PROLOGUE: The fires flickered feebly. Tall cliffs above cast dark shadows onto the ground, concealing the pale blue dragon. The IceWing stepped forward, her scales catching the moonlight. "This battle never should have happened," she sighed. "My ally made a bad choice in attacking the Sky Kingdom." Queen Slush wondered what Queen Dolphin was doing now. Most likely reorganizing her army and maybe regrouping them for another invasion. But the SeaWings wouldn't be able to fight anymore battles for awhile. If I were her, I'd be preparing for a counterattack. Queen Maroon won't take this lightly, she thought. The SkyWing queen would be furious at the unprovoked attack. They didn't know the location of the Summer Palace, but they would attack the guard outposts and kill any dragons with the bad luck to be their, Slush figured. She had to warn the SeaWings. And soon. CHAPTER ONE: Tidal inhaled the salty air. It was crisp and smelled of fish. She loved it. Stretching her neck in an arc towards the sun, which shimmered brightly above, Tidal felt waves lap her playfully. She gasped as she was suddenly engulfed in a huge surge of water, which bowled her over and slammed her against the soft coral reef. Kicking her back talons, she paddled to the surface to find her brother's snout in her face, grinning. "Didn't see me coming, did you?" laughed Pelican. His dark green scales glinted like emeralds as he thwacked the water with his tail again. Tidal ducked the wave and burst out of the water, scattering droplets that shone like glass as they caught the sunlight. "All right, I didn't, but I'd like to see you do it again!" she yelled, diving down and shoving his head underwater. "Now, now, Pelican, Tidal, don't play so roughly," ordered a silky voice behind them. Tidal turned and saw her mother, Dolphin, queen of the SeaWing tribe, watching them. "Yes, mother," she yelped happily, as Pelican resurfaced. Stream, Tidal's older sister, came over. Her bright teal blue scales were dazzling in the light. Her green spines were flared up, and her tail was lashing angrily. She addressed Queen Dolphin and spoke in an agitated voice. "Mo-THER!" she cried. "Mullet is teasing me!" Here, she gestured towards Mullet, their kelp-green brother was glowering at Stream. "Enough bickering!" snapped Dolphin. "Mullet, leave your sister alone. Tidal, Stream, come." She beckoned with her tail. The two princesses eagerly followed her. "Seal would be coming with us, but she is taking an Aquatic lesson with Tern." Tidal sighed. It seemed her favorite and youngest sister was always busy. "I thought you would enjoy attending one of the Council meetings," continued the queen. She led them to the top of the pavilion. The Council dragons were already assembled in their proper pools. The platters and cauldrons were filled with food. "You may eat," announced Dolphin, helping herself to a platter of ruby-red fish. Tidal crunched small green crabs, her favorite food, in her jaws, while Stream was eating some kind of seaweed salad. "Barracuda, you first." Dolphin pointed at the burly blue dragon sitting in the pool marked WAR. Tidal didn't much care for Barracuda, and avoided him whenever possible. He kind of scared her, with his scars and sharklike, protruding fangs. But the creepiest thing about him were his eyes. One was small and dark, the other had been scarred blind. He opened his mouth and spoke in his deep, rumbling tones. "Ever since the SkyWing attack, things have been troublesome. An outpost was torched, with nine causalities. The rest, terribly injured." "Dear, dear," said Queen Dolphin. "Are any fit enough to speak with me?" Barracuda nodded and flashed some of his glow stripes. Come, he signaled. A pale green dragon stumbled into the room. There were claw-marks slashed across his gills and underbelly, and his wings were twisted at awkward angles, one of them shredded. "Tell me everything," commanded Dolphin. "It happened quite suddenly, Your Majesty," he began in a choked voice. "We were there, guarding, scouting for signs of danger, when we heard wingbeats. We assumed it was the advance guard, but then . . ." He paused for a second, then continued. "It was the SkyWings. We attacked, but they had strength in numbers. Just as it began to look like we may win, however, one of them set the outpost on fire. The other followed suit. There were eight SeaWings battling inside. None made it out." Dolphin closed her eyes with a sigh. Tidal, who was wishing she hadn't heard the story, pressed against her mother. After a second, Dolphin looked up. "Very well," she sighed. "You may go." He bowed and left. "Well, Pool, I hope you have good news for me," Dolphin said to a sea-green dragon in HUNTING. "Nothing much has changed," replied Pool briskly. "We have been achieving, little more, little less." Next was the SeaWing in TREASURY, a dragon with cobalt blue scales and dark green eyes who Queen Dolphin called Hurricane. "Your treasure is safe, as usual, Your Majesty," he reported. "No problems with theives." "Good, good," replied Dolphin, waving a talon at the next dragon, Shell, a skinny, sapphire-blue dragoness. The Council meeting went on for some time until every dragon had finished their reports. By then, Tidal felt grumpy, impatient, and bored. When Dolphin dismissed the Council, Tidal shot of the pavilion and splashed into the sea, where she found Seal hovering near the surface. Tidal smiled and spread her wings. How was it, she flashed with her stripes. Seal shrugged. Same as usual, her sister answered in Aquatic, the underwater SeaWing language she sometimes missed Council meetings for, along with her patient and friendly teacher, Tern. Feeling the water stir around her,Tidal turned to see her mother swimming above her. She signaled in Aquatic for Tidal and Seal to follow her as she paddled back up towards the Summer Palace. "I must speak to Barracuda about the SkyWing situation. I thought you'd like to come," she explained as they surfaced. Before Tidal could protest, she glided up to to one if the caves in the palace, where Barracuda and Stream were waiting. He started speaking, but, suddenly, he looked up. Tidal followed his gaze. An ice-blue shape was spiraling in an awkward, jerking way from the sky. The dragon landed with a thud that echoed throughout the cave. Blood leaked from beneath her, and her breath was raspy and shallow. Her voice gurgled horribly as she spoke. "The- defenses- have been- penetrated-" she gasped. "Many- IceWings- lost. They- the SkyWings- come- for you." Dolphin bent down. "How many?" she asked. "Many," coughed the IceWing. "Too many." And with that, she rolled over. Dead. CHAPTER TWO: Tidal backed away from the spreading pool of blue-red blood, feeling sick. Seal had curled up on the floor, her eyes closed, while Dolphin was still leaning over the IceWing's ravaged body, her eyes pools of grief. Stream stepped forward. "Who was she?" she inquired. "Queen Slush of the IceWings," whispered Dolphin. "My ally. My friend." Barracuda barged past Stream. "Never mind the IceWing, think about what she said! The SkyWings are coming! We must prepare to attack them at ONCE!" he bellowed. Stream and Dolphin glared at him. Tidal followed suit. "Well?" he said, sounding slightly uncertain. "We must!" Dolphin flared her wings. "I must grieve. Barracuda, organize our soldiers. Prepare them. Send out three separate wings. One, the largest, shall meet the SkyWings head one. The second shall attack them from the side after the battle has gone on for a while. Near the end, or if it looks as though we are losing, the third can attack from behind," she ordered. The huge SeaWing nodded brusquely and soared away. Queen Dolphin remained crouched over Slush's body. After what felt like an eternity, she stood up. "I'll send a messenger to the IceWings, asking if they'll fight alongside us. I'll defeat the SkyWings, yes, if it's the last thing I do. I'll avenge Slush's death," she growled to no one in particular. "Tidal, Stream, Seal, you can leave." Tidal didn't need to be told twice. Spreading her wings, she leaped out of the cave, closely followed by her sisters. Stream ducked down next to her. "That was odd. The queen of the IceWings coming all the way out here, bleeding and dying, just to tell us the SkyWings were coming to attack?" she wondered aloud. Tidal nearly fell out of the air. "The SkyWings are coming! What will we do? What if they find the palace?" Stream looked mildly unconcerned. "They won't," she assured Tidal. "And if by some miracle they do, we can always go to the Deep Palace." "But she said they were coming! They must have some idea where it is!" Tidal cried. And that's when the SkyWings attacked.
Short prologue, sorry. First Wings of Fire story ever.
