Thread:FunAndGamess/@comment-34158552-20190713203038/@comment-34411796-20190825125233

PrologueEdit
Four years ago...

One yellow moon floated in the sky, its light stretching across fields and mountains. Stars dotted across the night sky, twinkling only the slightest. Only a few dragons stirred in their homes, awaiting for the pink and yellow sky of dawn.

Deep inside Jade Mountain, was a golden NightWing-SandWing hybrid with no barb on her tail, her muscles aching. She rose up and yawned, stretching her arms, legs and tail. She glanced around in the darkness and spotted a jar of herbs and berries, reminding her of the trip to Possibility, which was quite soon.

The nearly grown hybrid rose up and slinked out of her bed, tail trailing behind her. She reached forward and clasped the jar in her talons. Holding it closely to her chest, she walked out of her room, only to bump into the familiar ocean blue scales of her friend, Tsunami.

"Oh, hey Sunny," Tsunami whispered, blinking slowly in the shadows as her emerald green eyes appeared to have an oily sheen across them. She looked down at the jar in the hybrid's talons. "Medicine for the two mysterious dragons in Possibility?"

Nodding, Sunny said, "yeah! I couldn't sleep, so I decided to give it to them instead! It's weird though; why didn't they just get it themselves? Or were they too busy with their patients to go to Jade Mountain and get the herbs?" She nervously laughed, then looked up at Tsunami. "Anyways, how's the long distant relationship going with Riptide?"

"It's going fine," the SeaWing grumbled, looking flustered. "Why don't you go and give the medicine to those two doctors already?"

Sunny giggled. "Alright, alright," she replied. She trailed away from Tsunami, Sunny's wing brushing against hers. "You don't have to feel embarrassed when talking about your boyfriend, okay? Anyways, bye!"

The wind brushed against her wings, tickling Sunny slightly. Her tail swished only the slightest as she seemed to surf in the wind. The hybrid neared the ground and let her left arm hang out, allowing her talons to grasp the long, green grass.

When Sunny spotted Possibility in the distance, she rose higher in the sky, making her look as if she was a shadow in the night. Just a few seconds later, she landed in the mud, her snout facing the small homes of Possibility, which had a few NightWings roaming around.

She couldn't contain her excitement. Sunny wandered around, passing by some of the dragons already awake and ignoring their judgemental glances. She swirled her head towards a rather large hut, made of soot and wood, with a sign atop. The words Healer Hut were splayed across, written in red.

Rattling at the door, Sunny waited. Just a few minutes later, a SandWing opened the door, nearly taking Sunny by surprise. He was quite tall and handsome, with a long neck and pale yellow scales. He had a rather brown frill and coal-and-white eyes, along with unusually long, pale gray horns. This must be Meerkat.

"Hello!" the SandWing whispered, eyeing the outside. "You must be Sunny, if I'm correct about the odd looking part. Ah, sorry, that must be offensive! Apologies!"

Sunny smiled, her brow creasing with worry and surprise. "No no, it's fine! Everyone says I'm odd looking, and I'm just kind of used to it now, and even I admit that I'm weird looking. Anyways, if it isn't too much to ask, could I come in?"

He nodded, and nudged the door open, revealing a pitch black room inside the hut. "Go ahead! Mayfly is already asleep. She had to take care of a patient all day, so it serves her right to get some rest!"

Giggling, Sunny walked a few steps inside, hearing the door shut behind her. She heard shuffling and the warm scales of Meerkat press against against her. And at that moment, what sounded like a gust of wind flew past Sunny's ears, and a light appeared in his talon.

"Let's go, c'mon," he whispered, blinking down at her. Sunny looked away and followed him nonetheless, feeling quite embarrased by how close Meerkat was to her. The two continued walking until they arrived at a table with three chairs halfway tucked into it.

She set down the herbs and looked up at Meerkat, who was walking towards what seemed to be a cabinet. He signaled Sunny to sit down, which she did, trying to make as little noise as possible. He then returned with a cup of water in his other talon and slid it towards her.

Sitting down and grabbing the cup, Sunny looked up at him. "So what exactly do you need the medicine for? You could've gotten it from Jade Mountain Academy."

Meerkat tapped at his chin lightly. "Well, there's this patient who ran into a patch of cacti, and the medicine you set down on the table only grows around Jade Mountain Academy. We could've used other ointments, but we were running out." He smiled sweetly. "So that's why we asked you."

She stared into his amber eyes, silent. Meerkat was quite similar to her; always bubbly or kind. A grin split across her face, and she nodded. "Cool."

"Are you okay, Sunny?" Meerkat asked, tipping his head. "You've been kind of quiet and have been looking at me for a while. Are you sick or..?"

"No no!" Sunny exclaimed, the scales around her face seeming to warm up. "I'm not sick. I'm just.. surprised that someone is like me, y'know? There aren't much dragons in Pyrrhia like me. Clay could be an exception, but all he does is eat and sleep." ''Three moons, is this what Peril felt like when she met Clay? Or when Tsunami met Riptide?''

Letting out a sigh of relief, Meerkat sat down and placed a talon on hers. "You can tell me anything, okay? Sickness isn't a thing to joke about. Or at least, that's what Mayfly told me."

She pulled away, embarrassed. "I-it's nothing! I swear!" Sunny then looked away, pulling her cup of tea closer to her mouth. "Last time I checked, I haven't been sick until that one time Webs gave me a rotten tomato for dinner, which in my opinion looked as if it had mold in it."

Meerkat let out a soft laugh, one of the most beautiful noises Sunny had heard. Was she falling for the dragon? ''No, it can't be. We just met a few minutes, for moons sake!''

"It's okay to be embarrassed," Meerkat piped in, tipping his head to the side. "I touched your talon without your permission, so you have every right to be angry or whatever." He sipped his tea. " Sunny, could we err.. hang out sometime? Like, you're a really cool dragon, and I'd love to get to know you!"

Smiling nervously, Sunny nodded. "Sure! I'd love to! Maybe we could meet later this week? Two days later after this? I'm not sure when I'm free."

"Wow, look at the two loveburds."

The two turned around to see a MudWing, the bags under her eyes appearing to be droopy and purple in the darkness. She had a wide, flat head and mud-brown scales, with the back of her tail having frostbreath scars, while her back leg had two missing claws.

"M-Mayfly!" Meerkat yelped, nearly falling out of his chair, looking embarrassed. "I-It's not that way! I swear by all the three moons!"

Rolling her eyes, Mayfly walked over and leaned onto the table. She looked over to Sunny, her chin resting beneath her talons. "So, you're Sunny, correct? Nice to meet you. I'm Mayfly, and you should know Meerkat already." Mayfly shot a look towards him. "Thanks for waking me up, sandsnorter."

Meerkat groaned, and arched his neck towards her. "Oh, I'm sorry," he grumbled, flicking his barbed tail back and forth. "Also, sorry for giving you the wrong medicine and giving you more work to do."

"WHAT?" Mayfly growled. "REALLY? I SWEAR IF YOU DID THAT ON PURPOSE, I WILL SET YOU ABLAZE-" She then cut herself off and glanced towards Sunny. "Oh, sorry. You should probably plan your date with your boyfriend."

"For the last time, i-it's not that way-"

She placed her talon on Meerkat's. "Calm down," Sunny whispered to him. She then looked at Mayfly. "Alright then! Maybe you can go now?"

Nodding, Mayfly trotted off. "See you then!" the MudWing called, disappearing into the shadows. "Don't make too much noise!"

After a minute of silence, Meerkat turned his head towards Sunny, an astonished yet flustered look on his face. "Wait, really? Even though we just met?" He rubbed his temples with his free talon. "Oh moons, this is really awkward. I'm sorry."

Sunny looked at him, and intertwined her talon with his. "I'm not sure," she whispered, staring into his eyes. "I wonder if there is a future for us. But I only know one thing, and it's that I accept your request to go on a date with you." She exchanged smiles with Meerkat. Together.

Chapter 1Edit
PART ONE:

JADE MOUNTAIN ACADEMY

Four years later..

​He tipped his head, then sighed. "My name is Watersprout, and my parents are Riptide and Tsunami." He nervously gripped the sky-blue amulet around his neck.

Fatespeaker nodded. "Alright, Watersprout! Your Winglet is the Jade Winglet. And, nice! You'll be with me and Starflight's daughter!" She passed him a map. "Here ya go! Enjoy your stay!"

The sky blue dragonet sighed, and opened his map. Following the directions to his Sleeping Cave, avoiding the Prey Center, Art Cave, Music Cave and History Cave, Watersprout arrived.

When he arrived, Watersprout spotted a large, brown MudWing stand in front of him, having a limp leg. Beside the MudWing, was a orange, flame colored SkyWing with sky-blue eyes. And underneath the grown dragons, was a MudWing- SkyWing?- with brown scales of no color Watersprout had ever seen before. These dragons must've been Clay and Peril, and their only dragonet.

"Heya!" Clay said to Watersprout, gently pulling him towards Peril and the dragonet. "You must be Tsunami and Riptide's dragonet. I remember when you were just an egg!" He smiled, and flicked his tail to the brownish red dragonet. "That's me and Peril's dragonet, Copper."

Copper waved, and Peril placed a talon on her daughter's shoulder. Strangely, the dragonet didn't seem to flinch in pain by the dragoness' firescales.

"Go on in, Watersprout and Copper," Peril said. She pushed the two towards the entrance of their sleeping cave(not Watersprout though, she just made a waving motion like she WAS pushing him), and Watersprout's scales pressed against the SkyWing-MudWing hybrid, and realized they felt a lot more warmer than a usual dragonet's scales.

The first thing the SeaWing prince saw was a dark purple RainWing- NightWing?- lying in a hammock. The circles on her neck were a bright yellow, like the sun, and her eyes were green. Her horns were pale gray, along with her beak, and she had a flower crown dappled over her horns. Star-like markings laid on the frills near her ears, and her wings.

Beside the dark purple RainWing dragonet, was a goldenish SandWing with dark brown eyes. He was shorter than the dragon beside him, and his claws were unusually curved, like long, twisted daggers. Other than that, there were  no other dragonets except the other two dragonets, Copper, and Watersprout.

"Hello!" The dark purple dragonet said, bouncing over to them. She shook Watersprout's talon, which made his cheeks turn slightly pink. "I'm Princess Firefly! A RainWing-NightWing hybrid! I'm so happy to meet you!" She flicked her tail to the SandWing. "And that's Hyena. He's a prince and all, but all he does is talk about his 'father."

''Hyena? ''Watersprout said. ''Why didn't Tsunami mention him? ''He looked into Hyena's cold, dark brown eyes, and saw rage burning inside them. He felt chills go up his spine.

Copper rolled her eyes. "Well thanks for welcoming me." She walked over to Hyena, her bright, hazel eyes narrowed with annoyance.

The RainWing-NightWing hybrid dragonet huffed, then looked at Watersprout. "Well, who are you? If someone tells you their name, at least tell them your name, too!"

He gulped, glancing away nervously. "I'm Watersprout. My parents are Tsunami and Riptide. Copper's parents are Clay and Peril, and let me guess. Your parents are..?"

She nodded quickly. "Queen Glory and King Deathbringer!" She looked over to Hyena and and Copper. "Hyena's parents are Sunny and Meerkat. I bet he loves being the grandson of Queen Thorn, and the son of Princess Sunny, but really? All SandWings are boring, having their heads in the clouds, and only thinking of jewelry and themselves."

How rude can this dragonet be? Watersprout rolled his eyes, and got onto a stone bed, wrapping a blanket made of thick fur around him.

Watersprout was ready to end the day already. His sky-blue amulet glowed under the blankets like it usually did. After all, it was enchanted by his six year old aunt, Princess Anemone.

The most lonely dragon in Pyrrhia was finally going to Jade Mountain Academy.

And he didn't mind one bit.

Fiddling with his talons as he flapped his wings, Watersprout anxiously glanced around. He hated flying, and his aunt Anemone had always commented on how similar he was to a scavenger flapping their arms as if they could jump into the sky and begin soaring.

Watersprout sighed, and looked over to his father, Riptide, who was smiling just the slightest, his blue scales twinkling in the sunshine. ''He must be excited to see Mother. And I don't blame him; we haven't seen her in the past, what, three years? ''

​​​​Then, in the distance, peaks appeared in the corner of his eyes. Watersprout gripped his blue amulet, which made his scales more shiny, tightly. That's Jade Mountain.

"Aren't you excited?" Riptide asked his son, jabbing him in the side slightly. "You'll be able to hang out with Tsunami for once! And make friends!"

Sighing, Watersprout raised a scaley eyebrow. "Dad, it's just another school year. After four years or so, I'll be done with school, and then I'll be an adult-"

Riptide groaned. "You're no fun! Anyways, come on, let's land."

''Are we there already? ''Watersprout wondered, turning his head back over the mountain peaks, only to discover they were extremely close to the academy, seeing as there were lamps inside an opening of a cave that led deeper inside while dragonets walked inside, with their parents flying away.

His talons skidded against the ground, which bit at his palms slightly. Wincing, Watersprout looked over to his Father, who had landed gracefully as if he were performing a play of some sort. Alright then.

"Here we are!" Riptide called, lifting one talon forward. He looked over to Watersprout. "It's been a while, huh? Tsunami has always been so busy with school and such, and she was only able to come home at times." Riptide then lowered his snout. "She loves you, alright?"

Nodding, Watersprout suddenly jumped at Riptide, wrapping his wings around him. He buried his snout in his Father's chest, and Watersprout murmured, "I'm going to go now, alright? You can go find Mom."

"Alright. Now go get some friends! Or do whatever you dragonets do these days!" Riptide replied, pulling Watersprout away from him. "And make sure to get a girlfriend-"

"BYE DAD!" Watersprout shouted, running off with an embarrased look on his face. He darted inside, rudely pushing past many dragonets, only to be stopped by a black NightWing with a mess of purple and blue underscales with two small teardrops next to her green eyes.

"Ack, sorry!" the NightWing said, dropping the scrolls in her talons. "Wow, you sure do look like Tsunami! A lot! My name is Fatespeaker, and I'm afraid you need a welcome scroll before you go any farther. Take one! What's your name? Oh, I know! Watersprout!"

Taking the scroll away from the NightWing, Watersprout looked up at Fatespeaker. "Why does it matter if you know my name or not?"

Chapter 2Edit
"Bong, bong!"

The ringing of a large bell shook in Watersprout's ears. He jerked up, and nearly fell out of his stone bed, the thick blanket thrown to the side.

Watersprout glanced around, and saw Firefly at the doorway. She waved her talons, dark purple scales blending into the pale shadows. "Come on! We'll be late for Group Discussion Class!"

"What's that?" He groaned, rubbing his eyes as he walked up to Firefly. But the RainWing-NightWing hybrid only shrugged, and they both walked quickly to a cave. Watersprout was surprised she didn't even look at his glowing jewelry.

Inside, was three rounded, tables made of rock in the middle of the classroom. Racks of scrolls leaned against walls, and lamps filled with fireflies hung at the ceiling. Watersprout saw most of his clawmates sitting down at one of the tables, other dragonets at the other two tables, who he's never seen before, and his mother, Tsunami, at the front of the classroom.

"There you are, my lazy seaslug!" Tsunami said, obviously teasing Watersprout. He could hear giggling from the back of the classroom, and groaned with humiliation, his scales glowing with embarrassment, and he made his way toward two empty seats with Firefly.

Finally sitting down, Watersprout looked at Tsunami. She was grinning at him, then said, "Now, why don't we all introduce ourselves? Who would like to go first?"

Immediately, everyone raised their talons.

"Pick me! Pick me!"

"No, me!"

"I'll gladly go first!"

Tsunami was silent for a moment, then she pointed at a dragonet who wasn't raising her talons at all. She was a small, skinny SkyWing dragonet with white scales mixed with shades of pink near her back, and she had sky-blue eyes. Her snout was curled like a fish hook, she wore a few golden rings, wore a golden necklace around her neck with a large ruby inside curled around her neck, and she had a crown laying atop her head.

"You!" Tsunami shouted, smiling. "Why don't you go first? What's your name and your favorite color and one fact about yourself?"

The SkyWing looked confused for a second, then leaned into the ear of one of Watersprout's clawmates, Prince Cliff (who he had learned about by the loud talking in his ear when he was trying to sleep). There was silence, then Cliff spoke up. "Her name is Princess Cloudheart, and her favorite color is coral pink. I'm her brother; she's mute."

Tsunami tipped her head. "Really? I've never seen a mute dragonet; especially if they're royal." She glanced away, then pointed at a SandWing dragonet with pale, yellow scales mixed with shades of brown. She had dark maroon eyes, a missing horn on her right, and had a brown satchel thrown over her chest. "Why don't you go next?"

The SandWing dragonet smiled. "I'm Silverbill!" She announced. "My favorite color is blue, and I was sent here by Queen Thorn herself! What an honor!"

Watersprout's mother smiled. Before you knew it, she called on everyone, including him, and everyone was done answering. The bell rang, and everyone walked out of the classroom.

He glanced around, his tail flicking. He looked at Prince Cliff. For someone who was described to be immature and small by Tsunami(who heard it from Peril), he was tall, and sturdy, had dark red scales, and a long neck. He hardly looked like what Tsunami described him as.

"Watersprout, come on!"

He looked up and saw Firefly. "We have to go to Music Class, sea slug! Hurry!"

Quickly following behind, Watersprout caught up to Firefly. They both trotted towards a cave, with a sign next to the entrance with the words "MUSIC CAVE" in big, red letters. Watersprout guessed this was necessary, because APPARENTLY NO ONE KNEW THAT IT WAS THE MUSIC CAVE BECAUSE OF ALL THE RACKET COMING FROM IT.

Firefly had already entered inside, but all Watersprout did was peek inside. He saw a group of dragonets gathered by the chest of instruments, Cliff and his sister, Cloudheart, Silverbill next to a pale gray NightWing, and a dark blue RainWing with a mint green ruff. But the thing that caught Watersprout's eye the most, was a sky blue IceWing with a twisted snout and burnt hindlegs, playing the drums.

After what seemed like a minute, Watersprout walked in. No one looked at him other then the IceWing with her cold, black-and-white eyes. She quickly looked away and continued to play the drums.

"Do you need anything?" Watersprout asked. He walked towards the IceWing, tipping his head.

"Actually, I was wondering if I could talk to someone," she murmured. "No one likes disabled dragonets apparently. They can't do anything important I guess." She looked at him, blinking. "I was also wondering about your amulet; it's glowing."

"Oh," he said, putting the sky-blue gen of the amulet in his talons. "It's animus enchanted by my aunt Princess Anemone. It grants me nothing but shiny scales."

She seemed to glare at him. "We once had an animus, named Prince Arctic. He was our last, and thanks to one singular NightWing, we have no animuses." She continued to tap at the drums. "Though, it was only her fault. I don't see why my tribe hates ALL NightWings."

"Oh," Watersprout said, rubbing the back of his neck. He then looked at her. "What's your name? Mine's Watersprout."

Her face seemed to light up. "Kea. It's nice to meet you, Watersprout."

"While this is cute and all, but I need to talk to Watersprout."

He and Kea turned to see Firefly, looking at them. Kea nodded, as if she was dismissing him, and waved goodbye. Watersprout was pulled over to the music chest full of instruments.

"By the three moons, what do you want?" Watersprout sighed. "Or did you want to show me something?"

Firefly rolled her eyes. "I do want to show you something, but it's important, I swear." Her purple talons dived into the music chest, and pulled out something. Something that shouldn't be there.

An obsidian dagger, with what seemed dried blood on it.

Chapter 3Edit
Watersprout's eyes widened. He managed to catch himself before he tripped over a harp, laying on the ground. What the..

"Exactly," Firefly said, as if she read his mind. She observed it slowly, and tried wiping the blood on her talon. Only a little scraped off. "The blood must be old, but new at the same time."

"I believe we should show that to the teachers."

Firefly and Watersprout turned to see Hyena. He toward above them, his long neck was like a SkyWing's, and his scales were a golden sand color. He had dark brown markings under his cheek, like freckles. His cold, dark eyes were the only thing Watersprout had remembered about him.

"Hand it over." The words slithered out of his mouth like a snake. His talon extended, signaling for Watersprout to give it to him.

Jerking away, Watersprout glared at Hyena. "I'm going to give it to Sunny. Why don't you come? She is your mother after all."

Hyena let out a barked laugh. "She isn't even close to being my mother! Plus, she has my ignorant sister, Brightclaws. She only needs her." He looked away. "But, I'll come."

Firefly, Watersprout and Hyena then left the Music Cave and walked through the hallway. They passed the Prey Center, History Cave and library until they reached the Headmaster's Office. There, they found Sunny sitting down at a chair, with a golden dragonet at her side, talking to Peril.

"Mrs. Sunny?" Watersprout asked. She and Peril turned to him, and he continued. "We found something that could be hazardous."

Peril looked at the three dragonets, then moved away, making sure not to set the scrolls she was next to on fire. The golden dragonet looked at Hyena, who he was glaring at, and ducked under the desk.

"What is it, Watersprout and Firefly?" Sunny asked, not paying any attention to Hyena, who seemed slightly hurt by how he winced.

Sliding the dagger across the desk, Watersprout began to explain. About where they found it, and how the blood on it was new.

"Thank you for telling me," Sunny smiled. She opened a drawer and put the dagger inside, then closed it. "Now, go back to your class. You're about to start lunch."

They all waved goodbye, and walked out of the door. Hyena was walking towards the Prey Center, and Firefly was already ahead of Watersprout.

Watersprout sighed, and walked to Hyena. His eyes were narrowed and he looked mentally exhausted.

"Are you okay, Hyena?" Watersprout asked.

"I'm fine," Hyena sighed. "My mother hates me. She always spends time with Brightclaws, and my father Meerkat can't spend time with me because he's busy with the clinic."

Why are you telling me ''of all dragons? ''"I'm sorry," Watersprout said. He flicked his tail. "You don't have much friends either, do you?"

The mostly SandWing dragonet shook his head. "Copper is busy with Silverbill and that NightWing." He looked disappointed. "She probably thinks I'm a disappointment. That's what everyone at the Sand Kingdom thought."

Watersprout patted the back of Hyena's neck. "I never had much friends either," he murmured. "I can be your friend if you want."

Hyena's eyes lit up. "Really?"

"Sure," the SeaWing dragonet said. And for the very first time, Watersprout saw Hyena smiling.

Chapter 4Edit
Finally, Hyena and Watersprout arrived in the Prey Center. There was tables that were shaped like rectangles, the chairs being connected to them, a large area dedicated to hunting, and a door that had a sign above it. The letters were written in red, and it said, "Hunting Classes".

"Come on," said Hyena. The two walked over to Firefly, who was sitting down and scarfing blueberries into her mouth. They both sat down next to her.

"Finally!" Firefly said, nearly spitting the chewed up blueberries onto Watersprout. She then swallowed, looking at them both. "So, what was that about? You guys were going as slow as sloths."

Hyena let out his barked laugh. "We were just talking, you blubbering camel. And plus, I need to get some food." He walked off, his tail swishing.

"Oooo," Firefly teased. But she quickly stopped. "So, who's dagger do you think that was?" she asked. "Maybe a dragonet? Or one of the teachers?"

Watersprout rolled his eyes. "It was probably left there because someone forgot it was there. But who knows. No one can hurt anyone now."

Soon, Hyena came back with a few lizards and a fish he gave to Watersprout. They both ate the delicious meat (well, Watersprout wasn't so sure about the lizards).

"Anyways," Hyena said, picking at meat in between his teeth. "I was wondering about your amulet? I saw it glowing last night."

"Oh," the SeaWing dragonet said. "It's enchanted by my aunt, Princess Anemone."

He smiled at Watersprout. "Cool."

Soon, the day was over. Stars shone through the window, and crickets outside chirped. Everyone was fast asleep, except Watersprout.

He didn't know why, but he couldn't fall asleep. Maybe a walk through the dark could help him? Or maybe-

CRASH!

Watersprout jerked out of his bed. He glanced around his sleeping cave, only seeing the outline of what he guessed was Prince Cliff and Hyena upright in their beds, also seeming surprised.

"What was that?" Hyena hissed through the darkness, getting up. "I'm going to go check it out."

"Wait," Watersprout whispered. "You'll need me. My scales can glow in the dark, and it'll be easier for you to move without bumping into things." He imagined Hyena nodding in the darkness, and then his scales lit up, not too brightly. He and Hyena waved goodbye to Cliff.

They both walked in the hallway. Watersprout stayed close by Hyena's side, scared something would happen to his new friend.

"Look, over there," Hyena said, pointing to something shiny at the end of the hallway. They both walked over there, and saw something that should've been put away.

The dagger that they gave to Sunny. With drops of blue blood on it.

Chapter 5Edit
Watersprout got closer to Hyena. "That blood..! It's.. new!" The drops led to the Music Cave. Watersprout had to make sure someone wasn't hurt!

They both began to follow the drops, the blood drops getting bigger and soon forming puddles of blue blood. The Music Cave door was wide open, and the two had no choice but to enter.

Glancing around, Watersprout saw a burnt foot sticking out of the dark. He forced himself to shine his scales brighter, and saw Kea, injured, her breathing slow.

"Kea!" he shouted. He leapt forward, and looked over his shoulder to look at Hyena. "Get help!"

Hyena nodded, and ran off. A few minutes later, Clay and Sunny walked in (Watersprout was surprised on how Hyena got his mother's attention). Sunny lifted Kea up Clay's shoulders, and the adult MudWing quickly ran towards the infirmary.

"How did you find her again?" Sunny asked, kneeling down next to Watersprout, her moss green eyes soft.

"We found her after we heard a loud crash in the hallway," Watersprout said. "Hyena and I walked towards the noise, and saw the dagger you put in your drawer. It had blue drops on it, which eventually formed puddles as we followed it's trail. There, we found Kea, injured, and her breathing was slow."

Sunny nodded with understanding. "She'll be fine, Watersprout. How about I let your Winglet take a break tomorrow? You can join any class you want to at any time."

Watersprout looked at her, and nodded. "That would be nice, Mrs. Sunny. Thanks for your help." He watched her get up and walk off, and he looked at Hyena, smiling. "Thanks."

The SandWing looked away, embarrassed. "I only did what you asked me to."

"Do you want to go back to our Sleeping Cave?"

Hyena shook his head. "Honestly, I just wanted to take a quick walk outside. I like to look up at the stars at night; that's why I chose my bed near the window."

Watersprout nodded. "I'll come with you, if you want."

"You need rest, Watersprout. I don't want my friend to be tired in the morning."

"Alright," Watersprout said, walking off. He trotted through the darkness to his Sleeping Cave, where the others already were.

When he got back, he saw that Cliff was still awake. But, soon, he fell asleep, along with Watersprout.

Chapter 6Edit
Cold wind swept through the window of Watersprout's Sleeping Cave. He tried burying himself under his warm, thick blanket, but he could still feel the wind pressing against his sky blue scales.

"Urgh," Watersprout murmured. His stomach was yowling louder then a jaguar. He hadn't eaten much since yesterday; all he had was a fish and a few berries before lunch.

Glancing around, Watersprout rose up. He stared out the window, and saw the pale gray morning sky. He must've woken up early, because Firefly, Cliff, Copper, Hyena, a NightWing named Emeraldclaws, and an IceWing named Crescent, who had pale gray scales and wore a silver bracelet, we're already up.

He rubbed his eyes and suddenly, it hit him. Kea. An assassination attempt. Infirmary. Watersprout suddenly realized he need to see her.. she must've felt lonely, waking up in an empty office with a nurse named Mayfly.

Getting up from his bed, Watersprout peeked out of his doorway. He saw no one, other than a burly, dark red and orange SkyWing with black wings walking out of his Sleeping Cave.

Watersprout let out a sigh. He began to walk towards the infirmary, ignoring the odd SkyWing. He didn't need any delays stopping him from what he needed to do.

"Hey," the odd-coloured SkyWing said. "I was wondering where the infirmary was? I need to talk to Ms. Mayfly."

"You can follow me," Watersprout replied. "I'm going to visit my injured friend, Kea. She needs someone to let her know what happened."

The SkyWing's face had disgust painted all over it. He wacked Watersprout with his long, curled tail (which, made Watersprout wince). "Dragons like you are too caring. Too nice. It's a sign of weakness," he hissed. "It could get you killed it you were a SkyWing."

''But I'm not a SkyWing. ''"We need caring dragons too. We can't have too many rude dragons with murderous intentions," Watersprout said. "Now, are we going to the infirmary or what?"

The SkyWing snorted. "Fine, sheep-brain. Don't blame me if others comment on your unappreciative behaviour."

They then began to walk to the infirmary. Watersprout had only been there once when he was a few months old. He had spent a week at Jade Mountain Academy, only staying with his mother in her office. He remembered the cold, white and brown room of the infirmary, and watched Mayfly treat students with only minor injuries while they lay on comfortable beds. Watersprout had always wondered what it was like to be a doctor; was it frightening, or fascinating?

Finally, the SkyWing and Watersprout arrived. They both walked inside, and Watersprout found Kea curled onto one of the beds uncomfortably, and her burnt legs twitched like a cockroach after it had been stepped on. He had to stop his heart from stopping.

"Welcome," Mayfly said. She looked exactly as how he remembered her; mud brown scales, wide, flat head, and one of her back legs and half of her tail had frostbreath scars.

"Hello, Mayfly," Watersprout said. "How's Kea?"

"She's fine," the MudWing murmured. "Her condition is well. If you hadn't found her, she could've lost her life." She turned to the SkyWing. "And how are you, Sparrow?"

The SkyWing, Sparrow, folded his black wings, and smiled at her. "I've been well. I'm here to take my medications, Ms. Mayfly."

She nodded, and handed him a small jar filled with herbs. He walked out of the infirmary, leaving Watersprout and Mayfly alone.

Walking to Kea's bed and curling up beside it, he observed at her wrapped up wounds carefully. Bandages were wrapped around her side, a cast was on her wrist, and her tail had many loose bandages on it. Watersprout told himself to remind Mayfly to tighten them up later.

"She's okay," Mayfly said. "She just was shocked and probably dragged herself to the Music Cave, where she must've scratched her tail against the hard ground."

"But, how did the assassin get the dagger?" He questioned. "It was locked up in Sunny's desk.. the only dragons I remember being in there last was Peril, Sunny and Brightclaws."

Mayfly shook her head. "The assassin is tricking us," she hissed. "You can't fall for their games, Watersprout. Remember that."

He nodded. His fear began to grow more and more. Why did the assassin attack Kea, of all dragons? What did it mean?

Watersprout waved goodbye to Kea and Mayfly. He wanted to take a walk to clear his mind. Maybe he could go to the underwater lake? Maybe a swim would help him.

He walked out of the infirmary and towards the underwater lake. As he walked, he stared at the ground. Before he knew it, he bumped into the chest of a dragonet.

Looking up, Watersprout saw Emeraldclaws. She looked exactly like her mother, Fatespeaker, except she had dark green eyes. Her horns were a dark gray, and her tail was twisted and crooked, and her claws were shiny like emeralds.

"Move it," she said, her eyes narrowing. She had never spoken around her Winglet, making her forgettable. "I got to go."

She moved away and continued walking down the hallway. Watersprout looked in the direction where she was originally walking, and saw that it led to a dark, unsettling tunnel. He didn't want to go down there.

But his curiosity got the best of him.

He trotted inside. Watersprout's talons began to ache as he walked through the dark, rocky tunnel. Soon, he reached a pitch black cave. He had almost stepped on a bone of an animal. Watersprout quickly lit up his scales, and he saw something unexpected.

A pitch black, NightWing dragonet, next to what looked like a dragon made of stone, with constellations under her wings, and both of her eyes were pink and sky blue. She had teardrops that looked like diamonds. Other then that, she looked like a normal NightWing.

She dropped something that was in her talons. "Three moons!" She dusted herself off. "Why didn't Emeraldclaws tell me about a visitor?! The nerves of that dragon! Who are you, anyways?"

"Prince Watersprout," he murmured, flicking his tail. "Who are you?"

"Stargazer!" She announced. "My parents are Deathgiver and Moonflower! My cousin, who is as interesting as slime, is Princess Firefly!"

''Why didn't Firefly ever mention Stargazer? ''Immediately, her face had annoyance painted all over it, but it soon faded away. Watersprout quickly said his goodbyes to the mostly NightWing hybrid.

"Geez," he muttered to himself as he walked out of the cave, annoyed. "She's like her cousin; loud and royal. But I can't complain. I, myself, am royal."

He continued walking until he reached his Sleeping Cave. By the time he arrived, everyone was awake and ready to start the day. Except Emeraldclaws.

She was missing, like always.

Chapter 7Edit
"Hey, Watersprout!" Copper said as he walked inside the cave. She was sitting next to Crescent, and by the looks of it, it seemed they were having a pleasant conversation. "How are you?"

"I'm good," he said, dusting himself off. "How are you both?"

"We're both good," Crescent said. "We were just talking about going outside; I'm pretty sure Clay and Peril will be there, along with Winter and Lynx."

Copper nodded. "You can come with us, Watersprout. We were told it was raining, but Tsunami set up a canopy for us. Hyena already agreed to come with us, along with Firefly."

"I'll come," the SeaWing prince said. "I love standing out in the rain and rolling around in the mud like a MudWing, so bonus points for me!"

The two dragonets nodded. Watersprout watched as they both walked out of their Sleeping Cave, and he soon trailed behind them. He heard the talonsteps of Hyena and Firefly behind. They were murmuring about something, but before Watersprout could try and eavesdrop, they arrived at the exit.

As one of talon touched the ground, Watersprout immediately ran outside and collapsed on the soft, squishy mud. Rain pattered against his scales and mud cluttered inside some of his scales and in his talons.

As he rolled around in the mud, he spotted Firefly and Hyena under the canopy. They were whispering in each other's ears, and soon Firefly pushed Hyena towards Watersprout.

"H-hey," Hyena stuttered, not even noticing that he was getting wet and that his talons were sinking in mud. "C-can I join you?"

"Sure," Watersprout said, smiling. He moved away and sat upright. Hyena sat right next to him, an annoyed and flustered look on his face.

"What were you and Firefly taking about?" the SeaWing prince questioned. "I'm curious!"

Hyena looked away. "Nothing, Watersprout. You don't have to know. It's not really important, okay?"

He nodded. But, Watersprout couldn't help but be curious. He studied the flustered and distant look on Hyena's face, his face features, how his eyes were narrowed and his brow was furrowed. Watersprout couldn't put his claw quite  on it, but he'd have to pay more attention to find out what it was.

"Do you wanna talk?" Watersprout asked. "I personally would love to." Maybe Watersprout could talk whatever Hyena was hiding out of him?

"Sure," the SandWing said. "What do you want to talk about?"

Watersprout scratched his tendrils. "Maybe about the assassin or about Firefly?" He chuckled nervously. "I honestly don't know."

Hyena nodded. "Same. But we should definitely disscus the situation of the assassin." He looked into Watersprout's green eyes. "How was Kea?"

The sky blue SeaWing prince looked back. "Ms. Mayfly told me that she only had minor injuries. Even though she looked uncomfortable, Kea was fine."

Nodding, Hyena looked away. "Honestly, I was scared. Who would even do that to a dragonet, let alone a disabled one? We have to find the reason why Kea was the assassin's target, or else others might get hurt." He lifted the barb on his tail. "Or I might have to pick sides and hurt someone."

Watersprout scooted one inch away from him. "Hey, who said you had to hurt dragons?" He asked. "We can resolve this peacefully."

His friend looked at Watersprout. "Right. I'm sorry." He looked up at the sky, rain dripping off his face. "I'm gonna go back under the canopy.  If you need me, I'll be there."

Watersprout nodded. He watched Hyena get up and walk towards Firefly and the others. As they walked, the SeaWing prince heard talonsteps behind him. He looked over his shoulder to see Emeraldclaws.

"Hey, Runt," she growled. "I need you for something."

Before he could reply, Emeraldclaws' talons sunk into the back of his neck. It didn't hurt, it just surprised him. Of course he tried to fight back, but there was no success. Watersprout looked over to the canopy, and saw Firefly running towards him.

"Watersprout!" his friend shouted. Emeraldclaws stopped in her tracks and looked at Firefly, her eyes narrowed.

Firefly stopped in front of them. Her scales began to ripple into shades of orange and red. "What are you doing?" she hissed, baring her long, twisted fangs. "Give me a reason why I shouldn't hurt you."

There was silence, and then Emeraldclaws let out hysterical laughter. "You?!" she cackled. "Hurting me?! Hardly!"

The RainWing-NightWing hybrid narrowed her eyes. She gave Watersprout a weird, apologizing look. He didn't realize it at the moment, but Firefly did something not even he could expect.

Her fangs extended, and inky black venom sprayed out of her teeth and onto Emeraldclaws' face. The NightWing let out a shriek, and dropped Watersprout. The screaming was loud enough to attract the attention of Fatespeaker.

"What are you doing?!" Fatespeaker roared. She leapt towards her daughter. The venom sunk into the eyes. Watersprout was horrified, and saw that Firefly looked just as shocked.

Soon, Clay leapt forward. "We need a RainWing related to you in a way," the MudWing said calmly as Emeraldclaws' screeched loudly in pain. "Is there anyone here related to you, Firefly?"

Peril walked over. "Why don't I just burn out the venom?" Everyone looked at her, and she sighed. "Consider it. If Firefly doesn't have any siblings or cousins, then her venom could kill Emeraldclaws. And if I burn out the venom, it could be a lot easier.."

Almost everyone nodded. They moved away, and Peril walked towards the screaming Emeraldclaws. She sighed, and dug her burning claws into the eyes of the NightWing dragonet. She let out a shriek of pain, but soon went limp. Her breathing slowed, and she curled up on the ground.

Immediately, everyone stared at Firefly. Watersprout heard voices murmur, and could only make out three sentences.

"Is she the assassin?"

"Most likely. I can imagine her doing that."

Watersprout could only stand there in silence. He looked at Fatespeaker as she leap towards Firefly. Her eyes looked wide and angry.

"Why did you do that?!" Fatespeaker roared, her daughter being carried away by Mayfly, with additional assistance  by Hyena. She dug her claws into Firefly's shoulders, and was pulled away by Clay. She let out one more sentence as she was dragged away.

"I'll make you pay!"

Chapter 8Edit
Everyone had been dismissed. He glanced over his shoulder to see Firefly looking at the ground blankly as she walked towards their sleeping cave. Her scales were a dark, dark gray, with shades of blue mixed in.

He watched Crescent hug two IceWings, one with weird markings that looked like freckles, and one with a haughty expression on his face. They both looked worried, but soon they let her go.

Watersprout sighed, and walked into his Sleeping Cave. He watched as Firefly walked over to her hammock and crawl into it. She turned around, her back facing her clawmates.

"Jeez," Copper whispered to Watersprout. "She did, so why is she sulking? She needs to grow up and learn how to control her emotions."

He looked at the MudWing-SkyWing hybrid. "Maybe you should learn how to stop talking about it," he said, rolling his eyes. "I'm going to check on her, okay?"

Copper nodded, her eyes narrowed. Watersprout walked towards Firefly and sat right next to her hammock.

"Heya," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Are you okay? You seem.. upset about the situation." Watersprout looked away. "I want to thank you for trying to protect me."

Firefly turned towards him. Small tears were running down her face. "Protecting you?" she hissed, wiping her eyes. "I'm a monster. Thanks to me, Emeraldclaws probably is dead, and if she isn't, she's most likely blind! It's my fault!" Firefly sighed. "Just.. leave me alone."

He sighed, and got up. Watersprout saw Hyena poke his head through the door, and make a motion for him to come forward. Watersprout walked towards his friend.

"What is it?" Watersprout asked.

Hyena said nothing. He walked off, and Watersprout began to follow him to the infirmary. They both walked inside, and Watersprout saw Kea sitting upright on her bed, while Emeraldclaws laid on a bed in the corner.

"They're okay!" he said. He walked to Kea, and looked at her. "I'm so glad you're okay," he said, smiling.

"I am too," she said, smiling back.

Mayfly shushed Watersprout. "Be quiet," she whispered. "Emeraldclaws needs time to rest, Watersprout. She's horribly injuried."

"Sorry," Watersprout said. He looked at Emeraldclaws. She had bandages wrapped around her eyes, and her legs twitched uncomfortably.

Hyena stood beside Watersprout. "We have to thank Peril later," he said. He then looked at the SeaWing prince. "I'm so sorry if Emeraldclaws tried to hurt you. I watched her almost drag you away. But, I'm glad Firefly stopped her." Hyena smiled at him. "We could've never known what she was going to do to you."

He nodded. Watersprout looked out the window, and saw that the sky was dark, and that stars began to shine while it rained.

"Let's go to bed," Watersprout said.

The SandWing nodded. They both waved goodbye to Mayfly and Kea, and walked to their Sleeping Cave. Hyena trotted to his bed, and collapsed. Watersprout did the same to his own bed, and sleep soon found him.

Chapter 9Edit
The loud chattering inside the Prey Center made Watersprout even hungrier. He hadn't eaten in days, and he was sitting at one of the tables, waiting for Hyena and Copper. Plus, he had been too busy to eat anyways.

He glanced towards the door which led to hunting classes. Maybe he could try doing something different today. He barely hunted anyways.

Watersprout rose up, and walked towards the door. He opened it, his stomach roaring, and he was met with the outside.

The first thing he spotted was a large, murky lake, with dark gray fish swimming inside. There was another mountain peak not too far away, with dragons hovering around and flying, and spotted long grasses for dragonets to stalk their prey.

Watersprout trotted towards the lake, and dived inside. It was way deeper and clearer inside then on the outside. He lit up his scales, and spotted a fish staring directly at him. He tried slashing at it, but a talon grabbed it first, and he saw a dragonet snap it into her jaws.

The dragonet had golden eyes, dark, royal blue scales with bioluminescent aquamarine scales on her body, snout, ears and tail. She has a dark orange fading to yellow frill and wing membranes. She had an iceberg blue underbelly and teal SeaWing chest fin with orange and red back ridges that connect the webbing, and the webs in between her talons are also a teal color, and large gills at her neck.

Her eyes lit up. Watersprout suddenly recognized his cousin, Monsoon. She quickly swam away, and then came back with a fish in her talons. She began to light up her scales.

''Hi, Watersprout! I brought you a fish, ''she said in aquatic. Let's go back to the surface so we can talk.

Of course, he said.

They both paddled up towards the surface. Watersprout crawled onto land, Monsoon behind him. He hadn't seen his hybrid cousin in nearly a year.

"It's so good to see you," Monsoon said, handing him the fish. "How long has it been, a year?"

He nodded. Watersprout began to quickly scarf down the fish, and wiped his mouth. "Thanks," he said. "I haven't eaten in a day!"

Monsoon nodded. "I noticed your ribcage poking through your underbelly," she said. The SeaWing-RainWing rubbed her eyes. "You're so forgetful.. even forgetting to eat!"

Watersprout nervously chuckled. "I've been busy, okay?"

"Busy, sure," Monsoon said, rolling her eyes. "Busy doing what? Staring at a rock or rolling in mud? Even my father would be disappointed in you! And he actually stared at a rock for a few minutes!"

The SeaWing prince laughed. "How is uncle Turtle, anyways? I haven't heard from him in a while."

"He's been well," Monsoon said. "He's going to visit soon, along with mom."

"Good," Watersprout said, nodding. "I'm going back inside. My friends will be waiting for me."

Monsoon waved goodbye, along with Watersprout. He opened the door and walked inside, and spotted Hyena and Firefly sitting next to each other, worried expressions on their faces.

"There he is!" Hyena said. The SandWing walked over to Watersprout, an envelope in his talons. "This is for you. I found it under your pillow." He handed it to him.

Watersprout tipped his head, and opened it. The letter said in the following with red letters,

"Dear Watersprout,

''I need you for something. Please come to the cave where you found me. Thanks!''

From, Stargazer."

Sighing, Watersprout folded the note. "I have to go for a bit," he looked at Hyena. "Want to come with me?"

Hyena nodded. "Of course!" he said, raising his barbed tail. "I have to protect you if anyone attacks you. You never know, someone could be targeting you."

Watersprout nodded, and began walking towards the tunnel that led to Stargazer's cave, Hyena right at his side. Before they knew it, darkness engulfed them as they started walking through the tunnel. Watersprout lit up his scales, and saw Stargazer sitting on a large boulder.

"Hey-" Stargazer stopped. "Who's this?" she said.

"This is Hyena, Stargazer," Watersprout said, ushering his talons towards Hyena's shocked face. "I brought him along."

"WHO EVEN IS THIS?!" Hyena shouted with shock. "A HYBRID? A PURPLE RAT?!"

Stargazer snarled. She hopped down from the boulder and stood right in front of Hyena with narrowed, annoyed eyes. "Watch what you're saying," she hissed, clawing at the ground. "You're messing with the wrong dragonet, lousy SandWing."

Hyena began to growl. Watersprout ran in between them before anything violent could happen. "Stop!" he said. "You shouldn't fight, let alone in the darkness.."

Stargazer huffed. "What does he think he is?!" she hissed. "Royalty?!"

''He technically is.. ''Watersprout mumbled in his head. He caught a surprised and disgusted look at Stargazer, but she soon just looked and glared at Hyena.

"Can he please leave?" Stargazer asked, her eyes narrowed. "I only asked for you to come. He can stay behind with Stonemover." Hyena and Watersprout gave her a confused look. You know, the one made of stone who barely even talks?"

"Fine," Hyena hissed. He looked at Watersprout. "If you need me, I'll be here."

Watersprout nodded. He stood beside Stargazer, and compared to a dragonet who's tribe were taller then most SeaWings, Watersprout was quite tall. He waved goodbye to Hyena, and soon Stargazer and Watersprout began to walk deeper into the tunnels.

Chapter 10Edit
The darkness soon engulfed Watersprout and Stargazer. He lit up his scales, but Stargazer told him to not shine them so brightly. Though he didn't want to, he did anyway.

"Come on," Stargazer whispered. They both trotted through the tunnel, which Watersprout was sure he stepped on a bone or two, and then suddenly, they stopped.

"Why are we stopping?" Watersprout asked, his green eyes shining through the darkness. He looked to where Stargazer was looking, and he squinted through the darkness. Though he was supposed to be able to see through the dark, Watersprout had a hard time looking through the darkness.

He flicked his tail, then squinted even harder. Then, finally, he saw it. He saw the familiar midnight-black scales with indigo, deep blue, magenta and purple underscales of Emeraldclaws walking towards them, bandages wrapped around her burnt out eyes.

"Emeraldclaws?" Stargazer asked. Watersprout lit up his scales, and the small dragonet ran towards her friend, a worried expression on her face.

"Yes?" Emeraldclaws said, lifting up Stargazer. "What's wrong? Why can't I see anything?"

Building up his courage, Watersprout walked forward. "You tried taking me away, and Firefly tried taking me back," he said,  his voice wavering. "You insulted her, and then she sprayed venom on your eyes. You were screaming in pain, and Peril burned out the poison so you could live."

Stargazer hugged her. "I'm sorry.. I foresaw this coming but I didn't believe it.."

"She did this to me.." Emeraldclaws muttered. "No wonder I can't see.. my eyes.. they're long gone. Firefly made me blind." She ruffled her brow. "Avenge me, Stargazer." Watersprout tried to stop her from saying it, but he was too late.

"Kill Firefly," she hissed. "Or, by all the talons, I will kill her myself."

Watersprout's green eyes widened. He watched Stargazer nod,  and then Emeraldclaws set her down. She looked at Watersprout, made a "come on" motion, and then began to walk. He cautiously looked at Emeraldclaws, and then began to trail behind Stargazer.

Letting out a sigh, the SeaWing prince looked at Stargazer. "Anyways," he said, and edge to his voice. "Why did you need me again?"

Suddenly, they stopped near sets of tunnels. They were big enough for a grown dragon to squeeze through. Watersprout heard loud, earblasting music. He had to cover his ears before his ear drums nearly burst out of his ears.

Stargazer turned to Watersprout. "I found these tunnels here. They lead to the Music Cave, which I believe is where your friend was nearly killed."

"How do you.." Watersprout cut himself off.

The RainWing-NightWing hybrid dragonet smiled. "I watched  them stab her. One dragon held -Kea, I think?- down, and one began slicing and dicing." She gave a shudder. "It was frightening and grotesque in my opinion. Like, who would even do that?"

Watersprout sighed. He scratched his tendrils suspiciously. "So.. they're using these tunnels to get around without suspicion."

His friend nodded. "Indeed."

Nodding, Watersprout looked at her. "I'm going back to Hyena. If you need me, find a way to my Sleeping Cave, okay?" He then departed from her, and walked towards Hyena's direction.

She could be the assasin, he thought. Only Stargazer and possibly Emeraldclaws know about the tunnels, along with Hyena and I. Plus, Stargazer knows that Kea was attacked, and i'm pretty sure I haven't told her about Kea's near death experience.

Finally, he reached Hyena. Watersprout explained what he had discovered, and the SandWing nodded with understanding. They both walked towards the Prey Center to meet with Firefly.

As they reached the Prey Center, Watersprout and Hyena saw a large, burly MudWing with pale, copper colored scales mixed with shades of orange and brown mixed in, and mango coloured RainWing corner Firefly. She had no reaction; her eyes were blank and dull.

"Assassin! Murderer!" the MudWing hissed. Her emerald green eyes seemed to pierce into Firefly's scales. "And Iguana knew you when you were young, for moons sakes!" She looked at the mango coloured RainWing. "Right?"

The RainWing nodded. "Yes," he hissed. "The Firefly I knew would never hurt another dragon, let alone a dragon from the NightWings, and they tortured us!"

Hyena ran forward, and Watersprout followed behind. "Hey!" the SandWing hissed. They both turned to him, and he continued. "What are you doing?"

Iguana glared at him. "Teaching the assasin to not hurt her," he hissed, baring his fangs. He glanced towards the MudWing. "Ain't that right, Tilapia?"

She nodded. "Why are you defending her?" Tilapia growled. "Maybe you're her assistants! Evil dragons! We'll make you pay!"

Before she could hurt Hyena or Watersprout, suddenly Monsoon leapt forward. She slid in front of her cousin and his friend, and stared right into Tilapia's eyes.

"Leave them alone, Tilapia," she hissed. She raised up a golden bracelet. "Or i'll enchant this bracelet to reveal your secret."

Tilapia stopped, then glared at Monsoon. "Fine, animus drone." She turned around, intertwing her tail with Iguana's. "Let's go, lizard-breath."

The RainWing giggled. "Okay."

The two walked off, and Monsoon let out a sigh. She turned to Watersprout, Firefly and Hyena. "They're so in love that they don't even realize it." She suddenly snapped into reality. "Are you guys okay?!"

Firefly nodded. Her scales began to change from their dark gray and blue to her classic purple and yellow. "Thanks," she said, her voice still sort of gloomy. "That dragon thought I was the assassin, when I really wasn't! The nerves of some dragons."

As they chatted, Watersprout looked out one of the windows in the prey center. It was becoming darker and darker. He needed to sleep before it was too late.

"I'm going to bed," Watersprout said, flicking his rounded tail. He waved goodbye to Monsoon and his friends, and walked to his Sleeping Cave.

It was only before he was deep in sleep when he realized to tell Firefly that someone was planning to kill her.

Chapter 11Edit
Watersprout suddenly awoke in the middle of the night. The thought of Firefly dead filled his head. He looked over to Firefly's hammock, and saw her there, resting peacefully.

But, the SeaWing prince had a feeling he wasn't just alone with his clawmates. Somewhere in the darkness, was a pair of eyes. Though he couldn't see it well, he knew very well someone was here to grab Firefly.

He rose up, and suddenly talons wrapped around his snout. He let out a muffled yell. No one heard him, and with blurred vision, he saw a dragonet wrapping their arms around Firefly's throat and mouth, so that they could muffle her screams as well.

The dragonets began to drag the two towards one of the tunnels Stargazer had shown him. They began to drag them inside, one by one, into the darkness. Watersprout lit up his scales as bright as he could, momentarily blinding his masked attacker, and squeezed out of their stone tight grip.

The attacker let out a growl. He slammed Watersprout into a rocky wall, making it shatter into pieces, then threw himself on Watersprout. His attacker stabbed their diamond-hard claws into his chest, and began to drag him towards Firefly and her kidnapper.

Soon, after many kicks and attempted escapes, they arrived at a large boulder. Candles were lit up everywhere, and Watersprout remembered Art Class where they made candles. His attacker must be a student!

"Hurry up," a familiar voice said. She grabbed one of the candles, and then suddenly, one of Watersprout's worst fears came true.

It was Stargazer, next to a tied up Firefly.

"What are you doing?!" Watersprout let out the loudest roar he could muster. He rarely ever raised his voice. "She's your family, you idiot!"

Stargazer narrowed her eyes. "Don't forget she hurt my only friend!" she snarled. She began to lash her tail. "I hear her thoughts everyday! Emeraldclaws deserved it'.' Not that she has any friends anyway.'"

Watersprout's eyes widened. He knew NightWings had powers, but he never knew Stargazer  ​​of all dragons would have them.

"Now that I have her," Stargazer hissed. "I can spray venom on her eyes, just like she did to Emeraldclaws!" Her fangs extended, and she smiled at Watersprout. "Maybe this will teach you not to mess with me, okay?!"

Then, with a horrifying silence, Stargazer's fangs extended more. But before inky black venom could spray out, a dragon who seemed to be watching from the shadows leaped forward.

It was Hyena, his barbed tail raised.

Watersprout couldn't be glad enough to see him.

"It's good that we met again, purple rat!" Hyena hissed. He tackled Stargazer, and when Watersprout's attacker tried to go help Stargazer, Watersprout kicked and clawed at his underbelly, hissing violently.

As Watersprout and his attacker fought, he kept occasionally glancing towards Hyena, Firefly and Stargazer. The two were clawing at each other, and Watersprout saw a long, venomous scratch on Stargazer's, and that Firefly was trying to set herself free.

"Fools!" Watersprout's attacker said. A bit of his mask fell off, and Watersprout saw his glowing orange eyes. The dragon ran off, scratches at his underbelly and tail.

Watersprout ran towards Stargazer and Hyena and pushed his friend off the RainWing-NightWing hybrid. They were breathing heavily, especially Stargazer.

Watersprout glanced up and watched Firefly hop down. She walked towards Stargazer, her green eyes narrowed. Her scales were already shifting from purple to red and yellow.

"Idiot," Firefly said, hissing. She stood in front of her cousin. "If you want to live, go back to your home and stop living in this place, for moons sake." She glanced towards Watersprout, then sprayed venom in Stargazer's eyes.

The RainWing-NightWing hybrid let out a shriek of pain, and Stargazer seemed to glare at Firefly, then limped away. Watersprout looked at Hyena, and knew very well that he gave Stargazer a life threatening injury, along with Firefly.

"Let's go," Watersprout said, rage bubbling inside of him because of Firefly blinding already two dragons. "We have to tell the teachers about this."

The two nodded.

This is only the beginning.

Chapter 12Edit
PART TWO:

BRIGHTSTING CACTUS

The three limped through the darkness, and soon found their way out of the sets of tunnels. Firefly wasn't completely injured, Watersprout had a scratched neck, and Hyena was limping.

"You can lean against me," he said to Hyena, his green eyes worried. "You're hurt, and it would be a lot easier if you leaned against me for support."

The SandWing dragonet shook his head as they neared Sunny's room. "It's fine," he hissed. "I only have minor injuries, I'll be fine." He narrowed his eyes, and Hyena growled under his breath, "Plus, we'll meet my wonderful mother."

Firefly sighed. "Sometimes I don't get what your mother even did to you," she growled, knocking on the door lightly. "Did she hurt you in a way?"

He narrowed his eyes. "I don't want to talk about it."

Suddenly, there was rustling in Sunny's room. The door opened, and they found her standing right in front of them, her eyes tired.

"What is it?" Sunny said, rubbing her eyes. "Did Clay eat all the chickens before the morning started again? Or did Tsunami break a dragon in half?"

"No," Firefly said, an annoyed expression on her face. Her scales shifted to an orange color. "Mrs. Sunny, I'm afraid that we were just attacked by the assasin. And there's not just one." Her scales shifted to a pale purple color. "There's two. Or maybe even more! We don't know."

The SandWing-NightWing hybrid looked at Watersprout and his friend's wounds. She quickly offered for them to sit inside her office, which they tried declining, but they did anyways. Sunny had ran off to tell the other teachers.

Watersprout sat in one of the chairs. He glanced around the dark office, and spotted Brightclaws sleeping in Sunny's chair. She was fast asleep, with a warm, dark blue blanket thrown over her.

Soon, Clay, Tsunami, Fatespeaker and Sunny ran into the office, along with Mayfly next to Fatespeaker and Peril right behind them all."

"Explain to us what happened," Clay said, his brown scales blending into the darkness. Watersprout sat upright, and began. He felt bad ratting out Stargazer, but he had to. It was for the greater good.

"I had met Stargazer in the tunnels," Watersprout began. "One day, she found Emeraldclaws and found out she was blind, and Emeraldclaws told her to kill Firefly. She then told me about these secret passages that let to specific classrooms, two of them leading to the Music Cave and our Sleeping Cave." His voice was wavering, but he managed to keep a straight face. "I forgot to tell Firefly, and I woke up in the middle of the night, scared to see her dead body. But then, suddenly, talons grabbed us both and dragged us through one of the secret tunnels. When Stargazer was about to kill Firefly, Hyena suddenly appeared and protected Firefly, scratching Stargazer in the process with his tail." He let out a sigh of relief. "I fought off my attacker, and all I remember is that he was male and had orange eyes."

His mother looked at Watersprout. "I'm so sorry," Tsunami said, placing her talons on his face. "The thing that matters is that you're safe now. If we can bring Stargazer to her parents, everything will be okay. There won't be anymore attempted assassinations."

Watersprout glanced over his shoulder and saw Hyena with Sunny behind him. The SandWing dragonet gave his mother a hopeful look, but she said nothing.

"Peril," Clay said. "Get the students to the auditorium, and make sure Copper is okay, alright?" He intertwined his tail with hers. "Stay safe."

The firescales dragoness nodded, and departed from Clay and the others.

Letting out a sigh, the SeaWing prince looked up at Tsunami. "I'm glad you're okay, too," he mumbled.

His mother laughed. "No one would dare hurt me!" she announced proudly. "I'd snap them in half, like, uh.. I dunno, a stick?"

Hyena looked at Watersprout and Tsunami, a sorrowful look on his face. Watersprout knew that Hyena had always wanted a relationship with Sunny like he had with his mother, but Sunny didn't seem to care. It enraged the SeaWing prince when he saw Sunny ignoring her own dragonet.

"Tsunami, Clay, and Watersprout and his friends," Peril said. "We have to go to the auditorium. Sunny can come, if she wants." The firescales dragoness began to walk off, Clay was already trailing behind.

"Let's go," Tsunami said, her green eyes soft. The four then walked off, and Watersprout was sure he caught Sunny  glancing towards Hyena.

Chapter 13Edit
The three soon arrived in the auditorium. Watersprout, Firefly and Hyena looked around the crowded room, seeing Monsoon, Cloudheart, Tilapia and Iguana gathered near the front of the stage where Clay would usually announce stuff, and they also spotted Crescent, Cliff and Copper at the back.

"Let's go over there," Hyena said, pointing to their other clawmates. "We have to tell the others was happened, or else they'll be confused."

Watersprout and Firefly nodded. They squeezed through the crowd, and before they reached their other clawmates, Clay and Tsunami began talking loudly.

"Attention everyone!" Tsunami said. Everyone quieted down, and she continued. "We have something important to announce! Something that I HATE ABOUT THIS SCHOOL!"

Clay glanced towards the SeaWing. "You don't have to be extra," he murmured. The MudWing walked forward, his tail flicking nervously. "Recently, a student named Kea has been attacked. This means, sadly, that there is an assasin lurking among the shadows. Maybe just one. Maybe two. Maybe even twenty.. we don't know." Clay looked at Watersprout, Hyena and Firefly. "Luckily, we have some witnesses."

Everyone turned to Watersprout and his friends. They moved closer to the three, murmuring in disbelief and surprise, either their eyes wide or narrowed.

"That's correct," Hyena said, walking forward. "We were attacked by a runt and a large dragon with orange eyes, I believe." Watersprout wasn't too sure why Hyena didn't mention Stargazer's name.

That definitely sent everyone into a panic. They all looked around the room, checking to see if any of their clawmates had orange eyes.

Firefly's scales shifted from a purple color to sickly green mixed with orange, her ruff being dark red. "This proves I'm not the assasin," she hissed. "You all should be getting ready for class. Maybe it'll make your fear shrink, like your brains did when you accused me of that."

Tilapia hissed, her tail hitting the ground. Iguana grabbed her talons and pulled her away from Firefly quickly, nodding solemnly. "Everyone's dismissed," Clay said. All the dragonets walked out, along with the remaining teachers, except Copper,  Crescent, Watersprout, Hyena and Firefly.

"So that's all the noise I heard!" Copper said. She placed her warm talons on Watersprout's shoulder. "I'm so sorry  that I just stayed in bed, being a lazy sloth!"

"It's alright," Watersprout said. "It's not your fault, it's Stargazer's."

"Stargazer?" Crescent asked. "Who's that? A star who gazes?" The IceWing giggled. "Sorry, I can't help it."

"She's the one who attacked Firefly," Watersprout said. "She tried killing her. Stargazer's also her idiotic little cousin who can't realise she's probably being controlled by Emeraldclaws."

"Oh," Crescent said. She looked away. "Sorry.."

"It's fine."

"Guys," Hyena said. Everyone turned to the SandWing. "We have to help Stargazer. I hurt her a lot more then it looked like. She can die of my venom, and her legs are crippled."

"Why do you want to help her?" Copper asked. "Didn't she try and kill Firefly, one of our friends? What's the point of saving her?"

"I'm tired of being the dragon who doesn't care if I hurt others," Hyena said, looking away. "I need to be a hero for once in my life. And so do you four." He then looked up, opening his wings. "We have to save her. She's just broken, she can't help it."

He's so brave, Watersprout thought. I wish I could be as heroic as Hyena is.

Crescent looked at him. "But is there even a cure?" she asked, her eyes worried. "I get what your feeling, I feel it all the time, but what do we do?"

The SandWing prince grinned. "We're going to the Sand Kingdom of course. It's where we can find the only cure! The brightsting cactus!"he

Watersprout looked at Hyena, then stepped forward. "While I would usually hate going to a blazing hot territory, I'll go." He glanced over his shoulder. "Anyone else going?"

There was silence, and soon Firefly walked forward. Then Copper, then Crescent.

"Let's go," Firefly said, smiling at her clawmates. "Time to save my idiotic cousin."

Chapter 14Edit
You should never try and sneak out of a school with eyes and ears everywhere.

Watersprout and his clawmates were already struggling to exit the school without being discovered. About when they were going to fly out of the door that leads into the wilderness, a dragonet or one of the teachers would seem to go pass every time they tried.

"We have to try again," Hyena said. He glanced towards Watersprout. "What do you think? How do we get out, Watersprout?"

He scratched his tendrils, and then began to think. Then it popped into his head. He remembered the secret tunnels Stargazer had shown him. He hadn't seen much of them yet, but he remembered as he passed by to go back to Hyena, he spotted another tunnel leading outside.

"I know!" he said. Watersprout looked at them. "There's another secret tunnel that leads outside. We could squeeze out one by one!"

Crescent nodded. "Good idea, but what happens if you find Stargazer again? She could attack you three, maybe even Copper and I, while we're least expecting it."

"She won't even be able to see us!" Firefly said, flashing the IceWing a evil and mischievous grin. "I blinded her. But she deserved it anyways. Not like she was trying to kill us or anything!"

The IceWing's jaw nearly dropped to the floor. "Firefly!" Crescent gasped, her eyes becoming angry. "You can't do that! You can't solve nearly all your problems by hurting dragonets because they try hurting you!" She flicked her tail towards the others, her eyes softening up. "Let's just go already."

They all began walking towards the tunnels. As they walked, Watersprout lit up his scales and glanced towards Firefly. Her scales were a gloomy color, and she looked down at the floor in a guilty fashion. He wanted to feel bad for her, he really did, but he couldn't care right now about a dragonet who would hurt her own family.

Finally, the five arrived at the tunnel leading to their freedom. It was larger than most of the secret tunnels, able to fit three full grown dragons if they were curled in a ball; Watersprout was surprised no one had found it yet.

"Here we are," he announced to his clawmates. Watersprout flashed a grin towards them, his green eyes bright. "You ready?"

Only four nodded. Firefly didn't seem to care, but Watersprout couldn't let one dragonet stop them from saving a hybrid in danger.

Crescent was first. When she slid out, she stared at the cloudy sky, let out a sigh, and opened her wings. A long scar ran down one of her wing membranes, and when she tried to flap her wings, she'd yelp or grunt in pain. It took a lot of encouragement, and soon she jumped into the air, opened her wings, and hovered in the sky, waiting for the others.

Next was Copper. She opened her wings, and Watersprout saw that her wing membranes were a flaming orange color. She swiftly took flight and flew towards Crescent, letting the IceWing lean against her for support.

Soon, Firefly went, and all that was left was Hyena and Watersprout standing in the darkness, the light of the cloudy sky shining on their scales.

"Go ahead," Hyena said, smiling. He tried to move out of the way, but Watersprout stopped him. "What's wrong, Watersprout?"

He looked at his SandWing companion and shook his head. "You can go. I'd like to go last, to be honest. You deserve to go before me."

Watersprout's friend nodded, and opened his large wings. The SeaWing prince had never realized that Hyena's wingspan was so wide; he barely paid attention to it, anyways. He continued to watch as Hyena jumped into the sky, like a fish jumping out and back into the water, and hover beside his other friends.

Glancing back, Watersprout stared at the tunnels. He wouldn't be gone for long. He'd be home, with his mother, and safe. The assasin would be stopped.

After what seemed like moons, Watersprout opened his wings. He took a few steps back, then ran and jumped into the sky. He flapped his wings, and hovered in front of his friends. They smiled at him(except Firefly), and began flying towards the Sand Kingdom.

Chapter 15Edit
The bright sun shone on the plains of Pyrrhia. Watersprout soared towards the golden sands of the Sand Kingdom with his four friends, Hyena, Firefly, Copper and Crescent.

As they flew, the SeaWing couldn't help feeling that it was quiet. He had always heard the dead silence in the Sea Kingdom. SeaWings had always been oddly quiet, which bothered Watersprout. The only ones who seemed to stick out was his two cousins, Princess Spade and Princess Monsoon.

Spade was oddly organized. Watersprout loves his cousin, though when she'd usually dash around the room, looking in every corner for a pinch of dust, he couldn't help feeling embarrassed. He missed her, and when he would get the chance to, he would write a letter for her.

Monsoon, on the other talon, was different. She was sarcastic when she didn't get her suntime, and she was usually pretty friendly. She sometimes made awful jokes, and overall, she was kind and smart. Watersprout would make sure to run back to her after he and his friends saved Stargazer.

"Can we stop?" Crescent asked, panting heavily. The flapping of her wings slowed, and the sunlight began to shine on her back as she seemed to curl up in the air. Watersprout began to feel a feeling of worry and fear for his IceWing friend.

"Let's stop then." Hyena pointed to a v-shaped valley, with animals roaming inside. "We can stay there, but only for a little bit, alright?"

The IceWing nodded. She leaned against Copper, and the five began diving towards the valley. They landed on a path of grass. Watersprout watched as Crescent collapsed, and he glanced over his shoulder to see Copper standing away from the greenary; she just stood on a series of rocks.

"What's wrong?" Firefly asked. "You scared of the color green or..?"

Copper shook her head. "I can show you, if you'd like." She opened her wings and took flight. She dived towards them, and grabbed a flower in between her talons. She hovered beside Watersprout, and he watched as the flower slowly lit into flames. "See?"

Watersprout heard a surprised gasp and saw Crescent fall back. "Y-you're a firescales?!" she shouted. "How?I never saw you burn anything on accident!"

The MudWing-SkyWing hybrid laughed. "No," she said. "You can call me a 'warmscales' I guess." She looked at the ashes in her talons. "My brothers and I are like this. We can only burn things like paper or plants. That's why we don't usually visit the forest."

Letting out a sigh of relief, Hyena looked at Crescent. "You alright now?" he asked, his voice impatient. "We have someone to save here, if you hadn't realized."

Crescent nodded. "Yeah," she said. She turned around to face Hyena. "Why do you care so much anyways? She only has a venomous scratch on her and no eyes. She'll be fine for now."

The SandWing prince sighed. "You'll see when we get back to Jade Mountain Academy. And please, no judging me, alright?"

She tipped her head, and then shrugged it off. Crescent opened her wings, only flincing slightly, and took to the sky. Copper and Firefly followed behind her. Watersprout came after the both of them, Hyena trailing behind him.

Then, they began to fly. Watersprout flew beside Hyena, the wind pressing against his wings. He flapped them as he soared through the sky, and looked over to Hyena. He never knew how the SandWing flew with his massive wings. Watersprout was curious, to be honest.

"Hey Hyena?" the SeaWing prince asked, a hint of curiosity in his voice. "How do you even fly with your wings? Do they ever get in the way?"

Hyena let out his barked laugh. "They're just wings, Watersprout," he said hysterically. "My wings don't ever get in the way. They're like yours; usually folded back." He nudged him slightly. "Come on, we're falling behind."

The two laughed, and as they tried to catch up with the others, something seemed to tackle Watersprout and Hyena. Though, it quickly got off of him, and he and his friend swung around to face a green and blue SeaWings, and one SeaWing with deep, royalblue scales, with light teal markings and underscales. A spade shape surrounded her eyes, and tiger stripes marked her scales.

"Spade?" said Watersprout. She looked at him, and her face lit up. "I never expected Coral or Moray to let you fly around!"

Hyena looked at Watersprout, and the others flew over to them. "Who's this, Watersprout?" the SandWing asked, cocking his head. "You know her?"

"Of course he knows me," said Spade, pushing the guards away. "I'm his cousin, Spade. I tried getting into Jade Mountain Academy like Monsoon, but I guess even mother doesn't want me to learn from other tribes." She let out a sigh, and looked at Hyena and the others. "Oh, it's finally great to meet you! Well, other than the MudWing thing and IceWing. I don't know anything about you. Monsoon didn't mention a IceWing nor a MudWing."

Copper huffed. "I am not just a MudWing! I'm a hybrid, and I'm the daughter of Clay and Peril!" She glared at Watersprout, narrowing her eyes. "She's really your cousin?"

He nodded. "Yes. You should also respect her, too. Coral would execute you if you insulted her, so calm yourself, Copper."

One of the guards, a seaweed green SeaWing with yellow markings and blue eyes, flew forward. He raised his spear. "Listen to Prince Watersprout. Your father may be an ally of his mother, but I will not hesitate to hurt you if I must."

The other guard pushed the SeaWing away. He looked at Copper's shocked face, an apologetic expression on his face. "I'm so sorry about Slug! He's just protective of Spade, that's all. They knew each other when they were young, and her majesty requested that he take care of her."

Slug. Watersprout told himself to remember that. He never knew Slug's name, but he'd usually see him around, when they were young. He remembered Slug usually towering above Spade so he could intimidate others who came too close.

"It's good to see you, Watersprout," Spade said, smiling slightly. "Though, I wish you wrote me a letter. I adore them! Your writing is beautiful!" A stern expression then appeared on her face. "Its been nearly a year!"

"While I'd hate to interrupt this family reunion," Firefly hissed. "But we have a dragon to save, if you haven't realized it yet."

Watersprout looked at his cousin, an apologizing look on his face. "I have to go now, Spade," he said. "We have to save a dying dragonet. I'll write you a note when I can!'

She nodded. "Goodbye. And promise me you'll try and write me a letter, okay?"

He nodded, smilled, and turned around. His four friends flew ahead of him, and Watersprout waved goodbye to Spade.

Chapter 16Edit
As the five reached the Sand Kingdom, Watersprout was already exhausted. The heat was dreadful, and he thought he could fill an empty lake with all the sweat that was running down his scales. Not to mention, the pale yellow colour of the sand wanted to make Watersprout vomit.

"We're almost there!" said Hyena with an excited tone. He flapped his wings confidently, and he didn't look the slightest bit sweaty. Hyena looked confident in a way, and Watersprout looked at him with a tired grin.He

"When will we stop?" Crescent said. Watersprout noticed the scar on her wing was starting to bleed, but she didn't seem to notice because of how she was literally drenched in her sweat.

The SandWing prince sighed. "Are you sure? We could walk on the blazing hot said and get our talons burned.." he looked at Watersprout, and he quickly looked away. "Or we could continue flying, get to the Scorpion Den, and get what we need. Whatever you guys want."

"Ugh," Copper grumbled. "I guess we'll fly. There'll be shade anyways. Not to mention, maybe even water! Or coconut milk. Whatever you SandWings have."

Hyena's eyes narrowed. "We don't have coconut milk. Us SandWings trade something for coconut milk with the dragons who live at oasis', but I've never tried it."

Watersprout then looked over to Firefly, and as if on que, she began speaking. "I thought SandWings were just treasure obsessed goons who's heads were in the clouds and that they harmed any dragon that they caught in their kingdom."

"Even I know that's not true," said Watersprout, placing a talon on Hyena's shoulder (who flinched). "And I'm a SeaWing, for moons sake."

The rest of the conversation there wasn't pleasant. They argued about SandWings not being hauty dragons, and that they shouldn't assume what their friends' tribes were like.

Finally, they arrived. The five swooped inside, and Watersprout collapsed on the cool sand, along with Copper and Crescent. He looked up at Hyena, who's talon was out for him to grab and pull himself up, and Watersprout kindly rejected. He rose up by himself, and stood beside Hyena.

"Where do we go?" Watersprout asked, tipping his head. His eyes scanned the markets, shops and buildings of the Scorpion Den. There were mostly SandWings, but saw a few SkyWings and IceWings here and there.

"To the brightsting cactus market!" Hyena said enthusiastically, and he gently kicked Crescent in the head when she groaned and began to curse under her breath.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, they began to walk down a long path with markets set up, left and right. Many dragons were shouting at each other and advertising their products, and Watersprout nearly tripped as he heard, "RainWing and SeaWing slaves! Half price for only thirty coins!"

Hyena looked at Watersprout. "What's wrong? Salamander got your tongue?'

He shook his head. "Go ahead, Hyena. I'll be back, I just want to check out something real quick." Watersprout turned away, and walked towards the market. It larger than the others, and he spotted RainWings and SeaWings chained to poles, thrashing around, and a muzzle around their face.

"I'd take that one, please," said a large, burly SandWing, pointing his talon towards a dark gray RainWing, who looked to innocent to be in a place like that. He threw a bag of coins on the desk, and the seller handed a leash attached to the RainWing to the SandWing.

Watersprout was disgusted. They were selling dragons like they were toys! The cruelty disgusted him. He had to find a way to break them free.

And then, suddenly, an idea popped into Watersprout's head. He glanced over the the fence separating the market from the one beside it, and crawled behind it. He reached his talons through the bottom, and slowly but confidently, Watersprout clicked the button on the poles. Immediately, the chains connecting the dragons to the pole fell down, letting them get free.

"Gah! Who did that?!" said the seller, opening his wings. He tried grabbing the escaping dragons, but they were too quick for him to grab. The bystanders and buyers watched in awe as they ran out of the Scorpion Den, and took to the sky.

Getting up, Watersprout quickly slipped away. He glanced over his shoulder, and saw the RainWing slave looking at him. He could read the look on her face as plain as day.

Thank you.

Watersprout wished he could've saved her. She didn't deserve to be a slave, but all he could do was wish her the best of luck.

He walked down the path that Hyena and the others had walked on, and it soon led him towards a large shop. Hyena trailed out with a small, green prickly cactus in his talons. Watersprout was surprised that he could hold it without flinching in pain.

"Are we done yet?" Crescent groaned. She rubbed the back of her neck. "I'm tired, and I wanna go home.. well, to Jade Mountain Academy, at least."

Hyena nodded. "Of course." He looked at Watersprout, his tail swishing (which almost hit Firefly). "Let's go."

They soon arrived at the exit. They all opened their wings, and took to the sky. It was grey and cloudy, and Watersprout noticed a storm coming. But he said nothing.

Chapter 17Edit
PART THREE:

STORM OF FEELINGS

Rain began to pour faster than a SeaWing could say "leaping barracudas!"

Watersprout felt the rain weigh himself down. He used Hyena as a resting support, and looked over to see Copper helping Crescent. He had no idea where Firefly went. Watersprout didn't know why he was worried for a dragon who nearly killed two dragons.

"Come on!" Hyena shouted as thunder roared in the distance. Watersprout felt his stomach begin to twist and contort, and felt like he was going to vomit. He hated storms with a blazing passion, and usually would stay at home, curled up in a warm blanket and drinking hot tea.

He began to pant with exhaustion, and Watersprout noticed that his vision began to blur. He couldn't hear Hyena shouting anymore. He couldn't hear the thunder. All he heard was.. peaceful silence.

"Watch out!"

Watersprout's opened and saw a lightning bolt begin to quickly make itself towards him. A dragon pushed him out of the way, and turned to see Firefly, her tail limp.

"Idiot!" she hissed. "You could've killed yourself! SeaWings, with their stupid, flashy scales and dumb, small brains! Learn how to fly for once!"

The SeaWing prince felt Hyena push himself forward and glare at Firefly. They screamed and argued, and Watersprout couldn't hear a thing. The thunder was too loud. But the thing that broke the noise was Copper's loud shriek.

"Crescent's falling! Help!"

As if on instinct, Watersprout dived towards Crescent. She was flapping her wings wildly, and he noticed the scar on her wing was open and bleeding. He glanced behind her, and saw that they were going to land straight into an ocean.

Crescent fell with a splash, and Watersprout gracefully dived in. She moved her talons up and down underwater, as if she couldn't swim. Watersprout grabbed Crescent by her wrist and pulled her out of the freezing cold water.

"Thank you!" she said as she gasped for air. She looked at him, and took another deep breath. "I need help flying back up there. Can I cling onto your back?

He nodded, and he felt cold talons grasp his shoulders. He opened his wings, and flew up to Copper, Hyena and Firefly. For an IceWing, she was surprisingly lighter than what he'd expect her to be.

"There you are!" Copper said with a twinge of sadness to her voice. "I was so scared! Here, I can hold onto Crescent, Watersprout." The MudWing-SkyWing hybrid grabbed her friend, and let Crescent climb up her back.

"We need to find shelter," Hyena said, the bag he bought to hold the brightsting cactus swaying slightly. He turned to Watersprout, and saw a large scratch on his shoulder. The SeaWing prince then stared at Firefly with a shocked and disgusted expression.

Finally, he nodded. "Yes," said Watersprout. He scanned the stormy sky, then looked down to see a cave. He pointed towards it. "There!"

The five flew down and swooped into the cave. It was pitch black, other than the dim light. Copper walked over to the far end of the cave with Crescent, and Firefly stayed in a dark corner, sulking. Hyena and Watersprout stood there like statues, looking at the dim light ahead. Maybe they could try to-

"-SeaWings, I reckon, they always have-"-

"Shh!"

It was silent again. Hyena raised his chin and roared, "HELLO?!"

Suddenly, there was a yelping noise, and a dragon was pushed forward. Half of her body was a purple colour, and the other half was orange. Her underbelly were the same colours, except in the opposite order, and her horns were an ash red colour, with an orange tint, and so were the spines on her back, and as they ended, a SandWing fril began to the end of her tail. She had bright, cyan blue eyes and a necklace. And finally, she had a scar on her back  leg to tail.

"Ow, Burstbreeze!" she said, getting up. She looked over her shoulder, grumbled, and turned her head back to Hyena and Watersprout. "Hello, new dragons. I take it you're avoiding the storm?"

There was silence, and then Hyena spoke up. "Er, yes. We nearly got lost in it, and we have to save someone who I may have.. accidentally scratched with my tail.."

The odd looking dragon nodded. "I get it. You were just defending yourself, us dragons have to stick together." She turned around, and yelled, "BURSTBREEZE! GET  YOUR FLAMING TALONS OVER HERE! WE HAVE HOUSE GUESTS!"

Slowly, a peach and orange dragonet walked out of the darkness. His horns and claws were pure white, and the spines on his back were a flaming orange color. He had bright, teal-ish green eyes, and his underbelly and wing membranes were a saucy red.

"This is Burstbreeze," the odd looking dragon said, yawning. "And I'm Sunset. We're firescales, but please, don't judge us for being born this way!" Sunset's eyes narrowed. "Buuuuut, you'll probably do it anyways."

Hyena shook his head. "I won't." He gestured his talons toward his friends. "This is Watersprout. Over there in the corner is Firefly, and the MudWing-SkyWing hybrid over there tending to that IceWing's wounds, are Copper and Crescent."

"Cool," Burstbreeze said. "Where do you come from?"

"Jade Mountain Academy," Watersprout said. "We had to retrieve a brightsting cactus, and now we plan on going back." He looked at the two firescales. "Where are you from?"

Sunset looked at Burstbreeze. "We'd rather not talk about it." She then turned to Watersprout and Hyena. "But, Burstbreeze and I are going to Jade Mountain Academy, too! We heard that there was a firescales named Peril there, so we were curious!"

The two smiled. "Good," Hyena said. He then turned away. "We can all go back in the morning. It isn't too far, anyways."

The two firescales nodded. They then walked out, and Watersprout glanced into the shadows to see Firefly with a murderous look in her eyes.

Chapter 18Edit
Birds chirped loudly. The smell of wet grass and rain filled Watersprout's nostrils, and he stretched his arms out, only to feel his left talon press against warm scales, and his right to touch cold scales.

He opened one bright green eye, and he saw Crescent at his right side, Hyena being at his left. Copper laid next to Crescent, and he saw Firefly curled up in the shadows. The sun shone through the cave entrance, and Watersprout rose up, yawning.

"Morning," Hyena said, getting up and stretching his arms. "How did you sleep, Watersprout? Hopefully you didn't have any nightmares, unlike me."

"Was it bad?" Watersprout said, tipping his head. He looked down at Hyena's shoulder, and stared at the now dried up scratch on his shoulder. He told himself to talk to Firefly later.

The SandWing prince shook his head. "Nah just imagined I was falling.. nothing that bad." He had a sad smile on his face, and Watersprout told himself it was probably just Hyena's business.

"Are we done here?" Firefly hissed. "If you hadn't noticed, a dragon is dying, and we have to get to Jade Mountain Academy." She glared into the deeper part of the cave. "Get your tails over here, you firescales."

"Now that's just rude," Sunset said, strutting out of the darkness with Burstbreeze by her side. Watersprout noticed she was wearing a necklace; half orange, half purple. He wondered how it wasn't melting or becoming ash.

"They have a point, Firefly," said Copper, helping Crescent up. She slowly picked up Hyena's bag and handed it to him. "You forgot something."

"Thanks," Hyena said, grabbing it as he glared at Firefly (who had an angry expression on her face). He opened his wings, and walked towards the entrance. "Let's go."

They all took to the air, and Sunset and Burstbreeze were already flying ahead. He stayed beside Hyena and Copper, and they flew towards the peaks of Jade Mountain.

Surprisingly, the sky was nice and clear. It was its casual pale blue, and large, fluffy clouds floated through the sky, and the sun stayed up in the sky. Watersprout enjoyed this kind of weather. It was nice and calm; no loud thunder to hurt his ears, and no blazing hot heat. He wished he could enjoy this weather with his friends, but they were far too busy for it.

When they arrived, Sunset and Burstbreeze were already inside. Watersprout was just glad to be at the academy again. He could see his mother and Monsoon again! And of course, he would send Spade a letter.

As they walked inside, Watersprout and his friends noticed that the hallways were clear. He looked at Hyena, and watched as his ears twitched. Finally, Hyena blurt out, "in the Prey Center!"

They all ran towards the Prey Center. As they slid in, they saw fourty two dragonets and seven teachers gathered around something. Watersprout ran towards the crowd, and squeezed through, his curiosity had gotten the better of him again.

But honestly, he wished his curiosity had never existed.

What he saw was horrifying.

Kea, her stomach ripped open as her insides lay against the ground, a pool of blue blood surrounding her, and the SkyWing, Sparrow, that Watersprout had met at the infirmary, his neck twisted.

His face when pale. He covered his mouth, feeling his stomach churn. Tears ran down his eyes. Kea was actually dead, and she was most likely murdered, along with Sparrow.

Chapter 19Edit
"Move, everyone!" Tsunami shouted through the crowd. She squeezed through, with Mayfly, and bumped into Watersprout without noticing. She crouched down, and began to observe Kea's wounds with the MudWing nurse.

"Look," said Mayfly. She pointed towards something almost submerged in blood, and slowly picked it up, getting dark blue blood on her talons. It was a long, curved dagger that was slightly chipped in some places, and the handle had obvious claw marks on it.

"She was murdered, big deal," Clay scoffed, rolling his eyes. The nurse and the teacher looked at the MudWing with a confused and shocked look in their eye. ''That isn't Clay. It can't be.''

Watersprout looked up at Clay, mustered up some courage, and rose up so he was snout-to-snout with him. "I'd never expect you to be this way," he hissed. "One of your students died, and you don't care one bit?! What kind of dragon are you?!"

"Watersprout!" Tsunami said, quickly embracing him. She glared at Clay, and turned her back towards him. "I've missed you so much! If Sunny were here, what do you think she would think of Hyena not being here?!"

''She wouldn't miss him one bit. ''"I'm sorry. I'll explain everything once I'm done." He pulled himself away. "I'm.. going back to my friends. I'll be right back."

He ran away from his mother and towards Hyena and the others. Watersprout knew exactly where to go; near the tunnel that led to Stargazer. To his luck, he found them there, waiting for him.

"There you are!" said Copper, a sick expression on her face. "Can we get this over with before I vomit what I ate last night?"

"But you didn't eat anything," Hyena mumbled. "Plus, don't forget that Watersprout has to have a say in this." He shyly glanced towards the SeaWing prince. "A-are you ready?"

"Yes," Watersprout said. He looked at the bag at Hyena's side. "Let's go save Stargazer, and then everything can go back to normal."

"Well," Firefly said, walking forward. "Don't forget about the assasin. Kea and Sparrow were both killed, meaning that the assasin is still out there." Her voice was calm, yet shaky. "Remember to always look behind your back."

Crescent looked at Firefly. "Alright," she said. "But let's already get this over with. Stargazer is probably slowly dying; we never know."

"Hey guys?" Hyena said, his voice wavering. They all turned to him, and he continued. "When we see her, please don't judge me for.. hurting her, okay?"

"Alright?" Firefly said, her scales turning a pale orange colour. "Let's just go, alright? We don't have long."

They all turned towards the tunnels, and began walking inside. Watersprout forgot how dark it was, and he had nearly tripped over Copper's tail. He had quickly apologized, and then lit up his scales so he and the others could see better.

Finally, they arrived in the place where Stargazer and the one dragon who attacked Watersprout kidnapped them. But the strangest thing was that no one was there; there were only scraps of paper, feathers and inkpots.

"No," Hyena said, his voice turning into a snarl. They all looked at him, and saw that his talons were clenched in rage. "NO! SHE CAN'T BE GONE! NOT YET!"

"Wait, Hyena!" Copper yelped. She pointed towards a flipped over piece of paper, with some writing on it. The SandWing stormed over to it, picked it up, and began to read it. He then dropped it with a sigh of relief.

"What did say?" Firefly asked, picking it up. She began to read it out loud.

"Entry three, leaving.

''​​​​​​Stargazer here again. Well, Soulcrusher is writing for me. He's a surprisingly nice dragon than what Emeraldclaws told me he'd be. Anyways, today we're leaving. I wanted to go to the Lost City of Night for my resting place after what that SandWing did to me. I have been reading his mind recently, and I understand what it's like to feel hated. But, who cares. Not me.''

''Soulcrusher and Emeraldclaws are going to help me get to the Lost City of Night. This will probably be my last time writing, so goodbye, dragon who's whoever reading this.''

-Stargazer."

"The Lost City of Night!" Watersprout blurted out. "My uncle, Turtle, told me all about it when I was two! He said it was at the "talon" of Pyrrhia!"

"Then we need to go there," Hyena said. He looked out of the large tunnel that had led them outside when they were going to retrieve the brightsting cactus. "Let's go save Stargazer."

Chapter 20Edit
They took flight faster than Watersprout could imagine.

The five soared through the dark sky. They knew that Stargazer's time was running out. They all knew that she was slowly dying from a venom eating at her body and soul.

Watersprout stared ahead. As he flew, he began feeling that feeling he felt when he and his friends got caught in the storm. Pure calmness and silence. His vision became blurred, and his chest began to hurt.

"Watersprout!"

Suddenly, he regained his vision and sense of purpose. Watersprout saw that he was falling, and as he tried to flap his wings, he saw that he couldn't regain flight.

"Help!" he said, thrashing. Hyena handed the bag towards Crescent, told her something he couldn't hear, and he dived towards him. His talons reached towards Watersprout, and Hyena grabbed Watersprout's wrist. He then lifted him towards the air.

"Are you okay?!" Hyena said as Watersprout suddenly regained his ability to fly. "You scared me! Come on! We have to catch up with the others!"

"Okay," Watersprout said, feeling exhausted. He leaned against Hyena, and his friend helped him fly towards Crescent, Copper and Firefly, an old, broken palace in front of them.

"Are you alright?" Firefly asked as they flew closer. "You suddenly stopped midair and began to fall. We were so scared and frightened."

Crescent nodded, handing the bag towards Hyena. "Hyena told us to take the bag and fly towards the Lost City of Night, and that he would be back."

"Guys," Hyena grumbled. "If you hadn't noticed, we have to save a dragon to save. We don't have time for chatting, alright?" He stared ahead, and they began to near the kingdom.

Chapter 21Edit
When they arrived, they were shocked to see broken homes, a an almost destroyed palace, a school in ruins, and scattered coins and jewelry. Watersprout glanced around and found a scavenger running through the streets as it had arms full of gold and trinkets.

Soon, the five landed on a pavilion. Watersprout tried to walk through the entrance, but Hyena blocked him and the others.

"Yes?" Firefly said, her scales turning orange and yellow. "What do you need? Or do we have a little longer before Stargazer dies?"

"Guys.." Hyena said, looking away. "Don't judge me, please. I beg of you. I only did it for self defense, alright? She was trying to kill Firefly."

Crescent looked at him. "What are you talking about?" Her eyes narrowed.

Hyena shook his head. "You'll see." He walked inside, and then Watersprout and the three followed him slowly.

The hallways were full of old cabinets, old, long carpets with stains that could've been there from two hundred years ago, and small puddles of blood leading towards a large door. The five walked towards it, and pushed the door open.

Watersprout was shocked to see Emeraldclaws on top of a large, black throne made of onyx. A dragon with glowing orange eyes and black scales stood beside her, and Stargazer on the floor.

She was surrounded in a pool of blood. Three of her legs looked limp except one of the front ones. She had scars all over her body, and the tip of her tail looked rotted and decaying. She looked dead, and if it wasn't for her soft breathing, Watersprout would've already thought it was too late.

''Hyena.. what have you done?''

EpilogueEdit
A pale pink RainWing trotted throughout a hallway, waiting.

''When will he arrive already? ''she thought with a twinge of salt. If you ask a dragon to arrive at a certain time, then they should arrive by now.

Then, she spotted a SeaWing. His name was unknown to her, though she hardly cared. She just wanted to get it over with.

"WHERE WERE YOU?!" she roared at him, and he dropped the clipboard in his talons. He quickly scurried away, and the pale pink RainWing picked it up.

''Crescent.. Gentoo.. yadahyadah..''

''Ah, here he is! Hyena.''

(uhhhhh this isn't even my story)