Starcrossed

Chapter 3: Runaway

Morrowseer was straight out terrifying.

That was just your basic daily fact.

Anyone who didn't think he scary were either crazy, Morrowseer himself (hm...now that you think about it, maybe he did find himself intimidating. He probably does), or that dragon just had a really good reason not to feel frightened for some dumb philosophy.

From the way his earring made of bones shimmered with that black stone in the middle, to the way he practically loomed out of the ground, towing to the sky. But he was especially scary when you got in trouble. He usually got angry in that quiet, calm, claw-scrapping way — but that just made it worse. When he did get mad, you would know. It would feel like your scales were melting for eternity while at the same time, they were getting all cold and frozen; with those pitch-dark eyes gleaming furiously at you.

Right now (in particular), Starseeker felt like an ant in front of him. It didn't even occur to Starseeker that Morrowseer was his father until about ten seconds after he stepped out from the trees.

Starseeker felt like if he could move one muscle in his body, perhaps he would hide under a rock until Morrowseer was gone, wait for another hour or so, and then fly to the other end of the continent. 

But then he remembered Moon, and what his mother had told him when she hatched: "Starseeker. If anything happens to me or Moonwatcher, promise me — promise me — you will protect her with everything you have. Do you understand?" He had nodded, and said, "I understand." and then, at that moment, he had devoted his heart to his little sister.

He thought about that for a moment, staring at Morrowseer, who was staring at Moon for what seemed like an eternity. He immediately regretted that when his father's eyes pinned him down for an even longer moment. Then it was impossible to look away.

"Moonwatcher." he hissed finally. "Starseeker." He turned his eyes to glare at the Dragonets of Destiny. "Defected dragonets."

"Call us defected all you want! You're NOT GETTING OUR RAINFOREST, you squid-brained octopus-headed oily jerkface slime-ball excuse for what dragons call Morrowseer!" Tsunami bellowed ferociously, her face scowling with rage. "Or, more accurately, MorrowSNEER!!"

"I must disagree!" Morrowseer snapped at her. "You don't have the evidence to say that, considering the number of your army of lazy, no-good RainWings have lowered increasingly."

Starseeker felt his stomach drop. He then realized that, deep down, he wanted the RainWings to win and the NightWings to...well...not win.

Who knew what would happen when his tribe got ahold of the rainforest and eliminate the RainWings? What would happen then? When Starseeker said it, "world domination" sounded a bit much. But Starseeker had SEEN the NightWings with his own two cobalt-blue eyes. Sure, he bet most of them just wanted a safe place to live and have dragonets, but some of them (including Morrowseer) would go to extreme heights to ensure NightWing superiority...

He hoped he was wrong.

Later on, he would learn that he was correct. Utterly correct.

"Well I'll have you know we won't stop at this!" Tsunami shouted up at Morrowseer, snapping Starseeker out of the security of his thoughts.

"Yeah!" Sunny agreed in what was Sunny Level of anger.

"And you think we would be stupid enough to show you mercy? To let you go skipping out of here? Disgraceful. How dumb do you think I am, SeaWing?"

"If you think you guys can LADDITY-LA-LA right in here before I beat your smug stinking idiot face, I think you are very dumb! EXTREMELY, even!" she said.

"Say that again," Morrowseer snarled.

"You heard me," Tsunami snapped.

Moon got tense, her eyes glassed over like ice on a lake and her brows furrowed. Starseeker knew this look. She's having a vision, he thought. Now? Really? Okay....

Then, as quick as lightning, RainWings appeared out of air and threw themselves on the NightWings, hissing and brawling.

An emerald-green RainWing appeared by Tsunami and said, "You're welcome," smirking slightly.

"I could have handled them by myself, Glory," Tsunami grumbled.

"Orrrrrrrrrrrrrrr you could have been ripped to shreds by Morrowseer before I got to yell YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE ON THE UPPER FEILDS, NOT HERE! WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN THE TREES?! to you're big blue stubborn face, and frankly, I like the option where you're not ripped to shreds," Glory pointed out.

"Hey, you're not my queen," Tsunami protested.

"Yes, but: my rainforest, my rules."

"I didn't think it was possible for you to be more irritating before you were queen." Tsunami said.

"Hey hey, we're in the middle of a battle, enough bickering guys," Clay said.

"WE'RE NOT — " Glory and Tsunami started, but was cut off by Glory yelling, "NIGHTWING! Behind you, Tsunami!" and threw herself onto Starseeker.

"SEIZE THEM!" Morrowseer roared, grabbing RainWings out of the sky and crushing them.

Moon still had her attention on her brother, and she screamed. "Stop! Stop!" 

"GLORY!" Sunny yelled. "Stop!"

"What, Sunny."

"He's just a dragonet, no older than we are!" Sunny said. Her friends stared stared at her.

"So...?"

"Yikes, guys," Sunny said. "Just — get off! He doesn't mean any harm!"

"Yeah!" Starseeker agreed.

Glory fixed him with an icily glare but got her claws off him. She's queen of the RainWings, he remembered.

Starseeker bowed. "Thank you, Your Majesty," he said, ignoring Tsunami's slightly amused snort.

"My RainWings are falling back," Queen Glory said to Tsunami. She hesitated, and heaved a big sigh, hints of gray-blue peeking into her scales. "I can't let any more of them die. They had nothing to do with this mess.... Morrowseer's right."

"What? But we can't let the NightWings win! We cant let him win!" Tsunami said, gills pulsing.

"And we're not. They'll pay for this — I swear it on the moons, Tsunami," she promised. "But staying here to let them die pointlessly would be selfish, and part of being queen is to take care of her subjects." Before Tsunami could protest further, Glory leapt into the air, and her scales shifted into blindingly bright colors. "RETREAT!" She yelled. "Retreat, RainWings! With me!"

The RainWings in battle dissolved into the air, reluctantly, and the NightWings jumped into flight up after them, trying to find invisible wings or tail or snouts or talons. 

Starseeker and Moon ran into the canopy where Glory had swooped into before Morrowseer could get ahold of them.