The Chilly Sea

Where Did She Go?

The halls of the Sky Palace flickered as the torches swayed with the wind. Turtle never payed attention to the details of the Sky Palace before, mostly because he thought that he wouldn't need too. But now that Peril seemed to be in peril, Turtle thought it would be wiser to know where the nearest exists were. There were guards on every post, Queen Ruby seemed to think it was appropriate to have at least three sets of guards at every window. Maybe Ruby is really scared of Peril, Turtle thought. Maybe...maybe she honestly thinks that Peril killed that dragon. Turtle shook his snout and continued walking down the stairs toward the dungeon.  

One of the SkyWings that took Peril into this horrible dungeon saw him and let him pass. The SkyWing didn't even bother to ask who he was visiting. Mostly because only Peril's friends come to visit her and Turtle was a usual. As Turtle walked into the dungeon, he finally noticed how Ruby improved it. She fixed the dome above and made it into an actual ceiling. "It doesn't have the smell of blood anymore," Peril muttered, her voice sounding hoarse and broken. 

"Yeah...I noticed," Turtle whispered.  Peril looked over him, as if she was staring at something that was beyond him. Turtle didn't bother to turn around or to look where her eyes were at. Whoever was behind him could hear what he has to say. "Peril, my mom forgot about me again." As if that set an alarm in Peril's head, she shifted her snout to him and frowned. 

"What do you mean? Didn't she just send you a letter on how much she missed you?" wondered Peril.  

"She did, but when I went to see her, she just...ignored me. As if I was just another one of my brothers," Turtle sighed. The dungeon went quiet and Peril's talons shuffled against the cobblestone floor. 

"Turtle, I feel like dragons are targeting us," Peril murmured. The sentence was so quiet that he barely heard it at first.  

"What do you mean?" 

"...what I mean is that first everything I know and love is taken away from me and now you're being targeted. There isn't any possible way your mom could forget you that fast," Peril whispered. "I mean, it's not like you're that rememberable -- no offense -- but it's not that possible to forget that quickly." 

"Why do you gotta be so mean sometimes?" grumbled Turtle. "I guess that's true though." 

"You see," Peril smirked. "I'm a genius in disguise." Turtle chuckled as Peril shifted on her talons. He didn't want to ask but he knew that Peril wanted to talk to Clay. After all, he was the dragon to place her in this prison. Turtle never hated anyone until Clay did that to her. With a sigh, Turtle reached into the prison bars and held Peril's talons in his. "You don't have to do that..." Peril whispered. "I just had a lot of thinking time..." 

"I know you did. And I promise Peril, I will get you out. I don't care how I'll do it. But you will be rid of this prison soon," growled the prince. Peril just sighed. Her exhale echoed throughout the whole prison, letting both the young dragonets that there was no one here. 

"Don't make promises you can't keep, Prince," grumbled the fiery dragon. 

"Well, I'll try to keep this promise," Turtle sighed. 

"HEY! TIME IS UP!" a guard growled. 

"Coming!" Turtle shouted back. Once the prison went silent again, he turned toward the lonely SkyWing and frowned. "Don't give up, Peril...we will get you out." 

"I hope so," she mumbled. "I hope so..." 

Both the two dragons went silent but finally, Turtle said, "well, I'll see you later." 

"See you," Peril whispered. With that, Turtle turned around and made his way up to the top of the prison. Just like the morning before, the depressing prison guard stood there. Remorse was not an emotion that the guard seemed to have because as Turtle was just making his way back to the group, he could see out of the corner of his eye, the guard grinning. That stupid son of a--

"TURTLE!" Moon shrieked. Within seconds, Turtle turned toward the scream and was filled with panic once he saw Moon's frightened eyes. The NightWing seemed like she didn't know where she was going until she saw Turtle's familiar green scales. Was this part of the prophecy, Turtle wondered. But the look on Moon's snout told him that it had nothing to do with the prophecy and souly on somedragon they both know. "TURTLE! Kinkajou....is-g-gone!" Moon cried. 

And just like that...the world was set on fire. Kinkajou. Gone?