Poisonous Rage

Chapter Six

"A long time ago, before our ancestors landed here, the land was wild. Animals roamed the continent and the forests grew taller than the Hives. But other, stranger things lurked as well. Ancient creatures, who were as dangerous as they were old. And they would do anything to survive.

"When our ancestors arrived, many years ago, they settled down and built simple shelters as they explored their new home.

"Soon, strange things began to happen. Animals would wait at the edge of the camp, almost as though they were watching the dragons. Spying on them. One night they woke up to their scales on fire. Dozens of ant colonies were swarming over them, biting them. The dragons ran, screaming, into a nearby river, but the ants did not let go of their victims until they drowned.

"The next night, the dragons went to bed, fearful of another attack. They woke to a terrible keening, as though the very air was being torn to shreds, as thousands of bees descended on the camp.

"The attacks continued to worsen. The animals continued to grow bigger and bigger, and animals that usually lived alone suddenly worked in packs. Centipedes, lizards, snakes. Dragons began to be killed. They tried everything, but the attacks continued. The dragons noted how the animals seemed to move as one being, in perfect sync.

"Finally, they discovered how to stop the attacks; when they cleared a certain plant from the area, the attacks ceased. Soon, they sent out teams of dragons to wipe out the plant, which grew all over Pantala. Finally, the plant was destroyed and our ancestors could live in peace.

"Or so they thought. Some survived in the heart of the Poison Jungle and was discovered after many, many, years... by me.

"I was young and arrogant then, and Wasp was rising to power. Her mother had been horrible enough, but at least she had respected the individual tribes. Wasp only saw more dragons for her to conquer, to rule. She started by cutting down the trees. A patch here, a forest there, and suddenly we realized Wasp wasn't going to stop.

"She insisted we were being unfair - why couldn't she use the resources of Pantala for her tribe? We protested, but Queen Monarch believed Wasp's intentions were pure. Wasp promised she would stop cutting down the trees. Of course, she didn't, and soon our peace meetings had turned into screaming matches between me and Wasp.

"I almost challenged Wasp for her throne. Not that I wanted to rule the HiveWings, but I knew I was the older and stronger dragon. I could have killed her and ended the threat, but at the time I thought that would only make things worse," Sequoia chuckled darkly. "There have been nights where I've lain awake, wondering whether things would have been better if, at one of those meetings, I had lunged and snapped that viper's neck.

"Wasp continued to steal our trees, even going so far as to force a few isolated LeafWings out of their homes. Then, she announced that the Book of Clearsight decreed the other two tribes should accept her as queen and that Monarch and I should resign. Back then, I thought Monarch a cowardly fool for stepping aside. But now, while I don't agree with her decision, I understand she wanted what was best for her subjects and thought all-out war with Wasp would be far worse than agreeing to live under her command.

"Whatever the case, a final peace meeting was to be held. If Monarch and I stepped down, Wasp would leave our tribes alone, other than ruling us. If not, it was war. I saw one alternative, and I was desperate. I would never have given over power to someone like Wasp, nor would I lead my people to war, unless absolutely necessary. So, I searched for any way to avoid both.

"There was nothing I could think of, until one of my advisors, a fiercely loyal LeafWing by the name of Hawthorn, mentioned the Legend of the Hive. It seemed a crazy, far-fetched idea, especially since the plant was supposedly extinct. But Hawthorn insisted he had heard whisperings of the plant before. He was an extremely skilled Leafspeaker. I decided to believe him, and he and I ventured deep into the jungle before we found what we needed.