"Hear wha- oh."
The many NightWing soldiers that had come with them through the tunnel had lined up by the closest tree houses a short ways away and were shouting orders to each other while hastily throwing on helmets and shoulder pads.
"What are they doing with armor? Aren't the RainWings peaceful?" he asked his friend. Blackberry was a soldier-in-training and knew way more about this stuff than he did, which he envied.
"I-I don't know! I was never told of this!" Blackberry's face looked drained of color.
"Something bad is gonna happen, I can feel it." he hissed.
"Let's scout it out from there." she pointed to a small clearing surrounded by trees and bushes. Hopefully, the RainWings don't mind. He thought, nervously glancing at the trees as they walked over and crouched down behind the bushes.
Nearly twenty other NightWings in almost full armor were lined up just in front of them.
"Maybe the armor is for venom accidents? So if they startle the RainWings they won't get hurt?" Blackberry whispered to him.
He shook his head. He'd had a bad feeling before they even came through the tunnel. Now, the NightWings looked ready for war against sleepy fruit eaters. Why? was his only thought.
Behind them, there was a whoosh and when they looked the bushes behind them were trembling. Blackheart almost had a panic attack when Blackberry went up to the bushes and pushed them aside to which a dragon came out. The NightWing was a tall, muscular adult with many scars and swirly-looking armor because of the gold and iron mixture. His scales were polished and his snout was scrunched like he knew he was superior. Blackheart knew this dragon. He'd appeared several times at home with Moonwatcher, the royal seer, to talk with his mother. Blackheart felt himself trembling. Standing before them was General Shadowhunter.
Blackheart felt very small in front of the general as he bowed. Blackberry did not. She stood straight and proud, glaring at the general. I guess she doesn't like him either.
"Good evening, General," she said, through gritted teeth, standing at attention.
"Cadet," he growled, not even glancing at her. His piercing, blood-red eyes were fixed on Blackheart. "Why is there a child here?"
"Well, I'm actually four years old, so-" Blackheart started.
"Quiet! You were not asked to speak!" the general snapped.
Blackberry growled softly but the general didn't seem to notice. "I brought him here, he wanted to see the Rainforest. He's never seen anything outside the island, so I thought-"
"Enough! I did not ask for details!" Shadowhunter snapped again, smacking them both across the face with his wing.
"Yessir," Blackberry said, quieter but more hateful.
"I do not care why he is here, but I want him gone. I have got enough to deal with today with this important mission, as you can see." Shadowhunter grumbled, flicking his tail at the line of NightWings, who were now in full armor. "But before he leaves," the general's eyes bored into Blackheart's. "Why do you seem so familiar, dragonet?"
Blackberry smirked. "Permission to speak freely, sir?"
"Hm, granted."
"I know you do many important things within the palace and see many dragons."
"Yes, you could say that."
"So it would be reasonable to assume that your memory could fail you once in a while?"
