Heart of the storm

Chapter 3

A dragon called out from outside Thunder’s air pocket.
         “May all please report to the Storm hall now. Thank you.”
By law, all VoltWings had to immediately fly and remain in their air pockets after the emergency call sounded.
Thunder had said a quick goodbye to Sprite before they flew off, him to Sector 4 and her to Sector 9. Shortly after that, carrier dragons had been ordered to fly around the Storm
Poor things, they had to risk their lives because they needed a job. It was a bit depressing.
Though Thunder already suspected Static’s death, it was still a shock to hear it.
After that, the VoltWings had been kept in lockdown for nearly three days. No-one liked lockdowns. In fact, EVERYONE hated them, even the well fed Sector 1 dragons.
But this time it was more serious. It wasn’t a mild virus that had spread throughout the pumpers, like it had two years earlier. Someone had been killed. And it had been the Queen. What would happen now? The kingdom would be in chaos.
Most likely in even worse shape than it was before! What was it the Queen had said? So many wrongs. Can’t change. Hopeless. If that was what Static actually had thought, the VoltWings would need a miracle to survive this next phase of the Storm’s history. Thunder was not hopeful.
As scouts couldn’t hunt, food had to be rationed carefully, so Thunder was extremely hungry, after being delivered only a rabbit and a head of cabbage throughout the whole day.
Relieved to finally get away from the cramped space, he let himself fall through the film of his air pocket.
Thunder beat his wings to get feeling back into them, and then made his way to the Storm hall.
The hall was a truly ancient building, the oldest in the Storm. You could almost feel the history in its walls. Its entrance was marked out by two grey pillars and a grandiose doorway. The inside had often been changed. In its current state, it had a large platform, where speeches were given. The rest was an arrangement of rocks, which served as the audience's seating.Just outside the wide black doors, a golden fountain shot water high into the air.
The hall had an outdated feel, and was the one item that had been untouched since it had been created centuries earlier. The paint was cracked, and it looked like it had been eaten and then thrown up by HiveWings, and that was an insult to HiveWings.
The hall’s history was shrouded in mystery. It was supposedly the throne room of the old queens, but some said it was also a prison. A playground dragonet rumour had it that it was where the Queens would sacrifice dragons to the Storm. Thankfully, there was no evidence that it was true.         
Most months it wasn’t used. Usually once or twice a year, the Queen would make a new rule or something (which would often be abolished a few days later), and the VoltWings would be called there so she could announce it. It was kept in pristine condition though.
A cascade of dragons piled through the high oak doors, with no respect for the centuries old building.
After taking a deep breath, he joined the flow of VoltWings into the hall. Once the crowd reached the end of a short passage, they entered a huge room filled with hundreds of rock seats. The seats were all facing a wooden stand, six feet tall. This was where Queen Static addressed her tribe.
Used to address her tribe, Thunder corrected himself. This time, it would be someone different. The princess. Or, the queen, rather. Cloudburst.
Thunder found a seat in the second row, to the left, and waited for the rest of the dragons to file in.
Six dragons wearing a similar outfit to the guard that had been with Static, patrolled the room, clearly suspicious of every dragon that flew in.
After about five minutes, Sprite and Whirlwind landed next to Thunder and sat down on either side of him.
A VoltWing sitting a few seats away from Thunder sneered and got up to find a new seat, muttering about poor Sector scum as he went. Thunder stood and started to move forward, but Sprite held him down. “Hey, it's fine, I get that a lot. Just forget about it.”
Thunder was mad, but stayed quiet. “It’s just so unfair. Why doesn’t anyone do anything about it?”
“I dunno,” Sprite replied. “But let's not start a fight after a three day lockdown shall we? I think we’re all a bit on edge. What did you think of it by the way?”
“Most of the time I was sleeping,” Thunder added. “Could have been a blessing in disguise. I dunno. What about you?”
“Whirlwind can go first,” she said, sighing, as if recalling an unpleasant memory.
“Boring as the moons,” Whirlwind sighed. “My experience was about as interesting as a dead cow’s butt.”
“Whirlwind!” Sprite shrieked. Whirlwind just grinned.
Sometimes Thunder felt like the third wheel. He knew they didn’t mean it, but it made him rot inside.
Sprite laughed. “I had a very similar experience, but … it's better than being stuck in the pumping room all day. To be honest, probably ANYTHING would be better than being stuck in the pumping room all day.”
Whirlwind put a wing around her, sending a shot of jealousy through Thunder. He could never have that much guts. He always wanted to help, to reach out, but could never. He could never compete with Whirlwind.
Sprite’s face went serious. “Also, what were you going to tell us before the emergency call sounded?” she said to Thunder. “I’ve been wondering the WHOLE lockdown. Did you know Static was dead?” she said in a low voice.
Thunder nodded. “That's why I missed dinner. I was asking her something, and then she just … fell,” Thunder said.
Sprite eyed him, most likely accusing him of what he must have asked her about. Thunder pretended not to notice.
“She fell,” Whirlwind said. He didn’t sound convinced.
“She was talking to me, and then stopped, and collapsed. A guard caught her, but I didn’t think too much of it. She’s old, so I thought she might have fallen asleep, or passed out. But now she's dead.”
Sprite gasped. “What do you think might’ve happened?”
“Poison? Maybe a weird virus or something?” said Whirlwind.
“That’s the thing,” Thunder said. “As I was heading to the dinner hall, after my talk with Static, I saw this really weird fly thing. I think it might have stung her. I don’t know.”
“Ha!” said Whirlwind. “You’ve gotten even more crazy, Thunder. And to think I thought you were already!”
Thunder knew it was a joke, but it felt like Whirlwind almost meant what he was saying. His face hardened.
“And the fact that a lockdown was called means they don’t think she died of old age.” Thunder continued. “I’m scared they might think it was me. Do they think it was me? You know I would never—”
“You’ll be fine,” Sprite interrupted. “They would never think that. And even if they were stupid enough to, we’d back you up, wouldn’t we Whirlwind?”
Whirlwind nodded. “Yeah, what she said. Surely they’ve found something big about it, and this will all blow over soon. I mean, it's a loss, but is it really? I mean, we were all waiting for the queen to die eventually, right? I think the Storm is in better talons.”
Sprite stared at Whirlwind with a frown. Whirlwind gave a nervous chuckle. “Really, you haven’t thought that before?”
Thunder wanted to say no, but that would be lying. He felt horrible. Thankfully though, just before the conversation got any more awkward, a wave of shushes erupted through the now packed crowd.
Thunder looked at the stage and watched as Cloudburst walked up to the stand and cleared her throat. The same moody guard that had been with Static stood close to her. Spark. The hum of soft chatter quickly faded throughout the crowd, and eventually went quiet, although Thunder swore he could hear a few grumbles. It seemed some dragons weren’t happy with their new, younger queen.
Seeing Cloudburst sparked an idea in Thunder’s head. When he had talked to Static, she had said that it had been a rough day. What HAD happened that day? And did it have something to do with …
It was a chilling thought, but not one he could find in his heart to ignore.
“I am very sorry for the inconvenience of the last three days,” Cloudburst began. “I know a lot of us have been mourning the death of my mother, myself obviously included. During her Sector check, she very suddenly and unexpectedly went into a coma, and passed away after a few minutes. The reason is currently unknown, but an investigation is going to be performed on the subject very shortly. The lockdown was a necessary safety protocol.”
So they haven’t found anything, Thunder realised. No sting mark. No bite mark.
“That aside though, I think,” she choked back a tear, “I think we can agree that she was a leader we could all look up to. I personally have missed my mother very much, and I can expect that many of you have as well.” There was silence, and then she continued.
“Now, getting to business, there is something else we have been hesitant to mention. Sadly, in the chaos of lockdown, another VoltWing was discovered dead. No mark, just dead. The citizen was found in her air pocket yesterday. We are still unsure of what had happened, though I think it's a mere coincidence. Queen Static was on her last legs, and people die all the time.” She gestured with her talons.
There were a few chatters around the hall. Thunder looked at Sprite with confusion. She looked just as puzzled.
“The dragon was…” Dragons strained their necks to look for their family as Cloudburst turned and muttered something to Spark. Once she was satisfied with an answer, she smiled and announced, “Electron of Sector 2.”
There was sobbing, but Thunder could only pay attention to the hushed tones sprouting through the crowd. Thunder knew how they felt. Nothing like this had ever happened before. Was the Storm really safe? Could they keep hiding like this?
It had worked for years, but maybe it was all just a sign. Or maybe it was an attack. Either way, it had to end.
Cloudburst spoke again. “I am very sorry for this loss. But unfortunately, we can not properly deal with this problem until the Heart is given to me, which will only happen at the ceremony in a month.”
Oh, the ceremony! He’d been taught the VoltWing laws in school multiple times, but forgot one critical thing about being queen. Once an old queen died, their daughter would only be coronated at the ‘Heart Ceremony’ a month afterwards. That would be when the princess would be presented with the Heart and allowed to use it. Though, in his defence, he’d never been to one. It was a stupid rule, though. Especially in a situation like this. Surely they could make an exception. Two VoltWings had died, one queen and one citizen, under the same mysterious circumstances. How could they not be connected? The VoltWing crowd seemed to agree. Muttering about how stupid the rule was came from the VoltWings.
“Silence!” shouted the princess/queen. She sounded annoyed. The room went quiet instantly.
“As I was saying, I need the Heart to take action. It is still unknown of how someone could have gotten in, but as I said earlier, an investigation will be conducted.
“Until we can pinpoint the cause, we will have to continue work to maintain survival. So I ask you, do not worry. Outer security has been doubled, as well as Sector guards. No one else can possibly get in. You are safe.”
Are we really? Thunder thought. As far as he knew, half-trained Sector guards couldn’t stop a venomous mutant fly. It did nothing but put more people in the open to get stung.
“I don’t want to waste too much more of your time,” Cloudburst continued, “So let’s wrap it up. If anyone has any information at all on this case, they may meet Spark, head of security, after this announcement.” She gestured to Spark. “I’d like you to please go back to your normal lives, as I said earlier: this has been handled. You are all completely safe. You may leave.”
Queen Cloudburst turned and walked out of sight. Spark looked mad to be separated from Cloudburst but waited by the wooden stand.
As VoltWings started to exit the hall, Thunder turned to Sprite and said, “I have to go and tell them.”
She nodded and said, “Good luck,” before grabbing Whirlwind by the talon and walking away.
Thunder pushed his way to the front. For the past three days, he’d been thinking about that fly. He’d even contemplated leaving his air pocket to tell someone. Now was the time.
Spark had the familiar spear and belt and strolled in a very royal manner. Thunder found him studying the crowd, and glaring at every dragon that fearfully glanced at him. Thunder really didn’t want to approach him, especially after the incident with the Queen, but he had to. For the sake of the VoltWings, he had to.
Unfortunately.
Thunder walked up to Spark and awkwardly cleared his throat. Spark faced him and spoke in a deep cold voice.
“You.”
“Uh-um, I know something about the death of Static, sir,” Thunder replied. He could feel cold sweat on his forehead.
Stay cool, Thunder!
“You ... know something?”
“Well, I think that—”
“You think something?”
Thunder was getting nervous. He felt like throwing up. At the same time, he felt like ripping Sparks head off. He wasn’t making this easy. But he couldn’t do either in front of Spark (especially not the latter). He had to stay relaxed. Look professional.
He never liked talking to higher authorities. And he hated how weak they made him look. Thunder straightened up and looked Spark in the eye.
“I was there when the queen died, as you know,” he said before Spark would interrupt him again.
“And?”
“And, afterwards, as I was flying away, I saw a fly, and I think it stung her. It had a stinger, with blood, and it-it tried to sting me,” said Thunder.
“A fly?” said Spark, twitching with annoyance, but looking amused. “Let me get this straight. There was just this sketchy fly, and it happened to be there at the same time, as the death. And anyway, how could a FLY kill a dragon? Impossible.”
That’s what Thunder had thought at first as well. In school, every VoltWing was taught how the only animal that could kill a dragon was a dragonbite viper. But to Thunder, all the evidence was visible of how it had to be the fly. 
“No, but—” Thunder said.
“Get out,” Spark growled. “You should be punished for wasting my time.”
How could Thunder leave? His tribe was getting murdered, right before his eyes. Why couldn’t Spark see that as well? It could be him next.
Thunder imagined Spark’s body lying on the ground, dead. A markless body, no disease, but an unmoving heart. Even though he didn’t like this dragon, picturing him dead was horrible.
“Sir, you need to listen to me. If we don’t do something lots more will die. Why won’t you just—” said Thunder.
“Congratulations scout. You’ve just earned yourself a week of pumping. Speak again, and it’ll be a permanent job.”
Thunder's throat went dry. Suddenly, the possibility of Sparks death by mutant fly sounded more attractive. He didn’t even listen. His home was run by the most one sided, stupid dragons. Maybe it was hopeless, like Static had said. What was the point anymore? He had tried all he could. The Queen, Spark.
He turned and exited the hall. The noise of his talon steps echoed through the empty room. He didn’t turn around.
Outside, Sprite was waiting next to the golden fountain. He was so mad, he barely noticed that Whirlwind wasn’t with her.
“How did it go?” she asked, trotting over to Thunder. “Whirlwinds so sorry he left but he had to—”
Her words were drowned out by a red hot anger that was boiling up inside of him. Thunder ignored her and started flying back to his air pocket.
He could hear her shouts but didn’t turn back. He needed some time alone.
Thunder swooped around Sector 2. And that’s when he saw the body.

Talons off - Thunder