Burning Bright → Wings of Fire ✓

Chapter 10

Gem let her wings catch the sun's warm embrace as she flew. "We should land on the ground," Starflight stuttered, flying beside her, flexing his claws.

"Starflight, calm down," Gem murmured and touched his wing with hers. "Everything will be fine, you'll see. And even if Burn or my mother managed to free themselves, they don't know we're heading towards the Sea Kingdom."

"Yes, Gem is right," Clay said, flying on Starflight's left side.

Nightseeker appeared on Gem's left and brushed his wing against hers. "Gem, my dear, I'm afraid I have to return to the Night Kingdom," he said, and Gem's expression dimmed. She hoped her guardian would accompany them to the Sea Kingdom, but... "I understand," she said, smiling at him.

"Thank you, my dear. We will likely meet again," he said, ascending towards the sky and the Night Kingdom. Gem sighed, and Starflight touched her wing once more. "You will see him again," he said, giving her a reassuring smile. Gem smiled back, and they all descended toward the river.

Gem stepped back, startled, as Clay caught a large, warty boar that splattered red, glistening blood all over the riverbank. She flinched and pulled away, seeing enough blood from her wounds and the one she had inflicted on Morrowseer.

Clay looked at her with guilt and sliced off a piece of his meat. "Here," he said, offering it to Gem. Gem shook her head, her appetite not being the best. "N...no thanks, Clay."

Clay gave her a worried look but ate the bite himself regardless. They sat there for a few minutes before Gem heard rustling in the bushes behind them. She turned around, baring her teeth and growling low in her throat.

But what emerged surprised them all.

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Gem stared at the dragon that materialized in front of them. It was a RainWing with green-blue scales and friendly, sharp eyes. She smiled gently at Gem and dipped her head. "Hello, I didn't mean to scare you," she said, spreading her wings. "But if you're heading towards the ocean, can I join you? I would love some adventure."

Gem looked at her friends, and they shrugged. But, of course, it couldn't hurt to have another dragon with them, and if she was a RainWing, they could at least have someone who knew the way to the Rainforest.

"Of course, you can join us," Gem said, smiling. The other dragon smiled back. "I'm Glory," she said. "I'm Gem, and this is Clay, Tsunami, Starflight, and of course, Sunny," Gem said, gesturing with her wing toward herself and her friends.

The RainWing smiled. "It's good to meet the Dragonets of Destiny finally," she said, and Tsunami stood up. "You're not going to chain us up, are you?" she snapped, and the RainWing winked. "Why would I do that? RainWings don't take prisoners. But, come on, if we're going to get to the ocean, we need to hurry."

"Actually," Clay said, "we're heading to the MudWing swamps."

The RainWing blinked with a green color and sighed. "You know the way best. Show us the way, Clay," she said, and Clay smiled but shook his head. "I'm not the leader here." He looked at Gem, who winked.

"You're Gem. You've always been, even without realizing it, and now that you're back, we won't leave you," he said.

Gem felt a surge of warmth and determination. She nodded, her eyes shining with newfound confidence. "Alright then. Let's go to the MudWing swamps and find the answers we're looking for," she declared, leading the way with Clay, Glory, and the rest of their group following closely behind.

Their journey to the swamps was filled with anticipation and unity. Gem knew they would face challenges along the way, but with her friends by her side, she was ready to embrace her destiny and bring about the change their world desperately needed.

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The Mudwing swamps weren't as bad as Gem had thought. The only bad thing was the smoldering battlefield right outside their borders. Icewings and Mudwings lay in scattered positions, some with broken necks, others slashed open, and some without heads.

But they were all bleeding. And a lot of it.

Gem looked over and dug her claws into the sticky mud. "So I'll go in alone," said Clay, making Gem raise her head."No, you won't," she said, lifting her chin. "I'm coming with you. Skywings and Mudwings are allies, so it won't matter if I come along."

Clay sighed but didn't argue, and the two flew down to the marshy ground below. There were dragons scattered here and there, but none paid them any attention.

Gen didn't know if this made her scared or happy. She settled for afraid. The MudWings should be more careful who they let into their midst. But it could be like it was just another of their dragons showing a SkyWing ally how they work here.

"Let's go over there," Clay said, pointing at a big mud wing with scars all over her back.

Pearl lifted her chin to look tougher, and she cleared her throat. Mudwing spun around her eyes, and she bowed.

"Princess Gemstone," she said. Pearl blinked and exchanged a glance with Clay. "Uh, how do you know — wait, do I know you?" Pearl asked. The Mudwing looked up and shook her head. "No, Your Highness, you haven't met me before. But I heard about you from some of our Mudwings who were with the Skywings today. They told me you were the Princess of the Skywings, the lost heir."

Gem lashed her tail and dug her claws into the mud. "My mother, Queen Scarlet, wasn't my real mother. I... apologize if I've done anything," she said. The Mudwing blinked. "You don't need to apologize. Just go and do whatever you want here," she said.

Clay spoke up this time. "Um, we were wondering if you knew anything about a dragon named Asha," he said.

The MudWing blinked and shrugged. "Yeah, her sister's brother over there," she pointed with a claw. "Right at the end of the sleeping huts." Gem nodded, and with Clay, she walked along the narrow path between the mud houses.

"I'm sorry she mentioned your mother," Clay said, brushing his wing against Gem's. Gem shook her head. "It's okay that they're Skywings' allies, after all," she said.

They soon reached the last mud hut, and Clay extended a claw and called out, "Uh, is anyone in here?" A small brown head popped out, and the dragon stared at them. "Well, what do you want?" she growled, and Pearl had to compose herself not to bark back.

Then she saw Pearl, and her eyes widened. "Apologies, my lady," Pearl sighed. "Call me Gemstone, no 'lady,' alright?" she said.

The MudWing nodded. "Well, what do you want?" she asked, repeating her previous question.

"We want to know if you might know Asha," Clay asked, and the MudWing nodded. "I do; she's my sister," she said. Pearl and Clay exchanged a glance. "So, you... you're my mother," Clay breathed, and the MudWing snorted.

"Seems like it," her tone unsettled Pearl, and she flapped her wings. "This dragonet was stolen from you six years ago," she said.

Cattail rolled her eyes. "I never lost any egg; I sold it."