Proboscis Book 1: Clouds Parting- A Wings of Fire Fanfiction

~ Chapter 4 ~

No! I can't lose my only friend! What will I do if he dies? I'd be all alone on a giant adventure! And he was always the adventure-seeking goof! I won't last a week! A tree had toppled on top of Quartz, which now pinned him to the earth, and she couldn't move it.

Then, Quartz's eyes blinked open. "I'll help you!" Stratus said, trying not to cry. She pushed the tree as hard as she could, but couldn't get it off of Quartz.

"Quartz? Could you push the tree? I'll pull the tree while you push," Stratus said, her heart nearly thumping out of her chest. "I know you're super tired, but please, you have to survive!" Quartz did what she told him, and Stratus pulled as hard as she could. It took them a while, but finally, they got the tree off of Quartz.

"How did the tree fall on you?" Stratus asked. "There's no wind."

"I saw this dark figure," Quartz started. "It looked kind of like a shadow and it... It clawed the tree in half, making it topple over on me. Then it flew away. I couldn't get a close view of it."

"Can you sit?" Stratus asked. "Do you want to eat something?"

Stratus handed Quartz the pig she had caught earlier, and Quartz ripped it in half so they could share it. While Stratus was eating the pig, she noticed something.

"Quartz, your body is cracked!" Stratus exclaimed, pointing a claw at his torso. "How long will it take for it to heal?"

"Ugh... about two days, I guess. It's not too serious," Quartz said. "We were lucky I didn't completely shatter."

"CrystalWings can shatter?!" Stratus said, surprised. "In that case, we need to be way more careful."

"I guess we'll be here for a while," Quartz said disappointedly.

"I'll find something to make some beds for the two of us. Then I'll go get some water for you." Stratus said as she prepared to fly. She flew for what felt like ten days, but eventually, she found what she was looking for. She grabbed a large handful of leaves and a few bundles of moss and headed back.

"I'm back!" Stratus announced. "Could you make the beds while I find a pond or something to drink out of?"

"Sure, but we have one slight problem. I can't fly," Quartz said, showing his damaged wing. "I'll have to do without water for now. I can drink lots of water when we are about to leave. You can find a pond and drink from it if you're thirsty." Stratus nodded and flew off. She soon found a river and took a drink of water, the sudden coldness of it giving her a mild brain freeze. She started flying back and saw a nest of rabbits. She dove for one and reached out with her claws. Her claws dug into the rabbit's back, and it let out a final squeal before it died. Stratus picked the rabbit up and continued to fly back.

"Do you want this rabbit?" Stratus asked Quartz.

"No, I think I'm fine," Quartz replied. "I'm not that hungry." Stratus ate the rabbit reasonably quickly and sat on the bed Quartz had made for her.

"What should we do after we go to the BlazeWing kingdom?" Stratus asked.

"I was planning to go to the VenomWing kingdom, but we could also go to the SpaceWing kingdom," Quartz said. "If possible, we should try to get at least one dragon from every tribe."

"I agree. It's getting late. We should probably go to sleep," Status said looking up at the stars. They both drifted into a peaceful sleep.

Stratus shifted restlessly in her pile of leaves. The leaves fluttered all around her, landing on the cold dirt floor.

She was dreaming of food. More specifically, the delicious pastries and candies her mother used to sell at a shop in the Sunlight Bazaar. She was on a pastel rainbow cloud, surrounded by cows, chickens, mountain goats, and of course, her mother's sweets. Suddenly, a tornado materialized in front of her and the food was swept up in the whirlwind, spinning dizzyingly fast around her. She tried catching the food in midair, but then all the animals froze. A chicken's claw sliced just below her eye as the animal slammed to a stop, and the cut bled, trickling down her face. The tornado disappeared and the animals seemed to be hovering over her.