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

~ Chapter 10 ~

Stratus sat in dismay as she thought about Quartz. She hoped he would remember what she had said, and she wished she hadn't had to yell it in front of the guards. Stratus didn't want them to get in the way.

The dungeon was a large, stone hexagon cave beneath the palace. The main watch tower was in the middle, surrounded by a deep chasm stretching down into the bowels of the earth. Huge, spear-sharp crystals the color of molten fire spiked up from the darkness in the chasm, glowing with a bright light that was reflected off the lava. Two cells were on each side of the hexagon, with a stone walkway lining the sides, and twelve guards on every floor. This was the layout of the most supreme jail in the world, by the name of the Magma Prison. Argh!!! her mind screamed. How could I have been so stupid as to get Quartz and me thrown in a dungeon? Let alone the greatest dungeon in the world! If only I could break these chains... The iron bars blocking the entrance to her cell looked phenomenally weak, but even if the thick clasps around her wrists weren't there, she probably still wouldn't be able to escape. Stratus tried to avert her mind from the horrendous thought bubbling up inside like lava in a volcano. I'll die of starvation anyway, but if I try to break out... She didn't want to finish that thought, how the BlazeWings poured fiery hot lava on any "troublesome" prisoners. No matter what, she and Quartz would be dead soon.

A guard walked by, dark metal armor plating his arms and face. The armor looked heavy and thick, the guard moving a little bit slowly. He also had a long spear, and the point looked, quite literally, deadly sharp. Stratus had tried to get a guard's attention earlier, but the guard either ignored her, or he wouldn't help. Stop reminding me of my fate, guard! Stratus thought. But her mind switched immediately when she saw Quartz behind the guard, grinning like a Great Tooth Shark.

"Quartz! Why are you here?" Stratus yelled in shock and amazement.

"Shh!" the guard whispered at Stratus, "I'm breaking you out. I have no idea what my mom was thinking, imprisoning you because she was scared that other dragons would imprison you!"

"Wait," Stratus questioned, "Basalt?!" Basalt took off the metal helmet, his sleek gold and red scales glinting in the little light from the dungeon.

Before Stratus could question them, Basalt said, "C'mon! We don't have much time!" The three friends ran as quietly as they could go through the dungeon. A few moments later, they came across a guard. "Stay calm," Basalt told them. "I got this."

"What do you think you're doing with those prisoners?" the guard asked angrily. Stratus could tell that the guard was furious.

"I'm just showing them where everything is," Basalt replied calmly. Even though Basalt sounded calm, Stratus knew he was terrified by the twitch of his tail and how he tensed.

"Alright," the guard replied, reluctant about Basalt's excuse. Once there were no guards in sight, they continued to head toward the exit.

"That was some quick thinking!" Quartz whispered to Basalt. "You just saved our lives!"

"Yeah, thanks," Stratus said, more quietly than Quartz. "How are we going to get through the exit? There are guards there, too."

"Oh... I haven't thought about that," Basalt replied, losing hope.

"We'll figure it out," Quartz said, trying to bring Basalt's and Stratus' hopes up. They slowly approached the exit, hoping things would turn out their way.

"Hey!" a guard yelled from the middle watchtower, preparing to throw his spear. "What are you doing?"

"Don't you think the queen isn't being logical?" Basalt asked, slowly approaching the exit. "These two prisoners have already been out in the world. Why is Queen Tambora taking them and torturing them? Doesn't she want to get King Volcano back? These two are trying to do just that."

"Hmm..." the guard thought. Stratus and Quartz held their breath as they listened to the guards. They stood there in silence for a while but eventually a guard replied. "I get it. But we'll take you captive again if you don't save the King."

"We'll tell the queen about this," another guard said.

"Deal," Stratus and Quartz said. The guard opened the gate and let them out. Once they were out, they let out a sigh of relief.

"Phew!" Quartz said. "We can't thank you enough, Basalt."

"No problem!" Basalt replied. "Now, I think you guys need to get out of here as fast as you can, since you're still probably wanted. Also, I hope Queen Tambora won't yell at me and lecture me for letting you two escape. I'll be okay, though."

"We'll leave as soon as we can," Stratus said, still thankful for Basalt. "Thanks for rescuing us."

"I'm hungry," Quartz said.

"We'll go hunting," Stratus told Quartz, "and we'll leave right after."

"Okay," Basalt replied. "See you!" Stratus and Quartz flew off, beating their wings in the cold dawn air.

"I think we should fly out of BlazeWing territory before we hunt," Quartz said, and Stratus nodded her agreement. They flew the rest of the way in silence, seeing as they didn't want to be heard by the other BlazeWings. Once they were out of the BlazeWing kingdom, they started to relax. Then Quartz spotted a cow a little ways away, letting out a low moo and bending down to graze on the long grasses. He dived, his wings folding to his sides, but just barely missed the cow. Stratus swooped down and while the cow was focused on Quartz, Stratus killed it. Stratus started dividing the cow up, but Quartz stopped her.

"I'm too hungry for that. Let's just forget about being clean and just eat it! They starved us!" Stratus rolled her eyes at Quartz, but pulled her claws away and started eating.

"Oh!" Quartz exclaimed. "I feel so much better now!"

"Me too," Stratus said, still chewing the rest of her share. Once they were finished, they cleaned up the scraps, burying them underneath a thick bush, and continued flying.

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"WHAT!?" Queen Tambora shouted from inside the palace. The whole tribe could probably hear her screaming in anger. "Why did you let them escape?"

"Yeah," a guard said. "We let them escape. We promised we would capture them if they didn't end up saving the King. By the way, Basalt helped the two escape the dungeon."

"That is not needed," Queen Tambora said, finally calming down. "I am going to get my hands on Stratus and Quartz if it is the last thing I'll do. For now, I am going to punish you for letting them go. I will find another way to punish Basalt for helping Stratus and Quartz escape the prison."

"How are you going to get them back?" a guard asked, curious. "Are you going to use Ash again?"

"No," Queen Tambora replied. "I have something very special I'm going to use. Now it's time for you three to go to the dungeon."

"Please! NO!" the guards all shouted.

"I will personally escort you three to the dungeon. Then I will talk with Basalt and decide what to do with him. I won't put him in the dungeon, but I will still punish him somehow." Queen Tambora said. "Come on, now!" The guards did as they were told and followed the Queen, afraid the Queen would kill them if they didn't do as told. Tambora led the guards to a very small prison cell and shoved them into it. The prison cell had nothing inside, aside from a tiny window. The dragons could barely see anything in the darkness of it, since there were no windows. "Enjoy your stay here! Make yourself comfortable; you'll be here for a very long time. Guards, make sure these three stay here until they learn their lesson. If you let them go, the same thing will happen to you."

"Yes, Queen Tambora," the guards said in unison. Then, Queen Tambora flew out of the dungeon and back to the palace.

She was still angry that Stratus and Quartz had gotten away, but she had a backup plan in her mind. "I will capture those two! Stratus and Quartz! Mark my words! You may have escaped this time, but I'm going to get my claws on you two!" the queen yelled through gritted teeth.