Wings of Fire: Tangled in Darkness (Paused)

Chapter 14

Everything went dark. It collapsed like a bumblebee being smashed, but the stinger still filled with poison.

Monarch looked up and laughed. "No, no, no. This is a joke, right? Some kind of prank? My parents were fine and my brother- my brother was smiling! NO! They're at home, they have to be!" She looked toward Ivy who looked as if she would burst with sympathy. She looked at Left, who shook her head.

"It's not a joke, Monarch." She said, "I will leave you with your grief." Left looked at Hawkmoth, who looked shocked, then walked away.

Monarch crumpled onto the floor, crying out, tears streaming down her face. "No! NO, NO, NO! THEY CAN'T BE. MY MOM-" She stopped crying harder. "Mom- she, I was so mean to her. I didn't apologize." She looked at Ivy, who had a single tear falling from her eye.

"SHE HATES ME!" Monarch cried. She wanted to die. How could she live without anyone, anyone who knew her? How could she keep going, when she had no one to keep her motivated? No one to hug her, say, 'It's alright. You can do it, keep pushing forward until your dream is in your talons.'

She couldn't comprehend this and was about to slam her talon on the ground when Ivy grasped her and shook her until Monarch met her eyes.

"They're not dead yet." Ivy hissed at her. "Left just said they couldn't find them, but that doesn't mean they're dead. You are not allowed to fall apart until you see a dead body!"

Realization struck her. That was true. Deep down Monarch knew they were gone, but what Ivy said gave her a molecule of hope.

"Come on." Ivy helped her up and wiped the tears from Monarch's eyes. "We're going to find them. And I think I have a good idea of where they are."

Suddenly, a loud commotion sounded from outside, and Ivy jumped up, her tail lashing, her teeth bared, and her talons clenched. She narrowed her eyes and almost yelped. She turned and shoved Monarch into a pile of blankets, covering her so her orange scales couldn't be seen.

"What the-" She started, but Ivy shushed her. Monarch rubbed her eyes, wiping away the tears, trying to see through the blankets.

"It's the guards that chased us out of the hotel." Monarch's heart plunged. They were here? In the orphanage? What were they doing here?

Looking for me. She realized. Oh no. Stay very, very, VERY still, Monarch. She peeked out one slit in between the blankets, watching as four HiveWings ran up to Ivy and Hawkmoth.

They carried no spears but had lots of little brown pouches wrapped around their chest and backs, kind of like the little pouches the LeafWings wore. They were slumped at the bottom as if something heavy was in them.

Monarch was surprised to see Hawkmoth standing up tall and facing the HiveWings, but his tail still shivered with fear.

The biggest HiveWing approached Ivy. The LeafWing sneered, standing up on her hind legs to seem bigger. "What do you want?" She hissed. "We're already out of your way after you chased us out of the hotel!"

The HiveWing's wings buzzed. "We don't want you. We want the SilkWing. Tell us where she is!" The HiveWing hissed loudly, pulling her tail around to reveal a stinger as sharp as a kitchen knife. Monarch felt a tear fall.

Don't get killed for me. Don't die, please Ivy! She couldn't lose Ivy too. 

Hawkmoth shimmered his scales, and said, "We don't know who you're talking about. We escaped with a SilkWing, but we had no idea who she was." He hesitated for a moment, then said, "And why were you chasing us anyways?"

The HiveWing growled, and said to her companions, "Search the area. She's here somewhere." Monarch gasped, and the HiveWing snapped her head around, staring straight at the pile of blankets Monarch was hiding in.

Don't move, don't move, don't move, don't move. She held her breath and closed her eyes. Please if anybody's listening please help me. Clearsight?

She had never believed in their great ancestor before. After everyone found out that the book was fake, Monarch had the theory that maybe a dragon had forged the future and guessed it all.

But all her history books said otherwise, and she was inclined to listen to the real, knowledge-filled books instead of her own judgment.

What would a book tell me to do right now? Jump out and possibly save my friends but get murdered in the process, or stay hidden and risk my friend's safety?

She tried to think of all the books she'd read before about safety. It was mostly how to protect yourself from jaguars or how to get out of quicksand, and there were certainly no topics on what to do if four HiveWings were threatening your friends.

"Tell us why you want her and we'll give her to you," Ivy said, holding out her talons.

Monarch almost shouted, "What?", until she remembered to stay quiet. Is she serious?

The biggest HiveWing growled and said, "Our Lord wants her. She is a special SilkWing, with a special power. We were holding three dragons ransom, but she never showed up."

Three dragons? That must be my family! Ivy was right! She wanted to jump out and let them take her, all she wanted to do was be in her family's wings.

But then the other thing the HIveWing said reached her. What did he mean she had a special power? Am I a flame silk? I haven't had my metamorphosis yet, and my parents aren't. What did he mean?

With a jump, she remembered her metamorphosis. It was in two days.

Ivy turned toward Monarch, digging her out. What? No, Ivy, stop!

She didn't know how to feel right now. She wanted to go to her parents, but Ivy was also giving her away.

As the LeafWing touched Monarch's talon, she whispered, "Don't worry. I'll come and get you. Please forgive me for this."

And then she wrapped Monarch up in her talons, and pushed her to the HiveWings.