Wings of Fire: A Destiny Found

~CHAPTER 8~

       Glow, revitalized, soared through the bright sky, following close by Frigga and followed by her three fellow apprentices. The SkyWing queen's palace was in sight and as much as Glow was dreading what could happen, she admired the stately glory the palace emanated from the mountains.

       Yet, Glow wasn't worried for her own sake as much as for Kite after that morning. She promised she'd protect him from his mother if she was there and tried to take him away. But something was telling her that she might not be able to keep that promise. I couldn't just tell him "I'll try my best." That's not exactly reassuring. But, then again, neither was making a promise that she wasn't sure she could keep. She felt an overwhelming sense of dread.

       She unconsciously flew closer to him and Evenstar and turned her attention to possible code of conduct when they arrived. "Sooooo, what should we do once we get there, master?" She called from the back. Frigga turned towards her and addressed all of them directly.

       "First of all, don't try and haggle with Queen Scarlet. She's not one to give up her gold or jewels. If she desires to purchase something from you, the price she decides is final." She began. Glow was taking notes. Dying was the last thing she wanted to do, after all. "Second, try not to openly disagree with her. You either stay neutral, or agree with her. She's certainly not a dragon you wish to make enemies with.

       "Third, you must accept whatever she wishes to offer you, though be cautious. She has a habit of poisoning her guests for her entertainment. And finally, simply read my social queues and you'll be alright. If you have any questions while we're there, you may ask. I've dealt with and sold to Queen Scarlet before. She responds well to flattery." She finished explaining. Well, I certainly hope I'm not going to have a hard time remembering any of this.

       Corona turned to Glow and gagged. "Ugh, gross. How much more annoying can Queen Scarlet get?" She held out her talons and started counting them. "Extremely vain, covered in glitter and gold, psychopathic, violent and crazy, has a MASSIVE ego, that's quite the painful list of characteristics." The SandWing said unenthusiastically.

       Glow nodded and swallowed hard. Now she really wasn't looking forward to meeting Scarlet face-to-face. As if seeing her kill Dune in cold blood made me feel good about it before. She thought with a shudder. She felt Corona brush her wing gently and give her a sly smile that she did to cheer Glow up. "Chin up, Glow. It'll be fine–Frigga's gonna make sure that everything goes smoothly, okay?" Corona reassured. She wasn't one to have faith in most dragons, so seeing her put her faith in Frigga and Glow made her feel a lot better. Not completely better, but a lot better.

       About an hour of flying passed before they saw a group of SkyWings on a cliff on the mountainside. Frigga banked towards them and the rest followed behind her. Glow was panicking inside, not sure how to handle the situation. Oh no. These are soldiers! And there are a lot of them! Her head started rushing with scenarios where they're captured and taken to Queen Scarlet or killed...or both. Glow wasn't sure if her teeth were chattering because it was cold, or because she was scared, but she hoped to the moons that it wasn't the latter. That'd be pretty embarrassing. "Hey Glow, relax. You'll be fine." Evenstar's voice chimed in beside her. "This is no different from the other times we've sold things. They're just typical patrons."

       They lighted down on the cliff and the SkyWings turned around quickly to them. Seeing their packs full of merchandise, and the white capes they donned, the SkyWing soldiers put their weapons away and the smoke curling out of their nostrils ceased. "Good morning, good SkyWing patrons." Frigga greeted them. A large muscular dark orange SkyWing with scars across his left cheek and a broken horn stepped forward.