Hidden Wings

Chapter 12

Sorry again about length of the last couple chapters. Hopefully this one will seem longer with all the activity.
   Anyway, I would like to dedicate this chapter to Tranquil_Twilight who is an amazing person (and also my sister,) so please go check out her page! She should have her short story up soon if not already, but any support you can offer her will be so greatly appreciated! She is new to writing and to Wattpad, so please please please go and check her out! Thank you and happy writing! 😄

   Angelica's eyes widened in horror as a collective gasp rose from the crowd of watching dragons. Maria felt frozen in shock. You promised. You said you could do it. You said... Maria could feel her wings shaking. All of a sudden, everyone's eyes were on her. So she was the only one who saw Vycan take a step back, then another, then whirl take off toward the forest, completely free.
  "Stop him! He's getting away!" Maria snapped out of her shock and jumped off the ground, beating her wings wildly to rise faster into the air. The soldiers a who had been watching her suddenly came to life and lifted off together.
   The black dragon turned around and watched the oncoming wave of dragons, a cold, calculating look in his eye. The first dragons reached him, and chaos broke out.
   Vycan was clearly in his element. He was a dark blur, slashing and dodging and clawing every dragon in sight, and no one had been able to overcome him. Finally Maria fought her past the crowd of dragons to the front, close to Vycan. She thought she heard Spry call her name, but she didn't turn around.
   Vycan ducked swiftly under a vicious claw swipe and suddenly locked eyes with Maria. In the blink of an eye he was right next to her, his claws set against her throat. Maris stiffened. The line of dragons rolled back a few feet as the soldiers cowered in fear.
   Vycan snarled at them. "Come any closer and you know what will happen." His voice was a low growl. "Her blood is toxic, and I'm not afraid to use it." Maria hissed at him, but he only pushed his claws harder against her soft underscales.
   The guards held their ground, not coming closer, but not flying away, either. Until a dragon the color of emeralds rose up out of the crowd. Maria felt her heart leap and drop at the same time. It was Spryvern.
   "Back. Off." Vycan hissed at him.
   Spry's eyes were full of loyalty and determination. "Never."
   And then Vycan's claws were ripping through the scales on the side of her neck and the spray of blood was flying toward Spry, spraying across his chest and neck as he tried to get away. Awful screams of terror and pain erupted everywhere and Spry was falling, limp, toward the trees, smoke trailing from his scales.
   No. Maria wasn't sure if it was her screaming or Spry or everyone, but she had to get to him. She shoved Vycan away and dove toward her friend, shock dulling the intense pain in her neck. Spry hit the ground a few feet in front of her, and Maria crash-landed next to him. She stood gingerly, stumbling to his side. The dark red spray seemed to be dissolving into his scales, bubbling and smoking furiously.    "How do I fix this?" Maria murmured, tears clouding her vision.
   Spry's eyes opened and he reached out toward her weakly, his claws brushing the pendant around her neck then falling back to his chest as his gritted his teeth in pain.
    Maria's claws closed on the necklace. "The Crystal? But it's only-" then she thought back to Spry's exact words. "Some dragons believe that it has power beyond that, but no one know what that would be. They say that's it's activated by... Well, no one knows, really." Maria took the necklace off and held it in her trembling talons. The silver dragon's eye gleamed out at her, and she noticed something she hadn't before. The row of spikes down the dragon's back were concealing something. She took a closer look. Down between two large spines, were a pair of tiny wings, hidden from any viewer who failed to see beneath the surface.
   Maria touched one of the wings, pushing down slightly. The wings both bent, snapping downward as the dragon's jaw swung open, revealing that the inside was hollow. Maria stared from the dragon to Spry and back, then tentatively touched its open mouth to one of his wounds. The bright red liquid started to disappear, as if the dragon was drinking it up. Once it was gone, it left a blackened scar, but nothing that wouldn't heal. She moved to the next wound, and then the next and the next, talons shaking, until finally the burning had stopped. She lifted the Crystal and closed the silver dragon's tiny mouth, setting it down beside her.
   "Spry?"
   The green dragon was still, then, slowly, he opened his eyes. Maria made a sound of joy, pulling him to his feet and wrapping her wings around him. He laughed quietly, leaning into her and fitting his own wings into her's.
   "I was so scared," she whispered into his ear.
   Spry pulled her even closer. "You were so brave."