Wings of Fire: Flame of Vengeance

Prologue

The skies roared with thunder as lightning lit up the dark night with brilliant flashes. The wind began whipping with the intensity of a raging river, accumulating enough force to bend scrawny trees all the way to the grass. The sky's sudden transition from calm to buck-wild made it clear a heavy storm was brewing. After a few seconds, heavy rain flooded the land with great ferocity. On top of a mountain, a large dragon sat still on its peak. His face was riddled with battle scars from what could have been a ferocious battle, his head sporting a broken left horn. His scales were a dark orange hue mashed together with a brownish-red underside. In addition, his massive wings were bright yellow in contrast to his more drab body. The dragon was undoubtedly a SkyWing, and a battle-worn soldier at that. The SkyWing's lime-green eyes rested on a lake down below. He gripped the edge of the mountain, his talons digging into the rock. The rain poured down onto his back, but the SkyWing paid no mind to the downpour of freezing-cold droplets drizzling down his back. The sound of wingbeats ripped the dragon's attention from the lake. Turning his head, he took notice of a slightly smaller SkyWing landing right next to him. Her topside was crimson red while her underside sported gold coloring. The bumpy ridges over her light-blue eyes were gold as well. She sported her own cluster of battle scars on her left shoulder and back. Despite her size, there was something about her aura that demanded respect.

"Nothing yet?" The female SkyWing asked. The male Skywing scratched his throat with a talon.

"No. We haven't spotted the fugitive. I have a whole squadron looking for her. She's more cunning that we ever thought." The male replied with gritted teeth. The female SkyWing growled, clawing the ground.

"Falcon, go back to the palace. Get yourself some food and rest. You've earned it." The female SkyWing ordered. Falcon nodded his head.

"Thank you, Commander Hawk." Falcon replied, before spreading his wings and taking off into the sky. Hawk stared into the sky, narrowing her eyes.
"You can't hide forever..." Hawk warned the air. Flashes of lightning blazed all over the storm-ridden skies.

***

A large SkyWing soared above the lake at impressive speeds. She sported bright orange scales on her body and a light beige underside. The right half of her face was horribly burnt, revealing part of her jawbone and a dislocated lower eyelid. A necklace bearing rubies and emeralds was wrapped around the dragon's throat. The SkyWing snarled as she spotted three SkyWing soldiers speeding towards her. One of the soldiers opened his jaws and shot a large blast of fire at the SkyWing. The female banked to the right, dodging the blast. The fire smashed into the ground, creating a massive cloud of smoke. The female SkyWing dove inside the billowing tower of smoke, seemingly disappearing from sight. The three soldiers hovered over the cloud, searching the smoke for their target.

"Spread out! We need to find that SkyWing before she escapes!" The leader shouted. The two other soldiers swirled around the smoke, attempting to locate the female SkyWing. All of a sudden, diving from the upper area of the cloud, the female SkyWing tackled the squadron leader and threw him onto the ground. Before the soldier could retaliate, the female SkyWing dug her talons into his head and crushed the SkyWing's skull in, killing the dragon instantly. The two other SkyWing soldiers charged the female and grabbed her. The female quickly threw the duo off her and grabbed one of the two soldiers by the wings, slicing the leathery membranes and shattering his wing bones in a successful attempt to cripple th soldier. The soldier let out a pained scream that was quickly shut off when the female SkyWing slashed his throat with her talons. Blood gushed out of the wound as the soldier grasped the bleeding throat while struggling to stand, blood rushing out of his mouth after a failed attempt to yelp. The female SkyWing clamped her jaws on the soldier's neck and crushed it, ending the suffering dragon's life. Dropping the soldier's corpse, the female SkyWing turned to the remaining soldier, who began trembling with fear. The remaining SkyWing soldier attempted to flee, only for the female SkyWing to pin him down. She lowered her head close to his, bearing her sharp dagger-like teeth.

"Listen here, you worthless, miserable excuse of a SkyWing. You are to go back to the SkyWing kingdom and give your "queen" this message: I, Queen Scarlet, will reclaim my throne. And NO ONE will stand in my way." Scarlet proclaimed. The soldier quietly nodded fearfully. Scarlet released him and watched with amusement as the terrified soldier shakily flew off towards the SkyWing kingdom. A sinister smile creeped onto Scarlet's face.