Wings of Fire #1: Sahara's Destiny

Chapter 7

Back in the Kingdom of Sand, Sahara and Fennec flew away from the tunnel. The tunnel then, collapsed back into the sand. I need to remember how to get back to this place. Sahara thought. There was nothing but open desert, but she saw a small oasis to her right and a patch of cacti to her left. So, she figured the tunnel would be somewhere in the middle. It was around midnight and the chilly air ran through Sahara's warm scales. Fennec swooped beside her and smiled.

"What are you so upset about?" she asked. Sahara didn't answer and drooped her head. "Are you mad that we left that weird place? Everything is so weird; how could you like it there?"

"That place isn't weird." Sahara protested. "It's a village that very few dragons know about. The village has dragons from different tribes and they have very special abilities. They have a huge city with a library and lots of campfires and huts. Its almost like all the gifted dragons go and live there. But you can't see that! The dragons there are kind and have respect for one another." Fennec winced and Sahara glared at her.

Fennec didn't say anything and they kept flying in silence. Sahara wanted to turn back and go to the tunnel, but she didn't want Fennec following her. She'd have to remember how to get back when Fennec wasn't around.

They flew until they could see the Scorpion Den in the distance. Sahara made a fire and they tried to relax. Fennec curled herself into a ball and had a pout on her face. She muttered something to herself and tucked her head under her wing. Sahara perched herself on a sand dune and glanced up at the sky. All the stars and two of the moons shined down on them. One moon was full while the other was halfway. Sahara kept thinking about that horrible feeling when her talons shook violently.

Was it only temporarily or was it a sign? Was the shaking in her talons trying to tell her something? She couldn't feel the shaking anymore, but that slight tingle still remained. Sahara rested her head on her talons and sighed. She closed her eyes and went into a deep sleep.

:Dream:

Sahara woke up in the Sky Kingdom. She tilted her head and stared at the huge SkyWing palace. She closed her eyes and when she opened them again, she was in the throne room. Sahara scowled and walked down a red and yellow carpet. She glanced up and saw a copper-scaled SkyWing sitting on the throne. The SkyWing smiled and grinned with all her teeth. "What's your name, SandWing?" she asked, politely.

"Sahara." Sahara replied. She looked around and saw more and more SkyWings in the room. "Who are you?"

"Queen Topaz, but you may call me Topaz if you'd like." Topaz bowed. Sahara studied the SkyWing queen and a flash of white light appeared in Sahara's mind as a sudden memory came to her. All she could see was a dark and dead place covered in ash. A green and pink dragon in the background and a strange dragon coming from the volcano. The image disappeared and her eyes returned to normal.

Queen Topaz was staring at her with wide eyes and Sahara cleared her blurry vision. Topaz flicked her tail and a green and pink SeaWing appeared from the shadows.

The SeaWing studied Sahara with suscpicious eyes and the SkyWing queen whispered something in the sea dragon's ear. "Do you know Dolphin?" the SeaWing asked. Sahara nodded. "How long has it been since you've been able to do that?" she quizzed.

Sahara thought for a moment and curled her tail in. "Two days." Sahara answered.

"What's your name?" Sahara wondered. "I'm Pearl. Dolphin's sister." Pearl hissed. "And you must be her new animus." Sahara nodded and Pearl growled.

Sahara took a step back, but the SkyWings blocked her from the door. Pearl started stalking towards her and the SeaWing hissed. This was the SeaWing Stargazer was talking about. Even though he didn't describe what she looked like, Sahara could tell it was Pearl, even without having to hear her name. Sahara tried to find a way out, but every window she saw was sealed. She glanced back at Pearl and thought for a second. Was it possible for her to use her animus magic while she was dreaming? Would it work? Suddenly, Pearl lunged at her and pinned Sahara to the cold stone floor. "I wonder if it's possible to kill someone in their dreams?" Pearl sneered.

"Well, there's only one way to find out." Sahara said. Sahara quickly plucked one of Pearl's pearls from some hanging from one of her horns and held it tight. Pearl's eyes were wide and she stared at the forming stone in Sahara's talons. The pearl quickly turned into a stone and it whacked itself into Pearl's snout. The SeaWing staggered back until she was off of Sahara and yowled in pain.

Sahara got up and charged out of the throne room. She ran as fast as she could through the halls until she got to the courtyard. Sahara looked back and saw SkyWings flying after her. She took to the air and tried to wake herself up. Even as hard as she tried, nothing worked. When she looked back again, only one SkyWing was chasing her. "Wait!" the SkyWing called.

Sahara stopped and hovered. This SkyWing wasn't chasing her, but trying to follow her.

"Sahara, right?" he asked. She nodded and he exhaled, as if relieved for her to have stopped. He spiralled down to land in a small clearing and Sahara fiddled with her pouch.

"I'm Falcon. I need your help. I saw Topaz and Pearl as they came into the palace yesterday. At first, I didn't recognize her, but then I saw Pearl. I knew something was wrong and I needed to get to Dolphin. I'm on my way to the Kingdom of Sand, but Pearl made three dragons to try and stop me. So I figured you knew who Dolphin was and I could come to you. I just need to know where in the Kingdom of Sand I can meet you." Sahara blinked and considered Falcon's statement.

If that really was true, Sahara would be happy to help him.

"Meet me outside the Scorpion Den. I'll be taking a fly out that evening near one of the oases." Sahara confirmed. Falcon nodded and he disappeared.

Sahara woke up to shaking. Fennec was shaking her and calling her name in Sahara's ear. Sahara opened her eyes and yawned. "Sahara, what happened?" Fennec worried. "I sudden woke up last night and saw your eyes glowing white. What did those dragons do to you?" Sahara sat up and rubbed her eyes.

"That happens a lot." she shrugged. "It just randomly occurs."

Fennec frowned and crossed her arms. "I never see it." Fennec scoffed.

"Nevermind. It doesn't matter." Sahara dismissed. They began flying again and they reached the Scorpion Den by noon. The city was rushing with dragons as they walked through the streets. Mostly SandWings were gathering by the oasis. What's going on? Sahara wondered. They followed them to the oasis and found the SandWing princess and prince standing in the middle of the crowd. Fennec led her through the crowd towards the front.

"Fellow dragons," Princess Pebble announced. "We have very important news for you." Prince Dune was pacing next to her and he lashed his tail. "We have a new SkyWing queen." Pebble chirped. "Queen Topaz." The SandWings whispered and muttered to one another and Sahara gasped quietly.

She'd seen the SkyWing queen in her dream she had that night. It was almost like her dreams were trying to tell her something. Now, she expected to see Falcon fly in. "I don't like that SkyWing." Dune snarled. "Something just doesn't sound right about that name." Pebble flicked his snout with her wing and snorted.

"Topaz is a great name." she protested. Dune rolled his eyes and glared at the ground. "Anyway, me, Dune, and Queen Camel are going to go to the Sky Kingdom and meet her. We'll take a few guards with us, but we won't be long." the princess giggled. They both walked out of the crowd and back to the stronghold. Sahara started to worry about the royal SandWing family's safety. What if the SkyWing queen or even Pearl decide to keep them hostage? What if they were captured and killed? "We'll be leaving tomorrow morning." Dune said as they turned the corner.

Tomorrow, that means I could have time to go and warn them. Sahara thought. But she had a feeling that they wouldn't believe her. They'd just laugh and pretend she wasn't even there. Useless. Her mind hissed. Sahara sighed and kept her mind focused on her main goal, meeting Falcon.