Wings of Fire: A Game for Glory

Chapter 10: The Unsullied

"They may suit our needs," Envy says as he examined the army of armored dragons. "Tell me, what is their training?"

After the deal with Lady Sahara, the next day, the SandWing agreed to let Envy and Newt take a look at their new soldiery. The armored dragons stood side by side, as still as the dragons they killed, eyes unblinking as they awaited their lord at his behest. They watched their new master walk towards them.

 Their armor was shiny, a dull luster shone softly in the morning sun, cuts, scrapes and dents still covered the armor from when it was used. A set of segmented plates protected the dragon's necks, and a plate of armor, personally shaped to fit the soldier's face, extended from the soldier's head to their muzzle. The SandWing soldiers had spaces that let the ridges that went from their head and about a quarter from their tails to stick out.

"Their loyalty is absolute. They've been trained to master the ways of almost every dragon's fighting style, including the SkyWing's," Sahara says as she slowly walked towards them. The army instinctively moved inwards, creating a passageway for the SandWing, leading towards another cave that was quite hidden within the hues green of the leaves and overgrown vines. From a few feet away, a dragon would never suspect it to be a cave, instead, just another part of the forest and would walk off. Newt and Envy glanced at each other, utterly confused.

"Come," Sahara says, a smile forming on her face. "We'll take about the Vilkra army over breakfast."

Sahara gently pushed the vines and overgrowth away, allowing it to fall to the floor. The mouth of the cave only had impenetrable blackness, and Envy stepped in, watching his shadow dissolve into the surrounding darkness. When Newt stepped into the darkness, he vanished completely, though his translucent blue horns were could still be seen. 

 Envy's night-vision was quickly activated in the dark, before Sahara  walked inside, blowing a small portion of flame onto a torch that was posted near the entryway.  All of a sudden, flaming torches sparked to life, lighting up the tunnel ahead and bathing the entire cavern in a flickering orange glow. It happened so fast that Envy and Newt flinched, and Sahara chuckled.

Sahara lead the two through the narrow tunnels, following the torches that lit her way. "So, how did you two get here? Why are you two away from your homes?" She asks.

"Banished from the Ice Kingdom, all because of my heritage," Newt says quickly. "Envy and I encounter Queen Ruby, and hell, I was not in the mood for being captured by her. Luckily, Green-Wings had stabbed that cow-brained queen right into her tail. Gave us enough time to escape."

"Ah, so that's why my patrols stated to see a fleet of SkyWings swarming around our home." Sahara laughed lightly. "What about you, NightWing? Why are you away from your family?"

"My father was a greedy, avaricious bastard," Envy scoffed. "And unfortunately, my mother agreed to his plans about excessive training. Painful training that would not give me any rest-- and I just snapped. I attacked my father and left. Hopefully, finding this enchanted pearl will stop all of this mess." 

"And you need my army because...?" Sahara swatted at a spider that hung from the ceiling, from the thin, barely visible silk. Once Envy walked past it, he heard Newt yelp, and he heard the dragon freeze the small creature to death with his deadly frostbite breath. Envy opened his mouth to speak.

"We need the army because most likely, the other tribes are going to destroy anything that gets in their way. Anything. Even with Newt and I's abilities, a simple sneak attack could kill us. An army ensures our safety, and maybe even a victory."

 The huge mahogany table took up most of the vast space the dark, romantic room offered, left without a tablecloth and daring guests to ruin the perfectly varnished shine with their unworthy clawprints. Two tall, silver candelabras commanded attention from the center of the table, holding smooth white candles whose wax never dripped. There was nothing else in the cavern except torches that hung on the walls. "Please, sit," Sahara offers. Envy walk to the table, near the candles' flame that flickered beautifully. Newt sat next to him, a few inches away so he could give his friend some space. However, Newt was so short that he could barely reach the table. "Oh for the love of--" Newt hissed as he jumped up and down, yelling with frustration. Envy covered his mouth as he began to snicker at Newt's struggle.

"Sienna!" Sahara yells. "Get the pigs for me, please? Our guests need food."

A few minutes later, a red-brown MudWing with yellow eyes walks into the dining cave, a sliver, ornate plate of fried hog and one hog that was raw in her mouth. She yelps as she almost drops the food when the raw pig was beginning to slide to the right, and she tilts her head left, keeping the pig balanced. "Here you go!" Sienna beams as she gently laid the plate onto the table. She pushed the plate with one of her talons so it would be placed in the middle. "Thank you, Sienna," Sahara said as she pushed the plate of food in front of the faces of Envy. 

"Do you need a seat, Newt?" Sahara says, noting how small the IceWing was.

"....Yes." Newt huffed as a chilling mist slowly escaped his nostrils, the haze sinking to the ground before vanishing.

Sahara trotted out of the cavern, soon coming back with a large rock that she kept on her back. She set the rock down, and Newt gladly scrambled onto it. He was barely the height of Envy even while he was on the rock, but at least he could reach the table. He dug his talons into the raw pig, slicing off pieces of meat and happily feasting on it. Envy waited for Newt to stop hogging  up the food.

"I guess I should continue on about my army," the SandWing says as she sat down across from the IceWing and NightWing. "The reason being for this brutal, excessive training is because I do not want to see any weakness from them. One little reveal of vulnerability can mean the death of my dragons, and even my entire army."

"My dragons?" Newt chimed in, gulping down a piece of pig meat before he spoke again. "You rule over these dragons?"

Sahara nods, tapping her talons onto the wooden table, creating a soft, rhythmic beat. "I am the leader of the refuge," she answers. "I protect the dragons who escape their homes, for whatever reason. However, I do not hold criminals." Sahara's tongue flicked. "I've collected wounded soldiers who has been abandoned by their tribe, and I trained determined, strong-willed dragonets to prepare them for my military. Nevertheless, not many dragonets survive this vigorous training. The ones who do, though, are the most skilled soldier anyone could ever have."

Sahara sighs, her ears turning back, showing her discomfort. "I am only giving you dragons my army because I trust that you will keep your word, and help my refugees," she says. "It seems stupid to give up my entire army for free... but, you proved yourself worthy. To me, at least."

"We won't let you down," Envy states. "Nor will we let Pyrrhia down."

Envy turned his head towards the food on the plate, his stomach rumbling lowly. Both of the pig carcasses were almost gone, and he snorted with anger. Newt smiled nervously, and moved back, offering the last bits of food to his large friend. Envy rolled his eyes, but still tore off the remaining chucks of meat from the hog. Sahara smiled lightly. "When you two are finished, we can take a closer look at the army."

  ☆.｡.:*　　.｡.:*☆ 

Envy stood in front of the supposedly unsullied army of dragons. They stood in perfectly straight lines going vertical, two lines for each section. Envy was surprised Lady Sahara could even manage to get these many dragons. Each face was impassive, not a trace on it to say they know where they are or what they are about to do. 

Envy has never been a commander before, or any type of leader in his life. But, this was his army now-- and Newt's-- and if he was bond to command an army to save Pyrrhia, then so be it. Newt stepped forward, next to Envy, his chest pumped out with dignity. Even with Newt's size, Envy could easily tell that the IceWing still took pride in his abilities, and now, his rank. Second-in-command was the rank Envy offered. Newt was quick to agree-- now, the weight of regulating the military, the care of the soldiers, and whatnot, was now on Envy's shoulders, and he was fine with that. 

Envy blinked, his heart beating abnormally fast as he grew nervous. He rose his talons into the sky.

"Vilkra!" Envy yells, extending his wings. The army stomped their talons onto the ground in unison, to convey their loyalty and obedience to their new commanders. Newt flared his wings with excitement, his tail wagging.

And now, Envy and Newt had an army.