Wings of Fire: A Twisted Future - Broken Visions

Chapter 13

Quietkeep refused to sit up. Whoever it was, he was too sleepy to recognize their voice, could wait till morning. Minutes passed, Quietkeep slowly drifting back to sleep, when claws rapped on the door. His ears instinctively flicked up, and then shot back down in hope that the dragon didn't see that. Just the reaction they wanted. A response.

''C'mon, NightWing, we don't have all night,'' a saltier, irritated voice called right after. Quietkeep's heart began to race, his brain spinning, trying to uncover who these dragons are without raising his head. A scoff, and the scratch of claws. Good, it worked--

Something sank its long, serrated claws into the back of his neck and hauled him up with a grunt as the black dragonet yelped. Who dared? Can't a dragonet get a bit of peace and quiet? When he tried to wriggle away, Quietkeep realized that it would only hurt him more, so he went still. Moments later, the claws retracted and he was dropped on the cold stone floor of the hallway, landing with a thud on his side.

''Do you not have a shred of resp-'' he was about to say, but then he glanced up and saw Permafrost, her claws twitching. ''Oh, uh, hi, Permafrost.'' The IceWing looked troubled, for once. Her silver-blue scales were glowing in the moonlight from the small windows, illuminating half of her body to look like she was made of moonstones. Quietkeep tipped his head at her twitching claws, and suddenly she lunged, pinning him to the walls. He yelped, scrabbling at her stomach.

''Have you realized Fennec acting weird?'' she growled, curling her neck back to tower over the trapped dragonet. If you want an answer, let go of me, you IceWing! He was glad she couldn't read minds. Instead, he said ''Can we stop with all the aggression?'' Permafrost arched a brow, loosening her grip lightly, letting the NightWing crumple to the floor. He gasped for breath, disliking the way she glared down at him with those malevolent eyes. ''Sorry,'' she grumbled unexpectedly, flashes of white, navy and red swirling like a blizzard in her mind. Quietkeep couldn't understand it, no matter how long he trespassed into her private little alcove. ''Usually, I have to force dragons to get answers out of them, so I prepare myself and trap 'em before they even consider my presence.'' The IceWing shrugged, her wings quivering.

''Well, um, to answer that question,'' he stammered, kicking with his hind legs to get a more comfortable position against the wall, glancing at the IceWing's huge wings acting as shields to trap him inside. ''Y-yes, last time I saw her she was all frantic about a scroll or something. I'm not entirely sure.'' Permafrost tipped her head, that clearly being the right answer. 

''Good, that makes three of us so far,'' she muttered, turning away and beckoning to Quietkeep with her tail. ''Come.'' The NightWing opened and closed his mouth a few times, unable to come up with something as a reply, so he followed. She led him up the winding path, past the entrance hall and down the tunnel on the other side of the hall. Quietkeep flicked a glance at the huge golden gong in the middle, his scales rippling with unease, feeling as though he was being watched, and sped up toward Permafrost. The IceWing loomed over him. She was almost an entire dragon head taller, her shoulder brushing the bottom of his neck as they padded side by side toward the library, where Fennec usually was during the day. 

Finally, they reached they reached the tall wooden doors and Permafrost pushed the left one open just enough so she could peer in, then shoved it farther. Quietkeep glanced over the door and saw the library, seeming much more ominous than it should be in the dark. The globes were almost out, giving the shelves and scrolls an amber hue from a few angles, the long semi-circle desk that Fennec stood behind illuminated by a gold and silver sheen from two light sources: moon and globes.  

And, behind the desk, a flitting shadow, a lamp shining yellow light on the pale dragon behind the desk. Fennec. The SandWing must've been too occupied by frantically tossing scrolls onto her desk, reading a line or two and sliding them away to notice the swinging door and the two dragonets at the entrance. Her claws were scraping against the hard wood, leaving pale indentations as they raked when the little librarian scampered up and down, her large, obsidian eyes darting around. Unexpectedly, she let out a roar and swung her tail across her desk, sparks flying around her snout.