Our Planet has Crashed [COMPLETE]

forty one - Wings of Fire

Moon POV:

"Wow, this is just so . . . wow," Moon said to Dex, the scavenger who was apparently the "Technopath" who built the Drenlightened Language—the name of the translator for Dragon and the Enlightened Language that all the elves apparently spoke.

Dex grinned and said, "I'm usually forgotten. But not now, I guess."

But if Moon was wowed, Cricket was amazed.

Cricket had nearly fainted when Sundew brought her out from Jerboa's hut and shown her the gadget. None of the dragons—except Cricket and Winter, since they'd always seen potential in the furry creatures—ever thought this was possible.

Sure, scavengers had shown some intelligence before, but never on this level.

Moon still couldn't believe it.

Then Dex had proudly told the HiveWing that it will translate their conversations from anywhere on either planet. And Cricket had actually fainted. 

So Sundew and Swordtail dragged her back into the hut and onto a makeshift palm bed next to Qibli's, who at the moment was pleading to be let off bed rest.

After everyone had had a turn examining the Drenlightened language translator, Dex had Winter (who was extremely proud to be chosen, by the way. He boasted to everyone who wasn't present in the hut at the moment about his glory) put the Translator on a shelf behind Jerboa's most precious china plate (which Jerboa was not pleased to move).

Everyone was in a good mood, save Vespera.

She was not pleased to be stuck in a box once filled with fish with the world's ugliest thinking cap—whatever that was—perched on her head, not the mention the hastily poked breathing/ viewing hole made by Willow on the side of her carboard box.

She claimed she wanted to see the Translator, but of course, no one listened to her.

Vespera had been forgotten after a while through the excitement, but she caught everyone's attention again when she grabbed Sophie's arm through the hole in the box and they conversed quietly. But the conversation evidently didn't go well, because it made Sophie wrench Vespera's arm off hers and shoot some red light out of her forehead.

Moon personally thought it was terrifying. Fitz had to shake Sophie several times to get her to cut it out. Besides, what was even more terrifying was that it made Vespera fall to the floor of the box. When Moon had peeked into the box when Fitz took Sophie to go calm down, Vespera had been curled on the ground, shaking.

When Sophie was calm and came back into the hut with Fitz, she said it was called "inflicting", yet another of those "abilities" elves have. But apparently hers was different because this group named the "Black Swan" had tweaked her genes and made her different.

Moon thought the Black Swan sounded awfully like the Talons of Peace—but smarter. By a lot.

When the elves settled down, Hazel and Sundew went again to check on their dragons, while Winter was chatting with a now-awake Cricket, who had just woken up in time to see the Translator be hidden (although it was mostly Cricket talking, of course. Winter was just trying to keep teh scowl on his face (typical Winter) while actually listening very attentively to the HiveWing's rant on "reading monkeys"). 

Soon Cricket and Winter decided to study the scavengers outside while Qibli proceeded complaining about his bed rest. He argued back and forth with Jerboa, and Moon thought that she probably should go over there and tell him to rest (for the millionth time) but she noticed Sophie sneaking out the front door of the hut while Fitz—who she had been talking to—wasn't looking.

Moon immediately excused herself to go talk to Sophie outside because something didn't seen to be right.

She found Sophie struggling to climb a rock next to the ocean that looked tiny to Moon but was probably a boulder to Sophie. Moon sat next to her.

"Oh, hey," Sophie said. "Moon, right?"

"Yeah, that's me," Moon said.

Sophie rubbed her temples, much like Moon did whenever headaches from her mindreading happened. Something she noticed, though, was that the elves didn't have thoughts. Or, at least, she couldn't hear them. It was a bit odd. 

"Um, so, please don't be mad, but I tried to read all the dragons' minds when we first arrived to see if we could trust you, but . . ." Sophie trailed off. 

Oh. She honestly hadn't noticed that. Did Sophie know about her . . .?

"But what?" Moon asked. "It's fine, I won't be mad, I think, whatever it is. I know mind reading isn't easy."

"You do?" Sophie asked, shocked.

Moon laughed softly. "I can do it too."

Moon and Sophie were still chatting amiably about their powers when they heard a splash coming from near the cave where the Leafwings were hidden.

Sophie put a finger to her lips, and the two snuck over. There was one guar—a dragon Sundew had introduced called Cobra Lily—and she was talking to a frantic Luna, who was fidgeting and had shaking wings from what seemed to be fear.

Moon ran over, despite Sophie trying to get her to stay.

"Oh, Moon! You're here!" Luna cried. "Turtle and Anemone . . . were taken."