Wings of Fire: A Dangerous Scroll

Chapter 4

The two dragonets flew until noon when they finally landed at the dragon statues. Their sapphire eyes sparkled curiously, and for a split second Moonrise thought they were looking down at her. They were as tall as ten dragons stacked on top of each other. If only the NightWings had a kingdom as beautiful as this. She looked around at the surrounding mountains, the massive statues, and the towering spires miles ahead and couldn't help feeling a pang of jealousy. The NightWings could barely breathe in their kingdom! But she looked up at the clear blue sky and felt freer than she had ever felt before. I wish I could live here forever. But I have a job to do, and once it's done I have to go back home. Dark, gloomy, desolate... home.

She pushed away from the thought. If she wanted to get this job done right, she and Crescent needed to get the scroll to Finch as fast as possible. Windrider was counting on them, and Moonrise valued her place as Windrider's "best student."

She clenched the scroll in her talons. "Better start now if we want to make it to the palace by sundown," she commented to Crescent, who was looking wistfully at the winding path.

"Oh-- right." Crescent sighed and began walking up the path, lined with small ivory pillars. From their resting spot the previous night, they were able to tell that the path went on only for about half a mile. They would arrive before sundown if they took no breaks.

As they got closer and closer to the entrance of the palace, they saw that there was more treasure implemented in the architecture than they had thought. Every square inch of the towering spire was decorated in glimmering rubies and sparkling sapphires. SkyWings were carved into the concrete, their eyes gleaming emeralds. As they toiled up the mountain, they saw more and more dragons: mostly SkyWings, but some dragons from other tribes as well, most likely prisoners. I hope I don't become a prisoner.

"Kinda weird we haven't had a run-in with any other SkyWings yet." Crescent broke into Moonrise's thoughts abruptly.

"Huh. You're right," Moonrise replied. "I wonder if we're getting close?" She hoped so. Every part of her body ached; she didn't know if she had ever traveled this far in her life.

The sun was setting in the distance, painting the sky with beautiful shades of orange and pink. She could see the three moons rising in the sky; one full, one half, and one crescent.

Finally, the two dragonets arrived at a gigantic ivory arch, embedded with jewels like everything else around here. Two SkyWings, covered in armor and of course, gemstones, guarded the arch with spears in their claws.

"Halt!" one of them said in a harsh voice. "Who goes there?"

"We do." Moonrise could hear Crescent murmur under her breath sarcastically. She suppressed a chuckle.

"Greetings," Moonrise said in her most regal-sounding voice. "We come on behalf of the NightWing queen to deliver a message to her majesty, Queen Finch."

"Humph. Likely story," said the other. "We will need to see some form of proof that your intentions are good."

Oh, of course. Moonrise reached for the scroll and handed it to the guard, careful not to touch his talons.

The guard took the scroll rather quickly. A look of fear seemed to gleam in his eyes for a moment. Figures, Moonrise thought. Probably felt my scales, even from here. She watched the guard unravel and scan the scroll. A sudden look of understanding showed on his face as he rolled it back up and handed the scroll back to Moonrise, barely holding onto the edge with his talons. "You may enter," he said sternly.

Moonrise dipped her head in respect towards the two guards and walked past them. She heard Crescent's footsteps not far behind her. Almost immediately, she stopped in amazement at what she was seeing. A huge, magnificent plaza stretched out in front of them. Regal-looking buildings sprung out seemingly from every direction. SkyWings with colors ranging from blood-red to pale yellow chatted amongst themselves, some in flight and some on the ground. Multiple guards, almost identical to the ones they saw outside, were strewn across the area. The NightWing duo wove their way through the bustling city curiously, Moonrise being careful not to make contact with anything but the marble ground.