Unhcegila

Chapter 3: Prince's Rescue

The next morning...
Shadow had woken me early.
"Ice, we need to have a flight."
"This early?"
"Yes, you clearly need a little training if you are to be outside your Ice borders."
Iceheart was already up, and Midnight was ready to go.
"Ready Star."
Midnight nodded and I realized that must be his nickname. Iceheart grabbed her necklace and threw it up. It landed perfectly around her neck and the saddle appeared. I jumped on and we followed Midnight and Shadow as they flew into the rising sun.
"So what are we doing?" I asked Shadow as we caught up to him
"Let me show you."
He stood up on Midnights back and I gasped. Midnight started to do random movements and Shadow stayed standing parallel to the ground. He crossed his legs as Midnight twirled. Once he was done he held his hand out to me. Iceheart flew closer and I stepped onto Midnight. I stood there, using Shadow as support as Midnight started to do slow turns. I tripped multiple times, but Shadow was there to catch my hand. He let go and I found my balance. This was awesome! As the sun started to go higher into the sky, I had mastered standing on a dragon bareback. Iceheart took off her saddle and put it in the satchel, then I practiced standing on her. Her scales were a lot harder and rougher than Midnight's feather covered scales, so I did a lot better on her. This was awesome! We flew for a few more minutes, until Shadow got out a bow made out of nothing but leaves and twigs. The string was a vine and the arrow was a slim green light.
He pulled back the bow and the arrow appeared. He hit a nearby mountain top, then he nodded to me. I got out my ice bow and pulled it back. The same slim of light appeared, and then I realized the two white diamonds on the bow were lit up. The Blacksmith had given me a magic weapon without even realizing it! I shot it and it completely missed it's target. Shadow motioned for me to follow and we flew back to the house.
"Stay here and I will set up a course for you."
"What."
He was already flying off and didn't answer me. I sat down and Iceheart said, "he was probably setting a training course up for you to shoot."
"Oh."
Shadow came back thirty minutes later and said, "Iceheart I have set a white trail for you to fly over. Ice, you are to shoot targets set up around you."
I nodded and decided to put the saddle on this time. Once we were in the air, I got out my bow and saw the line. Iceheart was into it, and I saw my first target. I missed by a long shot. The next one was closer, and I missed again. The next and the next came, and I missed them both. After the line stopped, Midnight and Shadow flew up to us.
"You need to not aim at them while you fly. Let me show you."
He tapped Midnight twice and he dove down to the beginning of the course. They started and Iceheart and I watched them. Midnight seemed to lean every time Shadow shot, and Shadow leaned himself every time. He was telling his dragon where he was shooting. He shot at the first one and struck. Vines grew on it and he aimed for the next one. Hit again. Throughout the course it was hit, hit, hit and I watched his every move.
They flew up to us and Shadow said, "You tell your dragon where you're shooting by leaning towards your target. If their wings or head is in the way they move, you can have a clear shot. Also you don't aim at the target, you aim ahead of the target. Try again."
Iceheart flew back to the beginning of the course and I aimed ahead of the first target and it nearly missed. I aimed for the next one and hit it. I hit two more through the course and nearly skimmed the other targets. Iceheart flew back to the shadow and he said, "that's an improvement, but in order to protect yourself you must be 100% accurate. Follow me."
They flew back to the house and Iceheart followed.
Shadow set up a target and I practiced for a while.
When I had finally hit the center of the target in many different positions, I got onto Iceheart again. We went through the course and I only missed once.
"Better, now let's go for a small flight."
Midnight ran past shadow and he grabbed one of his horns, then threw himself on top of him and took off. Iceheart waited for me to get into the saddle then she took off. We were heading back towards the ice kingdom border, then Midnight stopped to hover in the air.
"Alright, let's..."
He was suddenly barreled into by a sky dragon, then another one joined.
"Shadow?!"
Iceheart dove for them but a sky dragon blocked my path. It was Sunfire.
"Princess of the ice, I have come to rescue you." Adrian said.
"Rescue me from who? It was my decision to come out here!"
"Gabriella, your mother is worried sick, she has searched the ice kingdom three times and yet we couldn't find you."
"So when I crossed the border and found him, he was free to go."
"No princess, he has captured you, he will be brought back to the ice palace for judgement."
"NO!"
Iceheart felt the command in my voice and she dove for Midnight, who was now being chained. Iceheart took a breath in and I held back. I didn't want to do too much damage or kill a dragon, I just wanted to scratch them. Iceheart let her ice fire go and barreled into the dragon putting the chains on Midnight. Iceheart got so angry that she froze the chains, but a sky dragon dove for her and her bond blew a dart at Iceheart. Iceheart flapped once, twice then fell out of the sky. I leapt out of her saddle and onto her belly, then two sky dragons caught her. She wasn't hurt, just had a dart stuck in her tail. I climbed onto her back and the prince offered a ride. I had no other choice. I climbed onto Sunfire and the group flew back towards the ice palace...
When we arrived, Midnight was curled up in a ball to try and get warm. All the dragon's landed and Iceheart was set down gently. She was put in her stall and I followed close behind. The queen entered the quartyard as I disappeared around the corner. Iceheart was starting to get some scenes back in her wings and tail, but she still stayed limp. I touched her nose and she lifted her head tiredly. She set it down softly on my lap and I stroked her head as she sighed. The queen entered my stable and I avoided eye contact.
"Gabriella Cameron! You had me worried sick!"
"So what, I'm not captured, I took care of myself."
"By being captured by a shadow dragon!"
"Midnight isn't a shadow dragon! He is the kindest dragon I've met!"
"He was the one to capture you, as with the boy..."
"Isn't a threat! They were living their normal lives until I came along!"
"Well then, doesn't that mean you need to stop running off and not just destroying your life."
I lifted Iceheart's head off my lap and she set it back on her pillow, and I walked out of the stable fuming. Mother followed close behind, but I turned and said, "I never wanted to come back if I knew you were going to do this to me all the time!"
"Then grow up! Because you are the princess of ice!"
"I never wanted to be a princess! I never wanted to be destined to run a kingdom! All I wanted was to explore the world with my own sense rather than sticking my nose in a book!"
The queen stopped, mouth open, and I stormed off to my room. Everyone must have heard me say that, because the yard soon erupted in silent whispers.
I looked at my books and saw they were all where they should be. I wasn't in the mood for reading. I laid down on my bed and thought about Shadow. he was probably being tied up and thrown into the deepest and coldest dungeon. Midnight must have gone with him, stuffed in one of those huge dragon cages. I fell asleep late that night and woke the next morning still furious. What was I going to do...