Lotus

Chapter 27

A couple days went by before I realized that I had absolutely no idea where I was going. While I had a vague plan before about going to find Sienna, I clearly should have figured out all the details beforehand. Or at least consulted a map. Now, I was wandering somewhere in the middle of Pyrrhia with no dragon around for miles and no clue where the Mud Kingdom was.

Maybe...maybe this wasn't my best idea.

I forced the thought out of my head before I had a chance to consider how correct it probably was. Instead, I tried to focus on flying. I made sure that my wings kept flapping, even though I couldn't really feel them anymore from flying so long.

I finally realized where I was when I reached the range of small mountains. The Claws of the Clouds Mountains looming in front of me were a welcome sight as I glided down to the base of one of them.

It felt wonderful to finally be off my wings after several days of almost nonstop flying. I rubbed my numb shoulders, trying to bring a little feeling back into them. I was definitely going to be sore there tomorrow.

I was just getting ready to lay down and sleep for a while when I heard a small snap behind me. With my nerves buzzing, I whirled around. After a moment, I saw the rust-colored SkyWing, staring at me with a look of both curiosity and worry.

"What are you doing here," she asked quietly. She glanced around, then looked back at me. "You know IceWings aren't exactly welcome in the SkyWing Kingdom."

I wasn't sure what to say in response, so I stayed silent, and glanced away. I could feel her gaze still on me, looking me up and down.

"You're not welcome in the IceWing Kingdom either, are you," she asked after a slight hesitation. My eyes slid up to meet hers again, and I could see that she knew that I was a hybrid. I nodded once, and she glanced around. "Come with me. Someone might find you if you stay here."

We moved quickly, flying as close to the ground as we could. We stopped to hide every so often, and after the third time, I asked her why.

"Things have grown tense between the IceWings and SkyWings as of late, so Queen Zodiac has recently started sending out patrols to keep an eye on the borders of our kingdom." She motioned for us to start moving again. "I'm not sure what she does to anyone who's found and not supposed to be here, but I'm guessing it's not particularly great."

We flew in silence for many minutes, until we came to a small opening at the base of one of the mountains. We stopped outside of it, and before we moved further into it, I decided to ask her the question that had been swirling in my mind.

"Why are you helping me?"

She didn't say anything for a moment, staring to the north. I was about to repeat my question, thinking she hadn't heard me, when she answered.

"I...understand the situation you're going through." She must have seen the surprised look in my face, because she continued quickly. "No, I'm not a hybrid, if that's what you're thinking. I…" She hesitated. Swallowing hard, she shook her head. "You'll understand soon enough."

I knew the conversation wasn't quite over yet, but there was nothing left to say now. I watched her exhale a thin plume of fire, then move into the dark tunnel. I moved after her quickly, wondering at what I might be getting myself into this time.

.....

This was definitely not my best chapter so far, and for that, I apologize. I would have liked to make it better, but I just could not get those creative juices flowing for me today. It should be back up to par next week.

Thanks for reading this anyway, and I hope you have a great rest of your day!

XLizzyMX