Wings of Fire - Shattered Ice

Chapter 6

Several guards stood at the entrance of the palace. One must've caught a glimpse of Frostbite's face because he snarled and suddenly ripped off Frostbite's hood.

Frostbite stumbled backward, eyes widening.

"You've got a lot of nerve coming around here!" The guard growled. The others recognized Frostbite right away and immediately raised their spears threateningly.

Frostbite leveled his gaze with them. "I'm just passing through."

The first dragon snorted. "Yeah, well, it isn't as simple as that. The queen wants you dead."

The guards advanced on them, glaring at Frostbite.

Still remaining calm, Frostbite sighed. "Blizzard, that was years ago. I'll drop off this IceWing here and be on my way back to the outskirts of the kingdom."

The IceWing guards seemed to only just notice Verglas for the first time.

"Who's the runt you got there?" the IceWing called Blizzard sneered.

Verglas growled at them, digging his talons into the snow. Frostbite narrowed his eyes. "Merely an apprentice. He's here to enlist as an assassin for the queen."

Blizzard tilted his head at Verglas. "Hm."

But then his eyes narrowed. "Say I bring this scrawny dragon into the palace. However, you aren't getting out of this, Frostbite. You're coming with us." Blizzard flicked his tail at the other guards. "Grab him."

"No!" Verglas shouted, trying to stand in the way of Frostbite. But to his surprise, Frostbite pushed him aside.

Eyes widening, he watched as the guards grabbed onto Frostbite, his mentor not struggling at all. "What are you doing?" Verglas yelled.

Frostbite glanced sullenly at Verglas. "I'll let them take me. You go with them. I'll probably be locked up in a cellar for now. Shard likes to plan her executions for later on, so then everybody will know about it by then and she can make a big show out of it. It's alright, Verglas."

More anxious than ever, Verglas let the guards direct him into the palace.

The other guards were constraining Frostbite, who was staring straight ahead, expressionless.

How much does this mean to him if he's letting himself get locked up? Or even killed?

As they entered, Verglas let out a gasp of awe, momentarily forgetting about his mentor. The palace was gorgeous, the walls and floors made out of crystals and ice. Moon globes hovered in the air, illuminating the walls, causing them to glow in shades of bright blues. But his wonder was short-lived, the guards were already pushing him forward, directing him past several rooms and sculptures. 

Soon they arrived outside two large doors, ice glistening. 

Blizzard rapped on the door two times, then stepped back. 

"The Queen should be in there. Keep your head down and let me do the speaking," Blizzard hissed at Frostbite.

"I'm meeting the Queen? Right NOW?" Verglas

Blizzard looked down at Verglas with annoyance. "I had specific orders from the queen to bring potential assassins straight to her. Now shut up."

Come on Verglas, this is what you were expecting, right?

Blizzard waved off the other guards, dismissing them back to their stations. He maintained a serious, guard-like expression as he waited for an IceWing to answer.