Wings of Fire 1: The Hidden Secret

~Chapter 3~

Dolphin helped Splash bury Blossom on the beach. They made a tombstone for her, and decorated it with flowers in shades of pink, blue and yellow. Dolphin found her blowgun and blow darts, and Splash placed Blossom's items down beside the tombstone.

She badly wanted to find Glory and tell her what Blossom had said to tell the RainWing and NightWing queen. Splash couldn't help thinking about what Blossom had said earlier. What had she meant about Splash being 'the one'? What was 'the one'? She'd also talked about Splash's sapphire necklace. What did Blossom want with it? Why did she even care?

"Hmmmmmmmm," Splash fingered her necklace between her claws. It felt like it always did—cold, slightly heavy, and send a tingling feeling down Splash's talon. Was that normal for a sapphire necklace? Did they all make her talons tingle? Or was that just her own necklace? She couldn't ask Dolphin, because all he had was a green seaweed pouch and a gold seashell earring. Neither of those were crystal necklaces.

Also, how come Coral hated her? Splash hadn't done anything wrong in her life. Well, maybe she had, but nothing bad to make Coral hate her for the rest of her life.

"I need to find Glory," Splash told Dolphin. "Blossom told me to give her a message...do you know what me being 'the one' means?"

"No," Dolphin replied. He flared his wings. "And I don't think you're going to find Glory unless you visit the rainforest."

"Hmmmmmmmmmm," Splash stabbed one of her claws in the sand below her. "That could work."

"Except you can't do that," Dolphin hurriedly added. "Coral forbid you."

"Have you ever wondered why she forbid me?" Splash asked him. "Wait, no, you wouldn't have cared. Never mind."

Splash whacked the ground with her thick tail. She hated Coral. She hated how Dolphin was obsessed with obeying Coral. She hated how she was a stupid SeaWing stuck in the stupid Kingdom of the Sea with no stupid friends except for the one stupid dragon who wasn't even here.

"I'm going anyway," Splash said boldly. "Coral can't stop me."

Even if I am useless and good at nothing, Splash's mind whispered. I still want to make a difference in the way Coral treats me. I have to escape. Either now, or soon.

"But then..." Dolphin looked more nervous then he had before. "Coral with punish me. I saw what she did to Tortoise."

Splash frowned. Dolphin shivered and looked at the ground. How was she going to run away from him without feeling guilty? How was she going to escape him without him getting killed? She'd also seen one of Coral's punishments, and they were horrible.

An aquamarine SeaWing named Hammerhead had been telling everyone how bad Coral's scrolls were. Coral had ripped of his wings, and then his claws, then plucked out each of his teeth one-by-one. Splash had been on her way back to Current and Whale's house when she'd heard muffled screaming and saw drifts of blood in the water. Then she'd seen what she never wanted to see — Coral tearing apart a dragon bit-by-bit. And of course, Moray was right there, clearing up the random teeth and claws and soaking up the blood with a cloth. Perfect little Moray, who could do no wrong.

"Then I'll wait," Splash suggested. "After the battle, we both go home, then the next day I'll escape."

"Coral will be after you for the rest of your life then," Dolphin pointed out. "After all, she needs you —"

He snapped his snout shut and looked at the battle. Splash frowned slightly. She needs you. She needs you.

'She' must be Coral, Splash guessed. But what does she 'need' me for? Is the reason connected to why she won't let me out of the Kingdom of the Sea? But what is the reason to all of my questions? Why does Coral 'need' me? What does she 'need' me for?