New Flames

Chapter 19

Viper was standing closer than ever. Flame could feel her breath on his neck as she circled around him.

"Back again, I see," she hissed, before breaking into a cold laugh, "did your guilty conscience miss me?"

"I don't want to keep seeing you," Flame snarled back, glad to be able to talk back to his nightmare once again.

"Too bad," Viper snarled, before lifting a claw to slash his snout again, right where his scar would be, "I'll aways be here."

Flame ducked his head before one of his feet slipped back. And then again. And again.

Until he realized he was walking backward.

He wasn't stuck anymore.

He could run.

And that's exactly what he did.

He ran, far into the landscape of his nightmare, trying to escape Viper and her taunts. Trying to outrun his fear and his hurt. Trying to not feel the amber earring that, even in here, pressed coldly against his scales.

But she was always there. She'd appear next to him, no matter how much he tried to lose her.

"Leave me ALONE," Flame howled, covering his ears with his wings as he stopped, trying to hide from the SandWing.

"Keep running, little SkyWing." He felt her voice close in on her, like a wolf stalking a herd of sheep.

One of her claws scraped his forearm, and he fell over at the sudden, unexpected blow.

Viper walked to stand in front of him, lifting her claws slowly.

"Viper... don't," he tried, but she smiled at him.

"You don't get it, don't you?" She questioned, fury in her eyes, before her claws slashed downwards, his snout searing from the uncontrollable pain it caused.

"You can't outrun yourself."

~

"You attacked him first, Buzzard! What did you expect him to do? Whimper and hide like a newborn cub?"

Treen's voice rang clear in Flame's mind, as he slowly freed himself from the chains of the sleeping dart, and the nightmare that had ensued.

His eyes blinked open, adjusting themselves to the dim light of what he recognized to be Treen's office. He couldn't see the RainWing, but he did see Buzzard, standing opposite where he was lying down.

"Oh, you're awake," Treen said slowly, appearing from beside him, as he slowly rose from the sleeping position he'd been in. "You're not hurt," she reassured him, examining his expression with a look of understanding, "and you are safe here."

"For now," Buzzard growled, but Flame didn't dare meet his eyes, concentrating his glance on Treen instead, trying to hold on to his remaining calm, left over from the sleeping dart.

"Buzzard-," Treen started, turning to look at him, but the SkyWing didn't let her finish.

"He's a flight risk, Treen. And you saw what he tried to do with Rail! We have to warn Her Majesty, and keep our dragons safe," he explained, raw and blunt, and Flame saw the way Treen tensed up at his words.

"Our dragons are safe. You heard what Rail said - they went with Flame willingly. And they were with the Talons of Peace, visiting Sanctuary and Flame's family. That's not the behavior of a kidnapper, and you know it," she shot back, obviously determined to get her point across. Something must have struck Buzzard, as he paused for a few seconds before talking again.