Wings of Thunder

Chapter 18

Hurricane stepped out into the open air. It was significantly colder and darker, and the fire had gone out. The others were asleep, and Hurricane walked over.

Spirit was still by the tree, fiddling with something in her claws. She glanced over at Hurricane, jumping. "Oh! Hey."

"Hi." Hurricane offered a warm smile.

"How'd it go?" Spirit asked.

"Surprisingly well." Hurricane shrugged. "I feel a lot better. Also really tired. Let's go to sleep."

"There's a soft spot over here." Spirit said, curling up. Hurricane walked over beside her. It was softer, and he laid down, resting his chin on his talons and closing his eyes. Eventually, consciousness slipped from his grasp and he fell asleep.

Hurricane woke up before anybody else. It was early, and the sun was just rising.

No longer did smoke rise from the volcanoes. Instead, the sky was clear. Hurricane sat up. The air was colder than before, and he was confused.

"The other volcanoes are dormant."

Hurricane jumped and twisted to see Silverfang standing in the doorway, with her head tilted. The cold air whistled through the air, blowing her scarf. "It practically warmed the entire city."

"And it's approaching winter, isn't it?" Hurricane said, half to himself.

Silverfang nodded. "Barak likes to have a big feast by winter time."

"He does?" Hurricane asked.

"Yep." Silverfang smiled. "He puts up big purple and blue banners around the city and he's convinced Goldenscale to let him host it there. Almost everybody in the city comes. Would you like to?"

"It sounds nice." Hurricane tilted his head. "If we're still here, then I'll come."

"I hope you stay for a while longer." Silverfang dipped her head. "I'm glad you've saved my son, but I have nothing to offer you in turn. I refuse to carry favors, either, so if you ever need a lesson in anything, do it while you're here."

"You taught Mist healing?" Hurricane asked.

"I did." Silverfang nodded.

"Then that's enough. Thank you." Hurricane dipped his head.

"Alright, then." Silverfang blinked. "I'll be going back inside now. I'll see you soon."

It took a while for everybody to wake up. Hurricane explained how his talk with Stormwatcher had gone and his suggestion to free other StormWings.

"I think I'll stay here for a while." Cloud said. "Maybe I'll get my own place. If the volcanoes are dormant, then this should be a nice place to stay."

"I'll come with you." Mist said. "At least long enough to teach one of you guys how to heal."

"I guess I'll tag along." Mesos let out a long sigh. "But only because I have nothing better to do."

"I'm down for bringing some justice." Tarantula grinned. "We're the good guys, right?"

"Nobody ever said that." Igneous sighed.

"I just did." Tarantula lifted his chin. "We're the good guys!"

"I'd like that." Hurricane smiled.

"Well, we haven't come this far just to split up now, have we?" Igneous nudged Tarantula, who bared his teeth in a toothy grin.

"What about you?" Hurricane turned to Spirit. "You don't have to come if you don't want to. After all, you only came with us because we owed you, and-"

"No, I want to." Spirit smiled and walked up to Hurricane. "You're my friends. Let's free those StormWings."