Wings of Fire • Journey of Metamorphosis [Book 2]

scene ix.

Um... the opening scene is quite graphic. I don't want to spoil too much but if you don't like flesh dissolving, skip a bit until Hawker is in the forest.

Also, one of my readers, dragonner, has made a very cool Wings of Fire RP! I promise it's nothing you've ever seen before. Here is the link if you want to check it out :)

https://www.wattpad.com/story/337409719-metal-people-hollow-people-a-wings-of-fire-rp-with

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His tired wings brought him to the Poison Jungle a few hours before sunrise.

     The fish he'd eaten before leaving the Spires seemed ages ago. He could practically feel his body consuming his muscles to power his flight. Food was not an option, however, as it was dark and he was way too close to Yellowjacket Hive. He wanted to fly in undetected, so he swooped under the cliffs. He finally reached the border river and decided he couldn't continue without at least an hour of sleep. The sun would probably wake him, and if not that, then his hunger. Just a few minutes, he told himself, then he would figure out a way to get the LeafWings' attention and convince them not to kill him.

     When I wake up... And then sleep hit him like a wingboxer's punch, knocking him out into oblivion.

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The pained roars of dying dragons bounced around his skull. Hawker was flying at top speed, avoiding bursts of light that came in at him on all sides. His heart beat as fast as his wings, which blurred with how quickly he was flapping them. Each beat felt painful as if his heart was trying to break out of his chest.

     It was panic. That was why it hurt so much. He couldn't escape it, no matter how fast he flew. What was he escaping from? His fear wouldn't let him look over his shoulder, as he was pressed in on all sides by his attackers. And he couldn't breathe. His lungs were screaming for air. He only knew he could fly straight, which he understood was deeper. Deeper, straight down, into the center of the earth.

     And then, out of the gloom, loomed a Supermajor. It was the same one who had crushed Diddy. He could see it now, swallowing the remains of his friend.

     Nooo! Hawker wanted to scream, but his voice wouldn't work. He couldn't inhale to power his shout.

     And he couldn't stop flying. The tunnel was leading straight to the Supermajor's mouth. Hawker's panic consumed him as he flew straight into its waiting mouth. The jaws slammed shut behind him, cramming him into a warm, moist space that crushed the air out of his lungs.

     Hawker thrashed, but he was unable to move. His arms and legs were pressed to his sides in an uncomfortable position while his wings were extended straight out behind him. Then, for a moment, a faint light appeared behind him. It was only a second before it disappeared and he moved further down, the walls pulsing. Swallowing him.

     No no no no please, I don't want to die! He began panicking in earnest as his lungs began to spasm, trying to inhale air that wasn't there. Hawker pushed his snout down, hoping his horns would have some effect on his attacker. It only caused it to swallow again. Hawker reached a small cramped space filled with water.

     Only it wasn't water.

     He would have screamed. The water burned his wrist, head, and tail – everywhere his wounds were. He began clawing in earnest, trying to turn around to face the way he'd come. He couldn't, but he did find something at the bottom of the pool. A small slit clenched tight by muscles. He stuck his claws in and began cutting, hoping the other side wasn't as tough as his current prison. It was only a few seconds before a disorienting spasm rocked him. Yes, yes! He did it again, pushing his unwounded talon through and sinking his claws into the flesh. As abruptly as he'd been swallowed, he was now outside again, shooting through open air and into freezing water. Thrashing his legs, Hawker broke the surface and gasped.