Listen, And The Stars Shall Speak

Run

The war truly had begun. The first battle had come and gone, and the hybrid hunters were still searching strong. Cinder frowned at the map before her. A number of hybrids had all gone missing in this one area, and none of them were ever seen again. She swallowed hard. This was also the place she lost track of her sister. Crimson, that was her name. Crimson was the first hybrid to disappear in this area, and she was far from the last. Cinder had guards positioned all around there, just in case another hybrid wandered in, or a lost one wandered out. She never could've predicted who she would find in this area, or why this dragon would be so important to her. 

Something was different, Ember concluded. Sure, he knew that there was a war going on, and that Uncle Squelch and Uncle Coal were in it. He knew that bad dragons were looking for dragons like him and Hope, although he wasn't sure why. But something still felt off. His parents were on their guard more. They didn't let him and Hope run around in the fields anymore. They couldn't go berry-picking by themselves anymore. It was strange. 

Hope didn't seem to notice the change at all, but then again, she wasn't even a year old. It wasn't surprising that she didn't notice things. She didn't even know to color inside the lines yet. 

Hope let out a shriek as their mother snuck up behind her and tickled the dragonet. Air grinned. Yes, they were in a war, and yes, she was terrified for her brother and for her family, but she believed they were safe here. Nightflyer thought so too, although he seemed a bit distracted lately. Strange. 

Air, Nightflyer, Ember, and Hopeseeker. A happy, hybrid family that didn't worry much about the war. Until it got involved and changed their lives. Until today.

Nightflyer and Ember were not too far away from home, picking berries. Then a rustle was heard in the bushes near them. Nightflyer glanced up and caught a flash of white scales.

"Ember." he said quietly, yet firmly. Ember looked up in surprise. He'd never heard his father sound this serious before. "Go home."

"But why?" he asked in confusion. Nightflyer inhaled as he caught sight of more scales.

"Go. Home. Now." Ember frowned, but started to walk away. There was a shout and he whirled around to see three sharp looking Icewings leap out of the bushes and lung at Nightflyer.

"Dad!" 

"Ember, RUN!" This time he didn't question orders. Ember dropped the pouch he'd been collecting berries in and bolted for home. Air and Hope glanced up at his arrival. Air froze at the terrified look on her son's face.

"Ember, what happened?" she demanded.

"I don't know, we were by the berry bushes and Icewings came out of nowhere and they attacked Dad and-" Air cut him off, a horrified look on her face. 

"Ember, listen to me very closely." She grabbed Hope and shoved her at him before messing with the clasp of her necklace. Her necklace. The one they had never seen her without. The one Dad gave her years ago. She pulled it off and put it around Hope's neck as she talked.

"I want you to take Hope and to run. Run as fast as you can, and as far away as you can."

"But-" he objected.

"Your Dad and I will find you later." she insisted, kissing each of their foreheads. "Be safe."

"Mommy-" Hope whispered. She didn't understand. She was scared. Air stared at them for one last moment.

"Take care of each other. Go. Now." She raced away towards the berry bushes. Nightflyer was a strong fighter, but he couldn't handle three fully trained Icewings on his own. He needed help. 

Ember swallowed hard and grabbed his sister's hand. 

"Come on," he urged her, and they ran away. They ran into the forest as fast as their feet could carry them. Ember glanced behind him in fear. Oh, how he wished Hope could fly. Hope ran and cried at the same, terrified. She had no idea what was happening, but her mother had looked scared and her dad hadn't been there and Ember was scared so she was too. They kept running until a large Icewing slammed to the ground right in front of them.

"Well, if it isn't my lucky day." the Icewing growled as more landed behind him. Ember quickly turned to Hope, whose eyes were the size of saucers.

"Run." he told her, in a tone that made it very clear that she was not to disobey. Hope let out a whimper and quickly fled.

She ran away, fresh tears falling down her face. She didn't look around and she dropped into a small opening in the ground, smacked her head on a rock, and fell unconscious at the bottom of a cave. 

Ember turned to face the Icewings and swallowed hard. He barely knew anything about fighting. His dad had taught him a little bit before his mom had insisted he was too young. His parents. Were they even still alive right now? Were these the same Icewings that had attacked his dad? Had they followed him to finish the job? He didn't get a chance to find out the answer as a huge Rainwing landed right between him and the Icewings. 

Meanwhile....

Nightflyer was pinned to the ground with a grunt. He clawed at the Icewing keeping him down, but it was no use. 

"Now, why don't you behave and tell me where your family is." the dragon growled. "You filthy hybrid lover." Nightflyer gasped for oxygen and spotted a flash of maroon scales behind the Icewing keeping him pinned.

"Well," he choked out. "My wife's right behind you." The Icewing snorted.

"Liar."

"No, really!" The Icewing screamed a moment later as Air lit him on fire. He was taken down fast, and the other Icewings seemed to have vanished. 

"Are you alright?" Air asked worriedly. Nightflyer coughed and nodded as Air helped him to his feet. 

"Where did the rest of them go?" he questioned. Air paled as a thought slammed into Nightflyer's head. "Air, where are Ember and Hope?" She stared at him in fear before grabbing his hand and bolting for the forest. 

The other Icewings went down fast. Just a few properly aimed venom splashes was all it took. The Rainwing turned to Ember and eyed him suspiciously. 

"Who are you?" he demanded. Ember was frozen in fear. His eyes caught sight of a silver disc hanging from the Rainwing's neck. It was a chakram- the same kind of weapon his Godmother always had. Only this one was engraved. There was a pair of shimmering dragon wings on it, and the light made it difficult to tell what color they were. There were words on it too, but they were too small for him to read. 

"Ember." he finally got out. 

"You're comin with me." The rainwing announced.

"What? No!" Ember protested as the Rainwing grabbed him by the arm. He tried to get away but the other dragon was too strong. "I have to find my sister!" 

"Trust me kid, if she's in this area, somebody'll find her."

"But she's just a baby! And I promised-"

"Hey!" The rainwing growled at him and Ember fell silent. "We all made promises we didn't end up keeping, and we've all lost dragons we care about. Get over it." 

"We?" Ember asked. Without another word, the rainwing lead him underneath a mountain and Ember gasped at what he saw. 

"We." The rainwing declared. "Welcome to the Colors Of The Wings, kid." 

A/N: Plz note that some of the things in this arc (namely the idea for the Colors of the Wings, stuff with Ember, and the concept of hybrid hunters was inspired by Crimsondragon82 and their unfinished story.