Wings of Fire: Chasing Embers

Prologue

Thunderclouds rolled in from the north, lightning flashing between the sheets of gray, rain pelting down on the kingdom below. A hefty IceWing stood perched on a cleft in the cliff, his sharp golden gaze scanning the area below. His tail whipped behind him like an angry viper, his teeth bared and sticking out of his muzzle. Down below, he heard angry roars and hisses from the battle.

The battle.

His talons curled inward, rage bubbling up inside his chest. Hot, scorching flames lapped at his emotions until he was blinded by red. The SkyWings had attacked, even when a peace order had been in place; the war wasn't over. All Queen Snowfox wanted was less bloodshed, but Queen Garnet found it more appealing to murder.

Feeling like he was being pushed off of the edge—literally and figuratively—the IceWing dipped his wings and soared down toward the battling dragons. He scanned the area for a free drake to battle, catching the wind with his wings and floating mid-air. He heard the flapping of wings behind him and quickly ducked, catching the SkyWing by surprise.

I knew by your wing-flaps, dearest, he thought, taking the appearance of this dragon in. Her talons were stained in blood, her eyes wide and almost crazy-looking. She was breathing raggedly, frost catching on the edge of her scales as the rain gradually began to turn into snow. Her vibrant blue eyes stood out against her dark orange coloring. He'd never seen a SkyWing with blue eyes. He was... captured by them.

"Y-You." The words tumbled out of her jaws, the female backpedaling in the air. "You... You're Blizzard, correct?"

She knows me, he thought, alarm prickling through his insides. Then he realized it was obvious. I'm the Queen's mate. Of course she knows me. A burst of anger suddenly coursed through him, adrenaline pumping in his veins. Well, she should fear me! I could kill her with the swipe of my wings.

Without warning, Blizzard streaked forward and blew frostbreath at the SkyWing. She yelped and ducked out of the way, staring at him. What do you want?! he screamed in his head. Leave before I kill you!

"What?" Blizzard sneered, his nose scrunching up to reveal sharp canines. "Are you starstruck by my looks? My position as the Queen's husband?" The blue-tinted IceWing smirked. "I sure hope so. I'd be honored to—"

"Don't act so charming." Her voice took Blizzard by surprise. He'd expected it to be soft and smooth; not rough and with a venomous edge.

"Excuse me?" He drifted closer toward her, rain pellets drifting down his body. The battle still raged below, but right now, these two seemed to be frozen in time. Blizzard couldn't explain it. "You know who I am, kid. I'd scram before I freeze your face off."

The words seemed to spark built-up fury inside the SkyWing. "Oh, yes, I definitely know who you are." There was now a darker glint in her eyes. "You killed my father. How could I ever forget?"

By all the moons, Blizzard thought, his golden eyes narrowing. This idiot has come back to me for revenge. To be honest, however, the IceWing didn't want to kill her. He wanted peace just as much as any other one of his tribemates, but he'd lost soldiers in this war. Blizzard couldn't forgive that easily.

"I don't even remember killing him," the IceWing said, waving his talons at her dismissively. "If it makes you feel any better—"

Hot, scorching fire suddenly burned his scales. Blizzard screamed in agony and unintentionally shot another blast of frostbreath, freezing her tail. She hissed and threw herself at him, the two breathing their own powers at one another. The different elements clashed and created a burst of light, exploding in the air, allowing for the SkyWing to wrench herself out of her former position.

She swooped below him, blasting his back. He roared and whipped around, diving for her but missing. She was small and fast. Blizzard was large, muscular, and slower. However, he was the Queen's mate. He was much more powerful in every way imaginable. I can't let this worm beat me. I'll kill her now and get it over with.

He couldn't find her for a few moments, until the hissing of gas made his ears twitch. He rolled his body backward and collapsed into the SkyWing, startling her, and held her in his grasp. His strength heavily outmatched her's, the IceWing spiraling toward the ground with immense force. He slammed her into the snow, the female gasping as shivers wracked her body. If I don't get her first, the cold surely will. I'm doing her a favor. She should thank me.

Without another word, holding her down with his wings, body weight, and hind legs, Blizzard reached forward and pried open her jaws with his talons. He slammed his other paw down on her throat so she wouldn't be able to breathe fire. Her eyes went wide and she writhed in his grasp, trying desperately to escape. But it did nothing except annoy the IceWing more, so now he had even greater reason to do this.

Her jaws were now wide, held open by his paws, and he gathered up the frostbreath in his lungs. It tickled his throat and he could hear the sound of the familiar hiss. Blizzard was about to kill this dragon, send frostbreath into her throat so she'd die immediately.

Then, something clubbed him in the head. The breath left him and he fell to the ground, coughing and touching the new wound on his head. Who did that? Another SkyWing? It must have been, the female had been trapped—

A shadow flashed over his vision. Blizzard raised his head and snarled at the same female SkyWing, his eyes fiery. "You—" His eyes drifted to the place he'd shot frostbreath toward—it was her tail, a now perfect club to knock any grown dragon to the ground. The IceWing was about to gather up more of his power until she clamped his jaws shut, shaking her head.

"This is for my father. This is for everything you did to break my family apart. You ruined me." Her words were gut-wrenching, placing fear he would never admit into Blizzard. She's not going to stop until she has her way.

Suddenly, a flash of white was in Blizzard's vision and another IceWing tumbled with the SkyWing. She hissed and threw him off, letting the fire roll out of her jaws. The white IceWing soldier fell into the snow, blending in and not being scorched to death. But Blizzard... oh, he was much less successful in his attempt to escape. The fire lapped at his face, burning off his scales and ate his eyeball into a pile of ash. He screamed and buried his muzzle into the snow, feeling the fire cease and flicker away.

When Blizzard raised his head, the SkyWing female was nowhere to be seen. He could hardly stand; the pain shook him in every inch of his body.

The soldier finally staggered to his talons and saw Blizzard. The other IceWing's eyes widened and he pelted over, his breath hitching. "S-Sir—"

"FIND THAT SKYWING!" Blizzard screamed, his roar shaking into the core of the earth. Dragons lifted their head to look his way, puzzled and cautious expressions dancing across their features.

Blizzard didn't care. All he felt was red—he should've killed that SkyWing as soon as he'd seen her. Now, half of his face was burned off, and his life was crumbling before his eyes. "FIND HER! AND NEVER STOP UNTIL YOU DO!"

The soldier nodded quickly and lifted himself into the sky, flying off. Blizzard watched with his golden eye, the pain becoming too hard to handle. And with a sigh escaping his jaws, the blue IceWing slipped into eerie nothingness as his body was covered by the ever-growing snow around him.