Listen, And The Stars Shall Speak

The Mark Of A Traitor

Now that Orange was awake, Kindle looks her over again before giving her final say on the Rainwing's health.

"I recommend that you rest for a few days, but after that, you'll be fine." She declared.

"Rest?" Orange crinkled her snout. "That word isn't in my vocabulary very often."

"Well it will be for the next few days!" Kindle proclaimed.

"But we have to make sure Drought and his stupid gang won't come after our families!" Cypress insisted.

"Yeah yeah, your lives are stressful." Kindle waved her off. "I don't care what you all get up to, but she is not leaving here for at least three more days."

"But by then everyone could be dead!"

"Why don't you guys go?" Orange suggested. "I'll be fine here. You can go and take care of Drought and the traitor that stabbed me."

"I'm NOT leaving you here!" Shore announced frantically.

"And-" Dusk hesitated, and the others turns to look at him. "I'm not so sure Dawn is a traitor."

"You WHAT?!" Orange demanded.

"She STABBED Orange!" Shore reminds him. "She could've killed her!"

"But she didn't! And Haze said it looked like she missed Orange's heart on purpose. Why would she have done that- or apologized if she had meant it?" Dusk explained.

"Oh, so she said she was sorry." Orange replied sarcastically. " Well, that just makes everything all better, no harm done, let's go back to school and make crowns out of daisies and sing songs about sunshine and magical rainbows!"

"Your sarcasm is SO powerful." Dusk insisted. " I know my sister, and she wouldn't do something like this."

"She knows what she's doing." Coal added quietly. "But traitor or no traitor, she's still a full member of the Sting, and that means dragons will be looking for her."

"How do you know she's a full member?" Haze questioned.

"Stabbing Orange wasn't something done randomly." Coal explained. "Its one of the tasks to join the Sting."

"What task is THAT?" Orange demanded. "Kill a Rainwing and join our cult?"

"No, you have to take out a strong dragon that is against The Sting and what they stand for. But the Dragon you choose can't be too powerful that someone notices they're gone. Dawn looked at our group, and via process of elimination, you were the ideal choice."

"Why not me?" Haze questioned.

"Dawn knew you'd put up a fight and that she'd lose." Coal responded. "She also has the mark."

"The mark?" Anaconda asked. Coal held out his wrist, where a small scorpion shape was branded into his scales. There was a thick scar running straight through the mark, ruining the shape.

"Every member has one, although I'm the only one with the line through it." Coal continued.

"How did I never notice that?" Dusk questioned. Coal shrugged.

"With so many scars, it's easy for one to go unnoticed." Coal brushed his talons over the mark. "When my brothers found out I was a spy, Prickle tried to carve the mark off my hand. He would've taken off my whole arm if he had to, but Fennec pursueded him to leave the line, to let it scar. I think it marks me as a traitor, or as an ex-member."

"You think?" Haze repeated. "Hasn't there ever been a dragon that's left the Sting?" Coal's face was grim as he replied.

"The Sting doesn't have ex-members." He offered. "Just current members and dead ones."