Let The Chaos Continue

Now You Know The News

News spread fast. Stream had gone to her mother with Thistle, unable to be on that island, at least for now. They couldn't stay there. Not when the sand was stained red with Sirocco's blood. Not when Willow's body lay there, both of them unable to move her.

She explained to Seashell and Geyser what had happened, and had promptly broken down immediately afterwards. Seashell had taken up the job of writing to everyone who needed to know. It was cruel, she imagined, for Willow's family to hear about her death through a letter, so she wrote to Coal and Firefly instead. They were closest with Adobe and Squelch. They would know the best way to tell them. 

She wrote to Kelp, Tsunami, Clay and Air too, knowing they would want to be informed. 

The reaction was not nice.

Clay and Peril had cried, as had Squelch. Adobe had sworn revenge on Sirocco, only for Coal to inform her that Stream had already killed him. She didn't know what to do about that one. 

Cypress felt like she was going to die. Willow was her little sister—her ONLY sister. And now she was gone. Anaconda had spent hours trying to comfort her while she cried, but it didn't do much use.

Kelp and Joy sat quietly in Joy's office, not really knowing what to say.

"Did Seashell say how Stream was?" Joy asked.

"A blood splatter disaster, I think was how she described it," Kelp admitted, staring at one of the walls. He didn't know how he was supposed to feel about Willow's death, but it was jarring in a way. She wasn't close enough to him that he felt it right to grieve, but he felt something. Devastated for Stream and Thistle, furious towards Sirocco and everyone he was associated with, and maybe even a little afraid that something similar could happen to them here.

He supposed, if anything, the incident gave him a greater respect for Deathbringer and how protective he was over Glory. They'd always thought the assassin was being a little ridiculous with how closely he watched the rainwing, but Kelp understood now. He was an assassin. He knew firsthand how easy it was for someone to appear and kill. Maybe, Kelp thought, he should watch Joy a little closer.

Not that Joy needed it. She could probably take out any potential threat before he even noticed one was there. But that wasn't exactly the point. Willow's sudden death had robbed him and others of a sense of security. 

Joy sighed. She felt guilty about not feeling more grief for Willow's death, but then again, grief wasn't exactly an emotion she was familiar with. She felt worse for Air, Ember, and all the others who were family to Willow, especially her siblings. Joy didn't know how she'd be able to handle it if Rainkeeper were to die, and Mudwing siblings were even closer than they were. It was devastating, she imagined.

"Thorn sent out letters this morning," She said, her voice breaking the thick silence. "She's calling a Queen's meeting."

"I thought you only had those when things were really bad," Kelp replied, looking more nervous now. "Last time there was one, the Hybrid War started."

"And that's why we're having one now," Joy went on. "Willow was a Mudwing killed by a Sandwing in Seawing territory. Sirocco was a Sandwing killed by a Seawing, and he is the one at fault, making Willow's death in part Thorn's fault. She just wants a meeting to make sure that Moorhen and the Mudwings won't declare war on her to avenge Willow's death."

"Is that really worth starting a war over?" Joy shrugged.

"Wars have been started over less. Look at Arctic and Foeslayer. Look at the War of Sandwing Succession. You remove the wrong dragon and boom! You've got yourself a war. And that's the last thing any of us want. Besides, there's been plenty of changes in Queens since the last meeting. It's about time we had another, if only to catch up and smooth some things over." Kelp frowned. "There's nothing to worry about."

"I know," he insisted. "It's just..."

"What?"

"The vast majority of Qibli's family now is dead or dying," He offered. "How do you think he's dealing with that?" Joy thought for a moment.

"Considering the type of dragons Sirocco, Vulture, Cobra, and Rattlesnake were, I'd say he's doing quite well."