Never Turn Your Back

This is a fanfiction for the Summer Writing Prompt Contest by MistydaAwesomeSeaWing. My OCs involved are: Misty, Dawn, Ash, Surf, and Cocoa. I am using prompt 3. Coding by moi.
Part Two in Progress: Ancient Evil, Same Terror
== Summary: ==
The summer sun shines greatly over Pyrrhia. Why not take advantage of it?
Five dragonets were just released from school for the entire summer. There was an infinite variety of activities they could do. Anything could happen while there was no homework to do, right?
These five dragons decide to go camping together, just them. Bad things start happening to them in the woods of the Claws of the Clouds Mountains. Beware the shadows hiding behind the campfire. . . .
==Chapter One: Freedom==
The sun gleamed brightly off the scales of five dragonets, all walking out of their school for the last time in a while. A strong breeze wafted under their wings, making them even more eager to fly away. They chattered with nonstop excitement as other dragonets wing away from the school, some staying in other groups like theirs.
“Can you believe it?” Cocoa, the hyper RainWing, exclaimed. “School’s finally over! I feel so free!” She bounced a little off the ground in emphasis of her announcement.
“Completely agree,” said the SandWing standing to Cocoa’s right. She spread her wings out wide in a gesture of welcoming freedom. “I feel extra awesome t’day.”
Dawn, the female SkyWing standing on the other side of Cocoa, snorted. “And yet, with all the time we spent learning, Ash has still not come to terms with speaking normally.” She glared at the SandWing whom had just spoken.
Ash rolled her dark gray eyes. “I ain’t ever gonna ‘speak normally’, as you put it. I’m perfectly fine with havin’ this accent, thank you very much.”
“Come on guys, we just finished year of fifty-thirteen! Let’s celebrate!” said Misty, the strangely-colored SeaWing with the long snout. She frowned in thought. “I’m already getting some ideas. . . .”
”Great,” Ash exhaled, exasperated. “More of Misty’s ideas. Misty!” Ash grabbed the SeaWing by her shoulders and shook her back and forth. “We just finished school!”
”Gosh, I didn’t know that,” Misty said in a snark voice.
”You don’t get it, you insolent wanna-be teacher! That means no ideas, no plannin’, and no makin’ theories!” Ash stopped shaking Misty’s shoulders. “Comprehend?”
Misty gave Ash a skeptical look. “You just about listed everything I do in the summer. No comprehend.”
“Shut up you two,” Dawn growled. “I refuse to listen to such irrelevant bickering while on summer vacation. Misty, what are some of your ideas?”
The sound of rushed talonsteps reached the four dragons’ ears. “I hope they involve swimming, cause I’m cooking out here,” announced Ash’s best friend, Surf, the male SeaWing who had just caught up with them.
Misty tried to reply, but Ash cut her off by practically jumping on Surf and saying, “Aren’t you so sad you don’t get to sit ‘round and do nothin’, Surf?” Her voice was so full of sarcasm that Misty raised her eyebrows at the SandWing.
Surf joined in on the mock act. “Yes, but I bet you’re even sadder that you won‘t have any classes to mess up or any teachers to prank.” He wrapped an arm around Ash’s neck playfully. “Right?”
”Ain’t that true.” Ash laughed. “Where would I be without you?”
”Dead,” he said simply. “Or enslaved and/or lost.”
Ash gave him a friendly punch.
It amazed everyone how Surf was completely oblivious to Ash’s huge crush on him. Maybe part of it was because Ash was always beating him up (in a joking way), or maybe it was because they grew up together. Whatever the case, Surf was either the most oblivious dragon in the world, or the best actor in Pyrrhia.
”I just wish Angel were here with us,” Ash said distantly. “Stupid Angel, being so smart she finished school early.”
Surf made a face at the SandWing. “You just called my sister stupid and smart. What does that make you?”
Ash pretended not to hear him.
Surf, his twin sister, Angelfish, and Ash were all orphans from Possibility. Angel was so good at school she ended up finishing a few days early, and was already at the orphanage they lived in.
”As I was trying to say,” Misty interjected, trying to hide her smile. “One of my ideas is, drumroll please . . . Going camping! We can set up tents and tell scary stories in the dead of night!”
Everybody groaned in unison.
”C’mon, guys, this will be fun!” Misty insisted.
Dawn gave her the side-eye. She stepped closer to Misty. “And where, exactly, would we be camping?”
That particular question caused Misty to hesitate. She shifted her weight from foot to foot uncomfortably.
Dawn caught up on it before the others did. Her eyes widened and she shook her orange head furiously. “You’ve got to be kidding me.” She covered her face with her talons. “You’re joking.”
Cocoa glanced at Dawn, then at Misty, then back again. Confusion twisted her face. “What’s wrong?”
Misty was about to answer when Dawn blurted from under her talons: “The Claws of the Clouds. Also known as the world’s biggest death trap.”
Chaos erruputed within the group.
”I ain’t ever goin’ back there again!” Ash announced passionately. “Not after what happened the last time!”
”Me neither!” Cocoa agreed. “How many times did we almost die there?”
Misty began counting on her claws.
”I believe that was a rhetorical question,” Dawn observed with an amused smirk. Misty froze awkwardly and dropped her talons.
”But, that doesn’t mean it’s still dangerous!” Misty exclaimed. She felt the others already starting to ignore her. “We got rid of the evil stuff lurking in there, right? Now it’s Not any more dangerous than any other part of Pyrrhia!”
Cocoa was turning about five hundred different shades of colors at once. She looked around nervously, as if their old enemy was still watching them. “Misty, you’re crazy!”
”Like I’ve never heard that before,” she muttered. She raised her talons to try to calm down the angry dragons. “Stop, please, be quiet!” Of course, no one listened to her.
It was Dawn who got them to calm down. The tall SkyWing spread her wings and shouted “Shut up!”
Cocoa, Surf, and Ash immediately closed their mouths. Dawn was a lot scarier than Misty. Surf spoke up first. “My sister went missing, got cloned, became possessed, died, and then came back because it wasn’t really her that died, all at that same place. There’s just too many bad memories there!”
Ash crossed her arms and nodded. “I agree.”
”But-but that’s exactly my point!” Misty pleaded. “If we go there—and mind you, it’s not that far from here—then we can get rid of all those bad times by making better ones! Don’t you see? We can finally put our restless souls to peace!”
”That makes exactly zero sense,” Ash said bluntly. She flicked her tail, careful not to touch anyone nearby. “My soul will always be restless. Ha! ‘Put it to peace’ indeed.”
There was a moment of silence as Misty looked at each of their expressions. Finally, she said quietly, “Please?”
Cocoa’s colors abruptly stopped changing. She had turned a bright shade of purple mixed with a little green, her two favorite colors. “I’ll go,” she announced suddenly.
All four of them gave the RainWing a skeptical look. “Really?” They said in unison.
The scales along Cocoa’s neck slowly changed a little red. “What? Don’t you all know by now that I can’t resist an adventure?”
You could tell Ash was stifling a laugh. “OK,” she relented, a twinkle in her eyes. “I may consider goin’, if I can bring along my nerdy friend here.” She wrapped an arm around Surf’s neck.
Surf glared at her. “I am NOT a nerd. You are just the exact opposite of one.” Cocoa muttered an Ooooo, burn.
Misty smiled. “We would never go without the whole group.” She turned her gaze to Dawn. “Well? Are you in?”
Dawn squinted at them. She clicked one of her claws on the ground in a rhythm. Slowly, she said, “Fine. I’ll go.”
”Yes!” Misty clapped her talons. “What could go wrong?”
== Chapter Two: Arrival ==
”We’re here!” declared a surprisingly excited Surf. He dropped the bags he had been carrying with his stuff in it. The blue SeaWing breathed in the smell of pine trees. “I have to admit, this is a lot better than desert weather.”
”Some of the orphans who aren’t SandWings must have rattled your brain,” Ash commented with a shake of her head. “The desert is so much better than this claustrophobic nightmare.” She glanced nervously around at the trees, as if they were about to close in on her.
The dragonets were surrounded by a shady forest inside the Claws of the Clouds Mountains. Birds could be heard gossiping in the trees up above. Loud insects buzzed their excitement for the arrival of summer. A soft breeze wafted through the woods, but most of the tree trunks blocked it. The thick aroma of pine needles hovered in the forest, a seemingly calming smell.
”You‘re late!” said the bush next to Surf. He jumped a mile high. Ash burst out laughing. Cocoa the RainWing slowly appeared in front of the bush, giggling with hilarious delight.
“Hey!” Surf yelled, fear and anger contorting his face. “What was that for?”
Ash walked over to Cocoa and gave her a high-five, still shaking with laughter. “Good one,” She exhaled between deep breaths.
Now Surf looked frightened, angry, and confused at the same time. “Did I miss something?” he asked.
Cocoa gestured to Ash as if saying Let her tell you, then turned invisible again and became nothing more than part of the bush.
Ash shrugged and raised her open palms in a gesture of confessing something. “Me ‘n Cocoa started a prank war as soon as our last class finished.” She shrugged again. “I guess she chose you as her first target.”
Surf groaned. “You two seriously started a prank war right now?”
”No,” Ash replied slowly. “We started a prank war around ninety-six hours ago.” She rolled her eyes like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “Use that brain’a yours.”
He restrained himself from attacking the spunky SandWing.
”Hi!” the two dragonets heard a voice call from a couple trees over to their right. The gray-blue head of Misty popped around from a trunk. She appeared relieved. “I’m glad you guys made it, I was starting to worry you got lost. Didn’t you use the map I gave you?”
Ash and Surf glanced at each other. The SandWing gave the slightest shake of her head, nigh imperceptible. He saw the pleading in her eyes, and decided not to tell Misty what had really happened. Ash had been so confident in her navigational abilities, she had discarded the map, and they actually had gotten a little lost, but still made it with good timing. Well, relatively good timing. There was no need for extra distrust in Ash, given the fact that they all already distrusted her so much.
”Yes,” Surf carefully replied. “It was just a little . . . tricky, at some parts.”
Misty narrowed her eyes suspiciously. She could clearly sense to edge in his tone. “Oh really?”
”Stop that.” Ash swatted at Misty’s face with her talons. “You look so much like Dawn right there.”
”I heard that,” said the muffled voice of Dawn from not far away.
” ‘Course you did,” Ash muttered. “You have the ears and mindset of an elephant.”
”I am not deaf!” Dawn yelled back.
”One of you can go help Dawn and Cocoa set up some of the other tents,” Misty interrupted. “Dawn’s a little grumpy because she can’t get her tent to stand up for some reason.”
”STUPID POLES!” They heard the SkyWing shout. A variety of crashing sounds followed shortly after.
”Want some help?” Cocoa’s voice asked.
”No!” Dawn yelled. “I will die before I except your help!”
”Then die already!” The RainWing shot back.
Misty laughed. “It’s funny that Dawn’s so smart, but she can’t figure out how to set up a simple tent.”
”I’d hate to see what you’d call hard!” Dawn called.
”What I’d call hard is getting you to stop eavesdropping!” Misty told her.
Silence.
”OK, that wasn’t actually that hard,” The gray-blue SeaWing admitted. She waved a talon at the things she was setting up. “This shouldn’t take long if you guys didn’t overpack.”
”Don’t worry,” Ash said with a dismissive flick of her tail. “I barely packed anythin’ other than my wits.”
”You needed to pack those?” Dawn snickered.
”Shut up!” Surf and Ash yelled at the same time.
Misty giggled. “This will be fun!”
”INDEED,” Cocoa agreed, materializing next to Surf and making him scream in surprise.
== Chapter Three: Fire And Fear ==
Night had risen, the haunting glow of the three moons already painting the dark sky. Every now and then, the shadow of a bat could be seen flying against the light of the stars. Nocturnal creatures rustled about, careful to stay out of reach of a campfire’s light.
Circling said campfire were five dragons, chatting about anything they could think of. Despite what Cocoa, Ash, Surf, and Dawn had said, Misty had been right. Camping actually was fun.
At least, it was when you didn’t get into arguments about what to play.
”I refuse to participate in that game!” Ash told Cocoa, who was asking if anyone wanted to play Truth of Dare.
”Why, you scared?” Cocoa asked, raising an eyebrow while grinning.
”No,” the SandWing said. She shuffled a little, glancing down.
”Then what about the pun game?” Cocoa suggested. “Look at all the Ash-es flying off the fire!”
Ash glared across the campfire at her, dark gray eyes reflecting the flames.
”Guys, you have it all wrong!” said Misty, who was sitting next to Cocoa. She leaned in close to the campfire. Her blue face slowly turned orange in the firelight. “We must tell scary stories!”
”Ooh, I vote that!” announced Cocoa.
Dawn snorted. She appeared to glow the most out of all of them, with her scale color matching the dancing flames. “There’s no way a story you tell can actually be ‘scary’.”
”How do you know?” Misty inquired, crossing her arms. “I can be a very convincing storyteller.”
”Is that just what Seal tells you?” Ash asked, raising her eyebrows.
Misty shrunk back a little. “No, I think I actually am a good storyteller. Besides“—Misty glanced over her shoulder—“Seal wouldn’t just randomly tell me that.”
”Knew it!” Ash laughed.
”Yeah, yeah, laugh all you want,” Misty sniped. “You want to hear this story or not?”
”I do,” Cocoa piped up.
Surf shrugged casually. “You have my attention, but Ash will probably take a nap.”
”Hey!” Ash snapped indignantly. “I ain’t ever taken a nap ‘n my life!”
”Oh, yes, that’s right, you’re hyperactive.” Surf stated sarcastically.
Ash glared at him. “You’re really askin’ for’a full Ash smack-down, aren’t ya?”
Dawn pretended to shiver in fear. “Oh, no! Ash’s gonna attack you with really hurtful feathers! Or she’ll tickle you to death! Or—moons forbid—she’ll exhale her awful-smelling breath on you until you pass out!”
”ZIP IT!” Misty shouted before the jokes could turn into a big argument. “I would like to tell my story!”
”OK, I’ll be quiet,” Ash said miraculously.
”Finally.” Misty breathed very deeply, in and out, and suddenly a little wheezing sound came out. Her creepy story-telling-ness faded quickly. She coughed hard. “Sorry, asthma problems. Right!” She straightened her back and lowered her snout. In an eerie voice, still a tiny bit raspy, she began: “Have you ever heard the tale of the Prince, the Peasant, and the Queen?”
Cocoa started to answer, but Misty raised her talon up to silence the RainWing. “Rhetorical question,” she whispered, then continued:
”Once, there was a prince, his name and tribe lost to the consuming shadows of time. He was quiet and secretive, always keeping to himself. He was loyal to only one dragon, and that was his younger sister, one of four.
”She was the only one he ever talked to. The prince was so secluded, he often locked himself in his room, not even coming out to eat. Although he was strange, he was cunning, always planning the next days to his liking through manipulation. The prince’s unpredictability became known through the entire kingdom.
”Perhaps the one morsel of love in his heart, he kept only for his sister. Her chances of being queen were very slim, as she was not very strong and was third in line for the throne. The prince desired to help her lean the odds in her favor.”
A sudden strong gust of wind howled over the five dragons, shaking the tall pine trees and sending a chill down the dragonets’ spines. The campfire dwindled, losing its bright glow for a moment, then grew back up to its original height.
Misty frowned, then continued slowly, “So he began to devise a plan to kill the queen, and make it look like his younger sister had done it. He sent a lonely peasant maid to cover for him one night as he went in to slaughter the queen.
”How he killed her was so despicable, even the stars shy away from his darkness.” Misty paused as another gust of wind rushed through the trees. Twigs snapped, needles fell, and blackness temporarily enveloped the campfire.
Cocoa shivered. Her scales were turning the green colors of fear.
”The earth itself wishes me not to speak of his wrongdoings, but alas I shall continue,” Misty whispered.
”The prince snuck into the queen’s sleeping quaters,silent as the night. He crept up to her bed, smiling malevolently. . . .” Another pause. Then: “And sliced out her tongue before she could cry for help. Then, as fast as a snake, he gouged at her eyes, one by one, making the death as painful—and unnecessary—as possible.
”The prince tortured her in many different ways, until finally, hours later, she bled to death. When what was left of the body was discovered, he claimed to have seen his younger sister commit the fatal act.
”There was, however, one problem that awaited the prince: the peasant he had used to cover for him. She knew of what he had done, and stood against him for it in trial. When the prince denied the accusation, the maid revealed that she was secretly a magic user. She cursed the cruel, heartless prince to be tortured for hundreds, maybe thousands of years, until his spirit would feel as sorry for his deeds as the maid was for helping him.
”And so it was, he was condemned to a life of restless torture for nigh eternity, as he would never feel penitent for his deeds. It is said that the prince roamed Pyrrhia as nothing but a tor spirit. He would only show himself in his true form if he was compelled to kill once again.”
Silence followed as Misty concluded the tale of old.
”Yikes,” Ash whispered. “I guess a story can be a little creepy when you tell it out here.” She gestu to the forest around them.
”Really?” Dawn scoffed. “It’s not bad since you know it’s false.”
”But this actually happened!” Misty exclaimed. “I learned it in a history scroll!” She promptly covered her mouth with her talons, expression screaming woops! Then she dropped her talons just as quickly and tried to look like she had said nothing.
The other dragonets gave her a funny look. ”I don’t think so,” said Surf. “I would’ve heard that story.”
Misty shook her head. “Not necessarily. You know me: I always somehow end up reading something no one else has read before.”
Surf shrugged. “Possibly.”
”Well, it doesn’t matter,” Misty said. “Did you guys like it or no?”
”Yeah,” Ash admitted surpringly.
”Yes,” Surf agreed.
”Not scary,” Dawn observed. “But not bad storytelling.”
”What about you, Cocoa?” Misty asked, glancing to her right.
No one was there.
”Cocoa?” Sudden panic flooded Misty’s veins. She stood up and scanned the area, rigid with fear. “COCOA?”
Surf and Ash immediately grew wide-eyed. They began to look around for the missing RainWing.
”Figures,” Dawn remarked. “She probably got so scared she ran away.”
”Dawn, this isn’t funny!” Misty snapped. “How come nobody saw her disappear?”
Ash frowned. “Is she still sitting right there, just invisible?”
Misty swiped a talon over the area where Cocoa had been sitting. Nothing. She shook her head. “Why would she leave?”
”OH.” Ash snapped her claws. ”She’s probably tryin’ to prank us! She must be around here somewhere. Unless. . . .” Ash turned pale. “Oh, no, she better not be ransackin’ through my stuff lookin’ for prank material! I can’t let her get it! Be right back!” She dashed off to her tent.
Dawn rolled her yellow eyes. She clearly thought all this was stupid.
“Maybe if we go to sleep, she’ll come back and show herself,” Surf suggested.
”Are you kidding?” Misty said. “If Ash is right, it would be even easier for her to prank us in our sleep! I’m not going to sleep now!”
”Then what else can we do?” Surf asked helplessly. “Unless you have any ideas. . . .”
The Female SeaWing sat down and thought for a moment. After a minute, she said, “Dawn, could you threaten her really loud? You’re one of the many things she’s scared of.”
”No,” Dawn denied her. “She won’t believe me. You know that.”
”Yes, maybe, but I’m out of ideas!” Misty wrung her talons, stressed. “I’m gonna look around the nearby forest.”
”Really?” Surf asked, worried.
”I-I’ll be fine,” Misty assured him. She walked away carefully, and said, “I have night vision too, Surf.” She disappeared into the woods.
Dawn stood up and exhaled flames on the campfire, keeping it stable. She started picking bits of food out of her teeth.
”Aren’t you worried?” Surf asked Dawn.
She shook her head. “Why should I be? We already know she’s a rascal, so she’s probably just trying to scare us. Why give her what she wants?”
Surf looked down. Maybe Dawn was right.
A shrill scream pierced the night.
Surf jumped. Even Dawn appeared a little scared. “What was that?” Surf asked, horrified.
”It sounded like Misty,” Dawn remarked. They glanced at each other, then ran out into the woods in the direction of Misty.
”Misty?” Surf called. “Misty? Please don’t play with us! Come out!”
”I’m over here!” Misty cried, sounding absolutely terrified.
The two dragons headed in the direction of her voice. They found a dark shape slumped over in the darkness. Dawn could barely see, but Surf had night vision, and could see much better than the SkyWing.
Surf walked up to the dark shape. “Misty?” He said gently. “What is—” He broke off. He stepped right beside her, staring down at something, silent.
”What is it?” Dawn snapped. “Speak up. What are you looking at?” She walked over, and breathed a plume of flame.
She lit up the outline of a red body fallen on the ground. Dried blood littered the ground around it. Flies circled the length of the body.
Dawn gasped.
Surf made a choking noise.
Misty shed tears of fear.
”Who—What—where,” Surf stuttered, unable to comprehend what he saw.
”This—This i-is the d-dead body of a SkyWing,” Misty whispered, voice shaking.
”Wait,” Dawn said, pointing a claw. “I know this dragon! He used to fight with me during the war. Although, I forgot his name.”
Misty started shaking. “I . . . I can’t. . . .” She drifted off, choking. She wrapped her arms around herself.
”You should go back,” Surf told her. “I don’t think you should be out here.” She nodded. He guided her towards the campfire, then came back to investigate with Dawn.
Something caught Surf’s eye. He glanced at Dawn, lighting up his bioluminescent scales, thus creating a dim blue glow. “Um, Dawn, look at his marks, and what he’s missing.” He pointed a claw at the head, and brought his talon lower down the body. “He looks like he just died yesterday.”
Dawn squinted harder and breathed a little bit more fire.
The SkyWing was missing his eyeballs. His tongue was severed. Some of his limbs were missing. Parts of his wings were cut off.
”Um, isn’t that how Misty said that royal dude kills?” Surf asked, hoping he was wrong.
”You're not saying that you believe her fairytale,” Dawn said doubtedly.
”WAIT.” Surf jumped back, breathing even harder. His eyes grew even more wide. “Look!”
Dawn stepped closer to the body, and let out a bit of fire. She gasped again.
The SkyWing was still breathing.
”What in the three moons. . . .” Dawn couldn’t find the words to finish her sentence. She backed away from the supposedly dead body.
Surf yelped when the body moved its bloody, gore-filled mouth, trying to speak but unable to as he was missing his tongue. It looked like he was mouthing the words “Leave, now. Leave now. Leave now.” Over and over again, until finally, his mouth stood motionless, dead, as it should be.
== Chapter Four: Running Shadows ==
Ash weaved her way through the four tents crowded in one spot between different trees. She opened the flap to the tent she and Surf had brought, and immediately started rummaging through her stuff. Everything appeared to be as it should be. She sighed with relief. Cocoa hadn‘t gotten to her stuff.
She exhaled and turned around, exiting the small tent. A little puff of flames escaped her jaws, lighting up the area better. Gosh, it’s dark, Ash thought, tripping on a fallen branch.
Ash started to walk back towards the campfire when the echo of a snapping twig reached her ears. The SandWing abruptly froze in place.
A shiver of fright crept up her spine. She glanced over her back, trying to see in the near-pitch darkness. Nothing.
”Hello?” Ash said, almost a whisper. “Anyone?”
No answer.
”Cocoa?” She asked, circling in place. “Show yourself, ya stupid RainWing!”
Silence.
Then, another snapped twig.
OK, this is gettin’ creepy, Ash thought, trying not to let herself get scared. Remember: Never turn your back, or someone will stab you in it.
A high-pitched shriek suddenly reverberated through the woods.
Ash’s breathing began to feel harder. Her heart felt to big for the growing fear within her. What was going on? Where was everyone? We’re they alright?
Rustling in the nearby bushes caught Ash’s attention, drawing her eyes like a fly to dead flesh. She let out another puff of fire, temporarily giving the area a red light.
When she could see in those few seconds, the shadow of a large, unidentifiable creature stood up, bared it’s fangs that dripped with saliva, then disappeared with the light.
Ash withheld a scream. What was that?
She broke into a mad run for the campfire.
She could feel the creature following her. Good thing she was fast.
Only, this thing was faster. Not a lot of beings were faster than Ash.
The sound of its pounding footsteps caught up to Ash. She started panicking, trying to get away from the mysterious beast. In her haste, she tripped over a rock and flipped over, landing on her side with a harsh thump.
Then, when she accepted the fact that this thing would overtake her at that moment, the footsteps stopped. The only sound Ash could hear was the quiet hooting of owls.
She used her fire to light up her surroundings, fearing the worst.
Nothing was there.
But, Ash could have sworn she heard the receding, pounding footsteps running in a different direction. Farther and farther away.
She exhaled deeply with relief and stood up slowly, shaking just the tiniest bit. She let out a small, humorless laugh. “What do I get myself into these days?” the SandWing asked herself.
Ash scanned what she could of her closest surroundings. She didn’t recognize anything. Sudden realization overcame her.
She had run in the wrong direction.
A long groan escaped Ash’s mouth. Great. Just great. I’m lost. What‘a hypocrite.
A series of strong breezes blew through the trees, making Ash even colder than she already was. The desert was so much better than this damp forest.
Before Ash began trying to find her way back, she pondered why the creature had let her go. What would cause it to leave her alone? It could have easily gotten her. Had it seen something else to chase? Or . . . eat?
The fact that Ash had almost most likely gotten killed frightened her worse than she would’ve liked. She was never scared. And she never, ever cried. Literally. Ash had never cried once in her life.
Her tear ducts felt a little like crying right then, but she wouldn’t let them. Never.
Even if she got murdered by some growling monster.
She wondered if the others were safe, if they were huddled around the campfire, laughing about something stupid. She wondered if they found Cocoa, and if her going back to the tents had been a bad idea.
She also wondered if the reason the creature had let her go had been to chase after them.
== Chapter Five: We’re Not Alone ==
Misty headed back to the campfire, shaking from head to tail with terror. Cocoa missing. The dead body. It was just too much for her. Although she was a little embarrassed, some tears had fallen from her foggy gray eyes, sliding down her face. This was all her fault. Her fault.
She trampled leaves and a few branches as she walked back, trying as hard as she could not to make a sound. If anything heard her, she feared the worst.
This is all in my head, the SeaWing thought to herself. There is not another murderer going around in these woods again. No. Calm yourself. Everything is FINE.
Misty’s heart, gut, and imagination told her otherwise.
She arrived back at the campfire, it’s warm glow permeating the black darkness. The night was so silent, it was as if no one was in the forest at all. But there were someones. Misty, her friends . . .
And maybe another someone.
Misty sat down hard, trying to clear her mind and calm herself down. There were definitely no monsters. So what else could have murdered that SkyWing? Not animals.
The sound of distant twigs snapping caused Misty to jump. She forced herself to relax. Probably just an animal, or maybe Ash coming back. She really hoped it was Ash coming back.
Deep breaths, Misty told herself. Nothing is going to kill you right now. We still need to find Cocoa—
Her train of thought immediately halted. Renewd fear swept over Misty. Could the thing that killed that dragon only yesterday have . . . taken her? Or . . . worse?
Footsteps sounded close by, very gradually getting louder. Very slow footsteps.
”A-Ash?” she whispered hopefully, hugging herself.
No answer.
”Cocoa? Please don’t scare me,” Misty begged.
No answer.
The footsteps got closer. And closer. From the other side of the campfire.
Misty’s lip quivered for a second. “Anyone? P-please?”
This time, the answer was a low, soft growl. No dragon could make that exact sound.
She whimpered. “H-h-help, s-somebody,” she tried to yell, but could barely make a peep.
Very slowly, the dark silhouette of some . . . creature, very tall, with a humped back, grew outlined by the light of the campfire. It was hard to make out most of the details of the body, but it seemed bulky, with a swooped neck, and a long snout. The thing’s jaws hung loose, it’s fangs glistening in the firelight, oozing saliva. It’s eyes seemed to glow, white as pearls.
This was not a dragon.
”Somebody!” Misty managed to shout, voice shaking with sheer horror. “Help! Please!” She was beginning to cry with terror. The SeaWing didn’t want to leave the campfire, even though she did have night vision. It was the only source of light she could use besides her bioluminescent scales. Panic overtook Misty’s wits, leaving her scared and quivering.
”Misty!” Was that Surf’s voice? She wasn’t sure. Her heartbeat was ringing too loudly in her ears for her to hear anything correctly.
The creature crept around the campfire, staying away from it’s warm glow. Another growl seeped through it’s throat, rumbling awfully.
That did it. Misty’s fear was too much for her. She turned around and broke into a run, loosing a scream. The campfire wasn’t safe anymore. She had to run. Or perhaps, fly.
Misty spread her wings, wanting to head skyward, but as soon as she did, the beast started catching up to her. She couldn’t stop to take flight, not if she didn't want to get caught.
The SeaWing attempted brainstorming while running for her life. It was not easy. But, once she could think a little more straight, she scanned her mind for bits of information about something living in these woods. Is it really a mythical creature? Could it be?
Or . . . the prince from the story.
Her story.
This is my fault, isn’t it? Misty thought to herself. I should never have told that story. They told me not to tell it. This, thing, is most likely the evil prince. WHY IS IT ALWAYS ME?
Only, if this creature WAS the prince, why wasn‘t he a dragon? What was he?
She thought back to a certain piece of the story. He would only show himself in his true form if he was compelled to kill again.
True form.
What he truly was, on the inside.
Is that what his spirit looks like? Reflecting the evil within him? It transformed him into that demon beast; he brought it upon himself.
But that demonic beast was coming straight for Misty.
And he was compelled to kill again.
After a few more minutes of running, Misty started tiring, gasping for breaths, wishing for water. Her throat was crisp with the forest air, and wanted to be flooded with cool water again. She unwillingly started slowing down. The prince did not.
As soon as the SeaWing stopped, only for a minute, to catch her breath, the beast overtook her. It seemed to almost swell in size, and crept up behind Misty. She sobbed when she felt the hot breath down her back. She couldn’t think of anything else to do. The last words she could mutter were, “Seal . . . I need you.”
Then, pitch black darkness enveloped Misty’s vision, and the world became nothing.
== Chapter Six: Missing In Action ==
Surf shivered in the cold night. Whether it was from fear or the cool weather, he could not tell. Maybe both.
There was nothing they could do with the body, so he and Dawn walked back to the campfire, weaving their way through the dense trees. The firelight glowed against tree bark everywhere, so it gave the plants a burning effect that didn’t seem natural. To Surf, nothing in this situation seemed natural.
As the two dragons returned to the campfire, they noticed nobody was sitting nearby. Misty had hopefully gone back to the tents, because they wouldn’t know where to look for her after that strange scream, and Ash must have not found what she was looking for.
It just . . . didn’t seem right. Especially Misty’s cry. Well, Surf had to admit to himself that she shrieked loudly whenever she got startled, so maybe that was it. Like, a rabbit running in front of her out of nowhere or something. Or Ash could have scared her. Yeah, that was it. That was also probably why Dawn wasn’t concerned about the scream.
Well, at least, not openly concerned. But hidden deep in her eyes, a newfound spark of slight fear was making itself known. Other than that, she acted totally calm.
”Hey, Dawn?” Surf asked the SkyWing. “Maybe we should put out the fire and call it a night? Cocoa can’t do anything that bad to us while we sleep, right?” He didn’t sound convinced, even to himself.
Dawn grimaced. “Yeah, let me put out the fire. It’ll only take a second. Do you want to go check on Misty and Ash, or did you want to wait for me?” She raised an eyebrow mockingly and grinned. By the tone in her voice, she might as well have been saying Can you not walk back by yourself? You too afraid of the dark?
Surf rolled his eyes when she wasn’t looking. “I think I’m perfectly fine just walking back on my own, thank you. The tents aren’t far.” With a flick of his tail, he flung a pebble at Dawn’s tail, and she immediately jumped and turned around, ready to pull somebody’s limbs off.
Holding back a laugh, Surf walked back to the tents, guided by his night vision and the glow of his bioluminescent scales. Owls hooted their boredom to the forest. Nocturnal creatures bounded away from Surf’s talons. The three moons shone brightly, rising over the treetops that pierced the sky.
Surf disliked how vulnerable he felt. He imagined the ocean would feel much safer, without the glare of a million stars upon you. Or the owl hooting. It was creepy.
As he had stated, the tents were not that far at all. He reached them with hope of seeing his best friend loping around, causing a ruckus. Alas, Ash was nowhere to be seen. She must have been in one of the tents. Or trying to pull a prank on him. Sadly, the second option seemed more likely.
Another chill slithered down Surf's spine. He didn't want to risk letting his presence be known, but nonetheless, he asked the dark night, "Ash?" When no one responded, he immediately figured Ash was trying to scare him. He took Dawn's earlier advice about not giving them what they wanted: fear. Surf wouldn't let his fear could his vision. Not then, with all the strange happenings, and not ever.
It turned out to be a fleeting thought. Loud rustling passed through the trees nearest Surf, scaring him out of his wits. His bioluminescent scales involuntarily grew brighter as he leaped away from the trees, revealing a glimpse of the mysterious creature's arm. The arm was lanky, so long it nearly dragged on the ground.
But the thing that really caught Surf's eye was its claws. Large, serrated, and stained with something dark and gleaming. Was it . . . blood?
Having beheld this horrific sight, Surf yelped and made a mad dash for the nearest tent. He fumbled with the entrance flap, lifting it and promptly jumping inside. A shadow of a groan escaped him as he landed on something large and hard. Very hard.
Surf's every being was the exact opposite of what Dawn had told him to be: full of fear. He let a gasping breath enter his lungs as he realized he had stopped breathing. His bioluminescent scales were flickering, matching the quick pace of his heartbeat.
After a minute, he relaxed and took a deep, slow exhale. His wings ceased their annoying quivering. Surf groaned with embarrassment, despite no one else being there. He wasn’t the type to go running like a little girl frightened out of her scales! He was supposed to be brave! He didn’t need to go around pulling a Misty (though he meant no offense to her, she was a fearful mess) in the middle of a camping trip! From now on, I must be courageous! he swore to himself.
What cause him to doubt his inner declaration was the fact that a split second afterward, he shrieked when he heard a tired voice moan “OW.”
Surf immediately scrambled to the back of the tent, slightly panicking. He finally noticed that the hard ground he had been laying on was actually a dragon. In his earlier state of horror, he hadn’t given thought to the thing he had landed on when he jumped inside the tent. The sudden discovery was so strange that Surf had the nagging impulse to laugh. He had been laying on a dragon the whole time? In hindsight, he probably should’ve just walked into the tent instead of leaping. That must have hurt.
Curiosity overtook his sense of caution. Who was this dragon? Surf lit up the tent more by brightening his bioluminescent scales, squinting with his night vision to see the dragon better.
He assumed it was Ash, just trying to hide, but then he realized she would’ve smacked him upside the leg for falling on top of her. Or just called him an idiot.
But then that would leave Misty, since she had gone back here . . . Now that he recalled, he couldn’t remember seeing Misty out there either. Something wasn’t right. Then . . . who on earth. . . .
”Thank you, so much, Mr. Gentleman,” Cocoa said in what counted as a gruff voice for her. She slowly pushed herself off the ground. “Being under a falling dragon is really not something most dragons would like to say they have experienced. But thank you, Surf, because now I get to say that I have been!” With Surf’s night vision, he could see the RainWing squinting her eyes in annoyance and anger.
As scary as a riled-up Cocoa was in the dark, Surf found himself relieved. Ash could have potentially been worse if he had fallen on her. The thought made him shiver. She might have stabbed him with her tail barb again (it may have occurred a few times in the past).
After he had a few moments to recollect himself, Surf grew irate towards Cocoa. He and his friends had panicked over the unanticipated disappearance, and in their newfound alarm, they had discovered a recent dead body. Did she have any idea what her fooling around had caused?
”Cocoa!” Surf growled. “Why in the moons did you vanish on us?! Did you think this was all funny?” He promptly regretted asking that question, for he already suspected the answer.
Cocoa shifted to a strange grayish color, but it was hard to tell in the darkness. There might have been a hint of pink peaking under the wing membranes. “Why do you think I disappeared in the first place?” She asked slyly. “Remember? Prank war?”
If the dragon standing in front of him had been Ash the SandWing, he would’ve punched her. “Seriously? Seriously? I thought no one could be worse than Ash when it came to horrible pranks, but I guess she has a competitor. And no, before you speak, that is NOT a compliment!”
Cocoa’s amusement passed like a fleeting shadow. “I didn’t mean for it to get too out of talon. Sorry?” she tried weakly. She shifted her weight from foot to foot.
Surf shook his head, claws covering his eyes. “Why do I bother,” he exhaled. “Do you know where Ash and Misty are?” he asked the RainWing.
She glanced around nervously, as if the two dragons Surf had mentioned would appear from nowhere. “No, but . . . a few minutes ago, I heard some loud noises.” Cocoa’s eyes drifted towards the woods outside the tent. The foreboding trees loomed over the campsite ominously. “Do you think they went back to the campfire?”
The tense SeaWing paused. He muttered, “I don’t think they could have made it past me without my noticing.” Surf‘s forehead made a shallow crater as he frowned, pensive. “Is this a part of the prank war? Are they hiding?”
Cocoa shook her head in the negative. “Misty isn’t involved in it, as far as I’m concerned. As for Ash . . . maybe? I honestly don’t know where they are.”
Surf groaned. “Fish sticks, so they’re temporarily missing in action?”
A low-pitched growl resonated throughout the campground. Both Cocoa and Surf yelped involuntarily, but Surf attempted to turn it into a grunt. The two dragons gradually turned their heads to meet each other‘s eyes. Creeping fear glowed within both of their eyes.
”Wanna find Dawn?” Cocoa asked quickly. She fumbled for Surf’s arm and started dragging him out the tent without his answer or agreement.
Surf nodded vigorously, still trying to seem calm. He let the nervous RainWing drag him back towards the campfire. His mind raced with thoughts and memories, all of which involved gore, terror, and trauma. He knew he was probably just overreacting, but he couldn’t help the pounding warnings in his brain. The questions proceeded to conjure up horrifying answers.
Where were his friends?
Were they alright?
Whatever could've happened to them . . . was he next?
Category:Fanfictions
Category:Fanfictions (Fanon)
Category:Content (MistydaAwesomeSeaWing)
Category:Genre (Horror)
Category:Genre (Adventure)
Category:Genre (Mystery)