Talking Trees

rewrite coming sometime in 2020!! yay
please speak to me if you'd like to still include your ocs
________________________________________________________________
its the og feat. others' ocs fanfic
too bad it's dead 
Currently on hold. I have other projects I want to focus on right now.
Additional characters by EndlessVøices, Fyrestørm, MorphoTheRainWing, SkyFireStone, and XSabxManiacX.
"A forest of talking trees..."
SUMMARY
Pantala has been a terrible place to live for fifty years. Innocents are butchered to keep the supposed 'myth' of LeafWings alive, every dragon is constantly monitored by the queen, HiveWings are mere puppets, and SilkWings live as slaves, beaten and silenced if they speak up. 
But when two mysterious dragons appear one day in Bloodworm Hive, inquiring about the whereabouts of a pale yellow SilkWing who they claim once saved their lives, the SilkWing Jophon's world is flipped upside down.
Because he remembers these strangers-- and happens to know who they're looking for.
With the assistance of his younger sister Pachliopta and the not-so-strange strangers, he sets off to track down this mysterious savior, who, unbeknowst to them, is but one link in a grand chain of rebels...
PROLOGUE
The thick, muggy air of the savannah at twilight surrounded the Hive like the world's most uncomfortable blanket. Though most dragons were asleep by now, lights still shone from several of the windows in Bloodworm Hive. The SilkWings' homes, clinging to the upper branches of the tree-like dragon city, swayed steadily as if trying to rock those living within to sleep. Purple and blue tones were beginning to set into the orange sunset sky, and the silvery, claw-shaped moons peeked over the horizon. Early stars glitttered above, providing the only light for the nervous rebels to see by.
"Are you... sure you want to do this?" The purple SilkWing asked nervously.
She gave the healer a single sharp nod. "I knew the risks, and I chose to help them. We'll be fine." Checkers shifted nervously on her talons, her striped wings fluttering. "I hope you're right. This isn't just dangerous, it's treason to help Leaf--er dragons like them." She glanced back at the two dragons sitting towards the back of the cell fiddling with white silk cloaks. "You'll need to watch out for HiveWings. If you get caught, you're dead--or worse," she added, too quietly for most to hear. "You can stop worrying, Checkers," Leanira laughed. "I think we'll make it. It's just crossing a bridge."
The healer shuffled. "...alright. But I'm coming with you--and I'm bringing Jophon." She looked at the tiny olive and red dragonet sleeping in a hammock, his burgundy wingbuds fluttering as he dreamed. "I have to keep him safe." The darker of the cloaked dragons, the one with the purple claws, spoke up. "Ahem. We need to get out of here, and quickly, miss." He stretched his two wings. "We can't let that demon Wasp find out about... uh, about dragons like us." Eyespots nodded, russet wings flaring to display the dark brown eye-like markings that they had named themself after. "Spruce is right. We need to leave now, or we won't reach the camp by dawn."
"Yes, yes, of course. Can't keep Selene waiting too long." Checkers gave an awkward chuckle, and scooped up the dragonet, who let out a sleepy whimper of protest, before curling up into a ball with his head tucked against his mother's chest. "Let's get going."
The dragons departed, gliding down from the silky house, Checkers holding the now-awake Jophon in her arms. He was blinking rapidly, his aquamarine eyes unfocused and bleary with exhaustion. "Mom, where are we going?" He asked, voice hoarse with sleep. "Just to help some friends, honey," Checkers murmured nervously, adjusting her grip to hold onto the dragonet tighter. "Just to help some friends."
All of the sudden, a buzzing noise filled the air, like thousands--no, millions--of insect wings beating in perfect harmony. A group of sleek armored dragons holding sharp, stinger-like spears rocketed toward them, translucent wings and perfectly polished scales glittering in the fading light. HiveWings.
They charged through the air, in a perfect formation, towards the group, who rapidly lifted off the gossamer bridge. The Bloodworm Hive night patrol rushed towards them, closing the gap quickly. The two LeafWings, who were clad in the moon-silver silk cloaks, flattened themselves to the gently swaying bridge below them, hoping that the similar textures would camouflage them. Unfortunately, the wind that the HiveWings whipped up with their flight ripped the hoods off their heads, exposing their green scales and webbed spines for all to see.
The HiveWing formation split down the middle, with half of the guards continuing to pursue the SilkWings and the other half gliding down to attack the LeafWings, who were clutching to the unsteady silk as if their lives depended on it. "We're gonna have to fight our way out!" the lighter of the two shouted.
"Not if I say so!" Eyespots snapped. "Checkers, head back to your cell! It's not worth it to risk Jophon's life. Spruce, Flourish, go on without us. Me and Leanira will cover for you!" The tan dragon's gaze turned to hers, and she nodded. This isn't as hopeless as it seems. Eyespots is a good fighter, and I've trained well, she thought. "Let's do this." She grinned as the silver silk, which had the same gleam as a sword, coiled out of her wrists. She lashed out, grabbing one HiveWing around the neck and pulling, strangling them. She kicked and clawed and bit, lashing out at the flurry of red and orange and yellow and green scales.
But they were too much. Whenever she knocked one from the air, another flew in to replace them, and the cloud of insectoid dragons didn't get any thinner. With a last flash of desperation, she raked her claws out at a HiveWing--and missed. She felt the guards stab their stingers into her, and felt her body start to go numb. 
Was all that for nothing?
In the distance she could see the twin LeafWings flying off, and Eyespots winging after them. She cried out, a primal bellow of rage and terrory, begging for her best friend--the only dragon she trusted--to come back to her. "SAVE ME!" She screamed. The tan SilkWing looked over their shoulder, tears welling in their eyes, their lovely face conveying a clear message.
I can't.
PART I - LEAVES IN THE WIND
CHAPTER 1
Nine years later...
It was yet another boring day in Bloodworm Hive.
Jophon was walking around the large marketplace, a small bag full of Scales hanging around his proudly arched neck. He wanted to buy something for his partner. Even though he didn't have strong feelings for her, she was nice enough, and he considered her a friend. His thoughts flitted back to a conversation they'd had that morning, where she'd mentioned wanting to get some dyes for a tapestry of Clearsight, comissioned by the Librarian's assistant, so that she could decorate the halls outside the Temple. Seeing a dye stall run by a skinny black HiveWing, he decided to buy what she'd requested.
"Greetings, sir," Jophon mumbled politely. "May I have your permission to buy some dyes from you?" The HiveWing snorted. "Quit yer groveling and pick what ye need," he barked, his voice thick with an accent from a different Hive. "Thank you." He searched through the display, looking for the right shades of gray, black, and purple that Heath needed for her art. "Didja hear the news?" He heard the HiveWing yell, likely directed at another merchant. "Couple o' green weirdos turned up one day, askin' 'bout some yellow SilkWing who saved 'em few years back. Looked like SilkWings, 'ut di'nt know not to 'alk back to HiveWings! Couple o' idiots beggin' fer a beatin' if you ask me. But no one ever asks me 'bout anythin," he lamented. "Ha! They're gonna end up goin' the way o' Leanira at that rate," the other dragon bellowed back.
Leanira?
Something was familiar about that name, but he didn't know what. Maybe she was a dragon from some old wives' tale, or some ancient figure from the days before Clearsight. Something tickled the back of his memory--back from the days when he'd been young and his mother had disappeared so often during the latest hours of the night, assuming he didn't notice her odd coming and going.
He was shaken from his thoughts when the black-scaled merchant poked his side with the tip of his forked tail. "Well? You gonna 'uy somethin' or not?" "Yes, sorry, sorry," Jophon muttered. He selected a bottle with the words 'NightWing Black' and a price scrawled in messy, rather rushed-looking handwriting on its label. He picked a gray that somewhat matched the archaic dragoness's silvery underscales, and a beautiful violet the same shade as a twilight sky. He looked deep into the purple bottle, labeled 'Savannah Evening', thinking. And suddenly, he remembered where he'd heard that name.
Talons wrapping around cream scales. Pink-rimmed wings. Lavender eyes, wide in desperation. And her screams. Those screams had haunted him for years after that fateful night. He remembered her desperate cries. "SAVE ME!" still echoed in through his dreams, faint but ever-present. His mother had tried to shield his eyes, but it had been useless. He'd still seen her get dragged off of the bridges, her talons ripping into the soft, silvery gossamer of the webs, leaving gouges that nobody had bothered to repair.
He took a sharp breath, dropped the bag of scales on the HiveWing's small counter, and darted off, the bottles of dye still clasped in his talons. His mind swirled with thoughts and déjà vu as he rushed through the winding streets of the Hive, darting past posters demanding obedience and warning of the impending LeafWing threat. What was happening that night? Why was she screaming? By Clearsight, WHO WAS SHE? His thoughts fretted, treading a nervous path that had long been worn into the deepest corners of his mind.
He was so focused on these dramatic thoughts and desperate theories that he didn't notice the two dragons walking towards him, who were arguing in frantic whispers.
"I don't think she's on display yet. The posters say that she'll be on at sunrise tomorrow!"
"Well then, we head to the stage they'll be on!"
"But we need to ask more dragons to try and find out where that stage is. Unless you're a prophet more powerful than Clearsight, sister!"
"Am not!"
"Are too!"
"AM NOT!"
"ARE TOO!"
The two dragons started screaming at one another, their wings flapping in fierce agitation. They collided quite awkwardly, and the smaller of the two--the female, he assumed from the tone of her voice--accidentally knocked the bottles of dye out of his grasp. Luckily, they didn't shatter, but it was still inconvenient. "Now look what you've gone and done, clumsyclaws!" The male snapped, his purple claws wrapping around the twilight-purple dye. "Here you go. Please forgive my sister for being a fig-licker. She can't help it." She shot him a glare."You're the fig-licker, log-snout!" The dragoness he'd addressed as his sister snapped at him.
"You know, I can report you for using a tree-related curse," Jophon joked.
The dragons, who he assumed were twins based off their facial similarities, tensed up. "Oh, uh--did I say something wrong?" He tilted his head. The purple-taloned, blue-tinted male chuckled nervously. "N-no. It's just that--er, we, uh--one of our parents got arrested for--uh, I mean one of our friends--" The sister thwacked him on the snout with one of her wings, which Jophon noticed were rimmed with an earthy orange tone that reminded him of carrots. "Stop trying to cover for us, Spruce," she hissed at him, teeth clenched. He noticed that her fangs were pointed instead of flatter and rounded like his own. "You know I'm the better liar."
"Sorry about that." She turned to address Jophon, placing the last of the bottles back into his talons. "My name is Nymph, and he's Milkweed. We're looking for a certain SilkWing, and we wonder if you can help us find her--you see, she saved our lives once, and we have to repay her for that. She's this pretty cream color, with yellow wings. The tips are kind of like mine, but a really nice pink instead." She flared one set of her wings to show him, even though he'd already noticed. "Her underscales are this really, really, really light pink--like, almost white. Kinda like a cloud, when the sun's just starting to set." She looked at him, her brown eyes wide with hope. "Ring any bells?" He tensed his neck muscles, ready to shake his head, and then he remembered something. "You called him Spruce. When you were arguing." Jophon pointed at the dragon she'd addressed as Milkweed. "Spruce isn't a SilkWing name. Why'd you lie?"
She tensed, her gaze suddenly narrowing. "What do you care? His name is Milkweed, and I didn't lie." Despite Nymph's fierce expression, he knew she wasn't telling him the truth. "I care because I recognize that name," he retorted, pale burgundy wings flaring. "From a night when I was a dragonet." She scanned his face, taking in every feature. Her eyes widened in recognition. "Jophon?" She murmured to him. He nodded. "Yeah, pretty sure that's my name. Now tell me yours." She shuffled her wings awkwardly and muttered something indistinguishable. "Speak up," he murmured. "My name is Flourish," she stated. "And his name is, as you know, Spruce." Flourish's gaze turned steely, her jaw tensed, and she stared intently into his aquamarine eyes.
"I hate to say this, but... we need your help."
CHAPTER 2
"You need my help?" He asked her, dumbfounded.
"Yes, we need your help, bud-brain." Flourish snapped. 
"With what?"
"With finding the SilkWing!" She snapped. "But this isn't the place to talk. Can you take us to your cell?"
He shifted. "Uh, sure. I was going there anyway. I have to take these to my partner." He lifted the dyes a bit higher, to show her. She nodded. "Good, good. Is she home?" He shook his head. "No. She's dragonet-sitting for a family in the upper levels of the Hive." Relief flooded into Flourish's gaze. "Excellent. Let's go."
They trodded through the winding streets and passages of Bloodworm Hive, passing more and more posters. Some pictured a sketch of a horribly mauled SilkWing. Their titles boldy declared, 'DON'T END UP LIKE HER', with some writing underneath it. After seeing several of these, he became desperately curious, and stopped to read one.
This SilkWing is a terrible traitor, who endangered her tribe and Hive when 
she intentionally brought two LeafWings to Bloodworm Hive. Her crime did
not go unchallenged, and she was caught and punished by Queen Wasp. To
show the residents of this Hive the true cost of disloyalty, she will be displayed
at sunrise in a prominent place within the Hive. Her story will be told to the 
spectators, and a full list of her crimes will be read. Attendance is optional
but highly advised, as it will show your loyalty to the queen and her cause.
"Jophon?" Spruce called. The SilkWing tore his aquamarine gaze off of the poster, and hurried after the LeafWings, up the winding paths of the dragons' towering, tree-like city, towards a window near the checkpoint that led to the SilkWings' cells.
"Alright. Since me and Spruce aren't actually SilkWings, we can't let the guards know about us," Flourish murmured. "We'll jump out the window and hide, while you go out through the checkpoint. Think you can do that?" They turned expectantly to face Jophon, who nodded awkwardly. "Sounds good."
He spread his big burgundy wings to mask their escape, watching as the two leaped from the big window. After they'd successfully departed, he folded them once again and shuffled over to get in the long line of impatient SilkWings. He turned his head to stare out a window at the beautiful continent he called home. Dusk was falling, and the savannah was washed in grays and blues. Rain clouds were gathering on the horizon, over the ocean. Somewhere in the world, there would be a storm tonight.
"A-hem," a voice coughed. "Sorry," Jophon muttered, and he trotted ahead in line. He held out his arm, showing his ID to the guard, and was waved through into the SilkWings' living quarters. The homes were less grand, and had been spun by the talons of the owners instead of built by talented and strong carpenters. The design of the buildings wasn't as rich or complicated as the HiveWings' houses, inside the great tower-city. He pushed on ahead, balancing on the swaying silk street like only one who had grown up there could.
He made his way confidently towards his own cell, which he was very proud of. He'd studied HiveWing architecture for months, and got the advice of an architect's assistant for some of the smaller details. He'd even woven in some things he'd found on the savannah: feathers, shimmering stones, colorful flowers, and speckled nuts. Heath had even contributed quite a bit, and had scavenged shards of stained glass from around old construction sites.
He looked up to the sky, and waved one big wing to let the twin LeafWings know they could land. They circled and drifted down calmly, the edges of their wings fluttering. Swiftly, they ducked under a long curtain of braided silk strands, and settled inside. "Nice place," Flourish murmured, her voice breaking the thick silence.
Shuffle.
Shuffle.
"Jophon, is that you?"
A polished teal-green face popped out from behind a doorway, with two big blue eyes the same color as sapphires. The dragon's gaze was questioning and inquisitive, with little suspicion on it. "P-pachliopta!" Jophon chirped awkwardly. "I, uh, didn't know you were stopping by t-tonight," he stammered. The wintry-green dragon snorted, trotting out from behind the silk curtain that had obscured her. She had blue triangles along her spine that looked like butterflies hitching serene rides on her back, and a soft dusting of white speckles across her neck and tail. She was short, but her wings were adult-sized and strong. "I thought I told you. Or did you forget, dorkus?" She stretched her neck out and up, antennae unfurled to make herself look bigger, until she was at snout level with Jophon. "And who are these two you brought home? Planning something?"
"Shut up," he growled playfully, swatting her with his left set of wings. "They're old friends." He glanced back at the twins, who nodded. Flourish shifted. "Should we tell her?" She hissed, her voice a whisper. Jophon hesitated, looking at her sassy pose and unconvinced expression, then shook his head. "Let her get to know you, first," he muttered. "I can hear you, you know. And what are you gonna tell me? I think I can handle it. Especially if it's gossip. The weavers are so boring," she sighed. "Wish I'd been assigned to drone status. Then I could've gotten some good talk."
His features tensed. "Pachliopta, I have to tell you something. And you can't breathe a word of what you learn."
CHAPTER 3
"You WHAT?!" she screeched.
Pachliopta fanned her four wings out wide, the tips of the larger set brushing the silken walls. "Jophon, you’ve done some stupid stuff in your time, but this just might be the STUPIDEST." She hissed, baring her teeth. "This is illegal. Ill-le-gal. We will get arrested. And killed.” She smacked her talons to her face, letting out a growl. "Why oh why did you ever talk to them. They’re LeafWings, you idiot. LeafWings!"
Jophon shuffled awkwardly, reaching out a talon to comfort her before thinking better of it. “Pachliopta, it’s not as bad-”
"Not as bad?!" She screeched. "NOT AS BAD?!?! What are you, some stupid little dragonet who jumped off the silk bridges because of a dare, so they could impress some shallow friends?!? THIS COULD GET US KILLED, JOPHON. KILLED!"
Flourish cleared her throat. "Ahem. May we interject into this oh-so-friendly sibling bonding experience?" The yellow-green SilkWing shuffled, turning to look at them. In the chaos of Pachliopta’s frenzy, he’d forgotten about them. "Yes, of course," he murmured, rubbing his wrists together.
"Alright." Flourish swept her tail across the floor of the tail of the gently bobbing silk house, and raised her chin to glare at Pachliopta. "Before you get your wings in a twist, you might as well know what we're here for. We are not here to destroy the Hives. We are not here to execute your queen--though I don't think anyone would mind if we did," Flourish muttered. "We are not here to kill innocents. We are not here to destroy. We are here because a powerful SilkWing rebel sent us here to find the one who saved us. The SilkWing we are looking for will be here tomorrow at dawn, and is supposed to be here for a month. But if we get our way, she won't be here too long." A wicked grin spread across her face. "We're breaking her out. And you are helping us." She pointed at the two.
"Who said we'd help you?" Pachliopta snapped, before Jophon had a chance to reply. "And why should we?"
Clearly displeased with the SilkWing's response, Flourish reached into a pouch around one forearm Jophon hadn't noticed before, mostly because it was stealthily hidded on the inside of her forearm. She pulled something out--a sturdy-looking glass vial with a red label, containing three sleek, dark-colored ants.
"Do you know what these are, Pachliopta?"
No response.
"Do you know what these are?"
Still nothing.
Flourish grumbled and rolled her eyes. "These little cuties are called 'paraponera clavata', better known as bullet ants. One sting, and you're in more pain than you'll ever experience. Your brother has already agreed to help us, and if you don't, we'll have one attack you, wrap you up in your own silk, and drop you on the savannah. Understand?" She nodded.
"She still needs you to say yes," Spruce chimed in.
"Yes." Pachliopta muttered.
"Yes to what?" Flourish asked, a wicked grin budding on her face.
"Yes, I'll help you."
"Good." Flourish put the vial away, and closed the pouch back up. In an instant, it was gone, hidden back into the patchwork of green scales that covered her body.
"Now, for the easy part: finding Leanira."
CHAPTER 4
It was painfully early in the morning, and Jophon would give anything to just be asleep in his hammock, buried in countless fluffy silk blankets.
Instead, he was trudging miserably through the halls of the Hive, following Flourish.
The proud LeafWing seemed to be the only one of their motley band of rebels who wasn't exhausted, which was ironic, considering she'd stayed up all night planning increasingly improbable escape methods that Spruce and Jophon had debunked with ease, before going to sleep close to midnight. Heath had been busy weaving all night, and had returned late, unaware of the LeafWings scheming in their kitchen. Pachliopta stalked after him, sulking, and Spruce brought up the rear.
"At a prominent place within the Hive," Flourish read off the flyer she held, which she had ripped off the wall earlier. "Where could that possibly be?" Spruce shrugged, taking a moment to readjust the set of fake wings he wore.
"Are you being sarcastic, or is that a genuine question?" Pachliopta tilted her head. "Uh, both, I guess," Spruce shrugged. "Well, anyways, I think I know where to go," Jophon interrupted. "There's a stage in the market, for events. Like, performances and stuff. Executions, sometimes." He shuddered, mind plagued by memories of shining blades, masked HiveWings, and screeching rebels.
"Great! What level is it on?" Flourish inquired, gaze bright. "Uhh... the market level?" He gave her a funny look. "Hives don't have numbered levels. You're lucky I know my way around, or else you'd get lost." Flourish huffed, blushing. "I would not get lost! I'd, uh, ask for directions." She snorted as if joking, but her claws were trembling with rage, or maybe the fact that she hadn't slept in two days was finally catching up to her. "Y-yeah! I'd ask. Or find a map. You know what, let's just quit this blabbering and go."
They continued on, passing through winding tunnels and wide streets. A few HiveWing workers and guards patrolled, but they didn't look twice at the crowd of so-called 'SilkWings', likely assuming they were early-morning cleaning crew, or out on some errand. The abandoned halls and the sound of their talonsteps echoing through empty halls was both eerie and oddly peaceful. Even if Jophon hadn't been guiding the group along, posters and signs pointed the way towards the marketplace, peppered with gruesome sketches and warnings. Those really shouldn't be posted in neighborhoods, Jophon thought, shuffling his wings awkwardly.
After a few more minutes of walking, the tunnels of the city opened out into the massive marketplace he'd been coming back from when he met Spruce and Flourish. The massive market, with a ceiling so high it was lost in shadow, yawned out before them. Along the sides were the standard honeycomb shops, and the stalls in the middle. Normally, HiveWing shoppers and SilkWing servants would be bustling around, merchants would be bartering and shouting, and some game or other would be held on a stage or in a cleared area. But not today.
Today, the market was empty--well, not empty, but nobody was shopping and thus it appeared so--and all the citizens of the Hive, as well as some who lived in others but who had traveled here, were clustered around a stage, whispering. The group jostled to the front of the crowd, to stand as close to the stage as possible.
The sound of a pair of loudly buzzing wings pierced through the murmuring, and a dragon descended down to the stage. An amber HiveWing with a reddish-orange face dug his hooked claws into the treestuff, and cleared his throat. "Greetings, citizens of Bloodworm Hive," he said. His voice had an odd hiss-like quality to it, as if his jaws were shut tightly and air rushed through his fangs. "On this day, one of the worst traitors in our recent history has been brought to this Hive, by order of the Queen herself. I believe you all know her story; a story of terrible treachery and malice."
As he spoke, two guards prodded something cream-colored and four-legged onto the stage, but its silhouette and features were blurred and distorted behind the announcer's pastel green wings. "She is one of the worst SilkWing traitors of this era, but her crime provided one spark of good for us; the knowledge of where the LeafWings have been hiding!" His voice rose to a tone of false panic, and he dramatically pulled a whip covered in small, sharp stinger-like thorns off of a belt Jophon hadn't noticed him to havee been wearing.
"I present to you... Leanira of the SilkWings! Or at least, what's left of her."
CHAPTER 5
The HiveWing sneered and stepped aside with a lash of his black-and-white striped tail, revealing a stiff SilkWing cowering on the stage. She fit all the descriptions Flourish had given him, but... something was off about her. She seemed different from the fierce dragoness warrior he remembered, who had volunteered to stay behind and fight off a group of angry HiveWings so that the others could escape.
And then he saw the scars.
Cuts and scars slashed across her proud neck and graceful limbs. Both of her horns were snapped off at uneven lengths, acid burns covered her face and tail, most of her spines were broken, one of her legs was shriveled and dead, and there were massive rips, holes, and tears in her lovely wings. Heavy cuffs weighed down her limbs, and her creamy scales were unusually dull.
"This!" He howled, stabbing a talon in the direction of the cowering, half-dead SilkWing. "This is why you should not rebel against Queen Wasp! Let this SilkWing be an example to all who may rebel of what punishments await them." He uncoiled the pitch-black whip, and hit her across the face, leaving a bloody cut across her snout. She hissed and snapped, and a few dragons in the crowd chuckled awkwardly, as if unsure whether or not to be amused.
"She had a chance to be beautiful, to live normally. She was a good and loyal SilkWing, wise enough to bow to the queen and to shun the dangerous rebels. Her beauty knew no bounds, and her loyalty was so prized, she was chosen to serve a noble heroine of the Tree Wars, General Carrion. But what the queen did not know was that her mind was poisoned! But by who, you may wonder? Well, by the rebels, of course! The wicked SilkWings and the vicious LeafWings, those who would dare to stand before the queen and challenge her!"
He paused, either for dramatic effect or because his throat was sore from all the screaming, before continuing.
"This infection in her mind festered, and grew, driving her mad enough to bring LeafWings into the Hive!" The tribes gasped and drew back in fear, mothers wrapping dragonets in their wings, soldiers snarling and raising their weapons, servants ducking and covering their eyes. "And not just any Hive--this very one!" His voice, which had been loud but harmlessly dramatic, rose into a vicious and terrifying frenzy that made Jophon's head spin and his talons shake. "All of you were in terrible, terrible danger, but luckily, you were saved! The loyal HiveWings of the most esteemed night guard were there to save you. The other rebels were killed for their treachery, but she was given the mercy of surviving."
"Now, she is forever cursed to suffer, blind and beaten, broken by the might of our wonderful queen!"
A resounding cheer and whoop went up, and tens of thousands of wings flared and hummed, but Jophon noticed not everyone was cheering. The palest SilkWing he had ever seen, with snow-white scales and a light, soft pink underbelly, stood glaring at the HiveWing with a resentful gleam in her eyes, despite a neutral expression. She was speaking calmly to a blue-green dragonet whose expression was fearful.
"See, Pipevine?" She murmured, addressing the scared dragonet. "This is why you shouldn't get into trouble." She lashed her tail, which was covered in hideous black burns, and pointed at Leanira, whose head turned towards them. Jophon couldn't see her expression through her blindfolded face, but from the pinched line of her mouth, he assumed she was glaring. "If you keep this up, you'll end up like her."
A brown SilkWing with bright bursts of blue on her scales snorted. "Psh! They'd just kill her, or ship her off to some prison in Wasp Hive." The dragonet whimpered, clinging tighter to the forearm of the white SilkWing. "I-is she right, C-cabbage?" Cabbage hissed at the brown one. "Shut your mouth, Common! Clearly you haven't learned what's good for you." The brown SilkWing, who he assumed was Common--what a fitting name, he thought, amused--rolled her eyes, but didn't reply.
As the crowd began to disperse, he caught sight of a small dragonet talking to Leanira. He inched closer, trying to eavesdrop. Spruce smacked him with his tail--note to self, getting slapped with a LeafWing tail fin really hurts--but he pretended to ignore it. The dragonet, who was clearly a HiveWing, was asking her a question. His eyes were bright and wide, his head tilted, and his tail flicking.
"--with you again sometime?"
Jophon only caught the end of the dragonet's question, and the SilkWing's response. Her face curled into a slight smile, and the sharp, painful tension of her facial features softened, revealing a trace of her once-abundant beauty. "I'd like that." The dragonet, pleased, scampered away, a bounce in his step, and Leanira straightened up. The zebra-tailed HiveWing slunk away, leaving her sitting on the stage alone. She isn't even chained down, Jophon noted. They must really trust the fact that she's too broken to escape.
A slight shuffling distracted him, and he saw the twins heading towards the stage, attempting to be discreet. By Clearsight, those two are just begging to get caught. He stood up and trotted after them, and grabbed his sister’s forearm to drag her too.
By the time he caught up, the twins were close enough to reach out and touch Leanira, but they didn’t. They simply stood there, waiting, observing her. "I know you’re there, HiveWing scum," she hissed at the two. "I can hear your breathing." The twins chuckled, and Flourish responded before her twin could. "We’re basically the polar opposite of HiveWings, 'nira. I thought you knew that." She swung her head around to face the two, her drooping wings stiffening, her gums peeling back slightly to reveal the slightest bit of fang. "Who are you?"
CHAPTER 6
"Why don’t you remember us? You saved our lives."
Flourish gave her a confused and dismayed glance. "You and Eyespots distracted the guards so we could fly off. Saved Jophon, too," Spruce chirped. Leanira’s wings relaxed. "Spruce? Flourish? You're… alive…" She let out a gleeful sigh, and sunk down, flopping onto the treestuff stage with contentment. "I’ve been hearing that moons-damned propaganda speech for so long, I started to believe it was true," she said glumly. "I thought the night patrol had gotten you, and you'd been killed. But now you're alive..." She smiled weakly, but her spark of joy was washed away in a tide of fear. "Does that mean you're here to destroy the Hives?" Her antennae flicked back in fear.
"No, no, no, no, no." Flourish laughed. "Not yet, at least." Her orange-tipped wings flicked backwards awkwardly, and her eyes darted around the marketplace. "I, erm, don't want to talk about it. Someone could... overhear us." Leanira nodded. "Makes sense. Now let's get out of here."
The cream SilkWing hopped off the stage, letting out a quiet hiss as her talons hit the floor and caused a slight tremor. The four dragons flared their wings, stretching them to hide the battered dragoness among a colorful tent of green, red, brown, and blue. Slowly, awkwardly, and inefficiently, they shuffled towards the nearest exit: a balcony overlooking the marketplace, where a guard would normally stand, their fierce pearly eyes systematically scanning the crowd, profiling the residents of Bloodworm Hive however the Queen saw fit. Today, however, they were empty; the guards had gone off to who-knows-where, probably chasing down that runaway dragonet from a few Hives over.
He shook away his thoughts and started to awkwardly scramble his way up. He was halfway up to the balcony when he realized a very important thing that he had forgotten in his mad dash for freedom.
Leanira couldn't climb.
"Stupid, stupid, stupid," Jophon growled to himself as he clambered down, before lightly landing. "Hey, uh, Leanira--should I like, carry you, or...?" The SilkWing shrugged. "Sure. Not like there's any other way I could get up there."
----
notes
i just noticed this book has a ton of walking
just so anyone who's reading this knows, I'm 100% winging the plot lmao
*8-15 paragraphs per chapter
*8-10 paragraphs for prologue + epilogue
*1-2 chapters every few days
*10-30 chapters, try to go for at least somewhere in the 20-25 range
--SPOILERS--
*common shows up again in final chrysalis scene
*alexandra shows up being pretty in one scene, has a 'take me with yoooouuuu' moment in another
*put ant in after the speech, asking her a question with the beginning cut off (her response is "i'd like that")
*namedrop selene during leanira's confession, don't reveal her until last chapter
*checkers shows up in a couple flashbacks, leave fate unknown until next book
*eyespots reappears later as a commander under selene
*ant gets dragged along for the ride
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