Wings of Fire: The First Step

Author's Note: This takes place about a century or two after the events of Arc 3, and the Pantalan Tribes have moved into Pyrrhia. A map will be made soon, but right now, for reference, the HiveWings have made three Hives on the peninsula near the Bay of a Thousand Scales, and the Silk- and LeafWings have made their Kingdoms coexisting in the forest north of the SkyWing Kingdom.
Prologue
The tall dragoness glared down at the scroll with obsidian eyes as the vulture's feather swept across the yellow surface, leaving a trail of red ink behind it.
'Coyote'
Jackal smirked, and a knife flew out behind her, ripping through the tent flaps. There was a screech of pain and horror, and the high-pitched sounds of dragons screaming echoed throughout the Scorpion Den. Amusement shone in the SandWing's eyes, and she stared down at her claws.
If she could instill fear into all of the Scorpion Den...Could she spread it to all of Pyrrhia...?
Jackal swept out of the tent, walking out into the chilly desert night. Two of the moons shone above, a carpet of stars laying across the black night. A SandWing limped towards her, his wings trembling with fear.
"J- Jackal, your daughter-"
"I know, you imbecile! Why wouldn't I with all of the ruckus you are making!" Jackal swung her tail around to scratch his eye, leaving him to fall to the sand, screaming. "All-" she faked a shuddering voice. "All of Pyrrhia shall pay for her death! A least, until the murderer reveals themself!"
The inhabitants of the Scorpion Den stared at her in horror. They were speechless. Good. With a flap of her wings, Jackal flew into the night, then paused for the SandWings to follow. About half of them did.
She burned down the Den and the rest of its inhabitants.
And flew towards the Hives.
Chapter 1
The door slammed, and the two HiveWings sighed. The Queen, atop her throne of glass, gave Orb-Weaver an exhausted look, and the young soldier chuckled.
"Your Majesty, I am quite sorry," Weaver said, giving Vinegaroon an amused look.
"Oh, don't be sorry, dear..." Vin sighed again. "Have you seen how many dragons are just like Bullet? Too many..."
They shared a laugh, and, seeing as there was a lull in requests, Orb-Weaver made her way to the throne, perching above the Queen with two flaps of her wings. The stained-glass windows set the room in a lovely honey color, which matched the unfinished, glass-encased, honeycomb pillars. The floor was made of a medley of different woods (the other Kingdoms wouldn't let them use all of their trees after what had happened on Pantala, and then it looked cool, so they kept it. Weaver agreed with the decision), giving the room a somewhat... Exotic look.
The walls were a mixture of stone, gems, ores, and glass, and Weaver loved how... Unique it made the throne room. From what she'd seen while guarding the Queen, other throne rooms were usually decked out in jewels and gold, showing off the riches of the kingdom. She'd actually quite liked the RainWing Queen's throne room, with its solely natural look.
"Orb-Weaver?"
Weaver blinked, looking down at the Queen. "I am sorry, Your Majesty. What did you say?"
“How is Pollen?” The Queen repeated, yet there was no impatience in her amber eyes.
“Quite well, Your Majesty. Pollen has been studying hard to become a glass-blower and has taken an interest in traveling to the Silken Leaf Kingdom in order to continue this career.”
“That’s wonderful, Orb!” Vinegaroon clapped her claws together. A rare smile split Orb-Weaver’s face, causing the Queen to grin back. Orb-Weaver looked away, embarrassed, and earned a laugh from Vin. “That is also very unsoldierly, Orb.”
Orb-Weaver put her stony face back on (The one everyone now recognizes in a split second, the HiveWing thought) and looked back at her Queen. “You’re not acting very queenly either, Your Majesty.”
“Oh, I can show you how-”
“Hoverfly requests an audience!” the soldier outside of the door yelled, and the two HiveWings quickly got back in place, putting on their serious expressions.
Orb-Weaver stepped forward and opened the door, allowing the pale orange HiveWing to enter. She swallowed as she recognized his chipped horn. This was General Hoverfly. Her boss- or one of them, anyway. She bowed her head.
“Your Majesty,” Hoverfly bowed. “I request about five messengers-”
“I did not give you permission to speak yet,” Queen Vinegaroon snarled, her dangerous tail curling over the arm of the throne. “I could kill you right here and now for that misconduct, General.”
Orb-Weaver smirked. My Queen is the best Queen, no? She blinked, clearing her expression. The general was clearly trying not to show just how terrified he was, his gray eyes wide. 
The Queen smirked, her eyes narrowing. “Good… You now have permission to speak. What was your request again?”
Weaver’s red eyes flicked back to Hoverfly. He swallowed. “Your Majesty, I request for five of the Kingdom’s best messengers. I need my soldiers to know that we are heading to the outpost tomorrow.”
There was a low growl. “Your soldiers…?”
“I apologize, Your Majesty. Your soldiers. I mean the soldiers of Hoverfly Wing.”
“Better. Fine,” Vinegaroon drawled. “Orb-Weaver, remind me- Who are my best messengers?”
The soldier straightened. “Yes, Your Majesty! Your best messengers are Mayfly, Aphid, Scorpion, Desiccata, and Hornet.”
“Thank you,” the Queen purred. “I’ll send them on their way. You may leave now.”
As the doors closed, Orb-Weaver turned to Queen Vinagaroon with a smile. The Queen returned her look.
“Your Majesty, I-”
“Yes, dear, I know. You should tell Pollen the good news too.”
“Oh, I will. It’s just-”
Vin’s chuckle cut her off, her dark red body rising from the throne. Her claws clicked across the floor, tail slithering behind her, until she was finally face-to-face with Orb-Weaver. The soldier’s breath quickened as the Queen wrapped her wings around her.
“I know you’ll do a great job. I’ll be fine. You know that.”
“I know that,” Weaver echoed, resting her head on Vinagaroon’s shoulder.
“You have always been my best soldier, Orb-Weaver.”
“Your Majesty,” Orb-Weaver whispered. “You’re making me want to stay.”
The Queen pulled back, resting the horn on her face against Orb’s. “It’s not like it’ll be forever.”
“And we’ll have letters,” Orb-Weaver added.
“And we’ll have letters,” Vin repeated, then finally stepped away, leaving Orb-Weaver feeling like something had just been ripped away from her. “You should go now. I order you to write me as soon as you can.”
“I was already planning on it, Vin,” Orb-Weaver smirked. “You’re the best Queen anyone could ever ask for.”
Vin chuckled. “I sure hope so.”
They smiled at each other for a few seconds, then Orb-Weaver turned, walking towards the door. As she slipped through, she thought she heard the Queen say something about ‘more than a soldier’, but simply dismissed the thought.
'''
Chapter 2
'''
Orb-Weaver glided around Vinagaroon Hive, the ocean breeze tickling her black wings. The Bay of a Thousand Scales sparkled in the sunlight, and she could see blue and green wings rising above the waves, like glimmering sapphires and emeralds.
Jewels like that didn’t interest Orb-Weaver in the slightest. Who needed gems? They didn’t protect you from harm. Their only true use would be to sell them and support you and whatever family you had. Why would you simply let that chance hang on a wall or somewhere to simply be looked at?
The idea had always boggled Orb’s mind. If she needed decorations, she could easily hang up an old set of armor, awards, Pollen’s weavings, Vinagaroon’s presents, even a trophy of war! But never gems. She simply COULD NOT understand why other Queens had mountains of riches while dragons starved on the streets. Although it was also their fault for not finding a job…
Orb-Weaver shook the thoughts from her head as the familiar honey-dyed wood balcony came into view. She landed on the smooth surface with a thump, letting herself relax with a sigh.
“Pollen, I’m back!” she called into the home.
They lived on the middle-most floor, with an average lifestyle. They could easily move up in both living quarters and societal rank, but they’d lived here since they’d hatched. Also, their parents had died, so the sisters had felt it right to stay. Orb-Weaver also ended up spending most of her paychecks on Pollen, so even if they did decide to move, they wouldn’t be able to constantly pay for the higher rooms, let alone buy one straight up.
Besides, Orb-Weaver liked the coziness of their home. They’d imported flamesilk from the Silken Leaf Kingdom, and the lanterns they were set in cast a warm glow across the main area. There were two hammocks on the side walls, with a dip in the center covered by a plush golden blanket and an assortment of pillows. All made by Pollen, of course.
Her weavings hung across the walls, and a portrait of the family hung neatly inbetween the entrances to their rooms. That was Orb-Weaver’s favorite, even if she didn’t look as brave in it.
Pollen burst out of her room and tackled Orb-Weaver in a fit of giggles.
“Hiya, sis!”
“Hey, Pollen.”
“How was work?”
“Normal.”
Pollen grinned viciously. “So more flirting with the Queen?”
Orb-Weaver pushed her off (playfully) and made her way over to her hammock, plopping down with her snout in the air.
“No. Who said that’s the norm?”
“Everyone.”
Orb-Weaver got up so fast she fell out of the hammock. “Who- WHAT?”
Pollen giggled. “Just kidding! But it is true, right?”
“Maybe a little bit…” Orb grumbled.
Pollen could get her to say the craziest things! Weaver’s sister was looking at her with her mischievous green eyes, and she simply huffed. Pollen was small, with pale yellow scales dappled with black, red, and almost white. They shared the same black wing membranes, but they had no similarities in personality.
Pollen was kind to everyone she met, but could also be found pranking other HiveWings. Of course, they were never cruel pranks, just little things like surprises as they walked or swapping honeydrops for stained glass (that went terribly once, so Pollen didn’t do it as often anymore).
Orb-Weaver, on the other claw, followed every rule and law in existence, always scowled, and never let anyone off the hook. Just like her Queen, Orb-Weaver was very strict, a quality she took pride in. She knew about the whispers that echoed through the dragons as she passed, the HiveWings that called her ‘The Scowl’ because they weren’t creative geniuses like her sister.
“You came in looking excited. Did she ask you to marry her?”
Orb-Weaver frowned. “No.” Besides, she thought. I’d be the one asking her. Surprised, she shook the thought from her head. Why in the three moons- We’d never be like that. No. I’m her soldier, she’s my Queen, that’s that, nothing more-
“Sis?”
Orb-Weaver blinked, looking back at her sister. She’d been thinking about the nonsense for a while now. “Sorry, well, we’re moving.”
“What?”
“I mean, well, only for a little bit. Maybe a year.”
“A year!”
“The outpost by the Mud Kingdom got set up, and all of the Hoverfly Fleet is going. We’ll help make some final touches, stay there for a little longer, then switch with Darner Fleet.”
“Wait, the Mud Kingdom?”
Orb-Weaver flinched. “You… Don’t like it?”
“I love it! I can weave grass and reeds and I bet I can sell stuff there, too!” Pollen grabbed a large bag from the shelf to her side. “Packing?”
“Yes. We leave tomorrow at dawn,” Weaver replied, grabbing her own bag.
“Not too long to get ready,” Pollen commented, practically floating into her room. Orb-Weaver could hear the clinking of gold and the soft sound of thread as they fell into the bag.
“I know.” Weaver entered her own room, scanning it for things to bring. Her room was very tidy.
Mostly because there was close to nothing in it.
Her books and such were kept in the study, so no desk stood in the corner. Instead, a suit of armor hung on its model, across from the dip in the floor she called her bed. Next to the door was a small tower of journals, filled with notes and reports. Pollen never liked them in the study. ‘Too serious’ she said. So Orb-Weaver kept them in her room. There was a simple red rug in the center of the floor, and tapestries adorned the walls, but that was it.
Weaver sighed. The set of armor would’ve been her first choice to bring, but they’d been told not to bring any, for fear of heavy loads tiring out the dragons. Weapons, though, were perfectly fine. Besides, they were getting brand new sets when they got there.
The armor in question was beaten up, dented. It still had its polished iron sheen, due to Weaver’s diligent cleaning of it everyday. The armor was like another set of scales. It covered her top half, but none of her wings. The plating went all the way down her spine and to her tail, where it capped off with a sharp iron point. Her set didn’t go all the way down to her claws to make way for the dangerous spurs on her wrists, making that a weak spot, but she didn’t mind too much.
Orb-Weaver placed three of the journals into her bag, then moved to the study, where she took some books off the shelves and her dual hatchets from where they leaned against the desk.
They were practically her children. She’d once given Princess Centipede a small lesson with them, to Queen Vinagaroon’s horror.
She’d ignored Orb-Weaver for a month.
That was quite possibly the worst month of her life.
'''
When they were done packing, the sisters went to bed early, to be rested for the trip ahead. According to General Hoverfly, it was only a day’s flight, but there would still be limited rest points.
Orb-Weaver lay awake, staring at her dark yellow talons. For some strange reason, she had some strange feeling that some strange thing would happen. After meeting the dragons of the Night Kingdom, she knew that there were millions of futures, millions of possibilities.
What if, in one of those possibilities-?
Orb-Weaver couldn’t finish the train of thought. The entire Hive army would still be there. Nothing would get to her Queen.
'''
Chapter 3
'''
Orb-Weaver and Pollen fluttered down to the landing platform, from which they planned to take off from. Friends and family gathered around the Hoverfly Fleet, and Orb-Weaver had a fleeting thought about bee nests.
Pollen made a delighting squawking noise and practically tackled a black HiveWing with yellow splotches. Orb-Weaver recognized the trails of orange dots and flitted down beside her sister. “Hello, Firefly.”
The dragon grunted, and Pollen got up. “Hi, guys. I thought I’d come here and join the… crowd?”
Pollen laughed. “It’s just a bunch of dragons, Firefly!”
“Exactly. I didn’t think there’d be so many…” he sighed, but his orange eyes were smiling. He paused before asking, “So… How long will you be gone?”
“At least a year,” Pollen said with an eyeroll.
“Wow.” Firefly blinked. “That’s… A long time.”
“It is not very long.  We will be back in no time,” Orb-Weaver said smoothly, and she felt a small talon poking her side. She blinked, turning to see Princess Centipede looking up at her with big green eyes. Her mother’s green eyes.
Centipede looked almost exactly like her mother. She had the same black scales, red wings, and long tail, but had red stripes instead of orange, and her wing membranes were tinted red-orange with black splotches instead of just black like Vin’s.
“Oh, hello Centipede.” Orb-Weaver lowered herself to the dragonet’s level and smiled.
“Hiya, Orb,” the Princess said, and Weaver detected a hint of sadness in her voice.
“Princess, what’s wrong?” she asked, scooping up the dragonet.
“Mommy says you’re leaving. Is that true?”
“Yes, Princess, but I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
“B-But what if you don’t?” Centipede was sniffling now. “What if you’re gone FOREVER?” She wailed and buried her face in Orb-Weaver’s chest.
“Oh, no, Princess! It’ll be okay! Trust me,” the soldier sighed and stroked Centipede’s horns with a talon, something she’d done since the Princess had been barely a day old. “I’ll come back. I have to. It’s not like I’m going to war.”
“Centipede! Centi- Oh, there you are!”
Orb-Weaver and the Princess looked up to see Queen Vinagaroon walking towards them.
“Your Majesty,” Orb bowed, one yellow claw crossed over the other.
“Orb, dear, please get up. Now is not the time.”
She flinched and rose to her feet, but the Queen’s face was smiling. Her daughter was clinging to Weaver, and she laughed.
“Centipede, darling, it’s time to say goodbye.”
“But Moooommmyyyy!”
“Centipede.”
“I don’t wanna say goodbye!”
“I know. But she’ll write letters.”
“I can’t read.”
“And maybe you’ll learn how to when she writes them. But for now, you need to stop clinging to her like a tick.”
“Okay…” Princess Centipede looked back up, into Orb-Weaver’s red eyes. “I’ll miss you…”
“I’ll miss you too, my Princess.” Orb-Weaver lowered her head to bump snouts with the dragonet. “Take care of your mom, alright? I need someone to do it for me.”
Centipede immediately brightened up. “Okay! Love you, Orb-Weaver!” She gave the soldier a kiss, then flitted back to her mom. “Mommy, Mommy, Mommy! Orb-Weaver made me in charge of taking care of you!”
“Did she now?” Vinagaroon arched an eye ridge at Weaver, who winked.
“Hoverfly Fleet!” Orb-Weaver looked up to see General Hoverfly hovering above the landing platform. “Finish your goodbyes, for we leave now!”
Pollen was already by Weaver’s side, waving to Firefly. “Well, sis, it’s time!”
“It is,” Orb agreed. “Farewell, Your Highnesses, until we meet again.”
Rising into the crisp air, Orb-Weaver looked down at the Hives. Vinegaroon Hive towered in the middle, with Tarantula, Honey, and Grasshopper Hives spread around it in a triangle-like shape. It was strangely beautiful in the rising sun’s soft light, the honey-colored rays spread out across the strip of land donated to them by the Pyrrhians.
Category:Star's stuff
Category:Wings of Fire
Category:Fanfictions (Unfinished)
Category:Literature