Venomous Vengance Book 1: Lost Lies

<poll>
Who do you ship?
Antheraea x Stinger
Crayfish x Antheraea
Puffin x Circinae (it's a possibility)
Atlas x Dromedary (not likely, but maybe)
Something else (tell me in the comments)
</poll>
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Venomous Vengance: Lost Lies	Venomous Vengance: Lost Lies
 	
Author(s) of Fanfiction 	Darkmoon the IceWing NightWing
Genre(s) 	Prophecy and Adventure
One-Sentence Summary 	The dragons of two continents begin to settle in 25 years after finding each other, and new adventures abound.
V E N O M O U S
V E N G A N C E
Set 25 years after the second arc. SilkWings, HiveWings, and a few LeafWings are now included in JMA.
C H A R A C T E R S
MAIN CHARACTERS
Former Jade Winglet (now teaching at JMA)
Antheraea
Crayfish (Darkmoon)
Circinae
Dromedary
Puffin
Stinger
Atlas
Floret (Floret)
Starry Night (Sbyman)
Kingfisher
SUPPORTING CHARACTERS
DoD (Clay, Tsunami, Glory, Starflight, and Sunny)
Morpho (Morpho)
Vera (Morpho)
Cynips (Lacey)
Tetra (Wolfblaze)
Basalt (The Wolves Heart)
Sunset (Fen the MudWing)
Noble (Pokeballmachine)
P R O L O G U E
1 year after the second arc . . .
Moon was flying with Qibli. They had three other dragons with them: Kinkajou, Turtle, and Luna. It had been a year, but they would be finally going back to Pyrrhia. Luna, a SilkWing dragoness, was coming with them to help bring the two continents together.
Moon sighed. I learned so much from staying with the SilkWings. Their libraries, their schools, everything was so advanced and we never knew it existed before now. And we stopped the war. We've done so much, and I've learned so many new things. Qibli learned more than he knew before. Turtle found a way to use his powers for good things. Kinkajou became more mature. We've all changed.
She looked at the moons and the dragons flying with her. When we return to Pyrrhia, how different will things be? Qibli saw the look on her face and said, "Moon, we'll all miss Pantala. But think of how much our world can change with all the tribes working together! This doesn't have to be the last time we see them, and you know it. You've probably had a vision about it already."
Moon sighed and nodded. "Yes, I had a vision. And I keep having it. Whenever I have it-" she broke off. A vision headache was trying to explode her head. Then she began to see it again.
"Dragons of all continents together
Can save the world and make it better
Away from home, fifteen Pantalans will be
Twenty-five years after the SilkWings are freed
The defeat of the wasp shook the hives
Among her subjects, a venomous vengance thrives
As the darkest night draws near
The red widows will strike and bring back a reign of fear
Ten dragonets will face a horde
If they wish to save the tribes from war."
Qibli blinked. Finally he said, "Do you know what it means?"
Moon shook her head. "I wish I could make sense of it. What in the moons is a red widow? Or a venomous vengance? And what horde? What reign of fear? I have so many questions, but no way to get answers," she said.
Qibli brushed wings with her. He looked into her eyes and said, "Moon, we can figure this out together. Besides, I think I found the first clue. Remember that line about Pantalans? Away from home, fifteen Pantalans will be. There are five winglets, so maybe we have to put a dragon from Pantala in every winglet!"
Moon smiled. "Typical you, figuring everything out." She poked him in the side before saying, "Tag! You're it!" She flew away giggling as he flew after her.
C H A P T E R 1
Antheraea was nervous, but also excited. She had been invited to Jade Mountain Academy! Her brother, Atlas, had been invited too, so that would make things better. She would get to meet Moon, and Qibli, and Turtle, and Sunny, and all the others too!
She saw the twin peaks in the distance. Atlas did too. "We're almost there!" he exclaimed.
Antheraea replied, "Are you nervous?"
Her brother looked at her like she was crazy. "Nervous?!? Why would I be nervous?" he asked. They continued this discussion until they were within sight of the entrance. Then Atlas said, "Shush! We're here!"
They landed, and almost immediately Sunny came up to meet them. "Hi there! Welcome to Jade Mountain Academy!" she said. She handed each of them two scrolls. She said cheerfully, "The first scroll is the schedule for your winglet, and the second scroll is a map of the school." Antheraea looked at the schedule scroll. It read:
Jade Winglet Schedule
Breakfast/Free Time 
Homeroom
History 
Herbs and Healing
Free Time
Lunch
Language Arts
Self Defense
Free Time 
Dinner
Tribal Abilities
Study Time
Free Time
Lights Out
Atlas looked over her shoulder. "Oh, you're in the Jade Winglet? Cool! We have history together. I'm in the Gold Winglet," he said.
Sunny said, "Atlas, you're in the second tunnel on the left, third cave in the right. Antheraea, you're in the first tunnel on the right, fourth cave in the left." Antheraea nodded.
Atlas said , "Thanks, Sunny!" The SandWing/NightWing said to Antheraea, "Classes start tomorrow. Have a great day and feel free to explore the school today and every day!" Antheraea nodded with a smile and went to find her sleeping cave.
Antheraea and her brother had gotten there in the morning, before many other students came. I guess this cave is all mine for now, she thought. She saw a silk hammock from Pantala, now grown here in the small Pantalan cities that had sprung up. She put her welcome scrolls in the empty rack beside her new bed.
She saw two full scroll racks by the entryway. She looked at one and found a lot of scrolls she liked. She took one off, Animus History, and began reading it. She always liked to read about animus magic because it was foreign and mysterious to her tribe.
She had no idea how much time had passed, but eventually she got hungry and went to the prey center. She took a few coconuts from a pile of fruit and ate them. She had been sitting alone as she got to her third coconut, but then a cheerful MudWing came over. He sat down with a mango in his claws.
"Hi! I'm Crayfish," he said. "I'm in the Jade Winglet. What winglet are you in?" he asked.
Antheraea replied, "I'm in the Jade Winglet too. My brother is in the Gold Winglet."
Crayfish smiled. "Awesome! One of my sisters is here. She's in the Quartz Winglet. I'll have Tribal Abilities with her. What class are you most excited for?"
Antheraea thought for a minute. "Maybe History. My family lives in the SilkWing village on the Talon Peninsula, but we moved there only a year ago. I want to learn all about Pyrrhia's history. And we might have Pantalan history too!" They both smiled.
Slowly but surely, Antheraea began to feel more comfortable at Jade Mountain Academy. Crayfish explored with her, and they were taking a break in the library before going deeper into the mountain. Crayfish was reading about scavengers. Antheraea was reading about plants. They sat together near one of the windows.
For a while they sat and read, until Crayfish got fidgety. "Do you want to explore now?" he asked.
Antheraea said, "Sure! I can't wait to see beyond the classroom tunnels." She walked off with the MudWing to explore the tunnels.
They found multiple underwater lakes, often with holes in the roof. There were plenty of caves with cool rocks. Once Crayfish found a diamond, and another time Antheraea found some pyrite. They searched the caves for interesting trinkets, and they found plenty. One cave had some tattered, scorched maps and bits of scrolls. Another cave had hidden jewelry, some of which they took.
Antheraea took a copper armband that really accented her purple wings. Crayfish took a thin gold tailband. But the most interesting thing they found was a chest. It was very old, from the looks of it. There was silver trim and a silver clasp. As they left the cave, Antheraea couldn't shake the feeling that the chest would be very important to her destiny . . . if she could even find it again.
Crayfish went to the library, and Antheraea went to her cave. As she walked in, she saw a dusty gold SandWing lounging in a pile of sand. She saw her silky hammock and sat down.
The SandWing said, "Hey there! My name is Dromedary. What's yours?"
"Antheraea," she said, her lavender wings twitching.
"Nice name!" Dromedary replied before lying down again.
A grouchy orange SkyWing stomped into their cave. "I'm Circinae," she growled. "And right now, I want some peace and quiet. So please leave me alone." Antheraea nodded, and Dromedary shrugged. Antheraea motioned for her clawmate to follow her, and she walked out of their cave.
She decided to go to the library. Crayfish would be there, and she liked to read. When she walked in, she was stunned once again by the beauty. There was a green glow, and beautiful flowers were everywhere. Crayfish came up beside her and smiled.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" He said it in a way that wasn't quite a question, but not a statement either.
"Yes, it is," Antheraea replied.
They stood like that for a minute, their wings almost brushing, until Starflight said, "Welcome to the library! I can help you find scrolls if you need help." Anthereaea politely said thank you, and then started browsing the scrolls.
"Ooh!" she exclaimed. "​​​​​​A Guide to the Flora and Fauna of Pyrrhia! I've always liked animals." 
Crayfish said, "I checked out Dangers of the Rainforest. It's surprising how many things there are that can hurt you! Quicksand, poisionous snakes, mushrooms, tree frogs, pythons, and lots more."
Antheraea smiled. "Well, you'll be well prepared if you ever go there." They both grinned for a moment before turning back to their scrolls.
After a few hours, a very pale blue IceWing came to the library. He called out to Starflight, "Hey, um, Starflight? Need any help in here?" The blind NightWing replied, "I do have one job that I could use some help with . . . Can you help me organize the name scrolls?" The IceWing, Puffin, responded, "Of course!" When he briefly turned in her direction, she saw his eyes and was shocked. Instead of the usual dark eyes, his eyes were a crisp sky blue.
She turned to Crayfish and whispered, "What's wrong with his eyes?"
He poked her with his tail. "Don't be rude!" he exclaimed. Then they both got quiet and read for awhile.
Antheraea's scroll was so interesting that she read for a few hours before realizing how hungry she was. She turned to Crayfish and asked, "Do you want to get something to eat? I'm pretty hungry."
As they walked out, Puffin called to them. "Wait for me!" he said. Crayfish and Antheraea paused so that the IceWing could catch up.
They had some nice conversation as they ate, and Antheraea was satisfied. She went to her cave, ready to sleep. Dromedary was still hanging out with the other SandWings in the music cave, but Circinae was there. She collapsed on her silk hammock and fell asleep almost instantly.
C H A P T E R 2
The next morning, she awoke feeling refreshed. She could see through a small opening in their cave that it was only dawn, but she stretched and walked out of the cave anyways. As she was walking out of her cave, she nearly collided with a gold and black HiveWing.
He was kinda cute, and his expression was hilarious. "I'm sorry," he said. "I should have looked where I was going."
Antheraea stuttered, "N-no, it's fine. I should have been more careful." He smiled, just a little.
"Nice to meet you, " he said. "I'm Stinger. What's your name?"
"Antheraea," she replied. He looked kind of sad, so she decided to ask a question. "Um . . . you look sad. Why?"
He sighed. "I was just thinking."
"What were you thinking about?" she asked.
"My sister. I haven't seen her in five years. I had a dream, a really strange dream, and she was in it."
"Really?" she said. "Cool!" Then she thought of something. "Did she happen to have a blue jewel with her? A star-shaped blue sapphire?"
Stinger's eyes widened. "I didn't think of that . . . Maybe she really did dreamvisit me." They both stood in uncomfortable silence for a few seconds. 
"Remember red!" Stinger suddenly blurted.
Antheraea gave him a confused look. "What?" she said, puzzled.
"Widow said 'remember red'. I know it's important, but I can't remember what it is yet."
Antheraea stood there trying to think about what it might mean, and then Stinger shrugged. "It'll come back to me eventually," he said.
Her stomach rumbled, and Antheraea realized she was hungry. "I think I'm goimg to go grab some breakfast," she said.
"Really? I was just thinking about getting something to eat too!" he replied. THey both chuckled.
"Let me see if either of my clawmates want to join us," she said. SHe poked her head into her cave, but Circinae and Dromedary were both fast asleep. "I guess it's just us, then," she said. He nodded, and they walked off towards the prey center.
The walk there was a bit awkward, mostly because Antheraea didn't know what to say. When they got there, she grabbed a few bananas and started peeling them. Stinger took a minute to chase down a chicken and kill it.
"I'm actually not a big fan of birds," he said, "But this looked like the easiest thing to catch."
Antheraea nodded. "I don't really eat meat," she replied.
"I've heard that all SilkWings are vegitarians," he said. "But something I've been curious about is have you ever tried meat?" She had to sit and think about that for a minute.
"I don't think I ever have,” she replied.
"Have you eaten fruit before?" she countered. Maybe he never had, considering his carnivorous lifestyle.
"I have indeed," he replied. "In fact, I got to try a mango yesterday and I thought it was great. I just like meat a little better."
They debated about whether fruit was better than meat or not for what was probably at least an hour, and when they were done with their breakfast, the sun was fully off the horizon.
As they were about to continue their discussion after cleaning up their eating places, the gong rang three times. "Oh, moons!" Stinger exclaimed. I guess that must be the warning bell. We better head to class."
They were both in the Jade Winglet, so they walked down to their homeroom together. When they got there, Antheraea spotted Circinae's orange scales, and Crayfish's familiar brown. Dromedary came into the room a little bit after Stinger and Antheraea, chatting with a female RainWing. With them was a small NightWing.
After everybody else, the blind IceWing named Penguin and a blue-green SeaWing came into the room just before the gong rang again to signal time for class to start.
Right after the gong rang, a brightly colored RainWing with a skyfire bracelet came into the room.
"Hello!" she said, her scales bursting with yellow excitement and pink hapiness. "I'm Kinkajou, and I'll be your Homeroom teacher! Today we're just going to do some introductions, and I'll try to remember everybody's names. Let's start with you," she said after pointing at the RainWing.
The female RainWing, who was constantly fidgeting, seemed a bit startled when she was called on. "Oh, me?" she said. "Okay. Um, hi, I'm Floret. I really like flowers, if you couldn't tell...I guess I like math and science too, but I hate history. I'm six years old, and I have a sister named Leaflet. She's basically my best friend."
"Thank you!" Kinkajou said. "That was great, Floret. Let's just go in a circle to make it easy. We're moving to the left." The next person in line to speak was Dromedary.
"Hi, everybody!" she began. "I'm Dromedary. I was raised in the Scorpion Den, but my dad was a traveling merchant who sold most of the silk our family friend Monarch made. I like sunlight, flying, open spaces, music, and talking. My goal is to learn as much as I can and one day do something great."
Kinkajou clapped. "Great job! Now it's the next dragon's turn." The little NightWing was next in line. "Hey," she said. "I'm Starry Night, but you can call me Star. I like reading and scrolls. I'm six years old, and I live in the rainforest with my parents. I think school has been pretty good so far."
It was finally Antheraea's turn to introduce herself. "Um, hi," she began. "I'm Antheraea, named after a type of butterfly. I came here with my brother, Atlas...um, we lived in Mantis Hive for a while before moving to the new SilkWing village on the Talon Peninsula. I like books, art, and exploring. My favorite thing to do is read, especially non-fiction or mysteries."
Puffin, Circinae, Crayfish, Kingfisher, and Stinger all introduced themselves after her. She learned that Puffin was blind, which explained his weird eyes. Circinae's favorite color was sky blue. Crayfish had three sibs. Kingfisher was named for his bright colors like a kingfisher bird. Stinger said that he used to live in Wasp Hive until he was three.
The gong rang again, this time signaling the end of the first class. The students all got up, preparing to go to History. It was taught by Webs, who had been a teacher at Jade Mountain Academy since its creation, and had been a guardian of the dragonets of destiny before that.
She was walking with Starry Night and Dromedary, while Floret was trying to talk to Circinae. All of a sudden, they heard a scream. "CIRCINAE! WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOUR EYES?!?" The loud screams had come from Floret. When Antheraea turned around, she shuddered. Circinae's eyes were a blank white, as pale as the moon, and they stared right at Antheraea.
C H A P T E R 3
Stinger, Star, and Dromedary turned around to look too. "Oh my gosh!" Star gasped. The orange SkyWing seemed to have no control over her body, and her mouth was curling into a snarl.
"Bow down before the HiveWings, slave." she snarled. "We are rising again, and nobody can stop us. We are already here, and the HiveWings will rebuild their empire. Anybody for them is rewarded, while anyone who refuses to help is worth less than dirt. We will reign again!" Circinae finally finished the speech, and when she did, her eyes faded back to normal, but Antheraea could see a faint symbol in the blank whiteness.
Circinae shook her head. When she saw dragons staring, she said, "What?"
A LeafWing named Vera spoke up. "You were just...possessed or something. You kept sprouting nonsense about HiveWings returning to their reign."
Another dragon said, "Were you mind-controlled or something? Your eyes were all freaky and white." Antheraea noticed Puffin slump down a little after that, probably because he was insecure about his eyes, being blind and all.
Circinae shook her head, as if to clear it. "I don't know what the moons just happened, but I'm just as confused as everybody else!" she snapped. The other students exchanged alarmed glances, then backed off.
Puffin walked silently beside Circinae to History, while the rest of the Jade Winglet walked in groups of two or three. They were mostly silent, trying to think about what just happened.
Everybody got to History in one piece, and they all sat down. "Welcome," Webs said. "As you probably know, my name is Webs, and I'll be your History teacher. Today we will start at the beginning with the Scorching."
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Floret give a large sigh and roll her eyes. She obviously hated this class already. The other dragonets seemed mostly okay with it. Personally, Antheraea found history quite interesting. There were always things that could be learned from the past, and history tended to reoeat itself.
Webs began with describing the only known records of the Scorching. Apparently, there was some debate about whether scavengers are as advanced as the scrolls said they were.
Antheraea got lost in a daydream, thinking about being an archaeologist who would find the records of long-forgotten past events. Her dream was to one day make a discovery so great that all of the continents would know who she was.
"Alright, remember to check out History of the Scorching from the library, and bring with you to class tomorrow," Webs said. "We'll be reading chapters one and two. Now, you may have free time until class is over."
Antheraea turned to her brother, who was sitting beside her. The fainter light made his coppery orange scales look dull, almost like they were rusted. "What do you think?" she asked him.
"It's great!" Atlas responded enthusiastically. "So much adventure and fun. I wonder if we had a Scorching on Pantala... Anyways, homeroom was great. We have a LeafWing in our winglet, Vera, and there's a HiveWing too. There's seven others, and they're all pretty cool. How's your winglet?"
"It's pretty great," she begam. "I have two clawmates, Dromedary and Circinae. Dromedary is super nice, and she likes music. Circinae, on the other talon, seems like a pretty grumpy dragon, but I know she's nice on the inside."
"Yeah, she seems pretty cool," Atlas said. "Wasn't she the one who had the creepy eyes in the hallway? That was really weird, to say the least." He shuddered, making the torchlight bounce off of his bronze scales oddly.
Only a few seats away, Circinae scowled at them. "Do you think you were the only one who got freaked out? I couldn't even control my own vocal cords!" she snapped. Obviously, she was just as confused as anyone, and just as scared.
Puffin, the blind IceWing, put a wing over her nervously. "Hey, not everyone thinks you're weird. It was just one strange thing, and everyone's fine now." Circinae glared at him, but relaxed.
"Whatever," she muttered. 
Webs saw the commotion, and walked over. "I hope you all don't have a problem. Do remember to control your tempers, and for goodness sakes, stop snapping!" he said to Circinae. "If you don't calm down, I'll have to send you to Sunny." Circinae rolled her eyes.
"I think I'm controlling my temper just fine!" she exclaimed.
The older SeaWing made a strange noise. "Well, with that attitude, you certainly don't look like it," he countered. "Now, why don't you go out into the hallway to cool off." Circinae stormed out, smoke pouring from her nostrils. Puffin looked worriedly after her, and he even seemed a bit startled or scared. 
Everyone attempted to have some conversation, but they still seemed put off by the situation with Circinae. Since Atlas had turned around to chat with the SeaWing from his winglet, Antheraea looked around for somebody else to talk to. A purple and orange RainWing was sitting nearby, and wasn't talking to anyone either. "Hi!" she said to the RainWing. "I'm Antheraea."
The RainWing turned around. "Oh, hi!" she replied. "I'm Morpho. What do you think of school so far?" 
"I love it!" Antheraea said. "It's great to see so many new dragons, and the experience is unique. Classes have been great so far too. The library is amazing, and my winglet is great! How has school been for you so far?"
"It's been pretty good," Morpho replied. "My clawmates and my winglet are okay, and I like all the fruit. The library has so many scrolls, and they're great too. I love to read, and draw, and write. I got a bit freaked out by the white-eyes weird-voice thing, though. I mean, how did that happen? It looked like the mind control Queen Wasp could do in the stories, but Circinae isn't even a HiveWing..."
They talked for a bit more, sharing stories and scroll reccommendations. Morpho said Antheraea should read Puddle Universe, and Antheraea said Morpho should read Silkspin Mysteries, a series about the owner of a silk shop who solved murders.
The stream of smoke didn't stop coming from the hallway, so Webs went out to check on Circinae.
"Why do you have to be so pushy?" the angry SkyWing snapped after Webs insisted she tell him what was wrong.
"It's my job to ensure the well-being of my students," Webs stiffly replied. "You ought to go see Sunny. You are being a disruption to the peace, and anyways, it would be good for you to calm down, which you certainly aren't doing here." Amtheraea heard talonsteps fading away as Webs walked her down to Sunny's office.
When the gong rang for the next class, both the Gold Winglet and Jade Winglet got up and left. Antheraea walked with Dromedary, Floret, and Atlas. Herbs and Healing was next on the schedule, and Dromedary seemed pretty interested. "It's so cool how plants can do stuff like that!" she said. "I mean, I wouldn't expect a leaf to heal cuts, but then it can. It's nice to know how to be helpful."
They walked in silence for a bit, before Atlas burst out. "We've got to figure out what happened to Circinae! Who should we talk to first?"
"Maybe the other dragons who saw her have the weird white-eyes thing could help," Dromedary suggested. "But what I think we really need is a mind reader."
C H A P T E R 4
Since they still had school, the group walked off to Herbs and Healing together. They were still chatting about what had happened just before History. They tried to figure out what had caused it, and why Circinae was the one who was picked to deliver the message, but they didn't come up with any answers.
"I still think it has something to do with Queen Wasp's mind control," Floret said stubbornly. "I mean, weren't her Hive-mind zombies famous for having eerily blank white eyes? Obviously, since you were there too, you saw Circinae's eyes. They were as white as a pearl, and looked pretty blank to me."
"That is a good point," Atlas said. "But Circinae isn't a HiveWing, and the Hive mind only worked on HiveWings who were injected with her poison. I think it's magic, some angry HiveWings using her as a puppet to pass along their threats."
"But as far as we know, there hasn't been an animus on Pantala anytime recently," Dromedary interjected. "So how exactly would they be using magic?"
"Maybe the found an animus," Atlas shot back. "If they have treasure, or any valuable things, they can afford to pay for some magic to make a puppet, surely. Even if they're not rich, they could still be paying a Pyrrhian animus to do their dirty work."
"But if I was an animus, and some secret orginization wanted my help, I would make them pay me a lot," Antheraea said, finally joining the conversation. "So they'd probably have to be rich, which means that they're possibly connected to royalty. What if it's one of Queen Wasp's sisters, trying to claim the power of the HiveWing empire again?*
The conversation was cut short when Atlas, who was in the Gold Winglet, had to go to Tribal Abilities. Dromedary, Floret, and Antheraea were left to try to puzzle out this problem on their own, at least until class was over. The three walked down the hallway in silence, trying to figure out the mystery of the white eyes.
They talked some more, still not decided on what the white eyes meant. The group went to Herbs and Healing, and sat down. No matter what Dromedary says, I still think figuring out mysteries like ominous speeches and eerie white eyes is just as cool as learning herbs and how to heal, Antheraea thought. She sat in class and payed attention, and it flew by.
Today they were learning about basic herbs and their uses. According to Clay, there were herbs all around them with various purposes and healing properties. Aloe could be good for burns, goldenrod could be used to heal wounds, chamomile was good for strength, and silk was good for binding wounds. Despite her lack of interest, Antheraea took notes and payed attention. She wrote down all of the herbs and uses Clay said, and drew little sketches in the margins of the pictures he showed.
She glanced around, trying to see if anyone else was distracted or lost in thought. The Silver Winglet was sharing this class with them, but she didn't recognize any familiar faces. She did notice another SilkWing, a pretty dragon with yellowish green scales and brighter green wings. The other SilkWing was doodling something on her notes that looked like it might be an architectural drawing.
She also noticed a grumpy SkyWing with red scales. The strange thing about him, though, was his white underscales and wings. He had a scowl on his face, but was taking notes on the things Clay said. He seemed a bit distracted by looking out the window, and when Antheraea looked she saw a few birds.
She turned her attention back to Clay long enough to make sure she was writing notes on all the things he was saying, and then let her mind wander again. Dromedary was fully tuned in to the lesson, her eyes bright with a keen interest. Circinae was glaring at Clay, still looking pretty unhappy, but she was taking a few notes. Beside her was Puffin, and Antheraea now noticed that she was taking notes for him.
Stinger was paying attention, although Antheraea saw his gaze move from Clay and the pictures of the plants to sweep around the classroom. He gave her a small smile as he saw her eyes meet his. She smiled back.
She let her eyes wander around some more, but eventually stared out the window and started trying to puzzle out the events of the day again. First Stinger's dream, with his sister dreamvisiting him and mentioning 'red'. Then Circinae being hijacked somehow and sending a message. What would be next, and why was all of this happening?
Okay, I need to start with the dream, she thought to herself. She could do this. Widow had been in Stinger's dream, and she was apparently there with a dreamvisitor. For some reason, she had told Stinger to 'remember red'. What did that mean? Possibly it could be something to do with a shared experience Stinger and his sister had. Or maybe a shared friend? I'll have to check with him about that later, she decided.
Then there was the freaky mental hijacking. Obviously, that wasn't normal. Floret was right, it did seem like HiveWing mind control. But Circinae wasn't a HiveWing, and nobody had mind control anymore. So Atlas was probably right. It was probably an angry HiveWing who found an animus and got them to turn dragons into puppets to deliver threats. Somehow, that thought wasn't very reassuring.
The bell rang again, and class was over. There was some free time and then lunch before they had to continue with their classes. Antheraea decided to head to the library to see what she could find in the scrolls.
She started walking, and soon she was joined by Stinger, Crayfish, Dromedary, Atlas, and Floret. "Where are we planning on going?" Atlas asked. "I was thinking about going to the library to see what I could find," Antheraea responded. 
"Well, what about going to Moon and asking her what she's seen or heard in Circinae's mind?" Stinger suggested. Everyone murmured agreement that that was a good idea, and they walked off together to the Tribal Abilities classroom.
As she walked into the room, Antheraea felt a shiver of worry trail up her spine as the possibilities of what they might learn raced through her head. She felt her heart pound with worry that they might be biting off far more than they could chew. As she faltered, Stinger stood beside her, his warm presence comforting. He gave her a reassuring smile. "Come on, we'll be okay. It can't be that bad, right?"
Now that she felt a bit better, Antheraea shook off her worries and stepped up to Moon's desk. Most of her friends followed behind her, just as eager to find out what Moon might know. Gathering her courage, she stepped up to Moonwatcher and said, "Moon, I've got a question."
Moon turned around, and the expression on her face was a mix of fear, hope, and worry. "I knew this would happen soon," she said with a sigh. "I need to tell you what I know."
C H A P T E R 5
More nervous and excited than ever, Antheraea eagerly leaned in a little closer. "We want to know if you know anything about what happened to Circinae," she said. "In a way, I think I do," Moon replied.
"More than twenty years ago, I had a vision," she began. "As we were flying back from Pantala, a prophecy came to me. It was like this." Her eyes began to flow slightly green, and she spoke in a voice very unlike her own. 
"Dragons of both continents together
Can save the world and make it better
Away from home, fifteen Pantalans will be
Twenty-five years after the SilkWings are freed
The defeat of the wasp shook the hives
Among her subjects, a venomous vengance thrives
As the darkest night draws near
The red widows will strike and bring back a reign of fear
Ten dragonets must face a horde
If they wish to save the tribes from war."
The dragonets collectively took in a breath as Moon spoke the prophecy. "What does it mean?" Atlas asked.
"I've been trying to figure that out since the first time I spoke it," Moon replied. "But I think I'll need the help of you five, and maybe the rest of your winglet. What I've figured out so far is that now, 25 years after the defeat of Queen Wasp, we need to have Pantalan students in addition to the students from Pyrrhia. The wasp in the prophecy is likely Queen Wasp, and her defeat shook the hives. But that's all I've figured out."
Stinger looked thoughtful as he stood beside Antheraea, and Crayfish was staring at the wall as if it could give him an answer. Antheraea was also trying to figure it out, thinking about the possible meanings of the cryptic phrophecy. A lightbulb went on in her head.
"What if the red widows, whatever they are, are responsible for hijacking Circinae?" Antheraea asked.
"Well, that certainly could make sense, if the red widows are using mind control to help bring their reign of fear," Dromedary said.
The five dragonets in the room looked slightly alarmed at this prospect. After all, a reign of fear sounded pretty scary, especially when it was led by dragons who could hijack your mind.
"What have you seen in the future or heard in Circinae's mind?" Stinger asked, one of the first ones to recover from his alarmed thoughts.
"Well, I've seen a few things and heard some interesting thoughts," Moon began. "First, I saw a vision of most of the Jade Winglet flying away from here, looking afraid and flying as if your lives depended on it. But Starry Night and Circinae weren't with you, and I saw a different vision of the two of them being held captive by some HiveWings. And in Circinae's mind, I could hear a bit of a mental struggle before the mental invader took control. The invading voice sounded female, but I couldn't tell if it was anyone here, because mental voices tend to sound a bit different from normal voices."
Everyone looked deep in thought, including Antheraea. Hmm, so we'll probably end up having to flee school and leave Circinae and Antheraea behind? That doesn't sound promising. And I bet those red widow things will have something to do with it. Maybe we can stop them if we find out who they are, but how?
Then something stirred in the back of her mind. She could feel a thought forming, but she couldn't put a talon on what it was. She knew it was important, but no matter how hard she tried, it wouldn't come to her. She sighed, and shook her head slightly.
Her sigh apparently shook everyone else out of theur thoughts, because everyone looked at her. "What's wrong?" Stinger and Crayfish asked almost simultaniously.
"Yeah, are you okay?" Atlas asked. Antheraea felt her heart warm a bit. She was glad to know that her brother and her new friends cared.
"It's nothing, I think. I'm just annoyed, because I feel an idea in the back of my mind, but I can't place it," she replied. She sighed a little again.
She heard a growl, and looked over to see where it came from. She saw Crayfish guiltily looking at his stomach. "I'm sorry, I'm just hungry," he said.
"So am I," Floret said. "Let's go get some lunch."
The group walked to the prey center to get some food, all with new knowledge that might be vital. Antheraea felt her heart grow heavy as she thought of what this information might mean. But cheerful conversation soon distracted her, and she had a spark of hapiness yet again by the end of lunch.
C H A P T E R 6
The rest of the day seemed to fly by. The Jade Winglet had Language Arts next. The teacher was a young adult SeaWing, who seemed pretty nice. Her name was Tetra. They had Language Arts with the Copper Winglet, but Antheraea didn't know any of the students in the Copper Winglet.
Self Defense was next, with the Gold Winglet again. It was taught by Clay, and Antheraea enjoyed having another class with her brother.
They had a bit of free time again, and then it was time for dinner. The winglets all went to the prey center, and after everyone had something to eat, the Jade Winglet gathered together to eat and talk. Their winglet was the smallest, since the LeafWing hadn't been able to make it, but Antheraea already felt a sense of closeness to her new friends. It felt almost as if she had known them for years.
The talk was mostly about what life was like for everyone outside of school. They talked about their pasts, their families, and their daily life wherever they lived.
"I'm from the area near the Diamond Spray Delta," Crayfish said. "Loon is the bigwings, and we all look up to her. She, Salamander, and Swamp are my sibs. I don't really know who my dad is, and my mom probably forgot we exist, but I don't mind. My sibs are all I need. We spend most of our time going to the local school or training in hunting and fighting."
"My oldest sister and I live in an oasis. My other sister ran away a year or two ago, and went north. I haven't seen her since. But Saguaro and I are happy in our little oasis, and we spend a lot of time reading and learning," Dromedary said.
"I live fairly close to the palace," Puffin started nervously. "My parents are in the third circle, and I'm in the bottom of the third circle. Both of my parents are fur traders, and they take lots of trips down to Goldview to trade their furs. They bring back things for the queen pretty frequently. Despite being blind, I'm somewhat good at hunting, so I get to help them."
"My family used to live on Pantala, but we moved here when my mom died," Antheraea began. "We had to take a boat because Atlas and I hadn't gone through Metamorphasis yet. When we lived on Pantala, we had a nice little place in Mantis Hive. My mom was a librarian, and my dad still is a carpenter. I grew up loving books and learning."
She turned to Stinger. "What was your life like before coming here?" she asked.
He smiled slightly. "I thought you'd never ask. Well, we used to live in Wasp Hive. My mom, my dad, my sister, and myself. Widow is about three years older than me, and she's always looked after me. When I was a little more than a year old, she disappeared. We waited for her to come back. We waited two years, and then our friend Red disappeared too. That was the last straw for my parents, and we moved to Pyrrhia. Since then, we've lived in Scarab Hive."
After listening to him talk about his sister and friend, some earlier thoughts popped back up. "Remember red!" Antheraea blurted. Everyone stared at her.
"It was something Stinger told me that Widow said," she explained. "It was when we first met, and he said his sister had told him to 'remember red'. She wasn't talking about the color, she was talking about your friend Red! How close were Red and Widow?"
She heard Stinger saying something, but another thought popped up. "Red widows," she muttered. Her eyes widened. "Oh my moons!" she exclaimed, a little louder. The other members of her winglet stared at her again.
"What?" they asked, almost in unison. "It's...um, it's nothing," she said. Actually, it wasn't nothing, but Antheraea wasn't sure who was supposed to know about the prophecy.
The rest of the dinnertime conversation went well, and they finished up. Their last class of the day was Tribal Abilities, which was taught by Moon. There was a basic overview of the natural abilities of every tribe, and then there was a little bit of time to talk about special powers like animus magic and mind reading. Antheraea's favorite part of the class was getting to meet Salamander, Crayfish's sister. They got along well, and enjoyed the class.
As the day wound down after that, Antheraea couldn't seem to stop thinking about the prophecy and what it might mean. In the next couple of days, she felt a bit distanced and distracted, because she wanted to share the prophecy but wasn't sure if she should.
Finally, two days after they learned about the prophecy, Dromedary approached her shortly before lights out. "Are you alright?" her clawmate asked. "You seem...I don't know, sad maybe? Is something bothering you?"
Antheraea sighed. "Yes," she said. "It's this prophecy. Not being able to tell anyone is stressing me out, because I don't know who is allowed to know and who isn't, and I'm worried I might screw it all up. But, even more than that, I think I figured out a clue about the Red Widows. Talking at dinner a few days ago made me think. What if these Red Widows have something to do with Stinger's friend Red and his sister Widow? If they do, I'm worried about what it means for him and what might happen. What if he has divided loyalties? What if he has to fight his sister? What if they find a way to make him join their side?" She gave Dromedary a worried look.
There were a few seconds of silence, then they heard talonsteps walking into the room. They looked up to see a confused orange SkyWing. Circinae.
"What's going on here?" she asked, seeming to be between confusion and anger. Dromedary and Antheraea sighed.
"There's a prophecy," Dromedary began. "Moon told us two days ago. It tells of a group of 'red widows' bringing a reign of fear on the darkest night, and says that ten dragonets must stop them. Moon thinks we might be the ten dragonets."
They had a bit of a conversation, but Circinae seemed happy that there was a valid reason behind her creepy mental hijacking. They went to bed, and they decided to tell the ones who didn't know about it soon.
C H A P T E R 7 They waited until breakfast the next day to tell the others. It was only Puffin, Kingfisher, Floret, and Starry Night who didn't know. Antheraea was glad the others knew, because her closer friends didn't have to be told; they already knew.
Antheraea walked to the prey center acconpianied by her two clawmates. Circinae seemed a little clamer this morning, as if finding out about the prophecy made her a little calmer or a little happier. Dromedary was her usual smiling self, positive without being overwhelmingly so.
She sighed, and took a deep breath in before stepling into the prey center. She absentmindedly grabbed a talonful of kiwis while she mentally prepared herself for the conversation coming up. She took a calming breath, and walked up to the dragons from her winglet who didn't already know.
"Hey, Antheraea!" Puffin said. "What's up?"
Antheraea sat down next to him, avoiding looking at him. "There's something I need to tell you. All four of you," she replied.
Floret looked up. "What? I hope you don't have some big secret you're keeping."
Antheraea sighed as Starry Night also looked up. "It's...it's about the thing with Circinae. It wasn't just some random, weird thing. There may be a sinister group of angry HiveWings behind this. And even worse than that, Moon actually has a prophecy about it. We - the dragonets in the Jade Winglet - are supposed to stop their angry horde."
Puffin stared at her, his eyes narrowed and his mouth slightly ajar. "So you're telling me," he said in a low voice, "That not only is there a malevolent group of HiveWings out for revenge, but you haven't said anything to us until just now? I'm guessing you've known for at least a day or two...maybe you just figured we weren't special enough or whatever to know." Seeming to be somewhere between angry and sad, he got up and walked out of the prey center, leaving his half-eaten goat behind.
Kingfisher looked in his clawmate's direction as the IceWing walked out. "Well, I can't blame him for being upset," the SeaWing said. "But personally, I think focusing on how to stop these Red Widows is more important than the fact that you kept this from us. After all, you probably had your reasons." Not seeming a bit disturbed, he went back to eating his fish.
Starry Night seemed a bit angry, but not like Puffin. "Wow, I'm glad you told us so soon," she remarked. Her voice became a little less sarcastic as she said, "I guess I'm just disappointed you didn't tell us sooner."
Floret was her usual energetic self, although she was also upset about not being told. "I'm kind of hurt that you didn't tell me sooner. I mean, I thought I was helping you figure it out. But a prophecy! I mean, every legendary hero seems to have had a prophecy to fufill. Being a hero sounds cool, don't you think?" she said.
Antheraea shifted. "I'm not so sure. I mean, yeah, fame does sound a little nice. But dragons might die, and it'll be the ten of us going against an army. I'd rather have a peaceful life than get all mixed up in a prophecy." But like it or not, I am mixed up in a prophecy now, she thought.
Very soon, classes started. Antheraea went through the motions, doing her work and trying to listen, but she was really distracted. She looked forward to free time, because today, she wanted to see what else she could find about the prophecy and the Red Widows.
Finally, after three hours, it was free time. She met with the rest of her winglet in front of the library. She would have invited Atlas, but he was hanging out with Sunset, the Silver Winglet SilkWing. She had felt a pang of jealousy, a little sad that her brother was more interested in a new friend than in the prophecy, but she understood.
She got right to the point, addressing all eight of the other dragons at once. "I think we need to search for more information. Crayfish, Stinger, Dromedary and I will read through the scrolls in the library to see what we can find there. Circinae, Floret, Starry Night, Puffin, and Kingfisher will search the caves. Is that okay with everyone?" They all nodded, and then split into two groups.
Antheraea walked into the library, with her three friends following behind her. They split up, with Crayfish and Antheraea going into the nonfiction side of the library. Stinger and Dromedary went into the fiction side, planning to look through old stories to see if there were any clues.
The first shelf of books and scrolls that Antheraea found was a shelf of history books. She took one down off of the shelf, called Pyrrhian History. She skimmed through it, but didn't find anything useful, besides the mention of a NightWing animus named Shadowseeker who lived 200 years ago.
"Found anyhting useful yet?" Crayfish asked. He had a scroll in his talon about a study of mind control.
Antheraea sighed. "Not yet," she replied. "There's a mention of a NightWing animus 200 years ago who enchanted some stones, but the scroll didn't say what the enchantments were."
Crayfish smiled encouragingly. "Don't worry. We'll find something helpful soon."
On that note, they both went back to looking. Antheraea skimmed through ten or fifteen more scrolls, before finally finding one that looked helpful. It was a shiny new book, with a fresh leather cover. The title read, A Complete History of Animus Magic. Since this looked promising, she sat down in a window seat to read through it. The first few chapters were mostly about early IceWing animi, and then it started to get into the Darkstalker-era animus dragons, like Jerboa I and Arctic. After those chapters, it was mostly about SeaWing royalty and a few animus NightWings. Finally, in the section that was about animi from 4800 A.S. to the current time, she found the chapter about Shadowseeker.
She stopped skimming, and began to read the first page. It said, Shadowseeker was a male NightWing animus who lived from 4830 A.S. to 4936 A.S. He was most famous for his work for the NightWing queen, such as the improved fortress. However, his most well-known achievement was the Spirit Stones. They were ten gemstones, one for each tribe, and strengthened a main attribute of that tribe. How he knew about the Pantalan tribes is lost to history, but it is possible that there were records of them in old NightWing scrolls. Whatever the case, the Spirit Stones were scattered to prevent any one dragon from accquiring them. Shadowseeker knew that all ten stones combined would grant great power, and by scattering the stones, he wished to prevent that.
Since this was the first good clue she had gotten, she waved to Crayfish and he walked over to her. "Hey," he said with a smile. "What did you find?"
"I think I've found a clue," Antheraea responded. "Apparently, an old NightWing animus enchanted ten stones to amplify natural abilities from each tribe. They're scattered now, but I think the Red Widows found the HiveWing one and have been using it."
He nodded, seeming to understand. "Let's go tell Stinger and Dromedary," he said. "They should know about this too, and we can see if they found anything."
C H A P T E R 8 Antheraea walked beside Crayfish as they prepared to tell the discovery to Stinger and Dromedary. The pair found their friends immersed in books and scrolls. As they approached, Stinger looked up. He glamced around at the slight mess he had made, and then smiled.
"Hey, what's up?" he said.
"I think I've found a clue," Antheraea replied. "About 200 years ago, there was an animus NightWing named Shadowseeker. He made ten stones, one for each tribe, and they were magic stones. He scattered them, because they would be too powerful if they were combined. But I think that the Red Widows might have found the HiveWing stone. That could be what they're using to control dragons."
"Woah, cool," Dromedary replied. "That certainky sohnds important. Let's go tell the others and see what they've found." Stinger nodded, and followed her. All four dragons walked out of the library after Antheraea checked the scrol out at the front desk, and they went back to the hallway outside of the library. They had to wait for a few minutes, but then the other five dragons in the Jade Winglet approached.
"I think we've found something interesting," Circinae and Antheraea said simultaneously. They both stared atthe other for a minute, and then Antheraea awkwardly smiled. "You can go first," the SilkWing said.
Circinae said, "Alright. Well, we had to search the tunnels for a while, but we eventually stumbled across a pile of treasure in one of the deep caves. We looked through it, and Kingfisher found a silver key. Obviously, it opens something, and we thought that it might be important."
All of the dragonets in the Jade Winglet were gathered around by now, and the dragons from the library were thoughtfully looking at the key. Stinger, Dromedary, and Crayfish didn't seem to find anything familiar about it, but that wasn't the case for Antheraea. She remembered the first day, which was only a few days ago, when she and Crayfish had explored the caves. Hadn't there been a chest with a silver lock that matched this key?
"I think I might know what it belongs to," Antheraea said. "But first, we should tell you what we found. Apparently, there was a NightWing animus named Shadowseeker who lived 200 years ago. He did some cool stuff for the queen, but the important thing he made was a set of ten stones known as the Spirit Stones. Each one amplified a main trait from one of the ten tribes. But he realized that they were too dangerous if they were together, so he scattered them. My theory is that the Red Widows found the HiveWing stone, and they're using it to control dragons."
They briefly discussed this, then Dromedary spoke up. "We need to learn what the key leads to. But first, we need to go find Atlas. I know he's hanging out with his friend, but it's been long enough that he might be ready to help us."
All nine dragons stood together for a moment, and then Antheraea and Dromedary walked off to go get Atlas. The best friends walked down the hallway to he art cave, where they found Atlas with the green SilkWing from the Silver Winglet. They were sitting close together, and each of them had projects they were working on. Atlas had been painting a sunset, while his friend had been doing another architectural drawing. They seemed pretty happy, but Atlas looked up when Antheraea came into the room. "Hey, sis," he said. "What's up?"
Antheraea replied, "You're going to want to see this."
C H A P T E R 9 
Atlas left after a quick apology to his friend, Sunset. He left his painting with her to dry, and then he left with Dromedary and his sister. They went back to the entrance cave, where the others were waiting.
The ten dragons went back to the library, where Antheraea and Circinae brought Atlas up to speed on the recent findings. Atlas briefly read through the passage on the Spirit Stones, and then he questioned Circinae about the key. She produced it from her neck pouch, and he inspected it. "This is really cool," he said. "Where did you find this, again?"
Circinae answered, "It was in the cave that Kingfisher found, and he brought it for all of us to look at."
Kingfisher said, "Well, I was just looking around for anything out of the ordinary. This one cave seemed to be calling out to me, so I went and looked in it. I saw the silvery glint, and I grabbed at it. It turned out to be the key."
Category:Fanfictions
Category:Fanfictions (Semi-Canon)
Category:Fanfictions (Incomplete)
Category:Genre (Prophecy)
Category:Genre (Adventure)
Category:Content (Darkmoon the IceWing NightWing)