The Lost Tribe

This is a fanfiction created by Rain. Do not edit. Do not steal, or heavily reference. This is an original idea. 
Thanks to everyone that reads my fanfic! Please leave a comment and give me feedback, I really appreciate it! :3
I very VERY strongly advise readers to skim read my page on my fantribe, TinyWings. This story has many references to the tribe, hence the name ‘The Lost Tribe.’ Events may seem confusing without this knowledge.
Summary: the TinyWings have been peacefully residing on the continent, hidden away, but when a curious young dragonet seeks for more than just a long life, and an unloved hybrid dragonet seeks knowledge not meant for her, the tribe has been revealed by a secret SkyWing rebellion. A Candle tries her best to make things right, but a series of events leads to an upcoming battle. Will the TinyWings run, or fight? Will they live or will they die?…
== Prologue ==
Candle was hurrying through the dark hallways of the SkyWing palace. Her amber eyes glinted in the flickering torch light as she tried to scamper around a sharp corner. Due to the sudden turn, she crashed into a hard stony wall unable to stop herself. 
“Ow…” 
Candle took a sad glance at the huge bruises lining her squashed, dark red tail. Sighing heavily, she got back up and limped through the corridor. Gasping for air, Candle searched around for the room she was looking for. Finally, she spotted it nestling against a large open ledge to the sky, half hidden in the shadows. With a small sound of relief, Candle staggered inside and collapsed on the floor with exhaustion. She hadn’t slept for days. Her vision grew hazy as she attempted, and failed, to rise off the dirty floor. 
No! I can’t… wait… any longer! Must… tell… Queen Ruby… of the Tiny… Candle slipped into a dreamless sleep, glimpsing the precious piece of parchment paper she needed.
“Good work Whitefire, bring her to the hideout.” A mysterious voice commanded.
== Chapter One ==
-Starling 
Starling yawned as she awoke from a fishy smell. A piece of seaweed was lying on her lavender snout. She shook it off and blinked. 
Well, that was one weird dream, Starling thought. She had dreamt of becoming a prisoner in the IceWing palace, externally trapped by Queen Diamond in a block of ice. 
Starling glanced around the half-underwater sandy cave. The hard layer of sandstone prevented cave from collapsing, and the seawater allowed the sand to be goopy enough to get out of. She quietly shook off stray pieces of slimy seaweed from her tail and slid clumsily out of her comfortable rock pool. Starling sloshed through the water, stretching her wings as much as she could in the in the tiny room. Her wingtips brushed the ceiling as she clawed her way out. The entrance was a wall of loose, wet sand that Starling had to dig through to get out. Whoever’s idea it was to make the entrances like this was absolutely crazy. Sure, it’s unnoticeable to the other tribes, but Starling had to pick grains of sand out from between her golden claws EVERY DAY.
She had finally dug her way out and covered the entrance up again when she saw a shadow in the distance in the shape of a dragon. 
Starling felt pricks of panic underneath her purple scales and  immediately dashed for the cover of the snowy Tall-pine woods. While doing so, she shouted, “Dragon! HIDE!”, and flipped her iridescent scales. The other dragons fluttering around the spindly trees plopped down into the snow and buried themselves. Starling dove into a pile of crunchy pine leaves and didn’t move a muscle. She heard heavy wingbeats of most likely an IceWing, and talon steps. Starling shifted one of the enormous pine needles carefully and spotted the silvery green IceWing, a peculiar color, peeking over the edge of the deep Dividing Canyon. The dragon was at least 10 times her size and must have been a large dragon for even regular sized dragons. It was curiously sniffing at the edge and peering over the cliff side. Seizing this golden opportunity, Starling studied the IceWing as intently as she could, examining every shimmering scale. 
As she was a TinyWing of the Splash Nation, Starling was forbidden of any contact with the other tribes and wasn’t allowed to visit the mainland. They lived up north near the IceWings where none of the other three nations visited. Starling sighed, and her eyes drooped with sadness. The other tribes were so fascinating, with their mysterious abilities and beautiful scales. The Splash Nation, being the most knowledgeable, had a vast library, books hidden underneath tree roots, stones, and hidden inside holes in the trees. There were also books dotted around inside little nooks and crannies all across the Dividing Canyon. Despite all these books and scrolls, they never really had any good illustrations of other dragons. 
Another set of wing beats drew Starling’s attention back to the present. Peeking out of the little gap between the needles, she saw another silvery- lilac IceWing arrive on the island. This IceWing strode confidently up to the other dragon with a First Circle dangling from her neck. 
“Snowstorm.” She called smugly, trotting over while wiping fresh snow off her bony grey shoulder. Snowstorm jolted and whirled around with an irritated expression. This dragon was in Second Circle, Starling noted, remembering her lengthy research on IceWing customs. 
“What do you want, Frost?” He answered, inspecting a clump of snow. 
Frost rolled her eyes and announced, “Queen Snowfall has just destroyed the Gift of Order.” 
Snowstorm’s ice-blue eyes widened. 
“It’s about time!” He exclaimed gleefully, and pulled off a shiny chain with a circle around his neck viciously.
Frost grinned, and flicked her ear, releasing some snow to thump down on Starling’s pine needle pile. She couldn’t help but squeak. 
Snowstorm’s ear pricked. “Did you hear something?” 
Frost glanced around. “No, what’re you yapping on about?” 
Snowstorm spread his speckled blue wings nervously. 
“Let’s get back to the palace and see what’s going to happen about the Pantalan dragons.”
He launched into the air and gracefully flapped away. Frost snorted skeptically but followed him through the sky. 
Starling let her breath out shakily. All around her, TinyWings emerged from their hiding spots and began to chatter on as if nothing happened. Starling winced when she saw her cousin, River, angrily flap towards her. His navy ruff quivered with worry as he stopped in front of her. 
“Starling! I thought I taught you better! Don’t make ANY noises when the other tribes are around!” He roared. 
Starling brushed it off cooly. 
“Whatever, it’s not like he SAW me.” She remarked.
River’s unnecessary yelling faded out as Starling recalled what Frost had said. Wait… Queen Snowfall destroyed THE GIFT OF ORDER?! Wasn’t it like so important or something?! She mulled it over and ditched River as he lectured her about being a danger to the tribe, blah blah blah. She flapped her mint-colored wings and soared up to the top of a pathetic looking tree. Starling hid herself among the dark pine needles and looked up at the cloudy sky thoughtfully. Anger bubbled deep inside of her as she remembered Queen Droplet forbidding her from going to visit the other tribes when she was caught for the seventh time. 
What if I try just one more time? Seeing the other tribes doesn’t matter too much, especially if I don’t get caught…
Starling looked back at the colorful TinyWings swarming the snowy island floor, and leapt into the air.
Starling rode the breeze warily. The ‘great escape’ want as dramatic as she thought now that she was flying over miles and miles of water, exhausted and afraid. 
Y’know, maybe I should go back…. Nah….
The rebellious lavender dragonet tossed her head arrogantly and beat her large mint wings determinedly. Starling thought about her life in the nation. Boring, predictable, and pointless. They never got any wars, hybrids, or big issues. Even the skit with Pantala (according to the spies) didn’t need the TinyWings! 
Starling snorted in the air, faltering for a second before getting back into position. Anger boiled inside of her as she remembered all the arguments with Queen Droplet and Princess Aqua about traveling to the other tribes and revealing themselves. The stuck up royals had refused and even had the AUDACITY to isolate her for a week for ‘ignorance’… Alright, fine, she did deserve that. 
Just the thought of meeting the other mysterious tribes made Starling’s heart flutter with excitement. They had customs and abilities that no other dragon she knew even had known of! 
The distracted dragonet passed over a small island, realized that there was an island, doubled back and crash landed on the wet sand for a much needed break. Gasping for breath, Starling heaved herself over to the nearby pool’s water’s edge and forced herself to consume the cold freshwater. Sighing in relief, she glanced up at the sun.
I still have a whole half day to fly…
Starling’s purple tail drooped in sadness as she beat her wings and lifted off into the sky. After another couple hours, she saw the beautiful continent and the rocky cliffs of SkyWing territory. 
“I finally found it! FINALLY!” Starling powered forward with new energy and sped towards the land happily. She soared contentedly above Pyrrhia and examined the colorful clump of… trees? No, trees aren’t dusty yellow and brown, or blue… Her eyes widened in disbelief as she realized… this was Possibility! This was the place fought over for centuries and become a place of peace for any dragon to coexist! Starling beelined down and hurtled toward the ground. It was a combination of dirt and sand, mixing together into a soft, earthy sand. Pathetic shrubs and lush trees were dotted around the landscape, and Starling felt exposed and threatened. She had the bright idea to roll in the dirt-sand to be less noticeable. Taking a deep breath, Starling snuck into a dark alleyway and crouched behind a crate. She gasped in awe of the sight in front of her. 
-Candle
Candle awoke in a musty cave filled with old rugs and dusty crates. As she tried to stand up, she found out that her body was binded with ropes. Candle cursed under her breath as she wiggled around on the damp stone floor, trying to undo herself.
“It’s no use, so give up.” A sinister voice echoed eerily around the room.
Candle gasped with horror as a young dragon stepped out of the shadows, a dragon she knew very, very well. This new dragon had black wings, black talons and a black tail, with splotches of dark red lining her tail, and scattered like blood dipped stars underneath her wings. 
“YOU!” Candle snarled, her amber eyes narrowed to slits. 
Crescent smirked. 
“Yes, me, Candle. You really, thought we would let you achieve greatness? Like us? There’s no chance. You’re so useless. We were stronger from the start.” Crescent’s silver teardrop scales glinted in the dim light. 
Agonising sadness, infuriation, and regret blossomed under Candle’s scales.
/flashback/
Their red and black eggs lay peacefully under the light of a full moon, and their parents watched eagerly. One was a dark red dragon, the other blending into the night easily. 
“I hope one has the ability of mind reading!” The red dragon squealed, leaning in and touching her nose to one of the black eggs. 
“I hope one can see the future!” The black dragon remarked, gazing hopefully at the other dark colored egg. They both ignored the bright red egg, as it was so obviously taking after SkyWings. 
The clutch of hybrid eggs were on top of a tall mountain close to the rainforest, and the NightWing tunnels. 
Crack.
The bright red egg began hatching, and Fireblaze, the female dragon, turned to it vaguely interested. 
Crack. 
The beautiful eggshell broke open, fell to the cold, moist grass and a black dragonet with red scattered like dark stars under their wings crawled out.
“Shadow! Look! She can READ MINDS!” Fireblaze exclaimed with shock. 
Shadow scampered over to his daughter and admired her in awe. 
“She’s perfect…” he whispered. 
Crack. 
“Another one is hatching!!” The exited red dragon shouted and scooped up her precious baby, carefully lumbering over to her eggs.
The black egg exploded apart and shards of goopy eggshell flew everywhere. This dragonet was a male, with black scales and a red tail. He had white scales clumped around his snout, and silver scales scattered on his wings like stars.
“Wow… he’s beautiful…” Shadow wrapped his newborn up in his dark blue wings and felt the strange white scales. 
“We’ll call him… Whitefire!” He announced, his blue eyes shining. 
Fireblaze nodded her approval and admired her other dragonet. 
“We’ll call her Cresent!” She lovingly hugged the mindreader. 
Crack.
“The last egg!”
Crack.
A tiny shard of egg peeled off and a nervous amber eye peeked out.
“Come on, little girl, it’s ok,” Shadow coaxed gently. 
The hybrid inside pulled the eggshell apart and squeezed through a small gap in the egg. This dragonet was pale red, with speckled black talons and a dark red underbelly. She had huge orange wings with brighter orange scattered like embers on her wings. 
“Her name shall be Candle, named after her flame colored wings.” Shadow whispered. 
Two years later…
Candle was two, and the only one in the triplets without NightWing abilities. She took after her mother, all SkyWing with jewel hard scales and an enormous wingspan. She had fire breathing, of course, but had a hard time controlling it. Crescent was close to her poor sister and defended her against her parents, who dismissed Candle as the ‘only one not special’. 
Her father, Shadow, was the only NightWing at the time who possessed the knowledge about the power of the moons, having hatched under two himself.
Thus, he had high expectations for his single moon born children.
Whitefire could see the future, and had the occasional clear vision. Crescent was a great mind reader, strong and powerful from the day she hatched. Candle… Candle had no powers.
Desperate to prove herself, Candle buried herself in books, scrolls and ancient history like her mother, and when the rare moments that she could see her father she would try impress him in any way she could. Living in the SkyWing Palace was hard with Queen Scarlet terrifying dragons with death threats and of course, the deadly monster Peril. Fireblaze was distant royalty, being Queen Scarlet’s cousin’s daughter, which granted her permission to stay in the palace. Naturally Crescent and Whitefire interested the queen, and they were her close advisers from a young age. Candle, being such an obvious hybrid who wasn’t ‘special’, was mainly confined to her bare stone room with nothing but old scrolls. 
“Candle!” The young dragonet looked up from her interesting history scroll, and saw Crescent scampering towards her.
“Wanna race? We can practice flying!” Her sister burst out. 
Race? Now? When she’s up to the good bit? 
Crescent’s face dropped. 
“Oh ok then…” her black tail drooped disappointingly as she trudged back out of the entrance.
Instantly Candle felt guilty, and wondered if she should go after her, but decided against it. A few hours later Whitefire and Crescent came into the room, pink forked tongues lolling out and panting. 
“That was so fun!” Crescent laughed. 
“I totally got to the big rock first!” Whitefire argued. 
“No you mean you crashed into it first!” Crescent giggled.
They both went straight past Candle and padded over to the small, rippling pool of of water tucked into the corner of the room. Taking in big gulps, Crescent said, “You should have come Candle!”
Candle flicked her dark red tail regretfully. Before she could reply, a burly orange guard popped his head inside. 
“Queen Scarlet requests the twins presence in an interrogation.” He reported. 
Crescent lifted her chin regally.
“We’ll come soon.” She answered.
The guard vanished and the dragonets heard his heavy talons thundering down the dreary corridor. 
Candle was left alone in the cold room once again. She glanced halfheartedly at the unfinished scrolls laying around the room. Her siblings had left to do their ‘important duties’ without her. Sighing, Candle trudged out of her room with her black talons clacking on the hard floor. 
“No no no! I’m telling you, she, and I, are completely innocent! You trust them, but not us?! Although I can hardly blame you for her. She’s useless.” A loud, desperate voice echoed through the air. 
Candle followed the voices to the magnificent throne room and peeked around a tall, imposing pillar curiously. There, pleading for mercy, was her mother chained in heavy metal. Crescent and Whitefire were watching with dismayed expressions, and shedding tears. 
“No! NO! YOU CAN’T DO THIS TO ME!” Fireblaze screamed, glaring at her children with slitted yellow eyes. 
Queen Scarlet was perched triumphantly atop her fancy throne, smirking at the scene. Crescent was trembling as she stepped forward.
“Fireblaze, I am hereby sentencing you to a trial for your attempted murder, disloyalty and lies.” The black and red dragonet pointed a shining, marble spear at her mother. 
“STOP!!” Candle burst out of her hiding spot and grabbed the spear angrily. She was breathing heavily as she thrust it wildly to one side, and looked at her sister dead in the amber eye. 
“What is going on? Disloyalty? Lies? MURDER? Fireblaze would NEVER!” the young pale red dragonet shouted, noticing the amused look on her queen’s face. 
“Go on, Candle,” Queen Scarlet’s gaze flickered from her to Crescent to Whitefire to Fireblaze. 
Crescent was staring at her in absolute disbelief, and anger. 
“What is wrong with you, sister?! Our mother has ruined your life! She ignored you! I’m doing you a FAVOR!” The black dragonet snapped, picking up the wickedly sharp weapon again and brandishing it. 
“By killing Fireblaze?! ARE YOU CRAZY?!!” Candle screamed, tears streaming down her face. This wasn’t right. Her sister had never been this vicious.
“YES! I HATE HER, YOU DO, WHITEFIRE DOES, WHO CARES?!” Crescent narrowed her eyes. “One less dead dragon DOESN’T MATTER.”
Candle was shocked into silence. The gold touched room swirled around her, and she felt sick. They were two, far too young to lose their mother and kill other dragons. 
“You’re not my sister anymore. You never were.” Candle whispered, fear in her gaze. 
Crescent’s eyes widened, and she froze in place. Candle growled and spun around. She whisked out of the room and left her sister staring shockingly after her. 
Candle heard the screams of agony long before the execution took place. She was crouched on the roof of the palace crying her heart out, dripping salty tears on the kingdom. Candle had watched the trial and heard the snapping neck all while looking up at the too-bright sun. It was a clear sunny day and most of the kingdom had watched to see the surprising royal turn guilty. Fireblaze had attempted to lace Queen Scarlet’s food with poison, only to be discovered by her own daughter. Apparently it was for the good of the kingdom, that was her excuse. She had been screaming nonsense when she was dragged out into the arena. Candle watched the SkyWings disperse out of the blood-soaked stadium and her siblings gazing at her mother’s red body. The slick roof tiles shone in the sunlight as she leapt off clumsily and swiftly swooped into the vast library. There was still evidence of her poor mother’s last work, dusty scrolls frantically shoved into wooden niches. Candle brushed her black talons along the soft wood and fingered the smooth curves of a large large stone desk nestled against a huge glass window. Her eyes sparkled with interest as she read the inscription on the desk. 
“In memory of the legends of the lost tribe, 
Those who sit behind this treasure, 
Will carry on the legacy.”
The lost tribe? Candle thought wonderingly. An old scroll was tucked into a small compartment hidden in the table, and she rolled it open carefully. 
“The legend of the lost tribe,” Candle read aloud.
“Long, long ago there lived a tribe a small as scavengers. They chose to stay in the sea between the Ice Kingdom and Sky Kingdom. They were a jealous tribe and longed for more land, so they decided to invade SkyWing territory.” She gasped in shock, and kept reading.
“The noble tribe of the Sky dragons fought back bravely and eventually defeated them, and the lost tribe vanished, never to be seen again.”
Candle felt a feeling of triumph. The small dragons had got what they deserved!
“However, this was at the time of the IceWing and NightWing battles, and the exact details if this was a merely a legend or a real story were lost, giving the librarians the responsibility to continue researching until they find the true answer.”
The mesmerised dragonet began imagining a future of her, the best researcher her who made the most incredible discovery ever; the truth about an entire tribe! Candle’s eyes were shining as she seated herself behind the ancient desk.
Two years layer Candle while was digging through the large palace archive in desperate hope for more information, her sister Crescent stormed inside the library and snarled at her. 
“What are you doing?! You’re supposed to be overseeing the poison testing!” 
Candle rolled her eyes. 
“I am NOT risking my life testing YOUR food.” She growled and went back to the large cardboard box filled with dusty paper records.
So annoying.
Crescent scoffed, “Think about me however you like, but you will NEVER surpass me.”
Crescent had risen in ranks since killing her mother and was now a close adviser to Queen Scarlet along with Whitefire. They had encouraged Scarlet to decrease the win scores by 50%, from 10 wins then face Peril to fire or four. Candle was horrified and tried to convince them of something else but failed. Ever since, she’s grown further apart from her so called ‘family’ and watched coldly as her siblings grow angrier and darker. Her father had died in an effort to find Fireblaze after she died. In fact, Candle had been there, sadly witnessing Whitefire discover the rotting body and throw it dismissively over the edge of a tall cliff. From then on, Candle had focused on the mysterious dragonet prophecy and the lost tribe legend. 
The SandWing war had passed and Scarlet died from the claws of Queen Ruby. Crescent and Whitefire weren’t very popular in the tribe and were only protected for their powers.
/flashback/
The agonising flashback ended and Candle felt the painful scrape of the rope against her pale red scales. Crescent’s slitted, glittering red eyes drew closer as she stalked towards her tied up sister. 
“Whitefire, show her.” 
He unfolded a damp piece of parchment paper. 
“This is enchanted to show anything you’d want anywhere around the continent.” Whitefire explained in a gruff voice. 
“Where did you find that?” Candle asked enviously.
Crescent smiled sinisterly.
“I enchanted it.” She lifted her chin proudly. “I’m a special half-animus, and I can do five whole spells in my entire life!”
Candle’s jaw dropped. Her sister was yet again better in another way?
“Then… Wh… Why do this? If you’re so special, why can’t I be?!” She paused, taking deep angry breaths. “You’re an animus, mindreader and a hybrid! I’m NOTHING! I’m there, sure, but I’m like a background character! You’re the main character!”
Crescent rolled her eyes as if it were obvious. 
“Yeah, you’re not important, so stop trying to be! Tomorrow, I’m starting a rebellion against that foolish Queen Ruby, use the information you gathered on this miraculous ‘lost tribe’, and destroy them for what they did to us in the legends!” She snarled. 
“That’s a LEGEND! According to the scrolls, they vanished as a punishment! We don’t even know where they are now! Rumour has it, they’ve split up into four ‘nations’ scattered across the continent!” Candle countered, attempting to look dignified wriggling around like a big worm on the floor. 
“Ah, but I will find them eventually! We’ll gather followers like bees to a queen and force them out!” Crescent paced around the cave and snatched the all seeing scroll out of her brother’s talon.
“Show me the throne room of the SkyWing palace.” 
A perfect replica of the room was painted in quick, invisible brushes onto the paper and showed Queen Ruby seated upon the throne. 
“I’m worried about the dragons sent to Pantala, what if they never return?” she asked an old advisor crouching by the magnificent throne. 
“They will come back Ruby, don’t worry.” He reassured.
Crescent smeared the scene away with a black claw and said pleasantly, “I think that was pretty useful right? She’s unsure and in no condition to face a surprise rebellion!” 
Candle glowered at her crazy siblings and opened her mouth, willing the destruction of fire to set the room ablaze. Scorching hot flames erupted out of her mouth and the wooden crates burst into flames. The tiny cavern deep in the mountains quickly filled with suffocating smoke and Crescent began coughing uncontrollably, dropping the scroll.
“I enchant this fire to teleport my brother and I back home!” She roared desperately.
They vanished, and Candle eased her ropes into the flames. They snapped and she winced at the sudden pain. Thinking quick, Candle grabbed the all seeing scroll and ran through the fire. She hugged the scroll tight and screamed in pain, but kept running. Burns were clawing her in her tail and arms, and the scroll was singed. Candle cried out and tumbled down the sloped rocky exit. Sharp stones pierced her soft underbelly, but she closed her eyes tightly. Suddenly, she launched off the edge, and Candle’s eyes popped open. She had reached the end of the tunnel and was flung out of the steep mountainside. A large glittering river was shimmering below her as she plummeted down towards the glistening water. The sun shone above Candle as she let her orange wings whip lifelessly around her. She was tired… so tired… so very tired… Candle plunged into the crisp cold water and realised she had fallen into the Diamond Spray River. 
Give up. Give up. Give up.
A voice echoed in her head and she let go, letting the scroll sink further and further with her. She glanced at the blurry shape that appeared to be the sun through the water and closed her eyes, giving in to the darkness.
== Chapter two ==
-Starling
Possibility was the busiest, most chaotic place she’d ever seen. Dragons lounged in the swirling river snaking throughout the city, dragons shouted advertisements for their goods, dragons danced and sang and walked and ran and so much more. Starling thought of the quiet, serene atmosphere of the snowy forest compared to this lively place. What’s more, there were so many different dragons. She saw pale yellow SandWings, fiery red and orange SkyWings, a few silvery blue IceWings and brown MudWings. Starling lifted the wooden crate on top of her and peeked through a gap. She sneakily waddled through the alleyway. Starling emerged into the main marketplace with the river flowing right through the middle, and aimed for the creaky bridge. She timed her entrance just right and squeezed in the packed lines to get to the other side. A big pale orange SkyWing was running over and tripped over Starling’s suspicious moving box. 
“Shoot, sorry! Gotta go!” He exclaimed to the disgruntled SandWing he bumped into before recovering and leaping into the sky. Starling couldn’t help but giggle and keep shuffling along. She finally reached the other side of the bridge and ducked underneath a dried crocodile stall. 
Gasping for air, Starling heaved the wooden crate over herself and sat there. She was still taking in the wonderful smells, weather, and busy noises when she looked up and saw a pair of orange eyes glaring back at her. 
She got spotted. Starling scrambled to her feet as the huge MudWing stepped back in shock. 
“A-a-a-a MINI DRAGON?!” He thudded to the ground, having passed out in surprise.  Not daring to look back, Starling shot out from under the table and zipped around huge multicoloured talons. A chill ran down her spine as she dove into a pile of stinky white cloths. 
“What the-?” 
“A mini what now?” 
“OH MY GOSH!”
“GRAVEL! GRAVEL, SPEAK TO ME!!” 
Starling buried herself deeper in the sheets and ignored the commotion she had left behind. 
“Well there’s nothing I can do, just need to wash these dirty blankets.” A close voice said. 
Panic shot though her as a dragon picked up the cloths and carried them away from the dried crocodile stall. It seemed like centuries had passed before the blankets had been dumped on the ground, and footsteps showed that the mystery dragon had went away. Acting fast, Starling untangled herself and leaped out of the cloths. She glanced around and spotted a small shrub nearby. Starling scampered over the dusty sand and ducked underneath the plant in relief. 
She had been dropped off on the outskirts of Possibility, next to the huge river and the desert. Several sandstone blocky houses were dotted next to the river and Starling glimpsed a rotting carcass of what was hopefully an extremely large goat. She craned her neck and in the distance she could make out the shape of the Claws of the Clouds Mountains. If Starling had looked at their vague maps right, if she followed them she’d come across to Jade Mountain and the rainforest. According to some of the history books, the RainWings had been great friends to the Splash Nation, and the rainforest was partly home to the Grow Nation. Starling had planned to visit there first, then the MudWings, then the SkyWings, then the SeaWings, then finally the SandWings. 
“Ok, let’s go slowpoke.” She growled to herself and snuck out of the bush into the long grass beside her, away from Possibility. Starling looked up and saw the brilliant orange sunset, making a mental note to hurry up. She prowled through the grass and emerged into a shady forest, obscuring her from above. The grass was so springy and green here, and the trees so thick and bright. Warm evening sunlight shone through the canopy and Starling relaxed. She trotted through the undergrowth and headed south, feeling the damp grass brush her purple underbelly. 
After a day of traveling, Jade Mountain had just become visible in the distance, still just as oddly shaped as recorded in the newer scrolls. Joy blossomed under her scales as it drew closer and closer with every wingbeat. And just a looming dark shape; the mysterious rainforest. Starling powered forward and approached the mountain carefully, as she spotted several multicoloured RainWings lounging around on some trees doing what she assumed was ‘suntime’. A golden-yellow dragon that appeared to be a SandWing without a tail barb was prodding a RainWing and flicking her tail towards the academy. 
“Please get up Kinkajou! You have history next!” The SandWing-like dragon cried. 
Kinkajou’s anxious blue scales shifted to a pale green colour. 
“How can I go back to history when Moon has gone to this creepy mind place?” She argued with a worried expression.  
The other dragon sighed. “I’m sure they’re fine, and Tsunami can contact us if she needs.”
Kinkajou looked forlorn. “Ok then Sunny.”
The dragons spread their wings and beckoned for the other RainWings to follow, then headed off towards Jade Mountain.
Interesting. ‘Creepy mind place’? I’ll bet my tail that’s Pantala. Starling thought, stalking around the open clearing. She decided to avoid Jade Mountain and focus on the Grow Nation. It took all morning to walk to the rainforest, and Starling shivered at the sight of the dark trees. It was a tangle of winding vines, crawling ferns and dark shadowy corners. In the distance, a roar of a strange creature echoed through the trees. She was on the border of the rainforest close to Jade Mountain, and was hoping that no RainWings would spot her like that MudWing. Taking a deep breath, Starling stepped into the lush forest and edged into the nearest clump of moss. Taking cautious steps, she prowled through the damp ground and spotted a flicker of something through the mushroom infested tree roots. Her heart beat faster as she stood still behind a blueberry bush. An iridescent blue frog leaped out from a hole in an upturned old tree hollow. Starling sighed with relief and kept moving further into the rainforest. After a good long hour of sneaking around and lurching at every surprising massive insect or bird, a strange wooden platform came into sight high above in the treetops. Just then, she saw a bright hot pink RainWing lazily hang from a thick dark brown tree branch. They snorted in their sleep as Starling crept further inside the lush undergrowth. 
“SAPLING! Get up! We’re on patrol duty! We can’t just REST whenever we FEEL LIKE!” a booming voice yelled. A grey RainWing with bright red undertones and purple wings materialised out of the nearby sequoia tree and rolled his eyes. He had peculiar spiral patterns on his ruff, and had black in his eyes where white was supposed to be. Sapling cracked open one light blue eye and shut it again. 
“Why MUST you be so loud Quail? There aren’t any dangerous things around here.” He complained. 
Quail narrowed his red eyes. 
“I’ll bite you if you don’t get your tail moving and start patrolling!” He warned. 
Sapling didn’t budge an inch. 
Quail shrugged and viciously bit Sapling’s light pink tail. Sapling’s scream could have been heard across the continent. 
“Three MOONS Quail! Fine! Fine! I’m coming!” He cried. 
“Good.” Quail vanished from sight and soon after Sapling vanished too, with a bit of grumbling. 
Starling giggled after she heard the rustling of ferns grow further away and walked out of her hiding spot. 
“Wow, Quail is unhinged!” She remarked to herself.
“What am I?” The recognising sassy voice of Quail asked beside her. 
Starling looked up into a curious pair of blood red eyes.
“Now I’m wondering who and what you are, and why are you in our rainforest?” He questioned.
Starling was shaking with horror. He’s definitely seen me clearly. She thought anxiously.
“I-I-um… I’m an, uh, SeaWing-SandWing hybrid…? With a defect?” Starling tried.
She thought she saw a glimmer of amusement flicker in his eyes. 
“Tell me what you really are and a reason why I shouldn’t report you to Queen Glory right now.” Quail flicked his grey tail impatiently. 
Sighing with defeat, Starling explained the history of her tribe and her whole story of sneaking out. 
His eyes widened with terror or excitement, she couldn’t tell. 
“So you’re a… TinyWing? There’s a WHOLE NEW TRIBE?!” Quail shouted disbelievingly. 
Starling flinched. “I’m Starling, by the way.”
“Quail. And don’t worry, I won’t spill your secret. So you’re got the mirror ability? Can it work on other tribe members as well?” He asked suddenly. 
She hadn’t actually thought about that. Would it? It would be cool if it would…
“I actually don’t know.” She replied, mystified. 
“Anyways, that’s so cool! A lost tribe? Wow! Can I see the rest of your nation? Wait, tell me about your lifestyle! No, what do you eat over there?” Quail was overflowing with questions. 
“Hang on, go back to the tribe? With you? Imagine the commotion! Starling, what in the three moons? Starling, you’re in BIG trouble! Aaaaaaaa we’ve been spotted nooooo.” She mimicked. 
Quail laughed, and Starling felt a strange warm feeling inside. 
“Imagine!” His ruff flickered yellow, then back to lilac.
“Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s go!” She asked, and prepared to fly. 
“Wait, so you’d show me your secret tribe to a complete stranger you just met? Cool!” He crouched beside her, a giant beside her small frame. 
“Let me camouflage you to not seem suspicious.” He suggested. 
Starling grinned. 
“Brilliant!” 
-Quail 
He had been wishing for something interesting to happen in his boring life, and had gone on a patrol with the laziest dragon in the village, Sapling. It was particularly uninteresting when he spotted a flicker of movement in a clump of daisies. Quail had pretended to fly off, then circled back to find a beautiful mint and lavender dragon the size of an adorable baby scavenger waltzing out of the flowers. That was when he was certain he was a part of something big, something important. The next thing he knew, Quail was travelling to her home far up north with her hidden in his ruff. 
“Hey Quail, are we nearly out of the rainforest yet?” Starling asked quietly.
“Not yet, but soon,” he whispered back. 
This dragon had claimed to be a part of a lost tribe called the TinyWings, who had split up into four groups called the nations. She was a part of the Slash Nation, and was a TinyWing with the copycat mirror ability. He soared over the last stretch of moist elm trees and landed gracefully on the muddy bog on the other side. 
“Thank goodness! The rainforest was so humid! Wait until you get to my island! It’s absolutely beautiful- with snowy pine trees!” Starling announced, and slid much less gracefully of his back. 
“I’m sure it’ll be magnificent!” He replied. Starling was like an eager purple dragonet, full of excitement and bubbling with energy. 
“I REALLY want to visit the SkyWings and see if they are as cranky as the scrolls say,” she exclaimed happily, and bounded through the brown goop. 
“Ok, but PLEASE can we fly, not walk through this mess?” Quail batted his eyelashes innocently. He hated getting his talons muddy.
“Sure, I FULLY AGREE with that plan!” Starling wrinkled her nose at the mound coating her front talons and shook it off. 
They took off into the air and chatted about their previous lives. Quail was finally certain he had a reason to exist now, and followed the TinyWing in the direction of the SkyWing Kingdom. 
-Candle 
She woke up in YET ANOTHER CAVE. This one, however, was made of cold metal and and not really a cave at all, more like a prison. Candle sighed as she realised where she was. This was the dungeons deep underneath Queen Ruby’s place and rarely used since the time of Scarlet. A wet note was attached to the rusty bars that said: 
“We will always find you, even if you get buried in a volcano and die in the wreckage. EXUSE ME?!” She roared, disturbed. 
There was no response.
A pitiful bowel of too-ripe fruit was lying on it’s side in the corner, and the drip drip of water suggested a pool of water lurking about somewhere. 
It was quite hard to tell the darkness, the only light emitting out of a tiny crack in the wall, in the prison cell opposite to Candle. She sighed and shook the chains wrapped around her wrists, legs, wings and neck. It was much more extreme than before, preventing her from burning her ropes away. The sound of her shuffling around to get comfortable echoed through the dungeons. Candle curled into a small tight ball and hoped to sleep through this whole mess.
Although, really, how did they find me?
-Starling 
They had settled down for the night under an over hanging stone ledge on a mountain they were travelling over. Starling tucked herself in the back corner in the shadows and felt her eyelids droop with exhaustion. They flew for a long time without breaks, almost reaching the border of SkyWing territory. The MudWing bogs had been… interesting, at least. They were so flat and sticky and generally unpleasant. There were a couple boringly brown MudWings lounging in the mud pools, but it was pretty quiet otherwise. 
“Thanks Quail, traveling across the continent is tough work, especially with a TinyWing hitching a ride!” She yawned sleepily. 
He laughed, and mentioned how good of passenger she was. 
HA! As if! She thought, remembering her constant yammering and distractions ALL throughout the journey. Especially her complaints about food. Starling hadn’t eaten at all, and she was quite hungry. She’s better get up early in the morning to scavenge for food. 
“Gosh, you have a seventh sense for yummy stuff!” Starling exclaimed, admiring the enormous pile of juicy wild raspberries that Quail had brought in. 
As expected, she had slept in and was snoring away inside the little cave beneath the ledge, so naturally Quail had ventured outside and magically found some food. 
“Well you kinda need it when you’re on a fruit gathering trip with some lazy tribe mates,” he snorted disdainfully. The red scales on his forearms glimmered a brighter red and he flared his ruff. Clearly some of the other RainWings had lived up to the stereotypes.
“I’m usually a carnivore, but look at this! Mmm-mm!” Starling remarked, avoiding the subject. She scooped up a pink raspberry off the mossy stones they were placed on, and plopped it in her mouth. Sweet red juice trickled out of gaps in her jaws as Starling stuffed more of the delicious fruit inside her mouth. Quail seemed to also enjoy himself, his purple ruff brightening to yellow as he grabbed the raspberries by the fistful and swallowed them instantly. The pair ate contentedly, in pure bliss as they munched on the wild fruit. 
Once they were full, the two dragons discussed where to next, and set off. Starling folded herself behind Quail’s ruff discretely, and was camouflaged by his scales. As they passed over the border, she felt a strange sensation of deja vu, as if she, or many someones, had gone over hundreds of times… whatever. It was probably just her imagination. 
“Have you ever been outside the rainforest before?” Starling asked curiously. 
He paused, as if struggling to decide whether to admit or hide something. 
“N…no…BUT! I could have gone instead of Pineapple to meet with the queens but Queen Glory insisted for me to stay! I was her ‘second in command’ apparently, so of course she had a stupid reason to keep me there!” Quail exploded, speaking harshly. He seemed to have a lot of anger bottled up underneath his scales, Starling noted, and hates the rumors about the RainWings.  
“This other time there was a diplomatic mission to deliver Icicle to Queen Glacier, or rather late Queen Glacier, and I begged to go. I groveled, mind you, as the IceWings are so fascinating! Why do they even have a Gift of Order? Really interesting!” He went on.
“Oh actually the new IceWing queen, Snowfall, had just destroyed the wall!” Starling remembered the chat between Frost and Snowstorm. 
Quail’s red eyes flickered with surprise. “Really? Good to know!”
Starling was glad to get off the topic of hating the young RainWing queen for keeping Quail in the kingdom. 
Another long afternoon of flying. Flying flying flying…it would never end. Starling sighed heavily as she plucked a nearby startled robin out of the air. In one, swift action, she ripped it’s life out by digging her teeth into its light red belly. Starling had never tasted robin before, and it was quite good actually. It had an almost honey like taste, sweet and fresh with a salty tang. As she picked brown and red feathers out of her jaws, she dove down towards Quail who was surveying the grassy landscape below. The occasional large, leafy bush were crammed into little nicks in the smooth stony walls. The valley was a secure feeling place, but with little places to sleep. 
“We could sleep under the cranberry bush,” Starling suggested.
“It’s got nasty thorns laced all throughout it,” he replied grimly.
“What about the bush that’s shoved into the burned tree hollow?” She asked.
“I just checked, there’s a fire ant nest in there,” he growled impatiently.
“Where else?” Starling sighed.
“Dunno.” Quail stalked over to a tall evergreen and patted the springy heather dip beneath it. 
“We could sleep inside this hollow and cover ourselves with heather,” he called. Quail clawed all the soft plant out of the small dip in the ground and curled into it, then pulled the heather back on top. In an instant, it had appeared that he’d vanished under the undergrowth. 
“Perfect!” Starling exclaimed, and clomped over. She lifted a clump of heather and laid inside the sleeping spot, then gently lifted it back over. It was comfortable and warm, a great place to rest for the night.
“Uhh, Starling, you’ve flopped all over my snout,” 
“Mmmm…. Warm…..”
== Chapter Three ==
-Candle
A sharp claw poked her side. She groggily opened her eyes and recalled the past two days. They were a blur, merging together while she was half awake and dreaming.
“Get up, the boss has something to show you,” a gruff, unpleasant voice barked.
A dark orange SkyWing with peculiar brown spots on his snout was standing above her, the hard metal door open a restricting chains wrapped around her snout. 
“Mmmf,” Candle growled, getting up and wincing firm her aching bones. 
The guard grabbed her chains and dragged her through the uninviting dark tunnels, their talon steps echoing through the dark. Candle shivered, the air frigid and moist. It had seemed like hours had passed when they finally emerged into a huge dark underground cavern, packed with red and orange dragons staring up at a high ledge near the top. The cave was lit with small, bright torches flickering as wings sent gusts of wind towards them.
“Up there.” The SkyWing gestured towards the stony ledge. 
He undid the binds on her orange wings and tugged on her chains to signal it was time to fly. They launched into the air and soared above the crowd, whispers following Candle as she crash landed on the rock. 
“Here she is, boss.” Her escort mumbled, and turned away. 
Candle watched as he dove off the edge and blended into the mob of over about 600 dragons.
“Candle. Are you admiring our lovely rebellion? I’m sure they’ll listen to the fascinating research you’ve done for us about the lost tribe.” Whitefire’s silky voice dug into her ears, and she kept looking down at the rebellion, rage roaring in her mind. All those smart, capable citizens, falling into Crescent’s trap… Candle felt tears in her eyes as she watched them gossip about their leaders.
“I wonder what Crescent will tell us!” 
“She’s so beautiful, pretty and understanding, she’ll make a great queen someday!” 
“Whitefire’s so cool!”
“He must have a marvelous plan in place for us!”
“I wonder what their plan is!”
The faint sound of dragons trusting her siblings was heartbreaking.
“Attention all dragons!” Crescent boomed.
The chattering quietly ceased and her sister regally watched over them, a smile present on her face.
“We have gathered you here today to put a wrong right, to restore our pride, to just do the right thing.” She continued. 
“Last night, while I was digging around in the library, I found THIS!” Whitefire exclaimed, holding up a crinkled piece of paper proudly.
Candle’s heart sank. That was what she had found, to inform queen Ruby of… the lost tribe.
“This is evidence of a filthy, cunning tribe that was never discovered until now! In this scroll, there is notes of them brutally attacking the Sky Kingdom and getting away unharmed! They slunk back to their pathetic territory and decided to act like cowards, disappearing off of the face of the continent!” Crescent roared, anger scrawled all across her face.
Gasps of shock and disbelief erupted from the audience.
“This spineless tribe thought that we would never find them, and that they could relish their attack for the rest of eternity!” She continued.
The growls coming from the crowd increased.
“BUT! We have found where they’ve been hiding for all these years! In the place where no-one would ever go, the ocean between our glorious kingdom and the IceWings!” Whitefire announced triumphantly.
That was not it at all. The TinyWings had been terrorized by one of the old SkyWing queen for centuries, and in a last desperate attempt of self defense, had struck the Sky Kingdom with a powerful attack. After that, the IceWing queen at the time had seized this opportunity and cursed them with a cruel enchantment in their weakened state, so devastating that they had to vanish entirely. That scroll they were holding, that one only gave evidence of their existence, and clearly the rest of the information was gathered from the legends.
“We have decided to exterminate this tribe, and defeat them once and for all!” Crescent growled. 
The red orange mob cheered their agreement and shouted to start now.
“Wait, wait, hang on now,” Crescent yelled, calming down the commotion. 
“We need allies! This vicious tribe, the TinyWings, have too many weapons and abilities! They’re cunning and sly, and the rest of the tribes must be warned.” She coaxed.
“The TinyWings? What a lame name!” 
“There’s our Crescent, always thinking of others.” 
“She’s right!”
Cries of agreement were shouted from the crowd.
“First, we shall contact the SandWings! This must all be unknown to the queens, by the way, as the queens these days are too optimistic and won’t see this threat clearly. They are blinded by the new arrival of the SilkWings and LeafWings, and will want to understand instead of eradicate the TinyWings! Next, the MudWings shall be notified. With the power of three whole tribes, the TinyWings won’t stand a chance.” Whitefire nodded his head to Candle. 
“This dragon was a loyal friend, our loving sister until she’d mind became twisted by their lies. She worked effortlessly to uncover the secrets of this tribe, and came across one of them. They broke her mind, and made her crazy! Why, she even set a cave on fire, the very cave she was resting in!” Crescent gazed with fake sympathy at Candle, who was fuming.
“Our poor sister was found by one of our loyal companions, Skylar, drowning in the Diamond Spray River. We had to chain her up as she was turning against her tribe.” Whitefire said somberly. 
Outraged roars were flung from the audience.
“Now, now, don’t get mad, she was a victim to their trickery!” Crescent waved her black wing around, and folded it over Candle’s prickly spine.
How DARE she touch me! Candle tried to snap the chains apart and slash her sisters fake woeful expression off her face. She whipped around and smacked Crescent in the face with her wing membrane, and the crowd gasped.
“See this is what they do! They twist your mind and propel you to hurt your own sister!” She cried, revealing the red, raw mark. 
Candle snarled. Her sister had used her rash actions and turned herself into the victim.
“Please just take her away, I’m too devastated to handle looking at her.” Crescent looked away and caressed her sore cheek. 
Candle gave her one last glare, full of venom, then allowed her guards to escort her away back into the dark tunnels.
They’re never going to stop. Candle was curled up in a tight ball and crying quietly to herself.
My family… how did this end up like this? My siblings are going to exterminate the poor TinyWings and it’s all my fault all my fault all my fault.
Moonlight poured thought the small light source and Candle turned away, depressed.
They don’t even know anything else. They genuinely think wiping out a whole tribe is good, and are doing it just to destroy my life. 
She was lying in her now familiar prison cell and thinking about her deadly sister, Crescent, and her wicked brother, Whitefire. 
I have to escape.
The thought seemed to ignite a fire inside Candle as she sat up. Are the bars thin enough to be snapped? Surely not, this was for the worst criminals. What about the brick wall? Can she break that? No, no, she was underground, there was nothing to escape to…
Candle sighed, pressing her talon to her forehead. The chains restricting her would be a problem; yes she needed to do something about that. 
How can I get rid of these without fire?
She rubbed her chain-bound wrists against the metal bars nervously, and small bright orange sparks crackled out due to the sudden friction. To any other dragon, the sparks would seem ordinary, insignificant things, but to Candle these were her flames of hope. 
Candle excitedly rubbed her wrist chains against the other bars, and they glowed a warm red-orange with heat. She winced as the cuffs melted and burned her scales, but she didn’t care. Candle rubbed and scraped until the metal was a goopy, lava-like substance. If she could scream with pain, she would’ve. The pain was something she’d never experienced before; it was excruciating. The metal drooped off and she flung the last few molten droplets away in relief. Her talon finally free, Candle began to desperately wench her chains away from her dark red snout. The chains loosened and she let out a cry of agony. The burn from the melted cuffs pulsed and cut deeper with every return. Tears slipped down her cheeks and she ripped the rest of the binds off her body. 
Now what to- OWWW!- do about the huge iron bars in front of me?!
She could always try to use her fire… though she wasn’t sure she could, as Candle was still in shock from her burns. She turned her attention to the ceiling, which was perfect and dusty and hard and… was that a crack isn’t he roof near the corner? Candle shook the last links of chain off her foot and gingerly pushed upwards. The separate chunk moved slightly, but not enough. She wildly glanced around and spotted the remains of her other intact wrist cuff, and shoved it into the crack. The iron dug deep into the roof and began to break the stone apart. Dust rained down from the ceiling as the crack opened up and the stone crashed down into the cell. 
Yes! Time to go, quickly before anyone sees me.
Candle surged upwards and tired to scrabble through the hole. She was stuck.
Wow, I really haven’t been exercising enough, Candle winced as she finally popped out. 
The loud sounds of the ceiling and her screams had alerted the rebellion followers, and she heard their thunderous talon steps racing towards her cell. Panicking, Candle ran up the cold hallway and picked up speed, not caring if she made any noise. 
“There she is! SHE’S GOING TO ALERT THE QUEEN!” 
She glanced behind her and saw a thin, yellow-orange wiry dragon power towards her, calling for reinforcements. 
“No, no, no no,” Candle muttered under her breath, cold sweat dripping down her spine. 
The corridor was continuing upwards, and thin slits let a little light through. 
I’m above ground!
The further she went, the closer the dragons came, but the bigger the windows got. Finally, Candle spotted a wide open ledge up ahead. 
“NO! STAY AWAY FROM THAT WINDOW!” A dragon behind her bellowed. 
Candle ignored her and blissfully dove out of the darkness, soaring through the air toward the horizon and the imposing sight of the palace. 
The moments of glory didn’t last very long, as malicious red SkyWings poured out of the palace and spun to face her. 
Their ranks have grown steadily. 
Candle let out a growl of defeat, and whirled away towards the towering mountains. She could loose them there, surely. The sound of many angry voices followed her into the peaks, and had no sign of fading when she doubled back into the lush forests lining the mountain base. Their wingbeats followed her and panic was sinking in.
Well I almost escaped, but this battle is far from over.
-Starling
The delicious chills of the morning wind filled Starling up as she gazed lovingly at her home. They had made it to a high mountain in the Sky Kingdom and the stretch of water she called home was visible in the distance. Starling turned towards the SkyWing palace in interest. It was huge and beautiful, with great pillars in a ring around an arena, and with stone towers reaching for the sky. As she looked closer, she could spot open ledges dotted around on every intricate level.
“The SkyWings sure are advanced, huh?” Quail commented as he slid up beside her. 
“Yes and so… free.” Starling sighed, thinking of her life hidden away under the sand. 
She felt a twinge of loneliness, then leaned into Quail’s talon. 
“I wish I was as big as you!” Starling watched a red SkyWing dive out of a ledge and and drift down to the arena with ease. 
Oh, the glory if she was an animus… she could enchant herself to grow as big as Quail…
Wait… the TinyWings have the highest animus power rate… could it be?
“I enchant myself to grow just as big as how I would be if I were a RainWing,” Starling clenched her eyes shut and waited for something to happen. 
Nothing.
“Uhh, Starling? What are you doing?” Quail’s confused voice asked. 
“Nope, don’t ask. There was no hope anyways.” She muttered, opening her eyes.
He leaned his head down and studied her expression. 
“What of there’s another way to grow big?” Quail said after a long moment.
Another way? What was he yapping on about?
“Um, if there was another way, wouldn’t I have figured it out by now?” She snapped. 
Quail began to flap his lilac wings excitedly. “But what if you couldn’t have?” 
He gently lifted her up and looked at her in the eyes. 
“Use your mirror ability on me, it might just work!” 
Her mirror ability? Why?
“Sure, I guess…?” 
Starling concentrated on his purple scales, imagining the power beneath them. A bubbling feeling grew inside of her and she embraced it, calling it to come forth. A golden light only visible to Starling’s eyes quietly seeped out of Quail’s scales and into hers. The bubbling feeling erupted, leaving her with…
“Starling? Did it work?” He plopped her back down on the dry grass. 
“I don’t know, but my fangs have grown,” she complained. 
A strange heap of the glowing stuff was in the corner of her vision. 
“Hang on…” 
Starling imagined grabbing the power with her eyes and using it with her talon and sprinkle it over her body. A stretching feeling came over her, her wings began extending, her talons lengthening and her neck expanding. 
“STARLING!?” Quail cried as he backed away. 
She couldn’t respond, she was still growing. In just a couple minutes, she had grown as big as Quail. 
“I’m… big?” Starling said wonderingly, gazing at her front talons. 
“Well I… I can’t believe that worked!” Quail admired her new form.
“I can’t either!” Starling jumped for joy. Her dreams had come true!
“Does this mean of can use my abilities?” He asked with shining eyes.
She tapped her new fangs. “Maybe?” 
“To use camouflage, imagine your scales melting into the background.” 
She concentrated, thinking of the beautiful mountain scene behind them.
Starling gowned her eyes to find her scales with a pinkish tinge, not see through like Quail’s.
“Oh no. I forgot, the ability allows me to copy other abilities, but only at 50% of its original strength!” She wailed in dismay. 
Starling tried to shift her scale color into a shade of red, and sure enough, her scales instead turned into a lighter shade than they were before. 
Quail sucked in a breath. “This is a problem.”
“Can I eben shoob be-benom properly?” She blubbered. 
Her life was ruined. She’d be scorned as a half dragon with no control of her powers! The freedom of being big diminished as quickly as it had arrived. 
“Well, at least try?” Quail soothed, patting her back sympathetically.
Sniffling, Starling hinged her mouth open and envisioned spitting venom at the small blue flower peeking out of a crack in the rock. A jet black liquid splattered out of her fangs and dripped on a strand of grass sitting a couple meters away．
“O-oh my,” his eyes widened with shock. “How did you shoot so far?” 
“Wow. I can t control how far I shoot. FANTASTIC.” Starling growled.
He trod on her foot. Hard. 
“What was that for?!” She snarled. 
“Come on. Cheer up. At least you have abilities, and is bigger. Come on, you’re better than this!” Quail encouraged, his grey scales glinting in the light. 
“I hate you.” Starling grumbled, but couldn’t help smiling. 
This infuriating dragon! Don’t smile. Stop smiling! Argh Starling you stupid dragon!
“Now come on, let’s find a good spying spot.” He arrowed into the air and spun over to a large stone boulder. It was a couple meters away, and would be a perfect place to hide, but spy at the same time. 
“I’m getting there first! I’m not tiny anymore, remember!” Starling launched into the air and beelined for the rock. 
“Nuh-uh!” He replied, and beat his wings harder. 
Just as she was about to reach the stone, a million red-orange dragons spilled out of the castle. 
It wasn’t really a million, but it had certainly seemed like there was. Starling gasped in horror as a small, lithe dragonet about 6 years old shot away from her pursuers with a frantic expression. She was a light pale red, with black talons and dark red undertones. The dragonet had a huge wingspan just like SkyWings, but with bright orange scattered in the usual pattern for NightWings… this was a hybrid. 
“That poor dragonet!” Quail watched, dismayed. 
“I wonder why they’re chasing her…” Starling thought carefully. 
Surely this was a dangerous dragon? She was being chased by like the entire SkyWing tribe… No, she was just a dragonet! Maybe because she was a hybrid? Yes, that must be it. 
Faint angry shouts cut though the peaceful silence.
“Come back here, traitor!”
“Don’t let her get to the trees!”
“We need to catch her, now!”
The dragonet glanced back and put on a burst of speed. She disappeared into the peaks of the mountains and a mob of SkyWings powered after her. A few suspenseful moments later, Starling spotted her winging desperately out of the mountains and down to the forest below. The SkyWings just saw her dark red tail flicker into the tangle of trees and resumed the chase.
“I can’t watch, we need to help her,” Quail muttered, and unfolded his wings. 
Before she could answer, he dove down toward the forest and glimmered out of view. 
Good luck, Quail, I guess I can’t follow you NOW.
-Quail
He didn’t have a moment to waste. Not daring to look back, Quail shimmered into camouflage and crashed into the familiar foliage of a forest. This brought him back home… to the rainforest. 
“She went that way!”
The angry shout was coming from his far right, and the quieter, more subtle sound of a dragon trying to sneak quickly through a thick woodland came from his close left. Slipping into his stealth mode, Quail soundlessly snuck through the trees and started to catch up to the dragonet.
Heavy breathing was ahead. A red tail though the leaves… there she was.
“Psst! I’m a RainWing, so you can’t see me, but please trust me!” He whispered next to her dark red ear.
She jumped and eyed the suspiciously empty air around her.
“Trust you to what?” She replied softly, avoiding a stray tree branch as she kept running. 
“Just follow the purple ruff,” Quail instructed, and let his ruff show. 
He heard a shocked squeak but turned away to run. 
The quiet sound of her crashing through the trees after him was reassuring, and he confidently dodged leaves towards the hiding spot he and Starling found. 
“Hurry up! She must be here SOMEWHERE.” 
“I’m trying idiot!”
“Crescent’s plan will be ruined!” 
The commotion behind Quail were growing further and further away as he and the hybrid erupted out of the trees. 
“Quick!!” He hissed, swooping behind the boulder.
The dragonet fell down and hit the ground with a bump. 
“Thank you SO MUCH.” She said breathlessly.
“Shh,” Starling quieted her down gently. 
She pulled a thick cover of broken branches over them and they waited in absolute silence. 
Heavy wingbeats passed over them and shouts of fury.
“No! I swear we had her!” 
Flap flap.
“Poor Crescent! That’s a bummer!”
Flap flap.
“What are we going to say?”
Flap flap.
The sound quickly faded away and there were a few more minutes of quiet, when Starling said, “I think they’re gone,”
Quail let out a shaky breath. “That was terrifying.” 
The hybrid turned towards them with paralyzed fear stuck on her face. 
“Thank you, again, I would have died for sure,” she was shivering violently.
“My name,” the dragonet glanced up, “ is Candle.” 
== Chapter Four ==
-Starling
“My name,” the hybrid paused, catching her breath, “is Candle.”
What a cute name. It certainly fit this dragon’s appearance, with her pale red body and huge flame colored wings.
“Hi Candle! I’m Starling, and this is Quail!” She smiled and stuck out her talon.
“Nice to meet you.” Candle shook it with her own black talon. 
She glanced wonderingly at Starling’s lavender scales.  
“What kind of dragon are you?”
“Oh I’m…. Uhhh…” Starling stammered.
She had forgotten what to say. Was she a rare trybrid? Or a hybrid? 
“She’s a SandWing, SeaWing and RainWing trybrid.” Quail jumped in.
Thank you so much Quail. Starling felt relived.
“Yeah what he said.”
Candle gave her a suspicious look. Her amber eyes seemed to see far off into the distance.
“Are you a TinyWing?” 
Starling choked violently on her spit. 
“A-a what?” She forced out.
Before Quail could attempt to lie even more, Candle narrowed her eyes and prodded her wing.
“You match the exact description of a Splash Nation dragonet.” The pale red dragonet inspected her expression.
“How did you know?” Starling admitted weakly.
“You clearly don’t belong to any of the known tribes, and are too unique to be a hybrid. The question is though, how are you so large?” Candle’s orange wings flapped impatiently.
“I…. I have the mirror ability which allows me to copy other’s ‘powers’… and it somehow works on height too?” She explained.
“Oh… interesting…” the mysterious hybrid mumbled, staring off into the distance. 
There was a sad aura surrounding Candle. and Starling suspected she had been through much more than it seemed. 
“By any chance would you take me to your home? I need to warn you, my evil siblings are planning to overthrow my queen and declare war on the Splash Nation with the aid of other tribes. They’re planning a rebellion based on some false legends and are prepared to wipe you out.” She said abruptly.
Home? Siblings? REBELLION? 
“WHAT?!” Quail and Starling shouted at the exact same time.
“Yes, you heard me. My evil sister, Crescent, and brother, Whitefire, are planning to gather secret recruits from other tribes and start a secret rebellion to eradicate your tribe in one swift blow. Luckily, they don’t know about the other nations, and you still have hope.” Candle made a distraught face, as if she were pushing her real feelings down inside.
“My nation… River…. Queen Droplet… we’re all… going to die?” Starling muttered faintly.
She thought of the cousin she left behind, River, who was probably worried sick about her. She had left him to die.
Uncontrollable tears streamed down her snout and she collapsed onto the floor. 
“Starling! Don’t worry, there’s still hope! Your tribe can be safe, if we act fast!” Quail knelt beside her and stroked her spine softly. 
“It’s going to be okay.”
They were flying yet again. The sky was streaked through with red and gold as Starling hid herself between Candle and Quail. Her mirror had worn off, meaning she was just as small before.
The SnowTouched Island was coming into view, just as beautiful and as pristine as she had left it. The rich, dark green pine trees were dusted with snow, and the Dividing Canyon was as dark as ever.
Her home… she was finally home.
Starling arrowed down blissfully, and fell into a soft pile of fluffy snow. 
A navy blue head popped out of a snowdrift nearby, and lit up as he saw her.
“S-Starling? Is it really you?” His voice quivered.
“It’s me!” She bounded over and squeezed him tightly.
“I bought bu bad bied!” He blubbered, sobbing as he buried his head into her shoulder.
“I saw other dragons! I saw the rainforest! I saw the SkyWing palace! I saw so much!” She let him go and flopped into the snow behind her. 
The clamor of others stirring was drowned out by the flapping of her friends coming down.
“A RAINWING!” 
“WE’VE BEEN SPOTTED!” 
“RUUUUNNNNN!” 
Screams of terror erupted through the air and TinyWings began desperately fleeing the scene.
“STARLING! RIGHT BEHIND YOU!” River looked paralyzed by the newcomers.
“Wait no! They’re friends!” Starling cried, and the TinyWings froze.
It was silent for a few seconds.
“Uhh.. Hi?” Candle waved a black talon awkwardly.
Nice try, Candle… Starling thought with a sigh.
A light gray-green TinyWing with a white underbelly shuffled forward. She had a glossy gold crown placed atop her horns, and was regally glaring down her nose at Starling.
“What have you done? Strangers, on the island? Sneaking out? Starling, I expected better of you.” Queen Droplet scowled.
Starling glared defiantly back.
“I have just found a dragon who has come to save the Splash Nation, and maybe the entire tribe!” She shouted, and jabbed a wing at Candle.
Queen Droplet snorted skeptically.
Candle shook some freezing snow off her dark red nose and stepped forward.
“It’s true. Your majesty, the SkyWings are planning a secret rebellion unbeknownst to Queen Ruby, and are recruiting other tribe members. They are planning to strike and exterminate you in one attack. Luckily, they don’t know about the other nations, but will soon. My estimate is that tomorrow they will try slaughter you all.” She announced grimly.
For once, the haughty queen was speechless, worry written on her face.
Take that Droplet! Starling smirked.
“A rebellion? Well… It’s rather hard to believe, but I GUESS we could warn the other nations….” The gray-green dragon sniffed. 
“Yes!”  Starling pumped the air.
“All TinyWings, please come here for a tribe meeting now!” Droplet yelled.
Small dragons of all colors and appearances slithered out of the snow, trees and leaves. River’s teal eyes were wide and slightly shocked.
“I forgot how many of us there were,” he said quietly. 
Was it her imagination, or did his voice sound a little worried?
Candle shifted her spotted black talons nervously as many little heads turned towards her warily.
“I have gathered you here to hear pit this young hybrid, who has devastating news.” Droplet puffed out her chest, and her daughter, Princess Aqua, sighed in embarrassment from the crowd.
“Go on.” The queen gestured towards Candle.
“Um, hi. I’m Candle, and um, yeah… ANYWAYS, just wanted to warn you that some evil SkyWings are planning a rebellion and put together a huge army, consisting of SandWings, MudWings and SkyWings to eradicate you all. They also don’t know about the other nations, but know your vague location.” She blurted out.
There was a confused silence for a few seconds, then it hit them. 
“WE’RE ALL GONNA DIE!” 
“ESCAAAAPPPEEE!”
“RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!” 
One bright red TinyWing ran away screaming and crashed into the nearest tree. He fell to the ground with a thump.
“Well that worked out well.” Droplet said sarcastically.
The TinyWings had eventually been informed that there was a possible solution. Queen Droplet sauntered forward with an irritated expression. 
“Clearly we have to escape the island, my people are too nervous.” She announced.
“No! Fight them!” Quail yelled. 
“Yes, I agree, we must fight them,” Princess Aqua cut in.
“They really won’t stop until they find you.” Candle interrupted.
Queen Droplet sighed with defeat, then looked as if she had just a sharp realization.
Droplet turned towards Starling. 
“Can you tell me, how, exactly the situation came to this?” She asked with a serious expression.
Wait… that’s actually a good question. How did they find us? Starling thought. She turned around to see Candle discussing battle plans with Quail. 
“Hey Candle, how did they find out about us?” Starling questioned.
Candle’s face dropped and turned white. Sweat trickled down her snout as she trembled.
“Uh, Candle?” Quail studied her expression worriedly.
Queen Droplet stepped forward with an angry snarl.
“What do you know?” 
-Candle.
“What do you know?” Queen Droplet snarled angrily.
Oh no. How do I get myself out of this? It was actually my fault, and they’re not dumb enough to believe whatever lies I spew.
“They…uhh… come over here quietly.” She whispered.
“No! Say what you know, right now!” Droplet growled, taking a menacing pace forward. 
A nearby TinyWing with gray blue scales and a small silver crown turned towards them, with a puzzled look on her face.
“Mother? What’s going on?” She flapped over a lump of snow beside them.
“Oh, nothing Aqua, just… discussions!” Droplet hedged, nervously shooing her away.
The bewildered princess was sent back to the others.
Queen Droplet cleared her throat, embarrassed, and turned back to Candle.
“As I was saying, tell us!” The Queen said regally.
“The truth is… uh…” she spluttered.
“Hurry up!” Quail snapped.
“They stole my research about the legends of your tribe, and imprisoned me. They found the evidence of your ancestors and the rough area where you live.” She blurted.
Queen Droplet’s mouth was gaping open. She came back to her senses and gave her a scornful look.
“Well I can’t see why I have to work with you! You betrayed my tribe!” Droplet growled, and added, “We are moving away, no matter what you claim!” Then stormed away.
Starling was also glaring at her. “I can’t believe you never told me!” 
Quail was watching with streaks of blue and red laced through his usually purple ruff. 
“Starling? I’m sure she was going to tell us eventually.” 
He was on her side! Candle’s heart leaped.
“No! She wouldn’t have!” Starling argued back. 
Despair was clouding in her mind.
“If YOU hadn’t tried to find out about us in the first place, we wouldn’t be in this situation!” The angry little dragon shouted, a look of pure hatred in her mint colored eyes.
Quail’s red eyes were wide with fear.
“I-I…” Candle felt sick with sadness. So this was what it had felt like for Crescent, who thought she was doing good and got rejected.
Her blurry gaze flickered to a navy blue TinyWing watching from the shadows of a pine tree. He scurried out of view as she fixed her eyes on him.
“Yeah, admit it! You doomed us, and you caused this!” Starling growled, digging her sharp claws into the icy snow.
Candle ripped her eyes towards her.
“I’m not surprised. Evilness must run in the family.” Starling looked at her with mock sympathy.
“That’s enough!” Quail snapped, glaring at the lavender TinyWing. 
Starling recoiled, as if taking a physical blow.
“You’re seriously on her side?!” Her eyes watered, angry tears forming.
Quail shook his head, as if impatiently watching two delusional dragons squabble.
“I’m not on anyone’s side! But I won’t listen to you accuse Candle like that! She’s clearly got the message!” He glanced sadly at Candle.
At least Quail supports me. Although I can’t blame Starling. It really was my fault. Candle thought.
Starling’s voice quivered with disbelief. 
“Really? Just like that? I can’t believe this! Good luck in the battle, because NO ONE will protect you as you cowardly hide from your problem!!” She grabbed a handful of frigid snow and flung it mercilessly at Quail. 
“Bye, forever. Clearly I trusted the wrong dragons.” She turned and stalked over to the queen, then flew away.
The snow dripped down the RainWing’s face as he breathed heavily and brought his now red talons to his face. 
“Are you-“ Candle started.
“NO! Don’t talk to me right now. Leave.” He let out a shaky breath.
The pain of regret, suffering and loss pierced her heart as she slowly trudged away.
-Starling
She turned and stomped towards Queen Droplet with scorching anger plastered across her face. The queen noticed her expression and shielded her gaze. 
“Those flea ridden, backstabbing snakes! I want to rip their spikes from their spineless backs and stab them! I want to feed them to the deep sea giant sharks! I want to watch their faces as I shove them into a volcano!” She snarled, mostly to herself. 
Her cousin, River, had a sympathetic face.
“It’s not your fault, don’t worry.” He reassured.
“Thanks River, but I’d like to be alone please.” She brushed him aside. 
River respected her wishes and silently walked off.
Starling spread her wings and launched gracefully into the air, gliding through the trees blissfully. 
Here, she was free. Free from other dragons and the traitors behind her. 
She swiftly turned to the left and spiraled down to her favorite shady spot. It was nestled between two huge trees, beside a large mossy rock. Starling slid into the little dip in the ground and curled up into a round, scales ball. She let out salty tears and closed her eyes.
-Candle
She wandered around the snowy forest for a couple hours, marveling at the beauty of the rich, dark green pine trees while holding in her tears. She had found a marvelous scene after a long walk without a TinyWing in sight.
Candle gazed out at the mystical, clear pool before her. It was lined with pale yellow sand, so light and fine it practically spilled like water through her claws. Small hard pebbles were heaped in messy piles under the water and around the lake’s edge. Tall ancient evergreens were arched over the water, as if protecting the still pool from danger. 
Candle sighed and dipped a claw in the crystal clear water. It was deliciously cold, and rippled at the smallest movement. The beautiful light of the setting sun reflected in the water, casting bounce light onto the trees.
A twig snapped behind her and Candle turned her head, swirling her talon around in the water.
The same navy blue TinyWing who was watching the argument was clambering over a pile of pebbles awkwardly. He had a RainWing ruff, she noted, and peculiar, dark green board-like frill just like Starling’s. This was probably a relative of the young dragonet. A stab of misery came over her as she remembered the tragic confession to her betrayal.
“What do you want?” Candle asked politely as he trotted to the water’s edge beside her. 
He was sitting patiently, but his blue talons were twitching with annoyance. 
“I just want to talk.” He replied, looking up at her with big green eyes. 
There was something in there… something that compelled her to nod, something that made her want to listen, and yet, something that that made her want to run far, far away…
“Sure.” She answered, gazing down at her reflection in the water.
“My name is River.” River smiled warmly at her.
River… it was a pretty name. It fitted him well, being friendly on the outside, but full of mysteries under the surface of the rolling water.
“I’m Candle, as you probably know.” Candle let her huge orange wings droop into the water, almost whacking him in the face with her pale red wing membrane. River grimaced as it brushed his face, and dug his pearly white claws into the sand.
“I honestly think that it’s not your fault.” He said gently.
“What?” She looked down at him in confusion. Candle was a giant compared to him, and towered over him. Though River kept on speaking, not even fazed by the fact that she endangered his entire nation.
“You did your best, and even came back to warn us. Ignore my cousin, she’s a little hot-headed. It really wasn’t your fault, your siblings came after us, not you.” He ducked under the shade of her wing.
She hadn’t thought of it like that before. It wasn’t her fault? Really? If she hadn’t left her work open for everyone to see in the first place, her snooping sister Crescent wouldn’t have found the evidence. Yes, yes, it was her fault. Although she did appreciate the effort River put into cheering her up.
“Thanks, but I think Starling is right. If I hadn’t announced to the public that I was the official librarian apprentice, then they wouldn’t have come looking at my stuff knowing they could.” She sighed.
River looked up at her sadly. 
“If I really can change your mind, at least let me support you.” He leaned into her dark red underbelly.
This dragon, who she had just met, was willing to help her defeat the enemy and believed that she was a good dragon? She instantly felt a warm feeling of gratefulness.
“Of course you can.” Candle saw him smile, and she had a strange tingling sensation. 
It felt good, and she was finally at peace.
-Starling
She had woken up from her nap and had strolled over to the royal sand caves. They were especially fancy compared to her small bare one. Queen Droplet was quietly planning escape routes with two of the nation’s animuses as she messily dug her way in.
The reddish blue animus called Gradient looked up from the scroll they were writing on.
“Starling!” She exclaimed happily.
By then Cerulean and Queen Droplet had noticed her sudden arrival.
That’s right, I come and go when I please. She thought gleefully.
“Hi Gradient!” Starling waved as she squeezed through the sandy hole and waded over to the mahogany table.
“What are you doing here, Starling? I thought I asked for Aqua!” Droplet cried, slamming her front pale green talons on the wood.
A bit over dramatic, really.
“She asked me to fill in. Anyways, watcha doing?” Starling peeked curiously over Cerulean’s almost black, dark pink scales.
Messy writing about plans for spells were scrawled on the paper.
Things like ‘speed enhancing jewel’ and ‘teleportation necklace’ were some of the ideas frantically written down.
Starling had wondered why they couldn’t just make everybody invisible or make the SkyWing army forget everything.
“Um. Can you move, please? We’re doing IMPORTANT stuff here!” Cerulean snapped, flicking his light pink tail impatiently.
He was always a stuck up dragon, proud of his power and thinking better of himself than everyone else.
“Ok, sure.” She shifted away and sloshed over to Gradient, patting her vibrant scales. 
“What can’t you just make the SkyWings forget everything? It’ll be easier.” Starling suggested, picking up the charcoal pencil.
“NO!” Droplet shouted, leaning over the table and snatching the pencil from her golden talon.
“We need something that will last forever, and keep on benefiting the tribe otherwise it would be a wast.” Gradient explained.
Well that made sense. Droplet would do anything to help herself.
“Oh ok. That explains a lot.” Starling replied, thankful for the help.
Droplet snorted and kicked wet sand on the soft seaweed bed nestled in the corner.
“I want something grand, something powerful for your last spells.” She announced.
Their last spells!? Surely not. They were the last animuses they have, and they’ve already wasted four spells each! 
Am animus TinyWing was allowed to use five spells in their lifetime, and no more after. If Cerulean and Gradient were on their last spells… they had to perfect these spells carefully.
“If I may speak, your majesty, I think that the telepathy idea is the best.” Gradient pointed to a section on the scroll.
“We’ll I think the extra speed boost is good.” Cerulean objected.
“Ok, so your spell is the telepathy, and yours the speed.” Droplet waved her claw. “Do the thing.” 
Starling watched in interest. Gradient took a deep breath and picked up a small amethyst bracelet that was sitting on the table.
“I enchant this bracelet,” she said in a loud, clear voice, “To allow the wearer that when they wave a talon, they let all the TinyWings to communicate telepathically, and when they wave the same talon again, they stop the communication.” She placed it back down and let out a sigh.
The bracelet sat innocently on the wood, looking just as ordinary as before. Queen Droplet picked it up curiously and slipped it on her wrist.
The four dragons seemed to hold their breath as Queen Droplet waved her talon through the air.
Gradient? Can you hear me? Starling thought.
Silence.
“It’s not working!” She yelled out in panic.
The shocked and scared faces of the dragons before her clearly showed it want working for them as well.
“But… how? It was an enchantment, clear as day!” Droplet argued worriedly.
Gradient shivered and flipped her iridescent purple scales back to a flat, boring brown.
“Maybe… maybe because she want strong enough?” Cerulean guessed.
Gradient whipped her head around to face him angrily.
“So you’re saying I’m weak?!” She yelled.
“No!” He yelped.
Chaos was unfolding, but the mystery of animus magic was still puzzling Starling. How did this happen?
“Well let’s just try your enchantment Cerulean, and hope for success this time,” Droplet interrupted hopefully.
Cerulean reluctantly stepped forward and waved his dark pink talon over a shiny golden ring.
“I enchant this ring, to allow the user to give a huge speed boost to whoever they choose while wearing this.” He announced.
Queen Droplet shoved the ring on and leaped to the other side of the cave. She fluttered feebly across the room. The ring also had no effect.
“No! That was our only hope!” The frustrated queen wailed. 
If the enchantments didn’t work, then… they had to fight. There was no option of running now. The SkyWings would be here by tomorrow morning, and there was no way the entire nation could get organized and fly all the way to the mainland that quickly. 
“We have to fight,” Gradient whispered, realizing it just after Starling.
Droplet turned her despairing gaze towards the animus.
“I’m afraid we do.” She snapped back into queen mode.
“Cerulean! Go tell the war commanders to meet us here and plan battle plans! Gradient! Go and round up the nation! Sort them into their abilities, quickly! And Starling, go help her!” Droplet tore the paper in half and titled the blank side: War Strategies. 
Starling raced out of the cave with Gradient at her side, and swooped into the TallPine woods. There, peaceful TinyWings were relaxing in the shade of the trees. 
“Attention! All TinyWings of the Splash Nation, gather in front of the Dividing Canyon! Sort into Mirrors and Regulars!” Gradient shouted. 
She was rather an impressive yeller, and her voice echoed around the serene forest.
They passed the message on, even warning Candle and Quail. After a bunch of arguments, discussions and confusion later the TinyWings were sorted in two groups in front of the deep Dividing Canyon. Queen Droplet and the three  war commanders, one light red, one deep brown, and one pale yellow hurried into the clearing.
“All dragons! We had run into an inconvenience, which resulted in us hafting to fight! The war captains and I have come up with a plan.” Droplet explained.
The hushed murmuring of the crowd was echoing around the clearing.
“We have decided, for the mirrors to be with the….” 
Queen Droplet’s voice was drowned out by her worries. 
What if I die? What if we win? Or… what if we loose?
The same anxious thoughts swirled around in her brain in a continuous cycle, constantly repeating and adding new concerns.
What if Queen Droplet dies? What if they win? What if I’m not strong enough? 
The slow, quiet stream grew into a flowing, rushing river that swept all her reassurances away.
“Starling? Hello?” Droplet’s impatient voice broke through the foamy surface and Starling was jolted back into focus.
“Um yes, what is it?” She asked, cold sweat dripping down her spine.
“I said, GO TO THE MIRROR SECTION!!” Droplet yelled.
Jeez, okay, kelp-brain, Starling thought resentfully as she scurried over to the mirror dragons.
The TinyWings were wearing worried expressions as they shuffled into the groups, quietly discussing battle moves and their concerns.
”We have decided to split dragons up into pairs to ensure the mirrors are never without a copy!” Droplet announced, “Chose your partners.” 
Starling dug her claws into the snow, looking around for Gradient. 
We’ve got a plan, and weapons. Get ready SkyWings, we’re coming.
== Chapter Five ==
-Candle
Candle watched sadly from the shade of the trees as the TinyWings found their partners. She and River had solemnly walked back to the clearing after they heard the message. Candle had spotted Starling and Quail, but she had decided it was better to avoid them for now.
They’ll just ignore me. She thought, with a twinge of loneliness.
Candle sighed and hung her head. She thought about the battle… and if she would have to fight her sister and brother. After a long moment, she looked up and saw a pair of wide green eyes frantically staring at her. 
River? What’s gong on? She thought curiously.
River pointed urgently at the sky. She looked up to see a huge cloud of glimmering reds and oranges, with two grey specks leading the way.
They’re here. 
Screams and cries of alarm shot through the air as the TinyWings spotted the incoming SkyWing army. 
“IN POSITION! GET READY TO FIGHT FOR YOUR LIFE!” Queen Droplet yelled, then glanced at the crowd, hurriedly telling the messengers to go notify the other nations. 
The SkyWings grew closer and Candle could make out the triumphant smirks on her sibling’s faces. 
“Candle! How good of you to face us! I thought you went insane!” Crescent shouted, breathing orange fire around in a ring.
The first of the SkyWings thumped onto the grim battlefield, smoke spiralling out of their mouths. 
“TINYWINGS! ATTACK!” Droplet ordered, summoning a geyser of water from the snow. She charged forward and blasted two SkyWings with the water, tearing up their scales and snapping their horns off. The red dragons were knocked ruthlessly into the freezing ocean.
”SKYWINGS! ATTACK!” Crescent snarled, fuming as she sliced her claws across a pastel yellow TinyWing’s chest. He screamed with agony and fell to the ground, lifeless. 
Fury shot through Candle. She glowered at her sister. Crescent as killing innocent dragons just to spite her. 
The SkyWings surged forwards, and the TinyWings met their claws grimly.
“CRESCENT! HOW DARE YOU!” Candle stepped, storming towards her. The chaotic battle around them seemed to slow down as she barreled into Crescent, surprise flickering in her sister’s blood red eyes.
Crescent flung Candle off easily and faced her as her sister skidded on the blood-soaked snow. 
“Get up.” The moon born hybrid ordered, opening her mind to Candle’s.
The injured hybrid slowly scrambled to her feet and stalked closer. 
Crescent suddenly lashed out one talon but Candle quickly deflected, ramming her shoulder into her chest. She grunted and kicked her off, seemingly unaffected. Candle whirled around and stabbed her blunt claws into her sister’s soft underbelly. Rich red blood leaked out and Crescent’s eyes sparked with pain. Her back talons scraped Candle’s thin tail and she coiled back.
”Back off, sis.” Crescent scowled, hearing the sound of Candle’s hatred towards her. “Hate me all you want.”
”Oh I won’t just hate you. I’ll kill you.” The hybrid winced with pain. Her wounds were throbbing.
”What big words coming from such a small dragonet.” Her sister snarled, slamming her claws into Candle’s side.
She screamed with agony, finally revealing her pain. Crescent smirked as rich red blood spurted out from the wounds, and she twisted her claws, ripping out flesh as she did so. 
Candle’s vision swirled around. She shook out tears and kicked Crescent away from her. 
Candle was going to die. It was clear of that. Her wounds were too severe, and she was no match for her sister. She could at least try. That was less than what she owed to the lost tribe, and to the innocent, misled SkyWings.
You’re such a monster. Candle thought, frustrated. 
“The feeling is mutual, sister.” Crescent stepped forward, holding up her bloodstained claws for the final strike.
-Starling
Starling had copied Quail’s abilities and had been terrorizing the enemy with stinging venom. It wasn’t as powerful as Quail’s, but it was good enough. 
“Why did you come here? To us? What did we ever do to you?” She asked the groaning SkyWing she had pinned under her claws.
She snarled at the TinyWing. 
“Your pathetic, cowardly tribe attacked us long ago. We’ve come to bring justice for our ancestors!” The SkyWing announced.
Starling spat black venom in her face. The SkyWing shrieked and the TinyWing stepped away, searching for a new victim.
”They’re all liars.” She growled. Candle. The SkyWings. Her ‘sinister siblings’.
Starling squelched through the blood soaked snow, wincing as the red dripped off her claws. A scream split through the air, and she whirled around in it’s direction. 
Surely that was a SkyWing. Not Candle… right? 
Starling pushed her way through the battle, slicing red and orange scales as she went. 
It can’t be… she’s such a coward, she’d probably still be in the clearing.
But still, Starling ran desperately through the crowd. She finally made it to a particularly bloody scene of a strange grey SkyWing standing over Candle’s unmoving body.
No. No. No. I hate her.. but she didn’t deserve to die. She fought for us. She… she actually cared.
”No!” She screamed, lurching forward to the lump of pale red scales. 
Candle was suffering huge, painful wounds in her side and soft underbelly. Her eyes were frozen, half open and glaring blankly into the open. 
“You.. you killed her.” She whispered. 
The dark red hybrid laughed, a long cackling laugh. 
“Yes I did, little TinyWing. What are you going to do about it? You do think it’s your fault, and, well, it is.” Crescent replied.
YOU WERE HER SISTER! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO CARE FOR HER! YOU WERE HER FAMILY! She thought.
”Family, that’s just a word. Hatred, now that’s a feeling. I felt it when she rejected me, I felt it when she faced me in battle, I FELT IT WHEN SHE CUT TIED TO OUR FAMILY!” Crescent shouted, sparks of flame crackling in the air. 
She stopped, as if realizing what she had said, and looked down at Starling, arrogance all through the way she held her head high. 
“She was nothing to me.” 
-Crescent
She felt no regret over killing Candle. After all, she deserved it. Candle betrayed her, from the moment she ignored her, from the moment she thought of herself better, from the moment she spilled Crescent’s plans. 
What more of a punishment my dear sister needed. 
The pathetic lavender TinyWing was crying. Of course she was. Only weaklings shed tears. Crescent watched, unimpressed, as she slowly got to her feet and picked up a small, sharp dagger lying in a nearby snowdrift. 
“Are you going to fight me?” Crescent taunted. “How brave!”
I HATE YOU! The small dragon shouted in her mind, and thrust the knife forward.
“I hate you too, don’t worry.” She said, then neatly ripped the TinyWing’s underbelly open as she dodged the puny swipe of the dagger. 
The dragnet’s eyes bulged and she coughed up blood as Crescent shredded one of her wings. 
Come on, Starling. Fight her! The wounded dragon thought. 
”Sorry Starling. You’re doomed.” The hybrid smirked. 
-Starling 
She looked up into the dragon’s blood red eyes. They weren’t like Quail’s eyes, full of warmth and hidden kindness. No, these were full of hatred and bottomless, pulling Starling inside their hypnotizing void. 
She was helpless against Crescent. She was an experienced warrior, who a couple years older than her. She also had fire and mindreading. How could Starling expect to win? 
For Candle. I need to do this… for Candle. 
Starling gritted her teeth and rolled away just as the hybrid slammed her claws down towards her. 
“You’re gonna die. Just embrace that fact.” Crescent growled. She stormed over to where Starling had collapsed; in some pine needles splattered with her own blood. 
I can’t run. I can’t hide. What do I do? 
Starling remembered her fangs… her new, venomous fangs… not much use without being as deadly as Quail’s. 
But still. That’s something. 
Crescent’s dark red head shot up, as if she heard that thought. 
Because she did. I hate mindreaders. Starling thought. 
”You won’t use your phony venom on me, fake RainWing.” The hybrid warned, stalking closer. 
She stepped closer to the leaves, sloshing through the bloody snow. 
The next moment happened in a blur. Starling and opened her mouth then Crescent had leaped forward and snapped her jaws shut. Starling had then desperately grabbed the dagger and stabbed her straight in the heart. Crescent had screamed and yanked Starling’s jaw into the ground, snapping her arm which had been left behind. Starling had broken free and spat venom right in the hybrid’s eyes, and she had fallen to the ground, dead at last. 
She was breathing heavily, pain erupting from her wounds. 
I killed her. I did it! The realization dulled her pain for a moment, the shock and pride of what she had done sinking in. 
Her arm was throbbing with indescribable pain, and her other severe wounds were dripping with crimson blood all over her lavender scales. 
Though I might die before I can tell anyone. She thought miserably, glancing down at Candle’s lifeless body. 
It was her fault she had died. She should have stopped them; she should have been there for her. But instead, the hybrid who had warned her whole tribe was dead. 
Candle was an innocent dragon; it wasn’t her fault. It wasn’t her time to die. 
Starling felt tears streak down her face and she stroked Candle’s now cold scales. 
-Quail 
The battle was chaos, SkyWing and TinyWing bodies scattered everywhere, fires and huge puddles of blood. Quail splashed through a pool of rich red blood as he slashed a SkyWing’s face. 
It’s never going to end at this rate, he thought grimly. 
A small TinyWing with bright green eyes was dodging through the mayhem. He had the perfect opportunity to bite an orange SkyWing tail… and instead shoved his fellow tribe member into a SkyWing’s scorching hot flames. 
What is he doing?! 
The TinyWing spotted Quail looking at him and grinned. He lifted a talon… and suddenly Quail was being lifted up, high into the air. 
What? Is this animus magic?! I thought that wasn’t possible!!
Quail felt himself get violently jerked away, and hit the blood-soaked ground with a loud thump. 
== Chapter Six ==
WIP
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