The Calm Before The Storm

15

Crystal held the tiny Labra between her claws. Labra woke up and cooed up at her. They played, Labra climbing around and over Crystal's spines and crests. Crystal laughed.

A single snowflake flew out of her mouth and melted at Tenpest's feet.

"MONSTER!" Tempest roared and spun around, running out of the room. Crystal quickly put Labra in between her shoulder blades, where two crests made a nice, secure spot to sit.

Crystal leaped forward and followed Tempest, intent on catching her before she got to the training room. Where Tempest would tell everyone what Crystal was.

Crystal sprinted faster, channeling all of her strength into her legs. She saw the dark, stormy tail of Tempest and opened her mouth, blasting the wall beside her back feet with ice. Crystal lunged and dug her long claws into Tempest's tail. Tempest snarled and a bolt of energy three Crystal off.

No, no, no, NO!

Crystal was too late. Tempest had entered the training room. Crystal poked her head through the door.

The time dragon lay unconscious by Nightmare. Tempest's tail curled around her back feet, and her voice was somehow unsteady but strong at the same time.

"Tell me again why the time dragon is asleep?"

"He was too meddlesome. Always turning back the time and making everyone forget their worst fears. We can't be strong without them," Nightmare said. "Now why are you so distraught?"

Tempest took a deep breath before opening her mouth. She didn't get to say anything before Crystal walked in and blasted the windows shut. Now the only way out was the door behind Crystal.

"What is this?" Flame asked. "Tempest shows up with claw marks in her tail...and then you...show up and..."

Whirlwind got it before Flame and the others did. "She's an Icewing!" Whirlwind screeched.

Immediately all of the other dragonwings were getting ready to unleash their most powerful attacks on Crystal.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye. Crystal launched herself forward as a blinding light and fire rushed towards her. Blinding light to others, really. Crystal had lived with bright, white snow. Solar Flare's scales didn't bother her one bit. The fire though, that was an entirely different story.

Ice erupted from Crystal's maw and engulfed the flames. She pushed through and slashed, her talons digging into Nightmare's shoulder. There was a roar to her right, Flame, and she whipped her tail out.

Suddenly she remembered Labra. Labra had been hanging on like crazy. As the light faded, she went straight for Tempest, diving under the tornado that threatened to suck her up.

Her wing slid around Tenpest's body and trapped her. An ice dragon's wing membrane was tougher than most, much like the wind dragon's, who used the stronger tissues to navigate the skies higher than regular dragons.

So it wasn't a problem when Tempest struggled and tried to escape by slaying Crystal's wing.

"STOP!" Crystal shouted. Everything froze. She had yelled so loud that snowflakes had flown out of her mouth. Even they seemed to stop moving.

"If you follow me, I'll...maim or seriously injure Tempest! I get a ten second head start and then I'm fair game. Got it? If you break my terms, you can only imagine what will happen." Crystal didn't want to do this. Just get away with Labra. She had a strange urge to protect the little dragon. She needed to get away.

She dragged Tempest backwards, her wing still wrapped around her body. "I'm really sorry," she said.

Tempest just growled, "Monsters have no real feelings. Just instincts."

Crystal shed a tear and slowly unwrapped her wing. As soon an Tempest was free, Crystal shoved her back into the room and sealed the door shut with her ice.

Crystal took off and ran again, not caring about the trail she was leaving. It wouldn't last for long. Crystal took the paper out of the pouch around her ankle and clawed a simple message into it. She placed it in what used to be her sleeping hole and squeezed through the single window.

She fell for a bit before opening her wings and catching the air and soaring through the sky. Labra still clung in between hwe shoulders and wings. Labra would be safe now, as long as they could get far enough away.

Back in the castle, on that torn paper, read a simple message.
Always living
To the fullest
Ice will collide
Could it be?
Even if everything is gone, I will always be sorry