On Destiny's Wings: A Journey of Embers (UNDERGOING REVISIONS)

Chapter 13: The High Deathbringer

Sundrop placed all four of her paws adjacent from one another, steadying herself. Her muscles felt as if they all might simultaneously collapse. She breathed, extending her wings, allowing their tips to brush against the tiny cavern's walls. With a glance, she looked up and watched Whirlpool and Oakwind. They too, followed suit. Whirlpool appeared just as nervous as she did, aquamarine maw trembling. Oakwind, with his forest-like scales, rooted himself to the stones.

"If I've learned anything," Sundrop began, "it's that dragons are meant to fly. I don't know how we're supposed to do it, but I know that our ancestors did it, and their ancestors did it, all the way back to the beginning of dragonkind." 

Whirlpool nodded. "Indeed!" she mirrored. "That's why we were granted these wings! WaterClaws don't do as much flying, but I know that I want to. My body feels almost as if it must!"

"And we're doing it together," Oakwind chipped in, drumming his talons on the ground. 

"Exactly," Sundrop assured. "After this, if we succeed, we're not dragonlings anymore. We're dragons! And, with any luck, we'll be free dragons on top of that." 

Whirlpool and Oakwind held their heads high, eyes determined. Sundrop was frightened. She knew her friends were as well. But what other choice did they have? It wasn't as if the three of them possessed the privilege they once had; all the time in the world to observe, to learn, in the comforts of their own kingdoms. Instead, they were rushed, trapped, and none of them were ready. 

But the FireClaw knew that they all had faith. And that was more than enough for her.

"Okay, uh," Sundrop began, arching her neck. "I remember watching my mama do this a lot. Right before she would take off, she would stretch out her wings and flap them a few times."

"Perhaps to test the quality of the air?" Whirlpool wondered, glancing back at her own ocean-colored wings.

"That would make sense," Oakwind mentioned. "My father used to tell me that wind moved differently everywhere, that it was never the same kind of wind two times in a row!"

"Okay! Then maybe that's what we should do first," Sundrop stated, nodding her head. "I know it's cramped in here, but let's do some flapping!" 

Sundrop flexed her muscles, slicing her wings towards the earth. Whipping up air, she did it a second time. It was true that the wind within the cavern was thin and unstable. It would make for a difficult first flight. She huffed, exhaustion suddenly washing over her. She hadn't eaten anything in nearly two days.

Adjacent, Whirlpool's short blue wings were working harder than Oakwind's, which were stout and powerful-looking. They both flapped, chuckling when their limbs collided with one another. Sundrop watched them practice. The Hole was monstrously small, especially for three dragonlings attempting flight. How were all of them meant to launch themselves aloft at once?

"Well? How does the air feel?" Sundrop queried after a moment. "Do you think we'll be able to get off the ground?"

Whirlpood shuddered, keeping her wings extended. "It feels, in a word... horrid." 

Oakwind nodded in agreement. "Yes, and I have no idea what I'm doing. Do we just keep flapping until we lift off?"

Sundrop groaned, blinking her blue eyes with frustration. She didn't have the answers for them. If she had been luckier, she wouldn't have been trapped in an underground prison. She would be surrounded by other dragonlings of her species, leaping from majestic mountain peaks and reveling in the crisp breeze streaming beneath her wings. A professional FireClaw would be accompanying them, announcing proper protocol as they flew.