Crack. Crunch. Craaaaack. CrAcK.
Kestrel looked down at her egg, her heart fluttering with excitement. They're hatching! she thought. She was about to be a mother.
The large egg was a crimson color, pulsing on the inside with a coppery orange. Kestrel tipped her wings protectively over the egg. She knew she was going to have twins; if the sheer size of her egg wasn't enough, the mother's instinct that throbbed in her chest screamed, There's two! TWO DRAGONETS!!
The rust red SkyWing put her talons on the egg, willing them to hatch faster. The egg was warm - too warm. Kestrel wrinkled her snout with worry.
That doesn't make sense, she thought, it feels like it's almost made of fire. Her mother instinct throbbed a warning, but Kestrel shook it off, burying the nagging worry in the back of her brain. It couldn't be possible. Yet the egg was uncomfortably hot, hot enough that she removed her talons as quickly as if the egg housed a dragonbite viper.
Kestrel's heart did a drum solo and a backflip as a crack the length of two talons appeared along the side of the egg. A thin wisp of steam trailed from it and vanished into the mountain air. Another throbbing burst of instinct, but Kestrel shied away from that thought as she saw the steam.
No no no no no! Her mind roared furiously. There was something wrong with her dragonets. They were burning. Kestrel desperately tapped the egg, trying to weaken the eggshell.
Suddenly, the egg burst apart. A flaming hot shard smacked Kestrel's forearm and she hissed with pain. Two dragonets sat in the nest where the egg had just been; one sitting upright, the other flopped on the ground, looking exhausted. The upright dragonet had coppery orange scales Kestrel had never seen before, complete with a set of striking cobalt blue eyes. The other was a pale, pale orange-red, as if the fire had been sucked out of him, and the scales along his back were a charred black. He looked like a dying ember, compared to his sister who radiated heat and steam.
Kestrel took a step back in shock as the realization sank in. Her instinct was right. The coppery dragonet had firescales, and the other had no fire at all. It was every twin-expecting SkyWing mother's nightmare come true.
Firescales yipped happily at the sight of her mother. She stood up and took a tentative step towards Kestrel. Her wings flapped open as she lost her balance and landed in an awkward position on her back. Flameless was still in his position half in, half out of the nest.
Kestrel walked over to her dragonets. I will still love them, she thought fiercely, and I will protect them, even if it means joining the Talons of Peace, because I WILL NOT BE FORCED TO KILL MY DRAGONETS.
She reached a claw out to her daughter, testing the heat coming off her scales. Firescales put up her talons and grabbed playfully at her mother. Kestrel couldn't bite back the shriek of pain as she came in contact with her daughter's scales. She yanked her talon away and inspected the scorched black talon-print burn on her claws.
It was no use. She couldn't even touch one of her dragonets. Kestrel looked at her son, who was still flopped pathetically on the rocky floor of the hatching cave. She scooped him up, the odd coolness of his scales a relief after the burn from his sister. Flameless managed to look less like a dying fish as he snuggled closer to his mother.
This is what she had wanted. The love from her own dragonets, the thrill of raising them to be strong and powerful fighters in the war. Firescales would certainly be a fighter; she was already on her feet, bursting small flames out of her coppery snout. But Kestrel couldn't touch her, and that brought a sadness to her bones that she never expected from herself. She looked down at the dragonet in her arms. Flameless was never going to be able to defend himself. He had no natural weapons, and the burns on his back were too severe for him to fight. Ever.
Kestrel sighed with disappointment. She was still going to try to love them to the best of her ability. She was not going to allow Firescales to be thrown off a cliff, in any case.
"I guess I better name you two lizards something better than Flameless and Firescales, huh?" Kestrel said affectionately. Her daughter pounced on the large SkyWing's tail, but Kestrel flicked it away at the last moment.
"You," she said, "Are named Perilous, but I'll call you Peril for short." Kestrel looked at her son, with all the fire sucked out of him. "You are... Ember, because my goodness do you look like you are dying."
Kestrel's heart pounded. She couldn't lose the only dragonet she could touch. She nosed him affectionately for a brief second, then set him down and jumped out of the cave into the sky. A second later, she wheeled around just in time to see Peril reaching for Ember's tail.
"No, no, no," Kestrel scolded, picking up her floppy son, "Do NOT touch your brother. I'll be right back, and I'm taking Ember with me because YOU, young lady, need to keep your talons to yourself." She waggled her claw at Peril in a very un-SkyWing like way. Kestrel focused on holding Ember, thinking to herself, Oh goodness, what is wrong with me? I'm having DRAGONET SYNDROME!
Then she threw her wings open and leaped into the sky.
***********************************
Kestrel came back from the medicinal wing of the SkyWing palace with a jar of ointment in her talons. The healer there had told her that it soothed burns - which was perfect for Ember's back.
The burned dragonet was perched on his mother's shoulders, looking slightly more alive.
Kestrel swooped down from above the Claws of the Clouds mountains and landed in the ledge of the hatching cave. Peril ran over to greet her, wings flopping on either side of her. Kestrel gave her a small smile.
"Hello, sweetie," the mother said, looking tenderly at Peril. Sweetie?! she thought, What am I DOING? Kestrel swept Ember off her back and deposited him back in the nest. She took the olive-green goo out of the jar for burns, and started applying it gently to her son's back. Peril watched from a distance, tilting her head curiously.
"Well, well, well," an ominous voice came from outside of the cave. "The mother has returned to tend to her illegal dragonets. How thrilling."
Queen Scarlet.
Kestrel whirled around to see five SkyWings land in the cave, one none other than Queen Scarlet herself. She was draped in gold chain mail, and rubies studded her brows. A wicked grin curled the orange queen's snout.
"Now, according to SkyWing law," Scarlet purred, "Twin dragonets like yours must be killed, so, I'm going to have a thrilling time watching your children get thrown off a cliff, and by order of the queen, you will never enter the breeding program again."
Kestrel's heart dropped. No. It couldn't be true. She should have moved her dragonets to a different cave. She should have known her queen would drop by to inspect her soldier's children.
"Your majesty," Kestrel gasped, flinging herself down into a bow, "I entered the breeding program on your orders. As one of your loyal soldiers, I'm asking you, please let my dragonets live!"
Scarlet tapped her chin thoughtfully with her claw. "Let me think. Hmm, how about... NO." The queen flicked a wing at her soldiers. "Seize her."
Kestrel stared at the queen from her position on the floor as two soldiers advanced towards her. She recognized one of the soldiers still next to the queen as Osprey, one of her acquaintances who fought in the war with her. He seemed reluctant to hurt Kestrel.
As the two soldiers reached towards her with outstretched talons, Kestrel knew that she had to choose - it was loyalty to her queen, or her dragonets' lives. She chose in an instant.
Fire burst out of Kestrel's mouth, and the two soldiers caught on fire. The shrieked, beating their wings and trying to back out of the cave. Scarlet and the others had to scramble out of the way, leaping out of the cave as to not get whacked by the burning dragons. Kestrel grabbed Ember, slung him over her back, grabbed Peril in her talons, and jumped into the sky.
"AFTER HER!!" Scarlet screamed. Kestrel flew as fast as she could, hoping to out-distance Osprey, Scarlet, and the remaining soldier.
But there was a weird sensation tingling her talons. And then it burned. Not two wingbeats away from the cave, and Kestrel couldn't hold her daughter anymore. She screamed with pain - and let go. Peril dropped like a stone down the mountain side. Kestrel's palms smoked as she yelled at her daughter, "Open your wings! OPEN YOUR WINGS!"
Perl had no idea what her mother meant, but instinct told her wings to fly open, and they did. Seconds from hitting the ground, Peril caught a wind current and rode it down the mountain.
The burns on Kestrel's talons distracted her, and in that moment the three SkyWings had nearly caught up. In a surprise move, she dove down towards the Diamond Spray River, hoping to gain some sort of advantage.
It was a mistake. One guard stayed directly above her, and Osprey and Queen Scarlet flanked her sides. Kestrel couldn't go anywhere, and the scorching heat that nearly singed her neck was a warning of "stop, or be incinerated". The young mother slowly dropped to the ground, growling furiously. She was a warrior! Why couldn't she rescue her dragonets?
Osprey and the other guard grabbed hold of Kestrels wing and snout, pinning her between them. The captured dragon thrashed wildly in their hold, but it was no use.
"LET ME GO!" she roared.
Queen Scarlet slithered over to Kestrel, eyeing the weak Ember that was lying across her back. Suddenly, she snapped her head the the guard on Kestrel's right.
"Pergrine, find that other dragonet," she said icily, dismissing Peregrine's rapidly paling face. The guard took off, but slowly, as if there was anywhere else he'd rather be at the moment.
Kestrel couldn't help feeling a small twinge of pride at the fact that some of the queen's best soldiers were afraid of her dragonet. That feeling vanished as Queen Scarlet turned her piercing glare onto her.
"Kestrel," she said, "You know SkyWing law."
"Yes Your Majesty. But spare my dragonets; they did nothing wrong," Kestrel pleaded, bowing her head, knowing that begging was pointless.
Scarlet gave her a look. "Hmmm. Guess what. I'll make you a deal. You choose one of the dragonets to die, kill it, and I'll spare you and the other one. How's that for just and loving queen?"
Kestrel stared at her, astounded. Kill her dragonet?
But it was one, or both of them.
Osprey took a step back with his spear ready. Kestrel slid Ember off of her back and took a look at him. He gasped wheezily, in worse condition than he was before. He had no fire, and therefore would be worthless to the tribe.
Peregrine came back, poking at Peril with a rock-tipped spear. Completely ignorant of the severity of the situation, she bounded over to her mother's talons. Scarlet stepped in front of her and hissed, stopping the copper dragonet short.
Kestrel bent her head an walked slowly over to the river, Osprey's spear aimed at her throat. Ember whimpered slightly. The words she had thought earlier seemed to ring through her ears; "I will protect them, even if it means joining the Talons of Peace, because I WILL NOT BE FORCED TO KILL MY DRAGONETS."
"I'm sorry," Kestrel whispered, and placed her talons, Ember and all, under the surface of the Diamond Spray river. A tear slid down her snout as she held the thrashing dragonet in the water, drowning him. It was the only time she'd ever cry. She felt her son go limp in her claws, and released him with a gasp. What have I done?
The five SkyWings watched as the blurry, pale red shape of Ember floated down the river until he vanished under the dark water. Even Peregrine's wings drooped with remorse. The silence was deafening.
"Squirble?" Peril murmured questioningly as she watched the lifeless shape of her brother vanish.
"Well. A mother killing her own dragonet. I'll be sure to give that information to dragon for the prosecution at your trial," Scarlet smiled evilly, her razor sharp teeth glinting in the sunlight. "Seize her!"
Peregrine lunged for Kestrel's neck. She rolled out of the way just in time, seething in anger.
"We had a deal!" she roared. Scarlet smirked.
"Kestrel, haven't you learned by now?" The Queen grabbed the other dragon by the throat. "I lie."
Kestrel roared again, scraping her back talons against the softer scales of Scarlet's underbelly. The queen hissed in pain, momentarily releasing her opponent. Kestrel whirled around, smacking her tail the face of the queen. She spat a plume of flame at Osprey, who had to duck in order to avoid being singed.
Peregrine was pummeled backwards by a headbutt to the stomach, and a second later, Kestrel took to the sky. The SkyWing Queen and her guards reoriented themselves in time to see the rust red shape of an angry mother zooming towards them at top speed. Kestrel barreled into Osprey and Peregrine, grabbed Peril in her talons, and took off.
"You dragons are USELESS! Do I have to do EVERYTHING mySELF?!?" Queen Scarlet shrieked, at the two guards who were still untangling themselves. She shot up into the air went after Kestrel.
Peril was burning her mother's talons. It started as the tingling again, and then turned into a scorching heat. You can do it, Kestrel told herself, nearly roaring in pain. Her palms were smoking, and were an even darker shade of black than they had been.
She couldn't do it.
Peril fell out of the sky for the second time that day as her mother screamed in agony. She landed at an awkward angle and cried out for Kestrel, but the large SkyWing couldn't hear her. Scarlet's wingbeats were catching up to her, and more soldiers were swarming out of the palace.
Kestrel flew as fast as the three moons would allow, as if it would heal her broken heart. Scarlet, naturally a smaller dragon, knew she wouldn't catch her rogue soldier, and Peregrine, Osprey, and the backup soldiers were too far behind. The queen stopped and hissed.
"Fly away, Kestrel, to the Talons of Peace!" she spat, "It won't do you any good. I always get the ones that betray me in the end!"
Kestrel didn't respond. Scarlet, now a hissing ball of fury, stared at the dragon winging away towards the peaks of Jade Mountain. Seven SkyWing soldiers hurtled through the air above her head, but their target was nearly invisible among the clouds.
"Your Majesty!" Osprey called from behind the scowling queen. Scarlet turned around to face him.
"What?" she snapped. Hmm. Maybe she could kill him. He was rather useless.
"What should we do with the firescales dragonet?" he asked, prodding Peril with the rock-tipped spear. She looked quite small next to Osprey, staring into the sky with an expression of hurt.
Scarlet advanced toward her, keeping her gold-tipped talons out of reach of the dragonet's burning scales. An evil smile split the queen's face as she studied Peril.
"Well, well. Wouldn't you make a thrilling addition to my arena?"