Thanks to Firescalesskywing for writing the first two chapters and letting me use their idea!
Casting Call[]
Solar - Main character
Summer Solstice - Main character
Caterpillar - Main character
Honeycomb - Main character
Chapter One: Solar[]
The wind whipped against Solar’s gold and black scales. She shook out her wings, hoping to get rid of the specks of sand that are nestled between her wings.
It was practically no use.
She really, really, hated the desert. It was so freakishly hot in the day, and in the night the temperature dropped and the winds picked up. Why did her scales have to be so brittle and weak?
Solar glanced around the flat desert, but there is no one there. In the distance, she could see a small shack, with the shape of a SandWing inside, and considered going over to ask for shelter.
No. She decided. I work alone. Besides, what use could a SandWing in a shack do for me?
There was an oasis that she had passed on her flight through the desert. It wasn’t too far back from where she stood. Solar sighed, and lifted up into the windy air and glided down toward the oasis.
She took a deep breath, and took a few slow sips of water from the water. Solar’s stomach felt cramped and hungry, and she hadn’t eaten anything since that goat she had caught two days ago.
What do they have to eat in this desert? Lizards, camels, prairie dogs? Three moons, I hope I’m out of this kingdom soon.
It was too dark to catch anything, anyway. She didn’t have enough NightWing night vision to track prey in the dark. After a few more long sips of water, she turned toward the palm trees at the base of the oasis.
Solar held out her wrists, and carefully used her silk to weave a hammock that she could sleep in for the night. At least it would be better than sleeping on the ground and getting sand between her scales, though she usually preferred to sleep on a rock ledge, if possible.
After what seemed like an eternity getting comfortable in her silk hammock, Solar eventually settled where she was, with her wings flopped over the sides, and her long, graceful tail draped through the sand.
She reached out her claws towards the shadow that surrounded her hammock, and carefully used them to weave a nice cover around her while she slept, so that if some clueless idiot SandWing came to drink from the oasis, he would definitely not find some weird SilkWing-NightWing hybrid dragon sleeping in a silk hammock between two palm trees. Now, she would just look like a lumpy shadow between two palm trees.
As the silk hammock rocked back and forth in the breeze, Solar fell asleep slowly.
“Are you sure?” A voice asked. Solar took a moment to realize that she was dreaming, and she couldn’t see the dragon who was talking, just their shadow.
“Yes, I’m sure!” Another voice snapped.
“But, I thought it was a lost power, like, even more lost than mindreading and future seeing were recently.” Came the first voice.
“I know, you slimy lizard! But, how do you explain it?”
“I don’t know! The legends said that dragons born under a sky with no moons would have that power! I didn’t think it was true. We had no proof, really.”
“Proof, whatever!” Was the response. “Stop yammering and admit you saw it too!”
“Fine...I saw it. You can’t always believe your eyes, what I say.!” The first shadow seemed to fidget with it’s claws.
“Whatever.” The first shadow spread its wings. “I think we’re being watched. I’m going.”
And with that, the dragons flew away, in a blur of shadow.
Solar bolted up and hit her head on the palm tree.
“OWWW!” She roared, and then had to dig her claw into her arm to shush herself. “Stupid tree.” She wacked the tree with her tail, which hurt, and thank you very much, the tree gave her a very smugly pleased expression.
Solar pulled the shadows off of her and tore down the silk hammock, so that no one could follow her.
The dream she had the night before still bothered her, but Solar had taught herself: A dream is a dream, and nothing to pay attention to. After having lots of dreams about talking shadows and of dragons finding out about her ability.
Which no one ever will, she hoped.
Chapter Two: Summer Solstice[]
A dragon was sitting in her garden, daydreaming. Solstice had lots and lots! and LOTS!!! of great plans about how to make the world a better place.
Not all of them were very realistic, though. Like the one, where Solstice had tried to launch papayas and mangos and pineapples into the air with a machine she built out of sticks, stones, and leaves. That resulted in her father getting hit in the head with a mango.
Or, when she tried to use long leaves and feathers to make herself wings before her metamorphosis. That could help little wingless SilkWing dragonets learn to fly! What a GREAT idea! Buuuut…. It didn’t exactly work out. Solstice had hit her head trying to jump off of the roof and spent nearly a week in the healers hut.
She was always ready to pop back up and try a new idea out until one day, her father had come to her and said:
“Solstice, I’m getting tired of all of your ideas and plans. Can you please just settle down and try gardening?”
So… Solstice sat in her garden, glancing back at the cucumbers that refused to grow! Seriously, how rude!
“Dumb cucumbers.” Solstice said. “I’m not going to wait alllll my life for you just to grow. SO JUST GROW ALREADY!”
As always, the cucumbers did absolutely nothing. She rolled her eyes. “Now excuse me ya defective cucumbers, I’m going inside!” Solstice stomped into her house, where her father was slicing bananas. She stuck one of the bananas in her mouth and walked to her room.
Solstice quietly opened her “Big Ideas Scroll” as she liked to call it, and traced her claw over the words she had written. After her fathers “No Solstice ideas” announcement, she had kept it hidden.
Here was one: “Books for everyone!” and “honeycomb cookies launcher” She dipped one claw in the ink and drew a line through them. One day, she would have GREAT ideas. And she could be an inventor with the BEST ideas in the WORLD. She would just have to prove it to everyone, starting with her father.
Hmm...what could she do? Launching food was definitely out of the question. Maybe another flying thing? Nah. That wouldn’t work. Besides, she had wings now.
Maybe not flying . . . what if I made something that goes on water? That could be cool! Yeah, I’ll do that. Then I’ll be able to invent things out of things in the water! And I’m not even a SeaWing! This’ll be AWESOME!!!!!!!!
Solstice glanced back at the cucumbers. “Goodbye cucumbers. I have more interesting things to do than watch you wither in the sun.” She skipped out of the garden and headed into her room to find some materials she could use.
She took her box of tools out from behind a creaky floorboard and set it down on her silk blankets. There was a jar of flamesilk she had bought at the market when she still lived in Jewel Hive, claiming it was for her mistress. She had gone back and hidden it, and that was only a few days ago. There were also some metal scraps, a whole lot of silk tangles, large sticks and branches and leaves, and a large piece of wood.
I’m ready to get started. She thought, picking out the pieces and setting them down in a neat line on her bedroom floor.