Midnight is a Wings of Fire fan-series by J. Pappas written in March 2019. It takes place after the events of arc 3 (although it was written before The Poison Jungle, The Dangerous Gift, and The Flames of Hope were released).

It was planned to be five books long, all titles derived from Coldplay's Midnight, but only part of the first book was written.

(The original text has been edited from its original choppy form to J.'s current writing form. It still has it's original meaning though.)

List of Queens

HiveWings: Queen Wasp

IceWings: Queen Snowfall

LeafWings: Queen Wasp

MudWings: Queen Moorhen

NightWings: Queen Glory

RainWings: Queen Glory

SandWings: Queen Thorn

SeaWings: Queen Tsunami

SilkWings: Queen Wasp

SkyWings: Queen Ruby

A Guide to Jade Mountain Academy

Copper Winglet

HiveWing: Bumblebee

IceWing: Crescent

LeafWing: Vine

MudWing: Crane

NightWing: Absurd

RainWing: Melon

SandWing: Lizard

SeaWing: Albatross

SilkWing: Morpho

SkyWing: Talon

Gold Winglet

HiveWing: Clearsight

IceWing: White

LeafWing: Herb

MudWing: Rabbit

NightWing: Glory

RainWing: Apricot

SandWing: Qibli II

SeaWing: Current

SilkWing: Dingy

SkyWing: Owl

Jade Winglet

HiveWing: Cadelle

IceWing: Narwhal

LeafWing: Maple

MudWing: Veronica

NightWing: Darkstalker

RainWing: Tropical

SandWing: Oil

SeaWing: Flood

SilkWing: Mourning

SkyWing: Kestrel

Silver Winglet

HiveWing: Dragonfly

IceWing: Glacier

LeafWing: Chloroplast

MudWing: Stone

NightWing: Galaxy

RainWing: Loris

SandWing: Palm

SeaWing: Pebble

SilkWing: Caterpillar

SkyWing: Shazam

Quartz Winglet

HiveWing: Fire

IceWing: Grey

LeafWing: Pine

MudWing: Earth

NightWing: Peacemaker

RainWing: Firefly

SandWing: Vulture

SeaWing: Fathom

SilkWing: Moth

SkyWing: Fang

Book One: Leave a Light On

Prologue

If the Hives were supposed to be anything, they were supposed to be cities of peace.

Not cities of rebellion.

From her wooden balcony in Wasp Hive, Queen Wasp watched the battle below.

Like the rebellion, they were pathetic.

They were no match for her HiveWing soldiers, who were supreme over the other tribes, who were just servants.

Focusing on Malachite, Wasp saw the battle through his eyes.

At the beginning of the battle, her soldiers were crushing the rebellion. Now, the tide had turned and the rebels were crushing them.

Malachite was wrestling with a gold HiveWing with black ink-esque markings like him, and wore wire-rimmed glasses around their ears.

Wasp raised an eye ridge?

Was that his dragonet?

Wasp had whisked to Wasp Hive because of his relationship with another HiveWing named Katydid.

She shuddered.

Love was a horrendous thing.

It was just a construct that the mind made to make sense of interpersonal connections. Plus, it blinded many to their own foolish decisions.

Despite this, she paired dragons with each other to ensure that their tribes would survive and be happy.

Wasp left Malachite and narrowed her mind onto her army.

Kill them fast-

Something burning like acid in her flesh and scales pulled her away from their minds.

From experience, she knew that it was not HiveWing acid.

It was SilkWing flamesilk.

Wasp writhed and hissed, resisting the sting and stick of the flamesilk's pull.

With several satisfying rips, the silk began to break.

In several moments, she was going to be free.

Just. One. More.

She struggled as the last few threads were thicker than usual.

Shit!

"Queen Wasp", a strange voice spoke.

The Hive Queen turned and saw a familiar figure behind her, perched on the railing.

The dragon was dark like shadows. Miniscule silver scales were scattered on the undersides of its wings. Two silver teardrop-shaped scales were at the corner of each eye.

"Clearsight?"

The black dragon snorted. "I am no Clearsight. I am Moonwatcher of the NightWings, and you are under arrest."

For what? I did nothing wrong!

"I beg to differ", Moonwatcher hissed. "I know who you are and what you've done to the dragons here."

She flicked her tail, and six dragons rose behind her.

Most of the dragons were colored like SilkWings and had two wings like LeafWings, but bat-like in appearance. These colors seemed to distinguish the tribes from each other.

She recognized that two of the six were SilkWings, and that another was-

Was-

A LEAFWING!

I could've protected their tribes. Then there'd be true peace, and this uprising would've never occurred.

Moonwatcher growled as a green dragon with odd stripes all over their body slammed themselves into the Wasp, pinning her under their weight on the floor.

"Oof!" she exclaimed.

"She's restrained!"

"Turtle", Moonwatcher groaned, "you were supposed to bring her to me."

"Yeah", Turtle snorted, "but restraint is a better option so she doesn't escape like Darkstalker."

Wasp raised an eye ridge.

Darkstalker?

Moonwatcher grumbled under her breath. "Just make sure that she doesn't escape. We have something that she needs to know."

"And that would be...?" Wasp demanded.

Moonwatcher stooped low, so that her black snout was level with Wasp's. Her forest-green eyes pierced menacing black pits.

"We know what the Hive Mind is, and, as long as you live, how it's never coming back."

Part One: Running Around with the Punches

Chapter 1

Ever since she emerged from her egg, Morning knew that the universe didn't quite feel "right".

If anything, it was supposed to be tranquil and orderly; not chaotic and hellish.

The feeling had tugged on her conscious until several years ago, when the HiveWing biology teachers told her that this was the natural state of everything.

The universe was billions of years old and chaotic. So why ask questions?

And it was true.

So, if everything was always spinning towards hell, why should attending the most prestigious school in Pern be any different?

From the shaded glen near the cavern system that led into Jade Mountain Academy, Mourning watched dragons arrive and depart. Dark green shadows rippled across and mottled her black scales and burgundy membranes.

Dragonets were being dropped off all over the school's property by their parents, who were crying with pride and fear as they left their offspring; they would soon head into treacherous, yet comforting waters.

Soon, that would be Blue, dropping his daughters and his nephew (Mourning's brother) off at the base of the fang-peaked mountain.

Her uncle was a good friend of Moonwatcher, the NightWing whom all of Pantala called "the second coming of Clearsight".

The arrival of the Pyrrhians on Pantala marked a new era of Pern's history, and Mourning let her mind wander and wonder at how Mother and Uncle Blue escaped the Hive Queen's claws. And what would've been.

She imagined both of them – blue-and-purple; green-and-blue – slinking towards Wasp and unsheathed their flamesilk to burn her for crimes against dragonkind.

What a different future that would be! The SilkWings finally ruling their masters.

But that was not the story that unfolded. Rather–

Her antennae detected the sharp vibrations of wingbeats. Mourning snapped out of her reverie, watched the sky... and noticed several shapes flying towards the mountain's base.

She studied their forms and colorations and knew who they were.

It was Blue, Cadelle, Bumblebee, Morpho, and... a LeafWing hitchhiker for some reason.

Mourning checked to see if her pack was still on her (it was) and cautiously slunk out of her hiding spot and parked herself near the entrance.

Surely, they would spot her there. She waved one of her larger wings to gesture the entrance.

The group spotted her and started descending.

Blue's blue-and-purple scales shimmered like lapis lazuli that was speckled with a magical violet moss. Several packs were strapped to his bag. (Possibly full of the other's personal belongings.)

Morpho's blue scales made him camouflage in the bright sky.

Cadelle... well, Cadelle appeared full HiveWing. The only trace that she was a hybrid was the antennae on her head. Other than that, she appeared like a generic orange-scaled dragonfly.

The hitchhiker was a dark green LeafWing, whose large leaf-shaped wings were speckled with gold. Some of their somatic scales were also gold, but plated over each other like patches of armor. At the end of their tail, was a scorpion-like barb.

They were a LeafWing/SandWing hybrid.

Pyrrhian-Pantalan hybrids (and vice versa) were rare, yet starting to pop up in the dragon genome.

The five landed crudely on the bare earth in front of Mourning.

"Long flight, eh?" Mourning questioned.

"Yeah, it's obvious, Caption Obvious", the hitchhiker snorted.

"Now, now", Blue said, putting a wing on the Pyrrhian/Pantalan hybrid. "I promised your mother that you wouldn't take after her and murder anyone, correct?"

The hitchhiker snorted, and Mourning detected begrudgment in their tone.

Maybe they're a descendant of the PoisonWings?

Or an assassin?

Or a mercenary?

Or–?

Mourning had to stop her train of thought. It was running at speeds only the Stars understood.

Blue turned and addressed the other dragonets. "Behave yourselves, Bumblebee and Cadelle. Don't embarrass me and your mother, please?"

"I will make no such promises", Bumblebee grinned.

Blue licked her forehead and Cadelle's. The orange dragon flinched backwards from her father.

The hybrid was the "odd one" in the family. She buried her snout in fictional worlds like the Traction Era and wrote as a way to escape reality. Mourning wasn't sure that she was in reality at all.

(Oh, and she hated physical touch.)

Blue sighed. Mourning had heard that sound many times. It was the sound of a father trying his best, and failing.

He turned to the hitchhiker and wrapped his wings around them. "Be good, Palm."

Palm. What an odd name.

What a SandWing name.

The hybrid nodded and gestured at the packs.

"Ope! Thanks for reminding me! I nearby forgot!"

Blue unwound the straps of the bags, got them over his head, and gave them to the three.

"That's better?"

"Much", Palm snorted and headed inside the cavern.

What an ass.

Blue looked flummoxed. "Alright then", he stammered before turned around and vaulting himself into the daylit sky. "Have fun!"

Mourning watched him go on, and on, and on until he vanished into the sky as a shimmering pinprick.

Her antennae detected vibrations nearby. Walking. No, strolling.

The SilkWing turned her head, and noticed that Bumblebee, Morpho, and Cadelle had gone inside the caverns.

She was the only one outside the school. (Well, not an entirely. Some students were still being dropped off on the taller cliffy entrances.)

Well, here goes nothing, she thought; and walked into Jade Mountain Academy.

Chapter 2

This is the second chapter of Wings of Fire (Midnight): Leave a Light On.

Chapter 3

This is the third chapter of Wings of Fire (Midnight): Leave a Light On.

Chapter 4

This is the four chapter of Wings of Fire (Midnight): Leave a Light On.

Originally published: 07/23/2024 (dragon guide and prologue), 11/01/2024 (chapter 1); edited: (WIP)