Hydra

Hydra stared in mute horror at the corpse in front of her. The corpse she'd just created.

The beautiful black scales were quickly being consumed by dark red blood, the surprise and fear still showing on the dead dragon's face, a ghost of her last moments haunting the SeaWing.

I'm a murderer, she thought dizzily. No. Mistress is a murderer.

Hydra had been forced, under the threat of her family, to become an assassin for her mistress. Hydra had never seen her enslaver, as she had been in a dark room the first time they met, and her mistress liked to speak in secrets and shadows. Hydra had a hunch she was a NightWing. NightWings loved shadows.

The corpse in front of her was a NightWing.

Of course, she'd murdered before. But only with poisons, quick, easy assassinations. Hydra could now name the ten fastest, easiest ways to murder someone with different plants, which was a depressing fact on its own.

This felt more... real. Terrifying.

It felt like her mistress owned her, and in a way, she did.

She wished she could see her mother, Aruana, or her brother and sister-in-law, Blobfish and Princess Amphitrite, the niece of Queen Tide and King Angler. But she'd been a prisoner for over a year now. A murderer for over a year now.

She willed herself to move, to flee the Rainforest. But her legs had turned to steel. Traitorous legs, she thought ruefully.

There was a horrified scream from behind her, and Hydra whipped around to see a male RainWing staring in horror at the NightWing, then at Hydra's bloodied talons, and back again. His scales quickly gave his terror at seeing her away, as a pale, sickly green crept up his scales, surrounded by red and gray. The colors of fear, fury, and hate.

"I'm sorry," Hydra whispered, fleeing.

"Stop!" He commanded, his scales becoming a royal blue hinted with blooms of irritation and annoyance, as if he didn't care a dragon had just been murdered. "I am Attractive, next in line to the RainNight throne! I command you to stop!" His voice wavered as he saw the black corpse again, but Hydra doubted it was because of any sorrow.

That's great for you, Hydra thought, but she hadn't heard of any male heirs to the throne. Of any throne, save the time the NightWings were almost taken over by a male dragon named Darkstalker. Was he married to Princess Moth or Princess Artistic? Hydra thought they were younger... And really, what kind of name was Attractive? That was just dumb. Then again, the NightWing queen was named Beautyrise, so maybe everyone in this moons-forsaken forest was a narcissist.

Hydra finally broke free of the trees, spreading her bright aqua-colored wings, regret filling every wing beat. She may not be free, but she could still fly, still breathe. The NightWing she'd just killed had none of that.

Bile crept up in her throat. Hydra's eyes widened and she dove to the ground, quickly landing before puking the fish she'd eaten for lunch all over the rocks. It was then she noticed the wet ground. She was close to the MudWing kingdom.

Too close.

If rumors were to be believed, the MudWing murderer now ruled the kingdom. He would not appreciate a SeaWing trespassing on his territory, and Hydra would not appreciate being put in a MudWing prison, and then having to face the wrath of her mistress when she was freed.

Suddenly, Hydra was overcome with the strange sensation of being watched. "Come out," she commanded. The bushes rustled behind her, and she clutched the dagger in her belt.

The MudWing did come out. She leaped at Hydra, who slashed her with her dagger. The MudWing, who had odd coloring, roared.

"Get off our territory!" The MudWing yelled, jumping onto Hydra and slashing her with her tail. Hydra screamed as a sting filled her body, burning, coursing through her veins like fire.

"Okay!" She said, gritting her teeth, fighting to keep the tears from her eyes and the waver in her tone. "I'm leaving!" She flew away, ignoring the terrible sting, a feeling she'd felt once before.

In Mistress's dungeon.

Hydra had woken up afraid, alone, and in the dark. The last thing she remembered was being hit on the head in her mother, Aruana's, house in the SeaWing kingdom.

"Hello, dear," a voice said, echoing around the dungeon. It was feminine, young, and cruel.

"Where am I?" Hydra had demanded.

The voice cackled. "That is not to your concern. But you're not on Pyrrhia anymore."

"I-I'm on Pantala?" Hydra asked, her voice cracking.

"Yes. I need a new assassin, and I've always admired SeaWings. They can go anywhere, save the Ice Kingdom. But I have other ways of sneaking beneath Queen Adelie's snout."

"I'm not killing anyone!" Hydra said, defiant. "Let me go!"

"Aw, do I have to do this the hard way?" the voice asked. "I am your Mistress. You will soon obey me."

"Never!"

'Mistress' sighed. "Alright, then."

Hydra tried not to let the fear show. She'd never become an assassin. She was a good dragonet.

Never, until Mistress brought in the HiveWing.

He had injected her with his toxins, fire burning through her as the sting and the pain took over. Her tail thrashed around, trying to connect with the HiveWing, to knock him out. She screamed again and again as more and more toxins entered her body. The voice taunted her, promising that if Hydra would work for her this would all be over.

But Hydra was stubborn.

Finally, when her voice became sore and her body screamed at her, her tail connected to the HiveWing's skull with a loud thunk. Mistress tutted. "I didn't want to do this, but I may have to."

"N-No," Hydra moaned, her voice hoarse. "P-p-please ch-choose someone else."

"But you're already here, and you know about me," Mistress said. "Cryo! Ceja!"

As the IceWing and SandWing entered the room, Hydra was overcome with dread, as the IceWing, Cryo, repeatedly froze parts of her, only for Ceja to breathe hot plumes of fire onto her, making her scales freeze and burn at the same time.

But it was nothing compared to the sting of the HiveWing's toxin, a memory that haunted her to this day.

The MudWing had somehow used HiveWing toxin on her. Hydra shivered. The MudWings were becoming more and more powerful. How she longed to fly to the Kingdom of the Sea, but Ceja and Cryo, her old tormentors, kept a watchful eye on Hydra, making sure she returned to Pantala.

Ever since the Talons United, the group of spies to free Pantala, succeeded and freed the LeafWings SilkWings and HiveWings, travel between the two continents had become more and more accessible. Now, a dragon could cross the ocean in at least two days, a skill Hydra had mastered. There were dragons on every one of the islands prepared to replenish food and offer rest, and the islands had happened to match up to the nine kingdoms. There had been some arguments among the LeafSilk kingdom, while it had still stood, on which tribe should occupy the island, and in the RainNight kingdom. Now LeafWings had their own island and SilkWings had their own island, and the family on the RainNight island was made up of hybrids.

Hydra flew until she reached the first island. A stubborn part of her told her to keep flying, to not let any weakness get to her, but her body screamed at her, and all she wanted to do was curl up for a nap. But she had to get back to Pantala.

"Are you alright?" Hydra perked her ears up. A tall and beautiful female SandWing stood over her–she had glistening white-gold scales, like a pale yellow river rock, a long, slender neck, and garnets and amethysts dotting her horns, giving her a regal aura.

"Oh, hi. I'm fine, just..." Hydra didn't know how to explain the strange MudWing. Or why she'd been in the Mud Kingdom in the first place. "I caught the wrong air current and crashed," she lied.

"I'll get you fixed up," the SandWing said sternly. "Have I seen you before?"

"Oh, um, yes," Hydra said. "I travel this way a lot, but I normally head straight to the IceWing island."

"Why?" Asked the SandWing. "Oh, is that rude?"

"No!" Hydra said hurriedly. "I just... my father lives on Pantala." The lies spilled from her mouth as easily as water.

"Oh, poor child," The SandWing said. "It must be hard for him in that warzone. Is he under the protection of Queen Chalcid, like most of the Pyrrhians on Pantala?"

"Yeah," Hydra said, lying again.

"I've heard that there have been a lot of random deaths on Pantala. Dragons just... dying."

Hydra's eyes widened. Did Mistress have more assassins like her?

The SandWing gave her a pitiful look. "Oh, it's okay! I'm sure he's fine! I'm sorry if I—"

"No, no, it's okay," Hydra reassured her as she took a seat on the guest bed and let the SandWing check her wounds. "Um, thank you..."

"Nyala," she supplied.

"That's pretty. I'm Hydra," she said before she could stop herself. She mentally smacked herself. She should've come up with something else like... Ayu, or Dolphin!

"Hydra! Very cool. Fierce. I like it." Nyala smiled up at her, then frowned. "Gazelle!" She called. "Come get a look at this!"

Another female SandWing strode in–Gazelle. She dropped down beside Nyala. "That's a HiveWing-made wound."

Nyala gave Hydra a stern look. "Hydra, were you hurt by a HiveWing? Tell me the truth, many HiveWings carry deadly toxins."

"I...I..." Hydra stuttered, panicked. What should she tell the SandWings?

"SeaWing, listen to Nyala," Gazelle said, then clutched her stomach. "Ooh, the egg is coming really soon!"

Hydra looked at the SandWing. "Congratulations! How long have you been with egg?"

"About a month," murmured Gazelle. "Three moons, how big is this stinking egg?"

Nyala touched her snout to Gazelle's. "Don't worry, honey." It was then Hydra realized they were wives.

Nyala turned her glance back to Hydra. "Now, where did you get the wound?" She looked desperate. "Please, Hydra, you could die!"

Hydra gave in. "I got it... from a MudWing." Okay, it sounded a lot less ridiculous in her head.

The SandWings gasped.

"No. Impossible," Gazelle said indignantly.

"Afraid so," Hydra said.

Nyala shook her head. "It doesn't matter where she got it anymore. We have to clean it. It could be even more dangerous combined with MudWing strength."

Nyala and Gazelle insisted Hydra stay the night. But Hydra was in a hurry, and she couldn't wait for long.

Placing a few golden coins on the bed, Hydra leaped out the window and began her journey toward the most dreaded island of all.

She'd skip the IceWing island to save time... and because IceWings were annoying. And also because Queen Adelie and Queen December might become suspicious of the mysterious SeaWing that traveled the islands so frequently. But that meant the island she'd stop at would belong to Queen Tide.

The SeaWing island.