Wings of Fire: The Darkest Hour (Not Accepting)

[AGGUA!]

Wrethen-
Wrethen didn't reply at first, instead staring down at the dragon beneath his talons. Several thoughts were running through his head at that moment. Spare the sandwing? It was likely he would just end up killing him in the near future... He could see possible futures of that happening. He hated that Foreseer was commanding him to kill the icewing, but then again, he had asked. He drew in closer to Snowstorm's face, his eyes burning like two fiery suns. "It is best to kill you now so you don't cause any more problems," he hissed. He raised one talon, then laid it on her throat. He ran it back and forth, then pressed the tip through some of her neck scales. Blue blood slowly slithered out, trickling onto her chest. He narrowed his eyes, wanting her to suffer as Foreseer had suggested.

Pharaoh-
Pharaoh, who was now bleeding from several wounds, let out a loud cry at the large black dragon. "WAIT, NO!!! DON'T HURT HER, PLEASE!!! PLEASE, I'M BEGGING YOU, STOP!!!" Pharaoh howled, diving for the dragon's talons. Wrethen growled at the sandwing, then raised his bloody talon and knocked him out of the way. Pharaoh heard a cracking sound similar to the one before and he skidded to a halt on the rocky beach, stones cutting into his scales. He was breathing a bit heavily, blood pouring from his wounds, salty tears dripping onto the ground beneath him. Wrethen turned back to Snowstorm, raising his talons again, while Pharaoh struggled to his feet, howling and screeching again, begging and begging and begging, wanting more than anything in the world for Wrethen to spare Snowstorm.

[Yveltal]

Foreseer flew upwards to hover beside Wrethen, a wide smile plastered across her face as she stared down at the IceWing. "You see? Watching her being hurt is more painful than death for the SandWing." She folded her wings and dove down, then snapped them open and slowly glided down to the ground. The queen landed in front of Pharaoh, and she lifted her head elegantly, towering over the golden dragon. "There's no point in whining, dragonet. You'll all die the same way eventually. I've seen it. I see everything, after all. I'm the most powerful future-teller in the tribe, and the visions do not lie." She grinned, gold eyes locked on Pharaoh. Pathfinder, Starkeeper, I'd appreciate some help right now, in case he has the foolish idea of attacking me.
wordBut Foreseer did fear that he would. The one future of their victory was turning into many. Either him or Snowstorm would tear her throat out, and obviously Wrethen wouldn't do anything about it, from what she had seen. But her's and Wrethen's victory overpowered theirs.
wordShe would win. She was sure.

Snowstorm let out a cry as Wrethen dug his talon into her neck, blue streaming over her scales and onto her chest. But it pained her even more to hear Pharaoh's howls and begging. Her eyes opened slightly at the hybrid hissed his words, his voice dripping like icicles in her ears. Would she die on this shore? Would she leave Pharaoh and the dragonets at the talons of this monster? Saltwater lapped at her wounds, and she winced, pain surging through them. Then she had an idea.
wordThis will be the last time.
wordSnowstorm reached out her left talons and touched the water, whispering, "I enchant this water to create a tsunami and to flood the shore."

Pathfinder released his head, trying to control his breathing. The headache still pounded through his head, but the flashes were gone. He could never control them. But just then he heard Foreseer's thoughts, and scrambled to his talons, shaking his head and trying to clear it. The young NightWing leaped into the air from the prison entrance, blinking the dizziness away. Immediately Pathfinder steered his course to the shore, following the queen's mind until he saw the giant hybrid pinning the IceWing down. He landed beside Foreseer, about to say 'I'm here', but a rumbling caused him to glance over his shoulder.
wordThe ocean water had retreated from that end of the beach, and a distant, tall line of water was rising up and surging towards the shore. He yelped as the huge wave of water crashed into the sand, and frantically launched into the air as it rushed towards the dragons. It fell like an avalanche under him, caught his tail, and dragged him down into the water with another yelp. Pathfinder fought against the strong current, and finally threw him and Foreseer onto dry ground. Pathfinder lay splayed on the ground, sputtering, and he snapped his eyes open to see the water retreating back into the ocean, as if it had never leaved.

[AGGUA!]

Wrethen-
Wrethen, who had been knocked off of his feet from the force of the waves, was up again just as quickly when they retreated. He saw the icewing laying a fair distance away and he roared, leaping at her, then slammed his talons down on her chest. He heard a resounding CRACK, then raised his other set of talons, slitting her throat, his eyes glowing like two embers.

(Again, sorry about powerplaying, just thought of the PM plan >:3)

Pharaoh-
Pharaoh, who had raised his head, coughing up seawater, now bolted upright as the hybrid lunged at Snowstorm. "NO!!!" he wailed, feeling his heart turn into lead. He stood up, all of his muscles knotted into iron, his gaze hard as he watched Snowstorm die in front of him. His eyes were blazing, his tail was arched, and he was breathing heavily. "You... NO!!!" He lunged with lighting speed, but not at Wrethen. He lunged at Foreseer, who was busy trying to get up, and knocked her down again. He knifed his talons into her shoulder scales, and the two of them rolled over on the shore, until Pharaoh slammed her spine down on the rocks with him on top. "GO. TO. HELL!!!" He snarled, raising his barbed tail.

Brb, gotta eat dinner
Also, I'll be on and off, we have fireworks planned tonight and I have a lot of company over, so I'm pretty occupied.

[Yveltal]

Snowstorm gasped, staggering back and clutching her throat. Blood poured out from the wound and onto her chest, which had almost all the bones broken. She fell to the sand, talons flexing uncontrollably, as she tried to breath. Blue blood was seeping into the sand, until it was reduced to a small trickle. Her breathing was raspy as she heaved herself to take every breath, clinging desperately onto her life by a thread. Her body twitched, bright blue eyes wide with agony and surprise.
wordNo. Pharaoh- the dragonets- she couldn't- she couldn't leave them.
wordSnowstorm wretched, coughing up blue blood, which sprayed onto the sand. She shut her eyes, tears streaming down her face. She couldn't hold on. She had to go. She had to die.
word"I'm sorry, Pharaoh," she whispered, her tense muscles going limp. With a final exhale, Snowstorm let the darkness wash her away.

Foreseer grunted in surprise as the furious SandWing lunged at her, screaming at her. Next thing she knew, she was thrown into stone, with the dragonet perched on top with his tail hovering over her. A grin spread across her face, despite the danger, and she twisted her head around to gaze at Pharaoh. "Oh, please. Whining won't bring her back. She's dying, or already dead. Go look." Foreseer lashed her tail, glaring hard at the young dragon. "Think about it. You need me. I can see everything, every possible future, every possible path and story and timeline that unfolds from these events. I can guide you."

[ No problem! Have to go for a little while ]

[AGGUA!]

Wrethen-
Wrethen stepped back, growling at the icewing, turning away from her corpse coldly. Of course, an exchange could still be made in twenty-four hours, but if it wasn't made, he couldn't save her. Even though there were futures with that happening, a few of them led to his destruction; but very few. He couldn't refuse an offer for her life back, even if he could pay for it. That was breaking his own set of personal rules. He couldn't. He watched Pharaoh tangle with Foreseer and he narrowed his eyes, his forked tongue slipping in and out, but he made no move to help or intervene.

Pharaoh-
Pharaoh sealed his eyes shut, not wanting to stare at the icewing's corpse. But when he heard her talk about him needing her, how she could help him, he lost it. He screeched, raking his talons across her forehead and snagging them on the gold circlet. He kicked out with his back talons, striking with his barbed tail. He tugged on the gold circlet, wanting to break it, wanting to break HER. He wanted to take everything away from her, everything that she so loved, and kill it, destroy it, send it up in hell's flames and send her down there too. For the first time, he felt a bloodlust stir inside of him that he didn't know could ever rise from within him. But then again, he supposed it was oozing out of his cracked heart.

[Yveltal]

Foreseer continued to grapple with the SandWing while observing futures at the same time. Some where Wrethen made a deal with a brown dragon, some where Pharaoh died at the talons of the hybrid, some where Pharaoh killed her himself. Snowstorm's death had made many change. But she could still see visions with the scarred IceWing.. How was that possible? She was finally dead. She was finally out of the way. Dragons couldn't magically come back to life. Foreseer was yanked back into the present when she felt something sharp slash across her side, and her eyes widened. Pharaoh's barb.
wordNo. I can't die. I will not, especially at the talons of his clingy dragonet. Baring her teeth, she slammed her back legs upward and tried winding him. Foreseer extended her talons and slashed them at his snout, furiously flaring her wings to try and blind him. Hopefully her healers had brightsting cactus..

Pathfinder still lay splayed on the ground, talons digging into the earth as he helplessly watched Foreseer wrestling with the SandWing. Part of him screamed help your queen! while the other, more softly, said help Starkeeper's friend! He couldn't decide. He knew his loyalties lied with Foreseer, but all she did with him was act like he was a guinea pig, her own personal mindreader for quick answers. She had mentored him a little about how to control his visions, and Pathfinder had gotten better. But she was a terrible ruler with so many sinister plans. Her mind was a whirlwind of so many things; plans for the fortress, tracking timelines and making plans based around them, up to fifteen creative ways to kill her next prisoner, strategic thinking on how to take the Diamond Spray Delta, and plans to press forward on the Ice Kingdom and Sky Kingdom borders in the Kingdom of Sand.
wordBefore he knew what he was doing, Pathfinder was hurtling towards Pharaoh and Foreseer, aiming for the queen for an attempt at a killing blow, but was nearly knocked off his feet by a huge brown dragon that surged past. He quickly ducked and rolled, then sprang, latching his jaws into Foreseer's arm, gaining a roar of fury.

Bayou had stayed at the edges of the cave when Wrethen had arrived, too shocked to do a thing. But now he was barreling out of the massive gap in the mountain towards the huge hybrid, skidding to a halt when he saw Snowstorm at his talons, blood seeping from a network of wounds all over her body. With a roar of rage, he leapped forward, pelting towards the limp IceWing. He paused, standing above her, and stared down in horror at the body. Bayou lowered his head and nudged her shoulder gently, shutting his eyes, but no response. No pulse when he held her talons.
wordBayou let out a shuddering breath, a single tear running down his cheek. The MudWing looked up at the huge, pitch-black hybrid, eyes full of twisting emotions; rage, deep sorrow, pain.
word"Please. Bring her back."

[AGGUA!]

Pharaoh-
Pharaoh yelped when he felt claws hit his eye, raking through all the way down to his snout. He let go, feeling something hard, like a boulder, slam into his stomach. He stumbled backwards, falling onto the rocks, his right side going dark. He raised his talons and gingerly touched the wound. They came away sticky with blood. And his eye? He couldn't see. He felt blind, alone, afraid. Only there was a difference. Snowstorm wasn't there to comfort him. She wasn't there to say it would be ok, tell him to muscle through it. She wasn't there to hold him, for him to wrap his wings around until the pain melted away and she was the only thing that mattered anymore. Now, he felt helpless. He slowly got up, watching as Pathfinder wrestled with Foreseer. He wasn't going to fight, not anymore. When the rage cleared, all that was left was grief. Sadness, a terrible longing. It hurt so much, like someone had gouged a hole in his heart. Part of it was missing. Snowstorm hadn't been the whole world to him, but she had made his world whole. He stepped away from the two nightwings, slinking closer to the hybrid and to Bayou. "... Bring her back," Pharaoh whispered, looking up at Wrethen with his one good eye, his talons pressed against his missing one. "Just... Just please!" His voice cracked in the most pitiful way, and he poured his heart and soul into those words. If he ever spoke again without Snowstorm beside him, he knew future sentences would be so meaningless, so empty and dull that he would be invisible to the world around him.

Wrethen-
Wrethen snaked his head around to look at Bayou and Pharaoh, one eye watching each dragon curiously. He then turned to look at Snowstorm's corpse, inhaling through his nostrils. The smell of her soul was still there, lingering heavily, then he breathed out through his mouth. "I can't, not unless I take someone else's life in exchange," he rumbled, turning back to look at the two of them. "Someone must suck the life out of themselves for me to breath it back into her."

[Yveltal]

Bayou's mind whirled. He could do that? Bring a dragon to life? Any dragon? My brothers and sisters.. he thought for a moment, but brushed it away. He glanced sadly at Pharaoh, then up at Wrethen. A life for a life.. he could bring back souls. Was.. was Wrethen an animus? Could he use his powers to bring them back? Maybe it took a big chunk out, and he needed another to patch it? So questions about how, how, how. Would bringing all her soul back cure the holes in Snowstorm's from her own abilities?
word"I'll do it."
wordThe large MudWing stepped forward, tail and head high, and stared firmly into Wrethen's blazing eyes. "I'll give my life for hers."

Pathfinder was slammed against stone, a dark face snarling in his own. Gold eyes glared daggers into his, and he was thrown into the ground again, claws furiously slashing at his throat. "You insufferable, ungrateful wretch! I trained you to be great, along with your worthless sister! And this is how you pay me back?" Foreseer hissed, biting into the vulnerable spot on his tail. Pathfinder roared in pain, and tried ducking under her or around her to escape, but couldn't. Her jaws were too strong. "You used me and Star!" he cried out, clawing feverishly at her neck. "We were nothing but pets to you!"
word"HELP ME!" the NightWing yelled to Bayou and Pharaoh, unaware of their situation despite the MudWing's thoughts on bringing dragons to life. Another weight slammed into his side, and the thrice-moon born dragonet and the queen rolled across the ground, hissing and spitting in a whirlwind of rage, talons, and teeth.

[AGGUA!]

Wrethen-
Wrethen rose up, towering over Bayou. He slowly extended his wings, wrapping them around the mudwing and blocking him away from the world. He inhaled again, smelling Bayou's own soul, ripe for the taking. "Are you sure about this? Once the exchange is made, even I can't undo it," Wrethen warned, his eyes shining as brightly as ever. He curled his spined tail around Bayou's body, like a large black python.

Sidewinder-
Sidewinder had made up her mind when she heard Pharaoh's cry of pain and agony, and she had a good guess as to what had happened. Sidewinder dove for the queen, ripping her free of Pathfinder and heaving her onto the stones. She slammed her talons down on her neck, her one eye glittering maliciously. "LEAVE. HIM. BE," Sidewinder snarled, her voice dripping with acid. She arched her tail over, hissing like a snake, her black diamondback patterns flickering in the dying light of the volcano.

Pharaoh-
The appearance of Sidewinder startled Pharaoh, but he made no move to help her, instead trying to listen in on Bayou's and Wrethen's conversation. Was Bayou REALLY willing to give himself up, just for Snowstorm? They hadn't known each other for very long... Maybe a week or two? He wasn't sure, everything had gone by so quickly. Pharaoh would gladly offer to do that, but he couldn't shake the feeling that Snowstorm would be just as broken and empty without him as he would be without her. And he could never do that, put her through that pain and suffering. If Bayou was being serious... Pharaoh just didn't know how to feel about that, exactly. He pressed his talons tighter against the cavity where his eye should be. Pretty soon, he would be just like the sandwing grappling with the queen. Just like her... Aside from the general scale color.

[Yveltal]

Bayou shut his eyes, keeping his breath steady. "Yes, I am. They.. they're like the siblings I never had. I'd do anything for them, despite not knowing them long.. And Pharaoh needs Snowstorm, and she needs him." In all honestly, he felt like their bigwings, and he needed to take care of him. He had failed them before.. letting Snowstorm die, letting them get injured. Maybe now.. now, he could repay them for his failures in protecting them, his sibs.
wordBayou stood at his full height, folding his wings close to his body to stop the shivers. He couldn't imagine what the pain would be like, having his own soul sucked out of himself by the hybrid.
wordIt was worth it.
word"I'm ready."

Foreseer hissed as she felt herself being pinned down by yet another weight; the SandWing queen, Sidewinder. She narrowed her eyes and flicked her tongue in and out, carefully studying her futures as they unfolded in her mind like an unread map. Foreseer bared her teeth in a grin, eyes still narrowed, and she made no move. "Hmm. You seem awfully protective of that SandWing. Could it be what I'm thinking?" Her next words were whispers, but purposely loud enough for Pharaoh to hear. "Is he your son, Sidewinder?"
wordForeseer had traced the SandWing queen's futures before, but never in great detail. She saw many where she was with the prophecy SandWing, laughing, and perched atop a ledge on a small island lit with colored glass globes. Six other dragonets were with them, laughing as well, and enjoying the view of the sea. Pathfinder's island. Interesting. I'll have to keep an eye on that.