Note: Wings of Fire and all the characters except all the StoneWings and the humans in chapter 1 belong to Tui T Sutherland. Kindly do not use the StoneWing characters without my permission. Any resemblance from my original characters to other people/ characters from other stories are purely coincidental
Part 1: Chapter 1: The Answered Wish
It was what people dreamed of having, the marble house, the gardens, the royalty, and all the other stuff people dream about. Yes, It wasn’t like all other houses, it was huge, magnificent, like a palace, white marble stones were used to construct these walls where I live.
I was the youngest daughter of the wealthiest family in one of the wealthiest cities in the world. Not the name I went for. Well, it was fine, but I’ve seen what power can do to people. My parents were monsters and never looked at anyone as humans, except her daughters, and especially Claire, my oldest sister, who is “perfect” the way she is, never does anything wrong, the heir to the family business. Well, I was the youngest, never to be looked at, the puppet for family gatherings and events, never once asked for anything.
“Ella!” came the voice I hated the most.
I closed the book that I was reading and kept it on top of my school books, which concealed the small trap door in which I kept my most cherished books ever; Wings of Fire. I didn’t have the whole series, I only had the later 10 books, which I had used my monthly 100 dollars (Since my parents were damn rich and didn’t care about a 100 dollars) to buy whichever books I could find, and I couldn’t ask anyone else, because the word might go up to my parents, and they only let me read school books and business books, and I can never lie to them. And if the word went up to my mother, she might never allow me to touch any book. I was lucky that these books were in the library, so I could read the rest of the series.
I always dreamed about making my own tribe and being a part in the adventures of the Jade Winglet and the lost continent, being with dragons who wouldn’t judge me because of my wealth, and there, I can be myself, who I am. I have read the books over and over again, right till the smallest detail.
I have even made my own tribe, the StoneWings, although I didn’t have much time to work on it, since I don’t want my parents to find out, or get low grades at school. But if a genie came to me and said I had only one wish, it would be being a part of Wings of Fire.
And Wings of Fire was somewhere I could be where people won’t expect great things from me because I am the daughter of someone great.
“Coming, mother” I replied, it was never a good thing when my mother called me, maybe for some horrible thing. Last time I had to just smile around as my father planned Claire’s big 15th Birthday party, which was a bad experience, while I never am recognized, just the girl in the background
I reached the end of the stairs and walked to the grand living room which was half covered in gold and silver. There was a couch in front of me, in which my parents were sitting in front of me, and next to them, my other sister, Rose, who was two years older than me as she was 13, but we two were the only ones who acknowledged each other, and made sure that the other was taken care of properly, in fact, if I were being honest, I would say that she it my only friend.
“Ella, you must go to the young business committee with your sister Claire and Rose today, no more time for homework” My father said “It’s 6 pm and I want you to be ready by 6:30 pm”
“But… I need it for my school, tomorrow, it’s a huge presentation which come to 20 percent of my grade”
“I gave you an hour, and you failed to compete it” My mother rose her voice “ I saw you reading the books instead of doing your homework”
“Those were for my homework” I protested “I had a doubt on Alkalines and Acids and I needed to differentiate them in my presentation” This wasn’t the first time I wasn’t able to finish homework on time because of these business events
“You have to go to the meeting,” My father said firmly
“Why is it that I have to go with Claire, can’t she go alone” I asked
“Because I feel like you are more focused on something else and not on top priority item” My mother explained
“Maybe because I have schoolwork,” I said
“No, I have asked the teachers, and they said that you have been reading a silly novel series, instead of focusing on ‘schoolwork’, weren’t you supposed to study business, and why did Rose see you with a book titled ‘A guide to Careers for young thinkers’?” My mother questioned
So Rose has chosen her side of the war then, not at all on my side, and I thought that she was my friend. I wasn’t ready for this
What am I supposed to say now? ‘No I don’t want to be like you’? Good job Rose
“I… Umm…” I stuttered, why did Rose have to tell everything, and how did she know?
“Come with me” My mother said, “I am searching your room”
“Don’t I have my own privacy?” I demanded
“No, you are going the wrong way”
“What’s going to happen if I read a book series?” I asked
“You are not going to focus on business” My mother concluded
What if I don’t? What if I want to be someone else, I don’t want to live under your legacy of business” I challenged. The room quietened, Claire was coming down the hallway and once she heard it, she dropped her files, it went in a soft crash
“Don’t you see what this novel has done to you? You are egoistic, don’t you see that I have succeeded in life, and all I want is for you to become better at life, win in life, don’t you see what the book has done to you?” My mom said, voice filled with venom
“You mean me thinking for myself is bad?” I asked
“She has a point mom, she can read anything she wants” Rose said “I just thought you ought to know”
“See what happened when you informed them?” I said
“Enough” My mother said “If you don’t want to be ‘like me’, I think you should leave the house, I give you 5 minutes to take all you want, then you shall never see this house again, understand?”
“Understood,” I said. I ran to my room, scooped up my science books, my guide to survival, my geography book and map, some clothes, and my beloved series which has given me a new life, minimal stationary, and some journaling books. Then I ran to the kitchen to get some food for the first few days, and got a compass and some rubberbands, then I stuffed everything in my school bag, which had some notes and that journal I took to school to note down animal behaviors and stuff about animals, good thing I didn’t take it out.
I ran back to the hall, glad to see those decorations because that would be the last time ever. My mother was waiting there to leave me out, along with the rest of the family to give me a proper farewell
“Any last words?” My mother asked
“Yes, I’m leaving this family for good, and don’t be stuck in chains,” I snarled
“I’ll miss you” Rose said
“Well, sis, I hope you will be healthy and well forever” Claire said in her crystal voice
“Bye then,” I said and ran out of the house.
It was around 7 or 6:40 pm, but I didn’t care, well, not until I was away from here. As soon as I reached the end of the grand pathway, I turned back to look at the house for the last time. It was really a good site, but no one knew what happens inside, right now I’ll bet Claire and Rose were evenly dividing my belongings and my mother was removing me from the family tree tapestry, maybe by burning the picture but not removing my name and keeping ruins, so future descendants would know what happens to people who think for themselves.
I looked around for a place to settle down, as the house was nearer to the countryside and deserted places, and I found it. There was a small hill far away from here where I could start a new life, and be who I am, and not someone people can push over.
I ran towards it, stopping only to catch my breath and dumped my bag down there. I sighed, it’s not going to be easy, but I had something they didn’t have; hope and love. I slowly walked around and found a couple of sticks which could make good wood for a small bonfire, and a set of rocks which I could use to make a fire and made a fire.
I stared into the fire, thinking what would happen if I let them take away the only place I could be myself. After a while, I laid down and looked at the stars, it was a clear view in this side
I wouldn’t even be here to see this if I stayed there
Slowly my eyelids started to droop, thinking that now, life would be different, but I went on my own terms, I would come back, to be even better. It might seem wired, but I made a silent prayer
I wish I could be who I want to be
That was the last thing I thought before sleep consumed me
The sun sparkled behind my eyelids, which seemed to grow heavier overnight, I didn’t want to open them, because then I’ll have to figure out the next step of my never planned plan, but I had to, maybe it was all just a dream, maybe I was still in that house, maybe in a few minutes I was going to hear the alarm ring and I was going to be sleeping on my keyboard and wake up t outlook at the ceiling of my room, which was painted like the night sky with glow-in-the-dark stars.
Reluctantly, I opened my eyes and found myself lying on the ground, I had a satchel with me, in addition to my bag. I shot up, alarmed. I checked my bag, all me books had transformed into scrolls and my pens and stationary into empty parchment scrolls and ink bottles and quills, and my clothes have become into handcrafted jewelry.
In in the sky, were dragons flying to a destination i had thought was a fantasy. I stifled a gasp and found four dragons looking at me, two younger than me, and two old enough to be my parents, they all were staring at me,
“Granite? Are you good” the youngest of the lot asked
What the he-
Part 1: Chapter 2: The Way To Jade Mountain Academy
I know I’m not supposed to stare at people, or dragons, in this case, but I couldn’t stop it. All this time, I had chased this world in a dream, and here I was. I quickly felt my body and I wasn’t a scavenger, or a human, I had two wings, four legs, and a tail that has sharp leaf shaped scales that could inject venom if I wanted too, claws that could also inject venom, this was the tribe I was dreaming about, it couldn’t exist, maybe I was a hybrid, but I couldn’t be, could I?
The dragons staring at me looked real, not like a product of my imagination, they looked… kind, fascinating, happy, and a little bit concerned,
“Granite!” The youngest one dashed into me
“Calm down Diorite” The other younger one said “Granite just fell”
“Well, I was worried, Aplite” Diorite said
Aplite turned to me “Sis, you should have just let us carry some of your stuff” he was fuming a bit, but he looked a bit worried
One of the adult dragons came to me “Granite, we can just walk to Jade mountain, it’s just a bit of walking”
Wow, a new name, tribe, and all the cool stuff I’ve been dreaming of for ages. Well, if I was the tribe I had created, Granite was certainly the name I was going for.
“Oh, ok” I said, I got up. It was a bit difficult adjusting to four legs and having to balance my wings along, but it was fine and manageable. “Where are we?” I asked
“Just near JMA” the other adult dragon replied “Remember? You got the letter”
“Oh wow” I said, “Must have got knocked off my mind”
“Ok then,” The first adult said, and she led the way.
I walked a bit, relieved that I didn’t have to look like a huge walrus in the air, I couldn’t fly. I didn’t even know how to fly, a basic dragon essential, and what was I supposed to do?
“We’re there” The dragon said
“Oh,” I looked up, Jade mountain was huge, and the entrance was crowded with parents saying goodbye to their dragonlets I scanned the area quickly and found the tree Secretkeeper and Moonwatcher were hiding, I gave them a small smile and Moon returned one too, which made me smile inside
A tail similar to mine caught my eye and turned to my left; there was a family which looked like mine
“Bye Stalactite and Stalagmite” The mother was saying
“Write to us!” The father was saying
“Yea sure,” Both of the kids were saying, they looked exactly like each other, maybe twins “We’ll write to you”
“Well, then” The second adult was saying “See you till the autumn break then”
“Write to us!” Diorite said, hugging me again
“Bye” Aplite said, waving one talon and Granite
I walked to the mountain and took in the scene. The parents of the dragonets were saying goodbyes and all the emo stuff. It made me tear up a bit considering that my real parents literally kicked me out of the house because of their mistakes.
I walked into the gate and found a cheerful NightWing in front of me
“Let me guess – It’s Granite, right?” came a cheerful voice “I’m tremendously good at guessing, in fact one might even say I’m mysteriously good at it, almost though I’m reading your minds”
“Seriously, even a year-old dragonet won’t be impressed Fatespeaker” I said
“Aw, you got me” Fatespeaker said “Well, here are your welcome scrolls and your maps” she thrust two scrolls into my talons
“There you are Granite, Second tunnel to the left, fifth cave to the right”
“Cool,” I said, wait, did Fatespeaker just say the same address as Moonwatcher’s cave?
“Is Moonwat-” I started, but my tongue froze. Why can’t I speak? I am not supposed to know about the other students yet, maybe I can’t say what will happen next
“Well, hope you like you caves” Fatespeaker said
Well, then, I sighed. I walked past Fatespeaker and took the second tunnel. I gasped in awe as I entered the tunnel, It was magical, and awesome and beautiful, and all sorts of things
I reached the fifth cave and gasped in awe, Sunny (or whoever has decorated the caves) has outdone herself, the room was beautiful, with two beds, one a Stone slab with some sheep wool knitted together to form something similar to a pillow and the bed has edge borderings so the sleeper is comfortable, the other a stone slab with rainforest moss.
Next to the beds, were scroll racks to keep our scrolls, there were five shelves. And next to the cave entrance, there were two more scroll racks already filled with scrolls. A sign above them said ‘Free Reading! Hope you enjoy them!’
I walked over to the bed with sheep wool, inserted my scrolls in the stand, and started exploring.
At the Stone slab bed, there was another stand, like a bed stand with drawers and shelves, which were already filled; there was a empty basket, two empty satchels that could be tied around the ankle. I opened one and it had a ink bottle, three elegant quills, a map of phyrrhia , a guide to the dragon tribes (Which was updated by Starflight, of course), and three empty scrolls I could use, and a unique crystal stone, with a message tied to it like a keychain: ‘Don’t let others say who you are’
In the shelves, there were rock collections and some platinum earrings with crystal pendants, there was one for every colour on the rainbow, there was midnight black and white earrings. There were a few bracelets to match the earrings and five chains with single pendants, and two with three pendants. Whoever I was, I was an important member in my tribe. Then, I noticed some faults in each on the jewelry.
These were handmade, by someone, by me?
There was a small treasure box, and the lock was number coded. I looked for a piece of paper in which there could be the number code and found a piece of parchment, it said ‘4726483’. I typed the code in the lock, expecting nothing, and to my surprise, it opened. I looked through the box and found some more crafts and literary writings and scrolls. I picked up one
‘How to grow strawberries’ I muttered aloud. I checked who it was written by and froze, my dragon name, Granite, was written below.
There were also pictures of a dragon who looked exactly like me, surrounded by two younger dragonets, and two older dragonets, who were supposed to be my parents. I looked closely, I was being awarded something.
‘Special mentions No.1’ I muttered aloud
I came across a badge that said the same thing, next I came across a placard that said ‘Youngest publisher of the century (Inter School)’
Then there was a trophy the size of my arm made out of tourmaline and ‘Most Creative Thinker’ was written at the bottom
And then, I found another picture, which was put in a frame, I was the family, Me, my two younger siblings, and my parents were there in a group picture. The way they smiled, not at the camera, they were smiling at me, I had my wings over the two younger dragonets, which could be my siblings in this world. I brushed my claw to the frame, there was a note attached to it: ‘Aplite and Diorite, Hornfels and Basalt(Dad and Mom)
Wow, I was someone great, important in this world, and I did all the work myself, and these were what I was good at in the reality world. I let myself replay that moment (From when I was six) When I won the DIY Projects award, 1st place.
Wow, It was a beautiful past, and one that I can live up too.
Well, time to get comfortable
My thoughts were interrupted as a four-year old NightWing dragonlet stumbled into the cave. I quickly got up and walked towards her with a kind face.
“Hi” I said
“Hi” She said timidly
“My name’s Granite” I said
“Wait… Your Granite? The Granite?” Moon asked, all the shyness going out of her voice
“Yea,” I said, I tried to look like someone who has done a lot of crafts, but I guess I looked the same,
“Just… I’ve read about you in ’30 Authors of Phyrrhia’,” Moon said
“Ok then, want to see the scrolls?” I asked “Come on” I beaconed to her as I moved towards the scroll racks
“Sure” Moon said, sounding less shy now
As I took out a scroll to pass it to her, Moon grabbed her head, like she had a headace
“Are you fine, You just have to-” I started, but my tongue froze, as if I couldn’t say that sentence
Right, speaking the future,
I heard the argument, and knew this was supposed to happen, that Moon would have to meet Darkstaker, and she would have to be puzzled,
I sat in front of her, the only difference was, in the books, she was alone, but now, I was here for her, she doesn’t need to be bothered by anyone else’s thoughts, literally, I felt awful that I had to take her to the prey center. But she doesn’t know the future, and she doesn’t know that I knew the future.
I waited for her headache to go away, she looked at me
“Are you okay?” I asked slowly, she needed time to think
“I’m fine” She said
I debated weather to reveal that I knew about her powers, but if she knew, that could lessen the chances that she could be my friend. I still had to introduce her to Kinkajou, well ‘meet’ Kinkajou and introduce her.
“Come on, let’s explore this place” I said “How about we start with the library?”
“The library? They have a library?” Moon asked
“Well, we do need a place where we can research from” I replied, a small smile at Moon’s surprise
Part 1: Chapter 3: Our Winglet
I took my satchel and beaconed Moon to come with me, and I noticed something different, before, in the excitement of coming to Jade Mountain, no one really noticed me, but now, dragons were staring at me
“Oh my gosh, it’s really her!”
“Do you think she noticed me?”
“I think I should offer her a fish”
“I just love the way she walks”
I spotted a sign and was about to read it when a StoneWing turned his head towards me
“Granite, it says that today’s an exploring day, we can explore the whole campus”
“Oh, thank you umm…” I started,
“Foidolite” He introduced himself “I would recommend you don’t hang out with liars like that”
“Oh, Moon, I’ve met her and found her delightful, who is a kind and nice dragon” I said
“Oh, you’ll regret it” He said and walked away
“Don’t listen to him” I said to Moon, who was tilting her wings to look even smaller “Come on, we have a library to explore”
We reached the library in silence, with dragons staring at me as me and Moon walked, Finally, I took a turn and we reached the library
The library was truly magnificent, the desk was at the center, where Starflight was sitting organizing last minute scrolls. He looked up.
“Oh, I believe one of the dragons here is Moon?” Starflight asked
“Yes,” Moon replied, “And guess who’s with me? Granite! The Granite”
“Wow, really?” Starflight asked
“It is” I said
The only dragon other than the three of us in the library was Sora, and Sora looked down from her reading nook at the mention of my name.
“It is a pleasure to meet you” Starflight said, bowing his head a little, “I have read scrolls about your voice of peace and your handiworks”
“Oh wow, there are scrolls written about me?” I said, failing to control my shock
“What else did you expect?” Starflight chuckled. “I’ve heard you’re a good author too”
“Well, it is a pleasure to meet you too” I said “I’ve always wanted to meet the dragonets of destiny”
“Well, I want to show you both a library system” Starflight said “Here is your library stamps” Starflight handed one to moon and me. It was wooden, and my name, Granite, was spelled in reverse, like a stamp. It was the length of 1 and a half of my claw, StoneWing claws were long, so it would measure two claws for other tribes.
“We’re testing out a system” Starflight said. He brushed his talons over a row of scrolls which were lined up under his desk. I spotted a name carved at the end of each scroll, lined alphabetically
When you want to borrow a scroll, you bring it up to me here.” Starflight started, “Each one has a unique carved stamp on the