Note : I know this is a day late but BOOK 11 IS OUT WOHOOO!!! I've only read the sample on Google Play books (because it isn't available where I live) so no spoilers please :) I'm still planning on how to sneakely get more phone credit without my parents noticing.

The day had finally ended. Three moons replaced the sun in the now black sky, one full, one a quarter full, and one only a cresent shape. Along with them were millions of dazzling stars, helping the moons illuminate the dark midnight sky. Some were gathered in clusters while others took the lone wolf route.

Firefly wasn't seeing all that, however. Her eyes were closed shut, her breathing even. Most would assume she was sleeping, but the if you knew Firefly well, you would know it was all an act. Not to fool other dragons, just Firefly herself.

"It isn't working, is it ?" whispered someone from right beside her.

She opened her emerald eyes and was met by Lychee's sky blue ones, full of concern and sympathy.

Lychee had one of her forest green wings on top of Firefly's back. It was supposed to make Firefly warmer so she could fall asleep, but it appears that method was not successful.

"No," she sighed quitetly, not wanting to wake the others up.

When they arrived in the Mud Kingdom to take a break, they had been greeted by numerous Mudwings who were unwilling to lend the dragonets a resting place. So, they were forced to stay at the hybrid houses.

The hybrid houses were on the very east of the Mud Kingdom, near the beach. Unlike the dry mud brick homes the Mudwings lived in, the few inhabitants there made their homes out of large sticks and straw.

(They look like these)

Those half-Mudwings were also much friendlier. They not only gave the dragonets their very own hut (they insisted on them staying for the night), but also held a campfire dinner in their honor.

"You should go ahead and sleep, Lychee. I'll tire myself out eventually," Firefly said.

"Or you'll stay up all night and fall into the ocean while flying tomorrow," the younger Rainwing complained.

Before an argument broke out, another dragon coughed to get their attention. It was Mirage.

The group had agreed that at least one dragon should stay awake just in case their mystery murderer decide to show up. So, Clandestine, Nemertea, and Mirage took turns keeping watch, being the only ones with night vision other than Firefly, who had been awake with Lychee the whole time.

"Uhh.. what's going on ?" Mirage asked.

"Firefly can't sleep if she's not warm enough," Lychee said.

Firefly caught the Sandwing-Seawing hybrid glance at his wings before pulling his attention back to them, an idea appearences in his head. Oh no.. oh no no no no..

"Do you want to go for a flight ?"

"Huh ?" Firefly raised an eyeridge. That definitely isn't the idea I thought he had.

"Do you want to go for a flight ?" Mirage repeated. "We can bring Lily back home to the nearest scavenger den and burn some of your energy."

Firefly craned her neck to look at Lychee's other wing. Beneath it was the short furred scavenger Lychee had saved the day before. She had snuck the tiny creature in her pouch and brought it with her. Later, they found out during the campfire dinner when it suddenly leaped out of her bag and ran to examine Gaia, an incredibly large but lovely Rainwing-Mudwing hybrid there. The thing didn't seem fazed by the dragons at all. Lychee should have named it Fearless, but instead she chose Lily to go with Poppy.

Lily was sleeping soundly, not bothered by the fact that there are 8 dragons that could eat her at any given time in the room. How could such a small, defenseless creature be so brave ?

"That could work," Lychee said, a smile appearing on her gold-speckled snout. Firefly could tell, however, that her cousin was partially upset about letting Lily go.

"Alright," Firefly shrugged. "We'll wake Clandestine up and you can do the same with Lily." This way, Lychee would get a chance to say goodbye to her scavenger friend.

Once they were ready, Firefly and Mirage took off and soared into the starry night sky, Lily clinging onto Firefly's neck. They flew in silence for a while, getting used to the dark even with their night vision.

After a minute, Mirage spoke. "So what other abilities do you have ?"

Firefly thought about her answer. To be honest, she didn't have many powers at all. "I can see in the dark."

"I didn't know that," Mirage said sarcastically.

"Hey ! Sarcasm is my thing !" Firefly fake scolded.

He chuckled. "Let me guess, it runs in the family ?"

"Why yes it does. That, and a few other traits like sass and wit."

They laughed, any previous tension gone. It was so much easier for those two to be goofy with each other when there were no other dragons teasing them.

Firefly calmed herself down and decided to give a real answer. "I can blend into shadows and change the colour of some of my scales and.. oh ! My dad taught me some basic assassinating techniques."

Mirage's eyes widened slightly at the last part, earning an amused sideways glance from Firefly. "How about you ?"

"Well.. I can breathe underwater but you know I hate swimming," he mused. Firefly nodded. "I can breathe fire, see in the dark, and radiate heat."

"What about your barbed tail ?"

"It's absolutely useless."

"It isn't venomous ?"

"Not at all."

As if to prove his point, he entwined his tail with her's, the barb touching her but doing nothing at all.

Firefly's ruff and stars turned blush pink. The move wasn't meant to be like that, but she couldn't help but get flustered when she felt his warm tail twisting with her chilly one.

They stayed like that for the rest of the flight, only untaggling their tails when they touched down on the damp grass, metres away from the lit up walls that surround a scavenger den.

Surprisingly, Poppy was there, holding some sort of jar with a candle in it in one of her paws. Has she been waiting here ever since she got sent back here ?

Lily seemed to recognize the smaller scavenger. She jumped down from Firefly's back and ran straight towards Poppy. They wrapped their paws around each other in what Firefly assumed as a hug.

"They'd be safer in Sanctuary, you know ?" Mirage said as the two scavenger started talking to each other in gibberish. "I don't think they're adults yet."

Firefly shook her head in response. "Lychee doesn't exactly agree with Sanctuary's motives. She thinks these creatures deserve to be free, not trapped in giant glass enclosures."

"That's a good point."

Not long later, Poppy ran towards the two dragonets and started screeching something in another language. She was so loud, Firefly believed all the scavengers in the nearby den could hear her and were preparing an attack, thinking Poppy's yelling was caused by danger. For that reason, Firefly decided it was a good time to leave.

"We need to go !" She told Mirage.

He nodded, understanding that there was a threat. They both took to the sky, flapping their wings as fast as they can. If she remembered the geography lessons she was given back at the rainforest correctly, Firefly was pretty sure that this particular scavenger den is by far the most advanced and dangerous one in the continent. It was even rumoured that scavenger spies were sent from there to follow the dragons around and assassinate them. So it was only wise to stay as far away from it as possible.

The flight back to the Mud Kingdom felt shorter than the previous one. It was also quieter. The only sound in the air being the crashing of the waves from afar and two dragonet's constant panting.

"This definitely burned all the energy I had left," Firefly joked, trying to lighten the mood.

Mirage laughed, and for a second, Firefly thought she succeeded - until she smelled smoke.

Mirage did too, by the looks of it. They shared panicked, wide-eyed glances before tucking in their wings to dive to where their hut was. Sure enough, there was yet another fire.