——— SIX YEARS LATER ———

Overcast was unsure about the Dragonets of Destiny's... well, destiny.

The IceWing had her days when she wondered how any of them were going to stop the war. It seemed those days were appearing more and more frequently, however. When she looked at her teammates, she saw teenagers who were trying their best, and who were just as uncertain as she was. 

Overcast wasn't entirely convinced that she was cut out to be a hero. She certainly didn't feel like a "chosen one", a dragonet selected by some Divine fate or interference for this one big purpose. She felt like her being here was just a happening of chance: her egg was just in the right place at the right time, and that was all.

Or the wrong place at the wrong time.

All because of timing, Overcast sighed as she made her way to the training cave. Maybe we're all here because of timing. Our eggs just happened to match up the description of the prophecy.

Speaking of "our", is that Clay I hear? 

She stuck her head around the cave wall to see a crimson tail slinking away. 

In the centre of this cave room, the dragonets' eldest sibling slumped to the ground, exhausted. "She's going to be so mean to you during your training tomorrow," he groaned to the blue dragonet standing next to him, the latter staring after the retreating minder.

"Oh, no!" The SeaWing gasped. "I've never seen Kestrel be mean before! That will be so unexpected and out of character!"

Clay huffed a laugh at his friend's sarcasm, then winced. "Ow. Don't make me laugh, I think my ribs are broken."

"Recovering from another smackdown with the snake herself?" Overcast asked, walking over to the two. She sat next to the big brown dragonet.

Clay nodded at her. "Tsunami stood up for me, though," he replied.

The SeaWing dragonet sighed. "Yes, and he's being overdramatic." She poked him in the side with her nose. "Your ribs are not broken. Dragon bones are almost as hard as diamonds." She raised her head. "Get up and jump in the river."

"No!" Clay buried his head under his wing. "Too cold!"

Overcast smiled. "What a great and new idea, Tsunami," the IceWing said. "We would've never thought of it had you not brought it up for the fifth consecutive time today."

"That's because it's a good idea for everything!" Tsunami said, poking her tongue out at Overcast through a smile. "And you know I'm right!"

The SeaWing liked to propose "jump in the river" as a solution to just about everything. Bored? Aching bones? Head too stuffed with knowledge of the war?
Overcast recalled with affection how Tsunami would immediately shout "jump in the river!" whenever her friends complained. The SeaWing certainly did not care that she was the only one who could breathe underwater, or that Overcast was the only other dragonet from a tribe who liked getting wet.

Overcast knew Clay never liked the frozen river that ran through their underground cave home, as she had often seen him lingering near the lit torches or letting Sunny sleep under his wing, cuddled to his side to give him warmth. It was only fair, she supposed, that the MudWings tolerated water yet disliked the cold.

But then again, Overcast was bored, and she knew the discomfort of her friend wouldn't make him miserable – Clay's determination was like his own internal fire, one that couldn't be put out even with buckets of sand or sleet or water.

"Get in!" Tsunami ordered as she seized the MudWing's tail between her front talons and started dragging him toward the river. "You'll feel better!"

Or a freezing river, Overcast added with a sly smile.

"I will not!" Clay shouted, clawing at the smooth stone floor. "I'll feel colder!" 

He actually gained a little leverage until Overcast joined Tsunami and grabbed Clay's tail, helping the SeaWing hoist the eldest towards the river.

"Stop it! Go away! Argh!" His protests went up in a cloud of bubbles as his two friends used their strength to heave the MudWing into the icy water.

Tsunami dove in immediately after, and Overcast admired her friend's elegance as she ducked and powered through the water. She looked like a graceful swan next to Clay, sinking like a brown boulder to the rocky bottom of the river.

Overcast joined the two in the deep end, delighting in the freezing water as she used her whip-thin tail like a tiny motor. She observed her claws in the silent peace under the water, seeing with new clarity the tiny serrated teeth in the curve. Overcast spread her wings, the silvery undersides appearing almost translucent in the clear river water.

The IceWing dragonet stuck her tongue out, smiling at the clean taste. The bottom of the chilly river was as close as she was going to get to home, at least for now. It felt like bliss. 

Overcast returned to her friends when she noticed Clay was powering himself over to the shallow end of the lake like a brown and amber crocodile. The MudWing surfaced and rested his head on the bank, and Overcast saw him scratch the rocks below him with a mournful look on his face.

She swam over to Clay, staying submerged in the water but less than a winglength from him. "You'll see some mud soon," she promised him.

Clay regarded her with a hopeful smile, which she returned.

"Kestrel will be sorry one day, when I'm Queen of the SeaWings," Tsunami said as she swam up and down the narrow channel. She was like a powerhouse, probably able to swim faster than the fastest fish in the sea.

Which is the sailfish, Starflight's know-it-all voice chimed from inside Overcast's head, and she muffled a groan. The IceWing paddled until she was standing up to her shoulders in the nice frosty water, closer to the big MudWing. Overcast didn't mind standing; the lapping water soothed her sore muscles, the chill settling into her bones and relaxing her.

"I thought only a queen's daughters or sisters could challenge her for the throne," Clay pointed out, lazily watching Tsunami swim. Which was fair, since he had just endured physical and emotional assault from one of our minders, Overcast amended the sentence in her head. Although she hadn't been there to witness the altercation between Kestrel and Clay, it wasn't a far cry to assume the grumpy SkyWing had been her usual violent and snow-sniffing self during training.

"Well," Tsunami replied, once she had swam up to the two again, "maybe the SeaWing queen is my mother and I'm a lost princess. Like in the story."

"Ah yes," Overcast smiled, "it's already been a whole three hours since you've mentioned the story. I was beginning to worry you'd forgotten!"

The SeaWing swung her tail, sending a wave of crystal water at the IceWing, who laughed joyfully and shielded her eyes with a paw.

Everything the dragonets knew about the world outside the cave came from a variety of scrolls the Talons of Peace had picked up. Although the majority of the texts were nonfiction and served as study resources, there were a fair amount of made-up stories and myths as well (the latter being Overcast's preferred genre). The group's favourite was The Missing Princess, a legend about a runaway SeaWing dragonet whose royal family tore up the ocean looking for her. In the end the princess was reunited with her family, who welcomed her back with open wings and a huge feast.

"I wonder what my parents are like," Clay said thoughtfully, opening up the subject that all of the dragonets discussed.

"I wonder if any of our parents are still alive," Overcast added cynically.

That was a subject that wasn't discussed as much, yet it was obvious they were all thinking it anyway; Kestrel and Webs brought back news of bloody battles, scorched land, and burning piles of dragon bodies from their outings. It was a scary thought, that the dragonets may not have anyone that loved them to go back to.

 Well, it's a fair enough jump to make; there's a war going on. That's why we're here, after all. The chances are they're all dead. Especially with ditzy Blaze leading my tribe into battle.

Clay turned to his two friends. "Do you think they miss us?"

"Definitely," Tsunami flicked a spray of water at the two with her powerful tail. "I bet my parents were frantic when Webs took my egg, just like in the story."

"And mine tore apart the marshes," Clay nodded.

"Mine ripped up the tundras," Overcast added. "No glacier left unsearched."

It was no secret that the dragonets had all imagined the scenes of their parents' desperate searches ever since they were young dragonets. How could they not? It was dragon nature, to want to know who you were.

Tsunami flipped over and floated on her back, staring up at the stone roof high overhead. "Well, the Talons knew what they were doing," she said bitterly.

Overcast's mood floated downward. "Tya," she scoffed, wading until the water was only up to her ankles. She let the tiny pebbles on the bank sift through her serrated claws. "No one would ever find us down here."

The friends listened to the sounds of the river gurgling and torches crackling. 

"We won't be underground forever," Clay insisted, that determined fire reflecting in his yellow eyes. "I mean, if the Talons of Peace want us to stop this war, they have to let us out sometime, right?" He scratched behind his ear, thinking. "Starflight says it's only two more years, and then we can go home and eat as many cows as we want."

"Well, first we have to save the world," Tsunami said. "And then we get to go back home."

"Right," Clay agreed.

"Only problem is we don't really know how yet," Overcast exhaled through her nose, tiny ice crystals dancing in space from where her permafrost breath met the much warmer air.
It had been six years, and the dragonets' Plan To Save The World was still a bit fuzzy, but everyone seemed to figure they'd know what to do when the time came.

Overcast wish she felt the same. Since the day she'd hatched, she'd had the words of the prophecy beaten into her brain – the expectations that came of it dancing darkly around her head. But in truth, the dragonets didn't know where to begin. The world beyond the caves sounded so messed up, like weeds and tendrils which had grown so tall they posed an interlocking canopy high overhead, and Overcast wasn't sure how she and her friends could untangle it all.

Clay pulled himself out the river, his now waterlogged wings dripping and heavy. He turned to a nearby torch, most likely trying to warm himself.

Overcast wished she could help Clay feel better, but her scales were cold to the touch. She shrugged her shoulders, then lifted her wings and folded them on her back as she walked out of the water completely.

"Unless..." Tsunami piped up.

The two stopped and turned to their friend. "Unless what?" Clay asked.

"Unless we leave sooner," Tsunami continued. She turned over and joined the two on the bank in one graceful motion.

The very idea got Overcast's heart pumping in a good way. She couldn't wait to get out of here and do some field work for the first time in her life. The thought of making a difference to the terror beyond the cave walls got her fired up.

"Leave?" Clay echoed, startled. "On our own? How would we even do that?"

"Well, why not?" Tsunami asked. "I mean, if we can find a way out, why do we have to wait another two years? I'm ready to save the world now." She peered at him a little closer. "Aren't you?"

Overcast nodded, unable to help the grin spreading across her face. "I'm all for it," she agreed. "The sooner we can make a change, the better. Moons' know we'll be much more useful actually doing something out there than loitering under a rock for another two years."

Clay looked doubtful. Overcast knew he didn't think that was the best idea, and to be fair, she agreed with him to some extent – it was a risky move, considering the Talons spanned far more members than just the three minders: a whole network of dragons were out there, getting ready for the prophecy.

"We can't stop the war by ourselves," Clay said. "We wouldn't know where to start."

Tsunami flapped her wings at him, exasperated. "We can too stop the war on our own," she protested. "That's the whole point of the prophecy. Overcast agrees!"

"Maybe in two years," Clay shrugged.

"Maybe sooner!" Overcast insisted. 

Tsunami looked at him. "Just think about it, alright?"

Clay shifted on his feet, smiling at his two friends. "Okay, alright," he laughed. "I'll think about it! Quit tag-teaming me," he swiped his tail at the two, spraying them with tiny pebbles and rock dust.

Overcast smiled. If her friends could work together and break out of the caves... if the group could take their destiny into their own paws, they would be unstoppable. 

Tsunami cocked her head. "I hear dinner!" She grinned.

Indeed, the sound of dismayed moos echoed up the tunnels behind the trio.

The SeaWing nudged Clay cheerfully. "Race you guys to the hall!" She called before whirling around and pounding away without waiting for the other two to confirm.

The light of the torches seemed a little dimmer, but the leftover cold of the river comforted Overcast as she pelted after the SeaWing dragonet. Thoughts of hope and determination ran through her veins. She knew her friends could escape these wretched tunnels and their minders if they just worked together. 

They might not know where to start... but Overcast believed that they might be ready to try.