Prologue

Candiru flew swiftly threw the night, her wings flapping quickly. The Seawing clutched her eggs close to her chest, flying south-west towards the Mud Kingdom. She was to land before the sunrise, and leave her eggs within the palace nursery for hatching.

I hope Ibis is awake... She thought, picking up speed. When she landed outside the Mudwing palace, the sun was just barely beginning to rise on the horizon.

"You're late!" A large female Mudwing said from the palace steps. "Are you sure he didn't see you?"

"I'm sure." Candiru replied. "There are guards on most of the islands I passed. They would've seen him."

"And not you?" The brown dragon asked.

"Skywings pass over every once in a while, if you fly high enough it's easy to be mistaken for one."

The Mudwing rolled her eyes and gave Candiru a worried look. "Come inside, the longer we talk the longer he has to find us."

The two dragons then entered the palace, the stone cold against their talons. "So, Ibis, how's the kingdom?" She asked.

"The Mud Kingdom is great, and might I add, we haven't seen a single scavenger in months!"

"One of those little things? They don't cause any harm unless you provoke them. They just steal everyone's treasure!"

"Treasure... right..." Ibis shook her head, before changing the subject. "The hatchery is this way."

Ibis pushed open two massive doors to reveal a small, circular room. On the floor, partially encased in wet mud, lay a single egg of dark crimson. Candiru stared at it for a long moment, before forcing herself to ignore the egg's odd color. She set her eggs down, the mud-covered floor squelching beneath her talons. "They can never know." She whispered to Ibis.

"They won't, Ru, I promise."