Stoke the Flame

The time had come to march. Ignis hissed to himself as he faced off against the wall of steel and flora ahead of him- it was time to attack! Sure, he was alone- sure, his two companions had left him. But this ended now.

Ignis had traveled down the tunnels with two others at his side- two other flyers, of course, he would never travel with anything without wings! But the two cowards he had brought along had been nervous to the point of fleeing the second a walking, talking rock steps out. Whatever. He didn't need them anyways. It was easy enough to escape from the toddling land-dweller, so he had quickly taken off and booked it into the jungle. Of course he found their base instantly- but it was metal and he lacked fire. So he simply sat back and observed the coming and goings of the court, making sure to terrorize the local monkey population when things were too boring.

These Atlanteans were not as perfect as they seemed- there was unrest in these halls, a rebellion brewing and panic and fear. Ignis had yet to discover why- something was very clearly wrong, but no one would talk about it. But he knew one thing- there were whispers of a queen. Some angry, some reverent but that meant there was a target- someone he could get answers from. So today, he would descend and find their queen- and get some answers wether she liked it or not.

Ignis hissed at nearby monkeys watching him from where he sat perched in a tree. Most scattered as he clapped his beak, but one especially big one eyed him. Ignis snorted. No respect. They would learn to respect him when he came back with flames. The tapejara stretched his wings, quickly taking off and diving into the base.

It was laughably easy to locate the queen- clearly, they had never dealt with flyers before. There was no roof, and no guards stationed high up- the ones who spotted him could do little but yell anyways. But there was a problem- namely, the multiple buildings set up. Ignis flew around for a good several minutes, growing angrier by the second- which one held the queen?

Finally, he came upon what he thought may be it- the biggest building, in the center of the facility. Landing on the wall, he crawled his way through a broken down window and into the facility. The walls were more well kept and tidy than they were in the rest of the facility- clearly he had found the right place. Keeping up near the ceiling, Ignis was careful to still whenever he heard footsteps- the servants that passed him never looked up. What fools!

Eventually, Ignis found the room he was looking for- a throne room. Well, he thought it might be a throne room. A large pile of chests and valuables sat in the center, and a platform made from a mix of strange human materials and plants provided a very cushioned seat. A window sat on the ceiling above, casting light down onto the iguanodon who sat in the center. And Ignis was sure this was the Queen. She was mostly white, with a blue face and tail tip. A crown of feathers on her head proclaimed her majesty, and the black tear marks on her face were an intimidating sight. Perched on her arm, talking to her in whispers- was that stupid monkey from earlier! Rage grew within Ignis- had that furry stinky creature been spying on him this whole time?

“You!” Ignis snarled, bursting into the room. The Queen looked up with little surprise, carefully moving her arm so the monkey could jump onto her back. “Are you the so-called queen?” He landed on a stack of crates nearby- he could easily take to the air again if she approached to take him down. The tapejara clattered his beak angrily at the monkey, causing it to shriek and hide behind the herbivore again.

The Queen frowned irritably, pulling herself to her feet. “Yes. I am the ‘so-called’ Queen. Queen Rhys.” She narrowed her eyes at him. “I would say it's a pleasure, but from what my companions have told me, it is anything but.”

Ignis puffed up, feathers expanding and making him look bigger (not that it mattered here). “Yes. Your little spies.” He narrowed his eyes at her. “Then tell me- just why are you sending your little scouts onto the surface world? How dare you invade my realm?”

Queen Rhys snorted. “You wish to know why we invaded? Take a look there.” She jabbed a claw at a nearby scroll Ignis had caused to roll with his landing. Curious, the tapejara opened it only to find… something he didnt understand. A messy drawing made of warpaint on tree bark depicting… something blue?

“...What does this mean?” The tapejara threw the paper back at her face. “You need better artists, nothing there is legible!” The Queen visibly bristled in annoyance, waiting a moment to regain her air before speaking again.

“That.” She pointed at the scroll, a different monkey quickly scurrying over and picking it up before retreating. “Is a recreation of what is happening on the far wall. You remember that earthquake a while ago? Im sure you felt it, it was the most powerful one any member here can remember. It cracked the dome- water is rapidly filling the dome. We’ve worked to contain it, and we’ve been working on fixing it- but it may fail.” The queen stepped forward towards Ignis, her tone a mix of frustration and a tingle of grief. “My subjects have been working themselves to the bone, and I refuse to let them die. We will save whatever we can- whatever individuals, whatever plants- we will bring Atlantis to the surface! We will be able to continue our lives- and we will not let you and whatever friends you have stand in your way.” 

The queen continued to pace, before facing Ignis. There was an inquisitive look on her face- an idea. “Of course, there is… no need for this, as long as we get help. If you are able to send for those who know how to and have the supplies too, there is a chance we could fix this without further conflict. You are small, and fast- good for delivering messages. Im sure we could come to an understanding, for the good of our people…”

Ignis was stunned for a moment. The silence stretched on, and on… before he broke it with a wheezing, rattling laugh. “Ha! You think- you think I would ever help you?” He howled in amusement towards the unamused queen.

Before she could cut him off, Ignis leaned forward- as close as he was willing to get to the angry herbivore. “You think this is something that can just be waved off? You invaded the islands- they are mine to claim, to cleanse in fire. You made many enemies- already, some of your scouts will never return home. You sent them to their death, to islands full of vicious, hungry carnivores with plants that destroy, and want help? No, no. It is just not me you should fear. You were right when you said I was fast- I was the first one here. But more are coming, many times larger than me, many times stronger than me. And there are many more of them then there are you. This hell will become a battlefield, soon enough. And as your throne lays under siege, and your followers fall- I will be there to set it ablaze.” 

The sound of footsteps caused Ignis to perk up, quickly hopping into the air. The queen was as still and cold as a statue, no rebuke coming. Still- Ignis had to poke one last time. “I’ll make sure to send your confirmation- war it is.” Cackling, the tapejara swooped overhead, busting out the window and escaping into the fake sky as an angry bellow sounded behind him. It was time to stoke the fire.