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IceWings

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IceWings, also known as ice dragons or arctic dragons to humans, are a Pyrrhian dragon tribe who live in the Ice Kingdom, the northwestern area of Pyrrhia which is known for its cold winds, freezing temperatures, and the Great Ice Cliff, which has been destroyed by Queen Snowfall, their current queen.

The IceWings supported Blaze during the War of SandWing Succession, joining her alliance with the promise of a large portion of land near the SandWings' northern border if Blaze won.[1]

Description

IceWing scales can range from silvery-gray and white colors to pale shades of blue, purple, pink, and sometimes yellow,[2] intended to blend into their icy surroundings. Their coloring has been described as "silver like the moons," "pale blue like ice," "as pale as the moons," or "moon-white scales," and "scales the color of sky reflected in the snow on the distant mountain peaks." IceWings have dark blue or stormy gray eyes, forked blue tongues, and dark blue blood.[3][4]

Serrated IceWing claw from The Dangerous Gift, by Joy Ang

The head of an IceWing is shaped like a diamond and is very narrow, with a ruff of extra horns behind their heads and spikes along their backs. They are lean dragons with thin, whip-like tails with icicle-shaped spines, ending in a very sharp tip.[5] They have serrated claws for walking on ice. Some IceWings, such as Lynx, have dark freckles or markings on their faces and wings, although this is not too common.[6]

When upset, some IceWings have been shown to ruffle up the spines around their necks.[7] They can handle flight distances well, but are weaker when subjected to heat.[8]

Diet

IceWings prefer to eat creatures who live in the Ice Kingdom, such as polar bears, whales, seals, penguins, walruses, hawks, and fish. IceWing meals have been described as containing "bowls of dripping meat."[9] They also consume scavengers, though not very often, as they are rare in the Ice Kingdom. IceWings are known to consume fish as well due to their presence in the ocean waters. Seals are common among the lower classes due to the gift of sustenance, a hole in the ice where the lower-born IceWings live, enchanted to always give the hunter a seal when they stick a talon in. IceWings would also eat frozen berries, and even have ice cream.[10][11] IceWings typically enjoy their food raw.[citation needed]

Abilities

IceWings can withstand subzero temperatures and very bright light.[12] They have serrated claws for gripping slippery ice, which was described as "ten times sharper than normal claws" and "like getting clawed four times with each claw instead of once" when used offensively.[13][14] They are also known for having sharper eyesight than the other Pyrrhian dragon tribes.[15] Their scales emit an icy-cold chill,[16] which can freeze tiny drops of water on their bodies.[17] They can also exhale a freezing weapon called frostbreath, also known as "freezing death breath" by the dragonets of destiny.[18]

Frostbreath appears as a cloud of sparkling smoke,[16] and can cause limbs to fall clean off from frostbite.[19] The only known direct cure is the gift of healing, a set of narwhal horns enchanted by Queen Diamond to heal accidental frostbreath injuries. In other cases, fire or related heat-emitting liquids are used to melt the ice.

Fjord using frostbreath during combat with Clay in the SkyWing arena, by Mike Holmes

It forms ice crystals where it makes contact with dirt,[20] and can be used to extinguish fires.[21] An IceWing can be prevented from using their frostbreath for a short time by raising their body temperature either via a warm environment or manually heating them up (hot metal, fire, etc.), similar to MudWings, but reversed.[22][23] Fjord's scales have been seen "melting" while in the arena, which could indicate that IceWings' scales cannot withstand the heat.[24] A dragon affected by frostbreath will first feel freezing pain, shocking the affected area into paralysis, and is quite painful for the first few seconds until the area becomes numb. Victims of frostbreath will sometimes become unconscious,[25] which can be treated with water and hot coals.[26]

Frostbreath taking over Battlewinner's body, by Mike Holmes

A fire-breathing dragon could survive having frostbreath shot down their throat for a short time, but the only known way to survive after sustaining internal frostbreath injuries is by staying immersed in lava.[27] Internal frostbreath injuries can eventually overwhelm a dragon if they leave their lava.[28] This is shown in Battlewinner's case.

Dragons hatched with firescales cannot be hurt by frostbreath, though an impacted area may be numb for some period of time.[29]

IceWings have sharp, glittering, and bright minds that are hard to read. Groups of IceWings will "reflect" off of one another and become even more difficult to read.[30]

IceWings have trouble scenting things properly in more crowded environments like forests or towns.[31] This may be due to how they are hatched in tundras, where many of the common scents are covered by the scent of snow and the small variety of animals that lived there.

Animus magic

IceWings were once known for having more animus dragons than any other tribe, as well as having magic the longest.[32] These dragons were carefully bred into the royal family and monitored extremely cautiously, with strict rules for the use of their powers to keep their soul from turning evil. IceWing animus dragons were only permitted to use their power once,[33] for the benefit of the tribe, at the gifting ceremony on their seventh hatching day.[33] Some animus IceWings went against the rules, such as Queen Diamond who used her power three times — once for her normal animus gift, the gift of healing, once for the gift of vengeance (the Diamond Caves), and once to enchant the IceWing crown to make the wearer hate NightWings as much as she had. IceWings host a test similar to the SeaWings' Talons of Power ceremony[event 1] to find animus dragons.[34]

The IceWings' line of animus dragons ended when Arctic, the last known IceWing animus, ran away with Foeslayer to the Night Kingdom, leading the IceWings to believe that the NightWings stole their precious magic.[35]

Animus Gifts

  • The gift of compromise: This gift is a scepter, carved from dark blue rock and set with little diamonds, which reminds Snowfall of NightWings. It is unknown what its purpose is.
  • The gift of defense: The Great Ice Cliff, a wall on the border of the Ice Kingdom that shoots icicle spears at anyone who isn't an IceWing. This feature was first seen when one of Blaze's soldiers attempted to cross it. IceWing hybrids can also cross the cliff, as stated by Typhoon, a SeaWing-IceWing hybrid. Queen Snowfall intends to tear it down after punching a hole in it at the end of The Dangerous Gift.
  • The gift of diplomacy: Three bracelets that allow the wearer to get over the Great Ice Cliff despite their tribe and keep the wearer warm in the Ice Kingdom, as well as a heated dome near the SandWing border, so they don't need to wear the bracelet; created by Penguin. These bracelets were stolen by NightWings, however, and have been lost for about two thousand years.
  • The gift of elegance: An enchantment on the IceWing palace that makes the inner walls mimic the weather outside.
  • The gift of healing: Queen Diamond's first official tribe gift. She enchanted a set of narwhal horns to cure any IceWings of frostbreath wounds.[33]
  • The gift of light: A tree made of ice, the Moon Globe Tree, enchanted and hand-carved by Frostbite. The tree grows moon globes which, once picked from the branches, hover over the shoulder of the dragon who picked them and cast a soft glow. They also have different brightness settings that can be changed by rotating the globe. Glory wanted a cutting to grow in the rainforest.
  • The gift of order: A wall that shows every aristocrat IceWing's name and their current ranking. The names can be slid around like abacus beads if the IceWing rises or falls in rank. Dead IceWing names can be scratched out. There are Circles for each rank, with two different systems for adults and dragonets. There is an alcove in the wall set aside for the IceWing queen,[36] and the queen must consider that all IceWings on the Gift of Order are important to the Kingdom. The queen must also reorder the ranks of the dragons in the IceWing palace every night. It was destroyed at the end of The Dangerous Gift by Snowfall.
  • The gift of splendor: The main IceWing palace, enchanted by animus twins to grow from the ground and never be cracked, melted, or harmed in any way from the outside.
  • The gift of stealth: A pair of pale silver wristbands set with diamonds that can make one or more dragons invisible. Snowfall uses it to disguise her army when she first meets the dragons from Pantala, then later to catch Crystal and Sky, on two separate occasions. They were given to Sundew when she left with the stealth group for Pantala.
  • The gift of strength: A delicate and elegant tiara, which is smaller than the IceWing crown, and gives immense strength to the wearer. Snowfall used it in The Dangerous Gift to destroy part of the Great Ice Cliff and then the entirety of the gift of order.
  • The gift of sustenance: Three ice holes on the outskirts of the Ice Kingdom where if a dragon sticks his or her claws into it they will always catch a seal. Winter thinks it is narrow-minded because it is built only for the lower ranks; any dragon who cared about their ranking wouldn't accept food which came so easily.
  • The gift of understanding: Only part of this gift is available in the Forbidden Treasury, a piece of unwearable silver. It is unknown what its purpose is. The gift is connected to a story Tui has not finished yet.[event 2]
  • The gift of vengeance: The Diamond Caves were Queen Diamond's second animus gift, enchanted so that anyone who touches Foeslayer (a NightWing locked inside with animus-touched shackles) with a diamond-tipped spear can kill her (used for the Diamond Trial). The shackles that bound her were enchanted to refreeze her and revive her each time she was killed. The only way to remove the shackles was to breathe frostbreath on them (Queen Diamond added this to the enchantment in case the IceWing tribe needed Foeslayer as a bargaining chip, but thought that no IceWing would ever even think of freeing her). Together, they were created because Queen Diamond was not satisfied with killing Foeslayer just once, and instead wanted her to suffer for all eternity.
  • The gift of vision: The gift of vision is an animus-touched ring by the IceWing animus, Opal. It is enchanted and only shows up for certain queens who aren't ready or need to be taught a lesson to become more open-minded. The wearer cannot take this ring off until they have fully learned their lesson. It allows the wearer to see visions through other dragons while the wearer themselves is sleeping, which makes them more open-minded towards other dragons' situations and circumstances. It is a silver ring with a big opal gem in the middle, and it cannot be destroyed. This is shown when Snowfall tried to ask Luna for assistance to burn off the ring with her flamesilk, or when she was slamming it on the rock.

Society

IceWings appear to be fairly sophisticated, strict, and superior in comparison to the other tribes, being the only Pyrrhian dragons to have a hierarchy. IceWings are very prideful, and often perceived as rude and arrogant by dragons of other tribes.[31] There are strict IceWing codes of behavior: most IceWings agree that the only way to make dragonets strong is to expose all of their weaknesses, and that shame and fear are powerful weapons in teaching. If everyone is disappointed in a dragonet, the consensus is that they will work harder to prove themselves.[37] Most dragonets are seasoned warriors in the Ice Kingdom.[38]

Even in times of general peace, IceWings still had minor skirmishes with SandWings and SkyWings.[39]

Royal IceWings are typically not affectionate, as Winter mentioned that hugging their family members would be considered undignified.[40] The lines of guards that attend the IceWing queen are perfectly coiled,[41] and IceWings are noble to their queen's orders.[42] It is painful to hold the IceWing guard stance for too long,[41] but Winter practiced for hours to get the pose perfectly right: his wings folded exactly so, his tail in the right position, his snout up and shoulders back.[41]

The IceWing queen, according to the ancient traditions of the tribe, was required to assess and adjust the gift of order each night.[43] She also has a council of powerful IceWings to guide and support her.[44] Most queens are killed in royal challenges in a battlefield, an arena, or before the entire court in a bloodstained throne room.[45]

Royal IceWings in the time of Darkstalker store the frozen heads of dead royal family members on walls in the palace and slide the deceased's corpses into the ocean.[46] It is unknown if they still uphold this practice.

IceWings have a mythological figure called the Great Ice Dragon, whom they swear by the teeth of.[30] They also swear by snow monsters[47] and believe in spirits under the ice.[48]

Circle rankings

The aristocracy and nobility of the IceWing tribe is divided into seven ranks of status, known as Circles. The First Circle is the top, or best, while the Seventh Circle is the worst. IceWings below the age of seven are ranked as dragonets and graduate to the adult rankings on their seventh hatching day.[49] A dragonet's ranking on their seventh hatching day determines the course of the rest of their life, and if a dragonet reaches their seventh hatching day in the Seventh Circle, they are stationed to an arctic outpost for the rest of their life.[50] In the Ice Kingdom, IceWing parents with the highest rank choose the names for their dragonets, regardless of gender.[51]

A dragonet's ranking on their seventh hatching day also determines the rest of their life in the kingdom. This system is managed via the gift of order and consists of a wall of ice showing the rankings of every noble and dragonet. The dragon with the highest ranking in a family decides their dragonet's names, which are then approved by the queen. Some noble dragons may wear accessories to indicate their rankings, such as a necklace with circles on it.[52]

IceWing dragonets raise their ranking through hunting, training, performing traditional IceWing customs, and passing tests given by their guardians.[53] In the dragonet rankings, each hunt is still a chance to prove themselves and increase their rank.[53] The highest-ranked dragonets are more respected. When a dragonet reaches their seventh hatching day in the First or Second Circle, they will be housed in the queen's palace and allowed to provide input on important matters. When an adult loses this rank, they can lose their place in the palace.[54] If IceWings die or are exiled, their names are slashed through on the gift of order, as shown in Hailstorm's case.

The gift of order has recently been destroyed by Queen Snowfall in The Dangerous Gift. She is also working on destroying the gift of defense so that IceWings can become more open-minded to other tribes willing to help them during crises.

Diamond Trial

The Diamond Trial, also known as the gift of vengeance, is a way for IceWing dragonets to increase their ranking in the tribe, generally as a last-minute effort to switch the places of two dragonets (the topmost and very low positions). It involves entering the Diamond Caves with narwhal horn spears, meant to touch a frozen NightWing (Foeslayer). She is unfrozen, and both contestants must battle her. Foeslayer turns back to ice when killed, leaving the two dragonets to fight to the death. Only one of the dragonets is given information about the dangerous trial.

Names

IceWing names are chosen by the family member with the highest rank and must be approved by the queen.[51] They can be named after ice formations like Glacier and Icicle, arctic animals (terrestrial or aquatic) such as Lynx, Narwhal, and Ermine, words for "white" in various languages such as Alba and Hvitur, polar landscapes such as Tundra, polar weather such as Hailstorm, and after mountains such as Changbai. They can also be named after blue and white gemstones such as Diamond and Opal, as well as cold seasons like Winter.

Click here for a list of known IceWings.

Animus dragons

Students at Jade Mountain

Trivia

  • IceWings have accents that are different from any other dragon tribe. This accent is described as "high-pitched with a tinge of deep in certain words."[citation needed]
  • IceWings may use fruit juice to make popsicles.[event 3]
  • The IceWing Royal Family is distantly related to the SandWing Royal Family, as Sunny is a descendant of Whiteout.
  • There have been legends of IceWing animi that have gone mad from overuse of magic.[33]
  • IceWings have a specific sleeping schedule.[55]

Gallery

References

  1. ↑ The Hidden Kingdom, page 115
  2. ↑ Dragonslayer, page 61
  3. ↑ Moon Rising, page 276
  4. ↑ The Dragonet Prophecy, page 230
  5. ↑ Dragon guides
  6. ↑ Winter Turning, page 259
  7. ↑ Darkness of Dragons, page 191
  8. ↑ Darkness of Dragons, page 289
  9. ↑ Winter Turning, page 4
  10. ↑ The Dangerous Gift, page 217
  11. ↑ The Dangerous Gift, page 305
  12. ↑ Dragon guides
  13. ↑ The Dragonet Prophecy, page 168
  14. ↑ The Dark Secret, prologue
  15. ↑ The Dangerous Gift, page 83
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 The Dragonet Prophecy, page 157
  17. ↑ Darkstalker, page 148
  18. ↑ Dragon guides
  19. ↑ The Dragonet Prophecy, page 272–273
  20. ↑ The Dragonet Prophecy, page 272
  21. ↑ Moon Rising, page 181
  22. ↑ The Dragonet Prophecy, prologue
  23. ↑ Winter Turning, page 90
  24. ↑ The Dragonet Prophecy, page 154
  25. ↑ Darkness of Dragons, page 146
  26. ↑ Darkness of Dragons, page 147
  27. ↑ The Dark Secret, page 168
  28. ↑ The Dark Secret, page 263
  29. ↑ Escaping Peril, page 125
  30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 Moon Rising, page 226
  31. ↑ 31.0 31.1 Winter Turning, prologue
  32. ↑ Darkstalker, page 124
  33. ↑ 33.0 33.1 33.2 33.3 Darkstalker, prologue
  34. ↑ Darkstalker, page 116
  35. ↑ Winter Turning, page 37
  36. ↑ The Dangerous Gift, page 19
  37. ↑ Winter Turning, page 7
  38. ↑ Winter Turning, page 66
  39. ↑ The Winglets Quartet: Deserter, page 103
  40. ↑ Winter Turning, page 45
  41. ↑ 41.0 41.1 41.2 Winter Turning, page 58
  42. ↑ Winter Turning, page 92
  43. ↑ The Dangerous Gift, page 18
  44. ↑ The Dangerous Gift, page 29
  45. ↑ The Dangerous Gift, page 47
  46. ↑ The Winglets Quartet: Runaway, page 140
  47. ↑ Moon Rising, page 289
  48. ↑ The Dangerous Gift, page 33
  49. ↑ Winter Turning, page 8
  50. ↑ Winter Turning, page 25
  51. ↑ 51.0 51.1 Darkstalker, page 15
  52. ↑ Winter Turning, page 240
  53. ↑ 53.0 53.1 Winter Turning, page 3
  54. ↑ Winter Turning, page 249
  55. ↑ The Winglets Quartet: Runaway, page 146
  1. ↑ Stated by Tui, source 
  2. ↑ Stated by Tui, source 
  3. ↑ Stated by Tui, source 


IceWings
Queens

Present: Snowfall • Glacier
Historical: Diamond

Royalty

Present: Crystal • Hailstorm • Icicle • Mink • Narwhal • Permafrost • Tundra • Winter
Historical: Arctic • Frostbite • Opal • Penguin • Snowfox

Jade Mountain

Winter • Icicle • Alba • Changbai • Ermine

Other Dragons

Cirrus • Fjord • Hvitur • Ivory • Lynx • Snowflake • Polar Bear

Hybrids

Darkstalker • Whiteout • Eclipse • Fierceclaws • Shadowhunter • Typhoon

Kingdom

Great Ice Cliff • Moon Globe Tree • IceWing palace • Diamond Caves

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