Sunny (Yellow) is being kidnapped by three Nightwings, Strongwings, Fierceteeth and Preyhunter. They have the intention of selling her to one of the Sandwings Queen candidates, Burn, in exchange for protection.
"Quick, while they're all distracted,"(9)
Sunny escapes in the night while also leaving her kidnappers a spooky message to turn them around so they won't tell Burn where her and her friends are. Sunny then hides behind some trees to see what the Nightwings do when they realize she has escaped.
When the Nightwings awake they go to the Outclaws, a group of outlaws, to see if they can get them to Burn to give her the information. Thorn, leader of the Outclaws, kills Preyhunter in a fit of rage. At the same time Sunny follows them the entire time and discovers Thorn is her mother.
Sunny gets recaptured when a group of Burn's soldiers kidnap her and take her to Burn's Stronghold where she will wait for Burn to return and do as she pleases with her. Thorn after hearing this goes to save her daughter.
Thorn's jailbreak attempt fails and she is captured but with both Sunny and Thorn the figure out a way to escape. Sunny wants to go back to her friends but Thorn needs to get back to the Outclaws and they split up for now.
"See you soon, daughter."(165)
Sunny returns to her friends to tell them about all that happened and they aren't that concerned. Sunny is angry at first but then thinks of a plan to stop the war. Her friends Glory and Clay also tell her the condition of their other friend Starflight.
"We are going to get all three of them in one place, and then we will either have a competition, like the Rainwings have, or we'll let the Sandwings decide."(219)