ã€ŠThe Draconesã€‹


 Chapter One

    Low to the cold, smooth stone, I move as silent as death. My booted feet make no noise while my mask smothers all evidence of my breathing. Shadows hide my hooded figure as I hug the wall, one hand gripping the knife around my calf. Not six feet in front of me lies King Rrth. He¡¯s in a deep slumber, his snoring giving testimony to that.

    Deep violet sheets mostly cover the king and his sleeping mistress. She¡¯s sixteen. I can hear her trying to stifle her crying. It¡¯s enough to make me wince when a round of horrifying images try to invade my strict mind. Quickly, I push them away and skate alongside the wall. I avoid tables. They¡¯re covered in liquor bottles and cups. Just the slightest unexined bump will alert the guards to my presence. A thick red carpet lines the floor. It hides a trap door and several blood stains from hisst mistress who had gotten pregnant.

    I suppress a horrified shudder and move along the darkened walls. The King¡¯s bulging belly is shiny from sweat and is sagging on the mattress; as if trying to eat it. My mind has the audacity of trying to picture the King in bed. I bite my tongue, trying not to gag. Why brain? Eventually, I get to the hard wooden desk that is next to the disgusting man. I quietly open it and take his very heavy coin purse. I tuck it down my tight, unforgiving shirt; to minimize sound. Deciding to be a bit more mischievous, I take his nes and rings.

    Completing the first half of my mission, I roll under the heavy bed. I narrowly avoid the chamber pot and move the the-mercifully-empty thing to the corner of the bed. I roll out on the other side ande out standing on crouched legs; bringing me face to face with a beaten girl. Her dark ebony skin and angelic face make it easy to see why the King was drawn to her. Another part is her heritage. Princess Mytheena. Engaged to the soon-to-be High King Derrick Bronznic; a fair-skinned man, whose beauty runs parallel to hers.

    She opens her ck eyes, widening them as she takes me in. Quick as a snake, I quickly cover her mouth with my gloved hand, while my bare hand rests its pointer finger against my lips; urging her to be quiet. I shake my head at her when I feel her lips part. Immediately she furrows her brow. I pull out a blue butterfly clip from my pocket and hold it out for her to see. Quick as she can, she snatches it from me, before cradling it against her chest.

    Slowly, I take my hand from her mouth and motion for her toe beside me. She looks over her shoulder as she slides off the bed; checking to see if her tormentor is going to notice her absence. I hold up a finger and dig through a pouch that has been sewn into my clothes. Hurriedly, I pull out a kidnapping note and a dead rat. Mytheena eyes me cautiously as I take the knife from my boot, while Iy the note on the desk with the rat on top. Deftly, I stab the knife through the rat and note, attaching both to the desk.

    While she stares at me in confusion I start moving. Instantly Mytheena follows with less than a step between us, leaving me no room to make an error. I move her to the open window before slowly standing to scan the grounds. Guards are walking around the yard, looking nowhere in deadened gazes. They find this boring. I don¡¯t me them. There hasn¡¯t been a sessful break-in for ten years now. That they know of.

    I motion at her to follow my lead and grab hold of the ivy-covered wooden fence, before starting my descent. By hiding in the ivy, we¡¯re able to follow it to the garden it leads to below without being seen. With Mytheena¡¯s hesitation and clumsiness, it takes us five minutes to make it down. What also slowed us down was that we had to be slow enough to avoid catching the attention of archers not twenty yards away from us. Mytheena makes it down a few moments after me, leaving me to seek refuge in the ivy and time to scan ahead. Her slowness was a blessing at that moment. It gave me enough of a warning, that I was able to yank her into the pile of ivy as the guards neared us; making their rounds. As soon as they¡¯ve passed, I snatch her out of our hiding spot, and keep her hunched down low to the ground, as we continue our escape. We stick to the walls and the shadows they create; her untrained feet making noise on every little thing possible. I wince at every stick she clumsily breaks.

    By some miracle, we make it to the canal unseen. This is when Mytheena starts to hesitate. I have to pull her into the water. It was like trying to drag a horse into water. She resists the entire time, but some sheer force kept her from yanking me back and knocking us both on our asses. Freezing water grips our feet, slowly dragging us both in with what feels like invisible hands. Only my mind keeps me from turning back. The only thing keeping the princess from turning back is what waits for her, and my iron grip on her trembling hand.

    Eventually, my breathing bes restricted. It feels like someone is sitting on my chest and the longer I stay in the water the heavier they get. We hug the side of the canal as far as we can but eventually, our time runs up. ¡°We need to go under,¡± I tell her when we get to the low bridge.

    She shakes her head at me. ¡°I can¡¯t. I¡¯m afraid Ick your ability, my good sir.¡±

    I nearly groan. ¡°Look at me Mytheena. You have the will. You¡¯ve survived being held by the bandit King Rrth for two weeks. You¡¯ve earned your right to move on with your life and be happy. You have the strength to do it.¡±

    She starts shaking her head. ¡°I can¡¯t. I can¡¯t. I don¡¯t know how to swim.¡±

    This time I groan. I get behind her and put one arm around her waist. ¡°Just do as I do, and don¡¯t fight me.¡± Once she takes a deep breath, I push her under, quickly following myself. She kicks as she feels my legs brushing against hers. Through the murky water, she can just make out me cutting through the water, propelling us forward with my hand. It doesn¡¯t take her long to mimic me. That¡¯s good. Practically all that I am carrying is weighing me down, and so is she. My muscles are working twice as hard as they should, which is never good when swimming in frigid water.

    I keep us swimming after we clear the tunnel. Eventually, I let go of her waist and she just holds onto my shirt. Once we round the bend, I bring us up for air. I can¡¯t keep us silent as sharp gasps of air evacuate our lungs, before quickly refilling themselves withoutmand. I pull her hand and head to the shore.

    Once on the ground, I give her no time to rest. I pull her with me and head straight to the trees. Following the smell of smoke, we race through the woods. The moonlight is giving us just enough lighting to see the trees ahead of us. Mytheena keeps tripping over unseen roots, so I quickly grab hold of her hand and make her follow behind me.

    About ten minutester the view of a ck Clydesdalees into view. ¡°Miny!¡± I call out to the horse as a warm smile spreads across my face and through my body. Immediately Mytheena pulls back on my arm but follows anyway. The horse starts heading toward me as soon as she heard me call her.

    When we emerge through the woods, bringing us to a small makeshift camp, Ivan is on his feet. His golden hair glows a faint red in the firelight while his charcoal eyes warm at the sight of me. His brown boots remain silent as he walks toward me to give me a hug in greeting. I ept as my face connects with his hard breast. He then squeezes my head into his chest.

    I pull back. ¡°Okay, we get it.¡± I snap at him. ¡°You¡¯re taller.¡± I grin at him when my wet body impression on him makes him grimace.

    ¡°Why are you wet?¡± He demands as he pulls the fabric from his chest.

    ¡°n B went out the window as fast as A,¡± I reply as I giggle. ¡°Margrette failed to cause a distraction in the town. She-¡±

    ¡°Met a boy,¡± he says with me. ¡°As always.¡±

    Iugh. ¡°Well, she¡¯s only sixteen. They¡¯re always on her mind. Give her time Ivan. She¡¯s young.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re eighteen and never made that mistake Kit. You¡¯re just as young as she is.¡±Material ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°Yes, but I was raised in this profession,¡± I argue back. ¡°If I recall correctly, you were as bad as she was when you discovered how to use that stick of yours.¡±

    His eyes widen, ¡°Name once.¡±

    I grin. ¡°Irene. Masie. Gwen. Quinn.¡±

    ¡°Hey, he/she looked amazing,¡± he says grinning. Then he catches sight of Mytheena. ¡°Who is this?¡±

    ¡°Princess Mytheena,¡± I say as I pull her closer to the fire.

    He pales, ¡°Princess? You were just supposed to steal Rrth¡¯s coin. He¡¯ll know it was us that took her.¡±

    I shake my head. ¡°I used the trademark of the Rats and left the ransom note. He¡¯ll me them since he isn¡¯t that bright. Besides, her betrothed contacted our head and is paying me to retrieve her.¡±

    ¡°Derrick?¡± Mytheena asks as her eyes brighten. ¡°Derrick is the reason I am being rescued?¡±

    I sh her an excited smile. ¡°Yes. He¡¯s meeting uster tonight. First, we need to change or we¡¯re going to get swarmed by bandits.¡± I move to the fire as Ivan demands to know what is wrong with me.

    ¡°Nothing I assure you,¡± I tell him while I remove my hood.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure this is going to bite us on the ass.¡± He mutters as he starts worrying. ¡°He¡¯ll find out.¡±

    I snort, ¡°Rrth? You must be joking.¡± I pull off my clothed mask, revealing part of my face.

    ¡°Not Rrth. He couldn¡¯t figure out a torch from a stick. Tristan, he¡¯s the leader of the Rats.¡±

    I curse as I remove the scarf around my face. ¡°I hadn¡¯t thought of that, but I doubt he¡¯ll know it was me. No one, other than the Wolves, knows I exist. I¡¯m thought dead by most, and a myth by others. Besides, he¡¯ll like the reputation of breaking into Fort Ulrin and taking Rrth¡¯s beloved prize right from under his nose.¡± I pull my long hair out of its braided restrictive bun. ¡°Now let¡¯s get moving,¡± I say to Ivan while Minyes over to me.

    Since I allow my hair to remain in a braid, it appears drier than what it is. I pull off the suit as I use Miny as a shield. I have no time for modesty. I dig through my pouch and pull out a green peasant dress. I toss it to Mytheena. She eyes Ivan a little nervously butes to stand next to me. I put on a deep blue peasant dress and pull out a brown corset. Ice it up and tie it at the end, tucking the string behind the corset.

    Mytheena copies me as I pull on a pair of brown boots that cut off at my knee. Ice them up;pletely covering the knives they hide beneath. I ball up my wet clothes, and hers, and stuff them in my saddle.

    I look at Mytheena. ¡°If anyone asks, you¡¯re our adopted daughter. Your parents were killed in a fire. You¡¯ve been with us for five years. Your name is Ynda. We¡¯re from the Southern District.¡±

    She nods, epting my order. ¡°Who are you?¡±

    ¡°My friends call me Kit,¡± I say to avoid risking more. ¡°If anyone asks who rescued you, it was Ivan. You never, ever, mention who I am.¡± I tell her sternly. ¡°Is that clear?¡±

    Hesitantly she nods, ¡°But why?¡±

    ¡°It helps if people don¡¯t know who the real savior is. That way I remain thought of as an innocent little girl, while Ivan-who is already known in our group-takes the credit. By doing this, I have less of a hit out on my head.¡±

    She nods in understanding. ¡°I can understand that, but if I have need of you in the future?¡±

    ¡°Contact a member from our group,¡± I say simply. ¡°Now we must be moving. Ivan is starting to whistle, which means he¡¯s worried.¡± Iugh when Ivan immediately stops and give him a wink; easing him some. Ivan goes into the woods and retrieves his horse, a graying Morgan named Nixie, and a russet Paint.

    ¡°Gayle!¡± Mytheena calls. She holds onto the horse¡¯s snout as Gayle lifts her off the ground.

    Ivan grins. ¡°Now I know why we had the extra horse.¡±

    I wink at him. ¡°Mount her,¡± I say to Mytheena while I get on Miny and Ivan kicks out the fire. Once we¡¯re all on the horses we walk out slowly. On the road, we kick it up to full speed, with me leading the way.

    About a half hourter, I pull off and hide in the trees; so I am obscured enough to be hidden, but still able to see them and intervene if they need help. Ivan takes Gayle¡¯s reins when he gets on the ground; responding to the sound of approaching men. Not five minutester a man in a dark cloak, with three men nking him, approached on horseback. The middle one is easy enough to identify. He has an enormous amount of jewelry on his hand and wears a cloak made from bear. This is definitely Prince Derrick.

    ¡°Derrick!¡± Mytheena cries, but Ivan holds her back. A bit confused, I cock my head as I look at the scene. Usually, he lets the rescues go back to their family. With that thought, and my sights on my mark, I take a bow off my saddle and ready it with an arrow. Once I pull the bowstring back, Derrick is within three feet of Ivan.

    Derrick removes his hood. ck hair shines brightly against his moonlit fair skin. He¡¯s scrawny, but I can see the potential of uing muscle. He¡¯s going to be a heart breaker when he¡¯s older.

    It¡¯s not Derrick that has Ivan hesitating. It¡¯s the men nking him. Upon closer inspection-and what had made me draw my bow-I can only see a hawk crest on two of the men¡¯s chests; the crest for Derrick¡¯s kingdom. The third holds none, but the ring ced on his right index finger is an engraved coyote. That is the crest for the Trix. Their thing is to steal from other groups, pocketing the original group¡¯s profit as well. Their rivals are the Purveyors, their crest is a stag. I wonder if they¡¯re here tonight as well.

    Once I see a lip twitch from the Trix, I raise my bow; ready to stake my im. As always, I had made sure the arrow I am using is our trademark blue ones; making it clear this was our kill. That is, if I have need to fire.

    ¡°Thank you for returning my betrothed,¡± Derrick says as he shes a grin to Ivan. He holds out a hand. It trembles slightly. Ivan grins and grips his forearm as Derrick does his. I see Ivan tap his pointer finger three times on Derrick¡¯s forearm. I get ready.

    They let go. ¡°How did you do it?¡± Derrick asks as Mytheena bes quite uneasy.

    Ivan chuckles. ¡°Secrets are meant to remain untold young one. It was quite the challenge I assure you.¡±

    ¡°Was she harmed? By you I mean.¡±

    He shakes his head. ¡°No sir. I guarantee that I did not harm a hair on her little head. Now if everything is to your satisfaction, I¡¯ll dly ept my payment.¡±

    Derrick nods, returning to a more business sense in bodynguage and tone, ¡°but of course.¡± He reaches into his cloak and pulls out a bag the size of a fully grown man¡¯s palm. He tosses it to Ivan with little hesitation. Ivan opens it and nods as he finds the correct payment. Right then, the Trix pulls out a knife and leans in to reach for Derrick¡¯s head; exposing part of his back to me. I release the arrow. It burrows into the back of the Trix member. He falls off his horse as Derrick¡¯s guards reach for their weapons.

    ¡°Whoa!¡± Ivan says quickly when one points their sword at him. ¡°I swear it wasn¡¯t directed toward anyone of you.¡±

    ¡°How can we believe you?¡± Derrick demands as he eyes him skeptically.

    ¡°Because that man was about to use you to get what he wanted, Prince Derrick. He¡¯s a Coyote; a member of the Trix. Here, I¡¯ll show you.¡±

    ¡°No.¡± The man pointing the sword at Ivan says. ¡°Have yourpanion reveal himself.¡±

    I roll my eyes as Ivan chuckles. ¡°She¡¯s not a manddy, but I will get her.¡± I sigh and draw another arrow. I step out of the woods slowly, Miny sluggishly trailing behind me. Immediately all five heads turn toward me. The man I had shot is on the ground, unconscious but still alive.

    ¡°Lower your weapons,¡± I say to them, my bow trained on the man with the sword.

    The burly guy hesitates but lowers his weapon slowly. ¡°And who are you?¡±

    ¡°Master Ivan¡¯s hand,¡± I say as I lower my weapon as well. It takes all I can to stop from gagging on acidic slush as I say that while Ivan grins.

    The man with the sword looks me over, ¡°How about a change in handlers?¡±

    I shake my head. ¡°I¡¯m sorry Sir, but Master Ivan holds my contract. It is up to him if he should sell me.¡±

    The man looks at Ivan now, ¡°How about it?¡±

    Ivan shakes his head. ¡°She¡¯s been with my family since she was young. I couldn¡¯t part with her.¡±

    The man shakes his head, ¡°Such a waste for a good shot.¡±

    ¡°Please sir,¡± I say quickly as I bend at my knees. I raise the Coyote¡¯s hand and reveal his crested ring. ¡°This is how we knew he wasn¡¯t with yourpany. I did not intend to harm you or your Prince.¡±

    Derrick nods. ¡°I believe her. Now let¡¯s get out of here before Rrth¡¯s men catch up to us.¡± Ivan lets go of Gayle¡¯s reins and heads toward Nixie.

    Derrick looks at me. ¡°Before you go, may I ask your name?¡±

    ¡°Kit,¡± I say to him as Ivan gets on Nixie. I do a backup run to Miny. I touch her ear once on top, sending her straight into a full-speed run.

 Chapter Two

    Several dayster I am in a city named Maycrest. There is a festival going about. People stumble around either drunk, or just getting through the crowd. Today I¡¯m dressed in a tight-fitting dress with a wooden mask ced over my face. The mask is a little loose, as it is one of Ivan¡¯s old ones. I have to pin it in ce with several hairpins to keep it secure. A paste covers my hands and arms, giving the appearance of warts. People tend to avoid me; in fear of whatever perceived disease I have spreading to them.

    A horn blows, signaling the beginning of the Spring Festival. My hand brushes my belt as I walk through the crowds, trying to get sight of Ivan; and maybe do a little eavesdropping. It isn¡¯t long before there is a clear path, and I see my desired goal. Little kids dance around, trying to see past the adults. I push past them and make it to the front of the line. Across from me is Ivan. He¡¯s wearing a wolf¡¯s mask.

    The man next to me is wearing a coyote mask. He begins talking to hispanion. ¡°There is talk of the Wolves tonight.¡± My back tightens and my interest perks. The Trix may be vultures, but they¡¯re the people you go to for information.

    ¡°When aren¡¯t there these days?¡± Hispanion sighs. ¡°Trixie is still upset about their involvement in the near-death of Isenberg.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s just d they didn¡¯t kill him. She¡¯s more interested in the man that found him on the road.¡±

    Thepanion chuckles, ¡°Someone found him? What was their interest with him?¡±

    ¡°ording to Isenberg, he wanted to know about his shooter. Isenberg didn¡¯t know since the arrow came out of nowhere. The trail doesn¡¯t stop there, however. ording to Prince Derrick¡¯s cook, the man tracked Derrick and Princess Mytheena down. He wanted to know about the shooter. Derrick told him of a hand of Ivan¡¯s that shot Isenberg. He said the hand was female, which surprised the man. The man asked for her name, to which Derrick replied that the name she had given was Kit.¡±

    ¡°Do you know why this Kit is of interest to this man? Or who she is?¡±

    The Coyote shakes his head. ¡°No. Ivan is said to be here today, but we haven¡¯t found him. No one knows why he is in Maycrest, but Trixie believes it¡¯s nothing we want to be involved in.¡±

    Just then trumpets shout, calling silence to the crowd. A guitar strums as a mandolin begins to y. Little children throw blue-covered petals on the ground as they skip and giggle. The guards march behind a tall man with graying hair. His entire face is shallow. This man is going on eighty-three, which is outstanding. He¡¯s finally decided to relinquish his crown, to the worst man possible.

    His oldest son, Mandel, is a horrible human being. He molests little children and kills them for fun. The prisoners receive harsh rations and are treated to daily torture of stretching and pration with heated metal. Even for stealing a piece of bread, this is their punishment. He also ns on raising taxes and extending work hours. My job is to stop this.

    I look straight at Ivan and brush my shoulder. A slight nod is what I get as I pretend to let a little kid ahead of me. Slowly I make my way to the back of the crowd, drawing no attention. Eventually, I slip into the little crowded shop. I go straight to the back corner of the shop where books are stacked higher than my head. I pull out my bow and quiver from behind a painting of a horse on a hill that rests against a wall.

    I go up the stairs that lead to their storage area. The KnickKnack shop owners are on their porch watching girls twirl ribbons and sing a song in honor of this historic asion.

    <i>The stars shine high</i>

    <i>With honor in our minds</i>

    <i>And augh in our smile</i>

    <i>To award the Noble</i>

    <i>That protects our kin</i>

    <i>In the greatest interest of his own</i>

    <i>Now his kingdom shall not fall</i>

    <i>For today it is given on this holy ground</i>T¨ºxt ? N?velDrama.Org.

    <i>To the King¡¯s kin</i>

    <i>The greatest of them all</i>

    The music ends as the girls scream and faint, falling to the floor of the stage while one remains standing. I roll my eyes. Dramatics are distracting and deadly.

    I pull the arrow as King Tru steps forward. He clears his dusty throat, ¡°My subjects and my family, the time hase for our wonderful Spring Festival. This festival is going to be burned into our minds for centuries toe. For on this day, I have decided to step down and relinquish my hold as king to my youngest child, Akairie.¡±

    I nearly release my hold on the bow as I¡¯m taken off guard. ¡°What?¡± I ask out loud as his daughter walks up to the stage inplete surprise. Her blonde hair catches sunlight while the flowers that have been woven into her hair blow in protest of the pushing wind.

    Her brother¡¯s face begins to turn red. His ebony hair looks like death as an enraged scream echoes through the air. ¡°What!¡± Mandel screams at his father. ¡°She is only twenty. Not even of full royal blood. You cannot do this father. You chose me. You decided it to be me. Why is it not me?¡± He screams.

    His father remains calm, but his ears are red in anger. ¡°She is young but knows what is best, my son. I have been informed of the way you treat my citizens and my prisoners. Your demonic antics are not of my raising or teachings, therefore, the crown goes to your sister.¡±

    Mandel loses his temper at that point. He reaches for the hunting knife on his belt and races toward his sister. It is at that point that I release my hold on the arrow. Mandel falls to the ground and screams in pain. My arrow has hit its mark. The head lies buried deep within his calf; a note is attached to the arrow. The guards finally react as screams ricochet through the crowd.

    The head guard reaches for the note. ¡°My Lord, it is a note from the Wolves.¡± Again, the crowd gasps as the king goes white.

    Akairie walks forward and takes the note as another soldier takes Mandel¡¯s knife. She reads it, facing her father. ¡°¡ä<i>My Lord, King of Maycrest, we honor you with the utmost respect. We serve and follow you and our other Lords. We watch and protect who we can when we can; and because of this, we are forced to dutifully report the inner workings of your eldest, Mandel. He is wicked my Liege. Blood is in his heart. He values money more than life. He believes your city is scum and ns to sell it to the highest bidder once his ns areplete. He ns to order your death, King Tru. Check his belt. You¡¯ll find the order.¡ä</i>¡±

    She pales at this part and licks her lips. <i>¡°¡®You¡¯ll also find the orders for your wife, sons, and daughters as well. If you check his room, you¡¯ll find his ns for a cleansing. To kill all who are weakened physically, and those who are scarred emotionally and physically. This is why we cannot allow Mandel to be inducted into history as our King. We hope that you understand why we have to do this. We will continually serve and protect The District and its people. With undying loyalty, the Wolves.¡¯¡±</i>

    Really Mylith? That¡¯s what you wrote? I shift nervously as King Tru orders for his son to be searched. The orders are clear and tucked neatly into his belt.

    Tru pales as his hands shake. He looks at his son. ¡°Treasonous!¡± He yells at him. ¡°Take him to the dungeons. He is to be executed. Akairie will be crowned queen after her brother¡¯s execution.¡± He spits on his son¡¯s cheek. ¡°You are not of my blood, but of a demon. I should have known that when I found your dog with a knife in its head.¡± With that said Tru walks off the stage, leaving all in a stunned state. What did I just hear?

    I hear a slight boot scuff behind me, pulling my distracted mind back into my body. A hand touches my shoulder. I grab it and twist his hand as I drop my bow. I use my other hand to grab the blue-tipped knife from my belt. As I spin us, I scratch his exposed cheek a little deeply. Before he can get back to his senses, I swipe his feet out from under him, letting go of his hand as he falls.

    I look down to see a defiant man. His face is hard as his taunt body quakes while he tries to lift himself. Brimstone eyes re at me in raw anger as his pale pink lips try to find words. He¡¯s about six feet but appears taller than what he actually is.

    ¡°Who-who are you?¡± A smoky voice asks through his finally functioning lips.

    ¡°Shh,¡± I whisper as I take a knee. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t fight it. It¡¯s a sleeping draft. You¡¯ll wake in an hour.¡± I take the knife and cut his hand, giving the draft more aide. He shouldn¡¯t be able to talk.

    He grimaces. ¡°Who are you?¡± His voice is strong, making me look directly at his face. How is he still awake?

    ¡°Who are you?¡± I volley back. I¡¯ll just stay here until he¡¯s out. That way I¡¯ll be sure he isn¡¯t some weird creature that will chase after me.

    ¡°Show me your face.¡±

    Iugh. ¡°You must be mad if you think that is going to happen. Now I ask; who are you?¡±

    He grimaces, ¡°Give-give me your hand.¡±

    I put two fingers on his neck. His pulse is weakening, but it is strong. Too strong. It¡¯s like drums are beating underneath my fingers. I am curious as to why he¡¯s asking these things. Reluctantly, I remove some of the paste and hand my hand to him. He grasps it surprisingly firmly and takes it to his face, as if to see what value it holds. His hand starts growing hot around my fingers then quick as a sh he licks the back of my hand.

    Pain erupts from my hand, making me yank my hand back as a sharp hiss escapes my mouth. ¡°What the hell are you?¡± I snap at him as I look at my pale hand. A red eye is shining back at me, but just as the saliva dries it fades away. ¡°What was that?¡± I demand from him.

    I look at him since he remains silent. His eyes are wide as he looks at me. ¡°Morda Mortha.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± I ask as I rub my faintly throbbing hand. I¡¯m seriously confused and getting really angry. Who just licks someone?

    He res at me, ¡°You!¡± His hand shoots up like a striking snake and knocks the mask off of my face. When the mask¡¯s strap had broken, it ripped off a few pins that I had used to keep the slightlyrger mask in ce. When the pins tore from my hair, my hair cascaded down like a waterfall, framing my face. My eyes are wide as my heart picks up pace. What is going on?

    His eyes widen as his body rxes. ¡°Kit,¡± he sighs while his head falls back and his eyes roll back. What just happened?

 Chapter Three

    ¡°Kit!¡± Ivan calls up from the stairs. ¡°By Dawn¡¯s Light, what is taking you so long?¡±

    ¡°Nothing,¡± I call down as I stick the knife back in my belt. ¡°Coming,¡± I yell as I grab my bow. I turn back to grab my mask when I notice something really odd about this kid. His throat is slightly rippling. A little scared I grab my stuff and run down to Ivan.

    Ivan has his wolf mask resting on top of his golden head. He grins at me. ¡°Your hair is down.¡±

    Slightly dazed I touch my hair. ¡°I guess it is.¡± I give him confused eyes. ¡°Some guy tried to get the jump on me.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Ivan demands as he starts walking toward me. I lead him up the stairs to show him the strange kid, but when we get there, the room is empty. I dash to the window to see if he went out that way. There is no way that kid is still walking around. We¡¯re too high for him to have jumped and there are no stones to hold onto. The streets are littered with pedestrians. There is nothing on the wall, aside from a g.

    ¡°Where is he?¡± Ivan asks, never one to question my sanity. I would at this point.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± I scan the sea of heads, trying to find one that matches his burgundy hair. The closest I find is auburn.

    ¡°Well, we need to leave here anyway. Miora has another task she wishes us to aplish. We¡¯ll find what we can on him when we have time.¡±

    ¡°Okay,¡± I say as I stare at the crowd. How did that kid do that?

    ¡°I like your hair by the way,¡± Ivan says as he pulls me from the window.

    ¡°Huh?¡± I ask as I look at him.

    He pulls a strand of my midnight hair, ¡°Your hair. I like it down.¡±

    I blush. ¡°Thanks. Let¡¯s go before something else happens.¡±

    Ivan nods. ¡°I¡¯ll meet you at the market. I¡¯m going to round us up some food.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡± I hand Ivan my bow and quiver out of habit. He gives me a hug as he passes. I look out the window again and swear I see the mysterious man. I look closer and balk. I do. The kid is grinning at me as he sits on a crate in the export station at the dock. His leg dangles as he waves at me. Anger res through me. That does it.

    I run down the stairs and pass Ivan. I hear him call my name after me, but I do not stop. Why did I forget to get my bow from Ivan? I push through the crowd. All I can see is the jerk¡¯s smug little face. Who is this kid?

    ¡°Kit!¡± Ivan says as he grabs my shoulder and yanks me to his side. ¡°What is the matter with you?¡±

    ¡°Him!¡± I shout as I point to the smug little bastard.

    Ivan follows the direction. His eyes narrow as the jerk blows him a kiss. ¡°That¡¯s the man that attacked you?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± I huff. We hear a sharp screaming from the crowd. We look up as a dark shadow covers us. All I see is a red screen before blue takes over.

    ¡°Dragon!¡± Someone yells, making everyone scream. I grab my bow from Ivan as his entire body takes root in panic. What in the name of Mikiah is one doing this far north? It¡¯s toote. By the time I draw my bow, it¡¯s gone.

    I grin. I got my bow back. I lower it to the crate the strange man had been on. ¡°Dryitch!¡± I spit at the floor as I lower my bow. ¡°Where did he go?¡± I demand. ¡°Ivan!¡± I yell as he still stares at the sky,pletely pale.

    I snap my fingers, making him focus on my hand. ¡°Ivan, are you alright?¡± I ask as I hand him my bow.

    The repetitive motion snaps him back to reality some more. ¡°What was that?¡± He asks as he slings my bow onto his shoulder.

    ¡°A dragon. Why is it this far north?¡± I muse as people slowly start calming down.

    He starts thinking. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s too dry in the south. It¡¯s just searching for food.¡±

    I shrug. ¡°Possibly. It wouldn¡¯t be the first time, but they tend to avoid civilization.¡± That way there are little dragon hunts to worry about.

    ¡°Maybe it was just flying over.¡± Ivan is starting to get back into his rational mindset. ¡°There are no signs of an attack.¡±

    I smile at him. ¡°Good thinking. Now you get the supplies. I¡¯m going to go and get something for us to eat.¡± He nods and starts walking away. Once he¡¯s a few feet away, I let out a huge breath of relief while I cup my cheek. My heart is pounding harder than a worked horse. That was so close. Reiming myself, I head off to the street vendor to buy salted pork, bread, and cheese.

    After I have sessfully bought us food for the weak, Anky voicees from behind me. ¡°Hey, Kit.¡± I turn and groan. Right in front of me is a tall, gangly man named Iseriah. He¡¯s nearly seven feet tall and has the worst case of e I¡¯ve ever seen. Even his perfectly shaved head has a case of it.

    ¡°Hey, Iseriah,¡± I say as I move past him to sit on a stone wall.

    He sits next to me. ¡°Word has it that someone has taken interest in you.¡±

    I roll my eyes. ¡°I swear if this is another one of your lines, I¡¯ll kill you.¡±

    He chuckles. ¡°No, it¡¯s not. Word from the Trix¡¯s is that a man from the south is looking for you. Just thought I¡¯d warn you.¡±

    I cock my head. South? ¡°What does he want?¡±

    He shrugs. ¡°Don¡¯t know but he¡¯s freaky. He gives everyone he talks to the chills. I¡¯d watch out if I were you.¡±

    I nod as I hear Ivan whistle. ¡°Thanks, Iseriah. Ivan and I¡¯ve got another job to do so I¡¯ll leave right now.¡± I give him a hug and start heading toward Ivan. Something clicks right when I get to Miny. The kid that just attacked me is the one looking for me. I bite my lip as that sinks in. There is something else, it just hasn¡¯t sunk in quite yet.

    Several dayster, Ivan and I are setting up camp in the woods. While he cooks, I head to the nearby stream to take a quick bath. I take my time since it¡¯s sweltering, and the water is nice and cool. I even tried to get my hand to show the weird eye again, but nothing ever happened. When I get back to camp-fully dressed in a corset and a dress since we have an early morning-Ivan is removing his shirt. My eyes widen slightly as I take in his hard muscles. They look as if they are sculpted in the image of perfection. When did he get those?

    I quickly look away before he catches my gawking. ¡°Waters all yours,¡± I say as I force a yawn. He jumps as I sh him a smile while I pass him.

    He fumbles for his change of clothes. ¡°I swear I thought you¡¯d be longer. I was going to head upstream.¡±

    I give him a confused look. ¡°Why are you so fidgety? I only saw your chest. You¡¯re not bound by society¡¯s dictation to conceal your breasts. Besides-¡± I wink at him ¡°you look great.¡±All content ? N/.?vel/Dr/ama.Org.

    He flushes darker and chuckles. ¡°I guess you caught me off guard.¡± He lowers his clothes and walks into the forest. Why is he acting so strangetely? I¡¯ve seen him in morepromising situations than that.

    I shrug it off and go to my saddle bags. I pull out an ivoryb Ivan had stolen from the Bandit Chief Ulurik and start attacking my knotted hair. I use the fire to help dry it as I eat Ivan¡¯s famous cooked rabbit. When I¡¯mpletely dry, he¡¯s still not back yet. This isn¡¯t an unusual urrence. He takes longer than I do when ites to anything vanity-rted.

    Reluctantly I decide to stay by the fire and keep an eye on it. I lean on a tree stump and begin cross-stitching. By the time I have stitched in a blue butterfly the size of a gold coin, he finally shows up. He¡¯s rubbing his wet hair with his hand, shaking loose remaining droplets. He looks at me and winks. I just roll my eyes. This is nothing new with him.

    ¡°What took you so long?¡± I ask as I get up.

    He grins at me. ¡°I was watching you sleep.¡±

    I roll my eyes, though it did make me smile. ¡°Not even close to being right.¡± I walk over to him. ¡°Here.¡± I hand him the butterfly I just stitched. ¡°I made this for you.¡±

    He takes it and looks it over. A smile spreads over his face. ¡°Wonderful job Kit.¡±

    I smile. ¡°Thank you.¡±

    He looks up to tell me something but stops midway. He goes back to smiling. ¡°I think we should go to bed. We have to be up before dawn tomorrow.¡±

    I sigh and nod. ¡°Probably best. Good night.¡± I feel his eyes on me as I walk to my bedroll.

    He¡¯s still watching as Iy down, so I roll over after I pull the covers up. ¡°Ivan?¡±

    He perks up. ¡°Yeah?¡±

    ¡°When is Mnieing back from Gunthra?¡± I yawn but am watching his facial expression.

    Immediately his eyes sparkle. Then a secondter his face falls, but his eyes retain their joy. ¡°Who?¡±

    I sigh. ¡°Your obsession. Your betrothed.¡±

    He sighs, seeing my point. ¡°We¡¯re meeting up with her tomorrow. Moira wanted it to be a surprise.¡±

    I grin. I haven¡¯t seen my adoptive sister in months. ¡°Goodnight.¡± I didn¡¯t know what else to say. The only problem now is that I¡¯m too excited to sleep. An hourter I finally drift off to sleep.

    I hear a sharp yell, making me open my eyes to check if Ivan is having night terrors again. When they open someone is standing over me. Before I have time to react the person bends toward me and stabs something in my neck. I punch the person, sending them flying as they are caught off guard. As I roll to my side, I see someone standing over Ivan, connecting a fist to his face. Just as I reach for my knife, I feel a dart enter my skin. I grab my knife as I get to my feet. Not even halfway up do I fall to the ground. Thest thing I see are boots approaching me.

 Chapter Four

    I drift in and out. Each time I wake I¡¯m immediately put to sleep. However, when I wake, I get the feeling that I am being carried; but it¡¯s too smooth to be by horse or carriage.Material ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    This time, when I wake, there is something hard under me. My head is killing me as my eyes open. A bright light breaks through all my grogginess, blinding me. I turn my head away as I use my arms to lift the top half of myself up. My head is pounding so hard I have to touch it just to make sure it¡¯s not a drum.

    Once I¡¯m sure my head is normal, I look around. There are thick gray walls that glisten from condensing water. There is a giant hole facing the outside world. So, this definitely is a cave. The remains of a dead fire are three feet from me. I try to remember what happened and swear. I got kidnapped. I hope Ivan is okay since I don¡¯t see him.

    The ground violently shakes, making me look at the exit automatically; nearly knocking me over. The sight of an approaching red wall causes a scream to stick in my throat as I lurch back into the cave wall. I press into it with my hands touching the slick surface. To shrink myself, I stand up as the wall opens; revealing a mouth filled with sharp teeth that are dripping with saliva. A red spongy tongue slithers out from the mouth that has nearly filled this cave; enveloping my face in hot putrid breath. I stare at the tongue while it swivels around; tasting the air. What in the name of Dawn is this thing?

    The tip of the tongue connects with my cheek,pletely ovepping it. I scream and try to sink further into the rock. A chuckle sounds in my head. It¡¯s deep, but feminine. ¡°<i>She¡¯s going to be fun.¡±</i> I look around, trying to find the source of the voice. It sounded like it was spoken right next to me. I look up and see crimson scales and two dark holes for nostrils.

    ¡°What are you doing Gracial?¡± A smoky voice asks. ¡°You¡¯ll wake her.¡±

    ¡°<i>Toote,¡±</i> The voice chuckles. I hear wood fall to the ground and running feet. I¡¯m still staring at the tongue as it retreats into the mouth.

    ¡°Move!¡± I hear the voice shout. The chuckle sounds as the head retreats. I can¡¯t blink. I can¡¯t breathe. All I can do is stare at the vast space where the head used to be.

    ¡°Awe man,¡± The voice whines, catching my attention. My wide eyes snap to the source, desperate to find something human. I¡¯m still petrified enough from the dragon, that I don¡¯t react to seeing the man that tried to kill me a week ago. Same eyes, hair, and sharp face. Only this time he looks annoyed.

    He hesitates, seeing how close I am to having a nervous breakdown. He licks his lips. ¡°Look, you¡¯re okay. Okay? My name is Trayvon. Okay? I¡¯m not going to hurt you. Okay?¡±

    ¡°Stop saying okay!¡± I snap at him as I try to get my breathing somewhat normal. I have no clue why this is what I chose to say.

    He holds his hands up. ¡°Fine. What is your name?¡±

    ¡°Ka-Katarina,¡± I say as I try to go with my thoughts to find some ground. Why didn¡¯t I just use my nickname?

    Trayvon nods. ¡°Okay. Katarina, I want you to let go of the knife. Can you do that for me?¡± I look down at my hand. Sure enough one of my blue-tipped knives is clutched in my right hand. I must have grabbed it out of reflex.

    I shake my head. If I let go, he¡¯ll do something. I¡¯m not sure what, but he will. ¡°What am I doing here? What is this ce?¡± I look to him for answers. I sure as night am not asking the voice in my head.

    He stiffens but answers without hesitation. ¡°You¡¯re here because of your heritage. This is Eagle¡¯s Bane Rock.¡±

    I see a giant red eye as the dragon tries to look in and scream. I push further into the wall. ¡°That-That doesn¡¯t make any sense.¡± I want to get away from here. I want to go home.

    ¡°Okay.¡± Trayvon licks his lips. ¡°What doesn¡¯t make sense?¡±

    ¡°All of it. This. That. I shouldn¡¯t be here. I want to go home.¡± I sound like a child; but who wouldn¡¯t when they wake up like this? Why can¡¯t this make sense?

    ¡°Let¡¯s start off with what is the most confusing.¡± He folds his legs as he sits down, speaking to me in a calm voice; as if he were reasoning with a child.

    ¡°Just let me go home,¡± I say as I tear my eyes off the dragon¡¯s bulbous head to look at him. His red eyes are looking at me as if I am a twig. He¡¯s seeing me as a frightened child. I don¡¯t know why, but this bothers me. Maybe because this position is usually switched.

    He shakes his head. ¡°I can¡¯t. It¡¯s too dangerous and not allowed.¡±

    I re at him. ¡°And why is that?¡± I demand.

    Trayvon chuckles. ¡°It¡¯s quite simple. You¡¯ll die if you¡¯re found.¡±

    My entire body tightens as my lungs go on lockdown once again. ¡°What?¡± I gasp when my lungs finally agree to start working again.

    He smirks. ¡°They¡¯re looking for you Katarina.¡±

    Huh? ¡°Who?¡±

    Trayvon facepalms. ¡°That¡¯s right. You¡¯re from the north. How about I just exin why I kidnapped you?¡±

    I re at him. ¡°That would be nice.¡± I hear a chuckling in my head. I give a quick shake to my head; positive I must have severely hurt it. His eyes narrow.

    Trayvon clears his throat. ¡°Do you remember the day I came for you?¡±

    I re at him, focusing my attention on him again. ¡°Which time?¡±

    He chuckles. ¡°The first. By the way, you¡¯re not easy to track down.¡± I roll my eyes as he moves on. ¡°Do you remember when I... licked your hand? Do you remember what you saw?¡±

    The glowing image shes in my mind like a burn. Slowly I nod. ¡°An eye. A red one.¡±

    He smiles and nods his approval. ¡°Yes. As I recall you asked what I am. I am-we are-something called the Dracones. That¡¯s what the eye means. We are meant to protect dragons. There are only two ever chosen at a time.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± I ask as I try to make sense of this. ¡°Look I¡¯m sure your club is great and all, but I really don¡¯t want to join.¡±

    Trayvon chuckles and shakes his head; his patience beginning to wear thin. ¡°You don¡¯t have a choice. The Adversantem are looking for you and myself. We stand in the way of total takeover of the Wastnd.¡±

    Am I dreaming? I cannotprehend this. ¡°Is this some sort of joke Ivan set up?¡± It does sound like something he¡¯d do.

    Now he¡¯s getting frustrated. ¡°No this isn¡¯t a joke. This is reality and it is happening to you. You are a Dracones. There is no way out of this.¡±

    I rub my face. This is a rude way to wake up. I look at him. ¡°And what makes you think that?¡± I¡¯m honestly curious. Ever since I can remember, there has always been a way out.

    Now his face is hard. His eyes hold a fire underneath as his jaw goes tight. He holds up his left hand, fist closed. On the back of his hand is a shining red eye.

    I look at the back of my hand as it begins to burn. The eye is shining on my right hand. How is he doing that? I raise my hand up, sure that this is some joke. Witchcraft maybe. I touch it. It¡¯s cold under my hand, but my skin is burning.

    I look at him with confusion. He¡¯s not lying but I don¡¯t want to do this. I didn¡¯t choose to do this; he drugged and kidnapped me. I huff, already nning my escape. ¡°Do I have another option?¡±

    Trayvon grins and shakes his head. ¡°Nope.¡±

    ¡°Then I am going to fight you on this.¡±

    He groans. ¡°How did I know this wasing?¡± He stands up. ¡°Are you going toe with me willingly at least?¡±

    Iugh as I get to my feet; staggering a little because I haven¡¯t moved in who knows how long. I shake my dizzying head and get into a defensive stance, knife held in my right hand. ¡°If your hopes were that I¡¯d becent with your sick little game, then you should know that I¡¯m not going to make this easy for you.¡±

    He grins and pulls his knife from his belt. A secondter he¡¯s on the move. I step out of the way, tripping him with my foot. I grab his hair after he hits the wall and throw him to the ground. He skids as he hits the ground, giving me room to move up. I let him get up, his face grimacing a little. I give him no time to react as I high kick him in the chest, sending him sailing out of the cave. There is a deep chuckle in my head, making me wonder if this is in fact a dream. I really don¡¯t think I should be hearing voices.

    ¡°Shut up Gracial!¡± Trayvon snaps. ¡°It¡¯s not like I see you trying.¡±

    <i>¡°And give up the chance to see this? You must be joking.¡±</i> The same voice in my head chuckles.

    ¡°Just get her. We need to leave or the Adversantem will be upon us. Besides, you¡¯re the one that woke her.¡±

    <i>¡°I did no such thing. She was awake when I got here.¡±</i> What the hell is going on in my head?

    ¡°Well, either way, we need to leave.¡±

    <i>¡°Fine.¡± </i>I narrowly dodge a huge foot as it goes into the cave. Her leg takes up about half the cave and her foot is a good portion of the wall. I¡¯m lying on the ground right under her leg. Sending in the dragon has got to be a cheat.

    Okay here are my options. Stay in the cave and most likely end up squashed. Or I can sneak out here and make a run for it. Or third, go with Trayvon willingly with hope of escapingter. I like the second option the best, even though something is telling me the third option would be smarter.

 Chapter Five

    My decision is made when Gracial begins to remove her foot for a second attempt. While she pulls her foot back, I move with it; staying low enough so not to touch her leg, but fast enough so not to touch her foot. Once out I roll into a bush, so Trayvon does not see me. We¡¯re on a cliff. The cave is burrowed deep into the mountainside. Red sand and dry bushes twine with rocks as they climb up the mountain, leaving a thick forest behind them. The fact that the tops of the trees below look small is clue we are really high up. I force myself to calm down by looking at the dragon. Trayvon has his arms folded with a dying smirk on his face as he stares into the cave. The dragon he calls Gracial is about twelve meters high and seven meters long. That¡¯s a huge dragon.

    Just go Kit. Go. I soothe in my head as I slowly crawl up the hill around the cave, while I watch Gracial make a second attempt. Without making so much of a sound, I start descending down the hill when I have cleared the cave, then start racing down the mountainside.

    I finally touch the ground when I hear Trayvon swearing, and a roar sounding from Gracial. At that point, I start running through the lush forest covered in vegetation. I can¡¯t even find dirt as I keep running. Where did Trayvon say we are? Eagle¡¯s Bane Rock. Now where the hell is that? I figure I better head south since running in a straight line will not help me. and I can smell smokeing from that direction. Maybe I can get help. Besides, he¡¯ll expect me to head north. Remembering years of experience, I locate moss and start running in the opposite direction.

    About two hourster the forest disappears and is reced by sheer nothingness. I swear and walk back into the very thinned-out forest. Should I chance it? I haven¡¯t seen many dragons, but I¡¯ve heard them. I decided to try and see if I can find another way around. From this point on it¡¯s nothing but ins. Should have gone north.

    I start pacing. Should I turn back or try making it across this in in hopes of finding help? Well, if I turn around, I have a higher chance of running into Trayvon. During my two hours of running/walking, I have failed toe across a single path or trail. The forest is my best bet for protection though. Then again, I still smell smoke. It¡¯s just across the in. Since this is the south, I¡¯ll need some help getting back. I shrug and decide to start running through the ins.T¨ºxt ? N?velDrama.Org.

    About halfway there I notice a dark shadow over me. I look up as it grows bigger. ¡°Dryitch!¡± I scream as I drop to the ground and roll, narrowly avoiding a ck foot from grabbing me. Well, at least it¡¯s not Gracial. That does notfort me. The grass provides some cover, but the rocks have scraped some deep cuts into my palms.

    I look up and narrowly avoid another wed grab. This time I end up on my back, looking up at the sky. I swear as I see the big red dragoning down to join this little game of catch me if you can. Gracial found me. I notice a brown saddle on her back with Trayvon riding her.

    ¡°Oh,e on!¡± I cry as I roll to my feet and try to start running. In my haste, Ipletely forgot about the ck dragon. Its foot ms right onto my chest, knocking me over. Instead of crushing me like I thought it would, it uses its ws to form a cage around me; pinning my shoulder with its outer w tucked underneath its palm. The dragon keeps my head exposed so it can look at me. That¡¯s the moment that I choose to notice its white ws are thicker than the size of my head. Now that¡¯sforting, I think bitterly as I try to push myself out from under the dragon¡¯s foot. It pushes harder, forcing me to be still.

    It¡¯s looking right at me, and it looks pissed. It lowers its head, so its nose is touching mine. <i>¡°Why are you such an idiot?¡± </i>A deep male voice demands. ¡°<i>Trayvon is just wanting to help, and you are causing trouble. Behave yourself. It is my job to keep you safe and you will follow what I say. Am I clear?¡±</i>

    I¡¯m still petrified from this very close contact with a dragon. I can¡¯t move, or barely think for that matter, but at least I know where the voices in my head areing from. Though this does not help my plea for sanity in my head.

    <i>¡°Answer me youngling!¡± </i>He snaps.

    Finally, I find my mouth. ¡°Why? I snap back. ¡°I¡¯m nobody. This is not who I am. I¡¯m not even from here, so why should I be involved?¡±

    He gives a deep, frustrated growl as he presses his face closer to mine. <i>¡°Because you were chosen. This is a great honor. Maybe since youck our knowledge you fall short of the proper reaction. I cannot me you for this. But you are somebody. You are Katarina. One of the leading members of the Wolves. You¡¯re a warrior that strives in stealth. You are who we need. Nrth did not fail when he chose you.¡±</i>

    ¡°Who?¡± I ask as I watch Gracial getting ready for her descent. I need to leave now if I even have a hope of escaping.

    <i>¡°You¡¯ll know who soon enough. Do I have your word that you¡¯ll stop running?¡±</i>

    ¡°I¡¯ll never give you that because I will not let go of that option.¡±

    He groans. <i>¡°You¡¯re a stubborn and headstrong girl. Now I definitely know why Nrth chose you.¡±</i>

    I swear I¡¯m going to kill this Nrth for doing this to me. ¡°Will you let me up now?¡±

    <i>¡°Are you going to run?¡±</i>

    I swear because that is my answer. Gracialnds just then, leaving the earth shaking. I hear her voice chuckling in my head, so at least she¡¯s amused.

    Trayvon immediately jumps off of his saddle and runs over to the big ck dragon. Worry is reced by gratitude as he smiles at the big ck thing. ¡°Thank Granth that you caught her Alienis. Gracial spotted a couple of the Adversantem a while back.¡± He looks down at me and grins as I re. ¡°You¡¯re good.¡±

    ¡°Obviously,¡± I mumble under my breath.

    Trayvon looks back at Alienis. ¡°How¡¯d you find her?¡±

    <i>¡°She is my charge. I see what she sees.¡±</i>

    His eyes widen. ¡°But that means she¡¯s already established a mental link with dragons. She¡¯s advancing quickly.¡±

    Alienis chuckles. <i>¡°Despite today¡¯s events, she is very intelligent. She will run so use the chains.¡±</i>

    ¡°What?¡± I ask as I try to lift my head. I knew I should have yed nice. I sincerely doubt it would be smart to piss off a dragon.

    ¡°Good idea.¡± He goes to Gracial¡¯s saddle and rummages through one of the huge saddle bags. I swear I can fit in one of those. He pulls out a thin silver chain to which manacles and a neck chain are connected to. I groan. Oh,e on. I m my head on the ground as I berate myself. I¡¯m such an idiot.

    Trayvon has the biggest grin on his face as he bends down and attaches the metal cor around my neck. It¡¯s tight and squeezes against my throat. Alienis slowly raises his foot for Trayvon to attach the manacles. I¡¯m not stupid enough to try anything while a dragon still has the option to squish me.

    I just look away as his rough hands grab my wrists and chain them about six inches apart, leaving me little room to work with them. He then takes the chain around my neck and connects it to my wrists.

    He looks at me, his grin gone. He¡¯d thought I¡¯d put up a fight. ¡°Are you going to get up for me, or do I have to do that too?¡±

    I sigh and slowly get up. Both dragons tense as they get ready for me to run. Oddly when I¡¯m standing, I see a saddle on Alienis¡¯s back. Immediately my heart starts pounding as my eyes widen. ¡°Please tell me we¡¯re riding horseback,¡± I beg.

    Trayvon grins. ¡°Nope.¡±

    ¡°Walking?¡± I squeak.

    He shakes his head. ¡°Uh-uh.¡± He then figures it out. ¡°You¡¯re afraid of heights, aren¡¯t you?¡±

    I blush and look at the ground. He startsughing. I hear two growls and snaps, making me look up. Gracial and Alienis took a snap at Trayvon in warning. <i>¡°Not everyone has ridden a dragon like you have.¡±</i> They both snap.

    <i>¡°Besides, she¡¯ll get used to heights soon enough,¡±</i> Alienis says as he gives me a quick look. Oddly enough I notice I¡¯mpletely visible in his ck eyes. Okay, now I feel really small. I look up and notice I¡¯m about halfway to his shoulder de. Now I feel minuscule. Alienis looks at me and lets out a wing. It¡¯s thin and almost see-through. I can see veins pulsing in it. His bones are thick but seem flexible enough. I touch it. It feels like a duck¡¯s foot.

    ¡°Do you need help?¡± Trayvon asks as I see a smirking from Alienis. He¡¯s enjoying watching someone intrigued by him.

    I nod. Trayvon picks me up by my waist and steps onto Alienis¡¯s wing. Alienis raises it with no effort as his skin shows no sign of bending. Trayvon sets me down and has me walk over to the giant white leather saddle. I have to raise my skirt quite a bit, showing my leg all the way to my midthigh, as I sit down. Trayvon¡¯s eyes linger on the exposed area as he reaches across my waist to retrieve some sort of strap. He loops it through several metal rings and pulls it tight against my waist. When he notices I have caught him staring he goes for my chains and attaches them to the horn.

    ¡°You might want to pull your hair back.¡± He says as he drops his gaze, providing some cover to his reddening face.

    I roll my eyes. ¡°And how am I to do that?¡± He looks at me and I look pointedly at the cuffs. He sighs and grabs a leather strip tied around my wrist. He leans in as he starts pulling my hair back. I can smell smoke, sweat, and pineing off of him. There is a lightyer of hair speckled across his chest, from what I can see. I can also tell he¡¯s very well-muscled.

    When he pulls back my eyes are forward, staring straight at the smoothly scaled neck of Alienis. Why was I just checking him out? He hesitates and then sighs as he hops down. He climbs up Gracial¡¯s saddle without needing assistance from her. Show off.

    ¡°We¡¯ll be at Morningswood in three hours. Don¡¯t worry about holding on. Alienis will not allow you to fall.¡± He then chuckles darkly as I gulp and widen my eyes. I didn¡¯t think that was a possibility until now. I look down and nearly scream. I¡¯m so high up. My entire body starts sweating as I try to keep my lungs from hyperventting. Now is not the time to have the chance of fainting.

    Alienis looks up and takes off. My stomach drops as I bite my lip so not to scream or I might vomit. I bend down and grab hold of the horn as best I can. I close my eyes so I cannot look down. I can feel the wind blowing past me as Alienis¡¯s head separates the harsh air from me.

    <i>¡°You okay back there?¡± </i>Alienis asks. I can¡¯t open my mouth to answer. I¡¯m so scared to open my eyes and see nothing below me. This is not a good calling for me. They had to have screwed up somewhere when making this decision. Hopefully, I can reverse it.

    ¡°She¡¯s fine!¡± Trayvon shouts back. ¡°Just don¡¯t be surprised if you feel something warm on your back.¡± I¡¯d snap something back but I¡¯m at the point that I feel sick. This is not good. How long did Trayvon say we had? Three hellish hours of this. Please kill me now so I don¡¯t have to do this again.

 Chapter Six

    Eventuallyying down only made me feel more nauseous so I just sat up and kept my eyes closed. Trayvon would asionally try to encourage me to open my eyes. All I did was just remain sitting straight up and try my best not to think of how high up I am.

    All was going great until Alienis warned me that we are about to start our descent. He then chuckles and drops. I scream as I squeeze the horn tighter. My organs are trying to escape my body through my mouth. Butterflies and adrenaline mix through my system, creating an exhrating rush. I can hear Trayvonughing as a smile spreads over my face. Okay, that was fun.

    I hear people as my body begins to jolt back. Alienis has straightened his body as he slows his descent. <i>¡°Open your eyes little one.¡±</i> He says to me as he pumps his wings.

    Slowly I open them and look around. We¡¯re inside a canyond, hovering just above a teau that is pressing against a canyon wall. We are currently about two feet in the air. People are surrounding us. They wear loose-fitting clothes and pants, even the females. Some females wear pants cut off at midthigh, males cut theirs off at the knees. I see a lot of sandals and I know why. It¡¯s hot here. There are red rocks surrounding us in this canyond. Even the sand is red. It matches the majority of their hair color. Yeah, I¡¯m definitely in the South.

    They all look at me as if I am a wolf in a snake pit. Their eyes give me warnings while their bodynguage signals that I am the one who is the threat. Most of their skin is darker than mine. They vary from fair to pitch ck. The sun is a moremon urrence than in the north, that¡¯s for sure. Some of their skin is even red. Well, I hope my fair skin doesn¡¯t get burned while I¡¯m here. How long will that be?

    The ground shakes as Gracialnds next to Alienis and me. A lot of people start swarming around Trayvon and Gracial. I hear a lot of questions, mostly about me.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Trayvon chuckles after he hops off of Gracial¡¯s back. He¡¯s basking in their swarmed attention as he looks at me; admiring his catch. ¡°She¡¯s from the north, and yes she did note willingly.¡±

    ¡°How did you get that bruise on your eye?¡± Someone asks as he moves through the crowd.

    His jaw tightens as I smirk. ¡°She gave it to me.¡± A couple of peopleugh while the others just give me another once-over.

    Trayvon grins up at me. ¡°Are you going to fight me?¡±T¨ºxt ? N?velDrama.Org.

    I roll my eyes. ¡°I don¡¯t really see the point.¡± Heughs as I just notice I have an ent. Mine seems a little warmer to me than his harsh one. I¡¯m going to stick out in this town like a hairless rabbit. Alienis lowers his wing to provide a ramp. Trayvon climbs it and unlocks the chains from the saddle. He holds my waist as Alienis helps lower us further, so Trayvon can escort me to the safety of solid ground.

    Right when my feet are on the ground, I see someone in one of the buildings. That strikes me as odd since everyone is down here. Giving it a closer look, I see a man with an ocher robe holding a bow.

    ¡°Duck!¡± I yell as I fall to the ground. Right where my head had been, is Trayvon¡¯s shoulder. That¡¯s where the head of an arrow buries itself, while Trayvon gives me a look that questions my sanity. As realization crosses everyone¡¯s face, panic ensues. The dragons roar and try to provide some form of a shield for Trayvon as he swears and pulls the arrow out.

    ¡°Come on!¡± He yells as he yanks on the chain, making me choke. I get to my feet and run with him as he moves through the scattering crowd. Another arrow misses my head by inches. This guy is a good shot.

    He pulls me into a building that has been carved into the wall. He guides me through the hallway to a wooden door at the end. Trayvon pushes me in there. ¡°Stay here,¡± He orders as he locks the door.

    ¡°But I can help!¡± I yell through the wood, but it¡¯s toote. He¡¯s already gone. I swear as I kick the door. I look around. The only light is provided by a single window. A bed rests in the far corner. As I scan the room I notice something in the dark corner. Boots.

    ¡°Oh,e on!¡± I cry as I reach into my belt and pull out a blue-tipped knife. There is a lot of darkughter echoing in this room, with more than one voice. I ignore it and keep my eyes in the far corner. This is going to be difficult without much use from my hands.

    Soon hands grab my throat. Since a cor is around my neck it prevents me from being choked. I spread my arms and elbow the guy¡¯s stomach behind me as I turn into it. My arms end up hurting as theye in contact with hard muscles. He grunts as I make a second attempt and hit him in the sr plexus. I stomp my foot on his foot and spin out of his hold.

    In mid-spin, the second man grabs my chain and throws me to the floor. Pain is in my neck and wrists as they rebel against the harsh attack. I get up as I roll, dodging a knife to my heart. I spin in mid-step, stabbing the knife into one man¡¯s neck. Once out of the spin, I do a backflip. I grin as the guy watches his mate struggle for air on the ground.

    Both of them are wearing ocher robes. On his neck rests a winged crest. A circle that connects in the center with dragon wings on the right and left side of the shape. I¡¯ve never seen such a crest, but then again I am from a different country.

    He res at me and spits at the ground. ¡°You drivascar. I can kill you with a clear conscious now.¡±

    ¡°Who the hell are you guys?¡± I demand as I feel like aplete idiot. I haven¡¯t even been in this city for ten minutes and I¡¯ve already made enemies. I didn¡¯t think that was possible.

    He chuckles. ¡°You know very well who we are girly.¡±

    ¡°No, I don¡¯t,¡± I snap, exasperation clear in my words; but he was already on the move. I step out of the way and loop my arms around his head; trapping him with my chains. I pull back hard and squeeze the chains tighter around his neck. His height lifts me off the ground, giving me no other option than to hold on for dear life.

    He spins around and rams me into the wall. I tighten my hold as air is forced out of my lungs. I shake it off as he goes for a second attempt. I swing my legs back and push off against the wall. We both go sailing forward. When I stop moving my chest is on his head and his face is buried in the ground.

    I pull back on his struggling neck and stand up. ¡°Who the hell are you guys?¡± I demand as he starts wing at my arms. He¡¯s choking, his face is red. Right as his body faints the door opens. Trayvon is staring at me with his jaw ajar, and about two more people behind him.

    I re at him. ¡°I¡¯m getting really sick of people trying to kill me,¡± I say as I loosen my grip and let his unconscious body fall to the ground.

    One of the aides races forward and touches the knifed man¡¯s throat. ¡°Still breathing.¡± He reports as he pushes his long auburn locks out of his face. ¡°She missed his artery.¡±

    I roll my eyes as he races to check the one I just strangled. ¡°Still breathing.¡± He looks up at me with petrified green eyes before backing up.

    I look at a still-stunned Trayvon. ¡°How¡¯s the arm?¡±

    He looks at me, then the two men, then me. ¡°How in the name of Locksbeard did you do this?¡±

    ¡°Locksbeard?¡± I ask as a braver aidees and starts dragging the man at my feet out of the room.

    ¡°One of our-¡± He grimaces as he grabs his arm. ¡°One of our-¡± His eyes roll into the back of his head as he falls forward. I dash forward and catch him, making the two aides jump.

    ¡°Trayvon?¡± I ask as I turn him over so I can see his face. It¡¯s red. I touch it and am surprised to find it hot. I can¡¯t see any other injuries, other than the bruise on his right eye, then his arrow wound. Iy him on the ground and rip his creamed blood-stained sleeve. Other than blood I find a clear viscous substance. I sniff it and wince. It smells like mint.

    ¡°Get a healer!¡± I yell at one of the aides. I snap at the paling one, iming his attention. ¡°Get over here and hold him up.¡± They don¡¯t move. ¡°Now!¡± I yell, making them both jump. They move into action, each doing the task I gave them.

    ¡°Hold him on his side,¡± I instruct, cing the aide¡¯s hand on Trayvon¡¯s back, the other on his side. I bend down and put my lips to his wound and begin to suck. When a sharp mint taste touches my tongue I spit it out and repeat the process a couple more times until I taste just the iron hint of blood. Finally, his face starts to fade to a baked pink. I sit up and wipe his blood from my mouth.

    As soon as I sit up, the healer and a bunch of aides came into the room. The healer is blonde and skinny. She¡¯s about five foot three and has a really high voice. ¡°Michael says that Tray fainted. He said that he thinks it was poison.¡±

    ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am it was,¡± The aide holding Trayvon up says quickly. ¡°But the Northerner sucked it out.¡±

    She looks at me with wide dark eyes. ¡°What did it taste like?¡±

    ¡°Mint,¡± I answer immediately. ¡°Clear and it had a thick viscosity.¡±

    She nods and orders them to lift Trayvon to the bed. One of the aides grabs my chains; giving me a cautious look resembling one you¡¯d give a poisonous snake. I move willingly with them when three of them provide knives. I¡¯m not dumb enough to make an escape attempt with an entire city on alert. They take a lock and chain me to a ring attached to the wall. Kindly enough, they provide me with a chair, allowing me tofortably sit and observe the healer and her work.

    I watch the healer check Trayvon¡¯s pulse and count his breaths. Several times she ces a hand on his forehead. About five minutester they bring in these ck worms. She ces them on his arms and now exposed chest. I grimace. What are those things?

 Chapter Seven

    An hourter shees back in and removes a couple of dead ones and ces them in a separate jar. She then removes the live ones and puts them in the original water-filled jar they came in.

    She notices my curious look and smiles at me. ¡°Leaches,¡± she exins while she goes and sits on the bed that¡¯s across from me. ¡°Thank you for your help. If you hadn¡¯t have gotten to him, he¡¯d have been dead by the time I got here. Where did you learn how to stall poison?¡±

    I shrug. ¡°You learn a lot about poisons in my line of work. Plus, you get a lot of snake bites in the north.¡±

    ¡°What would be your line of work?¡± She seems interested in my voice. Maybe they¡¯ve never heard a northern ent. I¡¯m still having a hard time getting past their southern ones.

    I sigh. ¡°I work for the Wolves. Basically, it¡¯s an independent workforce that works to protect the Northern Districts.¡±

    She processes that and smiles at me. ¡°That¡¯s...interesting. My name is Freiah.¡±

    ¡°Katarina,¡± I say with a genuine smile. It¡¯s hard to resist her honey-toned voice. ¡°But everyone calls me Kit for short.¡±

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s nice to meet you, Kit. I can tell you¡¯ll make an excellent Dracones.¡± She sees my face grimace before I can stop it. Freiah frowns. ¡°You don¡¯t know how big of an honor this is, do you?¡±

    A small smile touches my lips as I shake my head. ¡°I¡¯m from the north. I don¡¯t know anything about dragons or have even seen one up close until today. This is all foreign to me. I apologize if Ie off as a rude or disconcerted person. I just don¡¯t know what is happening.¡±

    She smiles, making her eyes crinkle. ¡°That¡¯s okay. I understand. I do not know you or your customs as well, so I cannot expect you to know mine. I can offer help, and answer some questions if you have them.¡±

    Iugh as I give a genuine smile. I like her. ¡°Well, I am confused on some parts.¡±

    She leans in closer to me, her elbows resting on her knees. ¡°I figured. I won¡¯t answer any questions on the Dracones. Those are for Tray to solve.¡±

    I nod. ¡°Fair enough. Okay, who are the guys trying to kill me?¡±

    She sets the jars down. ¡°They are of the Adversantem. They are here to kill you and Trayvon.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    ¡°Because you are of the Dracones. Legend has it, that when the Dracones fall they shall rise to power. Since our oldest member of the Dracones diedst week, his heir was to be chosen to take his ce. However, since he held no heir, someone was chosen by him from the other world that falls just short of death¡¯s curtain. Alienis was already picked to be the new Dracones¡¯s dragon. He saw his rider in a vision. He saw you. That is how Trayvon found you.¡±

    I have a feeling for this answer. ¡°Is the man that died named Nrth?¡±

    Her eyes widened. ¡°How did you know?¡±

    ¡°A dragon told me.¡± I sigh. Well, there goes my chance of getting my revenge or finding out why he picked me out of the thousands of people in this world. ¡°Do you know why he chose someone outside of his city or country even?¡±

    She shakes her head. ¡°That I do not know. We were all surprised a Northerner was chosen. Though I suspect not nearly surprised as you.¡± I couldn¡¯t agree more. ¡°Tell me, how is it that Tray convinced you toe.¡±

    I hold up the chains. ¡°He didn¡¯t. He and someone else attacked my camp as my partner and I slept. Trayvon drugged me. I just woke up about eight hours ago.¡±

    Her brow furrows. ¡°Eight? Is that why you guys werete?¡±

    I blush a little. ¡°Well, it took him some time to track me down after I escaped.¡±

    She grins. ¡°Is that how he got that ck eye?¡±

    I shake my head. ¡°That was when he attacked my camp. The bruise on his chest is from when I escaped.¡± She looks at his chest. There is a perfect imprint of my foot on his sternum. I kicked him harder than I thought.

    Freiah startsughing. ¡°Finally, someone who can best him.¡± She looks at me. ¡°We¡¯ll get along greatly. I¡¯ll go get us some food since you must be starving.¡± She locks the door behind her. Yeah like I¡¯m going anywhere.

    Five minutester Trayvon wakes up. I just watch as his brimstone eyes slowly harden. I think to myself; what has made him so jaded? There is something in his hard face that is vulnerable, I just don¡¯t know what. He has a story that is horrifying. Something tells me that is why he seems cold, even though he acts warm and friendly with his fellow Southerners.

    His eyesnded on me when he meant them to go to the window. He grins. ¡°You didn¡¯t have to wait for me.¡±

    I roll my eyes. ¡°They¡¯re too scared of me.¡± I hold up the chains. ¡°Apparently they thought you could defend them in your sleep better than they could themselves.¡± I grin as heughs. ¡°Are you alright? Freiah says you were infected with something called Grazing.¡± She didn¡¯t. I, however, know my poisons, but I have a feeling I don¡¯t want to show that card yet.

    He nods. ¡°Just fine.¡± Before he can say anything more Freiahes in with two people. The tall skinny bald one is carrying clothes; the other is there for aide. They both stare at me as Freiah blows past them and checks on Trayvon.

    She smiles at him. ¡°d to see you survived.¡±

    He grins at her. ¡°Thanks for saving my hide again.¡±

    Sheughs. ¡°I didn¡¯t save you. Kit did.¡±

    He looks at me with surprised eyes. ¡°She did? How?¡±

    ¡°ording to Jerald, she sucked the poison out.¡±

    He looks at me and looks me over again. ¡°How did I taste?¡± Immediately he goes red as I and everyone elseughs.

    I smile. ¡°Salty.¡± I wink at him, easing some of his difort. Now we both seem weird. ¡°If you were referring to the taste of the poison it was mint.¡±

    Freiah grins. ¡°Alright, well I¡¯m going to take Kit to get changed. She has to have been in those clothes for days. Shame on you for treating her like a rabid dog Tray.¡± She looks at the aides, still balking at me. Trayvon is staring at her in delighted amusement.

    Freiah takes the keys from the frozen aides and kicks them out. ¡°Get out. All three of ya.¡± She says as she pushes Trayvon out the door. Heughs and starts to leave. Hees back and grabs the aides by the back of their shirt cors and drags them out. He snaps her a salute as he closes and locks the doors.

    Freiah smiles at me as I wonder what just happened. How can this small little girl have so much power? She unlocks the brace around my neck first. Air hits my abused neck, causing a sharp sting all around my neck.

    She frowns as she touches it, making me wince. ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s probably from when the guy grabbed the neck chain and threw me on the ground,¡± I answer with a grimace as she prods it some more with her cold hand.

    ¡°Well, it looks awful.¡± She then proceeds to take off my manacles. I gasp in relief as they fall off. Some skin has been rubbed raw and bruise marks are starting to appear on my inner wrists. More than likely from the pressure they received when I was strangling that one guy. She frowns but has me stand. Shees up to my chest. I¡¯m a total height of five foot eight. I¡¯ve noticed that Northerners are taller than Southerners.

    After this, she leads me to an adjoined room. It has a box in the middle. Overhead is a piece of metal with holes in it. I give it a curious look. What is this thing? She tells me to go into the box. Reluctantly I do.

    ¡°Now remove your clothes.¡± She says as she pulls a piece of string.

    I raise my eyebrow. ¡°Why?¡±

    Freiah giggles. ¡°To get cleaned silly. Please tell me you have showers in the north?¡±

    I shake my head. ¡°We have bathhouses. What is a shower?¡±

    Sheughs. ¡°Hot water pours from the pipe over your head. It cleans you quickly and you use less water. The used water flows into a pipe under you and goes into the ground outside. The water is also scented so you smell extra nice.¡±

    That sounds weird to me. I shrug. ¡°I¡¯ll give it a try.¡± I remove my corset first, sighing in relief as my ribs expand. Then I bend down and uce my brown knee-high boots. My feet are grateful as I set them on the cold stone. Finally, I remove my dress, and then slip off my underwear. She takes my dirty clothes and folds them before setting them on the ground.

    Freiah pulls a second string as I pull my hair loose. I yelp and jump back as water pours on my head. Freiahughs as I blush; feeling foolish. I step underneath the water flow once again. She hands me a sharp metal tool used for shaving. Ither myself in soap and proceed to carefully remove the hair for my legs and underarms. Once that is done I hand her the razor back. She hands me a brush in its ce. I brush my hair. It took forever since it¡¯s wet and severely tangled. Once it is smooth she hands me a bottle with scented liquid stuff.

    ¡°What is this?¡± I ask as I sniff it. It smells ofvender.

    ¡°Hair soap. Brielle just discovered it. It works wonders. Justther and rinse.¡±

    I nod and pour some onto my hand. Ever so carefully I rub it into my hair. It feels wonderful as bubbles begin to form in my hair. Once my hair ispletely covered I return under the shower and wash it out. She yanks on the cord, ceasing the water flow. Freiah then hands me a cloth to dry off with. I do just that and then use a second one to dry my hair.

    Once I untangle my hair again Freiah hands me a piece of clothing. It looks like the top part of a corset but with straps. I give her a confused look. She grins. ¡°It¡¯s a breastband. It¡¯s like a corset, but without it¡¯s restrictiveness on the waist.¡±

    I raise my eyebrow as I study it. It looks fragile. I pull it over my head and let the band settle under my breasts, while the cloth shields and holds them back. It feels odd, but my waist is notining since it shall be allowed to breathe.

    Freiah hands me a pair of thin, brown, cut-off pants. I pull them on. They stop at just above my midthigh.

    She frowns. ¡°The waistline is right, just not the length. I¡¯ll have Brielle fix that.¡± She hands me a white top. I pull it on. Its neckline plummets to just above the breastband. A band pulls the bottom of the shirt against my body when it gets to my waist. There is a string that weaves up my shirt. Freiah pulls it, pulling the cloth together, covering up the breastband, then ties it off in a neat bow.

    ¡°You can wear your boots. Brielle is currently out of sandals so those will have to do for now.¡± She hands them to me. Ice them up. My body sighs in relief at some familiarity. Also, the knives that have been stitched to the inside of the boots provided me with some morefort.

    Freiah smiles up at me. ¡°You look amazing. Go look in the mirror so you can see yourself.¡± She leads me to a curtain. She pulls it back, revealing a walled mirror. I stare at myself. The shirt hides my hourss body but still gives a subtle hint of it. The shorts, as Freiah, calls them, hide the top part of my legs and butt. Built-up muscles in my legs are clear as they remain taunt, though my body is rxed. My boots cover my calves, but you can still see the curve of my thick muscles. My arms are firm and look to be in perfect shape for fighting.

    My neck is long, but a clear, dark circr impression is on it from the previous abuse it had received. Ebony hair flows in soft waves to the small of my back in a triangr fashion. Thick eyshes frame violet eyes, drawing wondering eyes immediately to them. Pale pink lips rest against pale skin, making them appear darker than what they are. An oval face with a strong chin and high cheekbones make up my feminine face as thin eyebrows imply delicacy. I pull my hair back to keep it from getting in my way. This only highlights my face. I sigh. I don¡¯t like sticking out.

    Freiah grins. ¡°The wonders of a fresh shower never cease to amaze me. Now let¡¯s go get you something to eat.¡± She takes my hand and leads me out of the room. My hand looks like snow resting against sandpared to hers. I definitely stick out.

    She sticks a key in the hole and unlocks it without much of a hitch. The dark halls are deserted as we turn left once we leave the room. The smell of food makes my empty stomach churn to life. How long did Trayvon keep me asleep?

    She pushes open a wooden door. Sunlight blinds me for a split second as I hear someone gasp. That gasp is followed by dead silence as all chatter ceases. When my eyes adjust about a hundred faces are staring at me. Torches are attached to the walls, providing light when it is dark. Four long wooden tables areid out vertically on the floor. One is horizontal and short. It hosts about ten people. The ten people are old and leathered. They¡¯re looking at me with curious eyes instead of weary ones.

    Trayvon stands up with a hard mask in ce. He walks forward with his shoulders up a bit as all eyes follow him. Trayvon looks at me. After about three seconds he speaks. ¡°I¡¯m d to see you¡¯re alright, and I thank you for saving my life.¡±

    I just nod as I blush a little. Everyone is staring at me. I¡¯m used to being the wolf in the night. The observer. Not the prey.

    ¡°Alienis wants you to meet the other dragons. I¡¯ll take you there. Freiah can bring us some food.¡± He grins at me. ¡°Do I need to chain you up again?¡±

    I roll my eyes and take a step back as I assume we¡¯re turning around. He grins and motions for me to follow him. He turns and starts walking back the way he hade. Reluctantly I follow. I keep my head held high as I feel their eyes burning holes into my skin. They¡¯re more afraid of me than I am of them. I keep telling myself this, but I know that¡¯s just not true.

    Trayvon falls back to stand by my side as we exit the open ceiling dining hall through the tunnel behind the horizontal table. He has a huge smile on his face though, and I wonder why. Something¡¯s going to happen, isn¡¯t it?

 Chapter Eight

    Twenty yards out, I see a huge hole in the reddish ground. When we get to the edge I look down. It¡¯s about a hundred meters deep and fifty meters across. Holes mark the walls as a descending circr path made of wood line the wall, provided for humans to reach the bottom. Dragons of all colors and shapes fly in and out, or just circle the air. As I realize how far the ground is below, my throat closes up. The ground sinks farther into the earth as the dragons be smaller.

    I squeeze Trayvon¡¯s arm as he starts to push the small of my back to get me to move forward. He facepalms. ¡°Why on earth did Nrth choose someone afraid of heights?¡±

    ¡°Good question.¡± I squeak as I take a step back.

    He tries to soften his face. His dark red eyes turn persuasive and alluring. ¡°Come on Katarina. It won¡¯t be that bad. I promise I won¡¯t let you fall.¡±

    I shake my head, though I did feel like I wanted to go with him. ¡°I can¡¯t. I just can¡¯t.¡±

    He sighs. ¡°Look, we¡¯ll take baby steps. Okay?¡±

    I shake my head as my entire body rebels against that idea. All I can picture is falling to my death. I let go of his arm and take another step back.

    He sighs again, frustration easily heard. ¡°Okay, Kit. May I call you Kit?¡±

    I nod as I stare down at the ground.

    Trayvon grins. ¡°Great. You may call me Tray. Kit, I want you to look at me.¡± I do just that. He locks his warm eyes with mine, making it very hard to look away. In fact, I find it hard to think of something other than how unique that color is.

    He holds his hand out to me. ¡°Now take a deep, rxing breath.¡± I follow hismand as I wonder how he is doing this. ¡°Good. Now take my hand.¡±

    As I¡¯m about to my mind recalls what he¡¯s trying to get me to do. A harsh image of me falling through the air with nothing to grab onto greets me. ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± I cry as I take another step back, dropping my hand as I do so. ¡°I just can¡¯t.¡±

    Now he¡¯s no longer calm. ¡°Why is this so difficult for you?¡±

    I re at him. ¡°Ever been pushed off a cliff?¡± I demand.Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    His eyes widen. ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Then shut your mouth.¡± I snap.

    Trayvon falls silent but eventually speaks. ¡°Why were you pushed off a cliff?¡±

    I sigh. I¡¯m sick of this story getting told so I give the cliff notes. ¡°It was my first time out. I was inexperienced. Ivan messed up one of our missions. We ran and got trapped on a ledge. The bandits swarmed us. One high-kicked me as I cut his stomach, sending me over the edge. I fell for a good ten meters before I got stopped by a couple of trees.¡±

    I lift my shirt a bit to expose my belly to reveal a long scar approximately the length of it. ¡°If I hadn¡¯t of been wearing a corset it would have killed me. Spent about three weeks in the infirmary.¡±

    Trayvon falls silent but speaks after a bit. ¡°So, your boyfriend messed up quite a bit didn¡¯t he?¡± He says it jokingly. I don¡¯t think he knew what to say to that.

    I give him a confused look. ¡°Who?¡±

    Now he¡¯s confused. ¡°That Ivan guy. The one you¡¯re always with. He¡¯s not your boyfriend?¡±

    Iugh and shake my head. ¡°No, he¡¯s not my boyfriend. He¡¯s my sister¡¯s betrothed and my partner. We¡¯ve been together for six years now.¡±

    ¡°You have a sister?¡± He asks with interest.

    ¡°Yes, but I¡¯m adopted. My parents found me in an orphanage when I was three.¡± I sigh. ¡°And you had to be a jerk and kidnap me the day before I met up with her.¡±

    He frowns. ¡°I apologize then. What orphanage did youe from?¡±

    I give him a curious look. ¡°Why?¡±

    He shrugs. ¡°Just curious.¡±

    I couldn¡¯t find a reason not to answer so I did. ¡°The Ovalngam Orphanage. It¡¯s in Niphi City. In the far north by the Cunvior Mountains.¡±

    He whistles. ¡°Was it crowded?¡±

    I shake my head. ¡°More cold than anything. We always bunched around each other for warmth when the fire would go out at night.¡±

    Trayvon grimaces. ¡°How can you stand the cold and snow?¡±

    Iugh. ¡°The same way you can stand this hellish heat. You were raised with it, so you¡¯ve epted it.¡±

    He nods. ¡°True. Look where we are.¡±

    I look around and find myself at the bottom of the cavern. How did he do that? ¡°Not bad,¡± I say as I see a lot of caves that are about sixteen meters high. Trayvon grins at me as the ground begins to shake. As soon as I see a long ck face emerging from a cave in front of me I hide behind him. This just starts making himugh harder. I hit him in the back, but still, use him as a shield.

    Soon more starting from the caves. Tall ones, and some only as tall as me. Some have long, smashed-in faces, while others are either long or stumpy. I spot Alienis. He¡¯s about fifteen meters high with long ck gleaming scales on his upper body and legs. His belly and ws are white. I can see a smirk in his eyes as they dance with amusement. He¡¯s the only ck-and-white one. The others are mostly either red and ck, red with a deeper shade of red, yellow and white, or blue and green. Well like me, we both stick out.

    I yelp in surprise as I feel like a big boulder has been pressed into my back. Hot air blows as it snorts. <i>¡°This one smells like strangend.¡±</i>

    I shudder. I¡¯m not used to having a voice talk to me mentally. Trayvonughs. ¡°Very good Deliah. Kit here is from the north. We have just found her. She is to be Alienis¡¯s charge.¡±

    <i>¡°But he¡¯s so young.¡± </i>The same deep feminine voice protests.

    I look at Alienis. Young? Does that mean he is going to be getting bigger? Trayvon speaks. ¡°He is fifteen. His mind is still immature, but Nrth matched these two up. He has already seen things through her eyes. Judging by the way they both behave, it should be a good match.¡±

    I balk at the great dragon as his head dips a bit. ¡°I¡¯m older than you?¡± I demand. A round of thunderous chuckling sounds in my head as Trayvonughs as well.

    Trayvon shakes his head. ¡°No Kit. In human years Alienis was born thirty years ago. Dragons age at half the rate humans do, but they develop mentally and physically at four times the rate we do. He is the youngest in this n.¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡± I nod. I don¡¯t get it and I¡¯m not even going to ask. ¡°So why am I down here?¡±

    Tray sighs. ¡°Always with the questions. We¡¯re here for your training and so the other dragons can get a feeling for you and get to know you.¡±

    I raise my eyebrows. ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Because we protect them.¡±

    I look Alienis over with disbelieving eyes. ¡°From what? A giant?¡±

    Tray chuckles. ¡°No. We protect them from the Adversantem. They take their souls and use them for power. They also take their hide to create armor and weapons. They also believe eating their hearts will give them a dragon¡¯s strength. It¡¯s horrifying.¡± He strokes Gracial¡¯s muzzle. ¡°It sickens me when one of them fall.¡± All the dragons bow their heads in memory of the fallen. What I want to know is; who is good enough to kill a dragon?

    I give Trayvon a hard look over. He wears his burden proudly, but he¡¯d be d to shift it. I can see some have fallen, though he has done what he can to protect them; but there is something under there. A horrifying memory trying to resurface. Alienis directs his eyes at me as he sees this in my mind. He¡¯s surprised that I¡¯m this perceptive. What happened to Trayvon to make horror reach his eyes?

    Alienis nudges my back. I give him a lost look as I try to figure out what he wants. He looks at Tray and then back at me. ¡°Why do they do that?¡± I sure as night didn¡¯t know what to say. I may be perceptive but I¡¯m not sensitive.

    Tray smiles at me, but it is definitely forced. ¡°Well, it¡¯s all true. That¡¯s how. The Adversantem possess powers to harness the abilities of a dragon while the Dracones are limited.¡±

    I raise my brow once more. ¡°Limited?¡±

    Tray grins at me, back into his masked world once more. ¡°Didn¡¯t you wonder how I fought off your sleeping draft so quickly or made it to the docks? We possess powers, but I¡¯ll have to show you when I¡¯m sure you won¡¯t run.¡±

    I roll my eyes. ¡°Well then so we¡¯re nning on never.¡±

    He frowns. ¡°You¡¯re still wanting to leave?¡±

    I give him a look that questions his sanity. ¡°You took me from my home. Forced me into yournd where I¡¯ve been nearly killed three times. Where I¡¯m told I¡¯m some sort of dragon guardian. All in a matter of a few hours, and you expect me to want to stay?¡±

    He grimaces. ¡°Well, when you put it that way.¡±

 Chapter Nine

    Over the next two weeks, Trayvon sticks to me like sap off of a pine tree. He even slept in the same room as me. I couldn¡¯t even use the restroom without him waiting outside for me. He constantly drilled into me his country¡¯s history. When I wasn¡¯t looking at a book, he was training me in closebat, shooting bows from dragon back, and sword fighting from their backs as well. That is after we spent the first two days and nights trying to get me over my fear of heights.

    Today is the day Alienis is making me fly on his back without the safety of a belt. We¡¯re already in the sky. I¡¯m clinging to the horn of the saddle as I¡¯m forcing myself not to look down. Trayvon is flying below us, trying to make me see that if I fall, he¡¯ll catch me. About a half-hour into the flight, and I hit all my targets, Trayvon yells that he has to return to camp.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare leave me!¡± I yell down at him. He justughs and waves as Gracial makes a sharp U-turn. ¡°I hate you, you son of a bitch!¡± I yell at him as Itch on to Alienis¡¯s neck.

    <i>¡°Would you just calm down?¡±</i> Alienis snaps at me. <i>¡°I swear I won¡¯t let you fall, and I know you trust me. Just rx.¡±</i>

    ¡°I can¡¯t Alienis. You¡¯ve seen that night in my head. The whole story. Would you be so willing to put that faith in someone once again so quickly?¡± Still, I take a deep breath and force myself to sit up straight, for Alienis¡¯s sake.

    <i>¡°That¡¯s my girl. Now, what do you see?¡±</i>

    I look around. I see smoke. Mountains. Forests. Lakes. Rivers. And something else. ¡°Alienis look to your left. About two miles southwest. What is that? Your eyes are better than mine.¡± I try to look. All I see is smoke, brown, and gray. Trayvon has not gotten far enough into our lessons to teach me how I can see through Alienis¡¯s eyes yet. A red dot shoots out of the trees and quickly grows.

    ¡°Dragon!¡± I yell as I spot a rider. I do not know this dragon. It¡¯s not one of the n¡¯s. Alienis roars, nearly making me lose my hearing. He pumps his wings harder as I draw my bow. I am begging in my head for this unknown dragon to stay away from me. Please just be a nomad¡¯s dragon. Please.

    I fire when the red dragon below us starts shooting fireballs at us. It roars in pain as my arrow lodges into its massive eye. Despite my arrow, the dragon below us still is heading straight at us.

    ¡°Alienis climb!¡± I yell in disbelief that I actually said those words and they came from my mouth. ¡°He means to attack you from below.¡± I let loose another arrow right into his eye again. ¡°Now!¡± I yell when my arrow does not slow him.

    Alienis begins to climb. I nudge his right, so he moves to his right. The red dragon zooms past him. I nudge Alienis on his left as I touch his neck. My stomach fills with butterflies as my organs try to escape my lungs once more while he plummets toward the earth.

    ¡°Up!¡± I yell as I hit his right, narrowly avoiding the red dragon again. This time, I catch sight of its rider; and he¡¯s wearing the same damn cloak the Adversantem wear. I pull my bow and let loose an arrow into his shoulder. The arrow stays lodged there as he grunts. My eyes widen when he looks up to give me a mocking grin. It is then that Alienis¡¯s back is mmed with the back of the red dragon. I lose my grip and am knocked off the saddle.

    ¡°Alienis!¡± I scream as air whips at me. I catch sight of the red dragon moving in to bite a disoriented Alienis. It is like a second part of my brain is activated. Quickly I ready my bow and aim. The arrow flies through the air as I drop at a quicker rate. The arrow lodges in the red dragon¡¯s eye again, joining its partners from earlier. The red dragon roars and flinches, just barely missing biting Alienis¡¯s neck.

    By this time, I¡¯m halfway to the ground. Alienis is near the ground. I turn my body, so I face the ground. I spread my arms and legs wide, trying to make myself as big as possible to slow my fall. ¡°Alienis!¡± I yell, panic clear in my voice. I do not like how fast the ground is racing up to meet me.

    Alienis snaps back to our world. I know this by a strong pull on my mind. ¡°<i>Pull up!</i>¡± I yell at him through my mind. I¡¯m trying to control my breathing. Harsh wind is grabbing at my skin, trying to find a weak point in it. His wings spread wide and pulls himself up at a sharp one hundred and twenty-five degree angle. Something hard grips my waist, crushing the air out of my lungs. I cry in pain while I try to pull at the massive red ws around me.

    ¡°We got her, Malbright. Home! Before her dragon figures out how to fly again.¡± A hard voice whoops, celebrating his victory. Concerned by his words, I look down and see Alienis fumbling in his flight patterns before starting to crash again.

    ¡°Alienis!¡± I scream through my mouth and mind. ¡°<i>Pump your wings, Alienis. I know you¡¯re hurt, but I need your help.¡±</i> I risk dropping my bow as I try to figure out a way to help him. I reach through the space between my captor¡¯s ws and grab one of my blue-tipped knives from my belt. Remembering Trayvon¡¯s anatomy lesson, I stab it into the dragon¡¯s foot; right into a nerve. The dragon howls his pain and lets loose of his grip automatically. I painfully gasp as pressure is released around my lungs, and they expand in their quest for air.

    As I fall, I start being able to make out individual leaf shapes in the trees in my increasingly quick descent. I cover my face with my arms and swear in my head repeatedly. Should have stuck with being the dragon¡¯s captive. Right when I expect to meet my death, ws grab around my waist in a hard protective motion. My head snaps backward as I am pushed forward. When I lower my arms, I see white ws around me this time and breathe a sigh of relief.

    Alienis is able to fly for a few minutes before he¡¯s forced to take shelter in a cave; crashing through the mountainside to widen its entrance as his wings give out on him. He had crashednded on his back and has me cradled on top of his stomach, to cushion mynding at least. Hearing the sounds of falling rocks, I curl into a ball and manage to avoid somerge rocks that are still dropping from his rough entry.

    When everything settles, I take a steadying breath before cold realization hits me. ¡°Alienis!¡± I call through the dust clouds. All I see is smoke and darkness. His grip is loose around me and I can¡¯t feel his mind, pushing my desperation into panic. I grab his scaly w and push against it, trying to escape his grasp. Gasping anguished breaths as excruciating pain is produced from my ribs, I pull myself out of his grip and roll to the ground; knocking all air out of me. I focus on taking ragged breaths of air to keep me conscious; while I find the will to fight for my body to listen to me.

    Eventually, I push through my pain. I grab hold of a bone of Alienis¡¯s folded up wing and pull myself up. I still can¡¯t feel his mind within mine like I always do, but the expanding and contracting pattern of his ribs give mefort. I need to get help for him. Only problem is I can¡¯t breathe, and I have no idea where I am. There is wetness heard in Alienis¡¯s breath so waiting for help is not an option.

    I go to his head. His eyes are closed and there is fresh blood on his skull. I kiss his head. ¡°Wait here Alienis. I¡¯ll get help. I promise.¡± I start for the entrance, about twice as big as it once was thanks to Alienis¡¯s crashnding. I kick the rock out of the way as I bat the cloud of dust from my face.

    When outside I have to cover my face as harsh light attacks my eyes. Slowly I lower my arms and swear. I¡¯m on a steep cliff that is a hundred-meter drop at minimum. Forest is all I can see. There is no sign of the red cliffs that I havee to recognize in thisnd. Where in the name of Dawn am I? I hadn¡¯t realized I relied on Alienis this much to get us home. If I get out of this, I¡¯m making a map.

    A dark shadow covers me, giving me some relief from the blistering heat. I look up and dive to the other side of the cliff, narrowly missing a red w. I hiss in pain when I shift my arms to get them under me. The red dragon¡¯s w had sliced through my back skin like it was butter. I hear a soft thumpnd as I force myself to stand. When I look up, I see the cloaked man. His face is harsh. Green eyes sparkle in delighted sadistic amusement. A scar is on his neck while fresh blood races down his shoulder.

    The member of the Adversantem grins at me while removing his hood, revealing a bald head with a sun tattooed on it. ¡°Well done, Dracones, but this is where you fall.¡± He pulls a knife from his belt and steps toward me.

    ¡°What in the name of Dawn is wrong with you people!¡± I cry, tired of all this; resting my hands on my knees while I force myself to remain standing. I¡¯m bruised, soar, and out of breath and royally pissed. ¡°Why can¡¯t you just be like normal people and talk things out? Not kidnap people, hold them captive, and expect them to y along.¡± I straighten as anger fuels my body. The Adversantem is looking at me with pure disbelief. ¡°And this sure as night is not where I fall. This is where you die.¡±

    He barks augh. ¡°And who is going to be doing this killing? You¡¯re weak and nearly off your feet right now. If you are to survive you have no clue where to go. My fellow men surround this mountain as I speak, and more areing. You¡¯re from the north, I know that ent. You¡¯re lost in this world.¡±This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been in worse spots before.¡± I step into a defensive stance. ¡°And the North would eat your ass alive. Survival is what we do best. Now quit talking and let¡¯s go.¡± The Adversantem chuckles. He moves forward at full speed. I step quickly as I grab his wrist and twist it while pushing on his pressure point. I flip the knife out of his wrist as he spins back; catching it the moment it leaves his hand. I duck and swipe with his knife at his stomach. Blood sprays while the metal hisses at the contact, which is easily drowned out by the man¡¯s cry of pain. I duck since the man keeps going and step back. I grin at the man while he turns back to give me a re that looks like it¡¯sing from death.

    I straighten while I take a much needed breath. ¡°Told you.¡±

    His jaw goes tight, and he quickly charges at me again. I step out of the way and m his shoulder with my fist, forcing him to spin. I high-kick his chest, sending him right over the cliff. dly, I take a small moment to rest as I look around. My body tenses when I hear the distinct sound of a dragon¡¯s roar.

 Chapter Ten

    Once I realize that I do not recognize that roar, I tense. Something hard strikes my back just then. The force is enough tounch me several feet before I hit the ground, and skid toward the edge of the ledge.

    ¡°No!¡± I scream as I try to turn myself around. My body turns, slowing my progress, but it¡¯s not enough. I grab hold of the cliff while my body yanks me down. I grunt as I try to support my weight. Rock is burrowing into my hands, drawing blood. The surface I¡¯m holding is bing slippery fast. I look up to see if I can catch sight of what is about to kill me. Just up above the gray rock and between the blue sky are two fighting red dragons. I¡¯m guessing what had hit me was the tail of the Adversantem red dragon since I can see blood glinting on its spikes.

    ¡°Gracial!¡± I call when my hands start slipping. What I wouldn¡¯t give for a foothold right now. My freshly sliced back is protesting the extra weight as my back skin molds together in the middle. This is certainly not helping me breathe better either. I try to pull myself up, but my soar arms give up. Why on earth did Trayvon make me practice my archery so much today? Though I have to admit it dide in handy.

    I go for a second try. My hand slips some more when I go for an extra grip. Damn blood. I have to help Alienis. I have too. Plus, I really don¡¯t feel like falling to my death. I swear this is actually how I¡¯m going to die one of these days. Come on Kit. You can do it. My entire arm is trembling while sweat starts to be a problem and mixes in with my oozing blood. I give it one more pull. My arms drag me up while air stays trapped in my lungs.

    When my head clears the rock, I catch sight of Trayvon jumping off of Gracial¡¯s tail. I have no idea where the Adversantem¡¯s red dragon went. His eyes widen when he looks over at the edge of the cliff.

    ¡°Kit!¡± Tray yells as he races over to me. Gracial takes off just then, diving toward the ground.

    ¡°Tray, help,¡± I grunt. My arms are violently shaking. I can feel blood on the back of my legs. The cuts on my palms are now deep gashes allowing the blood to flow freely down my arms. He grabs my arm the exact moment my arms quit on me. My arm slides out of his hand as my body falls to the earth. A hard yank and a sharp sting reassure me that he has indeed caught me. I look up and see relief on his face.

    I smile up at him. Working together we pull myself up. I copse on the ground. My breathing is heavy and stings with every movement my body makes. I swear my entire being is made of split nerves right now.

    ¡°What did you think you were doing over that cliff?¡± Trayvon shouts at me.

    ¡°Enjoying the view.¡± I snap back. ¡°What did you think I was doing?¡± I wince when I feel pressure being applied to my back. ¡°I was going for help when the Adversantem showed up. Alienis is in the cave. He¡¯s hurt badly.¡±

    ¡°Not as bad as you,¡± Trayvon says as he touches my back again. ¡°Where did you get this?¡±

    ¡°From the second grab that bloody red dragon made. Now get off your ass and check on Alienis.¡± I snap as I try to push myself up.

    ¡°Easy.¡± He says as he tries to push me back down. A hitched gasp escapes me when he touches my ribs. My arms give out on me without so much as an apology, forcing me onto the ground again.

    Trayvon touches my ribs again, making me hiss. ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°Please just check on Alienis,¡± I beg, giving up for the moment. My first dragon fight and I lost miserably. Then again, I¡¯m the one that¡¯s alive.

    ¡°He¡¯s just resting. Dragons can heal themselves. They force themselves into some sort of trance and their bodies heal their injuries. Remove their toxins. Wipe away exhaustion. Heal their mental state. And so on. The Dracones can too, but it has to be learned. I¡¯ll teach you when I know you¡¯re here to stay.¡±

    I bark augh and immediately regret it. ¡°You know, I¡¯m getting really sick of being kidnapped and almost killed.¡±

    Trayvon chuckles. ¡°I know. Now-¡± he shifts to his knees ¡°how did you hurt your ribs?¡±

    ¡°The red dragon grabbed me while I was falling to the ground and squeezed a little too hard.¡± I sigh and then tell the entire story to Trayvon. ¡°The Adversantem man said that they¡¯re surrounding the mountain. We need to leave.¡± I force myself to my feet.

    ¡°What?¡± Trayvon demands and whistles loudly, making my ears ring. ¡°When did he say that?¡±

    ¡°About a minute before I kicked him off that cliff.¡± My footing is shaky at best when I take another step. We hear a high-pitched gruff cry. Tray and I snap our heads up at the exact same moment. My response is automatic when I see a red dragon that is sure as night not Gracial flying toward us. I shove Trayvon onto the ground and swear as the red foot sps around me once more. Dragon blood is on me now, mixing with mine. Trayvon is swearing and looking at the dragon with raw hatred. I¡¯m trying to loosen the dragon¡¯s grip since I can no longer breathe. Gracial is nearly setting me on fire as she blows fire at it as she flies off after us.

    A dark voice enters my mind, leaving an algid feeling behind. ¡°<i>You killed my rider Dracones. Now I shall kill you.¡± </i>The dragon loosens its grip like I wanted but also throws me. I scream out while sharp air attacks my exposed back. My body is twisting in the air while I try to find some way to control it. I do not like how every flip or twist I make I¡¯m significantly closer to the ground. This is how I die.

    On a flip something ck covers my vision. I¡¯m caught in a hard grasp as enraged shrieking fills the air. ¡°<i>I caught you little one. Just like I promised</i>.¡± Alienis¡¯s voice says in my mind. It¡¯s shaky and a little weak, but it¡¯s there. I breathe in relief. I hear a dying gurgle and feel something warm on my exposed head.T¨ºxt ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Alienisnds on the ground, slowly unfurling his w to let me out of his grip. I stay in a ball for a minute, just relishing in the luxury that is a hard surface under you. I look up and see blood on Alienis, but it isn¡¯t his. When I look up at the sky, I see Gracial slowly descending toward me, her jaw covered in blood. Freshcerations cover her body, mainly her chest. By her smirk I take it the fresh dragon blood on my head belongs to the newly dead red Adversantem dragon.

    ¡°<i>Are you alright?¡± </i>Alienis demands as he nuzzles my back. I yelp and jump when the rough scaly surface activates my pissed-off nerves.

    ¡°Fine,¡± I say through a clenched jaw. ¡°I¡¯m never flying again.¡± Alienis and Gracialugh in my head but I¡¯m dead serious. ¡°Where is Trayvon?¡± I ask to distract them. I know they mean well, but there is no such thing as a tender touch on a freshly perforated back.

    <i>¡°He¡¯sing here on foot. Trayvon is scouting the area.¡±</i> Gracial informs me. ¡°<i>Are you sure you¡¯re alright?¡±</i>

    I sigh. Dragons worry more than a new mother. ¡°Positive. I still have a lot of adrenaline in my system so I¡¯m not fully feeling my injuries.¡± I wince as I straighten my back. I¡¯m going to be in so much pain when I¡¯m fully rxed. I touch along my back and grimace. There is a cut about a half-inch deep in my back. It thins out the higher it goes, but it still hurts.

    ¡°Good job killing that dragon Gracial,¡± I say as I smile up at her. She¡¯s still looking at me like I¡¯m going to drop dead in a millisecond. ¡°Are you alright?¡± I ask when I get a close examination of her underbelly. Four-inch w marks mark her shiny white belly. I can make out a couple of bite marks. There are burned scales on her chest and back. A fresh scar is across her nose. And I thought I was in pain.

    Gracial snorts. <i>¡°This is nothing new little one. These are minor injuries for a dragon. Fatal for a human.¡±</i>

    I roll my eyes. ¡°No need to brag.¡± Alienis and Gracial bark augh. A sharp whistle splits the air, making Gracial and Alienis take off. They¡¯re answering Trayvon¡¯s call. Alienis already knows that I¡¯m refusing to ride until I at least get that belt back on his saddle. I¡¯m not falling for my near-death for the fourth time today, that is if you don¡¯t count the cliff.

    I sit down on a rotting log. Moss is covering it, so it gives a little padding from the hard surface. I raise my eyebrow when I realize something. The farther south you go the less vegetation you find. We must be close to the north. During my flights, I have figured out that the forest stops fifty miles after the border. If all I could see when riding Alienis was forest then I must be close to the border. If that is the case then I¡¯m sure I could run, but not in the shape I am in. Especially because the Adversantem are in the forest.

    I shift my weight while I stare at the soft brown/green earth. I wince when I feel like something has bitten me in my ribs. Slowly I raise my shirt, exposing my pale skin. I grimace at the brown and red pattern forming around them. It looks like ground meat. Gently I prod it, making a hiss escape my mouth when my body protests the abuse. The bruise is the entire length of my torso. No wonder it hurts to move. I can even make out the individual toes of the Adversantem¡¯s dragon. Why didn¡¯t he just crush me if he wanted to kill me? I sigh when I remember Trayvon¡¯s exnation a few days ago when I was worried Alienis might crush me when we were practicing shooting from inside a dragon¡¯s grip. It¡¯s like holding an egg in your palm and trying to break it by squeezing it. You just can¡¯t.

    I lower my shirt and examine my palms. They are covered in blood and have very deep cuts from the rock. They¡¯re stiff and nearly impossible to clench. When I stretch my hand, I feel the cuts lengthening. Looks like I¡¯m not firing a bow for a while.

    I hear thunder making me look up. Alienis and Gracial are beginning tond. Trayvon is holding onto Gracial¡¯s leg. Blood is on his hair and skin. There is a deep cut on his forearm, but that is the worst of many. What happened to him? He jumps when Gracial is ten feet off the ground, making me wince when he hits the ground. That had to hurt.

    ¡°What happened to you?¡± I ask when he limps himself over.

    Trayvon grins. ¡°Got into a fight with a couple of Adversantem. Nothing as interesting as being tossed by dragons.¡± He winks at me. ¡°But Alienis is going to have to carry you by his foot since we need to leave now.¡±

    I groan. ¡°I¡¯m getting really sick of being treated as a ball.¡±

    He chuckles. ¡°I imagine you are.¡± Trayvon then straightens. ¡°Now have you assessed your injuries?¡±

    I sigh. I hate this part. ¡°Badly damaged ribs, possibility of a few breaks. Several injured cuts on my hands. Bruised torso. Long cut on my back. And a highly heightened sense of fear of flying again. Can I please just walk?¡±

    Trayvon chuckles and shakes his head. ¡°Sorry, but giving the circumstances you should just fly with me. It wouldn¡¯t be good for your body for Alienis to carry you. I know you refuse to fly without a belt now.¡± Gracialnds, making the ground shake. I lose my bnce. Trayvon catches me while a low chuckle escapes his lips. I roll my eyes and mutter my thanks as I straighten.

    Trayvon grabs my arm and leads me onto Gracial. He sits me in front of him and buckles us both in. Slowly Gracial rises for my benefit. Trayvon leans forward slightly to grab hold of the belt to tighten it but is careful of my back. I pull my hair back and twist it in a bun so not to smack his face with my hair. There is a jerk pulling us both down when Gracial pushes off of the ground. Trayvon¡¯s head brushes my neck while he tries to avoid my back. I stiffen a little when we get a little higher. Trayvon sighs and wraps his arms around my waist to ease some of my difort. I grip his arm, so I¡¯ll feel like I have less of a chance of falling.

    When we make it back, I¡¯m already half asleep and in torturous pain. Adrenaline has finally left my system. My back is as stiff as a board and my hands are more than likely going to remain clinging to Trayvon¡¯s arm for eternity. It¡¯s dark and the city is in slumber. My body is sweating, but I¡¯m freezing.

    ¡°You okay?¡± Trayvon asks in a whisper so not to wake anyone.

    For once I shake my head with chattering teeth. ¡°I don¡¯t feel so well.¡± My speech is a bit slurred, but I think he got the message.

    ¡°Okay. Just stay here until I get to the ground.¡± He slips out of the belt but keeps a hand on my shoulder. I try to force myself to stay upright but it¡¯s a little difficult. However, I manage so he slides down to Gracial¡¯s wing. On her outstretched wing, he utches the belt. Without the added pressure I fall off. Trayvon huffs as he catches me. There is worry in his sparkling dark red eyes. He touches my cheek the exact moment his eyes widen. Quickly he starts to run while I try to keep my worn body aware. I see the caring opening of the red ceiling before I meet ckness.

 Chapter Eleven

    I¡¯m sweating and cannot open my eyes. Sharp,bored ragged breaths are escaping me while weight weighs me down. My entire body is shivering and begging for warmth. I can¡¯t remember what has caused this. All I want is for it to leave so I can return home. There is a slight gush of wind that caresses my face, bringing some relief. I find some muscle and manage to open my eyes.

    At first, I see a vast space filled with dying bushes and stars overhead. Surprise registers. Everything is moving away from me at a slow pace. What is going on? I search the sky and find nothing out of the ordinary. I try harder in my new search and widen my eyes at what I see. Trayvon is carrying me with a determined aspect on his vacuous face. His eyes are nk though. That worries me. Usually, they¡¯re the only thing I can ever get a good read on in his typically vacant face.

    I try to lift my head but fail miserably. I can¡¯t seem to open my mouth either. What on earth is Trayvon doing? <i>¡°Alienis?¡± </i>I try through our forged mental connection since I can still think. I can feel his presence, so I know he¡¯s awake. <i>¡°Alienis, I think there might be something wrong with Trayvon.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Kit? What is wrong?¡±</i> I¡¯m surprised at first. That wasn¡¯t Alienis¡¯s voice. It was Gracial¡¯s.

    <i>¡°He¡¯s carrying me off somewhere. I¡¯d ask him where he¡¯s going but the fever has worn me out pretty good.¡±</i> I try to open my mouth and get nowhere. <i>¡°His eyes are nk Gracial. Not his face. His eyes.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°I¡¯m on my way. Where are you?¡±</i>

    <i>¡°I have no idea, but we¡¯re leaving the n. I can¡¯t hear torches or people talking. All I hear are crickets. Can¡¯t you see where we are?¡±</i>

    <i>¡°No. I can¡¯t even feel a mental connection with him anymore. That isn¡¯t normal.¡±</i>

    As soon as Gracial said those words I try even harder. I can feel my head bounce with him when he reaches the stairs. He¡¯s definitely leaving the city. Why can¡¯t I move? Even with a fever, I should be able to talk or move an extremity. I¡¯ve never been so worn out by a fever before. Maybe if I just focus on my mouth.

    Soon I nearly give up. It feels as if I am pushing against a mountain just to move it. Finally, I can open it. ¡°Tray?¡± It¡¯s a whisper in a cracked voice. How long has it been since I used my mouth? I try again. ¡°Tray?¡± My voice is louder, but it¡¯s just below a normal level.

    His eyes snap back down to my face. A sick grin crosses his face-bringing a fresh spike of fear into my system and stops. ¡°Katarina.¡± His voice is a rasped hiss. That isn¡¯t normal. ¡°It is your time to die.¡±

    Wait what? ¡°What do you mean?¡± My voice is growing stronger, that¡¯s something.

    ¡°We control the Dracones called Trayvon now. Now it is your time to die.¡±

    ¡°Why not control me then?¡± I ask to buy some time. I have never wished so badly in my life for the ability to raise my head. Why can¡¯t I move?

    He chuckles. ¡°Your mind is stubborn and undecided. His is trained and weak. It was no effort to take control. Besides, your mind may be strong, but your body is weak for the moment. Your life shall be easily taken and used to sustain the Adversantem.¡±

    Huh? ¡°How did you do it then?¡± I ask when he starts moving. ¡°How did you take his mind?¡± I need to stall. The only question is; for how long?

    The possessed Trayvon chuckles. ¡°Magic. One of our abilities we harness from dragons is captivating weak minds. When they are under enough control, we can manipte them as we wish. Poor Trayvon didn¡¯t stand a chance.¡±

    I grimace as my wounds start making themselves known again. ¡°If that is true, then why not slit my throat as I slept? You said so yourself, I am weak. I know I wouldn¡¯t have been able to stop you.¡±

    The bad Trayvon chuckles as he starts his descent down a set of stairs that leads to our city that is nestled on top of a teau; which set I do not know. ¡°Because our Head has ordered that you be brought to him. You and Trayvon are to be sacrificed in order for your hold to be loosened over the dragons. Yours is remarkably strong for being new. In a way, I feel sorry for you. All sheltered and cozy in the north with just humans trying to kill you. You poor girl didn¡¯t know what Trayvon had taken you into.¡±

    I try to lift my head. ¡°Don¡¯t give me that bullshit that all Northerners are weak.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not saying you are weak, Katarina. I¡¯m saying you¡¯re in over your head.¡±

    I bark augh. ¡°I can agree to that.¡± I grimace as I try to lift my head again. ¡°What did you do to me?¡±

    Trayvon chuckles. ¡°Smart. You figured out it isn¡¯t your fever weakening you. I gave you a paralyzing poison called Beltrise. You won¡¯t be able to move for quite some time. I really do owe Trayvon a favor. By keeping you vulnerable, and not expanding your powers, he¡¯s made it a lot easier to capture you.¡±

    I roll my eyes. I told him keeping me undertrained woulde back and bite him on his ass. In my pain, a slight fog begins to clear. The poison is weakening. My fever must be burning it off quicker than he thought it would. I raise my hand and touch my belt. I focus on my hand alone. It shakes and is stiff and swollen. Images of my near death give aid as I grab the handle. ¡°I just have a favor to ask.¡± I request in shallow gasps.

    The dark Trayvon chuckles, still descending down the long stairs. ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°Tell your Head I said nice try.¡± I stab the knife into Trayvon¡¯s shoulder. He howls in pain and drops me. I hit the ground hard and roll down the stairs. Pain is in every inch of my being as I roll to the bottom. Eventually, Ie to a stop. I try to lift myself with my only working hand at the moment. I lift my head when I hear boots stop right in front of me.Material ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    Trayvon grins at me. I nearly swear. He¡¯s still possessed. ¡°And what was the point of that my dear Katarina?¡±

    I grin as I see Alienising at us. ¡°To stall.¡±

    Trayvon looks over his shoulder in time to see Alienis¡¯s foot. Hends, forming a cage around the still-controlled Trayvon. Trayvon swears and tries to reach for me. Alienis growls as I chuckle. My arm gives out on me, making me fall onto the cool earth. My body is still shaking uncontrobly. I need warmth or I¡¯ll freeze to death.

    ¡°<i>Are you alright little one?¡± </i>Alienis asks as he nudges my drugged and very abused body.

    I look at him and smile. ¡°Fine. That is if I don¡¯t catch my death out here. It is freezing.¡±

    I feel Alienis sniff me. He snorts and nudges my body. ¡°<i>I smell death around you little one.¡±</i>

    I chuckle. ¡°Well, I feel like death.¡± I would give the world just to be able to sleep right now. However, I feel like that is a very bad idea. That is until I know Trayvon is no longer possessed. ¡°Where is Gracial?¡±

    ¡°<i>Looking for the Adversantem that is currently controlling Trayvon.¡±</i>

    ¡°Wonderful,¡± I say with thick sarcasm. I was hoping she¡¯d be here so I could at least warm myself under her belly. That, or hitch a ride up a level or so.

    About a minuteter we hear gasping and groaninging from Trayvon. I lift my head and use my hands to lift me some. He tries pushing himself up, but Alienis presses harder. ¡°What is going on?¡± Trayvon demands. His voice is back to normal so that is a good sign.

    ¡°Trayvon?¡± I ask in an exhausted voice. His head snaps toward my voice. His eyes widen as they take me in. I smile as I see emotion in his eyes, and surprise and worry on his face. ¡°Are you alright?¡± I ask when I can think of nothing to say.

    Trayvon looks around. ¡°What? What are you doing out here? Why is Alienis pinning me to the ground?¡±

    I grin, ¡°It¡¯s really him. Let him up Alienis.¡±

    Just when I say that, I hear an angry growl. I look up to see Gracial heading this way. ¡°<i>He got away!¡±</i> She roars as shends next to me, making the ground shake; causing me to fall on my face as my arms give out on me.

    ¡°Kit!¡± Trayvon yells as Alienis lets him up. Alienis growls and sticks his neck between Trayvon and me. ¡°Alienis!¡± Trayvon protests. ¡°She needs help.¡±

    ¡°<i>Not from you Trayvon. This wouldn¡¯t have happened if you hadn¡¯t been so blinded by your worry. She¡¯d be healed by now if you had just taught her. Now, look at her. She nearly died and still might.¡±</i>

    ¡°Alienis.¡± I snap. ¡°Be nice.¡±

    ¡°<i>No, he¡¯s right,¡±</i> Gracial says as she joins in. ¡°<i>Besides, Trayvon still might be possessed by the Adversantem.¡±</i>

    ¡°He¡¯s not possessed Gracial. Alienis let him by. I need to get back inside. I¡¯ll die out here. The vultures are already beginning to circle.¡±

    ¡°<i>Katarina, you cannot be certain that he is no longer possessed,¡± </i>Gracial argues.

    ¡°I know for a fact that he isn¡¯t. And if he is, then go ahead and let him by. I¡¯ll die either way if we keep arguing.¡± Not exactly true, but I just know that he is no longer being controlled. ¡°Let him by Alienis,¡± I order. My throat is killing me.

    Trayvon holds hurt in his face as he steps around Alienis. Hees right over to me and puts a hand on my forehead. ¡°By the Gods, you¡¯re burning up. We need to get you back to the infirmary.¡±

    ¡°You might want to get yourself checked out then,¡± I say when he lifts me off the ground. My eyes are barely able to stay open.

    He nearly drops me as he hisses in pain. ¡°What happened?¡±

    My giggle is in hysterics as my heart slows. ¡°I stabbed you.¡± ckness captures my vision as a hard thump is thest thing I hear.

    <i>I meet a world of sky and stars. There is nothing around, but I do hear people talking. My mind fixates on one voice in particr. Trayvon. ¡°Breathe Kit breathe! For the love of all things holey in this world breathe! I cannot lose you. Not now. I have so much to tell you. Teach you. You can¡¯t die on me. I swear I¡¯ll teach you to heal. Just breathe!¡± An image forms before me. Trayvon shaking my shoulders as Iy in a white bed. My eyes are open, but I¡¯m covered in fresh blood from reopened wounds.</i>

    <i>¡°Katarina my dear.¡± I look around as I hear a voice that does note from my head. My eyesnd on an old man with long braided gray hair. He has a brown and green eye as he smiles, revealing missing front teeth. He wears the loose white shirt of the Morningswood n, and their brown shorts and sandals.</i>

    <i>I eye him carefully, fully aware that I¡¯m neither dead nor alive. At this moment, it is for me to choose which way to go. My body isn¡¯t that exhausted and defeated yet. ¡°Who are you?¡±</i>

    <i>There is a hearty chuckle of delight in his voice as he answers. ¡°My name is Nrth. I¡¯m the reason you are a Dracones.¡±</i>

    <i>I re at him as so many emotions run through my body, mainly anger. ¡°You have a lot of exining to do my friend.¡±</i>

    <i>He nods, expecting that. ¡°You wonder why I have chosen you. Especially when we have never met in person. Is that correct?¡±</i>

    <i>I nod. ¡°Trayvon believes that you could be my father. I find thatughable considering my father was a beat farmer that was ughtered while holding my mother¡¯s body; both killed by raiders.¡±</i>

    <i>Nrth smiles. ¡°You are correct my friend. I¡¯ve never sired a child, nor do I hold any siblings. My family¡¯s bloodline died with me. I chose you because of what I had heard.¡±</i>

    <i>I raise my eyebrow. ¡°Care to borate?¡±</i>

    <i>Nrth smirks. ¡°When a Dracones dies we have an idea of who we want to take over our position. I wanted someone hardheaded, daring, stubborn, caring, and so much more. Granted that there were many candidates, but you stuck out.</i>

    <i>¡°Why you may ask. Because out of the mass chaos going through my head, I heard what sounded like a war drums call. It was a thought-a prayer more like it-to Northerner Gods. She was thanking them for sending this angel in ck to her rescue. When I further investigated, I saw you maneuvering this girl without a word. Your thoughts were frustrated, but you wouldn¡¯t let her go. You weren¡¯t rescuing her for the coin. You were rescuing her because you genuinely hated what was happening to her. You would have taken her without her betrothed begging you to.</i>

    <i>¡°Then I heard your friend Ivan¡¯s thoughts when you returned to the camp with Princess Mytheena. He was remembering all the times your heart had almost gotten you guys killed. He wishes you were only in it for the coin like most people, but that is also what he loves about you. It is then that I heard more thoughts of you, most of your previous rescues wondering about you. Admittedly some of them were murderous thoughts toward you, but that is when I decided to choose you.¡±</i>

    <i>I re at him. ¡°Well, thanks for that. Now I¡¯m nearly dead.¡± I can feel my life draining. My fingertips tingle. My mind is telling me to choose someone, but I want answers. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you just pick someone from your city? Or even your country for that matter?¡±</i>

    <i>Nrth sighs. ¡°To be honest, most of them want the Adversantem¡¯s blood. The majority just want the title. Out of all you were open-minded. Besides, I thought having a different perspective would help a lot of people here. You¡¯ve already helped Trayvon drastically.¡±</i>

    <i>I fold my arms. ¡°Sure seems like it.¡±</i>

    <i>Nrth scoffs. ¡°By the Gods you¡¯re hardheaded. Just like I pictured. However, I didn¡¯t anticipate you giving up so quickly. You didn¡¯t evenst a month.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Well, you chose someone afraid of heights!¡± I snap at him as I straighten, taking a bit of offense to that.</i>

    <i>He chuckles. ¡°And that should matter why?¡±</i>

    <i>I shrug. ¡°It¡¯s just something you¡¯re forcing me to get over.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Are? You¡¯re going back?¡±</i>

    <i>I grin. ¡°You¡¯ve got that right.¡±</i>

    My eyes snap open as air rushes into my lungs. I see Trayvon¡¯s face fill with relief as he lifts my head and cradles me into his chest. My body is covered in sweat and blood. I¡¯m still sore beyond belief and hold a raging fever, but I¡¯m alive. I smell blood and his scent, rxing me into a deep slumber.

 Chapter Twelve

    I wake to the sound of people talking. I recognize the owners of the voices. Freiah and Trayvon are talking in hushed tones. ¡°I¡¯m telling you, Trayvon, there is nothing more I can do to help her. She¡¯s suffering from dragons¡¯ blood poisoning. I can only let her fight this off herself. You, on the other hand, can teach her to heal.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± Trayvon snaps. ¡°She¡¯s too weak. Is there any ce you can think of that can be of some help?¡±

    ¡°There is, but you¡¯re not going to like it.¡± Freiah hesitates. ¡°A town within the North District. Only one healer has been sessfully known to heal this.¡±

    It falls silent for the longest time. ¡°Where is it?¡± There is a dark undercurrent in his voice.

    ¡°Niphi City.¡± She answers. ¡°You need to take her there.¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Trayvon says quickly. ¡°Absolutely not.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s her only chance at this point Trayvon. She would have healed just fine, if not for the Beltrise the Adversantem had given her, and the infection from her wounds. It stalled her system for far too long. You¡¯re lucky that her fever burned off the Beltrise as quickly as it had.¡±

    I hear him breathe long and hard through his nose. ¡°How long does she have?¡±

    ¡°Three days at best Trayvon.¡± She falls silent and speaks when he doesn¡¯t. ¡°What is it that has you scared Tray? I¡¯ve never seen you so nervous. Are you afraid she¡¯d run?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± He sighs. ¡°I¡¯m afraid she¡¯ll stay.¡±

    That shocks me. Apparently, it had stunned Freiah as well. ¡°What do you mean by that Trayvon? Don¡¯t you want her to stay?¡±

    ¡°I do, but she¡¯s barely surviving as it is. She¡¯s been here less than a month and she¡¯s very near death.¡±

    ¡°Only because she was vulnerable. And even then, she saved herself. Your wound is testimony to that. She also held her own in the field and fought the Adversantem valiantly. She won. Her opponent is dead.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you understand Freiah? I¡¯m the one that left her. I¡¯m the one that she protected when Malbright swooped to grab us. I¡¯m the one she had to fight because I got possessed.¡± He hesitates. ¡°She told me not to leave Freiah.¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    More silence follows. ¡°You couldn¡¯t have known about the Adversantem attack Trayvon. You are not to me for this. She knew-¡± She hesitates.

    Trayvon cut her off. ¡°She knew what she was getting into?¡± His voice is now dark. ¡°That¡¯s just it Freiah, she didn¡¯t. I never took the time to exin this to her. I didn¡¯t even ask for her help. I was so obsessed with tracking her down, and bringing her back here, that I never took the time to see if she would help. To even get to know her.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean Trayvon?¡± Freiah demands. ¡°Did you even ask her name before you took her?¡±

    I hear cloth rub against the wall as someone sinks against it. ¡°No. I nearly had her outside a bandit city, but she didn¡¯t go through the city like I expected. She went through the canal. I...distracted that girl for nothing.¡± He breathes through his nose. ¡°I followed her trail and lost it in the tracks of other horses when they met up with their clients. The man I had found on the ground was no help. I followed the wrong tracks to this prince¡¯s ce.¡±

    Trayvon snorts. ¡°He thought I was surprised the shooter was a woman. I was surprised that she had made the shot.¡±

    He breathes out harder. ¡°That only motivated me more, Freiah. Her skill is legendary in thisnd of hers. People would speak of her partner Ivan, and his hand going by the name of Kit. No one knew the girl and just gave credit to Ivan. It didn¡¯t take me long to find the pattern and realize that it was Kit who did most of the stuff Ivan had supposedly pulled. Only they all believed it was this fellow by the name of Ivan. It was brilliant. She was protecting herself by shielding her name with Ivan¡¯s.¡±

    Trayvon sighs. ¡°I finally caught up to her in Maycrest, and that was by sheer luck. I overheard two blokes calling themselves Coyotes gossiping about the Wolves¡¯ involvement in Maycrest, and that Ivan was supposedly the one leading the charge.¡±

    He hesitates. ¡°I found her in this little rustic shop. She was in the attic and had just shot the king¡¯s son in the calf, exposing his ns. I had just almost captured her when she surprised me and had me pinned and drugged in seconds.¡±

    There is more silence before he speaks again. He breathes hard, trying to control something. ¡°She was wearing a mask, to blend in with the festival that had been taking ce. It was driving me mad. I had been hunting this girl for nearly a week and I couldn¡¯t even see her face. I didn¡¯t even know what this girl looked like. She just knelt over me and tried to get me to sleep,pletely calm. Her sleeping draft was strong. It was working within seconds of meeting my blood.

    ¡°I would have slept, only my obsession was driving me insane. I had to at least know this little girl is the one I am after. I knew of only one way of finding it out and asked to see her hand. Eventually, she gave it to me.¡±

    He breathes harder, it starting to grow faster. ¡°When I knew it was the Dracones I was after I went insane. Anger ran through my system, and I ripped off her mask, finally facing that faceless creature that had been causing my mind so much torment. I was going for her. I was going to take her, but her draft had won.¡±

    Trayvon gives a hardugh. ¡°You should have seen her face when she realized I escaped. She was so angry that I could see a fire in her eyes, though I was a few yards away.¡± He stops for a second. ¡°I went nearly mad with the image of her face burned into my brain Freiah. I was more than obsessed with capturing this girl. I was a man consumed with just the idea of being even close to her.

    ¡°Since she kept slipping by me, I hired a bounty hunter to help me get to her. We found them while they set up camp. I watched her every second since Iid eyes on her. I even followed her when she headed off to bathe. I very nearly took her there, but she kept looking over her shoulder as if she could sense me watching.¡±

    He stops again. ¡°I just couldn¡¯t attack her unarmed and unclothed Freiah. It didn¡¯t seem right. I was going to take her when she was heading back to the camp, but Ivan kept listening and waiting for her like a good little partner.¡± He chuckles darkly. ¡°When he left to shower, I just watched her, trying to figure out how this little girl was supposed to help us. She¡¯s valuable there yes but what about here? I remembered her in the market then, when Gracial flew overhead. She didn¡¯t hide but prepared to fight. She didn¡¯t strike though, since Gracial appeared to be flying overhead instead of providing a distraction for me to hide.¡±

    Trayvon breathes hard. ¡°I grew angry at her and myself Freiah. I had tracked her for over a week and all I could do was stare at her. My obsession had finally waned, and my anger had peaked. I wanted to kill her as I watched herpletely rxed and just sitting there stitching, just waiting for her friend to return. What did this girl have that I didn¡¯t have? What could have possibly possessed Nrth to choose her? She appeared so weak and fragile as if a girl camping with her father. There was nothing stopping me from taking her.

    ¡°It was at that point that I was going to take her, but mypanion stopped me. He wanted to wait for Ivan and im the bounty on him. So that¡¯s what we did. I watched her while we waited for her vanity-drivenpanion to return. Mypanion and I waited for them to sleep.¡±

    ¡°Trayvon,¡± Freiah warns. ¡°Do not go there.¡±

    He continued, ignoring her warning. ¡°I watched her as she slept Freiah. I wanted to kill her for a split second. The bounty hunter woke her up before I could though, not that I was going to. She fought me, even though I had given her your sleeping draft, Ilrys. She punched me and had me on the ground in seconds. If the bounty hunter hadn¡¯t shot her with a dart she¡¯d have seeded in escaping, or at least causing damage.¡±

    Trayvon licks his lips. ¡°The bounty hunter and I went our separate ways after I ced a dagger on Ivan. I was afraid of waking her. Every time she stirred; I would stick her with more Ilrys. Then I made the mistake of leaving to get some more firewood. She woke up.¡±

    He chuckles. ¡°She was terrified Freiah. She had no idea as to what was going on. No idea where she was or who I was. She didn¡¯t even know what she was for Locksbeard¡¯s sake Freiah. She didn¡¯t know what an honor this was for her. She thought this was some kind of silly club or a twisted joke yed by her friend Ivan. I tried to make here with me since I had run out of darts, but she fought me and won easily.¡±

    Trayvon chuckles darkly. ¡°She had tossed me out of the cave, so I made Gracial go after her. She escaped and I still have no idea how. I was so angry when I realized this. I started thinking that perhaps Nrth made the right choice. But I was so angry and my obsession with taming her started to grow Freiah. I needed to capture her and break her down. Make her into what I am. A broken and trained soldier, like the other Dracones before me.

    ¡°It took me hours to find her and that is only because Alienis told us where she was. He had established a link with her. They weremunicating, she could even understand Gracial in the cave, only I didn¡¯t fully realize it until then. I became angry and jealous then. I had to break her. I had to keep her with me Freiah. You have no idea what relief came through me when I found her sitting by the window that day I brought her here. Or when she had two beaten and bloody men at her feet when I realized they¡¯d have someone waiting to kill her. It wasn¡¯t because she was alive. It was because I could still break her and mold her into myself.

    ¡°Only the other day when she nearly died, before all of this mess, did I realize I hadn¡¯t been seeding. Just the opposite, she¡¯s been changing me. When she saved my life on that cliff, I realized I had done this to her. I had been so obsessed with breaking her and making her be me, that I prevented her from being able to protect herself. And yet, somehow, she is still breathing and fighting for herself. She had been so insistent that I checked on Alienis, not caring for herself. She wasn¡¯t thinking of herself or her home anymore. She was thinking of her dragon. She was ying a Dracones role without truly being one. I truly hated her there for a moment.

    ¡°It wasn¡¯t untilst night that I realized my actions were hurting her. That my anger and growing jealousy and hatred had blinded me so much that the Adversantem was able to control me. And that she, yet again, rescued herself without aid from me. I¡¯m killing her Freiah. What I am is killing her. She may be a Dracones, but she¡¯s not broken and forced into this life as I am. She still fights. Even in death she fought and came back. If she stays with me, Freiah, I¡¯ll get her killed. Her only chance of survival from the Adversantem, and me, is to stay in the north.¡±

    Freiah slightly hesitates before speaking. ¡°You realize your actions Trayvon. That is what is important.¡±

    ¡°You asked me if I even asked her, her name, Freiah, before I took her,¡± Trayvon says in a hard tone. ¡°I hadn¡¯t. I knew who she was, but she never knew who I was until she was mine.¡± I hear him stand. ¡°I¡¯ll get the dragons ready. We¡¯ll leave at first light.¡± I then hear a set of feet stomping off, whom I assume is Trayvon. I hear Freiah sigh and walk away in the opposite direction.

    I sigh and look at the ceiling. Looks like I¡¯m going home, and I have a lot to think about.

 Chapter Thirteen

    I wake in and out of a broken mind. The first thing I was aware of was Trayvon lifting me off the bed. He just shushed me and closed my eyes. Once my mind registered darkness I fell asleep again. The other time was waking in midflight. Trayvon holds me against his chest, my face facing over my shoulder while the nket wrapped over my head protects me from the wind. Alienis soothes me and tells me I am fine. It is then that he exins what is happening to me and promises to keep me safe. I fall asleep as he hums a luby in his head.

    I wake to the smell of smoke. I pull myself up automatically, trying to find the source for the burning wood. Trayvon looks up and smiles as I rx. ¡°Where are we?¡± I ask. I try to lift myself, but my arms are weak and shake beneath my weight. Hees over and helps me sit up. He rests me against a log. I cock my head as I see blood on his shirt. ¡°And where did thate from?¡±

    He looks down and chuckles. ¡°You.¡± He walks back to the fire. ¡°Your blood does not seem to like being in its body.¡± He walks over to me with some water. Carefully he tips my head back. It isn¡¯t until the water hit my lips, that I realized I was so thirsty. I cough as ites pouring too fast. He eases up. My eyes are watering as my lips retain some moisture.

    I look at him. His clothes are ripped and his hair is a mess. His face holds morning fur while dark crescents decorate his eyes. How long has it been since he slept? How long have I slept? I¡¯m so stiff. I shake my head and blink hard, trying to straighten myself out. ¡°Where are we?¡±

    He sets the waterskin down and walks to the far corner of the camp, behind me so I cannot see him. ¡°Glendale. Well, ten miles from it.¡±

    I try to think through my dazed haze. ¡°That¡¯s thirty miles out from Niphi City.¡± I blink and remember something about the dragon¡¯s blood poisoning. ¡°Why are we this far north?¡± I can¡¯t remember for the life of me, though I know I am the reason.

    ¡°There is a man in Niphi City who can cure you of this sickness.¡± Trayvon answers.

    I smile. ¡°Garenth,¡± I recall his smiling face and white eyes. He¡¯s been blind for years now. ¡°Did I ever tell you that Niphi is my home?¡±

    Trayvones back into the camp and hunches by the fire. He puts his hand up to it. I shift ufortably. I¡¯m sweating but my body is shaking. I can¡¯t believe it wants more warmth. ¡°You told me.¡± He hesitates. ¡°What can you tell me about Garenth?¡±

    I think about it a little too long. I want to sleep. ¡°He¡¯s about forty years by now. He¡¯s a kind and gentle man. Always had a way with nts and creatures of the like. There isn¡¯t a living spirit that dislikes this man. There is no such thing as the word enemy in his vocabry. He¡¯ll treat you as an equal, even if you are not of the same species.¡± I look at Trayvon, making him look at me. ¡°He¡¯s also a good listener, Trayvon. Whatever is weighing on your conscience he¡¯ll be d to help. His lips are sealed tighter than a priest¡¯s.¡±

    Trayvon chuckles. ¡°And what makes you believe you are any authority on who to trust?¡±

    At first, this hurts me, but I calm myself. ¡°Because of my friends Trayvon. I¡¯m alive because of them.¡±

    ¡°Do you trust me?¡± He demands, looking into the depths of the fire. For some reason, this question has angered him.

    My mind is warning me that this is a loaded question, but I can¡¯t remember why. ¡°In some areas I do.¡± He shes me a look before looking away. ¡°I trust you in battle and to be there when I have need of you Trayvon. But I do not trust you as a person. I know nothing of you, and you keep it that way on purpose. You distance yourself from me, and even your fellow nsmen. The only one you talk to is Gracial and yourself. You hold something. Something dark. I can ept this. However, since you do not trust me, I cannot trust you.¡±

    Trayvon snorts. ¡°As if you¡¯re an open book, Kit.¡±

    I lock eyes with him. ¡°Ask me anything.¡±

    He raises an eyebrow. ¡°What do you know about your parents?¡±

    I tried to focus on that. ¡°Not much. I was three when they died. I only really remember smoke and the smell of hay. My adoptive parents told me they died in a raider attack. They found me under a bed of hay wrapped in a nket and holding my doll.¡± I lock eyes with him again. ¡°What about you Trayvon? What do you know of your parents?¡±

    He fell silent. ¡°Just go to sleep Kit. You¡¯re tired.¡±

    It is then that I remember his conversation with Freiah. ¡°I am, more than you can imagine, however I can¡¯t.¡±

    Trayvon stands. ¡°Then I¡¯m leaving. Anything is better than your constant chattering.¡±

    ¡°No,¡± I order, making my voice strong. ¡°There is something I must tell you.¡±

    His eyes lock onto mine. ¡°What is it then? So this can be done.¡±

    I open my mouth and then cry in pain, my eyes widening. He starts running toward me, but I fall to the ground, dirt covering my cheek as it provides cushioning. I can¡¯t breathe but I hear metal. Smoke and blood keep my mind grounded while I try to make myself breathe. It¡¯sing out wet andbored. My ears start to ring, and the only sound breaking it is dragons roaring.

    I feel something hard push my shoulder, turning me onto my back. A stranger stares at me, his eyes widen, and surprise is on his face. He¡¯s young, sixteen maybe. He wears an ocher cloak, the cloak, and the pin of the Adversantem. A dagger is held in his hands, he¡¯s going to kill me. I cannot stop him, there is nothing left in me, not even a protest. The kid vanishes from view, a thick arm around his throat iming him.

    Secondster Trayvon¡¯s face appears in front of me. ¡°Kit?¡± He asks as he touches my face. ¡°Kit are you alright?¡± His arm brushes something, making me cry in pain. ¡°Kit.¡±

    I¡¯m seeing ck. I see nothing but feel everything inside my body. ¡°Don¡¯t.¡± I gasp. I can feel it. I can feel iting. ¡°Don¡¯t leave me,¡± I beg, for I do not want to go. I want to stay.

    I wake up in a dark room. Candlelight is what keeps the ceiling visible. There is a smell of herbs and oils. All kinds of oils, and some salts. I cry out, for pain is what has wakened me. Immediately a strong, callused hand pins down my shoulders as I try to fight. I search for something, anything to make sense of this. I cry again as a yank on my shoulder ims my attention.

    ¡°Hold her down.¡± A graveled voice orders. My eyes find the voice. A man with brown hair looks forward, milked eyes seeing nothing. I follow his hand and see wood sticking out of my chest. An arrow. I cough, feeling liquid on my cracked lips. ¡°Young man, answer me.¡±

    I look and there is no one behind me, not that I can see at least. I look at the man again. He¡¯s frowning. ¡°Young man?¡±

    I cough, blooding again. ¡°There¡¯s¡± I winced on jagged air. ¡°There¡¯s no one there Garenth.¡±

    His brow furrows. ¡°Do I know you?¡±

    I cough augh, coughing even harder. ¡°I should hope.¡± I breathe harder. ¡°I¡¯m Kit.¡±

    His brow furrows. ¡°But you were taken.¡±

    ¡°Well, I¡¯ve been given back.¡± I joke. I wince as his hand grabs the arrow. ¡°Even they couldn¡¯t handle me.¡±

    Garenth chuckles, then bes serious. ¡°Kit, I need to remove this arrow.¡±

    I grimace. ¡°Is the iron heated?¡± My breathing sounds like I¡¯m inhaling water.

    He grins. ¡°Yes.¡± He then hesitates. ¡°Your friend didn¡¯t say what ails you before he left so suddenly. What is wrong?¡±

    That coward. ¡°Dragon¡¯s blood poisoning.¡±

    He fell silent. ¡°I won¡¯t even ask.¡±

    I chuckle, well actually gargled on blood. ¡°Good. Now yank.¡± Garenth pushes the arrow through my shoulder, making blood pour out of my mouth as I scream. I bite my lips as he lifts me. He breaks off the head of the arrow beforeying me down again.

    Garenth covers my mouth for me as he yanks the rest of the arrow out. He reaches toward the fire, pulling out a hot iron from it. He closes my eyes as I force myself to my happy ce. It¡¯s not enough. Searing white hot pain enters my mind, beating against my already weakened mind and body. I gasp in relief when it calms and cks out, escaping the second half of treatment.

    I wake slowly. Thest thing I remember is the smells mostly. Oils and salts and herbs. I remember Garenth. I grimace, my entire body is covered in sweat. Every muscle is trembling. I feel as if a sponge has been ced inside my mouth for hours. I know for a fact that I can¡¯t even raise a finger to defend myself at this point, cing me weaker than a newborn baby deer. But the most important out of all this, is my fever has finally broken.

    I open my eyes to see a wooden ceiling. The smell of flowers assaults my nose. I roll my head to my right, sensing eyes on me. I smile when I see roses on the nightstand by my bed. Sitting in the chair next to it is my little hero. At four feet tall Garenth stares nkly at the wall, hands twisted in a knot around each other. ¡°You look like horse shit.¡± I rasp.

    He smiles. ¡°Thank Dawn you finally woke, Kit. I thought I had been talking to a corpse.¡±

    I bark augh and immediately regret it. I cough hard, bringing fresh blood, and wheeze to a calm. ¡°I should smack you for that,¡± I say as he chuckles. I frown. ¡°Where is Trayvon?¡±

    Garenth¡¯s brow furrows. ¡°Trayvon? Do you mean Ivan?¡±

    Now I¡¯m confused. ¡°No, I mean Trayvon. He¡¯s the man that brought me to you.¡±

    ¡°I beg your pardon Katarina, but the man said he is Ivan. He¡¯s sitting in the kitchen. Shall I get him for you?¡±

    ¡°What does he lo-sound like?¡± I question, staring at Garenth while he thinks this through.

    He tries to recall. ¡°Lost and dark. As if something haunts him. His tone is strict but hushed. Smokey. He also sounds tired and worried. Mostly guilty.¡±

    I close my eyes and breathe a sigh of relief. ¡°Show him in. That is my friend.¡±

    ¡°There is something wrong about him Katarina. If you believe you can help him, I advise against it.¡± He stands. ¡°But I shall do as you request.¡±

    I hesitate but speak when he reaches for the door. ¡°Can you-Can you keep my location hidden Garenth?¡±

    There is confusion in his voice. ¡°Don¡¯t you want to be found, Katarina? Don¡¯t you want them to know where you are?¡±

    More than anything. ¡°At the moment, I¡¯d rather stay hidden.¡±

    Garenth nods. ¡°That I can do for you.¡± He leaves me near silence. The only sound I hear is my ragged breathing.

    A knock on the door has me give a relieved smile. I honestly thought the coward would run. Trayvon smiles as he sticks his head inside. His eyes go hard once theynd on me. His shoulders are up, his ck shirt hiding the bottom of his chin as he does this. He¡¯s on his guard. ¡°Are you awake Kit?¡±

    I give him a half smile. ¡°It¡¯s something new I¡¯m trying out.¡±

    Trayvon chuckles as hees to stand next to me. He smiles as his dark eyes remain vacant. His hand brushes my face. ¡°You feel normal.¡± He shes a smile at me. ¡°But you still don¡¯t look normal.¡±

    I roll my eyes. ¡°Oh, haha.¡±

    He grins at me. ¡°At least you¡¯re no longer in the death fan club.¡± He sticks his hand back in his pocket. ¡°Hey Kit, what was it you wanted to tell me?¡±

    Tell him? I try to remember but it¡¯s hard to remember after the attack. ¡°I-I don¡¯t remember.¡±

    Trayvon lets out a huge sigh. ¡°I guess I¡¯ll have to wait.¡±

    I smile at him. ¡°I¡¯ll let you know when I remember, I promise.¡±

    His eyes be determined. ¡°I can help try and jog your memory if you want. We were talking about trusting each other.¡±

    I am somewhat able to recall this. ¡°I do remember needing to tell you something, but for the life of me Trayvon I can¡¯t remember much. Maybe it¡¯s the drugs in my system, or maybe it wasn¡¯t that important.¡± That didn¡¯t sound right. ¡°No, it was important.¡± That I¡¯m sure of.

    He chuckles as he looks at the ground. ¡°Listen Kit, Alienis, and Gracial headed back to Morningswood a few days ago.¡±

    This confuses me. ¡°Why?¡±

    He looks away. ¡°They¡¯re meeting me there.¡±

    So soon? ¡°When are we leaving?¡±

    He looks at the floor. ¡°<i>We¡¯re</i> not Katarina. I am. I just wanted to say goodbye.¡± He runs out the door before I can say anything or react. I¡¯m shocked. Why did he just leave me? I try to lift myself up.

    ¡°Trayvon!¡± I yell after him, suddenly recalling what I had to tell him. I try to go after him, but I fall onto the floor. I cry out as my battered body delivers anguishing revenge. I suck it up and get my swollen hands under me. When my top half is lifted, I hear the door creek open. Trayvon sticks his head in as I lift my head.T¨ºxt ? N?velDrama.Org.

    I lock eyes with him. ¡°You¡¯re wrong Trayvon. You won¡¯t break me.¡±

    Surprise breaks through his face like broken ss. His eyes are wide as they take me in. He drops his eyes. ¡°You¡¯re wrong Kit.¡± He leaves, the front door mming secondster.

    Garenthes rushing in. ¡°What in Dawn happened here?¡±

    ¡°Nothing.¡± I rasp, my entire body draining of energy. ¡°Help me up, will ya?¡±

    ¡°What are you doing on the ground?¡± He demands as he sticks his arm out, trying to find me.

    ¡°I fell off the bed.¡± I gasp as my shoulder makes itsint clear. My left arm gave out on me, making me catch my full weight on my right. ¡°Ten steps forward, two to your right,¡± I tell him.

    He slowly counts and bends to help me when my body brushes his legs. ¡°Let¡¯s get you to bed.¡± Garenth helps me up onto the bed. My body falls in defeat the moment I¡¯m sitting on the bed.

    Garenth hands me a bowl. I wince when I smell tree bark and rosemary. ¡°What is this?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯ll help you sleep.¡± He helps me lift my head and puts it to my lips. dly, I drink it all; allowing myself some mercy by sumbing to a small piece of oblivion.

 Chapter Fourteen

    I wake up and feel numb. I remember everything. What was said and what wasn¡¯t. I squeeze my eyes shut. I was a fool to think I could have made a difference. Even the man who had kidnapped me didn¡¯t think I could make it.

    I open my eyes to stare at the wooden ceiling. My stomach growls, demanding food. My stomach does feel hollow, but I don¡¯t feel hungry. In fact, I feel a little sick. Pressure starts to build. Make that a lot of sick. I lean over the bed and dry heave for what has to be the longest time beforeying back on my back.

    I roll to my side and force myself to sit up. I feel a hand on my shoulder, making me look up. My eyes widen while a smile hits my face. ¡°Ivan.¡± His hair is pulled back, a dark scruff has settled over his dirty face. Bruises mark his face in a story while cuts hint toward horror. ¡°You look like shit.¡±

    Heughs, pulling me into a hug. I yelp when pain res in my shoulder, but he just squeezes tighter. ¡°I¡¯m so d you¡¯re back Kit.¡±

    I stiffen. How did he know I¡¯m back? I decide to rx and hold him. About a minuteter he still hasn¡¯t let me go. ¡°Ivan?¡± I ask, but that only makes him hold me tighter. I can¡¯t breathe and my body might just shatter with all this pressure building on split nerves. ¡°Ivan, who told you I was here?¡±

    Finally, he lets go, making me gasp as my battered sides expand. He looks me over. He looks dead tired, even his eyes have lost their spark. ¡°The Coyotes. I overheard them talking, saying that Ivan is heading to Niphi City. Since I was nowhere near Niphi City, I decided to head here. Only I ran into that bastard that had kidnapped you and I fought him.¡± He looks down. ¡°But he got away.¡± Ivan takes my hand. ¡°What happened Kit? How did you escape?¡±

    I blush, knowing what I¡¯m about to say will sound insane. ¡°The man¡¯s name is Trayvon. He took me to a city called Morningswood in the south. He brought me here when my suffering of dragon¡¯s blood poisoning became nearly fatal.¡± I rub my face, feeling rough cloth around my hands. I look at them. My swelling has gone down drastically. The cloth is clean, so I unwrap it. A long and jagged scar cuts across my palm, and another match on the right hand as well. I squeeze my hands and stretch them, wincing asionally as my skin begins to stretch.

    Ivan takes my hand and rubs a callused finger over the scar. ¡°Where did you get this Kit?¡± I look at him. He¡¯s just staring at them but there is pain in his eyes.

    I hesitate when I recognize guilt in them. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you if you promise not to do anything stupid.¡±

    He snaps his head up, looking me dead in the eye. ¡°Stupid?¡± He chuckles a little madly. ¡°No, I¡¯ll do more than that Kit. I¡¯ll kill him.¡± He squeezes my hand. ¡°For what he¡¯s done to you.¡±

    I give him a confused look. ¡°Know before you speak Ivan. I did this to myself.¡± Shock coursed through his face. I quickly exined while I dressed under the sheet, realizing now that I¡¯mpletely naked. I stood up and nearly fell over as my vision nked. Ivan caught me while I tried to get my head settled.

    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Ivan asks since I refuse to sit.

    ¡°Perfect.¡± I shake my head, my vision clearing. ¡°Just a little lightheaded.¡± I don¡¯t let go when he does. My legs are shaking and feel incredibly weak.

    Ivan seems to understand this and starts supporting most of my weight. ¡°Let¡¯s go for a walk Kit. I¡¯ll tell you what has happened since you¡¯ve been gone.¡±

    I smile, staring at the wooden floor. I¡¯m a little frustrated. I¡¯ve never been this weak before, and I¡¯m ready to go p Trayvon upside the head because of that. I¡¯m being forced to stay put by my own body. ¡°That would be nice.¡±

    Ivan and I have to duck when we enter the kitchen, the ceilinging to my bent neck. Garenth¡¯s kitchen is small, as is the rest of his house. I can see dust on top of his small wooden cabs. Garenth is resting on his table, slouched over itpletely in a deep slumber. His chairs are so tiny.

    Ivan opens the door for me, making me bury my face into his chest in the blinding light. Slowly I let my eyes adjust to the surrounding scene. The sun is rising, bringing to life this forest-invaded area. Dew brings smells of familiarity and calms me quite a bit. Birds chirp around this lone house while horses walk around freely, grazing the grassed area. I smile, feeling more at home as rounds of deja vu attack my senses.

    Ivan starts me off slowly, allowing me to decide when we move. When I took the first step he started talking. ¡°Okay Kit, I¡¯ll start off with that night. After I woke up, I was tied up in the back of a big wagon inside some straw. I only woke up because one of those sted pigs sat on me.¡± Iugh, gaining a smile from Ivan.

    He¡¯s all grins as he takes in my smile. ¡°It gets better. I fell out of the wagon when I jumped up. I fell right on my ass, right into a puddle of mud.¡± I grin as I slow our pace, my legs protesting wildly. ¡°The man I was with was a bounty hunter. He tried to fight me but I, being the fantastic human being that I am, overpowered the poor fool. I soon found out that we had been separated and the bounty hunter didn¡¯t know where you had been taken. He only knew that the red-headed kid gave him the creeps and he seemed to be obsessed with you.¡±Material ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    Ivan hesitates at this point. ¡°I told Mnie and exined everything to her.¡±

    I groan. ¡°You just had to tell her that I had been kidnapped, didn¡¯t you?¡± She is going to go insane until she knows that I am okay.

    Ivan chuckles nervously. ¡°Yeah. She just about went insane. At first, she was horrified and started crying so hard she couldn¡¯t breathe. Then when I told her I was going after you she became insistent that I stay. She couldn¡¯t handle it if she lost me as well.¡± He stops talking for a minute. ¡°We got married, Kit.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± I ask in disbelief, taking in his masked face. I¡¯m happy for him of course, but I am upset that I had missed it.

    He grimaces. ¡°She¡¯s also pregnant.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± I ask again. I¡¯m missing everything here. Stupid Trayvon.

    Ivan looks at me. ¡°She was so upset and felt so lonely, she pushed the wedding date up Kit. She didn¡¯t want to risk losing me.¡±

    I smack him yfully, then smile at him. ¡°I¡¯m d Ivan. You two will be really happy together. But what are you doing here when you should be with your pregnant wife?¡±

    He grins. ¡°We were in Marida when we heard the news of my location. She sent me ahead to see what this is about. I sent for her when I found out it was you here. She¡¯ll be here any moment.¡±

    I shake my head. ¡°How long have I been asleep?¡±

    ¡°Garenth said for a little over a week. He¡¯s kept you sedated because of your injuries. Your wounds were healing faster than he thought they would. He said you have an incredible regenerating rate.¡±

    I whistle. ¡°I did miss a lot.¡± And I missed my chance to kill Trayvon for ditching me.

    ¡°Any who, on with the tale.¡± Ivan picks up his pace so I will start moving faster. At this point, my breathing isbored, but my legs are feeling better. ¡°Moira was pissed when she heard about your capture. She called in all her contacts, even with the Trix¡¯s. Not one of them could give us details on your captor, only that he was from the south. Even her contacts from the south could pull up nothing. Eventually, shebeled you as dead, so your contract is up. Prince Derrick, of all people, was the first to rise up and volunteer for a search party when he heard of your disappearance; but Moira declined.

    ¡°What really angered Moira, is that Princess Mytheena came out and told everyone what you looked like. Your picture is posted all over the north, offering a reward to anyone with information about you. She even confessed that it was you who had rescued her from Rrth; which removed the price from my head, but now it¡¯s on yours. Once he learned that you may be in the South, he spread the word down there too. So now you have a price on your head in two countries, which is more than I can say for myself.¡±

    Ivan grins at me. ¡°And since my partner is nowbeled dead, I am now free to do as I wish. Mnie and I are opening up a shop in Marida, that¡¯s why we were there. Of course, I now have to change my name. What do you think of Eric?¡±

    I smile as I shake my head. ¡°How about Ian? It won¡¯t be that much of a change.¡±

    He considered it. ¡°No, I like Eric better. Besides, it won¡¯t be that hard to figure out Ivan from Ian, you just have to lose the V.¡±

    Iugh, feeling a little more rxed. ¡°Well, I¡¯m d everything worked out for you.¡± I wince when I trip on a rock and start falling forward.

    Ivan caught me,ughing while I straightened. ¡°I don¡¯t remember you being this graceful.¡±

    I roll my eyes. ¡°Ha ha.¡± I deadpan.

    ¡°So, what about you, Kit? What happened to you besides almost getting eaten alive by dragons?¡±

    I was about to open my mouth when a horse starteding up the drive. Mnie nearly jumped off the horse¡¯s back right when her eyesnded on me. Her red hair is being blown back as she shields her face from the raised sun. I can see her wide green eyes from here. Her pale skin matches my own, only there is a stardust ray of freckles across her cheeks. Her ck Morganes to a stop, and she is immediately off of it. She runs over and tackles me as hard as she can, mming me into Ivan¡¯s chest. It¡¯s a miracle that Ivan stayed standing.

    Mnie is crying violently as she hugs me. I can¡¯t breathe and my entire body is begging me to let her go. ¡°Never do this to me again.¡± She growls at me and squeezes me tighter.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like I intended this.¡± I gasp, trying to locate my lungs. ¡°I¡¯m seeing stars, Mnie,¡± I say when my oxygen is finally used up.

    She lets go and looks me over. Being three inches taller than me she gets to see the whole picture. ¡°Why are you in pants?¡±

    Iugh. ¡°It¡¯s what they wear in the south, Mel. I only had the clothes I was wearing, and they didn¡¯tst long.¡±

    She raises an eyebrow. She¡¯s so close I can see the gold kes in her eyes. ¡°And why is that?¡±

    I sigh. ¡°Come inside and I¡¯ll tell you the story. Ivan, you¡¯re still going to need to help me.¡±

    Mnie immediately grabs my other side to help. Ivan exins why his assistance is required. ¡°She¡¯s been here for a little over a week, Mel.¡±

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you send for me sooner?¡± She snaps at him and me.

    Ivan sighs. ¡°I just got here yesterday. She just woke up today. Garenth kept her sedated because of her injuries. They were pretty severe.¡± That just makes Mnie look me over again and holds me closer.

    When we get inside Ivan helps me sit in one of the ridiculously small chairs. Only half of my butt fits on it and my legs are to my chest. I tell all three of them the tale. Garenth woke up when we walked in. Garenth has me eat while I talk since it has been so long. My stomach couldn¡¯t be happier at this point. I have to force myself to slow down so that I do not get sick.

    The daypsed into night. Ivan and Mnie are both tired and are sleeping. I¡¯m tired but my mind is still wide awake. I wander outside, resting against the porch. I lean over it and stare at the trees. The moon highlights the trees, giving them a slight hint of silver. I can faintly make out deer. They¡¯re weary of this house, but they do not fear it enough to remain inplete hiding.

    I think about Trayvon¡¯s confessions to Freiah. I¡¯m his obsession. Not me personally but breaking me. He wants to mold me into another version of him. Was he raised into the Dracones¡¯ life? Did he have no choice but to follow? Or did something horrifying happen that forced him to shutdown any emotional bondage? That I am sure of, but Dawn help me find someone who could shed some light on this. I had tried asking Freiah. All she would tell me is that she didn¡¯t know and that Trayvon isn¡¯t originally from Morningswood. They found him nearly dead in the woods. The only reason they found him is because Gracial connected with him, picturing her rider before Nrth¡¯s partner passed on. It¡¯s rare when this happens. It means he was chosen by the Gods for this life. When his life was in danger, they made his presence and reason known. Gracial wouldn¡¯t tell me more when I asked her about this, and she hasn¡¯t told anyone else. Just like Alienis holds my secrets.

    I sigh. I miss Alienis and his cocky, patient attitude. I can still feel his presence in my mind. He is ignoring me. All he will tell me is that he is under orders to ceasemunication from me, by order of Trayvon. He doesn¡¯t know why Trayvon is doing this, but he trusts him. He believes there is a reason for Trayvon¡¯s methods, even if they¡¯re this strange.

    Why did Trayvon leave me behind? Was it for my safety? It can¡¯t be that he believes he will break me. If several near-death experiences in less than an hour didn¡¯t break me, then he surely won¡¯t. Will he? I do seem weak there. I can barely stand my ground there. I¡¯m less sure of myself and find myself constantly taken off guard. I know what I am doing here. There is nothing stopping me. I no longer am forced to work for the Wolves, though I am still considered one of them. If Moira were to find out that I am still alive, my contract would still be up. It was due for renewal the day after Maycrest.

    Trayvon wouldn¡¯t leave me if he thought it wouldn¡¯t help me. Maybe he thought this is better for me. I could barely keep up in his world. I¡¯m ahead in my world. I can keep up and fight with little worry. I know what lies here. But I want to go back. I want to fight and live in a world that holds surprises. However, I guess, since I¡¯m free to live my life, I should stick with what I know, and what I can do. I just don¡¯t want to, but I¡¯m still weak. I don¡¯t need to decide right this minute.

    A weekter my body is almost back to normal. My shoulder still hurts, but it¡¯s better than where it was a week ago. I¡¯ve talked Ivan and Mnie into leaving me, though they want me to go to Marida with them. I declined, iming shopkeeping is not the life for me, nor is city life. They left yesterday, right after Ivan told me where I could find my horse, Miny. Garenth has offered to let me stay as long as I like but I need to be going. Something is driving me to leave, though I don¡¯t know where.

    Garenthes out and finds me sitting on his porch in one of his ridiculously small chairs. He leans against the door frame, smoking his pipe. ¡°What are you thinking about Kit?¡±

    I sigh. He can always tell when someone is near, even without making a sound. ¡°What is waiting for me. Nothing seems to want me, and nothing calls for me. Though my mind might just be a little jarred since it¡¯s free to choose something to do for once.¡±

    He chuckles. ¡°That can take some getting used to.¡± He takes a long drag from his pipe before speaking, smokeing out of his mouth like a shaman. ¡°Why don¡¯t you return to your friend?¡±

    I scoff. ¡°He left me, Garenth. He does not want me near him. He believes he¡¯ll hurt me. That I am injured because of him.¡±

    Garenth considers this. ¡°Well, isn¡¯t he? If he had not taken you from your home Kit, you would not have suffered from dragon¡¯s blood. You also would not have been nearly killed. Never would you have ridden a dragon or made this friend you call Freiah. Alienis would never have been ced as your charge. You would still be with the Wolves, fighting for what is right in ournds.¡±

    I sigh. ¡°Even if he had not taken me, Garenth, I would still bebeled a Dracones. Trayvon didn¡¯t choose me for this life. I was chosen by the Dracones before me.¡±

    ¡°Then why don¡¯t you return and fight for your dragons Kit? They need you there.¡±

    Iugh. ¡°They were doing fine before I got there Garenth. From what everyone there believes, Trayvon is a god that can do no wrong, and he¡¯s the finest guardian over the dragons that they have ever had.¡± I shake my head. ¡°But I want to go back. I want to fight for them, even if I am constantly getting underfoot and hurt there. I feel at home there.¡±

    Garenth groans. ¡°Why couldn¡¯t you have just told Trayvon that?¡±

 Chapter Fifteen

    Several dayster, I find myself outside Rrth¡¯s bandit camp. Their security is noticeably tighter. Not one guard is by themselves, and their canal holds bars under the bridges. A frustrated groan silently ripples through me. It looks like Mytheena gave them the full story. I¡¯m currently hiding outside of a checkpoint, ready to execute my n. There is a wagon that is being searched by guards; who are looking for any lethal items. The wagon¡¯s contents are people, chained together in rows, who are wearing hoods to cover their heads.

    When the wagon is cleared, I crouch lower in the bushes that conceal me. My legs are killing me from being bent for so long, but my mind is in mission mode. The crisp air is keeping off sweat from my brow, the only exposed skin of my body. When the horses pass the checkpoint, I roll under the wagon, grabbing hold of the axles underneath. I lift my legs before they can make drag marks.

    The driver takes the wagon into the barn; to rest the horses and strip the prisoners. I get my knives ready when the wagones to a full stop. I let go and drop to the ground. After rolling out from underneath the wagon, I switch into a tight upright ball and wedge myself between two barrels of water. It is only when I¡¯m upright that I look at the prisoners. My eyes widen in surprise as I recognize Prince Derrick and a few of his men. I swear and wonder how Derrick even stays alive at this rate.

    I pull out a small mirror from my boot and use it to look around. I spy three guards, two handlers, and one driver. The guards are posted with careful cement; two at the entrance we entered through and one by the loft entrance near the roof. The solo one is an archer and is used to warn anyone when something bad is happening here. I swear when I spot another archer at another post in easy view across the street; watching our man here in case trouble arises. I need to kill him without him falling. This should be interesting.

    While the handlers and driver are busy with the prisoners, I decide to take out the other two guards. I slink out from the barrels and slowly work my way through an arrangement of barrels and hay. When I get close to the wall, I get down low; using the shadows the candlelight makes to my advantage. The guards are more focused on the prisoners, so they do not pay attention to what is next to them. I¡¯m close enough to the guard on the right that I can pick his pocket. I slowly stand, my knife in hand. When fully standing I slit his throat, then throw the bloody de into the head of the other guard.

    The two guards drop with a small thump. I go and retrieve my knife as I work my way around the three others on the ground. One walks off to get a knife to cut off the mens clothes. I go after the one that had separated himself from the group. When he¡¯sing back, I ce a hand over his mouth and put him in a sleeper hold. When unconscious I slice his skin with one of my blue knives; ensuring about two hours of slumber from him. His other buddy goes to find out what is taking his friend so long after a minute passes. I drug him as well, dragging both their bodies under the stairs.

    I slowly creep up the stairs, knowing I have just set the clock into motion. The archer looks bored. He¡¯s looking out the window toward a woman in the city below. The woman is running naked, getting chased by a drunken guard. I slowly stand, using the archer¡¯s back as a shield. When I¡¯m close enough, I stick my knife into his brainstem and hold him up on my own. I pull the knife out and stick it through his thick armor and pin him against the frame. I move a barrel full of tools behind him. I stick a pitchfork in his back at an angle and stick the handle in a hole in the floor, so he¡¯ll stay upright.

    Quickly, I go back down the stairs as the driver loses patience. I make little noise and leap onto him when he finds hispanions unconscious. I lock my arm around his neck while I cover his mouth and nose with my other hand. A half minuteter he falls. I give him two cuts with my blue-tipped knife and drag him with the others.

    Putting away my knives, I investigate the rest of the barn. No one is in here, except for the horses. I find Miny in the back. They tied her to two wooden posts and covered her eyes so she could not see.

    ¡°Shh,¡± I whisper when I touch her muzzle. ¡°It¡¯s alright Miny.¡± Immediately she picks her head up and lets out a loud neigh. ¡°Shh,¡± I whisper as I stroke her muzzle. ¡°You need to calm down or you¡¯ll give me away.¡± She goes quiet, letting my voice calm her. I take off the cloth they have tied around her face to blind her. Immediately her wild eyes look around, trying to find me.

    I pull down my face mask when she reels. ¡°Miny it¡¯s me.¡± She calms down and tries to bump her head against me. I smile and give her a hug after I hide my face again. I have missed her so. I untie her and lead her reins to the wagon with the ever-so-tense prisoners.

    I switch out a horse for her. Now I just need a male. One of the bolder prisoners begins talking at this point. ¡°Hello? Is anyone there? I can hear you breathing.¡±

    Lies. My breathing is silent. I walk over to the one covered in furs and yank off his hood. Derrick¡¯s eyes widen. ¡°Sweet Dawn do not kill me.¡±

    Iugh. ¡°Rx Derrick.¡± I briefly show him my face. ¡°It¡¯s me, Kit.¡±

    He looks me over. ¡°I thought you were taken to the Southern District.¡±

    I nod. ¡°I was, but now I¡¯m back.¡±

    ¡°But you are thought of as dead.¡±

    ¡°Probably a good thing.¡± Why is he in a state of shock at this point? He was in much better condition before I revealed my identity.

    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± He demands.

    ¡°When I was taken, Mytheena revealed my identity. Rrth is now after my head. Once he learned Miny is my horse, he took her in a stakes for bargaining. I need her back, and since the price for her is my head, I don¡¯t think I could get her back just by asking Rrth nicely.¡± I reach for one of my side pockets stitched into my suit. ¡°Now I need your assistance if you, and your men, want out of here.¡±

    I take the lockpick I had just grabbed from my pocket and pick his chain. ¡°I need you to drive us out of here and give me your clothes,¡± I exin that I need his clothes to disguise me since Rrth does not employ women. I switch his clothes for the driver I had just knocked unconscious and put on his. They¡¯re huge on me, and it looks like I¡¯m swimming in them.

    I sit in the back with his men and put on the cuffs that are way too big for my wrists. ¡°Now just drive us out of here and we¡¯ll be fine.¡±

    ¡°What about the others?¡± Derrick demands.

    ¡°What others?¡± I ask, truly knowing I don¡¯t have to go looking for someone else. ¡°If you think there are other prisoners, you are mistaken. Rrth takes his captives and strips them, robbing them of their dignity and everything else, before he kills them. There is a body farm not far from here where he leaves his victims. If you hold no value or use, he kills you.¡±

    Derrick looks me over. ¡°How do you know this?¡±

    ¡°Rrth was the raider that killed my parents. When I first joined the Wolves, I wanted to go after him, but Moira showed me her ns for him. Ask her about her n called Wildflower. She¡¯ll let you in on it.¡± I sh him a grin. ¡°Now let¡¯s get moving.¡± Derrick nods and puts the hood on over my head.

    The wagon jerks to a start. I keep my body straight as we bend and turn around. Derrick keeps his pace normal. I can feel the tension between the other members, especially because they are still in the dark on who is sitting next to them. All I can hear is wagon wheels against the dirt and horse hooves. People are talking and chattering, embellishing themselves in their drinks. I can hear a woman screaming, but it seems to be in pleasure rather than pain. Maybe the drunken guard finally caught the drunk woman.

    At the checkpoint, the guards look us over. ¡°What are they doing back here driver?¡±

    ¡°King Rrth demands that they be taken to his personal house. They are of Prince Derrick¡¯s men. He believes Derrick¡¯s father will pay handsomely to get him back.¡±

    The guards let out a low hmm before speaking. ¡°What about the other men then?¡±This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°The profit lies in these men too. His head of guard is here and his best fighters. The others were in in battle. He wants them toe personally to the negotiation, and y his warriors in front of Derrick¡¯s father, in order to raise the price on Derrick.¡± Derrick is good at this.

    I hear the guard take a step back. ¡°Alright, I believe ya. That is what Rrth would do. I¡¯ll send word that you areing.¡±

    ¡°Fine.¡± Derrick kicks the horses into gear, bringing a sudden jolt of relief through my body.

    Ten minutester Derrick pulls the wagon to a stop. I sigh in relief and let the cuffs slide off my wrists. I remove my hood, turning my head to see Derrick looking at me. I grin at him as I stand, sliding my arms from his sleeves, and letting his clothes drop from me. Heughs at the pile below my feet and turns his head to check for any approaching guards.

    I jump off the wagon, getting ready to start moving. ¡°Thanks for the help boys.¡±

    Derrick jumps off and grabs my arm. ¡°I can¡¯t thank you enough Kit. You saved me and my men.¡± His green eyes are brimming with gratitude as he smiles at me.

    I smile back, a little paranoid now. They should have discovered the bodies by now. ¡°You already have.¡±

    He looks away. ¡°I just wish there were more we could do for those vigers.¡±

    I put my hand on his cheek, making him look at me. ¡°That is a raider city, Derrick. It houses nothing but raiders. There is nothing human there. When you are grown you will be a fine king. Just think before you act.¡±

    He sighs. ¡°I¡¯m sixteen. I should know what I¡¯m doing.¡±

    ¡°You are young. You are to inherit a kingdom with Princess Mytheena at your side. You two have a lot to learn. Ruling a kingdom is a lot harder than most things.¡±

    Heughs. ¡°You sound like Fuller. He¡¯s the captain of our guard.¡± His eyes sparkle in an offer. ¡°He still wants to hire you.¡±

    Iugh. ¡°I¡¯m good at where I am at.¡±

    ¡°Where is Ivan?¡± He asks, remembering the first time we met.

    ¡°Ivan has retreated into retirement. Both of our contracts with the Wolves are up.¡±

    ¡°So, you¡¯re free to go where you wish?¡± A masked soldier asks,pletely enticed by my words.

    I grin. ¡°I was wondering when you would speak up Fuller.¡± I walk over there and take off the soldier¡¯s hood.

    Fuller is grinning at me. ¡°How bout it, Kit?¡±

    I shake my head, though I¡¯m tempted by his offer. ¡°I have other obligations. But I might take you up on it.¡± I wink at him while the other four soldiers try to make out my covered face. I look at Derrick. ¡°How did you get captured anyway?¡±

    Derrick blushes. ¡°I was on my way to Mytheena¡¯s kingdom when we were jumped by raiders. We woke up in chains and the wagon.¡±

    I sigh and shake my head. ¡°Rrth has a n. I¡¯m sure of it. I want you to go straight to Gunthra. When you see a man with a scarred eye, I want you to say this to him; A kitten ys with a ball of string while a raven watches nearby. He¡¯ll take you to Moira. Ask her about Wildflower. She¡¯ll need your help.¡±

    ¡°Where are you going?¡± Derrick demands as I go remove Miny from the wagon.

    I guide her to Derrick and smile at him. ¡°I¡¯m going to meet the raven.¡±

 Chapter Sixteen

    Two dayster I ride into the city. My suit is freshly washed, as am I. I ride into Gunthra with my hood and mask removed. I keep my face exposed and hair down, making it clear I¡¯m alive. The city holds bricked buildings and ground. The city is clean and in perfect order. Children y while members of the Wolves stare in hiding, eyes wide. Normal citizens just look me over since I¡¯m in such a tight-fitting outfit. My goal is to get Moira¡¯s attention.

    Right when I get to the square, shees out of the bar; her blonde hair following behind her as she shoves her way through the Wolves who have frozen in shock. I can spot her ck eyes from here on top of her snow-white skin. ¡°Kit!¡± She yells, racing for me.

    I jump down and hug her when her arms are around my waist in no time. She¡¯s shorter than me. She¡¯s five four and a lot skinnier. She¡¯s perfect for sneaking into ces and snooping around, and assassinations since she can fit into any spot. She may appear innocent, but she is the most diabolical being you can meet. If she fixes her sights on you, and you stand against her, it¡¯s like standing against a windstorm. She¡¯ll destroy everything in her path and will not be seen while she¡¯s at it.

    Moira pulls back. ¡°I thought you were lost. Where were you?¡±

    Iugh as I put my arm around her waist. ¡°Follow me inside and I¡¯ll tell you.¡± Once we¡¯re inside I tell Moira about my time away, but I refuse to give her the location. She¡¯ll go after them; I know she will. Moira knows I¡¯m protecting them, but she¡¯s not pushing it. Not today anyway. I then proceeded to warn her about Rrth and how I got Miny back.

    When I am finished, she leans back and thinks about this. ¡°Well, he has been up to something. I¡¯ve had to have someone rescue royal families from him for a week now. Only Derrick is the first group that actually made it into the castle. I have figured out a way to lure Rrth out of the castle, but it involves you.¡±

    I sigh. ¡°You already set the n into action, haven¡¯t you?¡±

    She grins and nods. ¡°Yes. How would you like to do onest job for me?¡±

    Iugh. ¡°It seems as if I have no choice. Since if I refuse, you¡¯re going to persuade me by saying I owe it to my family. He¡¯s the one that slit their throats. But before you go there just stop. You had me by asking for my help.¡±

    Moiraughs. ¡°Great. I already sent the wire to him telling him that we have you, and are willing to make a trade.¡±

    I raise my eyebrow. ¡°What are you bartering for?¡±T¨ºxt ? N?velDrama.Org.

    Sheughs. ¡°Money of course.¡±

    I roll my eyes. ¡°Well, I believe by now he¡¯s figured out it was me who stole my horse back, stole Derrick and his men back from him, and killed three of his guards. All right from under his nose.¡± Money is no obstacle to a man who truly wants your blood.

    Two dayster I have my arms tied behind my back, a gag ced in my mouth. I¡¯m in a new suit that looks identical to my old one; but my hair is pulled back and facepletely exposed, making me easily identifiable. She has me on my knees, looking at the road so it appears that she is superior to me and that I¡¯m submitting to her. Moira is wearing her Trix disguise. She¡¯s wearing a coyote mask and their crest pinned to her chest. ¡°Just rx Kit. Alright? Nothing will happen.¡±

    I scoff and roll my eyes. How about she tries being the one that¡¯s bound with a target on her head? That way I can be calm.

    Rrth and his bulbous belly are riding a white horse. He looks tired from carrying Rrth¡¯s fat ass. Rrth has two people next to him. My eyes widen and nearly want to run when I recognize the Adversantem crest on the two next to him. They are wearing a clean white shirt and crisp pants. By the way, Rrth is grinning, he¡¯s involved.

    ¡°Moira.¡± I try to shout, but ites out garbled.

    ¡°Shush!¡± She hisses and pushes me down when I try to stand.

    ¡°They¡¯re going to kill me, woman!¡± I hiss at her, though she didn¡¯t understand that either.

    ¡°I hear there is a price for this woman,¡± Moira calls. ¡°I¡¯m here to raise it.¡±

    Rrth chuckles, his other chin doing a jellied dance while he does. His voicees out thick and low, creating ripples in his neck while he talks. ¡°You¡¯ll receive the price offered Trix. A thousand gold.¡± A thousand, really?

    Moira shakes her head. ¡°We have ears King Rrth. We heard that she has also freed Derrick and his men from you, as well as stole back her stolen horse from you, without triggering an alert in your high-alert city.¡±

    His eyes narrow. ¡°Word travels fast in your world.¡±

    ¡°We know everything,¡± She hisses. ¡°Five thousand gold or I y her where she kneels. You won¡¯t receive the payment for stolen goods if I do that. By the way you¡¯re leering at her, I can guess that she¡¯s already on your mind.¡±

    Rrth choked, taken back by the raised price change. The Adversantem on his right touches his shoulder and nods. Rrth res. ¡°Fine.¡± He reaches into this saddlebag and tosses five huge bags of gold toward us. Rrth orders his horse forward, but the Adversantem that had his hand on his shoulder reaches into his pocket to produce a knife. He stabs Rrth in the back of the neck while the other Adversantem races for us. Saw thating.

    Moira screams while I break loose of my weak ties. I rip off the gag, ¡°I told you. Run Moira!¡± I yell as a dragon roars; making the hidden horses run off. Moira remains still when she sees a ck and red dragon soar above us. I steal her bow and push her into the bushes. I dive onto the road, avoiding the grabbing hand of the Adversantem. Staying low on my feet, I ready the bow and shoot the back of the head of the Adversantem. I fire again at a new target; killing the second one.

    I ce another arrow in the bow while I get out of a kneeling crouch, listening for the sound of the dragon. All I hear is fighting men; Derrick¡¯s soldiers fighting Rrth¡¯s raiders.

    There is a roar to my left. ¡°<i>Die Dracones!¡±</i> a dark voice yells inside my head.

    ¡°Come out and I¡¯ll try!¡± I yell back, searching the skies for it. If only there weren¡¯t so many trees surrounding this road. ¡°Come on you winged coward!¡± I yell, demanding it to show itself. My heart is pounding, and adrenaline flowing quickly through my system.

    ¡°<i>Kit, are you alright?¡± </i>Alienis asks in worry since he hears my thoughts. He knows I¡¯m trying to track this dragon.

    <i>¡°Fine for now.¡±</i> I let him know in my head. I grin and fire the arrow when I see the dragon. My arrownds in its neck. <i>¡°Now if you¡¯ll excuse me, I have a dragon to kill.¡±</i> I drop to the ground, avoiding its grabbing w. Quickly, I reach up and grab one of its ws. It lifts me off the ground, nearly yanking my shoulder out of its socket.

    The dragon roars while I hold on to its w. It tries to hit me with its tail. I let go of the w and drop onto its tail, doing my best not to look at the ground. I start climbing the tail, working my way up. Wind beats furiously at me while I work my way forward. The dragon starts doing barrel rolls. I scream with fear and delight in my system while I try to hold on. The dragon flies over the battle that is taking ce below. I can see Derrick looking up, but he still looks like a dot at this height. I squeeze my eyes shut while I banish the image of me falling at this height.

    ¡°Come on Kit,¡± I say to myself. I take two knives from my thigh. I stick them in the dragon¡¯s hide, making him roar. I put them in downward angles, so I¡¯ll have less of a chance of sliding out. I slowly work my way up while he tries to shake me off.

    It¡¯s about five minutester when I reach its head. Its skull is too thick to fully prate it and reach his brain, but I can still blind him. Slowly, I take my numb hand and count calmly to myself. I remove one of the des from the dragon¡¯s head and stab it into its eyes. It screams in pain and tries to shake me. I hold on tight while blood pours from the dragon¡¯s eye. I can¡¯t pull out the knife, it¡¯s stuck in his eye.

    ¡°Well, he¡¯s going to kill me either way,¡± I mutter to myself when I find myselfcking a better idea at this point. I pull the knife I had been using to hold on out of his skull and stab it into his final eye, right into the center of it. He roars in pain, pulling his head back. My hand remains around the knife as ites out of the dragon¡¯s eye as I fall away from him; finally shaken off by the dragon. I see a curtain of ck before me. Quickly I stick the knife in it, sliding down it while the knife cuts it, severing veins and creating a huge hole in its wing.

    I start falling to the ground, knowing full well that there is nothing going to be able to catch me at this point. I turn myself around, so I can face the ground, and see if I can figure a way out of this. I see a dark circle growing over me,pletely obliterating my shadow. I look up and see the red and ck dragon picking up pace as he falls to the ground. Well, I¡¯m screwed.

    The dragon is falling faster than me, but he¡¯s slightly behind me. It is then that I get an idea. I turn on my side and curl into a ball, avoiding the dragon and its wingpletely. I stick the knife into the dragon¡¯s side again and pull myself into his side. I use the fall to help me as I pull my body from the dragon to move further up it. I yank the knife out and stab quickly into the dragon¡¯s side, only this time a little farther up. When the trees are close enough that I can make out individual branches, I know I¡¯ve run out of time to find a more obscure ce and curl into a ball around the dragon¡¯s side.

    The dragon gives an anguished howl as screams of terror sound below me. Splitting bark flies past me as he drops on top of the dense forest, breaking several thick trees. I feel us jerk to a stop. When he stops, I start sliding down from my hiding ce but am stopped by something thick. I don¡¯t care to see what it is at the moment; all I canprehend is that I¡¯m alive.

    I can feel Alienis searching my mind, though for me at the moment it ispletely nk. <i>¡°Katarina!¡±</i> Alienis yells in my head when I do not answer.

    <i>¡°I¡¯m here,¡±</i> I assure him, ¡°<i>but I¡¯ve got good news and bad news.¡±</i>

    ¡°<i>What¡¯s the good news?¡±</i>

    <i>¡°I¡¯m alive.¡± </i>I sigh as Ie out of my ball. I look and see I havended on the wing, but a tree sticking through it is propped against my back, keeping me up. Trees are sticking through the dragon, a nice thick one clearing its middle. Well, he¡¯s dead.

    <i>¡°The bad news?¡±</i> Alienis demands.

    I look down below me to see how far up I am. I see dots running on the ground. I pull back, trying to calm myself. <i>¡°I¡¯m still afraid of heights.¡±</i> How do I get out of this one?

    ¡°Kit?¡± Moira calls, running around through the wreckage, trying to see if I was counted with the dead.

    ¡°Try higher up!¡± I yell down, refusing to look down. On the bright side of this, other than being alive, I¡¯m on top of the dragon this time.

    Moira screams when she realizes what is above her and why everyone has stopped talking. ¡°What are you doing up there?¡±

    ¡°I thought I¡¯d take a break!¡± I snap. ¡°What do you think I¡¯m doing up here?¡±

    ¡°Welle down here!¡±

    ¡°You do realize who you¡¯re talking to right?¡± I am still trying to figure out what was going through my head when I decided to go for a ride. Maybe I¡¯m only scared of heights when I have to go down. I facepalm at that idea. I need help.

    ¡°Just do it, you coward.¡±

    ¡°Excuse me?¡± I demand, a little annoyed. ¡°Who is the one that just killed a dragon here? Which one of us is stuck on its damn corpse? I¡¯m not a coward.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not scared of fighting dragons, but if there is a possibility of a fall Dawn help you,¡± Moira yells up. ¡°Yeah, that makes sense.¡±

    ¡°I will hurt you, woman!¡± I shout down to her, though she¡¯s got a point. Maybe I¡¯m just incredibly irrational. Or since I¡¯m up here, aplete moron. However, I¡¯m still on the question on how to get down.

    ¡°Kit!¡± She yells at me. ¡°Get down here.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m working on it!¡± I yell down to her, standing up on some very faulty ground. If I¡¯m standing on something that has a tree as its killer, chances are I made a wrong turn somewhere along the way.

    It¡¯s a long haul, but I managed to wedge myself through the skin of the dragon¡¯s wing and the tree and begin my way down. When I get onto the ground, I have every man and woman¡¯s attention. I feel as if I have a horn growing out of my ass by the way they are looking at me. I look at Moira. ¡°And I¡¯m down.¡±

    She startsughing. ¡°I could kill you or kiss you right now.¡±

    ¡°Well, I hope it¡¯s thetter,¡± I say with a grin. ¡°Did you hide your gold?¡±

    She rolls her eyes. ¡°Yes, while you were fighting a dragon, I was hoarding away gold.¡± She pushes me yfully. ¡°I was getting the horses back and helping out down here.¡±

    Iugh. ¡°Silly question. Now that Rrth is out of the way, I¡¯m going to take a break for a bit.¡± Maybe I¡¯ll go kill Trayvon.

 Chapter Seventeen

    A weekter, I am just about to kill myself with boredom. I¡¯d head back to Morningswood, only I don¡¯t know where it is; I¡¯m sure as night not going back into that region blind. Not when everything out there is trying to kill me. I¡¯ve been trying to get Alienis¡¯s help, but he keeps saying no. He won¡¯t even tell me what Trayvon is doing. I can tell that Alienis is depressed. Trayvon is holding something over him, keeping him from me.

    There also is a problem of the Adversantem crossing the border. They¡¯re leaving everyone alone; their main focus is on me. It¡¯s bad enough to be at the point that every time I enter a city, I get ambushed, even if no one sees me. One time, while I was hiding underwater in a bathhouse, Alienis informed me that Adversantem can smell Dracones blood; even if there are no wounds. That¡¯s the only help he¡¯s given me throughout all of this, and he¡¯s cut off allmunication with me.

    I¡¯m making my way slowly south, but I¡¯ve stopped for the day. I¡¯m at the border and resting at a small fishingke. I want fresh meat for once, but the Adversantem attacks are keeping me from buying supplies. I¡¯ve been forced to wear my ck suit just to blend in. These guys are like dogs once they catch a scent. I wear the mask just to keep the smoke from my face. Miny is eating grass, a little upset with me that I have no treat to offer her.

    While my fish cooked, I clean my bow; I had gotten it as a farewell gift from Moira. It¡¯s her bow. All ck with a white wolf carved into it. Once it¡¯s polished, I check the arrows and find they are in good condition. I clean my knives and add a new dose of my sleeping draft called Bonvi. It¡¯s made of night berries and whiskey.

    After I eat, I start banging my head with the heel of my hand. I am so bored, but I have to stay awake in case of an attack. I learned that lesson the hard way. I sigh and kick out the fire. ¡°Come on Miny. We¡¯re traveling a bit more before the sun fully sets. Might as well find out what the south is like on the ground.¡± And time to get these bastards out of the north.

    I pack up and start loading her up again while she waits patiently. Sitting idle was never one of my strong suits. Maybe I should have taken Moira¡¯s offer before I left, and renewed my contract with the Wolves. I wouldn¡¯t be on this path, about to wander into and that no longer wants me, if I had. Even Alienis, who I know for a bloody fact is ignoring me; because Trayvon gave him orders to no longermunicate with me. Hisst words to me were ¡°<i>I can¡¯t Kit. Tray has told me not to and I have to do what he says. He doesn¡¯t want to hear about you anymore. He doesn¡¯t want you and neither does anyone else. You¡¯ll have to handle this on your own.¡±</i>

    If it were possible to kill someone mentally, I would have achieved that several times over by now. Why does he do this to me? Why did he kidnap me and take me back, doing everything he can to make sure that I do not return to Morningswood? He has no right to tell me what I can and cannot do. I am not going to remain standing still, waiting for something to kill me. I¡¯m going to fight and I¡¯m going to get my answers, even if I have to disappear again after them.

    Two hourster the sun has officially set. I¡¯m on edge because I do not recognize anything, and I hear wolves howling. I get off Miny and start walking her, trying to find a good ce to make camp. She¡¯s doing fine and wants to keep going, but I¡¯m tired and want to sleep.

    <i>¡°Kit help!¡±</i> A roar sounds in my head,pletely scaring me.

    I jump back and look around, no longer used to the voices in my head. ¡°Alienis?¡± I ask, feeling slightly stupid at the moment.

    <i>¡°Yes. The Adversantem attacked Trayvon. He¡¯s in the woods alone. Gracial is fighting off their dragons and I¡¯m on my way to help. He¡¯s surrounded.¡±</i>

    ¡°<i>I thought he didn¡¯t want my help,¡±</i> I mutter darkly in my head, feeling annoyed as night. I¡¯m already getting on Miny though. I¡¯ll save his butt this time.

    <i>¡°He was trying to protect you, Kit. It¡¯s hard to exin. He¡¯ll do itter. If he won¡¯t I will. Just help him.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°And how did you know I was close?¡±</i> I am seriously irritated that he can block me, but I can¡¯t block him.

    <i>¡°Kit, just go. Now.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Fine, where is the moron?¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Two miles northwest of your location.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Northwest?¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Just go.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°On my way now.¡±</i> What is he doing this far north? I¡¯m just barely across the southern border.

    Alienis helps guide me on my way to Trayvon. I can see fire and smell campfire smoke. I also hear metal and enraged cries. I get off Miny and send her off. I get my bow ready and walk in slowly, covering as much noise as I can. I see about six Adversantem standing, four dead on the ground. Trayvon is covered in blood; some his own and some not. He¡¯s breathing hard and barely able to stand. I feel a little justified at this point.

    Trayvon falls to his knee, his head low. One of the Adversantem raises his sword, ¡°Die Dracones.¡± I fire my arrow, the head burrowing into the back of the Adversantem¡¯s head. I load another arrow and fire, shooting another between the eyes. The boys start looking around, trying to identify the threat.

    I fire another arrow, killing another and drawing their attention. I chuckle darkly as I step out of the shadows. ¡°Not so fun when you¡¯re the one getting dropped in on, huh boys?¡± I fire another arrow, killing another and dwindling their numbers to two. I shoot one more before they reach me. I drop my bow as I keep one foot nted and step to the side, turning my body. The Adversantem¡¯s knife misses my middle by inches. I grab his knife and turn it into his body, ducking low so I can flip him. I¡¯m standing with his knife in my hand and he¡¯s on the floor. He rolls to his feet by the time I have turned around. I duck another swing and stand up straight, stabbing his knife into his throat on my way up since he¡¯s five foot five. And now we¡¯re down to none.

    I turn around and see Trayvon struggling to his feet. All my anger is back in waves. I walk over to him as he tries on a smile. By the time I get to him, he¡¯s on his feet. I p him across the face, bringing a sharp echo to his shocked face. ¡°Moron!¡± I cry while he rubs his cheek. I then high kick him in his chest, sending him right into a tree. ¡°Idiot!¡±

    ¡°Kit calm down.¡± Trayvon gasps, grabbing his ribs, and trying to stand.

    I remain standing where I am, keeping my body contained, but my fists are visibly shaking. ¡°Give me one reason why I should not kill you?¡± I demand. ¡°Do you know what you left me when you ran off?¡±

    ¡°I was trying to protect you.¡± He grimaces, eyes closed, and trying to breathe.

    ¡°From the Adversantem?¡± I ask in either disbelief or just for the sake of an answer. ¡°You didn¡¯t think they¡¯d cross into another country to get me or something? They did Trayvon. They¡¯ve been tracking me like a pack of wolves do to a wounded deer. I haven¡¯t had more than ten hours of sleep for a week.¡±

    ¡°I was just trying to protect you.¡± He rasps again. ¡°Please, help me up.¡±

    ¡°I cannot for I will punch you again.¡± I look away and close my eyes. I force my breath calm, clearing some red from my mind. Immediately I go straight into survival mode. ¡°And I have to get ready. There are sure to be more Adversanteming. Since the dragons are busy at the moment, we¡¯re on our own.¡±

    ¡°This was just a scouting party.¡± He tries to sit up but fails drastically. ¡°I killed the main scout before he left.¡±

    ¡°Fine,¡± I snap, ¡°but we¡¯re moving out just the same. You are in no condition to fight.¡± I go and pick up my bow. I blow a sharp whistle, summoning Miny. Shees out of the forest and follows me to Trayvon. I help him get to his feet, but it¡¯s all I can do to keep from hurting him.T¨ºxt ? N?velDrama.Org.

    I put my hand on Miny¡¯s muzzle and slowly push down. She kneels. ¡°Get on.¡±

    Trayvon shakes his head. ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°If that was a scouting party, there are more following. We need to put as much distance between us as possible.¡± Reluctantly he gets on. I raise my hand and Miny gets up. I grab her reins and start leading her into the forest.

    During the walk, I can feel Trayvon¡¯s eyes on me. I so badly want to hurt him, just like the way he hurt me. He not only showed ack of confidence in me, but he basically called me useless and weak. He left me in a vulnerable position and gave me no say in his decision, or even grounds to argue. He left me on the ground for Dawn¡¯s sake. He didn¡¯t even leave me a message and gave orders for Alienis to ignore me and cease allmunication. Even Gracial.

    ¡°Kit,¡± Trayvon starts.

    ¡°Shh.¡± I hiss, hearing a branch break.

    ¡°No, you need to listen to me.¡±

    ¡°I said shut up.¡± I snap in a hushed voice. ¡°We¡¯re not out of the woods yet.¡± I pull Miny behind a thick tree. I motion for her to stay and then start climbing the tree. I see torches. Three Adversantem walk below, knives at the ready. Ah, the party reporting since the scouting party didn¡¯t report back. I told Trayvon there would be more. However, I need to lead them away from here.

    I get my bow ready and fire, shooting at their feet. At their protested shouts I chuckle darkly and fire another arrow, killing the one in the middle. I jump out of the tree,nding in a crouch in front of them. ¡°Come and get me, boys.¡± I start running at that point.

    The n worked, and they started chasing after me. My n is to make it look like I am more north than south. They can already smell my scent so this should somewhat work. Plus, I need to draw out any other parties that are out there. When I lead them back to the camp where I had found Trayvon, I kill them both. An arrow to the heart of one and a knife to the head of the other. When I pull my knife out of the head of thest boy, I hear dragons growling. Time to get moving.

    I climb the tree and jump from one tree to another, trying my best to avoid the ground in this thick forest. When it starts thinning out, I take to the ground, hoping that will stall them for a bit. I make Trayvon jump when I pull on Miny¡¯s reins. He hadn¡¯t heard me.

    ¡°Kit, will you listen to me now?¡± Trayvon demands.

    ¡°Shh.¡± I hiss. ¡°I need to hear. We¡¯re still being tracked. I stalled them at best.¡± We hear a loud crash about thirty meters from us. ¡°Yeah, you need to go.¡± I smack Miny¡¯s rump as I hand Trayvon the reins. I¡¯m not even in the South for a full day, and there is already death trying to take me.

    I walk ahead, staying as silent as I can, my bow drawn. Alienis is down, but so is his buddy. His opponent is dead though. Three Adversantem are heading toward Alienis and the other dragon. One is holding a golden sword, the other a wooden box, and the other a scented oilmp. Now that can¡¯t be good. I fire, killing the one with the golden sword, and then the one with the box. The one holding themp starts running away. I fire a shot,nding in the back of his head.

    ¡°Alienis!¡± I call, running toward him. ¡°Alienis are you alright?¡± He¡¯s breathing hard, his eyes half open so he can see me. I touch his nose and lean over so I can kiss the top of it. ¡°Of course, you are.¡±

    He snorts, blowing hot air at me. <i>¡°What are you doing here?¡±</i>

    <i>¡°</i>Saving your hide, that¡¯s what.¡± I rub his nose and stand up. ¡°Now where is Gracial?¡±

    ¡°<i>Resting. The dragon you see next to me is thest of the Adversantem dragons. They didn¡¯t send much since there were only two dragons. We each got one.¡±</i>

    ¡°Lucky you.¡± I walk over and pick up the box. I hiss as many emotions swim through my body and drop the box. It falls to the ground, the lid opening. A sh of green light lights the entire area before it vanishes. ¡°What was that?¡± I demand.

    Alienis chuckles. <i>¡°That is a spirit box, my dear Katarina. It holds the dragon¡¯s spirit, though that box can hold many. You just released one. The sword is used to kill. Themp is to guide the spirit and trap it inside the box. Since my opponent was already dead when they got here, they were going after me.¡±</i>

    ¡°Good thing I¡¯m such a snoop then.¡± I kick the box with my foot. After a little debate, I remove one of the cloaks from the dead Adversantem and wrap up the trio¡¯s tools. ¡°You alright to fly?¡±

    In response, he lifts himself and lowers a wing. I climb on and grab hold as best I could. ¡°Just tell Trayvon to meet us by Gracial,¡± I say with a yawn. I want to go back to being bored again.

    <i>¡°She¡¯s at Eagle¡¯s Bane Rock.¡±</i>

    Iugh darkly. ¡°Of course, she is.¡± I hate that ce.

 Chapter Eighteen

    When Alienis and I finally arrive, after killing about eight more Adversantem, Trayvon is asleep on the ground inside the cave next to a fire. Gracial had picked up Trayvon and Miny, and brought them to safety, soon after I had left them. While crisp night air attacks what little exposed skin I have, Gracial gives me a warming look as Alienisnds. She snakes her enormous head to Alienis¡¯s back and starts rubbing me. It feels like sandpaper, but I still let her do it. I hug her snout and allow her to lift me onto the ground.

    <i>¡°Thank you for saving Trayvon, Kit,¡± </i>Gracial says as she licks my clothed arm. <i>¡°Why are you still hiding your face?¡±</i>

    ¡°Because I¡¯m not staying,¡± I answer as I rub her snout.

    <i>¡°What!¡±</i> Gracial and Alienis shout at the same time.

    I wince as my head echoes. I look dead center on the two dragons¡¯ heads as theye toward me. ¡°I¡¯m getting my answers and leaving. I do not need this treatment from him. I also did not deserve that treatment from you two.¡± They have nothing to say to that. I head into the cave and lean against the wall. I need distance between us if Trayvon ns to live.

    An hourter I have a foot nted against the wall with my arms folded. Anger is still raging inside me. Whenever the dragons try to talk to me it¡¯s always to speak reason. I ignore them and fixate on the red-dusted ground. Unfortunately, my eyes kept wandering to Trayvon. His white shirt is dried in sweat and covered in blood. Scars are slowly fading from his body, though sweat and dirt has forced his hair to stick to his face. And he thought I couldn¡¯t make it on my own.

    An hourter Trayvon wakes,pletely healed. He looks around, just a little bit confused at this point. ¡°Kit?¡±

    I shake my head. I need to restrain myself. ¡°You moron.¡±

    His head snaps in my direction, relief clouding his face before he can make it vanish. ¡°I am not a moron.¡± He says defensively.

    I give him a disbelieved look. ¡°Then, by all means, exin the method to your madness.¡±

    He gets up and takes a step toward me with restrained arms. I spot a secret in his eyes before he hides it. He opens his mouth, licks his lips, and closes it. He looks away. ¡°Kit.¡± He takes another step toward me half a minuteter, finally looking at me.

    I sh him a dark look. ¡°If you want to live, you better stay away.¡±

    A break in the mask crosses his eyes at that moment. ¡°What is your problem, Kit?¡± Trayvon demands. ¡°Why are you so angry that I left you?¡±

    I finally lose control of my angered tongue. I push off the wall and a sharp growl from Alienis keeps me from acting on my murderous thoughts. ¡°You want to know my problem? I¡¯ll tell you what it is. You left me when I was near death. You gave me no warning for what waited for me. Do you know how many times I was nearly killed just trying to cross the street? By Dawn¡¯s Light Trayvon, I was attacked by a dragon in broad daylight well into the northern regions.¡±

    I give him a hard look when memories try to break through. ¡°You left me broken. You left me feeling weak and useless. And you left me unprepared. But what really pisses me off, is that you threw me to the ground before you even exined to me what is going on in your little head.¡±Material ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    Trayvon¡¯s face goes nk while his body goes tight. ¡°You want to know why I left you? It¡¯s because I was saving you. I was saving you from me and this life.¡±

    I bark augh. ¡°This life followed me the moment Nrth died. It would havee for me without you. If anything, you stealing me away is probably what has kept me alive for so long. This was never about protecting me Trayvon. This was about your supposed obsession.¡± Shock breaks through his mask. A knowing smile shes on my hidden face. ¡°That¡¯s right pretty boy. I heard every word in your confession to Freiah. But I¡¯ve got news for you. You¡¯ll never break me and your worry about turning me into you will never happen.¡±

    Trayvon starts stuttering, trying to remember where he is going with this. ¡°Kit, I¡¯m sorry. Okay?¡± He tries to reach for me.

    Quick as a sh, I grab his wrist and pressure point, turning it upwards and bringing him to his knees as I re at him. ¡°No, it¡¯s not okay Trayvon. It¡¯s not okay. It¡¯s not okay that you cut off Alienis from me; and ordered him to never talk to me. It¡¯s not okay that you believe you can control me. It¡¯s not okay that you left me on a limb without even exining why I was out there. And it¡¯s not okay that you made me doubt myself and left me feeling weak and unwanted, even by you. Do you know how messed up it is, that the very person who kidnapped me, gave me back because he thought I couldn¡¯t handle the job? And know the truth right here and now Trayvon. You would have died in those woods tonight without me.¡±

    Trayvon grimaces. ¡°Look, since when did you care what I think?¡±

    A sharp pained sting stabs at my mind and chest like ss shattering. I do care. Fury entered my system at this horrifying revtion. I tighten my grip, causing him to let out a small, pained cry. ¡°I don¡¯t.¡± I let go and took a step toward the door, motioning Miny to follow me. ¡°Now goodbye.¡± I need to get out of here and clear my head. I cannot let my emotions get the better of me. I might kill him if I don¡¯t.

    I head for the entrance, but the dragons drop their heads in front of me, giving me a sharp re. I look between the two giant heads, one ck and one red. I see anger in their eyes. ¡°Let me by you two,¡± I say with a demanding tone.

    <i>¡°You are being rude and childish.¡± </i>Alienis snaps at me. <i>¡°We still need you. You are a Dracones. You fight for us. You protect us.¡±</i> He would have continued but his eyes widen and roars in pain. His mouth smacked me as it opened, sending me flying.

    Trayvon caught me as I sailed into his chest. ¡°You okay?¡± He huffs while I shake off the hard blow. He still looks tired.

    ¡°Fine,¡± I say as I stand, my hand already on my bow. Gracial and Alienis take off, two dragons following them. Are you kidding me right now? I groan in my head. ¡°Get ready,¡± I warn.

    I look and realize he¡¯s weaponless. I groan out loud. I grab Miny and take my sword from her. ¡°Here,¡± I say as I hand him my green-ded sword. He looks at it for a brief second but takes it. ¡°Now stay,¡± I tell him as I go into a deep corner, blending in well with the dark walls.

    They came two minutester. A dark chuckle enters the cave, echoing off the walls in an eerie fashion with their heavy footsteps. There are six Adversantem, all marked in their ocher cloaks and hoods covering their faces.

    The middle one leads. He¡¯s bulky and I can see a long ck goatee. ¡°Well done Trayvon. You have sessfully evaded my men and killed several. However, your efforts were in vain. My men have nearly caught up with the woman Dracones in the Northern Region. She shall fall quickly. She cannot hold her own as well as you can.¡±

    I pull the arrow back as I resist shooting this guy prematurely. Trayvon chuckles. ¡°You are delusional as always Mikal.¡± His informality makes me look quickly at him and then back at the man he called Mikal. I saw tension and forced rxation in his body. ¡°You are nowhere near close to discovering Katarina. Her life is stealth and she¡¯s very good at it.¡±

    Mikal shakes his head. ¡°From what I hear she¡¯s been spotted at Gistalt. That¡¯s thirty miles off of the border. However, she does have a habit of killing my men and then disappearing.¡± Mikal removes his hood, revealing three long scars along the side of his head. They start at the corner of his jaw and start moving upwards toward the middle of his forehead. I am betting there is a pattern matching it on the other side. The scars are white and appear to be painted that way over his tan skin. He¡¯s trying to make them stick out.

    Mikal chuckles. ¡°Did you really think you could hide her from me Trayvon? I will have her caught. She will be taken to mynds and sacrificed to our Elder Dragon. Your blood shall replenish his strength and her soul will allow him to rise to power once more. Her very Dracones soul shall heal his mind and be the downfall of the Dracones, Trayvon. I intend to make sure it happens.¡±

    Trayvon is going stiff, whatever cked muscles are now gone. He¡¯s tighter than a springboard. ¡°Knock it off Mikal. You will not take my mind again.¡±

    Mikal chuckles. ¡°A lot of good it did me then. Kit is smarter than she looks. She¡¯s also surprisingly advanced. She killed Briah without help from her dragon or anyone. She¡¯s better than you let on.¡±

    Trayvon¡¯s jaw tightens. He might snap it if he gets any more tense. ¡°You¡¯re not going to kill her Mikal.¡±

    ¡°Kill her?¡± Mikal chuckles. ¡°Not kill. Just take her soul. She has not sworn her soul to anything yet, unlike you Trayvon. Her soul is still hers and pure. Her soul will breathe life into the Elder, your blood shall strengthen him. However, it is not necessary to keep you here. I¡¯ll take your blood when we kill you.¡± What are they talking about?

    Trayvon shakes his head. ¡°You¡¯re wrong Mikal. My soul is still my own.¡±

    ¡°Am I?¡± He challenges. ¡°You swore on your very soul, to the Dracones Gods, that you would serve and protect them. In this life and the next. You were young and stupid then. Even Nrth didn¡¯t ept their terms. If I remember correctly, the deal was so Gracial would live. When you die, so would she.¡± Mikal snaps his finger as hees to a conclusion. ¡°That¡¯s why Kit had to be strongheaded. To stay away from your influence; because another part of your deal was to do your best to have the next Dracones swear loyalty. She can still walk from this life.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare use her name on friendly terms,¡± Trayvon growls.

    Mikal finds a weak spot. He grins as he speaks. ¡°She is strong. Her mind is impossible to prate. Especially when she¡¯s angry. Yours is weak. Controlled and structured. Easy to break if you find the holes. The only reason you¡¯re alive today is because <i>Kit</i> woke up and got help that day.¡± He chuckles and shakes his head. ¡°When her body is vacant she¡¯ll make an excellent puppet.¡± Mikal shes a cruel smile. ¡°If you ever try to save her you fail Trayvon. Nowe quietly. We can use you as bait.¡±

    Trayvon¡¯s entire body cries, and he falls to his knees. I fire my bow, killing apanion that had stepped next to Mikal in his action to capture Trayvon. Their heads snap in my direction. I stand, fired anger is riding in my chest, while I take aim. ¡°Release your hold on him.¡±

    Mikal shes me a grin. ¡°Kit, what a pleasant surprise.¡±

    I pull another arrow back. His eyes zero in on the blue feathered ends and slowly ascend to the pointed tips of the arrows. ¡°Release him I said.¡± I fire another arrow, killing one of Mikal¡¯spanions again. We¡¯re down to four. I¡¯d kill him, but I don¡¯t know what would happen to Trayvon¡¯s mind if I did. I¡¯m not willing to risk it to find out.

    I load another arrow as he speaks. ¡°You¡¯re the one that killed my men. Those weren¡¯t knife wounds, they were made by arrows.¡±

    I chuckle, just slightly maddened. ¡°Very good. Nowplete my request and I will spare your life.¡±

    Mikal chuckles. ¡°There is no fear in your heart Katarina. I do love that about you.¡± He snaps his fingers, having the threepanions turn toward me. I fire an arrow into Mikal¡¯s knee, making him fall and cry in pain. I drop my bow and throw a knife I have in my belt,nding in the head of one. I grab another and sidestep and attack, stabbing the knife into the back of his neck. I take another blue-tipped knife and jump back to avoid a knife to my belly. I stab the knife into his skull. When I look I see Mikal has vanished, but Trayvon remains on the floor.

    I pick up my bow and run to the entrance of the cave. I can see Mikal trying to make a run for it. Trayvon moans behind me as I move to give chase. I take aim as Mikal heads toward the edge of the cliff. I fire right when he jumps with his one good leg,nding the arrow into the middle of his back. He lets a pained cry out as he falls. I race for the cliff. When I get to the edge apletely white dragon catches him on his back. I string another arrow and fire, lodging in the dragon¡¯s right wing. I curse as I watch him vanish into the ckened starred sky.

 Chapter Nineteen

    After the dragon is out of sight my priorities change. I turn back inside the cave and run to Travon¡¯s side. I set my bow next to his curled side. His knuckles are white as he clutches his stomach. ¡°Trayvon?¡± I ask quickly as I roll him to his back. I gasp when I see arge amount of blood pouring out of his stomach. A red-handled knife sticks out of his stomach.

    ¡°Trayvon!¡± I yell, panic pouring out of me. I help apply pressure, cursing the fact that Miny is hiding in the corner and is terrified right now. <i>¡°Alienis I need you now!¡± </i>I yell in my head.

    Trayvon opens his eyes at the sound of my voice. His dark eyes focus on my face while tense lines decorate his forehead. Why isn¡¯t he healing? ¡°Kit.¡± He gasps.

    I put my hand on his face to hold him down when he tries to get up. ¡°You¡¯re going to be okay. Just stay still.¡±

    He reaches for my face. ¡°I-I can¡¯t see your face. I need to apologize.¡±

    ¡°Later,¡± I say as I lock my eyes with him. They¡¯re growing weaker. I grab his hand as he reaches for my mask. ¡°You can see my face when you¡¯re okay. I¡¯d hate for you to miss my reaction when you utter that horrific phrase.¡±

    He chuckles. ¡°I¡¯m not going to make it.¡±

    I put my hand on his face and make damn sure he¡¯s looking at me. ¡°You¡¯re going to be okay Trayvon. I¡¯m sure as night not going to let you die. You¡¯re not getting off that easy.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t...heal. I need sleep for that. There is too much pain.¡± He grimaces. ¡°If I sleep I¡¯ll die. My blood is pouring too fast. There is nothing I can do.¡±

    ¡°Since when do you quit?¡± I demand, getting angry now. ¡°You do as I say right now Trayvon. Heal yourself. Sing for all I care. Just don¡¯t give up.¡±

    Trayvon chuckles. ¡°Sing?¡± His eyes fade out just then as they close.

    My breath locks in my throat. I shake him, but nothing happening. ¡°Trayvon!¡± I screech as I shake him, rare tears starting to form. ¡°Don¡¯t you dare do this to me!¡± I shout at him, anger in my body. I m my fist on his chest, hoping that¡¯ll wake him. ¡°Don¡¯t move on Tray!¡± I yell, sure as night aware that he¡¯s in that world right now. ¡°Fight. Come back!¡± I yell at him, hitting him one more time.

    The ground shakes as Alienisnds. ¡°Fight you stubborn jerk!¡± I yell. ¡°im your life!¡±

    <i>¡°Kit...¡±</i> Alienis starts in my head. ¡°<i>He¡¯s gone.¡±</i>

    ¡°Not yet he isn¡¯t,¡± I snap at Alienis. ¡°I swear by Dawn I¡¯ll go to that world again and retrieve him myself; the gods will not be d to see me.¡±

    <i>¡°You are stubborn,¡±</i> Alienis chuckles.

    Right, there is when Trayvon gasps, bringing my attention to him. Pain is holding my lungs captive as I try to find a pulse. I find one, but it¡¯s faint. ¡°You¡¯re not leaving yet,¡± I tell him as I get my arms under him. I grunt under his weight, my body demanding for me to drop him. I shove it from my mind. Alienis lowers his wing and gives me a boost. I set him on Alienis¡¯s back. I run into the cave and grab my things.

    I grab Miny¡¯s reins and lead her out of the cave. ¡°Stay,¡± I order her. I climb on Alienis¡¯s back and secure Trayvon. ¡°Go!¡± I order when I¡¯m on as best as I can manage. Alienis climbs and picks up Miny on the way up. He shoots off into the sky with so much speed, I have to cling onto Trayvon and grab a firm hold of a scale.

    An hourter we reach Morningswood, thanks to Alienis flying full speed the whole way. It is morning when we reach Morningswood. ¡°Freiah!¡± I yell as the townspeople surround me. Gracial has finally made it, but her wounds are severe. Miny is so scared stiff that she¡¯s standing perfectly still between them. People have already run after her while two men climb on Alienis to help me.

    Freiah arrives in a long white shirt, her hair pulled back. She takes Trayvon in the mens arms, my hand still on the knife to apply pressure. ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°Adversantem attack.¡± I tell her as we start moving into the building.

    ¡°Kit?¡± Freiah asks as she moves, giving me a surprise sideways nce. ¡°Is that you?¡±

    ¡°Surprised huh?¡± I chuckle. We move into the room Trayvon had stored me in when I had first arrived here.

    ¡°Set him on the bed.¡± She orders. ¡°Kit, I¡¯ll need your help.¡±

    I nod. ¡°What do you need?¡±

    ¡°Just do whatever I say.¡±

    Two hourster Ie out of the room with Freiah, my ck-gloved hands covered in blood; and probably the rest of me as well. She looks me over. ¡°What¡¯s with the getup?¡±

    Iugh as I touch my face mask. I forgot I had it on. ¡°It¡¯s what I wear on my stealth missions. Frankly, it¡¯s the only thing that gave me a chance of getting ahead of the Adversantem. They¡¯re like bloodhounds or something. They never sleep.¡±

    She cocks her head. ¡°Where have you been? Trayvon said you ran off while you were camping.¡±

    I give a daringly dark chuckle. ¡°I¡¯ll kill him for that,¡± I tell her what happened. How he ditched me in Niphi City and what has happened up to this point. She just sits and listens, her face a canvas of emotions as she does. As I was talking, I realized how much anger had fueled my emotions and motives. I came back here not because I wanted answers, or because I missed the ce. It was because I was genuinely angry with Trayvon, and I really wanted to know what he was thinking when he made those decisions; and get in a good punch. ¡°And you know the rest.¡± I finish off.

    Freiah shakes her head. ¡°If one of us does not kill that man, he¡¯ll end up doing it out of stupidity.¡±

    ¡°I know right?¡± I sigh as I slouch against the wall. ¡°I just wish I knew what the ass was thinking sometimes. He¡¯s distant and very rarely shows any emotion. I swear he could be a serial killer.¡±

    Freiah smirks, ¡°I can help you with that.¡±

    I look at her, immediately giving her my attention. ¡°That would be nice. I¡¯m getting nothing from him.¡±

    She looks me over. ¡°I¡¯ll talk while we get you changed.¡±

    ¡°Fair enough.¡±

    We start walking and Freiah begins talking. ¡°Everything started years ago before Trayvon was officially old enough to be chosen to be a Dracones. His situation was very unusual. Trayvon was prechosen, as I had already told you this; but along with the Gods, a Dracones had to find him worthy as well. Armani had officially chosen him when he was just three years old. He sensed power in Trayvon. A spirit that does not wane and a passion that does not die. He raised and trained Trayvon by himself. Everything he breathed was of the Dracones. Nothing was left alone.

    ¡°When Armani finally passed, Trayvon was predictably chosen to take his ce. The only problem with Armani¡¯s training is that it left him inexperienced with people. Trayvon met a man named Mikal when wounded in the forest after a brutal Adversantam attack. He took him back here to be treated and that started them on their way to bing fast friends. They did everything together. Mikal would attend Trayvon¡¯s training. Go on his patrols. Help with chores. He didn¡¯t seem to mind Trayvon¡¯s hectic schedule in the slightest. Mikal was getting closer to Trayvon, gaining his trust and confidence. That way he would get Gracial to trust him too.

    ¡°A little over a yearter, after he gained Gracial¡¯s confidence and trust, Mikal had tricked her one day. He imed that Trayvon was injured when in reality Mikal had knocked him out with sleeping powder. He took her far and killed her. He was in the process of capturing her soul when Trayvon had woken. He was seeing what was going on through her eyes when he had finally gained consciousness.

    ¡°In his desperation, he did something terrible. He called on the Dracones Gods and made a deal. His soul for hers. He¡¯ll be their warrior for all eternity if they would prevent her soul from being stolen. Because of the power radiating inside Trayvon, they made the deal. Only the other part is that another soul must be imed to serve them as well,pleting the original set. Because you are now a Dracones, he must make you swear your soul to them.¡±

    I raise my eyebrow at Freiah and open my mouth to speak, but she quickly cuts me off. ¡°Trayvon didn¡¯t want to do this to you, Kit. He was only trying to spare you by distancing you from him. That was his only intent. He knew you could handle the Adversantem just fine. He never doubted you, Kit. Trayvon believes in you more than you know. He puts his faith in you and his life. That is rare for him to do, ever since Mikal.¡±

    I think this over. This does make sense out of what Mikal was talking to Trayvon about. I¡¯m still just confused as to why he wouldn¡¯t talk to me about this. I decide to move on for now and just ask a different line of questioning. ¡°Freiah, what is the Elder Dragon?¡±

    She widens her eyes as I get into the shower butt naked. ¡°Where did you hear that?¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

    Now I¡¯m worried. ¡°When Mikal was talking to Trayvon in the cave, he said my soul would heal him and his mind, and Trayvon¡¯s blood would strengthen him.¡±

    She nods and pulls the string, making me yelp as wateres pouring down. ¡°The dragon¡¯s name is Modain. He¡¯s evil. He is the very being that makes up the Adversantem; and what makes them able to ess powers only the Dracones should possess. He allows them to connect with a dragon¡¯s soul and feed off their power. That is why they capture their souls. Modain feeds off most of them. That is why he¡¯s so strong. He¡¯s gorged himself on hundreds of their souls.

    ¡°His creation and involvement is terrifying in the least. Right now, he is weak and crippled, he¡¯s slightly mad as well. How he came to be this way is a story from old times. The two Dracones at the time were immortal and they fought a battle with him for a year, both never sleeping, their insanity increasing every day. When near failure the two Dracones offered themselves to a dark spirit that now resides in Modain. Their immortality in turn for Modain¡¯s destruction.

    ¡°Because of the deal the spirit destroyed and nearly killed Modain. In his weak state, Modain made a bargain with the Dracones Gods. Spare his life, and he¡¯ll release the two Dracones¡¯ souls from the beast. They made the deal and Modain used the rest of his power to kill the spirit, feeding off the spirit¡¯s essence, and letting its power destroy him. The Dracones¡¯ souls were released, but it destroyed the immortal set the Dracones Gods had created to protect the dragons. Thanks to this it created the mortal cycle of Dracones that you have now be a part of. However, there is a small bit of the dark spirit living inside Modain; since he has the original Dracones immortality.¡±

    I think this through. ¡°That doesn¡¯t make much sense,¡± I tell her as I dry off.

    She sighs. ¡°Well, it¡¯s the truth.¡±

    I still have something being kept from me; I can feel it. ¡°Well, if that¡¯s the truth, I should swear my soul to the Dracones Gods. That should make Trayvon and I immortal. We could kill Modain and set things back in order.¡±

    She shakes her head. ¡°If you do that Modain will die, but another dark one will be created in his ce, restoring bnce.¡±

    Why can¡¯t things be simple? ¡°Then why does he need my soul?¡± I¡¯m losing ground fast here. I cannot keep up.

    ¡°The soul of a Dracones will release him. That will break the curse, and free him from the dark spirit. Since Trayvon¡¯s powers are strong, it¡¯ll restore Modain to full strength. But in order for him to take your soul it needs to be trapped first Kit. That is why they¡¯ll never kill you until they have taken you to Modain.¡±

    I groan. ¡°Nothing is ever simple in this ce. It¡¯s all blood and gore here.¡± Sheughs while I start thinking over what she has told me. ¡°What would happen if he were to take my soul Freiah? Why is it necessary?¡±

    She sighs. ¡°It is necessary because a Dracones soul holds incredible amounts of power. If he harvests it correctly, while Mikal performs the releasing ceremony, then his injuries will be healed, and he¡¯ll return to full strength. However, in order for this to happen, the Dracone¡¯s soul needs to hold no obligations or loyalties. It must belong to the Dracones, no one else. If they find a soul like that they can attach it to Modain, creating the sealing part of the ritual.

    ¡°Before you ask, the reason why this has never happened before is due to the fact that there has never been a mortal Dracones that has sworn himself to the Dracones Gods. When he did this he became stronger, strengthening his blood. With Trayvon¡¯s added power, he can restore Modain¡¯s strength. The best part out of all this is that if he captures Trayvon¡¯s soul as well, he can wipe out the Dracones forever.¡±

    My reply is cut off by the sound of people screaming. I pull on some clean shorts and a belly shirt since I could not find anything bigger at the moment. Quick as a dash I run out the door, bow in hand. People run past me in hushed rushes. Some stop to tell me what is going on while some try to hold me back. I keep running and clear the door, closing the door to the building while I¡¯m at it.

    When the door shuts I look and see what lies before me. There are at least twenty Adversantem before me, and four dragons. Make that five. In the back is that white dragon that carried Mikal off, riding the white dragon is Mikal. Oh,e on.

    Mikal chuckles. ¡°It¡¯s nice to see your pretty face with my own eyes Katarina. For once.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s hard to see your ugly mug back there Mikal. Come up here and I¡¯ll fix it for you.¡± I answer while I try to think this through. <i>¡°Alienis, where are you?¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Gracial and I are taking care of some dragons. We can¡¯t help you right now.¡±</i>

    I curse while Mikal chuckles. ¡°Found out about our distractions now didn¡¯t you? Now, why don¡¯t youe quietly since Trayvon is already dead? There is no point in you fighting. We¡¯ll just find the next Dracones and kill him as well.¡±

    A small feral grin shes through my face as I realize something. The white dragon shakes his head and speaks in a loud bass, making my head rumble. <i>¡°The girl named Katarina spared his life. She saved him while between worlds. Her soul is white and blinding. Her blood is the essence of power.¡±</i>

    I shake my head to rid of the voice. It sounds sick and twisted and makes my skin crawl. ¡°Modain, you need to leave,¡± I warn in a firm voice, though I know for a fact he¡¯s not going anywhere.

    <i>¡°Ah, so you¡¯ve heard the story.¡±</i>

    ¡°Somewhat.¡± Come on Kit think.

    ¡°Are youing quietly or not Kit?¡± Mikal demands. ¡°Or do we have to do this the hard way and hurt you?¡±

    I give him an even look as I ready my bow. ¡°How¡¯s your leg Mikal?¡± His eyes widen as I aim and fire. The arrow shoots between two dragon heads and lodges in Mikal¡¯s throat. Every single dragon starts roaring and makes the Adversantem start their war cries.

    And we¡¯re off. I start running. I run past the entrance and race to the back, behind the building. They are at my heels and I¡¯m firing behind me without even looking. It¡¯sing before me, and I just know this is going to hurt. I reach the edge of the dragons¡¯ home and leap into the pit.

    <i>¡°Now!¡± </i>I yell in my head. Dragons fly from their homes, creating a sea of colors in front of me. I grab hold of the nearest tail and flip myself onto the dragon¡¯s back below. Screaming ensues from the Adversantem and a retreat order is given; they¡¯re retreating out of concern for Mikal, instead of being worried about my dragons. I didn¡¯t see iting through all the chaos. A hard white wall of ws is the first thing I can make out, as they make an attempt to catch me. I roll off whichever dragon I was riding, but I wasn¡¯t fast enough. Pain surrounds me as I fall, a world of ckness swallowing me whole.

 Chapter Twenty

    Several weekster, I¡¯m back in my stealth suit. I have just gotten back from spying on the Adversantem, trying to get a fix on their home base location. If I can find him and kill him, this will all be over. However, I know that is unlikely since he¡¯s heavily protected. I just need to be able to weaken him

    I did find out Mikal is alive and has returned to safety with Modain, and the hunt for my head has strengthened. I¡¯m going to be screwed over here one way or another. Gracial and Alienis have talked me into staying until Trayvon is fully healed. When he has healed, I¡¯m nning on heading out and finding a way to break this curse Trayvon has unleashed on himself, and maybe find Modain. Before that can happen, I need to correct this new torment I have been dealt.

    I¡¯ve also spent my free time studying about the curse the Dracones have pulled on themselves. It is said that the original set found the dark spirit in thend that belongs to the dead. The spirit is now long gone from thatnd; nothing else is said to survive there. It is also believed that the location of the Land of the Dead has been lost, as a direct result from the dark spirit agreeing to aid the Dracones. The original set is also believed to have taken the dark spirit¡¯s ce as penance for their actions for shaming the Dracones Gods.

    When wend, I get off Alienis in thepound and start heading inside to change. Alienis just watches me closely, checking for any sign that I am going to run. He doesn¡¯t know of my ns. I¡¯m still being petty and ignoring him; well that is what he believes. Also, his knowing phrases and logic are driving me nuts.

    Right when I take three steps from Alienis, Freiahes running out. ¡°Kit!¡± She yells. ¡°He¡¯s awake!¡±

    I stop dead, locking down to avoid all emotion from my system. She looks me over and sees a giant red cut on my bicep. ¡°What happened to you?¡±

    Iugh, it sounds off and confused. ¡°Ran into two Adversantem when leaving their camp. I got them before they could get help, but one got me.¡±

    She looks it over. ¡°I¡¯ll take a look at itter. You need to see Trayvon. He¡¯s been asking for you for thest three hours.¡± Of course, he has. I sigh and follow her inside.

    Freiah leaves me in the sunlit room. Trayvon is lying on the bed with his eyes closed. Deep even breaths bring some life to his shallow face. Judging by the stains on his chest, Freiah has gotten him to eat and drink. My palms feel weird but a part of me still wants to punch him.

    As soon as Freiah closes the door Trayvon¡¯s eyes snap open. He doesn¡¯t get up. He just sighs and stares at the ceiling. ¡°Kit,¡± he sighs, his eyes elsewhere than this room.T¨ºxt ? N?velDrama.Org.

    ¡°I still say you¡¯re a moron,¡± I tell him, heading toward the foot of his bed.

    Trayvon jumps at the sound of my voice and sits up straight, grimacing as he does. He slouches against the wall so he can see me without having to support himself. ¡°You¡¯re still here?¡±

    I cock my head slightly. He sounds relieved and surprised at the same time. There is also another emotion in his voice that I cannot decipher. ¡°I promised them I¡¯d stay until you recovered. They needed protection. The night I brought you back there was an Adversantem attack just outside the city walls. It¡¯s taken a while, but I¡¯ve got them to leave us alone for the time being.¡±

    He looks me over. ¡°Is that why you¡¯re so dressed up?¡±

    Iugh. ¡°Man, I¡¯m used to this thing.¡± I sigh longingly, missing the days I could feel the wind on my skin. ¡°It¡¯s the only thing that helps me hide from the Adversantem. I just got back from one of their camps. Just so you know, Mikal has returned to Modain, and he is pissed. I¡¯d watch your back before leaving this room.¡± His eyes narrow and I quickly exin. ¡°Freiah filled me in on some parts. Which is why my conclusion that you¡¯re an idiot still stands.¡±

    He smirks, ¡°Well let me apologize for that.¡±

    After a minute of silence, I roll my eyes. ¡°You really need to work on your apologies.¡±

    He grins at me. ¡°I must see your face in order for it to be sincere.¡±

    I roll my eyes. ¡°You¡¯re always obsessed with seeing my face Trayvon.¡± I turn my head from him and remove my mask. I take a quiet breath to steady myself.

    I can see his smile while I turn my head. It grows happier as my head slowly turns toward him then, in a split second, drops to horror. It soon grows into shock while his eyes scan my neck. ¡°What in the name of yer happened to you?¡±

    I blush and put a hand on my neck, feeling the fresh rough scar on it. It extends to the bottom of my ear and starts at my corbone. ¡°yer?¡± I ask, trying to distract him from me.

    ¡°Famous Dracones.¡± He says as he studies me. Sadness retains its popr residence once again while he watches, a hint of hope that it will disappear visits. ¡°Seriously Kit, what happened? It looks like you got sliced by a dra-¡± His eyes narrow. ¡°You mentioned an Adversantem attack. They were here?¡±

    I nod. ¡°Before you freak, it was made by a dragon. It¡¯s the which dragon part that you¡¯re not going to like.¡± His entire body goes tense, and I force myself to say it. ¡°It was Modain.¡±

    ¡°What!¡± Trayvon yells as he bolts up. He starts pacing while he thinks, his eyes dancing back and forth while they calcte. ¡°What do you mean Modain? He can¡¯t even fly Kit. You¡¯re being an idiot. Maybe it was someone who looked like him.¡±

    ¡°I know who did this to me!¡± I yell then stop myself, forcing a calm air in my mind. It tickles, causing me to try to lose it by shaking my head. ¡°Sorry, I¡¯ve been defending this for thest several days.¡± I pull my hair out of my bun and shake it loose, covering the thick, hideous scar. He just watches me as I try to think. I can¡¯t think, that¡¯s the problem. I refuse to feel any emotions right now. Not until I have more control over myself. Too many influences are going through me. I can¡¯t handle that many emotions and still keep control of my mind. I must remain rational. Of course, this would be easier if I could sleep more than two rough hours a night.

    Finding some ground, I pull my hair over my shoulder as I sit on the bed, covering the scar. ¡°Trayvon, remember when Mikal said that my soul would heal Modain?¡±

    Horror swallows his face, making it paler than normal. ¡°Kit, you didn¡¯t.¡±

    I shake my head. ¡°I didn¡¯t. His mind is still poisoned. I could feel it when he talked to me. His right rear leg is still missing. His front left one is still shattered and shriveled,pletely disfigured. And his left eye is still blind.¡±

    I wring my hair to focus my mind, getting slightly sidetracked. ¡°The other part was that your blood would strengthen him Trayvon. When Mikal stabbed you, he must have taken some of your blood to Modain. It has given him enough strength to fly again Trayvon. To fight as well.¡±

    Trayvon reaches out, his cold hand moving my hands and hair so he can touch the scar. ¡°How did he do this to you?¡± There is sorrow in his eyes along with many along the lines of pity, guilt, and anger.

    I move his hands, covering the scar with my hair again in slight shame. ¡°During the attack to get rid of them, Modain tried to grab me. I didn¡¯t see him until he was too close. I tried to move in time, but my neck wasn¡¯t fast enough. I¡¯m just d he was too focused on capturing me that he didn¡¯t kill me.¡±

    ¡°Kit,¡± Trayvon breathes as he tries to grab me.

    ¡°Don¡¯t,¡± I say standing, ying with my hair. I cannot look at him. My head is tingling and buzzing. It is when I am standing that he can see I¡¯m tired. He is finally focusing on my face and not my scar. There are deep ck circles under my eyes. Another reason I wear the mask is to help hide them. I will not show him he¡¯s winning. Not in this lifetime.

    ¡°What¡¯s been happening to you, Kit?¡± Trayvon demands, putting his hand on my shoulder. When I shake him off, is when he gets angry. ¡°Kit, why are you acting like this?¡± I look at him and see hurt, confusion, anger, and something else that escapes me at the moment. As soon as I saw it, it shed under a shield of nk expression. ¡°Have I hurt you that badly?¡±

    I shake my head, wincing at a sudden piercing pain. ¡°It¡¯s not you Trayvon. It¡¯s Mikal. He¡¯s been attacking my mind since I brought you here.¡± Horror breaks his mask while I rub my temples. ¡°I didn¡¯t notice at first, then I started getting headaches all the time. Pretty soon it remained constant. Then the nightmares started. He¡¯s been attacking my mind non-stop. He doesn¡¯t even sleep, so I can¡¯t either. If he loses concentration for even a moment he loses. This is his third attempt to take me. If I lose concentration he gains ground. That¡¯s why I have to reduce as much bodilymunication as possible.¡±

    At first, he cannot say a thing. He just stares at me while I fidget. When I wince, Trayvon speaks. ¡°How long has he been at this?¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s see, it¡¯s been three weeks since I brought you here. The second attempt failed your third day here, so a little under three weeks ago.¡± I rub my face. I am so tired.

    ¡°Three weeks?¡± He cries.

    ¡°You took a long time to heal. You¡¯re just lucky Freiah discovered that Mikal poisoned the de as well.¡± I turn away and start pacing. ¡°Your wounds were extensive. You nearly died three times.¡± I wince when the stab grows stronger. ¡°Freiah had to-ow-stitch up your insides.¡±

    ¡°Kit, you can¡¯t keep doing this,¡± Trayvon says in a hard voice. ¡°You can¡¯t keep fighting him. He¡¯s too strong. You might as well just give in.¡±

    I turn to see Trayvon with apletely nk face, and another face lurking behind his eyes. ¡°You son of a bitch!¡± I scream and punch him.

    Trayvon falls to the ground, his head smacking the wall as I move to hit him. ¡°Kit.¡± He says quickly when he sees murder in my eyes

    I stop when light shes into his eyes. I look away and look back, seeing the familiar wall, but there is strange anger and sadness in his eyes. It¡¯s new and fueled. What breaks me is a small pit of pity I see in his eyes. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± I say quickly, the words are out of my mouth before I can stop them. ¡°I¡¯m just so tired.¡±

    Trayvon gets up, slowly. ¡°It¡¯s alright.¡± I look away when I see the realization in his eyes. ¡°It¡¯s not really Mikal attacking your mind is it?¡±

    I bite my lip and shake my head. ¡°No.¡± I peek up from under myshes and see fear and revolution in his eyes. ¡°I only said that to make you feel better. If it helps, even Alienis doesn¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°Modain.¡± Trayvon hisses. ¡°Why is he doing this? Why can¡¯t it be Mikal?¡±

    ¡°Mikal is too weak for my mind,¡± I answer simply. ¡°Modain is just mad enough to try for the imprable. Only he¡¯s old enough to have a stronger mind.¡±

    ¡°Kit, he¡¯s mad. You need to get him out.¡± He puts his hand on my shoulder. ¡°His insanity could spread and poison your mind.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t think I know that.¡±I snap, then return to myself. ¡°Sorry.¡±

    ¡°Kit, we need you!¡± Freiah yells down the hall.

    I sigh. ¡°That¡¯s my cue.¡±

    Trayvon grabs my shoulder after I put my mask back on. ¡°Kit, you need to rest. I¡¯ll take over.¡±

    I touch his chest with a finger and gently push him. He staggers back while I shake my head. ¡°A feather would knock you out.¡± I touch his shoulder. ¡°Rest. It¡¯s just patrol.¡± Destroying Modain...same thing.

 Chapter Twenty-One

    I take to Alienis with revolution in my heart. I am tired of this dragon, and I am burnt out enough to do something drastic. Alienis can¡¯t see my n, since Modain has covered enough ground in my mind that I need to block all thoughts except my own. Alienis senses this, but he can also tell I¡¯m at my breaking point. I need to get this demon out of my head. I have a n but it¡¯s going to be daring. If anything, I should just turn back and do patrol like I told Trayvon I would be doing.

    I make Alienis drop me off in the hearnd of the South. I¡¯m at a dying prairie with ake at the edge before it drops into the canyons. I leave most of my gear there with him. I keep my knives, and my bow and arrow. He gives me a confused look. I touch my lips and shake my head. ¡°Go and return to home. When I have need I¡¯ll call.¡± I kiss his nose and motion for him to leave before running off into the distance; and out of his sight.

    I remember Alienis telling me that the Adversantem tracks mainly by smell. I also remember thest Adversantem camp I was at. It was in the northeast sector of the Southern region. I go to thekeside and use a knife from my boot to map out the sections of discovered Adversantem camps. There is a pattern. The outer ones are approximately five miles apart. The farther you go in the more spread out they are. Some are so far apart they don¡¯t line up and I can¡¯t make out the pattern. I trace the pattern, connecting the dots on the outer regions with one another and slowly make my way in time.

    When I have finished I find the pattern. It¡¯s the Adversantem symbol. With that in mind, I pull out a map and mark the other undiscovered Adversantem camps. Following the trace, I locate the one spot in the pattern that does not line up. The one in the breast. The location is the southern canyonds. This is their headquarters. It makes sense. Enough ground to hide in and plenty of hiding/sleeping ces for the dragons. I just need to get past an army of Adversantem.

    Remembering Alienis¡¯s information I go on a little hunt. I find purple Cali Berries. They¡¯re tiny and look like a growth on tree bark. Quickly I find some bear dung and dig through it. I find undigested hair from an elk. I take that and some of the scat. I return to theke and aim my bow at theke. Slowly my eyes trace the pattern. I fire when the water moves again, the dead fish rises out with my arrow inside it. I remove my gloves and grab the fish. I rub my hands all over it, getting as much as its slime that I can. I grab the scat after that and mix it with the oil on my hands. I gag on the smell, take the elk fur, and mix it as well. Last but not least I grab the Cali Berries and mix it into the paste on my hands as well.

    ¡°You can do this Kit.¡± I breathe to myself. I use the dyed dark purple paste and rub it on my legs, arms, the soles of my feet, stomach, and my bow. After storing some for ater date in my belt, I start running toward my destination.

    When I reach the sight of red dirt and growing tracks I hide under a rock, waiting for night. When ites I use the light of the full moon as a guide. Two hourster I reach the canyons. Holes line the walls, looking a bit like someone had carved them by hand. They¡¯re just big enough to fit Alienis, and he¡¯s the biggest dragon I have ever seen, aside from Modain.

    When at the edge I turn and slowly lower myself. I find foot holes and double-check that they will hold me before lowering myself down. It takes me about two hours of this before I reach the biggest cave, that¡¯s with stopping to take a break. The biggest cave is my best bet for Modain since he is thergest dragon known.

    It¡¯s pure ck in there. I cannot see a thing and my head is killing me. If I don¡¯t get him out soon he¡¯ll win out and he¡¯ll control my body. Then this is all over. I¡¯ll never have the opportunity to do...well anything. I¡¯ll be a mindless puppet or dead. I don¡¯t want that and I¡¯m not going down without a fight.

    I slink into the cave, hugging the wall so I can feel my way. My palms start to feel warm. Another sense starts to pull me toward the right side of the room. Unfortunately, that¡¯s when my head starts to really hurt. The further in I go the worse my headache grows. I stop when I see something shift in the darkness, and press myself against the wall. Heavy breathing is faintly heard. The ground shakes as something moves. I cling to the wall and stop breathing. Light enters the cave and nearly blinds me when someonees running.

    I nearly scream when I see Modain¡¯s white stomach in front of me. His eyes are zed over and he¡¯s looking at a wall. The person who hade in was Mikal. He looks exhausted, but Modain looks worse. Mikal bows. ¡°My Lord, I¡¯m here to report Trayvon has woken. I may im his mind again, but it¡¯ll be difficult to achieve with Kit around. Have you taken her mind yet?¡±

    There is silence as there is another stab at my mind. I nearly scream out, but I bite my lip to contain it. My head feels as if an arrow is being screwed slowly into it. I want to give in, but I refuse to do that.

    Mikal speaks. ¡°I see. Her mind is still her own, but you sense weakening. She¡¯s still in Morningswood. We haven¡¯t seen her leave the city. Her dragon is there in slumber and so is her horse. I¡¯ll try another attempt to get past the guards...I¡¯ll leave the torch.¡± He walks over and sticks it into a metal slit in the wall before bowing and leaving. Lucky bastard, he gets to leave.

    Slowly I move toward the unknown pull on my senses. When I pass Modain¡¯s tail there is a room. When I go into it I¡¯m blinded by a glowing clear ball. It appears to be made of ss, but tiny green balls shoot around like fireflies in there, trying to seek a way out. I grin as I remember Freiah¡¯s words. I get on the ground and find a rock. I walk to it; well aware I¡¯m making noise since the balls of light are humming and staying fixated on me. If I die now, I at least died trying.

    A roar sounds behind me, shaking the ground and walls. Modain¡¯s head snakes in and res at me as I raise the rock. ¡°You lose,¡± I yell as he opens his mouth to bite me. The rock goes sailing and smashes the ss. Balls of light shoot out, blinding us both. I take the opportunity and start running, the green balls still circling Modain¡¯s head behind me.

    The pressure from my head is gone but his foot ms me against the wall. I scream out in pain as a cage forms around me, one of his ws digging into my thigh. I take an arrow from my quiver and stab it into his foot. He roars in pain and drops me. I gasp, falling to the ground as my leg gives out on me. I take off my mask and rip it. Quickly I take my concoction and smother the wound with it before covering the hole with half the mask and using the other half to tie it off. After that, I also use the rest to cover my face.

    I try to stand and nearly fall. His w went right into the middle of my thigh. I start running, the green balls of light heading for the mouth of the cave. I follow them and use them as a distraction to hide in a crevice in the wall just outside of the cave, just missing hundreds of Adversantem. Six minutester they all burst out of the cave, yelling as loud as they can. Hundreds of dragons shoot out of the caves, taking to the sky.

    I was about to leave when thest of the dragons disappeared in the sky when Modain emerged from his cave with Mikal by his side. Mikal is holding onto one of my blue-tipped arrows. ¡°I can¡¯t even smell her scent on it, my Lord. Do you still have a hold of her mind?¡±

    Since I have my mind back, I can listen in without them knowing. <i>¡°No. When she released all of the dragon souls I lost my strength. I don¡¯t have enough to even tickle her mind now. I want you to find her Mikal and learn how she aplished this. If she gets out of the city I¡¯ll be amazed. I want you to take Trayvon¡¯s mind. Get him here. If she wants to fight then we¡¯ll return the favor.¡±</i>

    ¡°How can we find her if we can¡¯t even smell her?¡±

    <i>¡°The old-fashioned way. Track her.¡±</i> Modain lowers his wing right then and Mikal gets on. They fly off, leaving the town nearly empty. I say nearly because both exits have two dragons each, with six Adversantem to back them up. There are some doing rounds and looking in every ce possible.

    My leg is stiffening up so I don¡¯t have much time before I can¡¯t move it at all. I move out of the crevice and start climbing the wall, trying to be as silent as I can. I feel as if shattered ss is in my leg with every amount of pressure I ce on it. I have to stop and rest several times, so it takes me six hours to get out of the canyon. Once I reach the top I run, forcing my nearly immobile leg to move.

    I cry out in pain as I dive under the rock I had previously hidden under on my journey to the canyons. I force myself to sit up and remove a knife from my boot. I cut at the fabric surrounding my leg and remove the wrap I had made. It¡¯s deep and I have nothing I can use to close it. I wrap it off again and try to massage my leg. I fall asleep to that.

    I wake to the sound of thunder. I stick my head out of the rock and see thirty dragons flying back to the canyons. I check the sky. Almost sundown. I try to get my leg to start moving. I bend it and flex my toes, trying to make it as useful as possible.

    When the sun is down I start running again. I stop by theke again to remake my paste and reapply it. I also quickly make a numbing powder made of tree bark and yellow Naziri Leaves. Their round shape and bright yellow color makes it easily identifiable. Once the powder is on, and I have re-covered my wound, I start running again; knowing trees start growing ten miles from where I am. During my run, I call for Alienis and tell him when he meets up with me tond immediately. It¡¯ll still be a couple of hours until he reaches me.

    Trees are thickening around me as I move deeper into the woods, hours into my nonstop run. I¡¯m near tears at this point and the pain in my leg is near unbearable. The only thing that has me moving is imagining my zed-over eyes if Modain were to ever extract my soul. I hear wings pumping, fueling my body with another shot of adrenaline. If I can make it to the thickest part of the forest I stand a chance. I¡¯m only a couple of yards from it when something hard hits me from behind, making me fall as I cry in pain.

    Quickly I roll over and see Mikal just as he climbs on top of me. He pins my arms as I try to get him off. His grin is so feral he could pass off as a demon. ¡°Now, now, Katarina, you don¡¯t want to hurt yourself now do you?¡±

    ¡°Get off!¡± I shout as I try to shove him off.

    He manages to keep his hold, his malicious eyes have jaded over, fitting perfectly with his green eyes. ¡°Where would the fun be in that?¡± He asks as Modainnds. As the ground quakes I use that momentum and shove him off. I try to run but he snags the leg Modain had stabbed through earlier in the cave. I cry out as he drags me back in.

    ¡°Oh look, you¡¯re injured.¡± He muses as he drags me back, sticking his thumb in my thigh. I scream and kick him off with my good leg. His head snaps to the side, but he keeps a hold of my leg as I scoot back a bit more. I lift with my good leg and m it on his exposed elbow, breaking it. He cries and finally lets go.

    I stand up with one swift movement and have two knives drawn. I eye Mikal as he gets up in a ready pose. ¡°Leave and I won¡¯t kill you,¡± I tell him in a hard voice.

    <i>¡°Just give us what we want Katarina, and we won¡¯t kill you,¡±</i> Modain says as he growls.

    I keep my eyes on Mikal. ¡°I hear you lost your collection Modain. Your strength should be fading fast, shouldn¡¯t it? You haven¡¯t even tried to conquer my mind since that happened. Look at you. Your two good legs are already shaking, and you can barely lift your head. My guess is you need some of Trayvon¡¯s blood again, or you¡¯re going through withdrawal. Which is it Modain?¡±

    He snaps at me but does not bite me. He still needs me alive. They possess none of the necessary equipment to steal my soul. <i>¡°I¡¯ll kill you where you stand girl. You know of nothing in this world. You¡¯re a ck sheep in the midst of a wolf pack. You¡¯ll die in the end, no matter what you do.¡±</i>

    ¡°You¡¯re right Modain, I will die.¡± Finally, an idea shes to my mind. ¡°But not today.¡± Mikal moves to attack me. I step back and grab him. I flip him around and put a knife to his throat.

    I grin and lock eyes with a maddened Modain. Since I¡¯m probably just as mad at this point, I¡¯m no longer terrified that I¡¯m in a showdown of bluffing with a dragon. ¡°Now, correct me if I¡¯m wrong. Not only can¡¯t you kill me now, but you also need your little manservant toplete the ceremony to restore you to full power.¡±

    He growls and moves to take another snap, his teeth just an inch from Mikal¡¯s nose. ¡°Uh-uh. See you need both of us alive right now.¡± I nick Mikal on his throat, making him whimper. Modain pulls back. I¡¯m not sure who is more insane at this point since I know I¡¯m over the brink.

    ¡°Good boy. Now-¡± Mikal pulls a knife I had not spotted and stabs it in my stomach. I cry out and slice his throat identally as I fall forward. I catch myself before the ground can push the knife fully in. Mikal is gargling in agony while Modain roars. I get up and start running for the woods while Modain takes flight. When I nce behind me I see Modain pick up Mikal and take off for their homnds.T¨ºxt ? N?velDrama.Org.

    <i>¡°Alienis, I need you now!¡± </i>I yell in my mind while I stumble through the forest, my body is going numb.

    <i>¡°I¡¯m half an hour from you. Are you alright?¡±</i>

    ¡°<i>No. I think Mikal¡¯s de was drugged.¡± </i>I gasp as I slouch against a tree. My leg is finally giving out on me. It¡¯s shaking under me when I¡¯m barely putting any weight on it. I pull out the knife and sniff the silver metal. It smells like nutmeg and mint. Ground twigs, mint root, and powdered dragon¡¯s w mixed with the saliva of a cave bear. It makes a pretty potent paralytic. If mixed properly it can stay in your system for three days. However, it takes fifteen minutes to take effect. The reason for this is because it numbs your system before fully attacking your nervous system. There is no cure, other than to let it run its course. However, there is a stall.

    <i>¡°Alienis, the de was coated in Nightmare Crane. Tell Freiah that when you grab me; because I more than likely won¡¯t be able to.¡±</i> Before he can respond, I get to work. I catch a white moth called Luminous. I snap its body in half and rub his innards around the knife wound. I grab some moss and stick it on the wound to absorb most of the blood.

    I start running. About fifteen minutester my leg goespletely limp, making me fall. Dirt swallows my face and clings to it. I dig my fingers into the dirt and try to drag myself to a log to hide in. I make it two feet before Alienisnds, and my body gives up.

 Chapter Twenty-Two

    I wake to a red ceiling. I look around without moving my head. A white sheet lies over my naked body. A window is by my bed where a blue curtain blows with the breeze. It caresses my skin, raising gooseflesh where it touches. I try to lift myself but my torso protests.

    ¡°Ah.¡± I gasp when I push past the pain. I slouch against the wall, gasping. I pull the sheet up to cover my breasts again. When that is aplished I take a bit of a breather. Stiffly I try to sit up on my own. My middle protests but it¡¯s manageable. Carefully I turn, cing my feet on the ground.

    ¡°One,¡± I say as I brace myself. ¡°Two. Three.¡± I push myself up, making sure the sheet stays on my chest. I stumble forward as I bite my lip to stop a scream. My leg feels like I have a pole shoved through it. I brace myself against the wall and take as much weight as I can off of my leg.

    <i>¡°Kit, what are you doing?¡± </i>Alienis asks me while I try to think this through.

    What am I doing? <i>¡°I¡¯m not sure. Are you alright?¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Yes, though Trayvon is very angry at you. Freiah is as well. Just so you know, I¡¯m mad at you too.¡±</i>

    I groan. <i>¡°I know it was a stupid thing to do Alienis, but I was honestly losing the battle for my head. I had to fight back and do something. I wasn¡¯t about to let someone control me. If I was going to die, I was going to fight. You know this but I do apologize for not telling you what I was doing.¡±</i>

    He groans in my head. <i>¡°It¡¯s alright and I do understand. You may have cut off mental connection, but I still know what you¡¯re feeling. You felt trapped so you had to do something. I just think you were stupid going alone. Now lie back down and rest.¡±</i>

    I try to move from the wall, but I just fall back against it. <i>¡°I will when I can.¡±</i> He just chuckles in my head while I count under my breath. I decide to move along the wall and go sit in the chair in the corner. I still have no clue what room I¡¯m in.

    When I am about to reach the wooden chair the door opens. ¡°What in the name of yer do you think you¡¯re doing?¡± Freiah demands.

    I look and see the top of her golden head. Her hair is braided and twisted around her head in a beautiful crown. She¡¯s wearing the same thing everyone else wears, but she¡¯s cut diamond patterns on the side of her shirt. ¡°Trying to walk,¡± I reply a little breathlessly.

    She rolls her eyes and walks over to me quickly. She carefully supports my weight and helps me limp to the bed again. I groan as my body moans in relief. ¡°You¡¯re injured. You should be in bed.¡±

    I sigh. ¡°I¡¯m not that type, and you know that.¡± I lean a bit to ease some of the pressure on myself. ¡°So, what did I miss?¡±

    Freiah sits on the bed. ¡°Well, after Alienis exined your stupid move Trayvon kind of took off. He¡¯s back, but boy is he angry. All the others are ecstatic over the release of the captured dragon souls. I the other hand, want to know what was all over you when you came in. The dragons couldn¡¯t smell you, so they were convinced you were still out there. By the way, I made you a new suit.¡±

    I smile at her. ¡°Thank you, and it was a paste called Nostilgray. It basically covers your scent, or if ingested it¡¯ll cause temporary anosmia.¡±

    She raises an eyebrow. ¡°I never knew you knew so much about this stuff.¡± She sounds impressed.

    I shift my side again. ¡°It¡¯s not something I advertise. Please keep it under your hat for now.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Just please keep this secret for me,¡± I say as I give her pleading eyes.

    She stares at me for a long time before she sighs and nods. ¡°Alright.¡±

    ¡°Kit!¡± Someone shouts as the door ms open. I jump but Freiah just stays looking at me, totally unblinking. Her eyes are wide though, so he did scare her. I look at the door and see Trayvon ring at me.

    ¡°What?¡± I ask when he remains ring at me. I sit up a bit, making his eyes drop. His face is a little derailed when he sees I¡¯mpletely naked underneath it. ¡°Trayvon?¡± I ask as I snap my fingers. I¡¯m covered so he should be good.

    His eyes snap back to my face but it takes him a second to remember his thought. ¡°What is wrong with you? You went in there without backup? You nearly died.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m aware of that.¡± I snap at him, getting defensive. ¡°I had to Trayvon. I was running out of time.¡±

    He scoffs. ¡°What do you mean you were running out of time?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve had your mind taken correct?¡± I ask in disbelief. He is the one person I¡¯d thought would understand.

    His jaw tightens. ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Do you remember that feeling of...hopelessness? Despair even? Or feeling vited at all? Maybe it¡¯s all three Trayvon. I was at the point of thatbination, but I felt something in my mind I¡¯d never felt before. I was doubting myself. I thought of myself as weak. When I had hit that point I had to go Trayvon. I had to reim my mind and fight. Trayvon, he was going to take my mind in a matter of hours. This would all be over. I had to give it a shot since it was the only solution.¡±

    It takes him a few minutes to think that through. ¡°Well, you could have taken me.¡±

    I nearlyugh. ¡°What did you want me to do Trayvon? Drag you out of bed fresh out of a three-weeka? You couldn¡¯t even stand without falling. There is no way you would have been able to survive that.¡±N?velDrama.Org holds this content.

    He stumbles over that one. ¡°Look, I¡¯m not the one that got stabbed with Night-something or other. You¡¯re the one that screwed up and this is on your head.¡±

    ¡°What is on my head?¡± I demand. ¡°What did I screw up on?¡±

    He getspletely derailed by that one. ¡°Just think before you act okay?¡± He ms the door shut.

    ¡°What is his problem?¡± I ask Freiah, though I know what the answer is. I left him behind. I did this myself without even telling him where I was going. I nearly cost us everything...It ms as it hits me. ¡°Freiah, help me get dressed will you?¡±

    She nods. Quickly she stands and tosses me clothes and helps me get dressed. She hands me a cane and helps me to stand. Slowly she helps me out of my room. She gets called away when I make it outside.

    I hobble my way through the sea of looks and find Trayvon leaning over a rocked wall that we put by the dragons¡¯ homes. That way my worry of falling and dying was lessened. His body tenses when he sees me lean over the wall with him. He¡¯s staring at the setting sun. I don¡¯t even look at his face. I know what it¡¯ll be. nk. A mask.

    After a few minutes, I speak. ¡°Look Trayvon, I understand you¡¯re upset by what I have done. I ept that. I should have told you where I was at least going. I did that with Ivan so you shouldn¡¯t be different.¡±

    He nces at me. ¡°You were a team, Katarina. We¡¯re a team. That¡¯s what we do. You don¡¯t leave the other blind or behind.¡±

    My eyes remain on the sun. ¡°That¡¯s just it, Trayvon. We¡¯re not a team. There is nomunication. Since day one this has been about you. It was always what you say goes. There was never room for debate. You never took the time to even get to know me.¡±

    ¡°You never tried to get to know me.¡± He snaps back.

    Don¡¯t engage. ¡°I tried Trayvon, but you would shut me out. What I know about you is what people have told me. Even then, they don¡¯t know you either. No one even knows your favorite color for Dawn¡¯s sake. You shut me out and everyone else.¡±

    He interrupts me. ¡°This isn¡¯t about me Kit. This is about us. You nearly cost us everything.¡±

    I finally look at him with wonder. ¡°There is no us Trayvon. There never was. This was survival. All we both cared about was surviving. I don¡¯t know how many times I¡¯ve fought by myself since I got here, but I can give you the exact number we have together. Zero. We may have protected one another, but it was out of our mutual understanding. By Dawn Trayvon, you left me the moment things got tough without even talking to me. So, the next time you lecture me about not making a team decision, make sure there is a team in the first ce.¡± I¡¯d walk off at this point, but my limping would ruin it, so I just turned my head away and resumed looking at the sun.

    Trayvon stands there stunned. He can¡¯t think of anything to say to that. He leans his back against the wall. I refuse to be the first one to look or break this silence. Finally, he speaks. ¡°We¡¯re in trouble aren¡¯t we?¡±

    I chuckle a bit. ¡°That¡¯s putting it mildly.¡± I then remember something. ¡°You¡¯re in bigger trouble though. When I was in the cave with Modain, I heard him and Mikal talking. Mikal told him he could still take your mind and he¡¯s going to. Did he?¡±

    When I do not get an answer I look at Trayvon. His eyes are down, and his fists are clenched. He¡¯s angry, but his face is shifting from mask to mask. ¡°Trayvon?¡± I ask since he still does not answer.

    Finally, he speaks. ¡°When you came back, Kit...You were thought dead. The dragons could not find your scent. Alienis could not contact you. There was so much blooding from you that Freiah thought for sure she couldn¡¯t stop it. There was nothing in your face, nothing to show you were alive. I-I got angry.¡±

    He stops there and won¡¯t say more. I¡¯m shocked at this point. ¡°Trayvon, what did you do?¡±

    ¡°I-I went to look for Modain.¡±

    ¡°What?!¡± I screech. ¡°Are you dense? Trayvon, I barely made it back with my life intact. If it weren¡¯t for Alienis and dumb luck I¡¯d be dead.¡±

    ¡°I know!¡± He snaps. He still won¡¯t make eye contact with me. ¡°I didn¡¯t get there though. I couldn¡¯t find it and the Adversantem were everywhere. I had to bunk down for two days. While I hid for those days I had a lot of time to think. I was thinking that I can¡¯t-¡± He stops there. He finally looks at me. He loses a spark in his eye before he looks just above my head. ¡°I can¡¯t wait any longer to teach you to heal.¡±

    I raise an eyebrow. That¡¯s not what he was originally going to say. ¡°Alright, but I need you to answer my question first.¡±

    Now that takes him off guard. ¡°Question?¡±

    I nod. ¡°Yes. Mikal can still take your mind. You never told me if he tried.¡±

    He shakes his head. ¡°No, but if that¡¯s the case I need to leave you then.¡±

    ¡°Boy, you better be lying, or just in stupid.¡± I take a breath to calm myself and try to remove some of the harshness of my words. ¡°Didn¡¯t you just hear what we had said? Trayvon you cannot keep running from me just because you believe you¡¯ll hurt me. You need to talk to me. We need tomunicate. If we¡¯re going to be a team and win this thing we need to work together. That¡¯s going to be hard to do if you keep leaving when things get rough.¡±

    Trayvon gives a slight shake to his head. ¡°Whatever you say, Kit. I¡¯m going to go talk to Gracial.¡± He starts walking away at that point. I¡¯m either irritated beyond belief at this point or just in surprised. No, being annoyed is the best I can get with him. For once I wish I could be the one to walk away.

    ¡°Trayvon!¡± I yell. ¡°You can¡¯t keep running every time life throws you a problem.¡±

    ¡°Try me!¡± He yells back but keeps walking.

    ¡°Fine. I will.¡± I grab my cane and throw it at him, gasping as my stomach tries to kill me in protest. If I could have I would have thrown my shoe.

    The cane clips the side of his shoulder and flies off down the side of the mountain. I¡¯m not getting that back anytime soon. ¡°Ow!¡± Trayvon yells as he turns around. ¡°What in the name of yer was that for?¡±

    ¡°For your asinine behavior. You¡¯re being an idiot.¡± I yell back at him. ¡°If you walk away now Trayvon, there is a good chance you¡¯re going to get killed.¡±

    ¡°No Kit you are,¡± Trayvon yells back. ¡°You think you know everything and that your little miss perfect. Well, do you know what? You¡¯re just as dumb as the rest of us.¡±

    I see the exact words he wishes he could take back but it¡¯s toote. My anger has already woken. ¡°Then just go Trayvon. You¡¯re so convinced you can do this yourself, that you try to run from anything that can even just remotelyplicate your ns. So just leave then. Let¡¯s see how far you can do this on your own. Just don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t warn you. I hope you¡¯re alive long enough that you can figure this out on your own. I can¡¯t keep getting hurt covering my ass and yours just because you¡¯re too blind to see this.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not blind Kit. I¡¯m a realist. Just look at you. You can barely walk, and your stomach is in stitches. You¡¯re weak and almost dead. This ce is killing you. I¡¯m killing you. You¡¯re not going to make it here. It¡¯ll be better for both of us if we just split up and work on our own ends.¡± He walks away from me after that.

    I¡¯d kill him if I could walk. I still might. Now that my walking stick is gone I¡¯m going to have to go at this solo. I¡¯m going to kill him.

    <i>¡°Kit, what¡¯s wrong?¡± </i>Alienis asks me when I take a step. I might cry. My leg is wobbling and might just knock me on my butt. I can¡¯t answer him since I have to concentrate on my every step.

    <i>¡°Kit?¡± </i>Alienis asks when I finally reach the wall.

    I gasp as I lean against it, letting some weight off. My leg is pulsing under me. The split nerves are not helping either. <i>¡°Trayvon is an ass. What else is new? I do not understand why he refuses to fight with me. He¡¯s fighting Modain on his own and he¡¯s going to lose. Maybe after he cools off after my idiotic move he¡¯ll work with me. I hate that he¡¯s so...removed.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°That¡¯s just who he is right now Kit. If you heard his story then you¡¯d be more allowing.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°I do know his sted story Alienis. I just wish he were the one to tell me. He made a deal for Gracial¡¯s life. I still say he¡¯s a moron if he believes ignoring me is protecting me. I¡¯m getting killed out there while he just hides from me. If he can¡¯t see that we need to work together, then I¡¯m just going home. I don¡¯t need this, and I don¡¯t deserve the way he treats me.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Kit just be patient and don¡¯t do anything rash.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°I can barely walk. I think you¡¯re safekeeping me grounded for right now.¡± </i>I start moving my way along the walls, using them for support. I keep seeing people stop and stare at my wounds, their mouths gaped open. Not one of them helps me. It¡¯s a good thing I¡¯m taller than them or this could getplicated when I have to cross the center square.

    When I make it back to the room I had woken in, Freiah is waiting for me. ¡°Where is your cane?¡± She demands and helps me to the bed.

    My entire body groans as I sink into the bed. ¡°I threw it at Trayvon. He¡¯s not speaking to me, which is good considering how much he infuriates me.¡±

    She startsughing. ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°Long story short, he thinks it¡¯s best that we just keep working separately.¡± I start winding my hair up and tie it off. ¡°Every time I think that we can actually talk and get along, he runs off. He refuses to discuss anything with me and just walks off. It¡¯s pissing me off.¡±

    She sighs. ¡°That kid is more of a flight risk than you were when you first got here.¡±

    ¡°At least I stayed,¡± I mutter under my breath. ¡°That kid makes my blood boil.¡± I stop then something clicks. ¡°Uh-oh.¡± I breathe. The breath has just been knocked out of me.

    <i>¡°Gracial, where is Trayvon?¡±</i>I demand while Freiah talks. I¡¯m not hearing a word she¡¯s saying.

    ¡°<i>We¡¯re on flight to Boulder¡¯s Rock. He said he needed to cool off. Why?¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Because when I released the dragon¡¯s souls, Modain¡¯s energy depleted drastically. He needs Trayvon¡¯s blood to get some of it back. Only the effects are temporary. I need you to keep him safe. If Mikal has healed, by now he¡¯s going after Trayvon.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°I will. I¡¯ll get him back to the city as soon as possible. You need to tell him what happened when you went there.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°dly. Just get him back here.¡±</i> I breathe in, just a bit more rxed. Gracial can always talk sense into him. I just really wish I could heal. Why¡¯d he have to leave before he fulfilled that promise? Because I opened my big fat mouth that¡¯s why.

    ¡°You¡¯ll just have to be patient,¡± Freiah says as she pats my leg.

    What did she say? ¡°Sure,¡± I say as I smile at her.

    ¡°Good. Now get some rest. I¡¯ll wake you if we need you.¡±

 Chapter Twenty-Three

    A couple of days went by, and Trayvon never returned. Gracial assured me that he¡¯s safe and she¡¯ll keep an eye on him. She told me he needed to make some choices, as to what they could be remained a secret. Why is it impossible for this kid to open up to me? Even telling me how his day went is a struggle. I guess he just doesn¡¯t want to get attached since he¡¯s so insistent that I¡¯m going to die. On the bright side, most of my leg wound has closed up. I can walk on it more easily and move it, but it¡¯s a struggle.

    I¡¯m just waking on the fourth day when I hear something odd. The sound of something grating against rocks. When I open my eyes I scream and roll off the bed. Alienis¡¯s w ising through my window. Is he trying to make it bigger or something?

    ¡°Alienis, what are you doing?¡± I screech as I stand up.

    He stops and sticks his eye against the window. ¡°<i>You¡¯re alive! Naked but alive.¡±</i>

    ¡°Of course, I¡¯m alive.¡± I hiss as I pull on some pants. ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t I be?¡±

    <i>¡°I couldn¡¯t reach you. Neither could Gracial. Trayvon is in trouble. The Adversantem have found him.¡±</i>

    ¡°Of course, they have, the idiot,¡± I mutter under my breath. I grab my gear and shove it through the window. I slide on my knives and ce them in my belt after putting on a breastband and top. For Trayvon, I grab my green sword. He probably left unarmed as always. I strap on my bow and arrows and climb out the window just in time to hear Freiah yell after me. Alienis takes off as soon as I¡¯m on his back.

    It¡¯s not pretty when we make it to Boulders Rock. The Adversantem have Trayvon surrounded. Gracial is on the ground, tied up with several people holding ropes around her. I can see the blood from fallen bodies up here. I get out my arrows and fire into the heads of the twelve surrounding Trayvon. There are more but they have run for cover under Gracial. I swear. Alienis swings lower, making two pure ck dragons fly at him. I flip off his back since he¡¯s close enough to Gracial andnd on her back.

    ¡°Hold still.¡± I snap at her when she starts trying to move. I cut the ropes and jump off her so she can help Alienis.

    When on the ground I look around. There are ten Adversantem standing. Okay, this is going to be tough since I have nowhere to hide. I stand in a defensive stance when they fan around me. Should have thought this more through. ¡°Trayvon,¡± I say in a hard voice as I take a step back when they get closer. They all smile sickening grins while their hoods shadow most of their faces. Weapons are drawn while they take another step simultaneously.

    ¡°He-Here.¡± He gasps, touching my leg when I take a step back. He¡¯s beaten to a pulp and lying on the ground. I can see fainting scars on his body. He must have been unconscious before I got here. That¡¯s why they were surrounding him, so he wouldn¡¯t escape. They probably discovered what I have. Trayvon¡¯s blood is only a temporary effect.

    ¡°Can you fight?¡± I demand. I sure as Dawn cannot take them on by myself. Not with my injuries.

    ¡°I can try.¡± He stands up next to me.

    ¡°Good.¡± I hand him my sword. ¡°I can¡¯t do much,¡± I warn him. ¡°Not with my injuries.¡±

    ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll go first, we can switch off then.¡±

    ¡°How about we work together for once?¡± I suggest as I put my back to his. Now we can have more angles covered. ¡°Talk to me,¡± I instruct.

    ¡°Left!¡± He shouts as he moves. I go to my left to cover his other side. I grab the Adversantem¡¯s arm and pull him in, my knife sliding into his skull. I yank my knife out as I toss the body back.

    ¡°Front,¡± I tell him when one charges at me. I grab the Adversantem¡¯s arm and turn him. Trayvon grabs him and slits his throat. We keep up the pattern until they¡¯re all down, most of them dead.

    ¡°What happened?¡± I demand from him as we step apart. I can scarcely breathe as I stand on my shaky legs. The knife wound in my stomach is trying to rip itself open and spill the contents of my body onto the floor. I look at him and see not a scratch on him. He healed himself the lucky bastard.

    He pushes his burgundy hair out of his eyes. He looks me over, his eyes lingering on my previous injuries. ¡°Are you okay?¡±

    ¡°Fine. Trayvon, what happened? Why didn¡¯t youe back?¡± I touch his arm and look at him. ¡°You had me worried.¡±

    A slow p makes us look toward the cliff. I swear as I see Mikal standing among the corpses of his fellow men. ¡°Bravo Kit. You do have a heart.¡±

    ¡°Mikal.¡± I breathe as I face him. How many times do I have to kill this bastard? ¡°How¡¯s your throat?¡±

    He grins. ¡°You tell me.¡± Hands mp around my throat the exact moment his eyes un-focus. Trayvon¡¯s strong hands lift me in the air while I try to breathe. I look at him. His face is dark, and his eyes hold malice. There is a sick grin on his face while he tightens his grip.

    ¡°Trayvon.¡± I gasp. My hands are trying to w at his thick arms, but they¡¯re getting nowhere. ¡°Trayvon don¡¯t.¡± I choke. ¡°You¡­fight.¡± I¡¯m running out of air fast. I force my hand to move and reach for my belt for a knife. I cut his cheek, but he still holds my neck tightly.

    I lock eyes with Trayvon, making him look at me. ¡°Fight.¡± I gasp. ¡°You won¡¯t hurt me.¡± I try my best to sound strong with those words as he¡¯s strangling me, but I¡¯m failing miserably at best. I stab the knife into his bicep making him drop me. I gasp as Iy on the ground while Mikal walks over to me. He¡¯s drawing his knife. The only thing in reach of me is my sword. Come on Kit.

    I grab Mikal¡¯s leg as I grab the sword. Quickly I yank his leg out from under him. As he falls I stand and point my sword into his neck, ready to be rid of him for good. Fear is in Mikal¡¯s eyes as he stares at my tired angered expression. Right when I¡¯m about to drive it through his throat I hear Trayvoning up from behind me. I quickly do a side spin and hit the back of his head with the hilt of my sword. He drops to the ground at my feet, where I try to resist hurting him.

    By the time I¡¯m focused on Mikal again, he¡¯s on his feet. He has his sword drawn as well. ¡°You might be good with a bow Kit, but I¡¯ve trained all my life with a sword. You¡¯ll lose this.¡±

    ¡°Ha.¡± I bark. It sounds strong but I¡¯m barely standing at this point. I can¡¯t keep this up long. Even my taunts are weakening. If I fight him I¡¯ll be in major trouble if he has backup.

    Mikal steps closer. ¡°Then let¡¯s y.¡± He says with a grin. He steps closer and moves quickly toward me. I sidestep and block his blow, barely missing my waist. I disengage him and cut his arm as I step back.

    He touches his wound and grins. ¡°Impressive but it looks like I still have the advantage.¡± He goes for a hard blow and locks swords with me. His face is an inch from mine. My entire leg is screaming and protesting the amount of added weight. ¡°You¡¯re still injured, my wounds are healed.¡±

    ¡°Good for you,¡± I say through gritted teeth. The asshole.

    He licks my face. ¡°I¡¯m going to have fun with you.¡±

    ¡°You wish.¡± I push against him and stomp on his foot. I flip through the air andnd behind him. I turn in behind him and slice his back with my turn. He turned into it and quickly knocked my de away, blood in his eyes. He¡¯s out to kill me now. I make a strike for his unprotected left torso and end up locking des with him again.

    He moves my de with his as I try to disengage and grins at me. ¡°You know I¡¯ve never seen your sword skills. All you use is that bow.¡±

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t mean I don¡¯t know how to use this.¡± We start fighting again. He¡¯s fast and I¡¯m injured. This does not y out well in my mind. Just when I make a mistake and step back when I should have turned he disarms me, knocking me to my feet. Blood lust is clear in his eyes as madness shines through his manic smile. In a split second his eyes unfocused as a grunt escaped from his lips. He falls to his knees, then to the ground.

    Trayvon is standing behind him with a bloody de. He looks at me with wild and surprised eyes. ¡°Kit!¡±

    I smile at him and shake my head. ¡°You moron.¡± I gasp when my body tries to kill me for my recent abuse of it. Roars and fire tear through the air, nearly catching my hair with mes. We look up to see Gracial and Alienis heading toward us. They¡¯re shouting in our heads that it¡¯s time to go.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± He says quickly, holding his hand out to me. I take it but lose my bnce as my limbs fail and blood races from my head. He catches me and pulls me into him to steady us.

    ¡°Thanks.¡± I breathe. ¡°I needed that.¡±

    He chuckles. ¡°Let¡¯s go. We can talkter.¡±This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.

    Is that before or after he disappears again? ¡°Sure,¡± I say with a tight smile. Alienisnds quickly. I get on him before I can voice my remark and am immediately taken away to a safer ce.

 Chapter Twenty-Four

    We make it back to the city without incident. Freiah is waiting for us, ready to take care of me. ¡°Where in the name of yer have you been?¡± She demands from Trayvon. ¡°What did you do?¡± She demands from me.

    He waves her off. ¡°I¡¯ll tell youter. You need to look after Kit.¡±

    ¡°No,¡± She snaps as she pulls me into a standing position. ¡°You need to take care of her Tray. You¡¯re crippling her with your lunacy. So, you made a few bad decisions in your life. It shouldn¡¯t have to cost Kit her¡¯s.¡±

    ¡°You teach her then.¡± He snaps as he starts walking away.

    ¡°Get back here you ass!¡± Freiah yells, startling me. I¡¯m the one that is supposed to say that. ¡°It shouldn¡¯t be me that teaches her the Dracones way of life. It¡¯s not her fault Nrth chose her. It is your fault that you¡¯re killing her.¡±

    He turns to re at her. ¡°You know why I can¡¯t teach her.¡±

    ¡°Just shut up and do it you ass hat. It¡¯s her decision to make, not yours. Teach her or I¡¯ll summon Nrth¡¯s spirit and demand he haunts you the rest of your days. Your actions are shaming your former teacher Trayvon. I swear to the Dracones Gods that if you don¡¯t I¡¯ll tell Kit everything, and I mean everything.¡± There is a fire of defiance I¡¯ve never seen in her eyes before.

    Trayvon res at her. ¡°Don¡¯t you dare.¡±

    ¡°Then make her live you idiot!¡± Freiah lets me go in her anger, causing me to stagger back. Alienis catches me with his snout to steady me. ¡°My uncle would be ashamed of you Trayvon. He¡¯s rolling around in his grave at the thought of you doing this to your charge. You¡¯re to be teaching and guiding her, not crippling her.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯ll have to talk to them if she does Freiah!¡± He snaps at her. ¡°I¡¯ll have failed and Gracial¡¯s life would be forfeit.¡±

    ¡°So you¡¯re damning her because of it.¡± She yells back. ¡°Just do it already!¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t!¡± Trayvon snaps. ¡°You know what will happen.¡±

    Freiah¡¯s eyes go dark. ¡°I do. A young girl will die because her teacher-who is supposed to be looking out for her-is too selfish to see that his choice costs her her life.¡±

    His jaw goes tight, but to surprise us all Gracial snaps at him. I jump in disbelief, causing me to nearly fall. Alienis catches me with his wet tongue to steady me. He pulls me in a little, so I¡¯ll lean against his snout.

    Gracial huffs, smoke enveloping Trayvon for a split moment. <i>¡°The day you bargained for my life was a wrong one. You should have let me die Trayvon. You must teach Kit to heal, or she will die.¡±</i>

    Okay, I feel like the current trend here is pretty clear. I¡¯m going to die without Trayvon¡¯s help. He can¡¯t teach me to heal, or I¡¯ll end up talking to the Dracones Gods; where I¡¯ll kindly tell them off. Trayvon would fail in his bargain with them, and Gracial¡¯s life would be forfeited as a result. Trayvon is doing what he can to keep that from happening until I agree to be his puppet and say yes. However, Nrth chose me specifically because he thinks I won¡¯t do what Trayvon wants, which is what he wants. Judging by the way Trayvon is acting, he doesn¡¯t want me to agree to it. Though he¡¯s being aplete ass about it.

    Do you know what? I¡¯m just going to figure this out myself. From observing Alienis, Gracial, and Trayvon in order to heal, I know they need to be in a trance. I know fairly well how the human body works, due to my training in poisons, antidotes, and skills in killing/torture. I know the knife wound in my stomach has injured my abdominal muscles, nerves, tendons, and multipleyers of skin. I am lucky that it didn¡¯t prate my stomach or intestines. The w through my leg has damaged muscles, tendons,yers of skin, and nicked some of my femur.

    Trayvon interrupts my train of thought. ¡°Gracial, saving your soul will never be a mistake. I will not teach her because she¡¯s not even supposed to be a Dracones. She¡¯s a Northerner.¡±

    Freiah ps him. ¡°She¡¯s more of a Dracones than you¡¯ve ever been, you selfish piece of dung. She freed all the dragon souls Modain had captured since the set split. She¡¯s protected us and the dragons better than you ever have. She¡¯s willingly given her life to save your hide. Don¡¯t you dare say this woman isn¡¯t a Dracones, because she¡¯s already better than you. Even with you hindering her, she¡¯s done far more than you ever have. If Nrth were here, he¡¯d condemn you for your actions. I¡¯m ashamed to even be your friend.¡±

    Shock ripples through me as Alienis growls a warning at Trayvon, who has just taken a step toward Freiah. <i>¡°You need to grow up Trayvon and face the consequences of your choices. Kit will not be paying for it with her life.¡± </i>Before I can even speak Alienis tightens his tongue around me and takes off.

    ¡°Where are we going?¡± I demand as I hear Freiah and Trayvon yelling at him from below.

    ¡°<i>I¡¯m going to teach you myself. You¡¯re not supposed to be hurt.¡±</i> He dives down into the cavern, and into the cave where he sleeps.

    ¡°Alienis, I¡¯ll be okay. I just need to rest.¡± I breathe as heys me down. I¡¯m in desperate need of sleep right now. There is a chance I will not wake up. I¡¯m perfectly aware of this, but right now I don¡¯t really care.

    <i>¡°Rest. I¡¯ll watch over you.¡± </i>Alienis curls around me, using his belly to help keep me warm.

    I close my eyes and steady my heart, deciding to give my theory a try. I can¡¯t be any worse off if I fail. I feel every beat of my heart. Every breath I take. I use that to still my mind as I fully picture using a needle and thread to suture each of my wounds close. Repair all severed nerves and tendons. I smooth out the scar tissue as I would a nick in furniture. My muscles weld together. It isn¡¯t long before I¡¯m sweating with thebor going through my mind. I have no idea if this is right, but my instinct is telling me yes. Once I¡¯m finally finished with my wounds I picture the hideous scar on my neck. I imagine it being smoothed away. I finally get it to the point where it looks faint, which I will take.

    <i>As I¡¯m pulling away, stars envelop my field of vision. There are glowing white balls of light. Three of them are before me. A woman steps out with a white gown wrapped around her with a golden crown of leaves wrapped around her golden curls. A man steps out of the middle circle. A dragon is etched into his dark skin with a scar on his right brow. A baby dragon is curled up on his shoulder, his neck wrapped around his head. The far-right circle holds a half dragon, half man. He¡¯s standing on two legs as a human but has the neck and head of a dragon. His torso and limbs are human, but his limbs hold dragon ws. The creature¡¯s colors appear to be a mix of all breeds of color I have seen. </i>Material ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    <i>¡°Katarina.¡± The woman begins.</i>

    <i>¡°It¡¯s nice to finally see you in our realm.¡± The halfling speaks.</i>

    <i>¡°What brings you to us, other than your need to heal?¡± The man speaks. </i>

    <i>I raise my eyebrow and fold my arms. ¡°I didn¡¯t choose toe see you. What I want to know is why you brought me here.¡±</i>

    <i>The man chuckles. ¡°You¡¯re ballsy.¡± </i>

    <i>¡°And you¡¯re not,¡± I huff, showing my annoyance. ¡°Can I go now?¡± I can sense the deal they want to make, and I¡¯m trying to get them to hate me enough not to offer it.</i>

    <i>¡°Why do you talk to us this way?¡± The woman demands. ¡°We¡¯re the Dracones Gods.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°No, you¡¯re profiteers,¡± I snap. ¡°You give when you get. You show no signs of mercy. You are not my gods, as I have no direct corrtion of growing under you.¡± </i>

    <i>¡°You insolent girl,¡± the halfling snarls.</i>

    <i>¡°And you¡¯re an ass.¡± I¡¯m angry and an idiot. Fault me for it. Due to a deal between Trayvon and those three, my life is their stakes. </i>

    <i>¡°Got any other insults?¡± The man demands. ¡°Or can I kill you now?¡±</i>

    <i>¡°I¡¯ve got plenty, you conniving, moronic ghouls.¡± I straighten. ¡°You won¡¯t kill me, or it¡¯llpletely destroy your ns. You won¡¯t punish Trayvon either. That would anger me, and you don¡¯t want that. You will leave Gracial alone.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Why you insolent headstrong girl.¡± Snaps the woman.</i>

    <i>¡°You already said that.¡± I sigh. ¡°Look, you want to kill me? Go ahead. I¡¯ve been at death¡¯s door so many times we¡¯re bing friends. You three, however, keep messing with fate and making deals you don¡¯t even want to back. I¡¯m not asking for a deal, I¡¯m telling you. Leave Trayvon alone or Modain isn¡¯t the only ancient thing that is going to die by my hand.¡± </i>

    <i>She snorts. ¡°That¡¯s an empty threat.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Correct me if I¡¯m wrong, but Gods get their power through worship. You get recruited prayers due to your two warriors that you¡¯ve carefully selected. Correct?¡± I keep going, cutting off their answer. I¡¯m bluffing at this point, but I can¡¯t let them kill Gracial. I will not allow that, but I will not sell myself like a prostitute to keep them happy. Anger is what got me here, anger will be my tool. </i>

    <i>¡°Now when a Dracones dies, they get to pick someone to resume their role. If I refuse to pick one and die anyway, you¡¯ll have no one-and I mean no one-other than Trayvon to protect your precious worshippers. So don¡¯t piss me off, since I¡¯m already there.¡± </i>

    <i>¡°You will show us some respect,¡± The halfling orders, his hands clenching in his rage.</i>

    <i>¡°Only when you show it to me,¡± I retort. ¡°You have zero regard for my life. I¡¯m a pawn to you so you¡¯ll be treated as less from me. I am a person. I am a fighter. I am the best shot you¡¯ve got for keeping your precious Dracones alive. Now, leave me alone and leave Gracial alone.¡± </i>

    <i>The halfling steps toward me, but the middle man grabs him. The man speaks. ¡°You have no knowledge of us, and we have no understanding with you. As for the deeds you have done for the dragons under our care, we will give you our respect. However, you were quick to use your Dracones given power when you had need of it; so you do need us. You need at least Trayvon, who is under allegiance with us; whom I assume taught you to heal. For the price of using his knowledge, you will follow what we say.¡±</i>

    <i>I snort. ¡°Trayvon my ass. I taught myself how to heal. Your little man servant refuses to teach me to heal, or even expand my knowledge. All that I¡¯ve done, was not with your aide. In fact, your actions have been crippling me more than anything.¡±</i>

    <i>The woman pales. ¡°What?¡±</i>

    <i>The dragon on the man¡¯s shoulder lifts his head as he observes me. He flicks his tongue out, as if tasting the air. Surprising us all the dragon hops off the middle man¡¯s shoulder and flies over to me. The little white dragon, with daring green eyes, licks at some of my dried blood. He curls into a ball at my feet and goes back to sleep. Okay¡­</i>

    <i>The man is stiff and they¡¯re all staring at me with shocked eyes. ¡°It can¡¯t be.¡±</i>

    <i>I ignore them, though I feel apletely different air. ¡°So, since Trayvon didn¡¯t teach me anything, he¡¯s under no obligation to you for the healing that I have or will ever do. Right?¡± </i>

    <i>¡°Where are you from?¡± The woman asks, ignoring my strongarmed y.</i>

    <i>¡°The north.¡± I¡¯m beyond irritated with everyone attached to the Dracones bloodline right now.</i>

    <i>¡°You need to leave.¡± The halfling orders.</i>

    <i>¡°You¡¯ll leave Gracial alone?¡± I demand, folding my arms.</i>

    <i>¡°Yes. Trayvon didn¡¯t teach you so you¡¯re under no obligation. We will not let this go, however. Now leave.¡± The man orders but the dragon hisses at him.</i>

    <i>I bend down and pet the small scaly thing to calm him. When my fingertip touches him I gasp. My mind is attacked by an image. Me fighting Modain. I lose.</i>

    <i>¡°Now!¡± They all yell, causing me to vanish.</i>

 Chapter Twenty-Five

    I wake up to Alienis growling at something. ¡°<i>Go away,¡±</i> he warns, snorting smoke at our visitors.

    ¡°I need to talk to her,¡± Trayvon angrily shouts at him.

    ¡°And I need to treat her,¡± Freiah adds calmly. ¡°She¡¯s very hurt Alienis.¡±

    <i>¡°No, she¡¯s not.¡± </i>Alienis blows more smoke at Trayvon; his smugness easily heard in his tone.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Trayvon demands, his voice going cold.

    ¡°What?¡± Freiah questions, her voice sounding as if she¡¯s questioning herself.

    <i>¡°You wouldn¡¯t teach her, so she taught herself.¡± </i>Alienis purrs a little as I stroke his belly, letting him know that I¡¯m awake.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Trayvon repeats.

    ¡°Observation is a strong point I carry,¡± I say as I step out from behind Alienis. Freiah gasps while Trayvon looks staggered. ¡°Now if you¡¯ll excuse me, I need to shower.¡± I push past both of them, leaving them in disbelief. What¡¯s next on the n I have no idea. Either way, I stink, and I need to shower.

    As I¡¯m getting out of the shower, I hear someone screaming my name. I quickly pull on my clothes just as the door opens. Freiah¡¯s eyes are wide, and she¡¯s covered in sweat. ¡°Kit, it¡¯s Trayvon.¡±

    I groan. ¡°What has he done now?¡± In response, she grabs my hand and rushes me out the door.

    ¡°How did you heal yourself?¡± She demands as she pulls me.

    ¡°Instinct I guess.¡± I huff as she drags me along. ¡°What is going on with Trayvon?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. We were talking about you healing and then he suddenly passed out. So did Gracial.¡±

    ¡°Are they dead?¡± I demand; my cold tone giving warning of my body getting ready for a fight. Maybe I shouldn¡¯t have been so rude to the Dracones Gods. Eh, I could have been a little less mean; but strongarming them was my best bet. Plus, I really don¡¯t like them right now.

    We reach the bottom of the caverns to find Alienis nudging Gracial. She¡¯s still breathing so I¡¯m less worried. Trayvon is on the ground, his eyes darting back and forth under his eyelids. I kneel down and touch him. I get a sh of him talking to the Dracones Gods and they look very upset. I didn¡¯t make a great first impression.

    I stand up. ¡°It appears the Dracones Gods have called a meeting.¡±

    Freiah looks at me with wide eyes. ¡°What did you say to them?¡±

    Sheepishly, I rub the back of my head. ¡°I may have called them profiteers.¡±

    She groans. ¡°Is that all?

    ¡°Not exactly. I also called them conniving moronic ghouls¡­in that order.¡±

    I¡¯ve never seen such anger on her face. ¡°What would possess you to say those things?¡±

    I shrug. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I was hurt, tired, and angry. I¡¯m also severely pissed off at the way Trayvon, and those nimrods, are acting as if my life is theirs to barter with. I¡¯m also upset at the way Trayvon has been treating me. I¡¯ll be leaving first thing in the morning.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± She cries, hurt growing on her face.

    ¡°Freiah, I have almost died more times than I can count for thismunity and that man. The only one that seems to acknowledge that, or even care, is you, Freiah. I¡¯m not wee here. I¡¯m basically thought of as a long-term visitor. I¡¯m heading out to figure out how to be a Dracones; since, clearly, the man who is supposed to be my partner, doesn¡¯t think of me enough to be one.¡±

    Freiah grabs my arm as I begin to walk away. ¡°You¡¯re not Kit.¡±

    ¡°Clearly I am.¡± I pull my arm back. ¡°He¡¯ll be fine. Just keep him warm.¡±

    ¡°Do something!¡± Freiah yells at Alienis as I climb the stairs. He just snorts andys down. Alienis believes I¡¯m right in this. There is no point in staying with a ¡°partner¡± who would rather use me for his own selfish gain. I¡¯ve been severely abused in this partnership, and I¡¯m not standing for it any longer. Alienis will being with me in the morning; so he¡¯s not as worried about me if I were leaving alone. He¡¯s fed up with the way Trayvon has been treating me as well.

    I go back into my room and pack while I think of the next step. Trayvon, or anyone, for that matter, is not giving me any answers. No one, besides Freiah, will even give me a basic history as to what I¡¯m to be doing; or even a summary as to what I can do. I learned to heal myself, and I intend to find out what I can do myself. If I cannot get an understanding of what a Dracones is here, I¡¯ll do it myself by going to the source.

    I fell asleep that night with difficulty, but I did manage. When I sleep, I toss and turn while I¡¯m assaulted with images of Modain killing me. If he does destroy me, I at least want to have the right to know why. Why were they so desperate to go to a dark spirit in order to defeat him?

    Right before the sunes up the next day, I go and retrieve Miny. She¡¯s gotten used to being picked up by Alienis, so I¡¯ll bring her along. I¡¯ll be able to ride her on the ground and get away if the Adversantem attack and have Alienis distracted.

    ¡°Ready to go?¡± I ask Alienis when hends next to us. In his response, he nuzzles me. His eyes are sad, but he¡¯s ready. ¡°I know,¡± I say as I pet his muzzle. ¡°I¡¯m not getting anywhere being treated like dirt. If we want to beat Modain, I need to find some answers.¡± Or meet my death. Whichever.

    As I climb onto Alienis¡¯s back, I hear someone shouting. I recognize the voice, and I¡¯m in no mood to listen. ¡°Go,¡± I tell Alienis. With a roar, Alienis takes off. I know where I¡¯m heading, but I doubt Trayvon does. If I want to solve the mystery of Modain, I have to start where he begins. For that, I¡¯m going off the legends I have learned from my time studying, and some stories I was told by Freiah. There is one thing that they never mention but has something inmon withmon knowledge. The farthest part of the south, the darker and more lifeless it is. That is where I¡¯m going to search for my answers.

    We make it to the end of the south after five days of almost nonstop flight. We had little run-ins with the Adversantem; since I¡¯ve severely damaged them with mytest attack on them. Modain is still in recovery from what I hear. Mikal has survived Trayvon¡¯s attack, but he¡¯s too weak to heal, and there aren¡¯t any dragon souls for him to use; so he has to heal the old-fashioned way. The poor man.

    Alienisnds in a dead wood. It¡¯s on the edge of a ck sea. There is no life here and I sense evil. I¡¯ve never felt this much malevolent energy before, and it¡¯s putting me on edge. I instruct Alienis to take Miny to where he can no longer sense this darkness. I¡¯ll call for him when I need him.

    <i>¡°Careful youngling. Even the Adversantem will not venture here.¡± </i>He nudges me then takes off with a bored Miny in tow.

    Well, that¡¯s reassuring. On the bright side, they won¡¯t bug me here. I start walking, ck smog covering my feet with each step. I tread carefully, so as not to trip over any hidden roots. I have a feeling that if I fall into that mist, I won¡¯t be waking up.

    I¡¯m two hours in and the hairs on the back of my neck are standing up. ording to Freiah, the original Dracones made a deal with a dark spirit. Modain caved to the Dracones Gods and offered a trade. The Gods likely agreed since they¡¯d rather deal with a dragon than an immortal spirit. Only Modain didn¡¯t fully seed due to the spirit¡¯s newfound immortality. The spirit is trapped inside him and that is likely a major key factor in why that dragon is insane and still alive.

    I have no idea what I¡¯m searching for, but something tells me this forest can get a lot darker and creepier. I¡¯m not scared of spirits. They¡¯re useless unless you give them power. The only problem is some of them are very good at getting it from you. This isn¡¯t the first time I¡¯ve had to do something like this. I¡¯ve had to go to the realm of the dead to bring Ivan back once. That wasn¡¯t fun and it was downright scarring.

    Once night falls I can feel death. I can feel the cold metallic essence of it. There is fear in the air and wolves anguished calls fill the air. There is no wildlife, it¡¯s a trick to spark fear. Evil spirits feed off fear. That is what I¡¯m hunting so I refuse to make them stronger. That would be suicide. I finally see a bright screened light thirty meters ahead of me. I hear the calls of the dead. The trapped spirits of dragons that are here thanks to Modain. How he can do this to his own kind is well beyond me. There are moans and cries worse than I have ever heard. I have the power to help them, I just have no idea how. Maybe I should have brought the jerk.

    ¡°Leave!¡± A voice yells to me once I near the light. I refuse to flinch and keep moving. A voice has no power if I give it no heart. That¡¯s a lie but it helps me move forward.Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.

    ¡°Leave now!¡± The ominous voice yells again. I don¡¯t acknowledge it, I keep moving. I¡¯m getting to the bottom of where this all started. My guess is, in order to achieve his power-which is stronger than any dragon I have ever felt-he made a deal that started here. Deals are usually what end up killing you.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡± The voice yells again. ¡°Turn back.¡±

    I get to the screen, and I see faces pressing against it; groaning and moaning, begging to be released. There are little green balls in there, captured, and tormented dragons.

    ¡°I want to speak with the Dracones of my past. Whom caused my presence and gave us so much.¡± I demand as I look at the screen.

    ¡°Leave!¡± A voice yells.

    ¡°In my experience, when someone tells you to leave, it¡¯s because of the power they possess. What about me scares you?¡± I demand. I¡¯m forcing myself to remain calm, though I can feel my adrenaline trying to force itself to register. I refuse to. If I do I¡¯m dead. The spiritual world does not ept confidence other than their own.

    ¡°It¡¯s what you will do that scares me.¡±

    ¡°I demand you to give me what I want!¡± There is so much authority in my voice, that even I want to punch my pompous ass.

    Two blue lights shoot in front of me. Two men, with long hair and soulless eyes appear before me. They bear the Dracones markings on their chest and are slightly taller than me. I stand shocked at the one before me. He¡¯s the male version of me. ¡°What do you need?¡±

    I shake my head before speaking. ¡°I want to know about the spirit you made the deal with.¡±

    They both look at me and stiffen. They look at each other and then back at me. ¡°His name is Necro.¡± They answer then the male version of me takes over. ¡°He assured us he would help defeat Modain, but he needed an edge to beat him. We foolishly and desperately believed him. He killed us when he took our immortality. Necro was nearly true to his word, but he wasn¡¯t prepared for how strong Modain truly was. To save himself, he welded with Modain¡¯s spirit. He didn¡¯t realize that doing so would nearly kill Modain and in direct corrtion himself. If it weren¡¯t for the Dracones Gods they both would have died. However, so would the Dracones line since there is no longer an evil dragon to fight. The cycle would be broken, and their purpose would end.¡±

    The other one takes over. ¡°Necro is the subdued personality inside Modain. If he is freed then Modain¡¯s madness ends. However, Modain¡¯s strength returns.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s already figured out a way around that.¡± I toss my hair and fold my arms. ¡°The other half of my little duo offered himself to the Dracones Gods. His blood returns his strength. Due to this, my soul frees him. Since I will not pledge loyalty to the Dracones Gods, or be used to unleash pure evil into this world, I need to kill Necro and Modain. Now, what needs to be done to destroy Necro?¡±

    Male me answers, ¡°Attaching himself to Modain the way Necro had, forfeited his immortality. Once extracted from Modain, Necro dies.¡±

    Doable I guess. ¡°Done,¡± I say.

    He touches my arm, bringing a cold shiver through me. ¡°You must not free Modain. His power is stronger than you know.¡±

    ¡°If Mikal lives, then this doesn¡¯t matter in the long run.¡±

    ¡°He can feed off the trapped spirits of the past at his full strength.¡±

    I look at the screen. Trapped spirits of the past. This does appear to be their gate since an awful lot of them look to be trapped. ¡°I can fix that.¡± I hold up my hand, the Dracones symbol already lighting up.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡± They both demand.

    I shrug. ¡°Just following my instincts.¡±

    ¡°Dracones don¡¯t have instincts like this.¡± The male version of me says quickly.

    ¡°I guess we¡¯ll find out.¡±

    ¡°You touch that, and you die.¡± They warn.

    ¡°It¡¯s a good thing I¡¯m not touching it then.¡± I hold my hand at the edge of it. ¡°There is something familiar about one of you though.¡± I hint.

    ¡°Uh yeah.¡± He coughs.

    ¡°That¡¯s it.¡± the other one yells. ¡°You¡¯re going to let your¡­really great granddaughter do this?¡±

    I look at him. ¡°Excuse me?¡±

    The other one looks at me. ¡°We visited the Northern Districts before this happened. Morvota had a little too much to drink and met a woman. He got her pregnant and the bastard ran out on her. It looks like karma is finally kicking you in the pants centuriester, Morvota.¡±

    ¡°Shut up yer!¡± He hisses.

    I roll my eyes. ¡°Why am I always cleaning up after my family?¡± I look straight ahead. It now makes sense how I¡¯m so advanced in being a Dracones. I¡¯m rted to the original. Truth is, I have no idea what I¡¯m doing. I can¡¯t touch it, or I meet death. I don¡¯t think Death will let me live if I relieve it of some of its tortured souls. Especially the strong ones.

    Eh, I¡¯ve got to die sometime. Making enemies seems to be a specialty of mine, so I doubt that will stop in the afterlife. I take a deep breath and was about to lean in when Morvota touches my hand. ¡°Let me clean up my own mess.¡±

    Still touching me he touches the screen. yer copies Morvota. The Dracones symbols on all of us light up. Green lights shoot out from the screen, causing screams to sound around me. Dark spirits are losing their power. I can hear that by the anguished cries surrounding me; which means¡­

    Realization hits me just then. ¡°Oh no.¡± yer and Morvota turn to me and smile. They nod as they vanish. Apparently, this act redeemed them and screwed me over. ¡°Alienis!¡± I scream in my mind and out loud as I start running, following the path I hade.

    Alienis meets me at the edge of the barren wastnd. I climb on his back as quickly as I can. ¡°Morningswood! Go!¡±

    <i>¡°Gracial!¡± </i>I yell in my head, connecting with her. She¡¯s mad at me, but she¡¯s willing to listen. <i>¡°Gracial I made a huge mistake. Please get Trayvon to prepare for war. I¡¯ll be there as soon as I can, but this is all my fault. I freed Modain.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°What!¡±</i> She roars inside my head, making me wince and bow my head in shame. <i>¡°How?¡±</i>

    <i>¡°I freed the trapped dragon spirits of the past, as well as the original Dracones Set. I didn¡¯t think it would cause the dark spirits to lose their strength. Modain can now defeat Necro and attack us at his full strength, madness-free.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°You will exin more when you get here. I¡¯ll get us prepared.¡± </i>

    <i>¡°I will tell you everything, just hurry please.¡± </i>I touch Alienis, willing him to go faster. What have I done? Why didn¡¯t they tell me that this would drain Necro as well, and he¡¯d lose his hold on Modain? Why are all Dracones self-serving bastards? Maybe that¡¯s what it means to be a Dracones.

 Chapter Twenty-Six

    We make it to Morningswood in four days, early in the morning. The sun hasn¡¯t even risen yet. By the time we¡¯re near the city, I¡¯m armed to the teeth. I have my green de attached to my hip. My knives are all lined with my boots and belt, and my bow and quiver on my back. My hair is pulled back, allowing me to be ready to leave at a second notice to fight. I hear a dragon growl as wend. It¡¯s Gracial, she¡¯s announcing we¡¯re home. Trayvon runs out of the entrance as fast as he can. I jump off Alienis as soon as hends.

    ¡°Kit!¡± Trayvon yells as I run toward him.

    ¡°Tray, I made a huge mistake.¡± I start. Before I can say more he wraps me in his arms. Shock hits me so I¡¯m not sure what to say.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry Kit. I¡¯m sorry for everything I¡¯ve done and said to you.¡± He squeezes me tighter. ¡°I¡¯ll train you. I swear I will.¡±

    ¡°Tray stop!¡± I shout as I push against him. ¡°I did something bad, and we won¡¯t have much time.¡±

    He looks me over. ¡°What did you do?¡± His cold mask is back, as well as his demeanor.

    I just got whish from that personality switch. ¡°Okay, we¡¯ll talk about that whole switchter. I went to learn more about the spirit that fought Modain and¡­somewhat lost.¡±

    ¡°What!¡± He yells. ¡°How do you even know where that is? I don¡¯t even know where it is!¡±

    ¡°Legends. It wasn¡¯t that hard to figure out. Anyway, when I was there I met the original Dracones spirits, and that¡¯s apletely different story. Moving on, the three of us freed all the trapped, used-up, tormented dragon spirits. I didn¡¯t know this when releasing them I¡¯d weaken the dark spirits.¡±

    He looks confused. ¡°So?¡±

    ¡°Necro-the dark spirit that nearly defeated Modain-is what was making Modain insane. He¡¯s no longer crazy Trayvon. He can think for himself again. He is himself again.¡±

    Trayvon¡¯s eyes widen. ¡°Are you telling me, that the dark spirit is no longer inside Modain?¡±N?velDrama.Org holds this content.

    ¡°Yes,¡± I very nearly yell in exasperation. ¡°This means he can be killed but he¡¯s no longer mentally handicapped, Trayvon. He can heal as a dragon again. He can return to full strength again!¡± I grab his shoulders. ¡°With your blood, he can be stronger than what he was.¡±

    ¡°What!¡±

    ¡°I know!¡± I yell. ¡°We¡¯ve got to go!¡±

    ¡°Wait, what? It¡¯ll take months to repair that damage.¡± Trayvon takes a step back. ¡°We need to train and ask the Gods for help.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re dead, and allowed us to get into this mess; so how much help can they be?¡± I snap. ¡°We need to go while Mikal is healing and he¡¯s still weaker. Every second he grows stronger.¡± I pull on his hand. ¡°I need your help.¡±

    ¡°We need to prepare. We need to start your training now.¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t have time. Later!¡± I snap, urgently trying to pull him with me once more.

    <i>¡°Toote.¡± </i>A dark voice calls through our mind. I turn and swear as I see Modain flying toward us.

    ¡°Alienis go!¡± I yell as I run toward him, Trayvon still rooted into ce. How did he heal so fast? I climb onto Alienis¡¯s saddle.

    ¡°Kit.¡± I look over and see Trayvon. ¡°Today, we fight as partners. If we live, we¡¯re getting to know each other.¡±

    I smile at him. ¡°I¡¯d like that.¡± I pat Alienis. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Alienis flies into the rising sun. As we get closer I can see that Modain¡¯s legs are still basically useless. He¡¯s used his energy to restore the majority of his power, not his body. This will help us. I, however, have no idea how strong his actual power is. Stupid Kit. Why didn¡¯t they stop me? I nearly smack myself as I realize. They wanted to be free themselves. I am an idiot. I wonder where their souls go. Maybe where the other dead Dracones go. I wonder where that is. If that little dragon god vision is correct, I¡¯ll soon find out. When I do, they¡¯ll wish they were still trapped for eternity.

    <i>¡°What was that?¡±</i> Alienis orders, horrified by what he saw in my mind.

    <i>¡°My death,¡± </i>I exin calmly as we continue toward Modain.

    <i>¡°Katarina,¡±</i> Alienis warns.

    My response is cut off by a fire attack from Modain. I duck as Alienis dodges. When I look up I see a swarm of Adversantem dragons. Well, I¡¯m screwed. On the other hand, I do not see Mikal. ording to my calctions of the humbling human healing rate, he¡¯s still in aa. I have no idea what Trayvon has in mind, but I have to trust him this time.

    Alienis pulls up slightly and locks onto Modain as he rears. They grab hold of each other and start biting at one another. We¡¯re tackled on the side, knocking Alienis from Modain and me from his back. I¡¯m caught quickly though.

    As I¡¯m preparing for the worst a hand grabs my arm. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I got you.¡± Trayvon pulls me up from Gracial¡¯s w. He pulls me behind him and Alienis takes off after the dragon that tackled him. When I look behind us, I see several of our nsmen and dragons flying toward us.

    ¡°I bet you didn¡¯t know they are trained dragon fighters either?¡± Trayvon chuckles. ¡°Now let¡¯s kill this bastard.¡±

    ¡°His legs are still shriveled and still physically weak,¡± I say as I point at Modain as we fly toward him. ¡°He used all his energy to bring back his power. Now what kind of power does a dragon have?¡±

    Trayvon chuckles. ¡°I really have kept you undertrained. Okay, Modain has mind control. There hasn¡¯t been a mind he can¡¯t take at full strength. He can also zap a person¡¯s soul if he manages to bite them. He also has a way of basically causing anyone considered weak to bounce off of him in a way. His power is basically a built-in shield. Anyone who is not on his power level cannot touch him.¡±

    I grin. ¡°He¡¯s still weak. Alienis touched him.¡±

    ¡°Then let¡¯s get him. What is a dragon¡¯s weak point?¡±

    ¡°Wings, eyes, and belly.¡± I know that from my fight in the North.

    ¡°Good, because we¡¯re on our own,¡± Trayvon says as he rolls off, pulling me with him. We had avoided a dragon attacking Gracial by inches. We hurdled toward the ground, plummeting at such a pace that I could scarcely breathe. Air is pulling at my exposed midriff and legs.

    Ind on Modain¡¯s back, and Trayvonnds on his tail. Modain growls and turns his head, trying to bite at me. I dodge him and stab him in the back with one of my knives, holding on since I know what ising next.

    ¡°Hold on!¡± I yell as Modain goes into a barrel roll. Trayvon lets go of Modain¡¯s tail and drops onto his belly.

    ¡°Belly!¡± Trayvon yells to confirm as Modain roars.

    ¡°Climbing!¡± I yell back as I take out another knife and start making my way up. Modain roars again as he turns back over. By this time, I¡¯d made it to the base of his head. I stab him again while he tries to throw me. Trayvon does something, causing him to roar and toss his head back. I use the distraction and momentum to swing and stab the de into his eye.

    Taking an unexpected turn Modain dives toward the ground. Trayvon and I hold on tight but with the impact from the ground, we¡¯re both knocked off. I roll as Trayvon stays pinned underneath him. Modain stands as he growls. ¡°<i>Your blood will heal me!¡± </i>He yells as he takes a snap at Trayvon.

    Trayvon ducks and Modain misses his head by inches. ¡°Kit, I need you!¡± Trayvon yells as he tries to shove Modain off of him.

    I stand and run at Modain, knowing I¡¯mpleting that little dragon¡¯s prophecy. Modain swings his head wildly, striking me and flinging me into a tree. I smack it hard, pain radiating in every inch of my being. I can¡¯t breathe and I can¡¯t think.

    ¡°Kit!¡± Trayvon yells as Modain maniacally begins tough.

    I grab my sword from my belt and start running. I dive between Modain and Trayvon, my de lifted upwards. Modain bites down on me as my de prates his skull and enters his brain, swallowing me whole. I miss his teeth by a hair, but the top of his mouth ms down and cracks against my head, making my neck bend at an impossible angle. Thest thing I¡¯m aware of is Tray yelling my name.

 Chapter Twenty-Seven

    <i>I¡¯m in the shadow world, and I¡¯m definitely dead this time. That little rat bastard dragon wasn¡¯t wrong, was he? I look to my left and see Nrth has appeared before me. ¡°Pissed off the Dracones Gods have you?¡± He chuckles as he gives me an amused smile.</i>

    <i>I shrug. ¡°It was my free time.¡±</i>

    <i>He chuckles. ¡°By the gods you are something else. They needed a good ribbing anyway.¡±</i>

    <i>I smile. ¡°Hopefully the next one can keep that going.¡±</i>

    <i>Nrth looks me over. ¡°You still killed Modain. It was an honorable way to die.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°It was a stupid way to die. Who just charges into a dragon¡¯s mouth?¡± I fold my arms as I look at the little lights before me. Another soul to take my ce.</i>

    <i>¡°One who looks out for her partner. You¡¯re very good at working for a team. Trayvon is another matter entirely. I¡¯m afraid after you, he won¡¯t be so kind with the next one.¡±</i>

    <i>I snort. ¡°When was he ever kind?¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Good point.¡± He pats my shoulder. ¡°Now who do you want to rece you?¡± </i>

    <i>I shrug. ¡°To keep up with Trayvon, someone like me. Or Freiah maybe?¡±</i>

    <i>He shakes his head. ¡°There is not another like you my dear. Freiah is better suited to heal. She does not like fighting, though Trayvon challenges that belief sometimes.¡± </i>

    <i>I think about it. ¡°Stubborn would be good. Maybe Moira</i>.¡±

    ¡°<i>How well did you adjust to being here?¡± Nrth chuckles.</i>

    <i>¡°You do like poking holes in things, don¡¯t you?¡± I mutter. ¡°She can handle it though. She¡¯s smart.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°She also leads hundreds of people, child.¡±</i>

    <i>He¡¯s got me there. ¡°This is hard. How did you choose me so easily?¡±</i>

    <i>Nrth scoffs, ¡°I didn¡¯t. I thought about this long and hard in my lifetime. I was old when I died.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°No,¡± I give a mocked gasp. He chuckles as I turn back towards the lights. ¡°What made you choose my traits?¡±</i>

    <i>¡°I thought about the man you¡¯d be working with. When I found you, I knew you¡¯d be perfect.¡±</i>

    <i>I roll my eyes. ¡°Great, I¡¯ll need to pick a stone to get through his thick head.¡± </i>

    <i>Nrth chuckles. ¡°That is true. He does care for you. Your loss is devastating to him.¡±</i>

    <i>I wave him off. ¡°Only because I bullied the Gods, and he got to keep his precious dragon. I doubt the next one can do the same thing. Freiah is the only one I can see pulling that off.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°You keep thinking of people you know. Try thinking of your traits. There are tons with a lot of your qualities.¡± </i>

    <i>¡°Hopefully just the good ones.¡± </i>

    <i>¡°Stop!¡± A voice yells behind us, causing us to both turn in surprise. </i>

    <i>I groan. ¡°What are you three doing here?¡± I whine as I look at the Dracones Gods. ¡°Can¡¯t you let a girl die in peace?¡± </i>

    <i>The woman res at me. ¡°Silence you insolent girl.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Haven¡¯t youe up with a better insult than that yet?¡± I turn my body towards them, fully facing them as Nrth stifles a giggle.</i>

    <i>The man cuts her off. ¡°You killed Modain.¡±</i>

    <i>His statement confuses me. Was it supposed to be a question? ¡°And he deserved it,¡± I pointedly say as I nod.</i>

    <i>¡°And released the tortured dragon spirits.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Again, yes.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°And helped redeem your predecessors, Morkov and yer.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Unknowingly,¡± I sigh, wishing they¡¯d get to the point.</i>

    <i>To my surprise, both Morkov and yer appear before us. ¡°She did indeed save us our lords.¡± They say as they kneel. I roll my eyes as Nrth looks them over. </i>

    <i>Morkov stands. ¡°We did what we thought was right your Graces. We were desperate and foolish. Katarina saved and repaired all that had been done. Even Necro has vanished from this earth.¡± </i>

    <i>The man looks at Morkov. ¡°Morkov, why didn¡¯t you tell us you had an heir?¡±</i>

    <i>He grimaces while Nrth gapes at me. Morkov speaks with care. ¡°Forgive me Ugyay. I thought if I had forgotten about the child I had sired, the problem would go away. I know a child of an immortal would have been a great asset to you, but once I gave up that immortality the child lost his ability as well. No direct line and all that.¡±</i>

    <i>I roll my eyes. My greatest grandfather, the love em and leave em type coward, everybody. He peeks at me, shame showing on his face.</i>

    <i>Ugyay looks me over. ¡°She does look like you by quite a bit. You must be proud of her.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°I¡¯m proud, but I doubt she is of me as of this moment. I was stupid back then.¡± He looks me over. ¡°I am sorry for what I did to your ancestor, Katarina. How did she fair?¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Believe me, your selfish action four days ago, told me enough as to what to think of you and your friend.¡± He winces while I then shrug. ¡°To answer your question, I don¡¯t know. I grew up as an orphan so that part of my past has been lost. Maybe I¡¯ll ask her once I officially cross over.¡± </i>Material ? of N?velDrama.Org.

    <i>¡°No, I will.¡± He smiles at me. ¡°I owe her an apology after all these years.¡±</i>

    <i>Ugyay looks at me. ¡°You see, this is interesting. With your biological line as part of the original Dracones, we can make you immortal. All you have to do- ¡°</i>

    <i>I cut him off. ¡°Save it Ugyay. I¡¯ll agree to being immortal, and protecting the dragons, but that is it. I will not swear loyalty to a bunch of swindlers.¡±</i>

    <i>Ugyay¡¯s jaw clenches as his fists ball. The others stare at me in shock. ¡°That¡¯s not what I had in mind.¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Then get yourself another girl. I have no children. I have an adoptive sister, and I refuse to pick her. Who knows, maybe you¡¯ll snag the next line in another century or so toplete your precious set.¡± I turn back to the screen. ¡°So Nrth, you really think I should focus on my traits?¡±</i>

    <i>¡°Uh-yeah.¡± He says, taken off guard by the direction of this conversation, as he turns his attention back to me. ¡°Also focus on skill. Make sure they can fight since this life can be hard.¡±</i>

    <i>I cock my head as I think of it. A little light in the farthest part of the northern region lights up. A man with golden curls and blue eyes pop up. He¡¯s wearing the Wolves crest and is currently locking des with a Trix. ¡°I like him,¡± I say as I grin. I think my heart just melted a little. </i>

    <i>¡°Fine!¡± Ugyay snaps, causing us to turn.</i>

    <i>¡°Pardon?¡± I ask as the little dragon lifts himself off of Ugyay. He flies over to me and sits on my head. </i>

    <i>Morkov chuckles, ¡°It¡¯s good to see you¡¯ve been keeping Amelia safe all these years, Ugyay. She must sense my blood in Katarina. Look how much she likes her.¡± </i>

    <i>If a God could get red faced from anger, Ugyay did it. ¡°Take your immortality. I¡¯m not finished with you. Ulia, Rescove, let¡¯s go.¡± They vanish and I¡¯m kicked out of their world.</i>

    I gasp as I wake up. I¡¯m on a boat and smell of kerosene. I look up in enough time to see a ming arrow flying towards me. Oh no. I roll into the water, just barely missing the ming arrow. I pop my head out of the water as the crowd on the shore cheers. They just tried to set me on fire and are happy about it?

    <i>¡°Kit!¡± </i>Alienis roars, causing the crowd to silence as he pushes off the ground. Before I can blink he has me scooped up and is barrel rolling through the air.

    Gracial growls and starts flying to attack him. ¡°<i>Katarina is gone. Let her go.¡± </i>

    <i>¡°She¡¯s alive! She¡¯s alive!¡± </i>Alienis chants in his head over and over again.

    ¡°Can you please set me down? I¡¯m starting to get a little sick.¡± I beg as I feel things I wish would stay down start toe up.

    Gracial tackles Alienis, causing water to ssh the entire n and what appears to be my family, as we plummet back into theke. How long have I been gone? ¡°Tray!¡± I yell as I briefly manage to get my head out of the water. ¡°Help!¡± Gracial is trying to wrestle me from Alienis while he¡¯s squeezing the dear life out of me to protect me. Alienis is doing his best to make sure I can breathe, but Gracial is ying hardball and not listening to my pleas for her to stop.

    ¡°Kit!¡± Trayvon yells from the shore and dives into theke. No, I whine. I wanted him to yell at them. It¡¯s what he does best.

    Alienis pulls up as soon as Gracial knocks me out of his w. I burst back out of the water while Gracial still wrestles with Alienis, convinced he still has my corpse. Trayvon has finally caught up with me and tackles me with a giant hug, pulling us both underwater.

    I gasp for air once we¡¯ve popped back up. ¡°If I knew I was getting this kind of reception, I would have stayed dead.¡±

    Trayvon gives pealing booms ofughter; relief and joy in every feature of his body. ¡°How are you here? You¡¯ve been dead a week.¡±

    ¡°Long story short, but they basically kicked me out.¡± I grin as his eyebrow raises. ¡°You¡¯re not the only one I can piss off. I¡¯ll tell you more once we¡¯re out of theke.¡±

    He nods. ¡°Sounds good. Before we celebrate though, I will tell you Modain is dead, Mikal is not.¡±

    I¡¯m confused. ¡°So?¡±

    ¡°Modain managed to give Mikal his soul willingly, Kit. Mikal has what was left of Modain¡¯s power. It wasn¡¯t much, but Mikal¡¯s still inhumanly strong.¡±

    I really didn¡¯t even get a moment to rx before I¡¯m faced with my next mission. I groan as I throw my head back, ¡°I think I¡¯ll go back to being dead.¡±

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