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“She got out before us though,” Kadie said.
Mason sighed heavily and hung his head.
“What’s on your mind?” I asked. “I know we’ve lost a lot of people, but at least, we won. We stopped Ilvar from destroying the planet. I get that the losses must weigh heavily on you, butyou can’t let that distract you from the good that we’ve done,” I said.
“It’s not that. At least, it’s not entirely that,” Mason put his hand on his chin and looked pensive. The water continued to lap against the shore in a gentle rhythm, making a song that lulled us into a sense of calm. It was a stark contrast to the scene on the island. I certainly hoped that all the dragons on the island were dead for their sakes, because the pain of being held captive in that blaze was unimaginable.
“It’s the fact that he had so many people willing to follow him,” Mason continued. “Even Jade, who was brought up in our thunder and was taught a peaceful way to live eventually joined Ilvar because she thought she deserved more. The things he promised were dangerous. I’m worried that he isn’t going to be the last.”
“He probably isn’t,” Kadie said softly, “but the thing with men like Ilvar is that their promises are always hollow. They don’t act out of the kindness of their hearts, and they don’t put the best interests of other dragons first either. They only act for themselves, and people get caught up in the storm of their personality, but eventually they will see the light.”
“I just don’t want this to happen again,” Mason said.
“And it won’t. We won’t let it happen,” I put a hand on his shoulder. “We’ll remain vigilant, and we’ll make sure that people have respect for this place. If not, then they’ll have us to mess with, and nobody is going to want to take us on,” I grinned at him. I knew it wasn’t going to soothe his anguish just yet, but I hoped that in time it would help.
“So, you’re going to stick around then?” Brett asked.
I looked at the two guys, and then at Kadie. “I don’t think I’m meant to be anywhere else,” I said.
“It’s good to have you back, brother,” Brett turned towards me and wrapped his arms around me in an unexpected hug. Itwasn’t unwelcome though. However, the smell coming from his mouth was rancid.
“Your breath stinks,” I said. It was a mixture of brine and something else. I recoiled and pushed him away.
“It’s not my fault! It was those damn cables!” Brett protested. Kadie and I started to laugh, and then Mason joined in. It was good to hear him laugh again. It gave me hope that things could go back to normal. But we couldn’t escape the fact that Mason had a point, however. There were other dragons out there, ones who might still be loyal to Ilvar.
“What are we going to do now?” I asked.
“We should pay respect to the dead,” Brett said.
“I’m going to need to speak to my father as well. I know they were all wrong for following Ilvar, but we can’t just ignore them. There are some who are waiting for news and, if I do not speak to them, then they might assume that their kin were slaughtered, and more violence might follow. I need to tell them the truth about Ilvar, that he never cared for them.”
“Do you think they’ll believe you?” Mason asked.
Kadie wore a look of uncertainty. “I don’t know. Some of them will, I’m sure. And as for the others, well, even if they’re angry, I don’t think they will take it upon themselves to try and make Ilvar’s plans come true. They might just skulk away.”
“It’s going to be a long flight home,” Mason said.
“Yeah, but we can rest for a while here. There’s no rush to do anything else. We don’t have anything to worry about now. The planet is safe, we’re all safe,” I said. Mason nodded and closed his eyes. The battle had taken a toll on all of us. We let the soft air roll around us and rested on the beach. I stepped away from the others and sat by the shore, feeling the water crawl towards me. I reached out and felt it rush around my fingers.
Kadie came towards me. She sat down beside me, somehow still looking beautiful even though we had beenthrough hell. The scent of the volcano lingered on her, but beyond this I could still sense her sweet scent.
“Is Mason okay?” I asked.
She nodded. “He’s just resting now. I thought I’d come and see you.”
“And how are you doing?”
“Better than the rest of you, I think. I’m not as beat up.”
I smirked. “Yeah, but it must have been hard to go against the people you grew up with. They were your thunder after all.”
She ran a hand through her hair and looked pensive. “It was, but I keep telling myself that just because I grew up with them, it doesn’t make them my kin. They had ambitions that I could never agree with. I never wanted a world like this, and I wouldn’t want any of them to suffer this fate. I never wanted them to die.”
Her voice caught on emotion, and I felt bad for her. I pulled my arm around her, and she nestled against me.
“It could have been worse though. I could have lost the three of you,” she said.
I nodded. “It was a close-run thing.”
