Movement from behind Jacob caught my eye. A faerie with smooth brown skin, a thick mane of deep red hair, and hazel eyes looked over to me with a horrified expression. She was beautiful, but that wasn’t the focus, no, it was how deeply upset she looked to see me. As if she felt the pain I was in. Did she know me? Could seeing the pain of a dragon hurt her that much? I could see tears well in her eyes, and it touched me. If I didn’t survive, perhaps it would be a comfort to see such a sympathetic being as my last vision before darkness took me.
No, I wouldn’t do that to her. She would not see me die without a fight. I willed my magic to quickly heal me, and it was as if my magic understood my desperation as I felt the painful itch of repair wreck my body.
It was improbable that she could sense my will to survive, but the pain in her eyes shifted to something else, something determined. A silver sword appeared in her right hand and her eyes shifted to Jacob, who still hadn’t noticed her. Her brows knitted together, and her top lip shifted up in a silent snarl before she raced toward him. Not slowing down, she jumped on his back and slid her blade into his spine, moving up his back as she sliced her way toward his head.
Jacob roared and spun around, trying to fling her off him. The faerie crouched low, grabbing onto his bloodied fur as she continued to drag her sword up, albeit slower now. Jacob began to shake harder, and I knew this faerie would not be able to maintain her hold for much longer. It would be impossible. I willed my body to heal faster. To help just like this beautiful stranger was helping me.
Jacob continued to gallop around in circles, shaking his body in intervals as he roared until I saw the faerie fly into the air, her sword still stuck in his body. She hit the ground with a quiet thud, her body motionless. Panic seized me. Jacob was as giant as me, and that was a long fall for a being so small. She was either dead or unconscious. I was hoping it was the latter.
However, I didn’t have time for hope. Neither did this faerie because Jacob was turning in her direction, and I didn’t have to guess what his next action would be. He would stomp on her, killing her without a second thought. I would not let that happen. I didn’t know her, but I was grateful to her.
Using what little energy I had regained from my self-healing, I lifted my head and blew my ice in his direction. He wasn’t paying attention to me, now focused on the possibly dead faerie. I worked that to my advantage and aimed my spray of ice at his head, covering the left side of his face in ice. I crawled agonizingly slow toward him as Jacob turned in my direction. However, I was ready, already blowing my ice again before he could fully face me, catching the other side of his face. With his head now encased in ice, he stood still, no longer aware, as my cold paused his consciousness. I wasn’t going to wait for the ice to melt. I blew out pellets of ice into his neck until I severed his head from his body. It crashed to the ground, smashing into small pieces. With no head attached, the giant body toppled sideways, shaking the earth. In his death, his body would remainin dragon form, our true form. When I got enough energy, I would encase him all in ice before shattering him into pieces.
I kept crawling to the faerie until I was now only inches from her still unmoving body. I pushed my snout into her arm, wanting to feel if life still existed within her. I huffed, fluttering her hair, as I scented the faint trace of life still within her, and there was something else. Something sweet and familiar. A happy nostalgia instantly seized me, confusing me. Who was she?
I’d have to ask her when she woke up, and she would wake up. I had to get help. As a dragon, I didn’t have the ability to heal another. I needed to find someone. I had to shift, but I was so badly damaged that if I did now, my healing would be even slower, and I probably wouldn’t be able to move at all.
Shuffling feet behind me caught my attention, and I turned my head, growling. I was hardly ready for another fight, but no one else needed to know that.
Jullian’s lanky form appeared as he stepped out of the rubble from the cellar. He looked over to Jacob’s decapitated dragon form and dropped his mouth open in shock. “What have you done?” he called.
If he came any closer to me, I’d bite him. I was sure he’d taste bitter, but it would be worth it.
He lifted his hands toward me, and I blocked the faerie’s body, bracing myself for whatever magic he would conjure up to attack me. Whatever he did, he would not harm her.
A figure materialized in front of Jullian. An older male with graying hair and torn and bloodied clothing. There was something familiar about him. I knew him, but I didn’t know how. He looked at me and narrowed his eyes before spinning around and punching Jullian in the face, his fist glowing in a yellow aura. Whatever magic he packed in that punch did what itwas meant to do because Jullian was unconscious before he even hit the ground.
The man stared down at the unmoving but hopefully dead Jullian, disgust on his face. “I always hated him,” he said before limping in my direction. “I’m guessing you’re Ivan. Jalisa described what you looked like in dragon form. Do you know where she is? She’s been looking for you.”
Who was Jalisa? I wanted to ask but speaking was not something I could do in this form with such low energy. Instead, I remained still. Could he help this faerie? If he hit Jullian, it was a safe assumption that he wasn’t an enemy. I moved my head slightly to expose the faerie.
His face took on an ashen tone, and he quickly teleported in front of her, dropping down to his knees. I tensed, still unsure that he was a friend and not wanting any more harm to come to her. There was a strong scent to him. Another alpha. I stifled a growl just in time to see a look of pure panic on his face at the sight of her. Who was she to him? Perhaps this was her father. There was a slight similarity to their features that I had not caught before. Was this the woman he mentioned before? I had already forgotten her name. Why was my memory failing me so quickly? He placed a hand on her arm, and I could see the golden aura around him spread into her. It was overwhelming, the heat of it reaching me. I tried to push myself away, not wanting to dilute any of the healing magic being poured into her.
More voices tore my attention from the healing, and I sighed when Aaron and several other familiar faces soon appeared. They assessed the scene and wasted no more time gathering around us and pouring healing magic into us.
Several minutes later, perhaps longer – my mind was going in and out of consciousness – my body felt fully renewed. Every ache, bruise, break, cut now gone. I looked back at the faerie, and she was now sitting up right, a slightly dazed look inthose lovely light brown eyes. We were both alright. I was alive because of her, and she needed to hear my thanks.
I shifted back to my human form, conjuring clothes over my body. I wasn’t ashamed to be nude, but I had enough sense to know that wasn’t the way I should greet her for the first time in my human form.
The aroma of cherry and almond floated under my nose, and it was if my mind faltered for a moment. That scent was so familiar, but I couldn’t place why. All I knew was that my heart was thumping loudly in my chest, and I felt an all-consuming need to wrap my arms around her and hold her to me. Perhaps I wouldn’t let go for a good long while. “Thank you,” I whispered, my throat tight as confusing emotions inched higher to the surface.
She avoided my eyes, giving a curt nod as she stood. I didn’t understand her response. Earlier, she seemed to recognize me, even care about me. Now, there was an almost coldness to her. I took a step toward her, and she tensed. Had I scared her? I looked to the man I assumed was her father, and there was a sadness to his eyes, his lips pressed tightly. What had I missed?
I offered my hand. “I’m Ivan. What you did back there was amazing. Selfless. You saved my life. What’s your name?”
She shrugged, still not looking at me. “It’s fine.”
What an odd response, and I noted she didn’t shake my hand. I dropped it awkwardly. This was a new feeling for me. I knew it was cocky of me to think, but I’d never had problems attracting attention. I was handsome, and even if I was not someone’s type, they still had no problem looking at me. I’d like to think I wasn’t so much of an asshole that they wanted to turn away from my face.
I gave my best, dimple popping smile, although it was wasted because she wasn’t looking at me. “It was more than fine. It was impressive. And you never gave me your name.”
She touched her father’s shoulder. “We should go.” She briefly looked at me, and my heart dropped as I stared at tear-filled eyes. “My name doesn’t matter. I’m just glad you’re safe. Stay out of trouble.”
That was it? No, this was wrong. She was special. I knew this. I’d never had love at first sight, but this was feeling close to it. And she had to have a connection to me. Why was she crying? What had I missed? Desperate, I reached out and grabbed her wrist, stopping her from turning away. “Wait, please. Can I take you out to dinner? Even if just as a thank you, although that’s hardly enough. I feel this connection to you that I can’t explain, and I want to spend more time with you. Time that doesn’t involve us fighting for our lives but, rather, getting to have a real conversation.” I glanced to the man I assumed was her father. “If that’s okay with you, sir.”
She gave a dry laugh. “I am an adult. You don’t need to get my father’s permission for anything.”
Her father cleared his throat, looking at her with sympathetic eyes before looking back to me. “It would be fine with me if you did.”
