“I heard you met Dave?” A grin tugs at his mouth. “How long did you last?”
“Ten seconds.” I grumble, welcoming the change of topic as we reach the lakefront.
“Fuck, Bloom.” His head tips back with a laugh. “You’re going to have to do better than that if you want to be a bonded rider.”
Yeah, no shit.
My lips pull thin, a snarky comeback already there, but I bite down on the inside of my cheek and let it go. No point making the situation with Lucien any more tense than it already is—especially when he’s the one taking me flying. So I drag in a steady breath, letting it out slowly, and keep the conversation going.
“Are there many others?” I nod toward the two dragons ahead where they dip in and out of the lake, wings scattering water while we follow the path along its edge. “Many other recruits who are bonded here?”
“Not as many as we’d like.” He scrubs a hand over his jaw, black stubble rasping against his skin. “We’re hoping more willbond at this year's Blood Moon... But dragons are picky little fuckers. Not only do they require compatible Threads, they also only choose people they believe aremorally worthy, whatever that means.”
“I was surprised Merrin isn’t bonded, I mean considering how powerful he is.”
He huffs. “He’s what we call a Well.”
“A Well?” I arch a brow.
“Yeah, he can knot and store a shit ton of Threads, way more than anyone here. Rumour is he comes from a powerful line of sorcerers.” He peers down as we step over a small stream. “Definitely wouldn't want to get on his bad side.”
Another shiver traces down my spine, remembering how easily he muted my magic after I was caught at the border.
“So everyone here can use their Threads?” I ask. “I saw some training earlier, they looked okay but a bit... rusty. Are they all from the Citadel?”
He shakes his head. “No, it's way too bloody hard to recruit from there, never know who’s on whose side... So at the moment it's only me, Talen, Reya, Darren, and Merrin.” His elbow nudges me. “And now you. The rest are untrained Innerlanders. They learnt the basics of their Threads as kids, and usually that’s enough to deal with Outerlander run-ins.”
“Usually?”
“Yeah, well, a lot of the Outerlanders don’t know we’re on their side. Talen’s been holding meetings, trying to build alliances, but it’s bloody slow. Not surprising, really.” He shrugs. “For hundreds of years we’ve controlled them, suppressed them, kept them beyond the border and left them to die. Doesn’t exactly make them eager to trust us.”
My fists curl at my sides as I know all too well the deep rooted hatred he’s talking about. Hell, it took me months to stop seeingevery Innerlander as the enemy, and that was only because I lived side by side with them.
God I hope Bren isn't getting caught up in this.
“So even without magic,” Lucien goes on. “They still fight back—ruin missions, attack patrols. And if they’ve managed to get hold of some draconite, things can get messy pretty quick.”
“So that's why there were so many recruits with injuries in the Food Tent ?”
He nods. “And they’re going to need a lot more training to be ready for what's coming.”
“And what is that?” I push. “I heard Darren talking to someone at breakfast, said borders are closing? Something about a Census?"
Hesitating, his steps slow a fraction. “We are still gathering information. There’s a briefing at the end of the week. Best if Merrin updates you then.”
His focus cuts briefly to me, and for a second, his solid, unshakeable mask slips, revealing the far more vulnerable human beneath.
God, if he’s worried about what’s coming?—
“Why are you here?” I ask, tilting my head back to study him more carefully. His eyes narrow on me, confusion flickering behind them. “I mean—how did you end up joining this… rebellion? Movement? Whatever it is?”
“How long you got?” He shoves his hands into his pockets and I throw him a shrug. “Okay, I’ll give you the short version. Goldie and I have known each other since we were kids—our families are close. I always had a feeling something was going on with him, just… notthis.”
Glancing back toward the camp, hazy now in the afternoon light, he takes a breath.
“After his accident, after he merged with Cal, he brought me here. It was much smaller back then. Only Magda, Merrin,Reya, Darren, and a few recruits. He showed me around, told me everything they knew and then asked if I was in or not. I’d never been a fan of the Citadel. My older sister died in her first year of training, and I just… swallowed it. Never questioned it. Never said a word.” His lips pull thin. “Still, I guess I’d been sitting on that longer than I realised. Because when Talen asked me that day—something in me gave way. Didn’t even think twice. Just said yes.”
My forehead creases. “You were an Innerlander, training at the Citadel and you didn’t even question it? You trusted him that much... Talen? To leave everything you knew behind and follow him?”
