Page 39 of Where Broken Wings Fly

Something.

A pair of silver, molten eyes took to the cave opening that Gliocas had emerged from only seconds prior. They were larger than his, slanted more at the ends, and more creased. Two twisting horns stretched from the top of his head as he moved forward, his body balanced against slate-grey wings on his shoulders.

Gliocas whipped his head in the direction of the cave as he watched the second dragon emerge, this one taller at the withers and wider through his chest. The metallic sheen of his scales glistened beneath the sun as he blew out a puff of smoke, the small scales stretching down the length of his face shifting and settling with every movement of his lips. They parted ever so slightly, revealing daggers of pearl-white.

“Y-you…” I muttered, my body feeling far too similar to jelly as my mind dizzied and my vision blurred.

“I,” the dragon said.

Raegan narrowed his eyes, his focus shifting from the dragon to me, and back again.

“Is he talking to her?” he asked Gliocas, who huffed out an answer in the form of decaying-flesh-smoke.

Raegan didn’t look impressed — he looked angry when he found my eyes again. “That is not possible.”

My whole body was shaking as the second dragon continued forwards, his snout halting several inches from me where he drew in several large breathes of air.

His head tilted to the side as that glassy eyelid swiped at his eyes. “Caraid?”

Raegan’s whole body tensed further. “Not possible…”

“W-what is going on?” I shot my question to anyone who would answer, dragon or prince. Raegan only continued to stare at the two of us, his face stretched into confusion.

The dragon blinked at me again. “Caraid?”

“Answer him, Olivia,” Raegan snarled.

“How?” I whimpered back.

“Fear not, Little.” The dragon folded his rear legs, his wings hovering at his sides as he took to laying on the ground. “I am Urram, and I mean you no harm.”

I finally found the courage to look him directly in the eyes, ignoring the slitted pupil that resided there. “C-caraid?”

“Caraid,” he purred back, his snout nudging my shaking body. Trying my best not to stumble and fall in front of a dragon, I grew rigid at his contact.

“Never thought I’d see the day,” a fourth voice huffed, drawing my attention in the direction of it only to see Gliocas, right as he released another fishy breath.

“I… I can hear you both?”

Raegan looked even more furious as he scoffed at me. “Once one accepts you into the clan, they all do. It’s a dragon thing.”

“Accept me into… into the… what?” I breathed, nasally and low.

“By the gods, young Prince. Where did you find this one?” Gliocas snorted.

“I didn’t find her,” he growled back. Switching his focus to Urram, he frowned at the grey beast. “Why her, Urram?”

I wasn’t sure if I was just imagining emotion on the reptilian face before me, but Urram looked insulted. “I could ask Gliocas the same of you, Prince.”

I couldn’t help but to muffle a laughter as I bit down on my tongue.

Raegan wasn’t giving in, though. He held that stern glare with Urram, unwavering in his stubborn stature. It made me reconsider who, exactly, I had been travelling with. The pixies may have been creatures of wanderlust and brilliance, but I doubted many — if any — would square off with a dragon the same way that Raegan was.

“Do not question me. If I deem her worthy of us, let that be the only answer that you need.” Urram lifted and solidified his neck from where he lay, towering over Raegan even then.

“Let it go, young Prince,” Gliocas nudged at Raegan, forcing him to stumble a step and release whatever arrogance had his jaw clenched so tightly.

While Gliocas and Raegan conversed, I settled on the edge of the cliff-side and let my feet dangle over the path we had trekked. Even though I knew we weren’t on a literal mountain, it sure felt like one as I looked out at the lands beyond, at the stretch of green grass that waved against the faintest of breezes and the dark sea that lapped at the bottom of the rock.