Page 24 of Ashen Wings

“Hello there, little thing,” it says, cocking its head. Its eyes track each of my movements as I back away from the well. My spine thuds against one of the columns, supporting the weight of knees a heartbeat from giving out.

“Who…who are you?” I manage, brushing the smooth stone with my palms.

The creature rises from his haunches with inhuman grace, clicking its heels on the floor. A hooded cloak covers most of his body, but a scarred chest peeks out with each absurdly long stride.

“Oh, my apologies. I’m sorry to have frightened you. There’s no need for fear, my dear.” It holds out a hand. “I’ll try not to take offense that you do not recognize me. I realize you’ve only seen me in a much…grander form. My name is Tenebris.”

“Y-you…wh-what? You’re Ashborne’s dragon? How is that possible? Dragons do not shift. I…”

“Firstly, I am not Ashborne’s dragon. He is my rider, not my owner. I do not answer to any human, even the King of Shadow. Secondly, if you’d prefer I’m happy to shift into my other form.” Tenebris outstretches his palms like he’ll take flight and I throw up my own.

“Wait! No, no, this form is…fine.” I try not to wince or look too long at those rows of teeth. Gods, is he going to gnaw on my leg with those things? “And I’m sorry! I meant no offense.”

“All is forgiven. You’re nervous?” he asks, tipping his pointed chin. Tenebris approaches, splitting the distance between us. The earth shivers against each of his steps, like it, too, is horrified.

“You’re the first dragon I’ve spoken to in my life, so, yes a little bit.” Panic veers through me. If Tenebris is here…he’s most certainly alerted Jace already. My eyes dart from exit to exit, begging to formulate a plan.

“I won’t speak a word of this to my rider. Do not fret.” He chuckles a rasping half growl. “I’m simply here to offer my knowledge before you take that dragonstone and run from this place.”

My stomach churns. He’s going to hold this secret from his rider? I thought dragons couldn’t lie, just as riders swear their lives when they accept the bond. The pulse booming in my ears is more of a terrified rabbit than human. My heart might very well seize if it pumps any faster.

“What knowledge?” I ask, forcing my lips apart.

Tenebris tucks his hands behind his back and paces around the well. “You see, little thing, you can’t outrun what’s fated by the stars. My kind is all in agreement. We need the guardian to rise, and as such…we need her rider.”

“I’m not the guardian rider. Even if I were from Sovereign, I’m not of noble blood. I’m sorry,” I say.

Tenebris’s teeth flash in the dawn’s light.

“You cannot deceive a dragon, just as a dragon cannot lie. We pride ourselves in our candor and our ability to…cut through the bullshit as my rider so eloquently describes it,” he replies. “Take the dragonstone, break the ward, escape from here, let our Astralwing hatchling stone, and the continent crumbles. But the cosmos will find you, no matter where you turn. You cannot hide from the gods.”

“You’re mistaken,” I say, but a piece of me refuses to accept those words as truth.

“In my five hundred years never once have I been wrong.” Cocky much? Also, five hundred years old? How damn long do dragons live? The creature looks barely thirty.

Tenebris kneels beside the well, skimming a clawed hand over its surface. “You will come to see the truth, whether it be by our devices or your own.”

The dragon’s voice sends a shiver crawling up my skin. It’s murky like the depths, but crisp like the dawn air. He’s predatory and protective all at once, and there’s a familiarity about him I can’t quite pinpoint, like I recognize him…maybe from another lifetime.

“I just want a quiet life. I’m nobody,” I whisper. Now, the bite of that truth is one that sinks in. “Maybe the guardian rider is out there, but it’s not me.”

Tenebris wrinkles a brow, watching me with inviscid intensity. “You are most certainly not nobody, Nova Lindwen.”

He plunges his hand into the well and retrieves a citrine stone no larger than a pebble. The gem hums in his palm, like it's reacting to the magic wrinkled in his snow-white skin. Tenebris offers the stone to me with outstretched fingers.

“The decision is yours, little thing, but you must know the weight of one choice over the other.”

I pluck the dragonstone from his grasp and back away slowly. My thoughts unravel like a spool off a shelf. I’m slowly realizing there’s so much still unknown in this world. There’s so much still unknown about me. My hands tremble, but I pocket the stone anyways.

“Can I ask you a question, Tenebris?” I risk a glance at his reptilian eyes.

“Of course. You’re free to speak what you wish. Just as I’m free to decline an answer,” he replies with a humored smirk.

“What gave Jace those wounds on his back?”

Tenebris draws in a long, steady breath.

“There are things in these woods once repelled by the guardian. Ancient, evil things. I pray you never face them,” he says, scanning the cliffside. “They hide in the rock, in the brush. We call them lurkers, and while we do not know where they’ve come from, we know they’re hungry.”