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“Shut up!” I hissed, motioning for them to follow my lead. Going back into the water, I took a large gulp of oxygen and immersed myself.
After they followed me, we looked up to see the large iron ship pass over us. The horns only blared when the fog covered the sea and bridge, I had noticed. Its sound seemed to safely guide the vessels.
Swimming to the beach once the vessel left, I waved the kids out, and squeezed the excess water from my strands. “Please dry me, Draco,” I requested, patting his cheek once he was back at my side.
The moment the warm air reached my skin, I began to dry, so I turned in a circle until every drop disappeared from my form. Draco retook his place against the base of the mountain, joining the hill formation while another yawn stretched his mouth. He loved napping.
“Aaah!”
The screech erupted from me when Vyper thought it appropriate to shake the water from his wings on top of me, drenching me all over again. He snickered at my shock, and my blood instantly boiled.
“Oh, that did it!” Picking up the orange boot, I threw it at his face, hitting him square on the forehead.
Tears formed in the corner of his eyes while he looked at me, and his shoulders began to shake as a strangled sound left his throat. Throwing his head back dramatically, he let his body slump on the shore—the ground shaking from the weight—and covered his face with both hands.
My foot began to tap on the boulder, and I crossed my arms over my chest. “If you think I’m buying your crying act for one second, you don’t know me very well.”
Dragons couldn’t really cry. They didn’t have the emotional complexity needed to understand or experience the sentiment, and still, they loved imitating people.
His whines of pain continued, but I ignored him. Turning around, I let sweet Draco dry me all over again, and stroked his forehead in appreciation. One of Vyper’s hands lifted, and he peeked at me, trying to see if his attempt to gain my sympathy had worked. It hadn’t.
“Are you done?” I asked, giving him a pointed look. “In case you haven’t noticed by now, you’ll easily get another boot to the face before I let you manipulate me.”
Grumbling his discontent, he wobbled to his side of the mountain, and laid down against the hill just like his brother had done.
Once I was dressed in the strange clothes I found after arriving here, I stood before them.
“Okay, kids. Mommy is going to go to the scary city again to try to accomplish our mission here. While I’m gone, remember to just blend into your surroundings. Do not move. And do not try to play with strange people if you see any.”
That beach wasn’t one to be visited, I had noticed, probably for safety issues since it was a tiny stretch of sand and rocks directly under the tower, but I felt the warning was still merited. I knew my boys.
“Your kind no longer exists here, so I promise you thatwill notgo well,” I continued. “But most importantly, DO NOT breath fire on anythingoranyone. It is not funny, and the people here don’t have the means to heal like we do in our world. Understood?”
Draco nodded while Vyper snorted.
“I was talking to you,” I clarified to my green baby, just in case he had any doubts. “Do not breath fire on people, or boats, or the bridge,” I warned, staring straight into his eyes. Yet, somehow, I still felt like the concept needed to be reinforced for him. “DON’T make people extra crispy.”
His lips slowly stretched into a mischievous smile, and my nostrils flared.
“I mean it!”
Sometimes I questioned my decision of bringing two younglings with me instead of my loyal Luna, but the truth of the matter was I couldn’t have a full-fledged, adult Dragon in this world without being discovered. Luna was almost as tall as the bridge’s tower, and the kids would protect me if everything went wrong.
Frowning, Vyper finally nodded. His pout conveyed that I was draining all the fun out of this trip for him. Well, too bad, because little did they understand that this trip was about anything but fun. This wasn’t a vacation, it was our last hope.
Glancing down at the chain that hung on my chest, I gripped the golden ring tightly as my gaze got lost on the horizon. I needed this to work or it could be the end of everything my people held dear. I couldn’t let that happen. No matter how much I hated what I had to do, or how much I hated him, I had to make it work.
“Go. Take the others to safety. We’ll hold Raithian back.”
My aunt’s voice inundated my mind all of a sudden, and I shut my eyes to stop the tears that threatened to form.
“We can do this together, Amma. You have to come with me!” I urged as our people retreated, extending my hand to her. Azazel, the four-headed monster Raithian had created, flew towards us with unabandoned wrath, slitted eyes glowing green.
“Forget what you think you know, my girl,” she answered instead, ignoring my plea. Her determined gaze quickly looked behind her to the oncoming monster, and at the twenty warriors that stood by her side—holding the front line. “Listen to me, Evie.” Her voice became urgent, pressing. “You have to findhim. Raithian is getting too close, andheis the only one who can stop this. He’s all that’s left.”
“That’s not true!” I snapped, enraged that she thought a coward could be our salvation. “He’s not all that is left. I am here, and I will do whatever it takes to protect my people. They have me.”
Amma’s features softened, and she walked to my side, cradling my cheeks. “I know… that’s why you have to get them out of here right now. Save our people, Evie.”
