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RUMIR
Iflew out of the portal and fell to my knees, one hand on my chest and the other on my neck. Mom had tried to pull me out of Cedric’s grasp, but she’d only clawed off one of my scales. That pain was nothing, though, when compared to the fire burning in my neck.
I stayed there, hunched over, staring at the rocky ground as strong winds whistled by me. When Cedric’s boots appeared in my line of vision, I growled, “What did you do to me?”
But I knew what he’d done. He’d infected me.
I could feel it, a powerful desire to wreak havoc. My hand fell from my chest, trembling as my skin healed. This rage, raw and consuming… Was this what Natalie had been battling? It took everything in me, every ounce of my strength, to stop myself from going crazy, killing everything in sight.
Anger wasn't new to me, but this was something else, something more dangerous. This was a burning drive inside me, fighting to change the very fabric of who I was. My vision was unsteady when I looked up, but I could clearly see my father. It was like looking into a mirror, if my reflection had been an evil alteration of myself.
My father was a monster.
I’d always hated this man, but now that hate had grown into something even more potent. Millions had died since the start of this war. And all because of him.
He simply smiled, then walked away from me, obviously very happy with himself.
I looked around at this place he’d brought me. The world had turned red and then spotty, but color finally returned to my vision when I blinked. I bit down on my lip. My heart was beating so fast, it sounded like drums being pummeled, but I wasn't going to be overtaken so quickly.
I wasn’t going to give up.
Natalie had fought this thirst for rage, and I would do the same. I gritted my teeth as I recalled the horrified look on her face when Cedric had bitten me.
"Natalie!" I yelled telepathically, but I got no response.
We were too far away from each other. I took a better look at my surroundings. We were on a circular balcony carved into a rocky mountainside. A large section of the wall was smooth but it had cracks, and I saw a red light coming from within it.
I had no idea where we were, but I knew I needed to get out of here. I had no intention of joining my father's legion of infected. I tried to stand, but couldn’t. I fell to my knees again. Red lines crawled down my skin, pulsating in time to my heartbeat, just like the lights on the wall.
"Stop fighting it, and the pain will go away, Rumir. All your pain will go away,” Cedric said, his voice unusually raspy.
“If I’m in pain, it’s because of you, Cedric!” I closed my eyes as a throbbing sensation ran from my shoulder to my chest. “I won’t become one of your puppets.”
“You’re not a typical infected, Rumir.” Cedric pointed to my shoulder. “What I’ve given you is power—power unlike any you’ve never known. All you have to do is let go and experience it.” His head tilted to the side. “You’re my son, Rumir. You were born to be great, and you would have been. You would have been a part of all of this from the start, if only you’d stopped seeking your mother’s approval. First your mother’s, then Natalie’s.”
“Don’t speak of them!” I shouted. “Unlike you, they care for me. To them, I’m already great, just as I am.”
Cedric laughed and shook his head, then turned his back to me, as if I was a child who had said something nonsensical. He studied the dark and cloudy night sky, the moon’s light barely visible through the clouds.
I closed my eyes and took deep breaths as I focused on trying to stand.
But once again, I fell to my knees, falling forward this time, with my palms flat against the ground. I didn’t care what power Cedric claimed his bite was giving me. I didn’t want it. I wanted nothing from him, other than his death.
This man wasn't my father. He was nothing to me. The fact that I shared his blood was something I’d spent my whole life trying to forget. He'd never considered me as his son, or thought I was worthy of being a dragon. Now all of a sudden, he cared?
“You never wanted the side of you that came from me,” he said, as if reading my mind.
What the hell was he talking about? He’d never accepted me because I was a half-breed. I’d had a father who hated me, and had had to spend time with his dragons, who disliked me. And he wondered why I didn’t appreciate that side of me?
"But that side of you, Rumir—the dragon—that’s the part of you that makes you a god, not the rest," he continued. I groaned, suddenly growing cold. “Dragons are the true gods.”
He turned to look at me, his gaze piercing. "Where we live, the earth thrives. We don't need worship to survive. That's the biggest weakness the gods have, and it was almost too easy to take advantage of it." He chuckled. "By making the gods' source of power my army, I’ve put them at a disadvantage. Without me even lifting a finger, many of them will die, just because they aren’t being prayed to.”
He smiled cruelly. “You think I’m the bad guy. But think about it. The gods demand prayer so they can live—isn’t that a little narcissistic and selfish? But hey, I’m the problem.” He shook his head. “Don’t worry. I’m sure your mother won’t be among the dead and forgotten. Of course, she’ll have to join us.”
My vision went completely red. I lunged off the ground in an attempt to attack Cedric. My fist connected with his jaw, sending him staggering back, and I grabbed his throat to punch him again when he slammed his palm to my chest.
I was thrown back, hitting the wall. Chunks of rock fell while I crumbled to the ground, three ribs at least broken. I coughed up blood, the metallic taste on my tongue fueling my rage.
