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Of course he did. No one was surprised by this.
They attempted to do some introductions but didn’t get far before Sora threw out his arms, putting some breathing space around Amaru.
“Everyone wait! I need to check him over first.”
Luka dipped his head to speak directly into Amaru’s ear. “Sora is an accomplished healer from the Abe Mage Clan.”
“But I feel just fine,” Amaru whispered back to him.
“I don’t give a damn if you feel fine,” Sora replied in the same whisper, proving he was listening to their conversation even as he checked Amaru’s pulse on his left wrist. “You’ve been asleep for a long time in less-than-ideal conditions. You need a full examination.”
Amaru threw him and Vasily a look with a crooked grin and a twinkle of laughter in his eyes, but he didn’t say a word while Sora felt his throat and then shifted to magic, using a quick spell to check over his other vital signs.
Only a couple of minutes passed before Sora sighed and nodded. “Okay, everything appears to be in working order, but I still need to do a full checkup after he’s met King Rodrigo and Queen Ha Na.”
With the healer’s approval, their group started to walk toward the camp with the white and multicolored canvas tents poking out among the trees and bushes like a miniature town.
“How did things look down there?” Dimitri asked.
“Not great. Amaru was able to make a small fix to stabilize the system and keep everyone asleep, but we’re going to need more help…” Vasily paused and let out a deep breath. “Help and supplies. With that many people and dragons down there, we’re going to need some big plans.”
Dimitri grinned broadly. “You’re in luck. While you were down there, playing around in the cave, Ha Na and Rodrigo have been proving why they’re in charge. Ha Na called back to the clan to get more Valerii and supplies here to support our efforts to wake the Sousa safely. Rodrigo has been chatting with King Alric back in Germany about possibly getting more of the Burkhard Clan here to help with things.”
Luka exhaled, some of the tension in his chest releasing so he could more easily breathe. Now that they’d established that the area was safe, they could afford to bring in more help. And they were going to need it. This was way bigger than they’d expected it to be.
As they entered the in-progress camp, Luka smiled at Amaru’s wide-eyed gawking, taking in everything he passed. His footsteps slowed and a couple times they had to promise to take him back later so he could check out one thing or another.
Thankfully, Rodrigo and Ha Na were waiting for them in the center of the camp, chatting softly about the plans that were starting to come together already.
“Amaru, I’d like to introduce you to King Rodrigo, ruler of the Valerii Clan of Ice Dragons. And this is his mate, Queen Ha Na,” Luka stated.
Amaru glanced at Luka for a second and then offered a deep bow to Rodrigo and Ha Na with his hands extended before him, palms up.
“Oh no, you don’t have to do that.” Ha Na lightly chuckled. She captured both of his hands in hers and smiled sweetly. “We’re just happy to have you with us.”
“Yes,” Rodrigo agreed, his voice a deep, gravelly tone. “We certainly never expected to find a member of the Sousa still alive after five hundred years.”
Luka winced and even Vasily cringed, covering his face with his hand.
Amaru ripped his hands out of Ha Na’s grip and whipped around to regard Luka with wide eyes and pale cheeks.
“What?” he screeched, the word cracking in his throat. “Five hundred years? Are you telling me I’ve been asleep for five hundred years?”
Five hundred years?
How…how…how was that even possible?
This…wasn’t supposed to happen at all.
Amaru felt like his brain was slogging forward, struggling to process all that was happening as the dragons and mages finished setting up the encampment. He had been shown a spot to sit and rest, which he very much appreciated. He needed some time alone to decompress. It wasn’t just the onslaught of sensation after five hundred years of being in a very deep sleep; it was everything else as well. Knowing he had lost so many people without even a chance to mourn them. Knowing the world had changed beyond his recognition. He didn’t know how to emotionally respond to half of that.
Almost as if his brain needed to escape from reality, it kept fixating on other things. Like the style of clothing everyone wore. All their clothes were so strange, made with weird fibers. And then there was their technology. Every last one of them was carrying around these small flat boxes that lit up and flashed all these pictures. His fingers ached to wrap around one of those boxes so he could take it apart and figure out how it worked.
