by Lili Zander
“What?” Shock punches me. “A Draekon settlement on Nestri? But that doesn’t make any sense.”
“Exactly,” Fourth replies. “Everyone knows the Okaki hate Draekons. Who would suspect a thing? Nestri’s population is three billion sentients. One billion of them are Zorahn. It’s easy to hide ten thousand people here. False papers, false identities, everything is available for a price.”
The scheme does have a certain twisted genius about it. “And you’re telling me about this settlement because—"
“Someone accessed the Rebellion’s files. First now knows about the settlement. He’s in Nestri to kill the Draekons.”
I swear, long and hard. So much for avoiding First. That’s no longer possible, and I know it, and judging by the expression on Fourth’s face, he does too. “Where is the settlement?”
“Cintra,” Fourth replies. “I have more information, though I don’t know how reliable it is. First is hurt. The attack on the Zoraken battalion in Sotuf took a toll. He has spent the last day in a healing tank.”
“He’s still in Sotuf?”
“According to Tarish’s secret source, yes. Tarish sends along a message as well. After he tried to poison you, you have no reason to help him, but he begs for your aid anyway.”
“Yeah, yeah,” I say impatiently. For a supposedly smart man, Tarish is an idiot about some things. “I’m closer to Cintra than First is. I’ll get there before he does, and I’ll secure the town.” I give Fourth a grim look. “He is not going to kill ten thousand people on my watch.”
“I won’t be there in time,” Fourth warns. “You’ll be on your own.” I can sense his frustration. “I won’t tell you not to go. In your place, I’d do exactly what you’re going to do. But Ruhan, please be careful.”
He blinks out of existence. Lani’s been listening to the conversation. “We’re going to Cintra, right?” she asks quietly.
Caeron, she’s amazing. She’s not telling me not to go. She knows, as I do, that it’s impossible to walk away from this battle. “I’m going to Cintra.”
“Nope,” she says at once. “You promised me you wouldn’t leave me alone. Ruhan, you promised.”
I did promise. “Fine,” I say reluctantly. “You can come. But you must stay inside the city. You can’t throw yourself into danger, and First cannot find out about your existence.”
“Deal,” she says with a smile. She moves closer to me and takes my hand in hers. “I’m nervous.”
I should probably warn her about what’s going to happen next. “Dozens of soldiers have moved into the temple. I’m going to shift as soon as we get out of the elevator, and then breathe fire to clear a path for us to get out. You’ll have to climb on my back and hold on.”
Her eyes go wide. “I’m going to fly to Cintra on dragon back?”
“Yes. Is that okay?”
She laughs breathlessly. “Oh, yes, Ruhan. I’d say it is.”
24
Lani
I’m excited.
Okay, I’m mostly excited. Let’s say I’m ninety-percent excited and ten-percent freaking out. Not because I’m afraid to fly on dragon back—that part is amazing—but because I wish the circumstances leading up to it were less violent.
As the elevator descends and we get closer to the main floor, I can hear soldiers shouting orders. Ruhan’s communicating with Blue, who is still out of sight. “Can you short out their weapons?” he asks. “I just need a minute.”
I don’t know what Blue says in reply. “What would happen if he can’t?” I murmur. My stomach churns, and the excited-panicking ratio shifts toward the freaking out column.
“I leave you upstairs, clear us an exit route, and then come back for you.” I open my mouth to protest that plan, and Ruhan looks grim. “Lani, I know exactly how much damage my body can take, but I don’t know enough about human physiology. Humans are more delicate than Draekons. This isn’t exactly the right time to find out how much more delicate.”
Okay, fair enough. At the thought of being separated from Ruhan, every one of my instincts wants to panic, but he’s got a valid point.
Ruhan’s expression turns unfocused for a split second, and then he smiles at me. “Blue’s got it,” he says. “He can cut their weapons. It’ll be temporary; the security is quite good, and they’ll wrest back control. But it gives us a path out. Here’s the plan, Lani. The doors are going to open, and Blue is going to disrupt their weapons as soon as that happens. At the same time, I’m going to shift.”
I wipe my damp palms on my pants. “Can you fit inside the temple?”
“Yes, I think so. According to the schematics, the main floor of the temple is one big open space, and the front doors are tall enough and wide enough for me to fit through. With any luck, once I’ve shifted, the Okaki guards will run away. I’ll breathe some fire to encourage them. What I want you to do is run up my tail, sit on my back between my spikes, and hold on tight. As soon as you’re seated, we’re going to fly out of here.”
Fifty-percent excited, fifty-percent freaking out. “Okay. Can you talk when you’re a dragon?”
“No, but I can understand you.” He must sense that I’m on the verge of full-fledged panic, because he wraps his arms around me, pulls me close, and brushes a kiss over my lips. “For three months, you faced death every night,” he murmurs. “And you laughed in its face. You kept calm, and you told Gervil stories to stay alive. Lovely Lani, you are so much braver than you give yourself credit for. You can do anything you want. You will be fine.”
His words are reassuring. He trusts me to follow the plan. More than that, he’s also agreed to take me to Cintra. He’s not worried that I’m going to panic and do something stupid.
Ruhan’s got faith in me. His actions prove it.
I feel calm spread through me. “Okay,” I say, giving him a determined smile. “Let’s do this.”
The instant the elevator doors open, a sharp, piercing noise fills the air, courtesy of Blue. A deeper pulse—like a very low drumbeat—rolls through the crowd.
“Their weapons are down,” Ruhan says.
And then he shifts into a dragon.
I’m behind Ruhan, so I don’t know the precise instant the shift begins. I can’t see the expression on his face, so I have no idea if it hurts.
It looks painful.
A chill fills the air as Ruhan’s body transforms. His skin hardens into scales, crimson red and gleaming, shining like a thousand sparkling mirrors. The skin on his back tears open, and curved spikes rise from his backbone. Wings erupt, thick and leathery, glowing with a deep red shine. The base of his spine lengthens into a tail.
The crimson dragon—the Draekon Conqueror—lifts his massive head up and roars a challenge at the Okaki soldiers.
The sound tears through me. Goosebumps break out on my skin. I’m afraid. It’s not logical. I know I have nothing to fear from Ruhan; he would never hurt me. But this fear goes deeper. This fear is primal, instinctive. My body knows I’m looking at an apex predator. This is the most dangerous creature in the universe. If he wishes to kill me, there is nothing I can do to save myself.
The dragon turns his head around to look at me. Ruhan’s green eyes stare at me. Then he winks, slow and deliberate.
My fear evaporates, and I laugh out loud. This is so typical of Ruhan. He knows I’m freaking out, so he winks to distract me. Like he’s always done, right from the start. Even in dragon form, he knows exactly what to do to reassure me.
He turns his attention back to the soldiers, who are in utter disarray. I can’t say I blame them. For generations, Okaki legends have told of a crimson dragon that destroyed their planet. To see Ruhan shift into a dragon in front of them, inside the same temple he demolished a thousand years ago, must be deeply terrifying.
Still, they’ll regroup, and soon. I scramble up Ruhan’s tail, grateful he can’t see how clumsy and uncoordinated I’m being. I never had any illusions about being as graceful as a ballerina, but I also never thought
of myself as a complete klutz. Consider me schooled. I slip, nearly slide off, grab a spike to steady myself, and finally land on his back. His scales are hard but surprisingly warm to the touch.
My own personal heated car seat. I bite back my giggle. The stress is obviously making me lose my mind. “I’m good to go,” I yell out.
A few braver soldiers are beginning to recover their wits. “Weapons working again,” one of them shouts. “Fire at will.”
Guns aim at us. Ruhan roars again, the bellow of rage echoing through the open space. The scales underneath me get hotter, and then Ruhan opens his mouth and exhales a jet of fire.
Oh. My. God.
Soldiers scream in fear and scramble out of the way. I peek at the damage, though I’m almost afraid to. If I see a charred body, I swear I’m going to lose my breakfast all over Ruhan’s back.
Thankfully, there are none. It looks like Ruhan’s trying not to kill anyone. A handful of soldiers have burns on their bodies, but their tentacles are still moving, so fingers crossed, they’re going to make it.
Dragon-Ruhan stalks toward the massive, ornately carved doors. I hadn’t noticed these when we came in; the soldiers must have brought us through the back entrance. I’d been concerned about how we were going to get out, but these doors are dragon-sized.
Some brave—or foolhardy—soldiers are still firing their weapons. I crouch low on Ruhan’s back, trying to present as small a target as possible. The dragon roars in fury. Weapons hiss, and flashes of heat pass over my body. I know better than to lift my head to look around. I huddle low and let the formidable dragon clear a path.
No wonder they’ve remembered Ruhan for a thousand years. This is awe-inspiring. Terrifying. And, since I know that Ruhan’s on my side, it’s also hot as hell.
Something brushes against my leg. I scream and then realize that it’s Blue, clambering nimbly onto Ruhan’s tail. Okay, phew. Spider bot, you nearly gave me a heart attack, but you’ve saved our lives more times than I can count, so I forgive you.
Then we’re outside. Ruhan spreads his wings. He flaps them, once, twice, and jumps into the air.
And we’re flying. Somebody pinch me; I’m perched on the back of a dragon as he flies through the air.
From the first moment Ruhan told me he was Draekon, I’ve been wondering what it would feel like to fly, and now I know. It’s unbelievable, and it’s amazing, and it’s the biggest thrill ride of my life.
I thought I might be afraid. Heights don’t typically bother me, but it’s one thing to theoretically not be afraid of heights, and it’s another thing to voluntarily climb onto a dragon’s back.
But I’m not. Perched where I am, I’m smack dab inside the eye of the hurricane, and it’s surprisingly calm and sheltered.
Ruhan’s wings slice through the air. Wind whooshes past me. We climb high into the sky, and all of Nestri Prime—gleaming glass towers, elegant archways, blue pools of water, and green patches of parkland—is spread out below. The city is beautiful. It shines like a precious jewel, and I understand, more than I ever have, Ruhan’s regret at being forced to destroy it.
The dragon climbs higher, and we break through the cloud layer. The sun beats down on us, and for a while, I’m warm enough, but then I start to shiver, and my teeth start to chatter uncontrollably.
He must have exceedingly good hearing. I would have sworn that he couldn’t hear anything over the flapping of his wings, but he clearly does, because he immediately drops lower. His scales heat, as if he’s preparing to breathe fire, and the air around me warms.
Thank you, Ruhan.
We fly for what seems like forever. We swoop over a mountain range and past fields of purple and blue flowers. The sun is now directly behind us. My muscles start to ache, and I lose track of time.
Eventually, we arrive at our destination. A town is tucked in a valley between two tall craggy mountains. When Ruhan spots it, he circles it slowly, dropping height with each pass, and then he lands.
We’ve arrived in Cintra.
I’ve been trying not to think about what happens next. The second I heard what’s at stake, I’d made my decision. I couldn’t ask Ruhan to stand by while thousands of people were being killed. That was never in doubt.
But at the same time, I’m realistic about what my Draekon is going to face. No one thinks it’s a good idea for Ruhan to take First on alone, and yet, here we are.
On the way here, I made my peace with death. If I die, then so be it. But when I think of Ruhan, either hurt or dying, a fist squeezes my heart, and I can’t breathe.
I slide off the dragon’s back. My muscles scream in protest, and my knees buckle. Ruhan shifts into his two-legged form and catches me before I can fall. “Are you okay, lovely Lani?”
No, not really. I love you, I want to whisper. For the first time in my life, I’ve fallen in love with someone, and, because the universe has a sick sense of humor, there’s a real chance I could lose him.
But there’s no avoiding this fight. Any moment now, First will fly over those mountains, and he will attack.
We’re here; we’ve landed in Cintra.
Here, we make a stand.
25
Lani
Commander Tarish of the Rebellion must have warned the residents that Ruhan was on his way. A dozen heavily armed Zorahn—or are they Draekon?—approach us, but when they see me, they lower their weapons. “You’re Ruhan?”
“Yes,” he says, keeping his arm around me. He gets right to the point. “Tarish has warned you about the danger you’re in, yes?”
“Yes,” a tall woman with short pink hair says. “I’m Ayani. Former Zoraken. I retired ten years ago, but before I left, I reached the rank of Major. I’m in charge of Cintra’s security.”
“Perfect.” He looks around for Blue. “This is my techbot,” he says. “He’s an all-purpose BL3790, but that’s a mouthful, so I call him Blue.”
“You have an Adrashian techbot?” a man asks, looking impressed. “I didn’t think the Federation allowed those to leave their borders.”
“Technically, Blue’s from Ashara,” Ruhan replies. “You have shields, yes? We’ll upgrade them so they can withstand Draekon fire. What about soldiers? Are any of your people trained for combat?”
Someone else answers, throwing forth a lot of jargon I don’t understand. I yawn, and my stomach rumbles. Ayani gives me a friendly smile. “If you’d like,” she says, “You can shower and rest at my house. My son is home. He’ll prepare a meal for you.”
A hot shower sounds wonderful. I give Ruhan a questioning glance, and he nods. “Don’t wander off outside the city,” he says.
“Okay. What about you? You’re the one who just flew for hours. Are you going to eat?”
“Soon,” he says. “I’m going to take a look at the shields first.”
He’s got the ‘I’m also talking to Blue at the same time’ glazed look. I shake my head, biting back my smile. Ten to one, Ruhan’s going to forget all about food.
Ayani accompanies me to her house. On the way, she tells me her story. “There are black-market testers for the Draekon mutation,” she says. “Five years ago, I tested my son.”
“He came up positive?”
She nods. “The mutation runs in my family,” she says. A shadow passes over her face. “When I was a child, my brother tested positive and was exiled. We were forbidden to speak of him. It broke my parents’ hearts. They died less than a year after he was taken.”
Oh God. “That’s awful.”
“My bondmate had political ambitions,” she continues. “He would have turned in our child. I had to choose. My son or my bondmate.”
This gets worse and worse. Poor, poor Ayani. She’s here, so I know who she chose, but either way, it’s a heartbreaking story. “I packed our belongings in the middle of the night,” she finishes. “Someone I know had a contact for the Rebellion. Commander Tarish asked me if I wanted to fight, but I didn’t. I just wanted my child to be safe. Tarish settle
d us here.”
“And now you’re fighting anyway.”
“I still just want my child to be safe,” she replies. “There’s a time to run away from the fight, and a time to stand firm. What about you? How are you involved?”
I don’t really know how to answer her question. “I go where Ruhan does,” I reply at last. “I’m not a fighter; I have no skills to offer. But I’m not going to let him face this battle alone.”
Her expression softens. “In the end,” she says. “That’s all we can ask for. That we’ve made a difference in the lives of the people we’re with.” She stops outside a narrow yellow door. “We’re here.”
Ayani shows me the shower and then heads back to the power plant. I soak under the hot water for a long time. My therapist tried to get me into meditation back home, and I was never very good at it, but I take several deep breaths and force myself to clear my mind. A thousand things could go wrong over the next few days, but I will be useful to no one if I’m a ball of anxiety.
Right now, I need to act more like Ruhan. Calm, controlled, and always ready with a dirty joke or an outrageous innuendo.
Ayani’s son is in the living space when I head out. He’s younger than I expected. If he were human, I’d guess that he’s about eight.
“Hello,” he says to me. “I’m Arax.”
“Arax?”
“I was named after the former Firstborn. Ironic, really.” He looks at his comm. “My mother says I’m supposed to feed you.”
“If you don’t mind?”
“Not at all. What’s it like, flying?”
I blink at the sudden change in topic. “Amazing.”
“I can’t wait until I can fly,” he says. He thrusts his screen in front of me. “Look at this.”
I bite back my smile. I’d forgotten what kids are like. “What am I looking at?”
