Pulling back, I nodded. “I will. Try not to worry. Everything is going to be fine.”
She laughed. “Famous last words.”
We joined the others, and they were discussing where to open the portal. We couldn’t just do it right outside the academy. Students would see and this wasn’t anything we were telling anyone about except Gemma. She’d have to think about something to tell Peyton and Finley, but I was sure that wouldn’t be too hard.
“None of you can create a shield to make yourselves invisible? What do they teach you around here?” JayLeigh said, exasperated.
“Magic that each of our different races excel in. Unfortunately, all of the dragons left us before we could get their curriculum down,” Headmaster Stone snapped, having shown up just in time to feel insulted.
“Right. Well, your elven ancestors left some things out as well, but not to worry. Dragons learned how to adopt the trick, and I have you all covered. Though, I can’t hold the portal for long, so we at least need to be somewhere people won’t see the three of us disappear into thin air.”
“There’s a clearing in the forest area nobody should be using right now since classes aren’t in session,” Headmaster Stone said, this time without as much animosity in his voice.
“Perfect. Let’s go.” JayLeigh grinned before spinning on her heel and heading toward the tree line.
Enzo followed after her first and the rest of us trailed behind. Within five minutes we were hidden within the canopy of trees and ready to go. I gave Jules one last hug with promises to reach out as soon as I could. She teared up a little but backed away and kept her head held high as if none of it bothered her.
“Okay, before we go, I need to go over a few things,” JayLeigh began. “First, it takes a lot of energy to open a portal, meaning we only have one shot at this in order to leave today. Don’t screw it up by distracting me or freaking out. Now, once we’re cloaked, we won’t be able to see each other. Raegan, I want you to grab my hand, and Enzo will take yours so we don’t get separated. I don’t need one of you ending up in neverland with the fairies.”
She grinned and laughed at her own words, but none of us were joining in. Tough audience.
“Anyway,” she drawled. “When we arrive, time will be different. You’re going to be exhausted, even though it will only feel like you were in the portal for mere minutes. I’ll show you to your rooms and, once you’ve rested, I’ll show you around Drakken, then introduce you to Marek.
“My only warning is to not leave your rooms without me until you’ve been properly introduced to the other dragons. I’m sure you’re aware, shifters can have quite the temper, and not many of our residents are fond of change. The last time didn’t work out so well for them, so they will act before asking questions. Understood?”
Nods came from me and Enzo, even though I really wanted to object. None of it sounded even remotely safe, making me question my sanity for thinking this was a good idea in the first place.
“Perfect. Let’s get going then. The portal is only going to be a shimmer to you while we’re on Earth, but once we walk through, it will be much brighter. Keep your eyes closed if you get motion sickness, because I will bite someone’s head off if I get puked on. Literally.”
I glanced at Enzo. “Are you sure you want to do this? You can still back out.”
“Where you go, I go. I told you I’d help make everything right again, and if that means going through a portal that just might kill me, then so be it.” He puffed out his chest, seemingly proud of the stubborn fool he was being.
Ugh. I really hoped he wasn’t going to be all profound and mushy every time we spoke. It wasn’t good for the steel wall I was trying to keep up around my heart. “No feelings allowed” was my new mantra.
“Whatever. It’s your life. You can be an idiot if you want to be. Who am I to stop you?”
“You are everything to me and if you really didn’t want me to go, then I wouldn’t be, but there is a part of you that is glad I’m tagging along, and that is the part giving me hope.”
Ignoring him, I paid more attention to JayLeigh as I should have been doing the entire time. She was creating something that was going to rip me from Earth and pop me into another realm. Keeping an eye on her should have been my priority instead of letting Enzo screw with my feelings.
Her hands were glowing a soft violet color as she moved them in a circular motion, pulling her arms further apart with each rotation. Ripples began to form in the air before her, transparent in color and shimmering just like she had said.
With a deep breath, JayLeigh turned back to us. “Okay, time to go invisible. I need the two of you to hold hands like Enzo is getting ready to transport you somewhere, assuming he is capable of that elf trait.”
He grunted. “Of course, I am.”
“Good. We’re just going to act like we’re disappearing for a little trip the good old-fashioned way. That way, if anyone can see us, they can think we just transported like elves do. Otherwise, they’d see the portal entrance and that could be bad.”
“We should have just gone invisible before we left the office,” I said, thinking this was entirely too dangerous if we were trying to keep JayLeigh’s portal a secret.
“Yeah, well, we didn’t. I’m not used to having to hide my abilities, so we’re working with what we got. I’ve already been gone too long, and it’s time to head back now.” Her voice lowered and I could see the energy being sucked from her the longer we stood there. She hadn’t been kidding when she said it would take a lot out of her.
Enzo must have noticed the same thing, because he immediately took my hand and pulled us closer to JayLeigh. Using his free hand, he held both of our bags since I was stuck in the middle of him and JayLeigh. “We’re ready,” he announced.
She placed a hand on his shoulder and grasped my free hand tighter than I was expecting for her size. I glanced back at Jules and Alistair one last time. She smiled at me, but it was forced. The headmaster stayed close but didn’t seem as concerned until we must have fully disappeared, because a second later his eyes went wide like saucers.
“Stay close and, whatever you do, don’t let go of each other or me,” JayLeigh said, bringing my attention back to her as she took the first steps toward the shimmering portal.
It was wide enough that the three of us could step through at the same time and, with a massive deep breath, that’s exactly what we did.
The time for turning back was gone as we were sucked into the portal. It pulled the air right from my lungs. My grip on Enzo’s hand tightened, along with the one I had on JayLeigh’s. Once I felt secure in the fact that we weren’t going to get separated, I lifted my head and forced air back into my body.
Colors moved all around us in a kaleidoscope effect, which allowed me to calm down some and enjoy the ride. We moved around a lot, including flipping upside down, and I understood why JayLeigh warned us about the motion sickness, but thankfully, it didn’t bother me.
When I peeked at Enzo, I was a little worried that wasn’t the case for him. His face was turning a little green, and his eyes were clamped shut. I squeezed harder on his hand, giving him the reassurance that I was still there and everything was going to be okay.
More so because I didn’t want to see JayLeigh bite someone’s head off, not because I cared about making him feel better. At least, that’s what I kept telling myself.
As we were nearing the end of the portal, the colors began to dull, and I kept my eyes focused on what appeared to be a black void we were headed straight for. JayLeigh wasn’t freaking out, so I tried to remain calm, but then I remembered her previous words about Drakken’s shield possibly not letting Enzo in and my heart began to race.
I wasn’t sure how I would keep my shit together if he died right in front of me. The more I thought about what a stupid risk we were taking, the harder it was to breathe. Just as I was erupting into a full-blown panic attack, we were spit out onto a grassy knoll, and my legs buckled benea
th me.
Scrambling to my knees, I crawled over to Enzo, who wasn’t moving. Terror gripped at my chest as I shook his shoulders. “Enzo. Enzo, wake up!” I yelled.
No, this couldn’t be happening. He couldn’t have died. Not like this. Tears pricked at my eyes as my throat burned with emotion.
“JayLeigh, do something. Bring him back.”
“Raegan—”
I cut her off. “No talking. Just fix him.”
“He’s not dead, you idiot. He just passed out. And now, I’m pretty sure he’s only waiting to see how bad you’ll freak out, because he’s breathing just fine from what I can tell.”
Enzo’s eyes fluttered open, and a smirk appeared on his face. “Oops.”
Without hesitation, I punched him in the jaw and stood up so I could storm off. Where to, I had no idea, but I needed a moment by myself before I did what the shield apparently didn’t.
The only positive was that I now knew he wasn’t always going to be so damn mushy, at least. He was also going to be a massive pain in my ass.
Chapter 8
When I was no longer concerned with Enzo’s wellbeing, I took my time taking in the new land we’d been dropped on. The sky above was a fiery crimson as if the sun was setting, but it was high above, telling me the deep red was just its normal color.
The ground beneath my feet was firm and covered in some sort of wild grass that was a deep forest green with half-inch-thick blades that seemed to crisscross over each other, creating the solid surface. Enormous trees were to our left that reminded me of the Redwoods from a trip my family took down the California coast when I was about ten. Most were so wide, a dozen people could hide behind them and none would be the wiser.
To the right was a town of sorts with a few clusters of average-sized buildings and a grander one right in the middle of them all. I assumed that was the academy JayLeigh had mentioned. Their population didn’t seem very large, so I was counting on being right.
From where we stood atop a steep hill, the main structure appeared to be made from some sort of metal as the sun’s rays reflected off its sides, shining in my eyes.
“What do you think?” JayLeigh asked once Enzo was up off the ground and grabbing our bags I had long since forgotten about. I was glad he didn’t lose them in the portal when he was getting sick.
“It’s incredible. The sky is something else,” I answered. “Is it always this vibrant?”
She nodded her head. “Except for when it’s our technical nighttime. The sky is pitch black then. No moon or stars. Our only light during the four hours it transpires comes only from sources we’ve created.”
“You only get four hours of sleep every day?” Enzo gaped, and I was glad he asked. I was already feeling the exhaustion, and that was going to be nowhere near enough for me.
“Some do, some sleep when the sun’s still up. Easy to cover windows, you know,” she said sarcastically.
“Right.” Enzo cleared his throat, clearly embarrassed for feeling like he asked a stupid question.
“So, where to first?” I asked with a yawn.
“We can head straight to King Marek’s quarters, or I can show you to your dorms you’ll be staying in while attending the academy for the next few weeks. If you need to rest, I’m sure the king will understand waiting to meet you.” The challenge was evident in her voice, and I was going to accept.
“I’m fine to go now.” I cast a glance at Enzo, who was finally getting some color back in his face.
“Well, I’m not going to let you go by yourself,” he huffed.
Taking three steps in his direction, I got right in his face, poking a finger in his chest. “You don’t let me do anything. I will do what I want and when I want while we’re here. You have no say in my decisions. You made sure of that the day you met me and the lies began.”
His eyes turned dark as I pushed him back, but they never left mine. He seemed to be taking caution with the words he wanted to say next, which was smart on his part. The exhaustion was making me a mega-bitch, and I didn’t seem to be able to control it.
“Raegan, you know what I meant. I’d rather not have you go meet the king of dragons by yourself for the first time. We don’t know these people, and I’d like to be certain you’re not going to be harmed before we go our separate ways. Is that acceptable?”
“As long as you understand I’m my own person and will do whatever I want, then it’s whatever. Just stay out of my way.”
Enzo’s eyes widened as JayLeigh began to snicker next to us.
“Raegan, are you alright?” he asked.
“Of course I am, why would you ask such a stupid question? You seem to be full of them tonight.”
He rolled his eyes and glanced at JayLeigh. “What’s wrong with her? Why are her eyes and skin changing?”
She stepped toward me as her own eyes changed from light green to a deeper emerald color that matched mine almost perfectly. “Stand down,” she demanded as her height seemed to increase right before me.
Something whimpered that sounded like it was right behind me, but when I cast a glance back, there was nothing there. I quickly realized the sound had come from me.
“Raegan, get your dragon under control before you snap at someone who won’t be so understanding. Not everything is going to go your way while you’re here, and I promise you don’t want to lose control around the wrong people.” JayLeigh backed up as I regained control.
I hadn’t even known my dragon side was that strong. Nothing had felt different except my emotions being stronger, but I had assumed it was the exhaustion. Maybe bringing my dragon side further out wasn’t such a great idea after all.
JayLeigh’s face softened. “Don’t do that. There’s nothing to be afraid of. This is why you’re here. So you can control the beast inside of you and use all of your abilities. It will be easier than you think as long as you’re not afraid. Your dragon will sense that and use it to overpower you, but if you stay strong and remain in charge, you should have a unified relationship.”
My throat tightened, fear already coursing through me, regardless of her words. “Why do you talk about our dragon side as if it’s another being? Anytime I’ve shifted before, I’ve still been me.”
She tsked. “You’ve never shifted. You’ve utilized your dragon traits, but any toddler can do that. Until you’ve tripled in size and shot flames from your snout, you haven’t shifted.”
“Flames? Seriously?” I gaped.
“Yep, but enough of that. We need to get going. It’s almost lunch time here, and I want to be in and out before the crowds descend from the academy.”
Enzo still carried our bags, and when I tried to take mine, he refused, simply shaking his head and moving away from me until I quit trying. Fine, if he wanted to be my pack mule, who was I to stop him?
Instead of worrying about it, I focused on the buildings we were approaching. “None of these look like houses. Where do people live?” I asked.
“Well, there are a few choice places for the different dragons we have here. Most commonly, they live in the forest. The trees further in are twice the size of the ones you can see from here, and they’ve been made into homes. Second option is underground. That’s more suited for the nocturnal ones, though.”
“So, they live in tunnels?” Enzo asked.
She shrugged. “Not really. Metal buildings were placed underground with tunnels leading out of them. They’re actually really nice homes if you don’t mind fake light. Last, there are the nomads. They live in caves on the outskirts of our area and very rarely, if ever, come to socialize.”
“I thought you mentioned that dragons need a pack or something?” I asked as we finally made it to the bottom of the steep hill.
“They do.” She nodded. “There are around ten or so of them out there, keeping each other sane. What’s the human saying? Misery loves friends? Well, that’s them.”
I laughed. “Misery loves company, but pretty close.”
“W
hatever. You guys talk weird half the time,” she said, which made me laugh harder.
“Because panty burp is such a normal thing to say?”
She joined in with my laughter. “Okay, you might have me with that one.”
Enzo nudged my shoulder. “Uh, should we be concerned?”
I glanced up to see what he was talking about, and my eyes landed on a colossal dragon, easily twice the girth and several feet taller than JayLeigh’s. The scales were an obsidian color with silver undertones whose beauty I might have appreciated more if I wasn’t all but certain that its intense cobalt eyes were glaring at us.
“Oh, that’s just Onyx. He won’t bite, or at least, I don’t think he will.” She winked.
I peeked again at the imposing dragon and was pretty sure she was wrong. The dude looked like he was seconds away from ripping our heads off. His nostrils flared before he whipped around, narrowly missing us with his spiked tail.
“Right,” Enzo drawled.
We continued on, walking past structures with big glass windows that showcased products I assumed were for sale. Mostly weapons, which freaked me out a little. If this little slice of a realm was mostly blocked off from Earth and only dragons lived there, then what was with the artillery? Why did they have the academy, and what would they be teaching us when we arrived?
Something told me I probably shouldn’t focus on the answers to those questions. I’d be better off learning what I could and walking away, but I wasn’t so sure I’d be able to do that as time passed.
“The building up ahead is where the king stays. We don’t call it a castle, more like a headquarters. The academy is on the first level of the building. There are only a few classrooms inside and everything else is outside, but within the walls of the headquarters property,” JayLeigh explained.
“Where will we stay?” I asked since the academy was only one floor of the building.
“Most of the students have their own housing already, so you’ll stay in the guest area of the headquarters. Adjoining rooms most likely on the second level.”
Deadly Declaration (Shadow Veil Academy Book 2) Page 7
