“So, what time do we leave?” Eryk asks, rolling a rubber ball in his palms.
“Sadie said five thirty. It’s when the patrols swap to give the previous Wyrms a rest,” Mason explains.
“I’m surprised they care about getting tired,” Rocky muses. “They don’t care when we do.”
“What about Melia?” Eryk probes. “We can’t just leave her.”
“She won’t speak to us. There are Wyrms guarding her wherever she goes.” Rocky rubs his eyes. “I don’t think she’d want to come anywhere near us anyway.”
“I know it’s not nice, but we have no choice but to leave her,” Mason agrees. “I’m glad Sadie is coming with us.”
“Is she meeting us there or something?” Rocky finds himself asking suspiciously.
“Yeah; she can go out whenever she wants. She’ll meet us on the outside. Then we can go wherever we want. No more Wyrms, no more Ray-”
“You can’t seriously think it’s that easy. They’ll hunt us.”
“Marco and Hazel have outsmarted them this long,” Mason sighs irritably. “We can too.”
Eryk and Rocky glance at each other, the latter shrugging. If that’s what Mason wants to believe, then so be it. He’s just got back together with Sadie; Rocky doesn’t want to upset his oldest friend any further.
* * *
The clock ticks agonisingly slowly until the arms reach five thirty. Mason jumps to his feet, peering into the hallway and motioning the group with his hand.
“All clear.”
Rocky swings his backpack over his shoulder and follows Mason down the hallway. Their dragons are already waiting for them outside their rooms, and they nod silently at them as they approach. Cerberus licks his hand, her tail wagging. She’s desperate to get out of here.
“Are we really going to walk out the front door?” Eryk hisses.
“It’s the only door big enough for the dragons to fit through,” Mason explains under his breath.
“Won’t there be Wyrms guarding it?”
“That’s where the dragons come in,” he replies, patting Fortune’s neck.
The group is silent until they reach the lobby, where two grey Wyrms guard the front door. Fortune, Cerberus and Pirate burst out of the hallway, surprising the Wyrms before they can react. Before the Wyrms can make a sound, Cerberus pins one down and finishes it off with a bite to the neck, leaving it squirming and gurgling in its own blood on the floor. Pirate pins the other down, while Fortune tears its jaw off.
“Well done!” Eryk gives Pirate a thumbs up, to which the white dragon responds by puffing his chest out.
“C’mon, quickly,” Mason mutters, leading the way outside.
Violet clings to Rocky’s arm like a small child as they stick to the shadows, taking the back ways around the camp. Eventually they reach the old Krystalan base, which is now empty thanks to Ray’s takeover. Glass and broken doors are scattered across the front garden, and the flowerbeds that Ariel worked so hard to grow have been trampled into mulch. Nothing remains of the Krystalans now; it’s all Cindaraan territory.
Mason stops suddenly, making Rocky bump into him. “What are you doing?”
“I’m gonna wait here for Sadie. She said she’d meet us here.”
“We don’t have time for this!” Rocky hisses, his eyes darting around, paranoid that they’ll be caught at any second.
“I’m not leaving her behind.”
“But you’re the only one she told the way out to,” Eryk presses.
“Exactly, and this is my insurance that you don’t try to leave her behind.”
Rocky sighs and flops his arms down by his sides. They do not have time to wait for Sadie, if she’s coming. They should be running as far as they can before the Wyrms notice they’re missing.
“No, something’s wrong,” Violet murmurs, squeezing Rocky’s arm so hard her knuckles turn white.
“What’s wrong?” he asks, though he fears he may already know.
She shakes her head. “This isn’t how it’s supposed to go. I want to leave.”
“We’re not going without Sadie,” Mason says gently. “She wants out of this, just like you said.”
“No, no.” Violet squeezes her eyes shut, as if trying to block out what she’s hearing. “It’s Fae, she says that-”
“Fae lied.”
Rocky’s stomach drops as Ray steps out of the Krystalan base, his hands tucked behind his back. The rest of the group droop their shoulders in defeat. They’ve been caught.
“How did you know we were here?” Mason presses, crossing his fingers as if he’s expecting a different answer.
“Sadie,” the blond boy replies.
Mason’s girlfriend steps out behind Ray, holding her spear tightly in her hands. “I’m sorry, Mase.”
“But you wanted to leave!” Mason explodes.
“No, I’d never doubt Ray.”
Mason shakes his head. “You’re still a terrible liar.”
Ray flicks his wrist and several Wyrms emerge, cackling, with their black tongues darting in and out of their mouths. The dragons growl at a few of them, but the Wyrms take no notice.
Rocky looks at Sadie disappointedly. Not only did she betray them, but she had Mason thinking that she wanted to escape. He could see the devastation on his friend’s face.
Ray smirks, swinging his arms back and forth while rolling on the balls of his feet. “Did you really think you could escape? Really? Quite laughable.”
“Fae didn’t tell me you were here.” Violet swallows, making herself smaller by hiding behind Rocky.
“Fae has a tendency to leave bits out.”
“She’s nice though; she wouldn’t do this on purpose.”
“Next time you see her, ask her for me, then.” Ray’s eyes grow cold. “Hazel has escaped my grasp again, but that does not mean any of you will.”
“We don’t want to die!” Eryk trembles, pressing up against his companion. “This isn’t for the good of anyone.”
“I know that you are all scared, but I am afraid it is necessary. You are the beginning of a new era of Wyrms.”
Mason points to Sadie. “Her too? And Wes?” He fumes, his lip thinning into a tiny line.
“They are exempt because of their loyalty,” Ray says too quickly, his eyes darting between Mason and Sadie.
“Bullshit. The Wyrms will eat them no matter what.” He turns to his girlfriend, holding his arms out pleadingly. “Sades, he isn’t on your side. I’m sorry, but he isn’t. You aren’t free from this; the Wyrms won’t let you walk away when you have what they want.”
The Wyrms stare at him silently, neither agreeing nor disagreeing. Sadie’s eyes fill with tears. “I’m sorry, Masey. I really am, but you should have picked Ray when you had the chance.”
“You told me you didn’t want me to die, and now you’re leaving us all to our fates.” Mason drops his arms and his gaze goes cold. “I hope that you’re right and he doesn’t betray you. You’re going to regret this if he does. I won’t be able to save you.”
“I won’t need to be saved,” she answers confidently, though Ray doesn’t answer.
Rocky knows what will happen when the time comes. Sadie and Wes will be killed alongside them, their loyalty meaning nothing in Ray’s quest to create a ‘perfect’ new world. No amount of persuasion will get Sadie to leave, however, and if Wes were here he would be the same. But at least he can say that they tried to help them, before the inevitable betrayal.
“Come, back to your rooms.” Ray clicks his fingers and the Wyrms surge forward, creating a tight circle around the group.
Rocky chuckles at the smug look on his face. “You haven’t won, you know. Hazel and Braith still managed to slip out of your fingers.”
The blond boy’s face drops. “Not forever. Not when I have the perfect way to track them.”
“What perfect way? If it was so perfect, you would have got them by now.”
His smile grows wide again. “Something to do with
a little Anthropomorphic Dragon looking for revenge on two girls with giant beacons on their backs.”
22
Chapter Twenty-Two
I trudge through the forest, hugging my arms to my chest for warmth. There are no footsteps in the mud or anything I could follow Marco’s path with, which doesn’t help. I’ll just have to wander around blind until I find him.
After what seems like ages, I spot him slumped against a tree half-hidden by a blackberry bush. My heart jumps into my throat at seeing him so still.
“Marco?” I call out timidly.
To my relief, his head snaps up and he crinkles his eyebrows. “Haze? What are you doing?”
“I got worried. You’ve been gone a long time,” I reply, pushing through the scratchy tendrils of the bushes to sit beside him.
“I have?”
“A few hours. It was dawn when you left and it’s past midday now.”
He looks up at the sky, his eyes widening. “Oh.”
I shuffle uncomfortably on the bed of twigs and roots. “How are you feeling?”
“Uh, better I guess.” He looks up at the sky again. “I didn’t realise I’d been gone for so long.”
“You wanna talk about it?”
He bites his lips thoughtfully. “It was a shock, that’s all.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”
“It’s not your fault, it’s Draca’s. Do you reckon he knew?”
When I met him in my dream what I thought was gratitude I know recognise as malice in his eyes. He knew what he was doing. He knew that the necklace would upset Marco.
“Yes. I don’t know why, though. Why hurt you instead of me?”
He smiles softly, rubbing my palm with his thumb. “Because it would seem that I’m your biggest weakness.”
“That’s not true.”
“It is. In the old stories, Marine’s biggest downfall was her lover. I’m your lover, and he guessed correctly that if he hurt me, then he could hurt you as well.”
“This is different, though,” I say. “William and Marine were different people. We don’t know if they existed at all.”
He chuckles and leans his head against the tree bark, rolling his head to look at me. “The Marine that the Wyverns are using looks a lot like you, though.”
“Because they’re using my image,” I argue. “No-one knows what Marine looked like, so why not make a vision of an older me?”
He smiles and says nothing, just continues to stare up at the sky.
My life can’t be following Marine’s; it can’t be. There are so many things different. Rocky is my brother but he’s not dating Braith. Mason and Sadie aren’t together anymore either.
And Marco won’t die.
I won’t let him die.
Out of the two things in this whole mess I’m not willing to lose, it’s Rocky and Marco.
“You okay?” he asks, tearing me out of my thoughts.
“Yeah. Just thinking.”
“About what?”
“Marine.”
Placing his head on my shoulder, he sighs. “It’s just a theory, okay? You and Marine may not have lived your lives the same. You are very different people.”
“I don’t want our lives to play out exactly the same,” I confess. “I don’t…” I’m unable to finish when a lump forms in my throat.
“Haze, it’s okay. I promise when this is over, we’ll have a much better life. Just you and me.” He pauses, narrowing his eyes. “And Aqueous and Drea. Also, Rocky and Mason will probably visit every now and again, but that’s beyond the point. When this is over, I promise the wait will be worth it.”
I say nothing, swallowing back tears.
I don’t want him to die because of me.
* * *
“So, who is this little guy?” Marco coos, letting the baby Wyvern sniffs his fingers.
“I was thinking of calling him Lil Red.” I pat his tiny head, making him squeak in surprise. “He looks exactly like his dad, after all.”
“I always thought that Green and Purple were the lucky couple,” Marco says, only half-listening to what I say as Lil Red jumps onto his lap to play.
Red puffs his chest out in pride next to us, making Green whack him with a wing. The two of them stare lovingly at each other, though Green looks back often to check her other eggs.
I wonder when they will hatch.
It’s been a few hours, and there hasn’t been a peep from any of the other eggs. I hope Patriarch’s tantrum hasn’t hurt them. Just as the cranky Wyvern pops into my head I look up at the sky.
I wish I hadn’t.
The Anthropomorphic circles us silently from above, its chest covered in burns and welts from my water. Before I can open my mouth, it lands.
Right on the eggs.
Green screams in agony, having to be held back by Red as the Anthropomorphic squelches through the remains of the eggs. It shakes bits of shell off its toes, shaking its head in disgust. Red growls at the large dragon, but it swats his head in reply, sending him tumbling into a tree. Its beady white eyes land on me and its lip curls.
“Haze!”
Marco is too late to push me out of the way before the Anthropomorphic lunges forward, knocking the wind out of my body. Its claws hook into my jacket and it launches into the air before I can recover.
It flies straight up, going higher and higher in the sky. As the wind buffets my face, I realise what it’s doing.
If I attack it now, it’ll drop me.
It stops in mid-air, flaring its wings out to keep afloat while it glares at me. Its breath is hot and smells of rotten food. It must have been digging through bins as well as hunting. The welts look even more painful up close; its skin is red and inflamed. Pus seeps out of some of its wounds, though they don’t look infected.
Cries of fury from below tell me that the Wyverns are coming after it, though it doesn’t look bothered. It looks hungry. Glancing down, my vision goes blurry at the sight of the ground being so far away. The mixture of the cold and the height makes my stomach churn uncomfortably. The Wyverns fly after the dragon, but still it stays hovering where it is. By the time the Wyverns catch up, I’ll be dead.
Without thinking it through too much and losing my nerve, I press my hand against the dragon’s chest and let water pool in my palm. With a screech that makes my ears pop, it drops me. Everything seems to go in slow motion as I fall further and further away from the now bleeding dragon. My hair whips my face and the clouds zoom by. Just when I think that I’m going to fall forever, grey speckled arms wrap around my torso, and I’m lifted into the air once more. Ariadne growls in my ear, gripping me as tightly as she can.
The Anthropomorphic screams after us, but is intercepted by a group of Wyverns, who all attack it from different angles. It quickly falls like a sack of bricks as it is weighed down by all the bodies. Although it tries flapping its wings relentlessly, it disappears below the treeline, attacked by the angry Wyverns.
Ariadne lowers me to the ground quickly, and I shiver in her arms. Marco runs up and takes me from her, cuddling me close.
“Fuck, I wish you would stop getting into these situations,” he whispers in my ear, kissing me roughly on the cheek.
I can’t say anything through my shivers, though I am aware of the ground rumbling beneath us. It’s coming back.
Green grabs Lil Red in her mouth and takes to the skies, Stripy following her closely. The rest of the Wyverns rush towards the rumbling, attacking the Anthropomorphic as it breaks through the foliage. They all jump on it at once, aiming for its bleeding chest. They land several blows before they are shaken off and scattered in different directions.
Marco tries to back away with me limply in his arms, but the dragon quickly catches up to us, clenching and unclenching its claws. The familiar feeling of dread overflows me as I lift my arm towards the beast. The shark flies out of my hand in a funnel of glowing water. The dragon is smart this time and floats in the air, just above the shark.
I don’t want it to hurt anyone else.
The shark dives underwater, its fin sticking out and circling the beast. The dragon watches the water carefully, its eyes narrowed. Under my command, the shark leaps upwards, grabbing the dragon’s tail with its watery jaws. The dragon screams in fury and tries to swat at it, but each blow leads to the shark reforming as perfectly as before. Scales drop everywhere as the dragon’s hands and tail erupt in a vicious steam, the water melting its skin. Now in agony, the dragon uses the last of its energy to launch itself into the air, disappearing behind the trees.
Marco lowers me to the floor as the glowing water evaporates and I hyperventilate. He rocks me back and forth like a child, muttering in my ear. I start listing off my senses in my head, as it always calms me down. The remaining Wyverns surround us in a little circle, concern on their faces. Eventually I manage to calm down enough to control my breathing as the panic attack fades.
Marco brushes my fringe away from my face. “You okay?”
“Y-yeah,” I answer breathlessly, my mind foggy after hyperventilating.
As he holds me, a screech vibrates in my ears. Green is standing over her crushed eggs, her cries filled with grief. She nudges the broken shells, trying to breathe life into her little babies, but they’re long gone. Stripy comforts her by draping her tail over her friend’s shoulders.
I feel awful. I let this happen.
That thing was following me and now these innocent Wyverns have paid for it.
“I think we’re going to have to cut our visit short,” Marco whispers.
“We can’t leave them…”
“We’ll bring them back with us, but I think we have to give up with Patriarch. For now, at least, the others seem too involved with him. We can save these ones anyway – take them away from Ray and the WADT.”
I’m unable to answer as the world blurs around me and I slip into darkness.
23
Chapter Twenty-Three
Wind buffets my face when I open my eyes, and I expect to see myself surrounded by snow, but instead my head is buried in Marco’s chest. As my eyes flutter open, he grasps me tightly.
Glass and Ice (Elemental Dragons Book 3) Page 15
