They rounded the corner and spotted him. He was normal sized, but his body was a swirl of green and purple with bright orange wings. It was beautiful in a strange way. Skye had never seen a hybrid like this. Mixed race dragons were rare, and Skye always felt a certain kinship to them since she was part royal and part sea. Most dragons accepted them, but it was still nice to meet one like herself.
Murdoc was a mixture of three dragons though because woodland dragons were the offspring of two extinct dragon races. They never mated with anyone outside of their race.
Before she could even open her mouth to speak, the dragon’s gravelly and old voice entered her head. I wish to talk to the boy, alone.
“Who? Rowan?” Skye asked, surprised.
If that’s the boy’s name, then yes, Rowan. Come here, boy.
Rowan’s eyes went wide. Kingston gave him shove, and Rowan glared at him. Skye wanted to pull him back, tell him he didn’t have to go. Rowan’s anxiety spiked, and Skye pushed her hand against her stomach. Normally she could handle his emotions, but when he was scared, it was too much.
Something didn’t feel right about this. It was almost as if this were a trap. But it didn’t make sense for them to target Rowan. He didn’t pose any threat. Except he did. He slayed a dragon. Every fiber of her being wanted to yell at him to stop, but if this were a trap, she didn’t know how they’d get out of there. She readied herself in case they needed to flee.
He took slow, deliberate steps, looking at Skye every once in a while. She wanted to run up and take his hand, reassure him. That would humiliate him. Besides, he was angry with her right now, and she wasn’t sure he’d accept the help.
He stepped in front of Murdoc. Rowan looked so small compared to the dragon. Skye held her breath as she waited to see what would happen. Murdoc stared at him for a few moments. The he opened his mouth and released a jet of flames at Rowan.
FLAMES ENGULFED Rowan, but he felt no pain. He felt hardly anything, really. Everything around him was purple for a few seconds, then the color changed to green, then to bright orange. Then it was over. He didn’t even have time to be scared.
But he reached for the swords strapped to his back. He had them out before anyone else reacted. He was about to charge for the dragon when the hoarse voice entered his mind again.
Calm down. I mean you no harm. Rowan froze.
“Then why did you try to incinerate me?” Rowan looked down at his body to make sure he wasn’t on fire. He seemed fine. He still didn’t lower his swords though.
If I wanted to incinerate you, you’d be dead.
“Then what was that?” The dragon had a point, but Rowan was lost.
As a hybrid dragon, my healing is bit unusual. I don’t work the way most woodland dragons do. I have to use my flames. But I have powers they don’t. The purple flames healed your headaches and your hand. The green gave you your sight. The orange got rid of your anxiety. It will no longer plague you. I am part canyon dragon, and so I can also heal wounds of the mind.
Rowan staggered back. “You mean it?” He couldn’t fathom never having to deal with his anxiety ever again.
I heard you are a hero. You saved Kingston and Skye from under the nose of a very evil dragon. This is my way of rewarding you. I don’t usually like humans, but I respect you.
Rowan took off his glasses and looked at the one person he wanted to see. Skye. Her blonde hair fell across her shoulders, and her blue eyes sparkled. His heart stilled. She ran for him and flung herself at him.
“Are you okay?” She pulled back and looked him up and down. The worry in her eyes caused his stomach to flutter. She cared a great deal for him, that was for sure. He wished he could somehow turn her feelings into more.
“I’m great. Don’t need these anymore.” He held out his glasses.
She took them from him and examined them. “Really? You can see me?”
“Yep.” Rowan was trying to process what happened. He kept his eyes on Skye. “Gorgeous as ever.”
Skye blushed and turned to Murdoc. “I’ve never seen a woodlands dragon use flames before. You scared us to death.”
I’m sorry. I sometimes forget that I’m different. It comes from being alone for so long. Now I must thank you all for warning me about the canyon dragons. I will make sure to call a meeting with all the woodlands.
Rowan was glad Murdoc chose to speak out loud to all of them instead of just to Skye. It made him feel included. Skye opened her mouth to respond, but Kingston cut her off.
“We wanted to make sure you were aware. Can you tell us where Everett is?”
Murdoc didn’t say anything for a few seconds. Everett? You mean the royal dragon? I’ve no idea. I’ve never even met him.
“Kingston said you knew him.” Skye glared at Kingston. Rowan wondered if he’d lied to them. But after everything, how could he not trust him?
No. I’ve never met him. Seen him flying around occasionally, but I’ve never spoken to him. I know he visits Saffron from time to time. You might want to go see her.
Skye’s face fell, but she recovered quickly. Rowan knew she was disappointed. So was he, but he was having trouble feeling bad at the moment. He could see without his glasses, his stomach wasn’t in knots, and he could use both hands now.
“Where is Saffron’s cave?” Skye asked.
“She’s also very reclusive, and we had a falling out several years ago, so I have no idea where she is.”
Skye’s fists clenched, but she gave him a little bow. “Thank you for healing Rowan. Can we do anything for you?”
No.
Kingston stepped in between Rowan and Skye. “We should go. Come on.”
As they exited the cave, Skye rounded on Kingston. “You said he knew Everett.” The accusation in her voice was impossible to miss.
“I thought he did. I must’ve gotten confused. It doesn’t matter though. He told us about Saffron.”
Skye looked skeptical, but nodded her head. Rowan threw all caution to the wind and put his arm around her. He expected her to pull away, but she gave him a huge grin and leaned into him. There were dragons out there who wanted to kill them, a war was on the way, and they had no solid plan, but for the first time ever, life was good for Rowan.
THAT EVENING THEY found a cave where they could sleep. It would be rough as humans, but they’d survive. Skye settled next to the cave wall and watched Rowan. He was feeling pensive. She wasn’t sure what to make of his emotions at the moment. Murdoc took his anxiety away, and now he didn’t feel normal to her. She was used to feeling the slight buzz of unease that hung around him.
Rowan unsheathed his swords and stared at them for a second. He’d warmed up to her after they visited Murdoc, but an hour later he went cold again. He seemed very different and distant. She wasn’t sure why. He was probably trying to make sense of what Murdoc did to him.
“Hey, Kingston, can we practice?” Rowan asked.
Kingston stretched. “Sure, mate.”
Skye watched as they went through a few basic exercises. Rowan seemed sharper with his moves somehow. Skye ran through her mind all the things that happened in the last few days. Things weren’t adding up. Something was nagging at her. She’d never felt so helpless. As a dragon, she was pretty much invincible. But that arctic dragon that tortured her had a power she’d never seen before.
“I’ve never seen magic like the white dragon had,” she finally said out loud.
Kingston faltered for a second, and Rowan nearly cut off his ear. “Watch it,” he said.
Rowan grinned. “Maybe you need to pay more attention.”
Kingston spun his sword around and tapped Rowan on the thigh. “I thought the goal was to help each other, not intentionally wound me.”
Rowan let out a laugh. “You don’t need your ear.” Skye was pleased to see Rowan enjoying himself.
Kingston rolled his eyes and continued to cross swords with Rowan, but he spoke to Skye. “As for the white dragon. You have no idea. They are all e
xperimenting with things that haven’t been around for thousands of years.”
“Where are they learning it all?”
“The white witch.” Kingston made a jab, and Rowan barely got out of the way. Skye squeaked, but Rowan moved right in.
The white witch wasn’t a surprise. When Skye turned black, she knew they’d have a witch on their hands.
“Do you know who she is?” Skye asked.
“Nope. Never got that far. It was hard to tell since so many of them had strange magic.”
The magic bothered Skye. She didn’t know how to fight against that.
“What’s their immediate goal?”
Kingston jumped out of the way of a jab. “To find and kill Obsidian. And the other dragon kings.”
Skye blinked. She supposed that should be obvious. When dragons found out about her, there would be all kinds trying to kill her. Heck, they already were.
Skye stood up and paced. Something else was missing. There were too many holes in everything going on around her. She tripped over her own feet when she realized what it was.
“Why can’t anyone find Obsidian? He’s completely out in the open.”
Rowan circled the sword around Kingston’s and flung it out of his hand. Rowan let out a “ha,” but Kingston scowled.
He left his sword on the ground and turned to Skye. “You really don’t know?”
Skye shook her head. “I’m starting to feel dumb. What do you mean?”
“The sea dragons protect his location. The only ones that can find him are people who already know where he is. Go ahead, try to tell me where he lives.”
Skye opened her mouth to speak and found her mind had gone blank. She tried again, but for the life of her couldn’t remember where Obsidian lived. Kingston was right. How weird. She also wondered why no one told her.
“I can’t.”
“I can’t believe you didn’t know that. You’re half-sea.”
It bothered Skye that she’d been left in the dark. “I suppose that’s done at the council. I’m sure no one thought it was important that I know.” More like they knew she wasn’t great at keeping secrets. Which seemed stupid.
She felt silly now. If she’d wanted to find Obsidian after he became king, she wouldn’t have been able to. When Pearl brought her to his side, she didn’t actually tell Skye anything. She just brought her to the house.
It was a pretty ingenious safety measure, actually. But a lot of dragons knew where he was. If someone wanted to find him and kill him, all they would have to do is follow someone on their way to see him.
Rowan picked up the discarded sword and handed it to Kingston.
Kingston shook his head. “I think I’m done tonight, mate. We’ll practice again tomorrow. You’re getting good.”
While they’d practiced, the sun had set. Skye looked out among the stars. Before she’d been a human, they were the only things that made her feel insignificant. The sky seemed so vast and beautiful.
Rowan grinned. “And you’re easily distracted. Skye should talk to us every time we practice.”
Kingston nodded. “Though next time I think she might have to gush over how bad she wants you. Doubt you’d be able to concentrate.”
Rowan went bright red. Skye sputtered, and Kingston burst out laughing.
“You two are too easy, you know that, right?”
“HUMANS WEREN’T built for sleeping on rocks.” Rowan’s entire body ached. He’d slept with his head on his backpack, but a rock dug into his hip. He looked at the dingy cave and knew he wouldn’t be able to sleep there for another day. They’d been searching for Saffron almost two full days and found nothing.
“There are stores in the village. Kingston can take us down there, and we’ll get some sleeping bags and cots. Food too. We don’t know how long this is going to take.”
Rowan went to push his glasses back up when he met the bridge of his nose. He didn’t know if he’d get used to this. He’d worn glasses for as long as he could remember. Also, the loss of his anxiety was weird. It’d been a long time since his stomach didn’t have a knot. Sure, the exercise helped, but the fear was still there, simmering under the surface. Now, it was completely gone. He felt totally free. It was an amazing feeling.
“Have you been to Yosemite before?” Skye asked him.
“Yeah. My family spent a summer here my freshman year. But I spent most of the time in my room.” His life before he met Sid and Skye seemed so long ago. He almost couldn’t remember what it was like to be terrified of everything.
“But it’s beautiful.” Skye looked over the valley.
“And full of dragons who aren’t all that shy of people. At least the royal dragons stay up high in the mountains. There have been people who came close enough to the woodlands dragons to take pictures with them. I was too scared to go out.”
She nudged him. “Not anymore, right?”
“That’s right. Not anymore. I’m starving. Let’s go find some food.”
He’d tried to keep his distance from her like Kingston told him. But he found that difficult since all he wanted was to be with her. He had managed to stop touching her though. If she tried to hold his hand or put her hand in the crook of his arm, he pulled away. He hated doing it, but if this morning was any indication of her reaction, it was working.
Kingston dropped them off at the forest on the other side of the village. He said he’d wait there while they got the food and supplies and not to bother with a sleeping bag for him.
The general store was packed. But near the back were supplies for campers. They picked up two sleeping bags and two cots. Rowan grabbed a bunch of energy bars. He figured they wouldn’t be eating good food for a few days, and energy bars were the best for staving off the constant hunger. They paid for their stuff, and Rowan’s nose caught a whiff of rotisserie chicken. His stomach grumbled.
“We’re eating real food. Kingston can wait,” Rowan said. They needed something good in their day. Searching for Saffron was depressing.
Skye gave him a grin and nudged his shoulder. “You bet. That smells amazing.”
Rowan let out a breath of relief. He’d been afraid she would say they didn’t have time.
Skye waited at a table with the bags, and Rowan got them chicken, potatoes, and rolls that looked like they’d been sitting out all day. It wasn’t the Vegas buffet they had a few days ago, but it was decent food. He thanked the man who handed them the meal and sat down across from Skye.
She picked at the chicken and wouldn’t meet his eyes. He wanted to ask her what was wrong, but she spoke.
“Are you feeling better? When we talked at Murdoc’s cave, you seemed pretty upset.”
Rowan didn’t want to tell her the real reason he’d been upset. She never took it very well when he tried to confess his love to her.
“I’m okay. I’ve had to put the dragon slaying out of my mind. If I don’t think about it, I’m fine. Do you think my family is worried about me?” Rowan had been thinking about them since they left Vegas and he didn’t like his whole family out in Yellowstone searching for him. If something happened to one of them, he’d feel awful.
Skye gripped his hand. “You don’t need to feel guilty. I’m sure Aspen got your message. We’ll find Everett soon, and then we can go back and explain everything. This is all moving much faster than I thought it would. Sure the last couple of days have been slow, but when we started, I literally thought we’d be out here for years.”
“Probably because of Kingston. What do you think of him?” Rowan was still on the fence.
“I think he’s a good dragon. When we get back, I need to tell Sid to utilize his talents. He seems to have contacts with all the different dragons.”
“But you still don’t trust him with your secret.”
Skye reached over and grasped his hand. “I trust no one with this secret. Except you.”
Rowan’s heart raced. He loved being this person for her, but wanted to kiss her. No, he should stop thinking
about that. Focus on the problem at hand. “But he might be able to help you.”
“No. The only one who can help me is Everett. I doubt Kingston would know any more about the prophecy than I do.”
Rowan shrugged. “I’m just saying. He’s been pretty helpful so far.”
“Of course he has. I’m not saying that. But what I’ve become isn’t something I’m ready to share with anyone.”
She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes at him. At this point she shouldn’t be so reluctant to share anything with Kingston. Maybe Rowan was missing something. “Okay, sorry. I didn’t mean to push. Has Kingston done something that would make you not trust him?”
“No. But you’re literally the only other living soul who knows. This has nothing to do with Kingston. No one else can know.”
They finished their food in silence, and Rowan thought it was odd that she was scared to share it with Kingston. He understood that it was a big change for her, but lots of things were changing at the moment.
SKYE WOKE THE next morning pretty grumpy. They’d searched all day again and found nothing. She’d slept on the hard rock floor for two nights and was tired of it. The cots had helped, but they were not beds. Plus, she was cold. She wasn’t used to feeling cold. She supposed she could sleep as a dragon, and that would be more comfortable, but she couldn’t risk Kingston seeing her. She trusted him, but this was one secret that she couldn’t let anyone know until she found her answers with Everett or the prophecy.
Only then would be she comfortable revealing herself to anyone. Truth be told, Sid should be the first one. He deserved that much. She didn’t know what would happen after that. She wasn’t even sure if the kings would be working together or fighting against one another. Maybe both. She didn’t want to fight against Sid. If the kings were meant to fight against each other, it would be a lonely fight.
Skye stretched and went to the mouth of the cave to watch the sunrise. The view was the only good thing about where they were staying. The bright pinks and purples were gorgeous. Rowan joined her a few minutes later.
Skye: The Dragon Kings Book 4 Page 11
