Page 83 of Dragon Gods

“It’s warmer this way,” Fox said, the words murmured in her ear. She only gave a small nod, not trusting her voice. She couldn’t disagree and after a few more minutes, she let her body relax, sinking into his and focusing on the warmth. It was all she could do to ignore the hard planes of his body against hers. Despite the flings she’d had over the cycles, she’d never spent the night with anyone except for Flor and Javi. And neither of them felt likethis.

Sleep eluded her for a while, even after she felt the rhythm of Fox’s breathing steady behind her, the warm breath brushing against her hair with every exhale. It wasn’t until the moons were high, barely peeking out from the clouds, that sleep finally came for her and she let herself slip beneath its wings.

She dreamed of explosions and darkness.

* * *

Sofia woketo the sounds of screams and the acrid smell of smoke. For an instant, she thought her dream might have come to life, but the clearing around them was still. Fox sat groggily up beside her, his eyes slowly sharpening as the sounds continued.

“What?” she asked, but then she knew. She saw the angle of the sunrise and registered where the sound was coming from. Her body made the connections before her brain.

“The camp,” Fox said, voice rough with sleep and something more.

Another shriek echoed in the distance and then something Sofia had only heard once before.

The flapping of dragon wings.

SOFIA

AGE 15

Despite no evidence beyond the occasional unreliable account of jungle-crazed scouts, some among the Dragonborn insist the dragons didn’t go extinct under the great king’s rule. Rather, they insist the dragons went into hiding as a means to protect themselves from the king. Many scholars have placed the blame for continued Dragonborn resistance on this belief, noting the false hope continues to fan the flames of resistance within the community.

-Tales of the So-Called Dragonborn by Jules Vond

Sofia shouldn’t have gone to the main square. The executions happened when the moons went dark every blink. Even if she hadn’t seen the list of names and sketches posted in the streets, she would have known when Mina was scheduled to be killed—to be murdered. But seeing the name inked on parchment broke something inside of her. There wasn’t sadness or grief left, only a burning hot rage.

Gabriel was on the list, too. Apparently even attempting to give Sofia up hadn’t saved his traitorous ass. It had only taken her two cycles and listening in the halls to find out what had happened. He’d been caught stealing leather cuttings from the stables to sell. What he was selling them for, no one knew, although their guesses ranged from funding the resistance army to buying his girlfriend an abortion. Sofia had stopped listening to the gossip after that. All she knew is that Gabriel had betrayed her and in doing so, sentenced Mina to death.

“You’re lucky you’re useful, dragon-filth.”

So that afternoon, she’d left the chief commander’s manor early. He was already gone, off to prepare for the executions. No one in the household questioned her exit, and she knew they’d all follow soon enough. To not watch an execution, even the non-mandatory ones that occurred every blink, was a form of treason in and of itself. Only a traitor to the crown wouldn’t want to see its enemies brought to justice.

Still, no one would have noticed if Sofia hadn’t gone. She could have hidden away in the alleys of the slums, but she couldn’t bring herself to not watch. She needed to look into the chief commander’s eyes as he sentenced the girl heknewwas innocent and sent her to her death.

The square was already teeming with people when she arrived. Her small body pushed easily through the crowd, barely even noticed. She weaved through bodies until she was at the front of the mob, looking up at the wooden structure, which stood sentinel over the square.

She couldn’t take her eyes off the dark rust-colored stains against the wood and on the stones below. She didn’t even know she was picking at her cuticles until she felt a warm smear of blood. Her eyes flickered down, mind in a daze, as she saw the red staining her fingers.

It didn’t take long before the roar of the crowd changed pitch and the chief commander, general, and executioner walked onto the platform, a small procession of convicts behind them. Mina was at the front of the line, her body dwarfed by the iron cuffs that weighed down her hands and ankles. She didn’t bother to look for Gabriel in the line.

Mina’s hair was loose, unwashed and hanging in front of her face. But from where she stood, Sofia could still see the way Mina chewed on her lip and the sickly tint of her skin.

Sofia didn’t hear the chief commander’s speech. She didn’t feel the prick of pain along her fingertips as she continue to rip the skin there. All of her focus was on the slight tremor in Mina’s shoulders.

There were no thoughts in her mind of what she might do. Could do.

But as Mina was unchained from the others and brought forward, Sofia felt her body lurching forward, blood burning through her body like a fire. She slipped through the line of guards that stood between the platform and the audience, a thin waif of a girl not even noticed until she was through. She ran, small legs taking her up the steps of the platform, her eyes focused only on Mina’s own wide ones.

The girl’s mouth gaped and her eyes filled with terror, an emotion Sofia only understood when she felt the cold iron fingers wrapping around her arms and lifting her up.

“No! Stop! She didn’t do anything. I—” before she could finish, a gloved hand struck her across the face, the hands gripping her the only thing keeping her from falling over. The chief commander’s cold eyes flashed in front of her and she heard his voice, icy but soft.

“Take her to my personal interrogation cell, immediately. I will deal with her after this.”

The grip around her didn’t falter, lifting her like she weighed nothing and carrying her down the stairs. She thrashed and kicked, teeth gnashing at the invisible man behind her. They weren’t quite out of the square when her foot made contact with something soft and the man grunted, fingers loosening. She turned as she tumbled, scrambling back as she looked into the cold blue eyes of General Ocon. He sneered down at her as he reached for her again, taking little care as he pulled her forward.

“I don’t know why the chief commander seems to have a soft spot for such a wretched creature. I didn’t know his inclinations ran so young.” He leaned forward, cheek brushing against her own. “You must be good.”

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