Page 33 of Elven Oath

Could it be possible that she... No. It had to be the feverish delirium from the poison. Dragon senses didn’t work like that. Not without a fully established bond, and certainly not so soon.

Still, the memory lingered like a shadow just out of reach and my dragon was unnaturally quiet today. Most likely sleeping off the effects of what tried to kill us.

Falkor’s voice breaks through my thoughts. “That attack yesterday,” he says, his tone thoughtful, “didn’t it feel... different?”

I frown, turning my attention to him. He was right. Something about the attack had unsettled me, though I hadn’t been able to place it in the chaos of battle.

Drago nodded in agreement. “Yeah, it wasn’t like the first one. They were more organized, and their tactics were strange.”

Vevina, who had been listening quietly, suddenly straightened in her saddle, her brow furrowing. “I recognize one of the swords they used,” she says softly, her voice thoughtful but laced with unease. “It was an Elf sword, the kind given to males when they come of age. Each one is designed especially for its owner.”

I feel a chill creep down my spine at her words. "An Elf sword?"

She nods, her lips pressing into a thin line. “But the sword I saw... It didn’t belong to the man who was using it. I know whose sword that is, and the one wielding it wasn’t the rightful owner.”

Drago curses under his breath, his sharp gaze flicking over to me. “You think it was stolen?”

"Or worse," Falkor adds, his voice dark with suspicion.

Vevina looks troubled, her eyes narrowing as she thinks back to the skirmish. “There was something else off about them too,” she says slowly. “They didn’t move like trained Elves. Their stances, the way they handled their weapons... it was rough, unrefined.”

She was right. The attackers hadn’t fought like Elves. I had thought maybe they were rebels, but now I wasn’t so sure. “One of the men I fought spoke a language I didn’t recognize,” I add, my voice low. “It wasn’t Elvish, and it sure as Hades wasn’t Draconic.”

Drago nodded in agreement, his expression grim. “Now that you mention it, there was something strange about the way they communicated with each other. It wasn’t just Elves.”

We all fall silent for a moment, the realization settling over us like a heavy weight. These weren’t just Elven rebels dissatisfied with the peace the marriage was supposed to bring. There was something else at play here. Something far more dangerous.

“They weren’t Elves, at least not all of them,” Vevina says, her voice filled with certainty. “There’s no way they could have been.”

I clench my jaw, anger simmering just beneath the surface. “Then who are they? And why are they trying to stop us?” The uneasy tension in the air grew thicker as the truth became clearer. Whoever was behind these attacks, they weren’t just against this marriage. They were something bigger. A threat none of us had anticipated.

“We need to stay alert,” I say, my voice steely. “If these aren’t Elves, then we have no idea what we’re really up against.”

Falkor gives me a nod, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword. “Agreed. Whatever this is, it’s not over.”

We ride in silence for a while, each of us lost in our thoughts. What we thought was a simple rebellion from the Elves might have been something much darker, something lurking in the shadows of this fragile peace.

And in the midst of it all, there was Vevina. A woman I had only just begun to know, but already she had proven herself more than just a symbol of peace.

She had fought beside us, saved me when I was on the brink of death, and now she was tangled in the same dangers that threatened to unravel everything we’d been trying to achieve.

I couldn’t shake the feeling that this bond was going to test us both in ways neither of us had imagined.

Vevina

We ride in silence for a while longer, the trees thickening around us as the forest swallows the path behind us.

Aodhan rides in front of me, his back straight despite the fact that I know he’s still weak. Every so often, I catch him wincing when he thinks no one is looking.

I knew I had to say something, needed to tell them about what had happened with my dagger. It wasn’t normal, and if they didn’t already suspect that something strange was going on with me, they would soon. I wasn’t sure I understood it myself, but maybe together we could figure it out.

I take a deep breath, steeling myself, before speaking up. “There’s something I need to tell you.”

Aodhan turns slightly in his saddle, glancing back at me with those sharp golden eyes. Falkor and Drago slow their horses too, curious. The three of them ride even closer, forming a tight group as we move slowly through the trees.

“What is it?” Aodhan asks, his voice calm but laced with concern.

I bite my lip, trying to find the right words. “During the attack yesterday... my dagger... it changed.”

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