Page 40 of Winter's Dragons. Frozen Flames
Survive. The word echoed through the throne room like a sentence. My head started to spin, and my dragon reared inside me in desperation and protest. I had realized earlier that whatever she'd have to do to defeat Snegurka was probably dangerous, but I hadn't been prepared for this.
Distantly, I noticed that her explanation didn't shock Kerryn and Raijin as much as it had me, and anger at their betrayal joined the already volatile combination of emotions swirling inside me. What in the world was going on and why was I only hearing about this now?
"Then there is no problem," Raijin said with an eerie calm that made me want to tear his throat out with my teeth. "It's just a matter of approach."
"You have three soulmates, Cassia. You need to remember that you're not alone anymore. You don't have to carry this burden on your own. That's what we're here for. Besides, we might be more resilient to Ton Daímon magic than you are anyway, so it stands to reason that this is what we should do."
The haze of my fury cleared somewhat at Kerryn's suggestion. It didn't matter how they had learned Cassia's secret. Maybe it had been during their mission. Jack Frost might have known about it and could've told them. What mattered was that we'd found a way to help her, just like we had in her mindscape.
"They're right, treasure," I replied, grimacing when the words came out rougher and sharper than I would've liked. "From the day we first awoke in this realm, Kerryn, Raijin and I understood that we were meant to be here, with you. I admit that I had an entirely different image of how our courtship was going to go, and I definitely had other intentions for the future of our relationship. But life isn't perfect, and if there's anything I've learned, it is that we're stronger together than apart. No matter how different we might be, even if we disagree on a million issues, even if we're dragons and you're not, that remains valid. Didn't we tell you earlier? We made a promise to stay by your side, to help you in whatever way we can. Snegurka's demonic magic doesn't scare us any more than her ice magic did."
She was really just being stubborn, but I could not blame her for that, not after what I had seen in Snegurka's memories. Cassia had been carrying this weight for so long that she did not know how to pass it onto somebody else. Seeing the damage that had been done to the palace couldn't have helped, since knowing Cassia, she was likely blaming herself for this too.
I wondered now what would have happened had February not intervened with his own spell and had Snegurka remained trapped and defeated, as she had been before his attack. I suspected we would not even be having this conversation at all, and Cassia might have already done something foolish, out of the mistaken belief that she absolutely needed to handle this on her own.
The ironic absurdity of the predicament we found ourselves in didn't escape my notice.
Unfortunately, my words failed to convince my soulmate. "It would be irresponsible of me to just... dump this on you when none of it is your fault," Cassia insisted. "This is my duty, not yours."
Kerryn clenched his fists, visibly trying to control his temper. "Treasure... That's what we're trying to say. You are the queen of Tou Cheimóna, yes, and you have to do this for your realm. But by the same token, we have to do this for you, because we are your soulmates and your males."
"You're not just Cheimon now," Raijin offered tentatively. "You are also Cassia. You are our female. Remember?"
It wasn't anything we hadn't told her before. It shouldn't have been a huge epiphany. She'd spoken those words herself countless times. Even so, her eyes widened and her breath caught, her magic flailing around her in agitated waves that I could feel echoing into my very core. "Oh. Oh."
Her knees went weak and she slid down to the floor as if drained of strength. She buried her face in her palms, her whole body shaking with silent sobs. "Why are we even having this fight? I feel so stupid... I just... This is all wrong."
We all rushed to her side, crowding her in a four-way embrace that should have been awkward, but wasn't. "Yes, it is," Raijin replied as he caressed her hair, "but even when everything else in the world is wrong, you'll always still have us, and still know that our bond is right."
"It is, isn't it?" Cassia whispered quietly. Snowflakes started to dance around us, and a pattern of ice formed beneath our bodies, like a blooming flower.When she pulled away again, her eyes were dry and filled with determination."Well, then, my dear males... Will you help me again? Help me help my people?"
We all smiled at her. "Of course, treasure. Always."
****
Cheimon
It took quite some time to stabilize the mountain once again and provide assistance for the citizens who had been injured in February's attack on Tou Cheimóna. We had been fortunate in that the more distant settlements had only suffered minor damage, with the small town of Glacia and the area around The Bridge of Melting Snowflakes taking the worst of it.In The Frozen Peaks, the situation was far more serious, and it was there that we found the most injured and, unfortunately, the dead.
It did not help that my other two lieutenants were out of commission as well. December had apparently never made it out of The Frozen Peaks. I had been so distracted by the attack on Karasu and the amarok pack that it had not occurred to me to check his whereabouts until after I'd learned the truth about February's betrayal. If I had thought to look, I'd have found him bleeding out in one of the underground caverns of the mountain. January wasn't much better off, as February had attacked him shortly before he had started casting his spell. I'd managed to find my wounded lieutenants with ease after my confrontation with their treacherous friend, and I counted myself lucky that they were not dead.
My dragons and their families were able to compensate for the absence of my lieutenants. They turned out to be very useful at moving the fallen rocks and ice and evacuating the people who had been trapped in inaccessible places. I wouldn't have been able to do nearly as much damage control without their aid.
We worked all day, side by side with the still unharmed inhabitants of The Frozen Peaks. Pandora and Eranthe showed up that evening, bringing along a very concerned Jack and a host of reinforcements and healers. My sisters took one look at my pale face and ushered me off. "Go get some sleep, Cassia," Pandora told me. "You look like you're about to fall over."
I might have protested and insisted on staying to continue helping my people, but the words mimicked Emmerich's warning from the amarok caverns, as well as the silent concern my dragons had continued to display all throughout the day. The pleading glances they shot my way sealed the deal. Besides, it wasn't like they were wrong. I'd had some healers look me over as well, and I knew that for the most part, I was uninjured, but the whole episode had still taken a toll on me. I didn't remember feeling so exhausted since the day my parents had transferred Snegurka's powers into my body.
"All right," I told my sisters. "But if anything happens, anything at all, come and get me."
"Of course, Cassia," Eranthe replied with a soft smile. "Be at ease. We have everything well in hand."
I believed them because it was not the first time they had helped me and it would probably not be the last. That was why they had all insisted on becoming the avatars of the other seasons, so that I would have people to support me with my new duties.
When had I forgotten that? When had I forgotten that I was not alone?
I could not go back to my quarters to rest since they were still a ruin, so instead, we made our way to the very same chamber I had once assigned to my dragons.
Despite the fact that the cave-like room was located deep within the recesses of the mountain, it had not suffered much damage. I wasn't sure if it was just happenstance or a consequence of the magic left behind from the night my dragons had spent here, but regardless, I was grateful for it. We could've gone elsewhere, but I didn't have the energy to come up with an alternative.
