Page 42 of Drakhana's Treasure
Rastus
Idid not hesitate to move towards the flame, even when I couldn’t see Kirralee inside of it. I knew she would have to be there somewhere and when her call reached me it seemed to be absorbed by my skin more than heard.
She pulled me towards her and I held no resistance. I could see other dragons growing in strength as they absorbed her heat. They swooped in close for a power boost then swung away again, not letting the fire touch them.
Nothing would keep me from Kirralee now. I was afraid of my fire for so long. When I first came to the city I suppressed it and my dragon, forcing them out of my mind so that I could survive in the human world.
Now I wonder why I ever feared fire. As I descend through the pillar of glowing flame, I reach out for Kirralee. She’s not even corporeal but I can see her beautiful gold eyes. I drift closer, feeling myself shift without effort. When my hands come up in front of my face, they are barely defined against the yellow light.
I reach for her and I can feel her skin on my fingers. She blinks and I can see the curve of her lips. I lean in and kiss her, bright strobes flashing out from the pillar. It’s as if both of us have become both spark and explosive, extremely combustible and dangerous to mix.
She kisses me back, her sweet lips pulling at mine as the fire flows between us. She throws her head back and screams and her body takes on more definition within the fire storm. She smiles and nods and I know she’s going to be okay. It’s time for me to carry my gift out on to the battlefield.
I pump upwards with my wings, noticing with some surprise that my movements affect the pillar, tossing it from side to side. I try to fly up and have difficulty gripping the air. I manage to pull myself into a spiral and I come down on the edge of the basin, tripping and tumbling through the sand.
Ice dragons are running and screaming as I come to a halt on the hill. Some are running in human form while others attempt to shift and fly. Our radiant heat has affected them terribly and they can’t shift too close to us. Our army is taking them apart with ease.
I try to stand up and flick my tail out behind me so I can leap for the sky again. The movement seems to take too long, even though I’ve done it thousands of times in my life. When the weight of my tail flicking out makes me stumble again, I finally look around and see the problem.
I’m at least twice the size I was before, maybe even larger. Flames are billowing under my scales, making the red and gold patterns glow. I lean back on my haunches, balancing on my front feet while I flap my wings. Sand sweeps around me, dragged by my flapping but I ignore it. I need to find my center again, just like a fledgling learning to take off.
Triumph floods me as my wings and body come into full unity. I gather my back legs and launch into the sky, getting high with only a few wing beats. Roaring, I breathe fire all around us, taking off and burning great strips of desert as I hunt for the rest of the ice dragons.
As I come up in a wide spiral, I see Kirralee rise from the pillar. She looks golden white in her dragon shape, her usual patterns dark against the pale flame. She spins above the pillar and it collapses in on itself, leaving a wide black crater.
She flips into the opposite direction and sends a jet of fire into the small hills behind the basin. I hear screams straight away and see humans and dragons running for cover. I turn my nose up to the sky and power up as fast as I can. When I turn to look below the ground is dark, the many spot fires looking like stars that are too close.
There is a moment of extreme disorientation where the inky dark and glittering lights seem to be on both sides of me and I don’t know which way to fly. I shake my head hard, blinking at the ground so I can do what I came here to do.
My keen eyes quickly focus and pick out the movements of the people below. The ice dragons seem unable to shift and they are scattering into the desert as fast as they can. I can’t help but feel amused at their fate. They are cut off from escape now, their plans in ruins.
They are ice dragons and they are running into the desert for cover. We don’t need to chase them down. So long as they spend twenty-four hours out here, the desert will kill them.
Small fires flare across the dark plains and I know it’s my people, defending themselves and finally paying back the ice dragons for weeks of torture. I want to make sure they run to LA and never come back. The next time I walk into that boardroom I want the investors to be begging because their new partners pulled out and cost them millions.
Kirralee streaks by beneath me, her scales glowing white and patterned with gold. She’s bigger than she was but not as big as me. I tip sideways and let myself fall, the act far more thrilling with over twice the body weight. I feel the wind rushing on my scales and catch the air to fly after my lover.
The ice dragons flee and we chase them. I see other battle-hardened dragons still at it, attacking the retreating lines. All those with less experience are gathering around the trucks to administer first aid and support each other through the aftershock of battle.
Not every dragon knows how to fight. Not everyone wants to. This was an extreme situation. We had to call in those who had no experience in war. I was so afraid for them.
Now I know I can defend them on my own. Never again will the weak have to risk themselves. We can defend the clan without putting it in danger.
Kirralee and I finish the fight, moving further than the other, smaller dragons to keep the ice clan running. As we head back to the trucks we play in the sky, chasing each others tails and spitting flares at each other. When we land in front of our gathered nation, we are laughing.
Sand whips around us, the immense force of the shift heightened by our size and shared heat. We find each others’ lips and as the whirlwind around us dies we are wrapped around each other, almost unaware of the world.
When I turn towards the waiting ranks my smile is wide enough to embrace them all and there is joy in my heart like I’ve never known. With my arm wrapped firmly around Kirralee I turn to my people, ready to hear their relief and share in their triumph.
But instead of smiling, cheering and clapping, they are staring at us with wide, frightened eyes. All of them wear the shell shock of battle, the tired limbs and dark bruises, but that’s not what has them in shock.
They’re afraid of us.
My arm tightens on Kirralee and she hugs me even tighter. Just a second ago I turned towards my clan in complete faith and trust. I just assumed that seeing the ancient powers return would immediately make us welcome. After all, we just saved everyone’s butts.
No one speaks. They stay huddled in blankets, some with cups of hot tea, shivering and watching us. My eyes pick out Luke in the front line and he gives me a lopsided smile. I take a few steps forward, holding out my hand. Even though I only take a few steps, he recoils violently at the very suggestion of my touching him.
If they are looking at me with fear and distrust, they are looking at Kirralee in absolute horror. They never liked her, never trusted her. Now she has marked her strangeness they feel validated in singling her out, keeping her apart.
