Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
The warm, salty air of Emberfall brushed against my face as the ship sailed closer to the golden shoreline. The lush greenery loomed beyond the beaches, vibrant and alive in a way that mocked the icy desolation I’d left behind. The sun hung low, casting long shadows over the deck as tension simmered, palpable and suffocating.
Valen stood beside me, his dark armor gleaming faintly in the fading light, though his face was obscured by his helmet. He was a storm contained in steel, his presence as menacing as the silent crew he’d brought with him, their swords gleaming in readiness. This was his ship now, his domain, and the realization twisted like a blade in my gut.
“You should stay close to me once we hit shore and the battle starts,” Valen said.
I clenched my fists, glaring at him. “Why would I do that?”
His head turned slightly, the faintest shift of his helmet as he regarded me. “Because if you don’t, Rhydian and Bertha will die.”
The air left my lungs in a sharp, involuntary gasp. I spun toward him, my voice trembling with fury. “You’re bluffing.”
“Am I?” he said, his tone infuriatingly measured, as if this conversation was nothing more than a game. “You’ve seen what I’m capable of, Elara. Do you really want to test me?”
I hated the way my name sounded on his tongue, hated the way it curled through the air like a noose tightening around my throat. My nails bit into my palms as I forced myself to hold his gaze. “If you hurt them?—”
“Then behave,” he interrupted, his voice low, a blade cutting through my anger. “Do as I say, stay close, and they’ll remain unharmed.”
My heart pounded in my chest as I swallowed the bile rising in my throat. “You’re a coward,” I hissed. “Using threats to control me—what kind of leader does that make you?”
His helmet tilted again, and though I couldn’t see his face, I could feel the weight of his gaze. “A smart one,” he said simply. “I have no interest in spilling their blood, but I won’t hesitate if it means keeping you in line.”
I wanted to scream, to fight, to claw that smug calmness off his face, but I knew he wasn’t lying. Not entirely. Valen was too calculating for empty threats.
“You’re despicable,” I snapped, my voice shaking with barely contained rage.
“Despicable,” he echoed, his tone soft, almost amused. “Perhaps. But despicable keeps your friends breathing, doesn’t it?”
The sharpness of his words hit like a slap, and I turned away from him, gripping the railing so tightly my knuckles turned white. The shoreline grew closer, the lush green trees mocking me with their brightness.
“I thought you wanted me alive because I’m immune to dragon fire,” I said bitterly. “What’s the point of keeping them around? They’re not useful to you.”
“They’re useful to you ,” he replied, stepping closer, the weight of his presence pressing into my back. “And as long as they keep you compliant, they’ll stay useful to me.”
I stiffened, my breath catching as he leaned in, his lips brushing against my ear like the edge of a dagger. “But if you test me—if you so much as step out of line—then their lives will be the price.”
The ship creaked beneath us as it edged closer to the shore. I could hear the faint calls of the crew, the tension in their voices mirroring the storm building inside me.
“You’re going to attack,” I said.
“Of course,” Valen replied, his voice carrying no remorse, no hesitation. “This kingdom will fall. And you…” His gloved hand reached out, brushing against my wrist, the touch as deliberate as it was unwelcome. “…you will play your part.”
I yanked my arm away, glaring at him. “I’ll do nothing for you.”
“You already are, beautiful.”
The title dripped with mockery, and I hated how it made my skin prickle. “Call me that again, and I’ll?—”
“You’ll what?” he asked, his voice cutting through my threat like a blade. “Throw me overboard?”
The anger bubbled over, and before I could stop myself, I shoved him, my hands colliding with his chest plate. The motion was pointless—he didn’t even flinch—but the frustration burned hot in my veins.
“Stay mad, Elara,” he said, his tone low and mocking. “You wear it well.”
I turned away from him, my teeth gritted as the ship rocked gently beneath my feet. I hated him. Hated the way he spoke to me, the way he looked at me, the way he seemed to unravel every piece of me without even trying.
But most of all, I hated how much I couldn’t stop thinking about the kiss—the way his lips had claimed mine with brutal, unrelenting force. It burned in my memory, a cruel reminder of how much power he held over me.
The shoreline of Emberfall loomed closer, its golden beaches glinting in the sunlight. The beauty of it felt like a mockery, a cruel contrast to the storm brewing on the horizon.
Valen turned, his armor creaking as he moved. “Remember,” he said, his voice carrying over the wind. “Stay close. Behave.” And then, with infuriating calm, he added, “It would be a shame to waste that pretty rage of yours.”
I stiffened at his words, the unspoken threat clear. “Maybe you should remember,” I replied, “that your enemies will come for you eventually.”
He smirked. “Oh, I can’t wait until you come for me, Elara.”
Before I could respond, a flash of light caught my eye, followed by a low, ominous hum that vibrated through the ship.
A bomb, infused with magic, hurtled through the air toward us. The sky around it seemed to warp and ripple, the magic within it so intense that it distorted reality itself. Time seemed to slow as it drew nearer, and for a brief, terrifying moment, everything was silent.
Then it hit.
The explosion rocked the ship, sending shock waves through the deck. I stumbled, nearly falling as soldiers around us scrambled into action, their shouts of alarm cutting through the chaos. The ship groaned in protest, the wood creaking under the strain of the impact.
“We’re under attack!” Valen snarled. His eyes narrowed behind his helm as he scanned the horizon, assessing the threat. His soldiers moved with precision, despite the panic simmering beneath their disciplined exterior, preparing for the onslaught with practiced efficiency.
Another bomb of magic hurtled toward us, a deadly sphere of energy blazing through the sky. I barely had time to react before it struck. The explosion sent me sprawling to the deck, the impact leaving me disoriented. The world spun around me, the noise deafening as I struggled to regain my footing.
Valen was at my side in an instant, his hand gripping my arm with surprising strength as he hauled me to my feet. “Stay close!” he barked, his tone leaving no room for argument.
There was no concern in his eyes—only a cold, calculating gaze as he assessed the situation. He pulled me to my feet, his grip firm, almost painful.
“He must have realized we took the ship,” he said. His eyes flickered with something darker, a mixture of anger and strategy. “But surely he knows you’re on board. Why would he risk killing you?”
I couldn’t help it—laughter bubbled up from somewhere deep inside me, sharp and bitter, a sound that seemed out of place amidst the chaos surrounding us. “You think he cares about me?” I scoffed, the words tumbling out before I could stop them. “He doesn’t even know me. No one does.”
The Dragon King’s gaze snapped back to me, his eyes narrowing behind the dark visor of his helm. For a moment, we were locked in a tense standoff, the chaos of the battle fading into the background.
“Is that what you think?” he asked, his voice a low growl, laced with something I couldn’t quite place—frustration, maybe, or something deeper. “You underestimate your value, Princess.”
I met his gaze, the defiance flaring up inside me once more. “And you underestimate everyone’s desire to see you destroyed,” I shot back.
The Dragon King’s eyes—hidden behind that dark helm—narrowed at my words. Another bomb exploded nearby, shaking the ship violently. “This attack… it’s too soon,” he snarled. “My dragon is too far away to assist.”
Panic gripped my heart, tightening like a vise around my chest, but not for myself. Rhydian and Bertha were trapped below deck, and the ship was already taking on water. Every instinct screamed at me to run, to save myself, but their faces—Rhydian’s gruff, resigned expression and Bertha’s frightened, tear-streaked one—flashed through my mind. I couldn’t leave them behind. I had to get to them. I had to save them.
The ship lurched violently as another explosion rocked it, sending me sprawling across the deck. I barely managed to catch myself on a loose rope, my hands burning as the rough fibers bit into my skin. The smell of burning wood and sulfur filled the air, mingling with the salty tang of the sea, creating a sickening mixture that made my stomach churn. The world around me was a blur of chaos—soldiers shouting, the ship groaning under the strain, and the relentless barrage of magical bombs that seemed to come from every direction.
Through the haze of panic and smoke, I saw the Dragon King standing firm, his armor glinting in the fiery light. He was a towering presence amidst the destruction, seemingly unfazed by the chaos around him. With a sharp, piercing whistle, he cut through the noise, a sound so commanding it seemed to silence the very air for a brief moment.
I followed his gaze, squinting through the thick smoke that clung to the sky like a shroud. There, on the horizon, a dark shape emerged, wings spread wide as it raced toward us. I recognized the silhouette—the massive, winged beast that had terrorized me in my nightmares and haunted my every waking thought.
His dragon.
Its wings beat furiously, each stroke propelling it closer with terrifying speed, but my heart sank as I realized it was still too far away. The ship was sinking fast, the relentless assault of bombs tearing through its hull with merciless precision. Water was pouring in below deck, and with every passing second, the chances of saving Rhydian and Bertha grew slimmer.
I glanced back at the Dragon King, my mind racing. His dragon was powerful, capable of raining down fire and fury on our enemies, but it wasn’t here yet. And in the time it would take for the beast to arrive, Rhydian and Bertha could already be lost to the depths.
“No!” The word tore from my throat, raw and desperate. I couldn’t wait for the dragon. I couldn’t stand idly by while the people who had become my only allies drowned below. I pushed myself to my feet, legs trembling from fear and the unsteady deck beneath me. My heart pounded in my chest, each beat echoing the countdown to disaster.
Ignoring the Dragon King’s command to stay put, I turned and sprinted toward the entrance to the lower deck. The ship lurched again as another explosion hit, nearly knocking me off my feet, but I kept going, driven by a single, desperate thought: I had to reach them.
Had to save them.
The Dragon King reached for me, his hand closing around my arm with a grip like iron. “Come with me,” he ordered. There was no room for negotiation—only the raw, unyielding authority of a man who was used to being obeyed without question.
But I wasn’t about to be ordered around, not by him. I wrenched my arm free, my heart pounding in my chest as I took a step back, distancing myself from his overpowering presence. “I have to save them,” I declared, fear gnawing at the edges of my resolve.
His eyes narrowed, a flash of something dangerous crossing his face. “Don’t be an idiot!” he snapped, reaching for me again, his fingers brushing against my skin with a heat that sent a jolt through my entire body. “You can’t save them if you’re dead.”
I jerked away from his touch, my heart clenching with a mix of defiance and desperation. “No,” I whispered. “I won’t let them die because of you.”
His expression darkened, the air between us thick with tension. For a brief moment, our gazes locked, and in the depths of his eyes, I saw a hint of something—frustration, anger, and perhaps, just for an instant, a sliver of vulnerability. But I couldn’t afford to dwell on it. My mind was made up, and nothing he could say would change that.
I summoned the ice within me, feeling it stir and pulse beneath my skin, a cold, relentless force waiting to be unleashed. I emptied myself of every emotion, every thought, until all that remained was a cold, focused power, a determination that burned hotter than any flame. The ice responded to my call, gathering at my fingertips, solidifying into a sharp, deadly spear of frost.
The Dragon King’s eyes widened slightly as he realized what I was about to do, but he didn’t move to stop me. He simply watched, his expression unreadable, as if waiting to see if I had the strength to follow through.
I thrust the spear at him with all the strength I had left, the icy weapon slicing through the air with deadly precision. It struck him in the side, a sharp, jagged point of cold that drove through his armor and into his flesh. For a moment, he staggered, his hand flying to his side, the pain evident even through the hardened steel.
But he didn’t cry out, didn’t show weakness. Instead, he turned to me, his eyes blazing with both fury and something else—something that looked startlingly like respect.
“Impressive,” he gritted out, his voice strained but still laced with that same dark amusement that made my blood boil. His gaze lingered on me for a moment longer, as if memorizing my face, before he turned away, his attention shifting to the dragon that now circled above us, close enough to land. “I’ll see you again, Elara. Don’t die.”
With a snarl of frustration, he leaped into the air, caught by the dragon’s massive wings as they swooped down to carry him away. The wind from the dragon’s powerful wings buffeted me, nearly knocking me off my feet, but I stood my ground, watching as the Dragon King disappeared into the sky, a dark silhouette against the burning horizon.
My heart raced, the adrenaline still coursing through my veins, but I didn’t have time to catch my breath. I had made my choice, and there was no turning back. Rhydian and Bertha needed me, and I was going to save them—no matter the cost.
I didn’t waste a second. I sprinted toward the stairs leading below deck, my heart pounding in my chest as I fought against the ship’s violent lurches. Each step was a battle against gravity, the sinking vessel’s tilting floors threatening to throw me off balance with every move. The ship groaned and creaked, the sounds of splintering wood and rushing water echoing through the narrow corridors, creating a symphony of impending doom.
Water splashed up against my ankles as I descended the stairs. The further I went, the deeper the water became, rising from my knees to my thighs, until it was up to my waist, sloshing against the walls as the ship continued its downward spiral. I didn’t stop. I couldn’t stop.
“Rhydian! Bertha!” I shouted, my voice barely audible over the cacophony of rushing water and the groaning ship. The sound echoed off the metal walls, distorted and eerie, adding to the chaos around me. My heart raced, fear clawing at my insides as I pushed forward, each step a struggle against the freezing water that seemed determined to drag me down.
Finally, I reached the holding area, and my eyes locked onto their cage, the metal bars already half-submerged. The water was rising fast, swirling around their legs as they fought to keep their heads above it. Rhydian was hunched over the lock, his fingers working frantically to free them, while Bertha clung to his arm, her eyes wide with terror, her face pale and streaked with tears.
“Elara!” Rhydian shouted, his voice a mix of relief and desperation as he spotted me. There was no time for relief, no time for anything but action.
Without a second thought, I summoned what was left of my power, the ice within me surging to life, fueled by a desperation I could barely contain. The freezing cold spread from my fingertips, encasing the lock in a thick layer of frost. My hands trembled with the effort, the cold seeping into my bones, but I gritted my teeth and pushed harder, forcing the ice to expand, to deepen until it was strong enough to shatter the metal beneath it. With a sharp crack, the lock broke apart, pieces of ice and metal flying in every direction as the door swung open with a loud creak.
I lunged forward, grabbing Bertha’s arm and pulling her out of the cage, the water now up to my chest, swirling around us with a deadly intensity. Rhydian was right behind her, his grip firm as he helped her through the rising water. I could see the fear in his gray eyes, the same fear that gripped my own heart, but there was no time to dwell on it. We had to move, and fast.
“We have to go!” I urged as I struggled to keep us all moving. The water was climbing higher by the second, each wave threatening to engulf us, to drag us down into the dark abyss below. The ship’s walls groaned ominously, the metal buckling under the pressure as the ocean claimed it piece by piece. The air was thick with the scent of salt and panic, the sound of rushing water growing louder, more insistent.
We fought our way through the rapidly filling corridor, the exit seeming impossibly far away as the water rose around us, now up to our shoulders. The cold was unbearable, sinking into my very core, making my limbs heavy and uncooperative. But I forced myself to keep going, to push through the exhaustion and the fear, to keep Rhydian and Bertha moving toward the distant light at the end of the passageway.
We were running out of time, the ship sinking faster than I had anticipated, but I refused to give up. Not now, not when we were so close. The exit was almost within reach, the night sky visible through the open hatch, but the ship lurched again, throwing us against the wall.
“Come on!” I shouted, the words more a plea than a command as I pulled them both forward, the cold and the fear threatening to overwhelm me. The ship’s final moments were upon us, the water now up to our necks, the hull creaking and groaning like a dying beast. We had to escape, and we had to do it now, or we would be lost to the depths forever.
We burst onto the deck just as the ship tilted violently, throwing us all off balance. I could see the ocean rising to meet us, the dark water ready to swallow us whole.
The moon glowed over the churning ocean as the ship groaned in its final death throes. Debris and spray filled the air, and the weight of the sinking ship pulled at us, creating a vortex that threatened to drag everything down into the depths. I stood frozen for a moment, the chaos around me a blur, before Rhydian’s voice cut through the din.
“Jump!” he shouted, and without a second thought, I threw myself over the side of the ship.
The impact with the water was like hitting a wall, the liquid enveloping me and stealing the breath from my lungs. I kicked desperately, trying to reach the surface, but my soaked dress dragged me down, the heavy fabric clinging to my legs like chains. Panic flared as the ocean closed over my head.
I flailed, my movements frantic as I struggled to stay afloat, the water pulling me down with unrelenting force. My limbs were sluggish, weakened by exhaustion and the sheer burden of everything that had happened.
Just as my lungs began to burn with the need for air, a strong hand grabbed my arm, pulling me upward with a force that propelled us both toward the surface. Rhydian’s grip was ironclad, his strength the only thing keeping me from being dragged under. We broke through the surface together, gasping for air.
“Hold on!” Rhydian shouted, his tone rough with exertion as he kicked against the pull of the sinking ship. Through the spray of water, I could barely see, but I knew we had to keep moving or we’d be dragged under with the wreckage.
The ocean around us was a chaotic mix of rubbish and debris, pieces of the ship breaking apart and swirling in the current. Somehow, in my panic, I had summoned ice—a large block of it floating nearby, solid and steady amidst the chaos. Rhydian pulled me toward it, his movements sure and deliberate despite the turmoil.
As we neared the ice, I caught sight of Bertha struggling in the water, her eyes wide with fear as she fought against her own heavy skirts. My heart lurched, and I kicked harder, reaching out to grab her hand. She clung to me, her fingers digging into my arm as I helped her toward the ice block.
We clambered onto it, the surface cold and slippery against my skin but a welcome reprieve from the relentless water. Bertha collapsed beside me, gasping for air, her wrinkled face pale and terrified. Rhydian was next to her, his expression grim as he tried to keep us both steady on the makeshift raft.
The ship was nearly gone now, its once-proud form reduced to a few scattered pieces of wood and debris disappearing beneath the waves. The last remnants of it were swallowed by the ocean, leaving us adrift.
Exhaustion pressed down on me like a heavy blanket, my body sagging against the ice block. I tried to stay alert, to keep my eyes open, but the weariness was too much. My eyelids fluttered, the world around me fading in and out as I fought to stay conscious.
Rhydian pulled me close, his arms wrapping around both me and Bertha in an attempt to keep us from slipping back into the ocean.
Just before the darkness claimed me, I looked up and saw it—a shadow circling above us, vast and ominous. The dragon, its eyes glowing like embers against the bright sky, was watching us, its presence a reminder of the danger that still loomed. But the sight of it only deepened my exhaustion.
As my vision blurred and my body finally gave in to the overwhelming fatigue, the last thing I felt was Rhydian’s steady grip on me, holding us both above the water as we drifted on the ice block, alone in the vast ocean.