Chapter 5 #2
I can’t believe my ears, but it’s true. “Auranius,” I whisper. “He’s here.”
Alayel and I get up as the gigantic Dracolius guardian dragon approaches us, coming from the east, while the group of dragons turns around and heads west, deeper into the riders’ lands.
Auranius is at least ten times larger than the other dragons, so it makes sense they’d turn back.
Still, why not fight him? There are so many of them.
My body trembles as I watch the dragons retreat, as I consider how close I came to dying—again.
“We’re safe! We’ll make it.” Alayel fists the air, then wraps his arms around me and lifts me.
The action stuns me, clearing out most of my daze, and a new warmth reaches me as I’m pressed against his chest. When he puts me down, he holds my face with his hands, the action oddly tender, a touch that feels strange and right at the same time.
My head spins, now so confused, wondering if he’s about to kiss me. It feels unreal, even after everything we’ve just been through, or because of it, as if I couldn’t accept that I’m alive, that I escaped.
He closes his eyes and sighs, his hands falling from my face. “I feared losing you. I really did. But we’re going home now.”
Home. The academy. I can get used to that.
Above us, Auranius flies in large circles, and I can’t see, smell, or hear any sign of other dragons.
Yes, we’re going home!
The stars are shining in the dark sky above us when we pass the lighthouse and enter the Claw Bay.
It’s so odd to be back, as if I was the same person, as if nothing had changed.
Perhaps the strangest part is actually returning.
I suppose there were moments when I thought I would never see Dracolius again.
But I’m here, even if I’m not exactly the same person who left. Even if I’m not sure what changed.
Alayel has been steering the boat, either by taking the helm or adjusting the sails, and he’s surprisingly skilled at it, making me wonder if he had predicted that the smugglers would turn on us.
After defying death together and traveling for hours, I felt it would be silly to keep secrets from him, and I ended up telling him what happened in detail, or at least in as much detail as I could recall amidst incongruous memories.
The rider with that strange staff, falling, the dragon catching me, then healing me.
Alayel was as puzzled as I was, if not more, and told me not to mention any of this to anyone.
I don’t know if sky sentinels are aware that riders have magical artifacts, and I think it would be important to mention it, but he says that it would open up too many questions on how I survived.
If I mention the healing, they could deem me a traitor.
So silence is my only option, as uncomfortable as it might be.
The lights of Dracolius City grow larger and larger, reflecting in the water, as we approach it.
From here, I can even see the tall walls of the academy and the castle above it.
More and more, I’m thinking about Alayel’s plan and fearing he’ll go back on his word.
The sinking feeling when I realized there was no ball under any cup in the Trial still chills my body.
He gave me a contract, yes, but what if he claims it’s forged? What if he’s deceiving me?
His plan is to take the eggs to the academy by himself tonight and meet me tomorrow morning, leaving me with an entire, agonizing night to wonder if I’ll be accepted into the academy or not.
The eggs are in the same place, red and green and solid like jewels, and I’ve been crouching by them, embracing them with my body and arms as much as I can, sometimes rubbing my hands on each of them to warm them.
Alayel said none of it was necessary, but I didn’t want to take any chances.
I hope the water didn’t hurt the eggs and that the boat ride was not too cold for them.
Of course, once Auranius takes them, they’ll be fine. The gigantic dragon has returned to his lair, but he flew over our boat for a long while, until we were close to Dracolius.
He protected us.
And yet, before that, the enemy dragon protected me too. Saved me. And I don’t understand why.
Thud. The boat bumps against a side pier, interrupting my thoughts. We’re back to Dracolius City. As Alayel is tying a rope, two port guards approach us.
“Cargo and authorization,” a guard yells from the pier, before we can even see him.
Alayel turns to me. “Stay back and let me deal with it.”
It wasn’t as if I had any plans to attempt a negotiation with the port authority, so I nod and crouch behind the eggs. Alayel then walks to the guards and says something, but I can’t hear it from this distance.
As they talk, the realization hits me: we killed three men and took their boat. Dread coats my skin as my heart thumps frantically in my chest. I don’t want to be put in a cell again.
Meanwhile, the guards and Alayel keep talking. And talking. I wonder if it’s too late to jump overboard. Finally, the men walk away, and I exhale in relief.
Alayel returns with a wide smile on his face. “We’re good.” He takes the net with the eggs and places it in a burlap bag.
Seeing him do that makes me uneasy. I don’t know if it’s leaving the eggs or just not trusting that he’ll get me into the academy.
“I’ll come with you,” I say.
He slowly puts the bag back on the floor and turns to me. “You don’t trust me.”
“Yes. I mean, no, but—”
“I get it. I do. But first, you have a contract.” He points at the waterskin still clipped to my belt.
“Second, I live in the academy. It’s where I spend most of my time.
I’m new here, in this kingdom, and frankly, I need allies.
You’ve proven yourself more than capable.
Extraordinary, I’d say. And I need people like you by my side.
I want you to be in the academy. I want to…
” He looks down, and his expression softens. “See you again.”
My heart speeds up at the way he looks at me, the way he talks, but he could be pretending. I keep my tone casual but firm, and say, “I can still deliver the eggs with you.”
“You can’t.” He shakes his head and sounds apologetic. “I need to arrange everything. And it’s not in our contract. I’ll knock at the restaurant in the morning.”