Chapter 24
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
FRID
Iexhaled looking at myself in the mirror.
The soft flickers of the gentle evening light filled the room.
Victor sat on the bed behind me, with his hands in his hair.
He was not too happy that I was leaving, but there was nothing I could do.
Our stay in the compound depended on me bringing value to the sisters.
They were keeping their part of the deal.
Victor and I were fed, and he was being healed.
It was my turn to uphold my end. I lowered my gaze to the dagger I held in my hand.
The polished, narrow blade and the comfortable handle made for my hand.
I remembered how Victor unwrapped it and shaved the wood to make it smaller, then he carefully secured thin leather strips.
He spent hours doing it, and then contrary to what I expected, he never brought it up, never reminded me that it was him who made it fit me so perfectly, as if it was part of my body.
He could be very attentive sometimes. I stole another glance at him.
“It’s not a big deal. I'll be fine,” I said.
“Why won’t they let me go with you?”
“I told you, they don’t trust you.”
“But what if you get caught? What if you run into a monster dragon?” He looked up at me.
Our eyes met in the reflection.
“I have my sacred water.”
“What if there’re two of them?”
My skin crawled as I imagined several monsters chasing me through the air. That was the problem. With two dragons chasing me at once, there was only a slim chance that I would survive. But, I believed in my good fortune. I have been lucky before.
“I’m sure I can—”
“This is insane.”
“Believe me, I’m capable—”
“I know you are. But what if something goes wrong. You’ll be by yourself in the wastelands.”
“Honestly! What a way to build my confidence, Vic.” I turned, too annoyed to be intimidated by those prospects.
“I have to go with you.”
And again, my irritation flourished beyond belief. All the talk about us being together seemed like a cruel joke. If we ever tried, we would kill each other on day three. Somewhere in the back of my mind, a tiny, aggravating voice whispered:
Maybe sex would help?
I gritted my teeth, turning away, angered by my own thoughts.
“I have to go.” I sheathed my dagger. When I turned, he was standing right behind me.
“When did you . . .?” I exhaled, but stopped, surprised by the strange expression in his eyes.
A crease formed between his eyebrows, his hands clenched into fists.
“What?” I asked, trying to figure out the change in him.
He did not answer. Instead, he stepped forward, closing the space between us, and wrapped his arms around me. His silky smooth hair brushed against my cheek. For a moment, I froze, incapable of processing his unusual behavior.
We never hugged. Not even with just one arm, not ever. I already knew how strong he was under the loose shirt he wore. I had seen his muscular stomach and strong arms many times before. But, pressed against his chest, I could feel it with my whole body.
It was wrong on so many levels. He clearly had only friendly feelings toward me, but I experienced something else entirely.
The closeness of his body, the pleasant, fresh scent of his skin did not help.
The next moment, and I was imagining tracing my lips along his neck.
I pushed him away, noticing the warmth rising from somewhere deep in the pit of my stomach.
“I need to go,” I said.
“Frid?”
I glanced back at Victor and saw a deep, tortured expression in his eyes. He looked so handsome, so lost.
“I’ll be careful, I promise.”
I stepped through the threshold where Amira was already waiting for me.
I followed Mahin’s partner through the quiet tunnels, filled with quivering lights.
My head was already filled with the mission at hand.
I preferred not to talk, I needed to gather all my thoughts and get into a state of extreme concentration.
In times like these, I turned into a completely different human being.
Sharp, opportunistic, cunning, ruthless.
I had to keep my body and my mind aligned, because losing focus during a battle was lethal.
“They most likely would use lights at night. That’s how you can find them,” Amira said at last.
I stepped beside her when she stopped by an enforced metal door.
“Knock and the guards will let you back in,” she added.
I watched her lift the heavy wooden bolt, then she opened the door.
Pitch black darkness greeted me on the other side.
I was on my own from here on out, anything could happen beyond this point.
I drew a deep breath of the warm air and stepped forward.
The door behind me closed and all of my senses came to life.
Before I took the next step, I removed the small glass jar I had secured to my belt and uncovered the lantern.
Luminfera noctis. That is what Mahin called the amazing creatures.
Males were the ones who produced the cool glow to attract the females.
They were only active at night and preferred to be hidden from the bright light during the day.
The bugs had always lived in the caves, especially the darker crevices.
I moved quietly through the tunnel, carefully avoiding the dried branches and pieces of torn paper.
Any, even the very softest of noises could be deadly when you were out at night.
I had learned this lesson early on, and of course, I would never venture out in the wastelands alone if I had a choice.
I strained my ears, trying to catch any stirrings from the outside, but only a low howl of wind was distinguishable in the distance.
What did the crawlers do at night? I often thought about it. Could they talk? Exchange some ideas? Is that what it would be like to die? Your body still remained, but your mind was completely gone?
I forced myself to concentrate on the dusty walls and the smudges on the paint.
Whoever built these tunnels did not expect that the temples would be left to monsters and all the worshippers would be trapped underground, if they were lucky to survive the first wave.
I still remembered the stories we were told when we were children.
The first wave was what the doomsayers were expecting at the end of all times.
Some believed that the gods had returned to punish all the unworthy ones.
Whole cities and towns perished just in the first week, but the survivors had months of suffering after that.
The dragonborns were not as easily affected.
Entire families flew away in search of a better life, but many, many people remained.
No wonder they still hated us for our seemingly magical bodies that could shield us from the bites and lift us up into the sky.
Up ahead, I saw an opening. The air grew fresher, and the sounds from the surface became easy to distinguish. I could hear the crawlers growling, shuffling their feet, and even the strips of their torn, loose skin rubbing together. Carefully, I stepped toward the end of the tunnel.
It was a different way into the compound, and I could not recognize where I was in the city.
The vastness and the clear night sky confused me.
Looking back, I noticed that this tunnel had been carved out of a dirt wall, and from the outside, it reminded me of an abandoned ore mine.
I crouched, looking at the street. The crawlers had probably heard me, they moved around sporadically, but they still did not know where I was.
I placed my lantern on the ground and straightened.
An untamed, powerful force that was trapped within me slipped through my veins as I thought about lifting up in the sky.
The familiar sensation rippled through my skin and my bones ached, elongating.
I bared my teeth, transforming into my true shape.
I lowered myself to the ground until my front paws touched the sandy floor and spread my wings.
It was time.
Without delaying any further, I soared up.