37. Chapter 37
thirty-seven
N ot a single bird noise, not even a soft breeze whispers as we move between the tall trees. Only the scent of oak shows me this is real, not some dream. Usually, such a crispy, earthy smell would be comforting, but being in the depths of the forest just reminds me of how alone I feel in this situation.
How I can’t predict what happens next because nothing is how it should be.
A loud screech breaks through the air, and we all duck as a gush of wind blasts over us. An obsidian dragon with a glint of sapphire moving through his scales flies over us, and I slowly crawl up, my head snapping to Ripley as a glimmer of recognition lights up my eyes .
“That’s a sapphire dragon,” I say and run. I sprint as fast as my legs can take me, while I hope that dragon above us is who I think it is. This may be my chance at freeing myself.
I think back to the training day, that one time he pushed me beyond my limits, and hold onto that feeling. My muscles burn and ache in protest, my shoes kicking up tiny twigs and crunchy leaves as I run as fast as I possibly can.
“Get her!” Hephaestus bellows, and his men begin the pursuit.
Every breath makes my lungs twinge in protest, my legs already starting to feel heavy. I cut left behind a tree and keep running, hearing rapidly approaching footsteps right behind me.
My weakness, my hunger, makes me slow, and I try to jump over a fallen tree. It isn’t high enough, and I stumble and fall. It’s deeper than I thought as I roll down a hill. The ground breaks beneath my body, and the scent of ashes burns my nose.
I gasp for air as my ribs tighten, my tumble slowing until I hit against another tree.
Groaning, I crawl up, the taste of copper moving over my tongue as my vision is still a bit fuzzy. As I take a step, something breaks under my weight.
Blinking away the last bit of haze, I glance down and stumble back, falling down, my fingers moving between the bones scattered around me.
“No, no, no,” I whisper as I scamper through the ground filled with burned bones.
Panic spreads, my body shaking as I climb on a fallen log to get away from the bones. My heart slams against my chest as I stare at recognizable bone parts. Half of a spine. A broken leg. A cracked skull.
“Isn’t it beautiful?” Hephaestus sings, and my eyes snap up.
“What did you do?” I ask, tears brimming my eyes as my throat clenches .
“What Ares did to Nythralia in one of his first lives.” He crooks his head, a smile spreading on his features. “Play.”
Bile rises up my throat as I glare at him. He’ll say anything to dig his way under my skin.
I remember Ethan mentioning Nythralia and how all the red dragons died. How there was violence and bloodshed. I can’t picture Ares being the cause of that, though.
“Ares won’t kill innocent people,” I spit back.
Hephaestus laughs darkly, clutching his chest as he shakes his head. “Oh, sweet Aphrodite, you have no idea what he’s capable of.”
My teeth grind at the sound of my name coming from his foul mouth. I hate that our souls have history. If I had known how much of a monster he was, I would’ve never come within a thousand miles of him.
He looks over at Ripley. “Don’t let her go again.”
I sigh, and Ripley edges closer. Every sound of his steps pains me as he walks over the dead so easily.
A warm hand curls under my arm to get me off the log, and Ripley’s soft eyes meet mine.
“Come on, Draconis,” he says, keeping me close as we move between the fallen men of Valorcrest.
“You don’t have to pretend. I know you’re lying to me,” I whisper as we walk a few feet behind Hephaestus, who’s enjoying his art.
“Still, I’m supposed to keep you safe.”
“Safe?” I scoff, keeping my eyes trained on Hephaestus to make sure he’s still distracted and not paying us any mind. “You’re doing a terrible job.”
He pulls me to a stop, gripping my shoulders and staring down into my soul. “We have to wait for the right time.”
My gaze narrows. “If you were a Sapphire, you would already know. ”
He closes his eyes as a shaky breath falls from his lips. “I know… I know I lied, but the Aetherion has to believe I’m a sapphire dragon.”
“And that’s why you want to help me now? So I’ll keep your secret.”
“What he does to you is wrong, and what I’ve seen… he’s not Cedric, is he?”
I glance over his shoulder, my heart pounding heavily. He’s piecing the puzzle together for himself. Maybe this will help convince him to help me. “No, he isn’t.”
“He’s like Ares? A cursed god?”
I blink, wondering how he knows this about Ares. “He’s a god, but he isn’t cursed…” I pause, thinking of whether I should tell him who I am, that I’m the same as Ares, but I don’t. Not until I know who he really is. “Ares is cursed because of the man who’s using Cedric’s body as a vessel.”
“He brought Ares here?” He looks back at Cedric, then to me. “He’s the reason Ares came to our realm?”
I part my lips to speak, but no words come out at first. I want to trust him, but the only person I can fully trust right now is myself until I find my mates. “It’s complicated, Ripley.”
“Tell me,” he says, tightening his grip.
“I–I—”
“Sentinel, what are you waiting for?” Hephaestus yells, and Ripley’s hands fall to his sides.
“Nothing, Aetherion,” Ripley says and takes my hand, pulling me through the scattered bones.
Each step forward feels like a step deeper into the heart of darkness. The air is heavy with the scents of smoke and decay.
As we emerge from the shadows into the clearing ahead, my heart clenches at the sight of the devastation laid bare before us. The estate that was my home is destroyed by fire, the structure collapsed into nothing. Bones, blackened and broken, stretch out, their silent screams moving through the hollowed echoes of my soul.
“They’re here, Aetherion.” The warrior’s voice cuts through the silence like a blade, and I skim past Ripley, wanting to see with my own eyes the remains of my loved ones.
But before I can reach the remains, Hephaestus strides forward with a cruel grin, his laughter echoing like thunder against the backdrop of ruin. He beats me to the heart of the carnage, his boot nudging the charred skull.
“Where you belong, Ares,” he says as the skull cracks under his weight.
I hurry forward, needing to be sure. As I slump to my knees, my skin burns. Tears blur my vision as I reach out a trembling hand, my fingers curling around the nearest fragment of bone. I want to remain hopeful, believing these aren’t Ethan’s and Ares’ remains, but as I see the broken black and blue scales spread in the dirt, I fear the worst.