6. Calista
6
CALISTA
Khazmuda landed on the same rampart where he’d deposited me when he’d first brought me here. He gently placed me on the stone floor of the castle before his strong grip relaxed. He was an enormous beast with a size too large for delicacy, but he managed to handle me as if I were made of glass.
I felt the coldness of the stone floor as I lay there, breathing hard because I couldn’t shake off the horrifying sensation that had just taken place. My life had flashed before my eyes, my mother, my father, my childhood…the few years that were actually good rather than torturous.
Are you alright? A powerful voice like a drum entered my mind.
I sat up, rubbing my hand across my chest, still winded by my meeting with death. “Yes.” I stared at the stone beneath me before I raised my head and looked into his dark eyes, eyes just like Talon’s. “Thank you…for saving me.”
I was hunting when I saw you climbing.
“You can see in the dark?”
Yes .
When I’d finally calmed, I sat upright. “Does…King Talon know?”
I’ve tried to stir him several times. He must be having an intense dream.
So he didn’t know that I’d just tried to escape. “Khazmuda, can we keep this between us?”
His dark eyes were enormous and terrifying…but still beautiful. No .
“Please—”
I would die before I’d betray him.
My heart raced in my chest the longer I heard his booming voice in my head. It was so deep and powerful, unlike any other voice I’d ever heard. He spoke simply, without an inflection of emotion in his tone, but I could still sense passion. “You’re close.”
Our bond is unequivocal.
“I thought maybe you were his slave or something.”
What did you say? I’d clearly misspoken because the anger in his tone was unmistakable.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that offensively.”
I am no slave. Talon and I are bonded by friendship, loyalty, and respect.
“I’m sorry. He just seems like a ruthless authoritarian.”
He is a ruthless authoritarian.
“If that’s true, why would you want anything to do with him?”
Khazmuda stared at me for a long time, his body and neck lowered to the ground as far as possible so our eyes could meet. Because he’s more than that.
“He is?” I found that hard to believe.
Much more.
When I’d first seen Khazmuda, I’d assumed he was no different from a horse, a creature meant to be ridden by its master. But now, I realized how wrong that was…and how rude it was. He was an intelligent and beautiful creature, having as much depth as I did. “He’s keeping me as a prisoner, so I find that hard to believe.”
I never said he was moral, kind, or generous.
“If he’s none of those things, then why do you respect him?”
A long silence passed, a great bout of it, hanging in eternity. That’s between him and me.
All I wanted to do was escape King Talon’s imprisonment because of what he’d done to me, but that same man had somehow earned the undying devotion of a powerful dragon who willingly served him. “He would be nothing without you.”
And I’d be nothing without him . He raised his neck and lifted his head to the sky, gazing out across the kingdom before he dipped his chin and looked at me again.
I got myself to my feet and felt the chill now that the threat of death had passed. “Please let me go. He said he would kill me if I tried to escape.”
He won’t.
“How do you know?”
Because I do.
“What if you’re wrong?—”
I’m not. He lowered his head to regard me once again. Remember, you have the gift. You’re valuable to him, just as valuable as I am.
“So you’re saying he was bluffing when he threatened me?”
No .
“You realize that doesn’t make sense, right?”
He meant every word he spoke. But I’m not worried about your fate.
“Wish I could say the same.”
He lifted his head and looked elsewhere, as if the conversation had been completed.
“Tell me about the gift.” King Talon was holding that high over my head until I gave in to his demands. He assumed I would break eventually, but he underestimated my stubbornness.
Khazmuda continued to look elsewhere.
“Khazmuda?”
He’s awake.
“Oh fuck.”
He’s angry.
“No shit.” I stepped away from Khazmuda, walked to the edge of the ramparts, and approached the wall, looking at the sea of torches below, the village outside the castle walls. Everyone slept in their warm beds, free to live their lives as they pleased, in full control of their destiny. A part of me wanted to jump…and that part grew stronger.
The depth of your sadness is endless.
A gust of wind blew through my hair. I turned to look at him over my shoulder.
I’ve felt it before.
My eyes dropped, unable to meet the powerful gaze of the midnight-black dragon.
You won’t always feel this way, little one.
I turned back to the edge and looked at the city as it flickered in the darkness. I’ve always felt this way…and that’ll never change. I felt the cold sting my cheeks and redden the skin, but it was refreshing. For a moment, I was free, standing there because I wanted to, and until the king grabbed me and pulled me away, I would remain free.
He approaches.
I kept my eyes focused on the distance. The door to the keep opened and closed. A moment later, boots thudded against stone. His presence rivaled the size of Khazmuda, with the ferocity of a fiery dragon.
I didn’t have to look at him to know how angry he was.
His footsteps stopped for a moment before they started again, coming closer to me until he stood directly behind me. “I told you what would happen if you tried to escape.”
“Then kill me.” Like you should have done in the first place.
He remained behind me. Silence stretched. Nothing happened.
I suspected he and Khazmuda were speaking with their minds, a long conversation, judging by the fact that I continued to keep my head.
King Talon moved and came beside me, somehow casting a shadow over me in the darkness. “Let’s go.” He stepped toward the castle.
“Where?” I asked, continuing my stare into the darkness.
“Back to bed. Your windows will be boarded in the morning.”
I slowly turned, one eyebrow cocked at his words. “You said you would kill me.”
His back was to me, his cape fluttering in the evening breeze. Before he’d come all the way down here, he’d fully dressed in his uniform and his armor, his heavy sword hooked across his back, as if he expected a fight or needed to keep up appearances even in the middle of the night. “Do you want me to kill you?” He turned back to me, his face as angry as I pictured in my mind. His hair was messy from being pressed into the pillow for the last few hours. His eyes were tired, like they hadn’t had enough time to rejuvenate. His jawline looked harder than steel. “Come. I won’t ask again.”
“You said you would kill me. ”
His eyes narrowed in provocation.
“You said you’re a man of your word. Now’s the time to prove it.” I’d officially given up on life. I would always be a prisoner—just with different owners. My father gave up, so why couldn’t I?
He stared at me for several seconds, long seconds that stretched on endlessly. His cape continued to flap behind him in the wind, his posture stiff and straight despite the late hour, and he had the aura of a great king. It was in his stare, in the way he held himself, even in his voice.
I wanted it to end. I wanted the black void to take me…or whatever was beyond this life. “Why won’t you do it?—”
“Because Khazmuda asked me to spare your life.”
My eyes shifted to the black dragon, seeing his luminous eyes locked on mine.
You won’t always feel this way.