Chapter 16
Chapter
Sixteen
I entered the room before Cordelle motioned for me to join him. I dropped onto his bed, stretching my legs out as he caressed an old book he had been flipping through. It was thick, its pages yellowed with age, and something about it smelled like ink and candle smoke.
“Hey,” I said, my voice low enough that the others wouldn’t hear over their conversations.
Cordelle’s dark eyes flicked to me, studying my face. He always seemed to know when something was off.
“I’m sorry you struggled today.”
I sighed, rubbing my temples. “Kaelith is determined to make my life impossible.”
Cordelle’s lips twitched like he wanted to say something, but thought better of it. Instead, he tapped a finger against the book in his lap.
“I found something.”
I raised a brow. “About?”
“Your bond. Or lack of it.”
That got my attention. I leaned forward. “Go on.”
He flipped to a weathered page, covered in elegant, flowing script.
“There’s a record here of a rider who struggled to bond with their dragon.
It says, ‘When the beast resists the bond, it is not always rejection. Sometimes, it is a war between the past and present. A dragon does not serve a rider who does not know who they are.’”
My stomach twisted uncomfortably. “What in the name of Korhan does that mean?”
Cordelle shrugged. “Maybe Kaelith is waiting for you to figure that out before she fully accepts you.”
I scoffed. “I know who I am.”
“Do you?” Cordelle’s voice was softer now, his gaze almost… sad. “Because you don’t act like someone who does. You fight like you’re trying to prove something. You’re loyal to a father who betrayed you. And now, you’re thinking about breaking into a dungeon because of a suspicion.”
My fingers curled into the blanket beneath me. He wasn’t wrong.
Before I could answer, Jax stepped out of the washroom, running a towel through his damp hair.
“Damn, that water’s cold as shit,” he muttered before tossing himself onto his bed.
“Where’s Tae?” I asked, eager to change the subject.
Riven smirked. “He has a... meeting with a noble from Crownwatch.”
“Zander?” I asked.
Naia waggled her brows. “Probably the lady who said hi to him the other day.”
“Oh.” I smirked. “It would have been funnier if it were Zander.”
That earned a round of laughter from the room.
Cordelle, however, just watched me, thoughtful as ever. He let the conversation flow around us, but I could tell he wasn’t going to drop this.
Jax dropped his towel and proceeded to get dressed. Most of us looked away, but Ferrula stared at him.
“It’s a shame,” she said.
“That I am so good-looking?” Jax responded as he fastened his pants.
“That we are in the same squad and that you are so young.”
Jax pulled on his shirt. “You are thirty. I’m only three years younger than you. Besides, rules were made to be bent… or broken, depending on how persuasive you are.”
Ferrula smirked. “I bet we’d break more than just protocol.”
Jax laughed, and Naia grunted. “Hell no. We are not placing do not disturb signs on the door. It’s bad enough sharing the bathroom,” she said.
“And I see enough of Jax’s naked ass,” Riven added.
“It’s actually a nice ass,” Ferrula added.
“Thank you, Ferr,” Jax said, lying down on his bunk. He turned toward us. “Cordy, what are you working on?”
Cordelle pulled out his personal journal. “I wrote another poem, do you want to hear it?”
“Of course, my man.”
Cordelle cleared his throat before he spoke.
“I reached for you with open hands,
a whisper longing to be heard.
But silence wrapped its callous chains,
and not a single sound was stirred.
Do you not see the scars I bear?
The weight of battles fought alone?
Yet still, you turn—unyielding, cold?—
a heart encased in walls of stone.
If I were worthy, would you stay?
Or is this fate a hollow bond?
A tether frayed by fate’s cruel hand,
a dream I reach for, yet beyond?”
The room fell silent as Cordelle finished reading. I stared at my hands, feeling the words sink into my skin like something tangible.
“Damn,” Jax muttered, rubbing the back of his neck. “That was... heavy.”
Cordelle shrugged, but there was something in his eyes. “Not all stories are about victory.”
I couldn’t argue with that.
The silence after Cordelle’s poem lingered, as weighty as a storm about to break. His fingers traced the worn edges of his book, eyes distant, lost somewhere far beyond our small, dimly lit room.
Riven was the first to speak, her voice soft, careful. “What’s the story behind that poem?”
Cordelle’s jaw tensed. He closed the book but didn’t look up. “It’s about loss.”
We waited, giving him the space to continue if he wanted to. After a moment, he exhaled, his voice quiet. “My mother was murdered in the castle ten years ago.”
A chill crawled up my spine. I sat forward. “Murdered?”
Cordelle nodded. His fingers clenched around the book like he wanted to crush it. “I begged her to stay home that day. I told her I wasn’t feeling well, and that I needed her.” His throat bobbed, but his face was unreadable. “She said she had responsibilities, that she couldn’t shirk them.”
A muscle ticked in his jaw. “She never came back.”
The room felt too small, the weight of his words pressing in on all of us.
“Did they find out who did it?” I asked.
Cordelle gave a hollow laugh, shaking his head. “My father tried, but… she was a commoner. You know how it is.”
I did.
Naia let out a slow breath. “They just let it go.”
Cordelle lifted his gaze to meet mine, and for the first time, I saw the quiet fury in his pale-blue eyes. “That’s the thing about the nobility, isn’t it?” he murmured. “They decide whose deaths matter.”
I squeezed Cordelle’s hand, offering him what little comfort I could. “She would be so proud of you, Cordelle.” My voice was soft, willing him to believe it. “I know I am.”
He gave me a small, grateful smile, one that reminded me of a younger brother I never had. It wasn’t much, but I could see the tension in his shoulders ease just a little.
The moment was swiftly interrupted when Ferrula sat on her bed. And the rest of us returned to our own. She pulled back her covers without a word, but before she could climb in, Jax patted the empty space beside him with a grin.
“You are welcome to sleep here.”
Ferrula snorted, eyeing him like he was the most pitiful thing she’d ever seen. “You couldn’t handle this much woman, Jax.” She fluffed her pillow. “And I don’t want to deal with the noise complaints.”
Jax’s brow furrowed in confusion. “Noise complaints?”
Ferrula stretched out, smirking as she settled under her blanket. “Trust me, you’d be a screamer.”
Jax’s jaw dropped slightly, his stunned expression priceless as the rest of us fought to hold back our laughter. Riven pressed her face into her pillow, Naia bit her lip, and I stuffed my blanket into my mouth to stifle the sound.
The room fell quiet, just the constant rhythm of our breathing filling the space. A few heartbeats later, Jax huffed dramatically.
“Woman, I am taking that as a challenge.”
I smiled to myself before sleep finally took me.
The peace didn’t last long.
Yelling outside jolted me awake, voices sharp and urgent in the crisp morning air. My squadmates stirred, groggy but alert, as we all sat up and looked toward the door.
“What now?” Naia muttered, rubbing her eyes.
I threw off my blanket, already reaching for my boots. Whatever it was, it sounded serious.
We dressed quickly, strapping on our flight armor with practiced urgency.
The tension in the air was unmistakable, a sharp hum of unease that settled in my chest as we exited the room.
Members from all the squads in Fourth Guild were already moving toward the Ascension Grounds, the din of voices growing louder with every step.
At the center of it all, Dorian, Zander, and Theron stood locked in a heated discussion.
“They can barely ride!” Zander hissed, his usual composed demeanor fraying at the edges.
Theron huffed, his posture rigid with authority. “They passed the Deathwing Trial.”
Dorian’s expression darkened as he jabbed a finger toward Theron. “You’re doing this because I have to leave.”
Theron squared his shoulders, the picture of unaffected arrogance.
“You have orders from the king to visit the outlying kingdoms and secure more… recruits. I suggest you deploy quickly.” His tone was clipped, dismissive.
“I have been tasked with protecting the western ports. It is unlikely the aggressors are Blood Fae. They attack the eastern kingdoms, not the west.”
Dorian stepped closer, his presence radiating uncontained fury. “You are sending our brother with a squad full of unbonded riders.”
Theron smirked, his confidence as infuriating as it was unshakable. “What better scenario than to force a rider and a dragon to work together?”
“You are a total prick,” Dorian hissed.
Theron merely smiled, unbothered. “And you are a pompous asshole, but that doesn’t change anything.” He turned to Zander with a smug tilt of his chin. “Gather your squad… well, the squad you’ve taken responsibility for.”
I saw the shift in Zander’s eyes. Lavender bled into pure black, his rage crackling beneath the surface like a storm about to break. My breath caught. I’d seen that look before. The darkness just beneath his skin, the scarcely leashed power that threatened to consume everything around him.
Dorian moved fast, a steadying hand pressed against Zander’s chest. “He isn’t worth it.
Take the Thrall Squad and do an inspection in Thubia.
Theron is correct that there have been no sightings of the Blood Fae on the west side of the continent.
Their lands lie to the east, and they would have to fly around the entire northern shore. ”
Zander’s jaw ticked as he forced himself to calm. His eyes returned to their normal lavender hue as he nodded curtly.
Then his gaze swept over us.
“Thrall Squad, you’re with me.”