Chapter 44 Callan #2
“Two theories. The first: he’s jealous that she’s waiting and watching for the ancients to return.
The second: he’s seeing firsthand how she was with him, and because it’s not him, he’s jealous,” Balor says flatly, and that gets Mina to turn her head to look at him, the movement causing her scales to catch the last light of day, sending iridescent flashes across the courtyard walls.
Mina turns her gaze to her cousins and starts rumbling, the sound reminding me of the ocean during a storm or the thunderstorms that roll through our valley during monsoon season—deep, primal, and laden with meaning I can’t decipher but they somehow can.
“Got ya,” Njall says before looking at us, his expression betraying both amusement and concern.
“Mina says Abraxis can be as butt hurt as he wants.” She rumbles more, and he nods, the movement exaggerated in the dimming light.
“Correction: he can be as petty as he wants, but it doesn’t change the fact she was the same with him.
” She rumbles and ends it with a growl before turning and looking back out over the landscape, the sound making the stone beneath my feet vibrate slightly.
“She’s not just out here watching for her other mates; she’s watching for mages.
Just in case.” Mina huffs one more time before her tail stops thumping on the ground, the sudden silence more noticeable than the sound had been.
“Thanks for translating, Njall.” I reach out and rest a hand on his shoulder, feeling the tension in his muscles, the shared concern for his cousin clear in every line of his body.
“Anytime. Oh, and Lily wants to stay with her mom,” he adds at the end, glancing up at the tiny hatchling nestled against her mother’s frill.
“Don’t worry, Ty and I will sleep out here with Mina and make sure she’s safe.
I would have thought her remaining dragon mate would have stayed with his mate and child,” Njall adds, and I feel like it twists the knife a little more, the barb intended for Abraxis but cutting all of us who care for Mina.
I watch Mina’s scales rise and fall with his words, the movement like a wave passing over her body, betraying her emotion more clearly than words ever could.
She’s disappointed in Abraxis and his jealousy.
To be honest, I am too; the realization sitting cold and heavy in my gut as the night deepens around us, and we settle in for what promises to be a long, anxious vigil beneath stars that seem suddenly colder and more distant than they did just hours before.
Balor and I decided after dinner to shift and join the dragons in the courtyard for the overnight.
The transformation sends waves of pain through my limbs as bones crack and reform, my skin tingling as feathers and fur erupt to replace it.
The chilly night air feels different against my griffon form, each current and eddy detectable through the sensitive nerve endings in my plumage.
The stone beneath my talons keeps the day’s warmth, a pleasant contrast to the chill that has settled over the mountain as night deepens.
Somewhere in the three AM hour, Mina wakes with a start, her massive body tensing beside mine, scales rasping against stone as she surges to her feet.
The sudden movement sends a gust of her scent washing over me—ozone and wildflowers now mixed with the acrid tang of adrenaline.
She lights the lower courtyard up like a laser light show, her breath weapon erupting in a blinding flash that makes my eyes water and my vision spot with afterimages.
The air crackles with electricity, making my feathers stand on end and sending static shocks through my body where I touch the ground.
Several mages are burned to a crisp where they stand, the smell of charred flesh and melted fabric filling the night air, a nauseating mixture that makes my stomach clench.
Their bodies hit the stone with dull thuds, smoke rising from the blackened remains in thin, acrid tendrils that catch in my throat.
Njall and Ty take to the air to search the area close to the nest, their powerful wings creating down draughts that stir up dust and small debris, pelting my face with tiny stinging particles.
The sound of their wings cutting through the air grows fainter as they distance themselves, but soon the night is punctuated by the distinctive roar of their breath weapons, flashes of light illuminating the clouds from below like distant lightning.
We watch them use their breath weapons several times before returning, their scales gleaming with sweat and excitement when they land, sending tremors through the courtyard floor I feel through my talons.
Like Mina, they don’t shift back and stand guard on either side of her, their massive bodies forming a living wall of muscle and scale, heat radiating from them in waves that distort the air like mirages.
The scent of their exertion mingles with the odor of burned flesh from below, creating a pungent reminder of the violence that has touched our sanctuary.
As the sun slowly rises, painting the eastern sky in washes of pink and gold that reflect off the mountain peaks like fire, I see Mina still scanning the horizon, refusing to shift back.
Her eyes, usually vibrant gold, have a dull, exhausted cast to them, though they never cease their vigilant sweep of the landscape.
Her scales, normally shimmering emerald and silver, seem muted in the early morning light, as though her fatigue has physically dimmed her luster.
Lily is sleeping atop Balor’s basilisk form next to his head, her tiny body rising and falling with each breath, obsidian scales catching the first rays of dawn and transforming them into rainbow prisms. She knows she’s safe with him, his massive serpentine body curled protectively around her, his crimson eyes half-lidded but alert, scanning for any threat to his precious charge.
By the time the sun breaks over the mountains, sending long golden fingers of light stretching across the courtyard and warming my feathers, Abraxis walks out carrying a tray with coffee and waffles.
The rich aroma of freshly brewed coffee and warm maple syrup cuts through the lingering scent of battle, making my stomach growl despite my anger.
I shift back, bones cracking and reforming once more, my skin prickling as feathers recede into flesh.
The cool morning air raises goosebumps on my suddenly exposed human skin, making me shiver slightly as I stare at him, jaw clenched so tight I can feel a headache building at my temples.
“How was that super soft bed of yours?” I snap, looking at him, not bothering to keep the contempt from my voice. The words taste bitter on my tongue, sharp with the anger I’ve been nursing through the long night watch.
“Whoa, why are you mad at me?” He sets the tray down on a nearby stone bench, the china cups rattling slightly against the saucers, looking puzzled.
His hair is tousled from sleep, cheeks still bearing the crease marks of pillows, eyes clear and rested in a way none of us who maintained the vigil can claim.
“Why? You left your mate and child outside instead of staying with them. And you wonder why you’re not the head drake of this flight.
” The accusation comes out harsher than I intended, the words carrying the weight of exhaustion and fear that has built through the night.
I don’t bother taking anything from him before I walk away, my bare feet slapping against the cold stone, sending jolts of discomfort up my legs that I welcome as a distraction from my anger.
I hear him rushing to catch up with me, the sound of his boots on stone a rapid staccato that matches the sudden racing of my heart.
“Callan, wait,” Abraxis yells for me, his voice cracking with emotion.
I stop and whirl on him, the sudden movement making my head spin slightly, reminding me I haven’t eaten since yesterday.
“What is your issue?” I yell at him and look back over at Mina as she turns her head slightly to look at us, the movement slow and deliberate, like a mountain shifting.
Her golden eyes fix on us for a moment, filled with a weariness that makes my chest ache, before she looks back to the horizon, her vigil unbroken despite our disturbance.
“I have a ton of things wrong; we know this,” Abraxis says, his voice dropping to almost a whisper, forcing me to lean in to hear him over the morning breeze that carries the scent of pine and distant snow.
“I’m scared, I’m jealous, I never felt like I’m enough, especially now.
” He motions to his wing, the damaged membrane catching the sunlight, revealing its thinness, the network of veins more visible than they should be, a permanent reminder of his vulnerability.
He shakes his head, the movement causing his hair to fall across his eyes, which he brushes away with a hand that trembles slightly.
“I can’t defend my nest, mate, or child.
” He lowers his head and looks out over the horizon, his profile sharp against the brightening sky, jawline tense with suppressed emotion.
“If they die... If they don’t come back.
..” He stops talking and looks down, swallowing hard enough that I can hear the click in his throat.
“You’re afraid you’ll be challenged for Mina,” I finally get to the root of it all, and it makes sense, the realization washing away some of my anger like morning dew under the strengthening sun.
Abraxis nods, the movement barely perceptible, and moves to go lean against Mina’s front leg in silence, his hand resting on her scales, fingers tracing the patterns there as if memorizing them by touch.
I can see where his fear is coming from, and it’s valid.
If other males know he’s injured and the ancients are gone, they will come for Mina with a vengeance, drawn by her power and beauty like moths to a flame, heedless of the destruction their pursuit might bring.
The morning light strengthens, warming my skin and highlighting the exhaustion etched into Abraxis’s features, the dark circles under his eyes, the new lines at the corners of his mouth that speak of worry beyond his years.
My anger fades, replaced by a hollow understanding.
We are all afraid, all vulnerable in different ways.
Mina’s gaze remains fixed on the western horizon, her body a monument to patient fear, while around her, her family keeps watch, each of us fighting our own battles while waiting for news of the war being waged far beyond our sight, but never beyond the reach of our hearts.