Chapter 26 Last
LAST
Bjorn and I are dressed in battle leathers as we make ready to head out to the Black Rift. Because that’s what we have to do now, as we complete our final preparations, gathering everything we’ll need from our quarters and getting ready to go.
We’ve already been out and about all morning; a council was held here at Harnakje in the Grand Council Hall of the True Black Dragon Knights, a place I’d never even known existed before, to discuss our last move against the Black Dragon and all the forces controlling it.
Svanhild Magnussen, Mormor Annika, and the rest of the True Knights High Council were there, plus my stepfathers, Strom’s family, and a barely recovered Prince Halfdir.
Discussion raged all morning about whether we should bring our full forces or only a high-level strike team in to face our enemies and liberate our King; though our Prince wanted to bring all our remaining warriors to get his father out and raze the Black Dragon and its captors, my Bloodbond argued against it.
Because we know, as I step aside to a private niche now from the bustle in the late afternoon, my drakes and Laerke packing our last supplies in silver silk fly-bags, that bringing the full force of our might against the Black Dragon will only bring death.
We can’t sacrifice all our fighters in this last battle; and we can’t sacrifice others we love. We have to protect them—if for nothing else, then to act as a second front to defend the world.
If we fail in our last move against the beast today.
My thumb hesitates over the number I’ve punched into Heathren’s golden Intercessoria phone. I heave a hard breath, not wanting to make this call I know I must make. Then I let that breath out, tapping my thumb on the dial icon and letting it ring.
Ready to face what must be done, at last.
“Rikyava! Ohmigod, where are you?” The phone doesn’t ring long before my bestie Layla Price picks up. I practically see her beautiful jade-green eyes fire up with her Royal Desert Dragon in them at my long overdue call.
“I’m still in Sweden. I’m safe,” I say quickly, because I know it’s been too long since I last called them, and she needs that information before we get into it.
“Thank god!” Layla says before launching into a tirade.
“We’re all here at the Outer Island where you told us to meet; we’ve been here for over a day with no word from you, King Huttr, Halfdir, or anyone!
There’s Storm Dragons here with Rhennic, Crystal Dragons with Dusk, and Adrian and I brought our best Desert Dragons, plus Reginald is here with a massive contingent of Guardsmen from the Hotel, even Rake Andre…
but no you! Where are you? What’s happening? ”
I tear up now, feeling my best friend’s loving but stern voice on the other end of the line. Because I feel so much love right now, from how everyone has shown up for me, coming to the Outer Island to be part of a plan that will never come to fruition now.
“Layla. I need you to listen to me right now. Can you do that?” I say quietly, because a clench is in my voice at how hard I have to keep myself together and not cry in this moment.
“Rikyava… Okay. I’m listening.” Layla catches her breath on the other end of the line as she sobers. Intense now, she’s like a warrior-drakaina, though she was never raised as one.
Another reason I love her.
“Listen, Layla…” I hesitate now, not knowing what to say, though I soon plough on. “I love you, bestie. And because I love you, I can’t let you or anyone else we love get involved in this, what’s happening up here in Sweden.”
“Rikyava! What are you say—” Layla starts, but I hold a hand up now, even though she can’t see me.
“No, Layla, listen.” I double down on what I have to say.
“I know you, Dusk, Reginald, Adrian, and especially Rhennic, want to come through for me and the Blood Dragons right now. But I’m telling you—you can’t.
We’re even keeping back nearly all our people from being in on this one, because we do not know what’s going to happen.
So please hear me when I say I can’t tell you where the last of this is about to go down.
I love you. Keep everybody safe for me. And tell Rhennic… I love him.”
“Tell me yourself.” Rhennic’s soft baritone voice comes on the other end of the line now, and I know that sneaky cousin of mine has me on speakerphone. As we pause, I don’t know what to say to my cousin, but he does it for me. “Are Dir and Huttr safe?”
“Dir is, for now,” I say, informing Rhennic about his Blood Dragon family, because I know how beloved they are to him. “But Huttr isn’t. And Rhen… none of us might be, if what we fear goes down. Soon.”
“That bad?” Rhennic is brutally quiet now as he assesses this with a King’s demeanor, despite how I can feel his heart breaking at everything I’ve told him.
“Bad enough to end the world, babe. If we fail,” I say cheekily, though it’s gallows humor as I get silence on the other end of the line.
“Rikyava. Tell us where you are.” Dusk’s gentle voice holds nothing but love as he speaks. I hitch a sob now, as I shake my head.
“No. I can’t involve you all in this.” My heart is made up, for good or for ill. “I love you all too much to watch you perish to what’s coming. It’s worse than just dying. And I… I have to save you from it. If I can.”
“Honorable.” Reginald’s smooth voice comes on now, without his regular bite as a hard-ass North Sea Siren. As he heaves a hard sigh, I know he’s accepted my decision, in my warrior’s way.
“What about the Intercessoria?” Adrian Rhakvir’s smooth baritone voice comes on now, as I practically see his intense but loving frown.
“I’m calling them next,” I say, feeling so much love fill me again for Layla and her incredible drakes. As Bjorn passes by now, lifting an eyebrow at me, I know I need to wrap this up, but have no idea how to do it.
Not wanting to say goodbye to everyone I love.
“You’ll know it if we’ve failed,” I tell them now, knowing they need some kind of heads-up if they have to face this thing next, to defend our world. “Contact Heathren and Insinio in the Intercessoria, if we fall. They’ve got all my intel on this thing.”
“I hope we never need to.” Rhennic’s voice is soft, as I feel him understand what I’m up against.
And what he and his Royal Dragon Bind will have to do—should we fail.
“I hope so, too.”
With that, there’s nothing left to say, so I hang up. I do it before I can hesitate, before we can draw this out with lengthy goodbyes. A Blood Dragon can’t focus on what might happen, and the death we always have coming.
We have to focus on life, and this moment, even if it’s our last.
I hang up with love beaming so hard through my heart that my tears do fall now. I wipe my nose with my jerkin’s sleeve as I place my second call. Insinio Brandfort picks up before it even rings once. It makes me sob-laugh as I startle.
Then sob-cry, at everything we’re up against.
“Talk to me, badass.” I hear his strong, sober basso voice on the other end of the line.
“You’re not at the Outer Island at our rendezvous.
I understand plans have changed. The Intercessoria have tracked a massive power surge in Magnussen lands—cosmic-level bad, not to mention a shitshow of a battle at Stockholm, which I surmise you were in, just a day ago.
It was over by the time the Intercessoria stopped fucking around enough to portal in. Talk to me. What’s happening?”
“Insinio. I need you to keep everyone else out of this when you and the Intercessoria come to deal with the Black Dragon with us today. Can you promise me?” I dive into it because I know he’s a warrior like me and will keep his promises.
“You already talked to Layla Price and her Bind.” I can almost feel Insinio’s soft, sad smile on the phone. “I promise. I won’t let them get involved. It’s gonna break their hearts, but… I get how bad this is. All of us Archangels do. So you’re ready to move out? What’s the plan?”
“I need you to head to the power surge spot you tracked, now. It’s where everything’s going to go down tonight. Maybe by dawn.” I wipe my tears away now, readying myself for what comes next. “Just hang back until we can get there, maybe a few hours. Then we’ll be there with bells on.”
“Are you sure?” he asks, as I practically feel him raise one dark eyebrow. “About not telling your friends, or letting them help?”
“I’m sure.” I’m decided, though infinitely sad. “If we fail… at least everyone else may have a few more days of happiness. It’s all I can give them.”
“Okay.” Insinio doesn’t question me, only gives me his affirmative as he lets me make my choice. From his lack of gainsaying, I understand that even as strong as Layla’s Bind is, it hasn’t got the right magic to help with something like this monstrosity my Blood Dragon Ancestors created.
Because even Archangel magic doesn’t play nice with ours; no one’s does. It makes this creation nearly impossible to stop now, as I set my jaw and firm myself for our endgame.
Hoping against hope it won’t be our last move.
I hang up with Insinio, knowing he’ll be where he needs to be with Heathren and anyone else who’ll help us from the Intercessoria, when the time comes.
My drakes and Laerke are ready and waiting for me now; silver fly-bags stuffed with food, supplies, and water flasks crowd their hands, for the journey we need to take next.
At my nod, Bjorn juts his chin, moving everyone out. As we exit our abode into the late afternoon sunshine, I feel the crispness of the autumn air. It’s a beautiful fall evening; but the sunshine cannot pierce my heart now as I stew, wondering if I made the right call.
Before we can stride out from our lodgings, however, a small group of people approaches us. It’s my stepfathers, dressed in black battle-leathers now like me, plus Svanhild Magnussen, Olander Mortensen, Strom’s sister Mathilde and Mormor Annika, plus Prince Halfdir, who have come to see us off.