Chapter twenty six - The Dragon He Wouldnt Kill
Morning came slowly, as if the forest itself hesitated to wake.
Pale light filtered through the cave entrance, brushing the stone walls with a faint silver glow.
Liora opened her eyes to the cold air and the quiet weight of everything she had learned the night before.
Her body felt heavy, her thoughts heavier still.
Ashwing was already awake.
He stood near the entrance, wings half?unfurled, watching the forest with a stillness that was almost statuesque. His feathers caught the morning light, shimmering faintly. He didn't look tired from the night's hunt. He didn't look restless. He looked alert. Ready. A silent guardian.
He turned his head when she stirred, his golden eyes softening just slightly. He stepped closer, lowering his head so she could rest her hand against his warm feathers. She did, letting the warmth seep into her cold fingers.
"I'm okay," she whispered, though she wasn't sure if she meant it.
Ashwing nudged her shoulder gently, a gesture that said he didn't believe her but would stand by her anyway.
Kael was awake too.
He stood near the dying embers of the fire, arms crossed, posture rigid.
He wasn't looking at her, but she could feel his awareness like a pressure in the air.
He had barely spoken since last night. Barely looked at her.
But he hadn't slept either. She could tell by the tension in his shoulders, the faint shadows under his eyes.
Thalen was the only one who seemed unchanged. He moved with quiet purpose, gathering his things, checking the straps on his pack, humming under his breath as if the world wasn't about to tilt beneath them.
Liora sat up slowly, brushing dust from her clothes. The eggshell shard weighed heavily in her satchel, as if it carried the weight of centuries. Maybe it did.
Kael finally spoke, his voice low and rough from disuse.
"We leave soon."
Liora nodded, though her stomach twisted. She wasn't ready. Not for the journey back. Not for the Academy's questions. Not for the secrets she still didn't understand.
Ashwing stepped closer, wings brushing her back protectively.
Kael's eyes flicked to the dragon, then to her. Something unreadable passed through his expression, but he said nothing.
Thalen approached her with a small smile. "Eat something before we go. It will be a long flight."
Liora forced herself to take a piece of dried fruit from the pack he offered. She chewed slowly, the taste dull and distant.
Kael watched her for a moment, then turned away sharply, as if the sight of her unsettled him.
When they finally stepped out of the cave, the forest greeted them with a strange, heavy silence. No birds. No rustling leaves. No distant calls. Just stillness.
Ashwing noticed it first.
His feathers rose, his wings spreading slightly, his body shifting into a stance Liora had seen only once before — the day he hatched, when something unseen had stirred in the shadows of the forest.
Kael noticed too. His hand drifted toward the hilt of his blade.
Thalen frowned. "Something is wrong."
Liora swallowed hard. "What is it?"
Kael didn't answer. He stepped forward, scanning the trees with sharp, calculating eyes.
Ashwing growled — low, deep, a warning that vibrated through the ground beneath her feet.
Liora's heart pounded. "Ashwing?"
He didn't look at her. His gaze was fixed on the forest ahead, feathers bristling, muscles coiled.
Kael's voice was barely above a whisper.
"Mount up."
Liora didn't question him. She climbed onto Ashwing's back, gripping the feathers at his shoulders. Kael mounted his dragon, Thalen his own.
The silence deepened.
Then the forest shifted.
A shadow moved between the trees — massive, fluid, silent. Too large to be a bear. The air grew colder, the light dimmer, as if the presence itself swallowed the sun.
Ashwing snarled, wings snapping open.
Kael's voice cut through the tension.
"Thalen. The net."
Thalen's eyes widened. "Already?"
"He's here."
Liora's breath caught. "Who's here?"
Kael didn't look at her. His gaze was fixed on the shifting shadows between the trees.
"The black dragon."
Liora's heart stopped. "The one who burned my village?"
Kael's jaw tightened. "Yes."
A massive shadow moved between the trunks — silent, fluid, wrong. A shape too large to be anything but a dragon, yet too dark to reflect even a sliver of light.
Thalen's expression changed. Not fear. Recognition.
Kael stepped forward, voice low, steady, controlled.
"I know you're there," he said. "Erevos."
Thalen's breath hitched — a small, sharp sound — but he said nothing.
Liora felt the name hit her like a cold wind. She had never heard it before, yet it carried weight, age, and something darker she couldn't name.
Before she could speak, the shadow lunged forward, revealing a massive black form slipping between the trees, wings dragging against the ground, eyes glowing like dying embers.
Erevos.
Ashwing roared, the sound shaking the branches overhead.
Thalen threw the net — a massive, reinforced weave of metal and enchanted rope — but Erevos moved with terrifying speed. He lunged upward, wings snapping open, the net missing him by inches.
Ashwing launched into the air, Liora clinging to his back.
Kael cursed under his breath. "He's running!"
Erevos burst through the trees, wings beating violently, sending leaves and branches flying. He shot into the sky, a streak of black against the pale morning light.
Kael shouted, "After him!"
Ashwing surged upward, powerful and steady, chasing the black dragon through the clouds.
Erevos was faster than she expected — erratic, unpredictable, flying in jagged, broken patterns that made no sense. Ashwing followed with precision, muscles coiled, wings slicing through the air.
Kael's dragon flew beside them, Kael leaning forward, eyes locked on Erevos with a focus that bordered on desperation.
The ravine opened beneath them — narrow, jagged, dangerous.
Erevos dove.
Ashwing followed.
Kael shouted over the wind. "He's cornering himself! Thalen, prepare the second—"
He didn't finish.
Because Erevos didn't keep running.
He turned.
A massive black shape twisted mid?air, wings snapping open with a thunderous crack. Erevos lunged upward, straight toward them, jaws opening in a roar that shook the ravine walls.
Liora screamed, "He's attacking!"
Ashwing roared back, wings flaring wide as he collided with Erevos in a burst of feathers and black scales.
Kael's dragon dove in from the side, claws outstretched.
But Liora saw it — clear as daylight.
Kael wasn't aiming for the kill.
Not the throat.
Not the heart.
Not the wings.
He was aiming to push, not pierce.
To drive back, not destroy.
To capture, not kill.
Liora's breath caught.
Why?
Why would Kael protect the monster who burned her home?
Why would he—
Erevos slammed Ashwing against the ravine wall, and the world exploded into chaos.
Erevos slammed Ashwing against the ravine wall with a force that rattled Liora's bones. Stone cracked beneath them, dust exploding outward. Ashwing twisted, powerful and controlled, using the momentum to shove off the rock and hurl himself back into the air.
Liora clung to his feathers, breath ripped from her lungs.
Erevos wheeled around, wings beating hard enough to shake the air. His roar echoed through the ravine, a sound of fury and something deeper—something broken.
Ashwing didn't flinch.
He dove straight at the black dragon.
Their bodies collided mid?air, feathers and scales scattering like sparks. Ashwing's talons raked across Erevos' shoulder, leaving deep gouges. Erevos snapped back, jaws closing inches from Ashwing's neck.
Liora screamed, "Ashwing!"
He didn't need the warning. He twisted sharply, wings folding, letting Erevos' bite snap through empty air. Then he surged upward, powerful and precise, positioning himself between Liora and the black dragon.
Kael's dragon dove in from above, claws outstretched.
But again—Kael wasn't aiming to kill.
He wasn't going for the throat.
He wasn't going for the heart.
He wasn't even trying to wound.
He struck Erevos' wing joint—not hard enough to break it, just enough to force him off balance.
Liora saw it clearly.
Kael was protecting him.
Why?
Erevos roared and spun, tail whipping through the air. The blow hit Kael's dragon square in the chest, sending them spiraling downward. Kael held on, teeth gritted, eyes blazing with something Liora couldn't name.
Thalen circled above, shouting, "Kael! He's too unstable—we need to fall back!"
Kael didn't answer.
Erevos lunged again, this time straight for Liora.
Ashwing reacted before she could even scream. He shot upward, wings flaring wide, intercepting the black dragon with a thunderous crash. His talons locked onto Erevos' chest, forcing him back, pinning him against the ravine wall.
The impact shook the entire mountain.
Erevos thrashed violently, wings beating, claws scraping against stone. Ashwing held firm, muscles rippling, feathers bristling with raw power. He was unmovable. Unbreakable.
Liora felt his strength through every breath.
But Erevos was stronger than she imagined.
With a guttural snarl, he twisted, slamming his tail into Ashwing's side. The blow forced Ashwing back just enough for Erevos to wrench himself free. He shot upward, wings scraping the ravine walls, sending rocks tumbling.
Kael shouted, "Thalen! Now!"
Thalen hurled the second net.
It spread wide—glinting metal, enchanted rope, heavy weights designed to bind even the strongest dragon.
Erevos saw it.
And for a heartbeat—just one—he hesitated.
His wings faltered. His body jerked. His eyes flickered with something Liora didn't understand.
Recognition?
Pain?
Memory?
She couldn't tell.
But the hesitation cost him.
The net clipped his wing.
Not enough to trap him.
But enough to enrage him.
Erevos roared—a sound so raw it scraped the air—and dove straight at Kael.
Liora's heart stopped.
Kael didn't move.
He didn't dodge.
He didn't raise his blade.
He didn't even lift an arm to shield himself.
He just stared at the black dragon with an expression Liora had never seen on him before.
Not fear.
Not hatred.
Not anger.
Something else.
Something like grief.
"Kael!" Liora screamed.
At the last second, Kael's dragon slammed into Erevos from the side, knocking him off course. The two dragons tumbled through the air, claws locked, wings beating violently.
Ashwing dove after them, Liora gripping his feathers so tightly her knuckles ached.
The ravine widened ahead, opening into a vast, jagged basin surrounded by cliffs. Erevos broke free of Kael's dragon and shot upward, wings beating furiously.
He wasn't fleeing.
He was circling.
Hunting.
Ashwing landed on a narrow ledge, talons gripping the stone. Liora slid off his back, breath shaking, heart pounding.
Kael landed on a ledge opposite hers, his dragon panting, wings trembling from exertion. Thalen hovered above, searching for an opening.
Erevos perched on a jagged outcrop high above them, wings spread wide, chest heaving. His black scales shimmered like oil, his eyes burning with a feral, fractured light.
Liora stared up at him, her pulse thundering in her ears.
This was the dragon who destroyed her home.
The dragon who burned her family.
The dragon who haunted her nightmares.
And Kael—
Kael wasn't trying to kill him.
He wasn't even trying to hurt him.
He was trying to save him.
Liora's voice broke. "Kael... why aren't you fighting him?"
Kael didn't answer.
He didn't look at her.
He looked only at Erevos.
And in that moment, Liora realized something terrifying.
Kael wasn't afraid of Erevos.
He was afraid of losing him.
Erevos thrashed violently, the net tightening around him as he fought against the restraints. Ashwing pressed a talon into the ground beside him, wings flared, keeping the black dragon pinned without a hint of fear.
Kael and Thalen pulled the last rope tight, securing the final knot. Erevos roared, twisting, claws scraping the stone, but the net held.
Barely.
Liora slid off Ashwing, her legs shaking, her heart pounding. She stared at the massive, restrained dragon—the monster who destroyed her home.
But her eyes snapped to Kael.
He stood there, chest heaving, sweat dripping down his jaw, hands raw from the ropes. He looked shaken, exhausted... and distant. Too distant.
Something inside her snapped.
"You risked our lives," she said, voice trembling with fury.
Kael didn't answer.
"You risked Ashwing. You risked Thalen. You risked me."
Still nothing.
He just stared at the ground, jaw clenched, shoulders rigid.
Liora stepped closer, anger burning through her veins.
"You weren't trying to kill him," she said, voice rising. "I saw you. You held back. You protected him."
Kael's eyes flickered, but he stayed silent.
Liora moved right up to him, so close she could feel the heat of his breath.
"You risked all of us for a monster," she whispered, voice breaking. "For him."
Kael still said nothing.
The silence made her snap.
She shoved him.
Hard.
Kael stumbled back a step, eyes widening.
"You don't understand what he took from me!" she shouted, hitting his shoulder with her fist. "You don't understand what it's like to lose everything!"
She hit him again.
And again.
Kael didn't move. He didn't block her. He didn't raise a hand.
He just stood there and took it.
Until she lifted her arm one more time—
—and he caught her wrist.
Not harshly.
Not angrily.
Just firmly.
Steady.
Unshaking.
Their eyes locked.
Liora's breath hitched.
Kael's voice came out low, rough, breaking at the edges.
"I do understand."
Liora froze.
Kael swallowed hard, his grip trembling now.
"He killed my mother."
The world tilted.
Liora stared at him, stunned, unable to breathe.
Kael's voice cracked.
"And before the Academy twisted him... before the experiments... she was his Rider."