Page 55 of Of Blood and Banes (The Arterian #2)
THE FORBIDDEN FOREST
T he Forbidden Forest is thick with humidity and sprawling with every green flora I’ve ever seen. Soldiers at the front of our group lead through the thicket, tapping aside vines that hang like mangled curtains.
Archie is in front of me, his gaze sweeping left, right, and up to the canopy. He stumbles over a vine on the ground, and I catch him before he can fall. When he turns his beaming smile on me, it twists that pain in my heart of how I need to come clean to him about Darian and Cole.
A soft song of crickets chirp near and far, while distant birds whistle in the trees. Most of the forest is shrouded in shadow, sunlight choked out by the overgrown trees above, but streaks of golden sunlight leak through, casting enough of a glow for us to see.
Daeja walks beside me, snorting and then shaking her head as dragonflies attempt to land on her neck, then buzz around her snout. When they still linger, she blows a breath out of her lips and the two bugs tumble away and flit off.
“Wow…are you alright?” Archie mumbles in front of me, his attention stuck on Darian. “Did you fall or something?”
Darian is to his left, with Melaina holding his chains on the opposite side. Both of which meet Archie’s wide, concerned gaze.
Darian’s lips lift into a smug, arrogant grin before he tugs his collar down to reveal a set of purple bruise-like markings decorating his strong throat. “Oh, this? You should see her.”
I swear all my blood rises to my face, and I might pass out from the mortification. And the asshole turns his head only slightly over his shoulder to wink.
To fucking wink at me.
I stop in my steps a split-second before Daeja bumps me with her shoulder as she passes, encouraging me to ignore it and keep moving forward.
“Oh…I see…” Archie drags his rounded eyes back ahead to the path, his spine straightening. “Hope…hope she’s…okay…”
“I’d argue more than okay,” Darian tosses back.
I’m going to fucking kill him.
“Please do. No one is stopping you,” Daeja chuckles.
I toss her a wary glance. “Stop doing that.”
“Not my fault you’re a little loud with your thoughts. Shut the door if you don’t want me to hear.”
Grumbling, I internally search for the pathway between us. But as I reach it, I leave it open. Not wanting to close it off.
“So I thought,” she snickers. “But if you keep blushing every time that man opens his mouth, everyone’s going to catch onto you.”
I clear my throat, roll my shoulders back, and grumble, “Thanks for the advice.”
She swings her head back to look at me and snorts with affection. The hot blast sends my hair back from my face.
After a few hours of silent trekking, we stop at a massive tree covered with tangled moss and vines.
Long, wispy, lime-green fronds drip from its branches, swaying back and forth in a light breeze inches above a pool of green.
A toad leaps into the water, causing a small ripple before it’s gone.
Daeja stiffens beside me, and I pat her shoulder.
Though, I’m unable to stop my laughter from spilling over into my consciousness. “Don’t you worry. I’ll protect you from the toads.”
She narrows her eyes into slits at me, but she doesn’t deny the fact they still intimidate her.
“And don’t worry. I won’t let the others know your…reservations.” I rub her foreleg playfully.
The soldiers turn, looking back at the end of the line past me at Sethan. We all step aside as he strolls forward, then joins in some hushed conversation with the front of the group. I catch ‘which way’ and ‘left’ versus ‘right,’ along with a small squabble between two soldiers.
“Wow, look at this!” Archie snags a brilliant emerald off the ground where it had been perfectly nested in a bed of grass.
The ground glimmers with more of the green jewels, casting sparks of dazzling light as sunlight leaks through the trees above.
Archie turns a wide smile into my direction and holds the emerald up for me to see it. “This alone could get my family out of debt!”
“Stop!” a rough whisper cuts through our group from someone behind us.
As I turn, Corvin races forward with wide eyes and his hand outstretched as he barrels past me. “Archie, put that back now!”
At the same time, a low rumble trembles somewhere deep within the forest. Corvin bumps into Archie, and Archie loses his grip on the emerald for a split-second before seizing it mid-air and scrambling over himself to set the jewel back where he found it.
But it’s too late.
The leaves of the undergrowth shake, the movement drawing closer and closer. Yellow eyes flash open in the darkest part of the forest. Emerging from the thick shrubbery is a jade green dragon the size of… a cat?
“Lower your eyes! All of you!” Sethan commands, dipping his head low.
Oh, shit. Those aren’t emeralds—they’re dragon eggs.
We all lower our faces, eyes glued to the ground.
But not fast enough, as the small jade-green dragon screeches and races toward Archie and Corvin.
Several more small green dragons leap out from the undergrowth.
One toward Sethan and A’nala, both of whom slide in front of Melaina holding Darian’s chains.
“Do not let them bite you!” Sethan draws his sword. “Hold them back!”
Another one, the size of a dog, lands in front of Cole, its scales glimmering underneath years of undergrowth blanketing its back. Roots rise from beneath its talons and snake toward his boots as he unsheathes his blade.
A fourth wingless dragon that resembles a snake slips toward Gavin and Nolan. Its black beady eyes flashing while its forked tongue slithers out from its crooked jaw.
Three more dragons varying in shades of green spring toward the dragon riders.
Seven dragons. Seven small dragons. It shouldn’t be a cause for concern…except the fear in Sethan’s voice spikes my pulse.
The first small dragon flings itself and barrels into Corvin, knocking him clear off his feet.
The two of them turn into a wrestling match of teeth, claws, and fists.
Corvin’s metal armor screeches as the dragon rakes its claws across his chest plate, then sinks its teeth to his face.
Corvin screams with a terror that chills my blood.
The rest of the group explodes into havoc.
A’nala and Sethan work at guarding Melaina and Darian from one dragon.
Marge shifts behind Cole and removes her sword from her staff, while Cole swings his blade at the roots tunneling toward his feet.
Gavin and Nolan work at keeping the wingless earth dragon at bay.
And the other riders and their dragons circle to fend off the last three.
Spare soldiers split to defend the horse-drawn wagons at the back of the group.
The horses throw their heads back with panicked squeals.
Daeja and I race toward Corvin where he writhes on the ground, as Archie snaps forward to grab the dragon by its long, skinny tail.
He pulls the dragon off Corvin, and the creature whips to snap its needle-like teeth at Archie’s hand.
Archie dodges just in time. As the dragon rears back, I close the gap and shove Archie out of the way and raise my blade in front of me.
The earth dragon pauses. Its gleaming, yellow eyes narrow, Corvin’s blood still dripping from its maw. A gurgling hiss emits from its throat.
Heat barrels over my shoulder and fire blasts the grass between me and the dragon. Within the blink of an eye the fire ceases. Leaving behind a circle of fire no bigger than a spinning wheel.
A warning shot.
A successful warning shot, followed by Daeja’s thick growl.
The earth dragon backs up, squealing in terror at the flames. I know it’s fear all too well. The difference is I’ve overcome it. Forged myself new from the flames.
The earth dragon scampers away and disappears into the underbrush, and I turn my attention back to our group. Archie falls to his knees next to Corvin, and Marge joins to help.
Roots wrap around Cole’s shins. Despite slicing through several branches crawling up at him through the ground, they multiply and conquer inch by inch.
“Get down!” Sethan roars to everyone before he rips Melaina to the ground, and Darian drops, too.
A’nala stretches her wings out to cover the three of them.
The green dragon near them has its jaws parted to reveal rows and rows of tiny sharp fangs.
Like the blooming petals from a flower, part of the green dragon’s skin fans out around its face.
Everyone drops to the ground. I only have enough time to fall to my knees and send the dragonfire back down through the earth before ten splinters explode from the dragon’s mouth.
Daeja rears up in front of me and flares her wings, blocking Marge, Archie, Corvin, and me behind her.
The small barbs puncture her wings, and she lands on the ground with a monstrous thud.
Parting her jaws, she roars until the trees sway in a chaotic dance.
Oof. Now they’ve pissed her off.
The rest of the earth dragons pause before snapping their attention to Daeja. Air hisses as Daeja pulls in a long breath through her fangs, and she pushes up onto her hind legs. Her throat glows orange as she gathers the next breath of fire.
The earth dragons turn tail and bound back into the forest, disappearing into the thicket.
Daeja lands and blows out a breath of smoke, watching the bushes quiver then still.
Everyone else rises to their feet, and Cole brushes off the roots tangling his legs before he’s helped up by one of Sethan’s dragon riders, Jerome.
“Are you in pain?” I ask as I rush to Daeja.
She twists her head to pluck a two-inch-long barb from her shoulder and spits it out with a scowl. “No. Bunch of yappy little things. Lucky I didn’t torch them.”
“Pull the barbs out, and she should be fine,” Sethan says. “That earth dragon was far too small to be poisonous enough to take down a larger dragon. Though, the side effects may be uncomfortable?—”
“Help! Please!” Archie calls.