Page 25 of Upon Buried Embers (Upon Buried Embers #1)
Elf
“Wear a cloak,” Rohan says, and I grab the one I’ve been using, covering the pants and tunic. “We’re going to meet the other clan leaders today. You don’t speak, you don’t look them in the eye and you stay behind me. Do as you’re told at all times, understood?”
This wasn’t what I expected coming back here after my morning chores.
“Okay.”
“We will go on Drogonah, do not anger him.”
That’s hard when I upset him by simply breathing.
“And do not embarrass me and the clan.”
I walk out of the bedroom and suck in a sharp breath.
Rohan is wearing the bone mask, and it looks like an almost flattened dragon’s head, the nose pushing out a little where his nose would be, and it ends just above his mouth.
Two small, curved horns come from the sides of the head and curve back, just like Drogonah’s, I realize.
He must notice my questioning gaze.
“It’s the sign of a Dragonbond, only those that wear it have one. It’s created from the bones of The Graveyard.” I nod, looking into his eyes through the slanted eye shape of a dragon. “Does it scare you?” He inches closer, and I back up, banging into a chest.
I nod a little, my stomach turning.
He doesn’t stop until he’s in front of me, and his fingers trace the ties on my cloak, causing my breath to hitch at his nearness, at him looming over me.
“Interesting… maybe you are scared, but, I think it can be a little more than that.” He tilts his head, and I watch as his eyes roam over my face. My cheeks heat at his attention.
Having his eyes on me so full of focus is like a wildfire, engulfing everything in flames.
“The color of a rose.” He brings the backs of his fingers to my cheeks. “Yes, definitely more.” He steps back, picks up his axe and turns to leave. “Come.”
We exit his home and make our way to the caves at the back. It’s early afternoon now, but people still mill around, gathering water and talking in small groups, holding firewood and baskets of food.
Entering the cave, the heat hits me instantly, and it must be warmer because of the larger number of dragons that have slept here for the night. All of the beds were full apart from one this morning.
Rohan is also warm though, when I think about the heat rolling off of him when I’m near him.
Is it a Dragonbond thing?
A roar comes from further in all of a sudden, and a smaller black dragon moves restlessly toward Rohan, who simply stands taller at the stalking dragon.
“Calm, Escor.” The dragon snarls, and I back away. I haven’t seen this one before.
Blaise, Agnar and Hakon have their ears perked, looking between Rohan and Escor, but they don’t make a move to do anything.
Escor growls again, and the heat ramps up. I must make a sound, a whimper maybe, because the dragon’s dark eyes snap to mine, his chest puffing up.
“No!” Rohan shouts in a deadly tone, and the dragon’s eyes snap from mine to his. “You do not look at her that way.”
In what way?
Roar.
Rohan growls back, a firm rumble that shocks me. It sounds so much like Drogonah’s that I look for him, only to find he’s not here.
“Escor, do not even try it.”
Rohan and Escor have some sort of dominance stare-off for a while, a challenge for something that I don’t know about. But eventually, the dragon’s ears lower and he turns, slinking back to his circular stone nest far in the back of the cave.
My hands shake as I try to control my breathing, and Rohan comes to me, grabbing my wrists and dragging me to the center of the cave where the sound of beating wings from above rattles me.
I look up to the opening and see a large dragon descending. Its own grumbling roar shakes the walls as it lands heavily in front of us, scattering small rocks.
Drogonah.
He whips around in a flash, bounding over to Escor and roars in his face, teeth bared, one clawed foot against his scaled neck to shove him down. I hold my breath, my other hand instinctively going to Rohan’s arm in search of some sort of safety.
To my surprise, he pulls me in front of him, an arm banded around my chest, resting his chin on the top of my head.
“He’s being chastised for daring to challenge my dominance,” he says to me, almost softly as I feel his breath against my ear. Escor lowers his head, his own snarl forming but then his body goes lax after thoroughly being told off by an angry Drogonah.
“He’s still young, and will continue to test how far he can push.
I will allow it for now as it makes room for growth, and maturity.
However…” he trails off, and I shiver as his finger ghosts over the tip of my ear.
“If he dares to look at you like that again, he will feel the blade of my axe putting him in his place, and then the teeth of Drogonah to finish the lesson.”
“You would kill him?” I look at the smaller dragon. He would still tower over me.
“No. Not for that. He’s reckless, pushy and full of ego. However, he would not kill one of my clan members, that would be his death. And as arrogant as he is, he knows that.”
Drogonah lifts his front leg off of Escor’s neck and stomps his foot in another warning before he turns toward us, not caring there’s a young, angry dragon at his back.
Drogonah is feared, I think to myself. Respected.
Rohan moves us toward him, with me still at his front as he reaches out a hand, rubbing Drogonah’s snout which I think is to calm him. The puffs of warm air caress my face, my eyes directly confronted by teeth that are bigger than my forearm.
“Let’s go.”
Rohan pulls me to the side and lifts me up to help me onto Drogonah, but the dragon steps back, moving out of the way.
“Drogonah,” Rohan snaps, “Not now.” It sounds like the dragon huffs, and begrudgingly, he lowers his wing for me.
I grab on to one of the spikes at the end and put my foot on the leathery skin running between each bone.
Steadying myself, I grab the spikes to help me up until I’m finally on the saddle.
Somewhere I absolutely do not want to be.
Rohan is quick to join me, his arm snaking around my waist, holding me steady as he gathers the reins that loop around Drogonah’s neck. Once again, I notice the hair braided at the ends.
“Hold tight,” Rohan says, and I grab the front of the saddle. “Fly.” Drogonah’s chest expands, then his powerful wings spread out to the sides, glistening in the ray of light from above before he tucks them back in and launches himself, vertically.
I scream, the force shoving me back into Rohan’s chest as I scramble to hold on.
Rohan is an immovable force, hunkering us down low as we fly up toward the exit, the veins of ore here shining like small rainbows.
We come out at the top of the mountain of the dragon’s den as Drogonah spreads his wings.
Fog curls around us, the light bouncing off the clouds below, and I’ve never seen anything more beautiful. It even shelves my fear for a moment, until Drogonah turns sharply, dipping left and I squeal, gripping onto the saddle tightly once more.
Rohan chuckles darkly, nudging the top of my head with his chin.
“So scared.” His hand moves, resting on my stomach and rubs in a circular motion that causes me to squirm.
“But I wonder if we can change that in time, Little Whisperer.” The last words are a breath in my ear, and I slump back against him as we level out.
Rohan releases a pleased rumble. “We have a lot to discover, you and I.”
“Like what?”
“Like what you can do to please me.”
“I’m not… I wasn’t that type of slave,” I say on a quick breath.
“Don’t get it wrong. Anything I do to you, you will enjoy it.”
“What—”
“Hush,” he says, and I do, but I can’t help squirming at his hand still splayed across my stomach, possessing that area for his own. It confuses me as to why he would do this.
He doesn’t do anything else though. Just rests it there, rumbling in my ear and eventually, I relax again, looking at the clouds as we soar through them. Drogonah’s powerful wings flap with almost silent beats. He glides effortlessly for his size.
It makes me realize how truly magnificent this beast is.
Another rumble comes from behind. Drogonah’s answering growl follows, and I bravely turn to see two other dragons tailing us.
“Wildlings,” he says without me having to voice my question. “Drogonah is warning them away.”
“Will they attack?”
“Not if they don’t want to be hurt.”
“You’re not worried?”
He reaches around and pulls my chin up so I meet his eyes, the wind curling around us. “I’m a Dragonbond, wild dragons do not scare me.” His eyes bounce between mine through the slits of his mask. “I’m not sure much does anymore.”
It’s a short while later that we suddenly descend, and I can’t help but squeal, turning my face into Rohan’s chest and he cups my head, keeping me firmly against him, his chuckle betraying his amusement.
With a loud thud , and a jostle, Drogonah lands, and Rohan helps me descend on shaky legs, holding me steady.
I go to thank him, but the look in his eyes stops me.
It’s like he’s changed in an instant. He isn’t Rohan right now, he isn’t even a clan leader.
He’s a Dragonbond.
His eyes are hard, cold, a low ember burning within, ready to burst. His posture is tense, seemingly taller and ready for a battle I can’t see.
The air around him also seems to thicken with warmth, like touching him would burn you, and I make sure to keep my distance as he turns and searches our surroundings for threats.
Drogonah does the same, his head moving back and forth as he comes to the left of me, always keeping me in his sight with his right eye.
I look around, nerves settling inside of me when I see the sprouting of ivory sticking out of the ground, cracks flowing through them like an axe cracking open my heart as I spot others following in its wake. They are everywhere, so is an overwhelming feeling of sadness.
“It’s a dragon’s graveyard.” Rohan says it so quietly, like it has to be said this way and it causes goosebumps to rise on my arms.