Page 76 of Wrath of the Dragons (Fear the Flames #2)
Chapter Fifty-six
Elowen
I rest my hands on the railing, staring in the direction of where Mae told me to investigate.
I can’t see it from here, but when I think of the dense forest at the base of the mountains, I feel a tug on my ribs again.
I’m supposed to be getting ready for the ball, but every time I try to direct my steps below decks, something brings me back here.
I hardly slept and spent the night lying on my side while staring out the window in our cabin.
Mae’s voice echoed in my skull into the wee hours of morning.
We informed Saskia, Ryder, and Zarius of the prophecy once we returned, but the only one who believes in prophecies is Zarius.
He seemed unsettled, but had no theories as to what it could mean.
A prophecy is what altered the course of my life.
I was born to rule Imirath and beaten before the throne.
My blood has seeped into the stones of the castle, and I live within its walls, its crevices, its very foundation.
My presence beats like an invisible heart buried so deep the pulse drives my father mad, knowing one day I’ll come to take what’s mine.
Some prophecies don’t come to pass for years.
Others are so vague nobody knows if they truly did or are still awaiting fate to fulfill the messages given to seers.
The dragons fly in the direction I’m looking but always alter their course to return to me, and I wonder if they sense something as well.
Something lingers out there, and it feels like I’m swimming in dark waters, unable to see into the inky depths monsters inhabit, waiting to drag me down.
“Lead the way, princess,” Cayden says, striding up to me and leaning a hip into the railing.
“What?” I ask, clearing the fog surrounding my brain.
“It’s clear you need to see whatever is out there, and you’re not going without me.” He points at the dragons. “I also can’t climb onto one of them without dying so make your decision.”
I bite my lip. “How long do we have before the ball?” The day was spent discussing possible battle plans with Zale and Zarius, and the sun is already setting.
He pulls out his pocket watch, quickly doing the math in his head. “If we’re taking into account the several hours you’ll need to get dressed, not enough.”
I roll my eyes. “Deduct the several hours you’ll spend practicing your glare in the mirror and we’ll be grand.”
He tucks it back into his pocket. “We have an hour.”
I nod. “The dragons are uneasy so give me some time to calm Basilius before getting on.”
Calithea may have carried him on her back while he was unconscious, but I don’t think she’d accept him as willingly while conscious.
The dragons can sense my emotions, and probably knew how desperate I was to get him out of there.
All the dragons adore him, most likely because he arranges for their favorite meats to be brought to them and constantly sneaks them sweet treats, but I don’t want to risk their wrath if he tried to ride them, even with me in the saddle.
I begin humming the soothing tune that calms them when they awaken from nightmares and press my forehead into Basilius’s as his claws sink into the harbor and he shrinks to my height.
All the dragons are large, but Basilius is massive.
Cayden watches as I continue humming and drag my fingers down his scales as I move along his body and climb into the saddle.
He bristles beneath me, growling low in his throat when Cayden steps onto his wing, but I press my hand into his neck and continue the melody, gesturing Cayden forward with my other.
Once he’s settled behind me with his arms wrapped around my torso, Basilius splashes through the low waves and kicks off the sand, flapping his lavender wings to carry us over the gate in the harbor and into the sky.
The people of Galakin stop in the streets as the dragons fly above them, casting the shadows of their wings over their city.
Some look at them in wonder and awe, while others run for shelter.
To those who worship fire, the dragons must seem like gods.
The buildings give way to palm trees, and Basilius takes a right when I spot the river that separates Zario and Zraka.
The banks are lined with sun-bleached rocks where bright-colored snakes sun themselves.
I shudder. Snakes have always unnerved me.
Sorin overtakes Basilius, followed by Venatrix and Delmira zipping past, but Calithea remains and nudges Basilius with her snout, making him hum happily.
The forest opens into a clearing and a crystal lake catches my eye, as do the ribbon fish swimming within, their long tails swishing behind them in colors of purple, pink, and yellow.
They’re beautiful but, like most brightly colored creatures, extremely venomous.
Two stone buildings stand on either side of the lake and are connected by a wrought iron bridge that glitters in the sunlight.
As we get closer, I realize they’re temples.
One has a crescent moon at the top and the other has a star.
It must be a worship site for the gods who blessed us.
The moon temple is on the left, hewn from stone so black it must be pure obsidian, and on the right is a white temple with blue veins running through it.
They remind me of our thrones, I realize.
Obsidian and moonstone. Basilius lands along the shore, and the fish dart into the depths.
The forest is humid, and the air itself is sticky.
I gather my curls in my grip as I slide off Basilius, fanning the back of my neck before letting them go.
“Let’s check there first,” I say, gesturing to the obsidian temple that Cayden hasn’t removed his gaze from.
Skulls are chiseled into the base of the pillars that line the entirety of it, and the phases of the moon are displayed above the entrance, reminding me of the tattoo he has on his ribs.
I wouldn’t consider it to be in ruins, but vines creep along the forgotten site, over fallen pillars and the chunks of the ceiling that have collapsed.
We climb up the steps that are as dark as a starless night, dodging the moss and weeds peeking through the cracks.
It’s completely bare inside aside from the altar made of the same black stone and a dried-up pool at the center.
Cayden draws his sword, though it looks like no soul has been here in centuries, and spins in a slow circle as he nears the altar.
He drags his hand over the slab, clearing the dust, dirt, and yellowed palm fronds.
A faint pulse is absorbed by my sandals, and the hair on the back of my neck stands on end as Cayden reads the words etched into the altar.
“Nobody can escape the darkness, it awaits us all,” he says. “I translated it from Ravarian so it may not be exact.”
The temple groans as if coming alive from Cayden’s voice, and he rushes toward me, pressing one hand into my back and keeping his blade extended in front of me.
My chin jerks up at sudden movement, and water begins cascading from the tops of whatever pillars remain.
Some arc over our heads and fall into the shallow pool that runs the length of the floor.
Cayden lowers his weapon as a gust of wind slams through the open archways and dots our skin with droplets.
It’s incredible.
He looks down at me as I lift my lavender skirt and step into the pool, finding my footing in the knee-deep water before releasing it.
The slim golden chains hanging from the top of my two-piece shift against my stomach as I wade farther.
Cayden’s dark eyes track my movements, but he’s unnervingly still as his pulse hammers in his neck.
Power radiates off him as shadows stir like coiling snakes in the corners.
The markings on my hands and arms pulse in time with my heartbeat when he steps into the pool and slowly walks toward me.
“I feel as if I’ve seen this in a dream,” he says.
“I didn’t think you dreamed.” I circle one of the falls. “You’re usually restless at night.”
“Not often.” His voice is gravelly and rough.
“But whenever I do, you’re always in them.
” The obsidian water ripples around us, but I can’t tell if it’s because of Cayden or the water that continues pouring.
He may not think he has any magical abilities, but he believed in me when nobody did, not even myself, and this is me returning the favor.
“I think I dreamed of you before we met. I never saw your face, but I knew it was you.”
“How did you know?”
“The peace I felt.” He catches me before I can dip behind another fall and presses me to his chest. His eyes are nearly black, and his skin is feverishly hot.
I slide my hands along his shirt and hook my finger through the chain of his arrowhead necklace.
“I’ve only ever experienced peace in your presence. ”
“Is peace what you’re feeling right now?” I ask. He wraps a hand around the back of my neck, and my markings tingle as he brushes his lips over mine. “I know the magic within the temple is affecting you. I know you can feel it.”
“I can assure you that the gods are the last thing on my mind right now, and what I’m feeling has nothing to do with them.” I shake my head, but he uses his other hand to grab my chin and stops my movements. “Only you can bring me to my knees in worship, Elowen Veles.”
I shiver, but it has nothing to do with another breeze sprinkling my skin with more droplets and all to do with the unyielding intensity Cayden possesses. The pull to him is so strong that it’s nearly painful, but he doesn’t release me from this immobilizing hold.
“To the next?” he asks, though the water hasn’t stopped flowing.
“Only if you want to leave.”