Chapter 19

Chapter

Nineteen

SELENE

R oars of torment filtered through the air, sharp and fierce, jostling me from my slumber. My sweat-slicked body shot up with a start, clutching a scratchy wool blanket to my bare chest. First, the scent of smoked meat hit me, followed by the salty air. My skull was aching as my eyes adjusted to see a small table by the bedside, my Shadowblade resting on it along with a glowing candle. Heavy lids lifted again as I turned my sore neck to find myself in an easily four-person-sized tent.

Only Ric's hulking form dwarfed it, his lumbering body lounging on a chair, directly in front of the bed. His hazel eyes were shut, a peaceful look upon his face as he let out a light snore. His clothes were freshly washed along with his ink-marked body, the aroma of soap still lingering.

My rigid shoulders loosened but only slightly. Elric was okay. We were okay, even though I didn't know where we were.

My fae ears arched as the laughter of children pealed from just outside the tent, making Ric's eyes crack open. His wide arms reached overhead as he stretched, the small chair beneath him creaking.

"Good morning, sunshine." An inked hand went through his tousled bun as he smiled sleepily, completely at home in this harsh landscape.

Rolling my eyes, I then shook my throbbing head and asked the human Commander, "Where are we, exactly?"

"Umbra," he shifted in his seat again, the chair far too small for him. "Right on the Eastern Coast."

"Okay," I nodded and took a settling breath, trying to piece everything back together. "How long was I out fo—" Before I finished my question, more small giggles broke out just mere feet away.

My spine straightened, the sound actually hitting me and making my empty stomach churn with nausea.

I swallowed roughly, my throat dry and scratchy, "Are those children?"

"Yes?" Ric tilted his head with curiosity, greenish-brown eyes studying me.

"Why would there be children here ?"

His shoulders went rigid before he leaned forward, resting his tattooed arms on his knees. "What do you mean, why ?"

Now I was even more confused because what didn't he understand about my question? It was obvious. "Why are there children still in one of the most dangerous places in our realm?" Sweat started dripping down my back, anxiety prickling across my skin. My knuckles turned white as I clenched my blanket tighter. "We need to get them out, get them safe."

"Because this is still their home . Just because this place is vile doesn't mean life just stopped existing here." His words hit me in the chest, like an arrow through the heart. It had always felt like the High King had snuffed out all life, anything that was good within this cursed continent. "There are still towns here that are filled with families and people. Fae and human, though far fewer humans. Some were here before the High King was even born. But good, innocent people nonetheless. The type of people that helped me at my lowest after Emrys got me out of that fucked up castle."

The Rebellion's Commander took a long, deep breath. His tattooed throat constricted with each thick inhale of air before he said with sorrow, "And those are the same people who pay for their ruler's decisions. Not kings, not the lords or their fanciful friends but these people ," he gestured one large hand towards the opening of our tent where more laughter was trickling. "They pay with their lives every fucking day ."

Unease kept churning in my middle, my throat achingly tight as tears threatened to bloom. The Shadow Realm hadn't always been shrouded in evil and hatred and pure fucking terror. There hadn't always been this malevolent presence lingering here, and even though you could taste the dark magic on your tongue with every inhale, there was still some light in that darkness.

There was always the sun that Ric waited for, that hope.

No longer did only the fire and brimstone hellscape come to mind when imagining Atrium. New images began to sweep through my mind, the ones from the small book Ric had shown me months prior. The tiny and slightly faded portraits of the Fons Court and its neighboring angelic beauties.

There were lush trees, warm sandy beaches, snow-capped mountains, and populous cities before the darkness infected Atrium.

There was life before.

"Then we give these people back their home," I vowed and that made Ric grin, his smile bright and infectious.

"I've always admired your enthusiasm, Selene," he chuckled, his voice deep and hearty and comforting. Like a crackling campfire or soothing cup of chamomile tea. "So how are you feeling? We worked as fast as we could to get you out of that shitstorm of a rockslide and rushed you?—"

"We?" Befuddlement marred my features, but only for a moment before the realization settled in. He didn't mean Minka or Cordelia or Keva, because we were across the Circadian. And then the memory hit me at once, like a shocking blast of lighting.

Being followed.

The man falling in a rockslide.

Ric running to save him.

That fucking High Fae female trying to kill Ric. My upper lip curled.

As if my chilling thoughts conjured her, the tent flap opened abruptly. Bright red, curly hair was the first thing I saw. I startled as the breeze rolled in behind her, my eyes going wide as I took in the High Fae female that'd tried to kill Ric with her icy death magic.

Gone were the layers of fur she'd been wrapped in on the mountain and in their place was a tight thin long-sleeved shirt and matching leather pants that were made for the spring, not Umbra's harsh winter. Very expensive - looking boots adorned her feet, golden clasps and hooks glinting in the low faerie lights dangling from the tent's roof. She held two steaming bowls in her outstretched, freckled hands, a gentle smile hanging off her lips.

Power erupted in my blood as I surveyed the threat that was edging closer to Elric. He popped up from his chair, his bound brown hair touching the tent's roof. "Aw, you didn't need to bring dinner to us," he took the wooden bowls from her hand as she waved him off but he kept going. "I was about to get some for us in just a moment."

"Us?" she chuckled but I kept glaring despite their friendly demeanor. She had just tried to kill him, her power missing and blasting me into the earth. But I trusted Ric and his judgment of people, so I didn't move an inch. "I brought two just for you so you wouldn't fake not still being hungry."

Her gaze swung to me and I noted the trail of light freckles at the bridge of her nose that spread to her rosy cheeks. She was stunningly beautiful and gave a soft, friendly smile. "I didn't know you were awake yet dear, but please," she gestured towards the extra bowl in Ric's already slurping form, one bowl almost finished off. "Take that one and I'll bring more."

She left just as quickly as she came, her scent of frosted berries lingering in the tent. " What. The. Fuck, " I whispered harshly as Ric tipped his bowl back, getting the last drops before placing mine on the table beside the bed.

"That's Mags," he inclined his head like I understood his vague answer.

"Mags," I deadpanned.

"Well, technically Magdalene, but she goes by Mags," he corrected himself, the chair creaking loudly again as he leaned back.

My gaze went back to the tent flap, making sure she wasn't about to bound back in again. "And why are we with Mags when she just tried to kill you?"

Elric barked out a laugh, so loud and full of mirth and disbelief. " Kill? " His hulking body folded over, clutching his stomach as he wheezed out, " Me? "

Now I was getting angry because I knew what I saw and he wasn't taking me seriously. My nostrils flared, anger prickling at my spine. "Yes, you . With a fucking icicle, Ric."

His laughter waned, his face turning serious. "No, babe. She wasn't trying to hurt me or you." An inked hand reached out, gripping my covered feet in solace. "She was throwing up a wall of ice to keep Artemis and me from falling even further down that ledge."

"No," I retracted my foot and shook my head. "I know what I saw. She was trying to hurt us with that hailstone but she missed." Ric snorted but didn't interrupt me. "It hit right in front of me, making me fall through the fucking earth!"

He let out a sigh but not in frustration, "I can't explain how the rockslide tumbled around you like that but I do know that Mags never misses, so if she truly wanted to hurt us, she would've." He sounded so sure, like he truly knew this female. "And why would she try to kill me with her magic when I was helping Artemis?"

My jaw went slack, his reasoning making too much sense. Guilt continued to churn in my middle, the steaming broth next to me no longer appetizing. Everything within me screamed to not trust this stranger, having been burned by others before.

The flap opened once more, another strong gust of wind blowing through as Mags entered. She held another bowl of hearty soup and traded out the empty one in Ric's hand as he chuckled. I stayed completely motionless as I watched the two interact with a familiar comfort that was slowly making my heart ache.

Her long crimson hair fell past her elbows, so bright and lively like a wildfire. She patted Ric's head, a soft look of love gleaming in her light eyes before she turned and tilted her head at me in a bow. "And you must be the infamous Selene Choryrth."

"Yes," I kept still, matching her stare because I didn't know how else to respond. I'd never been in this type of situation before where I went from mistakenly thinking someone was trying to kill me to being friendly. And I also didn't know if it would go back to the prior if I didn't answer correctly. Luckily, Ric was always more than willing to do the talking for anyone.

"Yeah, that's Sel," his voice was chipper and excited, he took a large gulp of broth. "She's usually more talkative," he smiled warmly at me with that boyish grin, helping my shoulders relax. He was my family and I knew with all my heart that I trusted him. I would give her a chance, if only for him. "But there's also been a lot of confusing bullshit in just a few hours so give her some time, Mags."

The female's eyes went wide with shock and she turned towards Ric with a finger pointed at him as she scolded him like a petulant child. "That mouth is absolutely appalling and you know better than to speak like that, Elric."

His cheeks bloomed with color as he shook his head with embarrassment and rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry," he muttered but she was still pointing at him like a disapproving mother.

Shaking him off, Magdalene looked me directly in the eyes and held a hand over her heart. "You're safe here. No one will try to harm you." She nodded at the soup, "Please, eat something. Ashera should be here in a few with some new clothes." Her face turned solemn, fiery eyebrows downturned. "The ones you had on were too tattered to fix."

"Thank you," I peeped out as red bloomed on my cheeks because I'd forgotten I was still completely nude beneath my woolen blanket. I'd gotten used to not wearing anything, having to shift from one form to another, so it made it easy for me to forget, but not for everyone else around me.

And I knew clothes were going to be a requirement for meeting the true people of Atrium.

It turned out that the encampment was only about a two-hour walk from where we had our run-in with the rockslide. So by the time I was bathed and dressed in a comfortable tunic and breeches after being knocked out for hours, it was already nightfall.

That salty air continued to carry on the breeze as the ocean roared just outside the small mountain range protecting the camp. There were countless bonfires scattered throughout the large oceanside valley of dark leather tents. Their smoke plumed in the air but disappeared before rising high enough in the sky for others to see from a distance. Someone's magic must have been working profusely to keep the smoke at a steady level and it was impressive.

Despite it being near most people's bedtime, the continuous squealing laughter of children never faltered as they ran around, wooden dolls and toys in hand. Tiny pixies were zipping around as a green goblin and forest nymph walked the perimeter of the camp with swords at their sides. Both stuttered in their steps as they saw Ric and I walk by, heading towards the center of camp.

"So… What is this place?" I asked with a lifted eyebrow as two young men rolled a barrel of ale towards their small tent while snickering.

"It doesn't have a name," the human man that Ric had saved answered, his green eyes locking onto mine. Artemis was his name, and his voice was stern, his reply clipped and a little off-putting.

Magdalene patted his shoulder, "No need to be so protective, darling." She smiled at me and then Ric, that soft love echoing in her eyes as she stared at the latter. "We can trust them."

Artemis only grumbled something about Liam, pressed a light kiss to the side of her head, and walked back towards the outcropping of tents at the border of camp. "You'll have to excuse him. He's very suspicious of newcomers."

"Understandably so," my head bobbed in agreement as I wrapped my fur coat tighter around myself. I had felt that way just moments before and that paranoia still writhed within. Although it was now a low simmer rather than the raging boil of distrust from earlier.

We were strangers after all—well, I was.

We passed by a striking human woman, tawny cheeks flushed with health and thick, black hair braided into a crown. She held a scrap of leather and a needle in her hands, stopping her sewing to stare at us in awe as we followed Mags. Ric flashed her a saucy grin that had her blushing, head looking back down at her project.

"The main fire is this way," Magdalene held her arm out towards the largest smoke plume but before we could continue following her to our next destination, two small children ran up to her screaming.

"Did you see a dragon this time?" a little girl, no older than five years old, squealed in excitement as the small boy looked up at Mags with stars in his blue eyes. Both had human-shaped ears, their matching blonde hair tucked behind them.

But the little girl had long canines, too animalistic to be fully human. Her twin brother kept silent but expectant as he gazed at Magdalene, his small boots twitching with joy as he waited for her answer.

Mags leaned down to both of them and plopped a hand on each of their heads. "Not this time, little dreamers, but you'll be the first I notify when I do," she winked and the kids both let out shrill, excited yips.

The kids scampered away as she led us to the empty fire, everyone around the camp still milling about and keeping busy with odd jobs. Well, at least that was the excuse Magdalene used, because I was pretty sure they were just giving us a lot of space.

I wanted to see more, to ask more questions, but I didn't want to overstep so I just followed Ric's lead and sat next to him on the log bench.

Another burning hot bowl of the same soup was placed in each of our hands and I sipped on the warm broth, letting it soothe my insides as I studied the small camp. Magdalene and Ric chattered excitedly amongst themselves as I took everything in. There had to be about two hundred or so people here, all differing types of fae and humans coming together in a land fueled by hate.

As I had dressed, Ric explained his and Mags' relationship. Now knowing their history, I felt more at ease but was still slightly on guard. It was nothing personal against the fiery High Fae, my body just wouldn't let me not be on guard.

Magdalene had been a part of the group of people who worked within the Castle of Umbra and helped raise Ric, along with the other children who were left parentless. Even with her pure High Fae blood, she didn't hold any disgust towards humans like so many others within Atrium did.

She wanted what we wanted… A peaceful nation where all would be welcome.

No more slavery, no more death or war or corrupt magic.

So when I burned the Castle of Umbra down and slaughtered the Umbran guards, she took her chance and got all the kids and slaves out of there, freeing them. She led them here, to the Eastern Coast of Atrium, where they were building a ship to take them to Ladon in hopes of reaching Jindera.

To reach freedom because they were being pushed out of their own country.

Their home.

I kept quiet during their talk, only answering when asked a direct question because I was still absorbing the people and everything around me. I wanted to get Ric alone again, to ask him more about what was going on around us, and how we could help these people reach their destination. But he was absorbed by his adopted mother and I didn't want to pull him away from her.

He needed this time with her.

For an hour, Ric stayed by Magdalene's side as he gushed about Ladon and the Rebellion. About Emrys and me. About his best friend Minka and his new love Keva. We were still at war in Ladon, the entire continent practically on fire, but he was so proud to tell Mags about all the changes happening within our country and how we could bring that to Atrium as well.

"They had fruit trees and bushes and open gardens filled with every type of food you could imagine," Ric's arms were wide open as he told her about our short stint in Jindera and how glorious that country truly was. More people had gathered around the fire, taking their own bowls of soup and passing around cups of red wine. The Commander's inner child was coming out through his skin, stars in his hazel eyes as he kept going. "I'd never seen so many types of fish in my li?—"

His words were interrupted by an ear-piercing screech that left my heart pounding, sweat beading on my back. "What was that?" My voice was shaky and I didn't know why.

This ominous feeling of dread crept through me as Mags' bright eyes went cold, "The dragons."

Now Ric was on high alert, all boyish charm leaving him. A warrior took his place, his face stern and protective. "Dragons?"

Magdalene nodded as Artemis took a seat next to her and finally spoke, "We've heard their cries intermittently for months within those mountains. They would stop for a few days or weeks at a time and then start up again, no true pattern, but…" He stretched out his hands towards the fire and shivered but not because of the cold. "We can feel their pain... Their anguish. To hear one of our greatest creations of the Divine suffering like that… It's," he gulped loudly, "ungodly."

My heart was racing, the feeling of anxiety being overtaken by hope but I didn't want to get ahead of myself. Instead, I slowly asked with bated breath, "You know where they are?"

"Of course," Mags tilted her head. "Just outside of where we started tracking you two. We didn't know who or what you were and if you were a part of that… that barbaric nightmare."

Elric was breathing heavily, contemplating everything she'd just said, but I was already setting my empty bowl down on the log.

We knew where more dragons were, where more of my kind were trapped and being tortured by corrupt assholes, and I couldn't just sit by while they suffered. I was already up and moving when Ric's hand wrapped around my forearm and he pulled me back, "Just wait a second, Sel."

Taking a deep breath, I looked into his hazel eyes, "They could be dead in a second." I pulled my arm from his grasp but Magdalene stepped up to us.

"If they wanted them dead, they would've killed them months ago when this began."

Her words made sense and I already knew that, but it didn't ease the fire building within. We came here for the amulet and for the answers we so badly needed, but those dragons needed to be freed, needed to be saved even if that meant delaying our mission further.

I looked back to Ric's soil-colored eyes and then to Mags again, both a plea and a promise in my words. "We have to help them."

"And with you here, we will," Mags promised, her freckled hand on my shoulder, determination in her eyes.

The familiar warmth of the sun's kiss warmed my flesh, but it wasn't enough to bring that heat into my bones, into my soul.

I didn't think it would ever be enough without him.

And even though everything in my soul was rebelling against this mission, begging me to continue on my search for Emrys, I had to push him to the back of my mind.

Had to focus on the present and the matter at hand: freeing dragons from sadistic fucks.

Unhooking a fitted leather suit that was strapped on my thigh, I slipped my feet into it quickly while studying my surroundings, trying to locate that same howling dragon.

About fifty or so of the strongest warriors came with Ric and me back to the smoking mountain just a few hours outside of their encampment. Only I flew back in my dragon form, scouting the tops of the mountains to find any of Umbra's troops hiding within. We had gotten lucky as our fighters crawled through the rough terrain, with no threats waiting to strike them down.

Now they surrounded the lower part of the mountain, looking for another entrance or escape route to block off as I looked directly down into the steamy pit. The ashy air was silent for a moment, like the world had taken a deep breath before the chaos was unleashed. Rumbles of misery followed by the swift sound of a whip against flesh had the hair on the back of my neck rising. Smoke billowed out, the smell of misery potent within it as that poor dragon bellowed out once more.

It was heart-wrenching and painful to hear, that agony echoed into me.

And that screech…

It was one of a kind.

So strong and powerful, that screech alone could kill you upon earshot if she deemed it necessary.

It wasn't just the Gods' children that they held there, their anguish so dominating that it rattled my bones.

It was the Gods themselves.

And that was Reombarth being tortured, her purple scales most likely oozing the blood of our Divine as she was mutilated.

"Holy shit," I whispered against the chilling breeze now cutting into my flesh.

The strong scent of Medies trailed up on the wind, causing my nose to wrinkle in disgust as I kicked a loose rock into the abyss of the crater below me. Sulfur mixed with blood overpowered the strong aroma of dark magic as I stared down into pure darkness. Another roar shook the ridge, causing more debris to fall into the active volcano. The mountain was feeble, crumbling with even the slightest movement?—

An echoing uproar followed by a bellow of affliction sent more rocks tumbling down.

They were so close… So damned close that I could scent their golden blood a few yards away.

Unsheathing my Shadowblade, I placed it between my teeth as claws sprouted from my fingertips. The volcano's entrance seemed too narrow to swoop down in my dragon form without alerting everyone inside or causing it to crumble around us.

The element of surprise was to play a huge part in our attack, storming them at once from all sides. I couldn't make too much noise, couldn't send a blast of pure Godsfire without tipping off the guards on duty and giving them time to call out for reinforcements.

Gripping the frail rocks, I started to climb down the mountain, moving towards the center swiftly as sweat beaded across my brows from the heat pulsating upwards. A stinging twinge bloomed across my scale-covered palms and the pads of my claw-tipped fingers as I held onto the uneven stones but I didn't stop in my descent nor did I shift fully.

Golden blood dripped from the cuts in my skin, rolling down the rocks before it evaporated into the mountain's balmy air. My hands were healing slower than normal from the dark magic surrounding this place, but the cavern grew narrower the further down I went. I was certainly glad I hadn't shifted because my dragon form couldn't fit through it quietly.

Hollow footsteps echoed from the lowest level of the mountain the closer I scaled down it. More bloodcurdling cries littered the air along with howling laughter at our Gods' agony. Red fogged my vision, the bloodlust taking over. Holding back a snarl, I breathed in and out of my nostrils to calm my boiling veins. Those rotten creatures thought that they could torture our Gods without any repercussions. They thought that there wasn't a bigger monster than the master that they served.

Arrogance would be the death of every being in this mountain that didn't bleed gold.

Taking the Blade of Vita from my mouth, I clutched onto the stones with a single clawed hand and my feet. One of the guards, dressed in black rusted armor, walked below me on a wide bridge, never taking his eyes off of his shuffling feet as if he were counting the rocks beneath him. Scorching hot lava rolled beneath the interconnected platforms, just one misstep away from falling to death.

Did you find the other entrance? My voice slipped into Elric's mind, opening the connection between us.

I wouldn't strike anyone down until I got the go-ahead from Ric, not wanting any to escape their fate at our hands. And that power gifted to me at birth by Bomris, the Dragon God that oversaw the Court of Shadows, had come in handy time and time again.

Yes, we located two, he replied immediately, his words loud and clear as though he were next to me. Both are blocked and ready for these sadistic fuckers to be smoked out.

Another set of laughter boomed from the right side of the corridor lit up by faerie lights and out came a gaggle of Umbran guards through a lengthy tunnel. One of them grasped a weird contraption that held internalized lightning in a glass, the tip covered in golden liquid.

Not just any liquid… But the blood of our Gods.

The Blood of the Divine.

Four more guards came from a tunnel on the left side this time, a small group of Raken trailing behind them in a frenzy of rotting flesh and bony limbs. The sound of stomping boots turned to a pounding on the stone floors as a dragon with black scales and a similar build to Haco, but smaller, moved behind the cursed creatures. The dragon's nostrils flared with irritation and its head swung towards my position on the wall as I tightened my grip on my Shadowblade.

Steam blasted my face from my proximity to the volcano's core. Holding my breath, I watched its black eyes narrow to slits as the beast made direct eye contact with me but it didn't make a sound or move. Its glistening horns of black and purple rose above its head in a grand, deadly span. They could impale person after person on those weapons but the dragon stayed completely still, keeping its watchful gaze on me.

Pushing into its mind, I found nothing but murky cobwebs covered in a black gooey substance. Can you hear me? I sent the words into his consciousness to which the dragon shifted its head to the side, still glaring at my crouched position. Black scales glistened in the gleaming faerie light as its long tongue snuck out of its maw and licked the crusted golden blood off of its teeth in show.

My name is Selene… I am here to help you, I prodded once more but the dragon still didn't respond. I didn't even know if they could hear me or if they were too far gone, their soul lost forever, but that wouldn't keep me from trying again.

I would not lose another soul to Medies .

I can help you. Gold flashed in the dragon's eyes at my soft words but quickly disappeared back into the darkness as one of the guards rammed the lightning rod into his back leg. The large beast of prey roared out at the skies, causing the mountain to shake as the guard who shocked him shouted, "Move you disgusting beast!"

Rocks crumbled onto the stone floor from the echo of pain as the guards looked up towards the falling debris, throwing up shields of magic to block the damage. The dragon whimpered before the guard shocked him once more and the others let out a stream of laughter at the poor beast's pain.

That familiar crimson haze took over my vision as that beaten-down dragon dropped to the ground, his tattered wings and scarred face shaking from exhaustion. My heart was racing, pounding in my chest so wildly that a roar of blood flooded my ears. I couldn't hear anything besides the soft whimpers coming from his bloodied maw. I couldn't smell anything besides that decrepit scent of dirtied blood from his possessed soul.

And I couldn't feel anything besides pure rage at the abuse being displayed.

My claws elongated further as I examined the golden blood mixed with black spreading across the dirt floor and how the dragon wasn't healing, the dark magic embedded too deeply.

Another piece of stone tumbled down from my talons digging into the mountain with force, falling directly on top of one of the guard's skulls. I didn't mean for that to happen, but then the male fell to the ground, crimson leaking from the side of his head where the rock made contact.

The Umbran soldiers' laughter turned to shouts as they followed the trail where that stone had fallen until one pointed at my unconcealed position, screaming to grab a hold of their weapons. I responded with a feral grin as I palmed my Shadowblade before launching myself at the cluster of them.

I never liked turning down a challenge.