8. Riggs

8

Riggs

As I stalked through the academy building, I struggled with my anger.

Anger at Victor.

Anger at Tez.

Anger at Caliel.

My rage toward Caliel was mostly misplaced, and I knew it. I understood why the Gryphon was so conflicted.

Victor was who I wished to tear into tiny pieces, but Tez's two-faced deception cut deeply. Even thinking his name sent rage coursing through me.

That Victor was using that bastard to guard Bree had me nearly spitting in anger. It led to some rather spectacular visualizations…

Getting her to freeze him from the balls up won't be particularly helpful, Caliel growled. Considering she really needs a friend in this place.

A friend? The Gryphon couldn't possibly be serious. He handed her over to Victor. My mindvoice snarled the words.

That is true. But we all have our reasons for the choices we make.

I couldn't believe Caliel was sticking up for the dude.

A very sleepy-sounding Bree broke into the conversation. Tez admitted the sword wasn't meant for him.

Sorry, I was immediately contrite. I didn't mean to wake you.

You two arguing is giving me bad dreams, she said. And Aurora is up to something out there—there's energy flying around like crazy. She hesitated, and refocused. But Tez said that like he meant it.

Well, that is nothing but the truth, I sent to her. Doesn't change the fact that it's sitting there on his back.

Could be worse, she pointed out. Victor could have it, instead.

Go back to sleep, I told her, and broke off the connection. Discussions involving Tez did more than just frustrate me. I didn't understand why Bree and Caliel insisted on sticking up for the man after what he'd done.

I just wanted to shred him.

Alternatively, we could use him in another way. Although if that actually worked, then I would have to see Tez's face. All the time. Every day.

Not a pleasant prospect.

I paused on the stairs, closed my eyes, and took a deep breath. I needed to get a grip. Because it wasn't just Breana that needed me to have a clear head. My entire family was currently hanging by a thread.

Not to mention the Dragon Empire, Caliel stated .

I'd liked it better when he'd been silent. He was definitely stronger, thanks to the crystal feeding.

Tough luck. You will just have to deal, he said .

I gritted my teeth and resumed my upward progress to the fourth floor, and Marcus's suite.

I needed to talk to Rafael.

He answered the door. "Marcus is out flying with Havoc and Riley," he stated.

"That's okay," I said. "It's you I want to talk to."

His brows rose as he met my eyes. Then he stepped back and invited me in.

I followed him to the living area. He moved like a dancer, and his long hair glimmered with all the colors of the earth.

I had no idea how to segue into this conversation, so I just went for it.

"Victor wants to use Bree to breed more Drakes. Caliel thought you might know why Victor would want them."

Rafael stiffened before he moved to look out the window. "Did he tell you that I was the one who captured him?"

My brows rose. "Whoa, dude. No."

The glance he gave me was filled with pain. "Isobel used me to control and bind many of the creatures she eventually killed."

That certainly explained the hostility in Caliel's mindvoice. I took a deep breath and attempted to stay on target. "Why would Victor want more Drakes? He has the Trinity and Finn. He is already powerful with both a Dragon and a Fire Drake. Yet he wants more?"

Rafael's arched brows drew down. "The Trinity has the potential to be very powerful, if it is true that they are a mix of Torshin and Liberi blood. The Liberi would have enabled them to access life essences for energy without direct contact—they can pull it from quite a distance around them. The Torshin side could then take it and manipulate it as a weapon. In the past, only the most powerful Torshin mages were capable of something like that."

He rubbed his temple with long fingers. "But Aurora has used bloodmagic to age the Trinity rapidly, and the bloodmagic, although more powerful, exacts a price." His mouth straightened. "It has been enough that I suspect they have become dependent upon it, and can no longer utilize the energy collected from life essences as a power source."

I worked through it. "So they have to count on bloodmagic?"

Rafael nodded. "It is likely the Trinity can no longer access the blue and green life energies that you see Cara use. They have to rely on blood energy now."

"Okay." I hesitated. "Why does that matter?"

"Blood energy is very powerful, but it is a finite thing," he explained. "They have to create it. It is something Isobel didn't know when she first started using it. And by the time she realized it, it was too late. She could no longer access life-essence energy."

"So—the Trinity has a limitation. That is good news."

"As such, yes. But as long as they have access to blood energy, they are incredibly dangerous."

I considered. "It still doesn't explain why Victor wants to breed Drakes."

Rafael straightened slowly. "That was a project pushed by Isobel. Victor has only inherited it."

"So he's decided to go along with Aurora's idea? And she's carrying out something Isobel started?" I was missing something here.

He grimaced. "When the Torshins infused the Drakes with power of the Elementals, it enabled the creatures to tap directly into the life-essence energy of the lodestones."

"So they aren't dependent on bloodmagic?" I asked.

Rafael turned to meet my gaze. "We used bloodmagic only to control them. To use their Elemental powers, they call upon life-essence energy." He swallowed. "It means they have a nearly limitless source of power. And they were designed to do one thing—kill the Torshins' mortal enemies."

The Dragons. Caliel's words breathed through my mind. They were designed to kill Dragons.

"Dragons," I said aloud.

Rafael nodded.

"But why would Victor need that? Half of the underlords are Dragons. Is he planning on using Drakes to keep them in line?"

He leaned his hands on the back of the couch. "When I was with Isobel, she thought she was running the show. But there was someone always there, in the background, pushing. And I know she'd never admit to it, but she was afraid of him."

I stared at Rafael.

Victor has no reason to hate Dragons, Caliel said. But the Torshins have hated them since the beginning of time.

My pulse raced. The first rule of combat was very simple: know thy enemy.

And I'd been focused on the wrong one.

My mind spun as I descended to the third floor.

When I missed the last step, I landed on my feet, but with a stagger. I was dangerously tired and needed to rest. But I craved Breana like a starving man craved food. Much worse, actually. It was a soul-deep thing. I didn't know if it was because our bond was so new, or if this was a permanent state when one was mated.

Soulbonding, the Dragons called it. And it was a good name. She wasn't just a part of me. She was the most important part.

And Victor had her in his grimy talons.

I gritted my teeth as I entered the third-floor staff quarters. Surely Cara had done her thing, getting the academy organized in the wake of the death of the Emperor. We needed to talk.

Moments later, I paused outside her door. It opened before I could bang on it.

Her vivid-blue gaze met my own as she ushered me in and closed the door. "How is she?"

I fought the surge of emotion that the simple question evoked. "They have Tez guarding her."

Her brows rose.

"He has the sword."

She simply nodded and headed for the kitchen. "I'll put on some tea and get you breakfast."

"I'm not interested in tea. Or food."

The Watcher pointed to a chair. "You will sit. And drink tea. And then eat. We have much to achieve today."

Only that last statement encouraged me to obey the previous two. But I'd only pulled out the chair when Cara suddenly stiffened and held up her hand.

"Change of plans. I need you on the balcony. Sit just around the corner. She'll know you're there, but it can't be helped."

Confusion clouded my tired brain. When I hesitated, Cara pointed to the balcony. "Go. Now," as she headed for the door.

I rounded the corner, but stayed on my feet instead of sitting. My hand itched for a sword, because my instincts were firing like crazy.

I heard the door open. And Cara greeted, "Councilwoman."

Her voice was muffled by the thick glass pane. I planted my ear to the section screened by a curtain. Councilwoman. My fragmented memories supplied the pertinent fact—this must be a Liberi Elder. Or, in short, Cara's boss.

"Who is on the balcony?" a sharp female voice inquired.

"Merely a student. I sent him out there when I sensed your arrival."

"Can he hear us?"

"The door is closed," Cara assured her. I almost laughed at the avoidance of the truth.

The councilwoman got straight to the reason for her visit. "Did you have anything to do with the traitor escaping the Empire?"

"You mean Tyrez?" Cara tapped her chin. "Don't you think it's strange that he hadn't even been granted a trial?"

"That is not the point."

"It is the point. I am glad he escaped. The Empire has become a travesty of what it once was."

"Regardless of its current state, the realms need them." The councilwoman's tone was sharp. "Without the Legion, chaos will reign."

"We've already lost the Legion," Cara said. "We need a plan for how we are going to cope with that."

"Emperor Daize has assured me that he will work with us," the councilwoman insisted. "We must, therefore, find this Tyrez and bring him to justice."

"Are the Liberi assisting in the search?" Cara asked.

The Elder hesitated before she answered. "We have agreed to help. The Cryptid Council will also be sending its resources to track the traitor."

I closed my eyes.

That is a lot of tracking power on the trail of your brother, Caliel said .

"The Emperor is asking for his head as proof," the Elder stated. "He doesn't care if he's alive."

My gut twisted into a painful knot, and my shoulders itched, as though my wings wished to burst free.

"I will notify my contacts," Cara said.

Nothing she'd stated was a lie. But she'd certainly skirted the truth. And the councilwoman was no fool.

"If I find out you had any part in this, the ramifications will be unpleasant," she said.

"Understood," Cara replied.

There was a moment of silence. Then I heard the door open and close.

Cara came onto the balcony and gestured me back into the suite.

"Your nephew is not stupid," she said with a sigh as she headed for the kitchen. "My people and the council are among many who fear the withdrawal of the Legion from the realms. Daize is using that leverage to garner support. And he's demonizing your brother."

My stomach clenched. Daize wanted Tyrez dead. "He knows. Knows that Tyrez is his main threat. It's just been too difficult to get to him, before now."

She nodded. Cara was risking much by helping him. Her gaze rose to mine. "Have a seat. It's time for tea, and breakfast. You must be exhausted, but I cannot let you rest, just yet. We have somewhere to be." And then, she offered a tired smile. "Your special abilities class will be a little unusual today…"

I wasn't sure I saw the point of practicing my talent without Breana, and I told Cara so as she reoriented the gate.

"Practice is valuable at any time," the Watcher said. "But that's not what we are up to today."

And then she took us through the gateway, to a hurricane.

At least it felt like one. We stood on a cliff and squinted into the driving wind. Clouds swirled above us, and the ocean crashed against the rocks far below.

The rain had ice mixed in, yet I wasn't cold. A Dragon thing, likely. They flew above the clouds, after all.

It was frustrating to have a Dragon shifter body without being able to use it.

I turned my back into the wind and faced her. "Why are we here?"

"What do you see?" she asked.

I looked down at the crashing ocean. At the foot of the cliff that we stood upon, was a graveled beach.

It all poked at me, as though I'd seen it before. I was unprepared for the pulse of pure terror that swept through me. Images of Dragons pummeled me, as they screamed and fell into the churning ocean. Memories of burning agony chewed through my insides…

"I've been here before." My voice was barely audible over the screaming wind.

"Yes," she affirmed.

Dragons. Many Dragons. Here in pursuit of a powerful enemy—a mage. But it had been a trap.

"This is where the Legion met its destiny," Cara told me. "Where Finn's father used the parasitic darts for the first time and decimated the Dragons."

My pulse pounded as the fragments of memory continued to surface. This place was painted in pain and blood. "Why are we here?"

She looked down upon the bare rocks below. "Finn's father chose this locale because it is a rare combination of inaccessible and possible. This area is rife with volcanic activity, yet there are enough leylines to permit gateway access. And the weather is so mercurial that it takes a strong Dragon to fly here."

I stared out across the storm-tossed ocean. This place had spelled the end of the Legion as a dominant force across the realms.

"Finn and Ash were both raised on this island," Cara continued. "And the Oracle has foreseen that it will now see the rise of a new Dragon order."

"There is nothing here for us," I rebuked her. "Even Dragons can barely fly in this."

"Dragons that conquer these air currents can do anything," she corrected. "As a training facility, it would be second to none."

I stared at her. "Training facility? For what?"

She was silent for a few moments, and then she looked up at me. "An army," she breathed.

We need to build an army.

Caliel echoed Cara's words as I lined up with Team Dragon for the run.

I smiled at Sid, but as he grinned back, his eyes were filled with questions. They only enhanced what was bouncing around in my head. How could I be here, taking classes like nothing was happening?

That was the entire point, I realized, but this army thing was only the latest in a long line of reasons why I needed to be elsewhere, doing something other than a fitness regime.

If you disappear—it might lead to attention being drawn, and then questions. If anyone checks the timing of your arrival and departure—Razir being alive could unravel everything from your family being dead to Cara helping Tyrez escape.

It was the longest speech Caliel had ever made to me. Life was easier when I didn't have him for a conscience.

Then engage your brain. I must have saved it for a reason.

I pushed him out of my head because I had enough things cruising around in there without him adding to it.

As we lined up at the start, Nar moved close to me, with Leah draped over him.

"No wings today?" he asked.

"I don't have control over them," I said. "They come and go on their own."

"Is what they say about Dragon wings true?" Leah asked.

"I don't know. What do they say?" I replied.

She fluttered her eyes at me. "That touching them is a real turn-on."

I swallowed, remembering Breana stroking… "Don't believe everything you hear."

"We could try it…"

"Like I said, I don't have control over them." That it was the truth added authentic frustration to my voice.

She pouted. "Everyone around here is so booring …"

Cas released us at the start line.

Caliel's not wrong, Breana commented as I began to run.

I know. I'm just not sure what I can do about all this.

You are the focal point, she said. The living lodestone.

Desperation rose within me. That can't be true.

The sword knows. Caliel, again.

Dang it. I don't even have it anymore. It has moved on.

That changes nothing, the Gryphon said.

I shoved him away again, but Breana stayed with me, flooding me with her warmth. It gave strength to strides and they increased until I was flying along the path. I gained ground on the Bellati instructor, and then passed him.

He could take me easily, I knew that. But he was setting the pace for the entire group, and the realization had me slowing down until I ran with him, instead of ahead.

Breana breathed words into my mind. It seems you cannot outrun Fate.

The blasted Gryphon pushed his way back in. You can only run with it, he agreed .

I tried to remember that, less than an hour later, as Cody and the other instructors roped us together in teams and put us to work climbing a cliff.

"Why do I need to learn how to climb an effing cliff, when I have wings?" Adilyn complained as she searched for another handhold.

"The same reason that you need to learn to swim," Leah pointed out. "You never know when you won't be able to fly."

"I'll catch you if you fall," Sid reassured Adilyn. The big Anisau climbed like he ran—without effort. "You know that."

"I do," she affirmed. "But climbing wrecks my nails."

"Gives me a great view," panted Nar from below. I didn't know if his lack of breath was due to effort, or lust.

He certainly was better suited to lurking than doing anything physical. Unless you count sex, Bree commented .

"If I catch you looking up my skirt, I will carry out my threat," Adilyn warned.

What threat? Caliel asked.

She said she'd glamor his balls off. Bree laughed. Don't you remember?

Some things are better forgotten. Caliel's tone was snide, but I thought he sounded a little weaker as the morning progressed.

Bree must have thought so, too. Time to top up on more crystal power, she said. Have fun climbing.

I swallowed as she withdrew. She was deep in enemy territory, and I was dragging my exhausted body up cliffs. If we couldn't convince Caliel to carry out our plan…

Cara said we also needed to build an army. And she had her finger on the pulse of everything around her.

Even if we got the proof, could it stop a war?