42. DAMIAN

Chapter forty-two

DAMIAN

" A urelia!" I cried, her name escaping my mouth, realizing the mistake I had made. I was mad at myself for not telling her sooner. She deserved to know, and I was stupid to hide that from her. She knew I needed a Scaleborne, but I didn't tell her why or by whom. I was stupid to believe that he wouldn't show up. Her face showed disappointment, and the gold in her eyes stopped flickering momentarily. The heart I didn't know I had until I met her stopped beating.

She turned around, and that was when I knew I made a grave mistake. One of the men raised his bow, nocking the arrow to the taut string, aligning it with the center of her figure.

As if in slow motion, I roared with rage, hoping to stop him in time. My leg lifted, kicking him hard in the gut, making him fall off the cliff, screaming.

I wasn't quick enough.

My breaths became heavy, panting with the concern for Aurelia, her figure dropping in front of my eyes. Fighting the urge to meet her at her side, I heard the scraping of metal from the other men behind me, pulling out their swords and knives.

Taking a deep breath, I heaved my body toward the men, kicking, ducking, and moving without getting a scrape.

Was Aurelia okay?

Swooping low, I barely dodged a dagger.

Would I ever forgive myself if she died by my hand?

The other man had scars arrayed all along his skin, purple fleshy marks. He was unsteady on his feet, rocking back and forth with the bow and quiver of arrows draped along his shoulder. The sword affixed to his belt had unclasped and clattered to the floor. Not paying attention to his sword that fell to the ground, he was trying to aim my way, missing multiple times, and drew the string again when I kicked him hard in his gut, sending him stumbling backward, slipping on the rocky terrain along the edge of the mountain. With a scream, he fell backward, his bow plummeting with him.

Lunging for the fallen sword, I grabbed the beige leather sheath, uncovering the bronze sword hidden inside it. The familiarity of it rang through my ears. Tybalt came up close and jabbed his sword, barely missing my side. I raised my sword high with the intent of bringing it down hard on his head, but our swords clashed together. I shifted my weight to bear down, but he was too strong.

Leaning backward, the pressure from our blades releasing, I instantly jabbed the sword to go through his stomach when he conveniently disappeared into a swirl of purple mist in thin air, just like he did the first time we met. However, I still felt a physical impact with my sword.

I still hit someone.

Hearing a loud gasp, I looked up to see the third man's face, the sword deep in his chest, and his eyes opened wide. His skin was bronzed from the streaming light of the sun. He gasped for breath and fell to his knees, immediately falling over.

I didn't have time to wade through my thoughts. I was already a killer. This was not my first kill, so what made this any different? I quickly approached Aurelia's side, watching Belle fly over. Her wings were flapping, and she seemed large in the small area of the island's peak.

"Aurelia!" I yelled, looking at the blood seeping from her side and underneath her body. I couldn't help but think this was exactly how she must've felt when I was hit, but the difference was I didn't have any healing abilities.

The puddle. Oh, my curses. It was so much of her golden blood.

"Aurelia. I am so sorry. This is all my fault." My eyes burned, tears blurring my sight. Her hand, almost frail and weak, reached up, holding onto my own.

She said nothing, just struggled to breathe. Her wheezing gasps through each breath filled the silent air. A flurry of wind rushed behind me. I turned to find Belle landing, nearing close, and nuzzling into Aurelia.

Belle's golden eyes watered, watching Aurelia take her deep gasps.

I couldn't lose her. I couldn't lose her.

"Aurelia, stay with me!" Her eyelids started to flutter, then fell still. Her pulse stopped, her blood going cold. "AURELIA!" I shouted. An animalistic sound roared through the air next to me, and I looked at Belle in pain. She knelt her head down, a single golden tear dripping from her eyes and landing on Aurelia, soaking into her skin.

My own heart stopped in response. I had to physically grab where it sat to hold in the pain that I was experiencing.

Everything fell silent for a moment, and I felt defeated. Belle lifted her head, looking over to an area of jagged rocks and moss about a few yards away.

Belle raised her body and started to move toward where she had been eyeing before. Curiosity arose in me but didn't cover the pain that I felt.

Sebastia was my everything, and then I lost her. I then met Aurelia, and she taught me more about myself than I could ever learn. She taught me how to find happiness in the little things. She taught me that life was about more than death, killing, and murder. She taught me to live in the moment, taking in every precious one I had.

And that was what I did. I lived because of Aurelia. But I wouldn't let her teachings go in vain. She wasn't ready to meet the gates of Ezu 1 . The night of holding Sebastia in my arms became clear in my mind, the way she grazed her fingertips with my own, placing her necklace in my palm, enclosing my hand. Her smile lifted upward, and in pain, telling me it was going to be okay. She was ready. She wasn't needed here anymore.

Aurelia still had so much she needed. She had a kingdom she had to protect. She was the only one that they could rely on. She needed to become heir to the throne to change the course of the future for the better.

My heart throbbed with the pain of losing her, losing our past, present, and future. Everything that we were and would have become. But she taught me to live.

The desire thrummed through me, electrifying my veins. I was going to live. I was going to do what she wanted to accomplish, but couldn't.

I moved my head near hers, knowing that I would never be as close to her as I had wanted and dreamed, but I took this moment to tell her my feelings all the same.

"You're gone, Aurelia," my voice cracked through the hurt. Memories of us flashed through my mind. The memories of saving each other countless times, bantering, arguing, our kisses, everything. "But you taught me that sometimes you have to share what's dear in your heart to move on." I wasn't sure if I could continue my thoughts. My body was going to collapse on itself. I wiped the tears from my eyes, wincing from the pain, unable to make it stop. "So here I go," I breathed, my breaths jagged, my chest shakily moving up and down. "I told myself I wouldn't ever find love again, but you proved me wrong, Aurelia. You have proved me wrong in so many aspects of life, and I was so stubborn that you were the only one in the world that could change my view of it. I care for you so much. I will always have a place in my heart for you. Because of how deeply I care for you, I am going to finish your dream." I thought of the dragon relic. Her one goal in life was to save her kingdom, but she was the one who needed to do it. She needed to finish her quest.

I looked over to where Belle was and saw her head poking through some of the divots inside the large boulder a few yards away. I stood up, painfully leaving Aurelia to see what Belle was looking at.

Flecks of gold pierced my eyes.

The golden egg. It was really here. How was I able to see it?

Reaching it, I peered at the dome. Golden intricate details were carefully carved throughout the outside of the relic. Picking up the egg, the warmth of it puddled my fingertips. Glistening particles of gold danced in ethereal swirls, pirouetting through the air with an enchanting grace.

My eyes remained fixed on it, filled with wonder. Locking gazes with Belle, she nodded her head, reminding me of its powers.

I remembered what Aurelia said about the one wish that the egg held. Only one wish that could be granted to me.

If I wanted to, I could wish for Sebastia to come back to life. I could wish for my town to never have been destroyed. I could save my parents, my neighbors, and my fiancée. I could save everyone and reverse the effects of what happened that night.

But then, I wouldn't have been able to meet Aurelia. I wouldn't have been able to be with her. Her laugh rang through my ears. The quirky way she wriggled her nose when she spoke flashed before my eyes, along with her smile. She was my gold. And I didn't need anything else.

A realization occurred to me. I needed to accept my past. Let them move on. Allow myself to move on. Aurelia was my here and right now. I wanted to have a life with Aurelia. My Queen. Not just for myself, but for the people of her kingdom. Her destiny was not yet fulfilled.

"I wish for Aurelia to come back to life," I muttered as I held the golden egg. I wasn't sure if that was how it worked or would even work.

I held my breath, waiting for something to happen. Glancing at the sun filling the sky, and the clouds dancing across, I shifted my feet, nervous that it wouldn't work.

The saltiness in the air was thick with the elevation. My breaths were quick, passing the lump forming in my throat. Glancing below, I watched as the waves crashed, the open sea ferocious, drifting from side to side.

A glimmer drew my attention. Before me, cascades of golden light danced as the egg unfurled, dividing into four sections. Each side was dedicated to one of the four elements. On one part, intricate designs of fire adorned the relic, accompanied by ancient inscriptions. Another flap revealed water-themed motifs, with undulating waves. Meanwhile, engraved depictions of swirling winds and rugged mountains, as well as lush greenery of vines, adorned the remaining sides of the gleaming golden relic.

The egg grew warmer, making me wonder if the effects of it were starting.

Waiting for something to happen, I felt a soft vibration beneath my feet. I almost didn't notice it, at first, until it got stronger. It only took moments before the very pebbles on the ground started shaking, the soft clatters mirroring a hum.

The Earth was quaking. My knees wobbled, wanting to give out. A heavier hum came from the earth, rattling the dirt and rocks beneath our feet, opening up a gaping slit. Cracks spluttered throughout the hill, rocks falling, a roaring sound ripping through the sky.

From the mountain's cleft, a radiant glow spilled, illuminating a figure suspended in mid-air before me. Her presence was ethereal, her aura similar to a god's.

She was angelic; the strands hanging from her pinned up shimmering white hair blew in the wind, flowing alongside the slits of her deep black dress. The color was so dark, as if it were pulled straight from the depths of the ocean, untouched and unscathed, seamlessly rushing behind her, as if she was in harmony with the chaotic wind, in unison with its element.

Her face was smooth and young, her nose and ears slightly pointy, without the human touch of a curve.

"Damian," she said breathlessly, her voice like a melody floating in the wind. Her eyes were as golden as the sun and radiated brilliance as they pierced into my own.

"Who are you?" I asked, still holding the open egg in my arms, light protruding from its surface.

" Norilusclaicem 2 Satas 3 Railumen 4 ," she elegantly sang in Satas Lerma . "I am Norilus, the Dragon Scalekeeper," she said again, her language changing to my understanding. Her voice was smooth as a river, sweet sounds to my ears. My eyes never wavered from her presence, unable to look away. Her face looked to be of glass, seeming to be an imitation of sleek untouched water, glossy and reflective to the touch.

Was I dreaming? Was I dead? Did the wish reverse and take my life to balance the universe? Thoughts raced through my head, making me feel stuck in time, stuck in a trance. "She's alive, but she is still wounded. You will need to get her to safety," her words a dancing melody as they reached my ears.

I sank to my knees, knowing that Aurelia was alive. Thank the curses. "Where? Where do I need to take her?" I stuttered with hope.

"You don't have much time. Take her to the Scalebound colony. She will be safe there."

"The Scalebound colony? I don't understand," I said, my lips pursing in confusion.

"You will find them on the other side of the west mountain," she said, her arm elegantly pointing to the opposite side of the Forbidden Forest.

I thought about how we would get there. We wouldn't get there in time. She was losing a lot of blood. "How? She's going to die again before we can even reach it!"

"You're talking as though the Scaleborne hasn't connected to a dragon that can take you." I glanced over at Belle, who stood over Aurelia, protecting her body.

"I… I don't understand." I shook my head, my responses delayed. "I thought only Scalekind could see you. How am I able to?"

There was a glint of a smirk on her face as she said, "Scalekind are those with dragon blood. If you remember correctly, you were transfused with dragon blood." My eyes narrowed. Dragon blood? Transfused?

When Aurelia's blood saved me, it was a transfusion of her blood to mine.

"One more thing!" I asked. The woman appeared ethereal, her figure nearly translucent against the backdrop. Her complexion, pale and delicate, seemed so faint that I could almost discern the purplish veins coursing beneath her skin. "The diseased creatures. I know that it was Aurelia's previous wish. How can we destroy them?"

"You surprise me, Damian," she sweetly purred. "You originally came here attempting to kill Aurelia to get a wish of your own, yet you save her and then ask about her wish and not yours?" I lowered my head in embarrassment. I was going to kill Aurelia, yet here I was, saving her. The Scalekeeper was right. "I can't tell you everything, but I will give you a hint, as I know these diseased creatures also threaten my dragons." I paused, listening intently. "The answer is at the Scalebound colony. Tell them: yamceeii 5 axuaeii 6 uama 7 ."

I repeated what she said in Satas Lerma multiple times, so I wouldn't forget. Yamsayee ahhwahee wahma. I attempted to pronounce it, again and again, not to forget what I had to tell the Scalebound colony.

I blinked, and then the lady was gone, unable to receive any more clarity.

The words pounded against my head as I watched the sun slowly rise in the sky, the pastel colors beneath it fading as it reached its blue hue.

"Damian!" It was Aurelia's voice.

"Aurelia!" Snapping from the thoughts of the Scalekeeper, I ran to her side, dropping the golden egg, hugging, grabbing, and kissing her face. Tears appeared in my eyes. Not wanting them to be seen, I quickly blinked them away. "You're alive. Holy curses! You're alive!" Belle came to both of our sides, holding her ground.

"Damian, what's happening?"

We watched as the crack in the mountain turned into a large gaping hole with creatures flying out into the air. The split shattered the earth beneath it, the abyss opening up, dark and gloomy, ready to suck in the remaining of our lands.

Fire radiated around it, the embers hot and gleaming, burning a hole through the sides of the crack, erupting fervently into our own world.

One after the other, they roared, screaming and soaring into the sky. The creatures were huge, with large talons, horns, and scales that reflected off the sunlight. They were thirty times our size, making me want to cower.

"Dragons."

1. Ezu (Eh-ooh): Heaven

2. Claicem (Clay-sem): I am/My name is

3. Satas: Scaled

4. Railumen (Ray-lu-men): Keeper

5. Yamceeii (Yawm-say-ee): (Placed before the verb in a command)

6. Axuaeii (Ah-wah-ee): The verb to use

7. Uama (Wah-ma): Something to have/Theirs/Yours/His/Hers