Chapter 18

Chapter Eighteen

"I f you wish to explore the tunnels, all you have to do is ask . It will be easier if we do it together."

It was unnerving to be chastised by someone younger than you, but Zariah's points were valid. And it was preferable to being in the cave where the woman's sobs loudly echoed through the cave opening as Shava explained to her (yet again) that Zariah had killed her brother on the queen's orders.

"You didn't eat him at least, did you?" I asked, half joking, half morbidly fascinated.

The girl gave a loud sob, and Shava glared.

Zariah gave me a stink eye. "Fire is usually easiest. Then I don't have to look at the bones. Sometimes, though, when I've been out there for weeks without shifting back, I forget things. I smell the blood and terror, and I lose myself. When I come to, there are bones everywhere."

Once again, the world reminded me of just how close I came to being dragon poop.

"Thank the gods you had your wits about you when we met."

Zariah shook his head. "I've known who you are for a while, and I've watched you through the dome. Even my dragon senses our blood bond. I won't ever hurt you. Well, as long as Mother doesn't directly order it, then it's harder to disobey. And I don't think I can outright lie to her. If she isn't specific, I can manage, though."

I frowned. "Is it blood magick, of a sort?"

Zariah's lips turned down, unhappy. "Must be." He bent his legs and rested his chin on his knees.

A cursed prince who turned into a dragon and was forced to obey the queen's whims.

We didn't have a fucking chance.

That's why I needed to get back to the palace and get back to my research. I had to build upon the magick inside of me, and become stronger. No, invincible.

"It would be easier to explore the tunnels with you," I finally said, since the silence had stretched on long enough.

"I would like to stay away for a few weeks as it is. She cannot force me to do anything if I'm not physically there." He sounded so much like a petulant child that it broke me out of my selfish thoughts of research and power.

Zariah was a child, for all the death and fire he'd seen and wrought. I hardened my heart against such thoughts. I'd only been a child like him when my mother had died and I was reaped.

The strong prevailed, and the weak died. It was the way of the world. Adapt or die. Thrive and survive.

"Shall we?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. I'd rather begin my adventures with just Zariah and without a trail of girls and a young boy.

He rolled his eyes, shifting back into the dragon. Crouching down on all fours, he lowered his neck in a clear invitation to clamber on.

"What, don't feel like dangling me from your claws today?"

He huffed, and a trail of embers flew from his nose, smoke wafting up in tight curls.

"Fine," I relented, climbing up.

His scales were warm underneath my body, and I settled myself up above his wing joints, grabbing onto the large spikes around his neck.

"Where do you think you're going?" I groaned as Shava emerged from the cave, arms crossed over her chest. "I—"

Zariah flinched, his dragon ears flattening tight against his skull. His body flattened to the ground.

"What is it?" I asked.

Zariah shook me off, depositing me right in front of the small sliver on the cliff's side.

Then he flew away.

My shoulders shrugged, but inwardly I was pleased.

"Well, it appears I have no choice but to explore this cave and see where it leads. You can help the … new one settle in," I offered magnanimously.

Her eyes narrowed further.

"Cerys."

What? Oh. That must be the woman's name.

"Just so," I said. "Not much choice either way, since I can't get back over until Zariah returns. Might as well explore."

Her eyes rolled. "Just don't die."

Someone didn't wish me dead; what a novel experience. I gave her a grin that didn't feel as confident as I would have liked and squeezed my body in through the narrow cave opening.

* * *

There's nothing in here that can harm you. It's empty, dark space, and nothing more.

It was one thing to say it, quite another, when the stone walls squeezed in on you. My brain spun all the scenarios of me being crushed to death, or asphyxiating.

"Don't be stupid. Shava wouldn't be afraid."

That thought alone propelled me forward, pushing my body through the narrow slits and praying there was a larger chamber up ahead.

The silence played tricks on my brain, the sounds of my body scraping and sliding against stone loud and panicky in my ears. The path narrowed even further until stone pressed in on me from all sides. If I went any further, I would risk becoming trapped, unable to turn around and get back out. The ignominy of dying in a tunnel facedown with my ass in the air made me hesitate.

Until the entire cave shook.

Adrenaline and fear spiked through my body in a potent cocktail as everything rumbled and shook around me. Rocks tumbled and slide behind me and desperately I tried to stay calm. The small bit of light that had been at my back reminding me of the way out disappeared, plunging me into complete, inky blackness.

Don't panic.

It only lasted a few seconds, but it felt like hours. Would the walls fall and crush me? Would the cave-in behind me cut off all the air, and I'd greedily suck the last bits down until I hyperventilated, passed out, and died?

The rumbling stopped, and everything was once again still.

Son of a fucking bitch.

My breaths were loud in my ears, and I struggled to keep them calm and measured. If the air was limited, I would need to use it wisely.

Well, at least my choice was made; I had to go forward.

My hands and feet scrambled, taking stock of my surroundings since I could no longer see shit. In a way, it was a blessing; I could forget about the oppressive claustrophobia because I couldn't see the rock walls pressing in on me.

I pushed hard with my legs to propel myself forward. Too hard, because my upper body shot out into open air with no rock around it, and I fell down. My head hit first, the fall happening so fast I couldn't get my arms up in time. I slipped into a crevice head first, getting wedged tightly by my shoulders and hanging upside down.

This was it. This was how I died.

Blood rushed to my head as my legs kicked ineffectually in the air, my arms pinned at my side. It was times like this that I hated being so intelligent, because I was brutally aware of not only how I would die, but how long it would take. If I couldn't jiggle myself free somehow, the weight of my body would continue to push me down into the hole, compressing my lungs and my heart. Without my rituals, it would likely take only two days to die. Since I had done a few to make myself ‘heartier,' it could take a week until I succumbed.

Unless there was a bigger chamber below me.

It was a huge risk. Did I try to squeeze myself forward and hope there was a bigger chamber below me, or would I make myself more stuck and unable to back out?

Don't panic. Don't panic. This was the perfect time to panic!

No choice. I had to push myself further down, and pray there was a larger opening below me and I'd be able to turn my body around and go back out the way I came.

If I got out of here, I'd never go into another cave alone again. I'd take Shava. Hell, I'd take the damn dragon if I needed to.

The dragon could get me out.

Right. No matter what happened here, there were options.

My body protested as I wiggled down, pushing off the side of a rock wall I could reach with my left leg. The pressure increased all over my upper body and shoulders. My ribs protested. My lungs protested. The rock walls pressed in on me, even though I knew that was ridiculous and rock didn't move inward. My panicked mind was simply playing tricks on me. I had to calm down and take back control.

It was difficult because now I was firmly wedged in the tight crevice, unable to move, and only able to take shallow little breaths.

No going back now.

Ignoring the pain and protests of my body, I kept pushing with my legs. Blood pounded in my ears, every heartbeat magnified as my head throbbed.

Just a little further …

My body protested each fraction of space I gained, compressing my organs tighter and tighter. As I continued, I thanked myself for completing the strengthening rituals I'd done. Without them I might have already passed out, or forced to stop due to the demands on my body.

Unbelievably, I kept pushing. The pain wasn't pleasant, but I wasn't dead or dying. Yet.

One. More. Push .

I couldn't breathe. My chest was too compressed. I was far enough wedged into the rocks that my leg could barely push off from the rock wall. I had a final choice: commit to pushing through the wedge and get one last final push with my legs, or turn back. Either the final push would push me through the whole way or I'd be trapped. And hopefully, Shava and Zariah would figure out a way to rescue me.

A sliver of horror went through me at the very thought of having to be rescued.

Right, one final push.

I took a moment to gather myself, and allow my heart rate the chance to calm down. The darkness felt more oppressive than the rock shoved up against my internal organs, with the trickling sound of water the only thing audible around me. If I stayed in my head too long, it felt like the cave walls were closing inward on me.

Ok, that was enough ‘rest.' I cocked my leg back and prepared for one last, final push.

Here we go .

My leg cocked and bent.

"Zephyr!"

I paused as Shava's voice rang out through the cave. I didn't have the breath in me to whisper, let alone answer her. How the fuck had she gotten over here? Was it divine intervention? Never had I been so thankful to hear another person's voice.

"Are you in there?"

A pathetic wheeze was the only sound I could make. She'd never hear it.

"If he doesn't answer, that's a good thing, right?" Shava asked, quietly enough that it was likely to herself. Unless she had that other woman with her.

"Or it means he's dead or hurt, you idiot," Shava continued, answering her own question.

I would have snorted if I could have spared the air.

She went silent, and the momentary relief I'd felt at her presence spiked into panic as I worried she'd left.

Scrabbling sounds filled the cave behind me, and the sound of cloth scraping against stone.

"Son of a bitch, this shit is tight."

I tried to keep my emotions in check, knowing that I didn't have any room to spare for my chest to heave in thanks. Silent tears leaked from the corners of my eyes before I could stop them, the only physical outlet of emotion I could allow physically. Plus, no one could see them in the dark, so what did it matter?

My situation hadn't changed at all with Shava's presence, but the amount of relief coursing through my body was tangible. What was it about having just another person with you that made a terrible situation bearable? I wasn't used to relying on others in this way. I didn't like it.

"Tight spaces. Just—oh!"

Shava literally banged into me, reaching for the crevice only to discover me already wedged in between it. Her hands drifted over me, one resting on my leg, and the other sliding down my back, focusing on feeling my heartbeat and my small, panting breaths.

"You are alive. That's good."

Other than my mother, she was likely only the second person to feel that way about me.

Fuck. Stop crying like one of the kitchen wenches.

My lack of control was just as terrifying as the situation itself.

I couldn't see her, but I felt how her body contorted around the rocks and me.

"I'd like to pull you out, if that's ok." Her hand still rested gently on my face, so she felt it when I vehemently shook my head.

She drew away, her anger palpable in the air. "What, you want me to push you through to the other side? What if there is no other side?"

An irritated wheeze escaped my lips.

"Just wait a moment. Don't go anywhere."

I would have sworn she'd said the last bit sarcastically, but without seeing her expression, it was impossible to say. Her tentative footsteps echoed around me as she moved, carefully picking her way through the cavern, using a path I hadn't chosen.

Her grunts of labor filled the air as I waited, attempting to keep my breathing regular and even.

"Really picked a good one, didn't you? Urgh!"

Her shout mingled with the sound of tumbling rocks and debris. I hated how my heart rate increased, sweat dripping down my back as it went silent in the cave in the wake of tumbling rocks.

Was she injured? Dead? Would I languish here, slowly dying while her corpse decomposed feet away from me?

My ears strained to pick up the slightest sound.

Nothing.

"Fuck!"

Her voice echoed loudly in the cavern, and I flinched at the unexpected shout. Relief poured through me at hearing her voice.

She shuffled in behind me again.

"All right, I'm back. Sorry to say, but it only narrows further ahead. If you would have pushed any further, you'd be a goner. Let's get you out."

Disbelief warred with embarrassment and shame. I didn't enjoy being told I couldn't do something. Even worse, I hated being indebted to someone because I had been stupid.

"Going to pull you back now." She maneuvered around to my back again, grabbing my arm and giving an experimental tug. After some thought, she dropped it and grabbed my exposed upper thigh instead. "More area to pull from—give me a moment."

Whether she meant that, I didn't get a moment to consider. She immediately yanked me back, hard.

Pain assaulted me, burning a hole in my chest. A whimper left me, but that was all the sound I could spare. It was harder than ever to get any air in my lungs.

"Shit." Her hands felt around the rock. "You've already gone past the narrowest part. I think I can break some of it. Hold up."

She rustled around in her clothing, and must have found what she was looking for. Without warning, she struck, sending sparks flying that illuminated her determined face.

Again and again she struck, with no obvious effects. It did nothing against the rock, as I thought. What had she expected? She—

"Ah, there it is."

WHAM. CRACK.

A different pitch sounded out of the left center of the rock pinning my left side. Shava turned the blade around in her hand and slammed the reddish metal hilt down against that spot as hard as she could.

Impossibly, the rock cracked and split.

I gasped in air as I suddenly had a few more inches to work with. Shava laughed with triumph and brushed more rock away. Avoiding the jagged edges she created, she slowly helped pull me back out of the crevice and back into the main chamber.

Sweat poured down my back, my arms and legs shaking as I collapsed back in the main cavern. Shava kneeled in front of me, taking my head in her hands.

I was not ok.

"Zephyr, are you—"

Caught up in a vicious cocktail of adrenaline, fear, and lust, I seized her and slammed her up against the cave wall, her back hitting it with a muffled thud.

My mouth closed over hers. Minutes ago, I'd been unable to breathe. Now I'd steal her breaths.

Desperation drove me into her, along with the unfamiliar sensations of gratitude and the fear attached to it. I couldn't rely on anyone—it made me weak, and an easy target. I didn't know how to cope with it. I especially was afraid of how much I liked it; having someone else to rely on.

No, I wasn't being desperate. It was just lust; simple lust. I'd fuck her and be done with it as thank you, and nothing more. One hand went around her delicate neck, feeling her pulse push rapidly against the pad of my thumb. Her skin was flushed, eyes bright with arousal.

Lust. It was just lust.

I kept her pinned with my right hand, the left one throwing her skirt over her shoulder. My breeches went down my hips with a single shove, and the next moment my length rubbed against her heat, which was wet, warm, and inviting.

"Zeph," she moaned, jolting me. No one had ever called me that before. Did I like it?

These new thoughts and feelings were confusing. To avoid thinking about them, I thrust into her.

"ZEPH!"

Don't get caught up in emotions. Don't fall for her. You're just grateful to be out of those rocks.

"How did you know how to do that? With the knife?" I clarified as I thrust, not breaking my rhythm or giving her time to think.

"W-what?" she choked, eyes hooded and half-closed with pleasure.

I gave one large thrust, plastering my body against hers and leaning in. My grip around her neck tightened, both of us panting with exertion.

"A-a girl," Shava stuttered out. "From the stone quarter. She told me every stone has a weak spot. You just have to pay attention and find it. She's dead now."

Her eyes sharpened, as if remembering the other girl's demise in excruciating detail.

So, she hit the stone until she found the weak spot.

It was so simple and brilliant that I believed her. Girls from the stone quarter would be well-versed in masonry, so the source was credible, and I couldn't argue with the results.

I was alive.

And fucking Shava into oblivion.

"Please, Zeph, oh gods …"

Her eyes rolled back into her head as I pounded into her faster and faster, my fingers leaving indents around her neck. My other hand dug into her hair and twisted it around my wrist, pulling hard.

I didn't want to hurt her, just discourage her from thinking this was anything other than a quick fuck. I didn't need her developing anything for me, and the feeling was mutual. Clover had always acted afraid when I'd gotten rough with her.

But not Shava.

My harsh treatment of her had the opposite effect. Her heart rate increased, her breathing hitched, and frustratingly enough, her inner walls tightened and bore down on me.

Oh fuck, I was going to—

"AH!"

Hot wetness flooded my cock, my release out of my control as we cried out simultaneously. My hips continued to move against hers as I spent myself into her, her body limp around me.

"Oh my gods. Zeph."

She sank against me, and I let her. I owed her something for saving my ass. Again.

"T-thank you," I grumbled halfheartedly against her.

Her hand stroked my cheek, eyes boring into mine. Or they tried to; I kept mine firmly on a point on the cave wall.

Her arms came around me and hugged me, her face in my chest. My muscles tensed, afraid she'd say something ridiculous, like she cared for me.

"How did you get over here?" I asked. Zariah had flown away, after all.

She grinned at me, puffing up with pride. "I'm a good climber."

My lips parted with surprise. Surely she wasn't suggesting she'd climbed up to the cave hole, had she? Well, I suppose I was about to find out.

"Let us get back to the others. No more caves for today."

Shava nodded and together we headed out into the stifling heat.