Chapter 26

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

T oday's trial involves us spending the night in the Keres Forest, a deadly place full of dangers at every turn.

Lethina told me that Keres means death spirits, which didn’t help my nerves one bit. Encountering the lost ones was enough for me. I don’t need to experience any more death spirits in my lifetime.

Kyle stands at my side on the outskirts of the Keres Forest, his fingers threaded through mine as we wait for the trial to commence.

It’s been three days since the first Dragon Trial, and I’m more nervous now than ever. Knowing Atlas has the ability to mess with my mind and get in my head just like Amaros can terrifies me. What if he does that to me during the trial? It would be enough of a distraction to get myself into a lot of trouble, if not killed. Especially with what this next trial involves.

They allowed us the courtesy of starting here on the outskirts of the forest, rather than in it, although being here now, I’m not sure how it’s a courtesy. Mysterious shadowy creatures lurk in the forest, hiding behind large trees, watching us with beady orange eyes, and all I can think of are all the other dangers we can’t yet see.

I glance over at Atlas and Rhea, who seem prepared to bolt into the forest at any moment. Lethina and Brogan even seem confident about this trial.

But Kyle and I aren’t from here. We have a huge disadvantage compared to all of the other pairs who grew up here in Pyrrhus. At least for this trial, it doesn’t matter that I’m not a dragon shifter because no one is allowed to shift while in the forest.

A scream echoes in the distance, and I think back to what Lethina and Brogan said about the various creatures living in the forest. One in particular that sounds like someone screaming. As if this forest isn’t scary enough, it just had to have a creature that does that.

I glance at the other six pairs still left in the trials and catch Atlas’s eye. He stares at me for a moment and then refocuses on the forest.

Drakon stands with several guards off to the side, speaking to them in a hushed voice as we wait for his command that the trial has begun.

“You okay?” Kyle asks me, his handsome features twisted with the concern I know he holds for me.

I smile up at him. “I will be when all of this is over,” I tell him honestly.

Drakon whistles, grabbing everyone’s attention. “Welcome, participants, to the second Dragon Trial. I trust you are all prepared for what is to come. Although, in saying that, perhaps one can only be so prepared when it comes to Keres.” His tone turns serious and is laced with warning. “This forest holds dangers you can’t even begin to comprehend.”

I glance over at Lethina, and she smiles nervously.

“In a moment, I will sound the horn that the trial has begun. But as a reminder, you are not allowed to shift into your dragon when in the forest. I have used powerful magic to prevent you from doing so. Everything else goes.”

All of the pairs stand spaced out by quite a substantial distance. I look over at the female to our right who is crying already, and I worry how long she’ll make it if she’s already in that state. It’s going to take some serious mental strength to get through this. I know it. Even without having experienced this forest before.

The horn sounds, and all the pairs move into the forest. Some creep slowly, with caution, and others, like Atlas and Rhea, charge through it. We’re going to be in this forest for the night, and we don’t have to find anything like we did for the last trial. It’s just a matter of survival. So we’re opting for the approach-with-caution tactic.

I follow Kyle, who walks slowly through the bushes on high alert. There are no rules in these trials, as we came to find out during the last one. So we have to watch our backs for dirty tactics from the other pairs. I wouldn’t put it past Atlas and Rhea to try and take us out. The less competition they have for the third and final trial, the better. And they know it.

“Keep your eyes open and stay focused, okay?” Kyle says.

I push a branch to the side and out of my face as we move through the forest. “Okay. Do your powers work? We should test them and see.”

“That’s a good idea.” Kyle stops walking and attempts to use his powers, but he’s unable to call upon them.

I do the same and find I can’t access mine, either. We’re both strong fighters if the need arises to engage in combat, so I’m confident enough in that anyway.

“Lucky you can fight, huh?” Kyle says playfully, as if reading my mind.

We continue through the forest for about an hour, navigating our way through it as quickly and calmly as we can before nightfall, and by this point, we’ve lost the other pairs and are on our own. We haven’t come across anything too dangerous yet, but the thought of having to spend an entire night here freaks me out.

A branch snaps nearby, and I freeze.

Kyle holds his finger to his lips and grabs my wrist, gently tugging me behind a nearby tree. My heart races as I plaster my back against the tree, hoping it isn’t one of the deadly creatures of the forest. Without our powers, we can’t defend ourselves against these creatures. And we can’t exactly fight them by hand.

The rough bark digs into my fingers as we wait, remaining as still as possible. Leaves crunch as someone or something moves through the forest.

I glance up at Kyle, but he’s so focused, he doesn’t notice me looking at him.

“We’re going to run for it, okay?” he whispers. “Don’t look back. We have to find somewhere safe where we can hunker down for the night.”

“Somewhere safe? If such a place even exists in this forest,” I panic whisper.

He holds his hand up, gesturing for me to wait.

“Go!” he says, and we both take off running.

Thin branches and shrubs whip across my skin, cutting and scratching me as I dart through the trees. I ignore the pain and push through deeper into the forest. Kyle is in front, but I’m keeping pace with him. He told me not to look back, but I need to know what’s chasing us, if anything.

I glance over my shoulder and trip on a tree root that sends me flying to the ground. I scramble to my feet, looking around for something about to attack me, but I’m alone. Kyle is nowhere to be seen.

Did he carry on without me, without noticing I’m no longer behind him? This is bad. I walk deeper into the forest in the direction I am sure Kyle was running.

I catch movement in my peripheral, and every little sound startles me. It’s as if the forest is alive, communicating with itself on how best to handle the unwanted intruder. Every cell in my body tells me I shouldn’t be here. That I don’t belong.

Something snakes up my leg, and I scream, looking down at the vine that has crept up from the forest floor and winds its way up my leg.

I reach down and attempt to yank it off me, but several more vines sprout up through the ground and latch onto my wrists. I struggle against the vines, but they only wind tighter. It hurts, their tiny thorns cutting into my skin. The vines pull me to the forest floor, which slowly opens up, and I realise what’s happening.

The forest is trying to eat me.

“Help!” I scream, and then a vine sprouts up and snakes across my face, blocking my mouth.

With wide eyes, I scan the forest around me, searching for a way out of this. Something inside calls to me, telling me to burn through the vines. I don’t understand it, but as soon as the thought passes through my mind, my body ignites. Flames lick across my skin, engulfing the vines.

The vines let out a screech and unwrap from my body, sinking back deep into the earth below.

I scramble to my feet and back away as the flames slowly dissipate. Raising my hands, I stare at them as I try to make sense of what I was just able to do. How do I have fire powers? I’m not a dragon shifter.

Is that what they were? Fire powers?

Someone screams, and it sounds a lot like Kyle. I take off in the same direction. Is something attacking him? Possible scenarios plague my mind as I sprint through the forest in search of him. The forest grows darker, as if it’s working against me.

The screaming sounds again, only this time, it’s like Kyle’s above me. I stop running and slowly look up at a strange-looking white creature with red-tipped fur. It stares down at me with four beady eyes, its ears pulled back. It opens its jaws and screams at me, one that sounds just like Kyle.

I back away from it, breathing hard as it watches me, tilting its head to the side at an unnatural angle. Then I sprint as fast as I can away from it. My heart beats so quickly I feel like I’m going to pass out. Goose bumps prickle my skin, and a tremble jolts through my limbs, encouraging me to run faster. The forest groans and creaks with various sounds while I run through it.

I need to find Kyle.

I don’t know if I can survive Keres without him.

Voices sound ahead, and I’m sure one of them is Kyle’s. Although after what I’ve experienced, it could be a trap. The forest tricking me again.

Slowing down, I creep through the trees with caution, taking my time to try and keep noise to a minimum. I’m careful with my footing, and as I draw closer, I am almost certain I hear Atlas’s and Rhea’s voices, too.

Shit.

The forest is dark now, but my angel vision is strong, and I’ve adjusted to the gradual darkness since we entered the forest. However long ago that was.

I spot three figures up ahead and move closer to get a better look. Kyle and Atlas are arguing, and Rhea stands off to the side, her gaze darting around the forest every now and then, as if she’s afraid.

“I’m not going to ask again. Where the fuck is she?” Atlas asks.

Kyle runs a hand down his face. “Like I said, I don’t know. We got separated. And even if I did know, I wouldn’t tell you.”

Rhea laughs. “Doesn’t matter. We’ll find the bitch.”

Atlas glares at her. “Keep your mouth shut while we’re speaking.”

Whoa. Rude, but expected from him. Such an asshole.

Why are they so concerned with where I am anyway? I’m tempted to just walk right up to them, but something tells me to stay put. At least for now. So I do.

“Why don’t you just leave? Find somewhere to spend the night?” Kyle asks.

Atlas scoffs. “Don’t tell me what to do. You don’t even want to be here. I should take you out, then find your mate and deal with her. I’m sure she’d enjoy it.”

Kyle growls and takes a swing at him, clipping his jaw and knocking him to the forest floor. Atlas scrambles to his feet and charges at him, and that’s enough for me. I hurry out of the trees towards them.

“Get away from him!” I call out.

Atlas turns toward me, giving Kyle a chance to hit him again.

I almost forget about Rhea until she’s in my face. She shoves me, and I trip on something and fall on my ass.

She stands over me as Kyle and Atlas fight behind her. “You’re so weak. You think you can survive Keres? You think you can survive these trials? You can’t.”

She reaches down and picks up a rock, and I dart my focus between her and the rock.

“What are you doing?” I ask.

She smirks, moving closer, and I scramble back, trying to get to my feet. “Putting you out of your misery.”

I leap to my feet and swing my leg out, kicking her in her knee. She stumbles back, giving me a chance to prepare myself.

Kyle is handling himself well, but Atlas is a big male. They throw punch after punch, and I pray Kyle can knock him down, giving us enough time to get away from them.

I don’t want anyone else dying at our hands.

“I’ve had it with you! I see the way you look at Atlas. One male’s not enough for you, is it? You have to go after mine as well!” She lunges forward, attempting to smack the rock into my face, but I leap out of the way.

“I don’t want Atlas! He’s an asshole, and I don’t know what you see in him!”

She grips the rock tighter and moves to the side, and we circle one another. “Don’t lie to me. I’m not buying it.”

I keep my focus on her, every now and then dropping it to the rock. “Kyle is my fated mate, Rhea. You get what that means, don’t you?”

She laughs. “It clearly means nothing to you. You were here with that other male to start with, that watcher, then you had your other so-called mate show up. How many mates have you got? I bet you’re fucking them all.”

She throws her fist out, attempting to hit me with the rock again, only this time I grab her wrist and bend her arm, twisting it and throwing her down to the forest floor. I pin her there as she struggles beneath me.

“Grazen is a friend, and Amaros is a psychopath who forced a bond on me. You have trust issues because Atlas is an asshole. You deserve better, and you know it!”

She struggles, trying to escape me. “You know nothing!”

“I saw him fucking another female, Rhea! I know enough!”

She somehow manages to escape my grasp and smashes the rock into my head. My vision blurs, and warm liquid pools in my hair and drips down my face.

I glance over at Kyle as Atlas punches him, knocking him to the ground, and then I fall, blacking out as I hit the forest floor.

I don’t know how long I’m out, but when I come to, the forest has grown lighter, indicating it’s morning.

And then everything comes rushing back to me. The vines wrapping around me, dragging me into the ground, the fire powers I seem to have called forth, the creature in the forest whose screams sounded like Kyle, and fighting Atlas and Rhea.

I sit up way too quickly, and my head pounds. I reach my hand up and touch my sticky hair. When I bring my hand down, it’s red with a combination of fresh and dried blood.

Kyle.

Where is Kyle?

I scramble to my feet, swaying unsteadily while I search the surrounding area. There’s a rock at my feet, covered in blood, and there’s a pile of blood-covered leaves near a tree, right where Atlas and Kyle were fighting.

But Kyle is nowhere to be found.

“Kyle!” I call out, my desperate pleas echoing through the forest.

I’m met with nothing but the stillness of the forest and the gentle whispers of the trees as the wind blows through their leaves.

A sob escapes my lips, and I slap my hand across my mouth, not wanting to draw any unwanted attention. How I’m even alive, after bleeding out in the middle of Keres overnight, I don’t know. I must’ve healed myself during the night.

Stumbling through the forest, I search for Kyle. It feels like hours go by as I look, aimlessly wandering amongst the trees without a clue as to which direction I’m headed. Keres is enormous, taking up a huge chunk of Pyrrhus, and for all I know, I’m venturing deeper and deeper, and I’m probably going in the entirely wrong direction.

I stop walking and drop to my knees, digging my fingers into the damp leaves beneath my hands. Gods above, where is he?

Please be okay, please be okay.

“Kyle, where are you?”

I’m unsure whether it’s my inner voice or something else, but I swear someone responds. They tell me to get up and walk to my right. I listen to the voice and head in that direction. After thirty minutes, I’m about to give up when I see someone ahead. Someone’s there.

I run through the bushes to Kyle, who sits amongst leaves and twigs, leaning against a tree with his head slumped forward. I halt, scanning the surrounding trees.

Something feels off. We’re not alone here.

I crouch down next to him. He’s almost unconscious, and his head is bleeding. Without thinking, I attempt to heal him, but it doesn’t work. Of course I can’t access my powers.

“Shit!”

A low growl sounds nearby. Far too close.

I glance over at a four-legged creature with red eyes and red scales covering its skin, creeping toward me. It’s smaller than a Zelon, and I’m trying to decide whether it’s going to attack us when it slurps its long tongue out and swipes it up the side of my head.

I giggle and fall back, and then it moves closer to Kyle and licks the gash on his head. I suck in a breath as the gash heals before my eyes.

I reach up to my head and find my wound has also healed. Incredible.

Kyle looks up, blinking, his forehead creased as the red-eyed creature stares at him. It then bounds off into the forest, disappearing through the trees.

“What happened?” Kyle asks, his voice drowsy.

I wrap my arms around his neck. “We were running and then you were gone. The forest tried to pull me beneath the earth and consume me. I somehow escaped, heard you scream, which wasn’t you at all. Then I found you with Atlas and Rhea, who attacked us. Do you remember what happened? I think Atlas hit you with a rock. Rhea hit me.”

He shakes his head, and I help him to his feet. “I was running for a while when I realised you were gone. I stopped to go back and bumped into them.”

I slip my arms around his waist. “I’m so glad I found you. I was so worried.”

He squeezes me closer. “I’m sorry. Are you okay?”

I nod. “We need to get out of here. We’ve survived the night, just, and I don’t want to attempt a second one.”

He laughs. “That’s fair. Come on.” He takes my hand. “Which way?”

The same voice guides me in the direction we should take, and after following it before and finding Kyle, I’m going to listen to it.

“This way. Don’t ask how I know. I just do.”

“Okay, let’s go.”

We make our way out of the forest, which seems to take hours, but we finally reach the outskirts. It’s more of a relief than I’ve ever felt before, leaving Keres, and I never want to go back again.

“You can ride me back, okay?” He shifts into his dragon.

I climb up onto his back and hold on tight as he lifts into the air and heads for the training grounds. I’m so curious to find out who made it through the night, and I hope everyone did, even though I know that won’t be the case. If we don’t make it back soon, we could be out of the next trial. Drakon may assume we’ve died.

We’re about halfway back when several black dragons swoop down from above, narrowly missing Kyle. He darts to the side, but they circle back, coming in for another attack.

“Kyle, look out!” I call, but he doesn’t seem to see the other dragon who has sneakily flown off to the side.

It swoops around and then shoots toward Kyle, smashing into his side and sending us spiralling into the sand below. The landing throws me off Kyle’s back, and I hit the side of the sand dune hard. My head takes the impact, hazing my vision.

Kyle’s dragon is at the base of the sand dune, and I’m halfway down it.

I glance up as the three dragons swoop down toward him, their razor-sharp claws extended, ready to attack.

The dragon in front opens its enormous jaws, its red and blue flames glowing in its throat before it blasts them at Kyle.