Dragons and Mages: A Limited Edition Anthology

by Pauline Creeden

  At long last, a shiver passed through me, and I finally felt able to speak again. After taking a deep breath, I said, “That was the most intense feeling I’ve ever experienced.”

  “What happened?” Drew didn’t move or release my arms from his grasp.

  Sighing, I tipped my head slightly, only then realizing my skull no longer throbbed. As a matter of fact, it seemed as though my whole body felt more relaxed than it had in days. I shrugged, testing out the flexibility of my shoulder. “I’ve never felt more alive. I don’t know what Aaliyah did, but I feel amazing.”

  “Let me check her out.” Clara moved away from her mom’s chair to kneel beside Drew.

  Left with no other choice, Drew resumed his seat beside me. He reached out and put his hand on my knee and gave me a reassuring squeeze.

  Just as she had before, Clara took my pulse. Satisfied, she pulled out the little penlight and shined it in my eyes. Thankfully, this time, I didn’t feel the sharp discomfort inside my skull. I stared directly ahead to Clara’s face to try to read her expression.

  “I don’t believe it!”

  “What is it?” Drew’s fingers flexed painfully on my leg.

  “Her concussion is gone. Her pupils both dilate exactly how a healthy person’s should.”

  “The injection probably kicked in.”

  Ignoring Drew’s theory, Clara stared at me in disbelief. “How do you feel? Does your head hurt? Are you feeling nauseous?”

  “I feel great. Drew’s right, that anti-inflammatory must’ve done the trick.”

  Clara shook her head. She got up from the floor only to seat herself on the coffee table directly in front of me so that her eyes remained on the same level as mine. “I don’t think so. I’ve never had any medication react so swiftly to a concussion. Do you think the pendant had anything to do with it?”

  For some reason, I could not bring myself to agree with Clara’s statement even though every fiber of my being thought it could very well be true. Instead, I shook my head. “I don’t know what caused me to feel better, but I’m relieved to have my stomach finally settle down. I hate feeling like I’m going to hurl every time I turn my head. Whatever happened, I’ll take it.”

  I shifted my attention back to Gwen. “Do you remember anything else about this necklace?” My hand involuntarily moved to caress its intricately carved face.

  “Nothing I can think of just now. I’m sorry.”

  “Clara, you told me your brother was a runner-up in the gladio game. How did he fare with the Dragon’s Dare?” Their silence spoke volumes.

  Clara cleared her throat before looking me straight in the face. “He drew the Dragon’s Passage, but we didn’t worry like most people.”

  What? They weren’t concerned about his death sentence? Was he a terrible brother and son? I didn’t say any of these things but held my tongue.

  “I can tell you’re confused. You see, we believe the banishment sentence is appropriately named.” Clara reached over and squeezed her mom’s hand.

  Drew beat me to the question. “You think the Dragon’s Passage actually leads to where the dragons went? Do you have proof?”

  I shook my head. “Nobody’s ever come back from there. We can’t know any of that.” But even as the words left my mouth, I knew this wasn’t true. One researcher did come back—Ryker had told me about it just the other day.

  I needed to get some air and move about. I’d promised to keep the secret of the missing researchers and could not afford to have them question me. I stood up, ready to resume my seat if I felt at all dizzy. Nothing felt out of place; in fact, I felt better than I had in ages.

  “What’re you doing, Kat?” Drew stood up to block my path.

  “I think we should head home.” I could see him beginning to come up with a rebuttal. “The men have probably given up by now. I mean, if they didn’t find us at either of our houses or Clara’s, then I’m sure they decided to go home.”

  Drew looked over to Clara and Gwen for support.

  Clara reluctantly agreed. “She’s probably right. And now that your concussion appears to have disappeared, I don’t have to worry about you sleeping tonight.”

  “You should still sleep at my house tonight, just in case the peace keepers make another attempt.”

  “Sure. That sounds great. Let’s go.” I’d probably agree to anything if it meant we’d get moving.

  “I’m going with you until you’re safely home.” Clara stood alongside us.

  “Fine.” I couldn’t believe she’d agreed so readily.

  Clara led the way to the front door, opening it a little way to peer outside first, before pulling it all the way open. Even with the apparently empty streets, every noise made us wary and jumpy. Only one other couple walked along the other side of the sidewalk, seemingly out for an evening stroll together and paying us no mind whatsoever.

  When we entered the tunnel back to Dome 2, the guards had resumed their stations. None of them even looked twice as we passed them, which made us collectively breathe a sigh of relief once we returned to the open space of my home dome.

  We just passed by the research facility when a man rushed toward us. As if by instinct, Drew pulled me behind him at the same time Clara stood beside Drew. Together, they shielded my body from the man.

  “Oh, thank goodness you’re both okay!” Ryker declared as he came to a skidding stop in front of us.

  So much for us walking home unnoticed. I pushed my way through my human shield. “What made you think we wouldn’t be safe?”

  Ryker looked me up and down as if verifying my health himself. “I heard the peace keepers saying they didn’t have any luck finding you. I’m hoping this means they’ll give it up now that their mob mentality has had a chance to dissipate.”

  “We can only hope,” Clara agreed. “We were just heading back to Drew’s house. Thanks for letting us know, Ryker.”

  “If you don’t mind, I’d like to walk these two home. I have some things to discuss with Katherine in private.” Ryker stepped forward, his gaze never leaving mine.

  Clara hesitated before turning to Drew and me to find out what we wanted to do. Thinking I already knew what Ryker wished to discuss, I nodded. “We’ll be fine. Thanks again for everything, Clara. Also, please thank your mom for us. We left so fast; I forgot to tell her how much we appreciated her willingness to take us in so suddenly.”

  Clara breathed deeply through her nostrils at her apparent dismissal. She nodded curtly. “Fine. I’ll head home. I’m glad you’re feeling better, Kat. Be sure to come in for a check-up if you feel any dizziness. Okay?”

  “Yeah, sure thing.” More than anything, I wanted to get away from the research facility. I swear I could feel eyes watching me from every window in the place.

  We turned toward our housing development, and Ryker took his place next to me. No sooner had Clara left than Ryker asked, “Have you been home yet?”

  “No, Clara took us to Dome 4 before we got much farther than we are now.”

  “Oh, good. That means the peace keepers probably didn’t have any reason to enter your house. Do you keep my journal somewhere secure?”

  “In my bedroom.” I suddenly regretted my decision to leave his book on my nightstand. I should have at least hid it in my drawer. It simply never occurred to me that my home could be anything but safe.

  “It would be unwise for that to fall into the wrong hands. At least my name is nowhere on the thing.” Ryker seemed to mostly speak to himself, but my guilt ratcheted up a notch.

  We continued to walk in silence, getting closer by the minute to Drew’s house. As soon as we rounded the final corner to Drew’s street, all of my girlfriends charged toward us from where they’d gathered in Alyssa’s front yard.

  After many hugs and questions about my well-being, the girls finally quieted enough to listen to me answer them. “I’m fine, girls. I promise. What’s got you all so excited?”

  “We saw a mob of peace keepers headed through th
e neighborhood, and we saw them stop first at your house, Kat. Your parents turned them away, but then they came to my house,” Alyssa said. “What were we supposed to think when neither of you showed up?”

  “All a misunderstanding.” Drew attempted to calm the girls around him. “We were just coming home, and I’m ready for dinner if you girls wouldn’t mind letting us through.”

  Anna, Natalie, and Violet took the hint and excused themselves to get home for the evening themselves. I watched them go, thankful for their willingness to help, even though it probably would have gotten them in trouble as well.

  Hearing the account of my friends reminded me of how we’d been taken in the first place. My eyes shot to Drew’s empty hip. “Where are our swords, Drew? I can’t believe I didn’t even think about them before now!” My hand needlessly touched the place on my hip where my sword should have rested.

  “The peace keepers took them. I’m sorry, Kat, I didn’t even think about asking for them back. My only concern was to get you away from there and get you home where you could recover.”

  “But that was my sister’s sword. I have to get it back.”

  Ryker cleared his throat beside me. “I can check on it for you.”

  “Really? You’d do that?” I turned on him, my voice cracking with emotion.

  “Sure. It’s no problem.” He sounded so confident, I had to believe he’d succeed.

  Ryker’s offer to help only reaffirmed my idea that I needed to make sure his precious journal was still safely sitting in my room. I touched Drew’s arm. “I think Ryker and I will head back to my house so I can get a few things before I spend the night. You don’t mind, right?”

  Drew’s indecision would have been comical if our situation hadn’t been so dire earlier. Still, I loved how protective he had become over my safety. Although, now that I felt perfectly healthy again, I’m pretty sure I could take out any opposition rather easily, even if they did disguise themselves as peace keepers.

  “Fine. But if I don’t see you in ten minutes, I’m coming over to get you myself.” He glaring meaningfully over to Ryker before grabbing Alyssa’s arm and hauling her back toward their house.

  “Thanks,” Ryker said quietly as we started walking back to my house.

  “It was nothing. I’m sorry about your journal, Ryker. I’ve kept it on my nightstand. It just never occurred to me to hide it. I mean, there’s no crime in Dome 2 so why would I–”

  My last word came out in a strangled gasp when something cold pressed against my neck. Rotating my eyes over to where Ryker’s body slumped against another man’s as he passed out, I couldn’t understand how someone could have ambushed us so quietly.

  Chapter 13

  WAKING UP THIS time didn’t offer the same luxury as the medic’s exam table. Instead, I found myself on the concrete floor of a small, cold cell. It took me several seconds before I realized someone had put me in one of the evacuation rooms on the dome’s perimeter.

  Only a small door separated me from the toxic environment outside. As any resident knows to do, I checked the storage closet for an evac suit, only to discover none of them remained inside. This did not bode well.

  A frantic search of the room produced little else for survival outside of the dome. I turned to the interior door and stood on my tiptoes to see several guards had taken up positions along the hallway. From the signage on the interior walls, I discovered the peace keepers had brought me back to the research facility.

  The guards actively avoided making eye contact with me. Did they think if they didn’t look at me, then they wouldn’t be at fault for this terrible mistake? What had happened to Ryker? He had befallen the same fate as me. It didn’t bear thinking that the peace keepers might have already sent Ryker outside without a protective suit.

  I couldn’t just sit around and wait for someone to decide my fate. I pounded on the door to get any guard’s attention. Several faces turned toward me, but just as quickly, they turned away. Unbelievably, one of them did an about-face and left. Hopefully, that meant he would report my conscious state, and I could get the heck out of here.

  My calf muscles balled up into painful cramps, yet I ignored it to stay on my tiptoes to see out the window. Fifteen minutes passed without any changes to the personnel in the corridor. Letting out a disgusted sigh, I turned and let myself sink against the wall next to the door.

  My stomach growled in complaint. I couldn’t actually recall the last meal I’d eaten. Without any clock, I couldn’t even figure out how long I’d been left unconscious.

  The bitter coldness from outside seeped into my cell. Uncontrollable shivers coursed through my body. I rubbed my hands over my bare arms, hoping the friction would give me some semblance of warmth.

  Thankfully, I’d sufficiently recovered from my altercation with Grobin and my first encounter with the peace keepers. The necklace! My hand flew up and searched intently for the small pendant.

  I felt the familiar outline of the pendant, and my eyes closed in relief. At least the guards had left that with me. What would I have done if they’d taken it? They’d already stolen Brekke’s sword, so this small victory helped me maintain a sense of calm.

  An eternity passed in the silence of my cell before my back felt a vibration coming through the wall. I hoped that meant someone was spinning the airlock wheel on the other side.

  With the speed and agility I’d lacked in the last day, I regained my feet and stood facing the door. I wouldn’t dare let anyone stick another tranquilizer in my neck. I’d face this adversary head-on, even though I felt ill-equipped at the moment. Whoever stood in the hallway didn’t have to know that I locked my knees to keep them from shaking.

  A whooshing of air indicated the seal on the entrance broke, and the door slowly swung inward. The brightness of the hallway flooded into my dimly lit room. Two figures stood facing me, both backlit, but I recognized them just the same.

  “Silas, I demand to be released immediately.” My voice echoed within the bare room.

  Silas stepped exactly one foot inside before stopping and piously clasping his hands in front of himself. “I’m so sorry to hear you’ve been wrongly detained. I only just now discovered you were being held here. By all means, come with me.” He lifted one hand toward me and curled his fingers welcomingly.

  What kind of a trick was this? Rather than press my luck, I simply nodded and stepped forward. At the very least, I’d leave behind the most dangerous room in all of Heliok. Nobody wanted to find themselves so close to the dangers outside, especially devoid of all safety precautions. Who’d ever heard of an exit room without evac suits?

  Stepping between Silas and Ryker, I glared at the peace keepers who had stood guard. One of them should have had enough common sense to let me come into the hallway. Were they so afraid of me to take such drastic precautions? Or maybe, they merely wanted to let me know they didn’t plan on giving me a second chance to back down from my plan for the tourney.

  Silas placed his hand on the small of my back. My muscles tensed into rigid cords at his presumed familiarity. Not wanting to give him the satisfaction of knowing he had offended me, I forcibly relaxed my muscles.

  “I’m sure you must be hungry after this terrible ordeal. You simply must come and dine with me tonight, so I can make amends.” Silas’s voice dripped with false concern.

  He didn’t fool me one bit. What was Ryker’s part in all of this? Granted, I’d seen him drugged the same as me, but clearly, his release had come much sooner. He didn’t appear any worse for the journey we’d supposedly traveled together.

  I managed a sideways glance behind Silas toward Ryker. If only I could get him alone for a few minutes to catch up on what had happened while I’d been out of commission. Could I really trust Ryker, or had he simply strung me along to get me to share my secrets? I hated not trusting people.

  “I really should go home. I’m sure my parents are worried sick about me.”

  “I already took the liberty to let t
hem know you were with me,” Silas replied.

  Frowning at his presumption, I spotted Ryker shake his head almost imperceptibly. Apparently, I didn’t have a choice in this. Whatever plan Silas had in mind, I’d figure out a way to leave. “Thank you for that, at least. Can you tell me why your men brought me in the way they did?”

  “They acted on their own, and I assure you they’ll be assigned some rather unpleasant tasks for their abuse of power.” Silas nodded curtly as if his non-answer should satisfy me.

  I still had many unanswered questions, but again, Ryker’s eyes flared. I shut my mouth, but my mind continued to swirl with this mystery. My fingers curled into fists, and my frustration rose. Someone had better start making sense sometime soon, or I just might explode.

  By now, we had reached Silas’s private quarters in a restricted corridor. At least we wouldn’t have to worry about interruptions. Yet, the isolation of this section of the building left me unsettled.

  Nobody would come to my rescue. That thought almost made me laugh out loud. Not one person in Heliok would dream of going up against Silas except for my father, maybe.

  We entered the sparsely furnished private rooms where Silas lived. He led us to a table already set for three and pulled out a chair for me. With his raised eyebrows as an invitation, I stepped over and dropped into the chair. Silas patted my shoulders, and I clenched my teeth to ignore his filthy touch. He took the seat to my left. Ryker crossed over to my right and quietly settled himself.

  I looked down at the plate of food. Except for a wedding I’d attended about five years ago, I’d never seen anything so colorful. The items appeared so foreign. Were these even edible?

  “Go ahead and eat first. We can talk when we’re finished.” Silas offered solicitously, picking up his fork and stabbing some yellow circle, before bringing it up to his mouth and chewing it carefully.

  Was it terrible that I wished he’d choke on it? Probably. After all, he had just taken me out of cold storage.

  I waited a fraction of a second longer before mirroring Ryker’s motions. We ate in uncomfortable silence. After sampling each of the dishes, I decided I could definitely get used to this kind of nourishment. How could Silas selfishly eat like this when the rest of us ate that terrible gruel they deemed healthy and suitable for mass consumption? No wonder the researchers didn’t hurry to find a solution when they didn’t have any dietary changes.