“Abby!” screamed Atira, throwing another.
“Atira!” screamed Abigail.
“Abby!”
“Atira!”
“Abby!”
“Atira!”
The door burst open, and Liam, Desmond, and Briahnna all bustled in. “What in the world is going on in here?” Demanded Desmond who looked at the broken glass scattered all over Atira’s floor.
Abigail and Atira looked at each other then fell to the floor laughing.
. . .
Abigail and Atira were suddenly inseparable. Liam tagged along with them sometimes but was sure to give Abigail the space she needed. Atira especially liked it when Abigail used her magic to help her rather than fight her. Desmond was beginning to regret his decision to make Abigail Atira’s lady’s maid. But once again Atira seemed happy, and she was actually content with the magiks that he brought home. That made him happy, because Briahnna was really the only thing that he wanted. He was grateful to finally have Atira’s approval.
Chapter 45
“Dragon!”
Desmond and Briahnna abruptly sat up in bed. “What?” Desmond asked eyes half opened. “Did someone really just yell–”
Liam burst into their room. “Desmond!”
“DRAGON!” Again the yell came from outside but much louder this time and Desmond was up and getting dressed.
He looked back at Briahnna as he rushed out of the room. “Stay here!” he demanded.
Briahnna looked around wildly. There was no way she was staying behind. She heard a loud roar and looked to see a burst of flame fly past her window. She jumped up, put on what she could, and ran out.
The castle was full of people running and screaming. Briahnna ran through the corridor to get to outside.
“Your Majesty!” a guard yelled at her. “I’m supposed to protect you!”
She looked at him incredulously before she went out. “Then you’ll have to follow me!” she screamed and ran out into the chaos. Fire was burning everywhere, and people were trying to avoid it and put it out at the same time.
She saw it then, a large flying mass. She ran to the steps outside the castle that led to the towers and climbed. Why she wanted a better look at the horrific creature, she didn’t know, but she was consumed with a wild need to see it. It flew by just then. It had to be at least thirty feet long with beautiful turquoise scales and wings expanding at least fifty feet on each side. It was a beautiful sight to behold, and Briahnna was transfixed as she climbed the stairs to watch the destructive beast.
Soldiers were shooting arrow after arrow at it to no avail. Each arrow bounced off the dragon making it angrier as it sliced through a structure to get to a group of them.
Desmond was at the top of the stairs Briahnna was ascending, trying to rig a catapult with a large boulder on the tower.
“Queen Briahnna!” the guard yelled. The dragon stopped its descent to the soldiers upon hearing the guard shout her name and redirected its course to her. “Please!” the guard shouted. “Come back with me to the safety of the castle!” He yelled when he saw the dragon bearing down upon them.
It roared just then and Briahnna could see the fire building inside its throat directed straight at her guard. She threw herself in front of the guard and shielded them both, but the dragon stopped directly in front of her. She stepped back, plastering the soldier to the wall, completely frozen in terror. But it just floated in front of her and stared.
She gasped when she looked at the magnificent dragon’s bright blue eyes; the exact bright blue as… “Jerrick?” she reached a hand out to touch it as it floated closer.
“Ahnna!” Desmond yelled from the tower. Briahnna retracted her hand immediately. “Ahnna!”
The dragon reared when he heard Desmond and flew straight at the tower.
“Desmond!” Briahnna yelled and propelled herself up to him.
Desmond yelled at her and ran toward her, but the dragon was about to strike. Briahnna threw up her shield and jumped in front of him, just in time. The flames soared around her shield, and the dragon roared in frustration. It flew away from them and up to the tower. Briahnna screamed when the dragon’s flame burst from its mouth again, but a gust of wind made the flame fly out of control in another direction as the soldiers and guard on the tower ran for cover. Briahnna looked down to see Forster and Abigail throwing their wind at the dragon together. The dragon’s flight was altered and its wings worked to catch the air correctly.
While it was distracted, Liam jumped out from behind a wall of cover and landed on the dragons back with a spear in his hand. “Liam no!” Abigail screamed from below.
Briahnna propelled herself up the rest of the steps as Desmond yelled at her from behind and jumped off the balcony at the dragon as it tried to buck Liam off. She willed a burst of energy from her hands at the dragon’s snout and a yellow pulse hit the dragon square on as she plummeted downward. The dragon tumbled to the earth with her, and Liam jumped off, somersaulting to a standing position. Briahnna was caught by someone else’s gust of wind, and she landed softly on her back right before the dragon hit the ground in a burst of dust. Its blue eyes were staring straight at her. She hadn’t killed it after all, just neutralized it for the time being. She sat up quickly and started to scoot away from it when it suddenly roared and shot up into the air. Then it disappeared.
. . .
Briahnna was sitting on the bed when Desmond came in and sat beside her. All day they had worked to repair what could be repaired and find additional shelter for those whose homes had been completely wrecked. It was well into the next morning and still dark by the time Briahnna made her way to her bed. But all she could do was sit.
Desmond exhaled. “A large bird preying the skies,” he finally said. “Dragons of the southern mountains.”
Briahnna looked up just then. “Dragons of the southern mountains,” she said skeptically. For some reason she felt certain that this dragon was not from the southern mountains.
“Where else would they come from?” he asked.
She shook her head. “I don’t know.”
“You pulsed,” Desmond said.
Briahnna nodded. “But it didn’t kill it.”
“I wonder what would happen if you released it all like you said you did when you were little,” Desmond contemplated.
“It probably would have killed it, I think,” Briahnna said, looking at her hands. “Too many people in the crossfire, however.”
Desmond nodded. “Are you okay? Did pulsing take a lot of energy?”
“Not too much. But I can feel it,” she answered. “It makes sense why Jerrick just used the wind to shove Liam off of Samson that day. I think he had to reenergize.”
“Briahnna,” Desmond said standing up and pulling her into a hug. “Are you okay?”
“Oh,” Briahnna kissed him, and he placed his chin on her head. “I think I’m in shock.”
“Me too.”
. . .
Briahnna awoke suddenly. It was still dark out, and there were large green eyes watching her through the window. She held her breath wondering if she should scream. But the dragon in her window just watched her. She looked down at Desmond who was still fast asleep and got up slowly, crossing to the window. The dragon stuck its clawed foot on the window, and she had the distinct impression that she should touch it.
She looked behind her at Desmond to make sure he was still asleep, because she knew he would definitely try to dissuade her from touching a dragon. What was another dragon doing here? Was she dreaming? It didn’t feel like a dream. She reached out and touched it.
“You need to come with me if you want to save your people,” a voice said in Briahnna’s head. She yanked her hand away. And stepped back. The dragon huffed and stuck its foot further onto the window. Briahnna stepped close to the window again and touched it.
“You need to come with me now.” She looked back at Desmond in bed. “He cannot come with you. He is in a trance. He will sta
y asleep until we leave. As will the entire guard.” Briahnna poked her head out the window, and sure enough nobody was moving anywhere.
She looked back again. “I can’t just leave him here,” she said.
“You have to.”
“I don’t want to leave him! Why do I have to go with you?” she asked.
“Come with me and you will see.”
“I can’t just leave him. Don’t you see that? I finally have something I want. I want! Not what someone else wants of me! I won’t leave!”
The dragon waited for a moment. “And how do you plan to fight the other dragon or dragons when they return. They will return.”
“Why can’t he know?”
“He is not one of us. He is forbidden.”
“I am not one of you either!”
The dragon kept silent for another moment. “Do you want to save your people or not?”
“Yes!”
“Then you must come.” The dragon just turned and waited.
Briahnna looked back at Desmond one more time then ran to him. She shook him. “Desmond, wake up,” she said over and over. She knelt beside the bed and looked out of the window at the dragon again who had turned its head to watch her failed attempt at waking Desmond. Then she ran to the table and picked up a piece of paper, grabbed a pen, and wrote Desmond. She didn’t know what else to write. How did she tell him that she left? How did she tell him a dragon took her?
She crumpled the paper up and ran back to him. “Desmond I hope you can here me somehow. I love you! Please know that! I love you!” she kissed his cheek and looked at him one last time then crawled out the window and onto the dragon’s back.
“I might be going with you now,” she said, “but I will come back. You nor anyone else will keep me away.” The dragon huffed and flew into the sky.
. . .
Desmond awoke suddenly in the morning sun and looked down at Briahnna’s spot on the bed. I love you, he remembered hearing in his sleep. He jumped out of bed and ran to the door.
“Where is the queen?” he asked the guard standing there.
The guard looked at him questioningly. “She hasn’t left your room, Your Majesty.”
Desmond shut the door suddenly and looked at the wide-open window. He ran to it and looked out. There was a torn piece of her nightdress on the ground. He ran back to the door, opened it, and ran out to find Liam.
Liam barreled straight into him as Desmond turned the corner. “Desmond!” Liam said, out of breath. “We’re under attack!”
“What? Where’s Briahnna?” Desmond asked.
“Isn’t she with you?” Liam asked.
“She’s gone! Where is the attack?”
“On our bordering cities!” Liam exclaimed. “Where is Briahnna?”
Desmond turned around and ran his hand through his hair. “I don’t know.”
“Desmond,” Liam grabbed his shoulders and turned him back. “We have to leave! The attack came from dragons! Our people have no defense against them! We have to evacuate and bring everyone to the castle. Enlist the Magiks for help!”
“Just a minute,” Desmond said desperately. He ran outside to beneath his window and called for a tracker. Liam stood impatiently by his side. “What are you doing?” he asked.
“Briahnna disappeared,” Desmond said, holding up the piece of her nightdress. He ran a little farther south of the castle and found another piece lying near the edge of the city. He looked at it and then up and to the southern mountains in the distance.
“You called for me?” a tracker suddenly appeared.
“Rhyse!” Desmond said, grabbing his shoulders. “My wife has disappeared, and I think she left a trail! I need you to track it.”
“Yes, my king,” Rhyse said, bowing his head. Desmond handed him one of the pieces of the nightdress and put the other in his pocket.
Desmond patted the tracker’s shoulder and said, “Thank you.” He turned to Liam. “Go tell Thomas to stop all work in the fields. They need to start building underground shelters for all of our evacuees.”
Liam nodded and ran to tell Thomas. Desmond turned back to the southern mountains, a yearning building inside him to go and look for her. Then he shook his head, turned and ran back to save his kingdom.
Epilogue
Briahnna climbed off of the dragon when it landed in the southern mountains. People walked out of homes and slowly gathered around her. She turned back to the dragon and watched as it slowly transformed, leaving a man kneeling in its place before her.
“Daniel!” Briahnna gasped.
Spirit (Legend of the Dragons Book 1) Page 32