I could, but what was he saying? Did it mean we were meant to stop having sex? Echoes of my orgasm still resonated within me. Could I just give up on that amazing feeling?
“I don’t regret it, Saaron,” I said. “Actually, I’d do it again. If you ask me. Besides, the runes hold.”
“The runes didn’t shatter because I pushed my control to the absolute limit. If our moment lasted a minute longer…”
He didn’t need to stress it. I got a good idea of what would happen.
I looked down on my nakedness and didn’t feel shame, but I had a strong hunch that my apartment will flood with visitors very shortly.
“Could you mind returning my clothes?” I didn’t care about Saaron. For me, he could remain as nature had made him.
Snap!
The clothes that appeared on me weren’t mine, though they were new, Saaron fucked up sizes. The skirt was too small, the blouse too large and so on. Obviously, his attire looked perfect. Black suit, and even a gold tie! That bastard.
“Before the director arrives, let me ask you a question,” Saaron whispered. “What about Dramer?”
Dramer… oh god, I forgot… a gargantuan wave of emotions appeared somewhere inside my head, and if it’d crash against the coast of my mind, I’d not be able to contain the surge that would come with it. The runes… everything here would vaporize.
“That what I thought,” Saaron nodded with a gleam of satisfaction that flicked in an instant. “Farewell, Flare. A suiting name for a fiery one like you.”
Saaron vanished.
Dramer… I didn’t mean to… I fell to my knees. I was losing my mind again. Power swelled me. I brimmed with it. Too much to contain. Did the seal on my power finally break? I don’t understand it… how could a single person possess so much energy? I can’t contain it anymore. It filled my every cell to its limit. If there was a mirror, what would it show?
My consciousness began slipping away. My own draconic blood was tearing my flesh apart.
“Flare…”
“Flare…”
Muted, weak calls came from beyond the sheet of invisible glass. And then an unimaginable coldness descended on me. My raging power wielded a heat of a sun, but it could nothing, but cower from it. The feeling of tearing vanished.
I was lying on the ruined floor and sobbed.
I almost destroyed myself, but my strength is gone, now. I can barely move.
“Get up, girl,” an icy voice commanded.
My eyes cracked open. I saw a snow-white figure standing by what used to be the front door. Reading the room, I judged that I got myself into serious trouble.
Finally…
The light vanished.
Chapter 16
It was so strange to return, especially, that I’d remembered every single second from before I lost my consciousness. I genuinely thought it was the end of my life.
Now, I lay in the bed, while my body was bound by a spell. I guessed it correctly. The troubles were just started coming my way.
I couldn’t wait any longer, so I took the liberty of waking you up, a voice said in my head.
This again. It wasn’t Selene this time. The woman that stood by my bed was on a different level. She was every definition of beauty. Selene paled next to her. None the less, I didn’t appreciate that someone was talking directly into my head.
“Talk to me like a normal person. I can’t stand a voice in my head,” I murmured because saying anything lauder cost more than I’d expected. My strengths had been completely sapped. Was it her?
“In your state?” the woman in silver asked. “Fine. For now.”
She was different than Selene or any demi-dragon. I could argue with them and somehow, their wrath didn’t bother me. This woman had an aura of a different caliber. It wasn’t that she was cold or serious. Her appearance stemmed from something else.
“It comes from my age. I’m older than the mankind itself, child.’
I have to learn to shield my thoughts!
“Can we go straight to the business, director” Saaron said. I didn’t see or sense him. “I still have to inform my father about this accident.”
What was he saying? Why would he tell his father about it?
“Very well, Saaron,” the director said emotionlessly. “As the Head of the Dragon House, you bear the responsibility for the trespassing and this young member of your house.”
“Indeed,” Saaron nodded.
“What trespassing are you talking about?” I whispered.
“It appears she has lost her memories of the incident,” Saaron explained with absolute certainty. “Please let me take it from here. I’ll deal with her quickly and notify my father about Dramer’s crime.”
“Dramer? What did he do?”
“As I said…”
The director raised a hand and Saaron immediately fell silent, she stepped toward me and as her hand reached toward my forehead, I saw Saaron’s panic. This bastard lied to everyone. Did he try to frame Dramer in what happened between us… my thoughts drifted away. The room melted away and I stood on the bed of blackness without any sense of direction. Director accompanied me.
“I won’t apologize for invading your memories,” she said. “Nor it’d ease the punishment for what’d you done. It appears that the Head of the Dragon House tried to deceive me. A futile attempt. You can’t hide anything from me. Like your meeting with Ignelion and his pet Elleria.”
“Get out of my head, bitch!” I knew this was a very bad idea. But fuck her. Who gave the right to mess with my mind? I didn’t care that if she found out that it was Saaron instead of Dramer. I wouldn’t let some unicorn…
“Enough,” the unicorn said coolly. She cut me out without rising her voice. I wanted to speak up, but she did something to me. My body didn’t respond to my mental commands. Why? “Don’t be a dimwit. You are in my power, girl. I will dissect you, piece by piece, until no secret remains.”
I called for my rage, but the well appeared to be dried up. Not even embers had been spared. Was this another sealing spell or something else? The bitchy director didn’t even watch me as I struggle to regain my control over my body.
“Leave me be,” a single phrase escaped my mouth. It caused the unicorn woman to glance at me, at least.
“For a lowly dragoness, your mental capabilities are through the roof, I must admit,” she said, then asked. “Who are you?”
My mouth clapped together in defiance. If she wanted me to speak, then I’ll stay quiet. The urge to talk grew stronger, like a mountain stream fed by countless rivers until it became an enormous body of water. Her compulsion almost worked, not that there was much she could learn from me. I wasn’t some lost heroine of ages or whatnot. I’d been born and lived my entire life in the Wasteland. But she didn’t deserve to know it.
Out of the blue, the pressure receded, a moment later I was back in the hospital bed. Saaron was gone. Only two of us remained.
“This is a bother,” she whispered. “Too much of a coincident for my taste. I must leave you, for now, child. But be assured. I’ll be back one day.”
She turned to leave.
“Wait,” I hissed. “What’s going to happen with me now?”
“Nothing. It was an uncontrolled outburst of magic. Accidents happen.”
She left.
Spells binding me to the bed dissolved the same instant. Fucking hell. This bitch was intense as hell. Her magic power was anything I’ve seen so far. What should I do now? Her last words meant that she was going to cover it all up, so Saaron would get out of this unscathed. Was he this powerful or there was something else in play here? What had she discovered that made her suddenly change her mind? This alone was more troubling than anything else. If I possessed something that made the most powerful woman in the academy to back off, then who was I? Could this be related to Selene’s spell Ignelion had mentioned? Too many questions…
I sat down, my stomach rumbled. Sex and the struggle with the unicorn bitch h
ave made me seriously hungry. The room they left me in looked scarcely furnished, a bed, a commode, some medical equipment in the corner that didn’t seem to be used for a while now. What was a point if they could use magic? A lack of windows meant I had to be underground. No chance to run away. Shit.
A door cracked open a bit and Elleria slipped inside. I, actually, envied her figure. Well, she was nothing in comparison to the director, but something about the unicorn woman made my skin crawl. No amount of beauty could compensate for that.
“Elleria,” I said dumbly.
“Save your energy, idiot.”
Nice from the start. That was her for sure.
“Why are you here?”
“You’re reckless. Do you know it? At least, finding you this time wasn’t that hard.”
Finding me again? Ah yes, the library. So, it meant her ability had something to do with seeking. I’ve never heard of such power. Was it even possible? I guess, here, anything is.
“Why are you here?” I repeated.
“Well, think. You were involved in some nasty power explosions or such. The academy is buzzing with rumors. It actually caused the fucking dragon to come down to check it out. Plus, Mirenne, herself visited you here. This isn’t an everyday occurrence.”
“So, Ignelion got cold feet?”
“Shut the fuck up, idiot,” Elleria hissed. “Someone can overhear us.”
“She knows anyway,” I revealed the truth. Lying wasn’t in my nature. Oh Dramer, I hope you’ll forgive me.
“Shit… but this was expected,” Elleria snorted. “Not like you can match the unicorn’s psychic strength. It’s their specialty.”
I wasn’t going to brag that fucking Mirenne couldn’t get all the information she liked and reverted to questioning me. Elleria wouldn’t believe me anyway.
“So, it means…” What exactly? “What does it mean?”
Elleria made a sour face.
“Are they going to kick you to the Slackers?”
“I don’t know. When I’d asked what gonna happen now, she said that nothing will happen. I wish they expelled me already,” I grumbled.
Elleria mused this information for a moment, then with a snap of her fingers, she conjured a freaking chair. She sat down on in, a leg over a leg. Was there a second nature to her? I was fairly sure that humans usually possessed one, set-in-stone character that didn’t much change over the years. Rust was a prime example. He has always been quiet, but loyal redhead. I couldn’t imagine him suddenly changing into a talkative fake. But the change that had undergone in her was different as if she possessed a second personality.
Elleria’s fingers moved in a strange but cohesive pattern. I thought, I noticed a weak web of spells flying around.
“Now, we have approximately five minutes before this spell fades away.”
“What’s the point of this?”
I expected Elleria to put a hand over her forehead or scowl or something. But this alter ego of her, was something else entirely. She pointed her long sexy finger at me and almost smiled.
“Despite my previous judgment, you’re a true piece of work. You got the attention of demi-dragons, Ignelion, Mirenne and now a dragon. Believe me, I’ve never heard of a person who caused such a stir as you, Flare. If this continues… this might pose a serious problem in your education. For now, physical training is out of the question. We need to boost your mental strength.”
I got out of my bed. Unfortunately, they left clothes conjured by Saaron. The sizes were badly off the target. Maybe, Elleria could do something about that.
“So, what do you propose?”
“For now, blend. Find yourself a bunch of friends and stick with them. Less attention you’ll attract, the better. The single magic eruption can be forgotten. Ignelion will put a plan in motion to sway everyone’s attention from you. This might work.”
It made no sense to me. Why did Ignelion care about me so much? With Simona and Rust temporarily absent, any gesture of goodwill toward me seemed suspicious.
“I don’t get it,” I murmured. “Why do you people care about me? I’m a nobody from the Wasteland. This…”
A corner of Elleria’s mouth raised slightly, in a sign of derision or amusement. No way of knowing. In fact, I knew so little about her that any assumption could be wrong.
“You aren’t a listener, are you?” Elleria said. “Ignelion chose to teach you. That’s all to know. If you refuse his help, then after two or three years, most of your draconic powers will vanish and you’ll remain an empty shell. For now, find some friends. We’ll be in contact.”
She stood up and left, and with her, the runes disappeared.
Chapter 17
The damage Saaron’s and my romantic moment inflicted upon my room proved to be damn hard to fix. I received another place. On the lower floor. The room itself didn’t seem that much different. The same went for the corridors. But it was time to learn more about the academy and key figures who ruled this strange place.
Rebecca appeared the next day after moving into my new place. She didn’t want to talk about what happened. It looked we’d seriously spooked her the other day. The director had turned out to be true to her word and no punishment came my way. Though, it wasn’t what made my hackles rise. Mirenne knew the truth of our sex and chose to do nothing to Saaron as well. Were these two working together? This was the problem with this place. I knew virtually nothing about the dynamics between factions. Who allied with who and why? I needed to learn things fast.
First, I memorized the layout of the academy. A circle divided into five sections; Dragons, Unicorn, Elementals, Supernaturals, Fairies. In the middle of that existed a common area where we could meet members of other sections without restriction. Currently, entering another section could happen between 9 am and 6 pm. The rules made no sense to me.
The academy also had many levels. Students had access to floors between 1 to 5. Everything else was off the limits and possessed no descriptions in the guide. So, there was no knowing how many floors really were in the academy. The Heads of Five Houses had their offices on floor 5 in the common area. The director and the other members of the board remained above the ground. We had no way of going there, either.
After a little talk with Elleria, I’ve begun paying more attention to other dragon students. Differences between the first and second years were massive. First-years seemed fierce and full of emotions, while the older students walked with cold stares and stiff gaits. Extinguishing their rage affected dragons no matter how much draconic blood they possessed.
It was easy to say but making friends with either bunch seemed impossible. Especially now, when a label of a troublemaker had been stuck to me. So far, Ignelion failed to turn everyone’s attention from me.
Classes were a disaster. After two months, I’ve sucked at everything except some dirty-easy spells. It’s seemed that the more they wanted me to vanquish my draconic nature, the more rage awaken inside me.
Neither, Elleria, nor Ignelion returned to me with their plan to teach me anything. It could be that Mirenne had gotten to them and they haven’t been with us any longer. I’ve checked and Ignelion wasn’t listed as an ordinary teacher, though his name indeed existed among faculty. Elleria was a student-ghost. I’ve spent weeks tracking her but came to a dead end. Were they even a part of the academy?
In the third month came the moment of the revision with the Head of the Dragon House.
Saaron… you’ll regret it all.
The day was like any other. Full of boring routine and mad workload. They’d expected so many stupid essays that my dreams went bonkers. We were dragons, not writers, for god’s sake! The corridor on floor 4 was packed with peacefully rushing students. Apparently, the worst bunch was supernaturals who caused all sorts of disasters. Rust and Simona. I wish to see you again. Once, I earn more points, the first thing I do, I’ll go straight to see you. Despite my warm feelings toward my friends, something bothered me. Why weren’t they trying to m
eet me? The rules applied to weekends as well. They could visit me.
I took the stairs to floor 5. I’ve never been here. I couldn’t gather strength to meet that liar Saaron. None the less, the time arrived. The appearance of the floor surprised me. It was a huge circular and expensively decorated chamber with five doors in five colors; golden belonged to dragons, silver to unicorns, red to fairies, blue to elementals and green to supernaturals. If the color coding meant to signify anything, then it escaped me.
In the middle of the chamber stood a tree ringed by the twisted black wires. The marble tiles composed graphics under my feet. I didn’t know the meaning of what they represented, nor did I care.
Most students didn’t even notice me as there were handful redheads in the Dragon House. My precious anonymity didn’t last long, though. At first, it was a whisper, then everyone started looking at me openly. I wasn’t some fucking mutant from the Wastelands for them to look at. Elleria promised that diversion will be created to get everyone’s attention off my ass. I haven’t caused any more ‘accidental explosions’ since then, so there was no reason for others to treat me as if I carried a deadly disease. There was only one way to deal with this sort of people.
Ignoring them.
Rebecca perched on my shoulder growling at everyone around, not that anyone could see or hear her. In the end, I haven’t learned to shield my mind, nor I trusted her. Unfortunately, the library’s policy was strict and borrowing books that dealt with serious spells and abilities was impossible. Of course, I’ve tried to read them, but fuck them all, they had runes on them that didn’t allow me to even open these books. Looking for Ignelion’s strange place turned out futile, as well. I was on my own.
“Flare?” a female’s voice sounded over the commotion. It tugged my attention, while no one else heard it, it seemed. This must be another magical means of communication.
The Blood of Dragons Page 10