by M Guida
“Maybe.” He sighed. “I know you’re scared, but we’ll get through this together.”
I wanted to argue. He was as cool as a cucumber, but he wasn’t the one who was about to get sliced and diced.
He rubbed my back. “Let’s get something to eat. If you want to master the Golden Demon powers, you have to eat well.”
“Do you think the heat generation will help me pass the fire test?”
“Absolutely.” His confidence didn’t ease the case of dread in my gut.
We left for the cafeteria, and I forced myself to choke down three pieces of sausage pizza and a small salad. For the first time ever, Bo didn’t sit at the Royal table. He sat with his cousin and had his back to us. He didn’t even come over to say good night.
I returned to my room with Mina.
She patted her dragon bracelet. “I’m so glad I’m not having that dream anymore. I’ve also been meditating, and it really does calm you.” She clasped my arm. “Don’t worry about the trials. I’m sure you’ll pass just like last time.”
We entered our room, and I plopped onto my bed. “Last time, Bo helped me pass with a loophole.”
Mina shrugged and tossed her backpack onto her bed. “I don’t think so. I thought you passed last year fair and square.”
I crossed my legs and pulled out my angel lore book. “But that’s when I had the dragon king’s support. He’s one of many who want me out of here.”
Mina changed out of her shirt and pulled on her sweater. “And wants you to stay away from Bo.”
“Yeah.” My voice choked. I couldn’t believe I was losing Bo again. He’d been such a rock for me ever since I’d come here.
Mina pulled on her pants and sat next to me. “Don’t worry. Bo won’t abandon you.” She patted my thigh. “He’ll defy his dad.”
“I’m not so sure. He didn’t even say good night.”
She gave me a brief hug. “I’m sorry.”
I took a deep quivering breath. “Thanks.”
I stayed up late and read the angel lore, but I wasn’t any closer in solving the riddle. I fell asleep and woke with the book across my chest.
Mina was still asleep, sleeping soundly. The sun hadn’t come up yet, and I couldn’t sleep. Every muscle was tighter than an overstretched rubber band. I slid the book aside and sat on the floor to meditate.
Something moved outside the window that caught my eye. I expected to see Lucien flying, but instead, a red dragon soared over the Legacy grounds. It was definitely Bo. I quickly threw on some sweatpants and headed outside.
Stars still twinkled outside, and the sky slowly faded from black to gray. Dawn would be approaching soon. The red dragon was gone. I sat on the steps and put my elbows on my knees.
“Raven.” Bo stepped out of the shadows
I smiled. “Bo.” But the tight lines around his eyes and mouth made bees buzz in my gut.
“I need to tell you something.” He sat next to me and hung his head.
I pushed my hair behind my ears. “This has something to do with your father, doesn’t it?”
“I’m the next king to the dragons, Raven. I have to think of my people.”
“Meaning?” My voice sounded stronger than I thought possible, but inside, I was crumbling.
“If I don’t obey my father and stay away from you, he’ll strip me of my crown, and it will go to Heath.”
“So, now, you hate me?”
“No. Never.” He clasped my chin. “Don’t ever think that. I’ve wanted you since the first day I saw you. I still do. If I were king, none of this would be happening.”
“I take it this means you can’t teach me anymore?”
“I’m sorry.” He brushed his lips over mine. “This is goodbye for now.”
I couldn’t stop the tears from seeping down my cheeks.
“Don’t cry.” He brushed off my tears. “I have faith in you, Raven. You’ll pass those trials. I know you will.”
Despair clogged up every pore inside me. “How can I do it without you?”
“Because you’re a silver dragon. My dad, Heath, and the rest of my people haven’t seen a silver dragon for thousands of years. We thought they were extinct.”
“So, the first thing they want to do is kill or banish me?”
“Let me put it this way. How would your people feel if a Tyrannosaurus Rex or a Velociraptor came back?”
“A little different. I didn’t try to eat any of you.”
He draped his arm around my shoulders. “No, but you did drain our powers.”
“I didn’t mean to.”
He kissed me on the cheek. “I know.” He stood and lifted my chin, brushing his thumb over my cheek. “You can do this, Raven. You don’t need me. You need to believe in yourself.” He dropped his hand and tilted his head. “I’d better go before Heath notices I’m gone.”
“Heath didn’t just come to replace Professor Tuamma, did he?”
He kissed the top of my head. “The council wanted him to keep an eye on me… keep me away from you.”
He walked back toward the boys’ dorm, and I could taste his lips on mine. His strong arms had always made me feel safe. Now, he’d turn his back on me.
Cold air gripped me, piercing my bones and my soul. I huddled into a deflated ball, wishing I was like everyone else. Then maybe I’d be accepted. I hadn’t been accepted at high school and definitely not here.
Would the rest of the Royals abandon me, too? Were we no longer the Defenders? If I didn’t pass the stupid trials, I’d be locked up, because I was different. I had powers, but they were frowned upon. I rested my head into my knees and cried softly. I missed Julie and my mom so much right now. They both had been at my side through all the hard times.
How could I do this by myself?
“Raven? What are you doing out here? It’s chilly.” Mina sat next to me, rubbing her arms.
I quickly told her what happened.
“Figures,” she mumbled.
“Why do you say that?”
“Heath. He was one of the key knights that immediately branded my dad as a traitor.” She clasped my hand. “Hey, no matter what happens, I’m your friend. You stood by me when no one else would.”
I sniffed. “Thanks.”
The sun slowly peeked over the mountains, turning the sky and clouds pink and orange.
“We probably should get ready for class,” Mina mumbled.
“Yeah, I can hardly wait to see Heath’s bright and shiny face.”
“Don’t worry about him. Just learn what he teaches. You don’t have to like him.”
We both stood.
“Mina?”
“Yeah?”
Fear slid over my skin, leaving a rash of goosebumps. “Do you think the Royals will abandon me, too?”
She hugged me hard. “Not a chance. Lucien would never let that happen.”
I released her. “How can you be so sure?” I blinked away tears. “I never thought Bo would betray me.”
She put her hands on my shoulders. “Bo is a great dragon. He’s loyal and brave, but he’s not Lucien.”
“But Lucien’s a golden demon.”
“Yeah, I’ve noticed that. But I’ve also noticed the way he looks at you. I can tell you this… He never looked at Demi the way he looks at you.” She motioned with her arm. “Come on. We’ve really got to get ready.”
I wished I had her confidence. Thinking of facing the Royal table made me want to crawl in bed and pull the covers over my head.
An hour later, Mina and I headed over to the cafeteria. Most of the guys were at the Royal table, all except Bo. Once again, he sat with Heath, my new enemy. I was so tempted to freeze him and send him back to the ice age, but I held my head high and ignored both of them.
I forced myself to fill up my tray with a hearty breakfast of blueberry waffles and bacon. I grabbed a cup of coffee with cream and a big glass of orange juice.
I wasn’t sure whether I should sit at the Royal table, but Xavier
waved me over.
“Hey, good morning.” I smiled and sat down.
Mina took a seat next to me.
Lucien put his tray down loaded with eggs, hash browns, bacon, and two biscuits.
Xavier tilted his head. “What’s up with Bo? Why is he not sitting with us?”
I couldn’t bring myself to answer him.
“Because he’s a coward,” Lucien blurted.
Xavier put down his fork loaded with scrambled eggs. “What? Why do you say that?”
“Because he’s going along with what his dad wants.”
Dante put down his tomato juice. “You’re kidding? He’s going along with that stupid mandate. I thought he was a Defender.”
“Apparently not,” Rhys said. He looked at me. “Raven, just to let you know, we were all ordered to stay away from you, too.”
Xavier grinned. “But pissing off my dad has always been a favorite pastime of mine.”
I put down my coffee. “Are your fathers threatening to withhold the crown from you?”
Rhys shrugged. “No.”
Dante frowned. “That’s what Bo’s dad is holding over his head?”
I nodded.
“What a dick,” Xavier mumbled.
“It’s only because they’re afraid of you, Raven,” Lucien said. “You’re more powerful than all of them, and that scares the shit out of him.”
Mina pulled apart her cinnamon roll, dripping with butter. “So, Lucien, what would you do if your dad threatened to take the crown from you?”
“Being a king isn’t everything.” Lucien twirled a piece of waffle in syrup and then popped into his mouth. “An outlaw can have twice as much fun.”
Aaaaaaooo
Xavier howled.
Dante and Rhys both laughed, and Rhys winked at me.
I wasn’t sure I believed them. All of them had been given orders to stay away from me, but none of them had their birthright hanging in the balance. Could they really give that up for me? I was only one dragon and, according to Bo’s dad, not a special one.
Chapter 21
The next few months had been the hardest of my life. Dragon Magick class sucked. Heath wouldn’t even let me be in the same auditorium with the other dragons. I had to be put in a smaller one.
I had been so good with my crossbow last year, but this year I was struggling. My crossbow was supposed to enhance my abilities, but I never felt anything different.
He would teach me the same lessons but never offered one ounce of encouragement.
I could only cloak myself for a minute, and it was unstable. In fact, he glowed with happiness when I failed, which happened a lot.
In our last class, I had drawn on every ounce of dragon power I had. Tingles had shimmered over me, but then nothing.
Heath laughed. “You’re no better than the first time. To pass the trial and advance, you need to remain invisible for at least five minutes; you’re not even close.”
After he left my room, I slumped down on the cold floor like a beaten cur.
I missed Bo. He’d always been my greatest cheerleader, but he never even looked or talked to me. Vivian, on the other hand, practically did cartwheels on the way to class.
In Defense and Battle techniques, he had requested not to be my partner, and I couldn’t believe it. Anton had granted his request. At least everyone else didn’t act like I had cooties.
Lucien and I sat in the dungeon at the table.
I put down the angel lore book. “This is so frustrating. I can’t find any clues in this book about the Archangel Chamuel’s prophesy.”
Lucien scooted one of his dad’s books to the side. “I can’t find anything in here, either.” He leaned back in his chair. “I think you should try and do the heat generation spell.”
“Lucien, I’ve tried, but I still can’t do it. No matter how much I try. I still don’t get why Anton wants me to learn about golden demon powers, because I’m a dragon. I’ll never be able to access them.”
“There has to be a reason. Come on, let’s try one more time. I’ll show you again.”
I wanted to scream at him for the millionth time, because no matter how many times I tried, nothing happened or I turned everything into ice.
Lucien pulled some rocks out of his pocket. “Now, concentrate on the rocks and pull on the power deep within you.” He softly blew on the rocks, and they slowly glowed until they were red hot.
He made it look so damn easy, but everything he did was perfect. He could make the rocks turn hot by just moving his hand across them.
Nothing I did worked.
“Now you try.”
I had to pass the test as a dragon, so I stripped. Lucien always looked at me with admiration and desire in his eyes, but he never tried anything.
Sometimes, I had to admit, I was disappointed and hoped he wouldn’t keep his hands to himself.
I shifted into my silver dragon.
Lucien placed more rocks onto the table.
“Now, try and make them glow.”
Dragon, can you help me?
My beautiful dragon flashed into my mind.
I told you. We exhale cold, not heat. I’m sorry.
Determination pumped through me, and I hissed. Cold air brushed over the rocks, turning them into ice cubes.
I hung my head. Same old, same old.
“Try again.”
This time, I blew softly and frost made the rocks crack.
Shit, not working.
Soft footsteps came down the stairs. I immediately shifted and grabbed my clothes.
Lucien hurried over to the bottom of the stairwell. “Anton, what’s up?”
“I was coming down to see how everything was going.”
I quickly threw on my clothes just as Anton slipped past Lucien.
“Have you discovered anything more in the demon or angel lore books?”
“No,” I said miserably.
“Don’t give up, Raven. Your parents never did.”
I didn’t answer. Their reputation, especially Mom’s, was hard to live up to. She didn’t seem to struggle with the trials.
“She’s getting better,” Lucien said.
I scowled. Why lie? Anton would know soon enough.
“Raven, I need to tell you something. The dragon council decided to move up the trials.”
My heart sank to my toes. “What? Why?”
Lucien frowned. “Can they do that? I thought all of our trials are supposed to be at the same time.”
Anton sat at the table. “The King of the Dragons has had news of Professor Tuamma.”
Lucien folded his arms and shoved his chair back. “Meaning?”
“Ryker sent him a message… more of an ultimatum.”
I shifted in my chair. Whatever it was, it would be bad, bad, bad. “What?”
“Either we move up your dragon trial, or he’ll send Professor Tuamma back in pieces.”
I could feel the blood drain from face, and my fingers and toes ran cold. “Would he really do this?”
Anton put his palms on the table. “I’m sorry, Raven. Your dragon trial has been moved up. You have until next Friday to master your skills.”
Lucien slammed his fist on the table. “You can’t be serious? Everyone else gets almost a year to pass these trials.”
“But Ryker doesn’t care about any of them.” He pointed at me. “But he does care about her. He always has added another demand.”
My throat turned bone dry, and I squeaked out the words. “What?”
“He has forbidden that if you fail, you do not go to the Hollows.”
I looked between them. “Why would he do that?”
“Besides Legacy,” Anton said, “the Hollows would be the safest place to keep you away from Ryker.”
“Yeah, I remember that.” I rubbed my sweating forehead. “He’s doing this so he can have one of his goons snatch me like they my mom, huh?”
“Very perceptive, Raven,” Anton said. “I fear Ryker has gotten mo
re desperate, ever since you closed the magical gateway.”
“With my sword,” Lucien said.
“It wasn’t the sword or the dead man’s blood.”
Lucien and I looked at each other and both blurted. “Then what?”
“Tell me, Lucien, when you fought that creature, did you get blood on your sword?”
“No.” Lucien’s eyes clouded over. “Wait. I cut my hand and clutched my sword. What does that have to do with anything?”
Anton smiled. “I believe it was the combination of Golden Demon blood and dragon power that closed the magical gateway.”
Lucien frowned. “How can that be? It wasn’t like that sword was dipped in golden demon blood.”
“True,” Anton said. “But something about that power has made Ryker up his game.”
Lucien held my gaze. “I still say we need to protect Raven. Not hand her over like a lamb to be slaughtered.”
“Thanks for the boost of confidence,” I mumbled.
He held up a finger. “Don’t go there. You know that’s not true.”
Anton stood. “Then help her pass the trial, Lucien.”
“I’m trying.” Lucien shoved the demon book.
“Not hard enough. You have everything you need to help her succeed.” Anton walked up the stairs, his footsteps echoing.
Panic showed its ugly head. My lungs seized up, and beads of cold sweat broke out all over me.
“Crap.” Lucien got up and tossed his chair. “This fucking sucks.”
“You don’t think I can pass, do you?” I missed Bo so much. He’d be arguing with both Anton and Lucien, but he was gone.
Lucien clutched my shoulders. “If you had more time. Don’t you see, Raven. The dragon kingdom, Ryker, even Anton, they’re all setting you up to fail.”
“I’m not stupid, Lucien. I know this.”
“You’re panicking.”
I sucked in air, but only got small snippets and the dungeon and Lucien’s scowling face went in and out of focus.
Shit, I was going to pass out.
Lucien snatched my hand. “Come on. You need to stay calm. You need to meditate.”
We sat on the floor and crossed our legs. I put my hand on my tight chest. “I can’t.”
“Yes, you can. This can help you in the trials. If you panic, you’ll lose.” His hard voice broke through hysteria threatening to turn me into one of those stupid girls in a horror movie.