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It was cold. My fingers hurt from the constant throbbing. It felt like the haze had taken away all the warmth from my body. I forced my eyes open. They were heavy and it required all of my strength not to just let them close. The area was filled with swirling black smoke. Rays of light reflected against the dense waves.
A shimmer of green came from nearby. I tried to move closer, but everything felt like it was weighted down. The smoke shifted enough that I could see the large dragon laying peacefully. I struggled to get to him, but only managed to get a few feet before stopping. Uther’s body was still covered with wounds, but there wasn’t any blood. The smoke moved and in and out of the cuts as the dragon slept.
I tried to call the beast, but I couldn’t make a noise. The smoke moved over me, blocking Uther from view. Relaxing, I let it carry me and felt my eyes close again. It was soothing, like floating on a cloud.
***
A SWIRLING WIND PULLED at my body. I tried to breathe, but there wasn’t any air to fill my lungs. My knees hit the ground and I took in a gasping breath. Falling to my side, I stared at the stone floor of the garden palace.
“Zoran?” I coughed.
“How is he?”
I glanced up at Zoran. “Who?” I rubbed my face.
“Uther.”
I sat up and sighed. “Sleeping. Still just sleeping.”
“The wounds?”
“Healing, but slowly.”
The god looked off toward the balcony. “Come, we have work to do.” Tucking the necklace away, he turned sharply and disappeared behind the piles in his room.
I looked around to see that a lot of them had been knocked over and some of the items were broken. The room had always been cluttered but organized. I climbed to my feet and stumbled after him.
“How long was I in there?” I asked when I caught up with him.
“Three months,” he replied. He sat down on a stool by his desk and started examining the bottles lining the edge.
“What?” I breathed, rubbing my neck. “Three months? Are you serious? It didn’t seem that long.”
“Hopefully, Uther feels the same.”
I moved closer and leaned down to get a look of his face. “How long will he be in there?”
Zoran’s hand touched the charm beneath his shirt. “He should be dead, Fin. It depends on him whether he wants to survive or not. The wounds will heal with time, but his soul could already be lost.”
“I’m sorry. Uther was special—curse the gods! Yuki!” I grabbed Zoran’s arm. “Did you get him? Tell me you didn’t leave him there for your brother to find.”
Zoran brushed me off him and picked up his pen. “He’s in the basement.”
“Thank the heavens,” I breathed, running my hands down my face.
“He was needed,” said Zoran plainly. His tone was very firm. There was no real emotion in anything he had said.
“Can I go see him?”
Zoran shook his head. “The frost will get to you first.”
“Then let him out,” I snapped.
“No.” He continued scribbling down notes.
“Why the hell not?!” I glared at the god. “Aedus isn’t going to find him here. I’ll keep an eye on him.”
Zoran put down his pen. His hands were shaking as he clenched them. “Fin, step outside and see exactly what my brother didn’t find and then ask me again to let the dragon out.”
I backed away. “He didn’t—? The sirens...” I raced down the haggard walkway to the nearest exit. My chest seized at the sight. I walked to the end of the balcony and saw the full extent of what Aedus had done. The garden was dead. Only a couple plants were still clinging to life along the lava flow. The door to the tunnel had a giant hole in the center.
Hearing footsteps, I turned to see Zoran. He walked to my side and put his hand on my shoulder.
“The sirens? And Rhoda?”
“They fled. I found enough bodies to tell me they did their best, but Aedus’ men overpowered them. They weren’t created to fight the battles of gods.”
My eyes fell on the corpses of dragons scattered on the ground.
“How could they do this? They killed them for no reason.”
“They had reasons, Fin.” He squeezed my shoulder. “Mortals will always fear dragons and they have every right to do so. I don’t think it took much convincing for Aedus to gather his army.”
Zoran grabbed my hand and placed a scroll sealed with wax in it. “Take this to Hobbs.”
“What are you going to do?”
A hooded coat appeared in his hand. He helped me put it on and pulled the hood over my head.
“I’m going to let the mortals see for themselves the consequences of banishing the god who controls the fire of the mortal realm.” His hand brushed against my cheek. “I want you back before nightfall. Gail is still housing soldiers. Keep your head down and no one will notice you. Hobbs is expecting you, so don’t wander off course and worry the old man.” He went back into the palace.
I walked down the balcony and made my way to the stairs. Emerging out into the garden, I glanced around at the withered plants. Without the sirens, they didn’t stand much chance against the night air. I wandered through them. It was sad that such beautiful creations had been destroyed. Even though Zoran and I fought at times, this place had become my home, and Aedus had ruined it.
Approaching the gateway, I saw more of the carnage. Dragons and sirens were scattered around the area. Humans laid among them, but I felt no remorse for the mortals. They had attacked us. Death was a worthy punishment.
I wished more of them had died.
I stepped into the tunnel. It was too dark to see much. Extending my hand, I created a small flame in my palm. Shadows of large masses reflected on the walls. Covering my mouth, I turned in a circle and realized the extent of what had happened.
“Oh my god,” I breathed.
Dead. The dragons were really all dead.
I stopped at a small beast with black scales. It reminded me of Yuki. I knelt down and ran my fingers across its neck. The mortals were barbaric monsters. The dragons had done nothing to them. To annihilate entire species because a jealous god ordered it was insanity. If anyone did recognize me, I wouldn’t hesitate to blow up if they tried anything. I thought the gods were heartless monsters, but mortals were the same. They just didn’t have the power to act out their true desires.
I exited the tunnel and felt heavy. Even after sleeping for three months, I was emotionally drained. I started up the path to Gail and fought to keep the images of the dragons from cycling through my mind. I should have told Zoran to go himself.
The god had kept me in a necklace for three months and then sent me off like I was no longer in danger of his deranged brother finding me. Was it even safe for me to be by myself?
Stopping mid-stride, I looked back. Did he want me to see what the soldiers had done? I shook the idea from my head and hurried on. I’d find Hobbs and go home so I could focus on getting Yuki out of the basement.