T.L. Christianson - Frying Night

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Copyright 2021 by T.L. Christianson

Edited by Kjirsten Territ

Cover by Raquel Lyon At Crooked Sixpence

One

Sydney

I stood on a sandy red outcrop overlooking a sea of grayish-green forest below. The sun hung in a pale lavender skyfamiliar but off enough to feel wrong. In the distance, the sound of crickets and birdcalls, along with the occasional screech or snap of a dragon, filled the air.

Shielding my eyes, I rasped, The Dragon realm. I did it. I opened a portal into the dragon realm.

Ashe and Corbin gazed at me with wide eyes, but I was too stunned to say anything else.

My fingertips burned from the cuts Id had to make to draw the runes, but adrenaline rushed through me, dulling the pain.

Only minutes ago, wed been in a cave outside Balaur Academy. The ringing of gunshots echoed in my mind even as the calm breeze streamed loose tendrils of my hair across my face.

We were safe, but my body, which was hyped up and ready to fight, struggled to comprehend this. Blackness tugged at the edges of my vision, and I fell to my knees. When was the last time I ate? Yesterday? Id been so excited to see my bio-dad, Evgeni, through the gateway that Id forgotten.

A shadow loomed over me, and I gazed up at Ashe. Behind him, a freaking planet hung in the sky, its blue oceans and green continents overlain with wispy white clouds. Reaching out with one hand, I pointed to it. Both soldiers, Ashe and Corbin, turned at my gesture and stared as well.

What the Corbin trailed off. He knelt next to his large backpacking pack, staring up at the planet as if it would disappear. His eyes remained on the sky even as he fumbled through the bag. Finding a sun-faded baseball cap, he slid it over his blond waves to tame them.

Ashe clasped his hands behind his head as he took in the sphere above. Turning in a circle to scan our surroundings, his blue eyes settled on me, and his mouth softened into a thin smile. Let me see your fingers. Are they still bleeding?

I shook my head.

Sighing, he reached a hand down to help me up from the ground. His actions were unusually awkward, and I knew why. After kissing me and promising that wed never get separated, I was shipped off to the academy by my uncle, and Ashe had done nothing. Then he shows up at the sacred cave out of the blue with strangers shooting at him.

Was this just a mission, or had he come back for me?

And no matter how messed up, illegal, and dangerous it was for me to make the portal into the dragon realm, I did it to save us. We were cornered in a dead-end cave with strange Dragonborn shooting at us and yelling threats. I saw an escape, and I took it.

Ashe held my hand and examined the dried blood on my fingers. Syd, I cant believe you cut yourself. We need to fix you up, so you dont get infected his voice trailed off as he stared around us, almost in disbelief at the cry of a dragon.

Im okayit can wait until we figure out what were going to do. I bit my lower lip to keep it from trembling. This had been one hell of a day, leaving my mind foggy and my body exhausted and weak.

Uhhh, Syd? You know how to get us home, right? Corbins usual friendly demeanor sounded serious for once.

I shook my head. Ummm no, but Evgeni and Lev are out here, somewhere. We came through Aaraeth. She was the gateway I think. Evgenis portal looked different than this. I think he went through his dragon Nammoth to a different place. I turned to Ashe for support, but instead, his lips pressed in a line as his gaze darted between the planet, the dragons, and the nearby leafy trees.

So, youre saying were screwed? Corbin asked harshly.

I straightened my back even as the Eton Prime stared me down. No. Were not. Its just they know how to get back. I can feel them; theyre herenot closebut theyre here, and Im sure they can feel us too. We just need to find them.

Ashe eyed me, heaving out a sigh. It looks like nightfall will be in a couple hours. We should get moving and out of the sun. We need a place to rest, take inventory and then plan our next move.

I nodded. Well need water. Maybe Aaraeth knows where we can find it. This is her home, after all.

At her name, my dragon lifted her head lazily. She sprawled out across the scorching surface of the rock, her tail swishing at the occasional bug. Her scaled head lowered in the equivalent of a nod. She spoke into our minds, Of course, I know where water isthat direction, toward the rising sun.

As Primes, all three of us could telepathically speak to dragons and wyverns. And as part of a bonded Tetrad of two people and two dragons, Ashe and I could command them as well although that wasnt exactly common knowledge.

Corbin shouldered his pack in irritation, and we followed Ashe toward the edge of the rock where it plummeted into the greenery. Like a cat, Ashe crept down the steep slant before jumping onto the leaf-scattered black dirt. Corbin followed, but I hesitated.

Ashe glanced up and held his arms out for me. Ive got you. Come on.

Instead of descending down gracefully, my foot slid out from under me, and my hip hit the rock painfully, and I cried out. But my soldier was there and caught me. His hands skimmed the length of my body as they tightened on my ribs to stop my momentum. Once my feet met the ground, our eyes locked, and his fingers lingered just a bit too long. His pupils dilated slightly, and I sucked in a breath at the intensity of his gaze.

Then as quickly as hed caught me, his hands were gone, and he turned away.

Was he thinking about the bond like I was? Wondering if he could continue to fight that magnetic pull between us when there was no one to stop us?

There was no council here, no parents, no uncles or Prime Leaders or bossy professors telling us to keep apartforcing us to suffer in ways that they could never understand. Our bond was incomplete. At the best of times, it was uncomfortable and, at the worstcomplete agony. Being separated was physically painful. A pain that never went away.

It strained to hold us together like a rope. The threads broke and curled away, but our bond never snapped. Instead, it stretched and became flexible and stronger with each tie we made togethereach time we connected through healing or touch.

So, what now? We were free, werent we? Was there any kind of law here? Did it even matter if we finally and fully became bondmates?

Bondmates.

Mates.

Even thinking that wordmate