Chapter 24: Chapter 24

Liora's POV

As promised, by morning, Kysen had communicated a new location through his drakyn to Vyrmoth.

Getting up this morning was completely frustrating to say the least, because Vyrmoth woke me up by practically yelling in my head. Every passing day, there was always a new reason that he gave me to want to separate my mind from his. Yelling in my head in the middle of my sleep was so diabolical.

So, we were currently in the middle of a conversation… Well, an argument really, talking about boundaries, but Vyrmoth was not having it. Not even in the slightest.

“Oh please, you got more than enough sleep overnight. I do not see the problem here at all” he argued and I groaned for the umpteenth time that morning.

“This has nothing to do with how much sleep I got! Ugh, how can a drakyn as huge and scary looking like you be so sassy?” I said, definitely way too frustrated by now.

Yes, I did get a lot of sleep overnight. Given the fact that I had such a chaotic day prior, I fell asleep almost immediately my body touched my bed.

But, like I said, that really was not the point.

The point was that he didn’t knock.

Not that he could. Because he obviously lived in my head, which was extremely unfair.

“Do not call me that word!” he basically growled, and I rolled my eyes in response.

“You could have been gentle about waking me at least,” I muttered, totally ignoring him, as I dragged myself upright in bed.

My hair was everywhere, my eyes still blurred by tired lids, and my limbs felt like they belonged to someone else. I was not actually physically tired, I just still had sleep in my system. I was still processing everything.

“You would not have listened,” Vyrmoth replied calmly. “You are stubborn in your sleep as well.”

“I am peaceful in my sleep,” I corrected. “You’re the violent one.”

“Yet, you are the one throwing insults,” he said dryly.

I sighed and swung my legs over the side of the bed, rubbing my face.

“So,” I said, “Where am I going today?”

“The Ashfall caves,” Vyrmoth answered immediately. “East of the lower cliffs. Past the broken ridge.”

My heart skipped a beat.

“The ones no one goes to because they’re unstable?” I asked.

“Yes.” he said, blankly.

“Of course,” I muttered. “Because my life is apparently a series of bad decisions.”

“They are not unstable,” he corrected. “They are misunderstood.”

“That is exactly what unstable things say.” I stated. And weird wise drakyns.

I dragged myself out of bed and started getting dressed. Training clothes, boots, tunic. My hands moved on their own while my brain caught up.

“Kysen will be waiting near the entrance,” Vyrmoth added.

That made my stomach flip. Not in a dramatic way, just enough to annoy me.

I braided my hair quickly, grabbed my satchel, and slipped out of my room.

The castle was quiet at this hour, the halls still half asleep. Guards nodded as I passed, but no one stopped me. Outside, the air was sharp and cold, biting at my skin as I took off into the sky.

Flying always helped.

The wind tore through my hair and cleared my head, pulling the tension out of my shoulders. The cliffs rushed beneath me, the forest blurring into dark green and silver.

When the broken ridge came into view, my pulse picked up.

Were we really using this place? It looked like it was about to fall apart.

The Ashfall caves sat carved into the stone like old scars, black mouths in the mountain’s side.

Kysen stood just outside the largest opening, his back to me.

I slowed down as soon as I saw him.

He hadn’t noticed me yet. Or maybe he had, and just hadn’t turned around. Kysen Dravon had a way of always seeming aware without ever looking like he was trying.

He stood near the cave entrance with his arms crossed, dark hair tied back loosely at the nape of his neck, the wind tugging at a few stubborn strands. His stance was relaxed, but there was something different about it… It almost seemed… forced?

I landed a few steps behind him, boots crunching softly against gravel.

Still, he didn’t turn.

Something was definitely up with him.

“Are you planning to pretend I’m not here?” I asked.

That did it.

He glanced over his shoulder, and then slowly turned to face me.

“You’re late,” he said, and I tilted my head to the side as I studied him.

The bags under his eyes told me he either did not get any sleep or he had been crying.

Either way, I knew something had definitely happened to him.

“Good morning to you too, Dravon.” I said, pretending not to notice. He was usually a very closed book, but in that moment, I could see him as clear as day.

His mouth twitched. Not quite a smile, but close.

“You fly slower when you’re thinking too much,” he said calmly.

I narrowed my eyes. “You do not know what I'm thinking about.”

“No,” he agreed. “But I know what it looks like when you’re distracted.”

If only he knew he was the reason I was distracted.

I crossed my arms. “So this is the new torture chamber?”

He glanced back at the cave behind him. “You don’t like caves?”

“I don’t like places that look like they want to eat me.” I stated calmly. I was anything but calm.

He let out a quiet huff of a laugh and stepped aside slightly.

“Relax. These ones won’t collapse on you. Not today, at least.”

“That is the least comforting thing you could have said.” I pointed out, and he shrugged in response.

“Don’t worry, I made sure,” he said and I nodded, pretending that I still wasn’t terrified of the mere thought of the cave walls collapsing on us.