Chapter 56 The Silence of Sorrow pt3
I look over the edge of the cliff—it’s a sheer drop. A sheer drop that's made of broken obsidian. There are scorch marks along the edge of the cliff, signs of a landslide caused by dragon fire. One of the dragons has cleaved this mountain in half at some point. Far below is the rerouted raging river, the waters high from the winter melt.
“There’s no way we can climb down that!” Elsie shrieks.
Behind us, the last of the trees have become engulfed in flame. There's merely ten feet between us and a wall of fire. I turn and face it, stepping closer and raising my dagger as if I’ll fight the fire itself.
“I won’t let it kill you!” I scream.
A deep chuckle comes through the flames, something inhuman, something monstrous. I see the silver maw of the beast part the flames first, its scaled mouth split in a delighted grin. “It seems she did not lie. She cleaved this mountain in half to set a trap. Clever girl…” the dragon muses with pride.
I blink in surprise, almost dropping my knife as the giant silver dragon steps out of the flames and towers over us. He raises his head and each scale covering his neck is wider than I am tall. His claws dig into the earth, gouging huge tears as if slicing through silk. He swings his head from the prince and princess, and then down to me.
“What do you think you will do with that, little mouse?” he asks.
“You can speak?” Zaries gasps.
I turn my head, watching in terror as he steps forward with his sword raised. Elsie is at his back, terrified tears falling from her crystalline blue eyes as she sobs loudly. No one knew the dragons could speak.
They were thought to be vicious animals and nothing more.
“I’m older than your entire familial line, mouse. I have long since mastered the art of speech. How you puny humans have such an ability at such a young age confounds me,” the dragon grumbles, his voice so deep I can feel it resonate in my chest.
“What do you want with us, monster?” Zaries demands, but I can see the way his Adam’s apple bobs in fear.
“What do I want?” the dragon asks. He shakes his head, flames licking from his jaw. “What do I want?” he roars, blasting fire into the air above us. Embers rain down as birds flying above drop dead, burned to coal. “I want you all to die!”
“No!” I scream. I run at the dragon, leaping up on his claws, jamming my dagger between his massive scales, and stabbing upward.
The dragon roars, but not in pain, in irritation. “You are nothing more than a gnat! You think you can wound me?” he growls shaking me off and tossing me backward toward the burning forest. “Die, mouse!” he shouts then swings his head back toward the prince and princess.
I hit the ground hard, all the air forced from my lungs. For what feels like an eternity, I stare up at the burning treetops and the bright blue sky beyond and try to find my breath. I can’t die like this. I can’t let the dragon kill them!
I force myself to roll over, scrambling onto my hands and knees, ignoring the pain as they burn in the embers on the ground. When I get to my feet, my lungs finally inflate and I let out an agonized scream.
“Anara! Save me! Help me!” Elysandra cries.
She's reaching for me, edging her way along the side of the cliff and away from Zaries. Is she leaving him to face the dragon alone?
Zaries swings his sword at the dragon, who sidesteps the attack and watches him like a cat would watch a mouse. The giant beast is laughing, playing with him, toying with his fear.
“I’m going to enjoy eating the last blood of both royal families more than you will ever know,” the dragon purrs. His silver scales reflect the flames behind him and the blue skies in front, illuminating the monster with both the peace of the blue afternoon skies and blazing death.
Zaries backs up as the dragon comes parallel to the side of the cliff. He’s herding the humans, pushing them toward certain death, as if it’s a game to him.
“Anara! Save me! Leave the prince!” Elsie begs.
The dragon roars, drowning out the sound of her plea, but I hear it. I hear it even though Zaries does not.
The prince keeps backing up, swinging his sword and missing as the dragon extends his long neck and snaps at him. Behind Zaries and Elsie, the cliff juts out. A jagged edge with a deathly drop on both sides.
They’re trapped. It’s the edge of the cliff or the burning forests. Even if I could save her, there’s nowhere for us to flee.
“Time to die, little mice!” the dragon roars with laughter, arching his neck as flames begin to spill from his jaws.
I’m moving before I realize it, running toward Elsie and Zaries as fast as I can. I’m fighting the speed of the dragon’s flames, racing against death itself, and when I’m standing between them and the dragon, I feel the first lick of blistering flames against my back.
There’s a split second where I lock eyes with Elsie and my decision is clear to her. Shock makes her eyes open wider than I ever thought they could as my body collides with Zaries and the force of my speed sends us careening off the side of the cliff. I twist, putting my back toward the ground so Zaries has a chance to live.
It gives me an unobstructed view.
Blue sky.
Crimson flames.
Elysandra in dragon fire.
I cling to Zaries as the sounds of her screams implant into my brain.
“No!” he screams, the sound of his denial echoing off the cliff as time seems to stretch on forever. He pushes away from me, throwing me into the air away from him. I have a second to see the pain in his eyes turn to hatred before our bodies hit the rapids of the river tearing through the earth below us.