Chapter 19 19
Kaelen's POV:
We separated after a minute and moved to sit on the bench, side by side but not touching. I needed to think clearly and I couldn't do that while holding her. The forest was quiet around us except for some bird making a repetitive call that got on my nerves.
Where did I even start?
"Okay," I said. "Dragons. What do you want to know?"
"Everything. Start from the beginning."
Right. The beginning. Which was about five thousand years of history that I'd been taught in pieces growing up.
"Dragons have existed as long as humans have," I said. "Maybe longer. We evolved differently, with abilities that humans don't have, but we learned early that being known was dangerous. So we hid. Some dragons developed the ability to shift into human form, to blend in. Others had children with humans, creating hybrids."
"Like me."
"Like you. Shifters like me can transform fully, change between dragon and human form. Hybrids usually can't, or if they can it's partial. But they still have abilities—strength, speed, healing, and usually some kind of elemental affinity."
Annabeth was quiet for a second. "When you say dragon form... you mean like, wings and scales and breathing fire?"
"Yeah."
"You can turn into an actual dragon."
"I can. Though I haven't in years. Too risky."
She made a sound that might have been a laugh or might have been disbelief. "This is insane."
"I know."
"But it explains the healing. And the eyes. And the fever I can't get rid of."
"The fever is your dragon nature waking up. Your body temperature runs hotter than humans because you have literal fire inside you."
"Fire."
"Red dragons are fire dragons, Annabeth. The most powerful, the most dangerous. That's why—" I stopped.
"Why what?"
"That's why you're so rare. Red dragons were hunted almost to extinction."
Her face went pale. "Why?"
And here was where it got really bad.
"Because of the Order," I said. "They're a cult, centuries old, and they figured out that dragon blood has... properties. If you consume it, it extends your life. Not forever, but significantly. And the purer the bloodline, the more powerful the effect."
"They drink dragon blood." Her voice came out flat.
"They drain it. They capture dragons, keep them alive as long as possible, and extract their blood regularly. It's torture, basically, but it keeps the Order's leaders alive for decades beyond normal human lifespan."
"That's—" She stood up, paced a few steps away. "That's horrifying."
"Yeah."
"And they're still around? Still doing this?"
"As far as we know, yes. They're well-funded, well-connected, and very good at covering their tracks."
She turned back to me. "Is that why you've been running? They're after you?"
I nodded. "They found us. Found our family and have been chasing us. We barely got out in time the last time they met us."
"What about your parents? Do you think they have them captive?"
The question hit harder than it should have. I'd known it was coming.
"We don't know. They prepared us since we were kids to scape if necessary. Told us to run and not look back. When they disappeared, we knew the time to leave had arrived. We never saw them again."
"Kaelen..." Her expression was pure sympathy.
"We don't know if they're alive or dead. Sometimes I hope they died quickly instead of..." I couldn't finish that sentence. The idea of my parents being kept alive, drained regularly, tortured for their blood—I couldn't think about it without wanting to destroy something.
Annabeth came back and sat beside me, closer this time, her shoulder against mine.
"That's why you're so protective of your siblings," she said.
"They're all I have left. And they're counting on me to keep them safe."
We sat in silence for a minute. I could feel her processing everything, her brain working through the implications.
"So there are different types of dragons," she said finally. "You said lineages?"
"Right. Golden dragons like me have healing abilities. We're stronger than humans, faster, but our main thing is that we heal incredibly fast and can heal others if we're touching them."
"That's why you looked fine the morning after those guys beat you up."
"Exactly. Red dragons like you are pure power. Strength, speed, endurance, all amplified beyond any other lineage. And fire. Reds have the most destructive fire of any dragon type."
"What other types are there?"
"Blues control water and weather. Silvers are the fastest, best at aerial combat. Blacks can manipulate shadows, good for stealth. Bronzes have earth abilities, incredible defense. There used to be more but some lineages are extinct now."
"And reds are almost extinct."
"Yeah. The Order targeted them specifically because red blood is the most potent. Most powerful effect, longest life extension." I looked at her. "That's why you need to be careful, Annabeth. If they find out you exist, if they find out there's a red hybrid in Emberdale..."
"They'll come for me."
"Yes."
Her jaw set in that stubborn way I was starting to recognize. "Let them try."
"This isn't a joke. These people are dangerous, they're organized, and they will kill anyone who gets in their way."
"I'm not joking. I'm just..." She shook her head. "I'm tired of being scared of things I don't understand. Now I understand. Now I know what I am, what the stakes are. That actually makes it better somehow."
"How does knowing people want to drain your blood make anything better?"
"Because it's real. It's concrete. It's not just vague anxiety about why my body feels wrong or why I'm having weird dreams. It's an actual threat that I can prepare for."
That was such an Annabeth response. Of course she'd rather have a tangible enemy than unknown variables.
"Okay," I said. "But you still need to be careful. No telling anyone, no—"
"I'm not stupid, Kaelen."
"I know. I just..." I ran a hand through my hair. "I don't want anything to happen to you."
She looked at me for a long moment, her expression softening.
"Is that why you approached me?" she asked. "That first day after I helped you. You could have just followed your own way and forgotten about me. Was it because you knew what I was that you came back?"
I could lie. Make it easier, less complicated.
But I'd just spent an hour telling her the truth about everything else.
"I approached you because my dragon nature recognized yours," I said. "The first time you touched me, helping me up off the ground, something in me knew you were like us. And yeah, that made me curious. Made me want to figure out what you were, if you knew about yourself, if you needed help."
Her face fell slightly.
"But," I continued, "that's not why I kept coming back. That's not why I cleaned my room three times before you came over, or why I couldn't concentrate in class because I was thinking about you, or why kissing you just now felt like the most important thing I've ever done."
"What is the reason then?"
"You. Just you, Annabeth. Your bravery and your curiosity and the way you face things head-on instead of running from them. The way you threatened those drunk guys to save someone you didn't know. The way you laugh at my bad jokes and call me out when I'm lying and somehow make me feel like maybe I don't have to carry everything alone." I touched her face. "That has nothing to do with being a dragon. That's just you."
Her eyes got shiny and for a second I thought she might cry. But instead she leaned forward and kissed me again, softer this time, tender instead of desperate.
When she pulled back she said: "Thank you for telling me the truth."
"I should have told you sooner."
"You told me when I was ready to hear it. That's what matters."
We sat there as the afternoon light started to fade, her hand in mine, and for the first time in five years I felt like maybe, just maybe, I wasn't completely alone in this anymore.