Knowing yourself is more important than knowing someone else, so what do you do when you figure out your whole life is based on a lie?
-
Vale is a peaceful town-- at least by night. By day the town is haunted by a monster who never seems to quit or...
Unafraid and determined, Mina reaches me and grabs my thigh. She mutters an apology as she climbs my back and eventually holds onto one of the spikes of my spine. She meets my eyes as I keep looking at her, and she takes a deep breath, as if bracing herself.
Her soft hand connects with my scales, and she smiles carefully, before her face turns grave.
"Come on, we have to go," she orders, looking behind her shoulder to make sure no one sees.
Though I'm thoroughly confused, I make the running start again when I feel her hands are holding on tight, and I flap my wings and we take off into the gray sky.
Ops! Esta imagem não segue nossas diretrizes de conteúdo. Para continuar a publicação, tente removê-la ou carregar outra.
The cave looks worse. The walls are black as coal, the ground is covered in blood that I recognize as both Tane's and my father's as I sniff.
Adhafera comes running towards us; thankfully she looks unharmed and happy. She purrs as she leans against my foot, and Mina slowly slides down my scaly side and hunches over with her hand stretched out towards the babe. She smiles, and I feel my stomach clench.
I want to ask her why she isn't afraid, why she came running, and how she knew it was me, but she looks up and meets my stare with a slightly amused look.
"I've watched you climb out of your window and shift for years, Corie," she says, shrugging like it's no big deal, "and I know you're not the monster everyone thinks you are."
Adhafera sniffs her hand and eventually rubs herself against her, purring even louder.
"I also knew that when you eventually found out I wanted to help." Her voice is a little quieter, and she keeps looking at the baby chimera and cuddles it, while still speaking to me.
I wish I could tell her thanks, hug her, or just smile at her, but my new form makes it harder to convey the right feelings. She smiles up at me and nods, as if she understands what I'm thinking, and my body relaxes just a little.
"I'm a shifter too, you know," she says, "though I'm not bound by the sun or moon, and I'm nowhere near as impressive and strong as you when I change form. My talents lie more towards speed and flight rather than muscle and fire."
With her soothing voice talking to me, I sit down at the edge of the cave and stare at her. Adhafera runs around herself, hunting Mina's fingers. If I wasn't a dragon shifter myself I wouldn't have believed her. It explains why I never saw her during the nights if she took advantage of the day to train her other consciousness, and it makes me all the more hopeful that this beauty would maybe settle for me one day—
"Corie?" I whip my head to the slight trail down the mountainside and see my father coming up with firewood in his arms. He swallows and turns to face Mina, a small nod towards her signals that he acknowledges her, and then he looks at me again. "What are you doing back so soon?"
"Sir, if I may," Mina starts, getting up again and brushing the dirt and coal off her pants as she stands. "It didn't go so well with the Master," she explains offering her arms to take some of the wood for him as she continues, "Tane was ordered to march the soldiers here, to seek the remains of the dragon, and we came to warn you."
