When The Heart Sings

Chapter 72

Darien's POV:

Growls shook my chest unceasingly, although it was only with my own anger. Serena's side was far too quiet, so she was likely unconscious. That made my muscles shake in the desire to kill something, but there were no more targets to be had. We had killed all of the soldiers and two Valrid who had refused to talk, but others had still managed to capture Serena and disappear with her halfway through the fight.

Saphira was absent and I fervently hoped that she was with Serena. I wasn't sure if the Dranek lived or not, nor whether if she was with Serena. My eyes closed as I concentrated on the bond once more, but Serena's end was still.

I growled and shook myself in frustration since I could not pick up any hint of direction, neither did Serena's song guide me to her. It was pushing me to the edge of my control, and I knew my eyes were nearly black.

Fiona was fussing over the rapidly closing injury on Alex's arm. My own arrow wounds had already completely healed and disappeared. Lucas sat on a log and stared at the forest as if willing the missing duo to just magically appear.

A Dranek stood nearby, and the feelings of anger and a sense of failure rolled off of him. The ridge of hair along his back and tail were bristled, while the fan-like end of his tail sliced through the air in agitation as he occasionally lashed his tail from side to side. There were four others combing the woods in a fashion that only the Dranek could.

I glared at the water-filled hole in the ground once more. The bastards had flooded it to prevent us from following the tunnels. They must have dug it during the earlier stages of the war as an escape route. At least Serena was not down there. The bond let me know that she lived. The knowledge that she was in danger, kidnapped once again, made my blood run hot.

I couldn't remain silent or still any longer, "We have a good idea of where they were taking her. The Council Building is west of here and there is no reason for stealth any longer."

Alex got to his feet and looked at Fiona, "I really must see this through to the end, will you wait for my return?"

Fiona also got to her feet, "I am coming with you. I am not entirely sure what just happened, but it outrages my sensibilities. Let us see this wrong corrected and be made right."

Lucas' face was set with determination, "You know I am behind you brother. Let's go find that little mate of yours."

I turned to face the Dranek, this one was larger than most, and I had never really spoke with any Dranek other than Saphira. His sky blue skin reflected the anger that my reading ability could sense. "Will you fight with us?"

His dark gold eyes stared down at me for a long moment before the hair on his head stood up even more as his eyes flashed a brighter yellow, "We will fight."

He turned his head as he loosed a piercing cry that echoed through the trees and made the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. Four other fierce Dranek cries echoed his.

I faced the road, "Then we are wasting time when we are needed elsewhere."

It may take a slow cart two hours to get to the Council Building from here, but I had no plans on taking my time, although I was going to have to keep my speed to something my companions could manage.

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Saphira's POV:

I remained kneeling as I held Serena's limp body in my arms while listening to the sounds outside of the cage. It was indeed a cage, there were strong bars on the inside and solid sheets of metal behind them. I had tried several times, but the lid would not come off, nor could I do any damage to the walls or floor.

The cage must have been put on a large cart and several people were rolling it down an echoing area, likely a hallway. I remained silent, even though I felt like snarling at whoever was out there. Such actions would only draw attention to myself, and I was hoping that Serena would recover soon.

My hand rested on the underside of her chin as I kept tabs on her pulse, but it seemed normal enough. Her breathing was also steady. The gas has cleared out of the cage, although I could feel the aftereffects of it as well. It hadn't knocked me out, but I wasn't going to be managing any impressive fighting until it wore off.

I tilted my head as I tried to keep track of the turns we were taking and the footsteps around me. We had passed at least three of those giant behemoths along the way. Two Valrid and a handful of Tarulk were currently walking beside the cage.

I still had one dagger, so a one on one fight would be easy enough to win. However, I highly doubted that they would oblige me with such a fight, and I really didn't want to leave Serena's side until Darien stood guard over her.

I kept part of my attention on Serena. It wasn't really magic, as Dranek understood the term, but more that we were capable of picking up the tiniest clues and relating them to a conclusion. Serena's breathing was coming a bit faster and her heartbeat picked up speed almost imperceptibly.

She was starting to wake up.