Draygon Inferno | Book 2 | ✔️

Chapter Nine

          Siobhans eyes shot open when the cold snout of a horse pushed against her cheek. She pushed the horse away, grumbling when she sat up. How had she allowed herself to fall asleep before waking Wren to keep watch? One hand rubbed the sleep from her eyes.

"Knock it off, Wyx." She pushed the horse away when it nudged her face again. Siobhan yawned and stood up. Darkness consumed the sky, no sign of the sunrise burned in the distance though the moon was half set. She yawned again and glanced to their fire. Flames still burned on the wood, alive as if they'd just set it. Her eyes drifted above the flame to Wren's discarded bedroll. "Wren?"

There was no answer. She looked around. Bob was still tied to the metal rod, their satchels sat on the ground where they'd left them. Only Wrens sword was missing.

"Wren!" Her voice echoed into the dark void. She sniffed the air, picking up a trace of his scent following the path into the mountains. Grabbing her staff parts from beside her bedding, Siobhan rushed down the path. "Dammit, Wren. You better not have gone far."

Snow covered hills faded into snow covered lumps resembling boulders. Siobhan brushed some of the loose powder off the smooth surface, confirming what her history lectures had told her; Esa'drago was nothing but blocks of rock hard ice. She pushed off from the ice, following the path as it narrowed. Stars faded from the blackened sky until it was an empty void. Siobhan shuddered.

For the first time in as long as she could remember, she was cold. She wrapped her arms around her body, her staff clutched awkwardly in her hand, cursing herself for not taking a moment to grab their supplies and horses. Wind belted around her, lashing at her face like a whip. She lowered her head in a futile attempt to protect her face. The ascents path narrowed to a near tunnel of snow covered ice.

"Dammit, Wren." She stopped when the path split in two. Faded footprints jutted off to the right, but Wren's scent carried to the left. Siobhan sighed and glanced back to where she came. A void of blackness stood behind her, it stood to her right, and it extended to her left. There wasn't an ounce of light and what little she could see was slowly fading into nothing. Siobhan shook her head. "I'll never find him in time if I continue on like this. You are a fool, Wren Lethon. And I am an even bigger fool for caring."

Siobhan used her touch to find her way back to the path she came from before she sprinted back to their camp. Wyx was pacing by the fire, his mane shifting with every prance. He reared on his hind legs when Siobhan emerged from the darkness into the camp lit by the fire. She frowned.

All of their belongings were packed and loaded on the saddles. There were no signs of footprints on the ground, no trampled grass outside of what was created by her and Wren, nothing. There wasn't time to investigate further. She secured Bob and her staff to Wyx's saddle before creating a torch for herself.

"If that moron isn't okay, I'm going to kill him myself." Both heels dug into Wyx's side as soon as she was settled in the saddle, sending both horses into a gallop. Siobhan stopped when she reached the fork in the park.

Light from the torch barely illuminated anything around her. It reflected off patches of uncovered ice but dissolved into nothingness. Wren's scent still lingered to the left, but the faded footprints pointed to the right. Siobhan closed her eyes and inhaled Wrens aroma. It was cinnamon mixed with sweat mixed with something new. Pine. Freshly burnt pine carried on the harsh winds enveloped her.

Pulling on the reins, she angled Wyx to the left. The path continued to narrow, her torchlight dimming by the second until the only thing illuminated were Wyx's head and her. She carefully dismounted and guided the horse by hand, using the torch to feel in front of her. There was emptiness surrounding her, cold licking at her limbs until she was sure she'd turn into an ice statue then and there. Her teeth chattered, her hooded cowl did nothing to protect her. Still she pushed forward, bending and curving with the narrow path. There was no other direction to take.