Draconic Amnesty

Chapter 18 - Red and Blue

Elias trudged through the snow, each step kicking plumes of white powder. Barely covering the top of his boot, the snow wasn’t deep, but he’d been walking for hours and his legs didn’t want to lift higher than necessary.

Since the moisture inside his nostrils had frozen, he breathed through his mouth. Each inhalation starved him like a fish on land, his frozen lungs struggling to pull oxygen from the air. To maintain any vestige of warmth, his body expended copious energy, and as the sun set, he teetered on the verge of collapse.

Unfortunately, no shelter could be seen for miles in any direction. Wind-sculpted terrain continued in endless waves, miniature dunes of snow and ice seemingly untouched by life of any kind. The mountains, his initial goal, eluded him like a mirage in an alabaster desert.

How could anything survive on this continent? Why would anyone want to survive here?

As the sun set on the horizon, so did his hopes of finding Wren...or even living through the night. He’d been a fool to come here, alone, without any knowledge or direction. Had he expected to see dragons flying around, politely directing him to her abode? What the fuck was he thinking?

He sank to his knees, then fell onto his side, curling into a ball. Cold-induced numbness suffused his body, removing the bite from the wind. Drasp kept him alive but it wouldn’t last long. To make matters worse, his food and the other vials had frozen. Without a heat source, he’d be unable to shoot up, unable to eat.

Despair wouldn’t help; his tears would freeze before they dripped from his eyes. So he let his lids fall shut and thought of her.

Will she be ok with that guy, Ostyth? Will she remember me? Will she continue to take care of my mom, after I’m dead?

***

Wren paced in the cavernous chamber, claws clicking against the ice floor, tail swishing back and forth. Shelves of books lined the walls and the World News projected on a white canvas hanging from the ceiling. Normally, the Center for Human Research calmed her nerves and sparked a modicum of happiness, but not today.

She couldn’t stop thinking about Elias, thinking about their last night together. He’d called her name, several times, each utterance laced with uncharacteristic and increasing desperation. Even now, his voice echoed in her head, beckoning her to return, as if he truly needed her.

Of course, it was all in her imagination. He didn’t need her; he’d said as much after she’d paid for his mother’s medical bills. Though she couldn’t remember his exact words, she remembered the meaning: he didn’t need help from anyone.

But she needed him.

After their last mission, he’d commended her performance, even offering a rare word of thanks. He’d consoled her when they’d learned of Yuki’s death, holding hands and embracing. Something about him had changed, and —

“I figured I’d find you here.” Ostyth walked into the room from the northern entrance, his green scales glistening with fresh snow melt. “Not that I’ll ever understand what you find so fascinating about humans.”

“You don’t understand because you’ve never been in love.” She shot back, glaring at him.

“Love?” He swayed to the left, pretending to fall, then righted himself with a flap of his wing. “Is that what you it? You think Elias loves you?”

She swung her head away.

“I thought so,” he said, still approaching. “It’s ok though. You don’t need him.”

“You don’t know what I need.”

His head brushed against her neck and nuzzled her shoulder. “I know what you’ll need very soon. In two, maybe three days, you won’t be able to resist me.”