A False Reality ||The Dragon Prince||

Chapter 15

"Rayla?" Callum asked. When Rayla had told Callum to leave he had hidden in the tunnels instead. Callum hadn't wanted to leave Rayla alone, especially since Claudia's last visit ended in torture. As he listened his anger had grown. How dare Viren talk to Rayla like that! Callum wasn't sure exactly what happened since he could only hear the conversation. He looked down at Rayla. Her knuckles were red and raw, yet he didn't think the tears falling down her face were from the pain. She looked angry--no, not angry. He didn't think any adjective was strong enough to describe her fury. Callum wasn't sure if it was directed at Viren, or if some of it was for him because he hadn't left. Better apologies just in case.

"Rayla, I know you're really mad. But I only stayed because I couldn't leave you alone, knowing what happened last time." Callum finished and Rayla looked up at him. Some of her anger fading to show deep sadness and grief. She gave him a sad half-smile.

"Please say something." He pleaded. In response, Rayla opened her mouth but no sound came out. Callum understood now, "So Viren silenced you by taking your voice." Rayla gave a nod, showing Callum that his guess was correct. A sudden rage filled him. Viren had taken Rayla's voice while Callum had been only a few feet away. He had been right there, yet he'd done nothing. He longed to close the distance between Rayla and him. Maybe hug her and comfort her. To tell her it was going to okay, he would fix it. However, there was no way into her cell except the door below. But Callum had to do something, he couldn't leave her alone down there, voiceless and upset. So Callum knelt next to the barred hole and pulled off his scarf. He lowered his arm in between the gaps in the bars and he let go of one end of his scarf. Rayla realized what he was doing, and stood up, catching the opposite end of the scarf. They stood there for a moment, each holding an end of Callum's scarf. Rayla gave him a questioning look.

"Well it looks like you could use a hug, and I can't come down there. So I thought maybe I could give you my scarf instead." Callum said, " Oh, also I promise I'll find your voice and the scepter." Rayla looked up at Callum with trust gleaming in her eyes. She seemed to say," It's okay Callum, I trust you." At least that's what he hoped she was trying to say. Callum didn't want to end the moment, but he had a promise to keep, so he let go of his end of the scarf. Rayla took the other end of the scarf and wrapped it around her neck. She smiled up at him and Callum thought she looked a little happier.

"Just give me some time, I'll get you out. I promise," Callum said while standing back up. Rayla nodded and gave Callum a true smile. He loved it when she smiled, and she looked pretty in his scarf. He blushed at the thought. Then he cleared his throat before saying, "Bye, Rayla, I'll be back soon." Rayla waved goodbye and Callum turned and headed back through the tunnels.

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Claudia had followed her dad to his lair. Well, it wasn't a lair, more like a top-secret office. He was now rummaging through spellbooks. These books contained very powerful dark magic spells, and she wasn't allowed to perform most of the spells found within. Her dad was currently flipping through the pages of the most ancient and powerful of the books.

"Ah, here it is Claudia," Viren said as he set the book down on a table and gestured for her to come and take a look. She came over and looked at the spell he was pointing at, and gasped.

"Dad, why are you showing me this?" Claudia asked as her hands started to shake.

"This is Plan B, just in case this whole false reality doesn't work out," Viren said as he started copying down the spell for Claudia. He finished and handed the piece of paper to her. Claudia took a closer look. The spell was incredibly powerful and hard, it would be nearly impossible for her to do. But impossible was just another form of possible, so she would do it. After all, how hard could it be to resurrect someone?     

###Author's Note###

Hello Reader, thanks for taking the time to read! Man, this chapter took a while to write just because I wanted to make sure I did justice to the characters. What did you think? Thanks again for reading! -HappyLlama160