The Curse's Breath

Chapter Ten

Two months had passed since Celni's first day of training, and the war was progressing even more. The dragons had attacked a few more cities in an attempt to get some food back. They had gotten some resources, but most of their attacks had been stopped before too much had been taken.

That was mostly thanks to Jahier. He was doing excellent at filling Halne's legacy as Lieutenant General. She even heard that he had lofty plans of taking back Inua City.

She missed him like crazy. Their schedules never seemed to coincide anymore. With her training and his new responsibilities, they only got to see each other every few weeks, and only for a half hour if they were lucky. It was hard to have such a big part of her life missing.

She filled the extra time by practicing with her wings. Celni had been flying every morning, pushing herself harder and further each time. Slowly, she was getting the hang of things. While she was nowhere close to doing aerial acrobatics, she could clumsily fly a short distance before coming back to the ground.

Flying--if one could call what she did flying--was an experience like none she'd had before. To feel the air beneath her wings, soar through the air... it was as beautiful as music. The skies had almost become a sanctuary for her--an escape from the war around her. She never thought she could love doing something more than climbing trees, but life always found a way to surprise her.

Celni came back home late one night and heard a pair of voices coming from her father's office. She took off her shoes and went to the kitchen to grab a snack before wandering into the den.

Her apple slices soured in her mouth.

"Good evening, dear," Patleena said with a smile.

"Celni! I'm glad you're home," Reinej said warmly.

He and Patleena were sitting with half-empty glasses of wine. Her hand was on his knee. When she saw the direction of Celni's gaze, she quickly moved her hand back. She cleared her throat. "How did training go today? My Srenya said that the team has been doing excellent so far."

Reinej's eyes shone with pride. "I've been hearing glowing reviews from everyone I've talked to."

Celni took a deep breath and shoved the feeling of vomit back down her throat. "Mawk said he has been pretty impressed with how we've been doing so far. I do think we work well as a team. Well--most of us." She flicked her gaze toward Patleena.

If she knew what she was talking about, she didn't let on. She just smiled and gestured to another chair in the room. "Please, sit!"

"No thanks. I don't want to inter--"

"Sit." Reinej's tone was unusually stern.

She sat.

"So," Celni said, clearing her throat awkwardly. "Have you made any progress with Ashnule?"

Patleena frowned. "Who?"

Celni huffed softly. She knew his name. She just chose not to recognize it.

Reinej waved his hand. "The... dragon. The one you've been interrogating."

She nodded in recognition. "Ah, yes. That creature has been a particularly difficult one. We're trying to locate his family members, but so far that's been a dead end."

Reinej sipped his wine. "Might just be a useless cause."

She tapped her nails against her own glass. "Unfortunate." There was a moment of silence before Patleena spoke again. "I almost forgot. Rej, are the new boots for my soldiers ready?"

Celni curled her lip in disgust. Rej? Ew.

"I can go check on it for you tomorrow."

"Would you?"