Drayven's POV
I froze at her voice.
She placed her hand on my arm—small, shaking, and unbearably warm. The bond flared inside my soul like a wild flame. It burned through my chest, through my skull, anchoring me against the tide of destruction clawing its way out.
But I didn't want to let go of that destruction. I wanted to hold onto it. That was my real essence—destruction and death. I reveled in it. I enjoyed it.
"Please," she begged again, her voice raw. "Don't."
I looked back at her. The golden flecks that riddled her dark grey orbs sharpened her eyes. They jittered with a kind of terror I didn't recognize.
It wasn't the kind of terror I see in faces before I snap off necks and claw off chests. It was different. She wasn't terrified of me. She was terrified of what I was about to do, what I was about to become, and of that banal instinct in me that pushed for destruction.
Slowly, painfully, my body acquiesced. I loosened my grip, and the man collapsed to the ground, gasping, scrambling away like a wounded animal.
He clutched his neck, coughing before flying into the crowd.
Silence fell around me, so loud I could hear a pin drop if it did. Every eye in the city was on us now.
On me. On her hand, still gripping my arm
I turned my gaze back to the crowd, letting just enough power leak into the air to make them remember fear. To let them know the destruction I could cause if I just wanted to.
"No one touches her," I said quietly, throwing my gaze from face to face, making sure they didn't just hear me but also felt me. "She is under my protection, and anybody that touches her dies. Are we clear on that?" I growled.
It was raw, animalistic, and loud, and it charged through the night, crackling, like a current of its own.
All I got around was silence, an extremely loud silence that made my growl keep echoing through.
"Is that clear?" I growled again.
This time they spoke. The crowd yelled so loud their collective voice swallowed the night.
"Yes. Yes. Yes, it's clear. Yes," they kept repeating, chanting.
"Good." I grunted, letting my eyes jump around to make sure I have made them terribly scared.
"Now, take me to the Elder Highborns that run this damn city."
Instantly, the crowd parted wide into two halves, and some of the Highborns hurried through, guiding me along.
"This way, Dragon."
"This way"
They all kept chanting, gesturing to the path to the city.
Astra kept back, folding her arms below her breasts, just watching. I snatched her wrist.
Maybe her skin had a dormant magical surge in it, because the instant I touched her, something sharp and tickling crawled under my palm and over my skin. It was fast and momentary.
I pulled her closer. She gasped as she stumbled to stop at my side.
Her lips parted as if to snap at me, but she hesitated. Better. "You, stay by my side. Like I said, I can't let anything happen to your fragile life."
"Can't you be less condescending about it? And with that fact that your life is tied to my puny one…" there was a grudging twist to her voice and lips at the mention of the word "puny" She seemed to imitate me.
Originally, I should have been enraged at that rudeness. Instead, a smile broke off my lips. "I can't afford to be nice to you, because I can't be nice. Just stay right by my side. Never leave my side."
She raised her neck with defiance. "Then you should get yourself a doll."
"Well I have, and she is beside me right now," I returned.
Before she could attempt a cheeky comeback, I dragged her along with me, ignoring her muttering and curses as she staggered after me.
Stone towers loomed like wary sentinels as we continued into the city. Lanterns brightened as we approached.
Astra stumbled around me. I tightened my grip instinctively, steadying her before she could fall.
Her breath hitched.
"Careful," I muttered, low enough that only she could hear.
She shot me a glare sharp enough to cut steel. "You're dragging me like a loot."
"You are under my protection," I replied flatly. "That makes you untouchable. Be grateful."
She scoffed, but she didn't pull away.
The Highborns guided us through a massive obsidian gate etched with magical runes. The air around this part of the city was so thick it clogged my nostrils, wrapping itself around my lungs and stinking of old ancient magic, magic my kind had bestowed on the mortals before we were betrayed.
We walked down a long walkway made of polished cobblestone until we ended in the Hall of Elders.
They were already waiting.
Seven thrones curved in a crescent, each carved from a different relic of power—bone, crystal, molten stone, living root, or star-metal. The Elder Highborns sat rigidly upon them, draped in regalia meant to project their authority—puny human authority.
They acted higher than other races. Yet, they were the weakest. The treaty and alliance was the only reason the creatures were still alive and not burnt to ashes beneath the heat or my scorching breath, besides the fact that my mate and guides had to be one of their kind also.
The moment they saw me, they relinquished control of their authority. As it should be. They went down on their knees and bowed deeply, their foreheads touching the floor in absolute submission.
"Dragon Drayven," the eldest whispered, voice trembling. "The last and greatest, the destroyer of words."
I see they hadn't forgotten me and what I was capable of.
I released Astra's wrist and stepped forward, letting my shadow stretch across their thrones. "You all should know why I am here now," I said coldly.
"Yes," an Elder said quickly. "You have been disturbed from your slumber, and you need resealing. Containment. A return to well-deserved slumber."
My lips tightened in a sneer. They were still sweet-tongued and untrustworthy as they always were. "Since you know that, then how do you prepare to give me back my well-deserved slumber? I heard you don't have as many mages as needed." I parodied the Elder.
The whole group of old men nodded eagerly. "We don't have it at the moment, but we can always call for help from the neighboring cuties.
"How many days will that take?"
"We will prepare the rites at once, awaiting the arrival of the supplementary mages. With that, it shouldn't be less than three days."
"Three were days then." I grunted, not particularly pleased with the setup. I wanted it back immediately. The longer I stayed here, the higher the chances of my destructive nature taking charge.
A ripple of murmurs swept through them before they eventually chorused. "It won't be more than three days, Dragon Drayven."
At first, I didn't notice, but slowly, I began to see their gazes straying from me one after the other, careful, slow, and hesitant—toward Astra.
She stood stiffly at the edge of the hall, arms crossed, chin lifted despite herself. Confusion flickered across her face as she realized the attention had shifted.
I realized then what had happened. They'd recognized her as my guide.