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Thud... Thud...

Blade and Terrin landed in the atrium of the palace. Gilded walls towered over them as a luscious garden surrounded them with colorful, vibrant plant-life. It was silent except for a fountain that drizzled nearby down a cobblestone pathway, and ahead of them the path disappeared between the bushes and trees.

The bitter taste of the herb still clung to Blade’s tongue. He scowled and tried to spit it out, but he couldn’t clear the thick, earthy taste from his mouth.

Quickly and quietly, Blade led the way through the garden, eyes darting back and forth. He barely remembered this place. They crept low to the ground after seeing some guards inside through the windows. Going by memory of the crude map Neil drew, they headed to the northern part of the palace.

One guard patrolled the garden; they could hear his armor rattling as he stepped toward them. Blade ducked into some foliage, and Terrin found a dense patch of plants nearby. The guard passed them, and they were soon continuing forward.

As they approached the entrance, Blade saw an abundance of guards through the windows. At least four of them had eyes on the doorway, and another group of three was walking back and forth down that same hallway.

With a silent curse, he looked to Terrin and said, “There are more guards than we thought there would be.”

“Well, what are we going to do?”

“I… don’t know.” Blade watched them, thinking. It would impossible to slip in without a confrontation. They could use the other entrances, but he knew guards would be there too. The High Bishop had expected them.

“Let’s kill them.”

Blade furrowed his brow. “What?” Terrin walked forward and made Blade hiss and flare his feathers. “What are you doing?” he shouted in a hushed whisper and grabbed Terrin’s forearm.

Terrin yanked his arm away and glared at Blade. “I am not going to let these humans stand between me and Asha,” he growled. “They will die.”

“No, no, no, this is what I was talking about. Take a moment and think! There are too many guards to sneak in, yes, but we can’t go charging in there blindly. Let’s come up with a plan.”

Terrin snorted a huff of air and gave one nod.

* * *

Asha sighed and squeezed her tail tightly. Holding her tail was something she used to do when she was scared, and she realized she hadn’t been scared since she was very little. But right now, she was terrified. She had never been this afraid before.

She had no idea what time of day it was and how close she was to dying. For all she knew, it could be minutes from now. The guards could come down any second and take her and Renjee away. How would they kill her? Chopping off her head? Letting her bleed out? Suffocating her? Imaginary pain shivered up and down her spine, feathers flaring out.

A gentle, feline paw stroked the back of her head, trailing down her crest of feathers. A silver eye opened and looked up at Renjee.

“They’re coming,” he said. His violet eyes looked like they were glowing in the darkness.

“Who’s coming?” she asked. Already, she felt her heart banging against her ribcage. “The guards?” She listened for them, but she didn’t hear anything. Nothing stirred, not even the sleeping, black dragon that guarded them.

“Blade and someone else,” he said, glancing at the doorway that led to the stairway.

Asha gulped and stared too, waiting.

But no one ever came. She sighed and pulled away from his touch with a huff. “Don’t say things like that. Whatever you heard was probably the guards upstairs coming to kill us.”

Renjee didn’t respond to her, and when she looked at him again, he was sitting down with his feathery tail curled around his paws, and his ears were slightly perked. He was waiting.

Asha growled and suppressed her desire to lash out at him. Stupid bird-brain acting like my father—of all people—would come to save me.

Yet, she listened anyway, and soon enough, the metallic screech of a door echoed down the dank hall. She looked up. The black dragon stirred with a grumble and stretched out, claws scraping the stone. Renjee’s tail swished back and forth as he stood up and glanced back at Asha with a smile across his beak.

“They’re here!”

“Who’s here?” The black dragon frowned at him.

“My mate, and he’s going to kick your butt!”

Hopeful thoughts teetered into Asha’s mind. She stood up, and an aching feeling gnawed at her gut. Was she still hungry or was that a different feeling? No one had fed her in days… but… it wasn’t a hungry feeling.

It was an anxious feeling. Is my father really here? Is he going to save us?

When she listened, she couldn’t hear anything except for quiet tapping sounds coming down the stairwell. The black dragon stepped back and gave a firm growl, setting into a stance against the wall.

And the next thing she saw in the dim light of the prison was a red dragon with fierce, green eyes, teeth and claws bared.

Terrin!

* * *

Blade stood at the entrance to the stairwell, somewhere deep into the palace and far from the garden, his feathers, claws, and teeth coated with human blood. It tasted bile, metallic, and warm like a fresh kill. He grimaced and saw another couple guards coming down the hallway.

He rushed to meet them and slid to a stop as they held out their pikes. As he slid, he whirled around and smashed into one guard with his tail, hitting plate armor that dented under his strike. With a hiss, he spun all the way around and forcefully swiped the spearhead away and pounced on him. The other guard jabbed at him, and Blade narrowly dodged it as his body turned to claw his face open. Sharp claws tore through his flesh and killed him. Then, Blade ripped off the chest-piece of the first guard and bit into his exposed neck.

Pulling away, Blade spit out the blood and growled. A cut from earlier ached at his flank, and his head throbbed from a previous blow. He returned to the doorway and looked at all of the slain bodies around him—his stomach turned. No one else remained, but he knew more guards would be flocking here soon, and Terrin hadn’t brought back Renjee and Asha yet.

He should be done already…

Blade hurried down the staircase and soon heard the growls of two different dragons.

“Terrin!” a voice cried out in distress.

No, no, no, no, Blade repeated in his head all the way down the steps. When he emerged, his eyes adjusted to the dimness and he saw a black dragon stepping over Terrin’s body, teeth bared and ready to sink into his neck.

Blade didn’t give it a second thought as he roared and pounced on him and brought him to the ground. They slid across the cold stone and broke away from each other as the dragon kicked him. Blade rolled to his paws and crouched low, assessing his opponent.

He was about as big as Blade was with thick muscles, and he had weapons attached to his thigh. Red eyes glared back at him as he circled around. His stance was well-disciplined, and his movements were all too perfect.

This dragon was a trained killer.

Blade tried not to show his concern and instead flared his crest and fluffed his feathers out in an attempt to look stronger than he was. He knew intimidation would have little to no effect on him, but maybe he would be more careful fighting Blade.

Over the black dragon’s wings, he saw Renjee… and then he saw his daughter.

That distracted him, and the black dragon made the first strike. Pain racked Blade’s muzzle as claws tore into his flesh. He hissed and recoiled, giving the dragon another chance to attack. He was quick and agile, and Blade didn’t react fast enough to stop his claws from cutting into his neck.

Blade growled and recovered quickly to meet another attack, but this time he was able to dodge it and make a lunge. Blade tackled the dragon and quickly brought them both to the ground, claws scraping at each other and making small cuts as they fought for the top position. The black’s maw snuck under Blade’s jaw and nearly bit down on him, but Blade pushed his muzzle away and tried to bite him back. Neither could successfully make a bite, and the black dragon soon kicked Blade away and rolled to his feet.

Terrin was still on his side, wincing and struggling to move. Blade saw a few cuts that were bleeding profusely, but it looked like there was something worse wrong with him. Asha was reaching out to him between the bars, tears streaming down her cheeks. He was alive, but he wasn’t sure how much longer. Guards would be coming down any moment, so Blade needed to end this.

“You’re much stronger than the last one,” the dragon spoke. “But I’m afraid you’ll all meet the same fate.” He pulled out a dagger from his thigh and held the hilt between his teeth. A drop of liquid dripped off the tip of it, and Blade then realized what was wrong with Terrin.

He was poisoned.

The dragon reached into a pouch under his wing, and before Blade could stop him, he threw down loud, ear-ringing firecrackers that made a horrendously bright flash and disoriented Blade. He used the opportunity to attack him and surged forward as Blade struggled to recover. The blade aimed for his throat, and at the last possible second, Blade fell to the side and dodged it.

But the dragon withdrew another smaller blade from his forearm and spun around, slicing at Blade’s legs. Blade rolled away but not without feeling the dagger brush across his feathers. As he swiftly moved back to his feet, he felt his head loll to the side as he lost balance, and his body went with it. His head was still pounding and ringing from the shock of the flashbang, but if he hadn’t moved, that same knife would have stuck into him. It went flying past him and clattered in the cell behind.

Blade shook his head clear and resituated himself, ready for the next attack. The black dragon growled between his clenched teeth and inched closer to Blade.

Terrin gave a deep growl and struggled to stand. Asha told him to stay down and not to fight, but he wouldn’t listen, and he limped forward. He shook his head and fought through the paralyzing effects of the poison while blood dripped from his red scales.

“Terrin, stay back!” Blade hissed.

“And let y-you have all the f-fun?” He continued stepping forward, appearing to gain more strength in each step.

The black dragon and Blade shifted in positions so he faced the two of them.

“That poison can kill you,” Blade said. “You can’t take another cut like that.”

“Then I won’t let him catch me off-guard this time,” he retorted. “He’s a coward that hides in the shadows.”

The dragon glowered at them and flicked his tail. Hunkering down, he looked ready to pounce, but he waited for one of them to move.

Blade gritted his teeth. They didn’t have time to dawdle, and the dragon knew that. So, he made the first move. He dashed to the side and swiped toward the dragon, but as the dagger aimed at his forearm, he pulled away at the last moment and whirled around to make a quick strike with his tail. But he caught Blade’s tail and tugged it forward so Blade had to catch his balance.

In that moment, the dragon aimed to attack Blade once again, but just before the dagger reached him, Terrin crashed into his flank and sent them tumbling. The red dragon rolled away and tried to stand up, but his legs shook and he fell—the poison was still attacking him.

Terrin managed to deflect the dragon’s snout away, but claws caught his foreleg and tore through his scales. The red kicked and clawed, fighting off the black long enough so Blade could come from behind and sink his teeth into a hind leg. His teeth chomped into his leg and bit into the bone, and he gave a vicious shake of his head.

The dragon cried out in pain and dropped his dagger, which Terrin kicked away down the hall. His tail hit Blade’s muzzle hard, but he held tight and forced the dragon to turn and limp, shoving Blade’s snout into the ground as a forepaw stamped down on his neck. Blade’s teeth ripped his flesh before his leg was freed.

Terrin tackled him while his back was turned and latched onto him with his claws and talons. The two roared and bit each other, and that gave Blade enough time to recover and then attack him at another angle. Between the strength of both of them, the black dragon couldn’t escape no matter how hard he tried to wriggle free and claw at them. He tried to reach for a knife at his forearm, his claws touching them.

With a triumphant growl, Blade sank his teeth into the black’s neck and pinned him down, forcing his submission. He held him there until he stopped moving and then released him. He spat the blood from his mouth and helped Terrin up. The dragon was still breathing, but he had passed out—noticing a bloodied knife next to him, Blade realized Terrin had managed to slice him with his own weapon. Blade’s instincts told him to finish the job, but he couldn’t bring himself to kill another dragon…

He turned his head and saw Renjee’s joyous face sticking through the iron bars as he danced on his paws. And next to him was Asha, and she looked relieved. Terrin rushed over to her and nuzzled her as he pulled a crystal out of his small pack and smashed it against the lock.

Blade approached them and heard the metal sizzle before it melted and oozed down to the ground. The door slid open effortlessly, and Asha immediately stepped out and wrapped her arms and wings around Terrin, who nuzzled into her neck affectionately, his cheeks glistening.

Blade gave a heartfelt smile at Renjee as he padded up to Blade. Blade grasped him tightly and pulled him close. The moment was fleeting, but he felt warmth fall over him like a silken blanket. He licked the gryphon’s beak and sifted a paw down his neck.

“I missed you,” Renjee said and licked him back.

“I missed you too,” Blade responded as he looked up. Asha’s eyes met his, and her mouth dropped as if she would say something, but no words came out. Blade swallowed all of the words he wanted to say before they spilled out of his mouth in a jumbled mess.

Terrin motioned them forward. “We have to hurry!”

Blade nodded and followed him and Asha up the stairs. Renjee brushed up against him, chirping happily—he seemed to be unaware of the severity of their situation. Blade absently nuzzled him; his attention was focused on his daughter.

She had grown into a beautiful dragoness, more beautiful than he could have imagined. Silver feathers accented her black body in a graceful design. The crest at her head was smaller than Blade’s, and she didn’t have a mane either, but it made her look sleek with jet-black feathers following each of her curves. The way she held herself was that of a mature dragoness and not a flailing hatchling—she had grown without him. She glanced back at him, and his ears perked.

But as they reached the top of the stairwell, a column of guards surrounded the exit.

“Get them!”

Renjee squawked as they turned tail and flew down the stairs. Guards shouted after them and clanked with each step, an uproar echoing down. Blade’s heart pounded in his chest. He was already breathing heavy, and now they were going to be trapped.

Then Renjee squeaked as he tripped up and fell behind. Guards quickly closed in on him.

“Renjee!” Blade shouted and grabbed one of his legs, using all of his strength to pull the gryphon toward him. He grabbed Renjee and went tumbling down the stairs, thudding against every stone step and banging his head against them and the wall. Throbbing pain surged up his right wing as he landed on it. He squeezed Renjee tight against him and tried to protect him as he was battered and bruised. They fell past Terrin and Asha and eventually hit the bottom, dazed and disoriented.

Stopping at the main door, Terrin waited for Asha to come through before shutting it on the guards and slipping the lock into place. A magical glow emanated from it before he jumped back in time to avoid their swords and spears that poked through the bars.

He glanced back at the other three with the same worried expression that they all wore.

They were trapped.

“What do we do?” Asha asked.

Blade dusted himself off and winced. His head throbbed and his body ached. He checked Renjee to make sure he was okay, and he stood up with ease—his only complaint was about how his tail was stepped on.

“We’re going to have to fight them,” Terrin said. He was winded too, and Blade could tell that there wasn’t much fight left in him. The two of them had already killed at least ten guards themselves, and there were about twenty of them piled down the stairwell. Blade was sure that there were even more at the top.

“We can’t cut through them all,” Blade said. “We need to find another way out.”

“There isn’t another way out,” Terrin hissed, his ears pinned against his head. “We’re stuck here. If we file them in a few at a time, we can kill them.”

“That will take too long,” Asha added. “There are hundreds of guards here, and plenty more that will come into the palace. And I also think they aren’t dumb enough to do that.”

Blade gave her a nod. “That door won’t hold them forever, either. Once they break the seal, they’ll be storming inside.”

“Then what are we going to do?” Terrin growled.

“I… can help… you,” a weak voice said. The black dragon struggled to his paws, limbs trembling. He was bleeding considerably, but the poison appeared to be wearing off.

The four of them stepped back and waited for an attack, but he could barely even stand.

“And how do you plan on doing that?” Asha asked.

“There is another… way. But… I won’t t-tell you unless you agree to pay me fifteen-thousand gold pieces…” He coughed and spit up blood.

“Fifteen-thousand!” Terrin hissed and stepped up close to him. He stripped him of his satchel and removed all of his weapons. “Where do you think we can get that kind of money, and how do we know we can trust you?”

Asha pressed a paw to Terrin’s shoulder and gestured to Blade. “We have the gold.”

“I lost… If they see me like this… they’ll just kill me. If I’m dead, they don’t have to pay me.”

“So we help you escape and pay you?” Asha scoffed. “You’re in no position to be making demands.”

“It’s your only hope,” he replied. “Or we’ll all die.”

“Five-thousand,” she stated.

“Ten-thousand.”

“Let’s gooooooo!” Renjee huffed.

“Deal,” Asha finished with a smug look.

Blade looked between them and shrugged his wings. “Show us, quickly.”

The black dragon limped down the hall. Cell after cell disappeared behind them until they came to the end of the hall, where another stairwell was located. Instead of going down the stairs, he stepped into the second to last cell on the right. These were much smaller than the ones at the front, designed for humans rather than dragons.

He pressed a forepaw against a sandstone brick and struggled to push. A metallic click sounded in the wall, and another brick extended toward them. He pulled that one out and let it fall with a heavy thud and reached into the hole that was now there. Hearing another click, an entrance opened up on the back wall.

“Through here,” he said and led them into a pitch-black tunnel carved by hand. It was just big enough to fit a dragon, but it was a tight squeeze. Blade’s wings brushed against the wall as he crawled through behind Renjee. He was last in line, and Terrin was at the front. He heard the door slide shut behind them and click into place.

“This better not be a trap,” Terrin muttered, “Or I’ll be sure to kill you right away.”

“Right…” the dragon mumbled.

About ten minutes passed as they traversed around bends and then took an angle upward. Before they turned the last corner, there was a dim, red light glowing ahead of them. They stepped out into a cave, but this one was spacious. Wooden crates, tables, and barrels laid about in a semi-organized fashion, and small piles of bedding were laid out at the other end.

“What is this place?” Terrin asked. They walked through the cold cavern lit with red crystals, toward another tunnel.

“The Shadowscale hideout,” the black dragon answered.

“Secret criminal stuff,” Asha said to Terrin to answer his puzzled expression.

Blade paused. His surroundings were… strangely familiar. He looked around and stepped up to a wooden board hanging on the wall. On it were pieces of parchment nailed down. The runes were different on each piece of paper, and he could read some of them. They looked like they were names. He quickly skimmed them all until one of them caught his eye.

Akir.

He froze. Renjee warbled beside him and rubbed against him. The others had stopped too. Blade reached up to touch the piece of paper and clenched his teeth.

For a brief amount of time, he had lived here with Akir. He remembered it now, the shape of the cavern and the smell of damp rock. It was the perfect home for them, just outside city limits, and it sheltered them better than any other home they had. At the time, they only had a pile of bedding, and not all of this other… stuff.

“Blade,” Renjee said. “We need to go or we’ll get caught or something.” He tugged on Blade’s foreleg.

“I…” Blade reluctantly turned away. “How did you know about this place?” he asked the black dragon.

He looked back but ignored his question, continuing through the next tunnel. Blade held back a growl and followed behind Terrin and Asha. Renjee clung to him, and Blade welcomed it by laying a wing over his back.

“Everything’s going to be okay now?” he asked Blade.

Blade nodded and curled their tails together. “Everything will be okay.”

Light from the early morning sun shone at the end of the tunnel—it had only been an hour or so since night fell, and now the sun was already rising again to start the longest day of the year. They stepped beneath a slab of rock stuck in the sand and were soon in the open, dry air. Wind whipped across the desert, carrying spirals of sand up into the air, and the air was still somewhat cool in the shade. More rocks surrounded them, embedded into the earth. They were at the outer edge of the city.

“We need to hurry to Neil and Vespera,” Terrin said. “Where do the drainage pipes empty out?”

Before anyone could answer him, several armored soldiers stepped out from the rocks, and a row of crossbowmen took the high ground, arrow tips pointed directly down at them. The black dragon slinked back into the cave and watched from safety.

“Fly!” Blade shouted. Dread stabbed him in the gut like a twisted knife.

It was a trap.

Bolts fired from the crossbows on command, most of them burying into the sand as they scrambled to flee. Blade saw one hit Terrin, and another graze Renjee. Two nearly hit him, but a third one found its mark and shot straight through his wing. He winced and hissed through the pain and flared out his wings to take off.

His one wing that he landed on ached terribly, and he fell behind the others as they managed to escape into the skies. As he jumped into the air, a sudden, heavy weight fell on him from an invisible force. He smashed back into the ground with a cry and felt his bones being crushed by sheer strength. It was an unceasing force that he couldn’t escape. He watched the others flee and look back at him; Asha stopped and so did Renjee, but Terrin told them to keep going.

Don’t come back for me, Blade willed, hoping they would be safe.

A gilded-robed man walked in front of him, a hood covering his head. In his hands was a staff with a bright, glowing crystal at the end of it. He sneered and looked down at him with a beak-like nose.

“Leave the others. This is the one I’ve been looking for.”

Blade winced as the weight increased. Pain erupted through his body, and he swore he heard his bones cracking, ready to break. He gasped for breath and struggled to move; he was sinking into the ground.

The glowing of the yellow crystal on his staff stopped, and the weight disappeared, leaving Blade coughing and struggling to breath. His entire body ached, and when he tried to stand, he fell over.

“Gods know I’ve been waiting ages for this,” the man said and took off his hood. Medium-cut blonde hair stopped at his shoulders. Two beady, blue eyes stared at Blade with a ferocity not even a feral dragon could muster.

“You have caused me a lot of grief, and today, I will exact my vengeance.” He turned to his soldiers and motioned for them. “Come. Take him to the gallows.”

The men came and bound Blade’s limbs together. He couldn’t move or resist, but the anger and rage inside him wanted to lash out and kill them. But most of all, fear embraced him with a cold, unsettling feeling.

I’m finally going to die… I’m finally going to pay for my sins.

As they dragged him along, Blade saw the black dragon limping and bleeding follow behind the soldiers. He only gave one glance at Blade before he ignored him. He had deceived them and won after all.

As long as Asha, Renjee, and Terrin are all safe, I’m okay with dying.

In the past, Blade had danced with death many times; it numbed the anxiousness that he felt. Only this time, he was certain that he would die. Yet, instead of worrying about it and trying to stop it, he was going to let it happen—he was ready.

A warm, indescribable serenity calmed him like a pleasant dream.

I’m finally going to be with Akir again…

In spite of all that had happened, in spite of the pain, the fear, and the struggling, a toothy smile split his lips. He would miss Renjee dearly—and he knew Renjee would grieve over him—but Blade was content. After all of these years, he finally met his daughter again, and she had grown to be a healthy dragon with a mate of her own; she would forget about him soon enough and live her life happily. He hoped Renjee would move on and not dwell on his loss. The gryphon was too kindhearted and happy to ever commit the same crimes Blade had, but he had never lost anyone he loved before.

I guess we kind of are mates, aren’t we, Renjee?

Blade had denied their mateship many times up until now. Renjee was always willing to call Blade his mate, and he had always been there for Blade, but Blade couldn’t move on from Akir. A few tears streamed down his cheeks. He wished he could tell Renjee he loved him one last time. And he wished he could tell his daughter that, too…

Along with the peace he had, he felt… sad. There weren’t many people in his life—there never really had been, and out of the few he could say he loved, two of them died when he was younger. Now all he had left was Renjee and Asha, and he would soon be ripped away from their lives forever.

Blade sniffled and saw the gallows come into sight. It was a large, open area in the palace district, with seating circling around to watch the public punishments. The soldiers took him to the wooden platform. There was a table with a display of torture tools, each one looking more gruesome than the last. Blade shivered. He knew the High Bishop would use those on him today before he was killed. Blade’s death would be slow and excruciating.

With how weak I am now, I won’t last long… It’ll be over soon enough, and then I’ll get to see Akir.

They tied him to a wooden mount, his underbelly resting on top of it as they tied his limbs to the tool. Alexander walked in front of him with his arms behind his back, nose tilted up.

“Beasts like you must realize there is a consequence for every action you take. I will show you suffering like I have suffered, pain like you’ve never felt before. Your death will be my message from the gods.”

Blade gritted his teeth and held back a growl. “You already killed me when you killed my mate. The actions I took afterward were your consequences for killing him.”

An arrogant smirk curled his lips, which made Blade want to rip his face off. “Oh, but it wasn’t us who ended Akir. Sure, the dragon that did was rewarded handsomely for ridding that thorn in my side, but it wasn’t any of us.”

All of the blood drained from Blade’s face. His chest felt tight, heavy. “What do you mean?”

“It was him,” he said and pointed a thin finger to the black dragon. “He was Akir’s second-in-command for that little gang of his. For years and years, we searched everywhere for Akir to bring him to justice, but then Kail came to us with an offer we couldn’t refuse. I didn’t expect him to frame us for the crime, but he did what needed to be done, so we paid him.”

Blade glared with vehemence at the black dragon. When he tried to make a response to that, he caught all of the words in his throat and swallowed hard. He felt faint as if he would pass out; his limbs twitched and tingled in their bindings, and his heart was pounding harder and faster.

“We hired him to finish the job and kill you too, but you disappeared for quite some time.”

All of this time, he had thought it was a group of guards that killed Akir. He never once thought it would be his own kin. For years, he held prejudice against humans and hated them because every time he saw one he would think of how evil they were.

And now he realized that dragons were no better. Even he, himself, was evil: he had killed a number of guards today and even more in the past—a killer, a murderer.

I should have killed him when I had the chance…

Claws clenched. Anger boiled inside Blade. He shut his eyes and felt it all coming back to him: the horrid images of his mate lying bloodied on the ground. He felt the rage he had felt then; he felt the same sorrow and desperation clawing at him that he had felt all of those years ago. He saw the blood he had shed and the faces of those he had killed.

“I HATE YOU!” Blade spat and pulled against his restraints. Guards drew their weapons and pointed them at Blade, but he was entirely focused on Kail, the dragon that had ruined his life. He killed Akir, separated Blade from his daughter, forced him to live in exile, and undermined Blade to bring him here to his death. Blade now had someone to blame for all of his woes and strife, and that monster was right in front of him. Every fiber of his being wanted to kill him, and for a moment, he believed that would change things.

But Blade knew it was pointless. He heaved and took in giant breaths until he settled down and whimpered.

I’m so sorry, Akir…

“You’re going to give up just like that?” the bishop mocked. “There’s a difference between us and the beasts. We have ambition and determination whereas they have instincts. When life gets difficult, they just turn tail and run. It is why the gods put us on top.”

Blade didn’t listen to him. He dwelled in his thoughts. The calmness he had felt was gone, but deep down he felt it coming back to him. His only reassurance was that it would all be over soon.

“No matter. The festivities won’t begin for another several hours. Until then, you will remain here while I prepare.” He patted Blade on the head and left. All of his guards and soldiers remained. Kail left with Alexander, most likely to discuss his reward.

Please… whatever god or gods are out there… protect Renjee and protect Asha. Tell them I’ll be fine. Tell them not to try to rescue me. Let me die alone.

It was the only prayer Blade uttered in his entire life. He had never really wondered what was on the other side, if there was an afterlife. For all he knew, there could just be an empty darkness, a void. But, deep down, he believed—hoped—that Akir was waiting for him, perhaps so high in the sky that he was amongst the stars, where no mortal being could ever fly. And Blade would join him soon and fly together with his mate again.

I’m coming, Akir. I’ve missed you so much.

Blade closed his eyes, but that didn’t stop the tears spilling from them. All that was left now was to wait to be tortured and killed in front of a crowd of people.

* * *

“We have to save him!” Asha insisted. She, Neil, Vespera, Terrin, and Renjee were huddled inside Vespera’s home. After they escaped, they hurried back to heal and plan on how to attempt a rescue.

“How?” Terrin growled. “How do you expect us to rescue him when there are guards everywhere? We can’t fly in or out of the district, and they’ll kill us on sight.” Terrin hissed and dug out the arrowhead buried in his scales. Blood oozed from his wound before Asha cleaned it and wound a linen bandage tight around it.

Renjee whimpered, standing up and leaning against the window, staring out of it toward the palace district. “He would do the same for us… He did the same for us. I-I want to go… I want to help.”

“There’s nothing we can do,” Neil stated. “We’ll all die if we attempt it.”

Vespera shifted uneasily and nodded in agreement. “Blade wouldn’t want us to risk our lives for him. He’d rather die before any one of us.”

Asha angrily lashed at the air in front of her and growled with frustration. “You guys risked everything to come rescue us; why can’t we do the same for him!”

“It was his own fault you were—” Terrin began.

“Don’t you even start with that,” Asha interrupted, glaring at him. “It was just as much my fault as it was his, and none of us are to blame. It’s that stupid High Bishop. I’m going to rip him to pieces when I see him.”

Terrin wrapped a wing around her and tried to calm her down. She was furious, and her feathers were standing on-end. “Did you see the power he has? He dropped Blade from the sky and slammed him into the ground. He knows magic.”

Asha pulled away from him in a huff and turned her head the other way.

“It’s because of his staff,” Neil said. “He’s not strong enough yet to use magic on his own, so he needs a conductor. If we take away the staff, he’s just as weak as a normal human; I doubt he can even wield a sword.”

“Okay, look, I want to rescue Blade too,” Terrin said, “But there will be guards everywhere. Even if we did manage to defeat the High Bishop, we’ll have to fight through more guards than what were in the palace. There are only five of us, and we’re exhausted—it would be suicide.”

None of them had any argument to that. Asha clenched her claws and teeth, holding back her tears. Her father had finally come back, and now he would die because he saved her. Nothing could be done to stop it; she was powerless, like a prisoner again.

“There has to be something…” she mumbled. Terrin held her again, and this time she sank into his embrace and leaned against him.

Terrin could have died today too… I could have lost my mate and my father because they tried to rescue me.

“There is something,” Neil said, though he looked unsure if he should say any more. Whatever it was, he was deeply pondering over it.

“What is it?” Renjee asked and turned from the window. He had tears in his eyes, and some had already dripped down his fluffy cheeks. Asha knew how much he loved Blade from listening to him while they were captives together. To lose a mate was heart shattering, and he already thought about the possibility of that—in spite of how optimistic he was about everything. She didn’t want to see Renjee cry… ever.

“It’s something that we’ve been waiting for for a very long time. A revolution.”

They paused in silence, listening curiously. Neil looked at them and continued:

“Akir’s main purpose of the Shadowscales was to insight change in the city. It was a group of thieves and bandits, sure, but that was to provide an economy for the feral population: steal from the rich and give to the poor. Without his group working in the shadows, we never could have expanded our district. Along with that, he was devising a plan to revolt and rebel against the palace. Unfortunately, with his death the rest of the plan disappeared. But, members of the Shadowscales still know the general basis, and we’re not the only organization to know this either.

“There are two gongs, one on each side of our district. If we ring both of them five times back and forth, one after the other, we’ll start the revolution.”

Asha stared forward. A revolution… that’s so much bigger than us.

“Let’s do it,” Terrin simply stated. “I’m sick of the way we’re treated. I’m tired of being the lowest class.”

“The two-legs and humans outnumber us greatly,” Vespera added, worried. “Even if every feral in the district joined in, there would be three times as many two-legs and humans.”

Neil nodded. “But not every one of them will fight either. The amount of soldiers they have is small when compared to the general population. We also have some two-legs on our side, and even a few humans that have access to the palace. Once the plan is set in motion, many will answer the call-to-arms, and we’re much better fighters than humans. And if it goes accordingly as word spreads, the barrier surrounding the palace district will fall, giving dragons and gryphons freedom to fly there.”

“But how will we start this in time?” Asha asked. “We only have a few hours to save my dad…”

“We’ll have to come up with a separate plan for that. We can take a number of fighters to rescue Blade; it would be the first battle of the revolution, and it would set the precedent for the rest of the fighting.”

“This is crazy…” she said under her breath. “I just… all of this for my father? I want to save him, but this would be at the expense of the entire city.”

Neil nodded. “But I can’t think of a better time than any. The High Bishop plans to execute a feral dragon publically: this hasn’t been done in ages. By outright thwarting the execution, we’ll send a powerful message of unity, that we won’t stand to be picked apart one-by-one.”

Neil is way smarter than I realized, Asha thought to herself.

“This will change things for the good,” Terrin spoke. “If there’s a chance that we can save Blade and make a better future for us, then I want in. I want to help.”

“Terrin…”

“Me too!” Renjee chirped. “I’m uhm… not good at fighting or anything, but I can do loads of other things!”

“If this is what Akir wanted, then I trust him,” Vespera added. “I know for certain Akir would want to save Blade, and if his plan helps with that, he’ll be eternally thankful.”

Asha smiled and nodded. It felt like all of the stars were aligning for this moment. Perhaps this was their destiny?

“Let’s do it.”

* * *

---

Torture begins here:

Blade woke as he heard a crowd gathering. Murmurs rumbled through the mass of humans around him. Already, the seats were taken, and a mob was forming around them—all of them here to watch Blade die. Fingers were pointed, eyes were staring, and whispers were speaking of him, the feral dragon bound and ready to be tortured for their amusement.

A sick feeling coiled around Blade’s insides and squeezed all too tightly. The High Bishop wasn’t anywhere to be found, but there were plenty of nobles here dressed in their fanciest of clothes. Even humans dressed in rags showed up in the crowd as well as two-legs of different species. It seemed that mostly everyone was enjoying the Sun Festival.

How many people came to see me die?

Pain exploded at Blade’s snout as a rock struck him, thrown by someone to the side of him. He winced as tears welled in his eyes; his muzzle stung terribly. And that was far from the last rock thrown at him: Many rocks missed, but they were pelting him one after the other. Blade tried to be strong and bite his tongue, but when one struck his eye, he yelped and tried to hide under his wings, but they were tied down to his body. He let out a quiet whimper and endured until a booming voice filled the uproar.

“Enough!”

At once, the rocks ceased. When Blade opened his eyes, he saw the white-robed High Bishop walking up onto the gallows.

“Before you lays a dragon who caused us much grief in the past, for he is the one who slaughtered our palace guards for the sheer joy of it. This beast killed many of our friends and loved ones, including my own father, whom I cherished. He was merciless, so here, we will also show no mercy. For his crimes, he has been sentenced to death, and for the woe he has caused, he will experience the pain we had collectively felt. Let us hope that the gods will continue to punish him after we have finished!”

Cheering rumbled through the crowd as the bishop stepped over to the table with different instruments of torture. Blade swallowed. He tried to think of Akir and imagine what it would be like to see him again, but fear pushed those thoughts aside. He was afraid of the pain he would endure—maybe he was afraid of death, too.

Two guards grabbed his muzzle and shoved it down against the wooden bar he lay upon. Growling, he struggled against them, but they quickly tied his snout and head down to the beam.

Shouts from the crowd exclaimed profane desires to see Blade maimed. They cried out with glee as the bishop took out the first tool: a long, sharp knife. Blade stared at it with dread; he wondered which would come first: Would he pass out from the pain or the blood loss? He was already injured from before, so he didn’t have much more blood to give.

Alexander dragged the flat of the blade across his snout, teasing him with an evil grin. Slowly, the metal traveled through Blade’s feathers and down his neck before it turned and gradually sliced into his hide. It was very painful to feel the cold, sharp edge split his skin and leave a thin, bleeding gash next to his shoulder. But Blade tried his best to hide his pain, showing little to no reaction as warm blood spilled from the burning cut.

Another cut trailed down his flank, but this one was three times as long as the other, and it tore his hide open all the way down to his thigh. He couldn’t help but to wince and clench his claws; the pain was slow and agonizing, and he knew that wasn’t the worst to come. He was already feeling faint.

The next slash cut deep into his thigh, causing the dragon to elicit a painful yelp. Alexander swung the knife hard and fast like a sword, tearing through muscle and inching close to the bone. The gouge stung and burned excruciatingly as fresh air caressed his open flesh. Blade felt dizzy.

Deep rings of a bell lolled back and forth in his spinning head. Through the pain, he heard ten different rings go back and forth, calling to him. He wondered what they were; the sounds were two distinct bells, so quiet and low that it took him a moment to realize they weren’t inside his head—they were real. The crowd was too loud to hear it, and not even the High Bishop seemed to notice. Dragons were better at hearing, so Blade assumed the humans couldn’t pick it up.

The blade sliced down his other leg in the same way, causing him to wince and grit his teeth with a growl. He wondered how much longer he could endure. His hide felt prickly like a thousand needles repeatedly stabbing him at once, and his mind was slipping in and out of consciousness. The bishop seemed to notice and cleaned the bloody knife before setting it down.

He took a metal bar and grasped it between his hands with a surprising intensity, his eyes focusing on nothing but the bar. It soon glowed red-hot; he used magic to make the metal hot. The crowd continued its sick cheering and chanting.

“Now you’ll understand what true pain feels like,” the bishop said to Blade. He lowered the metal to his thigh and pressed it against his bloodied feathers. Sheer, agonizing pain swelled in Blade’s leg and shocked his body, his crest of feathers standing on end as he cried out. Alexander held the bar to his leg and cauterized the wound to keep Blade from bleeding out. It burned his feathers and his skin, leaving an ugly mark on his leg.

The smell of burnt flesh assaulted his nostrils. His body shook and trembled. His vision flickered when his mind threatened to shut down.

After he sealed the deep cut at Blade’s leg, he pressed the end of the hot, metal bar against his other cuts and slowly dragged it across his flesh, sending excruciating waves of pain throughout his entire body. Blade couldn’t stop the cries that spilled from his lips, and the crowd cheered.

Gods, take me now… Please help me… I can’t…

Finally, the bishop took the metal away from Blade’s flesh and set it safely down until it stopped glowing. Most of Blade’s senses hid away from the pain; his body felt numb and his brain was sluggish.

“A dragon’s greatest pride is its wings. What say you,” Alexander asked the crowd, “Shall we remove his pride?”

An uproar of approval echoed off the buildings. A wicked smile split the High Bishops lips as he reached for a thin, metal saw. Blade couldn’t understand what was going on, and his vision was getting darker.

The sharp, jagged metal jabbed into his wing. It sliced into his flesh, each sharp tooth grinding into his sinewy muscles. With a whimpering cry, Blade felt it cutting into his wing with each stroke. The pain was enough to send Blade back to the recesses of his mind. He was neither conscious nor unconscious, and he couldn’t tell what world he was in. More pain racked his body, but he couldn’t feel it anymore; he felt utterly numb. Time passed but the world around him didn’t move.

Torture ends here.

---

Light poured into his vision as the darkness receded. The crowd in front of him disappeared and a beautiful sky opened up, the horizon painted in hues of blue, red, orange, purple, and gold. Dragons filled the open expanse, painted like silhouettes against such a gorgeous world. His heart leaped in his chest.

Blade could see his mate now: arms and wings outstretched, ready to receive Blade into his warm, loving embrace. There was nothing more Blade wanted. He reached out to Akir, but he was still bound to his mortal body. He struggled and cried out to Akir, pulling and tugging on his restraints with all of his might to get to him.

But he was trapped; he couldn’t move. He couldn’t reach his mate.

Akir smiled brightly at him and landed in front of Blade. Blade stopped moving and gulped. Tears spilled from his eyes as he stared at his mate—his long lost mate. He was the love of his life that Blade had never forgotten. It was time for them to reunite at last.

“Are you okay, Blade?” he asked and removed Blade’s restraints. Blade nodded and he couldn’t speak; he was too happy. When Blade was free, Akir hugged around him tightly, and Blade squeezed back with all of his might, never wanting to let go.

“I love you so much,” Blade managed through his clenched throat.

“I love you too. Everything’s going to be alright,” he said softly and held Blade against him. Blade melted in his embrace and sobbed, burying his snout into his neck. Weakness trembled in his limbs, but Akir was here for him—he was his solid rock.

Indescribable joy warmed his aching heart. It was all over now: all of his pain and suffering, the grief and strife. Blade was home.

The last thing he saw was Akir’s happy, smiling face as he took Blade away.

Everything went black.