He grinned before rising to his feet. “Come on, we should keep going.” His hand extended toward me and I clasped it, allowing him to peel me from my resting spot.
Tilting my head back toward the increasingly bright sky, I groaned. “I’m so tired.”
A moment later, a luxuriously soft tail grazed my cheek.
“Hop on.”
“Are you sure?! I won’t be too heavy for you?”
“I’m waiting,”he said impatiently.
I hauled myself over his large back, swinging a leg up for leverage, apologizing when I pulled on his skin.
“Lean forward and wrap your arms around my neck. Loosely, please.”
I did as he instructed, pressing my body flush against him, gripping tightly as he took off into a sprint. Laughter rolled off my tongue like rhythmic waves of the ocean. The incline becamealarmingly steep at some points, but he leapt with all the grace a giant feline could possess, balancing me at the same time.
“He’ll never catch up to us at this speed. Now we just have to find the dragon’s nest and not get charred in the process.”Dae paused, raising his nose to the air. “I think I’ve caught something.”
59
Melody
We landed, and I’d never been more grateful for a dirt surface. Jasper had flown through the skies above the treetops with me in his arms. It’d been magnificent when it wasn’t stomach-droppingly terrifying.
Dante had Tio ride on his back as they speared through the forest beneath. When Jasper stopped, I recognized fatigue was setting in for him, too. Yet, he didn’t once complain, his wings unfaltering as we’d kept a steady pace.
This was where Ro’s letter indicated a camp was tucked in the woods. Tio slid from Dante’s back, marching to the firepit and crouching down. He set his fingers into the ashes. Dante maneuvered around the deconstructed tents, sniffing and huffing for information.
“Hasn’t been lit for a while, probably since at least last night,” Tio said. My heart split watching him frantically search for any other telling signs. He hadn’t seen his best friend in weeks. And we would have barely missed her.
I wished Tio could have gotten to her on time. I tried schooling my features, but heat pricked the back of my eyes. If only I hadn’t needed so many blasted breaks.
Braxius left his perch on Jasper and came to rest on my shoulder. “Oh, hello,” I said. The tiny blue creature sniffed along my cheek, then pressed his head against it in a nuzzling fashion. “Oh, you’re very friendly. I like you.” I gently patted his head with the pad of my finger.
“Do you know her scent? Can you smell her?” Tio asked Dante the question that would be offensive in polite society, but completely normal among magical, enhanced creatures. Or, enhanced man, I guessed. Maybe the term creature was offensive and other-ing when he was in this state? It’s shameful I never thought twice about these things before finding out they were my people. Tio ran a tense hand through his golden streaked curls, and I sobered back to the moment.
Dante’s beast form flared his wolf-like nostrils. “She was here, but it’s faint. There’s many other scents and they’re…” he paused, as if trying to determine something. “Off. I’ve scented a group like this before. Their magic taints the air like something rotten. But it’s mingled with the decaying ground, so I can’t separate them enough to track.”
“How recent?” Tio pressed, his voice rising, desperation clawing its way out.
“Hard to say,” Dante started.
“Dammit.” Tio paced in circles, pulling back his hair so tightly between his fingers I wondered if it was painful. Perhaps not as painful as the hard emotions encircling him.
Braxius lifted from my shoulder and flew to him. He didn’t perch on Tio, instead head butting him in the chest once, enough to break Tio’s spiraling worry. Tio stopped and cradled the tiny beast in his hands, holding him to his chest. “Is she okay?” he whispered to the dragon, a near wobble in his words.
I couldn’t see what transpired between them, but judging by the slow release of Tio’s tense shoulders, he received confirmation.
“She hasn’t been here today,” Dante said to Tio before looking at me. “We should test your magic first, then we can investigate further.”
I balled my fists at my sides, nodding in resolution. The time had come to see if my rare magic held any chance against the curse. I tried batting away the thoughts that insisted on creeping in, the ones that had me dreaming of a way I could save an entire kingdom using the magic I’d suppressed all my life.
“Jas, can you scout the area? If Ro or her party are anywhere around here, I want to know,” Dante said.
“Aw man, can’t I watch the light show first? I’ll go right after, I promise! Imagine blondie here defeats the curse and I miss it,” Jasper whined.
Dante huffed through those beastly nostrils of his, resigning to the negotiation. “Fine. This way.” He nodded and began north, stalking through the woods.
