I glance down at Odi, who’s already looking up at me, rolling her eyes. “You’ll be eating those words when a monster leaps from the trees and devours us.”
My eyes drift to her mouth then back to her. “Better hold on tight then.”
She quickly pulls her hand back, like she’s been stung, but I catch the flush rising in her cheeks and I can’t help smiling.
The screech sounds again, but this time it’s followed by movement in the tree tops. My hand rests on the hilt of my blade as I take a step forwards to investigate. The branches above rustle, quick and sharp. Then they burst open with a flurry of leaves and snapping twigs.
I see scales, and pull back before the creature has a chance to snap at me.
Drakelings.
Half-lizard, half-dragon and all attitude. They’re small—no bigger than a full-grown rat—but they have speed on their side. Sleek-scaled bodies in a range of colours, blues, greens, purples and reds, with two pairs of fluttering wings on their backs that hum as they move, almost like the bees on the mainland—just bigger and less friendly.
Three of them hover in front of us, and I hear the catch in Odi’s breath.
I move backwards slowly until my arm brushes hers. “See, I told you it wasn’t dangerous.”
“What are they?” she asks, wide eyed.
“Drakelings. They aren’t aggressive—not unless you spook them or try to steal the eggs from their nests.”
She pauses long enough that I turn to find a strange expression playing over her face. “Why do I want to pet it?”
I swallow a laugh. “I’d avoid it if you value your fingers. They’ll bite hard enough to make you curse if they feel cornered. Some of the more wealthy landsmen post capture contracts, hoping to keep them as pets, but I neverunderstood why.”
Odi takes a step back, but I catch her wrist. “Don’t move. They’ll lose interest soon enough.”
A dark, purple-scaled drakeling creeps closer, its wings twitching. I hear the gentle clink of weapons behind me as the crew freezes, watching the scene unfold. Odelia sucks in a breath, leaning her body towards mine.
The drakeling flicks its pupils over us as if it’s sizing us up for a fight. It chirrs and flits around, before deciding that we’re much too boring to look at and darts back into the tree tops, the other two hot on its heels.
I exhale, tension bleeding off my shoulders as I flick my gaze down to Odi. She blinks like she’s just returned to her body so I give her arm a little nudge with mine. “Nosy little shits aren’t they.”
She swipes a glittering drakeling scale from the ground and grins, and I feel like my heart is going to explode from my chest at the sight of her. Then I huff softly, of course the pirate would snatch the shiny things. She almost reminds me of the cliff roosting sea birds that collect treasures for their nests. I look away when she looks back at me, pretending I wasn’t watching. “Like someone else I know,” she says, her voice pointed.
It’s my turn to roll my eyes. “With me! Move out and mind the drakelings!”
As the sun begins its descent we finally reach the tallest part of the island, and what awaits us down below is breathtaking. A forgotten temple, crumbling in places but still standing strong. It rests atop a mound, like the island has lifted it from the deep embrace of the sea and offered it to the sun.
A gentle breeze swirls around me, stirring my hair. I feel a presence beside me and look over to see Elio. His hazel eyes crinkle at the corners, squinting as he assesses the view. “Looks like that’s been abandoned for quite some time.”
“Like your bed.”
He scoffs, folding his arms across his chest. “It gets more action than yours does.”
A smirk plays on my lips. “You had Tavi worried there for a minute.”
Elio sighs. It’s a haunting sound, like he’s fighting a silent battle and losing. “She’d never admit it out loud.”
I flick my gaze to the woman who’s like a sister to me. She stands tall and proud, a stern look upon her sharp features as she speaks with Odi, their attention on the temple ahead. I’d found her in a tavern five years ago, drinking alone. Two burly men had tried to pick a fight with her, but she flattened them both in seconds. I knew instantly she would be a part of my crew. There hasn’t been one day since that I’ve regretted inviting her onto my ship.
Tavi has more stories in her to tell than I do scales. She’s fierce and she is brave, but she’s also a woman who longs to be loved, preferably by the malestanding beside me, no matter that they’ve both taken more than their fair share of time coming around to it.
“Just don’t go dying on her, eh?”
Hazel eyes find mine. “Hadn’t planned on it.”
As I look in their direction again, Tavi catches my eye, and with a simple nod we start down the side of the slope, making our way towards the ancient temple as our boots carry us through rapidly hardening ground, until beneath us is all rock.
