“Okay…”
I follow him all the way around the outskirts of the town, taking it all in from a distance. There are so many small, beautiful structures lining the streets, and from the outside looking in, it almost seems like the town is arranged in a circular pattern.
I continue to follow, with Daegan walking closely beside me. They tell me stories about their homeland that aren’t in books I’ve read, things you wouldn’t know unless you grew up here.
When we reach a small hill near the mountainside, we begin to climb. Eventually, we reach the plateau, and Raef guides me toward a cluster of glittering rocks that did not get there naturally.
“In our culture, we burn the bodies of our deceased,” Raef says. I look more closely at the arrangement of stones and see the name carved in the largest one.
“Meela,” I whisper, kneeling to inspect it closer.
“This is where I placed her ashes. She needed a spot to be remembered.” Tears threaten to fall at the sentiment, but I hold them in. I’ve shed enough, and she wouldn’t want that anyway.
I place my hand on the stone then lean forward and feel the cool smoothness of it against my forehead. I take a moment, just breathing in, remembering her adorable, scowling face in my mind.
And then I realize that some of the details are becoming fuzzy. I haven’t seen a portrait or anything since before her death, and so much has happened since then that I’m having trouble conjuring her image.
That’s the moment a tear begins to break free. Just a single one. I guess I still am who I am. Soft. Unable to push everything down and smother it, despite how hard I may try.
I finally stand, wiping my cheek, and face Raef with strong shoulders. “Thank you.”
He nods, but I know he didn’t do it for me. He did it for her.
“Were you guys ever…?”
He shakes his head, his somber mood stealing his smile. “I don’t know. We never got a chance to find out.”
And that tugs at my heart for both of them. They deserved more than this.
We begin to hike back down the hill, and I get a better view of Torrynth from the higher vantage point. I was right that it’s arranged in a circle. The roads weave through it in an intricate pattern up to the center. That’s not where the largest building is though. Up against the mountainside is a white and gold shining palace, much bigger than any other structure below.
“That’s home,” Daegan explains. I look over and he’s eyeing the grand palace I just had my own eyes on.
“Wow. It’s beautiful. And you guys didn’t even have terra magic to build any of it. Not the palace, not the wall, not the homes…”
He offers me a tight-lipped smile, then leads the way back toward the roads. We weave in and out, getting deeper in the city. A lot of the structures seem to be private homes. By the third road we turn onto, more shops pop up. There’s an armory, a potion shop, a place to buy linens, and more.
“Daegan Vaelor? Welcome back!” A burly old weaponsmith with wild gray hair is sitting in front of his shop, smiling at Daegan like he’s a savior come to rescue everyone. Like he respects him greatly.
“How’ve you been, Taelun?”
Taelun’s smile falls, revealing the horrible truth of what’s become of their people. “Could be better,” Taelun answers honestly. “Brother passed this last year…”
“I’m very sorry to hear that. Salius was an excellent blacksmith, and a kind dragon.”
The weaponsmith nods in appreciation. Then, his fiery-orange gaze shifts, falling on the ancient dragon sword. Taelun squints his eyes with curiosity. “Interesting sword.”
“Yep,” Raef answers.
Taelun doesn’t question any further as we say goodbye and resume our stroll through the streets, but I look back and find him still studying us, that same look of intense curiosity on his face.
It’s strange seeing Daegan like this. So comfortable and well-known and respected by his people. It’s almost as if people look at him and talk to him like… he’s their prince. It’s not that I’m not surprised by his kind behavior, but I’m used to seeing him get treated much differently, and him acting a lot more guarded and cautious.
I enjoy this side of him. A few more people say hello as we stroll through the streets, and it warms my heart, seeing him treated as he should be. Each one of them has their own unique color of eyes with the same illuminated quality to them, and I know now that each set matches the color of their dragon form.
But something is strange about the village...
“There’s barely anyone here,” I murmur in an almost reverent whisper. Sure, we’ve encountered people here and there, but not nearly enough for a village of this size. And I definitely haven’t seen any shifted dragons.
