“Get away from me!”

  Ahn’rah’s eyes flitted over the Dullahan as his flaming branch now pointed toward him. He could see the way the Fae shook in fear, and he could hear the panicked, rasped breaths. It couldn’t be any clearer that Dragons weren’t exactly among his favorite beings. It was to be expected.

  “None of us have any intention of hurting you. Quite the opposite, actually.” Ahn’rah reached into the satchel around his neck and pulled out six Leystones, setting them on the ground without coming too close to the makeshift torch. He also pulled out a leather waterskin that seemed too small for him, but also too big for the Dullahan, placing it beside the stones.

  He watched the Fae’s expression as he walked further into the den to stand next to his mate. The Dullahan kept the fiery stick up like a shield, watching them. He didn’t seem keen on taking his eyes off of the two Dragons he now shared a cave with.

  “Are you alright, Turimiil?” Ahn’rah asked gingerly, glancing her over and making sure that she wasn’t burned.

  “Yes. I never got close enough for him to do anything to me. I think he was having a nightmare.” Turimiil responded, hesitantly sitting down beside the fire and turning her eyes back toward the Dullahan.

  “Good,” Ahn’rah replied, sitting himself down as well. “Injuries aren’t exactly things we could factor in right now.”

  The two watched as the Dullahan, realizing neither of them were likely to move, finally tore his eyes away to look down at the items Ahn’rah had left him. He picked up the waterskin and sniffed it carefully before taking a sip. That one sip turned into several long gulps as he gave in to his need for water.

  “Where’s Caelmer?” Turimiil asked, her brow beginning to knit with worry. “I thought he was going to come back with you.”

  “He’s off getting other Thought-Bringers to help him gather supplies for us.” Her mate replied with a growing smile.

  Turimiil’s pale green eyes slowly went wide and she leaned closer to him, a smile threatening to appear on her own lips. “You mean we’re leaving? You made a deal with them?”

  “We did. We’re leaving, Turi. Tomorrow, at noon.” Ahn’rah looked to her now, the two of them fully smiling.

  “So soon? Will everything be ready by then? Will we have everything we need?”

  Ahn’rah gave a soft chuckle and pressed his forehead to hers. “Caelmer and I will handle it. Caelmer will be getting most of the supplies, I just have to go back out and get the food and-”

  A small cracking sound had both of them perking up and turning their heads, only to see the Dullahan had dropped one of the now drained Leystones on his mad dash out of the cave. They barely had a glimpse of one of his limbs as he fled out of the opening, only leaving behind a now smoldering stick, a waterskin and a cracked, empty Leystone.

  Ahn’rah sighed and stood, briefly stretching before strolling off toward the entrance of the den. “I’ll talk to him. We can chat about the plan once I convince him to come back inside.”

  “Be careful, darling. I don’t think he’s taking any of this well.” Turimiil said as she got up as well, making her way back to their nest.

  Ahn’rah only gave her a nod before he left, slowly trodding up the curving path that led out of the den. It wasn’t exactly hard to find the Dullahan once he emerged from the opening. The ghastly green Fae was standing not too far away with his back to Ahn’rah, staring up at the somewhat imposing planet of Topavara in the Aetheric sky above them.

  He could see the Dullahan’s frame shudder every once in a while, and could hear shallow, quick breaths. Both knees trembled, and Ahn’rah wondered if it was from exhaustion or fear. Either way, he doubted he could say anything all too helpful. Still, he had to try.

  “That’s Topavara.” Ahn’rah began. The Dullahan swung around with a gasp and tensed up, but Ahn’rah didn’t come any closer, instead sitting down not too far from the entrance. “You’re on one of its two moons.”

  The Dullahan was gripping the Leystones to his chest, and Ahn’rah could now see that they were slowly draining their energy into him. The white Ley energy almost looked like smoke being sucked into the Fae’s chest through his tattered shirt. His emerald eyes seemed to glow slightly along with his hair and translucent right leg.

  Ahn’rah gave him a few moments to speak, but continued once he realized he wouldn’t. “I understand you’re not likely to trust us. I really do. But we’re your only way of leaving, and I don’t want us to be on the wrong foot. Could you at least tell me your name?”

  Another long pause left them both in silence, but the Dragon let him have the time he needed. He watched how the Dullahan’s expression shifted from fear to anger, from anger to sadness, and then a complicated mix of all three. The Fae fully turned toward him now, making surprisingly steady eye contact.

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  “Daventio Tolbeth.” His voice was still somewhat rasped, likely from a mix of dehydration and a lack of use. Daventio’s brow was tense, contributing to a rather hard expression despite the fear and panic he had held before.

  Ahn’rah offered him a lax smile and a small bow of the head. “And I’m Ahn’rah Kirr. A pleasure to meet you.”

  “I doubt it.” Daventio replied, narrowing his eyes. “You’re likely just keeping me here as backup rations. Topavaran dragons are monstrous.”

  “That’s not entirely true.” Ahn’rah replied, choosing not to take the ‘monstrous’ comment personally. He knew the types of things the Divers did, and he couldn’t blame the Fae for what they now believed because of their actions. “While some of us are indeed monstrous, it’s not because we’re Topavaran. It’s because the Topavarans that travel the cycle are part of a monstrous group.”

  “You expect me to believe that?” The fae hissed.

  “You’re alive aren’t you?” Ahn’rah stated bluntly, gesturing over to the Trove moon that rested close to the crest of Topavara in the sky. “My friend Caelmer helped me pull you out of that Golem you were in, on the Trove Moon.”

  Daventio hesitantly pulled his eyes away from the Dragon to instead stare over to the black moon, the crater to the Trove just barely visible from where they stood. It sat as a small, barely glowing dot on its surface. Otherwise, it seemed like a normal moon.

  “That’s where my father stores his treasures.” Ahn’rah continued. “He leads the Trove Divers on these horrible trips through the cycle, killing and stealing things from all of the Fae planets and attempting to recruit and rest whenever they stop at a Draconic planet. When he returns, he takes all of his trophies and places them inside of that moon.”

  Ahn’rah stood and took a few steps closer to Daventio, who turned to look at him again but didn’t move. “Not every Topavaran follows him and the other Divers, but those dragons aren’t exactly well off because of it. Most of them hide away in smaller caves or leave Topavara altogether. That’s what we are doing tomorrow. Leaving.”

  Daventio stared up into Ahn’rah’s electric blue eyes, glowing in the dark of the moon. He took a while to think before finally responding to him. “Why take me with you? Why did you save me in the first place?”

  “Because it would be wrong to leave you here. It would be a death sentence.” Ahn’rah spoke plainly, refusing to sugarcoat the situation. “There’s no other way than to take you. This moon has no resources or Leylines for you to live off of, and you wouldn’t survive on a planet full of Trove Divers.”

  The Dullahan’s head slowly hung and he stared down at his bare feet, deep in thought. Ahn’rah let him think, now moving to sit not too far away from him. They both simply sat in silence for a few minutes, and Ahn’rah couldn’t help but gaze out at Topavara, a small pang of sadness settling in his chest. Such a beautiful and lush planet, and yet its inhabitants cast such an ugly mark on its reputation. It was a shame.

  “Where’s Relictumire?” Daventio eventually asked.

  Ahn’rah gave a small nod and stood up again. “It’s on the other side of the moon. You should be able to see it if we walk a bit in the other direction.” He turned, being careful not to knock Daventio over with a wing or tail, and began walking away from the sight of Topavara.

  Daventio followed him, having to run to keep up with the Dragon’s pace. Even with Ahn’rah stepping rather slow, his large frame made it hard for the Dullahan to keep up.

  “If you’d like, I can fly you over-”

  “Not a chance.” Daventio quickly replied, Leystones in his fists as he quickened his pace to try and make better headway. Ahn’rah gave a soft chuckle and nodded, continuing on.

  “Fair enough.”

  They walked for another half hour before the sight of Relictumire finally started to come into view in the distant sky. Its lush green surface was occasionally broken by wide, winding rivers and pools of water of varying sizes. Its one moon, bright blue in color, peeked out from behind it.

  “There it is. We’ll be making our way there starting tomorrow, should all things go to plan.” Ahn’rah looked down to Daventio and gave him a small smile, only for it to drop when he saw the look of horror on the Fae’s face.

  “Tomorrow?” He asked in a quiet whisper, his wide green eyes stuck to the planet that he had asked to see. “You’re bringing me back there?”

  “I assume from your reaction you aren’t keen on that plan.”

  “No. No, I am not keen on it!” Daventio’s breath began to quicken again. “If they find me again, they’ll just put me in another one of those things and I’ll be put right back into formation!”

  “Whoa, Daventio, breathe.” Ahn’rah spoke gently, laying himself down and resting his head on the ground so he could be closer to the now panicking Dullahan. “We weren’t planning on leaving you there unless you requested it.”

  “But they’ll know I’m there!”

  “We’ll be hiding you. How could they possibly know if you were there?”

  Daventio finally broke his stare on the planet to look at the Dragon that rested beside him. His brow knit in confusion as if the reason was obvious. “Because I can power their Golems. They can’t afford to lose whatever Generators they’ve got.” The Dullahan then pulled down the collar of his torn shirt to expose the tattoo in the center of his chest. It was a Rune of some sort, tattooed in a black ink that stood in high contrast to Daventio’s pale green skin. Ahn’rah had seen it a few times before on things his father would store in the Trove Moon, such as a shield or a valuable statue.

  It was a tracking Rune, meant to react with a small stone as its counterpart when nearby. It was meant as a way for Fae soldiers or nobility to find the item if it is to be lost, yet here it was, tattooed onto the young Dullahan’s chest. Ahn’rah’s heart sank and he began to realize the true seriousness of it. One of their theories had been correct.

  “I’m property of The Autumn Court’s Royal Army. They’re going to want me back."