Dragon Bound

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Chapter Eighteen

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‘Stop!’ The shout was ignored by the smaller man who scaled the wall with catlike finesse. Jason hurled himself up the brick work, leathers creaking. The bell still clanged, waking everyone in residence from dragons to servants.

The boy had chosen not to make a break for the gates where Jason’s long stride would have caught up with him but to climb the outer wall. Perhaps he thought if he got enough distance, he could find a safe way down the other side. He would be mistaken. The other side of the mountain the stronghold was carved into was nothing but sharp slick rock and dark sudden overhangs.

Dragons were taking off as more torches were lit. Hounds howled as they were released from their kennels to hunt. Those on night watch were bringing their beasts in, closing on the stronghold to ensure no unknown animal lurked nearby for a rescue.

The boy landed nimbly atop one wall and ran along it. Jason was quick to follow, boots slipping a little before he found his balance. He could keep up easily so far. He had stood on toe tip in the saddle of a flying dragon, he had enough skill to run along a wall.

Gabe was running alongside down below, shouting orders. Jason could not understand where the kid thought he was going. The whole stronghold was up in arms. Soon, there would not be a single empty corridor.

The boy swung a left, scaling down the other side and plunging into the small man-made waterway. Jason was quick after him, the water soaking into his boots and slowing him a fraction. The impact of the jump sent a harsh ringing through his bones. He gritted his teeth and poured on more speed.

A glint of silver was his only warning and Jason threw himself sideways to avoid the small throwing knife. His boot slipped and he stumbled, his side colliding with the concrete side of the water course. The boy was already pulling ahead, climbing out and diving down another corridor. There was a yell, a thump, and several loud curses. Gingerly and still sopping wet, Jason jogged after him. The boy was face down on the cobblestones, Logan and two uniformed guards restraining the still struggling teenager. Jason panted, ribs aching.

Logan glanced up at him.

‘Inform the king. We have him.’

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It was nearly dawn when Jason finally came back to the stable. In that time, Lune had calmed down enough to work a claw under the light chain and wiggle it off his snout. It had not been a fun process and Lune had been frustrated when all he wanted to do was melt the chains off in a blast of fire but couldn’t.

He had half hoped that Jason was coming to calm him down, but the rider had done little more than storm in, check on Damon and storm straight back out again. Lune was annoyed, tired and upset but did not dare lie down to sleep. He paced up and down, often pausing at Damon’s side as though to check the other male still lived. The sun rose slowly, bird song penetrating the dark mood of the stall.

Damon was still sleeping deeply and probably wouldn’t wake for another few hours. Lune remembered how pungent the black dragon’s food had been yesterday afternoon. The boy must have snuck it in then, when Damon wouldn’t have been able to identify it. Lune couldn’t help but feel slightly guilty about that. He should have noticed something was off, but he didn’t. When the door to the stall opened, Lune swung around expectantly.

His wings drooped to the floor however when he saw it was not Jason or Gabe but the squire, George. George gave a nervous little wave.

‘Morning boy, Gabe and Jason sent me to check on you both,’ the boy said nervously. He held out his palm flat, exposing a sugar cube. Lune wasn’t in the mood though. Not in the slightest. He gave a miserable chuff and sat down beside Damon. George hesitated and then came further into the stall.

‘Are you hurt? Sir Jason didn’t think you had been hurt…’

Nice of him to notice, Lune thought bitterly.

He wanted to ask if they had caught the boy who had tried to take him, but he had no way to communicate with this squire. His mental connection was with the whirlwind of rage that was the human rider who was currently keeping their link closed. It was probably to protect Lune, but it left the Kagame feeling isolated and hurt.

He wanted to know what was going on and he wanted Damon to wake up.

‘I’m going to check on Damon, okay?’ the boy asked in a shaky voice. He was probably afraid Lune would attack him. Honestly, he was too tired. He knew none of this was the young human’s fault.

George crept in, cutting a wide path around Lune, keeping his wide eyes of the dragon’s head and swishing tail. Lune watched him closely as he crept over to Damon’s side and placed a hand on the dragon’s flank.

‘He’s asleep,’ George said. Lune rolled his lilac eyes.

Well, duh.

The squire gave Lune another nervous look.

‘Are you hungry?’ the human asked. Lune growled. He didn’t want to eat or drink anything in this place at the moment. None of it could be trusted. How had the boy got so far into the stables? Surely, he must have had help…

‘Umm, well, if you’re not hungry, I’ll go,’ George said, looking rather hopeful as he sidled over to the door. Lune huffed out low sigh and turned away, going back to nosing at Damon’s head. The other male didn’t even stir.

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‘Report?’ The Sun King stood, his crown glinting harshly in the morning sunlight. The servants shrank back, overtaken by an aura that felt as suffocating as a house fire. Even his knights cowered. Some of his knights. Others, like Gabe and Jason, stood against the barrage of fire and fury.

‘We have the boy. He was found early this morning trying to lure Jason’s Kagame from its stall,’ Gabe growled. A wind of conversation swept into the hall. Questions rushed around like a swarm of buzzards. The king raised his hand.

‘Silence.’ He didn’t shout but he didn’t need to. The room went quiet again.

‘We don’t yet know how the boy got into the stables or where he is from. He has not spoken a word to anyone since he was brought in for interrogation,’ Gabe went on.

’You must make him talk. I want to know where this boy came from, who he is working with, where they are located and how they entered my stronghold.’ The king’s voice was low and steady. It was the most terrifying tone Jason had ever heard from the man.

Takara stood close by, a silent golden shadow. This was odd in and of itself as the Sun King did not often bring his prized dragon to the war room. It appeared that the man wanted his dragon close. Jason couldn’t blame him. Even now, the thought that Damon had been targeted made him want to be sick and violent at the same time.

‘Sir, if they came for the Kagame, surely they will try again? We could use the animal in a trap,’ Kyril suggested.

‘We are not there yet. We need more information,’ Fredrick interjected. Jason didn’t trust himself to speak. He was shaking with silent fury and was glad Gabe stood between himself and Kyril.

‘Go. Get us that information,’ the king ordered.

Estevan took a step forward. ‘I will make this boy speak,’ the man hissed.

‘Logan will go with you. Jason, you will go too,’ Estevan did not look particularly thrilled by this suggestion but was not stupid enough to argue with the Sun King. Jason wasn’t overly happy either, but he would not refuse. He knew Logan would act as a buffer. His squad leader was long used to the tense dynamic of his riders. None of it mattered. Estevan could parade around all he liked so long as Jason got answers.

It was a long walk to reach the dungeon which had been cut into the very bowels of the mountain hundreds of years ago. It got colder and darker the further down the three knights went. They didn’t speak as they walked, Logan in the lead. Jason came last only because he didn’t like the idea of Estevan travelling behind him in the gloom.

Whilst the king’s court had never been strictly harmonious, Jason had never doubted the loyalty of his fellow dragon riders. Sure, they had their issues. Their responsibilities and the internal politics meant that they bickered but their loyalty to their king had never been questioned. Atop their dragons and flying side by side in battle, Jason had never once thought the danger would come from anyone other than the approaching enemy. Now...

Now he wasn’t so sure.

There was a stiffness to Logan’s posture as the older man walked that told Jason that the squad leader was having similar thoughts. Surely everyone was. Distrust could be deadly. They needed answers before life here became more unstable. The bottom of the stairs led to a wide archway, guarded by four soldiers in full armour. Normally it was only two, but security had been doubled in most places. They nodded respectfully to the three knights and parted for them.

Boots clunking dimly, they made their way down towards the last cell. Inside sat a figure, heavy cuffs fixing him to a metal chair bolted into the old stone. The floor was covered in scorch marks and various instruments hung threateningly on the walls. None of this seemed to have any effect on their captive who looked rather bored.

Jason first impression of the boy was one of puzzlement. In the dark of the night and the rush of chasing the boy down, Jason had not gotten a good look at him. Strangely, his face was oddly familiar though Jason couldn’t say why. The boy couldn’t have been any older than nineteen summers. He sat calmly in his chained chair, face blank, black hair slightly matted from the blood still leaking from a gash in his forehead. He stared up at them with a sought of resolute calmness that unnerved Jason.

The boy looked ready to die.

‘Boy, do you know who we are?’ Estevan thundered, crossing his arms over his front, and puffing up his chest impressively. The young man raised a bruised brow.

‘Obviously,’ he said in tartly. Considering they wore the king’s blazing sun imprinted into their leathers and it was Jason that caught the boy, it was pretty bloody obvious who they were. Even in the low torch light, Jason could see the faint flush in Estevan’s cheeks. Jason said nothing. It wouldn’t look good to be berating each other in front of the prisoner they were trying to interrogate.

‘What is your name?’ Logan rumbled. Silence met his question. He tried again.

‘Why have you come to the Sun King’s stronghold?’ The boy stared insolently up at them. He was quiet for a long moment until he seemed to decide he could answer. He gave a half shrug.

‘To take your dragons of course,’ he replied.

Estevan’s lip curled. ‘And what makes you think you would be able to achieve such a thing?’ he sneered. The young man laughed.

‘It wasn’t difficult. You’re so arrogant and careless. Half your beasts would follow me through fire if it meant getting away from you,’ he spat. Estevan charged forward, fists raised but Logan stepped into the man’s path.

‘Our dragons are bound to us, boy.’ Logan said steadily.

The boy smirked, the twist turning his features gaunt. ‘You have a lot of faith in your magic.’

‘Not just our magic. Our beasts are trained from hatchlings. They are a part of us and we, a part of them. If your entire plan is to free them then it is a plan destined to fail,’ Logan replied evenly. The boy’s smirk only widened.

‘There is a change in the wind coming. I have given the information about your stables. We know how many beasts you have. Those we can’t free will be slaughtered but that is a price we are willing to pay,’ the boy hissed. Jason felt the bottom of his stomach drop out.

‘Who is we?’ Estevan growled, his jaw tight.

‘You’ll find out soon enough.’ Logan didn’t stop Estevan this time. The man stepped forward and struck, his fist thudding into the side of the boy’s face.

‘You will tell us,’ he warned. The boy spat blood and grinned through bloody teeth.

‘Your animals will all turn on you for how you have treated them, and the Sun King will burn in his kingdom.’

‘You’re wrong. We care about our dragons,’ Jason murmured. Estevan shot him a disgusted look.

The boy laughed coldly.

‘You think you’re any better because you captured something so rare? Do you really think there’s such a thing as a kind slave owner? Who are you trying to fool? Take that beast’s collar off and see where his loyalties lie. Admit it, your best-case scenario is the animal flies off,’ the boy snarled. Something hideous and dark twisted in Jason’s gut. He didn’t want it to be true. He didn’t want to care if it was.

But he did.

‘Enough. You will tell us what we want to know, one way or another.’ Jason watched numbly as Estevan grabbed a rag from the wall and came around the back of the chair. He wrenched the boy’s head back, placed the rag over his face and held his skull in place as Logan picked up a bucket of water.

Jason turned away.

He had no interest in watching this. He clenched his fists at the sound of water hitting the stone floor. There was a seconds’ pause as the fabric absorbed the water then the unmistakable sound of suffocating splutters.

--

Damon woke with a hideous pounding in his skull. He growled but quickly stopped, the vibration only adding to the headache. He felt oddly stiff, and his mouth felt as though he had been chewing on old cotton. He opened his eyes very slowly.

Lune came over to him, sniffing and nosing at him. He could feel the smaller dragon’s distress. More worryingly was the closed link with Jason. Had something happened? He tried to stand but his limbs were wobbly.

What the fuck had happened?

Lune pressed into him, churring weakly and nuzzling him all over. Clearly the little Kagame was very distressed. The stables were quiet. He sniffed but he couldn’t smell anything out of the ordinary. Gabe’s scent lingered by the door along with George’s.

He honestly couldn’t remember anything out of the ordinary. They had eaten the evening meal and Jason had left them to bed down for the night. It was then that Damon noticed just how high in the sky the sun was. His muscles tensed. Something very wrong had happened.

You were drugged. Lune’s quiet voice across their link made him turn. A boy broke into our stall last night whilst you were asleep. He tried to make me go with him. Jason caught him before anything happened. Lune did not add the part where he had considered leaving with the boy.

Damon’s rage poured across their link. The dragon let out a roar, his huge black wings mantling and brushing the ceiling of the stall. Someone had drugged him, entered his stall, and tried to steal his mate!

Lune eyed him warily, tail quills rattling. The door to the stall jangled and Damon rounded, fangs exposed. Jason sidled in and gazed up at his irate dragon with an annoyed expression.

‘Calm the fuck down, you’re fine,’ Jason growled. This did not have much of a soothing effect. Damon snarled, tail whipping out. Jason ducked. ‘Damon, enough! The boy is in custody,’ he snapped. He glanced over at Lune who had not come over to him.

Lune stared right back. He was having trouble reading Jason’s expression. The rider looked pale, brows pinched and lips thin. It was an odd, grim expression, somewhere between guilt, jealousy, and something else.

You have already spoken to the boy, Lune thought grimly. Damon’s head whipped from his mate to his master.

And!? What did you find out? Damon snarled. To their surprise, far from answering their questions, Jason bristled. He straightened, his eyes hardening in a posture that reminded Lune uncomfortably of Kyril.

‘A report will be given to the king. He will decide what the next course of action will be, not you,’ he said waspishly.

’You aren’t going to tell us what he said? Damon thought angrily.

‘I don’t need to. I am the rider; you are the dragon. I will decide what you need to be told.’ The response was so cold and so out of character that Damon just stared at him, muscles rigid with anger.

You aren’t interested in our feelings or thoughts on the matter? Lune’s thoughts were icy. Jason glanced briefly at him and crossed his arms stubbornly over his chest.

‘Not at the moment,’ he snapped.

I was beginning to think you were different. Instead, I am reminded that you’re still just a human. Lune’s words seemed to have hit a nerve because Jason flinched. Lune padded over to Damon and nosed at the black dragon. Together, the two turned their backs on the tense figure and headed out of the stall into the enclosure without a backward glance.

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END

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