Ride the Wave

8

Dozens of glowing eyes lit up the tunnel ahead of us, blocking our path. I counted at least twenty pairs before giving up, and more seemed to fill the tunnel every second. I swallowed hard and prepared to fight them, while Slade and Jasin did the same. If we were going to get Kira out safely, we’d have to defeat them all.

6

Kira

T

he door to my cell opened, jerking me awake. A tall man stood in the doorway, dimly lit by the dying embers of the torch outside my cage. I recognized his long blond hair and tanned skin—the Azure Dragon. I was wondering when he would show up. The others had been by at least twice now.

I’d seen Doran three times before. The first was a year after my parents were killed by Sark. I’d been traveling with some merchants and we’d stopped in a small town in the Air Realm. He’d shifted to his human form and spoke with one of the merchants, while his cold eyes searched around as if he was looking for someone. I left the merchants the next morning, worried I was putting their lives at risk. Much later, I saw Doran fly over the Earth Realm after I'd met my mates, and we’d hidden while his huge dragon form had circled over us before finally leaving.

The last time I saw him was when he’d kidn*pped me a few days ago.

I saw a bundle in his hands and wondered what he'd brought to pacify me until my life was sucked away to keep him and the others alive. I still wasn't sure why they bothered, honestly. Maybe they really were fattening me up like a pig they prepared to s*******r.

“We don’t have much time.” Doran said, as he approached my cage. He offered me a bar of soap and a wet wash cloth in one hand, with a bundle of fabric in the other. “Get clean and change into these clothes as quickly as you can.”

I frowned as I took the items from him and watched his back as he left the room. After untold days in the same clothes I’d worn in the Earth Temple I was eager to change into something new and be moderately clean again, but the fact that Doran had brought me this now probably meant my time was up. They were getting me ready for my sacrifice, I was sure of it.

The dress he'd given me only reinforced that theory. It was a long gown made of the finest velvet in a deep green, trimmed in silver and adorned with intricate designs across the bodice. A long, hooded cloak in dark gray completed the ensemble, and he'd even brought me some clean undergarments too. I supposed they wanted me to look beautiful for them when they drained my life.

I sighed and washed myself as best I could before changing into the new clothes. Once I was done, some of the haze from the days spent in the cage seemed to lift. Being clean and wearing a fresh set of clothes made me feel like a human being again instead of an animal trapped in a cage. And if they thought I would go easily to my own sacrifice they were in for a surprise.

Doran entered the room again and his gaze quickly swept over me. “Good, you're ready.” He unlocked the bone cage with a key I'd never seen before. “Now follow me and do everything I say. We'll need to hurry.”

Why he thought I’d hurry to my own death was a mystery, but then again, the Dragons were all very odd. In the brief snippets of conversation I’d shared with the others they’d spoken as if I should be honored they were going to kill me.

The cage opened and I stumbled out of it. The second I was past the bones, energy rushed through me, as if I’d taken a breath after being underwater too long. My magic filled me with power and reconnected me to my mates. I sensed Jasin and Auric immediately, like bright sparks in my consciousness, and relief made me nearly laugh out loud. Slade was there too, a cool, reassuring presence in my mind, but our connection was still new and not as strong.

They were close. Were they coming to rescue me?

For the first time in days I had hope, and I channeled it as I reached for Auric and Jasin's magic, combining it and gathering it in my palms. I turned toward Doran and with a bellow of rage I launched a lightning bolt at him. It struck his chest and threw him back against the wall, knocking him out with a sizzling sound.

I'd never done that before. During training I'd been able to summon lightning for only a second and it had been little more than a spark, even though Jasin and Auric had been able to master it. But my determination to get out of here and find my mates again made me stronger, and nothing was getting in the way of my escape.

I threw open the cell door and started to rush out, but a strong hand grasped my shoulder and yanked me back.

“What do you think you're doing?” Doran asked, clutching his chest where I'd struck him.

I jerked away and gathered fire around me like a shield. “I won't let you take me!”

“Take you?” He stepped back from the flames and rolled his eyes. “I'm trying to help you escape!”

“You...what?”

“I'm here with your mates. They're waiting outside.” He held out his hand and offered me a small black mask covered in twirling dark green vines. “Put this on and we'll go to them.”

I plucked the mask from his hand and stared at it. “Why would you help me?”

“Kira, I'm your father.”