The Fear of Loneliness (Fear Series Book 1)

Chapter 8: Protection (unedited)

"Wake up."

The voice is soft, seeming to come from far away. Leonidas, no doubt.

"Ausren. You must get up."

The dragon's eye snaps open, his head coming up and nearly harpooning his horns in the top of the cave.

Blinking the sleep from his eyes, quickly opening his pupil to improve his vision in the dark space, Ausren looks around carefully. The human is nowhere in sight and, judging by the angle of the shadows, he could not have been asleep for more than a few moments.

Ausren carefully picks up his uninjured wing, thinking that perhaps he accidentally covered the human in his sleep.

Still, nothing. The cave is empty besides himself.

"What...?" Ausren murmurs, casting around once again. If not from Leonidas, then where did the voice come from?

Before the prince has the time to discover the answer, an enraged and familiar roar sounds. Immediately, priority rearranges itself inside his mind and he is moving, ignoring the pain in his shoulder as he moves for the entrance.

If there is another dragon here, sounding its position in such a way, then it can only mean two things. One, it is after Leonidas, or two, it has encountered another group of humans, which also puts the human boy at risk. Either way, the one who saved Ausren's life is in danger.

Ausren cannot, in his right mind, let that caliber of human die.

Scrambling at the lip of the cave for a moment, Ausren hauls himself out into the open. Pain wracks up his leg and it attempts to give out. Shoving it aside, the prince adjusts his pupil to the influx of light and turns his attention down the rocky slope.

As Ausren watches, Leo bolts out between the trees, ducking immediately to the right. Barreling haphazardly after him, eyes nearly closed against the shrapnel his passing creates, the dragon known as Enozarc comes. His lips are peeled up, revealing saliva-covered teeth. His frills are fully extended, the array of colors in the translucent material popping in the sun. And his claws dig deep into the snow, ripping up the turf beneath.

Enozarc, being the second in command of Ausren's specially picked strike unit, is a savage and cruel beast. He is well known for his cruelty and temper, having slaughtered warriors for little less than looking at him for too long. He is a valuable warrior, incredibly skilled, and has killed thousands of humans in his lifetime, despite being unusually small and born without protective breastplates.

He is a formidable opponent... much too formidable for an unarmed boy incapable of killing.

Ausren lets loose a hiss of alarm, opening his uninjured wing and extending his other to the fullest. The prince has found himself inexplicably attached to the young human.

He cannot leave him to his own devices.

Ausren bounds down the slope, sliding on the rocks and nearly losing his footing. His leg gives out, dropping his shoulder to the rocks and momentarily halting his progress.

Enozarc roars, opening his eyes fully now, searching for his prey. He easily picks Leonidas out against the snow. The blue dragon lowers his head, zeroing in on the boy, and opens his mouth slightly. Even from his position half-way down the slope, Ausren can hear the vicious hiss Enozarc lets loose.

The brave boy stands, panting, teeth bared, undeterred by the threat. The sound sparks an unexpected pride in Ausren's chest. This little creature, who deemed the prince worthy of life, is far more fierce than expected.