Wings of Fire: Revenant

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Peacemaker flew south, following the river weaving among the mountains on its journey towards the sea. The towering summits slowly petered off into rocky hills and stunted peaks, mantled by dark, heavy clouds. Blinding flashes of lightning frequently tore across the horizon, as though invisible talons were trying to rip open the sky.

Kinkajou flinched at every clap of thunder, but the binds around her body and the threat of Peacemaker's blade kept her moving forward.

In the beginning, she had tried many times to meet Peacemaker's eyes, frantically attempting to convey some kind of wordless message. Her green gaze had been desperate and pleading as she'd gestured to her bound snout, begging Peacemaker to let her speak to him.

But Peacemaker wasn't in the mood to hear anymore lies. He'd turned his back to Kinkajou, ignoring any further efforts to get his attention. After awhile, she had just stopped trying. Now she flew with her eyes cast down and her head drooping, like every drop of life had been squeezed out of her.

They were close to their destination now, flashes of lighting beginning to reflect back at them from the approaching sea. Peacemaker followed the tail end of the river with his eyes, finally locating the cove where the mountain runoff began to spill into the ocean. This was where he would find what he was looking for.

As if on cue, a familiar shape began to flap its way up from the cove, luminescent scales flashing like green lightning against the monochrome sky.

He must have cast a spell to let him know whenever another dragon is coming close to his house, Peacemaker thought, sneering as he glanced down at the pearls wrapped around his wrist. So much for not wasting his magic.

Kinkajou followed Peacemaker's gaze to the quickly approaching shape, her expression shifting instantly from defeat to horror. She began to thrash and pull backwards, desperately struggling against her binds like a fly caught in a spider's web.

"Stop it!" Peacemaker snapped, giving the rope a jerk so violent that it nearly made Kinkajou go tumbling from the sky.

"See that," Peacemaker continued, pointing to the luminescent shape flapping towards them, "if you want to go free, then that's the dragon who's going to make it happen." He pulled his end of the rope in closer and added, "But only if you keep still and do as you're told."

Kinkajou blinked helplessly back at him, her scales sickly pale with fear.

"Now come on," Peacemaker said, gesturing to a group of jutting rock spires below. "I think I've just found the perfect meeting place."

The two of them sailed down towards the largest of the rocky pinnacles, coming to rest on the wide, flat top. The approaching dragon adjusted his flight to veer towards them, his emerald scales beginning to melt through the gloom of the storm.

The dragon was close enough now that they could hear his heavy, clumsy wingbeats and see the desperate confusion written all over his face. "Kinkajou!" he cried, rapidly flapping his way over to them.

"Stop!" Peacemaker snarled, standing firmly between Kinkajou and this new dragon. "Don't come any closer!"

"Peacemaker?" the emerald dragon gasped, hovering in the sky in front of them. "Wh ... what are you doing?"

"Get back and I'll explain," Peacemaker replied.

The green dragon stared around in bewilderment for a few seconds before finally lighting down on a spire a few wingbeats across from theirs.