Wings of Fire - The LostWing Chronicles, Book 1 - The Awoken

Chapter 7

 Anadrom continued to fake unconsciousness as Estuary prodded her painfully with her tail. She felt a lunge of relief as the blackmailer eventually gave up this violence, muttered to herself for a while, and then began dragging her prisoner back towards the Summer Palace. Not daring to open her eyes, Anadrom felt the water temperature rise as they entered the waters of the hidden lake, and then felt herself dropped unceremoniously upon a sandy beach.

"Bring a doctor at once," Estuary snarled to one of the guards. "No, she's not insane, only ill for some reason. By the moons, maybe I just don't want to bother finding another prisoner with a drainable soul yet, although I'm beginning to consider using you. Good, that's right. Hurry back!"

Before long, the ground next to her shook with the impact of several dragons landing, and then she felt talons gently working along her snout. She forced herself to stay still, but made her breathing come in ragged gasps, and added a quick and repeated twitch to her right wing. She heard murmuring above her, and then the sound of an unfamiliar voice, which she assumed was the SeaWing doctor.

"I believe it's just exhaustion, princess. I've been studying her from afar to gauge the medical aspects of slowly losing one's soul, and she certainly hasn't been sleeping often, or well for that matter." Studying from afar - did they notice me sneaking off with Abyss? They would have said something, right? Or maybe they didn't notice, although I've never been that lucky.

"You can't make her wake up right now?" Estuary hissed dangerously.

"No, I'm afraid not," the doctor responded nervously. "Although I'm certain you could with your - erm - impressive powers." Estuary snorted, as if the concept of wasting magic on Anadrom was absurd, then sent the doctor off and seemed to stand next to Anadrom for a while before flying off herself.

I need to somehow contact Abyss. If I can tell him what Estuary is planning, then he can stop her from stealing the throne and take away her earring before she can tell the IceWings anything. And then I won't have to use my magic for her awful army, and everyone will be safe. She needed to contact Abyss - the thought kept running through her mind. Quickly, too, before Estuary convinced Queen Coral to do something nefarious with her new stone soldier.

She slid her eyes just barely open and saw that her guards were still alert and moving around her in threatening arks, like sharks circling their prey. Maybe Abyss would come up with another clever plan to distract them? She waited, shifting herself slightly in little increments until she had a better view of her surroundings.

There was nothing for a long time but the swishing of wings and the dull lap of waves upon the rocky beach. Anadrom thought she heard an occasional whooshing noise, as if single raindrops were falling down from between the canopy leaves, and then she noticed the movement of the guards beginning to gradually slow. Their wingbeats became steadily slower and slower, and they lowered slowly towards the ground, until all at once they all fell out of the sky and into rumbling slumber. Hardly daring to breathe, she lifted her head slightly, and saw the small shape of Abyss beckoning from the bottom of the cliff wall.

They made their way stealthily back to the cave, and once inside, Abyss grinned proudly at her. "That was one of my best operations yet," he beamed, happier than Anadrom could ever imagine being. "Modified RainWing sleeping darts, each set with a different delay, so I could target one guard at a time and have them all collapse at once. Quite brilliant, if I do say so." He was smiling at Anadrom, and she felt that she should congratulate him, so she quickly did.

Before he could say anything else, she quickly blurted out, "I have to tell you - er - right away - everyone's in massive danger! I need you to warn Queen Coral! Er, please."