Shadowburn (2)

Chapter 22

Lightning shot at a short tree near the cave, causing Nina to jump awake. Before she could fully process what was happening, the cave filled with light as another tree was struck. Her eyes widened, the yellow turning pure gold as her pupils dilated.

She jumped to her feet and ran to the entrance. The sky was filled with bolts of lightning, each striking in quick succession. The corners of her mouth turned upward and an ethereal glow emanated from her eyes. She bounced on her feet slightly before running deeper into the cave.

"It's happening! It's happening! It's happening!" she exclaimed excitedly as she skipped up and down the cave near where the egg was resting. It looked like a massive purple rock with small discs protruding from it in a neat arrangement. It was shining with the same glow as her otherworldly eyes.

"My mother would be so proud! I finally raised my own dragon egg!" She stepped closer to the egg and placed her hand on the rough surface. "You are about to be born, baby dragon. I know you've been waiting for thousands of years and it's finally your chance!" she said, petting it affectionately.

A tiny crack spread across the shell and Nina let out a small squeal of delight. The lightning outside continued to shoot throughout the sky, and with each bolt, a new line appeared on the egg. The dragon was minutes away from being born.

"I know I've only been looking after you for four centuries, but I promise I'm kind. My mother appointed me herself!" Nina said as she clapped her hands.

The top of the shell popped off and a tiny dragon emerged. Everything after that happened quickly. The baby creature shrugged off the remaining pieces of shell and gazed upon Nina with wide, trusting eyes. His skin was slick with slime, its scales smoother than most dragons. It appeared like the skin of a snake, elegant and beautiful. His nose was flaring slightly as he tried to take in all of the smells in the room. His skin shone a brilliant gold, the exact color of Nina's eyes. "You shall be called Ember," she said and the creature cooed as he walked over to her. He rubbed his head against her affectionately.

"Not so fast little one, I'm not your master," Nina said, petting the newborn.

Just as the words were done leaving her mouth, a figure appeared out of nowhere, a man – a naked man. Nina blushed but quickly realized that the man wasn't stable on his feet. He gazed around the cave, his eyes bewildered, but collapsed before either of them could say something.

Nina ran to him and knelt by his side to see if he was okay. His pulse was steady, and she let out a breath of relief. "This," Nina said to Ember, "is your master."

*****

Sin stood amidst the rubble, a deep frown on her face. A few feet away, Thorn was pretending to be asleep, and on the other side of him Raiden was talking to Kalen in a low voice, Caelei nowhere to be found.

Sin felt Andreas come up behind her and his arms circled her waist. She leaned back into him, clicking her tongue.

"And you were worried about me hurting the books in your study. I think my heart is bleeding. You are hereby forbidden from ever entering my library, Scotty."

Andreas smiled against her neck, and she turned to look at him incredulously, wondering how he could be so calm in the face of such an awful, awful tragedy. All those books... those beautiful, beautiful books that she'd only begun to scratch the surface of reading...

Andreas' eyes, though, were gold again. Sin arched an eyebrow as he snapped his fingers. Sounds from around them made her turn again to blink at the sight before her. The house... the giant, black-stoned mansion, was slowly putting itself back together.