Never wake a Dragon (on hold)

8. part III - gone

Adeem paced the small living room, waiting for the sun to set. He'd slept for a few hours only to wake up in a pool of sweat. During those first few moments before clarity had settled, he had confused reality with a night of frightening dreams. It would have been a relief to learn that nothing had gone wrong, but the truth had left a bitter taste on his tongue that had yet to abate.

He grasped the back of a chair and stared at an undefined spot on the wooden table, breathing slowly. His nature had roared for hours on end, refusing to give him even a sliver of peace. It had taken every ounce of control he possessed to keep it at bay. He feared what would happen if he slipped.

An audible yawn sounded from Nev's room. Adeem's heart appeared to jump a beat in response. A quick glance out the window revealed the last slivers of direct sunlight and unmoving clouds that shimmered in pink. He released the chair and tried to relax, not wanting Nev to see his distress. It took several attempts before he could lower his shoulders.

The door handle jostled, and a second later, Nev peeked out only to rub his eyes in the last remnants of scattered sunlight. "What time is it?"

"It's not that late. We have a long night ahead." It was one of the only perks of winter.

"Tell me yesterday didn't happen." Nev's eyes were wide open and wet at the edges.

Adeem desperately wanted to say that all was fine, but he couldn't lie, not when Nev already knew the truth. "It happened."

"What are we going to do?"

"We'll find out who did this, then I will blow them to dust without a second thought."

Nev nodded, slowly moving through the room to sit on the sofa. He slumped and immediately placed a pillow in his lap. "And Astrid?"

"We get her out as soon as we can." He didn't want her in Kyung's clutches despite what had happened and her threats on his life.

"Tonight?"

"Yes."

"Are your powers back?"

He almost scoffed but held back. "Yes, stronger than before it seems." It was true. He'd not felt this close to losing control for years. His insides roared with untapped anger and screaming rage.

"I think I need to feed," Nev replied. "I don't want to risk getting weak when we're in the middle of something."

The wording almost made him smile. 'In the middle of something' implied something frivolous. Trust Nev to say it when their world was falling to pieces around them. He entered the hallway and grabbed both their jackets, throwing the black leather in Nev's direction.

Nev caught it and seemed to stare at the lapels. "Do we even have a plan?"

"No. But we can think of one on the way. I can't fucking stay here a second longer. I need to do something."

"Alright." Nev seemed to understand, rising in an instant to join him in the hallway. They had no time to lose, especially if they wanted the apartment to look the same when they returned rather than a gaping hole if Adeem's powers decided to escape.

* * * *

Damp air coiled around them while they walked along the water. Nev kept sniffing, searching for a prey to devour as soon as possible. They could have moved faster into the more crowded parts of the city, but Adeem feared he might lose it and endanger not only Nev, but others. Nev had also been right about having some sort of plan.

"She's in the cellars, but I didn't see anyone else down there. Hopefully they've left her unguarded," he said, answering one of Nev's nervous questions.