Apex [Imperial: Book 2]

Chapter 14

When I'd warned each dragon of what I'd learnt in Erakor, Kronx had demanded that the entire wing fly ahead, and he'd catch up later. He'd only wanted a few dragons to come back and lead him to the new cave we'd found - much further away from Erakor.

I'd only barely been able to convince him to let several other dragons accompany him for the entire journey.

He'd been so insistent on only a few, but I couldn't help but wonder if several more had also come with us. The dark blue dragon was starting to tire; no longer was he shoving trees out of his way so forcefully, and even his pace slowed down as he ploughed through the forest.

Anxiously, I glanced across at the gradually rising sun. Even though the blanket of stars stretching across the sky was still visible, I knew that it would not be long before they eventually faded until they were no longer visible when the sun was completely above the horizon.

That was when the humans would wake up. How long would it take for them to realise that we were gone? What would happen if they did? The queen had been so intent on forming an alliance with us; if we vanished during the night she would not be pleased. Perhaps angry enough to try to capture us - the events yesterday had confirmed that that at least, was true.

A shudder ran down my spine, as I quickened my pace slowly. Silently wishing that Kronx would also somehow speed up, and we'd all be far away by the time the humans sought after us.

But that wouldn't happen. Even with the distance we'd travelled during the night, it would only take a few hours flight for them to catch up - should they pursue.

Hopefully not. Perhaps Lord Raffael would persuade the queen against it - if she didn't blame him for our escapade.

"Can we hunt?" Rutilus's voice echoed through the early morning air. Further ahead of me, I could see him veering across the sky, his eyes locked on something within the forest. A deer, perhaps. Or an elk. "It's been ages since I've eaten."

And rested.

Even his wingbeats were sloppier than normal. His head sagged, and even his normally bright gold eyes appeared bronze and dull.

Neither of us had slept - or eaten since we'd arrived at Erakor.

Kronx did not pause as he grunted, "not yet."

"When?" A copper dragoness demanded, her red eyes narrowed as she stared down at the older drake.

He hesitated, twisting his long neck around to peer back in the direction of the human city. A hint of smoke coiled from his open jaws, and I could have sworn that his silver eyes darkened. "Soon."

But Kronx's answer did not seem to satisfy the copper dragoness. Baring her fangs in a snarl, she glared across the sky and although she remained silent, her eyes dark with impatience.

For a few long minutes we continued on in silence. Circling around Kronx, I peered across the forests beneath us, and then towards the mountains that still were far too close. If the humans travelled afoot, we would be safe. But much more likely, was that they'd ride dragons to find us. And if they did - it would only take a matter of hours to catch up to us, if even that.

With each passing minute, the sun rose higher and higher into the air. My unease only grew as it rose higher; unable to forget that the humans would be waking soon if they weren't already.

Suddenly, Kronx halted. "Go find a cave," he declared stiffly, twisting his long neck to glance at each of us. "Somewhere where we can all rest."

I relaxed slightly, allowing my wings to sag even as I soared through the air. Finding a cave would likely not take too long. Perhaps Kronx would even let us hunt before we retired for the day; we were all hungry.

No longer worried about the threat of humans, I scanned the forests with renewed eagerness. My gaze raked over the trees, watching as the branches and leaves swayed lightly in the breeze. Colourful birds fluttered between the plantation, their chirps staring to echo through the air as the sun rose higher.

Streams weaved through the forest. Most were flowing smoothly, yet they still reflected the trees that surrounded them, and even parts of the cloudy sky.

No sign of a cave yet. Had the others had any luck yet? Curious, I craned my neck, quickly spotting Rutilus, Terraz and even the copper dragoness circling the forest. Further away, I could just glimpse the glimmer of turquoise scales in the distance.

My heart skipped a beat. Had the rest of the wing found somewhere to reside, and had sent a dragon to lead us to them?

No. It couldn't be. The dragon was coming from the wrong way; from the mountains. Beyond the mountains, from the human city.

Alarmed, I edged away. If only we'd found somewhere to rest earlier - at least then we would have been hidden from sight. Not out in the open, as we were right now. And even we did find a cave before they got to close, the humans would have likely spotted us by then.

"Humans!" I snarled, staring at the rapidly approaching dragon. Already, I could just make out the shape of the turquoise dragoness, and the vague shape of a human perched at the base of her neck.

From the corner of my eye, I watched as Kronx froze. Something flashed across his dark silver eyes. Recognition? Fear? Anger? I couldn't tell - the strange gleam disappeared as quickly as it had appeared.

"Wait!" The dark blue drake bellowed at last. "Reida, go find the rest of the wing. Go get help - quickly!"

The copper dragoness tensed, reluctantly dipping her head. Not once did she utter a sound as she quickly wheeled away, flying as fast as she could.

"What do we do?" Terraz questioned Kronx, tilting his head curiously.

"We wait," the dark blue drake murmured quietly, his silver eyes remaining fixed on the approaching dragoness. "There's only one dragon - I doubt they will try to capture us." His voice sounded uncertain, as though he was not so sure of what he'd just said.

Clenching my talons, I shared an uneasy glance with Rutilus. The red and gold drake had remained quiet, barely uttering so much as a growl. His fangs were drawn back in a silent snarl, with smoke coiling from his jaws.

Abruptly, the turquoise dragoness jerked to a stop, her yellow eyes wide with shock. Even from here, I could hear the furious shouts of the human on her back. The insults, and the threats, the commands.

Yet the turquoise dragoness barely seemed to be listening to them. Instead, she lashed her tail before screeching, "Go! More humans are coming!"

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1187 words

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