Mysteries Beyond (Dragons RTTE Fanfic - Sequel to Deception)

Chapter 6

It was dawn when you quietly put Amethyst's saddle on her back, near the exit of the cave, being careful not to startle any dragons or make too much noise. Now that the sun was beginning to rise, and the storm had cleared, you figured this would be the perfect opportunity to explore the cave you had discovered in more depth. You felt a little bad leaving Viggo behind, but you knew he was still recovering. You hadn't seen him since last night, so you figured he must still be asleep. That was something strange: from the looks of it, Viggo never got much sleep. Well, now that he was healing, that would give him a chance to catch up on some much needed rest, you supposed. Amethyst was twitching with excitement, as you adjusted her saddle, giving quiet, little roars, each one rising in volume.

"Shh, I know, Amethyst. We'll be out there soon but, for now, try to keep it down." you urged her, wanting to be able to slip away silently and make it back before your absence became suspicious. If you were lucky, you could make it back before Viggo started wondering where you were. If not, well, you figured you could think of some kind of excuse.

You were now creeping through the cave to the small crevasse in the rock that you lead you out into the dawn sky, keeping each footstep as silent as possible. Beside you, Amethyst walked as stealthily as possible too, not wanting to lose the opportunity of an early morning flight. You turned the corner, to see the crevasse in the rock up ahead of you, letting light pour into the cave. But there was something there blocking the light or, more precisely, someone.

At the crevasse, leaning against the rock wall and casually examining his sword, stood Viggo. Beside him, Sclera gave his arm a nudge as you approached.

"Viggo?" you said a loudly as you dared, "What are you doing here?"

"I thought I might find you here, (y/n). The question is what are you doing here?"

"Taking Amethyst for a morning flight." you answered as smoothly as you could. That wasn't a complete lie.

Viggo raised an eyebrow at you, clearly not convinced. "Do you honestly think after all my years of Maces and Talons, I wouldn't be able to tell when people are keeping things from me?"

'Uh oh...He's got you...' You searched quickly for an answer, but were relieved when you saw his face relax into a smile.

"Relax, my dear. I was only curious about what you've discovered."

"What I've discovered?"

"Oh, come now, would you really be taking Amethyst for a leisurely flight at midnight and  again six o'clock in the morning?"

"I might." you replied. Viggo, however threw you a look as if to say 'but you wouldn't', which was enough to make you gulp a little. Denying it was pretty much useless, seeing as he seemed to have already concluded you were lying.

"Listen, I just didn't want to disturb you." you said honestly, "You're still recovering. Otherwise, I would have told you."

"I appreciate your concern," he said holding out a hand to you, "but this time I must insist that I really am fine. Besides, I need some fresh air after spending most of the day in a cave yesterday."

"Okay." you agreed taking his hand, "Just take it easy."

Now that it was dawn (and you weren't upside down), you could see your surroundings outside the nest properly. Dotted around, were countless glaciers of different sizes, sticking out of the sea, like spines on a Monstrous Nightmare's back. You could tell Sclera was being especially careful to keep his body steady and flight pattern even, so Viggo wouldn't have to move too much.

"Have you seen Valka this morning?" you decided to start the conversation.

"She spent most of last night caring for the Bewilderbeast egg. I believe she left early this morning to retrieve supplies." you were glad to hear his voice was no longer laced with pain. You knew it would take time for him to recovery fully, but at least he was out of the agony he was in before. "You still haven't informed me on where exactly we're going." he added.