Pᴇʀғɪᴅɪᴏᴜs || Tʜᴇ Cʜᴏsᴇɴ Eɪɢʜᴛ Bᴏᴏᴋ Fᴏᴜʀ

Prologue// Premature Grief

Zarlo
Blood. All I can see is blood. It soaks the sand and stains my hands, a never-ending crimson that won't come off. My hands are raw and blistered, my own blood mixing with that on the ground. My eyes stray to the horizon, where a form lies motionless. I feel like I'm running, but in reality I'm not moving faster then a walk. At long last, I reach the prone body. I recognize that face. The slash on her neck still pumps blood as Zay's clear black eyes meet mine.

"Traitor." She whispers, no trace of love left in her gaze. "You... you betrayed me... us..."

"No!" I try to yell, but instead a savage hiss escapes my lips. "You brought thisss upon yourssself, sssisster. Cowardssss should know better than to messs with a power sssuch asss mine."

"Zay, no." I'm sobbing, but my cheeks stay dry. "I didn't want this. I can't... don't leave." I try to speak, try to move, but I'm bound in one spot. Stuck watching as her body shudders before a ragged last breath leaves her system. Unable to do anything but watch. Her eyes, still fierce with hate, slowly glaze as she becomes limp once and for all.

"NO!" I shoot upright, slapping my palm over my mouth a mere moment after the shout leaves my mouth. My eyes dart anxiously to the stairwell, but after a long minute of waiting tensely, I relax.

It was a dream. Only a dream. I run my hands through my shaggy, dirty, scruffy and uneven blond hair that hangs in my eyes. The rats around me squeak in a comforting harmony along with the ship's creaking timbers.

"Stupid, stupid..." I grumbled. A smile flash of light cut into the dimness belowdecks, and Olraz's cool, silky smooth scales caressed my skin. The viper wound his way up my arm, his forked tongue flicking across my cheekbone. I reclined against the wall, feeling a grimace of thought on my face.

"Was it a vision?" I wondered aloud, checking my pouch for the Copper Falcon. Sure enough, there it was. Not near my skin in the slightest.

"So, if it was a vision, and the Copper Falcon wasn't..." I frowned, feeling as if I was forgetting something. Olraz bobbed his head at me, his tongue popping out to taste the air. The sight made me grin, but then I realized something.

"Of course!" I facepalmed in exasperation. "Raz, you're a genius."

The viper twitched his tail, tapping my ear as if to say, "duh. You've just gotta pay more attention."

"Gerathon?" I closed my eyes, reaching for the black shadow mass in the back of my head. I proved with the utmost care, not wishing to bother the great beast.

"Yesss?" Her cool, unimpressed voice echoed in my mind.

Did you... send me the dream earlier? I asked timidly.

"Dream? Boy, I do not... oh, that one. I did." The great serpent sounded pleased. "Did you enjoy it?"

Not particularly, I admitted, but... is it a vision?

"Hahah. Boy, somethings you must find out for yourself."

What? What does that mean? My eyebrows furrowed as the great beast didn't respond. Gerathon? But she wasn't going to reply.

My eyelids slid open again, and I pursed my lips. "Well. That went... terribly." I sighed, hunching my shoulders against the wall in an effort to make myself smaller. "What can I do, Olraz?" The viper draped himself across my neck, nuzzling my chin in a comforting manner. I exhaled, suddenly feeling exhausted again. "How can I protect Zay? How can I protect her, her animal, you and myself? This war cannot mean anything good, Raz. I'm getting a feeling that someone is going to lose something close to them. I just hope it's not me..."

It's back, it's back! Woo! Book four is officially out! Hope y'all enjoyed! Theories, anyone? Stay tuned! :3