For being in a tropical place, Richie was freezing. He'd barely made it off the ship without being caught and dove into the ocean, trying to keep from freezing. Even though it was tropic water, Richie had been in it for nearly an hour and it was getting cooler. He knew swimming straight for Pona was stupid; he needed to wait for night to fall.
As it got darker, Richie heard yells from the ship above. The sound made him smile; they'd be fucked when Klais found out he escaped. The guy was a psychopath and would surely treat the Lucantians who failed the same way he treated Tenebrians.
When it was finally completely dark, Richie began to swim, keeping his movements smooth and not obnoxious. He couldn't be caught; Eddie and his dad might not be able to save him a second time.
Eventually he reached the shore, staying on his stomach so no one would see him. Thankfully, there were no guards around so he was able to sneak into the forested area, smiling as the guards ran of the ship in a panic.
He knew he wouldn't be safe for long, hiding in the forest with guards lurking around. Ducking his head, Richie sprinted through the forest, ignoring the angry snarls and snaps from wildlife there. He prayed he didn't run into any feral dragons.
"Idiot!" Richie whispered to himself, climbing up one of the trees.
One he was situated on the branch of a tree, barely peeking out from the top brush, he grabbed the flute from his pocket. Thankfully the guards hadn't stolen it when he was first captured. He played the melody as quickly as he could, hoping only Iris heard it.
Soon enough, Richie caught sight of the black dragon gliding through the air. He blew the flute again, getting her attention.
Iris flew down, flapping her wings to keep herself suspended in the air. She purred at the sight of Richie, who climbed on her back.
He didn't even have to give a destination; the dragon took off toward the mountains, and Richie trusted her enough to find him somewhere safe to hide.
They reached the mountains in a matter of minutes, entering an assumed empty cave. It was way higher than the other one that they'd hidden in was, but it still had supplies. There was a small group of warriors, as well as Edwin, sitting around a fire. A few dragons surrounded them, eyes closed and relaxed.
Richie approached the group, who were discussing quiet plans.
"I figured you'd escape," Edwin said with a grin, hugging Richie when he walked in. "How'd you get out?"
"Eddie's dad. He's with us and he's a council member so he's got information."
Edwin smiled in approval. "Are they safe then?"
"They, or Bill?" Richie asked, raising an eyebrow as his brother blushed furiously.
"Both of them," Edwin mumbled, but Richie could tell his focus was on Bill's safety.
"They should be okay as long as they don't do anything stupid," Richie said, sitting next to Edwin and looking around at the group. "What's the plan?"
"We have dragons and a ship headed to Konilla. We will be sending someone to Tenebris to warn them," one of the warriors said, leaning against an amber dragon. "I expect the first battle will commence sooner as opposed to later."
"Is it possible to end it before war reached Divisus? Innocents will die, Tenebrian and Lucantian," Richie said, trying to act more sophisticated in the presence of warriors.
Edwin nodded. "It is, but I fear that means we'll have to take out their leaders. Which includes Eddie and Bill's parents." He sounded ashamed, looking nervously at Richie.
