ELENA
THE REST OF the camping trip, well, let’s just say when Blake told me he could come back for it later, I listened, and he found two more.
One he had to dig for, for almost an entire day. His dragon form helped, and I enjoyed his company. I couldn’t help but think they weren’t the same creature.
Then, when he finally took the orb out of the ground, he handed it to me. Well at least he trusted me enough with one of his precious orbs.
It was round and had a sort of purple color to it. I wiped off all the mud and dirt around it, cleaning it up. I was mesmerized by the color inside. It was as if it was alive and changed form inside the orb every few seconds.
“What does it do?” I asked.
“If I tell you, well, then I’d have to kill you, which is not going to work out so well for me.”
I laughed. “So, in short, you don’t know.”
“Not yet.”
I laughed again. It was a good laugh.
The other orb, I had to get with his human form. We had to climb as the space was way too small for the Rubicon. It was inside some sort of a mountain, and the entire cave would’ve crumbled if the Rubicon came out. A small light shone from above; it was an opening inside the mountain, like a hollow space which you couldn’t enter from the top, and his orb just had to be in that hollow space. It was pitch dark below. I didn’t want to think about what was going to happen if we fell, but I kept thinking only that.
To make the story short, I had another near-death experience when the rope we were using to navigate the wall, pulled out of the metal bracket and I fell a few feet, hanging in the air upside down like a marionette puppet without hand strings.
My scream echoed through the entire cave.
“Calm down!” Blake was at my side at once, but he couldn’t reach me.
“Dammit, why, why!” I yelled at him. “Fuck!”
“Just calm down, okay, and do as I say.”
“I knew this was going to happen. You are too reckless, and I don’t care about anyone else but myself!” I yelled sarcastically at his body dangling upside down trying to reach me.
“Just use your upper body to pull yourself up, and do it fast.” He sounded alarmed.
“Why?” I sounded scared, hell I was scared.
“Just do it.”
I tried but when he reached down, I panicked again that the rope was either busy breaking or something was really wrong.
“C’mon, Elena.”
“I’m trying.”
He talked me through it so I tried it his way. I hated that it worked, and just as I thought the rope was hanging on its last thread, I reached out again. As the rope broke, Blake caught my hand and pulled me up as if I weighed nothing.
I wanted to hit him, but I clung on for dear life to the wall. His body was behind me.
“You’re safe.This was seriously stupid,” Blake mumbled.
I took a few breaths. He’d got that right.
“Up is faster than down. I’ll find a way to get us out from there.”
“It’s fine, let’s just get to the top and away from here, please.”
He started to climb with me still in front of him. It was easier than me hanging onto a second rope, as I was useless at climbing. He was like a monkey.
Well, he’d saved my life again, even though he had been the cause of my life being in jeopardy. But he’d also made something clear. He was really good at extreme sports, something I wasn’t, and we really had nothing in common.
We got the orb and started our final push to our destination, close to the Creepers.
We were heading to a tavern, or so the Rubicon told me. The tavern and the rest of the village were isolated, but not unreachable.
Plenty of dragons who wanted peace and quiet had found their way to that village over the years, and it was the only place we were going to be able to find a spot to enter without getting mauled on the first try.
Even scientists went there once a year to take samples to experiment and do some sort of yearly analysis.
Whenever I thought about the Creepers, I saw Blake’s mark on his back. How he had survived was beyond my knowledge.
I was once again transported in the Rubicon’s paw. I had a funny feeling that was how I was going to fly with him from now on, which was sad, as I really missed the wind in my face and seeing the world on top of a bed of clouds. But, at the same time, I understood why, as he was just so massive. I didn’t think anybody could ever ride him like a Dragonian should.
I felt the landing, it was so gentle but I felt it. He opened his paw and I could hear people speaking in Latin.
I climbed out and found a small group standing behind the most beautiful lodge I had ever seen, with a huge field in the back. An irritating buzz played in the back ground.
“Good day, princess.” One of the men, who seemed to be in his fifties, walked up to me. He had a silver beard and silver hair that made me think of a Swallow Annex. “I’m David. The owner of this fine establishment.”
“Elena is fine. No need for princess.” I squinted and looked in the direction of the buzz. “What is that awful sound?”
“Oh, that is the Creepers. The more the sun rays shine, the more noise they make, it’s like a soothing sound, or supposed to be. You’ll get used to it.”
I just stared at him as he spoke about the Creepers being gentle.
The Rubicon grinned.
“You’ll probably want to freshen up. We have hot showers and Jacuzzi tubs in each room if you’d like a bath. This is my wife Connie,” he said, and a woman with brown-and-gray hair greeted me with the most beautiful dimples.
“Elena,” I greeted her.
“It’s so nice to have you both here. You look just like your father,” she said. “I’m sure you hear that a lot.”
“Thank you.”
The buzz was going to drive me insane. Did they ever stop?
“My son, Charlie.” A man in his early thirties shook my hand. “And his wife, Shelby.” The woman had blond hair and she too gave me a beautiful smile.
“Come, let me take you to your room.” She looked over her shoulder, and I did too as the Rubicon started to shrink into Blake’s figure.
I looked in front of me, as I knew he was going to be butt naked in a few seconds.
I followed her to the main entrance which was a beautiful open verandah with steps running up to sliding doors.
We walked into a reception area, which was surrounded by abstract paintings done by the same artist, and comfortable chairs. So many doors and hallways surrounded us, with a huge set of stairs in the far left corner. A big chandelier hung from the ceiling, and you could see the first floor above.
She led me up the stairs and down the hallway, around the corner to the room way at the end.
There were plenty of doors across from one another.
“Blake made it perfectly clear to have two separate rooms available for the two of you.” She sounded so hospitable.
“Thank you so much,” I replied, and she opened the door.
She let me walk in first, and it was absolutely beautiful. It had so many windows that led out to a balcony. The curtains were pulled back and it had the most lovely view of open skies and plenty of trees.
It felt as if we were stuck in the Amazon. A Victorian couch reminded me of my room in Clive’s place, with a bed that was fluffy.
The colors fit perfectly, an off-green with pure white linen, flowers with a gift basket on one of the dressing tables, and a fire place.
“Here is the bathroom.” She opened a door and it led to a beautiful bath tub standing on four golden paws. The shower looked inviting too. It was really sophisticated, something I’d recently gotten used to, but nevertheless, took my breath away.
“I hope it meets your standards,” she said, sounding hopeful.
“It’s perfect, more than perfect, thank you so much.”
“You are welcome, dinner will be served around seven and if you would like something to eat now, you can just let our chef know, he will be more than happy to make something for you.”
“Thank you so much. I would love a long bath.”
She giggled. “Enjoy it, princess.”
“Elena, please.”
She closed my door as she left, and I drew a deep, satisfying breath as I entered the bathroom and eagerly opened the taps. Warm water filled the bathtub, and I couldn’t wait to climb in.
When it was half full I disrobed and lay back down. I felt so dirty after days of washing up in streams, hoping that Blake wasn’t standing near watching me for safety reasons. Who knew what the Rubicon had told him to do.
I felt human again as I soaked. I was so tired, and we hadn’t even gotten to the hardest part.
I closed my eyes and could feel my mind drift away. It was peaceful then a flash of a huge creature, one I’d never seen before entered my mind with a small black bird breathing fire at him.
I jolted up and water splashed everywhere. My heart raced as if I’d just run the hundred meters, and I was breathing really fast.
What the hell was that?
I CLIMBED OUT and pulled on my jeans, a pair of sneakers and one of my warmest sweaters as the image of the fire-breathing bird and a huge dragon had frozen my mind.
I’m just really tired, that was what that was. Why had the bird breathed fire? Were there fire-breathing birds I didn’t know about? What was that creature? It didn’t make any sense whatsoever.
I opened the door and at the same time the one opposite opened too. It was Blake, looking all spick and span wearing a pair of jeans with a long sleeve t-shirt and a black puffy body vest.
“It’s nice to just feel clean again,” he said and smiled.
“It is,” I agreed, and we both went downstairs. I found Shelby by one of the other staff members.
“So I take it that both of you must be hungry.”
“Starving,” Blake said with a grunt that made her laughed.
“Come, through here.” She led the way through one of the hallways off the lobby, and it opened into a beautiful dining room, set up with many tables. There was a coffee nook which grabbed my attention immediately. Blake sat down at one of the tables just as David entered. They started speaking immediately about the trip, and to my surprise, he was friendly, just like he had been during our classes. It confused me as he always had only short-syllable sentences for me. Well, I was probably to blame too. It wasn’t as if I had tried my best to have conversations with him. The Rubicon was another matter. Him I could speak to.
I poured in the milk and sugar, and slowly walked to the table where David had taken one of the seats. I took the one opposite Blake as Shelby handed us menus with a few choices.
Blake glanced at his. “Is it going to be too much to ask for everything?”
“Not a problem, you must be really starving.”
He gave her his super grin, the one that reminded me of Jako, and I really struggled to ignore it.
It still managed to make my stomach flutter just a tiny bit.
“What can I get you, Elena?”
“The stew looks nice.”
She disappeared into the kitchen.
Blake and David spoke about the trip, about his orbs, about everything. He mentioned that there were two or three scattered all around the world, meaning that he would soon have to leave to retrieve those as well. There were eight in total, and what they did, he didn’t even know yet.
I guessed it was something that would be revealed when the time was right.
He laughed and joked a lot. It was something I didn’t like, as it was this Blake I’d met on the mountains, who’d trained me to become a Rubicon. It was this Blake who had also made me fall madly in love with him then broke my heart in a million pieces.
I was in deep trouble here and thought I should really stay in my room until a meal was ready next time, just to keep my distance from him.
The arrogant Blake, now him, I could dislike very much, but he wasn’t here right now.
The food eventually came and I dug in. Blake ate as if he’d never seen a plate of food in his life, and before I was even halfway with mine, he was already finished with his second.
David left us when the food arrived, and there was an awkward silence again.
When I was done, I pulled out my chair and left.
I went to my room and just sat on the balcony. The buzzing noise the Creepers made in the distance was driving me insane.
It spoiled the scenery of where this lodge was built completely.
After a while, I got up and went back inside. I tried to sleep, but couldn’t, as I kept thinking about the image that’d woken me.
Was that a dragon, the Rubicon? It didn’t feel as if it was the Rubicon. I felt fear, real fear for that second, and I couldn’t stop thinking about the fire-breathing bird too. It almost reminded me of a crow, but it wasn’t one.
What did that mean?
An urgent knock sounded at the door and I rushed to see who it was.
I opened the door and found Connie, David’s wife. She looked petrified.
“You need to come, now. Something’s happened with Blake.”
I closed the door behind me as she ran down the hallway. I followed her.
“We think he’s just gotten his first glance into the future.”
“What?”
“He spoke in tongues, and his eyes turned crystal white.”
“What did he say?” I asked as we ran down the stairs.
“Something about a bond that is cast, uhm.” She tried to think. “Into the world of despair and fright, to find the one who can harness the light. Defeat the beast you must or the fate of one heart will turn to dust.”
I lost my breath for a second at her words.
“He was coming to when David asked me to get you.”
I didn’t like that last part.
“There was something else. The way he said find the one, it didn’t sound like person, more like… I don’t know how to say it.”
“An object?” My mind immediately went to the King of Lions.
“No, not an object. Something else, like a missing ingredient.”
I blew out air as I followed her into the dining hall. Blake was sitting with his face propped on his hand.
“Are you okay?” I asked. He didn’t look up. All of them seemed worried.
“Blake?”
“Just give him time. He said he’s experiencing one mother of a headache,” David answered.
I sat down on the chair opposite him again and waited for him to regain himself.
He looked up. “Tell me again, what it was I said?”
“After the true bond has been cast, they will need to find a way past. Into the world of despair and fright, to find the one who can harness the light. Defeat the beast you must or the fate of one heart will turn to dust.”
He didn’t look at me, just stared at the table.
“The one,” Blake said quietly.
“It didn’t sound like a person, Blake. It sounded like…” David struggled to find the missing world.
“An ingredient,” Connie said.
“Exactly that, an ingredient.”
Blake shook his head. “Any ideas?”
David shook his head.
“What did you see?” I asked him.
“I can’t remember, it was all a big carousel of things. The only thing I saw was a beast with a fire-breathing crow.”
I looked at him, really looked at him.
He finally looked at me too. “What is it?”
“I saw that earlier today. While I was taking a bath. The image just flashed through my mind. It was scary. I’d never felt that kind of fear before.”
“Me neither,” he said.
It was the one thing I remembered, the fear.
I got up. “This is a mistake, we should not even be thinking about doing this.” My father’s promise just became clear.
“We have no choice. Most of the people standing in this room have a loved one behind Etan. You were born in Etan.”
“I know what I sound like, but that image scared the living hell out of me.”
“The brave aren’t called the brave because they weren’t scared, Elena, neither the courageous, nor the heroes. All of those people written in history have one thing in common: fear, and plenty of it, but that is when true courage shows itself.” He sounded so damn smart, which I hated.
“You risked your life inside the Sacred Cavern knowing that not everyone comes out.”
“Yes, because I believed I could do it with all my heart.”
“And Irene said we would.”
I started to laugh. “Until you said one will die the other one not.”
“If we don’t find the missing ingredient.”
“You know what it is, where to even start looking for it? We have no freaking clue, Blake.”
“It will come, I have faith,” he said, got up, and left the dining hall.
The way everyone looked at me made me feel ashamed of what I’d said.
“I’m sorry, I know what I must sound like.”
“Don’t, none of us will ever know what it feels like to have this sort of destiny hanging over our heads, but Blake is right, you only need to find the missing ingredient.”
“You make it sound as if it’s flour and a dash of vanilla extract. We don’t even know what it is.”
“I have faith too. It will come.”
“I don’t even know how we are supposed to get past the Creepers.”
“That will come too, just be patient,” David said as he got up and left the dining hall.
I went back to my room. I really felt so bad for my little outburst about not wanting to do this.
I remembered my father, the way he’d spoken to me during my ascending. He had been alive then. I didn’t even know if he was alive now.
I should’ve never made that promise to him. It had made me doubt myself so many times and now, I had no idea how I was going to do this.
I crawled into bed, not even caring about dinner, and just thought about that flash, something we’d both seen. Why I’d seen it first, I had no clue.
It was imprinted in my mind, and I fell asleep thinking only about it.
I dreamed about the vision too, it was as if it was a photo in my hand. Then it came to life. The picture changed and my view got bigger, not the picture, but it was as if the camera moved in and I started realizing what I was seeing. A long, serpent-like body, smallish wings, four tiny paws and a long beard. It was an elemental dragon, but it didn’t look like Herby, or Dusty, Tornado or Kirby. This was something different. It was one I’d seen before. Then I saw the crow but it wasn’t a crow, it was the Rubicon.
