Lucian followed me. He grabbed two bottles of water from the fridge and we went for a walk.
“You really learn all of it at Dragonia Academy?” I asked.
“All of what?”
“Well, the bonds, anatomy, spells, potions and fight club.”
He laughed. “You mean Art of War?”
“Fight Club, Art of War, it’s the same thing.”
He brushed his fingers through his hair. “Yeah, we do. Even more.”
“More than in more than what Dumphreys are trying to teach me?” I tried to make her scolding face.
Lucian thought it was hilarious. We reached the lake and sat down.
It was so peaceful here.
“So how are you doing, with all of this?”
“Getting there, slowly. A part of me feels I will never be ready, but hey, anything can happen in the next three months, right?”
He nodded as I focussed on the pod of swans gliding gracefully on the water.
“Blake says hi.”
My stomach twirled, and my heart clenched just hearing his name.
“Elena?”
“I heard you. It’s complicated, Lucian.”
“What is?”
“I really don’t want to speak about him, please. Can we change the subject?”
His smile faltered, and he nodded.
“Do you know if the Rubicon has any weaknesses?”
Lucian’s eyebrows knitted. “What?”
“You faced him twice. Does he have any weaknesses? Mia told me, but she said it wouldn’t help me much.”
Lucian chuckled. “The Rubicon?”
“Yeah?”
He squinted again. “He’s tendrils are extremely sensitive, if you can get on his back. Not a job easily done.”
“Is it dangerous?”
“Very. The last time I tried, I almost got trampled by his feet. Everyone always tries to go for his tendrils. The Rubicon protects them with his life.”
That was why Mia said it wouldn’t help me.
“Listen to Mia, Elena. His weakness will not help you.” He chuckled and shook his head.
I got a feeling we were not speaking about tendrils at all.
“It’s the reason you need to get into that sim. It will help you process the beasties easier.”
I stared at him with a raised eyebrow. “Stop making fun of my beasties. They will stay beasties until the day they die.”
We both laugh.
“Yeah, the Rubicon is everything but a beasty. You really need a shower.”
“Yeah, yeah, thanks for introducing me to the sim. I’ll get there, but I’m not ready yet.” With that, I got back up and walked to the castle. I needed a shower badly.
That evening, Dad dragged me to the simulator. I hated Lucian sometimes.
Dad was super giddy, and Lucian actually padded him up. He put on the suit, went all out for this one. King Helmet explained it helped with the sensation, making it even more real. He pulled on the gloves last and looked like one of those ghostbuster characters. I stayed in the computer room, watching the screen as Dad and Lucian exited on to the obstacle course.
Lucian eventually came back and put on earphones that had a microphone close to his mouth. He handed me one as he grabbed a chair on wheels and dragged it next to me.
I put on the earphones and could hear Dad speaking on the other side.
“It looks so real,” Dad said.
“Now you know why I’m not ready,” I replied.
“Bear, this will be great for you. You need to try it.”
“Okay which dragon, Jako?” Lucian asked.
“I think I’m going to try a Copper-Horn. I always wanted to know what Dragonians feel when they face us.”
We both laughed. I was dying to see Dad’s dragon form too, and kept a close watch on the screen.
Lucian did a few swipes on the tablet that was in his hand and on the screen it looked like a Game of Thrones episode. Dad just took one of the character’s places, and the old setting feel got replaced with modern times. That was how real it looked.
The gate on the far corner opened, and a huge beasty walked out. His scales glinted in the sun as two prominent horns laid flat on his head.
Dad chuckled. “Oh, man, this is amazing.”
“Yeah, you need to get ready, Jako. That beasty might be Metallic, but in the sim, none of them rolls over,” Lucian said.
“You serious?”
“Do I detect a bit of fear, Dad? Yet you want to push me in there.”
“It’s a sim, Elena, not the real thing.” Dad looked like a modern-age gladiator in the ring as the beast walked closer. He was magnificent.
“That is what you really look like?”
“Yep, now you understand why you couldn’t handle it.”
“I was ten, Dad. You are sort of beautiful.”
He didn’t reply.
“You ready, Jako?” Lucian’s voice popped through the speakers inside my earphones.
“Yeah, I’m ready.”
The beast stood in front of Dad. He was a giant.
I watched how Dad evaded him. He jumped on the boulders, and everything to get away from him.
Finally, Dad was on his back, and my gaze shot back at Lucian. How the heck?
Lucian chuckled as I took off my earphones and went to the window.
Mechanical wires attached themselves to the suit, like a claw hanging from the ceiling, assisting Dad with the movements that weren’t possible.
Dad wrestled with nothing as he dangled in the air. The snaky arms that were attached to his suit were working overtime.
I looked back at the screen and it looked so real, the way Dad pulled on the dragon’s horns and ears. I slid back down on the chair and put the earphones on my head.
Background noise of people in the crowd cheering him on and Dad’s grunting filled my ears.
The beasty growled and swung from side to side. Eventually, he went down with Dad on top of him.
Big fat letters on the screen spelled Yield, and Dad roared. “Whoa, that was fun.”
Lucian and I chuckled.
“See, Bear, not that hard.”
“I’m not ready yet.”
“You’ll get there. I promise.”
BLAKE
I couldn’t sulk in my room and went home. Whining down was the only thing I needed. I ended up on Friday night at Longbottoms—our regular watering hole. I hadn’t seen Jimmy, the owner of the bar-slash-club in a long time.
He would always be a friend, as it was him that gave the Shifters their first chance. We started with performing on weekends in the club and hit the music charts a year after.
I entered and got a few smiles from the patrons. I shook a couple of hands that sat at the bar—all regulars.
“Hey, Blake,” Jimmy said and leaned over the bar. He was a Crown-Tail and his bronze eyes gleamed, grabbing my hand into a shake. “What will it be?”
“Vodka with soda and lime, please.”
Jimmy poured me a glass as I took a seat. He placed it on a coaster in front of me. “So, how have you been doing?”
“Slow night.” I looked around with a smile.
“Stop avoiding my questions. A big shock when they brought Jako back, and he wasn’t alone. You have a rider. How does it make you feel?”
“Not wanting her dead, that is for sure.”
“The old farts do not know what you would do. Whoever wrote the book on Rubicons was speculating, that’s for sure.”
“Now answer my question. Why are you empty on a Friday night?”
“Business is kind of slow. The new club that opened on Dawsons put a lot of strain on us.”
“Wish I could help.”
He gave me that look, the one that said I could, and I laughed.
“Yeah, the band and I are not on the best of paws at the moment.”
“Still that thing with Ty?”
I nodded. “I want to change it but I don’t know how.”
“Easy, pick up a Cammy and call them.”
“Not that easy. I fucked that bridge up not just with Ty, but with Isaac, too. I hurt him badly that night.”
“Hey, I’m sure the guys already forgave you for that, Blake. I told you before, stop being so hard on yourself. You have more to deal with than any of us bozos.”
I chuckled as a new customer came that needed Jimmy’s help.
I looked at my Cammy and sighed. Isaac wasn’t even going to pick up the phone.
I sipped on my drink, and one vodka became two. My eyes flickered to the stage with all the instruments. The need to play overpowered my gut. I couldn’t believe it was so quiet tonight.
I got up, took my drink, and went over to the stage.
I picked up the guitar and adjusted the mic.
The background music died out, and I saw Jimmy busy playing with the buttons behind the bar.
“Testing,” I spoke over the mike and my voice blared through the speakers.
A few of the people that sat in the booths cheered and applauded as I put my hand in the air.
“Think of entertaining you tonight.”
Whistles and more applause filled the air, and I strummed the guitar.
“Jimmy, your guitar is way out of tune.”
“Then be my guest and fix it,” he yelled from behind the bar.
I chuckled, turning the knobs, and kept strumming until it was perfect.
I started off with Never-Breath. It was a song that was always close to my heart.
One song that Isaac wrote followed it, and I worked through the list.
I missed the guys a lot.
Jimmy kept my glass full.
I needed it tonight.
I was busy with another song when a second guitar played Isaac’s part. I looked over my shoulder and found the idiot strumming a guitar. My eyes locked on him just having fun and looked back at everyone cheering the two of us.
Jimmy must have phoned him.
The song finally ended.
“It’s about time, don’t you guys think?” Isaac spoke in his Southern Accent.
The crowd cheered.
We played one more tune and then took a break.
I shook Isaac’s hand. His grin was wide as he stared at me. I felt like an idiot for not listening to Jimmy.
“How’s the wing?”
“Healed a long time ago. Why didn’t you phone?”
“You know why? I almost ripped Ty to pieces and hurt you badly.”
“Hey, nothing that was news to us, Blake. We knew your darkness was getting stronger. We will not leave you. What don’t you get? You are our friend, one of our best friends outside of the reservation. You are part of our family, bud. Family fight, viciously, they also give the others chances to make it up to them. Say sorry and forgive. You should’ve picked up the phone.”
“I’m an idiot. When are you going to learn that one?”
He laughed as Jimmy brought him over a drink, and we shifted into a boot in the corner.
“So you have a rider, huh?”
I pushed my fingers through my hair. “Yeah, she is really awesome, but you know me, fucked that up too.”
“Don’t say that? Why do you feel that?”
“I tried to tell her the truth, but then Jako happened and the truth came out the worst way it could’ve. She shares her father’s look of disappointment and it’s been tough. Thought I could set it straight here, but the Ancients are banning me to get close to her.”
“Blake,” Isaac said and rubbed his face. “You want me to try?”
“Dude, she doesn’t know who you are. She knows about you, but no idea what you look like.”
“You told her about us?”
“Of course I did. Music is my life, and the idiots who make music with me too.”
Isaac slap-shake my hand. “Dude, I told you three years ago we are like burrs. You will not get rid of us that easy.”
I laughed. “How are the others?”
“You know how Ty is. The guy is so high most of the time. I have to remind him constantly why we hadn’t seen you for such a long time. Sulking does not look good on him, man.”
I laughed.
“Jamie actually wrote a song that he begged me to send to you. Matteo is Teo, the guy hardly speaks. Asking him about his feelings is pushing it. And Max is like a little brother, kept asking me daily if I heard from you. I kept telling them to give you time.”
We spoke the entire night about the past five months. He spoke about the new club too, and the owner had phoned him plenty of times to play.
“Yeah, not if he is threatening to close Jimmy’s, sorry.”
Isaac laughed. “It’s what I thought too. So what, you want me to organize a reunion concert here, one night only?”
“Yeah, he deserves it. He is taking some strain so it would have to be charity, I’m afraid.”
“Hey, the guy gave us a chance when nobody else thought we could sing, so free it is.”
I was glad that I came here tonight and felt lighter as we played a few more songs, joshing around like old times.
It would be fun to play with the entire band in two weeks from now.
I couldn’t wait.
