Chapter 2 002

My mother had told me a story about a war that happened on Earth between realms eight hundred years ago. According to her, this war broke out because the dragons, being the strongest, wanted to be the ruling realm across the whole earth, and the other species refused to be under them.

The dragons being so destructive was bound to destroy every other species that were against them ruling, be it lycans, werewolves, vampires, humans, faes, elves, griffins, and many others. But the goddess mother of the fae sealed the Dragon Sovereign, who was the mightiest of the dragons, the oldest among species, under the ground.

Since then, dragons have stopped existing on Earth.

A year after the war, my clan was prosecuted for a traitorous act against the fae realm, and were being executed every four weeks, until now that my brother was the only one they thought remained in the clan, then there was the powerless me whom they don't know about and could never save herself from danger, regardless, I was a fae.

Watching as the dragon crawled out from the huge hole a few feet away from me, my heart pounded hard against my ribcage. It was a huge one; its horns could be long enough to be carved out as a sword for the humans.

When every part of its body was out of the whole, it let out a roar that caused a heavy wind to blow.

The ground finally became still, and I watched as the pit closed again, making my heart leap to my throat. I stood to my feet slowly, hoping that it wasn't seeing me, so I could reach Ofelia and awaken her so we could escape. I tried tiptoeing around to the other corner, my heart palpitating, and I clutched my dress so tight.

I forgot how to breathe, or maybe scared that it could hear my heartbeat. Hot sweats overwhelmed me, and I prayed to the goddess mother to save me this time, and I wouldn't take such a risk again. I was halfway towards where Ofelia was when the dragon snarled, causing me to freeze.

I tried looking at it to know the direction it was going, only for it to raise its head, its maw opened, and a heavy wind hit me hard, causing my body to freeze. It hurt so bad only to find myself being hurled higher to the sky, taking me away while I screamed for help. I cried, not sure if it was because of Ofelia, or the fact I wasn't sure where the whirlwind was taking me to.

It felt as though my whole body was tied together with a rope, making it difficult to move my body.

The whirlwind moved with great speed, my eyes shut from the excess air that slammed my face. Suddenly, I slammed my belly on something hard and let out a painful groan. I couldn't even open my eyes to see where I was, but with my hands falling apart, and my legs dancing around, head lying sluggishly, I knew I wasn't in the whirlwind any longer.

I winced again in pain, feeling nauseous when darkness filled my mind, and I dozed off.

—

HOURS LATER…

“Mother, I'm tasty…”

“I feel feverish. Could you get me a coat?”

“Someone please massage my back. It hurts.”

It was a very dangerous dream that I had. If indeed the dragon my mother mentioned had finally risen, then the earth would be in trouble. When it finds out that his people don't exist any longer, it would burn the whole earth.

What should I do? How do I get River out of the cave so we can escape into the immortal realm?

I took a deep gulp and finally opened my eyes after so much struggle. I tried stretching my limbs and rolling my body as I do on my mattress, but something struck my belly, and I groaned, forcefully trying to pull away, only to find myself lying on a tree branch, so high that I could smash my head on a rock if I fell carelessly.

My heart dropped in force. How did I end up here?

I was facing the floor, and the branch was a single one on its own, so there was no other place to hold onto. In fact, I hadn't climbed all through my life. I was equal to a human, so gullible that even some humans were stronger than I was. Most times, I doubted I was a fae.

“Ofelia!” I screamed, looking around by the way I was. “Where is she? Did she leave me back in the human realm?" I shook my head. She isn't like that. There's no way she left me behind when I knew no place.

Come to think of it, did I even make the wish that I came for? Will the goddess mother save my brother?

I battled to recall what happened and how I ended up in the tree when the memory struck hard like a blow. My eyes bulged in fear. I clenched my palms into a fist, and my teeth quivered.

“So, what happened to her? Did the dragon kill her?” I burst into tears and began looking for a way to position myself very well on the branch so I could jump down, even if it meant hurting myself. “That dragon threw me away, and I ended up here. Was it a sea dragon? What if I fell into a trap and died?”

I heard the clearing of a throat from the ground, and when I bent my head very well to see if it was a person, our eyes locked.

“Need some help?” he asked, his head cocked to the side.

I rolled my eyes. How do I trust him? Why was he so dangerously handsome?

“I'm leaving…”

“No no no….” I blurted out, my chest heaving. “Please help me down.”

He smiled at me, his sharp jaw and plump lips made me take a soft gulp. I had seen so many human males, but none was as handsome as he was. He was so tall and huge, his muscles and shoulders broad, with wavy, short brown hair, and purple eyes.

I thought he wasn't a human, because he had a beauty that was far from being human. And the way he looked at me? I doubted he knew I was a fae.

He walked closer, just under the branch, and said, “Release your body and I will catch you.”

For some insane reason, I found myself smiling at him. Would he really catch me? I didn't need to question him when his arms were so muscular to do more than catching me. So like he said, I slowly pushed my body away from the tree branch and tried hard not to scream in fear.

With a thud, I landed onto his arms as he said, my body pressed against his.

He stared at me for quite some time, and I didn't avoid his gaze. I swam in the illusion of having this man bed me for the first time. He was so manly, and was the kind of man I had always dreamt of being with.

But then, reality set in, and I recalled I wasn't supposed to let him see my eye color. I cleared my throat and said to him, “You…you could put me down…”

“Ah, I see.” He helped me stand on my feet.

I stretched my dress. Thankfully, it wasn't torn so much that my nude was revealed.

Now that I was down, I needed to go back after Ofelia to be certain she was safe. I bowed to my saviour gratefully, “I hope we meet again.”

He arched his brows, “What? Meet again?”

I nodded, “Uhm, I have to go after my friend. Thank you for saving me.”

“Just like that?” his expression suddenly changed, revealing how unpleasant he felt that I was leaving. “You have to pay back for saving you. I don't help people for free.”

Huh? Pay him back? How was I supposed to do that?

“But you only rendered help, and I have nothing with me here except the dress I'm wearing.” I gestured, wishing that he would let it go. I had just admired him seconds ago, and this act of his alone was off for me.

I was a beauty, and he should also be grateful to meet me. If he wanted, we could be friends, because I knew for sure that he wasn't a fae.

“Then, strip the dress and have me take it as payback,” he said seriously, wearing a long face.

Did he mean it?