Page 40 of A Broken Ember

“Indeed I did, and so I shall.” Anastasius gave me a disarming smile which I couldn't help but return.

All around us, the normally lively castle was even more exuberant. The green the prince wore for the occasion was plastered all over the place—on the walls in the form of painted swirls which I couldn't discern, in the decor, wrapped around the people in sashes and gowns and tunics. Everyone wore their finest along with decadent grins. It was an expression I found myself matching reluctantly. Everyone moved with grace and a foreign beauty. Fabrics swished and grins flashed between every eager face we came across.

Upon seeing their prince, many bowed low with bright smiles, and when their gaze came my way the hatred I expected to see wasn't there. Instead, there was curiosity. The prince led me outside, where the air was so thick with draconis the sun was shaded. I couldn't help but watch as they flew in tandem, their movements rapid and excited. The chaos was organized, though, and there were no protesting roars filling the air and no collisions. Only endless scales of every color replacing the blue sky. If I weren’t seeing it before my eyes, I would think such a thing was an act of magic to assemble so many dragons in the sky with ease. There was no apparent pattern to their flight, but not a single wing brushed another despite the thousands of draconis above me.

“What are they doing?” I murmured in awe, unable to take my eyes away from the flying display of draconis. I itched to join them, but it was an itch I couldn’t scratch. Surely, if I joined them it would only disrupt the balance they had so perfectly established.

Anastasius' smile was almost palpable and reluctantly I tore my eyes from the sky to watch him. His eyes were alight with glee. “They are flying their life path.” I frowned at the explanation, but before I could inquire, he continued. “Would you like to join them?” The question threw me off, uncertainty clinging to me like a shadow. I hated the way my gut churned with nerves.

“I don't know what to do.”

He gave me a soft smile before stretching out his hand, the burn that had been there less angry. Now, the only sign of it was a fresh scar to join the others. “Just follow your heart, Eleos. It won't lead you astray,” the prince said before releasing his draconis, once again stunning me with his beauty, his elegance. His everything. I wanted to claim him, to consume everything about him. When my lips tugged up into a smile, I didn't fight them. Massive moon-like eyes blinked at me slowly, waiting for me to shift. Instead, I walked up to his snout, laying my hand on his scales to see if they were as smooth as they looked. They were. He let out a contented rumble, nuzzling into my palm ever so slightly.

“So fucking beautiful,” I murmured to him, stroking his snout. The scales were warm. My fingers traced the seams of each scale, creating a path of their own. The prince was truly a wonder to behold, a figure of strength and dominance that would make any Circulus draconis think twice before taking him on. Not me. There was no fear between us. The thought didn't startle me, but the next did: I respected him. Cared for him, even, and that would make leaving him when my task was complete all the harder. It didn't matter now, though. I retreated a few steps before unsheathing my draconis.

In this form, my heart rate slowed, and my worries of disrupting the flow ebbed slightly. I met Anastasius’ eyes, and as if reassuring me, he briefly entwined our tails. The heat of him against me sent pleasure racing through my body, but it was gone all too quickly, and he took off into the sky.

For a moment, I just watched as he seamlessly incorporated himself into the flying draconis. He should have instantly disappeared from view amongst the plethora of draconis, but my eyes easily tracked his midnight sky form as it interacted with the other De Vita.

Reluctantly, I joined the clan, keeping low to the ground to avoid any collisions at first. My eyes didn't leave Anastasius. He was a beacon, a burst of darkness which overpowered everyone else. Instinct made me weave through the throng of bodies. It should have been impossible with the sheer amount of draconis surrounding me, but nobody so much as brushed me with a wing tip or claw. I hovered in the air, taking in the beauty of the flying mosaic around me. Claws, teeth, and wings flashed past me in a flurry, but my eyes were solely on Anastasius. He flew in the center of the mass, all the draconis pulled in by him. I felt the tug, too, unable to resist the urge to fly toward him. I needed to feel him against me. Even the Ruptor seemed entranced by him, and it wasn’t just the familiar sexual desire for him. I craved him. What he represented. So, I weaved through the bodies. Up close, it was clear the flight paths were a form of dance, the music the sound of our wings beating.

It took forever to reach Anastasius, but when I did, everything fell into place. I darted for him, pulled in by the beauty of his movements. His eyes were impossibly bright, like moonlit embers burned beneath their surface. We flew chest to chest, up and up, then swooped down in tandem. We forged a path together. My heart fluttered. I wasn’t sure what it meant, but it felt right. The final trial was coming. I shouldn’t still be here, yet I didn’t want to leave. Perhaps my father was right and I had changed here. A shift . . . If I became Chosen, the relationship between the clans could change.

He would be my undoing or my salvation, but either way I knew he would be my everything.

Chapter 40: Anastasius

Claeg’s path was entwined with mine. By the gods, nothing felt more right. The day of breath was always full of surprises, but the connection with my Selected was unparalleled. I never wanted to part. To do so would be to amputate the fire within me. Unthinkable. I craved him. So, when I couldn’t take it anymore, I cleaved myself from my path and emerged from within the prophetic dancing draconis. We hadn't yet breathed our flame, but the need to consume Claeg overpowered my desire to worship even the gods. Claeg followed my lead, his wings so close I felt the air from every sweep of them. Energy snapped between us, electrifying the beats of my heart. I abandoned all thoughts of Oriana and my task in favor of indulging in the pleasure of flying with Claeg. My Chosen. I knew it then. It didn’t matter the results of the trial. He would be my Chosen. When I became De Vita, I would ensure it.

We ventured through the canyons, heading to the cave we had slept together in—back to another time we were vulnerable with each other. The cave came into view, reminding me of that night, the time my desire had been set ablaze, but I had been too afraid to act on it. That wouldn't happen again. I needed to feel Claeg, to taste him, to unite our bodies as our souls would be joined when he was officially my Chosen. Until that day, I would fight for him. Even if he didn't win, which I was certain wouldn't be the case, the dance proclaimed our paths as entwined. With him, I would have everything.

At the entrance of the looming cave, I allowed my wings to recede until I was in the flesh of a man once again. Claeg followed suit. He hovered over my shoulder, his breath on my neck raising bumps along my flesh. I sucked in a breath. The air was busy with energy. Tension. My cock throbbed.

“Eleos….” His name came out as a moan, making me flush. His resulting smirk had me burning with desire. The distance between us was only a breath, but it was too much. “I…” I breathed, my words taken away when his lips met the spot beneath my ear. Suddenly, his hands were on me, closing the space between us with a frenzy.

“Why do I feel this way?” Claeg growled, ripping at my ceremonial tunic. The fabric tore, but I couldn't bring myself to care about the precious attire. Claeg inhaled deeply, his hands desperately pulling the ruined clothes off of me. As the clothing fell away, exposing my skin to the sun, I realized I hadn't responded. We had danced, writing them in the sky—it was a language nobody spoke, but our paths were clearly entwined.

I voiced my theory, my eyes slipping closed: “It's the gods. They are pulling us together because you are my Selected.” Claeg froze, dropping his hands from my body. No! my body cried in response to the absence of his heat. My eyes flew open to see Claeg standing before me with a frown. The expression made my cock soften and worry pulse through me. “What's wrong, Selected?” I reached for him, but he stepped away. The action made my stomach twist. “Eleos?” I prompted.

“Do you feel the same about Oriana?”

His question made me grimace. Instantly, Claeg stiffened, misinterpreting the action.

“No. She is a spark while you are goddamn blaze. You are beautiful, and you burn so brightly. You make me feel it all.” I took a step toward him and, to my relief, he didn't step away again. “You are the one I Choose, Eleos. It is you that I want now,” I whispered. I resisted the urge to bite my lip. Now wasn't the time to have a bloody pool in my mouth, especially if this was headed where I wanted it to.

“I tell myself that this is wrong, that I shouldn't want you. But when I'm with you, I feel like my Circles aren't broken. You make me feel healed,” Claeg said, absently rubbing his hands together, the scars matching the one on his neck. My chest ached with phantom pains. He still wouldn't meet my eyes.

“Eleos…” I tilted his chin up with a couple of fingers. “You are perfect the way you are. There’s nothing I would change about you.”

His eyes flashed with anger, making me realize my mistake instantly. “Except my name, you mean.” He pulled back, and I sighed.

“Yes,” I admitted, making Claeg hiss and turn his head to the side. I dropped my hand. “I would because I want to remind you every moment of every day that you are more than Claeg the Ruptor. You are Eleos the merciful,” I whispered. Claeg refused to meet my eye for a minute, but when he did they were glassy and vulnerable.

“And if I can’t be there for you to do that?” he asked, his voice cracking. I frowned, not understanding what he meant. I took another step toward him until his back was flush with the mesa.

“Then I will hunt the entire world for you. There is nowhere that you can go that I won't follow. I would fly across the sea for you,” I vowed, pressing my hands to the rock on either side of his head, enclosing him between my arms.

“And if I don't become your Chosen?”

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