Page 152 of Anathema

“Well, it seems to be broken, whatever it’s fo–”

A distant rumble reached my ears, like rolling thunder. Light flickered in my periphery, and I turned toward the window, where an indistinct black mass flew toward the castle.

My and Allura’s gazes locked, the look of confusion on her face mirroring what I felt right then.

I slowly rose up from the bed and padded toward the window, watching the blackness move closer. Closer.

“It’s coming toward us, but what is it?” Allura asked from behind.

I shook my head, watching as a massive shadow moved across the yard below.

The rumbling sound grew louder. Louder.

The object didn’t stop, it advanced toward the window like it might crash right through the glass. Both Allura and I flinched as the black swarm fell upon us. Hundreds of ravens outside the window, their wings beating against the glass, claws scraping the surface. Another massive shadow zipped overhead, and the ravens all shot up into the sky, where they hovered, making way for something enormous that perched itself against the castle wall.

I drew in a shaky breath and leaned forward, staring through one of the lancet windows. An enormous, feathered dragon, whose claws scraped against the stones of the castle wall, hopped his way over to the balcony.

“Dear gods.” Awe livened Allura’s voice as she crept toward the window with slow and careful steps. “Is that … what I think it is?”

I studied the silvery eyes that were all too familiar to me. “Raivox?” Scrambling for the balcony door, I fumbled with the lever for a moment, my hands shaking.

“Maevyth, wait! We don’t …. What if he’s dangerous.”

“I know him.” I swung the door open and stepped out onto the balcony where he perched on the balustrade, his massive body taking up the whole opening of the arched stone. At least eight meters tall, his claws alone were half the length of my body.

In awe, I took in the size of him. Was it Raivox? It had to be. Even if nothing else appeared to be the same, I recognized those tiny crescent markings on him. “How …. How are you … so grown? And how in the world did you ever find me?” No sooner had I asked the question, I glanced down at the whistle in my hands and back to him. His claws slid over the stone, leaving long white scratch marks. Behind him, the birds dove and flew about, drawing the attention of the fyredrakes who prowled below my balcony. The vicious-looking beasts that I’d seen Zevander petting.

Raivox hopped toward the castle wall, where he scaled the side of it before taking flight. Hovering in front of my balcony, his wings must’ve stretched at least twenty feet in each direction. The sheer size of him sent a cold rush of adrenaline through me, the clash of excitement and fear squeezing my chest.

“Am I dreaming?” Allura said as she padded to my side. “Did I hit my head at any point?”

“No. It’s not a dream.” I stuffed the whistle into the pocket of my dress and smiled, relieved to see him. “He’s real.”

“In all my life, I’ve never seen one. They’re said to be mythical, like unicorns.”

An obnoxious pounding at my bedroom door startled me, and I snapped my attention in that direction only a moment. By the time I looked back, Raivox was no longer there. I leaned over the balcony railing, searching the sky for him.

“Maevyth! Don’t do it!”

A grip took hold of me, yanking me back from the window, and my spine crashed into the stony floor of the balcony. A shock of pain spiraled up the back of my neck, and I winced.

“Have you lost your senses? And, you!” Rykaia glared back at Allura, pointing a finger in the other woman’s face. “You just stand there and watch her do it.”

“I beg your pardon.” Though polite, Allura’s voice held a sharpness to it.

“I wasn’t going to jump. I saw something fly over the castle.”

Rykaia peered over the balcony, though nothing remained to be seen. “What was it?”

“Just a bird.” While I wanted to tell her the truth, even Allura had questioned whether, or not, Raivox had been real. A creature she’d called mythical, like unicorns.

Shaking her head, Rykaia stepped back from the railing. “All that for a bird?”

“It was an exceptionally large bird.”

“Yes, well. I’m going to go,” Allura said. “Thank you for having tea with me, Maevyth. We’ll meet up for some history discussion later this afternoon.” She gave a knowing smile and winked.

“Of course,” I said, nodding as she left the balcony.

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