Page 169 of Gift from the Nexus

She chose him.

“How did…you said we came from her,” I stutter, not processing this at all.

“Well, you did for sure. We still don’t know how I do what I do, but she’s a part of him, and you…you’re a part of him. Instead of getting a more vampire, vampirish, I don’t know, genes, I guess you got his bonds. I’m sorry, Draken, I know this is all speculation on my part and I’m not answering your question.”

My body sways with her words. Today’s been a bit overwhelming, and I don’t know how to process any of this. I can’t tell if I want to puke, faint, or ask Tanith if she wants to fly with me and Willow.

“Wait, why didn’t you want me to shift today?”

“I’m not positive about that either. I just had an awful feeling about you shifting in the forest, so I went with my gut. I don’t know if it was a secret meant to be kept from Keeper forthe time being or something else, but the risk wasn’t clear to me. My visions, dream walking, all of it since being rescued, have been choppy compared to normal. I’m no longer getting straightforward answers or guides. CC isn’t speaking to me and I’m having to make decisions based on my feelings.”

I squeeze her hand in reassurance that I’m not upset with her when I hear and sense the doubt creep across her. I’m not questioning her decisions in a negative way, just trying to put the pieces of what seems to be my new reality together.

I have a parent that’s alive and well, given his situation, and apparently, his bonded dragon is the reason I can shift into a dragon. Not to mention everything else that just happened.

What the fuck do I do now?

“Take a breath, dragon. We’re here,” Caspian says, gripping my shoulder as smoke begins to blow through my nostrils.

“Sorry…I’m just…”

“Overwhelmed?” Tillman finishes for me.

“Yeah. That.”

“You’re not alone, brother. We got you,” Corentin says as he lays his hand on my other shoulder, and I finally feel like I can breathe.

Between my little wanderer and my brothers, I feel grounded enough to function and slow my thoughts down. Fuck, this makes me feel ten times worse for Willow. She deals with shit like this happening to her…like weekly. I couldn’t do it. My skin feels tight with the need to shift, and my eyes are crossed from all the thoughts.

Her snort and musical laughter soothe both me and my beast. Her bright silver eyes look so tired, so drained, yet she still has enough in her to take care of this. Lead me, comfort me, and be here for me despite whatever just happened when she used more power than I’ve ever felt in my entire life.

“We can talk about that later. At home or the debrief, but we still need to help Tanith. It’s going to take the two of us to get that chain off her.”

My dragon growls in my chest when I look back at the large links hanging from around Tanith’s throat. She’s been trapped like a feral beast for what I assume to be the same amount of time as Keeper and that’s just…fucking disgusting. There’s barely any room at the mouth of the cave for her. No doubt inside there’s no room for her to spread her wings.

“Let’s go then,” I declare, clearing my throat nervously.

Why I feel so much more nervous about meeting Tanith than I did when the truth bomb of Keeper was dropped on me, I don’t know, but there’s an embarrassing tremble in my hands. In my heart, I do know the answer, but I don’t want to admit it.

The knowledge we have on dragons from Essemist Keep is minimal, but it’s the biggest known factor that they’re highly regarded creatures because they’re not only fierce but so intelligent. Their minds function on the same scale as ours. Fuck, maybe even more. They’re the one and probably only subject outside of Primaries that I truly cared to learn about. I obsessed over everything I could learn about them when Gaster provided me some books. I guess meeting one in real life has me feeling a little self-conscious.

What is she going to think of me?

Why do I even care?

“Because she’s a part of you. A part of your dragon, my dragon. It’s okay to think and feel all this, Draken, but she’s not going to think less of you. There’s nothing to think less of. You’re perfect.”

“You have to say that. You’re my little wanderer.”

“I don’t have to say it. I choose to because it’s the truth. You’re perfection. You feed my soul.”

Her soul… if only she knew.

Pulling her hand until her body is plastered to mine, I kiss her with everything I’ve got. Fuck, I love this woman more than anything in this realm and if I could right now, I’d just kidnap her and fly us back home.

“Tanith, this is Caspian, Corentin, Tillman, and behind them is more family whose names I haven’t memorized yet, but I will,” Keeper says, pointing my brothers out as soon as we come to stand a few feet from them.

Tanith bows her head subtly, and despite everything I just thought, I’m still taken by surprise at her knowing eyes and awareness. She knows everything he said.

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