Page 27 of Tempest Rising

Ariadne didn’t deserve her. Hell, I wasn’t sure anyone did. But the fact that Ariadne now rode the dragon I had once watched soar beside me—that just twisted the knife even further.

"Shut your mouth, Ariadne," I said, the words slipping out colder than I intended. "You don’t know what you’re talking about."

Her eyes widened slightly, just for a moment, but she quickly masked it with a smirk. "Don’t I?" she asked, her tone laced with bitter amusement.

Tess’s posture stiffened beside me, her jaw tense. I could see the burn of anger in her eyes, the way her body trembled, not from fear, but from frustration, from the weight of everything pressing down on her. She was caught in the middle of something she didn’t fully understand, and it wasn’t fair to her. None of this was fair to her.

Ariadne was watching me closely now. She knew what she was doing, pushing buttons she didn’t fully comprehend but was more than willing to exploit. And Bella... Bella stood silent, watching both of us, her silver-veined wings folded at her sides, her presence like a living reminder of the past I couldn’t escape.

"Enough," I said again, but this time my voice cracked.

Ariadne’s smirk faltered for just a second, a flicker of something that might have been surprise crossing her face. But she recovered quickly, her lips curling back into that same condescending smile.

Tess, however, didn’t wait for Ariadne to continue her verbal assault. She straightened, her chin lifting as if she'd made a decision. With a steadying breath, she stepped toward the simulation, her fists unclenching as her eyes swept over the faces of her friends—Pippa, Mason, Wesley—all frozen in peril.

“I’m not playing at this,” Tess said, her voice low but filled with a quiet determination that made something inside me twist. “And I’m not weak. If anyone here thinks that, they’re wrong.”

There was no real answer to the problem I’d created. That was the point. But watching her struggle to find the right course of action, to weigh lives in the balance—it was a cruel test. Yet necessary. We didn’t have the luxury of saving everyone in this world. Painful decisions had to be made, and sometimes, no matter what you chose, you lost something.

She was facing that truth now, head-on.

"Do you really think ideals are enough to save people?" I asked, my voice dripping with condescension, unable to hold back the bitterness curling in my gut. "This isn't some story where the hero swoops in and saves everyone with nothing but heart and hope. In the real world, people die. And sometimes, no matter how hard you try, you can't stop it."

Ariadne's lips curled into a sneer. "Naivety like that will get you killed, human. Or worse, get others killed." She turned on her heel, beckoning to her dragon. "Come, Bella. Let's not wasteour time on foolish dreams." With graceful strides, she led her indigo-scaled companion to the far side of the arena.

Tess flinched, but her gaze held steady, defiant. That fire in her eyes... it gnawed at me, because I knew where that kind of hope led. I'd seen it too many times before—watched it get crushed under the weight of reality.

Without waiting for her reply, I cut my hand sharply through the air. The figures of Pippa, Mason, and Wesley shimmered for a moment before dissolving into nothing, leaving behind only the quiet hum of the arena and the low, contemplative rumble of the dragons.

Tess’s shoulders sagged slightly, and I could see the way the tension drained out of her. But the defiance didn’t leave her eyes. Not even close.

I took a measured step forward, closing the space between us in an instant. My hand found her chin, catching her off guard as I tilted her face upward. She froze but didn’t flinch, her lips parting as her wide eyes burned into mine.

“Not good enough,” I said softly but with deliberate heat in my voice, weaving fire into every word. “You’re still not ready.”

Her breath shuddered under my fingers, her pulse pounding against my skin, but she didn’t pull away. Something defiant burned in her silence—a fire that only made me want to push her further, test her limits. Break her shield and show her what trust in someone stronger could mean.

"This assessment? It’s over for the day. You’ve barely scratched the surface of what’s required, and if this was your final testing day, you’d fail. Miserably." I watched her jaw tense, that unforgiving fire still simmering behind her eyes. She hated hearing this, I could tell.

Good. She needed to hate it.

“You want to prove Ariadne wrong? Provemewrong?” I leaned a fraction closer. Her scent wrapped around me—firelight and books. Sweet. Unexpected. Dangerous. My voice dropped to a whisper. “Then stop playing the part of a librarian trying to survive. Start being a Dragon Rider.”

I released her chin abruptly, the absence of my touch drawing a shiver she couldn’t hide. I swallowed hard, tethering my resolve. She wasn’t Cassian. She wasn’t my redemption, nor my punishment. I wouldn't let history repeat itself. I took a step back, my voice snapping back to its usual bitterness.

“You’re going to need a miracle to pass at this rate, Tess. Because right now? Everything you’ve got... it’snot enough.”

Chapter 12

Tess

It should’ve been a comfort, this room, my office. I’d always felt at home in libraries, surrounded by knowledge—and yet, right now, all I wanted to do was scream.

I stared at the small bento box sitting on my desk, its colorful contents neatly arranged: rice shaped into stars, slices of grilled chicken, and a side of pickled vegetables. I'd picked it up at the dining hall, not in the mood to socialize.

It looked perfect. Too perfect.

The sight of it only made me feel more disconnected.

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