The Curse's Breath

Chapter Twenty-Two

"Sotira!"

Celni gently flapped her wings once more as her paws settled onto the earthen floor of the dragon camp. She could feel the wind from Keltaril's wings as he landed next to her. She folded her wings against her back and looked up to see who had called her dragon name. Sephina, Zakten, and Kulliras were padding up to them with happy gazes.

"Hey! Good to see you guys." Celni greeted them brightly.

"It's good to see you too! It feels like forever since we've seen you," Sephina said. She stepped closer to Celni and nudged her with her head in greeting. Zakten and Keltaril bumped each other playfully, while Kulliras just flapped his wings excitingly before pulling everyone into a group hug.

Celni laughed before pulling away. "I'm sorry. I've been... busy."

Sephina eyed her. "Clearly."

"I said I'm sorry!" Celni protested, still laughing.

"Don't tell us, tell Chalen," Zakten said, flicking an ear. "He's pissed."

Kulliras curled and uncurled his wiry tail nervously. "He said he was going to talk to the king about it."

Celni's ears flattened against her scales. "Really?"

Keltaril took a step forward. "I'll tell him that it was my fault."

"You weren't with her the other days she was missing, though." Zakten pointed out.

Keltaril shifted his folded wings in a sort of shrug. "So? I'll cover for those times too."

Sephina shook her head. "Chalen saw you at training those days, remember?"

Keltaril growled softly in frustration.

Kulliras was looking at Celni with a cocked head. "Where were you, anyway, Sotira?"

Their heads swiveled to look at her. Fear slid into her blood like ice, and she clenched the ground tightly with her claws. "L-Lunar showed me a quiet place for me to stay where I could recover from my injuries," she quickly lied. "That's where I was."

Sephina nodded. "Well, if you can get Lunar to back you up on that, I would. Who knows what King Albaras will do to you if you don't have an excuse for your absence."

"But I thought he was okay with me being here?" Celni questioned.

"He is," Zakten answered. "Just as long as you're here for what you say you're here for."

Keltaril nodded in agreement. "There was an incident a while ago. Before the war. A guest didn't stick to what they said and things... things got messy."

"I'll be careful," Celni assured them, sitting down and resting her tail across her paws. "But surely he'll give me grace. He seems like a calm, level-headed king." She narrowed her eyes, confused, as they all winced and looked away. "Right?"

"Not... lately," Zakten said reluctantly.

Celni tilted her head, curiosity but also unease settling in her stomach. "What do you mean?"

"He still appears calm. But sometimes..." Kulliras licked his lips with his long tongue and then leaned closer to Celni. "Sometimes, if you look into his eyes, it's like looking at a still, calm lake and knowing there's a whirlpool underneath, ready to suck you in and tear you limb from limb."

Celni stared at him with her eyes wide.

Keltaril pulled the forest dragon away from Celni, sighing with exasperation. "Don't let him scare you. He's exaggerating." He hesitated. "Somewhat."