As the couple departed, and Valen and Hera said their goodbyes, it was with bitter urgency that their attention quickly returned to the danger at hand. Forcing the sadness of Fredrick and Arlene’s farewell into the back of his mind, he knew what their next step was.

Turning to examine the supplies that had been gifted to them – two packs, one larger than the other and obviously meant for Valen to carry, stuffed with a couple blankets, two pillows, the bound canvas of a tent with stakes within, four canteens for carrying water, a decent amount of dried foods that he knew would be almost tasteless but that would be able to last them at least a month if they rationed well, a few smaller tools that might come in handy on the road, and even a fishing rod, strapped to the side of the larger pack for their use.

He spent maybe half an hour going through what had been left for them, making sure he knew exactly what they had, and at the very end he found, to his surprise, one last thing – a small purse, filled with copper and silver Dracari bits, enough to cover resupplies at least two or three times. Despite knowing that they had to get moving soon, Valen felt himself begin to tear up again.

Quickly rubbing away any wetness that might have spilled over if left alone, he put the purse back into the bag towards the bottom, where it would be safest, then hoisted the larger pack over his back. Hera walked over, allowing Aevra to clamber out of her hands and hop down onto the ground as she lifted her own pack. Then the young wyvern quickly climbed back up, nestling in between the top of the pack and the younger Galar’s neck.

Hera chuckled, reaching a hand up to scratch at Aevra’s chin before she and Valen turned to Raenelir. The wyvern was looking at them patiently by the water, his electric eyes still shining brilliantly even with the sun high in the sky. It was midafternoon, and as Valen looked up at the Highborn, there were a few issues he suddenly realized needed to be addressed.

First, how could they carry their packs and still remain safely on Raen’s back midflight?

Second, was it safe to fly during the day, or should they return to their previous routine of flying at night and resting during the day?

And finally, where were they going to go? The third issue, at least, Valen had an inkling of an answer for. Setting aside his other questions for the moment, he turned to look at his sister again and raised a brow questioningly.

“So… Matt and Layla?” he asked, and immediately Hera’s attention was fully on him. She was nodding immediately, apparently so sure of the idea now that she did not even have to think before she replied.

“Yes, Matt and Layla. I know it’s dangerous to go into Lakevale, especially since it’s the largest city South of the Divide and the Empire’s stronghold down here, but they’re the only people I can think of that we could trust... and who might be able to help us, even if it’s just to show us where to go from there,” Hera explained, her face growing more and more animated as she spoke.

Valen understood the wisdom in what his sister was saying and agreed that if the Romaris were able to help them, then they had to at least try and see them. At the same time, however, he knew how dangerous it was to walk into a city swarming with Imperial soldiers and likely with an entire garrison of Dragon Riders of their own. And, thinking back to the attack at the Hatchery, the thought of possibly running into the gigantic black dragon that had been able to go toe to toe with their Matriarch - and win - was downright terrifying.

Closing his eyes, he did his best to mentally weigh the benefits of heading to Lakevale against potential dangers. In the end, however, he realized that the only reason it was even a debate at all to him was his own fear. If he allowed that to keep him from going to the only people in all of Parovia that might be willing to help them and their wyverns now, then what was the point of surviving at all?

When he opened his eyes again, the decision was made.

“Alright then, Lakevale it is. But, Hera… if we’re doing this, then we need a plan. We can’t just go riding Raenelir into the city. We’d be surrounded and arrested or... or worse,” Valen said, becoming quiet as he finished. Hera nodded in understanding, eyes growing distant as she imagined what such a fate might entail.

“Yeah,” she said after a few moments of silence, “I’d rather avoid that, too.”

Valen chuckled wryly before he continued.

“So then, here’s what I’m thinking. We’re not far from the Twin Lakes, and if I remember correctly, the town Medst is directly across Eastlake from the city. If we fly close to there, and land a couple of miles away, I can travel the rest of the way on foot and take the ferry into the city to find Matt and Layla. But, Hera... that part I have to do alone.” As he said this, he looked his sister directly in the eyes, already knowing that a protest was going to come.

“Alone? There’s no way! What am I supposed to do if you get arrested, or worse? That's the worst idea you've ever had!” she practically shouted, face twisted in anger. Yet Valen was already shaking his head.

“Exactly, Hera. What if I am arrested, or worse? There is no way I’m going to risk your life here, not after everything else we’ve survived so far. Plus, one of us is going to have to stay behind with the wyverns anyways. We can’t bring them into Lakevale, but we also can’t just leave them alone out here. They’ll be captured or slain if they wait for us, or they’ll abandon us entirely, and then where would we be? No, while I go into the city, you’re going to stay with Raenelir and Aevra. I need you to travel with them around the Twin Lakes and Lakevale, and wait for me at the Southern edge of Westlake. That way, as soon as I get there, we don’t have to risk flying over the city as we leave. Especially since we have no idea if I’ll have people after me,” he said.

While he knew as soon as he finished speaking that the words were bitter for his sister to swallow, he could also see the realization dawning on her that they really had no other choice. Not if they wanted to stay as safe as possible. She threw her hands up in frustration, before crossing her arms and glaring at him.

“Fine, Valen. But by the Four, you had better get back to me safely, or I’ll come and kill you myself,” she snapped, that new ferocity flaring up inside of her again. Valen smiled. His sister, he knew, was already more of a survivor than he would ever be. That thought gave him some comfort as he turned back toward Raenelir.

“Don’t worry, Hera. We’ll only be separated for a few days at the very most. Everything will be fine,” he responded, before turning his mind back to one of their other issues.

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

“Now then, how are we going fly safely with all of this new stuff?” he wondered aloud. He did not let his sister see his smile when a laugh forced its way out of her mouth, instead weighing in his mind whether or not putting the packs in front of them and hugging them as tightly as possible might be plausible. He was so deep in his thoughts, that when Raenelir suddenly extended his neck and pulled Valen’s pack from his back with his mouth, he practically jumped in fright.

Then he saw that the Highborn had the straps of the pack hanging carefully around one of his teeth and did not seem bothered by the extra weight on his jaw whatsoever, making Valen grin.

Seemed like the wyvern was happy to resolve one of their problems himself.

Though, in the long term, he knew they needed a better solution. After all, no matter how little the weight of the packs bothered him, it would be all too easy for them to be lost should they run into any danger. Then they would be right back to having nothing.

Still, it was a temporary fix he was happy to work with for now. Soon enough Valen, Hera and Aevra were once again situated on Raenelir’s back as the wyvern extended his wings and lifted off in a gust of wind, the two siblings clinging tightly to his back. Evening was near at hand, and despite the danger of travelling by day, right now time was of the essence.

So off they went, following the edge of the Ura's Glade until, in the distance, the first signs of Eastlake came into view, and it was time to seek out Medst so their mission could begin. Valen sincerely hoped that he was making the right decision in leaving his sister behind to enter the city on his own. After all, if anything were to go wrong, it could very well be the last thing he would ever regret.

----------

By the time they reached Medst night had just fallen, and the town - whiched stretched along at least a couple of miles of Eastlake’s shoreline - was lit by a multitude of lamps and torchlight as people continued about their business. It was not late enough for people to be asleep yet, but late enough for the darkness to cover Raenelir’s landing in the distance.

As the wyvern descended, Valen and Hera clinging tightly to the Highborn’s back while Aevra squealed in delight, he glanced out across the water and, in the night, was just able to pick out pinpricks of light across the lake. Even so far away, a city as large as Lakevale was easily visible. Turning his attention back to Medst before the town was concealed by the trees ringing the clearing Raen was landing in, he could tell that it was fairly large as well.

It was not as large as a full city, but certainly at least twice the size of any other town he had ever been to, even Wyrha. For just a moment, the thought of being around so many people all at once felt overwhelming.

Then he was climbing off of Raenelir’s back, helping his sister down as he thanked the Four that the pain in his legs and general soreness from the constant travel was gradually getting better. A simple thought, but one that helped him refocus on what mattered.

He would protect Hera and his family’s last two wyverns, or he would die trying.

“Looks like as good a place as any to camp for the night. We’re far enough away from the town that we shouldn’t be noticed if we build a small campfire, but close enough that I should be able to make my way there on my own without too much difficulty tomorrow,” Valen declared, and Hera nodded in agreement as her feet hit the ground.

Aevra hopped from her position behind his sister’s neck, wings opening wide as she managed to glide roughly to the ground. Her landing was not graceful, but Valen and Hera were both still surprised by her sudden display of growth. With everything that had happened, he had totally forgotten that Aevra’s brood had been about to begin their first flying lessons with their mother. Without the help of the Divide’s great heights and varying terrain, it would be a bit harder for her to begin flying in earnest, but she would still be able to pick it up with a bit of time.

Their attention was suddenly pulled from Aevra as Raenelir’s head appeared from above their own, almost hitting them in the back of the head with their own packs as the Highborn plopped them down on the ground in front of them. Deep rumbling that almost sounded like laughter emitted from the wyvern’s throat as the siblings looked at him, but they quickly moved on from surprised looks to eager work.

Though it took them longer than it had with Fredrick and Selah, as the two of them obviously had more experience with setting up and tearing down campsites, it only took about an hour or so for the two Galars to finish pitching their tent and get a small fire going.

They sat in front of their meager campfire as the night’s chill began to fall in full now that they were no longer bustling about. Both munched thankfully on just enough of the dried jerky that had been given to them to keep them going, and then Hera let out a yawn as she stretched and rubbed at her eyes.

“Val, I think I’m going to get some sleep now. Try not to stay up too much later, you have an even bigger day than me tomorrow,” his sister said, before heading into their tent, allowing Aevra to follow her inside before the entrance flap swung down behind her. There was some shuffling inside, but before long what little noise Hera and the young wyvern were making died down and the only sound was that of the crackling flames, the deep rumble of Raenelir’s breathing, and the singing of crickets accompanied by the occasional call of an owl.

He had not taken the time to really notice before now, but since they were down from the mountains, away from the sporadic evergreens, Valen realized that Autumn truly had begun. While most of the trees still had their leaves, they had changed into an assortment of oranges, reds, yellows and browns, bringing some color to their surroundings even at night.

That meant that before long, Winter would be upon them, and while they had certainly learned how to deal with severe Winter weather up in the mountains, that was when they had been able to get inside solid structures for cover instead of just a tent. The thought of being stuck in a tent if a winter storm were to hit was not very pleasant.

Still, for now that was a problem for the future.

He needed to focus on the task at hand; getting into Lakevale safely and tracking down the Romaris as quickly as possible. Everything else would just have to wait.

Despite the serious nature of Valen’s thoughts, it was not long before his eyes began to droop, and he found that it was harder to fight sleep than it was to let it take him. Raenelir seemed to notice this as well, because the wyvern began prodding his flightbrother with his snout, forcing him to his feet.

“Alright, Raen, alright,” he chuckled, letting out a sigh before joining Hera and Aevra inside the tent. His sister was sound asleep when he entered, the hatchling curled up in a ball against her stomach. When Raenelir put out their campfire by literally plopping down on top of it, and Valen was left with only the light of the moon and stars overhead, he let the tent flap fall once more and laid down, thankful for the thin but comfortable pillow and blanket he now had to sleep with.

Despite how tired he was, he still found himself staring up at the roof of the tent for a while, unable to fall asleep despite the protestations of his body. His mind was simply racing too quickly, the thought of possibly being surrounded by the very dragon riders that had destroyed his home and killed his family the next day refusing to leave him be.

Finally, when he realized that he would not be able to sleep in the tent tonight, he sighed, collected his blanket and stepped outside again. He found Raenelir lying in the grass a short ways away, head down but eyes trained upwards, at the night sky. The Highborn turned his attention toward Valen as he stepped out of the tent, lifting his head just a bit as he turned to meet his gaze.

So Valen made his way to the wyvern’s side, finding a place in the grass against the drake’s side where he could nestle in between one of his legs and his chest. Covering up with the blanket he’d brought with him, it was not long before Raenelir’s natural body heat and the added warmth of the blanket began to lull him to sleep in concert with the deep, rumbling breaths that shook the wyvern’s frame.

Instead of worrying about the danger he might face the next day, Valen found himself thinking of the wonders he might discover in the great City of the Lakes as he drifted into a dreamless slumber.