The cliffside was empty and grey as ever. Howling winds pounded and ground at it, lesving the hard surfwce covered in burnt and bleached grit. The winds blew and faded like breath in a rotten lung. The sky was green.

Timothy’s legs dangled off the edge. His brand burned on his forehead. He felt a pull, like something inside the pit was pulling him in by the head. But there was nothing inside the pit, a nothing so profound and deep that it seemed to suck in all heat, all life. He’d often wondered what would happen if he let it take him, too, but he’d never had the guts. It’d been close, though.

He sat there for a long time, the cold wind roaring, staring into the abyss.

———

Pain and noise. That’s what met him when the cliff faded. “I don’t care if the queen of all dragons vouches for him! Question him, and have him cuffed, damn it!”

Shadows, it hurt. His hearing was dull and flat, and the angry voice stabbed them cruelly. And then another one piped up. “Look, my sister told you everything already. Lay off, will ya?” Her voice… it ground with frustration, but it was familiar…

“Are you forgetting that your sister caused all this!? And that idiot’s an accomplice!”

Timothy felt drier than old jerky, and about as alive. A long, hoarse breath pulled free from his throat. His eyes cracked open, and it was like ripping stuck parchments apart. Everything was blurry. His everything hurt. His chest, his arm, all of it throbbed as he struggled against his own miniscule weight. Where am I…? The wolf felt cool sheets beneath him. A bed, thicker and more comfortable than anywhere he’d ever slept. All around it were pale curtains, on rolling stands. The air smelled of burned fur, alchemical medicines, and dragon. And anger, a lot of it. He could barely move his head.

He blinked his dry eyes, and the world slowly got clearer. The room was lit brightly, so he could make out two silhouettes through the drawn curtains. A woman so huge she could only be Valencia, standing at attention but in a sagging, exhausted way. He thought she was still in her armor. She was facing someone else: another woman, from the voice, tall and lean for a kindre. The other woman held what was clearly a fighting staff before her, and judging from her stance she was barely holding back from using it. Timothy tensed at the sight, and wow, did that hurt.

Am I a prisoner…? He thought sluggishly. His pulse barely quickened in his exhaustion. I can’t move…. But I’m not tied down, I think… his eyes moved like slugs in bowls, slipping to his body. What he saw shocked him, even through his exhaustion. There shoulda been mortal wounds where the lightning had struck. Instead, his body looked whole. Well, mostly. His arm and chest were intact, but bare of fur, revealing tender, thin pink skin. He looked like if he was poked too hard he’d bleed out, but it was still whole. He’d been stripped of his outerwear, leaving him in his loincloth, and so even his legs were treated in a few places the lightning had lashed with fingers. Mandible, normally strapped to his chest, was gone. The fresh skin was covered in a thick green paste, which smelled strongly alchemical. They healed me…?

Valencia stomped her foot, pulling his weary eyes back to her. “Don’t talk about my sister like that!” She growled. Urgency was slowly flooding Timothy’s veins, like fire and ice brewed together. Have to stay awake. No candles inside the curtains. I can see them, but they can’t see me. There were no windows inside his curtains. He barely stopped himself from chuckling— Yeah, you’re gonna escape out a window right now. That’ll happen.

“Bring her into this?” The older woman hissed. “Your fool of a sister burned down the Deepshadow! Her little adventure’s put us all at risk!” He couldn’t just lie here… he patted himself down quietly, hoping for any of his gear to be around. But duh, they wouldn’t leave him anything else useful. Mandible couldn’t get to him. Magic…? He turned his palm up in bed, and tried to make a sliver of darkness. The effort sent a spike of pain through his bones that knocked what little wind he had right out of him. That’s when he saw Valencia’s large ears twitch in his direction, and her head half-turned his way. Frass! Timothy didn’t dare breathe. She heard me!

“Oh, don’t even get me started on him, Ashborne. I don’t care if he is a wolf, no innocent man would wear that symbol. I don’t know why you’re protecting him, but it will end.” She’d seen the motion too, but she didn’t interpret it as her having heard him. Timothy’s heart was pounding loud enough he could almost imagine her hearing him. But what did she mean, protecting him?

“I, uh, well, uh…” Valencia sounded nervous now, and he saw her ears still trained on him. Then her ears pinned back slowly, and he heard her snarl. “It doesn’t matter, because he ain’t broken any law I know! So I ain’t budging, y’hear me?” And, to his surprise, she circled around to face him… and the other woman circled so her back was to him. That was deliberate! Timothy’s jaw dropped. Her tail was twitching now with nervous energy. No way. A faint hope sparked in his chest. Is she really on my side, here? Against one of her fellow townsfolk?

“Yeah, don’t talk about Timothy like that!” And this time the voice was Meri’s, coming from somewhere to his right. He didn’t dare turn his head to look. She was alright! Relief flowed through him like warm tea, soothing his frazzled nerves just a little.

“That’s enough out of you, child. And more than enough out of you, Ashborne!” The woman stepped right up to Valencia, and poked her chest. “I give that mother of yours a lot of leeway—“

“What leeway? You ride her ass over—”

“But this time you’ve gone too far! This is how your loyalty lies, is it? Protecting some Lusundra-loving savage, who helped set our woods on fire, and brought a monster to our gates? How dare you!” How formidable was this woman to be able to step to a dragon with no fear? Timothy wasn’t surprised at all by what she was saying, but having the guts to say it to Valencia, a woman who could flatten the Voltcage… she was dangerous.

But Valencia hissed in rage, and suddenly seemed to tower over her opponent. “How dare me? How dare you, you fuckin’ hag!? This has nothing to do with us being dragons, and fuck you for implying it! My family’s lived here for decades! I was born here! And you’re just gonna come in here and say I’m some kinda traitor for showing basic empathy to the guy who saved my sister’s life? How dare you!”

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

By now the two women were inches away from each other, both looking ready to stop yelling and start striking. “I’m just calling them like I see them, dragon.” The other woman hissed. “I’ll remember this.”

“Remember all you like.” Valencia spat. “This wolf’s not getting questioned or fuckin’ arrested until we’ve had a chance to figure out what happened. Until then, he’s just another victim of the attack. Now, if I were you, lady, I’d buzz off before my mom gets here. I’d bet the captain would love to hear you think she’s some kinda neo-Lusundrite.”

There was a long, tense moment. It didn’t look like either woman was gonna back down. Timothy shivered. Even through the curtain, he could feel her glare at Valencia, then him. Then, with a grunt, she stomped out, slamming the door behind her. "Wait a second for her to go." The dragoness murmured. And almost as if to dispel any doubts he’d had, she looked right at him! Timothy stared back. The spark of hope he’d felt toward her burst into a small flame. Meri was safe. And this tower of a woman was on his side— or at least, not jumping to him being some kind of puppy eating monster, yet. It was as close to acceptance as he’d had.

After a long minute, Valencia heaved a sigh. “Ancestors, I thought that bitch’d never leave.” She walked over to his bed, and pulled aside the curtains slowly. The dragoness who stood before him looked exhausted, still in her chitin armor and smelling of burned cloth, his own burned fur and flesh, and ozone. She was covered in soot from even flying into and out of the wildfire. But she still tossed him a friendly, almost cocky smile. “Glad you ain’t dead, shorty.”

“He’s awake?” Meri cried. “Timothy!”

But Timothy only had eyes for his protector. He didn’t understand. Timothy croaked, staring up at her. “Why help me…?” Even breathing that much hurt.

The dragoness seemed surprised by the question. She didn't even seem to make the connection to his brand, instead just saying “Cuz it was the right thing to do, yeah?” That answer just about struck him like a bullet. “What, did you want me to feed you to Locke?” His head was spinning, bad, and only part of it was from shock. His vision was starting to swim again. Valencia’s eyes widened, and she grabbed his good shoulder. “Shit! Hey, stay with me here! Mat!” He heard Meri shout in alarm and her feet hit the floor.

“I’m coming!” The voice that answered was bassy but soft, even in alarm. Another dragon burst into the room, clearly part of Meri’s family. He wore pale blue healer’s scrubs, with a medical bag strapped to his hip. He was smaller than V, though still huge enough to loom over the helpless wolf. His dark eyes darted around the wolf, taking in the details. “Right.” The dragon’s hands flew to Timothy’s chest, and the wolf instinctively flinched (well, twitched.) But the healer’s touch was warm and gentle. Heat bloomed through the wolf’s chest as the healer’s hands lit up with bands of vital energy. Life flowed back through Timothy’s exhausted body, washing away some of the fatigue that weighed him down. His vision slowly cleared, and he felt control, if weak, return to his limbs. The dragon continued for a moment more, before sitting back with a breath. “There, that should help a little. You’re still very weak, so take it easy, and no magic.”

Timothy just lay there, not quite managing to pull himself together. All three dragons were standing over him, and none of them looked too happy. “T-Timothy…” Meri mumbled, holding onto her sister for comfort.

“T-Thank you.” The words took effort to say. “You’re… Mat, right? Meri’s brother.”

“Yes, that’s right. Pleased to see you awake, Timothy.” The healer smiled a relieved, gentle smile. Combined with his soft, deep voice, he was handsome as a tallbloom in the sun! Though, that may have been the exhaustion and thankfulness talking, a little.

As for their sister, Valencia just heaved a sigh of relief. “Shit, don’t scare me like that. Thought you were gonna bite it... A-and in front of Meri, too!” She tried to play it off, but she looked real freaked out.

“Death keeps chewin’ on me, but I’m too stringy to swallow.” He managed a weak grin. Valencia chuckled, prolly more at his nerve than the joke, and managed to snap out of it a little.

Mat didn’t seem too amused, though, just giving a grimace. “I wouldn’t joke, considering how close you were to slipping off for good.” The healer’s hand plunged into his hip satchel, pulling out a silver wand. “Your right arm was barely hanging on. You were scorched all over, and considering our biology, that’s a real trick. Not to mention…” his face softened with worry. “You have a lot of scarring, all over you. Your tail is missing, too, and you were so emaciated and weak I couldn’t even put you under without a wand to hold back the spell. You’re lucky to be alive.” V shuddered, and Timothy realized she’d had time to get a good, long look while he was lying there.

And the tough dragoness flinching, and the way Mat put it, made it sound a whole, whole lot worse. Timothy’s grin slipped right off his face. Meri’s tail curled around her legs, and she nibbled on her nails nervously. “That said,” and the healer brightened just a touch, “You’re out of the woods, more or less.”

“Th’ woods… wait, the Deepshadow! The fire! Th-the battle!” It all came rushing back into focus. Timothy leapt from the bed— or he would have, if his body was working. He sort of lurched hard enough to lift the blankets, before Mat gently stopped him. “Is the fire out? What happened to the Volt—the Fae Eater? Are we still under attack? Wh—“

“Slow down, okay?” Valencia grimaced. The atmosphere darkened as all three dragons shared a Look. Meri looked almost tearful, and Mat looked reservedly sad, but nobody looked happy. “We’re not under attack anymore, the Voltcage—”

“Don’t say its name!” He interrupted frantically. “You’ll call it back!” Meri blanched. The big dragoness swallowed hard, and continued.

“W-well, it went back to the woods. But the little bastard’s been throwing a lightning tantrum out there.”

“Oh, no.” Timothy’s heart fell. “How bad is it?”

Valencia sighed, and crossed her arms. “It’s fucked. Everyone’s on duty now because monsters have been fleeing all night. I’m no ranger, but… I think the Deepshadow’s finished, Timothy. Even from the air, the only part that wasn’t on fire was—“

“The forest’s heart. Figures the fairies would protect it.” V nodded. Timothy had cursed that damn forest many a time over his years. It was an awful place, full of plants that could eat you, dreadful monsters, and fairies. He hadn’t seen the sun proper in seven years. Its food chain was so aggressive and competitive and full of nasty, inedible monsters that even a Streneli like him was always hungry. It was a terrible, dangerous place to live, and only dumb luck, cunning, and aggression had kept him alive.

But it was home. And it was gone. Gone was the house on the hard-mud isle, that he’d spent weeks building, twice. Gone was the garden he’d sowed, that he’d helped the bees settle, and filled with sunlight against all odds. And his friends… Deadhall was protected by his enchantments, but would they hold against a fire this harsh? Goldblossom had many bodies, but this heat could burn them all. All those years struggling, and in one night, it’d all gone to ash. He was homeless again, and he was alone. He felt it as a churning, horrible sickness in his gut. As a choke in his throat. As bitter cold burning his heart. And all he could manage without crying in front of the three dragons was “Damn it.” His eyes stung.