them.”
Although that was what I’d expected he would say, I didn’t voice my agreement. He needed to make this decision without any interference on my part.
He raised his head and gazed out again at the choppers, buzzing around in the sky like angry black hornets. He shook his head, shuddering. His brown eyes darkened. “I don’t want to go back to them.”
He might’ve lost his memory, but deep down I believed he must have still been conscious of the trauma they had put him through.
“For all I know,” he went on, “they could wipe my brain all over again. Lock me back in some tiny, airtight bunker for God knows how long.”
As more explosions were let off, I said, “Are you sure about this? Don’t feel you have to rush to make a decision. These hunters might be causing a disturbance, but they can’t get inside. No matter how hard they try. You have time to think about this.”
He took another moment to think, but then met my eyes, his mouth set in a thin hard line, his expression resolute. “I would rather assume that they are lying than take the risk that they are not.”
I held his gaze for several moments longer, trying to verify whether I really saw true conviction in them. I did. He had made up his mind. “Okay.” I nodded. “I’ll go and tell Shayla your decision.” I was about to rush out again but I held back to give his hand a gentle squeeze. “Don’t worry. We’ll take care of this.”
Then I turned on my heel and returned to the veranda before resuming my seat on Lethe’s back.
As he carried me back to the Port, I tried to fill my mind with only positive thoughts. I tried to reason with myself. We were seeing small signs of improvement in Josh, like his being able to hold in solid food, and his stamina slowly rebuilding. If the hunter really was telling the truth, how would that be possible? Wouldn’t he only be getting worse?
Descending on the crowd that was waiting for us, I informed Shayla, “He doesn’t want to be handed back. He is staying with us.”
She nodded, not looking in the least bit surprised. Then she fixed her eyes on the hunters, her jaw setting in a grimace. “Then it’s time to give these bastards an ass-kicking… Shade- style.”
Grace
N either Lethe nor I were needed for this task. This was a job for the fire dragons. I doubted even the jinn and witches would be required for this.
The fire-breathers burst through The Shade’s boundary, unleashing an unholy storm of flames. It engulfed the choppers completely, as well as every patch of sky within sight. It had become a sky of fire.
Shouts abounded, along with the firing of bullets and the dropping of more explosives, but from what I could make out through the blaze, the fire dragons were already above them and had blinded the hunters far too much with their fire to make their aim anywhere near accurate. Besides, the dragons’ scales were so tough, they were practically magical. They could withstand the spells of witches, which in their own way were just as powerful as these explosions the IBSI were raining down on us.
After five minutes of chaos, the dragons relinquished their flames just a little bit. The helicopters that had survived were rapidly fleeing the area. The dragons didn’t bother chasing after those who had escaped, but they did burn all who remained within easy reach to cinders. Several aircraft crashed down against the roof of the island’s barrier, along with the limp bodies of men. The dragons swept down, clasping the wreckage and the bodies within their claws, and flung them miles away, into the ocean.
As my hands trembled, I realized how in shock I was. It was not even so much their sudden arrival, nor what they had said about Josh. I just could not get over the fact that they had been so ready and willing to walk right into such danger. They knew how deadly our security was. They knew we were equipped with an army of dragons, jinn and witches who could take them down from the
Although that was what I’d expected he would say, I didn’t voice my agreement. He needed to make this decision without any interference on my part.
He raised his head and gazed out again at the choppers, buzzing around in the sky like angry black hornets. He shook his head, shuddering. His brown eyes darkened. “I don’t want to go back to them.”
He might’ve lost his memory, but deep down I believed he must have still been conscious of the trauma they had put him through.
“For all I know,” he went on, “they could wipe my brain all over again. Lock me back in some tiny, airtight bunker for God knows how long.”
As more explosions were let off, I said, “Are you sure about this? Don’t feel you have to rush to make a decision. These hunters might be causing a disturbance, but they can’t get inside. No matter how hard they try. You have time to think about this.”
He took another moment to think, but then met my eyes, his mouth set in a thin hard line, his expression resolute. “I would rather assume that they are lying than take the risk that they are not.”
I held his gaze for several moments longer, trying to verify whether I really saw true conviction in them. I did. He had made up his mind. “Okay.” I nodded. “I’ll go and tell Shayla your decision.” I was about to rush out again but I held back to give his hand a gentle squeeze. “Don’t worry. We’ll take care of this.”
Then I turned on my heel and returned to the veranda before resuming my seat on Lethe’s back.
As he carried me back to the Port, I tried to fill my mind with only positive thoughts. I tried to reason with myself. We were seeing small signs of improvement in Josh, like his being able to hold in solid food, and his stamina slowly rebuilding. If the hunter really was telling the truth, how would that be possible? Wouldn’t he only be getting worse?
Descending on the crowd that was waiting for us, I informed Shayla, “He doesn’t want to be handed back. He is staying with us.”
She nodded, not looking in the least bit surprised. Then she fixed her eyes on the hunters, her jaw setting in a grimace. “Then it’s time to give these bastards an ass-kicking… Shade- style.”
Grace
N either Lethe nor I were needed for this task. This was a job for the fire dragons. I doubted even the jinn and witches would be required for this.
The fire-breathers burst through The Shade’s boundary, unleashing an unholy storm of flames. It engulfed the choppers completely, as well as every patch of sky within sight. It had become a sky of fire.
Shouts abounded, along with the firing of bullets and the dropping of more explosives, but from what I could make out through the blaze, the fire dragons were already above them and had blinded the hunters far too much with their fire to make their aim anywhere near accurate. Besides, the dragons’ scales were so tough, they were practically magical. They could withstand the spells of witches, which in their own way were just as powerful as these explosions the IBSI were raining down on us.
After five minutes of chaos, the dragons relinquished their flames just a little bit. The helicopters that had survived were rapidly fleeing the area. The dragons didn’t bother chasing after those who had escaped, but they did burn all who remained within easy reach to cinders. Several aircraft crashed down against the roof of the island’s barrier, along with the limp bodies of men. The dragons swept down, clasping the wreckage and the bodies within their claws, and flung them miles away, into the ocean.
As my hands trembled, I realized how in shock I was. It was not even so much their sudden arrival, nor what they had said about Josh. I just could not get over the fact that they had been so ready and willing to walk right into such danger. They knew how deadly our security was. They knew we were equipped with an army of dragons, jinn and witches who could take them down from the
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