The Twilight Dragon Ch. 12

Author's Note: Hey beloved readers, it's been a while and I apologize for anyone that's been looking forward to the next chapter. I've been very busy these past few months and after my "Mirror Lake" story didn't do so well I have not been as motivated to write. I'm slowly finishing up this story as I come up with ideas for how it should end. Thanks for following :)

*****

"Trust me, I know my ropes." I said to a dubious Duke the next day. We had decided that I would be tied to Duke with a rope harness as he carried me while he flew. "The harness will hold." I assured him as he examined the rope between his claws. "This isn't the one you made, is it?"

I scoffed. "What's wrong with the ropes I make? Anyways, it's not."

We packed everything into Duke's bag and had a light breakfast, since we would be flying and didn't want to upset our stomachs. We ate silently and I checked the bag a few times just to make sure we had everything.

"So we'll fly to Scarsdale and then from there, we'll have to do the rest on foot. We should get going, I may need to take some flying breaks." Duke said as he shouldered the bag.

We walked to the top of the hill and I tied the harness around me and Duke, triple checking the knots. He beat his wings, sending soil and rocks flying away from us and flattening the grass. I grabbed his arms tightly as the initial take-off jerked me from side to side.

My heart raced once we were airborne. I had only flown with Duke a few times in the past, and the feeling was still exhilarating. It was very beautiful up here, to see the large forested areas and small lakes that dotted the area. I watched the view for a long time, despite the strong wind making my eyes water. Eventually I grew tired and fell asleep to the rhythmic bouncing.

I woke up later when the rough thump of Duke landing interrupted my sleep. Duke untied me and we both walked around, stretching and groaning. It was already dusk but we had arrived at Scarsdale. I could tell from Duke's expression that he was very tired. I felt guilty, I expect the trip would've been much easier had he only been flying by himself.

"Do you think you could ask if we could get the basement area again?" Duke asked me as he stretched. "We can rest and tomorrow do our investigation."

****

It was a little strange to enter the brothel from the front door. The front desk had a cute redhead that greeted me in a friendly way. "Well hello dearie, what's your pleasure, men or women?"

"Neither, I'm here to see Isabelle."

"Oh! I see." She excused herself with a smile and I waited.

I was looking at the nude paintings on the wall when I heard a voice behind me.

"Well well well, look who's here." I felt warm hands on my arms and I jumped a little.

"Oops, sorry." The dark skin woman held up her hands and laughed. "I didn't think I would have the pleasure of your company again so soon. To what do I owe this visit?"

"Duke and I want a room in the basement if it's available."

"For my favorite couple, of course. I assume you want it to be discrete again?"

"Yes, please." I said.

Duke and I returned to the back entrance and quietly made our way downstairs. Isabelle followed us. "Freshen up, and when you're ready, maybe you'll join me in the lounge for a drink or two?" She nudged me and winked. "And Duke, I'm sorry the invitation cannot be extended to you, should I bring down some liquor?"

Duke nodded. "That would be great, wine please."

Isabelle nodded. "Of course." And then she pointed to me. "And you, shower and I'll get you some fresh clothes."

"Oh. Ok." I said, surprised.

Once again, the bathing area was empty, the trickling of the water into the pool the only noise. I splashed myself with water and scrubbed myself. I heard a knock on the door and Isabelle walked in. I covered myself with a towel shyly but she appeared completely unfazed.

"Here, you'll fit into these. "She said, handing me some clothes. "I'll meet you upstairs?"

"Thanks." I studied the clothes. They were of a soft material, and they had beautiful swirly designs on them. I put them on and headed upstairs.

The young hostess left for a moment and returned with Isabelle. She led me to a new area I had never been to before. It was a large area with many people dancing to music. It was dark, so I followed closely to Isabelle as she expertly weaved between the many gyrating bodies. She led me to an area that was obscured by dark curtains.

"This is where we relax and get away from it all." Isabelle said with a wink as she parted the curtain.

There were already a few women sitting inside on large plush couches. The air was filled with the sweet scent of flowers and also some smoky scent that I didn't recognize. I noticed that a few women were smoking long, glass pipes. I scanned their faces casually as I sat down on a large purple couch. And who did I see but Donya, who did a double take when our eyes met.

"Some wine?" Isabelle asked sweetly.

***

The night went on and we continued to drink and chat. Mostly I just listened to the women who had various tales of men they had met or places they had gone. They were all fascinating in their own way and their ability to weave a tale was enviable. I was bracing myself for Donya's tale but she never spoke, only mulling over the stories while she smoked a small glass pipe. We hadn't acknowledged each other beyond the eye contact. Thankfully my glass was never empty thanks to Isabelle's careful attention.

"Oh try this one, one of my patrons from the east brought this as a gift. He only comes once every few years." Isabelle said. "But always for me." She said with a wink at me, as if we were sharing some old secret.

"I'll take some." One of the women, a blonde, held out her glass but Isabelle waved her hand impatiently.

"Try it." She was slurring a bit as she poured me a big glass. The mouth of the wine bottle leaned dangerously past the rim my wine glass.

"Ohh!" I jerked forward to catch the mouth of the wine bottle and all the ladies chuckled.

I took a sip of the new wine. "Oh wow. This is really good." I liked the sweetness mixing with the tartness of the wine. "Savor it, it really is a great wine." Isabelle took a drink straight from the bottle before pouring the previous woman a glass, who didn't seem to mind at all.

Isabelle had her arm on the back of my chair and had somehow ended up sharing my chair with me.

The booze was really starting to hit me hard, and I had trouble following the next story. I looked over at the corner I had been avoiding for the entire night. It looked like the woman beside her had taken possession of her pipe and was smoking it languidly.

"Come here, Donya." Isabelle called to her.

"You know, I don't work for you anymore." Donya said with a drunken chuckle and a shake of her head.

"Please, come here, Donya."

With some difficulty I watched the tall brunette get up from her seat and walk over. Isabelle pulled her into her lap and all of a sudden it was way too crowded. I started to sit up and leave but Isabelle grabbed my hand. To be honest, I wasn't sure if I could get up at the moment, my legs felt like rocks and my head felt so heavy. I smelled the faint scent of Donya's perfume, a familiar and somewhat painful reminder. "No, stay. You ladies need to tell me all about what's been happening. What is all this monster talk I keep hearing about?"

"Oh..." Donya gestured feebly with one hand. "Honestly, I'm not sure where to begin." Donya said. Her cheeks had a healthy blush to them and she swayed a bit as she spoke.

Heh, she's drunk. I thought before a wave of dizziness hit me. Oh fuck. I am too.

"Well let's just put it this way...before, there were not as many monsters." She said, before hiding her mouth behind her mouth, eyes twinkling.

"And now there are." I chimed in. We both laughed way too hard at that.

"Maybe, we're doomed, " Donya said with a wave of her hand.

"Maybe we're not, who's to say." I chimed in as we both snickered drunkenly at the dark humor.

"This is all just an epic journey to discover that we are royally fucked." I said as I leaned back into the couch. My head spun, but it felt so good.

Donya nodded, "Perhaps the cultists will come back and finish the job." she said dryly.

"Come again?" Isabelle asked gleefully, her eyes lighting up. "I didn't hear anything about these cultists."

"You didn't tell her about our adventure?" I asked Donya, who shrugged uncharacteristically as she took a sip from her wine.

I snickered. After listening all night, I was eager to have something to share. "They had powers...like...magic or something."

Isabelle sat up and looked from me to Donya. "Is this true?"

"Yes, they wanted to take Duke's blood for some sort of ritual." I said in a secretive voice. I paused. "I have no idea why though, but I have a feeling that these hellish creatures were the result of it. But who knows if those are even real."

"Very interesting. Isabelle said, eyes twinkling. I have heard of all these creatures roaming about, but I had no idea it was because of Duke. " She sat back, please with the new information, almost greedy with it.

"But this stays between us." Donya warned, breaking from her drunkenness to suddenly become serious. I could feel the heat emanating from her to me.

"Of course." Isabelle said with a dip of her head. "How many years have you known me? You know I can keep a secret." She shoved Donya's shoulder, a sluggish move that looked a bit too strong. Donya almost spilled her drink and quickly sat up straight. "Speaking of secrets, I'm going take care of a few things, have fun." Isabelle pressed the wine bottle into my head and got up. We watched her lift the curtain and saunter back out into the crowd.

We sat there silently. I noticed that there were not a lot of women around, most had left while we were talking. There were two talking in the corner but we couldn't hear them. There was a long moment of silence.

"Are we going to keep doing this? Acting like we don't know each other?" She finally asked, breaking the silence.

"I never did that." I said, resisting the urge to scoff at this statement, even though I knew it was true. As if I could forget her.

"I wish you would stop looking at me like that."

"Like what?" I asked.

Donya sighed. "With that wounded look. Like I'm some sort of... awful person."

You are, I thought to myself. The thoughts sounded childish even in my head. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see her turn to look at me, but I refused to make eye contact.

"You said you didn't want to be friends." I felt a bitter taste in my mouth at the memory. I suddenly didn't want to be there. I finally looked at her, hot with anger.

She was giving me a reproachful look. "I... I didn't act appropriately." She sighed and rubbed her eyes. She suddenly looked a lot older.

"No kidding." I said acridly. Yet I wanted to hear more. The ache in my heart forced me to stay seated.

"I just...it hurt." She halted, then sighed again. It was probably not easy for her to talk about her feelings, especially when she was obviously drunk. I sat silently and stone-faced, unwilling to help her out one bit.

"It hurt to become so attached to you and yet have to see you with him. I know you'll never think of me that way and yet... I couldn't stay away." She looked over at me sadly.

It was strange, all this time, I hadn't thought about her hurting too. Was I the selfish one? To enjoy all her attention knowing that she had feelings about me that I couldn't return? The wine bottle felt heavy in my hands. I put it down on the floor as I thought about what she said.

"You don't know... how much it hurt to be rejected by you...I trusted you..." I wanted to tell her about all the nights I spent missing her, angry, hurt, betrayed... she was here now and yet my words were caught in my throat and I couldn't speak. Frustrated, I dug my nails into my palm until the pain distracted me.

"Please don't think that..." Donya said sadly. I brushed hot tears away from my face.

She pulled me into a hug before I realized it. "I tried, I really did."

I wanted to push her away but my resolve faded immediately. Being with Duke had lessened the pain, but I had still missed my friend dearly. I hadn't realized how much I had looked forward to our talks after work, or how close we had become after our adventure together, when the night sky was our roof and I trusted her to keep me safe while I was sleeping. I hugged her for a long time before I pulled away. Donya wiped at her eyes gingerly with a sleeve.

"Please forgive this overly emotional fool." Donya said, pressing her forehead against mine.

"I'm sorry I didn't..." I couldn't even put into words what I was sorry for, but she touched my cheek and nodded, smiling sadly.

"It's so hot in here." I complained offhandedly. She let out a small laugh.

"We can sit out in the patio."

We walked up the stairs and out to the patio in the backyard. There weren't many people lounging on the chairs but given the purpose of the brothel and the time of night, it made sense that most had gone indoors. Still, there were some men and women around, a pair were dancing around the fountain while some others were speaking in hushed tones with the occasional burst of laughter or giggling from the women. I followed Donya to a set of wicker couches in a more secluded area near some trees. It was late out, but the air was still warm and faintly smelt of flowers. The wooden torches around the garden gave off enough light for us to see.

It was a far different atmosphere than indoors. Donya sat down on one lounging chair and I the other.

"This is nice." I commented as I spread out.

"Mhm. I used to love sitting here when I used to work here."

"How long ago was that?" I asked, curious. Donya had always been around when I started working at the brothel.

She was silent for a moment, thinking. "Five years, maybe six? The years start to blend together after a while."

I nodded in agreement before I realized she couldn't see my face.

"Same. I try and keep track in my house, mark the summers and winters." It was late, and my head was still a little dizzy from the wine, though the fresh air seemed to help it some. We sat in silence as the wind blew through the leaves in the trees.

It was so peaceful, I didn't want to bring up the subject again, the one that was causing a nervousness to creep up in my stomach as I wondered what was going to happen after tonight.

"Can we be friends again?" I asked. Donya was silent for a few, painfully long seconds. I braced myself for her rejection.

"If you still want to be."

"Yes, I do."

I looked up at the night sky, marveling at how beautiful the stars looked out.

"So, I'm guessing you and Duke are headed to the town where the rumors are coming from."

"Yes, once we figure out the source."

"I believe I can help with that, I have some connections here we can talk to. On one condition." She said.

"Oh?" I raised an eyebrow even though she couldn't see me.

"You let me come with you."

Hmm...

"Please, I want to help." Donya said.

"Alright." I agreed. To be honest I was so happy to be friends with Donya again that I easily accepted, even though I knew Duke wouldn't be impressed to have more people tagging along. He wasn't even happy that I was along for the trip.

We headed indoors after a short period, bidding each other good night. We would be up early in the morning.

**

I returned to the room and Duke was already curled up under the blankets like a giant cat. I stripped off my clothes and crawled underneath to join him. He rumbled happily and spooned me eagerly. "How was it?"

"It was good." I said. I paused for a moment before I added. "I talked to Donya, we're ok now." Silence.

"She's coming with us." I added.

Duke sighed. "Do you think that's a good idea?"

I shrugged. "I liked having her around last time. She doesn't complain."

"I won't be able to carry both of you." He said, scratching his chin thoughtfully. I marveled at how easily he accepted my decision to bring Donya along, already he was thinking of plans.

"I think that exhausts you anyways, and we need you at your fighting strength." I added as he looked up at the ceiling in contemplation. His eyes darted down to look at me. "I slept most of the time you were upstairs." He admitted sheepishly.

"And now it's time for bed for both of us." I said, patting him on the arm." He agreed and leaned over and blew out the candle.

***

The next day we made our way to the forest near the brothel to figure out our plan. Donya set a map on a nearby boulder and Duke and I peered over at it. "My sources tell me that the majority of the monsters have been coming from this direction." She pointed north of Scarsdale. "Near Therak mountain. There's a town there." She drew a line upwards from where we were. "Hills. It's going to be tough getting there. At least a day on foot. But it's not the traveling that I'm worried about. Have you thought of what we're going to do once we get there? How are we going to be able to stop these cultists?"

"The direct approach isn't going to work, Duke can attest to that." I said, watching the large dragon nod.

"It will have to be with stealth. we'll have to stay in the trees, get to the town and see what it's like there. We don't have much else of a choice."

It was a crisp early morning, and we were huddled into our clothes, our breath making patterns in front of us. Donya and I walked on the path and Duke followed through the forest, taking to the air when there was no coverage. It was hours until we saw people again. I didn't pay much attention to them, I was too focused on our task at hand. Eventually, enough people passed to make me curious. They were not the usual travelers, who were mostly merchants with carts. They were couples and families, walking along the road with what looked like all of their possessions.

"They look so scared." I muttered to Donya as I watched the mother pull three children along. We kept our heads down and continued walking.

We found out why all the people were leaving the town as we neared. Even from a distance we could see smoke coming from buildings. There was a lot of rubble all over the place and we had to navigate through the wreckage while covering our mouths to protect against the smoke. It didn't seem to matter whether people saw Duke or not, so he joined us as we walked into the town. Duke grabbed me and pulled me to him. I was about to let out a curse when I heard a man's scream. He ran past me, turning to in horror at Duke. He fell onto a pile of trash and scrambled to his feet before he broke into a run again, still screaming.

"Jesus, what happened here?" I looked at the smashed shutters and broken doors of the houses.

"What a mess." Duke shoved a cart to the side so we could walk by. Something green flashed out of the corner of my eye and I turned to look.

"Ah!" A small green creature was holding a wooden stick and beating a window with it. It looked to only come up to my thighs and had long pointed ears. Eventually it smashed the shutters and dove inside. I looked back at Donya and Duke to see them both staring at where the creature had disappeared to.

"What in the world is that?"

"Goblin." Duke said with narrowed eyes.

I looked over at him in disbelief. "What? How did you-"

Duke pulled me close protectively, leaving Donya standing alone. "Be careful. There could be more of those creatures out there." He paused for a moment. "I don't think you two should go any further."

"I disagree." Donya said. We both turned to look at her. "The cultists must have summoned these creatures, or their powers have drawn them to this location. You've fought them before and were unsuccessful. You can't do it alone, you need our help." She said. I could tell she had been thinking of this speech for a while. She looked at me for a brief moment before looking at Duke. "Lianne and I will approach this dangerous situation with appropriate precautions." She said seriously.