“The clan leader can’t blame your escape on Caelan if you’re never seen with us.”
Drayce’s head jerked up, and his brow furrowed. “What?”
“You get out of here and you immediately fly to Stormbreak. We’ll meet up with you after we get Caelan to bond with the Goddess of Fire.”
Drayce shook his head. “Masaru would never believe it. Even if I’m never seen, he’d still blame Caelan.” He dropped his forehead to his arms. “Leave me alone,” he ordered in a muffled voice.
Fuck this. He was ready to fight dirty.
“What about your promise to the king?” Adrian kneeled and waited for Drayce to slowly lift his head so their eyes met. “You promised to protect him.”
“Trust me, I’m not the chosen protector of the Guardian of the Godstones any longer. Masaru has already offered to send another dragon to Caelan.”
“I’m not talking about that promise. I’m talking about the promise you made as an Erya citizen and member of the Royal Guard. You promised to always protect the king.”
“I’m not Royal Guard.”
“But you still made the same oath as all of us. ‘My life for Erya. My blood for the crown. My soul for the Godstone,’ ” Adrian recited the words that had been written on the very essence of his being.
Drayce stared at him for a second and then shook his head. “I am giving my life for Erya. Living and escaping puts Erya in more danger than if I die under the executioner’s blade.”
“What about Caelan?” Drayce froze, eyes widening a little, and Adrian pressed on. “He’s fucking falling apart right now.”
“What do you mean?” The young man sat up straighter, his attention completely on Adrian and the next words out of his mouth.
“Man, I don’t know what’s going on with him and those gods attached to him, but it seems bad to me. I’ll admit that I’ve never been close to him, but he’s growing more unfocused and…unstable. The Chasm was attacked in a night raid last night. He took down a dragon. Like a full-blown, massive, fire-breathing, eat-you-in-one-bite dragon. He did it with nothing more than a wave of his hand. It was the scariest thing I’ve seen in my life, but he did it to save Eno and Rayne.”
Drayce instantly released his own legs and grabbed Adrian’s arm, fingers digging into Adrian’s flesh. “Eno and Rayne were in trouble? Are they okay now? Were they hurt?”
It was more than a little heartwarming to see Drayce so obviously concerned over his friends rather than the dragon that had nearly killed them all. Adrian covered Drayce’s hand with his own, trying to ignore how icy cold his skin was. “They’re okay. You saw them in the hall. They’re fine. Like I said, Caelan saved them.”
Nodding, Drayce released Adrian and settled into his huddled position. “Good. That’s good,” he mumbled. “Caelan and everyone are safe. You don’t need me.”
“You’re not hearing what I’m saying,” Adrian snarled. “Caelan is losing it. He’s not going to listen to me, and he’s barely listening to Rayne right now. They’re constantly butting heads. Eno told me that you can get through to him. Eno mentioned something about a forest in Zastrad and you pulling him back from the edge.” Adrian shoved a hand through his hair and growled. “Nobody is telling me the full story, but I’ve got eyes. The scariest thing on this island is not a dragon, but our king.”
“It’s the gods. They’re tearing him apart.”
“And you’re the only one who has a shot at reaching him. He’s trying, but he needs your help. Seriously, Drayce, you’re the only one who can save this man’s soul.”
“How am I supposed to do that if I plunge us into a war?”
“I don’t know. I think you leave the political maneuvering to Rayne and help Caelan think more clearly. We’ll figure a way out of this, but you have to stay alive.” Adrian reached out and put a hand on Drayce’s slim shoulder. He felt thinner and smaller than he remembered.
“But my father—”
“What exactly do you think is going to happen when you’re executed? Do you honestly think Caelan is going to be able to hold it together? Do you think me, Rayne, and Eno are going to be able to calm him down?” Adrian tilted his head, making sure he was holding Drayce’s eyes. “Or do you think he’s going to destroy every dragon he sees?”
Drayce’s eyes widened, and all the blood drained from his face. Adrian must have hit far too close to the truth, but he’d gotten into Drayce’s head. Also, he really didn’t want to know what had happened in Zastrad with Caelan.
“The way it looks to me, war is inevitable no matter what happens, but I think a lot more good can come out of this if you stay alive, okay?”