The Betrayed Dragon (Cycle of Dragons Book 2) by Dan Michaelson (best free ereader TXT) 📕

but it also seemed to come from somewhere nearby. It was almost as if there were a familiar sensation coming off of that dragon, something that triggered within me and told me that there was a power that I should be aware of. “Does the king want you attacking them?”

“The king wants to ensure the safety of the kingdom,” Thomas said quietly and carefully, with more than a hint of menace in his words. “If that involves ensuring the Djarn don’t continue their attack, then so be it.”

“Continue their attack?”

Could they be responsible?

Joran had said they wouldn't be responsible for it, and his father had more than a little experience with them, as the only person along the plains who traded with them. I found it easy enough to believe Joran, but what if they held that information back from him?

What reason would they have to share that with him?

When I had come here before and felt the dragons, I had felt there was some sense of energy that came from the Djarn.

I needed to know.

I looked past Thomas, stepping toward the Djarn.

“We’re not here to harm you,” I said, holding my hand up. I tried to focus on the connection to the green dragon, feeling that power within me, the energy that connected us.

As I did, I recognized that there was some hint of connection flowing from the Djarn. That couldn’t be imagined. It was real.

If that were the case, then it meant that the Djarn were somehow connected to the dragons, as well. Could they know something about what happened to the dragons?

I could feel a presence around me, though it was faint. It was enough to know that the other Djarn surrounding me were getting close enough that I could feel them—but not so close I could see them. I kept my focus on the one Djarn in front of me, the only one I could see.

Behind me, I could feel energy coming from Thomas. I had to be careful with him. He had taught me how to connect to the dragons, and I knew he had knowledge and experience, but if he intended to attack the Djarn . . .

“We’re looking for missing dragons,” I said, stepping forward, holding out my hand as I pressed toward the Djarn.

For a moment, I felt a surge of power that flowed around us. I glanced over to Thomas briefly to see if he were aware of it, but I couldn’t tell anything from his expression.

I turned back, looking for the Djarn. The face I could see was barely visible through the trees. I caught a glimpse of long hair—or so I thought, at least. Pale skin caught some of the light glowing from Thomas. Then it faded.

The Djarn retreated.

I took a deep breath, moving forward, trying to get closer to the Djarn, but even as I did, I knew they were already gone.

“Well?” Thomas asked.

“I think they’re gone,” I said.

“Can you follow them?”

I closed my eyes, focusing on the energy of the dragons, the connection I had felt flowing between the dragons. The energy seemed to have faded, leaving me with nothing.

I shook my head. “I can’t feel anything.”

He turned to me. “You will need to explain yourself.”

“I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to upset you.”

“I don’t mean it that way.”

“You don’t?”

Thomas shook his head. He whistled softly, and when he did, I could feel power building between him and the dragon. A soft stirring came as the dragon made its way toward us.

“No. Not to me. What you describe is important, Ashan. Perhaps more than you know. When the time comes, you will need to explain to the king how you detected the Djarn.”

11

The halls of the Academy were quiet. It felt like every step I took thundered loudly, disrupting the somber air inside, as if the quiet were determined to mock me for my mistake. I couldn’t shake the feeling that I’d somehow angered Thomas and had done something that disrupted his plans, along with the king’s plans.

I paused for a moment, looking at one of the dragon lanterns set into the wall. The flame pouring out of the dragon’s mouth made it look as if it were breathing fire, leaving the eyes of the sculpture glowing as well. Heat radiated from it, though not nearly as potently as it would feel from a real dragon. I could feel energy coming off of the dragon sculpture and the lantern, but not so much that it felt like a danger to me. I didn’t know why I paused in front of this one in particular. It was as if there was something about this lantern that called to me.

I felt like I needed to do something. Ever since returning to the city with Thomas, I’d felt that I needed to do something more. I’d made a mistake approaching the Djarn, keeping Thomas from attacking them, but at the same time, it had felt right.

Dragons had gone missing, but why would the Djarn suddenly be accused of being involved?

A strange sense came to me.

At first, I wasn’t sure what it was, but it burned in my belly.

The power of the dragon.

Surprisingly, this sensation was close.

Almost as if it came from within the Academy.

I wandered through the halls, focusing on that strange sense, but couldn’t feel anything more.

Then it was gone.

As I was making my way through the halls, I came across Ames. He was staring at his feet, and he nearly ran into me. He muttered a quick apology.

“What’s wrong?”

Ames looked up. “Oh. It’s you.”

I had had some interaction with Ames in my time since coming to the Academy—enough to know that he wasn’t unfriendly, just sour. “Is anything bothering you?”

Ames shook his head. “You know, I know the others give you a hard time about coming from the Wilds, but sometimes I wonder if you might have it better not having come from the city.”

I frowned at him, not even interested in correcting him that I didn’t come