I'm The Dragon King's Slave

Chapter Five: Fall For Me

I'm– I'm going to die. My piercing scream echoes over the sharp mountain crags as I plunge to my death. I'm sure it's the last thing I'll ever hear... until a new sound fills the air. The sound of wings. Alarik's enormous obsidian dragon form cuts through the clouds, heading straight for me. But the rocks look like they will reach me sooner. I reach for a tock, a tree branch, anything to slow my fall, but it's no use. I brace myself for my bloody demise– but with a deafening roar and a flash of ice blue eyes, Alarik thrusts himself beneath me just in time.
    "Alarik, you–" I scream and cling to his scales. His speed is too great. He can't stop. We both plunge into a small mountain cave at high speed. Alarik's powerful wings flap hard to slow us down, but they scrape along the jagged cave wall, shredding before my eyes. No! Suddenly, my marked arm explodes with pain, as though it is me who was just sliced open.
    "AHH!" I scream and Alarik roars. He pulls his wings around me in a protective cocoon as we both slam to the cave floor.

    When I open my eyes, Alarik is human again, pinning me to the ground.
    "Are you... all right?" His voice is husky and low, completely out of breath. I look at where his right arm is shredded to ribbons, bleeding profusely.
    "What? Am I all right?" I gasp.
    "You were pushed from a cliff, so yeah. I'm asking if you're all right." He says.
    "But you took the blow. Your arm–" Alarik shakes his head.
    "Just answer the question, Lavena. Are you all right?" His eyes flash as he looks down at me, his breathing labored.
    "I'm fine, but you need a doctor or something!" I exclaim.
    "A doctor. Yeah right." Alarik scoffs. He tries to smile, but a sharp pain stops him. He clutches his arm and doubles over.
    "Fuck." He groans. Blood seeps through his fingers. When he squeezes his arm, my own arm seizes in pain.
    "Ah!" Tears prick my eyes as I claw at my bandaged mark. Alarik stares down at me in shock.
    "I thought you were all right. What's wrong?" He asks quickly.
    "M-my arm. It feels like it's on fire!" I gasp, "Are you poisoning me or something?" I demand.
    "No, of course not." Alarik carefully removes my bandage to reveal my marked arm.
    "There's nothing wrong with it. It's not even bruised." I gasp.
    "It's the Dragon's Mark. Our bond." Alarik realizes, "My pain must cause you pain."
    "What?" I ask.
    "Think about it." Alarik sighs, "You've felt it before now. Moments where you could feel what I feel. Even my emotions." What he's saying rings true. The moments where my arm would throb. Where I'd feel his jealousy. His rage.
    "At the ball... when Xander grabbed me..." I mutter.
    "You felt me then?" Alarik's eyebrows raise in surprise, "So, you know I wanted to kill him." I nod. A fresh wave of pain overtakes Alarik, and I feel it, too.
    "There's only one way for us to fix this." Alarik says and begins pulling off his shirt. Wait. What's he doing? He can't mean–
    "Alarik, I do NOT consent." I say quickly. Alarik freezes, cocking his head to the side.
    "What?" He asks, "What do you think I'm trying to do?" He pulls off his shirt slowly, and for a moment, I forget to breathe. His rolling muscles flex in the dim cave light, the reflection from the nearby pool of water dancing on his skin.
    "I need you to set the bone in my arm." He explains.
    "What?" My eyebrows shoot up. I don't know how to do that!
    "I can heal fast, but if the bone is out of alignment, it will continue to cause pain. For me and for you." Alarik says. He holds out his virtile, sinewed arm to me.
    "Please, Lavena. I'd do it myself, but I can't move much right now." I can see in his eyes that he's telling the truth, and he can see my uncertainty.
    "Try." He says, "For both our sakes." I nod, gingerly taking hold of his arm.
    "On three." Alarik says, nodding.
    "Okay." I take a deep breath.
    "One... two..." I steel myself and push as he says 'three'. Alarik lets out a cry of pain as the bone sets with a sickening pop. The same pain flashes in my arm, but instantly is relieved. Alarik gives me a weak smile.
    "Thank you."

    Once we've both regained some energy, I find my footing and look around the cave.
    "It's too dark. I can't see the exit." I say.
    "Hang on." After hitting a few rocks together, Alarik creates a small flame in the palm of his hand.
    "Why not just breathe fire yourself?" I ask.
    "I'd have to transform." He replies, "And believe me, you don't want to deal with my blue fire."
    "Why?" I ask, "Is it hard to control?" Alarik shakes his head.
    "I can control it. But make no mistake, it's lethal. It's the only fire that can kill other dragons." My heart pounds. I stare at Alarik, his body looking that much bigger in the shadow of the flame. I shouldn't be surprised. The Dragon King's power is legendary. With the fire flickering in the palm of Alarik's hand, we both look around the illuminated cavern. And then's when we realize: we're caved in. Alarik stares up at the freshly fallen rocks covering the entrance.
    "Damn it. We're trapped." His chest heaves, fear flashing in his eyes. Why is he nervous?
    "Why don't you just slam your tail into the rocks?" I ask.
    "And risk crushing you with more?" Alarik asks, "Absolutely not."
    "Well, we can't just do nothing." I reply, crossing my arms.
    "Just let me think, Lavena." He huffs.
    "We need to try something even if it's dangerous for me–"
    "Lavena, please!" Alarik's hand cuts through the air with too much force. The flame flies out of his hand... heading right for me. In a flash of panic, I throw my hands up. But the fire doesn't strike me. It doesn't come anywhere near me.
    "Wh-what in the world?" I hear Alarik gasp. I open my eyes to the fire floating right in front of my outstreatched hands. What the– My Dragon's Mark starts to hum softly beneath my flesh, as if awakening for the first time. Warm but not hot, a lick of inviting flame flicks down the webbing of my Dragon's Mark. A clam confidence falls over me as I feel every vein in my body spark with power. I don't know what's happening, but it feels amazing.
    "Lavena," Truly awestruck, Alarik takes a step toward me. The buzzing power in my veins suddenly becomes too strong. In an instant, I sever the connection.
    "Are you okay?" Alarik asks, eyes wide.
    "That was... too much. Whatever it was." I answer.
    "It looked like you were controlling the flame for a second there." Alarik says.
    "Yeah, but I couldn't hold onto it." I sigh. With a deep sigh, Alarik kicks a rock into the water. The ripple webs out away from the shore... and reveals a small, hidden pathway.