- 12 hours ago
Mark of the Eternal Bracelet
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Short filmTranscript
00:00The day we were supposed to complete our blood bonding ceremony, my mate Rylan had the clan
00:04sentinels drag me out of the sacred hall. Lyra's baby needs a father on paper. Once we divorce,
00:10I'll marry you. He walked in with his childhood sweetheart instead. Everyone thought I'd swallow
00:16my pride and wait another month. After all, I'd already waited seven years. But that night,
00:21I accepted my family's arranged alliance and left the abyssal reach entirely. I disappeared
00:27from Rylan's world completely. Three years later, I returned to abyss reach with my mate for a clan
00:33ancestral rite. My mate had a work emergency, but he had his people to collect me. At the border
00:40crossing, I walked out and froze. That person was Rylan, my ex. The arrival clearing. I spotted a
00:48scout holding a marker carved with my name, my formal alliance name, Gila, and walked over. Rylan was
00:55holding it. He had Lyra with him, plus a few of his clansmen, all craning their necks toward the
01:00tree line. Rylan looked surprised to see me. He covered it fast. Hey, isn't that Rylan's obsessed
01:07ex? Isn't that Evara? I told you she'd come crawling back. His men laughed. Evara vanished without a
01:14trash. Now she sees Rylan is in a higher rank. She probably cries herself to sleep every night.
01:21Evara, if you're gonna fake a random run-in, why show up like this? Couldn't you at least put on
01:27some makeup? Without Rylan, you can't even buy a nice outfit. Look pathetic. It was true. I used to
01:33make myself perfect every time I knew I'd be near Rylan. Sharpest claws, finest scales on display,
01:39best version of me. Not anymore. No point. Because I'm carrying, and my mate refused to let me be
01:45uncomfortable. He had this soft traveling wrap custom-tailored for me. Listening to them mock
01:50me, it suddenly clicked. They only knew my alliance name. They had no idea the one they were here to
01:56collect was me. Evara, hey, it's good you're back. Rylan's been asking after you for years.
02:02Yeah, our son is entering the young training cohort soon. From now on, you're in charge of the drop-off.
02:07He was still so incredibly arrogant, but I wasn't that naive girl anymore. I didn't want to waste
02:13another second on them. I was just about to tell them exactly who I was. I am-
02:19Please don't blame Rylan. He's just trying to take care of you. You disappeared for three years.
02:23Who knows what kind of shady stuff you had to do to survive. Rylan caught my expression and thought
02:28I was jealous. Something flickered in his eyes. Satisfaction.
02:32All right, Evara. Drop the attitude. You clearly can't survive out there, so stop throwing tantrums,
02:37take care of the kid, and learn your place. Damn, Evara. Look how good Rayon is to you.
02:41He's giving you free room and board. Isn't babysitting better than whatever trashy life
02:46you're living now? Hurry up and say thank you!
02:48Lyra touched the scales at her throat and spoke with false sweetness. Rylan smirked and glanced at me.
02:54Don't worry, dear. If my son acts up, I'll handle him myself. You won't be mistreated.
02:59Why would she be mistreated? She ran away over a tiny little misunderstanding. If she hit rock
03:03bottom out in the wilds, a little humility is good for her.
03:06My heart actually skipped a beat. Three years had passed, and he still thought it was a small
03:11matter to dump me and married Lyra? The Rylan who used to love me was truly gone. He wasn't the
03:15young warrior who'd carried me, wounded, across three territory borders in the dead of a moonless
03:21night. But whatever. It was all in the past. None of it mattered anymore. Besides,
03:26I was about to carry my second hatchling anyway.
03:30Aren't you here to pick me up? Let's go.
03:33I looked at Rylan calmly and said,
03:36Silence fell over the clearing.
03:37Pick you up, please.
03:39Lyra held up the carved marker. Read it carefully. We are here for Hela. Do you even know who that
03:44is?
03:45Kale is a living legend. Coldest dragon alive in the field but completely devoted to his wife.
03:50Rumor has it he refused all alliances for years just waiting for Hela.
03:54Everyone knows the rule. If you want Kale's favor, go through Hela. She is his entire world.
04:00Listening to them gossip about my marriage, I couldn't help it. A genuine happy smile spread
04:05across my face. We had been married for three years. Kale's reputation as a fiercely devoted
04:10husband had spread everywhere. To claim Hela as his, Kale went to the ancient exchange and paid down
04:16a legendary artifact, the Eternal Fang Bracelet, just to give to Hela. She's the most enviled female in
04:23every territory. Lyra stopped. Then she pointed at my wrist and shrieked.
04:28That bracelet! That's it!
04:31The clearing went quiet. Everyone looked.
04:35It's a pretty good fake. Which a lowborn Klansman bought you that? Buying you a cheap imitation.
04:40Absolute trash. Rylan grabbed my arm, studied the bracelet, then laughed.
04:44Wow, it really is high quality for a fake. Way better than the replica I had made. But I'd never
04:50actually wear mine in public. These outer territory imutations, though, the craftsmanship is something
04:54else. The weight actually feels real.
04:58Or what, Ivara, are you going to tell us you're Hela?
05:03Are you Lord Kale's bonded mate?
05:06The whole group fell apart laughing. Of course they did, it was absurd to them. Kale was a living
05:12legend across all territories. Cold. Absolute. Untouchable. And three years ago, I was just the
05:18girl Rylan had left standing outside the Sacred Hall. There was no version of reality where those
05:23two things connected. Lyra swung the bracelet around her claw. Just give it to me, Ivara. I'll pay double
05:29whatever you traded for. Give it back. Kale gave me that. Rylan struck me across the face before I
05:36could finish. Shut your mouth! My head snapped sideways. I tasted copper.
05:42Ivara, do you have any idea what you're saying? Rylan looked furious. You think you can just casually
05:50invoke Lord Kale's name? Are you trying to get me killed? His Klansman piled on immediately. Do you
05:56know how hard we fought for this pickup assignment? Kale absorbed Rylan's clan faction last season.
06:02Our entire livelihood depends on him now. The only way Rylan keeps his post is if Hela accepts him.
06:09You're out here spreading wild rumors that you're connected to Lord Kale. Are you trying to ruin Rylan
06:15entirely?
06:19I wiped the blood from my lip. Slowly turned back to Rylan.
06:23Whatever he saw in my eyes made him flinch. Lyra caught it. She stepped forward and pointed a claw
06:29at my face. You ungrateful snake. Rylan offered you a place and you throw it back at him? I know
06:35you're still bitter about the past. Trying to sabotage his standing out of petty spite. That's sick.
06:41Hearing her say that, it felt exactly like three years ago. No matter what I did, Lyra would twist it,
06:47feed her poisonous version of the story to Rylan. In the early days, he used to defend me. By the
06:54end,
06:54he always took her side. Just like now.
07:02Jealous shrew.
07:11For old times sake, I'll let this go. Take these, get yourself proper clothes.
07:15If you really don't want to tend Lyra's hatchling, I'll find you something tolerable next season.
07:19Don't worry. Ever since Kale absorbed us, this kind of thing cost me nothing.
07:23No, thank you. I don't take things from strangers.
07:33You won't take what I'm offering? What does that mean? I'm a stranger to you?
07:37Rylan grabbed my arm. He dissolved our bond. Better not to stay tangled in each other's lives.
07:42Others might get the wrong impression. I was thinking of Kale, who had a very particular dislike
07:47of misunderstandings. Rylan glanced at Lyra. He had a knowing look.
07:51My faction is hosting a tribute piece for Kale in three days. I was going to bring you,
07:56show you something real. But you need to present yourself properly. Can't embarrass me.
08:00I'm fine. But thank you.
08:04Fine. I'll take Lyra.
08:07I won't let you down.
08:13Hope you're still this confident in three days, I said, and walked into the tree line.
08:18Fresh air. The nausea faded. I stood there for a moment, breathing it in. My mind flashed back to
08:26three years ago. My family had arranged an alliance overseas. I'd gone to Rylan for the first. Seven
08:32years together, I wanted to seal our bond before the journey. Force the decision. He agreed. But at
08:39the sacred hall, it wasn't just Rylan waiting. Lyra was there too. Lyra's baby needs a father on paper.
08:45Once we divorce, I'll marry you. This is just about Hatchling. I watched him take her inside.
08:52That was the last thing I needed to see. I crossed the border that night. Met Kale. Bonded with him
08:58a
08:58month later. Had our son the year after. Now I was carrying it again. And the only reason I was
09:04even back in the reach was to attend a clan ancestral rite with Kale. Honestly, if it wasn't for the
09:10rite, I never would have set foot back here. And I definitely wouldn't have run into Rylan. Three
09:15days later, I painted on a light adornment, threw on comfortable traveling leathers and made my way to
09:21the feast grounds alone. The second Rylan saw me enter the clearing, his eyes lit up. A smug smirk,
09:27spread across his face. You said you weren't coming, but here you are. Listen, if you want me back,
09:36you need to at least present yourself properly to match my standing. I walked past him without a
09:42word. He grabbed my arm. Evara, I'm talking to you. Our circle is here. Where do you think you're
09:48going? I pulled free and said simply, that's your circle. Mine is up there. He followed my gaze to
09:59the head circle. The raised dais reserved for lords and their bonded mates. His face went pale. Lyra
10:05spotted my bracelet from across the ground and her voice cut through the clearing. Evara, how did she get
10:10in here? She's here to cause chaos. How dare she wear that bracelet tonight? Of all nights. Tonight is
10:18the first time Kale is bringing his bonded maid out publicly. Is she trying to humiliate Hela?
10:24She slipped past the sentinels. She's trying to make us look disloyal in front of Lord Kale.
10:31Is this female with you? No. Take that bracelet off and get out. I looked at her with a faint
10:42smile.
10:46You sure you want me to leave? Lyra realized others were watching. Her eyes went vicious.
10:52Stop acting like you're something. Take it off now. She lunged forward to rip it from my wrist. I
10:58swatted her claw away and stepped back. Someone behind me tripped me. I hit the ground hard.
11:06Lyra stepped on my arm and ripped the bracelet off my wrist. My arm screamed. My wrist was bleeding.
11:14Treating this like it's something sacred. Trash. But I just sat there, staring at the bracelet lying
11:22broken on the ground, shards scattered across the stone. Pick her up and throw her out.
11:29A few sentinels moved toward me. They reached for my arms. I struggled.
11:35I am Kale's. Lyra struck me across the face before I could finish.
11:39Are you going to start spreading rumors that your Lord Kale's kept female? You wish.
11:45She struck me again. When I came back to the reach, I hadn't planned to make a scene.
11:50It had felt beneath me. But now, she had made it worth it.
11:56Your Lord Kale's kept female? You wish.
12:04Rylan crouched down in front of me. Reached for my wrist. I pulled back instinctively.
12:10Are you done throwing your fit? You show up wearing the bracelet, dressed down on purpose.
12:13You wanted me jealous. Just say it, and I'll give you what you want.
12:16I laughed, short, sharp.
12:21Rylan, you're finished. He frowned, opened his mouth, and then the clearing went dead silent.
12:27Guests began to straighten themselves, drifting toward the entrance path.
12:31Kale is here. Behave yourself. Lyra and I have dissolved our bond, by the way.
12:37I stared at him. I was cradling my nearly broken wrist.
12:40I'm just setting word for again.
12:42Looking at the male in front of me, thinking,
12:44How did I spend seven years on this person? What did his dissolution have to do with me?
12:49At that exact moment, Kale walked in with our son in his arms.
12:53Once they reached the feast grounds, our son squirmed and climbed down.
12:57He hit the stone path, all soft cheeks and small clawed boots.
13:02And every eye in the clearing went straight to him. His guardian scrambled after him.
13:07Evara, if you stop being jealous of Lyra, I'll forgive you for disappearing three years.
13:13I'll give you another chance. Carry my hatchling, a real one, ours.
13:18Just come back and tend to my son. I'll get rid of Lyra.
13:22Rylan hadn't noticed who the cub was yet. I didn't say a single word to him.
13:27I just looked past him into the crowd, trying to catch Kale's and our son's eyes.
13:32Then it happened. Kale followed the cub's small, clumsy steps, straight to where I was.
13:39The second my son saw me, something broke open in his face.
13:43He threw himself into my arms. He looked at my wrist.
13:47Why is there so much blood?
13:49Mom.
13:50Every dragon in that clearing turned from the cub to me.
13:52The ones who have watched me get knocked around without doing a thing, all of them staring.
13:57My son's warmth in my arms washed away everything that had been pressing down on me.
14:02I crouched down to his level, cupped his cheek.
14:04Okay.
14:05He took my hand, bent his small head, and breathed very carefully on the wound. A dragon child's
14:11instinct. The faint warmth of an ember breath that couldn't yet burn but still tried to heal.
14:17His eyes were wet, cubs. They see something hurting someone they love and they just fall apart.
14:22Protecting you is mom's job too.
14:25Before I could say anything more, the air in the clearing changed. A heavy, suffocating stillness
14:30washed over the crowd. Kale was walking toward us. That quiet, controlled walk that made the air
14:35around him feel different. Dragons moved aside without knowing why. I felt him before I saw him.
14:40I picked up our son and turned around. The blood on my wrist looked stark against his white wrap.
14:45Our son looked up at Kyle immediately. Father, someone hurt mother. We have to make them pay.
14:52Kyle stepped forward and very carefully lifted my arm. What happened?
14:56His face was unreadable. Ivara, I'm right here and you're already hurt. I can't take my eyes off you.
15:02But his voice was quiet. He didn't finish the sentence. Whoever did this? He didn't need to.
15:09Looking at this cold, absolute lord turn into a fiercely protective mate made my heart ache.
15:14He was always like this. A mosquito bite. A bruise from sleep. Even just eating half a portion.
15:19He'd be beside himself with worry. But I loved how intensely he cared about me.
15:24The feast hall's ambient light was low and dim, but our son felt something hard beneath his boot.
15:29He bent down and picked it up from the stone. It was the central gem from my broken bracelet.
15:34Isn't this the bracelet you gave mother?
15:36Kale's inscription visible on its face. Kale took it from him, turned it over, saw the engraving.
15:41Then I looked at the shard scattered across the ground and at my wrist. The nearest stone pillar
15:45cracked in his grip. Bring every torch to the ground over here. Now!
15:50He drew me gently into the light. When our eyes met, his pupils narrowed slightly. I softened my voice.
15:55What happened to your face? They actually dared to do this to you?
16:00I'm fine, Kale.
16:03Evora, I am your mate. You never have to swallow this kind of treatment alone.
16:09No one gets to hurt mother!
16:12Our son pressed close. Honestly, I could have handled Rylan and Lyra myself.
16:16But perhaps it was pregnancy. Or perhaps it was just finally feeling safe. My voice cracked.
16:23And they all came at me.
16:25All the weight I'd been holding for three days broke open. The feast grounds had gone dead silent.
16:31Rylan's scouts from the border crossing were somewhere in that clearing,
16:34shaking hard enough that they needed the standing stones to hold themselves up.
16:38They didn't expect it either. The female they'd spent three days calling Rylan's lovesick cast
16:43off was Lord Kale's bonded mate. They'd seen the bracelet. She'd told them, multiple times.
16:49Every single one of them was now looking for a way to disappear into the tree line.
16:53But then Lyra's companion, a female named Vesa who had arrived late, strutted out from the crowd.
16:59Evora, where did you find these two? Their performance is impressive.
17:05Vesa had arrived late.
17:07Do you want Lyra to get them placed with a traveling troop?
17:12Not that you could afford the placement fee.
17:14She hadn't seen Lyra fawning over our son. She had no idea who Kale was or what his cub looked
17:20like.
17:20She was just Lyra's tail, dressed up to find a high-ranked mate tonight. And she knew the easiest
17:26way to earn Lyra's favor was to make me miserable. Vesa threw her head back and laughed at her own
17:32words. Usually half the clearing would laugh with her. But this time the entire grounds just stared
17:38at her like she had lost her mind. Vesa noticed the dead silence.
17:45You're actually quite striking. She doubled down. She turned to Kale and smirked.
17:51If you ever want to leave her, I wouldn't mind taking care of you.
17:56My mouth twitched. She was propositioning my mate in front of me. I didn't know whether to call it
18:02brave or catastrophically stupid. Over the years, anyone who'd tried to get close to him had either
18:08vanished from the territories entirely or ended up reassigned somewhere they had no desire to be.
18:14Vesa finally registered the clearing's energy. She drifted toward Lyra for backup. Lyra wanted
18:20nothing to do with her. Before Vesa could even speak, Lyra spun around and struck her viciously
18:25body across the face. Vesa dropped hard. Vesa, are you insane? You just insulted Lord Kale and his
18:34bonded mate, eh? Do you want to be banished?
18:38Replaying the last few minutes, Ivara is Hela. I just told her mate I'd take care of him. Oh no.
18:46Kale's reputation as the most protective bonded lord in any territory was not a rumor. Vesa started shaking,
18:52then someone near the back of the clearing made a sound. Heads turned. Vesa had lost control of
18:57herself entirely. Her shift reflex had misfired in the most primal, humiliating way a dragon can in
19:03public. Scales broke out down one side of her neck and arm in a panicked, involuntary half-shift,
19:10the kind that happened to hatchlings who couldn't control their fear responses. On a grown female in a
19:16formal gathering, in front of a lord, it was devastating. Kale's jaw tightened slightly. A
19:22sentinel materialized and quietly escorted her from the grounds. Lyra and Rylan went scarlet. The
19:30guests looked at them the way you look at those who have shamed themselves past the point of recovery.
19:36Meanwhile, a healer Kale had summoned was tending to my wrist, nearby. I hissed. Kale and our son both
19:43turned with the same expression. Can you perhaps be a little more careful? The healer's hands started
19:49trembling. I shot them both a look. He's helping me. Stop. They immediately turned identical wounded
20:00expressions on me. Father and son, same face, same pout. I know. I'm sorry. Keep going. He visibly
20:08relaxed. When he finished, he turned to Kale. My lord, your mate is perfectly fine. The unborn is safe.
20:18The wrist is the worst of it. I will source the best remedies available and do everything possible
20:23to ensure no scarring. Kale said nothing. I knew exactly what that silence meant. It was the one
20:29that came before something irreversible. Standing in the crowd, Rylan looked terrified. But underneath the
20:37panic, he burned with something else. Jealousy. Watching how close Kale stayed beside me.
20:44His old possessiveness was peaking. But the survival of his faction was on the line so he had to bite
20:50it
20:50down. Kale stood beside me and surveyed the clearing with the kind of stillness that made everyone in it
20:56feel like they'd already been found guilty of something. He looked almost cold. Almost lethal.
21:02I actually found it a little endearing. Especially with our son standing right beside him like a tiny
21:09furious mirror image. I want to know exactly what happened. Everything. If you speak now,
21:17perhaps you survive this. If I have to find it out myself, every single one of you goes down with
21:24it.
21:24It was a naked threat. These dragons had clawed for the chance to attend this feast. None of them
21:31wanted to burn for Rylan's sake. Rylan panicked. He stepped forward. Lord Kale, there's been a
21:38misunderstanding. As Evara's as her former bonded partner, I was simply reconnecting with her.
21:44Things got out of hand. He unexpectedly said former bonded partner with a particular emphasis.
21:49God blessed him. Such an idiot. The worst possible moment for it. He actually thought I had spent three
21:56years keeping myself for him, waiting for him to snap his fingers so I could come running back.
22:01He completely missed the murderous stillness crossing Kyle's face. I heard the stone goblet in
22:08Kyle's hand crack. Rylan kept going, oblivious. You likely know she was quite devoted to me before the
22:14dissimulation. Reconnecting after years apart, it's natural that emotions would-
22:21The goblet shattered in Kyle's grip. Stone fragments fell. Blood ran down his fingers.
22:27I pushed Rylan out of my focus and reached for Kale's hand.
22:31Stop! Stop trying trying to put yourself between us. You had your chance and you threw it away.
22:36Don't flatter yourself. This is between us and it has nothing to do with you.
22:40I pressed carefully around Kale's cut, looked up at him. I have loved exactly one person my entire life.
22:51And it is you. Everyone here can hear me say it.
22:56I grabbed a clean wrap and frantically began binding Kale's bleeding hand. Rylan looked genuinely hurt.
23:03Evara, I know you're bitter, but Lyra and I have dissolved our bond. Her hatchling is ready to call
23:10you mother. You only bonded with Kale to wound me. I understand. I'm not angry. Just come back.
23:16Whatever he can give you, I'll work twice as hard to match it. Just return and tend to my son.
23:21If you
23:21don't want Lyra, I'll make her disappear. I honestly could not believe what I was hearing. His arrogance
23:27had no floor. Kale's blood was smearing onto my wraps, but as I urgently pressed the binding to his
23:32palm, he suddenly let out a low, genuine laugh. Why are you laughing? Evara. Kale reached over with
23:39his uninjured hand and quietly rested it on top of my head. You just said I'm the one you love
23:44most.
23:44Our son made a face and looked away. His cold, fearsome father was currently acting like a lovesick
23:50hatchling, all because I'd defended him. The entire feast grounds went still. Half the guests were in shock.
23:57The other half were dying of quiet envy. The whispers spread through the crowd like fire through dry
24:02grass. The rumors are real. He is completely devoted to his mate. Rylan stood there, his knuckles white
24:09with humiliation. But our son wasn't finished. He looked Rylan up and down with open disdain.
24:14Cub tender, my mother is the most protected one in our den. You think you deserve her?
24:24Mother? Mother only carries two cubs. Me and my sister. You really think your hatchling gets to call her
24:31mother? I know all about you. You're the one who broke my mother's heart. You're not as impressive as
24:40my father. Not as strong. Not as handsome. He tilted his head studying Rylan with the kind of cold
24:52disdain that was entirely too familiar on that small face. And you smell like someone who peaked
24:59too early and never recovered. It's making my eyes water. Is your hatchling going to grow up leeching
25:10off others too? The guests surrounding us erupted. They couldn't help it. Rylan bit his lip hard enough
25:17to draw blood, shaking with shame. Everyone in that clearing knew the truth. He had coasted for years
25:23on Lyra's family resources. It was not a secret. Hearing all of this, Lyra had completely lost her
25:30grip on rational thought. Her hatchling was the most important thing in the world to her.
25:35The most exceptional cub alive. And this female was going to replace her. Rylan had essentially said so
25:41himself. Lyra grabbed a bone-handled knife from the nearest table and lunged straight at our son.
25:48You little wretch! I'll kill you! I didn't think. I let go of Kale's hand and threw myself entirely
25:56over our son. A blinding, searing pain ripped through my back. The color drained from my face.
26:02I didn't finish the sentence. Everything went black. I collapsed to the stone. The last thing I saw
26:09before I lost consciousness was our son's face, white with panic. I wanted to tell him not to cry.
26:15I didn't get the chance. I woke to the sharp smell of healer's den. Dried herbs, warm stone walls. I
26:22stared at the ceiling for a moment, disoriented. My best friend Sorin was in the chair beside me.
26:28The second she saw my eyes open, she grabbed my hands.
26:33Oh, thank the ancient fires! You're awake! If you had stayed under any longer,
26:39your mate and your son were going to tear this entire territory apart!
26:44What? She was definitely exaggerating.
26:48I reached for my stomach on instinct. Sorin caught the look immediately.
26:52You're both fine. The healer said it was shock and pain. That's why you went under. The unborn is
26:56completely safe. That Lyra is something else. Going after a cub with a blade, Dre. My chest tightened.
27:07My son! Kale! Are they... Both fine. Physically, completely fine.
27:16Slow down. Drink. Sorin handed me a cup of broth. I drank. The tightness eased a little.
27:23You didn't need to throw yourself. You didn't need to throw yourself in front of him.
27:28Evwilai. Tunsil. Settilands. There were six sentinels in that clearing. Dre was never going to get
27:37touched. That's Dre. I know, I know. He's your whole heart. That terrifying little creature. He doesn't
27:46need protecting. He's more dangerous than most full-grown warriors. I smiled despite myself.
27:54Where are they? Sorin's eyes lit up. Getting revenge. I wanted to come along,
28:00but your mate and your son are genuinely terrifying when they operate together.
28:05So I volunteered to stay with you instead. She settled in and began.
28:11When I arrived, you were already under. Your son watched you collapse and went completely still for
28:17about two seconds. A cub. I don't know where he gets that kind of strength.
28:23Kale found out about the strike at the border crossing three days ago, and the bracelet,
28:28and everything they said to you. He had his centrinals hold Raylan down, and they dealt with the hand he
28:35used
28:35to hit you. I closed my eyes briefly. Then he had a chest of gemstones brought into the clearing.
28:44All the shards from your broken bracelet. And he told Lyra that since she loved taking things that
28:50belong to you so much, she could have them. All of them. She had to swallow them. You know what
29:05the stones. And the mail. And the mail. She refused at first. So Kale had her hatchling brought in.
29:22Then she did it. She swallowed a great many shards. They worked her over until she was barely conscious.
29:30Then Kale had her dropped beyond the outer borders, face first. Every dragon who stood around watching
29:38you get hurt carries a mark now on their wrist now. Just for doing nothing. Soren fake-dabbed her eyes.
29:46If you weren't my closest companion, I'd probably have one too. I gave her a flat look. The clan records
29:53were updated, but the only news that spread was about Raylan's faction being absorbed and dissolved.
29:59Every allied group in that clearing with border exposure, Kale absorbed it.
30:04Some were disbanded entirely. Some are still bleeding out. Raylan was supposed to go the same
30:11way as Lyra. It wasn't hard to figure out. The hatchling. I think she made a deal with him.
30:18When a mother is running out of time, the one thing she'll trade everything for is her child's safety.
30:25Rylan must have promised her something about the boy. Lyra had swallowed shards and stones for the
30:30chance that her son would be alright. Kale was precise and he was cold, but every time I so much
30:36as bruised my arm, he acted like he'd personally failed. He was brutal because he was afraid, not of
30:42losing power, of losing me. And Dre, my sweet, sharp, slightly terrifying cub, had been shaped by that same
30:49love. I'd been trying to counterbalance it, clearly still working on it. The den door swung open. I
30:56thought it was Dre. Kale, can you grab my… Rylan.
31:01Evara, it's me. His face was still swollen. He'd managed to find a decent cloak, the one I'd given
31:09him years ago, the one he'd told me was plain and unworthy of his rank. He had his methods for
31:14getting past sentinels, apparently. I stayed where I was. Last time I'd moved too fast, it had cost me.
31:20He seemed to read that. I'm not going to hurt you. I just needed to…
31:25What?
31:28I still love you.
31:31Every time I think about you with him, I can't breathe.
31:35I know it's too late. I know… I know what I did.
31:39His voice broke on it.
31:40But I can't just…
31:42Rylan.
31:43He stopped.
31:44You were with another female, while we were still bonded. You let me humiliate myself. You abandoned me.
31:52And then tonight, you stood in front of my mate and told him I was devoted to you?
31:59You've had seven years and three more to figure out what you want. What you want keeps shifting
32:05based on what you can reach.
32:08That's not love.
32:09Rylan's jaw worked. He wanted to argue.
32:12I was always your contingency. And you were never mine. Not really.
32:18He looked at me for a long time. Then he looked at the cloak.
32:21You gave me this for the winter solstice. I told you it was plain.
32:27I know.
32:28I kept it.
32:29I didn't say anything. He left quietly. A moment later, Rylan hit the corridor outside,
32:36and Kale's sentinels, and Kale's fist. I heard it from inside the den. One impact. Then nothing.
32:44Kale came in with his hand newly wrapped, Dre right behind him. They both stopped when they saw I was
32:49awake. Then they were both in front of me at the same time, Dre getting there first,
32:54only because he was smaller and could cut the corners.
32:56You're up. Are you... Does anything hurt? Do you need...
33:00Father! She was fine two minutes before you got here. She was talking and everything.
33:05Kale ignored him.
33:06Are you okay? Tell me you're okay.
33:10I'm okay.
33:11Dre tucked himself under my arm.
33:14You say that every time.
33:16Because it keeps being true.
33:19After a moment, he spoke very quietly.
33:22Mom, are you upset that father raised his voice at me?
33:29Did he raise his voice at you?
33:31Dre's lower lip came out a fraction. He maintained firmly that he was fine.
33:36Dre...
33:37He was the worst liar, Dre said, very firmly.
33:41He didn't yell. He was just... loud.
33:46I pulled him closer and looked over his head at Kale, who was suddenly very interested in the
33:50damn wall.
33:53Nothing.
33:54I kissed the top of his head.
33:56Protecting you is also my job. I'm not sorry.
34:00I know. I know, Mom.
34:02Soren eventually took Dre to find food, and it was just the two of us.
34:05Kale pulled up a chair and stayed there, not quite touching, like he was still afraid
34:09something would break if he moved too fast. He wanted to look at my wrist. I let him.
34:14He was so careful about it, like the wound was still happening.
34:18I'll do better. You won't be alone like that again.
34:22Kale...
34:23This wasn't your fault.
34:25You were alone and you got hurt.
34:27I was in a clearing full of dragons and I got hurt. That's not the same thing as being alone.
34:32I'm not made of glass.
34:34He looked up.
34:37I'm also not leaving. You understand that? I'm here. I chose this.
34:42You chose it because your family arranged the alliance.
34:45He didn't answer.
34:47I chose to stay. Every single day for three years I chose to stay.
34:53That's not an arrangement. That's me.
34:56But something in his face shifted. I thought about the hidden chamber behind the clan tapestry.
35:02His quiet, years-long devotion that he'd never once spoken aloud. The young, unblooded dragon eating
35:08alone at the edge of the training grounds every day while I stuffed a pouch of resource tokens into
35:13his pack and told him he was my honorary younger clansman. He'd loved me before he knew what to
35:18do with it. Before I even knew his name. I reached over and took his uninjured hand.
35:23You want to know what I was thinking?
35:26Every time things got hard and someone told me I'd bonded with the wrong dragon.
35:30He waited. But they'd never seen you bring me warmth stones when the cold fever took me.
35:36Or stay awake beside me through three full nights because I was homesick and couldn't sleep.
35:41Or stay awake beside me through three full nights and couldn't sleep.
35:47Or look at me the way you look at me when you think I'm not watching.
35:51They were comparing you to whoever they assumed you were.
35:56I know who you actually are. Kyle didn't show weakness easily. He was showing it now.
36:03I don't need you to be fearless. I just need you to stop assuming I'll leave.
36:08I told him, I'm not going anywhere. He brought my hand up and held it against his face. Didn't
36:15speak. Didn't need to. They kept me in the healers' den two extra days. Kale and Dre's
36:20insistence, not the healers. The morning they finally let me return to our den, I walked back
36:25through the entrance and stopped in front of the bonding tapestry. We were both so young in it.
36:30Kale, already composed, already guarded, the barest pull at the corner of his mouth like he'd practiced
36:35not smiling until it became habit. Me, looking sideways, like I hadn't fully believed in the
36:41moment yet. I lifted the tapestry. And I found the wall behind it. Image after image after image,
36:48etched in the old way. Dragon memory stone, the kind that holds a moment in its surface like pressed
36:55light. Me at 19, handing out forage tokens outside the training grounds. Me at 16, laughing at something
37:02off-frame. Me at 14 in a clan corridor, arms full of scrolls, annoyed at whoever had pressed the stone.
37:08He'd loved me across a decade before I'd ever said his name. I heard the den entrance behind me.
37:14Kyle froze in the corridor, looked at the memory stones, looked at me. Evara, I can explain.
37:21You noticed me first. He didn't move. I gave you resource tokens at the training grounds because
37:28I thought you couldn't afford to eat. I told you that you were my honorary younger clansman and I never
37:34even asked your name. I didn't know it was you until I found these. Silence. I'm a little upset it
37:43took us this long. Think about all the time we wasted. His voice came out rough.
37:50You're not- Upset about the stones? No. I'm glad. I looked at him. I'm glad you kept looking.
37:57Kyle crossed the den in four strides and pulled me in before I could say anything else.
38:01I never thought you'd say that. I know. That's the problem. You've been waiting for me to leave
38:07since the day I arrived. He didn't speak for a long time. Then, against my hair- I'm not leaving.
38:13I've told you. I'll keep telling you. I felt him exhale. For how long? I thought about it.
38:21As long as it takes for you to actually believe me. Dre appeared in the den entrance, took one look
38:27at us,
38:28and silently backed away. Good cub. Kale held on a little tighter. Outside, the ancient forests of the
38:35abyssal reach kept moving. Wind through the canopy, the distant sound of wings, the slow pulse of a
38:41territory that had stood for 10,000 years. And I stayed exactly where I was.
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