Rogue Dragons

A lock is like a person. Some are easy to understand and open but others are tricky and hard to navigate. But Kamari Cain has never found a lock she could not finesse, she never found a door that would not open for her skilled hands. She was known throughout the city for her skill, shopkeepers did not fear what monsters could be lurking in the shadows.

They feared her.

Now, with the moon as her companion and the thought of fresh food for the week, she listened for the sweet click of gears that never failed to send a shiver down her spine and a smile to her lips. The gears strained and fought her until her pick glided through them like a water spider, the click felt so loud, as if it vibrated the soil beneath her boots.

After weeks of casing and gathering evidence, she knew all of the comings and goings of Lord Sandarv’s estate. One of his guards, Jean Luc, has a particularly large crush on the lord's daughter and would be preoccupied for at least another twenty minutes. Giving her plenty of time to sneak in and out with what she was here for.

Lord Sandarv is a peculiar man, Kamari thought as she entered one of the side foyers. Though she already knew that. Even if she hadn’t made it her job to know everything about the man, his extravagant home alone shows his unique taste. Its location in Nethilor Forest gives it the reputation of danger, Sandarv believes that is enough to keep thieves like her away. He was wrong.

The exterior was made of glass, though anyone, creature or human, peering through would not be able to see anything. But from the inside, Kamari almost felt as if she hadn’t entered the house at all. As if she was still outside hiding between the trees, a phantom shiver reverberated through her at the odd visual. The walls inside were made of stone, at least in this section, and led to the lower levels. Where Sandarv’s vault is.

There are two guards stationed outside of the cellar doors, talking amicably, clueless to her presence mere feet away from them. Kamari reaches into the leather satchel at her side and pulls out a tiny vial of cream-colored powder, she hesitates for only a moment before leaning over the corner and blowing the powder directly into the guards' faces.

The men only have a split second to notice her but it’s enough. She’s out of sight before they can draw their weapons and the effects of the powder begin another half-second later. They stagger and groan before falling into a restless sleep together on the hard stone floor. They’ll wake up eventually, angry and bruised.

There was no light behind the cellar doors besides the lanterns that adorned the hall behind her as she descended further into the darkness. Her eyes needed no adjustment, seeing more clearly than any human eye could. Her heightened senses are what made her an excellent thief and sneak.

Shelf after shelf of books lined the shadowy walls with varying levels of dust covering the spines. It smells of decaying pages and the underlying scent of sweat. Kamari couldn’t waste much time but the ache to run her fingers over the spines and dive into the rich history and knowledge was palpable, but instead, she strode to the far left wall farthest from the entrance.

A tall set of steel doors greeted her. They seemed to be vibrating with energy and anticipation, when she grasped the chain and lock keeping the doors closed, a shiver ran down the length of her arm.

Two minutes and the lock was freed, Kamari’s fingers trembling with excitement. The doors did not creak as she opened them into a small square room.

Kamari could only stand there in shock as she observed the room around her, any trace of excitement scrubbed clean from her veins. There were no jewels, no stacks of money or gold coins, nothing but a small girl, no older than three or four, cowering in the center of the room.

A chain hung painfully snug against her ankle, dirt caked on every inch of exposed skin, what could only amount to a paper sack wrapped around her tiny frame. The girl's eyes were large, spooked glowing orbs of green.

Another dragon. Sandarv must be trafficking them. Kamari’s dinner threatened to make another appearance at the sight. She’d heard of dragons like herself being kidnapped and sold for their blood or power but never imagined she would get so close to it, or that it happened to children. Though, she supposed, cruelty does not discriminate.

Kamari knelt to a crouch and tried to force her features into what she believed to be comforting. “Hello,” she whispers, bringing a hand out. The girl scoots as far away as she possibly can, the chain digging into her ankle deeper.

Kamari could not blame her, she would react the same way in her situation. She knew she had to get this girl out of there, Dayanara would know what to do. She couldn’t leave her here.

Kamari closed her eyes and breathed in a grounding lungful of air. She forced herself to forget her surroundings, to focus only on the power within her. She places her palms face up and within moments can feel the familiar tickle and dim warmth as a single flame sprouts from each palm.

Kamari opens her eyes to find the girl closer, still wary but curious. The orange light illuminates her soft features.

“What would you say to getting that chain off your leg and getting you out of here?” She extinguishes the flames. Kamari knows she must be gentle but the guards won’t be asleep forever and a girl can only occupy one man for so long.

The girl looks down at the chain, her emerald eyes brimming with returned hatred and anger, and glides her foot closer to Kamari. She’s as gentle as she can be but a couple of times her fingers graze the inflamed skin and a sharp intake of breath can be heard among the stillness. Kamari apologizes hushedly one last time before the chain breaks free.

The girl allows Kamari to place her in her arms and onto her back as they race up the stairs, down the long hallway, and out of the doors into the welcoming evergreens. The cold midnight air does little to soothe the adrenaline running through Kamari’s system. It’s a long journey back to her and Dayanara’s cottage and she wants to put as much distance between them and Sandarv as quickly as possible.

When they reach the small cottage hidden deep and snug in the lush and mysterious greenery of Nethilor. Nethilor is a perfect place for their species to live, and nature makes them feel as if they can be themselves without the constant fear of being found and executed. The forest borders most of the city, yet locals tend to not explore out of fear of getting lost or the creatures that live in its depths.

Their home is hidden from view from anyone who may walk past, though as deep as they were that was incredibly rare. The brick is laid haphazardly as if a drunken gnome did it and is covered in moss and kudzu.

Candlelight shines through the front window when they approach, Kamari’s heart warms at the idea of Dayanara staying up late researching new ways to improve whatever potion she’s working on.

“Dayanara, I need your hel-” Kamari halts as not only Dianara turns to face them in the doorway. The girl at her back, who was asleep, is now wide awake and her tense muscles are pushing into Kamari’s tired spine. A customer, who Kamari has never met before but this scene isn’t a new one. About once a week at least, a fellow dragon from town searches them out for potions to help conceal their powers. It’s one of the ways they make their money, Dayanara says it’s the only honest way they make their living.

Dayanara's alarmed golden eyes scan the two, “Uh, anyways,” she says with forced enthusiasm as she turns the curious guest towards the front door. “ Take an ounce once a day and it should last for a couple of days, I’ll make you a new one for next week!” She doesn’t wait for them to respond before shutting the door between them and whirling back to face Kamari.

Kamari brings the child from her back to the worn yellow couch, careful to avoid any of the places she seems to be in pain. “This is…” she realizes she hasn’t even asked the child her name. She kneels to face her, “What’s your name, sweetheart?”

The girl looks at Dayanara with wide eyes, tears close to falling over, and Dayanara comes to kneel next to Kamari, sensing the intensity of what must have happened tonight.

Kamari has never been the nurturing type or the sensitive one, she doesn’t even remember the last time she cried. But Dayanara is in touch with her emotions, more so than most. She is an Undan dragon, her element is water and her emotions are just as fluid and always just beneath the surface. Kamari being an Incaendi, her element is fire, and she tends to deal with her emotions in a more repressed way until they explode from within her.

Kamari’s heart couldn’t help but warm at the sight of Dayanara, her almond eyes welling up as she waits patiently for the girl to answer. Kamari could look at her for hours and never get bored, but before she could question that feeling further, the girl responded.

“Hyssop.” Her voice is raw and broken and she still refuses to make eye contact with either of them.

Dayanara reaches out a hand to touch her knee, her skin the color of wet sand beneath the candlelight, but thinks better of it and tucks it behind her back. “Where is your mother,” she asks, her voice like the wind rushing through the flowers on a riverbed.

At the mention of her mother, Hyssop’s bottom lip trembles. “I-I don’t… I don’t know. She went to get us food one day and never came back. She told me to never leave the house so I waited for her, but I got so hungry. I looked for her, but then a man found me and took me”

Kamari clenches her fist at her side to keep from punching something. The odds of her mother still being alive were slim, and to imagine how scared Hyssop must have been. Stories like this were common among dragons, most being orphans, widows, or parents having lost a child. Losing people you love is synonymous with their kind.

Kamari and Dayanara are no strangers to that fact, Kamari’s parents having been killed in the war against their kind fifteen years ago, the war that wiped out nearly 3/4ths of their kind and sent the rest into hiding. Dayanara’s parents fought alongside Kamari’s, their lives coming to an end just like Kamari’s. As if their lives hadn’t meant anything, as if there were not two small girls waiting for parents who would never come home.

It was then that Kamari decided that, no matter what, she and Dayanara would get Hyssop to safety. Her story can not end here, Kamari refused to let it happen. Even if she had to burn down the entire country to make it happen.

“Do you have any other family? Your father?” Maybe they could send her to a relative that could train her to hone her skills and keep her safe.

That idea is crushed into the maroon carpet below them as Hyssop gives the tiniest shake of her head. “Mom told me that I would never meet my father.”

Dayanara and Kamari share a glance, it’s not uncommon for a woman to hide her child from their father, especially if the father is human. The risk is much too high that he would give them over to the king.

A loud grumble drowns out their thoughts, a single dirt-smudged hand resting softly on her stomach. Kamari and Dayanara both see her ribs peeking out. Guilt surges through Kamari, getting her fed should have been the first thing they did instead of trying to get information out of her.

“We’re going to get you some food, okay, little flower?” Kamari and Dayanara stand and walk to the kitchen adjacent to the living room. They can still keep an eye on her through the open walkway. Hyssop only nods and lays her head on the armrest, her eyes drooping.

“So, how do we get her out of the city unnoticed?” Dayanara whispers as she searches the cupboards for anything they can give Hyssop that won't upset her stomach.

“Maybe Leopold?” Leopold is someone Kamari sells her stolen goods to, he keeps things discreet but is honest. He knows everything that happens in Lumina and he would know about any ships leaving the docks anytime soon.

Kamari and Dayanara have had arguments about her criminal tendencies and alliances, Leopold is one of them. She knew how she felt about him, even without noticing the way her nostrils flared at the mention of his name, but the circumstances would have to be enough for her to be okay with it.

Dayanara said nothing as Kamari said she would go to the market at first light and talk to him. Kamari placed a hand on her shoulder to get her attention, her golden brown eyes meeting Kamari’s sapphire ones. She holds her hand up to show her fingers are crossed. Dayanara smirks and shakes her head before crossing her own in a joking manner and leaving the room to give Hyssop the sandwich she made for her.

Crossing their fingers started when they were little when their parents were out at rebel meetings and wouldn’t come home until the early hours of the morning. When Dayanara would sit by the window, watching earnestly with tears streaming down her freckled cheeks for their return, Kamari would sit with her. Eventually, they developed a pattern to keep her calm, having faith that everything would be okay. It’s become a symbol of their friendship ever since.

The next morning, the market is packed fresh with people milling out sampling wares, buying fresh fruits and veggies, or running their hands over the exotic silks at various booths. Leopold keeps his stand in the back, at the end of the lines of people, only those looking for trouble come to him.

His wrinkled face brightens at the sight of Kamari, a mischievous grin splitting his cracked lips. “Kamari,” he says heartily. “To what do I owe the pleasure? Do you have anything for me?”

“I need a favor.” She didn’t have time to joke or talk about meaningless things. Every moment that Hyssop is here is another minute Sandarv could use his power to find them. They had to get Hyssop to safety now.

Sensing her urgency, Leopold motions for one of his partners to take his place at the front of the stand and motions her to follow him. He takes them to the far end of the stand where the multiple voices and music playing from somewhere in the distance would drown out their conversation.

“What do you need, little grasshopper?”

“Do you know of any ships leaving the country, preferably tonight?” Shock etches against his sharp features as he studies her for a moment. Sweat begins to bead on Kamari’s olive skin as she waits for his response.

“Did someone run into trouble,” he asks with a smirk.

“I need to get someone out of town, they’re in danger. It’s important.” His smirk dissipates and he sticks a cigar in his mouth and lights it. He takes a long puff before responding.

“I may know of something, what’s it worth to you?”

“Whatever you want.” Kamari knew it was a bad idea to show how much she needed this, but imagining Hyssop’s small, scared face, she couldn’t bring herself to care what debt she owed him. It couldn’t be worse than the alternative.

His smile returns. “We can discuss that part later. There’s a ship leaving for Brunasia tomorrow at dawn, the captain owes me a favor. If you bring your package to the docks tonight at midnight, they can help you.”

“Thank you, Leopold.” They shake hands before Kamari stands to leave.

“It isn’t free, I will come for that favor eventually,” Leopold says to her retreating frame. She gives him a thumbs up without turning around, she would worry about that later.

She returns home to find Dayanara reading to Hyssop on the couch. A small, genuine smile on Hyssop’s face. Her feet dangle and sway as Dayanar shows her a picture of a fierce dragon flying above a sea of trees. To be so small, she’s endured more than any one person should have to go through, her life has only just begun.

“Can I do that,” Hyssop asks as she points a miniature finger and runs it along the illustrated scales. Her eyes are wide with fascination and wonder.

“We used to, but now it’s rare to be able to fully take on our dragon form. But we still have the heightened abilities and some of the features. Like your eyes, the way they glow sometimes.”

“What are your powers?”

“Well,” Dayanara reaches to the wooden table in front of the couch and brings back a glass of water. She closes her eyes, her long black lashes fluttering slightly, and takes a deep breath. A small column of water dances up from the cup, curling around the room in the form of a dragon much like the illustration.

Hyssop giggles as the tiny dragon swirls around her head before dipping back into the cup. “Again! Again!”

“You should see what she can do in a bathtub,” Kamari laughs, making her presence from the kitchen known. She used the back door in case Hyssop had still been sleeping. Dayanara jumps at the sound of her voice and a blush blossoms against her cheeks. She sets the book on Hyssop’s lap, the book looking much larger in her hands. She turns the pages excitedly, her eyes growing larger with each image she sees.

Dayanara pulls Kamari into the kitchen. “So,” she asks earnestly.

“There’s a ship going to Brunasia in the morning. Leopold can get her on it but we have to get her there tonight.” There’s an inner struggle brewing between them both, they know they have to do whatever they can to get her away safely, but they’ve grown to love Hyssop in the short time they’ve known her.

“Yeah, that’s good. We can do that and she’ll be safe and we can breathe knowing she’ll be better off.” Dayanara wrings her hands in front of her, refusing to make eye contact.

An idea begins to form in Kamari’s mind. She takes her hands and leans down to look Dayanara in the eyes. “Hey. What if we went with her?” At her confused look, she continues, “I mean she’ll need guidance and you can find clients anywhere and I can help. Maybe you’ll finally make an honest woman out of me.” Dayanara smirks.

“That’s insane, what about our lives here?”

“We can start new lives,” she urges. She would need to leave some money for Leopold, hopefully, he wouldn’t be too upset at losing the favor with a full pocket.

Dayanara searches Kamari’s face for any hint of doubt or humor, but she finds none. Her eyes drift down to settle on her lips, but it’s so fast Kamari wonders if it even really happened. “Okay,” is all she says.

Kamari pulls her in for a bone-splintering hug before pulling back and shaking her shoulders. “This is going to be great! An adventure of epic proportions!” Dayanara laughs and shrugs off her hands to go pack what they can bring with them. They can get new things, and build a new home with Hyssop.

A few hours before midnight, Dayanara has managed to fit clothing for them and supplies for a basic potion and tincture-making kit into two duffels. Kamari fashioned an outfit for Hyssop by cutting up some of her clothes, they are baggy but will work until they get to Brunasia.

Hyssop is nervous, she watches our every movement like a spooked kitten. Hopefully, she will adjust smoothly on the trip there, the farther from the place where she’s been tortured and lost her mother the better she will be.

When the time comes to leave, they’re about to say goodbye to the home they built after their parents died, when they hear footsteps. Multiple people approach from the front, sending a chill up their spines. Could Sandarv have already found out what happened and found them? Hyssop grips the sides of Dayanara’s pants.

The footsteps grow closer as the three stands, thinking of what to do. They head to leave, if it is Sandarv they don’t need to be here when they arrive. They could be in the middle of the Attum Sea before they even realize they’re gone.

“ Kamari Cain. Dayanara Saint. Bring the girl out or we will take whatever means necessary to take her from you,” A male voice booms from the front yard.

Kamari takes Dayanara’s hand, another idea forming. “Take Hyssop and go. I can distract them.” Dayanara starts shaking her head vehemently.

“No way. I’m not leaving without you.” Tears begin to form in her eyes and Kamari gingerly places a hand on her cheek.

“I’ll be right behind you.” She knows that may not be true, Sandarv doesn’t seem the forgiving type. The most important thing is getting them to safety.

Dayanara still shakes her head, “I can’t leave you.”

“You have to. Take Hyssop and get to safety, I’ll find you. If not in this life, then in the next.” Before she can stop, before she can second guess what repercussions could come from it, she leans in and places her lips on Dayanara’s. The kiss is earnest, hurried, and full of passion and years of longing. It's goodbye. Just in case.

When they pull apart, Dayanara’s eyes are still closed, her lips still parted. Kamari crouches down to face Hyssop. Her cheeks are blotchy from tears and Kamari wipes away a tear before it can drop from her jaw. “You are going to be okay, I promise no more harm will come to you. You are a dragon, mighty and strong. They fear you, you don’t fear them. Remember that.”

Hyssop sniffles and nods and Kamari gives her one last reassuring smile.

“Now, go.” Kamari pushes Dayanar and Hyssop out the door before they can say anything else. Dayanara lifts her hand and shows her fingers are crossed, Kamari does the same before closing the door between them.

Kamari goes to the front of the house, steeling herself for what's to come.

“ Is that you Sandarv?”

“ Kamari Cain, you have something very important to me and I’m gonna need it back.” There’s a cruelness to his voice and it boils her blood at the thought of him talking like that to Hyssop.

“If by it, you mean a toddler, I’m not sure she belongs to you.” She doesn’t hide the rage behind her words. Her hands start to heat at anger coursing through her.

“You have ten seconds before we come in,” is all he says. Kamari does nothing. If it’s a fight they are after, it’s what they’ll get.

The front door bursts open and guards flood in. Kamari summons flames instantly to her palms, hurling a ball at one of the guards. It hits him in the leg and he crumbles, a scream ripping through his throat. She throws another one, just narrowly missing one of them in the chest.

She feels no remorse, just resignation. She knows this will not end well for her, but she knows Dayanara and Hyssop will be safe and that’s all that matters.

An arrow buries itself in her leg, she yells as she collapses to her knees. She refuses to let tears spring from her eyes. She grits her teeth and sends another fireball hurtling towards a guard, it finds its way home in the abdomen of another guard.

Another arrow finds her shoulder and she grunts against the pain, thankful for the heightened pain tolerance her magical blood gives her.

Just as she is about to throw another fireball, an arrow rips through her palm. She can’t fight against the burning scream that escapes her. The pain is becoming unbearable, she can’t see through the clouded vision her hot tears cause, and it's a struggle to keep the fire in her palms. She prays to the gods that Dayanara and Hyssop are still getting farther away.

Sandarv enters the room, clad in an embroidered tunic of gold and maroon. His face shows his age and cruelty. “Where is she, Kamari?”

“She’s long gone,” she spits.

Sandarv motions for a couple of guards to search the house, she can hear them ripping things apart as they make their way through the rooms. She refuses to look away from him, showing him the hatred in her eyes.

Sandarv approaches her, kneeling to his knees to bring his face close to hers. He brings a dagger to rest upon her throat, the blade cold against her skin.

“Where. Is. She?”

She doesn’t answer right away. Instead, she leans forward, feeling the dagger dig into her skin. A line of blood bubbles to the surface and trails down the expanse of her neck. “You’ll never find her. She’s gone.”

A frustrated scream makes the guards around them flinch, but Kamari only grins as he flips the wooden table, the glass of water from earlier slamming against the exposed brick. He tears picture frames from the wall, throws empty jars from Dayanara’s workstation, and punches the walls until blood spurts from his knuckles.

He spares another glance at Kamari before looking at one of his guards. “Kill it. Meet me outside when you’re done. We must find the child.” He spits on the ground before leaving out the way he came.

A guard, who she recognizes as Jean Luc approaches her, she wonders if Sandarv knows about him and his daughter. She laughs at the thought and the look on his face. The dutiful servant.

She closes her eyes and pictures Dayanara. She pictures her laugh, the crinkle on her forehead as she concentrated on her work, and her squeal when Kamari brought a new herb or flower home from the market. She pictures her with Hyssop, reading to her, and soon raising her. She crosses her fingers one last time, feeling peace knowing they’ll be okay. She doesn’t feel the blade or pain.

Her soul soars above.