I blinked at the Eastern dragon, stunned. She raised her head, eyes flashing green, and I resisted the urge to take a step back. “You can go, if you want to,” she said in a low, intense voice. “But I will not abandon this monastery or its people to St. George. Especially since it is my fault they have come. I will not watch another temple burn.” Her eyes shifted completely, a pale icy green, slitted and reptilian. “The time for running is over. Now they will face the fury of a shen-lung.”
“Shit.” I raked a hand through my hair, giving her a desperate look. “You do know it’s the Order coming for us, right? Genocidal maniacs who hunt dragons for a living? You stay behind, you’re going to get blown to pieces.”
“I will not leave this temple defenseless.” The Asian dragon fixed me with a level, piercing stare. “These people trust me. They have guarded the secret of our existence for centuries. It is my duty to protect them—they will not defend themselves.”
“You can’t wait here for St. George,” I snarled. “You’re going to be killed, along with everyone else in this place. We are outnumbered and outgunned. We have to run.”
“No,” Ember broke in, sounding determined. “She’s right. We can’t leave all these people to be slaughtered. And I’m tired of running. Enough is enough.” She raised her chin as I turned on her, her jaw set in that stubborn resolve I knew all too well. “It’s time to start fighting back.”
“Firebrand.” I shook my head, forcing my voice to be calm and reasonable. Every minute we stood here arguing, St. George was drawing closer and closer. I had to convince her, and quickly, that we couldn’t stay here and wait for the Order to kill us all. The Eastern dragon’s mind was made up, and I didn’t think I could dissuade her, but I’d be damned if I let the Order kill my brave, fiery hatchling. “You’ve seen their numbers,” I said, moving closer to her. “You know what we’re facing. If we wait for St. George, they’ll kill us.”
“And what about all the monks here? The people who helped us?”
“They’re going to have to run, too,” I snapped, and plowed on before she could protest. “Yeah, I know that sounds heartless. And yes, it sucks, Firebrand, but that’s war for you. There will be casualties and people caught in the cross fire. I have other responsibilities, and I have to decide what is most important. Right now, that includes my friends, my hatchlings, my underground and you. If we wait for the Order to find us, we’re dead, and so is everyone around us. There’s no way we’ll be able to protect them.”
In the corner, St. George sighed.
“Yes, there is,” he said, and pushed himself off the wall. His expression was grim as he straightened, his eyes shadowed and dangerous. “We’re not going to wait for the Order to come to us,” he stated, sealing all our fates. “We’re going to take the battle to them.”
GARRET
Two black armored vehicles wound their way up the narrow mountain road.
Perched in the branches of a pine tree, my M4 held loosely in both hands, I watched the Order of St. George approach and took a quiet breath, then let it out slowly. Around me, the woods were silent, my companions nowhere to be seen. Wes was the only one of our party to remain behind at the monastery, and he was probably doing the sensible thing and hiding in the deepest, darkest hole he could find. The rest of the monks, when told what was happening, refused to flee or take shelter, and instead filed into the main hall to meditate. They did not fear death, Jade told a frustrated Riley. They would not cower and hide in their own temple. If the Order came for them, they would meet them with dignity and respect, as they did all facets of life.
Which meant, if we failed here, the entire monastery would almost certainly be slaughtered for associating with dragons.
I shivered a little in the warm sun, realizing what I was about to do, what this ambush truly meant. A line had been crossed today. I was no longer killing my former brothers in self-defense. This wasn’t me fighting my way through the Order to save the very dragons I’d once hunted. This was a calculated decision; I was going to kill the soldiers of St. George, and I wouldn’t stop until the entire strike force was dead or incapacitated.
Abruptly, I remembered Tristan’s face, the contempt in his eyes as he’d tried to kill me, and I desperately hoped he wouldn’t be with this squad. If he was, I’d have to shoot him. He was far too dangerous to ignore, able to kill any of my companions in a single shot. If I saw Tristan St. Anthony through the scope of my rifle, I’d have no choice but to pull the trigger. If he didn’t take me out first.
A heaviness settled over me, and I shook it off, tightening the grip on my weapon. I’d chosen my side. Even if I could return to the Order, I wouldn’t. Not with what I knew now.
The trucks drew closer, the sound of the engines rumbling over the trees. I pressed a button on my phone, put it to my ear and murmured, “Now.”
For a quiet moment, nothing happened. The forest was deathly still. I hefted the M4 and pointed it down the road, training the muzzle on the front windshield of the first car. Curling my finger around the trigger, I held my breath.