William couldn’t sleep. Too much weighed on his mind. As he tossed and turned, he thought of the events that led to this moment, to where he was. Laying on a dusty old bed that hadn’t seen use in who knew how long in a fabled underground city.

Something just didn’t add up. Opalana was the perfect hideout, the perfect base. Why allow it to be found? Why send others to this place? Only one conclusion came to mind: someone else knew. Somone neither Lyndria nor Cutter considered an ally knew about this place and the goal was to prevent it from falling into their hands.

If only he held even the slightest clue as to who that individual could be.

William sat up and fumbled about in the dark until he found the candle beside his bed. Even cloudy nights in Diamus were easier to see by instead of the near-pitch darkness that enveloped him, now chased away by the dim flame of the candle.

He wasn’t going back to sleep any time soon so he made plans to resume translating the old tomes. The moment he sat down at the desk, he felt a presence behind him. He whirled around, half-expecting to see a ghost floating just above the floor behind his chair. He had outgrown such childish fantasies, but something about this place brought those thoughts to mind.

There was no spirit, but the obvious glow of a candle or lantern passed by under his door.

William quickly retrieved the pistol he didn’t remember placing on the desk. It should have still been by the bed where he had placed it, but was grateful that subconsciously he remembered to keep it on him at all times. He stood there, holding his breath, and pointing the gun at the door, ready to fire upon whoever dared to sneak up on him in the middle of the night.

Several tense moments passed. The gloom had faded. But nothing happened.

Still gripping the pistol, he slowly approached the door and peered out. The glow of the intruder’s light gave away their position in the next hall. He grabbed his own candle and pursued. While he hated the idea of the light giving away his position, he was blind without it.

Thankfully, it worked both ways and made following the mysterious person much easier. He still made a point of keeping his distance which made determining their identity impossible. It was a relief that the intruder didn’t visit anyone else’s rooms and went straight out of the temple where they were staying.

Unfortunately being “outside” still didn’t make it much easier to see even with the braziers strategically placed around the city. The streets were strangely empty. William expected some people to still be awake, a side effect of living among such a large population. Walking the eerily quiet streets with only the sound of footsteps breaking the silence was unnerving. Was there a curfew in effect? What would happen if he ran into a guard? The questions pestered him and he prayed to never learn the answers.

Eventually his quarry stopped in front of a house. He quickly ducked into a nearby alley just in case they chose to confirm they hadn’t been followed. Thanks to how quiet the city was, he heard the faint knocking on the door,  the sound of it opening, hushed voices, and then the door closing again.

Carefully, he crept out of his hiding place and moved closer. The door itself had no windows or keyholes to peer through and he didn’t dare risk doing something so obvious out in the open. Instead, he made his way around the side in the hopes of finding an open window to listen in through.

His gamble paid off as he found a nearby window, its glow a beacon in the dark alley. The window was too high to climb through but William managed to find an old crate to boost himself closer at least.

“I already told you, I can’t make a move yet,” Lady Masterson said. “They aren’t done translating the books unless you think you can do it faster?”

William stared at the window in disbelief.

“Don’t give me that,” her companion replied. Judging from the heavy, rumbling voice, it was safe to guess it belonged to a dragon. “You weren’t supposed to be here in the first place. I thought you were keeping those fools in Diamus in line.”

“How was I supposed to know we had people in Opalna already? This city is supposed to be deserted.”

“Well it ain’t, and it wasn’t even before we got here. So you can get back to your assignment before I tell her what you’ve been up to.”

“You can try, but she’ll thank me when she learns what I know.”

Silence. William stood on his toes, straining his ears in case they spoke in lowered tones.

Then the dragon spoke again. “If it’s about the drake in the basement, don’t bother. Feylin hasn’t shut up about him. Half the city knows.”

“I’m talking about something much more valuable than some old wyrm. But Feylin is threatening to kill me if I don’t help her. I bought some time but that’s about it. I need safe passage out of the city before spring.”

“Feylin already said nobody leaves without her permission. If you get out, she’ll know you had help. I’ve been working this for the last 30 years. I ain’t risking it for you.”

Quiet again. William cursed his thudding heartbeat. He couldn’t afford to miss a single word.

“No, I have a plan,” Lady Masterson said. “We just need to play our cards right. I’ll sneak out on the wagon for the next supply run. Whoever is on guard duty will take the fall and you’ll get away clean.”

There was no immediate reply but the soft sound of clicking could be heard as if the dragon were pacing.

“It’s risky,” the dragon said. “If Feylin finds out—”

“She won’t. But our Matriarch won’t be happy if she finds out about this the hard way. How long before she comes south?”

William suddenly felt cold. Everything hit him all at once. When Lady Masterson said she didn’t work for Cutter, he believed her. He let her smooth talk him into thinking she was an ally, that he had been paranoid, and their reunion was a coincidence. But his first instinct had been right all along. Cutter planned this. His kidnap and convenient rescue by Lady Masterson was all a ploy. But why? Was it to get him close to her? To distract her? just to get him close to her again. Did she plan on him taking her out or the other way around?

Before he could speculate further, the dragon spoke again: “She’ll come south when the time is right and not a moment before. Look, I’ll send word to our Matriarch and see what she says, but if she says no, you’re on your own.”

“Just tell her that what I know will make a difference in the upcoming war. She’ll listen.”

William had to take several deep breaths to calm himself. A mixture of rage, fear, and disbelief throttled his senses and made it hard to think. Once again his trust was misplaced and was reduced to the role of pawn. Could anyone be trusted? The short answer was no, but it wasn’t that simple. He couldn’t do this alone. She mentioned a war. He couldn’t sit by and do nothing. Even if he did, where would he go? No one would let him live, knowing what he knew.

If that’s the case, then aren’t I doomed no matter the outcome?

The realization made him freeze. There was no escaping it. Lyndria couldn’t let him live knowing her secrets. Cutter likely still held a grudge for her treatment at the prison. Feylin saw him as nothing more than a pawn. And this new mystery Matriarch had no reason to keep him alive. Even if somehow he dodged the dragons, the Scale Guild had a bounty on his head. No matter who won, he was doomed.

He sank to the ground, feeling breathless again. The thought of seeing Marie again and getting his life back in order was what kept him going. Now even that was no longer an option.

Eventually, the streets began to bustle with life again and he realized he had been there for too long. The pins in his legs and the pain in his lower back reprimanded him harshly for sitting on the ground until morning.

Still, he somehow made his way back up to the temple despite not paying attention to his surroundings. He half expected an assassin to finish the job, but nothing happened. No one seemed to notice or care that he had left his room. It made no difference to him anyway. It was nothing but a sea of faceless people. Each one of unknown allegiances and motives. All of them hid a knife behind their backs.

Instead of going to his room, he made his way into the lower levels and back to Eber. The drake had returned to painting the walls. The one being worked on showed three blue dragons flying over a large field.

Without looking back, Eber spoke. “We have nothing more to discuss.”

“I only wish to ask a favor of you, your excellence.”

“If it’s to kill Feylin, or to deal with Lyndria for you, the answer is no.”

“That is not what I wish to ask.” He straightened up and spoke in a clear, confident voice just as he would for any business transaction. “I have no nothing to offer in return but there is a woman hiding in the Human Territories. Her name is Marie Delcatt. She is”—the confident tone faltered—“is my wife.”

Eber stopped painting and looked over his shoulder. There was no trace of contempt or anger in his eyes.

William removed his wedding ring and held it up. “I ask that you give this to her and tell her that…that I’m sorry I couldn’t keep my word.”

“Human—”

“There is going to be a war. I’m afraid I don’t know the exact details but I intend to do what I can to stop it or at the very least give humanity a fighting chance. However, even should I succeed, my death is all but guaranteed.” He kneeled on the ground and bowed his head. “I know I have no right to ask this of you, and you have no reason to listen. But that also means you have no stake in my success or failure. This means you are the only one I can trust.”

“The three humans with you can’t be entrusted with this task?”

“One of them I have recently learned plans to betray me to another Matriarch. The other, I can’t be certain isn’t being manipulated by the dragons either. Also, I calculate his chance of survival similar to my own.”

Jefferey had done nothing suspicious but William couldn’t rule out the possibility especially since he was the only one who could decipher the tomes to begin with.

Eber said nothing. William was unsure if that was a good thing or a sign of refusal. Until he knew for certain he had no intention of leaving.

“What is your name again?”

“William. William Delcatt, your excellence.”

“Tell me this, why not leave? Go to your wife and flee far away where the conflict cannot reach you.”

“Because I do not think such a place exists. And even if it did, I dedicated my life to fostering peace between humans and dragons. I want the next generation to grow up in a better world than mine. A world where the conflict you lived through 800 years ago is nothing more than a chapter of history and no one fears it being repeated.”

The sound of approaching steps broke the silence. William remained perfectly still. His heart beat in a calm and steady rhythm.

“Raise your head.”

He obeyed and found himself looking the drake in the eye.

“I see why Lyndria had you come here,” Eber said. “There was once a time when I believed in creating a world where my descendants could live free of strife. I gathered other like-minded dragons and humans. My daughters sacrificed their lives for it.” He straightened up and prompted William to do the same. “And I tell you now it is a fool’s errand. You may desire peace but there will always be those who seek to disrupt it for nothing more than selfish desires. It is an unending battle, one your descendants are under no obligation to continue.”

“That may be so, but I would rather fight for the future than sit on my hands and do nothing.”

The faint hint of a smile tugged at the corners of the drake’s mouth. “Answer me one more question, William. Which do you think serves this world better, a vacant throne or a destroyed one?”

“But they are the same.”

All traces of the smile from before faded. “No, they are not.”

“Then I don’t understand the question. In either case, there is no one on the throne.”

“That is where you are wrong, William. Until you can answer my question, I will not help you. Now leave me.”

He turned back to his painting. William quickly recovered from his shock and stepped in front of the dragon. There was a lack of fear at the growl elicited from his interjection.

“I don’t have time for riddles. I could very well be killed tomorrow!”

“Feylin would be a fool to kill you before you’ve told her the location of the Eye. Yes, I’m aware of your deal with her. Sound travels quite well in this place and many things have ears. I’ll tell you now, even should you give her the Eye, it would only destroy her.”

“Then help me to recover it! You said yourself your daughters sacrificed their lives to protect this world’s future. Would you allow someone to trample on that sacrifice? Would you let Cutter undo everything you fought for?” It was a shot in the dark and a dangerous one at that. But the way he saw it, he was already a dead man. What difference did it make at this point?

Eber glared, his rumbling growl filling the room. William held his ground. That Eber hadn’t killed or driven him away yet suggested he was being tested. Dragons didn’t respect the weak-willed.

“You remind me of your ancestor. Very well, William. You have my attention but I’m still not convinced of your resolve. Humans are fickle and easily manipulated.”

“Then this whole conversation is pointless and you may as well kill me now,” William replied defiantly. “I am likely to die anyway.”

A smirk crossed the old drake’s face. “And what happens if you survive? What would you do then?”

“My time with Cutter has…challenged my way of thinking. I have been callous, arrogant, and even outright blind to the true way of things. I have crossed lines in the name of achieving my goal and have seen others go even further. But I have only ever wanted peace between our species, nothing more. I will continue to fight for it, so long as I am able.”

“I wonder if you would maintain that resolve should you learn the truth of what it took to get the world to this state.” He lay on the floor and dipped his paint-stained tail into a bowl of water. “I will make you a deal: if you can look me in the eye with that same resolve after learning the truth, I’ll help you.”

“But I don’t have time—”

“Feylin gave you until the end of the season which is weeks away. By then I doubt it will matter since you never intended to honor your end of the bargain. Do not look surprised. I have spent centuries among your kind. Lying is one of many skills often used to ensure survival. But until that time comes, you will remain under my protection. Will that suffice?”

William nodded slowly. He would rather not wait, but it didn’t seem that he was getting a better option than that. There was nothing he could do from here anyway. Until he was outside of Opalana, he was stuck. “But may I bring along the scholar who was with me before? He would most certainly enjoy hearing this as well.”

“Very well, but only if he agrees not to share what he learns.”

“Why must we keep this a secret?”

“The past was buried for a reason. It must stay that way.”

Somehow he knew the drake wouldn’t budge on this and so gave up attempting to argue. “Then I shall return in an hour and we can begin, if that works for you?”

A small nod was the only response but it was enough. William bowed and left the chamber, hurrying back to their rooms.  He had no idea what time it was, but Jefferey should be awake by now. Hopefully, the scholar was off somewhere investigating the many mysteries of the city. It would make things go much more smoothly.

The first place William went was his room. Surprisingly, everything was as he had left it. Lady Masterson hadn’t taken his notes for her own. Thanking his luck, he gathered up his share of the books and translations then hurried to Jefferey’s room.

Jefferey was nowhere to be seen, but William wasted no time gathering up the remaining tomes and translations stuffing them in a bag, and then heading back into the hall.

It ends here, Lyndria, he thought. I will no longer play your game.

When they were being led through the city, he caught sight of a well. That was his destination. No one stopped him, no one questioned him, no one did more than glance his way. Still, he moved with a purpose and kept his head down.

It all started with these damnable books. You knew I would focus on them and act on what I learned. That’s how you have been tracking me. Because you know what’s been written.

The area around the well was filled with people but that was of no consequence. It made it easier to blend in. He went straight to the well and dropped the bag inside. Dragon leather didn’t burn easily, but the water would do the job fine. By the time anyone fished the books out, assuming they ever did, the damage would be done and irreversible.

“The past will stay buried, just as you wish,” William said to no one. “I only hope I made the right choice.”