Forces Collide by Jamie Wilson (ap literature book list txt) 📖

Her canine teeth changed in a subtle manner.
‘You wouldn’t dare!” I said. “You know you’re not allowed to sink your teeth into someone unless they say you can. And I have said no such thing!” I knew the rules I’d put in place on them. I knew she knew that too.
"You know, if I bit you, you would pretty much finish healing almost straight after I let go," she said.
"Drannor was different. I know that can happen with you all," I said.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
I explained what he'd done every time after he'd bitten me. At first she seemed repulsed by the fact I had happily let him feed from me. She understood why I did though, it had been a way for me to keep him in check. She knew that was a good thing. I smiled at her.
"I don't know that I have that much self control in me to be able to do that," she said softly. "I'm not the best at this sort of thing, you must understand that."
"Of course I do," I said. I smiled at her. "It was only an idea that I just had. I think I better sleep a bit more."
She nodded. "I'll let you have some peace. Rest sister!"
I did not take too many more days to finish healing as much as I could. Hycis never bit me, there was no need. I seemed to heal at an exceptionally good rate, she was surprised how quickly.
When I was able to get up and leave the tent though, I knew that what was outside would not be too pleasant. I had not seen Drannor in the whole amount of time since the fight. Hycis would not tell me where he was until now.
"Don't bother asking," she said, slipping back into the tent as I was about to leave it. "A scout returned and said that Neldor has been found, but Drannor's still missing. The only thing is the found Neldor and he was..."
He was what? I was confused and worried as well. i liked the big back wyvern, and so did Gaelira. He was after all, her brother. Family. Her only remaining family, other than her children, Yelowatae and Unae.
"Please, don't speak in riddles," I said. "I need to know where he is. I miss him so much."
“Thats the only problem the thing, Gem. Drannor has not been found. There is not a trace of Drannor anywhere. But Neldor was found.... dead." She looked at the ground sadly. "I've had people searching for him since you woke up a few days ago. There are a lot of dead elves out there. Though there are many humans who survived."
I gulped. "You have got to be lying."
Her face was sombre enough that I knew she was not lying to me. "I know its hard to accept, Gem, but it is the truth," she said.
Gaelira roared when she heard the news. She was up in the sky, but now she was coming back down to the ground to me. Several times I knew she was furious but also grief stricken.
I hurried out of the tent when she landed nearby. "What's wrong, Gaelira?" I was already worried about her. No matter how hard she tried to hide it, she could not for too long.
"Ackron is dead!" she said, her orange eyes wild with agony.
"Oh Gaelira," I said, feeling very sorry for her. That was most certainly a shock. Haemir Agrivar, who was the black wyvern's Uruohtar, was one of my best friends. Once he'd been more than that. Now he was gone as well? There were too many familiar faces dead now.
Who else did I know well that was dead? How many more had fallen?
I sighed. I had to find out of he really was dead or not. The best place to start would have to be where Neldor was, where ever that was. I turned to face Hycis. "Where was Neldor found?"
"I'll show you," she said. She knew that this was a hard thing for me to accept.
How could Neldor have been slain? He was such a strong fighter and Drannor was faster than any other elf. Which made him a hell of a lot quicker than a human. I also knew there were few ways he could be killed, things that I guessed the humans knew, thanks to the vampire who'd nearly killed me not so long ago.
I knew Hycis would never lie to me, though I had to see this for myself before I could really beleive her. Part of me did believe her, though some of it made no sense. Someone could not just vanish into thin air could they?
We moved on, unsure what the next we would find was. Then Gaelira hissed and sprang through the air. Then she landed and said, "cover your ears, Gem!"
As I did, I looked down at the ground before Gaelira. She roared in agony, a sound I never thought to hear from her.
Lying before the great dragon was a black dragon. Immediately I recognised the dragon before her. Ackron - Gaelira's mate - and dragon of Haemir. This discovery surprised me, since when could humans defeat Haemir? I knew he was a ferocious fighter, and almost unmatched in skill with a blade. In all his years only one person had defeated him, and that was me.
I slipped down from Gaelira, ignoring the distance from her back to the ground, and moved a little way from her to find Haemir. I found him, not far from Ackron's lifeless body. I examined him, trying to figure out how he'd died. There were no marks on his body and his armour was not in bad condition. He must have killed himself trying to heal Ackron, I thought in dismay. It was the only thing I could think of that would explain his death because his body had no damage to it.
I was still stunned by the fact he had been slain. To me it just did not seem right. Haemir did not deserve such a fate at all.
I then wandered on, on my own leaving Gaelira near Ackron; I knew she would not move from his side for a while. It did not take me long to find the next dead dragon.
"Neldor!" I yelled in pain. If Neldor was dead…. Drannor was…I could not think it. As I touched his almost cold black scales, someone's mind touched mine. I let them in, trying to hide my grief.
Gem, he fell from me when the other wyvern managed to knock him from me. I'm not sure where he is, but I do know my Rider is alive. How ever I don't know whether I'm going to make it, Neldor said.
Gaelira growled as she came back to me. “There is no chance I'm going to let you die, Neldor. You're family to me, the only family I have.”
My wyvern lowered her head as the sun still glittered faintly on her scales and gently touched his cheek. The sun seemed to shine from her onto him, and I watched as she lifted her head away. Neldor was completely healed the moment she did. He lifted his head looking at himself.
“Thank you, Gaelira,” he said in shock. Then he looked at me as he leapt to his feet. “I go to find my rider.”
He certainly looked a lot more energetic now. “Go, Neldor, and bring him back to me.”
The black wyvern nodded and then leapt into the air. I was so worried about Drannor, and he was going to have some explaining to do when he did get back here. I was not pleased with him for disappearing like he had done.
To my relief it was not long before I saw Neldor coming back in my direction. It was easy for me to spot the person sitting on his back, completely unscathed. The black wyvern lowered himself to the ground near me and my eyes instantly went towards the elf on his back.
Drannor seemed to flinch as he saw the fury in my eyes. Not something I had ever thought I would see him do these days.
“Before you even say anything Gem, know that I only disappeared because things were a little too much for me here. People would have been hurt, yourself included, had I not left.”
“Drannor, you know that I would have listened had you told me where you went. I've been more worried than you might realise while you were gone. Where were you?” I asked flatly.
“I've been taking a look at the damage the fighting has caused. A lot of people are homeless now, Gem. Many of which have children. Where I have been able to, I've helped them, but there is a lot to fix now that the war is finally after a whole century, over at last,” Drannor replied. “Plus, I have also seen that Collin and Sam are heading into Nuduien. The people there seem pleased to see them in the city's walls.”
“That's only fair, they are Lindan Marcos' children. Not that I expect to ever see them again. I did completely destroy their father after all.”
“You'll see them again. After all the Uruohtar's are bound to you. If Gaelira calls, then they have to come.” Drannor wrapped one arm around me gently. “All that's left now is to help people recover from this.”
“I suppose so.”
Things were going to be very different from now on, and I knew that.
I knew though, that no matter how difficult things were going to end up being, we would one day all stand as one nation, humans and elves alike, as one group. One day, we would not have these ridiculous past hates for each other.
With my mate, my sisters and friends nearby, how could anyone turn and say no? Plus there was also the fact that the most powerful wyvern to ever live was by my side as well. All the remaining wyverns respected her, there was no point in being against her for what she was. They would only know that I would rise up with her to teach them a lesson. Imprint

Publication Date: 03-16-2010

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