Inferno (Talon #5)(71)
Silence fell, broken only by the cicadas and the wind in the trees. Ember gazed down at me, and for a moment, I could see the outline of her other self in the moonlight, eyes glowing green, wings partially outstretched for balance.
“Huh,” she remarked, cocking her head. “Listen to that. You can actually hear it.”
“What?” I asked, bewildered.
“Absolutely nothing,” Ember said.
Smiling, I held out a hand. She took it and carefully stepped over my legs to sit down between my knees. I wrapped my arms around her and leaned close, feeling her body against mine, the warmth of her in the cool night air. She relaxed against me, and I closed my eyes for a moment, letting myself sink into the feeling of peace. Tomorrow, we went to war. Tomorrow, we would lead a group of soldiers and dragons into battle with Talon, a battle in which many of us would die. Tomorrow.
“Well,” Ember mused after a moment of peaceful quiet. “This is it, isn’t it? The Very Last Battle, in capitals and italics. If we win, Talon’s army will be gone. They won’t be able to do…whatever it is they’re planning. Which is probably try to take over the world, knowing the Elder Wyrm. If we lose…”
“We won’t be around to regret it,” I murmured.
She shivered, though her voice remained contemplative. “Are you scared?”
“Yes,” I said quietly. “But not for me. For everyone we could lose tomorrow.” Reaching up, I ran my fingers through her hair, brushing it from her neck. “For you.”
“I’ll be right beside you, soldier boy,” Ember said, leaning into my touch. “If we die, we go down together.”
“No,” I whispered, making her tense. Closing my eyes, I pressed my forehead to the back of her neck, willing her to understand. “Ember, my life isn’t important. If I die, nothing will change. The Order will either rebuild itself or be broken completely, and Talon will continue on as it’s always done. The loss of a single soldier will mean nothing in the long run.
“But you,” I went on, before she could mount a protest, “you’ll be the one to change things, Ember. Riley, Jade, even Mist…they’ll all play a part, but if we survive, the one who will determine the future of Talon and St. George will be you. I don’t think Riley could do it—he still doesn’t trust the Order, and his underground will always come first. Jade craves the isolation of her homeland, and Mist is more comfortable in the shadows than in the thick of things. You’re the bridge between us, dragon girl. We’re all here because of you.”
Ember gave a short, humorless laugh. “No pressure or anything,” she muttered. “But you’re wrong, Garret. It’s not just me. I might be the dragon who started questioning the way things were, but I could do that…because I met you. Because I fell in love with you, a soldier of St. George, when it was supposed to be impossible. If we never met, I might still be in Talon. I could be a Viper now, killing for them, hunting down innocent dragons. Everyone here would be a target.” She shuddered. “Actually, no, scratch that. I wouldn’t even be a Viper, because the freaking Elder Wyrm would be living in my head right now.” She clenched a fist on my arm, and my stomach curled. “I wouldn’t even be myself anymore. I’d be her. The enemy of everyone here.”
Ember took a shaky breath, pressing closer to me. “If things had gone differently in Crescent Beach,” she whispered, her voice trembling, “we wouldn’t be sitting here now. If anything, you’re the reason I’m not on the other side of this war, that I’m not the enemy of the rogues and the Order, and maybe the whole world. I’m here, Garret, because of you.”
Turning in my arms, she gave me a fierce glare as a lump rose to my throat. “So don’t you dare say your life isn’t worth anything,” she finished, staring me in the eye. “And don’t you dare go into battle tomorrow with the intent of charging off into some ultimate noble sacrifice.” One hand rose, caressing the side of my face, as she gave a faint smile. “Your past has been forgiven, Garret. Those years with the Order—you’ve redeemed yourself a hundred times over. Now, you just have to forgive yourself.” Her other hand came to rest against my cheek as she leaned in and touched her forehead to mine. “We end this together, like we’ve always done. And maybe, somehow, we’ll beat the odds and win one more time. But I’m not going to do anything without you, so you’d better be there. Besides…” The smile curled at one corner, becoming teasing, though her eyes were dark with emotion. “You still have a wager to lose, soldier boy. How am I going to kick your ass in surfing if you’re gone?”
Something hot slid down my cheek, even as I smiled back. “You’re awfully confident about that,” I said, and my voice came out slightly choked. Ember gave me a defiant grin.
“Prove me wrong, then.”
“I will,” I promised, and kissed her. She slid her arms around my neck and pressed close, and for a few fleeting heartbeats, with the moon shining down on us and stars fading from the sky, the past and future disappeared, and the present was the only moment that mattered.
Pulling back, Ember shifted and curled up against me, resting her head on my chest, as we gazed at the horizon. Overhead, the moon climbed ever higher, ticking down the minutes until dawn. It wouldn’t be long now; a few hours, and then nothing would be the same. Not for the rogues, the Order, perhaps even the rest of the world.