I chewed my lip again, ignoring the forming blister. I didn’t know what kind of supernatural Jasmine might be, but if I had to guess, it was something much more impressive than the failed protectors of Avalon. “So she blames my family?” I asked.
“She blames the goddess, I think,” she said as she straightened and propped her hands on her hips. She studied the map as if she could find secrets that would solve all of our problems. “She has a lot of hatred, Vivienne, and you’re going to meet others with this same pain and rage. You will only remind them of what they have lost, but it doesn’t change that you have power within you that is capable of changing things in ways we’ve never been able to do. It’s why I have such high hopes for you.” She glanced back at the door. “I just hope Killian comes to see the bigger picture.”
I touched my birthmark, feeling drawn in by the grandeur and aspirations the Dean had for me, but really, was this my fight? I didn’t ask for this power. “What if I don’t want to be here?” I whispered as shame tinged my cheeks red. “What if this is all a giant mistake? Killian didn’t get a chance to tell you what I did…” It wasn’t something I really wanted to get into with someone like the Dean, but she deserved to know that I wasn’t the savior she was hoping for.
“I don’t care what you did,” she stated flatly. “I need to show you something.” She cupped her hands and a dull glow flashed between her fingertips. I gasped as she drew the disturbance out, opening her arms until a massive projection filled the room. A distant dragon’s roar rolled through the air like thunder, hitting my chest as an array of dragons sped through rushing Tunnels. They traveled between realms that flashed, civilizations rising and falling as their victims’ cries pierced my ears. I held my breath as futuristic skyscrapers made of glass shattered; golden domes melted off of a cascade of hills.
I watched in horror as the wild dragons rained down destruction. The Dean interrupted the horror with an upraised finger as she pointed at a blue dragon that dripped with water pouring down its snout. “These are the water dragons that have claimed Avalon.” Her finger shifted as she continued to point out the variances in the infected dragons. They all had a sense of madness in their eyes, scars down their backs and other signs of disease or poor health. The red dragons hailed from Vyorin, a place of fire that flashed briefly through the hologram. She sped through the different races and their home realms, showing me the contrasting difference between the friendly origins and their diseased counterparts.
If I hadn’t been terrified before, I certainly was now. “I need to get back,” I said, my voice straining on a tremor. “My mother…”
As if echoing my fears, the image changed to the dragons Tunneling toward Earth. They broke through the vortex and circled dark clouds.
I leaned closer, my heart in my throat. The setting looked familiar… then it struck me. This was in the past. “That’s Mattsfield High,” I murmured. I’d seen it on the news, but without the dragons. There had been a gas explosion, hadn’t there?
“You’re correct,” the Dean said solemnly as the dragons released their fire all at once at the gym, instantly killing everyone… except two figures in the center. I leaned closer despite the horror.
“That’s Lily,” the Dean said with a small smile. She snapped her fingers and the display vanished in a glimmer of power. “You can come in now,” she said, raising her voice.
I whirled as the door opened and a gorgeous girl stepped into the office. “Hi, Vivi, is it?” she asked with a light smile as if I hadn’t just witnessed the destruction and death of lives all over the realms.
Numbly, I nodded as the Dean guided me to a seat. I gratefully slumped into it and braced myself on the armrests.
Lily took the seat adjacent to mine. “I know this is probably overwhelming, but I want to say how happy I am to have you here. You have no idea what it’s been like.” Her eyes flashed for a moment, turning her pupils into reptilian slits before she shook her head.
I squeaked and leaned back. “What…?”
The Dean remained sentinel at my side, conveniently blocking the door. “There are many different types of dragons, Vivienne. Some are good, like Lily, some are our partners, like the wyverns who have bonded to the students, and some have lost their way.” She smiled, resting her hand on my shoulder as her thumb grazed my birthmark. “Any power comes as a blessing… or a curse.”
And there it was, the point that the Dean was trying to drill into my head. I was able to do something about the destruction. I came from a lineage of power that had once protected the realms and kept order in place.
There was more to this than my problems, more to this than my father’s revenge. Earth was in danger. All the realms were in danger and I could be a force for good, or I could run and hide and fail them all.
I curled my fingers, digging my nails into the wood. “What do I have to do?”
Lily and the Dean exchanged a smile.
For now… I wasn’t going anywhere.
With the meeting concluded, I stumbled outside feeling dazed.
Dragons had already attacked my world… what was to stop them from attacking again?
I realized with a sinking sense of dread that the Dean wanted me to ask that question. The answer was simple.
I was meant to stop them.
I finally understood the importance of Dragonrider Academy. They needed me and if I could help them in any way, I had a duty to do so.
Maybe that was my goddess blood talking, being
