The thin membrane cloaking the unseen from reality was removed.
Seeing the dragons fly in their true forms, majestic and beastly was no ordinary feat in itself.
Not many survived. It was a feat quite close to legendary.
Liana was holding on to Lucian's neck with her body and arms. She was typically lying down on him and bear hugging him with all her body parts.
She did remember his warning. She dared not harm those heavenly, glittering scales.
" Damn! Why does this feel so good!... "
Liana thought she heard a murmur though nobody spoke.
" Umm, Lucian, did you say something just now? "
She tried to look at his eyes, bending a little down. As soon as they made eye contact, Lucian dived several feets towards the ground. The motion made Liana forget everything else and cling tightly onto the slippery dragon with renewed grip .
" Did she just hear my thoughts?Impossible."
In that commotion, Liana thought she heard something again. But this time, she chose to ignore.
In no time they were hovering over the outskirts.
Draco did not wait more than a second to launch his assault, straight on the spot Liana had shown him on the map.
As they kept zooming further and further forward, Liana saw that the 'spot' she pointed at, was no spot at all. It was an entire village, an entire locality.
Draco's fire was so massive, it had turned the entire place into a ruin. Or so Liana thought.
" Draco, STOP! You will hurt Damian if he is in there! "
Every Dragon in that flight froze in the middle of the sky.
They had no idea what tsunami the naive human had ushered.
She dared to yell at the Dragon Lord, in his Dragon form. And dared question his judgement in the middle of a mission.
"She's gone! She's dead. Fried. Boom. Quick Lucian, think of a way for her, out of this! "
Liana heard Lucian's thoughts again this time. Loud and clear in the unholy silence that followed Draco's roar and her yell.
Draco did not even look at her.
He simply closed the gap between himself and Lucian.
Then with the flip of his magestic tail, he swept Liana onto his back.
She fell, face flat on his sturdy scales, with a thud.
Before she could sot up or grab onto something, Draco took a large loop. It sent her flying. She was headed straight for the ground. Falling as swiftly as someone would fall if they jumped out of an airplane without any parachute.
Liana closed her eyes, this time very sure that it was her last moment.
Just as her legs were about to crash on the ground, Liana found herself dangling. A close brush with death. Escaped by less than a hair's length.
Draco held the back of her dress with his teeth. And with its sharpness, it was no surprise that the dress tore from the place and she fell on the ground, on her knees.
Draco, Lucian and the others descended in front of her like gods coming down from the heavens without any wings.
" Look around everyone. I felt him. The prince in right under my nose! "
It was at this point that Liana understood where she was wrong. Of course Draco had in mind the safety of his son even when he didn't look human. A dragon in his beast form was more capable not an animal for real.
Liana tried to hold onto Draco to get up but he brushed past her, totally ignoring her presence.
The rest of the group walked along with Draco, following in his footstep. None of them saw Liana, who was still on the ground.
A hand finally stretched in her direction.
Liana looked up. It was Lucian.
He was having a hearty laugh at her condition but he was atleast there.
She took his hand and he pulled her up.
Strange enough, the murmuring had stopped. Liana could not hear any strange thing any more.
Perhaps she was imagining things all along.
The group had already seperated and they were combing the location.
" Stay here! "
Lucian made Liana stand behind a fallen building and felt.
Liana stayed on the stop for a few moments. She tried to catch any sound, anything that was happening. But it seemed more like a burial ground than a war zone.
The silence was unsettling and unreal.
Liana started walking around the walls, circling the structure , under which she was standing.
Suddenly, she saw someone standing, right on the spot where Lucian left her.
He looked her in the eye.
He looked very strange.
Neither a human, nor a dragon.
" Hello human. I am betting you are the latest collection to appease our Dragon Lord? "
His voice was sinister. The aura he was emitting did not seem very friendly in nature.
" What's your name? Can I have your name? "
He walked closer to her as she kept retreating.
Liana started looking over her shoulder as he closed the gap. Her back was on a wall. It was a dead end.
" The dragons are too busy. They are not going to come for your aid. They are looking for that dragon child. I am sure they will find him safe and sound. "
Liana was itching to ask him if he was the one who took Damian. If Damian was alright. What did he want with him? And other questions like that.
But she refrained wisely. She kept looking back, hoping that someone might come to her rescue. Perhaps Lucian would come like he did before.
The man's hands went on both sides of her hips.
His sudden touch made Liana throw a kick, right at his face.
It was with brute force and great intensity.
She saw with horror as the man's jaws dislocated.
But he did not look in pain. He simply smirked. He simply smirked and fixed his face.
" Wow! That was quite impressed for a mere human. I guess you deserve to touch someone like me. Someone of my stature. "