CONTENT ADVISORY / TRIGGER WARNING
THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS DEPICTIONS/STRONG IMPLICATIONS OF THE FOLLOWING THAT SOME READERS MAY FIND OFFENSIVE OR DISTURBING:
~ REFERENCE TO WAR, BLOOD AND VIOLENCE
His teeth ground together. "Because he betrayed me." Anger boiled through him, and he felt his body starting to feel flush with rage. He took a moment, inhaling and exhaling slowly to calm himself.
"The war started after a long series of events, and it was not so simple. Búri, the father of Borr who is the father of Odin, created the race of dragons. I was the first to be born, and as such, I was titled the dragon prince. At the beginning of everything, dragons outnumbered the mortal races. Your kin, elves, were greater in numbers. As were dwarves and the drow, and man was considered more...well, less than they are now.
"Dragons were able to 'get along' with the mortals for a short period, and our relationship with the elves was actually at its greatest. Man grew jealous of the peace between the elves and dragons, which led to a war that nearly eradicated your kind. Dragons stayed out of the business of mortals because we did not want to go to war. The only reason we went to war is because the Nordic men started targeting our nesting grounds."
Libelle put her hands behind her head while she listened to him, his story intriguing and important to her. Eskil seemed to speak the truth, and sadly she had no one else to ask who could tell her the story from their perspective. He remained lying across her waist, his head propped up on one hand while the other toyed with the leather lacings of her shirt.
"For a short time, we sought peace with mankind. But the talk of peace quickly turned to bloodshed. Not long after, we learned of traitors among the dragon race. They were aiding mortals and killing their own kind, and that's when we learned of the first slayer. This war has been longer and more complicated than you were led to believe. There are more details I could go into, but at this moment it's pointless."
"Why did the gods not intervene?"
"I wish I knew. Sometimes they meddle in situations they should not. Like this one, the magic that Loki provided you. If he hadn't," he said, gesturing towards himself, "I would not look like this."
"Why was peace unable to be attained? If both parties wanted it, what stopped it?"
He gritted his teeth again and stretched his neck. "It's complicated."
"It can't be terribly complicated."
He exhaled slowly again, his nostrils flaring as he felt himself growing impatient with the conversation. "A friend, she was murdered during the meeting."
"Oh." She stared at him with a questioning expression, then glanced at the candle that had roughly a quarter remaining. "Was it a dragon or mortal who killed her?"
"No...yes...well, in a way, it was both. One of the kings of the land joined forces with the dragons who betrayed me. They killed her during the peace talk. They knew that if I lost her, I would not be able to contain my fury."
"She was that important to you?"
"She was."
She went silent again as the two stared at inanimate objects around the room while listening to the gentle rainfall. She felt calmer, and the images of her nightmare were fading as their conversation progressed. Eskil had provided more information than she expected, but she greatly appreciated the new facts. The dragons did not start out as the cruel and merciless rulers she thought they were. It made more sense now she knew what had happened, but it didn't change the fact that they were still at war.
"Do you still want to be at war? With mortals, I mean."
"Honestly, I don't know how to answer that. My hatred for your kind knows no bounds, but the killing cannot continue. Eventually, one of our races will die out." He sarcastically laughed. "I think yours will be the first because your bodies are so weak and fragile. Besides, your only one of a few slayers left in existence and you can't hope to slay all of us on your own."
Her expression turned solemn as she looked away. "I hope it doesn't come to that."
Eskil sighed again. The longer he lay here with her, the more relaxed and tired he was becoming. It was unnatural how comfortable he was being near her like this. She felt warm and soft, which was surprising to him. He was lying across a dragon slayer, yet he wasn't trying for her life, nor was she trying for his. It was...strange. His mind was getting fuzzy and his eyelids were growing heavy. Libelle looked at him confused. "Eskil?"
Once again, everything went dark. Libelle flinched when Eskil's eyes closed and his head slipped from his hand onto her chest. Her blush was almost instant and she held in her squeak of surprise. He was already in a deep sleep as a faint snore passed his parted lips. In the dim light, his expression was peaceful.
She tried to move away from him, pushing up with her arms to try and slide upwards in the bed. Instead, Eskil made a growl-like noise in his sleep and wrapped his arms around her. His cheek rubbed against her chest with a sigh as he scooted his body further onto the bed and made himself comfortable.
Libelle froze, unsure of what to do. Her arms remained above her head while she stared down at her defenseless foe. He had let his guard down and allowed himself to appear incredibly weak in front of her. Why?