The Ice dragon's Mistake

Chapter 5-The life essence

“Are you sure you haven't seen the woman around here since then?” Winter asked the bartender while unconsciously tapping his index finger on the bar table he was seated at.

“No…I haven’t seen her around since then,” The man answered plainly but sincerely. Winter have consistently visited the bar ever since the moment he figured he couldn’t get the ‘Riley’ girl out of his head and while her image begin to fade, he could still vividly remember what she sound like. It’s been a month since then and it bothers him greatly how a human girl could have such an impact on him, while he had started to hope that he’d run into the girl again out of curiosity but now he was just chasing that feeling again, the same feeling he felt when she had her in his arms, it awakens something inside him, something he couldn’t place a finger on.

“Hmm, okay…give me, my usual” Winter commanded the bartender who at first was taken aback by the impoliteness of his tone but decided to ignore it, after all, he was his regular customer.

Winter’s head hung low, while he wonders whether or not to employ his friend’s help since he was more used to human technology and how things works, finding someone would be a piece of cake for him. ‘Terran can be really loud though, I’d rather not tell him’ He thought before he heard a loud call of his name.

“Winter”

“Speak of the devil” He mumbled as Terran pushed past the people in the bar and found his way to him. Ignoring the loud screeching sound of the bar stool, he dragged it close to him and took a seat right next to him.

“You’re here again” Well, they’ve met coincidently a few times while he kept coming over to the bar. The bar was quite famous amongst their kind since the owner is a human who was contracted to Terran, because of his contract he could easily recognise their kind, so they gave them the proper treatment they deserved, after all, they are superior to them in every way.

“Hey…vodka please” Terran politely ordered from the bartender, he sure is bent on being bound by human rules and morals. Winter thought as he watched him grin at the bartender so brightly. Terran is kinda enthusiastic in nature.

“Do you come here looking for the girl...again?” Terran asked meeting his friend’s cold desolate eyes.

“No” Winter lied apathetically, the last thing he wanted was Terran poking his nose where it doesn’t belong.

“Why does it sound like you’re lying though” Terran questioned as he narrowed his eyes at Winter who gave him an indifferent look at first but frowned as it dawned on her that he just lied, for the first time in 50 years, that girl sure is working wonders in his life even in her absence.

“You lied didn’t you?” Terran asked in disbelief. It’s not like there was any punishment for telling a lie or something, but the fact that he just lied to cover the girl’s existence was what’s praiseworthy.

“Whatever” Winter shrugged and stood leaving some cash on the table for the bartender.

“You’re just gonna go? Aren’t you waiting for the girl?” Terran asked innocently.

“I don’t think she’ll be coming today, it’s probably gonna be the last time I’ll come looking for her as well. I can hardly remember what she looked like, not like I ever remembered in the first place, I’m going home” Winter declared after leaving large bills more than enough to cover his drinks on the table, and then turned around to leave.

“Winter wait-” Terran hurried after him. Meeting up with him just right outside the bar.

“Lemme help you find her Winter” Terran offered, his eyes glistening with hope and optimism.

“I appreciate the sentiment but it doesn’t really matter-

“I haven’t seen you show this much interest in anyone for over a hundred years, please let me find her” Terran begged. Winter knew what scares Terran and to him, it’s just a needless worry.

“Are you still worried I’m gonna go into eternal sleep-

“If not because of the girl, you’ve been sleeping for almost the entire day, there was a time you slept for three days Winter…are you really gonna tell me not to worry” Terran’s brow creased and Winter sighed but before he could think of a proper reply to him, his pupil narrowed in alarm and his aura glowed brightly, so bright that any dragon miles away from him would have noticed. “What the f**k was that?”Terran asked with a nasty frown but he was still better off than Winter whose face was of absolute terror.

“Crap!” He muttered with a groan. It was faint but he knew exactly what it was. The aura of another dragon, a life made from his life essence. “I think I messed up” He muttered as he met Terran’s bewildered eyes.

*****

“Lemme get this straight…that night, you shared your life essence with that girl…by accident?” Terran asked for the umpteenth time.

“It’s what I said” Winter replied anxiously tapping his hand on his sofa. Unable to discuss the problem outside after a phenomenon that could have attracted their kind happened, the two returned to Winter’s home which was the closest to the area. Winter explained the problem immediately to Terran who couldn’t seem to comprehend no matter how much he tried.

“How on earth did you make that mistake-

“I don’t know, even the fact that I can’t remember her well is a problem on its own, I couldn’t make that mistake even in my sleep, how on earth did that happen? I wish I know too but it’s not a big deal, I just have to get rid of it” Winter declared but was surprised when Terran wore a crestfallen look in reaction.

“You’d be killing your own child-

“It can’t be helped, he can’t exist out there anyway” Winter decided. “The fact that I can’t feel its aura again means it’s still taking form and still unstable, once I feel its aura again, I’d be able to pinpoint its position, I was a bit surprised this time…it won’t happen again-

“Winter…do you understand what you’ll be doing, you really shouldn’t-

“You know I have to. It’s inevitable” Winter said insistently making Terran sigh.

Strange enough, Winter couldn’t sleep, he’s been sleeping more than usual for months now but this particular time, he couldn’t sleep…he stayed up all night waiting to feel the breath of a new life that had sprouted due to his negligence, he needed to clean up his mess…and fast.

Then it came again…the breath of a new ice dragon but unlike before, its aura seems more stable which means he could continue to feel his existence. Winter stood from the sofa he’d been sitting on since the previous night while drinking one of the most expensive liquor he was gifted by Terran.

“Found you” He smirked. When was the last time he was this excited? He couldn’t remember, but whether it was because of the girl he will be seeing again or because he was just excited to fly for the first time in a while. Winter removed his shirt, growing his dragon wings in a matter of seconds and despite his attempt to shrink the wings to a concealable size, it was still big enough to break the entire window wall that stretched from end to end of his penthouse apartment.

“I guess I’ll have them take care of that later” He muttered as he flew straight into the air after concealing himself with dragon magic. Then he rushed out flying following the breath of the child. Maybe it’s because it’s been long he flown, the excitement that came with having his wings in the humid air had him grinning, though it was wrong for him to be flying around that time after all it was still late evening and not night, it will take a royal dragon of equal strength to his to see through his magic which he doubt was anywhere close.

While still masking his presence, Winter found herself in an apartment building, a familiar scent tainted the air in the area, it was the girl alright? The same girl that night? He started to worry, what if the girl planned this all out? What if she was sent to break his pledge? After all, she still couldn’t explain how he quickly fell that night, not only did they end up together in bed while he was uninterested in a woman, but he also somehow managed to share his life essence with her. Life essence, also known as dragon’s breath. Even if they did sleep with someone, they don’t share a child with that person if they don’t want to, a life essence is an important part of them, it’s more than babies in tiny droplets of sperm to them, it practically cutting out a part of them and nurturing it, it’s a little different from how human babies are made, because sharing a life essence ensures that the child born is a dragon that carries their will.

Many dragons have had bastard children in the past that weren’t dragons, that’s because they didn’t share their life essence. If they didn’t share a life essence with their woman, a normal human is born and if that were the case with Riley, he would probably have ignored it, but the thing she’s carrying, to Winter isn’t just any child, it’s the birth of a new dragon and not just any dragon, a royal dragon with his essence, it was too dangerous to let the baby live, ignoring the catastrophe it could bring…humans carrying a dragon egg hardly survives, which means not only the world is in danger, the mother isn’t safe either. Ignoring his pledge, he couldn’t risk it so, he needed to get rid of it…and fast.

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