Chapter 175: Scared

Liona’s POV

The wooden bed frame creaked and groaned, shaking so hard that the metal joints rattled.

At first, I thought the floorboards were shifting beneath us, but then my eyes landed on Azura.

It was not the bed at all.

Her entire body trembled violently, her muscles tensing up as if something terrifying was locked inside her, desperately trying to claw its way out of her skin.

Her eyes stayed tightly shut, but her face twisted into a mask of pure agony.

Heavy tears leaked from the corners of her eyelids, tracking wet paths down her pale cheeks.

She was weeping in her sleep, trapped in a nightmare that refused to let her go.

I rushed to the side of the bed, my own hands shaking as I reached out and grabbed her shoulders.

"Azura," I pleaded, giving her a firm shake. "Azura, please wake up."

But she did not stir. The frantic trembling only grew worse.

I shook her again, raising my voice to pierce through whatever horror she was seeing.

"Azura! Wake up!"

The girl on the mattress remained completely unresponsive, her eyes locked shut against the world.

But then her chest hitched, and her pale lips parted.

A sound slipped past them, weak and completely broken.

"No," Azura whispered, her voice cracking with a fear that made my blood run cold. "Please... no..."

Before I could call out to her again, the air in the room grew heavy and thick.

A strange pressure yanked at my hair, and then the world went completely sideways.

The ceramic cup sitting on the bedside table suddenly lifted into the air.

It hovered for a second before rising higher, drifting toward the ceiling.

The candle beside it followed, its flame flickering wildly as it floated upward.

Then the heavy woolen blankets tore away from the mattress, lifting into the air like weightless sheets of paper.

Every single small object, every piece of loose clothing, and everything that was not bolted down began to rise, spinning and shaking in the middle of the room.

A memory flashed through my mind, bright and terrifying.

I remembered exactly what Genevieve had warned me about.

She had spoken about Azura’s magic, describing a raw, destructive power that tore itself free whenever she completely lost control of her emotions.

It was a force that did not listen to logic, and it certainly did not care about reason.

Fear flared in my chest, hot and sharp. I took a slow step backward, my boots scraping against the stone floor.

Then I took another hurried step. My shoulder blades hit the rough, solid wall behind me.

I pressed my palms flat against the cold stone, trying to anchor myself as the room spun out of control.

I was terrified.

I was not scared of Azura herself, but I was absolutely horrified by what her untamed powers might do to us.

It could tear this room apart, shatter the walls, or crush both of us in an instant.

I stayed pinned against the stone wall, my heart hammering against my ribs as I watched my best friend weep, shake, and suspend the entire room in midair without even realizing she was doing it.

A sudden shift in the air made the hairs on my arms stand up.

I felt a heavy, overwhelming presence enter the space.

I did not turn my head to look toward the doorway.

I did not need to see him to know he was there.

The ancient, invisible bond anchored deep inside my chest began to vibrate, sending a wave of warmth rushing through my veins.

It was a familiar sensation, yet it was completely unwanted.

The Dragon King had arrived.

He moved across the room in a blur of motion, his heavy leather boots thudding loudly against the solid stone.

Within a fraction of a second, he cleared the distance and stood right beside me.

He leaned in close, his deep voice carrying a sharp edge of panic.

"Are you okay, princess?" he asked quietly.

I could not bring myself to answer him.

My throat felt completely dry, and my mind was entirely focused on the scene before us.

I kept my eyes glued to the bed, watching Azura struggle against her own mind while the tears continued to soak her face.

Beside me, I felt the Dragon King go completely rigid.

His gaze shifted away from me and landed on the bed.

He stared at the floating furniture, the trembling girl, and the sheer, raw power that poured out of her like a raging thunderstorm.

He did not say another word.

He just was completely silent, his sharp eyes moving over the chaos as he tried to comprehend the madness unfolding in the room.

Slowly, his large arm slid around my waist.

His touch was incredibly gentle, completely lacking his usual demanding grip.

He simply held me against his side, offering his solid frame as a shield.

He was just there for me, standing as a barrier between me and the danger.

I was too exhausted and too frightened to fight him on it.

I did not pull away or argue. Instead, I let my weight lean into his side, drawing comfort from his heat.

At this point, the terror running through my body was simply too great for me to care about pride.

But then a loud, splintering crash echoed through the space as the heavy wooden door was thrown open, slamming violently against the stone wall.

I snapped my head toward the entrance.

A towering man stood framed in the doorway, panting heavily as his chest rose and fell.

He held a pair of massive battle-axes in his hands, and the sharp metal blades were coated in thick, dark blood.

It was completely obvious that he had brutally cut his way through the castle just to reach this floor.

It was Rhydor.

His wild eyes swept across the chaotic bedroom, instantly locking onto the bed.

He stared at Azura, taking in the floating cups, the spinning blankets, and the desperate tears streaming down her face.

In an instant, the fierce, murderous rage vanished from his expression, replaced by pure heartbreak.

He let go of his weapons, and the heavy axes clattered loudly against the stone floor, completely forgotten.

Rhydor crossed the room in three massive, desperate strides, ignoring the objects floating around his head.

He threw himself onto the edge of the mattress and reached out, gathering Azura’s shaking body directly into his massive arms.

He pulled her up against his chest, holding her so tightly that there was no space between them, forcing her to sit up against his solid frame.

"Pumpkin," Rhydor choked out, his rough voice completely cracking with emotion.

"Pumpkin, please wake up. I need you to wake up."

She did not open her eyes.

Her limbs kept shaking, and the silent tears continued to flow.

Rhydor tucked her head beneath his chin, his voice dropping to a soft, desperate plea.

"I am right here. I am here, and I am never going to leave your side again. I promise."

He began to rock her back and forth, moving slowly and gently as if she were made of fragile glass.

"I am here," he whispered into her hair, his shoulders trembling as he held her close. "I am so incredibly sorry. I am right here, Pumpkin."

As his words echoed through the room, the violent shaking of Azura’s body began to slow down.

The objects hovering in the air lost their steady balance, wobbling and drifting lower toward the ground.

"I am never going to let you go," Rhydor continued to whisper, his voice steadying as he pressed a soft kiss to the top of her head. "I promise you. I am right here."

In an instant, the invisible magic snapped.

The floating objects lost their lift and plummeted instantly toward the floor.

Everything came crashing down at once.

The ceramic cup hit the ground and shattered into a hundred tiny pieces.

The candle slammed into the stone, the flame snuffed out instantly, plunging half the room into shadow.

The heavy blankets dropped back onto the mattress, and dozens of small trinkets clattered loudly across the floorboards.

But before the debris could even hit the ground, the Dragon King moved.

He spun his body around, placing himself directly between me and the flying objects.

His massive arms wrapped completely around my shoulders, pulling me flush against his chest while his broad back faced the rest of the room.

He held me tight, using his own body to shield me from any stray shards of glass or sharp objects that might have flown in our direction.

The chaos settled, and nothing came toward us.

Yet, he did not relax his grip, and he did not let me go.

On the bed, Azura’s eyelids finally fluttered open. Her eyes were bloodshot and heavily rimmed with red, but it was not just from the crying.

It was the result of being completely unconscious for three grueling days.

She had spent three entire days trapped in a deep sleep, locked away in whatever horrific nightmare had broken her spirit.

She blinked through the dim light, her gaze slowly focusing on the man holding her.

Her dry lips parted, and she tried to speak.

"Rhydor?" she asked, her voice incredibly weak.

It sounded completely cracked and hollow, barely louder than a breath.

Rhydor let out a ragged sigh, his arms tightening around her slightly.

"Yes, it’s me. It is me, Pumpkin."

Azura stared up at his face, her mind clearly trying to process reality.

For a long, painful moment, she remained completely silent.

But then she drew in a shaky breath, and when she spoke again, her voice carried a tiny hint of the fiery girl I knew so well.

"You jerk," she whispered, the words barely audible.

A sudden warmth bloomed in my chest, and I felt my heart completely melt at the sound.

Even after three days of silence, even after witnessing whatever horror had broken her mind, and even after waking up completely terrified, her very first instinct was to insult him.

It was the most normal thing she could have said.

Rhydor did not flinch at the word, and he did not try to defend himself.

Instead, he buried his face in her neck, holding her even tighter against his heart.

"Yes, it is me," he choked out, a raw, emotional laugh escaping his throat. "I am your jerk. I will always be your jerk, Pumpkin."

Azura looked up at him, her red, strained eyes searching every single inch of his face as if she were making sure he was actually real.

Then, her fragile composure completely broke, and her voice cracked into a sob.

"They all died, Rhydor," she whispered, the words tumbling out in a rush of pure agony.

New tears spilled over her lashes, hot and fast.

"They... all died."

Rhydor pulled her completely into his lap, burying his hands in her hair as he tried to absorb her pain.

"I am here. I am right here, Pumpkin. I promise you that I am going to protect you. No one is ever going to hurt you again. I will protect you with my life."

He held her tightly, rocking her while she sobbed violently against his chest, her hands clutching at his shirt.

I stood by the wall and watched them, completely frozen.

I felt a hot tear slip down my own cheek, followed quickly by another. I had no idea when my own crying had started.

I did not know what terrifying things Azura had seen in her dreams, and I did not know what loss she was mourning.

All I knew was that my best friend was completely heartbroken, and seeing her suffer like that tore a massive hole through my own chest.

A heavy sob escaped my lips, and I quickly pressed a hand over my mouth, trying to muffle the sound.

I was desperately trying to hold myself together, fighting the urge to completely break down in the middle of the room.

Before I could fall apart, a pair of strong arms wrapped firmly around me.

One large hand anchored itself around my waist, while his other arm came up to securely cradle my shoulders.

His massive, broad frame shifted, completely blocking my view of the bed and preventing me from seeing Azura break down any further.

The Dragon King pulled me flush against his chest. This time, I did not even try to push him away.

I did not have the strength or the desire to fight him.

I let him hold me, allowing him to pull my shaking body against his solid chest until I was completely enveloped by his familiar warmth.

An overwhelming sense of safety washed over me.

I hated to admit it to myself, and I certainly did not want to confess it aloud, but I felt completely safe in his embrace.

His arms were steady and incredibly strong, acting like an unbreakable wall between me and the rest of the world.

Standing there, tucked against his chest, I truly felt like nothing in this world could ever harm me as long as he was holding onto me.

I stopped fighting the tension in my muscles and leaned completely into his frame, letting my heavy tears soak directly into the fabric of his shirt.

"It is okay, Princess," he whispered into my hair, his deep voice incredibly low and soothing.

He did not offer any empty platitudes, and he did not try to fix the tragedy around us.

He simply held me tight, letting me lean on him.

He rubbed his large hand up and down my back in a slow, calming rhythm.

"Let it out. I am right here."

My shoulders shook as I finally let go, sobbing quietly against his chest.

I let the tears fall freely, emptying the fear and exhaustion that had been building up inside me for days.

The Dragon King only tightened his grip, pulling me closer until I could hear the steady, rhythmic thudding of his heart beneath my ear.

Across the dark, ruined bedroom, Rhydor continued to hold Azura just as tightly.

We were two broken mates and two broken friends, clinging to each other in the heavy silence of the space.

Around us, the shattered pieces of glass, the fallen blankets, and the ruined objects lay scattered across the cold stone floor, a physical reminder of the storm that had just passed.

No one spoke another word. No one made a move to leave.

We simply held onto each other, finding whatever comfort we could in the dark, quiet room.