“You... You wench!” shouted Jisel, still backing away, half-crying now. “You took it all from me!”

“You’re the one who doesn’t know how to let go. You didn’t even love Ashen, yet you held on desperately. You could have stayed out of this conflict, but you chose to ally with the Yekara, Jisel. I thought you were a smart woman, but the truth is, you’re the real coward here.”

“Am I?” she scoffed.

Her eyes went down on the dagger Cessilia was holding. She was still hesitating, just a bit. She wasn’t afraid to kill anymore, but Jisel... Somehow, she was reluctant to kill her. Not because of her relationship with Ashen, or because of their history. No, Cessilia had a feeling that, in other circumstances, with another path in life, that woman would have turned out very differently. In some way, Jisel was just another victim who had turned to the worst means to survive. They even had blood in common... She was a dragon’s daughter too. Something in Cessilia’s heart held her hand, wondering if there was really nothing that could be done. Of course, Jisel had already gone too far to redeem herself, and she knew it was too late for that woman to change... or was it?

To her surprise, Jisel slowly stood up. She didn’t have any weapons anymore, and no will to fight left. Cessilia didn’t feel any danger coming from that woman... She had given up, yet a mocking smirk was on her lips.

“Are you really stronger than I am, Princess?” she said, strangely calmly. “...If your precious King betrays you, do you really think you can ever take it?”

“I can take it,” Cessilia retorted without blinking.

Jisel smiled, and stepped closer to her.

“There have been so many like me,” she muttered. “Desperate women, willing to do anything to survive. Women with no dragons to help them...”

She finally got very close to Cessilia, and touched her hand that was holding the dagger, strangely gentle. Cessilia held her weapon tighter, just in case Jisel would try to take it, or turn it against her, but it didn’t feel that way.

“If you want to help them, you should be ready to do this.”

She suddenly pulled her fist, and brutally impaled herself on the dagger.

Shocked, Cessilia stared at Jisel’s eyes, and the strange smile that appeared on her lips. The two women exchanged a stare for a long minute, and then, Jisel coughed some blood, and slowly fell back, her body dropping on the sand. Her eyes half-closed, she had stopped moving, lying completely still and her head turned toward the crying Red Dragon. Cessilia was shocked. She stared at Jisel’s breathless figure, unable to comprehend why that woman had done that. She had been so desperate to survive just a moment ago... Had she realized she had lost the moment her dragon was trapped? Or had she already been badly injured during the fall? That would explain how her death had been so quick... or perhaps she had purposely stabbed herself so she’d die quickly... Cessilia would maybe never understand why she had suddenly chosen this end, or get answers to her questions. Either way, that woman was dead.

Cessilia dropped her dagger, a bit out of breath. She felt... strange. The body of the dead woman lying in front of her didn’t feel real. She didn’t know what she should have expected, but strangely, she didn’t really feel anything... Just tired, maybe. The waves gently came up to their position, reaching Jisel’s body. If she left her like that, her body would be swept away soon. She would disappear in the sea, like many, perhaps. She could hear the long cries of the Red Dragon. Jinn’s faint squeals were heartbreaking to hear... Cessilia let out a faint sigh, a cold mist coming out of her lips. One fight she had finally ended. It didn’t feel like a victory, but it sure felt like closure.

A faint, more gentle growl came from behind her. Cessilia smiled, and turned to face Cece. The majestic Silver Dragon was standing there, with those big ruby eyes staring right at her. They faced each other on the beach, finally getting a moment to themselves. The thunder had stopped too. Now, all they could hear was the calm sea, the rain, and the cries of a mourning dragon. Cessilia slowly approached her dragon. Cece was so big now, she had to stand up to be at the same height as her dragon’s eyes. Gently, she put her hands around her dragon’s face, around what would be its cheeks. She smiled, and gently put her forehead against her cold scales.

Cece released a little breath of cold mist too. Strangely, her dragon’s coolness warmed Cessilia’s heart, and brought her peace.

“...Did you come back because you were worried about me?” she muttered.

Cece growled faintly.

“Thank you... for giving me a second chance.”

She stayed for a long moment like this, taking deep breaths with her. The cold, almost eerie white mist around her dragon was making her feel safe, and calmed her down. She could feel her lungs fill with fresh air as some heavy burden was lifted off her shoulders. With Cece there, she felt incredibly strong, serene and complete. Just like her dragon, she was different from the young woman Cece had parted with, years ago. The two of them were more mature, stronger, fiercer, and more united than ever. The two of them stood still for just a few minutes, as a quiet reunion.

After a while, Cessilia stepped back, her hands still on her dragon’s cheeks.

“I think we have to go now. Sorry for bringing you back into such a mess.”

Cece released a little spat out a mouthful of snow, and nudged Cessilia’s face with her snout, making her smile.

“You’re right. Let’s go.”

The two of them turned heads toward Jinn, who was still trying to fight the ice it was trapped in. Sadly for the Red Dragon, Cece’s thick ice wasn’t going to melt anytime soon. It tried to move again, but Cece suddenly growled as a warning, making Jinn whimper and calm down.

“...We’ll take care of him later,” said Cessilia. “Let’s go help the others now.”

Cece turned around, and Cessilia quickly climbed on her dragon’s back. When they took off, Cessilia couldn’t help but glance one last time at the beach, Jisel’s body still lying there and getting smaller as Cece flew up. She sighed, and then turned her eyes forward.

Her dragon knew exactly where to head first. Flying through the rain, Cece took her back to the Capital’s streets, flying above the main place of conflict. Just like Krai or Kian, Cece was too big for the narrow alleys of the island, so Cessilia jumped down, landing on a roof and sliding down until she hit the street. She had been dropped just streets away from the main battle, but the number of fires going on in the area was worrying her; the alleys were filled with dark smoke, ashes, and people fleeing. Some recognized her, and tried to run to her to beg for help, but Cessilia knew she had to keep going. Apologizing when she could, she kept running, trying to find her cousin’s figure she had spotted from above.

“Tessa!”

“Cessi!”

As soon as she heard her, her cousin stopped her fight and turned around, and the two of them ran to each other. The two women jumped into each other’s arms, relieved.

“You’re good!” exclaimed Tessandra. “Damn, I was starting to get real worried... Is that Cece up there?!”

“It is,” smiled Cessilia. “She’s back.”

“She’s back and with a massive upgrade, you mean! What the heck did she eat to get that big? And... is it just me or has she changed color too?”

“Just a bit,” Cessilia chuckled.

“What about... up there?” muttered Tessandra, glancing toward the castle.

“...I got it. I just wanted to check on you guys here first.”

“If it wasn’t for those fucking fires, it would be better. We’ve pretty much won the fight already, but putting out those fires is a bit more complicated than just kicking some asses. Don’t worry, though, we got this. You go get your man, alright?”

“I will. But first...”

Cessilia glanced up at the sky, at her dragon, and Cece loudly screamed back. Then, the Silver Dragon did a beautiful arc in the sky, and dived down on the Capital. Right before it hit the building, it suddenly flapped its gigantic wings, and blew a long wave of ice and snow above the whole area. Everyone stopped, speechless, to witness the incredible white specks raining down on them. Not only had Cece blown an ice mist over the building, but the rain itself was cooled down, and came down in little snow crystals above the streets. Thanks to that, the fires were all almost immediately blown out and dampened, leaving smoke plumes everywhere. Tessandra’s jaw dropped.

“What in the world was that?! You got a snow dragon now?!”

“An ice dragon.”

“Ah,” scoffed Tessandra. “Too cool to play the water dragon now, uh? Well, I’m glad our girl is back... and you too.”

Cessilia smiled, and they hugged once more, quickly but strongly. Tessandra had noticed not only how her cousin wasn’t stuttering anymore, but also how she was different. When they let go of each other, she put a hand on her hip, glancing around.

“Well, thanks for the help with the fires, I think we’ll manage things from here. You better go and save whatever’s left of your man.”

“Will you be alright?”

“Cessi, I’ve been having fun slicing guys in two for the last hour or so, shouting after your annoying brother, and spending time with my boyfriend too. Trust me, we’re good here. Even Nana’s turning into somewhat of a pyromaniac...”

“Nana?” frowned Cessilia, confused.

“Long story, but the family might get bigger quite soon... Anyways, I’ll update you later. Don’t worry about us, go!”

Cessilia nodded and, after one last glance, she turned around, headed for the highest roof she could find in the area. It did seem like Tessandra and her brothers had a hold of the situation already. For some reason, it looked like they had gathered the Yekara soldiers and mercenaries in the middle of the plaza, and were subjugating the last ones resisting, or hunting them down in the streets.