Never Weak

By J. A. Penrose

The blizzard howled around the entrance of the cave, sending flurries of ice and snow washing over the floor. Normally that wouldn’t concern me, but it was summer.

I blinked, looking away from the white swirl and focusing on Ma, who shivered slightly and blew a steady stream of fire into the pit between us and the storm. “Suitini, you know how proud I am of you?”

I smiled up at her, tugging at a strand of hair with my armoured hand. “Of course. I’ve never doubted it.”

Ma glanced sidelong at her husband, who laid curled up a bit deeper in the cave. He stared at me with that half-lidded disdain he always wore, then swapped his gaze from me to her and grunted.

She let out another breath, smoke tendrils curling from her nostrils. “You’re the only one who’s strong enough to save the dragons from the blizzard.”

A frown crinkled my forehead, and a nervous laugh bubbled up in my throat. “Me? Why me?”

Father snorted, smoke drifting in front of my eyes for a moment. “Eventually, you will have to come to terms with what is written in your veins.” A shriek filled the cavern as he shifted and dragged his scaly underbelly across the stone. “You’re a human. You’re not our child. You’re weak.”

The words hit me like a claw to the stomach. I wasn’t their child? Memories flew through my mind, all adding up to the truth. Father—no, Kana—was right. I wasn’t even their daughter. I was part human.

A useless, worthless, weak human.

Ma’s growl broke through my thoughts as she sent a glare at Kana. She turned back to me, her gaze softening. “It’s not like that. I chose to raise you. And being able to transform into a human is a gift. As I said…”

You’re not our child. You’re weak.

I let Ma’s words fade dully into the background.

A lump formed in my throat, and I blinked a few times. No tears could show, even though they were just from the smoke. I swallowed. Definitely from the smoke. Stepping back, my limbs began to stretch, altering, changing back to how they’re meant to be—a dragon.

Scales instead of armour. Claws instead of hands.

And fire in my stomach instead of fear.

But it still didn’t completely remove the spots darting across my vision or the slight stumble in my step as I pushed past Ma and out through the cave entrance, halting at the edge of the cliff, my wings unfurling amid the swirling snow.

Ma never did get a chance to explain why the blizzard had come, or what that had to do with me.

But why would I trust her now after learning about a lifetime of lies? Was anything true? Heat stung behind my eyes. Did she really love me?

The ocean roared beneath me as I looked over the edge of the cliff, tasting the sea-spray from the waves that hurled themselves against the rocks.

“Fascinating how the ocean’s waves slam against the cliffs, isn’t it?” Adran pauses, looking out over the sea. “I suppose that is where we see the greatest amount of change and destruction. Two things that will always hold their ground having to slowly give way to each other.”

Madman. Always has been. “I suppose it seems that way, but the rocks break when the water hits them enough. That’s why we have cliffs.”

The man turns to me and grins brightly. “That’s exactly what I thought! But when the water hits the rock, it breaks apart. Shatters. Like glass.” He waggles his fingers. “Smashes into beads of foam. So technically, in order for the water to chisel the rocks into these magnificent cliffs for everyone to marvel at, the water must first break. Nothing is whole. Not water, not air.” He looks down at me. “Not even you, young dragonling.”

I blinked, shaking my head. Nothing is whole. At the time, I had labelled the mage as insane. After all, I could tell I was whole.

But after the revelation from Ma, doubt clawed at my heart. I was shattered now. Smashed apart like the waves against the cliffs. All of my life, an unstoppable force; all of my life, sure of my path.

And today? Today was the contact. The day I hit the cliff and the whole world shattered.

A cough came from beside me, and I twisted to my left, eyes widening. “Adran? What are you doing here?”

The man from my memory scrunched up his nose, shivering, “I’ve missed you, too, dragonling.” Letting out another hacking cough, he tugged his cloak tighter around his shoulders. “Your father’s gone too far with this blizzard. At this rate, he’s going to freeze all of Caldor over in a day.”

Something inside my stomach seized up. I couldn’t bring myself to ask how he knew the truth about my birth. “My father? My father is the one causing the blizzard?”

He nodded. “Yes, your true father. Your human father. And you need to stop him. Like all humans, your blood is ice, where theirs is fire. You alone can travel to the Ice Plains. You alone—as a human—can stop him.” Another shiver racked his body, and he backed into the cave. “Don’t wait longer, dragonling. Fly.”

Another icy blast of wind sent snow cascading over my claws. I growled, lifting my gaze to the horizon again. Adran was right. It was time for me to prove to Ma that her faith wasn’t misplaced. Time to prove to Kana that I wasn’t weak. I threw myself forward off the cliff and spread my wings, angling myself toward the Ice Plains and my blood-father.

No weakness—human or dragon—would stop me.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

J.A.Penrose is an Australian speculative fiction writer who loves fantasy. In her spare time, she can be found composing music, playing music, or learning a new language. She loves to spend time with close friends and family, and will often be found trying to make even a small dent in her TBR. Above all else, she aims to have a strong personal relationship with her Heavenly Father.

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