When Ice Breaks, When Gold Cracks

An Deuii, the city below the temple of the goddess, was the same as Unda's last memory of it, a hazy image of the sturdy stone buildings that lined streets hung with colorful sheets of patterned fabric, boasting the colors of the goddess Selini: gold, black, green, red, and blue. A long flight of stairs up the temple mountain descended into a welcoming square where dragonborn and hybrids alike crowded around, staring at the servants of Selini with wide eyes. They dipped into low bows as Aurum stepped from the landing accompanied by awed whispers and gasps from the crowd. Jekall and the other generals were nowhere to be found, but Unda doubted they would share the crowd's respect. Not after Aurum and the others had made themselves out to be fools.

"This way." Aurum breezed through the throngs of dragonborn, which parted for him like water.

Foliis and Stellae filed in behind him, heads high and backs straight; beside them, Ignis's swagger seemed even more out of place, but her grin let everyone know that she didn't care.

They escaped out into the streets, but Unda stood frozen in the square, his heart pounding against his ribs as people began to straighten. Their faces twisted as they turned to him, just the slightest twitch of uncertainty or confusion or even disdain. He touched his elf-like ears and flashed a nervous smile, ice cold despite the warmth in the air. "Please excuse me," he murmured, dipping his head before he wove back through the disappearing path Aurum had taken.

Whispers stirred anew behind him, but they no longer carried the same undertone of respect. His skin crawled—this time not with the restless touch of his icy magic. Quickening his steps, he raced to Aurum's side and wrapped himself in his brother's presence until the storm behind him died down.

Overhead, dragons circled in the clear sky, their shadows passing over the streets like great clouds. Trilling dragon cries echoed through the air and mingled with the shouts of the children dashing past Unda's legs. The buzz of activity was the same as the vision the pool would always give him, only now the gaze of the crowd followed him. One child, a little girl with a splatter of indigo scales across her nose, stared up at him in wonder until a boy with matching scales snatched her away.

Unda shrank closer to Aurum's side. When was the last time he was allowed to visit the city, and had it always felt so suffocating?

In his vision, Vivian had disappeared down a side street in a city much like An Deuii, weaving through the bodies with practiced skill and the eyes of a killer. His pulse quickened. Thrown in the middle of a crowd, his scrying skills were as good as useless. He couldn't watch for her if he couldn't pick her out of the sea of people.

A steady hand settled on his shoulder, one calloused and scarred but no less gentle. Aurum smiled down at him, and the crowd seemed to dissipate as Unda sank into his brother's security. His fingers danced with magic as he ruffled Unda's hair. "It's different to be present in the city, isn't it?"

Unda dragged a faint smile to his lips. "The temple isn't so different when it's busy." There will always be people staring no matter where I go. His hands itched again with the urge to hide his ears, a feature that branded him as something else and gave him the face of the enemy rather than a disciple of the goddess.

Aurum opened his mouth to say something else, but Foliis cut him off with a gasp—quickly stifling it with her hand. Silver flashed at the edge of the street as light glanced off the scales of a tall dragonborn man. He stood waiting, watching, for a heartbeat before he tucked into his cloak and backed into the shadows.

"I'll be back." Foliis dipped her head to Aurum before backing out of the group. She disappeared down the alley without waiting for his answer.

Stellae's lip curled slightly. "Atticus again."