Sophia’s eyes took a moment to adjust to the dark jungle when they entered. They only walked a few paces before she found what they were looking for.
“Oh, now that’s where I keep my boat,” Evan remarked, not seeing past the glamour Sophia had put on Simi. That’s why he started and nearly tripped on his feet when the mass of the old ship suddenly swung to the side and breathed fire in his direction.
Chapter Forty-Eight
Sophia doubled over laughing as she pulled the glamour off Simi before Evan responded with an attack. It wasn’t like the white dragon to play pranks so she must not have realized who they were at first when they approached, having been on guard with Wilder captured.
“Oh, it’s you.” Evan’s chest rose and fell as he collected himself. “Pink Princess, you could have told me that you’d disguised Simi as a boat.”
Still laughing, Sophia shook her head. “Where would the fun be in that?”
“You’re not invited to my next wedding now,” Evan threatened.
“I bet you’ll change your mind when you need an officiant,” Sophia teased.
“Nope,” Evan chirped. “You only got to marry me one time.”
Sophia strode over to Simi, who still appeared unnerved, and offered her a tame smile. “Are you okay? Have you been able to find food here?”
“I’m fine.” The dragon suddenly looked dignified. “That shouldn’t be your concern.”
“Sophia is used to having to wipe her dragon’s behind, so she thinks to ask about these things,” Evan remarked.
“Be careful. Your dragon might hear you making a joke and vomit,” Sophia fired back. “You know how Coral is allergic to humor.”
“Ha-ha. She has a refined sense of humor and doesn’t resort to fart jokes like Lunis,” Evan teased.
“If you two would focus, I’d like to rescue Wilder,” Simi said with her head high in the air and almost poking out of the canopy of trees.
“Yes, of course,” Sophia said at once, feeling ashamed that they were joking when Wilder was a captive. “Is he okay?”
The white dragon nodded. “Yes, as far as I can tell, although I’m not sure he’d tell me otherwise. He asked me not to move locations since he figured the Rogue Riders are looking for me. They recognized him as a Dragon Elite and will be searching for his dragon.”
Sophia nodded. “That was smart. Where do they have him?”
“It’s in the center of the village on the other side of the island,” Simi answered. “They have him in a pit reinforced by magic. Apparently, that’s where they keep their dragons when they’re punishing them.”
Evan grimaced with disgust. “Punish their dragons?”
Simi nodded, sharing the sentiment. “Yes, their partnerships are very different from what I’ve observed when viewing through Wilder’s perception. They have him heavily guarded with at least three or four dragonriders at any given time.”
“It sounds like they’re expecting us,” Sophia muttered while thinking.
“They probably think we’ll use a tactic similar to theirs,” Evan offered bitterly. “Charge in all guns blazing.”
Sophia nodded. “Which means we’re going to employ strategy.”
“What do you have in mind?” Evan asked.
A smile lit up Sophia’s face. “We’re going to use a distraction.”
He sighed. “That’s the oldest trick in the book, and they’ll expect it. Probably know what we’re up to.”
“I’ll remind you that the oldest tricks are usually that for a reason,” Sophia stated. “They work and this one will too because we’re going to use a diversion that they won’t be able to ignore and will require a lot of dragon power to address.”
Evan clapped his hands together and looked excited. “Sounds intriguing. What are we going to do?”
Sophia’s grin widened. “You mean, what are you going to do?”
Chapter Forty-Nine
“Well, it’s official,” Evan said after hearing Sophia’s plan. “You’ve lost your damn mind.”
“It will work,” Sophia argued.
“Are you sure you didn’t get bit by one of those swans, and the poison went to your head?” He looked at her sideways as though trying to decide if she was ill.
“I’m fine. Seriously, give the plan a chance.”
“What I’m worried about,” Evan began and started to pace, “is that the plan will lead to my funeral.”
“Which I’ll attend although you won’t allow me at your next wedding,” Sophia joked.
“I think the plan has merit,” Simi offered in a neutral tone.
“That’s because it’s not you who has to be a sitting duck for angry dragonriders to pick off,” Evan complained.
“You’re not going to get picked off,” Sophia argued. “You’re going to create a diversion they can’t ignore and draw them away from Wilder. Then Lunis, Simi, and I can swoop in and save him.”
Evan stopped pacing to think about it for a moment, then reluctantly nodded. “Fine, I’ll do it, but you all better hurry.”
Sophia gave him a challenging look. “You’re not worried about what those newbie demon dragonriders will do, are you? I thought their skills were no match for you.”
Evan shook his head, suddenly serious. “Sometimes it’s not about skill, Pink Princess. In their case, it’s about not caring for boundaries. We both know that there are certain things you and I would never do in battle. It’s the rules of war, which we as the Dragon Elite respect. It sounds as though these dragonriders, who punish their dragons who are supposed to be their equal partners, don’t care for such things—which makes them incredibly dangerous.”
Sophia nodded. She knew exactly what Evan meant. They fought fairly. The Dragon Elite would never hit an enemy in the back or kill a man when they were down. That was simply a moral ground that they didn’t cross. The Rogue Riders wouldn’t have the same moral compass directing their way.
“Remember that we don’t compromise who we are based on what others do,” Sophia advised, slipping into her role as leader when in the field. It felt like second nature, and she was grateful for that as she spoke to the much older dragonrider. “It’s their karma how they behave. Fight fair no matter what and I believe we’ll be successful in the end.”
Evan drew in a breath with a solemn expression. “Okay. I hope you’re right.”
Chapter Fifty
The Dragon Elite guy that they’d captured had put up a pretty impressive fight but hadn’t been a match for the Rogue Riders when overwhelmed.
Tanner had liked watching the guy with dark brown hair and a conceited smile get the tar knocked out of him. His name was Wilder, and he’d gone after Nathaniel before, trying to get him to come to the Gullington. Since that hadn’t worked, the guy had apparently followed them to the island they were taking. Since then, he’d resorted to mouthing off quite a bit after being locked in the pit—goading the others, trying to turn them against each other.