Dragon System

Chapter 3 D – Breaths in the Dark

The scrape of boots outside wasn’t a trick of his ears. Desmond froze, breath caught in his throat. The sound grew clearer: a small patrol of guards, their voices low but distinct, cutting through the thin walls of the ruin.

“Check the alleys.”

“Orders are strict tonight. No strays. The king’s decree.”

“If we find anyone, we drag them to the square at dawn.”

The three women stiffened at once. Selene’s lips pressed into a tight line, Mira’s fingers trembled, and Lysandra’s hand clenched tighter on her wooden shard.

Desmond whispered urgently. “They’re searching. If they find us”

“They’ll drag us out in chains,” Selene cut in, voice like steel. “And you’ll lose whatever little dignity you scraped tonight.”

Mira’s eyes darted to him, wide with fear. “What do we do?”

The system’s voice struck, merciless:

[System Challenge Triggered.]

[Survive detection until dawn.]

[Failure will reset trust progress to 0%.]

Desmond’s chest constricted. Zero. Everything gone.

He forced calm into his voice. “We stay quiet. Together.”

The patrol’s torchlight flickered against the cracks of the wall. Desmond gestured sharply, and they ducked into the narrowest corner of the ruin, pressed close, shoulder to shoulder.

The space was suffocating, four bodies forced together, the women’s breath hot against his neck, the sound of Selene’s pulse quick under her controlled facade.

Mira whimpered softly. Lysandra clamped a hand over her mouth. “Quiet.”

Desmond leaned close, whispering so low it was almost thought: “Trust me. Just breathe with me. Match my rhythm.”

He inhaled slowly, deliberately, then exhaled. Mira’s shaking lessened as she mirrored him. The guards’ boots scraped right outside. A beam of torchlight swept across the broken entrance.

Selene’s body pressed hard against his arm, rigid, yet her thoughts betrayed her: “…if he fails, I die with him. I can’t believe I’m staking my life on this nobody.”

Lysandra’s hand stayed steady on her shard, but inside she raged: “…I should be fighting, not cowering. And yet… his calm is holding us.”

Desmond whispered again, barely audible. “Not one sound. Not one move.”

The torch lingered, then drifted away. They stayed locked in silence until the patrol’s footsteps faded. Then, slowly, they loosened.

Mira collapsed against Desmond, her head on his shoulder. “I thought I’d stop breathing,” she whispered.

“You almost did,” Lysandra muttered. “But you didn’t.” Her eyes flicked to Desmond. “Because of him.”

Selene scowled, but her voice was quieter than before. “Luck. Nothing more.”

Her thoughts screamed otherwise: “…his voice… it stilled me. Why? Why does it matter what he says?”

The system chimed in Desmond’s skull: [Trust Progress: +12%. Current total: 57%.]

A wave of relief washed over him, but it wasn’t enough. Not yet. The silence stretched. None of them wanted to admit how close they’d come to being dragged into the streets.

Desmond decided to press the moment, while their walls were still cracked. He looked at Lysandra first. “You didn’t panic. You held Mira still, steady as a blade.”

Her chin lifted. “Of course I did. Panic kills faster than steel.” But her gaze softened for a breath. “You didn’t panic either.”

Their eyes met. For once, no smirk, no wall. Then Selene. “You mock me for being less, but when it mattered… you didn’t pull away from me.”

Her face flushed. “We were cornered. I had no choice.”

“You did. You could’ve stepped aside, let me take the risk. But you pressed closer instead. Because somewhere in you… you trusted me.”

Her lips trembled. “You presume too much again.”

The system pulsed. [Trust Progress: +6%. Current total: 63%.]

Finally, Mira. She still leaned against him, warm, trembling less now. “You told me to breathe. I thought… I’d never hear anyone say that to me. Not since” She stopped, words caught in her throat.

Desmond touched her hand gently. “Not since who?”

Tears glistened in her eyes. “My brother. He was taken to the front line. He never came back. You… you reminded me of him.”

The system chimed: [Trust Progress: +9%. Current total: 72%.]

The gray of dawn crept in faint streaks through the cracks. The night was nearly spent. Desmond’s heart pounded, not just from the system, but from the fragile, flickering bond between them.

The system’s cold voice returned: [Requirement: Minimum 80% trust before dawn. Time Remaining: 57 minutes.]

Desmond’s breath caught. He was close, but not close enough. The women were watching him, each with different eyes, Lysandra with the beginnings of respect, Selene with defiant confusion, Mira with trembling hope.

One last chance remained before the sun rose. And outside, a horn sounded, the guards calling for dawn assembly.