War of the dragon, p.20
War of the Dragon, page 20
What, you mean the fact that I've been given a divine mandate to hunt down the piece you have by a bunch of sulky gods who will barely lift a finger to help me? "I have told you everything you need to know," I said coolly as I folded my hands in my lap. "I have no idea why you wish to make an enemy of me, but I will not allow you to bully me any more than I will allow my husband. If you insist on arresting me for a crime I have not committed, then I will have no reason to keep my lips sealed. I will tell everyone about your true nature."
"My true nature?" Fersel asked, and I had to commend him for his incredible self-control. Aside from a slight flicker in his gaze, he gave absolutely no sign that my words had distressed him.
"Yes." I allowed my lips to curve in a small smile. "I have some small ability of my own, and I can sense that you are a mage. Just like I can sense that you have a piece of the dragon heart buried two floors beneath the house. In the cellars, I presume?"
Fersel's handsome features tightened with anger. "You seek to blackmail me, then?"
"No." I held up my hands, imploring him to listen. "I merely seek your help in keeping this dangerous artifact out of Lord Trentiano's hands. He already has two of the pieces in his possession, and they have given him heightened strength and charisma, as well as the ability to heal grievous wounds. If he should get his hands on the piece you hold, he will become unstoppable."
Fersel gave me a wary look, then sighed as he leaned back in his chair. "You are right that I am a mage," he admitted. "I am a descendent of one of the original families that sealed Zakyiar’s relics away all those centuries ago. My family has denied our magic for centuries and changed our name numerous times in an attempt to disappear from history, and yet it is not the first time someone has traced us here. How did you find out my secret?"
"Lord Trentiano is a highly accomplished researcher and scholar," I said. "He also has quite a bit of money. Between the two, and the fact that he can likely sense the other dragon heart pieces thanks to his partnership with the dragon god, I don't think it was all that difficult for him."
Fersel's expression turned downright grim. "Then there is nothing for it," he said, pulling open a drawer. "I will have to kill you both."
He pulled a pistol from his desk drawer, and my heart dropped when he trained it on me. "Wait!" I shouted as I dropped to the ground, and the sound of the gunshot echoed in my ears, a miniature explosion that made my skull vibrate.
"Don't make this difficult, Lady Zara." The baron's chair scraped back, followed by heavy, methodical footsteps. "It's nothing personal, but it is my duty to protect the dragon heart piece. Two lives is a small price to pay, and if what you say is true, I will simultaneously thwart the dragon god. Surely that is worth your life?"
"You asshole," I growled, giving up any pretense of ladylike manners. Grabbing one of the chairs, I straightened up and ran straight at Fersel, using the piece of furniture as a shield. Wood splinters ripped through my skin as he fired at me, but I ignored the pain and used the chair to drive him straight into the wall. His next shot went wild, and I winced as the window behind his desk shattered. If his gunshots hadn't already alerted the guards, that would.
"Get off!" he roared, flinging his hands out. Magic sizzled in the air, and I gasped as an unseen force barreled toward me. But before it could connect, the amulet flared with blinding white light, erecting some kind of barrier around me. It repelled the magic, sending it soaring toward the ceiling, and I jumped back as a small chandelier went crashing to the ground.
“What are you?” Fersel sputtered, his face slack with astonishment. He and I lunged for the pistol at the same time, and I tackled him around the legs, taking him to the ground. The two of us tumbled across the carpet, away from the firearm, and I cried out as the baron pinned me to the ground and started raining blows down on me. I crossed my arms over my face to block them, but he still managed to get a few blows in, and each one hurt like a bitch. I could feel more magic sizzling in the air, but my amulet continued to glow, repelling his attempts to ensorcel me.
“Get him off,” Caor said urgently. “You have to get him off!”
“Could use a little help here!” I shouted. But as Fersel shifted his weight, I felt the press of my dagger against my thigh.
What the hell. I dropped one of my arms and stretched it to the left, then bucked my right hip in the same direction, throwing Fersel off-balance. He let out a rather unmanly squawk as I used the momentum to flip us over, and before he could get his bearings, I yanked the dagger from my skirts and plunged it into his chest.
Fersel’s roar of pain was nearly loud enough to shake the walls. “Y-you,” he croaked, eyes wide with shock and agony as he stared up at me. Blood bubbled out of the corner of his mouth, and a wave of guilt hit me so hard that tears stung my eyes. I hadn’t wanted to kill the man. He’d just been doing his duty, the duty passed on by his ancestors through the millennia. I’d just wanted him to help me. And now he was dead.
He’s the enemy, Zara. He works for the man who slaughtered thousands of your people.
The sounds of shouts echoing from the courtyard spurred me into action. I yanked the dagger from Fersel’s chest, wiped it on his shirt, then gripped it in my right hand as I hurried out the door. There was no point in hiding his body—the guards would have seen the broken window, and would find the blood on the floor. I needed to get downstairs, retrieve the heart, and get out of here.
As I ran down the hall, cursing my decision to trade out my spelled boots for these noisy ones, my ring began to warm against my skin. “Don’t worry about the guards,” Caor said. “Just get to the heart.”
I did as Caor said, barreling down the hall as I followed the heart’s distinctive signal. The front door burst open, and I whirled around as guards came running into the house on the heels of the butler, who had undoubtedly gone to fetch them. But to my surprise, they headed straight upstairs, their eyes skipping past me as if I were no more interesting than the paintings mounted on the walls.
“My magic cannot shield you for long,” Caor barked. “Go!”
I raced to the end of the hall, then yanked on the handle of a heavy wooden door that I hoped led to the basement. It was locked, so I shoved my lock pick through the keyhole and twisted. The keyhole flared as some spell activated, trying to resist the pick, but after a few seconds the lock clicked open. I wrenched the door open and grabbed a lamp from a side table, then rushed down the stairs into the darkness.
“Come on, come on, come on,” I chanted as I methodically searched the cellar. It was ruthlessly organized, but though the signal was loud enough to make my brain ache, I couldn’t find the piece of heart.
Focus, Zara, I told myself. Clear your mind, and pinpoint the location.
I stopped in the center of the room and took a deep breath, trying to clear my head. The sound of footsteps thudding upstairs and servants wailing wasn’t helping things, but I forced myself to block it all out and focus on the object I was looking for.
Where are you? I asked it. Show yourself.
I felt a strong tug come from a patch of floor that was covered in sacks of flour. There? I strode over to the spot and grabbed the closest bag, then began tossing them clear of the space. Soon enough, a trapdoor came into view. I grasped the chain, and it began to glow coal red. My amulet flared at the same time, counteracting whatever magic was in the chain, and with a mighty tug, I yanked the trapdoor open.
Below the floor was a large chest enclosed in a four-foot gap between the floorboards and the ground. I used my lock pick on the magical padlock that held it shut, then flipped back the lid to reveal a black box carved with silver runes nestled amongst some other valuables. There were no seams or handles of any kind, no way to open it, but I didn’t need to. I could hear the call coming from within clear as day, and as I stared, an image of a large, roughly cut chunk of black diamond swirled into my mind’s eye.
The piece of heart was in this box. I was sure of it.
The footsteps began to draw closer, and I hastily grabbed the box and flipped the chest lid closed, then dragged the trapdoor in place. There was another staircase at the other end of the cellar, and I rushed over to it, then began to climb toward the double doors that I was certain led to the outside entrance.
“You!” a male voice cried. “What are you doing down here?”
Dragon’s balls! I lunged for the doors, but they were locked from the outside and refused to budge. Heart in my throat, I spun around, the bloodied dagger in my free hand, and leapt from the staircase down onto the approaching guard. I stabbed him straight through the heart even as I took him down, and the light in his eyes went dark as we hit the ground.
“Mandel!” Three more guards raced down the stairs, and I jumped up, holding my dagger aloft. It was three against one, and with only a single weapon at my disposal, the odds weren’t looking good. Not to mention I was hampered by the box under my arm, which I didn’t dare relinquish.
“Drop your weapon,” one of the guards snarled as he advanced on me. I might have if I thought they were going to take me alive, but the murderous look in his eyes told me otherwise. Instead, I tightened my grip and sank into a defensive crouch, prepared to fight to the death.
“Zara!” Lessie’s voice burst into my head, and I nearly dropped the dagger. “Get down, now!”
Fifteen
The sound of wood splintering diverted the guards’ attentions, and I dropped to the ground just as Lessie released a huge gout of flame into the cellar. My stomach turned as the scent of roasting flesh and burning hair mingled with blood-curdling screams, and I glanced up to see the guards on the ground, rolling to try and smother the flames, which were already spreading to the flour sacks. It was only a matter of time before they reached the rows of wine kegs on the opposite side, so I jumped to my feet and darted across the room before I was caught up in the conflagration.
Lessie didn’t wait for me to reach the top of the stairs—she snatched me up in her grasp and took flight. Terror speared my chest at the sound of cannon fire, but Lessie executed a perfect barrel roll, then pumped her wings even harder, propelling us several hundred feet in mere seconds. A feat she would have never managed just a few months ago.
The air around us shimmered, and I gasped as patches of Lessie’s body disappeared, mingling with the night sky. “Are you all right?” Tavarian shouted from above, and my heart soared at the sound of his voice.
“You came for me!” I cried, happy tears stinging the corners of my eyes.
“Of course we did!” he shouted, and though I couldn’t see him, I could hear the exasperation in his voice. “We had to, once we figured out where you’d gone. Though the next time you decide to take a shortcut, some advance warning would be appreciated!”
Laughing, I finally settled into Lessie's grip, allowing my body to dangle in her clawed hands as she flew. The wind rippled through my hair as we soared through the night sky. Even though my silken gown did nothing to protect me from the elements, I savored the sting of icy air against my skin.
We didn't stop until we were well outside the city limits, far away from the reach of cannons and pistols. Lessie landed in a clearing barely wide enough to accommodate the three of us, with trees that towered high enough that we would not be easily spotted by airships. Gently, she laid me down on the ground, and I groaned as the exhilaration from the past few hours deserted me, leaving me spent.
"Zara!" Tavarian was at my side, his silver eyes gleaming in the moonlight. His face was the picture of anxiety as he gripped my hand, an emotion I was unused to seeing from him. "Are you all right? Lessie and I flew as fast as we could to get here, but communication between us is severely limited, and I had no idea what sort of trouble you were in."
I smiled, then held up my hand. The black box containing the piece of heart was clutched in my fist. "Caor decided it was taking us too long to get to Barkheim, so he spirited me away when I went into the woods to relieve myself. Tonight, I finally got into the house of the mage who was guarding the piece of heart. I managed to steal it, but I was about to be skewered when you arrived."
Tavarian swore. "Those blasted guards," he said, his eyes flashing with anger. "If we’d been but a moment later, you would be dead. What good is it for you to be their champion if they don't care about your welfare?"
"On the contrary," Caor drawled as he stepped from the tree line. I jolted upright, nearly slamming my forehead into Tavarian's. His own eyes had gone wide with astonishment, and I remembered this was his first encounter with the god. "If not for a little divine intervention on my part, Zara would have died. That amulet is a handy little thing, isn't it?"
"No kidding." I traced it with my finger. "What are these exactly?"
"Protection amulets, given to our priests and priestesses to call upon us in times of need." Caor's lips quirked into a half smile as he canted his head at me, long hair spilling to the side. "I suppose since you are our new champion, it is fitting that you wear one. The amulet will not protect you from physical assaults, but it should shield you from all but the most powerful magical attacks."
"And the invisibility?" I asked. "Was that the amulet, or you?"
Caor shifted his weight from one foot to the other, and I got the distinct sense that he was uncomfortable. "Gods have the ability to pass amongst humans unseen if they choose," he said. "I lent you that ability for a few minutes so that you could get into the cellar. It's not something I do often, so I'd prefer you didn't mention it to the other gods."
I snorted. "You mean I'm going to meet the other gods someday?"
He winked. "Perhaps," he said, reaching up into the air. I blinked as he pulled my leather pack from seemingly out of nowhere, then tossed it to me. "I came to return this to you, since you're in no position to retrieve it yourself.”
I caught the pack, then set it to the ground and allowed Tavarian to help me to my feet. "Will you trade it for this?" Tavarian asked, holding out the box to Caor. "Now that we've retrieved it, it needs to be destroyed. Surely one of you gods have the power to do so. We certainly do not."
But Caor shook his head, taking a step back. "I do not dare touch such an unholy object myself, lest it corrupt my power and turn me against my fellows. You are right that no human or mage in this world currently has the power to destroy the relic. It must be unmade by a god of equal strength."
"Okay, so how do we do that?" I demanded. "Is there someone we can summon to take care of this?"
Caor laughed. "The gods do not answer to summons. They must be called upon, at the right time and place." He scratched his chin for a moment, considering. "Your best option is to go to the Forge of Derynnis. He is the ancient god of the Underworld, and his fires are hot enough to destroy most anything magical. I believe that if you can convince him to cast the piece of heart into his forge, that will be enough to unmake it."
"The Forge of Derynnis?" I shook my head even as the scholar in me perked up, fascinated by the prospect of more lore. "I've never heard of it. Do you know where it is?"
"It is located in the side of an active volcano, on an island in the middle of the Byrgonian Ocean."
"The Byrgonian Ocean?" Tavarian echoed. "That's several thousand miles south of here!"
"It is quite a distance," Caor agreed. "A long journey even by dragonback." He eyed Lessie, who had been glaring at him since he'd appeared, with some distaste. "I imagine you would object if I transported you there without your friends, so you should handle your affairs quickly and start the journey as soon as possible. In the meantime, I will petition Derynnis myself and see if I can get him to help you."
I scowled. "You mean there's a chance he won't?"
Caor shrugged. "He's rather capricious, and as a god of the Underworld does not value mortal lives all that much. Even so, he is your only hope, so be on your best behavior when you do finally reach the forge. He does not suffer fools."
With that dire pronouncement, Caor winked out of sight.
Lessie let out an exasperated huff that wholeheartedly mirrored my current mood, and I coughed as a cloud of smoke shot from her nostrils. "This dragon heart business seems to have become infinitely more complicated ever since the gods got involved," she grumbled at me.
"Maybe, but we have no way of destroying these pieces unless the gods help us," I pointed out. To soften the sting of my words, I wrapped my arms around her neck and leaned into her warm body. "Thanks for saving my hide again, by the way. You're getting pretty good at flying in to rescue me in the nick of time."
Lessie snorted. "A skill I've been forced to develop, thanks to these mad missions we're constantly running." But she wrapped her foreleg around me and made a purring sound deep in her throat that made my whole body vibrate.
I glanced over my shoulder at Tavarian, who was watching us a little wistfully. He must be missing Muza, I thought. Now that Elantia was in such dire straits, would Tavarian call Muza out of retirement? After all, the council was in no position to prosecute either him or his dragon for their earlier desertion. But then again, I had a feeling there was more to Muza's disappearance than what Tavarian had revealed. There was still a secret he was sitting on, one that I would have to worm out of him someday.
But now wasn't the time. Now, he needed comfort, just as much as I did.
I let Lessie cling to me for another moment, then gently extricated myself from her embrace and walked over to Tavarian. He opened his mouth to say something, but I ignored him as I wrapped my arms around his neck and stretched up on tiptoe to kiss him. I pressed the entire length of my body against him as our mouths met, and a gasp escaped my lips as a jolt of energy arced between us.
Lessie huffed again, but this time there was something distinctly amused in her tone. "I'm going to hunt for dinner," she said as she took flight, buffeting us with a gust of wind. "You had better have your clothes on by the time I come back."
