by Logan Jacobs
“Hm.” Preyna pursed her lips and thought. “I have a spell that will allow us to walk through the brick wall.”
“That would be amazing.” Kas nodded fervently.
“I’ll teach you later,” the beautiful blonde assured her, and then she walked over to the wall. “Now, everyone, come line up over here. We can only go one by one, otherwise it gets a little messy.”
“What about the dragons?” Eira asked, and her hand instinctively reached up to pet Svass.
“It should be alright for them to stay on your shoulders,” Preyna answered.
“Okay, good.” Eira nodded, and I had to smile at the redhead. She’d always seemed so battle hardened to me, but now that she had a small dragon of her own to care for, she wasn’t afraid to show a much softer, caring side.
As much as I thought Eira’s warband leader attitude was sexy as hell, I had to admit I found her soft side incredibly endearing, too.
We all lined up by the wall, and Preyna closed her eyes, placed her hand on the brick, and muttered something in the old language.
“Give me your hand,” she told Asta, but she kept her other hand placed firmly on the wall.
The white-haired elf girl took Preyna’s hand and allowed the sorceress to guide her through the brick. It was incredible to see her disappear into the wall, but I knew she’d come out the other side just fine.
“You next,” Preyna told Eira, and the redhead grabbed her hand.
Svass curled up against Eira’s neck, and I could clearly see her shaking with fear.
“It’s okay,” the redhead assured her, and she reached her hand up to stroke the small reptile’s back.
Svass seemed to calm down some, though she didn’t move from where she was wrapped tightly around Eira’s neck.
Preyna smiled at the small dragon and then closed her eyes and led Eira through the wall. The redhead disappeared just as Asta had, and I was once again astounded at Preyna’s abilities.
Kas and Uffe were next, and the little dragon seemed almost excited, which was odd because he was usually the most timid.
Uffe had a smile on his reptilian lips, and he leaned toward the wall as Kas took Preyna’s hand and stepped through the stone.
I shook my head and laughed before I turned to Blar.
“Ready?” I asked him, and he nodded and laid his head on my shoulder. He didn’t seem to care either way, and I figured traveling through a wall wasn’t very exciting for him since he was able to teleport on his own.
I took Preyna’s hand, and the sorceress smiled at me as a jolt of electricity worked its way from where her flesh touched mine, all the way up my arm.
“We’ll go together,” she told me.
“Okay.” I nodded.
Preyna turned toward the wall but kept her hand on it, and then she stepped forward and pulled me along with her.
The stone seemed to melt away as we stepped directly into it, and before I knew it, we were on the other side of the wall.
“Whoa,” I breathed as I looked around.
The yard we were in was magnificent. Bright green grass covered the ground, and there were huge fruit trees planted strategically around the area, along with berry bushes, flowers of all shapes, sizes, and colors, and even a small pond with several wooden chairs beside it.
A huge fountain sat right outside of the front of the house, though it looked more like a small castle than any home I’d seen before. The entire building was made of the same white stone as the fence, and it was at least three stories tall, with balconies and large doors and windows everywhere.
I was suddenly extremely glad Preyna and Kas had been able to cast the invisibility spell on us. It would be incredibly difficult to move around this home without being spotted, though as I looked around, I didn’t see many guards. There were a couple near the front doors, but I didn’t see any others.
Blar smacked his lips when he saw the fruit trees, but I turned to him and shook my head.
The little dragon rolled his eyes, but then a loud clanging sound from the small castle caught his attention, and he immediately focused on the mission once more.
“What was that?” Asta whispered.
“I don’t know.” I shook my head. “But we should go find out.”
I carefully led the girls over to the front steps of the mansion, but before we could make our way up, the clanging sound rang through the air again, this time followed by male voices.
“I assume you’ll be back next week,” a voice said, and it sounded oddly familiar, but I couldn’t place it.
“Same time as always,” another voice answered, and this voice was familiar as well. “The King goes through ‘em, I tell you.”
“Right, right,” the effeminate voice laughed. “We’ll have more ready for you.”
“Next week, then,” the male said, and a moment later, he came into view.
I couldn’t stop my jaw from popping open at the sight of the man. I knew him. It was the elf from the King’s dungeon who I’d seen when I was in the body of the baby dragon down there.
He was pushing a small cart with several cages covered with cloth. I could sense the babies inside, and I knew this scumbag was bringing them directly to the King’s dungeon.
I glanced down to see there were several carts parked in the driveway, none of which were particularly elaborate. I pursed my lips at their smart planning. These arseholes were terrible people, but they weren’t completely stupid. They knew a cart that looked like it held royalty or royal goods of any kind would be much more likely to draw attention than one that looked like a peasant’s cart.
“Rath, do you know him?” Kas whispered to me. “You seem surprised to see him.”
“I saw him before, in the elf King’s dungeon,” I replied in hushed tones.
“We can’t let him leave with those babies.” Preyna frowned.
“Don’t worry,” I told her. “We’ll follow him and get them out before he can make it back to the King.”
Preyna nodded, and while the dark-haired elf worked on loading the baby dragons into the cart, we made our way around the steps we were hidden behind, so we could head back toward the fence and cut the man off once he made it to the road.
“Oh, Keelan, one more thing,” the other voice called just as we made it to the edge of the steps.
I stopped in my tracks and waited for the other man to make his descent, but once he came into view, I had to close my eyes and open them again to make sure I was seeing correctly.
I knew I’d recognized that voice, but it couldn’t be…
Coming down the steps was the man I’d killed just two days before.
Chapter 11
Kas gasped, and she reached up to cover her mouth with her hand as her violet eyes locked on mine. Then the Valkyrie pointed and shook her head.
I closed my eyes and shook mine back. I had no idea how it was possible, but the man was standing right there. From the long curly orange hair, to the dark-blue eyes, the elf was exactly the same.
Yet, it couldn’t be.
It was eerie seeing the man I’d just killed walking around as if nothing had happened, and I wracked my brain and tried to figure out what could be going on.
He was a sorcerer, so could he have possibly figured out a way to avoid my attack? Did he somehow make me think I’d killed him when I hadn’t?
I shook that thought out of my head, there was no way that happened. I knew I’d killed him. I’d decapitated the bastard, but then… how? How was this arsehole standing in front of me?
My eyes scoured the elf for anything that might give me some sort of clue as to how this was possible, and the more I looked at him, the more I realized this couldn’t possibly be the same man as before.
The outward appearance was uncanny, and I suspected the two were most likely twins, but other than their features and voice, nothing was the same.
The man we’d fought a couple of days ago had worn immaculate clothes, with gold clasps and an orange cap
e to match his hair, but this man wore only a simple dark-green tunic and black pants. A plain broadsword dangled from his hip, but there were no other weapons I could see, and the top half of his curly orange hair was pulled back into a braid to keep hair from getting in his eyes.
The man’s voice wasn’t nearly as effeminate as his brother’s, either, and he moved with more purpose and precision where his brother had walked with a feminine sway of his hips.
This brother was clearly the manlier of the two, and I wondered if he was a sorcerer as well, or if he relied solely on his strength in battle.
“What’s that?” the dark-haired elf asked.
“I was told something went wrong at my brother’s place,” the elf said, and he looked around nonchalantly. “Do you have any information regarding his death?”
“Can’t say I do.” The dark-haired elf shook his head. “What do you care, anyway? You hadn’t talked to him in years.”
“Maybe not.” The orange-haired elf shrugged. “But he was still my brother.”
“Mmm,” the other elf mused as he lifted the last cage into the back of the cart.
So, the elf knew about us killing his brother. If that was the case, he was more of a threat than I thought. I couldn’t have him, or the man who worked for the King, letting any of the other dealers in the area know about what we’d done.
If word got out we were killing dealers, they’d take extra precautions to make sure they weren’t caught, and I wanted them to think they were as safe as they’d always been.
I glanced over to the girls, and Eira’s green eyes locked on mine. She narrowed them to slits and then flashed them over to the orange-haired elf.
I nodded before I looked at the rest of the girls. Asta, Kas, and Preyna each nodded back, and I turned to face our opponent.
It was time to take out these sorry arseholes.
I was sure as soon as we attacked, whatever guards were in the area would be called down to assist, but there were five of us, plus the dragons, so I knew we could take whatever came our way.
Blar’s grip tightened on my shoulder and hip as I pulled out my sword and stepped forward.
It was strange to know my opponent wasn’t able to see me, but I took full advantage of that and made my way over to the tall, lanky elf. I readied my sword, but just as I reared back, he ducked down.
The orange-haired man threw his hand out toward me, and tangerine-colored sparkles flew all around. I didn’t know much about magic, but I knew he’d just removed my invisibility spell.
It didn’t matter, I still had my blade at the ready, and I quickly swung low to try and get the man’s shins, since most enemies didn’t expect a swing like that.
This elf was prepared, though, and he jumped back and rolled out of the way. When he got back on his feet, he had his sword out, and he held it up to me before he cocked a lopsided smile my way.
“You must be one of those dragon loving arseholes,” he sneered.
“That’s me.” I grinned mockingly and adjusted my stance. It seemed this guy was going to actually be a worthy opponent.
“It was those bastards who killed my brother,” he said, and he dove forward to swing at me, but I blocked his blow and pushed him away with my sword. “Know anything about that?”
“I do, actually,” I said, and I gestured to Blar on my shoulder.
The little blue dragon let out a massive fire blast right at the man, but the orange-haired sonofabitch was quick, and he used his magic to throw up an invisible shield.
“I thought you might,” he said as he attempted to cast some sort of spell in my direction, but he wasn’t the only one who was quick.
I tucked and rolled to the side, and then I sprang up a few feet away from him while Blar hovered just overhead.
I glanced to the stairs, only to realize I couldn’t see the girls any longer, probably because I’d been removed from the spell.
“Enough of this,” the dark-haired elf said, and he walked toward me with his blade at the ready. “I can’t be late to the palace.”
The elf took another step, only to fall flat on his face. His sword clamored to the ground in front of him, and I quickly kicked it out of his way before he could raise himself up onto all fours.
“What the fuck,” he growled, and he looked around with narrowed black eyes.
“You should be more careful, Keelan,” the orange-haired man sneered without looking away from me. “You’re not much help in battle, are you?”
“Fuck off,” the dark-haired elf spat, and he stood up and wiped the blood from his mouth. “Someone tripped me.”
“Tripped you?” the sorcerer asked, and his dark-blue eyes narrowed on his customer.
I stepped forward to stab at the elf, but before I could, he spun around and cast orange sparkles all around.
Suddenly, the girls came into sight.
Eira stood just behind the orange-haired man, while Kas and Asta were on either side and just behind the dark-haired elf.
Preyna was still over by the staircase, but from her stance with her arms held up, it was clear she was in the middle of casting some sort of spell.
“I see,” the orange-haired man scoffed. “I thought this would be a quick fight, but it seems you were trying to rely on little girls to do your bidding. No matter, I’ll have my guards handle them while I slice you to pieces. Guards!”
“I wouldn’t underestimate them if I were you.” I smiled and lowered my stance so I could take whatever he threw at me.
“I don’t underestimate them,” he chuckled darkly. “But I know my own strength, and I know they’re no match for me.”
“You don’t know a damn thing,” Preyna said, and she walked up behind me.
“Mmm, so you do have a sorcerer,” he said, and the way he looked Preyna up and down made me want to skin him right there. “This should be more interesting than I thought.”
Ten guards came barreling down the steps then, but I nodded to Eira, and the redhead brought her sword down toward the boss while I rushed toward him.
The orange-haired elf spun around to catch Eira’s sword with his own, which left his back exposed, just as I’d planned, but as soon as I reached him, he vanished.
“Looking for me?” his voice asked from behind, but Blar let out a massive fire blast, and I heard the elf curse before he disappeared and reappeared near the other elf’s cart.
“Your teleportation is weak,” Preyna laughed, and suddenly the elf began to swirl with her golden magic sparkles.
“And you’re better than I anticipated,” he snickered.
“He can’t teleport any longer,” Preyna told me. “He’s all yours now.”
I smiled at the sorceress and then charged toward the orange-haired man.
The guards rushed down, and Eira took on two of them while Preyna and Asta stepped up as well. Kas was locked in battle with the dark-haired elf, but Uffe blasted the guards with his fire and hurtled rocks directly at their heads.
My team had the guards taken care of, and from the way the orange-haired man backed up toward the castle steps, it looked to me like he was about to try and run. Without his teleportation, he probably wasn’t confident enough that he would win, so he figured it was better to not fight at all. It wasn’t an idiotic plan, but it wasn’t a brave one, either.
“Where are you headed?” I laughed as I hurried after the bastard.
“Just getting a leg up,” he said, and then he turned around and jumped down the stairs toward me with his blade lifted high above his head.
I thrust my sword up and half-expected to be able to get him in the stomach like I would most other opponents, but he was faster than I gave him credit for, and he managed to bring his blade down before I could make contact.
The metal of our swords made a hideous screeching noise as they ground against each other, and the force of the bastard’s jump pushed me to my knees. When I looked up into his dark-blue eyes, it was clear he was enjoying himself. There was a wicked smi
le on his face, and I knew right then this move had worked for him before, and he fully expected to be able to kill me.
I wasn’t a regular citizen who didn’t know what they were doing, though. I was a trained Asgardian warrior, and I wasn’t about to go down that easily.
“I killed your brother,” I said with a smile.
The man’s eyes widened slightly, and his shock distracted him long enough that he lost his initiative, and I was able to shove my blade upward with enough force to trip him against the stairs behind him.
He slammed into the stone, and I saw him grit his teeth and tense his body before he got up to his feet. I knew that fall hurt, and I couldn’t help but relish in the knowledge for just a second.
“You?” the orange-haired man asked as he stood up. “You killed my brother?”
“You mean the arsehole who looks just like you, only prettier?” I asked with a sarcastic smile. “Yeah, I took him out a couple of days ago. Got all his men, too. And I released every last one of his dragons from that shithole barn he had them in.”
“I will kill you in the name of Seamern,” he growled, and his lip curled with hatred.
“Wait,” I laughed. “Your brother’s name was Seamern?”
“You dare speak his name?” The man’s lips twitched.
“I am wondering,” I baited him as we started to circle each other on the large landing of the mansion stairs. “How did your brother wind up in such a disgusting place to begin with? You’ve got this nice mansion here, and I can’t help but think you should’ve shared. That’s your brother, after all.”
“You don’t know what you speak of,” he spat.
I could tell my words were getting to him, which was exactly what I wanted. I didn’t care about his brother in the slightest, but from the way he’d talked to the other elf, I knew it was a sore spot with him.
If I could use his feelings to distract him from our fight, I would. The less focused he became, the more likely I could get a shot on him.
“Maybe.” I shrugged. “But I do know I chopped your brother’s head clean off and watched the life drain from his eyes.”
