Forged in Magic (Dragon's Gift: The Protector Book 5)

by Linsey Hall

  The corner of his mouth kicked up. “I was just about to ask. But it’s rare that you’re the one requesting.”

  I shrugged. “I’m not worried about the blood bond anymore.”

  He pressed a kiss to my forehead, then pulled back and raised his wrist to his mouth. His white fangs descended, then punctured the skin. I shivered.

  He held his arm up to my lips, and I took his forearm in my hands. Trembling, I pressed my lips against his skin, drawing deep of his blood. Flavor exploded over my tongue, strange and delicious. Warmth flowed through me, strengthening my muscles and calming my mind.

  Pleasure followed, so acute that I moaned, my eyes fluttering shut.

  Ares withdrew his arm. It took all I had not to yank it back. I opened my eyes in time to see him raise his wrist and swipe his tongue over the wounds, closing them. Heat streaked through me.

  I lunged for him, straddling his waist and wrapping my arms around his neck. I pressed my mouth to his, kissing him ferociously.

  It felt amazing.

  I didn’t know if it was his blood, our declarations, or some combination of the two, but I was on fire. I rubbed against him, desperate to get as close as I could. His strong arms wrapped around me, squeezing me tight before he withdrew.

  I was about to complain when I felt his big hands running down my sides and up my back, as if he couldn’t get enough of me. It was mutual. I touched him everywhere I could reach, images of tearing his clothes off racing through my mind.

  But another thought blared stronger than all the rest, brought on by desire. Need.

  “Bite me,” I said.

  “What?” He pulled back, eyes heavy-lidded and hot.

  “I mean it. I want it.” And I did. Badly. It was supposed to feel good—and what a bond it would be … “Do it.”

  He didn’t hesitate. It was as if something had snapped his iron control. Maybe it had been my determination that had done it, but I didn’t care enough to figure it out now. Not when Ares was lowering his head to my neck.

  Excitement raced through me, followed by a sharp, small stab of pain. It was gone in a flash, followed by heat and pleasure. Ares’s mouth felt like silk.

  I shuddered against him, letting the ecstasy flow through me, coil tight within me. He groaned low against my throat, the vibrations sending another jolt of pleasure through me.

  When he withdrew his mouth, I wanted to yank him back toward me. But the swipe of his hot tongue against the wounds at my throat sent another jolt of pleasure through me.

  I moaned, my head tilting back.

  Ares swept me up in his arms, then headed for the bedroom.

  Chapter Eight

  As it turned out, Svalbard wasn’t just a chunk of rock in the middle of the ocean. It was a magical chunk of rock with a super magical mountain. And that made it a pain in the ass to find.

  “The mountain isn’t on any map.” Del shifted through a pile of maps in the back of her trove.

  She, Cass, and I had come up here early in the morning after scouring the internet for any mention of a super tall mountain on Svalbard. As far as the modern world was concerned, Svalbard existed. But it didn’t contain the largest mountain in Norway. That was on the mainland.

  Since Del’s trove contained an enormous collection of books and a few old maps, we’d come up here to see if we could find anything. Two hours later, surrounded by piles of books and scrolls, we were coming up empty.

  “So if the internet has nothing and your trove has nothing, we’ll need to go farther afield,” Cass said.

  “Dr. Garriso and the fae Fiona,” I said. Our friend at the Museum for Magical History and the fae librarian were the two most knowledgeable people we knew. Their libraries and memories far surpassed ours. I looked at Cass and Del. “I’ll start with Dr. Garriso if you’ll contact Fiona.”

  “On it,” Del said.

  Cass saluted.

  We left the trove, filing into Del’s bedroom. They stayed behind, and I took the stairs two at a time to my apartment, grabbed the keys to Fabio, then headed down to the street. The late winter sun was just rising when I stepped out into the chill air. I had two hours until Ares returned from a trip to the Vampire Realm that was meant to start coordinating backup for our future fight against Drakon. We weren’t sure when we’d need them exactly, but it would be soon.

  Fabio was parked just down the street. It didn’t take me long to reach the Museum for Magical History. Despite the early hour, Dr. Garriso was sure to be there. We were pretty sure he even slept there occasionally, so dedicated was he to his passion.

  I parked in the lot behind the museum and hurried toward the back door. I tapped on Dr. Garriso’s office window to alert him, then knocked on the unassuming entrance that led to the staff offices.

  A few moments later, Dr. Garriso opened the door. He was in his seventies, with flyaway white hair and a tweed coat that looked very Sherlock Holmes on him. It suited the old scholar.

  “Come in, come in.” He gestured me inside the barren hallway.

  Though the main part of the museum was a beautifully decorated old building, the staff offices were located off a linoleum-tiled hallway in the basement. Fluorescent lights buzzed in the ceiling.

  “Whatever you’re here about, it must be important,” Dr. Garriso said.

  “How’d you guess?”

  “I’ve been getting a fair number of difficult questions from your camp lately.” He grinned. “I just hope I can help with this one.”

  “Me too.”

  Dr. Garriso led me down the hall to his office. Stepping inside was like going to another world. The twentieth century office drudgery of the hall gave way to a book-lined office that looked straight out of a nineteenth century lord’s manor. Floor-to-ceiling shelves were filled with leather-bound books. Tiffany lamps cast a warm glow over the dark furniture and heavy desk.

  “Tea?” Dr. Garriso asked.

  I smiled. It wouldn’t matter if the world were ending—Dr. Garriso would always offer tea. “Thank you, but I’m not sure I have the time.”

  Concern wrinkled his brow. “Yes, yes. Of course.”

  I took a seat in one of the leather chairs at the end of the narrow room.

  He sat next to me and leaned forward. “What is it that I can help you with?”

  I told him about Svalbard and the mountain that couldn’t be found on any maps.

  Interest gleamed in his eyes, and he tapped his chin. “Interesting. Very interesting. I think I may know just what you’re talking about.”

  I opened my mouth to ask what he meant, but he leapt up, as spry as a man in his twenties, and hurried to the far wall. He scaled a wooden ladder and reached for a large, dusty book.

  “I’ve always been interested in the ancient religions,” he said as he hurried back. “The problem is that there is usually so little written history. And what we have isn’t necessarily reliable. Some things weren’t written down until hundreds of years after the fact, and how are we supposed to know what got lost in the process?”

  “So you think this has something to do with an ancient religion?”

  “It just might.” He sat and opened the huge book. A small poof of dust plumed upward. Quickly, he skimmed through the pages. Then he stopped, pointing to one. “Yes, yes. Here it is. There is mention of primordial gods in Northern Europe. The first gods, who came long before the Greek or the Celtic or the Norse. The primordial gods.”

  “I’ve never heard of them.”

  “Not many people have. But the Icelandic poet Snorri Sturleson recorded an ancient tale, passed down through the centuries, of a land of ice and snow that was protected by the primordial gods.”

  “I’ll bet twenty bucks it was Svalbard.”

  “Yes, very likely. It was said to be an island, far off the coast, where the polar bears were larger than houses.”

  Ehhh. I grimaced. “If it’s protected by the primordial gods, that could mean it’s hidden from human eyes, right?”

&nbs
p; “Yes. And your giant mountain would be hidden as well.”

  “So how do I reach it?”

  He leaned over the page, brow drawn. After a moment, he spoke. “It says here that there is an entry in Heimsrkingla. There’s nothing there now—just rocks and snow on Norway’s northernmost coast. But you should go and see if you can trigger the magic.”

  “What kind of trigger?” I thought of the dwarves in Norway and how we’d had to trigger Sven’s magic with the amber stone.

  “I have a feeling that if this is what I think it is—and you are who we all think you are—that you won’t need to do anything other than show up.”

  “I hope you’re right.”

  His gaze turned grave. “So do I. Because you need to succeed, Nix. And I’ve just given you all the information that I know.”

  “Thank you.”

  He grinned. “My pleasure. Not every day that my knowledge is put to such world-saving use.”

  World-saving. “I just hope I can live up to that.”

  I arrived back at Factory Row the same time Ares did. He strode down the sidewalk toward me and pulled me in for a kiss. My mind spun for the briefest second, every inch of me focusing on his touch, before he drew away.

  I wobbled a bit, steadied my breathing—and then remembered everything that faced us. That sobered me right up.

  “Did you find anything?” he asked.

  “Yeah. You?”

  “Yes. Should we need them, I have a contingent of vampire soldiers who will help us with the fight.”

  I grinned. “Thank you. And I got lucky, though Cass and Del struck out.”

  “You know where to go?”

  “I do.”

  “Good. Because there’s a crowd waiting.” He pointed behind me.

  I turned, looking through the window of P & P. I’d only had eyes for Ares when he’d arrived and hadn’t noticed how many people were inside.

  Cass and Del, with Aidan and Roarke. Along with Connor, Claire, Aerdeca, Mordaca, Bree, and Ana.

  I gave Ares a quizzical look. He shrugged, which I should have expected. How would he know their intentions better than I?

  “Let’s go figure this out, then.” I walked into the warmth of P & P and looked at all of the people. “So, guys, what’s the party for?”

  “We were hoping you’d tell us.” Aerdeca tapped her fingers on her chair arm. She was dressed in her tactical fight wear instead of her usual white pantsuit. So was Mordaca.

  “Yes, Cass says that you’ve found the dragons,” Mordaca said.

  “Maybe found the dragons,” Cass said.

  Mordaca waved her black-clawed fingers. “Whatever.”

  I approached the group. “Yes, there is a chance I have found the dragons, but I can’t guarantee it. Why are you here, though?”

  “To help you, obviously.” Bree flicked her dark hair back from her face.

  “We barely know you,” I said. “Not that I don’t appreciate the help, but you’re risking a lot for people you barely know.”

  “We’re risking a lot because there’s a lot at stake,” Ana said. “All the magic in the world. That means our magic, too. And the magic of every innocent supernatural out there.”

  “And we’re not interested in running from a fight,” Bree said.

  A smile twitched at my lips. “I’ve gotten that impression.” I looked at Aerdeca and Mordaca. “Same goes for you?”

  “We’ve known what was at stake from the moment we touched the beaker,” Aerdeca said. “We’re here to fight.”

  I glanced at Connor and Claire, but their faces basically said, “Give me a break.”

  I didn’t bother asking them why they had our backs. They always had our backs.

  “All right, then,” I said. “We do need your help. Normally, we’d take fewer people on recon—which is what this will be—but we can’t afford for Del, Cass, or me to get caught by Drakon.”

  “So we’ll be your guards.” Bree cracked her knuckles and grinned.

  “Yeah, basically.” We could protect ourselves normally. But this wasn’t normal.

  “With this crowd, I think we’re going in loaded for bear,” Cass said.

  I grimaced. “Good, because there will be polar bears. Big ones.”

  “So we’re headed north?” Del asked.

  “Yes.” I relayed Dr. Garriso’s information about the primordial gods and what we might face.

  We didn’t have much of a plan other than show up, stick together, and hope for the best. We were really walking into the unknown.

  “This is some serious chosen-one business going on,” Bree muttered.

  She was right. And whoever had done the choosing—I sure hoped they knew what they were doing.

  With Ares, Cass, and Mordaca as the transporters in the group, it didn’t take long to transport everyone to Heimsrkingla. After everyone had gotten into winter clothes, Ares took me first so that we could scout out the terrain. Everyone else followed behind.

  As soon as I arrived on the far northern coast of Norway, cold wind whipped across my cheeks, making my eyes water. Every bit of land that wasn’t barren rock was covered by snow. The black sea roiled, whitecaps topping the waves.

  It was much colder than the fjord had been, and much more desolate. Especially in the dark. Damned winter. It seemed that most of our time in Norway would be spent in the dark. Especially this far north, where there would be no sun all month. At least there was a bright moon and stars. Reflection off the snow gave plenty of light.

  I spun in a circle, taking it all in. Mountains rose high behind me. At the sea, small islands of rock dotted the landscape.

  Close to the water, something pulled at me. Cass had just arrived with Roarke and Del, but I left them behind, crunching through the snow toward the water’s edge. It felt like my dragon sense, but I hadn’t employed it.

  Ares joined me. “Where are you going?”

  “I feel something. Magic. It’s different.” Maybe it was the same thing Dr. Garriso had been speaking of.

  I clambered over rocks as waves crashed against the shore. The magic grew stronger, sparking on the air.

  “Do you feel that?” I asked.

  “Nothing,” Ares said.

  Hmmm. I quickened my pace, my heart racing as I neared the magic. At the shore, there was a barren spot with no snow. It was a large flat rock, about ten feet wide. I walked out to the middle of it, magic singing up through my bones.

  There was a carving on the rock, a large swirl. As soon as I stepped into the middle, the magic swelled.

  Water splashed.

  I looked up.

  A large ship was rising up from the sea.

  “Holy fates,” the murmur sounded from behind me. Other exclamations followed.

  Water poured off the rigging and deck. It glittered in the moonlight, a structure made entirely of ice. It was clear in parts and cloudy in others, but the whole thing was definitely made of ice.

  These Norwegian Vikings sure did like their boats.

  Bree stepped up beside me, her dark hair hidden behind her hood. Her voice was filled with awe. “Skithblathnir, the ship of the gods.”

  “What is it?”

  “The best ship ever built, according to Norse mythology.”

  My gaze traveled over the ship. It was huge, with the sleek lines of a Viking warship. But there were no shields at the waterline, which a warship would likely have. There were also no sailors.

  “I think we’re supposed to board,” Ares said.

  I nodded slowly, still awed.

  “Pretty impressive,” Mordaca said. “Yes. I’d say you are the chosen one.”

  I let out a shuddery breath. “Then let’s board.”

  I made my way to the shore. There was either deep water or magic right here, because the ship lined up exactly with the rocks near the water. I jumped from one of the rocks onto the deck. Despite being made of ice, it wasn’t slippery underfoot, thank fates.

  Ares followed, then Del
and Cass. Everyone else boarded afterward.

  “Anyone else think it’s a tad risky to board a boat that is technically made of water?” Claire asked.

  “Yes.” I nodded emphatically. Water on top of water. We’d just have to hope it didn’t melt.

  Once everyone was on board, the boat pulled back from the shore, then set out to sea.

  “There’s no sail raised,” Cass said.

  I looked up at the empty mast. “Nope.”

  Magic propelled this vessel. I looked at Del, whose dark hair whipped in the wind. “Do you see any ghosts?”

  She shook her head. Del was the only one among us who could see ghosts that didn’t willingly show themselves.

  Ana stepped up to the rail and looked warily into the sea. “Is it a ghost ship if there’re no ghosts?”

  I frowned. “I don’t know. But it sure feels like one.”

  The ship cut through the waves, which got bigger as we headed farther out into sea. If this was some dark magic, it could take us out and drop us in the middle of the ocean.

  The moonlight glittered on the waves as they rose and fell around us. The cold cut through my jacket. I shivered, wrapping my arms more tightly around myself.

  “We have to be getting close,” Cass said. “This is too wild to not be the right track.”

  I had to agree with her logic. The crazier and more magical things got, the more I thought we were going in the right direction.

  It felt like hours that we sailed, the wind chilling our bones and muscles. In the distance, storm clouds rolled and lightning struck. Eventually, snow began to fall, the clouds blocking out the light of the moon. It was so dark it was hard to see the ocean now, and claustrophobia pressed in on me.

  Finally, the snow stopped. The clouds parted and moonlight revealed glowing, snow-covered mountains in the distance.

  “That’s it.” I grinned.

  “You feel that, though?” Cass asked.

  “Not good,” Mordaca murmured.

  Aerdeca shook her head in agreement.

  They were right. Magic rolled off the land, a threatening electricity in the air. I shivered and tried to ignore it as the boat carried us to the shore. It glided to a stop, and we jumped off one by one, landing in the soft snow. It covered the ground, fluffy and white and so pure it seemed like no one had stepped on it in centuries.