The dark-skinned guard watching the entrance to the tavern gave her a wary look, immediately recognizing the outfit of her station and seeing the unresponsive woman lying on the curricle behind Loren.
“Watch her a moment, will you?” Loren said in her stateliest voice, tucking her chin so her face was absolutely hidden in her cowl. She was well known at this tavern, and it wouldn’t do to have Cyus finding out she had been here tonight.
“Y-y-yes ma’am!” the man stammered.
Loren chuckled to herself seeing Cyus’ cousin sweat and shift about nervously as he followed the order. She moved to the back door of the tavern, striding with purpose the way she had seen all Healers walk, and pounded on it. She didn’t have to wait long for a response. After about a minute, a harassed looking middle aged woman with a tangled gray bun and chocolate colored skin banged open the door.
“Who in the hells is making so much damn racket at my damn backdoor?”
Joisanne was Cyus’ mother and proprietor of the tavern, the Run Rummer. She didn’t even look up from the ledger she was scrutinizing.
Loren cleared her throat dramatically, seizing the woman’s full attention. Joisanne looked up sharply, and her mouth dropped open satisfyingly. Loren loved this woman like she was her own mother, and Joisanne treated her like a daughter, but Loren did enjoy her practical jokes.
“Pardon, mistress, I meant no disrespect. There’s no one injured inside, so if you were called here by mistake, I humbly apologize and beg forgiveness.”
It truly is amazing how someone can become so polite and well-spoken when they believe they are in trouble, thought Loren.
Unable to contain her laughter a moment longer, Loren threw back her hood and watched Joisanne’s expression transform from humble, to outrage, to chagrin, to disapproval, and finally to outright amusement in the span of a few blinks. That reaction was worth the mummery ten times over in Loren’s opinion. She laughed until her sides hurt.
“Now, you cut that noise right now, girl. I don’t know what got into you tonight pulling such a childish prank, but you better take that robe off before you get into real trouble!”
Joisanne was back to her usual self, glaring and tapping her foot.
“All you need to know is that there’s a woman being watched over in the front by Manor. See that she gets to a doctor or a real Healer; she’s going to have a nasty bump on her head when she comes to.”
“Alright, girl, come to think about it I don’t even want to know what you’re up to. Not in the least bit.”
“Has Cyus come looking for me?” Loren asked, trying to seem aloof.
“He was here an hour ago. Don’t worry though, he won’t hear about this from me. Now, get going. You’re keeping me from my inventory.”
And with that Joisanne slammed the door in her face.
A giddiness crept over Loren. She was about to do some real Inspector work, unsupervised for the first time in her life. She was determined to show Cyus that she was just as capable on her own as she was with him at her side.
Cyus and Dain had been collaborating endlessly trying to track down the serial murderer who had targeted the Healers, so Loren found herself running errands for them. While she was out, she just happened to take a little longer than was necessary so she could snoop things out on her own a bit. Tonight she meant to put her findings to use.
For one, she’d found out that there was a particular neighborhood near Jenukai Fortress that the Healers avoided nearly all together now. Five of the murders had happened in the vicinity, so Loren decided she was going to go make herself the bait, hopefully drawing the psychopath directly to her. The thought simultaneously excited and terrified her.
The neighborhood in question was about thirty minutes away; she made it in ten. From there, her task was making her presence known and obvious. The most hardened, cutthroat, and lowliest criminals wouldn’t touch a Healer, so it was clear she had reeled in her fish after a surprisingly short amount of time.
The moons were high and bright tonight, so her costume was obvious to anyone that would be looking for her. Footsteps beyond her own echoed on the cobblestones of the street behind her, but they kept a narrow yet steady distance. Loren made sure to take a few unnecessary twists and turns onto other streets just to be certain it was her mark that paced her.
Before long, she could hear a man’s voice muttering harshly, like he was having an argument with someone. As Loren walked, she listened more carefully, just in case she had missed a second culprit stalking her. After a few minutes of straining, she realized whoever this man was, he was in the habit of conversing vigorously with himself.
He must be a true madman, then.
Her pulse began to race in increased excitement. Seeing a wall off to her left, Loren slowed just enough to the point where she saw her pursuer, letting him know in no uncertain terms that she knew he was following. The man had only one arm, but he held a sword. Loren broke for the wall.
She crested the wall and dropped into a yard of some sort. There were crates stacked all along the side that extended out towards a grassed area. Lifting a cudgel from her pants’ back pocket, she waited for the murderer. Despite his handicap, he had no trouble getting over. He landed, and she could hear him talking quite clearly.
“We’ll gut this bitch good, mark my words… Yes, you’re always right… Of course, it will be just like the others… Oh yes, you will love all the blood.”
As the maniac came closer and closer, Loren’s pulse began to pound inside her ears and sweat glazed her palms. She quickly removed the robe, breath coming to her raggedly in anticipation of what she had planned. Luckily, she was hidden very well, and her culprit passed by without seeing her. The moment he went by she threw the cloak over his head and he swung wildly with his sword. With that she connected roughly with the cudgel squarely with his temple. He went down in a heap.
Loren moved to see who he was when out of the shadows near the wall came a familiar smooth voice.
“Well done, my love,” Cyus clapped with mimed politeness.
Loren nearly jumped out of her skin.
“How long have you been there?” she demanded.
“Oh, right around the time you knocked that poor Healer woman senseless. You’re two for two, I see,” Cyus replied, unamused.
“And you didn’t stop me?” Loren asked with incredulity.
“You seemed to have things well in hand. Shall we see who the culprit is?”
In her surprise, Loren had almost forgotten she had caught the murderer. She and Cyus walked over together, and he kicked away the sword making sure the man couldn’t grab it. For the first time Loren noticed a skull on the hilt. He lay face down, and Cyus rolled him over with a booted foot, pulling off the Healer robe.
“Do you recognize him?” Loren asked once the man was on his back.
Before he could answer, a manic cackling broke the silence of the empty yard. The one armed serial killer was out cold, so the sound couldn’t have come from him. Cyus and Loren looked about, but could not pinpoint where it was coming from. The sound set Loren on edge, and she huddled closer to Cyus.
“Come on, my love. Let’s get him bound and get out of here,” Cyus said, wrapping a protective arm around her shoulder.
Just then the sword floated up of its own accord and stabbed Cyus through his middle. Loren’s scream warred with the mad cackling for domination in the night.
Chapter 24
“I still think it would look more convincing if you were bound and gagged.” Xavian tried to make a joke, but he said it in such a strained voice that Arius cocked an eyebrow at his friend.
“Thanks for trying to alleviate the palpable tension, my friend. And perhaps a good spanking to go along with it? No, thank you,” Arius retorted, gritting and showing his teeth in an attempt at a very forced smile.
In accordance with the prisoner exchange, Arius stood armored but unarmed. Xavian, on the other hand, was allowed to be accoutered as he saw fit.
Xavian had his bow and quiver at the ready, along with various knives hidden amongst his person. Only Rotu accompanied them, as Arius would not be leaving here.
It was approaching noon, and the sun was nearly at its peak, though it was difficult to tell because of the dark blanket of cloud cover. They stood facing the city about twelve miles away in an area called The Celestial Dunes. The landscape surrounding Axion was all heavily forested hills, but during The Roan Wars, the militaristic giants who had become slaves to the Zedd’Kaul had made their camp on this very spot, besieging Axion for close to two years. Since then, no trees or plant life of any kind had regrown. It left this square mile of land quite dead.
It was here they awaited Dregan and Evaline‘s arrival from the clearest vantage point of the city that they could find.
It wasn‘t just the dire prospect of the meeting with Dregan that had him on edge as he looked up and scowled at the clouds. Even though he had grown up here, Arius had loathed the weather of this place. The continual darkness had always dampened his spirits and grated his nerves.
“At least the infernal rain has finally stopped. I was starting to think--”
Arius cut off what he was about to say as he watched a flash of gold streak skyward, followed by two lesser, darker specks. The avian trio climbed steeply from the middle of the city from near the tower towards the dreary gray that constantly enveloped the city.
Dregan was coming.
Their banter was immediately extinguished, and Arius’ heart began to riot inside of his chest. A cold sweat broke out, beading on his brow, and in his peripheral vision he glimpsed Xavian tense and clench his jaw. The time for this inevitable confrontation was now at hand.
Arius and Xavian stood as though they were in a mausoleum, quiescent and austere, watching intently as his brother drew closer by the second. In a few short moments, Dregan and his Gold dragon bore down upon them, flanked by two Black dragons. The arrival of the three dragons kicked up blinding amounts of sand despite the wetness from the earlier showers, and a whirlwind bore down on the dunes. The sandstorm that ensued caused them to lift thick veils they had tailored that morning using cloth from their blankets at the inn. Despite the effort, they were unable to stave off the worst of the conditions.
After an annoying onslaught of coughing and the tumult of the mud and sand had died down, Arius got his first look at Dregan. It had been many years since the estranged brothers had come face to face with one another. Nothing could have prepared Arius for the hate, fear, anxiety, relief, elation, and a score of other emotions he couldn’t quite decipher that washed over him in that moment. Arius was forced to lock his knees to avoid stumbling due to the shock that threatened to overwhelm him. He couldn’t afford to look weak in front of Dregan. Not now, not ever.
Dregan had always been renowned for his striking good looks, but the face that locked stares with Arius was gaunt and skull-like. Those gray-green eyes which had always been piercing now sat in craglike hollows. Deep lines creased from the corners of his eyes and mouth, giving him the appearance that an unhinged sculptor had frantically chiseled him to life.
Tapping as much unchecked Duncar magic as Dregan is capable of must have adverse effects, Arius thought to himself with a sort of grim satisfaction.
Despite all those shocking outward changes, one thing remained the same about his brother: he displayed that infuriatingly audacious smirk Arius was so accustomed to. That knowing smile coupled with his Shadow Priest armor made Dregan appear imperiously intimidating astride his golden mount. Arius had only seen this breed of dragon in his nightmares, and it shone like a molten sun despite their overcast surroundings.
On either side of his brother on Black dragons were the Demon Priests Lint had warned them about. They both wore the black armor of their trade that held a cerulean gem the size of a fist in the middle of their breast plates where their hearts would be. Arius noted that the shards pulsated and glowed ever so slightly.
The person to Dregan’s left hid their features behind a monstrous helm that took on the likeness of a demon, while the man to the right had scars crisscrossed all over his face. His hair was dyed a putrid green that was pulled into an intricate braid, adding to the shock value. The man with the green hair winked and blew Arius a kiss. Beside him Arius felt Xavian raising his bow and reaching for his quiver in reaction to the gesture. Arius gave the most infinitesimal shake of his head to prevent any premature violence.
Usually such a slight would have had Arius’ blood boiling, but he had disregarded the insult the moment it had occurred. Evaline had chosen that very instant to poke her head out from behind the man with the green hair, and Arius had little care for anything else that had transpired. Somehow he forgot how to breathe and his mouth had gone dry instantly. If he thought his heart was drumming at the notion of coming face to face with Dregan, it was nothing compared to the explosion that had ensued beneath his sternum at the sight of his betrothed. Arius hadn’t remembered her being this stunning.
He quickly scanned her statuesque face and found that she was unharmed on the surface. Only then did his lungs begin to cooperate as he sighed in relief and felt a tension he had not noticed previously melt away. Evaline regarded him with pursed lips and a cool expression in turn. Strangely she clutched to the man with the green hair as if for comfort.
“Remove your veil, brother. I would like to see how the years have treated the savior of Gaelaria, the mighty General Arius Jadestar.”
Reluctantly, Arius tore his eyes away from Evaline to regard Dregan once more, all but ripping his veil from his face and tossing it aside.
“I didn’t come here to be goaded, Dregan. Set Evaline free and I will take her place. After the exchange is made, you and I will have plenty of time for pleasantries, I‘m sure.”
“I’m sure we’re going to have endless amounts of fun reminiscing, little brother. We have business to conclude first.”
Dregan nodded, and the man with the green hair and his companion dismounted, landing effortlessly after the lofty drop from their steeds. Evaline stayed astride his mount and shifted about nervously.
Arius scowled as the man sauntered over. As the Demon Priests approached, Arius studied his foes’ dragons in an effort to ignore his growing angst.
The Black breed was Arius’ personal favorite, so it galled him to see rivals use something he was so familiar with and cherished. The two Black dragons stood roughly thirty feet tall, and their wingspan was almost as long. Arius favored this species because of their loyalty and ferocity in battle. They weren’t the most agile fliers like Blue dragons, but they rode the winds like a tempest nonetheless. These particular two sat on their haunches with wings folded inward over their plated skin, watching with carnivorous eyes. They were well trained as they sat nearly motionless during the proceedings, growling softly in the deep and guttural way of dragons.
Dregan’s Gold dragon was another story. As far as Arius knew, there was not another like it in all the world. Out of all the traditional breeds, Black, Red, Green and Blue, the Black was the largest. This Gold dwarfed any Black that Arius had ever seen by a wide margin. The beast stood nearly fifty feet tall, and its vivid sun-gold wings stretched as wide as Alrukar was tall. As Arius stood in the shadow of this magnificent creature, it made him feel very small. More than that, watching Dregan lounge astraddle this beautiful monstrosity made him wonder if this was a fool’s errand.
Who could best someone who has tamed that?
The arrival of the Demon Priests brought Arius back to the here and now. He fought down an urge to spit at their feet, especially the man with the green hair. Arius disliked the man intensely since first seeing him, and under different circumstances he would have gladly pulled forth his sword to engage the man in mortal combat. Instead, he stood unarmed awaiting the encounter.
“Shall I search him, or would you like to do the honors, Korac?”
“You know me. I wouldn’t mind a chance to grope one as pretty as he, but the way
he is looking at you, I’d say you’re more his type, Brom.”
“Aye, can’t keep his eyes off me, can he? Well, that’s no surprise now is it? Must be my scars; they always make me look so endearing. Wouldn’t you agree, Korac?”
“I’m a hopeless romantic myself, so I’d like to think that it must be your charisma and wit. Whatever it is, I’ve always envied your ability to make such a pleasant first impression, Brom.”
Arius and Xavian exchanged baffled looks. Neither had known quite what to expect out of this meeting, but the unadulterated sarcasm exuded by the Demon Priests definitely caught them off guard.
“Just get this over with,” Arius growled.
“He has quite the rude temperament, doesn’t he? Looks like we’ll be doing the princess a huge favor by keeping her from marrying someone who is prone to such brash demands, eh, Korac?”
In the blink of an eye, Xavian knocked an arrow, drawing and holding the string taut against his cheek. He stepped forward with the tip held directly in front of Brom’s eye smoothly and steadily, ready to fire. Behind them, Rotu roared and stomped his feet as he was fueled by his master’s mood. It caused the earth and sand to shift roughly. All three of the Duncar steeds took up the course as well. Over the deafening roars Xavian spoke clearly and dangerously.
“No more talk. Our truce be damned, if one more word escapes your arrogant lips, I’ll plant this arrow into your brain.”
Brom didn’t blink, but he did nod. His comrade held up both of his hands and said, “Peace friend, there’s no need for any of that now. We are going to make sure Jadestar here is unarmed and then we’ll do this nice and easy. We’ll meet halfway, exchanging the princess for him and we can all walk our separate paths. Isn’t that right, Brom?”
Again Brom nodded as he took a half step away from the arrow. Arius reached out and gently laid his hand on Xavian’s arm, pressing down so he lowered the weapon.
Dragons of Destiny Page 23
