Oddly enough, he seemed to guess my thoughts, or at least my mood. “Don’t worry,” he told me. “Things have a way of working themselves out. Even when a situation looks hopeless, it’s not always the case.”
“Really? Do our present circumstances count?”
“Most definitely.” He smiled. “Sometimes, you just have to have faith it will all be all right in the end.”
“And do you have faith in that?” I asked softly, gazing deep into his lovely purple eyes.
“I have faith in you.”
The words shook me to the core. He was so shy, and so innocent. In spite of him being nearly ten times my age, I feared that I might taint him with my jaded view of the world if I touched him. He had no reason to trust me, not after what I had done, and yet, he’d opened up to me. I could easily imagine his innocence sweeping over me, giving me a goal and a life beyond being a tool for a more important older brother.
Before I could offer any coherent reply, Magda intervened, “Not to interrupt you two,” she pointed out, “but the sun is setting.”
She was, of course, correct. As I turned away from Dineiro, I noticed that in the distance, the last rays of sunlight now colored the clouds in vivid shades of crimson. Larue actually whimpered, clutching my hair in a nearly painful hold. I shared a concerned look with my dragon.
“Come on,” I said. “We’ll make camp. If someone tries to attack us, I’ll protect you.”
We stopped and began to prepare ourselves for a long night. I felt honestly dismayed that in these seemingly endless plains, there seemed to be nothing but grass. I hadn’t even seen any living being except us.
But I refused to let the oddity of the situation defeat me. Ever since entering Merlinia, nighttime had been strange. Granted, I hadn’t been aware that some sort of creatures lurked around me, hunting other beings with magical abilities, but now that I was, I would protect my dragon. And damn it, I really had to stop thinking about Dineiro as mine.
I retrieved my supplies from the saddlebags and began to work. Soon, I’d made a reasonably comfortable nest of blankets and gestured for Magda to remain close by. I couldn’t be sure, but I guessed that my regular routine wouldn’t change tonight and it would rain again. Her heat would help the three magical creatures weather the coming storm.
“You three should stay there,” I told my companions. “Get some sleep. I’ll keep watch.”
Dineiro looked like he wanted to protest. “I’m not sure if that’s a good idea. What if you can’t see them? They might hurt you.”
“It’s all right,” Magda offered. “I’ll help with that. Rest. You’re all exhausted.”
In response, the little dragon removed the cloak I’d loaned him and wrapped it around my shoulders. “You’re a good man,” he whispered in my ear. “Don’t ever doubt that.”
Was he a mind reader? Did he know how I doubted myself? I honestly couldn’t read him, and didn’t get the chance to ask. All of a sudden, he melted into his dragon form.
Seeing him again like this was, admittedly, a little disconcerting. My mind still had a little trouble reconciling the image of the purple-haired young man with the purple-scaled magical beast. But in both forms, he was just as beautiful. On impulse, I reached out and touched his reptilian face. He seemed surprised but wordlessly leaned into my caress.
“Thank you,” I whispered. “I promise I won’t let you down.”
I didn’t know if he believed me. I didn’t know if I believed myself. Either way, we couldn’t allow ourselves further conversation. Larue and Vesper slipped into Dineiro’s pouch—and when in the world had I stopped considering that strange?—and the dragon slowly made his way to the nest of blankets, purple tail swishing. He was strangely elegant, even in this form, and for a few moments, I got distracted by the way his scales glittered in the waning light. When he lay down, though, I got to work again. I gave Magda some water and brushed her down a little, although I didn’t have time to focus on her as much as I normally would have. Scouting around revealed very little regarding our location, other than what we already knew. However, with a degree of effort, I even managed to make a small fire, even if the only thing I had to work with as raw material was dry grass. Sadly, I could provide my companions with no dinner, but I doubted they could have eaten anyway.
“Let’s hope the fire will help keep these things at bay,” I said.
“Perhaps it will,” Dineiro answered, “although I doubt it will be so easy.”
“Tell me more about these creatures,” I inquired, sitting down on a rock and whittling my sword. It always paid to be informed regarding your opponent. “What exactly are we up against? Magda didn’t care to share what she knew with me.”
My mare huffed, sounding displeased. “How would that have helped? They wouldn’t come for you.”
I peered closer to her, narrowing my eyes. One of the worst things about having a magical equine as a best friend was that I could never read her expression. I had in time learned a couple of tricks, though, and because of that, I managed to realize something. Even if the situation wasn’t in the slightest bit amusing, I released a victorious aha. “You didn’t see them either, did you?”
“Few people actually have,” my dragon replied in her stead, “and accounts vary a lot. Some people have described them as spirits, ghosts. Others believe them to be monsters of sorts. Either way, we do know that they prey on magic.”
Well, that wasn’t very reassuring. Out of the two descriptions, I certainly hoped the latter would be correct. I didn’t fear monsters, but sadly, my sword and crossbow were of no use against ghosts.
As I mused over this, I caught on to something Dineiro had said. “They prey on magic, not magical creatures?”
From the safety of Dineiro’s pouch, Larue grumbled, “Does this look like an opportune moment to argue about semantics?”
“There is a difference,” I pointed out. “A small one, but there is. Let’s take the common mosquito. He needs blood to feed and yes, he carries diseases, but he preys on humans’ blood, not humans.”
“Well, actually, there is this one species of mosquito that—”
Dineiro covered Vesper’s mouth with a claw, something I felt quite thankful for. It might have been naïve, but when I’d made my analogy, I hadn’t imagined huge man-eating mosquitoes existed in Merlinia. Apparently, I’d been mistaken.
“That’s beside the point,” Dineiro said. “I admit I’m not entirely certain about the nature of spirit hunters, but what we do know is that the victims of their attacks are never the same again. Our magic is a part of us, Kirril. To have it stolen would be akin to death.”
I imagined the glow of Dineiro’s scales fading, that discreet hum of energy that came from him disappearing. Just the thought made me angry. Dineiro might not have learned how to use his magic, but I wouldn’t let anyone take it.
“They’ll have to get through me first,” I said, fully meaning the words.
A few minutes passed while we waited in terse silence. I wanted to crawl at Dineiro’s side like his lucky two friends, but instead, I scanned the horizon for any approaching beast, or even a blur of motion. Arthurians might not have magic, but our sharply honed senses had helped us circumvent that. Given the fact that there was virtually no obstacle to obstruct my line of sight, I would definitely see something should a foe approach us.
Nothing happened. The wind continued to blow idly. It was getting a little colder now, much as it had in previous evenings, but beyond that, I noticed no change. I remained on my guard, knowing that it was too soon for the mysterious spirit hunters to make their appearance. If Dineiro and his friends were correct, they wouldn’t make their appearance until well into the evening, and the sun hadn’t even completely set.
In spite of my attempts to prepare, however, I was taken completely by surprise when the last rays of light finally disappeared. The ground actually started to shake. The fire went out, and my dragon released a startled yelp, jumping out of the ne
st of blankets and clinging to my side. Magda neighed, sounding frightened, and I held my sword up, ready to take on whatever was coming.
The world blurred, much like it had when we’d first ended up here. When my vision cleared, a part of me thought, “You have got to be kidding me.” The other wondered whether I’d lost my sanity, probably about the time when I’d met the gaze of a lovely purple dragon.
Impossibly, the Forgotten Steppes had disappeared, and we were now standing in what seemed to be a desert of sorts. The vegetation had completely melted, leaving behind a barren wasteland. Other than that, though, nothing had changed. Our blankets remained in the same position, as did the Rainbow Brick Road. It was almost as if night had transported us into a different version of the Steppes. Reality simply had a whole different meaning in Merlinia.
Ominous clouds gathered above, making my dragon gasp. “They’re coming.”
“Stay behind me,” I told him. “Magda, watch my back, and no matter what happens, keep an eye on them.”
“Got it,” she replied.
One would ask himself what a horse could do under such dire circumstances. A normal one might have been so spooked it would have taken off running a long time ago. But Magda was special. She’d been my companion through many battles, as Arthuria’s prosperity had naturally drawn the greedy eye of various peoples, organized or otherwise. Still, in spite of having faced pirates, mercenaries, bandits, and armies, I still didn’t feel fully prepared for this. I suspected that what unsettled me most was having Dineiro here. I was far too focused on the fact that I could lose him to keep a clear head.
Clutching the handle of my sword like an anchor, I remembered all the lessons the blade masters at the castle had painstakingly taught me. When the storm exploded over the now-barren steppes, I faced it, protecting Dineiro from it with my own body. As rain fell, I could swear I heard laughter in the air, low voices whispering things I couldn’t understand.
Suddenly, my dragon released a high-pitched whine. I turned, only to see the angry wind lifting him up, threatening to steal him from me. He was trying to fight it, but his wing was still weak from where I’d shot him. In the meantime, Magda was rearing wildly, also being pulled up. In the expanse of a few moments, I made a decision. Dropping my sword, I grabbed her reins and with my other hand, reached for Dineiro, grabbing his hind leg.
With a grunt, I pulled him down and held him close. He was trembling, shielding his pouch with his clawed paw. But the hunters wouldn’t be deterred. Lightning flashed in the sky, and the icy rain created a curtain that prevented me from seeing anything. Dineiro’s body seemed to emanate heat, though, and I stood my ground, hoping and praying they would leave us alone.
It wasn’t meant to be. An even more powerful gust of wind swept over us. Magda’s reins snapped and I watched with horror as she was swept away by the hurricane. I was somehow pushed back away from Dineiro, staggering as the storm threatened to kidnap my dragon as well.
Dineiro screamed, and somehow, in spite of the entire force of the storm trying to hold me back, I jumped on him, managing to pin him to the ground. As I did so, however, two white forms slid out of Dineiro’s pouch, protesting in small familiar voices and trying to reach for us. Before I could do anything about it, Larue and Vesper had vanished as well.
I covered Dineiro’s body with my own, knowing I could do virtually nothing to protect him. As many battles as I had fought, no man could hope to defeat the forces of nature. Thankfully, though, the spirit hunters’ hunger seemed to have been appeased. The thought filled me with both relief and horror at what price they had demanded. The storm eased, until it stopped altogether, and the night became clear. When at last I felt sure that the coast was clear, I got off Dineiro, pulling him up with me.
His eyes were wide with shock and grief and tears streamed down his reptilian cheeks. “My friends, Kirril…My friends are gone.”
It didn’t matter that he was still in his reptilian form. I hugged him close and kissed his forehead. “We’ll find them, baby. We’ll find them and Magda.”
Dineiro cuddled close to me, and he melted back into his human shape, crawling into my lap. In spite of his nakedness, it wasn’t about arousal or anything sexual, but about comfort. As I held him, I mentally vowed that I’d find Larue, Vesper, and Magda. The spirit hunters might not know it now, but they’d messed with the wrong Arthurian.
Chapter Five:
In Which a Rescue is Attempted, a New Friend Appears, and a Choice is Made
We didn’t linger too long at our former campsite. I was still shaken and brokenhearted, but I knew that tears wouldn’t help my friends. We still had a chance to find and rescue them, but if we wanted to do so, we needed to hurry. At daybreak, reality would most likely shift again. They would be stuck as prisoners, and Kirril and I would have to wait for at least thirteen hours to continue our search.
Knowing this, we quickly gathered the remnants of Kirril’s supplies. Most everything was a mess. The blankets were torn and soggy and the crossbow shattered. The sword had, however, survived, and miraculously, so had the satchel where he kept his medicine.
Once our task was done, he wrapped his cloak around me and shouldered the bag. Together, we walked toward the road that had brought us here in the first place. “Right. Now which way do we go?” I asked.
“I think the clouds came from that direction,” he said, pointing north.
I sniffed the air, hoping to find a trace of my friends. To my surprise, I sneezed. Kirril’s blue eyes widened. “Excellent!” he said. “We’ll use that.”
My sensitive nose did indeed guide us north, just like Kirril had said. Sadly, just as I thought we might have a chance to find my friends, the pixie dust left behind by Larue finally faded. We’d have continued to go on, convinced that we were headed the right way, but unexpectedly, we reached a crossroads.
This had never happened before. Intellectually, I understood what it meant. The Path of Fate wasn’t straight. It couldn’t be blindly followed. Sometimes, people had to make a choice, and that choice could set the course of their entire existence.
“What do we do now?” I inquired, unable to keep the despair from my voice as I stopped. We couldn’t even separate and take one path each since there were three different directions.
“We need to think.” Kirril looked around, obviously trying to figure out an answer. “There are three roads…It can’t be coincidence. Could it be that each of our friends was taken in a different place?”
My mind just about melted at that. Did this mean that we had to choose who would live and who would die? That couldn’t be it, right?
The thought made something inside me crumble in despair. My knees buckled, and I collapsed onto the path, suddenly drained. The only thing I’d wanted was a home with a mate and my friends. Granted, my other half wasn’t exactly what I’d expected, but after spending a little more time with him, I’d realized that I’d been unfair in my original assessment. He was brave and thoughtful, even if he didn’t fully realize it. I’d hoped that we could perhaps find our way back to the Laughing Forest and explore our attraction a little more, but it seemed I wouldn’t get the chance. How could I possibly do such a thing when my friends were missing? I felt selfish and horrible just for wishing it.
Angry and frustrated, I pounded the bricks with my fists. Kirril knelt by my side, embracing me with his powerful warrior arms. He’d protected me and had kept me from being harmed. I felt safe with him, far safer than I deserved to be.
A voice startled me from my depressing musings. “Well now, don’t take your fury out on me. It’s not nice.”
I yelped and recoiled, falling back against Kirril. “What in the world…?”
“It’s the road,” Kirril choked out. “It’s speaking.”
“Quite so.” The path glowed brighter, a million colors flashing over us. When it spoke again, it almost sounded smug. “You didn’t imagine you people were the only ones with consciousness. Tsk, tsk, Dineiro. I
can accept arrogance from humans, but not you.”
“Who are you?” I asked, now trembling. Was this another trap?
“You know who I am, but that name is such a mouthful.” The voice hummed, as if considering. “How about you call me Rainbow. No! Bowie…I like that.”
Great Goddess above, was it being serious? Apparently so. Kirril squeezed my hand, quietly telling me to remain calm. “Well, Bowie, could you possibly tell us which way to go? We seem to have reached an impasse.”
“I’m afraid I can’t do that,” the path replied with a sigh. “You know how it is. You have to make your own choice.”
“Well, yes,” Kirril replied, “but nothing says it can’t be an informed choice. Is one of them in more danger than the others?”
“Oh, they’re not in any danger.” The road chortled. “The supposed spirit hunters just like to be dramatic.”
“Wait…What?” I couldn’t believe my ears. “How can they not be in danger?”
“I have a little confession to make.” Bowie almost sounded embarrassed. “I get bored easily. And when I get bored, I enjoy matchmaking.”
“Matchmaking,” I repeated in disbelief. “So Kirril and I…”
“You two were going to meet eventually.” If Bowie had been a person, he’d have probably shrugged and waved its—his?—hand dismissively. “Might as well meet now, when you can at least make use of it.”
Kirril and I stared at each other. What did he think about these revelations? Had he realized he was my mate, or did humans not know these things? The latter option was more probable.
In any case, I couldn’t afford to worry about that now. No matter what this road said, I still worried about my friends.
As if guessing my thoughts, Bowie tsked again. “It almost looks like you don’t trust me. Ah, well. There you go. I’ll let you see for yourselves.”
Three orbs appeared, hovering over the three paths. I peeked into them, and realized in shock that I could see Vesper, Larue, and Magda, one in each orb, just like Bowie had said. The image wasn’t very clear, but Magda seemed to be in a stable of sorts, being brushed down by the caring hands of a blonde woman. The mare didn’t appear to be panicking, and when her host scratched her ear, she actually released a pleased whinny. We couldn’t see the woman’s face, but her gentleness suggested that Magda might, indeed, be safe.
My Mate's a Dragon Slayer? Page 4
