Despite knowing the Rasta were lurking ever closer, the White City had cast its spell over Koba. He was fascinated, exhilarated and in no hurry to leave.
The White Road led by an overlook bordered by a low wall of white stone. Koba stopped, struck by the sight of this unprepossessing white wall. For some unknown reason the wall fascinated him. He found himself obsessed, driven to see what lay on the other side.
“Go ahead. Look but only for a moment.” Zoran warned. “The sun is dropping. Rasta will soon come out.”
Without hesitation Koba strode straight to the white wall and looked out over it.
Below stretched a waving blue-green forest. Blue-green leaves waved, swirling in the pleasant breeze. The shushing leaves seemed to sing an utterly entrancing song. The blue-green miasma shimmered before his eyes.
There was something extraordinary, something mystical about these `trees’. As if the trees were sentient beings, dancing their love for life.
As Koba gazed at the waving, blue-green trees he was overcome by a sensation he had never known. An exhilaration that could be described as intense rapture saturated his consciousness.
An intoxicating sense of freedom filled his soul. As if all the invisible chains, all the repressed fears he was not even aware that he carried, everything that was holding him back in life, suddenly fell away.
It was a stunning sensation. Like being reborn. He could give of himself, of his heart. He felt utterly free to BE.
There was a dreamlike, hallucinatory quality about the forest. These dancing, singing, blue-green `trees’ - Are they really trees? Or entities who appear to my hazy perceptions as `trees’?
For some reason Koba did not understand, this visionary blue-green forest was sacred to his soul.
Have I BEEN HERE before? Impossible. But I have. I’ve been here before! But somehow, I just forgot.
And he made a silent vow from the depths of his soul - This time I will NOT forget. I will REMEMBER and I WILL Come Back...
Turning, Koba gazed into Zoran’s scintillating golden eyes and then into Balian’s Drakon eyes that stared into the abyss of his soul. For so long he had hated their close relatives, the arrogant, avaricious Arkons.
Arkon pirates had killed Koba’s father, an officer in the New Earth space corps. But these Drakon lived by a code. A sense of loyalty. Of honor.
No matter what comes, I will always treasure your friendship. I will never forget you. Koba told them silently with shining eyes. And in a spontaneous act of wordless joy he embraced both men.
“For my honored Brother.” Zoran placed a gold chain hung with a scintillating blue-green emerald pendant around Koba’s neck. It was one of the pieces he had taken from the temple.
`My Brother’... The words, the depth of the Drakon’s gesture shook Koba to his core.
To Balian, Zoran gave a gold necklace with a brilliant ruby pendant. For himself he kept two gold rings mounted with purple amethysts.
And it came to Koba - These two men are the real treasure of White City.
“My Brothers -” Here Koba’s voice broke. “Your friendship means more to me than all the gold in White City.”
The depth of emotion sweeping through Koba’s heart was so intense, a deep, belly-shaking laughter erupted from his gut. Hot tears welled up, streaming unbidden from his eyes. And he found himself laughing and crying at the same time as they embraced each other.
Suddenly the clear sunny blue sky turned oppressively dark. Fierce black storm clouds were blowing in over the hillsides. The dancing breeze that had waved the blue-green trees turned into a deep, malevolent hissing.
Sensing threat, the men turned to see a large pack of Rasta lining up behind them. Bouncing on heavily clawed, powerful hind legs, the reptiles were charged with aggressive power. Their green and coral striped coloration pulsated, glowing like neon lights, indicating that attack was imminent.
The raptors’ green and coral feather head crests were stiffly erect, making them appear bigger, more imposing. Explosive hisses and roars had stunning impact. Lashing tails sounded menacing death rattles.
Caught in the open, the three friends crouched in a tight circle, weapons drawn.
Above, thunder growled. Lightning snapped. Cracked. The bad weather struck. Sheets of hard rain blew into their faces. The wind and rain were coming in from behind the Rasta, pummeling and blinding the humans.
Powerful jaws snapping rows of needle sharp incisors, the reptilians charged. At the first flicker of attack, the men commenced firing. Some Rasta fell but other reptiles poured in, becoming a veritable blur of leaping green and coral-striped bodies.
A Rasta smashed into Balian knocking him down. Its sharp teeth latched onto his shoulder. It began shaking him viciously. A few inches closer and Balian’s jugular would be severed.
Koba shot a hole through the big raptor’s skull, but others were darting in for the kill. Too many. Koba grabbed Balian’s pistol from his bloody hand. His long gun was too awkward to fight at close quarters.
Spraying the Rasta with hot laser fire Koba and Zoran pushed the reptilians back. For a few moments. But more were pouring out of the fallen city. Soon the humans would be overwhelmed by sheer numbers.
“This way!” Zoran yelled. “Over the wall!”
Slinging Balian’s arm over his shoulder the Drakon warrior ran toward the white wall, the youth hobbling at his side. “Come on - Jump!”
Despite Balian’s injury and the deluge of rain, they bounded over the wall. Zoran was so powerful and agile that both men landed on their feet, running down a narrow, steep trail. Koba stayed on their heels, giving them cover with his pistol, the reptiles in hot pursuit.
But they couldn’t keep up this grueling pace for long. Balian was hemorrhaging. He desperately need medical attention. After a mile or so they slowed to a fast walk.
Menacing hisses and death rattles resounded from the thick green jungle along the trail. The Rasta were following closely under cover.
Koba periodically loosed sprays of laser fire into the greenery to keep the reptiles back. Growing weaker from blood loss, Balian struggled to keep up the pace. Finally he staggered and his legs crumpled. Coming up on the other side, Koba slung Balian’s other arm over his shoulder.
They struggled on, periodically spraying the thick green underbrush with laser fire. Both Zoran and Koba were frequently forced to wade through high grass and shrubs. The trail was not wide enough for two people let alone three abreast.
“Stop here.” Koba ordered when they reached a small clearing.
Here in the deep forest the rain was not so heavy. Reaching into his backpack Koba grabbed a blood coagulant and injected it into Balian’s arm. After applying a pressure bandage to close the wound, he injected a stimulant to help Balian keep going. All done in moments.
“Okay done. Go, go!”
Chapter 25
Shouldering Balian on each side, Koba and Zoran now virtually carried the wounded Drakon through the rapidly darkening jungle. They stopped only a few moments at a time to gasp for breath. Warning rattles and hisses constantly menaced the air from the Rasta lurking around them.
An explosive hiss shot from Zoran’s right. He glanced over to see the outline of a Rasta in thick undergrowth just a few feet away. He fired the laser pistol but the Rasta disappeared, the heavy undergrowth making it difficult to get a kill shot.
They pushed on. The reppies lurked ever closer, but the dimming light made them difficult to see. A showdown was rapidly approaching. If only they could climb a tall tree, but it would be almost impossible to get Balian’s heavy, nearly comatose body up there.
In the rain, in the darkness, they would only be able to kill some Rasta before the others took them down. Koba saw what was coming - Powerful reptilian bodies springing out of darkness. Long curved claws ripping. My vision in the dark pool was right. This is the way I’m going down...
Strange, Koba found he didn’t regret it. He had no love, no family. Only these two
brave men whom he considered true friends to go down fighting at his side. This is all my fault!
The rain was letting up. Gasping for breath, the humanoids were forced to stop in a small shadowy clearing at the base of a huge tree. Sensing imminent attack, Koba and Zoran whirled around, firing laser pistols, the red lines of fire arcing through the darkness.
In his heart, Koba felt crushed with guilt. He alone was responsible for this debacle. If not for his desire to discover the gold vault in White City, they would not be in this situation.
And his friends had generously gone along with his desires. With a little bribery as incentive. I am such a conniving asshole.
Poor Balian, only 15, he hasn’t had a chance to see much of life yet. And Zoran is head over heels for Roxanne. She will kill me if I come back without Zoran or Balian. But in that case I will already be dead. His lips creased in a grim smile.
I have nothing and no one. Now I have managed to bring these two brave souls down with me. But the battle is not over. Yet. Koba thought, losing another wild spray of laser fire at the lurking Rasta. It’s now or never.
“Zoran - take Balian, I will cover for you.”
Zoran instantly realized what Koba intended. If he left a swarm of Rasta would overcome Koba in the darkness. “Nay Koba - there might be another way.”
Cupping hands over mouth, the Drakon emitted a series of wild, metallic shrieks. The agonized screams of a creature in its death throes cut through the heavy moist air.
Moments of eerie silence passed, punctuated by large drops falling from the leaves. Koba saw his life ticking away.
Suddenly the stillness was broken by an earth-shaking roar. The Drakon warrior shrieked in response. This elicited another rapacious roar from some gigantic creature, still hidden in the deepening jungle gloom.
A pause. Momentary stillness. Koba sensed the lurking Rasta were also listening. Even cowering before the monstrous entity that had screamed its bloodthirsty challenge.
THUMP. THUMP. THUMP. The very ground vibrating under a gigantic weight.
Crackling branches. Small falling trees. Something huge coming. Moving fast.
Just yards away the dense shrubbery splintered apart. An ear-splitting scream blew Koba’s hair back. The gaping maw of a gigantic T Rex erupted through the bushes. It was tall as a three
story building.
Moving with tremendous agility on long powerful hind legs, the T Rex struck. Massive jaws equipped with foot long incisors clamped down on the nearest Rasta. Viciously shook the squealing reptile until its spine broke. The animal went limp. The other Rasta instantly disappeared into the bush.
“What is that?” Koba asked in shocked awe.
“King of Rastabahn. Quick while the King eats. Go! Go!” Zoran hissed.
Shouldering Balian they ran through the gloom as the giant T rex ripped and gnawed the raptor to bloody shreds.
“How did you do that Zoran?” Koba panted.
“I made the call of a wounded Rasta. Great King eats Rasta. This is King’s territory.”
The three men shuffled on until they reached Zoran’s village. Though it was dark, Koba saw the Drakon lived in substantial homes built of white stone with red tile roofs.
As they helped Balian to his parents’ house, they were quickly surrounded by a crowd of tribesmen bearing torches. Word swiftly spread that Balian had been seriously injured by Rasta. Within minutes the whole village turned out.
Koba guessed there were several hundred Drakon crowded around outside Balian’s house. He was impressed by their genuine expressions of concern. In this world, loyalty meant survival. Drakon family ties and close friendships went back generations.
Mira entered Balian’s house as Koba was turning to leave. Seeing her, he caught his breath. A light shone from her face like a halo. She is beautiful.
Mira touched his arm “How is Balian? Will he be alright?”
“I think so. Your healer is tending to him now. The bleeding has stopped and I sutured the wound.”
“You are leaving already?” She asked.
He nodded. “I need to get back to Roxanne and the captain. I left them alone too already.”
Zoran had come up behind him. “I will go with you Koba.”
Mira’s face fell. At that moment Koba found he wanted to spend a little time with her. Alone. He wanted to tell her - he didn’t know what. Or maybe what he wanted to say to Mira could be said without words.
“Mira can I speak with you somewhere - alone?” He flicked a questioning glance at Zoran who nodded acquiescence.
Chapter 26
He followed her out behind the house. A swing hung from a tree in the backyard and she sat down in it. Koba stationed himself behind her. Maybe this conversation would be easier if he couldn’t see her expression.
Hidden insects chirped in rhythm. A slight cool breeze ruffled the leaves. Placing his hands on her lower back he pushed the swing. She held on, arching her back, looking up over her shoulder at him. Moonlight reflected off her smile, her radiant face, those glinting eyes.
“Mira, how old are you?”
“16.”
Oh God. She’s even younger than I thought. Too young. But they grow up fast here.
Another Voice in his head said: I love Zoran like a brother. Balian too. We have been tested in the fire and survived. I know they all want me to stay here, on Rastabahn. The Drakon need me.
A strange feeling gripped Koba’s heart. He had never really been needed before. He felt like a traitor, running out on these people who had opened their hearts, given him so much.
But I can’t condemn myself to live in this oozing swamp the rest of my life. I’m an engineer. My idea of a good time is making machines and women run smoothly at maximum efficiency...
All these confusing thoughts flipped through Koba’s mind in an instant. But all he could force out was - “Mira...I’m sorry…”
“What do you mean Lord Koba? What are you sorry for?”
“Many things.” I USE people. Aloud he said - “I may be leaving soon. We set the rescue beacon up on Kolar Mountain.”
She remained silent. He saw her hands tighten on the swing rope. Her head dropped, her face turned away from him.
“I - I really like you Mira...but I have to go. Back to my own world.”
She didn’t ask why, only - “When?”
“Hard to say. But I don’t want to get involved with you, then leave you.” With a broken heart, even pregnant. He left unsaid. He had done enough of that, charming the pants off women. No more.
Shoulders broad and head lifted proudly Mira rose from the swing. Stepped toward him.
Koba the `Lord from the Sky’ found himself backed into the tree trunk. Placing both hands on either side, caging him in, she softly rocked her enticing breasts and hips against his needy, craving body.
“A girl can dream can’t she, Lord Koba? I will take what little time we have left.” She released a deep sigh. Her lips brushed the corner of his mouth. “I wish you could take me with you…”
“I wish I could take you too Mira, but I don’t even know where I’m going. Space is dangerous. No place for a 16 year old girl. Your parents, your brother, they would never allow me to take you away.”
He palmed her cheeks. Kissed her melting eyes, glimmering in the moonlight. Will I ever get over this day? This night? Never. A hundred times never. Let me never forget. This moment. This Rastabahn.
Gazing up into Koba’s eyes, Mira realized that for the first time she was looking at the real Koba. Somehow his walls had crumbled.
The old devil-may-care ribald player was still there behind Koba’s long-lashed, expressive brown eyes. But now she saw someone else too, a stronger man with more emotional depth. No longer hiding.
“You have changed Koba. I see it in your eyes.” She stifled a sob. “I wish we had more time.”
“You are ... beautiful to me Mira.” His lips brushed hers in a slow melting kiss. God I can’t believe I’m shutting t
he door in her face. We could have had so much more…
She melted into his body, rocking her hips lightly against his arousal. He meant to kiss her forehead in a last tender goodbye but their lips met. A stunning tingling shock swept through his body.
God he could almost come just from holding her, feeling her rock against him like this. His hands slid up to cup, then massage her breasts, thumbs flicking her nipples to taut nubs. Just one more melting tongue-sucking kiss...
Koba glanced over to see Zoran standing in the shadows by the house, waiting for him. Clearly anxious to get back to Shebear Cave and see Roxanne.
“Mira I have to go now. See you tomorrow. Okay?” He gave her a sweet lingering kiss.
“Alright Koba.” She pulled back, releasing him.
For her part Mira had only a vague conception of Time. A week, a month on Rastabahn, might as well be a year, a lifetime. Who knew - rescue might never come. In the meantime she and Rastabahn would work their magic on the Lord Who Fell From the Sky.
The Drakon were edgy with curiosity to hear all that happened in White City. But Zoran only gave them a brief explanation before he and Koba left for Shebear Cave. Zoran was well aware that when he returned they would drag every last detail from him...again and again.
Chapter 27
Koba entered Shebear Cave first.
“Koba!” Roxanne’s head jerked up from the fire circle where she and Jivan were sitting. She rushed over. Her eyes traced the myriad scratches and ripped, bloodstained clothes. “Gawd - you’re a mess. What happened to you?”
But the exhaustion on his face held a strange pathos mixed with exhilaration. In that wordless moment Roxanne sensed a change in Koba. In his eyes, in the warm, caring way he looked at her.
“Where are Zoran and Balian? Are they okay?” She asked.
At that moment Koba stepped aside and Zoran stood at the cave entrance.
A shocking bolt of lightning clashed, outlining the Drakon’s form in a flash of white light. His skin shone like an ancient golden statue. Ethereal. A fallen god. Resurrected.
Eye of the Dragon (Vision of a Dreaming God) (Fallen Drakon Empire Book 3) Page 9
