by Bonnie Lamer
Garren turns his head to look at her. “I am trying to make her understand how stupid she sounds.”
Isla shakes her head and steps back. “I warned you.”
“I…” is all Garren says because I take his voice away and push him back to a tree like I did the Goblin earlier. His struggling isn’t doing him any good either.
Turning to Mortain, I ask, “What have the Dragons tried to eat?”
Mortain looks thoughtful for a moment. His brow scrunches up and almost hides his eyes while he thinks. “I recall stories from my pappy about Dragons trying various fruits and vegetables but that is not enough to sustain them.”
“What about animals?”
Mortain’s nostrils start flaring. “Are you saying we are no better than animals?”
I roll my eyes. “If I was saying that you are not better than animals I would have used those words. I asked what animals have the Dragons tried to eat?”
“There are no animals here,” Mortain says. “They all became extinct long ago.”
“When Dragons still visited the Cowan realm they fed on livestock,” Tabitha says. She sees where I’m going with this.
“What is livestock?” Mortain asks.
“It’s different types of animals that we eat.”
“Xandra, I understand where you are going but…” Isla is interrupted by a loud snorting sound. I turn around to find a Goblin blowing some type horn. With his nose. Eew.
“King Gowarth is honoring you with his presence,” comes a grizzly little voice from the Goblin next to the nose blower. “You will all bow before him.”
I snort. “Yeah, that’s not going to happen.”
The Goblin becomes indignant. “Then there will be no peace talks.”
Oh, I am so not spending all day debating Goblin etiquette. If they want our help then they need to get over themselves. “Look, we want to help all of you but not if you’re going to be ignorant about it.”
The indignant little Goblin rushes towards me as if he’s going to kick me in the ankle or shin. Yeah, like I’m going to let that happen twice. I pull magic that stops him in his tracks. Unfortunately, Mortain takes the opportunity to kick me from behind. Right in my Achilles tendon. Ow. I turn around and glare at him and he shrinks back. “Stop doing that,” I growl.
“Do not call us ignorant,” he barks from behind Tabitha’s leg.
I roll my eyes. “Fine, you guys aren’t ignorant.” Turning back to the nose blower, I send my magic out until I feel it touch the little caravan of Goblins that the King brought with him. I teleport there being careful not to land on any of them. I do scare the crap out of them, though.
The little guys, well there’s probably females too but I can’t tell them apart if there are, try to run away but I don’t let them. I put up a wall of magic and then I reach down over the tiny crossbows pointed at me and I scoop the King out of his litter that his minions are carrying.
I know I’m being condescending now, but I still say, “You need to not act like a child and come figure this whole thing out with us.”
His little legs are flailing as he grabs my wrist to keep from falling since I am holding him by his little tunic. Just as I begin to teleport us, he bites me. So when we arrive back at the rebel camp, my wrist is spurting blood. I shake the Goblin loose and put pressure on my arm with my other hand while I concentrate on healing it. “That wasn’t nice,” I say glaring down at the King who landed on his butt.
“It was not supposed to be nice,” he says in a rough voice. He sounds ancient. “You attacked and kidnapped me.”
“Xandra, perhaps a modicum of diplomacy is called for here,” Isla says trying to hide a smile. Kallen tries to cover his laugh with a cough.
Tabitha just laughs. “Oh, let her be,” Tabitha says to Isla. “Her ways may not be diplomatic but she does get results. And she is always entertaining to watch.”
I don’t think that was a compliment. I give Tabitha a dirty look but that just makes her laugh more. I choose to ignore her now. Turning to the Goblins who look like they’re about to kill each other, I say, “Let’s sit down and talk. I’ll make some chairs.”
Three resounding no’s make me glare at my newest family members. “Thanks for the confidence.”
Garren looks at them like they’re crazy. “The girl seems to have enough magic to create a few chairs,” he says. “She can teleport for god’s sake.”
“She has the magic,” Kallen says trying to keep his face even, holding back the grin that’s trying to climb onto his lips. “We simply do not want to be turned into chairs or have the entire Dragon realm filled with chairs.” I’m really tempted to kick him in the Achilles tendon.
Isla explains what he means to Garren. “Xandra has trouble when it comes to smaller magic. She lacks the…finesse to control it in small doses.”
Funny how when I’m saving their butts they don’t care how much finesse I have, I grumble. Out loud. On purpose this time. “Fine, Isla or Kallen can make the chairs.”
Kallen doesn’t hesitate. He makes enough chairs for everyone. I notice that he makes mine extra soft but that still doesn’t make up for his lack of faith in my growing control over my magic. He’s trying not to laugh at the sour face I’m making in his direction.
“This is no way to start negotiations,” Gowarth growls.
I sigh. He’s right. “Look, I’m sorry. We just want to get things moving along. The Dragons aren’t very happy with any of us at the moment.” I picked up on that through Raziel’s thoughts.
That doesn’t make Gowarth any happier. “Then bringing us here has jeopardized our freedom. When the Dragons find out that we have met with outsiders, they will revoke the treaty!”
Yeah, probably. We really did screw things up for them. Unless we come up with a solution to everyone’s problems and that’ll be tough. I’m still getting over the fact that it was Tabitha who decided to butt into another realm’s business and not me. I guess she’s had longer to be disgusted by it. Though I can’t help thinking about what Dagda had said about Fairies coming in and changing the lives of humans because they are disgusted with them. That wouldn’t go over very well. Probably as well as this is going to go. “I was asking earlier what makes a Goblin particularly delicious to a Dragon.”
“The same thing that makes food delicious to the rest of us,” Tabitha says. She’s teaching a couple of the rebel Goblins how to wash their bowls. As I said earlier, cleanliness is not high on their priority list. “The smell.”
I can’t help but make a face. “They like the smell of Goblins.”
Both Mortain and Gowarth fold their arms over their chests under their noses. “We Goblins take pride in our scent.”
“Why?” Okay, that just tumbled out of my mouth like an avalanche. There was no stopping it.
“Dragons do not have strong olfactory senses. Their fire breath inhibits them. The relatively pungent scent of the Goblins is able to reach them,” Tabitha explains.
“Okay, then all we have to do is introduce some sort of livestock and make them smell like Goblins.”
Why is everyone looking at me like I just said something incredibly stupid? “What?”
“The only things that smell like Goblins are Goblins,” Isla says patiently. Garren nods from where he is being held against the tree. I let the magic go so he can participate in the conversation. Unless he pisses me off again.
“There is no way to generate the scent. I have tried for years.”
So he’s thought of this before. Why was he so condescending to me then? “You don’t have to generate the scent synthetically.”
Garren is about to say something snide when Kallen says, “What do you mean?”
I smile at him for at least giving my ideas a chance. Pointing to the Goblins, I say, “These guys reek. I’m assuming they reek all the time.”
“Hey!” Gowarth and Mortain say in unison.
I sigh. “I wasn’t trying to insult you. I’m merely stating a fa
ct. You guys smell like you do now all the time, right?” They both nod. “Then why can’t your natural smell be captured from sweat under your armpits and from your pee and stuff and rubbed onto livestock?” A shiver runs down my spine at how disgusting that sounds. Poor livestock. The upside is, once they have the Goblin smell on them they probably won’t mind death so much. “It sure seems like a cow would fill the Dragons up faster than little Goblins do.”
Garren is rubbing his index finger and thumb on his chin as he considers my idea. “That could work. There is still the problem of getting the Dragons to agree, though. They are quite content with how their food chain works right now.”
“It’s not much of a chain if it only has two links. Maybe they could have more variety this way. It doesn’t hurt to ask, right?”
Kallen makes a little coughing sound and I look over at him. “We did not exactly part with the Dragons under peaceful terms. They were trying to kill us at the time.”
I wave off his response. “People try to kill me all the time. What else is new?”
Kallen smiles. “That is true. But none have had the strength of a Dragon.”
Guilt comes rushing back to me. I look down at the ground as I say, “I could have killed the Archangel of Evil when I tortured him. I’m pretty sure he’s close to having the strength of a Dragon.”
Isla and Tabitha look at me in shock. Garren shakes his head as if he didn’t hear me correctly. “What do you mean you could have killed the Archangel of Evil while you were torturing him?”
I shrug in discomfort. “I challenged him to a duel and the loser was supposed to spend a thousand years in a fiery pit. I didn’t want it to be me.” Oh, I wonder if Belial is now in a fiery pit somewhere. I should probably find out and set him free if he is.
Garren turns to Isla. “Is she insane? How could she possibly have fought an Archangel?”
“Do you not remember seeing her wings?” Isla asks him.
His face scrunches into a frown. “Well, yes. I just assumed they were a scare tactic for the Dragons.”
I shake my head. “Nope, they were real.”
Now he really doesn’t look like he believes me. I’m not going to keep trying to convince him. He can believe whatever he wants. “Anyway, I’m willing to try to work it out with the Dragons.” I look at Mortain and Gowarth. “Would you guys be willing to take care of the livestock and make sure they smell like you?” I know I have a whole life full of weird questions like this in my future.
In agreement for what is probably the first time ever, both Goblins say yes.
Chapter 37 – Raziel
A salty tear falls on my lips. It is not mine. Someone is crying over me and a smile touches my lips now. I know who it is. Her gasp at my sudden movement is stifled when I pull her mouth to mine in a kiss.
She pulls back in shock. “How? You have been dead all this time.”
I open my eyes to see her beautiful face and say softly, “Not dead. Simply not here.” I sit up and grin at her confused expression. “You have been caring for my body since I left.”
“Yes,” she says quietly, attempting to wipe away her unnecessary tears. “I could no longer feel either your or Xandra’s souls. I thought you were both gone.”
I reach my hand up to touch her wet cheek. “I have seen you so many times, yet I have never really looked at you. You are beautiful.”
A little line forms on her brow. “I am not sure you are well. You need more rest.”
I laugh which startles her. “Rest is not what I need. What I need is for you to Fall with me.”
Adriel leans back from me as if my craziness is contagious. “Fall? With you?”
I nod and keep my distance, trying not to startle her more. “To help our mutual friend.”
Her eyes light up. “Xandra is alive as well?”
“Thanks to you, yes.”
Adriel shakes her head. “I have done nothing to earn that compliment.”
I cannot help myself; I put my hand to her cheek again. “It was you who gave her the key to winning her battle with Belial. You cared for her while she was here, keeping her safe and undiscovered. You are responsible for saving her. You have also been a good friend to her, protecting her when necessary on other occasions.”
“Raziel,” she says attempting to stand up. “I am sure you will feel better soon. I should not impose my presence on you any longer.”
I stand up with her and grasp her shoulders. “Adriel, please listen to me. When I changed Xandra’s destiny, I changed my own as well. It is not Xandra that I need to make my heart whole again. It is you.”
She stumbles backwards but I catch her before she falls. “That cannot be true. I am a lower Angel. Archangels do not find mates among us.”
I grin at the term mate. Xandra hates that term when used to explain a loving relationship. “I know that you love me.”
Adriel’s eyes become downcast. “We are supposed to love all of our fellow Angels. Especially Archangels.”
I put a finger under her chin and lift her face so she is forced to look at me. “That is not what I mean and you know it. Remember, I know everything.”
A little of her strong personality begins to shine through finally. “That has not been true recently, Raziel.”
I chuckle and drop my hand. She doesn’t lower her eyes again. “No, but that was a necessary part of my journey. The knowledge was still with me but the Seraph of Joy kept it hidden until I was ready to see it. You are my destiny now Adriel and I am more than happy to spend eternity proving it to you.”
She blinks several times. Yes, it will take some time for her to believe me. She doesn’t have the knowledge in her heart yet like I do. Right now though, I need to convince her to help Xandra once again. That requires her to Fall with me. “Adriel, we must take our Fallen forms to guarantee that Xandra can do as she is meant to do.”
“But I have never Fallen before.”
“I will show you how it is done.” I hold my hand out to her and after a moment of hesitation, she finally places her palm on mine.
“Are you ready?” I ask.
Adriel shakes her head. “No.”
She will get over that. I say the words that will allow us both to Fall. In an instant, we are in the spot that Xandra, Kallen and I shared just a short time ago. Adriel spins around when she feels her wings are gone and that makes me laugh. “You will get them back someday,” I assure her.
She gives me a doubtful look. “Nothing is as it is supposed to be lately, so please forgive my doubts. I am not prepared for all of these changes. Nor for your declaration of love.” Her face begins to color as she realizes that I had not actually used that term yet.
I pull her close and whisper in her ear. “My love for you has always been in my heart because it is our mutual destiny to be together. I simply needed to find the path to it. There is great joy in our future together. I can see it now.” I kiss her cheek and then step back and offer her my hand again. “Do you trust me?”
She ponders that question a bit longer than I care for, but after a moment she smiles. She slips hers in mine and we walk the short distance to the rebel camp. Adriel is still in shock but I feel the kernel of hope that is building inside her.
We arrive just as Xandra is laying out her plan. It is a risky endeavor and I am proud of her for ignoring the doubts of those around her. I am also aware that being in her presence does not bring the familiar pain I have become accustomed to. I squeeze Adriel’s hand and smile down at her confused face. She thinks I have gone mad. On the contrary, I have once again become sane.
Chapter 38 – Xandra
“There is no talking you out of this?” Isla asks me.
I shake my head. “No. This is what I’m supposed to do. I’m supposed to help bring peace amongst the different races. Remember the prophecy?” Why do I have to keep bringing this up? They were all terrified of the prophecy forever; so it’s not like they’re not familiar with it.
She obvious
ly remembers but I think she’s trying not to at the moment. Turning to Garren, she asks, “What is the best way to approach the Dragons with this proposal?”
He looks at her like she’s crazy. “You want to go to the Dragons that already want us dead with this inane idea? What would their motivation be to agree? This is their realm and we have no business trying to change their entire way of life.”
“There is only one thing that can motivate a Dragon to do something it does not want to do. A more powerful being.”
I whirl around to see who said that because it can’t possibly be who I think it is. I’m wrong. It can be. And he has someone who looks an awful lot like Adriel with him. But she doesn’t have wings. He’s also holding her hand. I kind of expect a little pang of jealousy but it doesn’t come. With their golden haired beauty they make a striking couple. I’d be happy to see them together and happy. Adriel has obviously been lusting after him for a while so this is perfect.
