by Gia Tsiknas
Brizna cried out and slumped onto the floor.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
PLAN
Pain surged through Machi’s battered frame. She could sense Anget in the room with her, but the pain made her vision black. She was tired, and her body screamed at her from the damage it took.
Icham had carried her back into the great hall. The fire blazed and the other two dragon guards were brought along and laid against the wall. The dragons didn’t have a room dedicated to the injured because they were rarely hurt. Anget was near the fire, his wing set and the pain only a dull ache. His mother, Archa, lay curled near him, humming songs as her beloved son slept.
Another wracking pain surged through her body, and Machi screamed.
“We don’t know enough about humans.” An unfamiliar voice crackled.
“Can’t we do anything?” Icham begged.
“We’ll see.” They thrust a fuzzy object into her face and she tried to swipe it away. “Stay still.”
Machi tried to comply. Another bout of searing pain ripped through her and she ground her teeth, refusing to allow her body to spasm. “Good, now concentrate, block everything else out but my voice.”
Machi fought the pain, regaining enough of herself to reply. “What now?”
“Heal.”
With great effort Machi concentrated, drawing upon the boundless energy of the speaker to knit together her flesh and bone. She felt like she was working for hours, but it could only have taken a few minutes. Her face was covered in sweat by the time she finished.
“Thanks…” She realized that she did not recognize the voice. She opened her eyes to see the head of the large mustached dragon from the Council pull away from her. She blinked, realizing the fuzzy object was his mustache. “Your name is?”
“Lucius.” He said.
“Thanks, Lucius.”
“You are welcome, young Drakian.”
Machi tried to sit up, but it took a few tries. Worry flooded through her as she remembered she had not heard the Council’s decision yet. “So, do I dare ask if I’ll be killed?”
“‘You will come to no harm here, young Drakian.’ Is what our official response would have been.” Lucius shook his large head. “However, I believe that you caused quite a number on yourself in this place, so I don’t think that answer is appropriate.”
Machi coughed out a laugh. She wiped the sweat from her face and glanced about the room.
“Anget!” She pushed her newly healed body up and scrambled to her sleeping bonded. Lucius looked on in surprise as Machi’s face softened and she stroked Anget’s head. Machi breathed in and laid a hand on Anget’s wing. Concentrating hard, she called forth healing.
Archa’s humming halted. “What are you doing to my boy? Get away from him!”
Machi flinched and glared up into the emerald dragon’s maw.
“I’m healing him, so shut up or I’ll knock you out like those guards.” She jerked her head to the two guard dragons against the walls.
“Lecherous— “
“Archa.” Lucius snapped. Archa felt silent, and he continued. “Let her work. No human can harm their own bonded. You know this.”
Archa growled and turned away. Machi shook her head. With another deep breath her hand glowed once more and touched Anget’s wing. The bones snapped and straightened as the wings mended. Anget shifted and woke.
“Machi?”
“Glad you’re awake.” She smiled.
“I’m sorry, Machi, I couldn’t get free. I couldn’t get to you.”
Machi thought back to Anget’s desperation. How reckless he had flown to catch her and shook her head. “Don’t worry, Anget. I’m fine now. Get some sleep.”
“If you say so.” After a moment his breathing became regular and rhythmic, marking him asleep.
Machi stood and nodded to Archa before stiffly walking back to her corner next to the fire. Archa glared but said nothing.
Once Machi returned to her corner and sat, Archa stooped back to Anget and started humming again. Machi recognized the song and started singing under her breath. The notes held a melancholic air as they filled the room. Archa trained an eye on Machi, but continued to hum. Their intertwining voices mingled and danced. The few other dragons tending the wounded stayed silent, their eyes closed as they soaked in the melody.
“So you know the old songs.” Lucius commented when she had finished.
Machi shook her head. “Only a few. My mother would sing to me every night.”
Lucius was thoughtful for a moment, and Machi sighed. She was tired, and worn, and she wasn’t finished. Zafirah was still deep in the northern mountains, and Brizna was still her prisoner. And she needed information.
“Where is the Gray… Aidrian?”
Lucius watched Machi for several moments before responding.
“Weren’t we all surprised, when your pursuer ended up being our long lost prince?”
“What?” Machi’s gaze snapped up to meet his. Her anger flared, and she turned to glare at her feet.
“We have been isolated in these mountain tunnels too long.”
Machi shrugged.
“Do you wish vengeance on the prince?”
Machi frowned.
Did she want him dead? She wanted him gone. But was that the same?
Machi tugged her hair absent-mindedly.
She was a different person from the assassin who had chased clues at her own expense. She had grown. Tribulations had savaged her life, and she had survived. She was tired of living a life of blood.
“I want to get Brizna back and leave this behind me.”
Lucius watched her. “Aidrian wishes to speak with you.”
Machi jerked as if someone had slapped her. “What do you mean?”
“After the situation calmed, and we could tend to the injured, some of his memories returned to him.” Machi frowned, but didn’t stop Lucius from talking. “He wanted to talk to you right away, but Drina and I persuaded him to retreat to another room until you had recovered. You do not have to meet with him. It is a request only.”
Emotions warred through Machi. She gave herself time to sort through them by asking. “How long was I out?”
Lucius didn’t comment on her abrupt change in conversation, but he answered.
“About three hours. We had tried to use our medicines to help you heal, but you are too different from us and they had little effect.”
Machi stood and shook out her wings. They felt as light as a feather. Maybe the medicine had some effect, just not as intended.
She frowned. Machi didn’t want to meet with Aidrian. She would have been happy if he never spoke or faced her again, but she needed information. She needed his knowledge if she wanted to free Brizna from Zafirah’s clutches. With a long sigh Machi grimaced.
“Let’s get this over with.”
“Very well, follow me.” Lucius motioned toward the hall. He led her out of the room. The halls were large, winding through the ground with a haphazardness that made Machi’s skin crawl. She looked to Lucius. He was the same size as Icham.
Could they be the same age? Lucius stopped outside a large red door.
“Here you are.”
Machi stared at the handle. She flexed and relaxed her hands. She still had the knife in her boot. Should she take it out now?
She glanced at Lucius. Would he allow her? The dragon had said Aidrian was their lost prince. Did that make him untouchable?
She grasped the handle, entered the room, and blinked.
Aidrian looked different. His hair was no longer gray and ragged but brilliant white and swept back from his face. He wore a dark green tunic with pale green trimming, a dark brown hose, and a black, leather belt decorated with emeralds. Boots of high quality leather shod his feet. He stood in front of an intricate mural that spanned the far wall, examining it with a sad expression.
The image was of a dragon balanced on two legs, preparing to strike a knight whose sword was poised and r
eady. A girl, her dress billowing, and her long hair wild in the mountain winds, stood between the two titans. She faced the knight with her arms outstretched as if to shield the dragon from harm. The girl had white hair and blood-red eyes.
Aidrian turned to Machi with a forced smile on his face.
“This was my father’s study when he was away from court. I would stare at this painting for hours whenever we came here.”
Machi nodded tersely.
“There’s no need to worry. Ulokhu has been destroyed and Raboni is helping me hide from Zafirah’s influence.” Machi refused to answer and Aidrian’s wavering smile vanished. “But that’s not why you’re tense.”
The silence stretched between them. Aidrian’s eyes flickered to hers then away multiple times, as if he was unsure what to do.
Machi didn’t look away. Her gaze was level and steady. She kept her frustration in check, but she didn’t want to give Aidrian any leeway. He had to come to terms with what he had done to her, and she wouldn’t forgive him easily. Aidrian’s gaze hardened, and he stood at attention, taking a deep breath.
“If you want to kill me, you can.”
Machi blinked. Her surprise broke her stoic stare. Aidrian’s eyes were unyielding as they stared into hers.
“You have every right to kill me. I murdered your parents, helped enslave our people, and took your partner off to be tortured. And I won’t stop you. No one is in the way. You can do it now.”
He picked up a dagger from a shelf from one of the side walls and held it out to her hilt-first. Machi stared at it.
The golden, decorative handle glistened in the light, red and sinister, persuading her to take it.
It would be so easy to hush him now. She was healed, she could escape. The plans whirled in her mind as her trained Hunter’s brain mulled over the situation, weighing the cost. She could do it. She’d killed in much harsher circumstances. Just stab him and walk out. Then claim Aidrian wanted privacy. She’d be gone before they discovered her lie.
But should she?
Machi breathed in deeply, the last remnants of her wrath whispered to her, but as she exhaled the whispers died away.
“Take that thing away before I decide keeping you alive is more trouble than it’s worth.”
Aidrian wasn’t convinced. He had seen the look in her eyes as she had stared at the terrible, golden knife.
“I took everything from you. You deserve retribution.”
Machi turned toward the door.
“If that’s what you want to talk about, I’m gone.”
She stalked to the door and grabbed the handle. Just as it started to open Aidrian called to her.
“Please, don’t go yet.”
Machi froze, but she didn’t turn. She didn’t trust herself. Aidrian continued.
“The knife is gone. Please, I need to speak with you.”
With a shaky breath Machi turned to face him. She crossed the room, sitting on one of the handful of chairs that ringed the chamber. It had surprised Machi to see them in a dragon’s lair. But if this was a study made for Aidrian’s father, they would need human furniture. Machi crossed her arms and tapped her foot, scowling.
Aidrian nodded, grabbed a chair, and sat opposite her.
“Your planning to rescue him, aren’t you? Your partner.”
Machi ground her teeth. A stiff nod was all she would give him.
Aidrian shook his head. “You should give up. He’s long gone. I saw him before I set out to chase you. His soul is already in her grasp.”
“I didn’t come for advice.” Machi’s voice was ice.
“Listen to me.” Aidrian snapped. “This isn’t some simple snatch and run mission. Zafirah doesn’t simply hire lackeys. When you enter her service, you give up a part of your essence to her. More than likely this happens without the lackey’s knowledge. And she can do a lot of damage to a person with that bit of soul.
“She can infect the soul with darkness; she can subject the person to so much pain that they beg for death; she can read a person’s thoughts; she can even control them, like a puppet on a string. With that bit of soul, Zafirah controls the entire person. And Brizna has lost his soul to her. He’s dead now, gone.”
“If it comes down to it, I’ll kill her.” Machi’s voice dripped venom.
Aidrian slammed his fist on the arm of the chair. Machi gripped the arms to her own chair, the cloth screaming in her grip. They stared at each other for several long moments.
“If you don’t give me the information I need get out of my way.” Machi’s voice had lowered to a hiss so soft it was almost too low to hear. She was still, tense, ready to strike. How dare this man lecture her. How dare he dictate what she should and shouldn’t do. “I won’t say this again.”
Aidrian stared at her. His expression thawing from rage. A widening of the eyes and he sat back heavily in his chair. Slowly he articulated his next words.
“You love him that much.”
Machi rocked back, the statement so sudden she didn’t know what to say.
Aidrian was silent. He deliberated long and hard before continuing. He leaned forward and looked into her eyes, his gaze unwavering and unflinching.
“You do not understand how much agony she can put us through when she sinks in her claws. You have no idea how much stress that puts on the mind until all that’s left is a gibbering, obedient mess. How do you know he hasn’t lost his mind already? How. Do. You. Know?”
Machi glared right back at him. She didn’t want to say; didn’t want to reveal her dream, as if it might be tainted. But Aidrian’s eyes were stubborn, and she knew that if she didn’t answer, and answer honestly, she would go in blind. And that would put Brizna at risk.
“I had a vision.” Machi spat, as if saying it in spurts might make it easier. “He fought a large enemy in a gray room. Just him and that thing, fighting and fighting. I dreamed I helped a bit to give him some relief, then I woke.”
Aidrian’s eyes glazed over as if she had just said what he had feared. He slumped back against the chair.
“All right, I will tell you what I can. On one condition.”
Machi’s eyes narrowed.
“I want you to help me rebuild Drakia.” Aidrian refused to look up.
Machi frowned.
Aidrian plowed ahead. “If, and I do mean if you free your partner and stop Zafirah I want to rebuild Drakia again. I want to give the refugees I hunted their home back.”
Machi waited for the punch-line. But nothing came. Raboni? Is he serious?
Yes, he is, child. And he has my approval.
Gritting her teeth, cursing her decision to talk with Aidrian before leaving, Machi released the chair and sat back.
“Fine.”
Aidrian’s head shot up and he stared at Machi. With an effort he choked back his comments and nodded.
“Ask away.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
ZAFIRAH
Stealth. That was her focus; that was always the focus of a Hunter, stealth and then speed and then distraction. Machi pulled a wry smile, Ex-Hunter.
The waning moon was a sliver of light in the night sky. Machi’s wings beat long, powerful strokes as she soared through the chilled mountain air. She was as high as her lungs could handle without being short of breath. Her dark clothes shielded her in the night sky. She was invisible until dawn, which was still hours away.
The hidden entrance into the dragon’s keep was long behind her. It was the same entrance they had used during the Betrayal to flee their bonded and lock away their hearts.
The spires of old mountains stabbed like greedy fingers at the night sky. There were many peaks in the range, but Machi was only looking for one, hidden and small in the cluster of its larger siblings. Turrets and chiseled towers came into view, and Machi let out a held breath. She found it; Zafirah’s stronghold.
The fortress had no drawbridge, only a small winding path that wove its way to the summit-gate. There was no need for man-made
defense, as its narrow path fell into a chasm on one side. Water gushed from the mountainside, spewing its torrent far from the cliff-face before dumping into the frothy river. The river wound in-between the mountains and emptied into the dead forest that made up the border of Aguden and Drakia.
Machi circled the castle, trying to put together a map in her mind. A large stone and glass structure crowned the east side of the mountain. Open stone pathways ranged the north and south angles of the mountain, with the geyser of water spilling south. Machi glared at the center building. It was the great hall, according to Aidrian.
Yellow flickers traced the walkways, and Machi grit her teeth. She would rather ghost through the castle, and kill Zafirah while she slept, but Aidrian did not understand the castle’s layout. He had used Ulokhu’s shadows to travel. Machi had wanted to do reconnaissance, but time was of the essence. Aidrian had been out of contact with Zafirah for too long, and the longer they waited the more alert she would be.
That’s a lot of soldiers. Anget’s shadow loomed over her, blocking the scant moonlight. The hum of his nervous excitement flooded through him. Machi watched in awe as the juvenile dragon floated in the air with unprecedented grace. Anget was clumsy on the ground, but the air was his domain, and he rode the wind-currents with ease. I brought Icham, Grandpa and Scholar.
Machi frowned. Where’s Drina and Lucius?
Drina won’t leave Aidrian now that they’re together again and Lucius refused to come. He offered Grandpa instead, and Scholar wouldn’t leave me alone until he came too. Anget sniffed. Something about a momentous occasion.
Machi smiled and shook her head, her memories flowing into Anget: Brizna teasing her before a mission, Machi ribbing him back.
Anget shifted his head to look at her. Who was that?
You’ll see him soon.
Hope swelled in Machi, but she stifled it.
One last mission. She promised herself. One more time, and we’ll be free.
Machi took a breath and focused. She shut out the wind, and steadied her heart, letting her blood-lust rise and heighten her senses.