“Easy. I have since seen enough of how you protected the Null to know you are capable of caring for something other than yourself. A servant of the void cares for no one. You might have issues you need to work through, to master control over your chaotic nature, but if you so choose, you can be a worthy servant of the light.”
The dragon sneered. Erika had no other word for the expression on the dragon’s face in the moments before he lowered his head threateningly at Draydrak and closed his talon-tipped fingers around her and brought her closer to his chest.
Lord Death held his hands out, palms up once more. “Or, if you wish, you do not have to serve at all. As long as you do no more evil, the Divine Ones will let you go unmolested. Though like all beings, you will one day stand before them and be judged.”
The dragon didn’t relax, but he didn’t growl either, so Erika took that as a good sign.
Draydrak tilted his head and studied Erika for a moment before his gaze lifted back to the dragon. “Though the Null will join our fight. I can see that much. It is in her nature. And if you care for the Null as much as I think you do, you will fight beside her. She’ll certainly have a better chance of surviving the coming war with you as a partner, rather than alone.”
“I will fight alongside my Null and destroy whatever enemies she wishes me to annihilate.” The dragon’s voice was deep and rich and somehow held a hint of a roaring fire to it. The tone made Erika’s ears vibrate. “But I serve no others. Not you. Not the Avatars. Not even your Divine Ones.”
A glance around showed everyone else was as surprised by the dragon’s words as Erika was.
Lord Draydrak drew back a few more steps and then bowed to the dragon. “Your aid is welcome. After the war is over, you will be free to go anywhere you wish, and no one will come after you as long as you never harm innocents.”
The dragon rumbled something that sounded like a vicious sort of humor, but then he turned his back on Lord Death, and Erika was no longer caged by his claws. Instead she now sat on his hand. Above her, all she could see was his long narrow muzzle where it flared out into what would have been his cheeks in a human. The elegant feelers waved softly in the breeze.
Two beautiful solid dark eyes with flames deep in their centers stared back at her. “I am yours,” the dragon whispered. “I shall serve only you.”
Erika licked her lips nervously. “Okay.”
His warm breath washed over her. “And you are equally mine and will serve only me.”
Oh boy. Her superiors were going to have some words about that. But she wasn’t stupid enough to challenge the elemental dragon. He was far too volatile. Gryton needed more time to learn to control this side of his nature.
Squaring her shoulders, Erika reached out and gave his sizeable clawed thumb a reassuring pat. “Let’s start with the war that’s coming, and we’ll decide where and what to do from there? In the meantime, I’m more than happy to have you as my friend and partner.” She grinned suddenly. “A girl couldn’t ask for a more splendid partner.”
The dragon puffed up his chest and preened at her compliment.
Lord Draydrak laughed. “The two of you will be the Light’s battering ram. Together you will help us defeat the blood witch and extract the oldest of the djinn from her clutches while the Avatars and I deal with my sister.”
Then the god of death turned from them to address the Avatars and the rest of the assembly.
Erika was just thinking it might be smoother sailing from then on.
At least that’s what she’d hoped until Lord Draydrak drew himself up to his full height once more, his earlier openness and friendliness falling away.
“There is just one other issue we must address here today.”
The stadium-like structure went absolutely silent. No small feat for an area that was packed body to body with a good ten thousand gargoyles and dryads.
Something must have passed between demigod and dragon for the fire elemental drew Erika closer to his chest and took a step toward the cliff and open sky.
“Hey! Where are you going?” She smacked his thumb repeatedly to get his attention. “We can’t just leave. What’s going on?”
“A fight to determine which pair of Avatars will lead. I will take you to a safe distance.”
“What? Wait? There’s a second pair of Avatars?”
“Yes.” The word came out in a hissing rumble. “The ones you know as Anna and Obsidian. They were created to battle the old Avatars if need be.” The dragon stopped at the edge of the cliff and turned back to face Lord Draydrak and the assembly. Then he sat and gave everyone a look that said approach at one’s peril.
“Oh, Hell. This is bad.”
“Or it could be entertaining,” the dragon countered, and Erika could sense his eagerness to see the coming fight. It appealed to the dragon’s chaotic nature.
“Not entertaining,” Erika muttered under her breath as she watched the old Avatars skeptically size up the new set.
Chapter 13
Gregory
STARING ACROSS THE expanse of sand, Gregory met Obsidian’s gaze, and he saw the truth confirmed in the young male’s gaze. Lord Death’s words were true. He’d known Shadowlight had been spectacularly powerful for a premature gargoyle. And Anna had developed swiftly as well.
But back in the Mortal Realm, Gregory had been limited and hadn’t seen the full potentials sleeping in the depths of their souls. But now? Now he could clearly see how powerful they were, how much more potential still waited within them, readying for a time it would be needed.
Still, he’d never imagined he was looking upon his and his lady’s replacements. Even though he saw the truth in the youth’s eyes and echoing in Lord Death’s words, something didn’t sit right with that knowledge in his mind.
If Anna and Shadowlight had been created to replace him and his Sorceress, why had they been reborn at all?
“Perhaps we are intended to mentor them?” Lillian suggested, though he sensed the doubt in her mind.
“I would do so gladly, but it still makes no sense. The Divine Ones could simply have given them the knowledge of everything they would need to know.”
“Perhaps because the Lady of Battles interfered like she did with me?”
“Perhaps.” But he still didn’t fully accept that possibility. There was too much yet unknown.
“Gregory, my oldest mentor,” Lord Death soothed, “you and your lady are more damaged by Gryton’s creation than you know. While you and she have recovered a great deal, you still have a long journey until you are fully restored.”
Gaze sharpening on Draydrak, Gregory huffed softly. That might be true... “But why did the Divine Ones not tell us this themselves?”
“Because the Lady of Battles found a way to steal what few memories you had from the time after Gryton’s birth to now.”
Gregory couldn’t deny those words. His memory was spotty. So, too, was Lillian’s.
“Have a care,” she cautioned. “I think this is a test.”
“A test?” But as he touched minds with her, he saw it as she did, and he agreed. It made sense if this was some sort of test to prove they were still capable of leading. “I shall take care.”
He turned his attention back to Draydrak. “You say Anna and Obsidian are our replacements.”
Draydrak gave him a mysterious smile. “I did not say that. I said both pairs must prove their worthiness to lead. The one I deem best suited will then become the commander of the Divine Ones’ army.”
“And is there a reason we can’t just ask the Divine Ones which pair they’d prefer to lead?”
Draydrak’s smile vanished. “You could. But the journey would take time and magical strength better used for preparing for the coming war. Perhaps a series of trials, such as what a novice, journeyman, and master must complete, only one more strenuous in light of an Avatar’s greater power?”
“I knew I smelled a test,” Lillian whispered in his mind. “I still don’t see the
point. Even damaged from Gryton’s birth, we would still easily win against Anna and Obsidian.”
Gregory huffed his agreement. But like Lillian, he detected something more hidden in Draydrak’s words.
But just then Obsidian stepped forward and bowed to Lord Draydrak. “I shall battle Gregory if that is the will of the Divine Ones.”
“He’s going to get his ass kicked,” Gran muttered to Thayn. “What foolery is this?”
Gregory probably wasn’t meant to overhear, but he did anyway.
“I thank you.” Draydrak bowed his head in acknowledgment of Obsidian’s bravery. Then he turned to look at Gregory. “And you, Avatar? Will you face this young one in honorable combat?”
With a huff, Gregory took a step forward.
Behind him, Lillian made a sound of denial. “What are you doing? You know as well as I do that winning a fight isn’t going to win us the trial. There is always more to what Draydrak says than what’s on the surface.”
“I know.” He glanced over his shoulder and grinned at her.
He continued forward until he was in the center of the ring, facing a determined Obsidian. The youth’s expression was a cross between determination and doubt that what he was about to do was wise.
“In your doubt, you show wisdom, Cub,” Gregory sent along a private link, allowing his affection for the youth to cross over to the other male. Then he turned fully to face the Lord of the Underworld and said aloud, “I call your bluff. And will add that you have grown foolish since I last saw you if you think you can trick me, old friend. The Divine Ones may have created a second pair of Avatars, but it wasn’t to battle us for supremacy.”
Gregory smirked as Draydrak’s ears slumped, betraying him. “If the Divine Ones did not think we were up to the role of leading their armies, they would have said as much in the Spirit Realm, and we would have bowed to their wisdom.” He turned to look at the two youths. “However, I also trust their judgment. They created Anna and Obsidian for a purpose. I will not waste time fighting with my allies, but there is nothing to say the Avatars—either the new or the old—must lead alone. I welcome the new Avatars and ask them to rule beside my Sorceress and me.”
“Hah! Told you they’d never fall for it,” Thayn said with a good bit of glee. “You can pay up later, Dray.”
Lord Draydrak merely smiled. “You won fairly. Come claim your reward whenever you wish.”
Thayn huffed and then turned to grin at Gran. “I’ve won a great prize.”
“And what prize would that be?”
“It shall be a surprise.”
Gregory caught a hint of the elder’s thoughts. Ah. Even his Sorceress hadn’t yet realized what the old goat was up to.
Gran just shook her head at the elder’s joy.
Suppressing a grin, Gregory turned his attention back to Draydrak. “So, if you had managed to convince me to fight Obsidian, what was going to be the lesson I was to have learned?”
“Besides the folly of allowing pride to lead you stumbling blindly into my trap?”
“Besides that, yes.”
“Humility and that even the Avatars are not infallible and sometimes they need their friends to accomplish their goals. And perhaps to make you less hard-headed?”
“There might be something to that last part. I have been known for being hard-headed a time or two before,” Gregory admitted. “And if the Divine Ones wished to teach me that I am not infallible, you need not reinforce that lesson. It’s one I’ve already discovered. I’ve failed several times in this life already.”
Draydrak spread his arms wide. “No one is perfect. Not you or me. Not your Sorceress. Not even the Divine Ones themselves, clearly. Otherwise, my twin would never have....”
“Gone off the rails?” Anna and Erika echoed in unison. They glanced at each other and then grinned.
“You will have to explain that phrase to me at some point,” Lord Draydrak told the two women. “But there is something else we must talk of. Anna and Obsidian’s true purpose. One I have not shared with them because I wanted you and your Sorceress to hear the rest of what I have to say first.”
Lillian joined Gregory, and he instinctively curled a wing around her since she had returned to dryad form. Once he had her tucked against his side, he glanced up at Draydrak. “You have a tale you wish to tell?”
“I suppose I can begin it by saying that to truly serve the Light sometimes vows must be broken.” Draydrak looked at the dragon when he said it. “When you and your Sorceress interrupted the Divine Ones’ original plan, they had to come up with a new one. That is the real reason they created a second pair to act in the capacity of the Avatars. Anna and Obsidian were created to replace my twin and me.”
Up until now, everyone in the assembly had been silent, listening attentively, but now the absolute stillness to the gathering spoke of deep shock. He glanced at Anna and Obsidian. By their near-identical expressions of surprise, he knew this was the first time they were hearing about this.
“I will help strip my twin’s power from her and then give it to one of our young Avatars. Once my sister is sufficiently weakened, I will surrender my own power, and with yours and Lillian’s help, we shall drag my twin back to the Spirit Realm for judgment and healing.”
Draydrak paused. “If it is possible for her to be healed. Then, one day, we will return to take up the mantles of our power. If that isn’t possible, then you and the Sorceress will perform your duties as the Avatars and bring two new demigods into being to take up my and my twin’s magic. Until that time Anna and Obsidian will guard our respective powers.”
“Holy. Fucking. Shit.”
Gregory looked toward Anna. He couldn’t blame her for the outburst. It was a surprising fate to have to swallow for one born not knowing anything of magic or the three realms. But he didn’t doubt the Lord of the Underworld’s words. Anna and Obsidian were both incredibly powerful. Now it made sense as to why. Even if they weren’t destined to wield the power of death and war, merely provide the vessels in which to house the two powers, that was no small thing.
“Do we get a say in any of this?” Anna asked.
Draydrak bowed his head and smiled serenely. “Always. As with each new level of power and responsibility you have received, you have been granted a choice. You can accept this fate or deny it. The Divine Ones do not want slaves.”
Anna snapped her teeth together, and Gregory was sure he heard them grind briefly before she spoke again. “Of course I’m going to say yes. My home is at risk.”
Draydrak looked at Obsidian for long moments.
The gargoyle nodded. “I, too, agree.”
“Very good. But even so, there are no guarantees of success.”
“There never is,” Anna said simply.
“No,” Dray agreed.
Lillian stepped away from Gregory’s side then and took command of the assembly. “If we’re to win this war and finally defeat the Lady of Battles, we’re going to need one ironclad plan. Let’s start hashing this thing out.”
And with his Sorceress giving no quarter, all parties began to discuss their strategy as the afternoon slid toward evening.
The sun was beginning its descent toward the ocean when Gryton stirred at last. Every set of eyes were drawn to the dragon as he shuddered a second time.
Erika reached up and touched the dragon’s foreclaw as if seeking to comfort the great beast. But the dragon just gave his head a little shake and looked at Lillian.
“The Battle Goddess’s captains have just awakened Gryton’s sleeping Elites.” The dragon’s deep voice vibrated along Gregory’s wing bones. “You should assume all the rest of her battalions are also waking. They will be battle worthy in less than four days.”
Lillian glanced back at him; her eyes calm. She nodded, and he looked to the rest of the assembly. “Then we have less than that to march upon the Battle Goddess’s kingdom.”
The dragon nodded. “She’ll strike the human world first, thinking we are s
till there. And there is another reason for her to attack the Mortal Realm first. They will seek to cause as much bloodshed as quickly as possible to feed the blood witch’s spells. Killing humans will be far easier than killing gargoyles or other faebloods. If Taryin and the Battle Goddess manage to take the Earth, the witch will command a power as great as the Battle Goddess.”
While usually, a blood witch couldn’t hope to achieve that kind of power before the Light hunted her down, Gregory knew with a djinn and the Battle Goddess as her allies, this witch would have far more protection than any of her kin had ever possessed in the past.
Which must be the secondary reason the Divine Ones had sent such a powerful Null to pair up with the elemental dragon. Fire was destructive, but it was also a purifying force. The Null could weaken Taryin, and then the dragon would be able to burn away the witch’s spells and then the witch herself.
Now if they could only gain the dragon’s full cooperation.
Chapter 14
Bervicta
ALL IN ALL, THINGS were going better than Bervicta would have thought. The Battle Goddess hadn’t killed her or Vaspara or Sorac. Not yet, at least. Things looked to be improving. Not that their luck would last much beyond the opening skirmish in the coming war.
Bervicta didn’t fool herself. She didn’t expect all of them to survive. If given a choice, she’d surrender her own life to provide her two friends with a chance at a future with their draklings. She’d been surprised at how swiftly the little ones had worked their way into her heart, and she wanted them to have the best chance at survival. That meant Vaspara and Sorac needed to survive the war.
She just didn’t know how to guarantee that outcome.
She was still mulling over unhappy thoughts when she arrived at the drakling’s nest deep below the fortress. Nodding sharply at the guards, she impatiently waited for them to release the ward spells and unlock the heavy ironbound door. But soon the door was screeching open and she was striding through, her heart already feeling lighter at the thought of seeing the draklings again.
The Complete Gargoyle and Sorceress Boxset (Books 1-9) Page 188