Not that she didn’t enjoy it. She never experienced anything like it. Her body still tingled all over when she remembered what he did to her and how he did it. She just didn’t want it to happen again. If he ever came near her again, she couldn’t say no. She would do it with him again, and again, until she lost herself in him.
Not only that, she would lose her team’s respect. The more times she met Rocor, the more likely one of the team would find out what was up. She already threatened her position by speaking out against the Allies. She only clawed her way back by never mentioning it again.
She made up her mind to ask someone other than Rocor about the medical examination. She headed back to the archives room, but Freya was nowhere in sight. Dana and Sophia hadn’t seen her, either.
Jasmine started for the central hall, but no matter where she went, she couldn’t find one Assan anywhere. Where could they be? They must all be down at the armory. Jasmine could surprise them there, but she didn’t know the way. What could she do?
She hated hanging around waiting for something to happen. She retrieved her notebook from her room and walked up the long passage to the Keep’s front entrance. The sun dazzled her outside, but the fresh air revived her after so long underground.
She hiked into the forest in search of some more plant samples. She didn’t want to go too far. She didn’t want to meet another morlock like the one that attacked the team on the journey here. She wouldn’t be able to defend herself against it alone. Not even the whole team working together could stop it until Fawks saved their lives by killing it.
The sunshine warmed her face. She would like to close her eyes and doze off right now, but the fresh breeze invigorated her. She walked faster. Why didn’t she come out here sooner? The outdoors always cleared her head and washed her troubles away. Life made sense once again.
She only made it a few paces into the forest when she heard loud voices not far away. She migrated toward the sound, but the closer she got, the slower she walked. She recognized those voices. She couldn’t fail to recognize them when she heard them every day.
She crept closer and ducked behind a tree when she saw people moving between the trees. Rocor’s voice boomed through the woods, and Warku’s answered. What could they be doing out here, yelling at the top of their lungs?
At first, she heard only a garble of confused shouting. She got as close as she dared before she peaked out to stare at the scene. All four Assan brothers—Callan, Rocor, Warku, and Gao—stood in a loose circle between the trees. They bellowed and threatened each other back and forth. Every man in that group argued at full volume with every other.
Even staring right at them, she couldn’t tell what they were arguing about. Little by little, she separated one voice from the next.
“You don’t even belong here,” Warku thundered at Callan. “We haven’t seen your face in years, and now you want to take over.”
“When you act like this, someone’s got to take over,” Callan yelled back. “You’ve been an insolent punk since you were young. I should have put you down when I had the chance.”
“You want to put me down? Do it right now.” Warku jabbed a finger in his brother’s face. “I’ll kill you and take Haya for myself, the way she should be.”
Gao smacked Warku’s hand down. “Can’t you talk about anything but Haya? You haven’t touched her in twenty years, and you’re still stuck on her.”
“Shut your trap, boy,” Rocor interrupted. “Let them work it out between themselves. You’re too young to get involved in this.”
“I’m not too young to challenge you,” Gao shot back. “You can’t fight all of us. I’ll cripple you, and one of them will finish you off.”
Rocor narrowed his eyes at his youngest brother. “You’re stupider than I thought if you think you can come near enough to hurt me. Go home to your mother where you belong, and leave this to the big boys.”
“He has as much right to challenge you as anybody else,” Callan put in. “He’s fully mature. I’d like to see you stand up to him.”
“You stay out of this, too,” Rocor told him. “You won’t take over this Clan. You’ll run home to your wife and her family.”
“Maybe I won’t,” Callan replied. “Maybe I’ll rid the world of your stinking presence. Then I’ll bring Haya and Asya back here and live happily ever after.”
“You won’t fight the Ulasso,” Rocor countered. “You would roll over and let them wipe us out. You’re too soft to lead this Clan, just like you were too soft to stick around in the first place. Run home to your hole and don’t bother us again.”
“None of you is man enough to lead this Clan,” Warku boomed.
Rocor rounded on him. “I’m the oldest. I’ll put all of you in the ground before I let you take what’s rightfully mine.”
“I’m the oldest,” Callan interrupted.
Warku snapped over his shoulder. “You don’t count. You’re not even part of this Clan anymore.”
“That’s what I say,” Rocor added.
Warku spun around to face him. “Don’t you dare agree with me. You want to lead this Clan? You’ll have to get through me first. I challenge you to battle it out right here and now.”
The instant the words left his mouth, the whole terrible scene changed. Gao and Callan fell silent, and Rocor froze in his tracks. He stared at Warku, and the other two fell back out of the way. Warku narrowed his eyes at Rocor, and Rocor’s shoulders stiffened.
Jasmine held her breath behind the tree. Whatever this challenge meant, these two would fight to the death in front of her eyes. Did she have to stand here and watch Warku kill Rocor? She couldn’t watch, but she couldn’t get away, either. She stood rooted to the spot, and her eyes strained to catch every detail.
As soon as Gao and Callan retreated, Warku and Rocor started circling. They kept their eyes fixed on each other’s faces. Jasmine’s blood pounded in her neck. Rocor flexed his fingers to grab and tear. Warku’s shoulders swelled out.
All of a sudden, Warku let out a tremendous bellow and launched himself at his brother. Rocor rose off the ground, but to Jasmine’s surprise, neither brother reached out his hands to seize his opponent.
Instead, Warku spread his arms wide. His neck bent forward and kept on going. It extended far over his chest, and his neck stretched to push it forward. Dark grey swirling patterns spread over his face and surrounded his snarling mouth.
Rocor also threw his arms out to the sides. His shoulders exploded out of his body. His fingers elongated to scratch the air. His blue-black colors covered his skin and wiped out every scrap of skin.
In front of Jasmine’s eyes, both men lifted off the ground. They screaming mouths split their heads in half, and mouths full of sharp pointed teeth jutted between their lips. Their arms grew longer and longer until they unfolded into wings. They beat the air to lift themselves between the trees.
The colors darkened their features. The dragon pattern Jasmine noticed emerged in all its grotesque horror. It became more and more distinct until it took over the brothers’ whole being. In a minute, nothing remained of the men she thought she knew. Rocor turned into a gleaming blue dragon.
His head whipped forward on his long neck. His lashing tail cracked through the air, and leathery wings rustled between the trees. Warku rose coal-grey opposite him, and his jaws snapped in deadly rage.
Their wings sent wind blasting through the forest. They dodged their heads this way and that. Rocor darted forward and slashed his brother’s shoulder with his teeth. Warku shrieked so loud Jasmine cringed behind her tree. She couldn’t believe the evidence of her senses.
The dragons fluttered some feet above the ground. They rose and fell and danced around each other, but neither could gain enough advantage to turn the fight his way. Rocor brought his wicked tail around and smacked Warku aside with it. Warku stumbled and hit the ground. He rolled on his side, and his head shot up to shred Rocor’s wing.
Rocor descended on top of him. Hi
s clawed feet extended to cut his brother to ribbons, but Jasmine didn’t see anymore. She broke out of her shock and bolted into the forest.
11. Chapter 10
Jasmine raced back to the Keep, but she couldn’t calm her thoughts. What in the name of heaven did she just see? She saw Rocor and Warku turn into dragons. That might have shocked her, but it certainly didn’t shock Gao and Callan. They stood back and watched the fight. They knew all along the two men would change into dragons.
This could mean only one thing. The Krataks were dragons. Nothing else made sense. In fact, it made so much sense Jasmine wondered why she didn’t figure it out before. What else could explain the color patterns under their skin? What else could explain the tapestries, the mystical designs in the Krataks’ clothing, their ornaments—in everything?
Everything she experienced since she landed on this planet crowded into her mind. One memory after another demanded her attention. No wonder Rocor blamed Fawks for the shuttle crash. Fawks was the white dragon who attacked them. So why did he save them after the fact? Maybe Rocor could explain that, too.
Rocor! How could she ever look at him again? How could she stand to be around any of these people again? She had to get out of here. She had to get off this crazy planet, and fast.
How could she do that without telling her teammates where she was going? She couldn’t get off the planet at all. General Duncan told her point blank they would be stuck here if they didn’t leave with her when they had the chance.
She hurried down the passage. She kept control of herself just enough to avoid breaking into a run. Where could she take refuge while she figured out exactly what she should do? Only one place in this place offered her any solace. She found her way back to her room. It looked exactly the same as it did when Freya first showed it to her. She hadn’t even slept in the bed. She spent last night with Rocor in his secret den.
She slammed the door and bolted it against the world. She still couldn’t get her mind to function. Every instinct told her to scream and run, but she had nowhere to run to. She had to confide in somebody, but who?
She had to tell her teammates. They came here to study the Krataks. She couldn’t keep this to herself. She tore the door off its hinges getting out of that room—and stopped. Right outside her room, with his hand raised to knock, stood Rex.
Jasmine stiffened. She narrowed her eyes at him. “What do you want? I thought I told you to stay away from me.”
He gave her his crooked grin and sauntered into the room. “I was going to invite you to take a walk with me outside. You said you wanted to collect samples. Why not combine that will a nice walk in the park?”
She snorted. “I have enough samples, thank you very much, and I’m not going anywhere with you. Now get out of my room.”
He nodded over his shoulder. “I thought I heard somebody running. Was that you? Were you in some kind of hurry?”
“That’s none of your business.”
He eyed her, but he wouldn’t stop smiling. He stepped closer. “Give a guy a break, Jasmine. Give me a chance to make it up to you.”
“Make it up to me! You lied and humiliated me in front of everybody, and now you want to make it up to me? How do you propose to do that?”
He slung his arm over her shoulder. “I just told you. Take a walk with me outside. You know you’ll feel better.”
She marched away from him to stare out the window. “I’m not going outside. I was just out there.”
He frowned. “You were? Oh.”
She spun around to yell at him again when she paused. Should she tell him what she knew? He was a member of this team, wasn’t he? She couldn’t exactly tell the others without telling him, too. What would he do if he found out? She didn’t have to ask. He would tell the Allied Command. That was his job.
He leaned against the bed and set his hands on his hips. “Let me guess. You were out there with Rocor, weren’t you? You’ve gotten awfully close to him lately. Is there something you want to tell me?”
Jasmine gulped. “Rocor?”
“Yes, Rocor,” he breezed. “You’ve been keeping some big secret from me. I thought you trusted me enough to tell me anything.”
Jasmine thought fast. Was he trying to trap her into revealing something? What if he already knew about the Krataks? Was this his creepy way of testing her loyalty?
He pushed himself off the bed and sidled up to her again. He bent over to kiss her, but she couldn’t respond, even to push him away. She could only stare at him with her mind in a ferment. She trusted him when she revealed her doubts about the Allies. He already knew about that. Maybe she could trust him with this, too. If anyone could help her, he could.
Out of nowhere, she became aware of his lips touching hers. A shiver ran down her body, and she shuddered all over. She found herself staring into his blue eyes at close range. How different he looked from Rocor! How sallow and empty his skin looked without those designs and shapes competing for real estate all over his face.
He misunderstood her reaction. He put his arms around her and clasped her against his puny body. He couldn’t hold a candle to Rocor in sheer masculine power and magnetic attraction. What did she ever see in him? Even his kiss disgusted her.
He hugged her against him and leaned back to pull her toward the bed. She squirmed out of his arms. “Don’t, Rex. I don’t want to be with you like that again. I’m finished with you.”
He snorted and came at her again. “You don’t mean that. You might still be mad at me, but you can’t just end it, just like that. We’ve got too much potential, you and me. Forget about Rocor. Come and lie down in bed with me. You won’t regret it.”
Every nerve went on high alert. “Rocor! What does he have to do with this?”
The grin evaporated off his face. “You never had any problem with me before you met him. You knew I represented the Allies. What did you think I was going to do if you turned against them? Don’t you think Rocor would do the same thing if you turned against him?”
Jasmine crossed her arms over her chest. “You’re jealous of Rocor, aren’t you? That’s what this is all about.”
For the first time since she first met him, Rex Masters actually frowned. “I am not jealous of Rocor. I could never be jealous of a brute like him. I know you’re too much of a woman ever to be attracted to him.”
Jasmine burst out laughing. “If that’s true, why do you keep mentioning him when we’re not even talking about him? I told you I don’t want to have anything more to do with you, Rex, and that has nothing to do with Rocor or anybody else. It has nothing to do with anything except you. I know you better now than I did before. I know you represent the Allies and nothing else. You stick with the Allies and leave me alone.”
He opened his mouth to give her some other nonsense, but she held up her hand. She would never listen to another word he said. She would never tell him what she knew, either. He knew nothing about the Krataks, especially not this, and he would never find out if she didn’t tell him.
She decided then and there she would never tell a living soul what she knew. What was she going to say—that the Krataks were really dragons in disguise? Yeah, right.
She shoved Rex to the door and dragged him through it. He frowned even deeper. “What are you doing, Jasmine? We’re in the middle of a conversation.”
“Not anymore. Go back to whatever you were doing before you heard me running down the passage. I don’t have time to bother with you right now.”
He watched her race away. “But where are you going?”
She waved over her shoulder. “I have to talk to somebody. I’ll see you later.”
Talk to somebody! Man alive, did she need to talk to somebody! She had to get this secret off her chest, and fast. If she didn’t talk to somebody about it now, she would have to tell one of her teammates, and she didn’t want to do that.
She raced down the passage heading for the main hall. She must surely find an Assan there, and it wouldn’t be one
of the brothers. Who would it be? She could only guess. She didn’t want to unburden herself to just anybody. She couldn’t think of one person she would feel comfortable unburdening herself to, but she would take what she could get.
The moment she walked into the hall, her spirits soared. She spotted Freya standing in the far corner. Freya! Of course! Jasmine couldn’t have hoped for a better person to spill her guts to. Why hadn’t she thought of Freya in the first place?
Freya stood with her back to Jasmine, but she turned around when Jasmine rushed over. Her face brightened. “Hello there, Jasmine. I’ve been looking for you.”
Jasmine panted, all out of breath. “Have you? I’ve been looking for you, too.”
“Have you? What have you been looking for me for?”
Jasmine looked around. Her heart raced in her chest. They were completely alone. This was the moment of truth, make or break. If Jasmine didn’t get through to Freya now, all hope was lost.
Before she could blurt out the truth, Freya started talking instead. “I talked to Gao about the Keep’s construction, but I haven’t been able to find Sophia to tell her what he said. He said there’s a document in the archives room at Harkniss Keep that describes in detail how the ancestors carved the stones and mixed the mortar to build the….”
“I know all about the dragons, Freya,” Jasmine interrupted. “I saw Rocor and Warku fighting in the forest a few minutes ago. I saw them change into dragons. I know everything about it.”
Freya stopped with her mouth open and stared at her. “You do?”
Jasmine nodded. She couldn’t control her emotions. She didn’t say that very eloquently or as calmly as she wanted to, but at least she got it out in the open.
Freya shut her mouth. “Oh.”
Jasmine held her breath and waited. Freya studied her for such a long, tense minute Jasmine wondered if Freya knew anything about it herself. Maybe the men kept some kind of secret from their own sister. How was that possible?
Freya took a breath. “Well, if you know, you know. That’s all there is to it. So, you know. What are you going to do now? I suppose you’ll tell your friends and your Command. That will be the end of our secret—and our advantage.”
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