Dragon Blood 2: Wyvern

by Avril Sabine

  “No.” He dropped a light kiss on her lips. “Now go and get dressed.”

  They were ready within twenty minutes and Amber steeled herself to pass through the Void, with the help of the Gold Dragons Kade had organised to take them through. Neither he nor Flinn had learned how to travel through the Void yet, even though they’d both held a Pliethin.

  Amber, Kade, Rian, Brann, Crystal, Flinn and Orin travelled to Ronan’s home. The rest, and that reluctantly included Jasper, stayed behind to cover for them. Shannon, Jasper’s Gold Dragon, was in residence with her two warriors to help take the wyvern nest tomorrow morning. Dragons were a secretive bunch, even with their allies.

  “I hope this isn’t going to take all night.” Flinn said as he landed on Ronan’s rooftop garden and became human.

  “Then I suggest getting on with it instead of standing around socialising,” Ronan snapped.

  Amber strode to Ronan’s side and linked her arm with his as she headed for the house entrance. “And here I thought we’d even have time to sit and gossip over tea and scones.”

  “We’re not going through the let’s be friends crap again, are we?” Ronan asked.

  Amber smiled up at him, almost certain that he wasn’t as cranky as he sounded. “But I’m just so lovable you won’t be able to resist being my friend.”

  “Friends are enemies who haven’t gotten around to stabbing you in the back yet.”

  “That’s a sad way of looking at life.” Amber shook her head slowly.

  “It’s realistic.”

  “Sad.”

  Ronan pulled away from Amber. “Enough.” He turned towards Crystal, who along with everyone else had followed them inside. “You shouldn’t see a single person. The house is empty apart from the prisoner. All my warriors are outside.”

  Crystal nodded and started forward, Orin a step in front of her. Amber fell into step beside her, linking her arm with Crystal.

  “I think your ability is so much more useful than mine,” Amber complained.

  “At least you can prevent people from dying,” Crystal said.

  “Yeah but you can see attacks before they come out of the Void at you.”

  “Don’t you ever shut up?” Ronan asked from behind them.

  Amber grinned at him over her shoulder. “Sure I do. When I’m sleeping.”

  Ronan ignored her. “Turn left up here. It’s the third door on the right.”

  Crystal nodded, her gaze darting everywhere as she walked. “It all looks clear so far.”

  Amber really wished Ronan hadn’t interrupted her conversation with Crystal. Now she was left to think about what might be waiting for her. Was this a trap? And why her? Why couldn’t the assassin have told Ronan instead of her? Maybe Ronan’s cynicism was rubbing off on her, but she couldn’t think of one good reason why the assassin wanted to see her. Only really bad scenarios came to mind. Ones filled with blood and dying.

  Orin opened the door for Crystal and stepped into the room and to the right. Crystal glanced around. “Only one person.” She quickly entered so everyone else could follow.

  Amber managed to enter last, uncertain if she really wanted to hear anything an assassin might want to tell her. She stopped. A man wearing dragon-leather pants was chained to a metal stool that was bolted to the floor. Water dripped from his body onto a recently mopped floor and he stared at her out of one green eye, the other swollen shut. His body and face were covered in bruises and cuts, several still oozing blood to mingle with the water droplets. Amber fought the urge to reach out and heal him.

  “Only her.” The man’s voice was surprisingly strong considering his condition.

  “That wasn’t the deal. I agreed to bring her here.” Ronan drew back a fist.

  “No.” Amber raced between the prisoner and Ronan. “Please. No more.”

  Ronan stared down at her, anger radiating from him. “Don’t be weak, Amber.”

  “I’ll see him with just Crystal and my bodyguard.” She held his glare with one of her own. “The three of us are more than enough for anything he might try. If he can try anything in this state.”

  Ronan remained silent then nodded sharply. When Flinn opened his mouth to argue, he turned his glare on him. Flinn instantly shut his mouth. “Everyone out.” His voice brooked no argument. He paused in the doorway to face them. “No one can hear what happens in this room once the door is closed.”

  Amber suppressed a flare of fear and nodded calmly. She watched as Ronan quietly closed the door, forcing herself to breath evenly and turned to face the man. “Why did you wish to see me?”

  “When you first saw me, what did you think of?”

  “What?”

  “When you entered this room and looked at me. I want to know what your expression meant.”

  “I wanted to heal you.”

  “Why are you allied with Ronan?”

  “Why did you want to see me?”

  “Humour me. He’s not going to let me live, so what’s the harm?”

  Ronan would kill this man because he’d tried to kill her. He wasn’t the one who’d stabbed Rian, but he could have been. She should want him dead, but she didn’t. “What’s your name?”

  “Daray.”

  “What did you want to tell me?”

  “I wish to ask a favour of you.”

  “I thought you had information you’d tell only me.”

  Rian stood by the door, his arms crossed. “I think it is time to leave. He has nothing of importance to say.”

  “I want to go too,” Crystal said from beside Amber.

  “Please. My parents were renegades. I wanted better for my daughter. I thought this was that chance. Not once has your name been linked with Ronan. Most of us would have known better than to bother. Take my daughter into your care and I’ll give you all the information you need.”

  “Oh no,” Crystal wailed, grasping Amber’s arm. “We can’t let Ronan kill him. Who’ll look after his daughter?”

  “I think Crystal needs to leave the room,” Rian said directly to Amber.

  “But-”

  “Do you need to leave as well and let me deal with this?” Rian interrupted her.

  She sighed. “Crystal. Let them know not to disturb me and there’s no need for you to return. Rian will be enough.”

  “But Amber-”

  Amber shook her head. “Crystal.” She met her friend’s eyes. “I need to focus on what both Rian and Daray have to say. This is important.”

  Crystal hugged Amber tightly. “Don’t do anything stupid.”

  Amber grinned as Crystal let her go. “I thought that was a given.”

  Crystal laughed. “Just don’t.” She walked towards the door, a single glance over her shoulder before she left.

  Amber turned to face Daray the moment the door closed. She couldn’t help herself. She reached out and took some of the wounds from his face. The swell from his eye, the cut from his lip and mended his broken nose.

  “Why?”

  Amber pondered Daray’s question and then shrugged. “I’m a healer I guess.”

  “Ronan will not give you all night to make your deal. Tell us what information you have and we will decide what value it has,” Rian said.

  Daray shook his head. “You could easily say it was valueless. I recognise you for his son. Now I’m looking into your eyes.” He turned his gaze to Amber. “Please swear you’ll see to my daughter if I give you this information.”

  “What do you expect us to do for your daughter? Are there other family who would believe they should have a part in her life and what is her age? Where is she at this moment and what current plans did you have in place for her if something should happen to you?” Rian came closer, his hands clasped behind his back as he studied Daray.

  “Does he speak for you?” Daray looked at Amber, but nodded towards Rian.

  “He’s my bodyguard. He takes the position very seriously.” She couldn’t resist smiling at the understatement.

  “I
am her first warrior and I owe her a life. I will not let her do anything that puts her life in jeopardy.”

  Daray nodded. “My daughter, Doneele, is thirteen. A woman she calls Granny has cared for her since her mother died years ago. Her mother was a renegade too. She’s my only child still surviving. And she’s Gold.”

  “The best we could offer her is to become a warrior. We cannot guarantee to sponsor her so she can become a Gold Warrior.”

  “But her children or even her children’s children may no longer have the stigma of renegade attached to them and can make alliances that will allow them to become Gold Warriors. I just want to give her a chance to avoid being a renegade. Being born one usually means you are one forever, regardless of how much Gold is in your bloodline.”

  Amber looked towards Rian. “What should I do? I don’t want the kid to suffer because of her parents. You know how all this stuff works better than me.”

  “Amber offers you this. If you willingly give all the information you know, and it is of reasonable value, she will see your daughter is cared for, trained as a warrior and placed with a Gold Dragon at the appropriate time. All current family ties will be broken, even those to you. She will be an orphan of unknown parentage to prevent any possible repercussions of your current actions coming back on her. Do you need time to think on this offer?”

  Amber couldn’t believe how much like his father Rian looked and sounded. A moment of worry reared before she brushed it away. He was different to his father. Maybe there were some similarities, but that was to be expected. He’d been raised by Ronan.

  “I accept,” Daray said.

  “Then who hired you to kill me?”

  Daray looked towards Amber. “I didn’t believe the offer that was sent out. I decided to find out if it was true. I haven’t seen weight in gold offered in decades. I finally received a personal offer. I had a spycam hidden on me in case they went back on their offer. I can give you the location of where I hid it.”

  “Who was it?” Rian’s words had an edge to them.

  “Paili, the head of Coyle Clan.”

  “You had better have flawless proof.

  “Who is Paili?” Amber turned to Rian.

  “Kiani’s closest ally. She knows you are somehow involved with Ronan, but does not know the details.”

  “Kiani? Kade’s mum?”

  Rian nodded.

  Amber turned her back on Daray, certain her face showed the shock she felt. Was it only Paili involved? Had Kade’s family decided he shouldn’t have a mage? That since they weren’t willing to share how mages were made, then no one should have one? Amber desperately wanted to sit down. And possibly even throw up.

  “Will you be fine?” Rian moved so he could look at her.

  Amber nodded.

  Rian examined her a moment longer before he turned back to Daray. “I need the location of your daughter and the proof. Ronan does not need to know about the girl and we should retain the original proof. You need not worry Ronan has recorded this session, the material the walls are made from interferes with electronics. But I guess you have noticed the benefits are worth that inconvenience. No one can send their thoughts into or out of this room. Or enter it from the Void. No one can hide in the Void listening to us, nor can anyone kept in this room be found by a tracker.”

  Daray gave Rian the information he requested and Rian ushered Amber from the room to where only Kade and Brann waited in the hallway. As soon as he saw her, Kade wrapped his arms around her.

  “Where’s Crystal and Flinn?” Amber asked.

  “Ronan sent them home,” Kade said.

  Rian closed the door before he spoke. “Can you stay here until I return? I need to gather some evidence.”

  Kade’s arms tightened around Amber. “Don’t take too long. I want to get her home.”

  For once Amber didn’t protest about someone making plans for her. With the chaos inside her head there was no way she could think clearly let alone make decisions.

  “Who is it?” Brann asked.

  “Paili. Kiani’s closest ally.” Rian’s words brought silence.

  “Are you certain?” Kade finally asked.

  “I soon will be.”

  Silence filled the hallway again, broken only by the sound of Rian’s footsteps. Amber pulled back from Kade. “Would your mother be a part of this?”

  Kade shook his head without hesitation. “No. But Paili and Ronan are old enemies. Although none of us thought Paili felt that strongly about him to risk current ties. We were obviously wrong.”

  Amber turned when she heard a slight sound behind her. Ronan strode towards them. She was glad Kade kept his arms around her so she could lean back against him. She wasn’t certain her legs could support all her weight yet.

  “So who is it?” Ronan looked directly at Amber.

  “Paili.”

  “That bitter old bitch? I thought she’d be over it by now.”

  “Over what?” Amber asked.

  “Nothing. It’s history. Are you certain? He wasn’t just trying to save his life, was he?”

  “Rian has gone to collect the proof,” Amber said.

  “Good. I’ll see it’s verified as soon as he brings it back.” Ronan smiled at Amber. “And you doubted my plan would work.”

  “Guess I should know better by now.” Returning his smile was too much effort, but she did allow herself a yawn. “I hope Rian hurries. I want to crawl into bed and sleep for a week.”

  “Does this mean you don’t want to hunt down wyverns after all?”

  At this comment Amber was able to dredge up a smile as she turned slightly so she could look at Kade. “Dream on.” He wasn’t going to keep her safe in his castle while he went out hunting. She wasn’t the type to sit at home cowering in the shadows, waiting. He’d just have to get used to it.

  Chapter Nine

  Amber stared at the map spread out on the table in front of her, trying to suppress yet another yawn. She nibbled on the piece of toast she held and tried to focus on what Flinn said. Instead, her mind roamed and she glanced around the table to where Shannon sat beside Jasper, her warriors behind her, just like Flinn’s were. Crystal sat beside Flinn and Kade was on her right while Maira and Brann were seated at her left. Rian stood behind her as usual. In the corner of the room sat a man taking notes in the folder he held.

  Testing had already begun and she hoped the man hadn’t noticed her inattention and was marking her down because of it. She tried to recall his name, but failed. It was something ordinary. At least she thought it was.

  “Amber, Flinn wants to know if you and Kade are fine to take the northern entrance,” Rian prompted her.

  “I don’t see a problem with that.” Amber took a large bite from her piece of toast rather than smile like she wanted to do. It was a pity Rian couldn’t walk in the Void. He would have been able to help her out in class. Maybe she could hire a Gold Warrior to do that for her. Suddenly everyone around her started to rise and Amber hurriedly rose to her feet.

  “Do you need me to give you a quick explanation of the plan?” Rian asked.

  She grinned at Rian. “Was it that obvious?”

  “No.” He returned her grin fleetingly. “There are four exits. Only three Gold Warriors. The smallest exit, which is the eastern one, will be attacked by Maira, Orin, and Shannon’s youngest warrior, Rhobert. Flinn’s team have the west and Shannon’s the south. You, Kade and Brann will take the northern entrance. Each team leader will keep communication open with their own group so everyone can hear the moment any attack plans are changed. And you were reminded to aim for the wings. They are not human and never have been. Think of them as rabid dogs.”

  “And what will the scribe be doing?”

  “Scribe?”

  “The one sitting in the corner making a million notes about us.”

  “Along with his staff, he will watch you from the Void, making more notes. And the testing will not be over until you have all returned to the castle an
d taken care of the injured.”

  Amber stepped outside, popping the last piece of toast in her mouth. She really hoped that later she wasn’t going to regret having something to eat, but she’d been starving. In the castle courtyard, three dragon saddles waited. Amber stood beside Rian as Kade, Shannon and Flinn were saddled.

  “I never asked you what you did with Doneele last night.” She glanced towards Rian.

  “I left her and her granny at a motel. I’ll find somewhere more permanent for them after this test. Do you need help mounting?” Rian nodded to where Kade waited for her.

  Amber shook her head and then was nearly bowled over by Crystal who threw her arms around her.

  “Good luck. I’ll see you after we win.”

  Amber grinned as Crystal ran back to Flinn and hurriedly strapped herself into the saddle. She did the same. “Okay. Rabid dogs. I can do this.”

  “You better be able to,” Kade warned her.

  “I can.” She held on as Kade launched himself into the air, Brann and Rian on either side of him. As they drew closer to the wyvern nest, Rian dropped back so the ‘scribe’ could clearly see he wasn’t interfering in the test.

  Amber felt a moment of fear when the first wyvern flew out of the nest towards her. She couldn’t resist reaching out with her mind to check that it was like a rabid dog. A shudder went through her as she made contact with its mind. Nothing sane there. Rabid dog was too kind a description. She momentarily froze, then all the hours of practice kicked in and she flung balls of fire at its wings. The screech it made as it plummeted to the ground brought more wyverns pouring from the nest. Amber’s mouth fell open at the sight of them. They were meant to take out all of these?

  She frantically threw fireballs as Kade dived in amongst them, slashing and retreating. Brann did the same and Amber had to keep an eye on where he was so she didn’t accidentally hit him by mistake. At times, the day seemed full of shadows as the wyverns blocked the sunlight from them. With the way Kade flew, Amber was glad to be strapped in.

  “Down.”

  She flattened herself against Kade, at his command, and felt the air rush by her as they slid through a crowd of wyverns. As soon as they were past, Kade wheeled and headed back to them. Amber sat up and launched two fireballs before she had to press herself against Kade again. This was going to take them all day. Or did they have the bulk of the creatures? Surely each team weren’t fighting this amount of wyverns.