Daryk Warrior

by Denise A. Agnew

  Mia’s spirits flagged under fatigue and disappointment. She may have stopped the dragons from completely destroying the castle but that didn’t mean safety. She didn’t think she could stop the dragons again if they decided to breathe fire once more. Mia hated the weakness in her limbs and also wondered if she’d gone too far and drained herself beyond repair. Asam seemed strong, holding up a good portion of Mia’s weight.

  “Please.” Mia managed more words. “Take your snow dragons and leave us in peace. Innocent people could be hurt.”

  Rechard laughed and it sounded warm. Almost delighted. “They’re called ice dragons, my lady. I’m sure people have been hurt inside the castle. I can see that you aren’t. You and this woman are healers?”

  “Yes,” Asam said, her chin tilting up a little in obvious defiance. “People inside the castle will need our help.”

  Rechard placed one hand on the hilt of his sword, expression overflowing with appreciation and fascination. “I see. And very good healers you are. I didn’t know healers could control dragons.”

  Mia could have said she hadn’t realized it before the time in the cave, and she was almost certain Asam hadn’t realized she could do it until now. Yet she stayed silent on the subject of healer abilities.

  She played on Rechard’s pride. “I’ve heard some Daryk Ones can tame dragons.”

  Rechard shook his head. “Temporarily.” He glanced over at the oddly graceful dragons as the animals started to move back from the castle. Relief mingled with dread inside Mia.

  “I see you’ve done more than bewitch my dragons,” Rechard said. “They are quite placid now.” He gestured to the men hovering around. “Enter the castle and make sure there’s not more resistance. Bardannia is now under the control of rogues.” His smile was solid and assured. “These ladies are to be given every courtesy. Food, drink, whatever they desire. Treat them with the utmost respect.”

  “Why are you treating us so well? We stopped your attack,” Asam said.

  Rechard laughed. “Because, despite what many might think, I’m an honorable man. I do not rape women or allow any of my men to do so.”

  “But you’re a part of the group that wishes to conquer Magonian women and take them for breeding,” Mia said without thinking.

  Mia waited for the inevitable outburst of anger but it never came. Rechard peered at her and his words were strong but quiet. “I believe Magonian woman should breed with us but not through rape. We can show Magonian women many kindnesses, many great things they can’t experience on Magonia. Women are treated like slaves on Magonia.”

  Surprise made Mia speechless. She hadn’t expected such understanding from a man like this.

  Asam spoke up. “What do you intend to do with us?”

  Rechard gestured toward the smoking, damaged castle. “Listen to how quiet it is now. I think it is safe to say war here is over.” He glanced up at the structure. Sounds of battle had ceased entirely. “All women inside the castle will be my guests and under my protection. No harm shall come to them. Come. Let us go inside. It is cold in these elements.”

  Surprised to the core, Mia didn’t resist when Asam turned her toward the castle and they entered behind the conquering army.

  Chapter Eleven

  Mia sat up in bed as Asam opened the door to Mia and Eryk’s lodgings. A day had passed since Rechard’s rogues had taken over Bardannia Castle. Resistance from the remaining Daryk Ones within Bardannia had been forcibly put down—Drakus Fina’s men were in the dungeon below nursing their own wounds. Asam was allowed to see the men and heal their wounds, thank goodness. Mia heard Asam putting away some provisions and stoking up the fire with peat brought in from the storehouses.

  Asam stood in the doorway to the bedroom. “Sorry I was gone so long.”

  “It was only an hour.”

  “How do you feel?”

  “Much stronger. Ready to get up, I think.”

  Asam smiled and moved into the room. “Good. I’m glad to hear it. Even without Eryk here you’re recovering well.”

  “You sound amazed.”

  “I am. You should need him here to…” Asam’s cheeks went pink.

  Mia laughed, equally surprised that she could feel this jolly when the castle was under the rule of a rogue and Eryk wasn’t here.

  To spare Asam more embarrassment Mia left the bed and stretched. “I say we make soup.”

  “Your appetite is back.”

  “I’m ravenous. First I need to wash.”

  When Mia had taken care of her morning ablutions, she entered the main room to find Asam cooking away in the meal preparing area.

  “Can I help?” Mia asked.

  Asam waved her away. “No, no. Sit down. I’ll cook the soup.”

  Mia knew better than to push her health at this point, or Asam’s patience. The woman was very motherly and Mia realized she’d started to think of Asam as a mother figure, or at the least a dear friend.

  “You are very good to me, Asam.”

  Asam paused in cutting vegetables. “Well you are young and I’m quite a bit older.”

  “How old are you?”

  Asam laughed. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

  Mia snorted softly. “Dragonia is full of surprises for me. Why should your age be different?”

  Asam sighed and returned to cutting. “Ninety-five.”

  Mia almost gasped but managed to hold back. “Ninety-five?”

  “I know. I don’t look a day over fifty. It’s my self-healing abilities.”

  “Ah.” Mia felt envy gnawing at her. “That’s wonderful. How long can you heal yourself if need be?”

  Asam shrugged. “I don’t know. I’ve heard of some healers in the past who managed to live to two hundred.”

  Mia covered her mouth, astonished. “I never read that in the Chronicles of Magon.”

  Asam tossed the vegetables in a cooking pot and added water. “I’m guessing since you came to Dragonia you’ve discovered many things you didn’t know.”

  Mia sighed. “And many things the Chronicles lie about.”

  Asam went quiet as she continued putting together their meal.

  “I wish I knew if Eryk was safe.”

  “Don’t worry. He was well away from this. He’ll return with enough Daryk Ones to take back this castle.”

  Mia knew he would, if he could. “As long as he’s safe, that’s all I care about.”

  Asam took the cooking pot to the fire and hung it over flames. “As I said before, you love him, don’t you? Have you had sexual congress yet? I thought perhaps you had, since your energy levels are much improved from when I first met you.”

  Asam’s bluntness took Mia off-guard. “By the God Magon, you do get to the point.”

  Asam shrugged as she stirred the pot literally and figuratively. “I’ve always found that’s the best policy.”

  Mia was surprised when tears filled her eyes. “Yes.”

  Asam turned back to the cooking area and washed her hands before sitting across from Mia at the table. Her eyes were shrewd and knowing. “My dear, if you need to cry, let it out.”

  “How did you know? I mean, that I love him.”

  “It’s written in your eyes when you talk about him. Just as tears are written in your eyes now.”

  Mia sniffed and wiped away the tears as they poured down her cheeks. She retrieved a handkerchief from her tunic pocket and dabbed at her face.

  “I don’t know why I blubber so often these days,” Mia said.

  “Your emotions are raw from what you’ve been through lately. It’s an outlet you should never be ashamed to take.”

  Mia smiled through her tears. “Oh but you see I am ashamed. I was always so strong. So in control. I hate losing control.”

  Asam nodded. “It takes a long time to learn a new way of being.”

  Mia laughed. “How did you get to be so wise?”

  “Ninety-five years. That’s how.”

  Mia smiled at Asam. “I’m
grateful for your friendship, Asam. I feel like I’ve known you forever.”

  Asam’s expression glowed with kindness. “And I, you.”

  When their meal was ready and they dipped into the delicious and hearty soup, Mia asked, “How are things out there?”

  Asam took a swallow of a warm fruit drink. “Rough. As you can imagine the fires caused extensive damage to the battlements. They managed to put them out before important things were lost.” Asam put her spoon down and wiped her mouth with a cloth. “What surprises me the most are this Rechard’s actions.”

  “Especially with what I’ve heard about Dracus Fina.”

  Asam nodded. “Men come in many shades. There is evil and then levels of evil.”

  “Which level is Rechard?”

  “I think it varies depending on the circumstance.”

  “How so?”

  Asam leaned her elbow on the table and propped her chin in her hand. “He’s treating all the people very well. He allowed me to cure the injured, even the Daryk Ones. He’s even feeding the Daryk Ones well. Yes, they’re in the dungeon, but they have heat, light and food. How many evil men would allow that?”

  Mia stared into nothing, wondering. “Extraordinary.”

  “He’s made certain his rogues have acted with respect to all women. No rapes or mistreatment. He’s told his men that if they harm a woman he’ll kill them on the spot.”

  An idea came to Mia’s mind, one that she hoped she wouldn’t regret a thousand times over. “Do you think we can use his kindness to our advantage?”

  Asam’s expression turned wary. “Possibly. Why?”

  “I have a plan.”

  * * * * *

  As Mia stood in Rechard’s quarters, she hoped her venture would prove fruitful rather than foolish. She’d waited here quite some time after demanding an audience with him. Calmness, thank goodness, was her companion. Asam had tried to talk Mia out of the plan but she wouldn’t be swayed. Once here, she’d kept her mind on the task by cataloging all she saw in the room. The quarters were unpretentious. She sat on a long padded bench along a wall near the door. The man who’d ushered her into the room beyond the guard area had offered her a cup of water. She’d been amazed at the rogue’s courtesy, though she supposed she shouldn’t be. She sipped the water to soothe her dry throat. She put the cup down and slipped off her hand coverings and stuffed them in a pocket on her long garments. Still she shivered, unable to get warm. A modest fire burned in a hearth against one wall and she left her water to stand near the warmth.

  Tapestries decorated three walls, as much for warmth as for anything, it seemed. Colors were muted. This first room looked to be a waiting area and she imagined sleeping and dining rooms lay beyond. Used to rules, she stayed put until curiosity and rebelliousness demanded otherwise. She stepped up to the doorway at the back of the room. A bookshelf lined one wall. She almost…almost stepped inside what was obviously another sitting area with benches, chairs and a large table. She missed reading, wanting to absorb herself in knowledge the way she had on Magonia.

  “My dear Mia,” a deep voice said from behind her.

  She started and swung around. Rechard stood a few feet away in the doorway, dressed in the garb of a Daryk One. He wore a sword at his right, hand resting on the hilt of the weapon. She left the threshold of the living area and came toward him, but not too close. His silvery hair flowed around his shoulders and despite his obviously masculine good looks she realized he was a little too pretty. Her stomach jumped. Maybe she couldn’t do this. What would Eryk think of her if he knew what she planned?

  “I’m sorry. I was being nosy,” she admitted.

  He shrugged. “It’s of no consequence. You may wander freely.”

  Apprehensive, she moved past him and settled on the bench again. She held the cup of water between her hands and sipped.

  “Excuse me one moment,” he said and disappeared into the back room. When he returned with a large coat and came toward her, surprise hit Mia again. “Take this coat. You’re cold.”

  She took it without argument, though part of her didn’t want his kindness. She didn’t wish to owe him. “Thank you. You’re very kind.”

  “You sound surprised.”

  “Of course I am. You just sacked a castle and imprisoned everyone in it.”

  “You’re not imprisoned. Protected and given shelter is the way I prefer to think of it.”

  “So you believe you’re doing a good thing for everyone in here?”

  “Yes.”

  He smiled and despite the fact he was a rogue and raider she couldn’t deny his smile seemed genuine. “You’re a clever woman.” Rechard stood at the hearth mantel and glanced at the tapestry above. “These are modest lodgings, don’t you think?”

  Not what she expected him to say. But then she wasn’t saying or doing what she’d planned either.

  “By whose standards?” she asked.

  Rechard turned his back on the fire. “In Magonia you weren’t used to luxury.” He moved toward her but stopped short of too close. “That’s one reason why Magonian women will be happy here.”

  How could she refute that? “Magonian women should determine their own fate. Why do you think taking women from their homeland by force benefits them? They’ll trade one leash for another.”

  He shrugged. “Some will think that. I don’t. Women will be protected from abuse under Drakus Fina’s rule.”

  “And they aren’t now?”

  “No. There are men, bad men who would rape Magonian women. Drakus Fina will assure that doesn’t happen.”

  She didn’t believe a word of it. She wanted to swing her pack at him. Instead she took a deep breath and pressed her lips together to hold her tongue.

  “You’re doubtful.” Rechard had moved closer.

  Her resolve began to flag but she remembered why she was doing this and the bravery required.

  She put on a smile, false at it was. “I’m used to suppression but I think under Dracus Fina I might prosper. I’ve always wanted a child.”

  Rechard’s eyes glittered with purpose and she swallowed hard. She could do this.

  Without a pause she continued, “Will the Magonian women be allowed to pick whom to breed with?”

  “No.”

  She sighed. “How tiresome.”

  “You’re a willful woman. Why did you leave Magonia?”

  The truth slipped out before she could change the words, make them more palatable. “To be free.”

  “Freedom is yours in Magonia.” Rechard reached for her and she tried not to flinch. His big hand cupped her behind the neck and he drew her forward.

  “Don’t mistake me for a fool, Mia. You may think I’m a brute. A disreputable man. I’m not stupid or easily led. Do not offer something you don’t mean.”

  Quickly she segued. “What do you think I’m offering you?”

  “Your body. As a vessel for my child.”

  She shivered and knew he’d feel it. No way could she suppress her true feelings with enough honesty to convince this man. She wanted to scream with frustration. Mia resisted an impulse to struggle against his grip, to run for the door and escape. Instead she stared into his eyes, aware she’d lost her advantage when she didn’t submit and look away.

  “Did you have a husband on Magonia?” he asked.

  “No.”

  “A lover?”

  “No.”

  He grunted and released her. “But you do now.”

  His statement floored her. Was he guessing or had someone at the castle told him?

  “No use denying it. I can smell him on you.”

  She shivered, her body overcome by a desire to run, her mind controlling her need to fly. “Smell him?”

  “The Daryk One. Didn’t your man tell you that once a Daryk One has claimed a woman, his scent is on you?”

  “No.” She didn’t know how to respond, as amazed by that information as she was. But she found her voice fast.

  “I wouldn�
��t breed with you because I honor another’s claim. Not every rogue would honor it.”

  Failure loomed. She’d tried seduction and failed miserably. She wanted to scream. What else could she do?

  “If my Daryk One came for me would you let me go?”

  Rechard shook his head. “That would defeat Drakus Fina’s agenda. We need Magonian women and you are Magonian. Your healing gifts are profound. We could use those gifts as well. If your man comes for you, he’ll lose.”

  Mia made a rushed decision. One she hoped she wouldn’t regret. “If he comes for me will you let him live?”

  Rechard’s smile was genuine, almost admiring. “You drive a difficult bargain, Mia. He’ll be placed in the dungeon with the rest. Drakus Fina will decide what’s to be done with him.”

  Desperation made her bolder than she’d ever been. “If he fights a rogue one-on-one and wins, will you let him go?”

  He snorted softly. “You’re determined, aren’t you?”

  “Yes.”

  He returned to the mantel, his expression clearly still impressed. “You must love him to ask so much.”

  She would admit it, if it got her what she wanted more than anything. Almost more than anything. She wanted a life with Eryk, and she’d fight for it.

  “Yes. I love him.”

  “How do you know you can trust my word, Mia?”

  She took yet another chance. “You seem a very honorable man in most every way.”

  “Good of you to say, even if you don’t believe it. Very well. When he comes for you he will have to fight me.”

  She hadn’t expected that and her stomach soured. “Why you?”

  He shrugged as if he’d given it no particular thought. “I am the leader here now. What is this man’s name?”

  “Eryk Gauth.”

  Rechard’s eyebrows went up. “Draconus! I know him. He’s an honorable man.”

  “There’s one other thing I’m requesting if you fight him and he wins.”

  “You’ve asked enough.” Rechard’s voice hardened. “But I admire a woman of your courage. This is the reason why we need more Magonian women to mix with our blood. Courage and strength.” He gestured with one hand. “Too many Dragonian women are weak.