“You will be in the flight leader’s cave?” She eyed him, a look that held both wonder and concern.
Alador realized that Rena honestly did not know that Henrick was Keensight. They had spent time at the lake with Henrick, so he had thought all the dragons had kept Henrick's secret from him. “Yes, I have a pact with him. You may land on his ledge and call for me. Do not fret, he is not at home.” Alador reassured the young dragon female. He reached out to reassure her and stroked her muzzle softly.
The dragon’s eyes closed happily for a moment before a thought occurred to her. “How do you know he is not in his cave?” Rena asked with additional concern.
“As I said, he and I have a pact. I happen to know where he will be for a bit of time.” Alador stroked his hand back and forth on her muzzle, evoking a purring sound from the female. “I promise you, it will be fine.”
“You are certain?” she asked again. She turned her head to stare at him with one large silver eye.
“I am certain,” he reassured her again. He laid his forehead against her muzzle. It felt right to be in contact with her despite the scales that covered her. It helped that those on the muzzle where smooth. He remembered the cut of the breast scales when she had held him close. Alador smiled inwardly at the thought of everyone being so scared of Keensight. He remembered his own fear that the dragon had inspired. It was hard to correlate that with his feelings for Henrick.
After a long moment of contact, she pulled back. “I will meet you there. It will take some time to reach Amaum’s cave. If he is not in it, a bit longer to find him. I might need my dame to help me if he is out frolicking.” The dragon snorted, a light steam boiled over Alador frosting his hair and eyebrows as it met the cold wind. “He is always frolicking.”
“I am sure if I had wings and freedom, I would be too.” Alador chuckled as he shook his head.
“No, you wouldn’t.” Rena said emphatically.
“Oh? What makes you say this?” He wiped the ice particles off his face.
“Because you are MINE!” she insisted. She leapt into the air, barely missing Alador as she dove off the cliff face.
He had been about to argue, but he knew for Rena it was the truth. Alador was certain that was how she now saw him. He was not quite sure of his own thoughts. He pulled the amulet out and let its cold surface settle in his hand. He focused his thoughts on the top of the stairs in Keensight’s cave and the swirling tunnel of ice melded into rushing colors.
It took him a moment to realize that he had arrived. The cave was so dark that he could not see his hand. It was warmer without the wind, but not by much. He called light to his hand and found a torch on the wall. It took him sometime to light it, even normally produced fire seemed to hesitate to manifest when it was his hand calling for it. He continued to struggle with anything to do with fire.
Once that was done, he moved around lighting each one. It took some doing as many were just barely in his reach. At last there was a bit of flickering light filling the cave. Rena had said it would take some time. He hoped that a dragon’s sense of time was not too far off from his own. Their lifespan was so much longer that he had not considered if this would affect how long it really took. Lost in his thoughts, he wandered over to Keensight’s hoard. When the sound of metal struck his boot, he looked up at the towering mound. Now that he had the time to inspect it without the dragon, he wondered what the old dragon found valuable. He hesitated a moment, looking about for the absent dragon before his curiosity overtook his common sense.
He smiled at the throne that now was back against the wall. Alador remembered when Keensight had pulled out the throne. He had been so terrified. He knew that the situation had to have been amusing to Henrick. As he ran a finger along the arm of the chair, he wondered if he would have handled the news back then. He suspected it would have made more sense to him than some of the things he had encountered. He looked out over the pile, calling light to his hand again, he held it up over the pile. There were numerous items of treasure that one would expect from a dragon, but there were odd things as well. Many of the books Henrick had taken from the library were now stacked at the back wall behind the pile that made up the dragon’s bed.
He carefully began to climb onto the pile. It was difficult as every step seemed to send slip and stone tumbling down. At last he made it to the top, the place where the indentation of the great dragon created a flat area on which to stand. He figured the most precious items would be kept close at hand. He knelt down and began to sort.
The first thing that struck him was how uncomfortable it was to kneel in the indentation. Keensight had seemed to be quite comfortable on his pile of slips and rock. The second was a treasure chest. It was quite large and only the top of it shown in the pile. It lay in between the indentations of the dragon’s coiled tail.
Alador carefully slid his way over to it. He pulled at the top, but it was locked. Alador dug around the pile near the chest. He was certain that a key had to be here somewhere. What would be so important that a dragon would feel the need to lock it? With all the treasure here, it piqued his curiosity. He did not want to pry it open and risk damaging the beautiful chest.
It was an old wood, nearly black in color. It was gilded with medure and gold. To mold medure into filigree and gilding for a box would take a great deal of skill. Even then, some level of magic would be needed. It was a hard metal, difficult to work and harder to find. The lock puzzled him. It seemed to have a keyhole, but it was completely round. He began to look for any item that might have the same circumference.
He looked about for something that might fit the lock, pulling an oblong item from its sheath of treasure. Alador frowned when he realized it was bone and that it belonged to a mortal man. He cast it down quickly. How many Lerdenians and Daezun had the dragon killed in his time? He suspected he did not wish to know the answer to that. He closed his eyes as visions of Renamaum flying next to Keensight as they swooped down upon the silver standards of the Lerdenian army filled his mind.
As he continued his search, he laid aside pieces of amazing armor, weapons in shapes that he had never seen, and even strange gemstones. He wondered how many turns the dragon had been collecting treasure. How far had Keensight gone from the Great Isle to find such strange wonders?
His first warning of trouble was the tremor of the cave as something loud hit the ground outside. It was too soon and too large to be Rena or Amaum. Had Pruatra come to give him word? A bellow of rage dispelled that question as quick as it had come.
Alador looked about at the mess he had made. He had a good relationship with the dragon, so he was fairly certain that as soon as Keensight saw it was him, all would be well. His concern was more that it was not Keensight, but rather a rival dragon.
It was with relief when he saw the red muzzle. Before he could call out his welcome, fire roared from the dragon’s mouth. Alador barely got a magical shield up in time, all around him items wilted in the heat, some even catching fire. Alador struggled to hold the shield as the dragon’s breath raged on, it seemed unending.
When at last the dragon exhaled its last glowing breath, Alador slipped to his knees with relief. “Keensight! It is me, Alador!” he called out hastily, trying to catch his breath at the same time.
The dragon thundered into the chamber. His wing talons clawing the ground angrily as he moved forward. “You had best explain yourself quickly! Before you follow your father into my gullet!” the enraged dragon snarled.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Alador’s eyes were wide with surprise. He had not considered that perhaps the more dragon nature of the beast would outweigh the Lerdenian man that Keensight had spent so much time portraying. He scrambled and slid down the left side of the mound as the dragon rounded to the right.
“I was curious what you found worth saving in your pile beside slips and medure.” He stated breathlessly. He did not take his eyes off the muzzle of the dragon. He had almost not gotten a shield around himsel
f the first time.
“It is none of your business,” growled the dragon. He nudged the pile with concern, trying to push slips upward as if he knew where each one went.
“I am sorry. Please, I meant no disrespect or harm.” Alador put both his hands out pleading with the dragon.
Keensight moved up onto his pile protectively, and Alador carefully swung around as he moved to keep the dragon fully in front of him. The dragon nudged where the wooden chest was then swung a fully angered gaze to the mage. Flickers of smoke smoldered from the dragon’s mouth showing how great his anger truly was.
“Thief!” he snarled.
“I took nothing, I swear.” Alador was beginning to fear he would not get through to the side of Keensight that had acted as father and mentor.
“You touched my chest. If you had no intent to steal, you would have no need to dig it loose.” Keensight hissed; smoke billowed from both nostrils as the dragon raised his head a bit higher.
Alador stood stunned. How did he answer that? He swallowed hard as he thought because he had indeed touched that chest with the intent to find the key. Alador kept his hands free to work a shield if he had to. He was sweating in the heavy robes now after the heat he had endured.
“I was just curious,” Alador feebly defended.
Keensight slid forward on his pile for a short distance. He stretched his neck out and began to sniff Alador. Alador held his ground, but his heart was thumping wildly in his chest. The dragon’s head came up and his mouth opened for a moment as if he were about to unleash the fire burning wildly within in him. Alador raised a shield reflexively. The dragon snapped his mouth shut and stared at the mage for a long moment.
“You presume where you should not.” Keensight raised his head satisfied. “I may have nurtured you, but that does not give you the right to touch my hoard.” Keensight returned to fixing his pile that was clearly out of sorts now. “You are enough dragon to know that it is not right. It is known that dragons do not enter other dragons’ caves without permission,” the dragon huffed.
Alador breathed out the breath that had remained caught in his chest. He let the shield go, he realized that he was trembling and even his hands were sweating. He slowly began to remove his cloak as he was drenched with sweat within his robes. The cave was no longer cold after the scorching onslaught. Keensight was right, he had not searched his memories though they came flaring through his mind now. He should have known the possessiveness and spells that dragons cast upon their hoard.
The dragon snorted his displeasure. “You made me melt some of it.” Keensight nudges a melted pile of metal down the side of his hoard.
Alador looked up in surprise. Had Keensight just whined? If he had, the mage did not intend to point it out. Alador carefully moved to the throne and laid his cloak on it. He noted that some of the gilding was scorched with heat.
He waited, ready for the dragon’s anger to surge again. Alador was not sure how many more shields he could hold if the dragon decided to destroy him, geas or no geas. As he waited, he realized that he had told Rena to bring Amaum here. He should warn the dragon before they arrived given his own disastrous reception.
He took a deep breath and blew it out before starting. “So, umm, how did you know I was here?” It was a stupid question and Alador realized it the moment that it left his mouth.
The dragon lifted its head from the careful resorting of his pile and fixed a disbelieving glare on Alador. “You do not think a dragon leaves his hoard unguarded?”
“To be honest, I had not thought about it,” Alador admitted. “I did not see a guard?”
“If you saw it, it would not be much of a guard.” The dragon huffed as he continued to set his pile right.
“A spell then?” he asked, braving to move a bit closer.
“To tell you that would let you successfully rob me blind,” the dragon snarled, looking up at the mortal before him. “What were you doing here, anyway? I doubt you came just to snoop through my hoard.”
“Ah, yes that.” Alador shifted uneasily.
Keensight did not miss his hesitant tone. “By the gods, what else have you done?” He looked about the cavern with concern.
“Well, with winter in full season at the lake and nowhere else to speak in comfort that we both knew, I had Rena fetch Amaum so I could speak with him.” Alador cleared his throat.
“I see.” The dragon’s tone was edged with resurging anger as he clearly suspected where Amaum was to meet Alador. “And where is this meeting to occur?”
“Here,” Alador stated with a boldness he was no longer feeling. He readied a shield as the dragon drew up as fully as he was able in the cavern.
“You invited…” sputtered the dragon. Smoke was billowing out Keensight's nostrils, and the dragon’s chest was heaving. “Here…” He apparently could not even form speech.
The sudden lack of communication was Alador’s first warning. The heaving chest was the second, so when the dragon’s fire raged outward, the shield was already in place. This time the fire was not directly aimed at the mage, but Alador was thankful for the shield from flame and heat nonetheless.
The dragon surged off the pile, the top of his muzzle hit Alador sending him flying backwards. “You have no right to use my cave as your own!” he bellowed moving forward.
Alador hit the ground and rolled up, his training in the guard serving him well. “Henrick, LISTEN TO ME!” He had to get through to the man he knew for the dragon was clearly beyond reason.
“Blood always wins out they say. You are just like your father. I should have eaten you the moment I knew of you.” The dragon paced around Alador, clearly thinking of doing just that.
“Father… Please?” he called, making one last attempt.
The dragon had reared up over Alador, but Keensight paused when he heard the words. He hovered over the mage, huffing with indignation and outrage. “I should eat you,” he repeated. The great head lowered.
“You had no right,” Keensight muttered again. He turned and crawled back onto the hoard.
Alador was trembling with real fear. Here was the bestial side of the dragons that he had known about, but had not personally encountered. He bent over placing his hands on his knees just breathing in and trying to steady himself. He looked up, Keensight had gone back to nuzzling various pieces of treasure in the mound into its proper place.
He knew that this was a mistake he would not repeat. However, the damage done now was what concerned him most. Knowing that his use of the word father had reached the dragon when apologies had not, he pulled himself up to try again.
“Father, I truly apologize. There is much that I still have to learn.” He stepped forward, his hands out beseeching the dragon.
“Do the Daezun go into one another’s houses, pawing through each other’s stuff?” The dragon huffed his question as he continued working. He did not deign Alador with a glance.
Alador frowned. He had not looked at it like that. “No, no they do not.”
The dragon picked up a melted goblet and carefully moved it to the bottom of the pile before asking, “Then what made you think that it was okay to riffle through a dragon’s home?”
“I did not think…” he began.
Keensight rounded on him with his great head, the neck stretching forth to almost reach Alador. “YOU NEVER THINK!”
That stung a bit and Alador found himself becoming a bit ruffled himself. “That is not true,” he hotly defended.
“It is mostly true.” The dragon snapped his mouth shut and returned to fixing the treasured mound.
Alador wanted to deny that, but he knew that the dragon would just pull up past errors. “What do you want me to do about Amaum?”
“If the fledgling is smart, he will not come,” snarled Keensight.
“I assured them it was safe.” Alador licked his lips worriedly. “Please do not hurt them. Continue to take your anger out on me if you wish, but they have only done as I bid them.”
&
nbsp; “Oh, you and I are not done boy. I assure you of this,” hissed the beast.
Alador did not even want to know what that meant. Right now his concern was for Rena and Amaum. He stared at the dragon for a long moment. “Please father. Do not hurt Rena.” His voice held an edge of protective panic. “She did not wish to come, I insisted it was safe.”
“You had no right.” The dragon repeated.
Alador wiped his free hand over his face. “You have made this clear, and it will not happen again. I swear it.” He moved forward. “Father, please. I do not want Rena harmed,” he insisted more boldly.
The dragon stopped what he was doing and slowly turned his head to look at Alador. There was a strange scrutiny from the dragon. “You have asked me thrice to spare Rena. You have asked for Amaum only once.” The dragon slowly turned around on his pile. “Do they know I am Henrick?”
“They do not seem to.” Alador answered quickly. He had not realized he had focused his concern clearly on Rena. He did not want to answer more questions there.
The dragon stared at him for a long, uncomfortable minute, then finally answered. “You may meet with them on the ledge. Make it clear that I am at home. They will know better than to enter without invitation.”
Alador's relief was audible. “Thank you, father.” He was sure to continue that use of word as it seemed the only thing that had kept Keensight from swallowing him as he had originally threatened.
He picked up his cloak and turned to head for the entrance of the cave. He had made it across the open space to the tunnel when the dragon called after him.
“Alador, did you mate with Rena?” The question was gruff and still held the edge of previous anger.
Alador stopped in his tracks. His back stiffened at the question that he had hoped to avoid. He turned slowly to look at the great dragon who was staring at him. He called back loudly.
“I am a man, and she is a dragon. I doubt the mechanics are possible.” He was careful not to lie to the dragon.
“Did you mate on the winds of magic?” The dragon pressed.
Pseudo-Dragon (The Blue Dragon's Geas Book 4) Page 31