by Logan Jacobs
One whip of the appendage at a closer range, and the dragonkin could probably slay me right there.
Scars and fresh wounds etched their way across his callused, scaled hide, and I eyed the girth of his arms as my blood went cold. They were as strong and sturdy as boulders, and his massive hands clenched to the side of his chiseled stomach as he stared me down.
Then the dragonkin drew its leathery wings up, and his wingspan stretched nearly twenty feet across. They had rips and stains on the undersides, and each point was cut up with sword-like points.
All of this was truly shocking to behold on such a humanoid figure, but his face was the worst of all. It was elongated and heavy like a dragon’s head, and his yellow eyes shone amongst the sickly gray hue of his cheeks. His fangs were razor-sharp as smoke seeped from his snout, and two ivory horns protruded from his skull.
The dragonkin had the glare of a hunter as it stepped out from the smoky shadows it lurked in, and even though it had fresh blood and feathers clinging to its lips, it still looked hungry.
I had to act quickly.
Only ten yards separated us as it let out an almighty roar, and the ravens overhead squawked with terror as they fled the scene.
I was terrified, too.
Instead of flying away, I took aim at the scaly man’s heart, but before I could loose my laced arrow, he parted his bloody jaws.
A rancid substance as black as tar spewed in my direction, and I dove aside just in time to mostly dodge it. Splatters of the stuff caught the edges of my alchemist robes and immediately melted the fabric down, and when I looked back to where the beast had fired, the wall was disintegrating in front of me.
Whatever this smelly shit was, it could have melted my body on the spot.
The dragonkin sneered around his fangs as more tar dripped from his maw, and he eyed me like I was a fool.
Granted, I looked and felt like an elderly man and only held a single arrow at the ready, but the dragonkin clearly hadn’t noticed the soft yellow pollen dusting the conical tip of my arrow.
He also didn’t look like he really wanted to melt me down.
No, this bastard wanted to make me squirm with terror before he ripped me to shreds, and then he’d gnaw on my innards for a while like he’d done to the fourteen elves by the stream the other day.
I did my best not to grin at the predatory glint in his yellow eyes, but I knew what would come next. This dragonkin was drooling for a bite of me.
I didn’t try to flee. Giving him my back would be the worst decision possible.
I let the beast come at me with another vicious roar as I swiftly pulled the bow tightly to my chest. Then I let out a slow, steadying breath as I watched his scarred and scaly chest bound toward me, and right as he spread his wings and lunged through the air, I released my hold on the bowstring.
The dragonkin snarled as he crashed down, and even though he managed to land on his clawed feet, he stumbled wildly before slamming into the forest floor.
A heavy tremor radiated under my feet as the beast jittered with pain, and I recognized the sharp scent of foxglove’s pollen steaming into the air. The same rancid black tar started oozing out from the incision where my arrow pierced his chest, too, and I knew the poison was spreading fast.
I jumped back as the bubbling and boiling tar seeped across the forest floor and toward my boots, and I snatched my favorite, discarded cloak from the ground before it could be melted away.
Searing smoke filtered into the sky and was caught up in the cold breeze, but suddenly, the dragonkin’s flesh started to erode. More of the tar seeped through his thick, callused skin, and it ran from beneath his bluish scales like a wet rag being wrung out. His brawny neck tensed up in the middle of a snarl as his bloody jaws parted once more, but before he could spew another attack in my direction, a violent jolt shook his frame.
I stumbled back again as I realized the flood of his tarrish death wasn’t going to stop seeping out anytime soon, and as the beast’s eyes rolled back into his head, his forked tongue turned as blue as his scales.
I took one last glance at the growing tide of tar, hitched my bow over my shoulder, and ran back toward the stream and the smog. My heart pounded heavy with adrenaline as I listened to the dragonkin dying in the distance, and his gurgling snarls turned into choking squeals long before I reached the stream.
I only forced my feeble, borrowed body to run until I made it to the hazy barricade of the Alchemists’ Estate, though. Then I reverted back to a hobbling stride as my wheezing lungs caught their breath, and I tethered my cloak over my back to hide my bow once more.
Five minutes later, I was in the thickest, grayest haze of smog on the other side of the grounds, and I let go of my mirrored form as I crouched by the gnarled hedgerow. My aching joints gradually restored themselves to their prime as my body grew taller, and my hair shortened as the wiry beard on my face melted away. I didn’t waste a moment before tearing off my umber robe and chainmail tunic, and I stuffed the guise into my satchel before I promptly exited the Alchemists’ Estate.
By the time I left the foggy northwest quarter behind, I was fully myself, and I entered into the rest of the kingdom with a steady, unconcerned stride. I wandered straight south for a ways before I cut inward to the western centre of town, and I behaved as if this was where I’d intended to spend my evening all along.
As I strolled between the shops and stalls, I couldn’t keep the easy grin from my face.
I’d slain my first dragonkin today, and I’d done so with no injury to myself.
In fact, it was almost easy.
Well, perhaps I was fooling myself, since my heart was still beating at twice its normal rate, and I had to slow my strides to a calmer pace as a potent sense of achievement washed over me. Then I glanced down at the subtle scarring on my palm and let out a light chuckle at the thought of what other challenges might lay ahead. I was eager to meet them all, and I felt like my next assignment couldn’t come soon enough.
I was that much closer to doing my Master justice.
Then I noticed a gathering of faeries near an upcoming stall, and my attention derailed only slightly from my adrenaline rush.
The group of beauties stuck out in this side of town with their wispy clothes, and flowers in their loosely tied hair. They were also taller than the usual faeries who darted around Ocadia, and I knew this meant that they were the heirs of the faerie throne.
From what I remembered hearing, the one in the middle with the soft pink skin was the duchess. Her hair was thick and white while her ears peeked out from between the tendrils and shot above her head. Her eyes were a mesmerizing shade of blue as she looked around the evening street, and as we locked eyes, the dapples of her cheeks grew more red.
The faerie duchess turned and giggled into the shoulders of her sisters, who were less pretty, but still had pinched features and huge eyes. One of them had skin the color of lavender, and soft, mint hair, but the other sister in the group was tinted a cornflower-blue and had even paler green hair.
The pink-skinned duchess regained her confidence again and turned back around just as I passed by, and she quickly plucked a carnation from her head and held it out for me to take.
I slowed my pace and turned to the duchess.
Her eyes were bright with naivety, and her cheeks were blushing even more now that I stood so close. She knew better than to flirt with a human in the streets, but she was clearly feeling rebellious now that it was nearing nightfall in this particular quarter of the kingdom. I could see her studying my stern features, but my two-toned eyes seemed to have her mesmerized after a short time, and when I offered her a grin, I heard her breath catch lightly in her throat.
Then I reached out and grasped the carnation between my fingers, and our hands brushed together for a moment before I whisked the flower into my pocket.
The group of faeries all giggled again while I walked onward through the dusky street, and I looked over my shoulder to see the duch
ess standing with her hands clasped and waiting for me to return.
Now wasn’t the time, though. I had just defeated my biggest target so far, and for that, I needed to tell the Master.
Even though I did sometimes regret just one thing about my line of work: it rarely allowed me the freedom to court the many beautiful women who caught my eye in the streets of Ocadia.
Chapter 6
After spending some time looking around the stalls, I decided I’d given myself a good enough alibi and travelled home by cart. By the time I reached my estate, the dusk had turned into night, and I was in high spirits as I walked into the reception.
I’d not only done what the Master asked, but I’d kept to my track record, too. It was almost exactly one hour after nightfall.
I wasn’t sure if it was the notoriety giving me such a high, or the fact that I had proven something to myself, but what I did know was that I was feeling on top of the world this evening.
“Mazne,” I boomed as I closed the door behind me.
“Oh, Dex!” Mazne said and rushed around the counter to see me. She fumbled her hands across my face and lifted up my eyelids to check if I was alright.
“Uh, are you okay?” I asked as I pawed her hands off of my face.
The receptionist threw her arms back around me and gave me a tight squeeze, and I struggled to get her off me, but she wouldn’t budge.
“I only found out after you left!” Mazne screamed. “I didn’t know you were going to kill a dragonkin. Has anyone in this house ever actually done it? Has anyone ever actually come out of it alive? You must tell me everything!”
Mazne was like my sister, which meant that sometimes Mazne was also just as doting as a sister was.
“I will tell you everything,” I chuckled at her giddiness.
Then I unraveled her hands from my waist so I could head over to the desk, and I pulled my disguise out of my bag and handed it to Mazne while she eagerly waited for me to continue.
“So, what happened?” Mazne pressed, and she chucked the clothes into a large bag behind her before cupping her hands under her chin to listen close. “It’s nice to see you made it out alive!”
“For a second I didn’t think I was going to,” I admitted. “But it was a pretty easy kill if I’m being honest. Just an arrow to the heart, and it was done.”
“You defeated him with one arrow?” she marveled.
“He did put up a fight,” I clarified. “It was certainly a challenge and required the careful reading of my opponent’s actions, but he behaved as I anticipated, so I came out the victor.”
Mazne rolled her eyes, but she knew I wasn’t much of a showoff. I usually tended to keep my business to myself, but Mazne had a knack of prying for information, and I wasn’t going to get away without telling her everything she wanted to know.
“And what did it look like?” Mazne said as she nudged my arm across the desk. “Were his eyes all gangly and gross? Did he explode?”
“He was massive,” I laughed. “Probably eight feet tall, and no, he didn’t have gangly eyes. They were the brightest yellow I have ever seen, and he sprayed a strange sort of acidic substance that was capable of melting stone away.”
“He sprayed the acid at you?” Mazne gasped with wide eyes.
“Toward me, yes,” I confirmed. “I avoided getting injured, though.”
“Oh, my gosh, that is amazing,” she gawked. “I can’t believe Dex Morgan, our very own Dex Morgan, killed a dragonkin!”
I laughed at her outrageous excitement, but I couldn’t deny that her enthusiasm was contagious.
“Thanks, Maz,” I chuckled. “What matters most is that this dragonkin will no longer prey on the innocent--”
“Oh, sure,” Mazne scoffed. “That’s all well and good, but you’re not even injured! You lived, Dex, and with only a bow and arrow on you, too! Show me one man in all this kingdom who--”
“Hey, can you tell the Master I’m back?” I cut her off before she could swoon over the events any more. “I’ll run down to see him now.”
The woman behind the desk flustered her hands up to the sky.
“Of course, of course,” Mazne stammered. “I’ll get on that now. Give it five minutes so I can run the message to him, and then go.”
“Thanks, Maz,” I said and turned to sit in the open reception area.
“No problem, dragonkin slayer,” she shouted and ran to tell the Master the news.
I smiled as I sat on a golden chair and flung my tools off my back. I always forgot how heavy they were until the weight of them was lifted off me. I took off my cloak and shoved it in my satchel, and then I cracked my knuckles one by one. I focused on the sound of the cicadas that echoed through the room and thought about what I had just achieved.
There were very few moments in my life where I actually stopped and commended myself for my bravery and efforts. I mostly just came back from a task, trained some more, and then went to sleep, but this time was different. It was the first time in a while that I actually knew nobody else in this estate could have done what I had.
I looked over at Vulnus, who sat on the opposite end of the reception area. The lanky old assassin was dressed as a farmhand today, and his overalls were stained with manure while he wiped a bloody dagger off on a rag.
“Who was it today, then?” I asked the old assassin. “A landlord?”
“Nah, the troubadour that lives next door to his farm,” Vulnus said with a raspy tone and a toothy grin. “Been tellin’ unsavory tales about the daughter. Poor girl’s not but fifteen, just starting to come out in society and whatnot. Man needed that loose tongue of his taken care of.”
“Ahh.” I nodded in understanding.
Vulnus went back to polishing his blade, and I glanced over at the tapestries to keep my mind busy, but I could hardly relax at the moment.
I whistled a little tune and tried to steady the constant flow of adrenaline I had coursing through my veins, and within a few moments, Mazne came back in with a huge grin plastered on her pretty face.
“Go on, the Master’s waiting,” the receptionist announced. “From what I can see, you have a boatload full of gold coins waiting, too.”
I nodded my thanks, gathered my things, and made my way to the Master’s office. Then I gave the door three taps and waited.
“Come in, Dex,” Master Abbot called from the other side.
I stepped into the office and tried not to look too proud of myself. Diplomacy went a long way in the estate, and nobody liked a showoff. Master wasn’t a very excitable man, either, and he was never the type to throw huge, congratulatory parties for anyone. After all, our job was to kill, and doing our job was expected of us.
“I must say congratulations,” Master Abbot calmly stated from behind his desk. He was seated with his hands folded on his lap, and he looked much more tired than he had when I left earlier this day.
“Thank you.” I bowed.
An extra-large pouch of gold coins sat on the desk between us. It wasn’t exactly the boatload Mazne had told me it was, but it was more than I would ever need. That one kill alone would set me up for at least two years if I kept within my means, which I always did.
“So…” the Master trailed. “How did it go?”
“Well, the dragonkin spotted me, first,” I started and took a seat opposite him. “I didn’t have time to get in the appropriate position.”
“I see,” the Master replied with a forlorn tone.
“So, I had to shoot him from close range,” I continued, “and got him in the chest. One shot, just like always.”
“Very well done,” he chuckled with a tired smile, and I noticed he looked more weary than usual.
“Yeah, at first I thought he had me,” I returned, and I couldn’t mask my excitement. “He sprayed out this acidic tar, and it nearly hit me, but I jumped out the way, and it’s a good thing I did. The substance he sprayed burned straight through the stone wall next to me. It was a lucky escape, really.”
“I don’t think ‘lucky’ is a word an assassin like you should be using,” the Master sighed. “Not with the amount of training you’ve undergone.”
“But before that,” I carried on, “I was sitting behind the wall, trying to see where the dragonkin was, and what I didn’t realize was he went out for a hunt. He came back and saw me crouched in front of the wall with my back unfortunately turned.”
“And that’s when it sprayed you?” the Master asked.
“Yep, exactly.” I grinned. “So, I had two options. Run away, or battle, and I couldn’t do the first option because I mirrored into a man whose bones ached too much, so I let the dragonkin come after me. Stood my ground, because I knew how hungry he really was, and then I shot. One arrow, straight to the chest, and the beast fell like a tree. Well, an oozing, tarrish tree.”
“I’m glad it worked out for you,” the Master uttered, and once again, I caught a weary look about him. “I must admit, I was slightly worried when you left. You know, none of the other assassins here has ever killed a dragonkin, and you just went out and did it without surveying the area for the usual week or so. Well done.”
I nodded in appreciation, but when the Master didn’t smile back, I saw through him. He was trying to keep the conversation light, but his tone and slight frown gave him away. Usually, I wouldn’t bother him about the other work he had on his mind, but something was different this time. I could sense it.
“What’s happened?” I blurted out. “Something’s the matter.”
“Well,” the Master pursed his lips. “We’ve had another job given to us, one that I couldn’t really turn down. You are the best man for the task, but it’s not a task I would like to give to anyone, most importantly you.”
My excitement shifted to worry as the Master titled his head to look at me. He had always been forthright with his jobs, but he was stalling for some reason. Suddenly, all the valor and gold of my dragonkin slaying left my mind completely, and I shifted my full attention to the challenge of my next task.
“What is the job?” I asked outright.