The Destroyer Book 4

by Michael-Scott Earle

  “I was more involved with the animals of the tribe. We would use pigs, goats, and sheep to prepare the land for planting. It helps reduce human labor and increase food production.”

  Thayer and I used to handle the logistics of food production for the army. Alexia took over and, along with Gorbanni, had managed to feed the army for many years. Shlara’s methods had helped us immensely and we almost never needed to worry about feeding the army now.

  “Of course,” she continued, “it makes it harder when we are always on the move. If we could stay in one place for a few years, we could feed an army twenty times our size.”

  “You and Alexia will have to figure out a way. I plan on the army being one hundred times larger than it is now. But we must keep moving. It protects us from discovery and helps us stage more successful attacks.”

  “I can just see it,” she laughed. “It will be a logistical nightmare. You might as well promote me now to General of the Latrines.”

  “I like that title,” I laughed with her. “Instead of dragons on your armor we'll etch mushrooms and your reports will carry rakes and shovels instead of spears.”

  “Ugh!” she moaned. “Our helmets will come with perfumed scarves to wrap around our noses and the boots will be more like galoshes.”

  “It will be hard to recruit people, but easy to train them,” I said and our laughter echoed into the night.

  “Speaking of shit and latrines,” she wiped a tear of laughter from her eye, “I’ve designed a new outhouse. It should help us turn the waste into compost quicker. I left the designs back at the camp, but I can tell you about it now if you wish.”

  “Sure,” I agreed and we spent the next hour going over her idea. It seemed promising, so I gave her permission to borrow carpenters and build a few outhouses.

  “Despite the amount of time we devoted to discussing shit, this has been a fun night,” she said at last when the conversation had slowly turned to discussing the lay of the night sky. “I was nervous when you asked me to come with you.”

  I grunted and sipped my tea. Spiced wine would have gone better with the boar and I wished I had brought some. Then again, Entas swore pine needle tea was the source all of his power.

  “Tomorrow morning, we’ll head back. We’ll try to do this every couple of months. I have a strong friendship with the rest of my commanders and I want the same with you.”

  “Is a friendship all you want from me?” Her voice was soft. Not a whisper, but not much more.

  “That and dedication. The same traits you and I discussed when you first came to the camp.” I looked past the fire to her and saw her green eyes aglow with the orange light. Her heart was beating quickly.

  “I am grateful to be your commander and serve in the army. I had my doubts about being promoted, especially after the thrashing you gave my team last year.”

  “You are cocky.”

  “So are you,” she replied back with a smile.

  “You have proven yourself to me, Shlara. Continue to do so and your desire to be my best general will be fulfilled.” I looked away from her eyes and back into the fire.

  “What if I have other desires?” Her voice was husky. I knew what she hinted at; Shlara had not outright admitted her feelings for me, but had done more than hint at them several times. It was part of the reason I had hesitated to spend time alone with her. I didn’t want to give her the wrong idea. Entas had disagreed and my mentor had encouraged me to treat her as I did my other commanders.

  “Everything will come to us after the Elvens are destroyed,” I said plainly. I did not meet her gaze.

  “I expected that answer,” she sighed. “Unless there is something else you wish to do tonight, we should get some sleep. The sooner I help you destroy the Elvens, the better.” She lay her bedroll down between mine and the fire. For a second, I debated telling her to move it a bit farther away, perhaps to the other side of the campfire, but then I decided against it.

  “Agreed.” I curled up on the mat next to her and listened to the ocean’s lullaby for a few minutes before sleep took me into darkness.

  Chapter 14-Kaiyer

  The sound of the ocean woke me from my slumber. I rolled toward the campfire and sighed. I doubted Shlara would mind if I took a few extra minutes of sleep before we broke our fast and journeyed back to the army. Despite the full night’s rest, I was exhausted. My bedroll felt like a solid piece of marble.

  “Your habits remain as I recall.”

  The voices echoed in my head. I jumped to my feet and realized that I was not on the cliff overlook camping with Shlara. Instead, I lay at the feet of the dragon statue on the dais. What I had thought was the campfire was the eerie blue light of the braziers. The sound of the ocean from my dream was the flow of water that crashed into the pool from the dragon statue’s mouth.

  There was no movement from the stone dragon, or any sound from the rest of the caravan where I suspected the thousands of lizard-spider creatures waited for me. I turned up to the eyes of the statue and pondered whether the voice had actually come from it.

  “How long have I been asleep?” I asked cautiously. My words hung in the air and then were lost in the sound of the falling water.

  “How do I explain time to you? You have been asleep for eternity.”

  They were whispers in my head, each voice spoke at a different tempo, creating a disorienting echo. My brain started to hurt.

  “What are you?”

  “You recall so little. It is disappointing, but foreseen. Name me now and I will carry that title until you forget me again.”

  “I don’t understand.” The voices felt as if they came from the statue, but I didn’t really hear them. They just slammed into my brain like a punch from the back of my head.

  “You do not want to understand. Maybe you wish not to.”

  “Mulakanna’teall.” The word escaped my mouth as I exhaled.

  “Yesssssss!” the voices hissed and purred with pleasure. “You have not forgotten your servant.”

  “How are you my servant? How do I know your name?” There was still no movement from the statue, but I expected it to come alive at any second and attempt to destroy me.

  “I followed your instructions. None of your enemies have come before you. Not the O’Baarni, their servants, or my traitorous siblings.”

  “Why would the O’Baarni come here before me? Who are their servants?”

  “You asked me to guard this world from them. Then half an eternity passed. I wondered if you forgot about your servant. Anger came. Anger left. Fear came. Silence came. My bones returned to this world. Only my dreams are here. They know more than I did.”

  “What do your dreams know?” Nothing these voices said made any sense to me and I wondered why I had even bothered to ask it another question.

  “They know why you never relieved me of my task. They know why you have finally come to this world. The reconciliation is close at hand.”

  “Reconciliation?” Pain shot through my head again.

  “Mistakes will be accounted for. The beings will be set free or damned.”

  “Whose mistakes? Beings? I don’t understand.”

  “She knows you are in this form. Now she sends her minions after you. They will take the Ovule to her and all will be lost.”

  “They don’t want to take the Ovule from me. They offered me one to leave this world.” Vernine had tried to give me the leather backpack which contained the Ovule.

  “You struggle to forget, while my dream fades. I wish I could tell you more, but once I am gone, the creatures will return for your flesh and then she will be victorious. Leave this place. Protect the Ovule.”

  “How do I leave?”

  “You created life with Water. My dream fades now. Farewell, Master. Remember me as your greatest servant, for I was the last of my kind,” the voices whispered in my ear, as soft as Jessmei when we lay in the cave those many months ago.

  The blue light faded from the sapphire gems in the
statue’s eyes. Their intensity was mirrored by the magical torches that sat upon the dais. Their light also began to fade and along with it, the distant rasps of the lizard creatures rose.

  Fuck.

  The light extinguished suddenly, and I was plunged into absolute blackness. The screams of the creatures echoed through the cavern like trumpets. I could hear the ocean sound of their claws scraping off the walls as they ran toward me. The noise blended with the roar of the waterfall flowing from the effigy’s mouth.

  The sound of the pool made me consider what Mulakanna’teall said of water. It must be draining somewhere, or it would have overflowed.

  The approaching monsters made my heart race in my chest. If this did not work, I would die. Fuck, even if the pool did have a drain, there was no telling if I could hold my breath long enough to make it to wherever it ended. I had escaped the Elvens before using the dark river beneath Castle Nia. I could hold my breath for upwards of ten minutes, but there was no surer way to kill an O’Baarni or Elven than drowning. Lack of air cut off the functioning of our brain rendering us unable to heal. This was why both our races feared the ocean.

  The lizard-spiders grew closer. I could not stay here. The water was a dangerous choice, but it still gave me a chance. I took a few deep breaths, then dove into the pool at the dragon’s feet.

  The water was cold. For a precious second I froze in shock and almost lost the air in my lungs. I pushed through and swam toward the bottom of the pool. There was a strong current and I felt some of the stress of my choice leave my mind. I found the tunnel at the bottom of the pool. I couldn’t see anything through the darkness, but the current was strong and I let it carry me downward in its embrace.

  I could hear nothing but the sound of my heart hammering in my chest and the pulling swish of the water. I reached out my hands and felt the sides of a smooth tunnel. It was probably four feet in diameter, wide enough for me not to worry about getting caught and trapped.

  I counted.

  The water grew colder. My blood felt like ice. I remembered sitting under the waters of the river while I waited for Jessmei’s three Elven captors to ford it. These waters were even colder. Numbness filled me everywhere and I pulled more Earth into my body in an effort to warm myself with magic.

  Sixty.

  Where would this flow of water leave the mountains? I guessed it would be at the mouth of the river that fed the bottom of the valley. If Vernine’s warriors were still at the keep, I could avoid them and make my way back to the castle. Then I remembered what the dragon said to me. I needed to get the Ovule from Vernine. I needed to keep it from the empress.

  One hundred and twenty.

  There were other Ovules. I had left one beneath the castle in Nia. There was the one Kannath had used to bring his warriors to this world. The empress must have some as well since she had traveled here through the Radicle with her entire army. Why did the dragon want me to keep one Ovule?

  One hundred and eighty.

  Nadea must have also had an Ovule. The thought struck me suddenly. She brought me through a Radicle. Or was I already on this world, frozen in sleep? Paug said I was sleeping when he saw me and he spoke words to awake me. I should have asked him what those words had been. Nadea had taught him the words. She told him what to do.

  Two hundred and forty.

  How did Nadea know where I was? How did she know to awaken me, or how to do it? If she had not used an Ovule, did she wield some other sort of magic? My brain spun and then I realized that I actually was spinning in the current. I was caught in a riptide. My foot found a wall and I pushed off of it, praying to whatever luck I had that I would launch myself in the direction that would take me out of this endless, icy hell.

  Three hundred.

  Maybe there were other objects named Ovules the dragon spoke of? What did the name mean? It had something to do with plants . . . seeds, flowers . . . Shlara had spoken to Alexia once about a garden. They had used the word.

  Three hundred and sixty.

  My heart was throbbing and I felt the uncomfortable tightness in my chest that indicated I would need to breathe soon. The current wasn’t moving fast enough, so I took a few hesitant kicks with my legs to speed along my travel.

  What if the Ovule was a person? The thought struck me suddenly from the darkness and made my mind recoil as if I had actually been punched.

  Four hundred and twenty.

  How did I know the dragon’s name? It came to my mouth unbidden, but as soon as I spoke it, I knew it was correct. There was something about the creature that felt familiar. It was the way it spoke to me. It felt like I had conversed with it before. But that was impossible. The feeling in my stomach when I said its name was the same feeling I had when I guessed that the Ovule was actually a person. I knew I was right, but I did not know why.

  Four hundred and eighty.

  I slammed into a wall and almost lost the saved air in my lungs. I had been holding out my hands in the direction the water pushed me, but I wasn’t prepared for the speed at which I hit the smooth surface. I skipped across the rock with a grunt of surprise and then bounced into the flow again. If I drowned down here, I wouldn’t even know it. Everything was already black.

  Five hundred and forty.

  If the Ovule was a person, who would it be? The dragon said that she was sending minions after me. He said they would take the Ovule and all would be lost. I must protect the Ovule, but who was the Ovule? Who was the dragon afraid of?

  Six hundred.

  I was missing something. I could feel that I was close to understanding what the dragon wanted. His words did not make any sense, but if the Ovule was a person then Mulakanna’teall inferred that I knew her.

  Her.

  Nadea.

  Six hundred and sixty.

  If any person could be an Ovule, it would be the duchess. Other than my daughter, she was the only Elven-human hybrid known to exist. The signs were there. She was able to retrieve me from the Radicle without an Ovule because she was the Ovule. Perhaps the Ovules were named after those people who could operate the Radicles without the aid of the magical orbs. I had not understood it completely, but I had sensed Nadea’s power when I changed her into an O’Baarni.

  Seven hundred and twenty.

  But who did I need to protect Nadea from? If Vernine was being honest with me, Telaxthe had already captured Nadea. Mulakanna’teall said that she knew I was in this form. What did he mean? Who was she?

  Seven hundred and eighty.

  My lungs were screaming. Demanding to breathe. Every heartbeat was agony. The current continued to push me, faster than before, but there was still no hint of light, no sign of air. Just fast moving water in the darkness of my mind.

  Eight hundred and forty.

  Fuck I was tired. Exhausted. My body hurt beyond compare. I wanted to breathe.

  Please let me breathe.

  Nadea. Jessmei. Shlara. Malek. Alexia. Thayer. Gorbanni. Greykin. Beltor. Danor. Entas.

  Paug.

  Iolarathe.

  Please let me breathe. The darkness is too much. The pain is too great.

  Nine hundred.

  Chapter 15-Iolarathe

  “How was your ride?” Relyara handed me a cup of steaming tea as soon as I walked into my suite.

  “Glorious!” I sighed. It had been only half an hour or so since I left Kaiyer back in the stables and the smoky scent of him still lingered on me. I took a sip of the tea. While it was warm and delicious, I wanted to celebrate with something more. “I desire a bottle of wine.”

  “Yes, Mistress. I will fetch one.”

  “First have a bath started. Then the wine,” I said after a second thought. She nodded, and I sat at the small table in the foyer of my suite sipping the tea and thinking of Kaiyer’s facial expressions and joy during his first ride. My lover had a natural talent for riding. Had he been born an Elven, he may have had the necessary years to master the discipline. Though he was young for their species and sti
ll had plenty of time left to master whatever skill he might choose, humans were not allowed to choose.

  And they certainly weren’t allowed to ride horses.

  “The water is ready, Mistress.” Relyara’s husky voice interrupted my thoughts. One of my servants entered from the hallway with a bottle of wine on a platter spread with cut apples and cheese. Relyara was very thoughtful.

  I set aside my tea and moved into the steaming tub. The hot water was a fitting end to a session of riding, exploring ancient ruins, and lovemaking.

  “You seem lost in thought.”

  “As lost as any Singleborn could be.” I thought about asking her to leave, but then I reconsidered. I already missed Kaiyer and didn’t want to be alone.

  “Pour yourself a glass and share the meal with me.” I pointed at the platter. There wasn’t a second glass, but Relyara found one quickly and then did as I asked.

  “What made it glorious?” she asked.

  “Humm?”

  “The ride. You said it was glorious.”

  “I rode out to the ruins to the southwest.”

  “That is a dangerous place to go. Especially alone.” Her scent changed to lemons.

  “There was a carrion beast lurking around, but it knew better than to come near me.” I smiled slightly and took a bite of apple and cheese.

  “Now you are speaking complete foolishness. Next you will tell me there were Wisps dancing through the ruins and you frolicked amongst them.” She shook her head and her dark blue-black hair rippled beautifully.

  I was about to reply, but a knock sounded at the distant door of my foyer. Relyara excused herself and moved to answer it. I closed my eyes again and leaned back enough in the tub to soak most of my hair. I imagined the water was Kaiyer’s fingers running against my scalp. Then I thought of his hands rubbing over the rest of my wet body. I realized I was holding my breath and I let it out in a long sigh.

  It had only been a few hours since we fucked, yet I wanted him again. Would I ever grow bored with the human? I wondered if I was only attracted to him because of the danger our couplings presented, but then dismissed the idea. It was his scent that first attracted me to him and his other attributes only increased my desire to be around him.