“No matter how much trouble you go to, there is always something that’s going to budge it up.” She looked at the young lizzie sitting on the gazebo steps. “Esther, go throw a rock at those birds.”
“Oh, let them alone,” said Willa. “We can put up with a few noisy birds.”
“As long as it’s just the little ones,” said Dovie. “I nearly died when I saw that tyrannosaurus the other day.”
“Figuratively and literally,” said Iolana.
“Well, no. I wasn’t really in danger, at least not from the dinosaur. I could have been burnt alive in the fire though.”
“There wasn’t too much damage was there?” asked Willa.
“The shop will be closed for a week,” Dovie replied. “I don’t mind that at all. I think my mum can do with a rest. The sorceress paid for the building repair and the damaged stock.”
“As well she should,” said Willa, to which Dovie nodded.
“I’m worried about Mum though. I think she thought Abner Winton might ask her to marry him.”
“She’ll find somebody better,” said Iolana.
The two looked to their hostess to find an enigmatic smile in the corner of her lips.
“What are you on about?” Willa asked her.
“I’m just enjoying the fact that I have friends for tea. Care for a biscuit?”
They ate their sugary treats and talked of things that were both unimportant and vitally important—like what type of handbag would be fashionable in the fall and whether they were old enough to wear dresses that showed some of their backs. They were alerted to a new arrival when Esther hissed. Turning toward the front corner of the house, they saw Questa Hardt timidly approaching. Iolana stepped down the steps from the gazebo and met the girl several feet away.
“Good day,” she said.
“Hello,” said Questa, her smooth umber skin tinged with green. She looked like she wanted to say something else, but just stood wringing her hands.
“That’s a lovely dress,” offered Iolana.
Questa’s day dress was very pretty. It was the latest style, much more in fashion than Dovie’s, light blue and decorated with little bluebirds over the breast.
“Thank you. I… I… I’m sorry, um… I’m interrupting your tea.”
“Would you like to join us?”
“Yes, but first I have to say something. I’m sorry. I’m sorry for being so horrid to you. I’m sorry for being a part of that group… you know, the girls that tease you. They used to tease me too, because my mother is Mirsannan. I shouldn’t have had anything to do with them, but when they seemed to want me with them, I was pleased just to have friends.”
“I know just what you mean.”
“When they wanted to play that terrible trick on you, I was just so happy because… because it wasn’t me. They were horrible to you and I was right there with them. Then one day at the trolley stop, I looked and saw just how ugly Sherree and Talli are inside. I ran away screaming!”
Iolana’s face scrunched up as she tried very hard not to burst out into a grin.
“I haven’t been able to look at either one of them since.”
Pulling the girl to her, Iolana gave her a hug; at last unable to keep her teeth from showing.
“You’re forgiven. Come and join us.”
Taking the dark-skinned girl’s hand, she led her to the gazebo steps.
“Girls, this is Questa Hardt. Questa, this is Dovie Liklighter, Willa Tice, and um… Esther.” She called to Kayden who was watching from the back corner of the garden. “Have them send out more tea and two more cups!”
“You want some tea too, don’t you?” she asked Esther.
The lizzie bobbed her head up and down.
* * * * *
Senta’s garden looked so much smaller with the massive form of the steel dragon curled up in it. Both his gigantic head and his barbed tail rested on the grass near the wrought iron furniture where the sorceress reclined. The baby crawled across the lawn, finally stopping to tug on the great beast’s whiskers. The long forked tongue shot out to flick over her fine blond hair.
“She’s retarded,” said the dragon.
“Nonsense. All human children are dull.”
“I don’t mean this one.” He pointed up into the sky where the tiny coral dragon was circling. “That one. She’s not growing fast enough and she doesn’t seem very bright either. Are you sure she’s getting enough nutrition?”
“Her name is Zoantheria, and dragons do everything at their own pace,” said Senta. “You should know that better than anyone. And you have to be nicer. She may grow up to be your wife one day.”
“That’s ridiculous,” said Bessemer. “Dragons don’t have wives. I’m sure she will someday worship me like all the other reptiles on the continent.”
“Ooh, a few years on your own and you’re already having delusions of grandeur.”
“There’s nothing delusional about it,” he said. “I am grand.”
“Well, I’m glad you could grace my garden. How long are you staying?”
“A day or two. I can’t really be gone any longer. My people need me.”
“Your people?”
“You know what I mean. Now there are prospectors streaming into their lands looking for gold. There is bound to be trouble. It’s a lot of responsibility,” he sighed. “We could change places if you like.”
“No thank you. I’m sure I’d make just as ugly a dragon as you make a man.”
“But you could come visit.”
“Yes, I could come visit. I hear you’ve been visiting Port Dechantagne in my absence.”
“I had to see Geert and Maro. They’re family.”
“And young Miss Staff?”
“I confess,” said the dragon. “She is one of my favorites.”
“I’m glad you’ve kept an eye on things.”
“How is Hero?” he asked.
“Beautiful.”
“And Hertzel.”
“He’s… well, he’s Hertzel. You know what I mean?”
“Yes. What about Saba?”
“What about him?” She narrowed her eyes.
“Just asking how he is.”
“I don’t really know.” Senta stood up and picked up the tea tray. “I’ll be right back.”
As she stepped inside, she came face to face with Baxter.
“You can’t leave Senta out there with that beast,” he said.
“She’s safer now than she’s ever been.”
“It’s him, isn’t it? It’s that police inspector.”
“What?”
“You know what. He’s her father.”
“I thought you didn’t care who he was,” she said, but seeing the look on his face, she softened. “I already told you that I don’t love him.”
“But you don’t love me either.”
She sat the tray down on an occasional table and wrapped her arms around his neck. “I’m very fond of you.”
“But do you love me?” he asked.
“I think I might, actually.” She blinked her grey eyes. “I said you have me for as long as you want me.”
* * * * *
Despite the warm summer, fall came early to Port Dechantagne. The winds whipped in from the west and the third week of Novuary saw seven solid days of rain. This didn’t slow down the wave of immigrants coming into the colony and by the end of the month the tide of new arrivals had actually increased, as news of a gold discovery made its way to Mallontah.
Iolana Livonia Dechantagne Staff finished the box of Rikkard Banks Tatum books and returned them. She finished the first draft of her history of Birmisia Colony, but put it away to revise at a later date. She wouldn’t return to it for almost a year. Her friendship with Dovie Liklighter and Questa Hardt grew closer, as did her relationship with her cousins Augie and Terra, whom along with DeeDee Colbshallow she continued to tutor. In Decius, she formally added Esther the lizzie to her small class.
Sherree Glieberman seemed
to have permanently split from Talli Archer. However, she filled the void when she started dating Maro McCoort, ending Iolana’s hopes of being a permanent fixture in his yellow steam carriage.
Walter and Wenda Charmley continued to operate their dinosaur ranch, and Wenda expressed no bewilderment at the fact that her husband, one day each week, claimed to be his brother. Since she didn’t seem to mind, nobody else did either.
Theirs was not the only notable marriage though. On Decius 17th, Gabrielle Bassett married Mr. Kaspar Drake. Benny and Hero Markham served as the best man and the matron of honor, while Senta and Dutty Morris served as bride’s maids.
Seifer Caldell was tried and convicted of willful destruction of public property, attempted mayhem, and criminal anarchy. He was executed by hanging Decius 25th. Mrs. Wardlaw who had been injured in Caldell’s bombing fully recovered and returned to work as Governor Staff’s secretary, working out of the governor’s home until the Gurrman building was restored.
Senta held numerous get-togethers at her home during the fall months, though she found little reason to step beyond her gates. Her little dragon, Zoantheria, flew off to hunt in the forest, but like her mistress was seldom seen in Port Dechantagne. By contrast, Kieran Baxter could be found around town on a daily basis, usually with baby Senta in his arms. They frequented the cafés and as the baby began to walk, the parks, sometimes with Senta’s brother Peter Bassington in tow.
* * * * *
“I’m sorry. I never even had the chance to get close to her. Those two idiots tried to steal her power, as if they had any chance of containing that kind of magical energy. All they did was ruin it for me. There is no way that she would trust me enough to let me get close to her now.”
Pantagria stood up and crossed the distance between them, as the purple flowers stretched to get out from beneath her feet, their all-too-human eyes looking up pleadingly. Her hair had grown back out and the great scabs that had covered her naked body were almost healed.
“It’s all right. Don’t fret. I know you did your best, my little wizard.” She ran her hand over Obed Bell’s sunken cheeks. “The sorceress will pay eventually. But first I need to find my way to your world.”
“I’ll do anything I can for you,” he said.
“I know you will. I know you will. It will take time, but someday we will be together. I will breathe the air of the real world. I will taste and feel and exalt in all the sensations of the real world. With your help. With your help, and that machine…
The End
Coming Soon:
About the Author
Wesley Allison has served as a public school teacher for the past 20 years, so buying one of his books could well keep his family above the poverty line. He has a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and a Master of Science degree from Nova Southeastern University in Florida. He still teaches English and American History in southern Nevada where he lives with his lovely wife Victoria, his two grown children Rebecca and John, and a large iguana named Cissy.
For more information about the author and upcoming books:
Visit the City of Amathar Blog at http://wesleyallison.com
Visit the Author Wesley Allison page on Facebook.
Books by Wesley Allison
Look for them wherever fine ebooks are sold. Select titles are also available in traditional paper formats at the City of Amathar Blog and by special order from your favorite bookseller.
Princess of Amathar
Transported to the artificial world of Ecos, Earth man Alexander Ashton struggles to understand the society of his new friends the Amatharians. As he does so, he finds himself falling in love with their princess and being thrust into a millennium-long war with their mortal foes the reptilian Zoasians. Princess of Amathar is a sword-swinging novel of high adventure.
His Robot Girlfriend
Mike Smith's life was crap, living all alone, years after his wife had died and his children had grown up and moved away. Then he saw the commercial for the Daffodil. Far more than other robots, the Daffodil could become anything and everything he wanted it to be. Mike's life is about to change.
His Robot Wife
In His Robot Wife, the novella-length sequel to His Robot Girlfriend, it is the year 2037 and Mike has been married to his robot wife, Patience, for five years. Troubles are on the horizon though. Prop 22 promises to annul marriages between humans and robots. And Patience hasn’t quite been herself. Is there something wrong, or does she just need a software upgrade?
Eaglethorpe Buxton and the Elven Princess
Eaglethorpe Buxton, famed adventurer and story-teller, friend to those in need of a friend and guardian to those in need of a guardian. He is a liar and braggart, not to be trusted, especially around pies. Who are we to believe? Buxton himself leads us through his world as he comes to the aid of… a poor orphan? An elven princess? Who can guess with Eaglethorpe himself telling the tale?
Eaglethorpe Buxton and the Sorceress
Eaglethorpe Buxton, famed adventurer and story-teller is back, this time to put on a play about a sorceress. When the sorceress, subject of his play arrives with fire in her eyes, Eaglethorpe must pretend to be his good friend Ellwood. Will he pull off this charade and survive? And what happens when the real Ellwood shows up? One can never tell, especially when Eaglethorpe tells the story.
Senta and the Steel Dragon Book 0: Brechalon
Brechalon is the novella-length prequel to The Voyage of the Minotaur and the books which follow in the story of Senta and the Steel Dragon. Meet the people who will change a world-- the Dechantagnes, wealthy siblings from a disgraced aristocratic family who plot their revenge; the imprisoned sorceress Zurfina; and Senta, the orphan girl who will one day rise to great fame and power.
Senta and the Steel Dragon Book 1: The Voyage of the Minotaur
In a world of steam power and rifles, where magic has not yet been forgotten, an expedition sets out to establish a colony in a lost world. The Voyage of the Minotaur is a story of adventure and magic, religion and prejudice, steam engines and dinosaurs, angels and lizardmen, machine guns and wizards, sorceresses, bustles and corsets, steam-powered computers, hot air balloons, and dragons.
Senta and the Steel Dragon Book 2: The Dark and Forbidding Land
Two years have passed since Senta, the sorceress Zurfina, and Bessemer the steel dragon arrived in the strange land of Birmisia. Now it is up to the settlers to build a home in this dark and forbidding land, ruled by terrifying dinosaurs and strange lizardmen. Ten-year-old Senta must discover which is the greater threat, a would-be wizard or the ever-increasing presence of the tyrannosaurus.
Senta and the Steel Dragon Book 3: The Drache Girl
More than three years have passed since the colonists arrived in Birmisia, and Port Dechantagne is a thriving colony, with the railway line almost complete. Twelve-year-old sorceress's apprentice Senta Bly, Police Constable Saba Colbshallow, and former maid Yuah Dechantagne must deal with wizards, prejudice, steam carriages, boys riding dinosaurs, and the mysterious activities of the lizardmen.
Senta and the Steel Dragon Book 4: The Young Sorceress
Everyone in Port Dechantagne seems to have an agenda of their own, from mysterious sorceress Zurfina, to agents from the enemy nation of Freedonia, to the kings and witchdoctors of the mysterious lizardmen. On the eve of her fifteenth birthday, sorceress’s apprentice Senta finds herself being pulled first one way and then the other. Will she actually have to split herself into four in order to deal with all her responsibilities?
Senta and the Steel Dragon Book 5: The Two Dragons
War has come the Birmisia. The newly settled colonists contemplate war on two fronts. The mysterious lizardmen from far away Tsahloose, led by their monstrous dragon god, threaten from the south. And from across the sea, the totalitarian kingdom of Freedonia threatens to invade their world with wizards and steam-powered war machines. Can even 17-year-old Senta and her mistress Zurfina the Magnifice
nt stop them? Find out in the thrilling conclusion to the Senta and the Steel Dragon Series.
Tesla’s Stepdaughters
In a world where men are almost extinct, someone is trying to kill history's greatest rock & roll band. Science Police Agent John Andrews must negotiate a complicated relationship with Ep!phanee, the band's lead singer; drummer Ruth De Molay, bassist Steffie Sin, and the redheaded clone lead guitarist Penny Dreadful, as he protects them and tries to discover who wants to kill the Ladybugs.
Women of Power
The life of a superhero is tough. All American Girl fights supervillains, alien invaders, and terrorists as she tries to get product endorsements and a magazine deal. That's nothing compared to her private life though. She's only just broken up with her super boyfriend Perihelion when he's scooped up by Omega Woman, and now rival Skygirl has moved into her territory.
Blood Trade
Vegas is going to hell-- literally. Werewolves run through the streets and the vampires are taking over. Former army ranger/Goth tattoo model/private eye Xochitl McKenna doesn't like it either, especially when it comes between her and her clients. But are the vampires and werewolves the greatest threat, or is it something or someone much closer to her? Warning: Adult Content.
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