“I saw that. The walls are actual trees, not just cut lumber. Didn’t know trees could be this smooth, or grow in this manner,” Dave said honestly.
“They’re a special tree I’ve been working on for building purposes. Don’t worry—they’re well insulated and resistant to fire. I was working on trying to make them Dragon-resistant. With these four tikes, it’s only a matter of time before they start using their Affinity breaths!” Fornau gestured to his four children, who were wandering around the floor on hands and knees or with the ladies, being bounced on knees or fed by Quindar.
With their cute, determined, and happy expressions, it was hard to think that their other form was of a fire-breathing Dragon.
Dave caught Deia’s eyes as she gave him a happy smile. The kind that only made his mind hear ringing alarm bells as he caught the way she looked at the baby.
Dave didn’t need to read minds to know what she was thinking: I WANT ONE!
Dave wasn’t against it, but he didn’t want to bring a child up with everything that was going on.
“I was wondering if you might be interested in helping me design our new home? If Alkao is for the idea of having Dragons in Devil’s Crater.” Fornau smiled.
“I’d be more than happy to help.” Dave smiled.
***
Alkao and Anna stepped through the teleport pad’s event horizon. People stared at the Demon king as he walked out of the pad. His DCA guards moved around, their eyes looking for threats and their hands resting on their swords, ready for an attack at a moment’s notice.
They had arrived late. With the oncoming winter, it was already dark.
Alkao shifted his shoulders, taking comfort in his thick and heavy hide that rested around him, keeping him warm.
People talked animatedly about the Demons and Beast Kin that made up the little party. Anna led the way, weaving through the people waiting for the teleport pad or hawking goods around it before people got to the main city. Refreshments and cart rides were the biggest seller.
The party moved through all of it. Alkao looked over the growing city. Forests had been mostly cut down for housing.
“There are people living in those trees?” Alkao said, asking Anna for confirmation.
“Yes. Cliff-Hill has a large group of Elves from the Kufo’tel forest and Dwarves from the Mithsia Mountains. They lie to the north behind a massive enchanted wall they put up for defense after the Dark and Earth Lords attacked them,” Anna said as they finally made it out of the plaza that surrounded the teleport pad and onto the four cart-wide road where carts were waiting to carry people off to the side, or racing past with goods to Cliff-Hill, the teleport pad, and Omal.
Anna led them up the road and Alkao took in the sights of the city. At the top of Cliff-Hill, the city was already formed, with people moving lower down the hillside toward the large stone walls that ran from the two cliffs on either side of the sloping hill.
Alkao saw the familiar smithies. They were lower down the hill, close to the teleport pad and with stone roads that connected to the main road passing through the city.
Dave’s ceramics factory was off to the side. Carts continuously moved around the factories and smithies.
They walked up the road for a bit, before Anna walked down a small path.
“Hmm, looks like things have done a bit of growing here. Used to be a road in and out of here.” Anna led them through the forest.
The guards all looked around. Anna took a turn around a large and thick grouping of trees. They followed and came out into a cleared area.
A massive three-building home faced them; off to the side, there seemed to be a smaller building. It looked like a shed in comparison.
Soul gem threads lay around, lighting up the house.
“Well, that’s new.” Anna looked over the home.
“I think with Dave, expecting one thing and finding something completely different is kind of a daily occurrence.” Alkao grinned.
“You do have a point.” Anna nodded and headed for the main door.
Before Anna could knock, Dave was there, opening the door.
“Come on in!” he said with a wide and open smile, a beer in his hand. He hugged Anna and braced Alkao’s arm.
“Don’t worry—we’ve got something that can get even the Demon King drunk!” Dave waved everyone, including the protection detail, in.
“Malsour, Fornau, and I put wards up all over the place today while the ladies went off and gathered us a feast and booze. Nothing gets past the tree line without us knowing about it.” Dave smiled to the protection detail. “It’s a bit cramped here, but one of the rooms upstairs is free for you to have an overwatch of the main grounds. The two side houses are completely free of people, so use them as you desire. The right side one has my lab in the basement so don’t go down there—don’t want something to blow up!” Dave clapped his hands.
“Thank you. Do you mind if we have a look around?” the guard commander asked.
“Go for it! We’ll have some food ready in an hour or two—better than those rations.” Dave grinned to the guard commander. The other guards looked pretty happy. A warm house, wards already set up, and warm food! Not a bad protection detail.
“Thank you for your hospitality,” the guard commander said.
“No worries. When you’re looking around, could you let me know if you spot any ways for me to improve security around here?” Dave asked.
“Certainly.” The guard commander and his detail perked up. Doing a favor for Dave Grahslagg—they’d put in their full effort.
“Thanks!” Dave said with a wide smile. “Well, I’ll leave you to it.”
“Thank you, Mister Grahslagg.” The guard commander tilted his head slightly in respect.
“Please, just call me Dave,” Dave said in a light tone, waving away the guard commander’s serious tone. He left them to do their thing and guided Alkao into a large room at the back of the house. Massive two-story windows looked out onto a large deck with a roof above it. There were four children in states of play or sleep inside the house. Malsour and Suzy were outside talking. Induca and Fornau were talking to each other and tending to the children. Off to the side, the smell of food wafted in. A woman and Deia were talking to each other animatedly.
“Anna!” Deia said in a raised voice, wiping her hands on her apron and coming out to greet Anna.
“Hey, Deia.” Anna smiled.
“Come, I need your help in the kitchen! Induca, could you get Suzy?” Deia practically pulled Anna across the room.
“Hi, Alkao! Dave, get the man a drink,” Deia said.
“Yes, honey, be gentle!” he said as Induca quickly got Suzy’s attention and disappeared off into the kitchen with the women.
“I’ll get you something to drink. You know Fornau, right?” Dave gestured to the man watching the three children wander around and holding another against his shoulder.
“Hey, Fornau. I’m guessing this lot are yours.” Alkao grinned, looking at the kids.
“Yeah, we have rather large litters.” Fornau sighed, a smile on his lips as he looked to the wandering children.
“Thank you again for all that you did for Devil’s Crater,” Alkao said.
“No worries. It was a fun little project. I heard that Unity might be growing again once the winter passes?” Fornau asked.
“It looks that way. We’ve got inns growing all over the place and people coming to trade, adventure, and do everything under the sun. We’re turning into quite the hot spot, it seems.” Alkao smiled proudly.
Dave arrived with drinks and Malsour came in from outside.
“Thank you,” Alkao said.
“Fornau and Quindar are interested in moving to Devil’s Crater. Be a good place for young ones to grow,” Dave said.
“Well, you’re welcome to move to Devil’s Crater. There are certain things we hold our people accountable for—though, I don’t know how safe it is for children. It is Ashal still, after all,” Alkao said
.
“I think our family would be fine, but we’re asking not just for a citizenship. With us, there come certain”—Fornau moved his hand around, as if trying to find the right word for what he was trying to explain—“different needs than other settlers might have.”
“Oh?” Alkao sipped from his tankard. He grunted in appreciation, holding his mug up in salute to Dave.
“You like that, huh? Some of my own brew, been keeping it in storage.” Dave grinned. “And what Fornau is trying to say—he and Quindar have certain different needs and qualifications, because they’re Dragons.”
Alkao frowned at Dave, expecting the punchline to come as he drank from the mug again.
“Well, not the way I would go about saying it.” Fornau laughed awkwardly.
“So, you’re saying you’re a Dragon?” Alkao tried to keep his skeptical look from surfacing. Fornau had done a lot for him and he didn’t want to be disrespectful.
“Ah, you don’t believe me.” Fornau’s smile turned predatory.
“Pass me my grandniece,” Malsour said.
“Thanks, Uncle Malsour,” Fornau said.
The ladies came out of the kitchen.
“Could you watch the children? I just need to give Alkao a demonstration,” Fornau said.
“Okay. Don’t use your aura, though,” Quindar said.
“Of course not, dear.” Fornau gave her a quick kiss.
“I have the perfect place away from prying eyes.” Dave waved for Alkao and Fornau to follow him. They went down to the basement, going through tunnels until they came up inside the shed, which was actually a house. Dave put Mana into a circle that glowed around their feet. The shed disappeared and they appeared in a room made of metal. Dave guided them out into an open area that was big enough to fit two of Dave’s houses.
“Does this work?” Dave gestured to the room with his glass.
“This should work fine.” Fornau walked into the room. He grew in size, wings sprouted from his back, and his legs started to get bigger as his body and arms extended outward. His neck extended; his clothes disappeared and revealed green, brown, and black scales underneath.
Alkao could only watch as Fornau transformed into a Dragon and turned around to look at Alkao. His nictitating eyelids moved over his eyes.
“Do you believe me now?” Fornau asked, his voice deep and powerful.
“So, you’re a Dragon,” Alkao said, remembering when he’d said the words just a few minutes ago.
“Correct.” Fornau laughed and reduced in size, back down to his Human form. His clothes formed back over him again.
Alkao had never seen a Dragon ever in his life, and now he was in a house of six of them! Four children and two adults.
“This is a lot to take in.” Alkao tried to get past how he had felt like prey before Fornau’s eyes. He knew with a swipe of Fornau’s hand, he could be dead.
“Fornau is really interested in working to help develop Devil’s Crater. Quindar wants to get her kids more used to being around people of different races. It’s kind of a Dragon thing that the younger generations get a bit rowdy,” Dave said.
“They start thinking that they’re above other races and killing them, which is one reason we have so few children and most of them are sealed up.” Fornau sounded sad.
“Right now, I’m a bit stunned—I won’t lie. Though, what would a Dragon need?” Alkao asked. Having a family of Dragons living in Devil’s Crater was a good way to protect his people. Also, Fornau had already helped them a lot. Having him around would be a great help to the future of Devil’s Crater.
“We would need a perch, just a place away from other people that we could set up a home. Probably in one of the tree ranges, maybe in the areas where you want to have mining and timber? That way, if we go hunting, we can kill anything that comes out of the dungeons and continue to train,” Fornau said.
“So, a region along the crater wall for you to carve out a home.” Alkao nodded, sipping from his drink and thinking.
“Also, Quindar has offered to teach your forces how to fight in the skies. Anna is good, but Quindar was born in the skies and the Lady of Fire has given her blessing,” Dave said.
“I agree to the terms. But if you’re out in the crater walls, how are you going to get your children into the town?” Alkao asked.
“Well, I can help with that.” Dave smiled.
“You can? I was thinking of just flying over,” Fornau said.
“I’ve been brushing up on my teleportation!” Dave smiled. “I can probably whip up a pretty simple pad that will teleport you from your house in the crater walls to another one in the city—that way you’ve got two!”
Alkao laughed and drank from his mug. “You called Malsour uncle—but isn’t he Human?”
Dave gave Alkao a look.
“Right, dumb question.” Alkao sighed. It seemed the more he learned, the more he felt he was behind everyone by two steps.
Chapter 14: A Future Discovered
Dave and Deia sat on the porch. The kids were acting up so the Dracul family was dealing with them. Suzy had her creations working on the dishes and cleaning up and was reading inside the house. Lox, Gurren, and Steve had come by for dinner, and then stolen Alkao and Anna for a night of drinking.
Dave leaned down and kissed her head as she lay in his lap. “I love you.”
She turned, a smile on her face, and her lips puckered.
Dave grinned and kissed her again.
“I love you too,” she said as Dave pulled back. She grabbed his arm and wrapped it in hers against her stomach.
“You sure you don’t want a drink?” Dave asked.
“Nope, haven’t been feeling that well lately.” Deia frowned and nestled into his lap more. Both of them were covered with blankets, a heating lamp keeping the winter at bay.
“Okay.” Dave ran a casual look over Deia, checking for anything that might be the issue. “Uh, okay.” Dave frowned, concentrating his spell.
“Something wrong?” Deia looked to Dave.
“You find you’ve been more tired recently, or sick in the morning?” Dave asked.
“Yes, why?” Deia asked slowly. Her eyes thinned.
“Because I think it’s time we saw Doctor Jules. I think you’re pregnant.”
“What?” Deia asked, startled, as she turned her own senses inward. “How is this possible?”
“Well, I guess it must’ve been when we were in Per’ush,” Dave said.
“But how—that rune I made?”
“Well, with a lot of magical energies, runes can become weaker. Did you check it that one night when we went all night?” Dave asked.
“No, but it’s really rare for Elves to get pregnant with other Elves! How the hell did two Halflings do it so fast?” She looked around in alarm.
“I’m not sure,” Dave said.
“What are we going to do? I haven’t planned for any of this! Am I going to need to leave the Stone Raiders?” Deia sat up, her nerves clearly showing.
Dave pulled her onto his lap.
“I’m going to be a mother!” She looked at him, her shock clear.
Dave rubbed her back and brought her into a hug as she held her hands over her stomach. “I’m going to be a dad.” Dave grinned. His nerves turned to excitement.
“But, what’s going to happen?”
“You’re going to blow up like a whale and I’m going to get a bunch of sleepless nights as a body pillow with a kicker in my side.” Dave saw the worry on her face. “Babe, Deia, firecracker—we’re going to be okay.” Dave held her face and kissed her. “I love you and this is a happy moment!”
“I just—it’s so sudden. I can’t believe it.” Deia looked at Dave. His smile seemed to be infectious as her shocked face turned into a smile.
“I’m going to be a mom,” she said in a quiet voice, biting her lip and looking down at her stomach.
“Yes, yes, you are,” Dave said. In that moment, Dave was struck with her beauty, with t
he incredible woman that she was. She was smart, resourceful, driven, proud, and kind.
He squeezed her in a hug, but not too tight, and kissed her head.
She laughed and shied away from his tickling kisses.
He grabbed her sides, tickling her, making her giggle like a little girl.
“We have to go see Jules and tell the others!” Deia said.
“We’ll do a check-up with Jules tomorrow and we’ll wait till then to tell everyone,” Dave said.
“Okay, but if this is real—” Deia jumped up and down, excited.
Dave laughed and Deia sat back, leaning against him and holding his hands that circled her.
“We’re going to be parents,” Deia said.
“Damn right we are.” Dave’s thumb ran over her hands holding his.
***
Jules looked up from the box of medical supplies she was organizing. Her eyes fell on Dave and Deia as they entered her clinic in Terra.
“Hey! Sorry we couldn’t make it out the other day. Esa has been swarmed with training and I have been stuck with a bunch of patients.” Jules smiled and greeted them.
“No worries, Jules. We were wondering if you could check something for us,” Dave said.
“Oh? Did you break something?” Jules joked.
“No. Well, could you look over Deia?” Dave asked.
“Sure.” Jules held out a hand; Deia put hers in it. Jules looked over Deia. No visible trauma—though…that’s weird. Okay, that’s, well, anatomically it makes sense, but how the hell is that in a game?
Jules looked up at Deia with a puzzled look.
“Uh, so it looks like you’re pregnant. I guess you should talk to Jukal Enterprises to get that bug fixed.” Jules shrugged.
“What? Are you kidding? Do you know how hard it is for an Elf to have a child anyway?” Deia held her hands protectively over her stomach as she looked away, leaning into Dave’s embrace.
“Well, Players don’t have children. This is a game. Only POEs have kids and Players are infertile, with the game’s rules.” Jules snorted.
Stone Raiders' Return (Emerilia Book 6) Page 17