To Save The Broken Heart: Dragons, Griffons and Centaurs, Oh My! (Dragons, Griffons, and Centaurs, Oh My!)

by Margaret Taylor

  He smiled, his whiskers twitching. “Indeed you will.”

  And with that, like Mithrin, he headed back into the trees on a bouncing hop, using his tail to whisk away his tracks.

  A couple of days ago, while passing the time, she’d remembered what Terra had said about some sort of knife Golix had intended to use on her twin when they’d first met. But, her sister had lost it when she and Draven had been captured and she’d asked Furiem to search for it. Her hope was it was something magical and or mystical.

  If it was, it might be enough to slit the Golix’s throat…when the time was right.

  If it wasn’t, well, she’d end up dead. As in dead-dead this time, cause there wasn’t a Harpy around to bring her back.

  That was ok. Everyone already believed she was, so, no harm, no foul.

  But, if she could take the black bastard with her when she went…so much the better!

  Chapter Eleven

  Mithrin found the first coral reef he could and stretched out to grab some sleep. He set Fancar loose to graze nearby, confident his mount would alert him to any trouble.

  But, sleep wasn’t forthcoming. Not easily at least.

  Rolling onto his back, he stared up through the crystal water, watching the waves roll by. His thoughts drifted, moving along with no real rhyme or reason then suddenly focused on Lanni.

  Like crashing surf, they coalesced into the perfect picture she’d made eating that damnable mango.

  The juice had glittered on her chin and he wanted to lick it clean…

  Her lips had been wet and sticky and he wanted to taste the sweetness for himself…

  A drop had trickled off her jaw and he wanted to catch it, bringing it back to his own mouth…

  Oh, he was in deep trouble.

  His father’s firm edict of non-interference with mortals rang in his ears. He’d already broken a half-a-dozen of their laws and was bordering on crossing the most firm, but he couldn’t help it.

  His soul ached with some inexplicable need and that should have disturbed him.

  But it didn’t. It felt right. Like he’d lived a thousand Suns just to be right here, right now.

  Naiad’s had always been seen as Gods, or Goddesses, but the reality was, they were just long-lived. Some passing into Ancient even.

  Like Neptune…

  And despite the myths, they didn’t have God like powers. Some of them had a version of it, like Phara would could control the weather, but most didn’t. And the legend that they were all female and bound to fresh water was another they let perpetuate through history.

  The truth was much simpler. Most of his kin had come from various Ancient Gods, Zeus, Heracles, and Apollo to name a few. And like Dragons, there was a chance a child of their blood could inherit a modicum of their powers.

  Most didn’t, but a few did.

  Phara’s mother had slept with Aeolus, the God of winds, at one time and she was the result. Neptune had not been pleased over the affair but was equally heartbroken when she died during Phara’s birth. Whether it was her passing or something more, his younger sister showed aptitude with all forms of rain and wind very early and had been honing it ever since.

  He had not been so lucky and only inherited his father’s sense of preservation and leadership. The Naiad’s he called family were all looking to him to fill his father’s shoes…some rotation.

  He had been content to just watch the world go by around them. Like most, they weren’t needed anymore. The creatures of this world had moved on. They were no longer worshiped, which was fine with him and with most of the others, truth be told.

  They enjoyed a peaceful existence under the waves, left alone to monitor the seas as they saw fit. And until 20 rotations ago, no one really knew they were still around. Not until the first of the grand ships built by the Cyclops in Kelas had begun to cross the open waters with any regularity.

  Fancar nudged his arm, jerking him out of the half-sleep state he’d fallen into. Stretching, he checked the surface, noting the growing darkness. By the time he made it back, they should be alone.

  He wanted more time with Lanni, wanted to talk, to get to know her and tonight he would do just that, setting aside the work, or rather, leave it to the others…

  It wasn’t to be though.

  When he arrived, he found things had gone from bad to worse. For her.

  Golix apparently had not been pleased when more had actually gone wrong, even after he’d bound her in the cage.

  She was laying on her side, barely able to draw a full breath. Her hands had been pulled up under her chin and the harness of rope around her upper body pinned her arms tightly to her chest and sides. Her legs were bent, calves touching her thighs and were tied off in the back. The bastard had even gagged her with a strip of cloth.

  That wasn’t the worst part. No, it was the large stake someone had driven into the sand. Tied about halfway up was a rope and one end had been looped around her neck to keep her in the dead center of the prison.

  He started across the sand, but a loud hiss from left drew him up short, as did her frantically waving fingers, warning him back. Ducking into the foliage, Furiem scampered up a tree so they were eye-level, his little chest heaving at the humid air.

  “You cannot go near her,” he whispered.

  He clenched his hands into fists, trying to hide their shake. “Why not?”

  “Golix installed a monitoring device,” the ferret replied, pointing to the upper corner of the cage.

  Sure enough, a little red dot blinked in the darkness. Of all the…

  “Why?” he asked again.

  Furiem quickly explained. “He found another of the ships, the one you took last night.”

  He scrubbed a hand down his face, regretting the decision to climb aboard and wreck the bridge while it was being towed out by the whales. He thought he was helping, but clearly not. “So he knows she had help?”

  “He is guessing, but yes. And is now trying to catch us at it.”

  He punched the tree, shaking the leaves. “So, what do we do?”

  Furiem sighed. “We wait.”

  He shook his head. “No, we do not. We continue.” He jerked a nod toward his poor Lanni. “If he has proof she did not move and things continue to fall apart, it will cause more havoc.”

  Furiem’s face pinched with doubt. “Are you sure?”

  “Not in the slightest. But it is the best we can do.”

  ***

  Lanni heaved herself over onto her other side the next morning, waiting for Golix’s customary appearance.

  And, sure enough, he exited the cave and strode down the beach like clockwork.

  Fortunately, Furiem had caught Mithrin in time last night. He’d wanted to come to the cage though, she’d seen it in the set of his shoulders and the dark look on his face, but he hadn’t. She made a mental note to hug the little ferret when she could for his perfectly timed interference.

  “What?!”

  Golix’s bellow rang across the breeze and she smiled around the strip of cloth between her lips.

  “How is this possible?”

  Her two cohorts in crime had outdone themselves. Furiem had set all the Basalisk’s loose, along with a few more he’d gotten from somewhere and Mithrin had taken three ships, instead of the usual one.

  She watched the Unicorn pacing back and forth, his head jerking up and down wildly as one of the Satyr’s made his report.

  “Inconceivable!” he finally shouted, his red eyes coming to hers. Ducking his long head, he burst into a gallop and slid to a halt just outside her prison, sending a wave of sand through the bars.

  She ducked but still ended up with a mouthful of it. Spitting it out as best she could, she sighed.

  “How? When?” Golix questioned, pacing back and forth. His tail swished at the air and his eyes glowed a bright red. “Who is helping you witch?”

  She shrugged and gave him a look she hoped said something along the lines of, Really? You expect me to
answer?

  He growled and shoved one of the Satyr’s with his flank. The poor minion entered the cage and roughly jerked the cloth out.

  She licked her dry lips. “How should I know? I was right here, exactly where you put me asshole. Did you ever think you might have a traitor of your own?”

  She was baiting him and it worked. The red in his eyes brightened and he jerked his head back, snorting loudly. She kept it up, shrugging against the ropes. “I mean come on, I can’t move, you idiot! How could I have untied myself, done whatever you think it is I’ve done and retied myself. Be logical here.”

  His eyes pinched. “You have help.”

  He was trying to sound confident but there was doubt underlying those three simple words and she pounced on it. “Really? From who? You destroyed the only family I had left when you killed Dinsa.” She let a tear fall to the sand, not holding back. Her bottom lip quivered and she kept up the pressure. “I haven’t got another in my pocket either. If I did, trust me, I’d just fly right out of here!”

  He stomped through the sand and she could see the wheels turning. She wanted to push more, but didn’t. He wasn’t stupid and he wasn’t power mad. She’d have to let him work it out on his own.

  And he did.

  Eventually he turned back toward the beasties in the distance and she could see the calculations working their way through his thoughts by the emotions spinning across his long face.

  “Fine.”

  He nodded at the minion still in the cage. The creature untied her legs but left the rest of the harness around her upper body and her ankles bound together. He removed the rope around her neck and she drew a breath, gulping at the freedom. She struggled against the bonds. “This isn’t necessary. I haven’t done anything.”

  Golix snorted. “And that will ensure you continue to behave until I have need of you.”

  Ah, there it was. A chink in the armor and again, she pounced on it. “And when will that be?”

  He swung a look toward the beach then out across the water. “Not as soon as I had hoped, but you need not worry. Your purpose will become clear at the appropriate time.” He turned and walked away, muttering under his breath.

  Well, it was a start. There was a purpose, a reason he was keeping her alive. Now she just needed to figure out what. The Satyr gave her a pitying look as he dug the stake out and another when he took the camera down from the corner.

  Bunching her stomach muscles, she sat up, calling out to the misshapen creature. “Could I have some water, please?”

  He paused in the doorway, cutting a look back over his hunched shoulder. “Promise not to tell the Master?”

  She nodded. She was really thirsty after all.

  He dropped the stuff on a table by the food tent and returned with a cup, holding to her lips. She downed it, the cool substance bolstering her spirits.

  “Thank you,” she said when it was empty.

  The Satyr nodded and squatted next to her for a moment. “You really should not bait him so.”

  “I wasn’t,” she lied. “I was just being honest.”

  His greenish-yellow eyes searched hers. “Just be careful. He will kill you.”

  She didn’t doubt that, but not before she’d fulfilled his goals. “Do you know what he intends for me to do?”

  He shrugged one twisted shoulder and jerked his chin toward the water. “From what I have heard him say, he needs you to fly those ships.”

  Ok, that she wasn’t expecting…

  Her new friend left after imparting that little tidbit and she scooted slowly across the sand to lean against the bars.

  As the day passed, she twisted the information over and around and through her brain. And it made a perverse sort of sense.

  If her ability to commune with animals was blood based then it would stand to reason he’d need her to, at the very least, get the blood soaked metal off the ground.

  But, what if it was more?

  What if they couldn’t stay in the air without her…

  The mystery deepened as she sat there and until she had more to go on, it was purely speculation. It did, however, help her begin to form a new plan. An altogether wild and crazy scheme that if it worked, would give them an advantage they didn’t have now.

  If it doesn’t?

  Well then, she would have wasted some pretty valuable time. If she allowed him to finish refitting the ships and it didn’t work the way she was thinking, they were fucked.

  Royally.

  Mithrin’s appearance next to the bars startled her and she bit back on a screech.

  He smiled. “I apologize. Are you well?”

  She returned it. “I am. I was just lost in thought.”

  He cut open an orange looking thing and held some of it up to lips. “And what were you thinking?”

  She chewed, trying to finalize this new hair brained idea. “We need to stop.”

  “What?” he hissed. “You cannot be serious!”

  She turned and rested on her hip, hoping the urgency in her voice would be enough as she explained what she’d learned. “I am,” she added at the end. “Look, I need you to do something.”

  He quirked an eyebrow.

  “Find Draven and Terra. They were headed for Lad’ak and they need to know what’s going on.”

  His jaw creaked dangerously and one hand slipped around the back of her neck. “I will not leave you!”

  She gulped, her heart swelling with the fierceness in his tone. Her response wasn’t much more than an emotion filled croak. “You have too. It’s the only way.”

  The fingers twisted into her hair and his other hand came through the bars, curling around her cheek. “No.”

  She leaned into his palm. “Yes! Mithrin, even if this works and I can control the ships, someone is going to have to take them out. We’ll need Draven and Terra and anyone else they can find.” Tears pooled in her eyes but she blinked them back, hoping she sounded braver than she felt. “You have to go. You’re the only one that can,” she added shrugging against the ropes.

  He growled, low and deep and his hands tightened. Closing his eyes, he leaned his forehead against the bars and pulled her forward enough to touch them together. His next words were a soothing balm to her empty soul.

  “You stay alive. You hear me, Lanni Heegan! No matter what, you stay alive. I will return for you!”

  Chapter Twelve

  Lanni stared at the surf long after Mithrin had disappeared into it. She wanted him to come back, craved to see his smile, longed to hear his soft, and yes somewhat regal, chuckle. Ached to look into his eyes, needed to feel his fingers caress her face.

  It wasn’t going to happen, but she gave herself about an hour of self-pity before getting back to work.

  Flopping onto her side then her stomach, she slowly wormed her way to the corner where she’d buried the dagger. It wasn’t easy, but with a slow, steady twisting motion of her upper body, she managed.

  Once there, she whistled softly. Furiem, her ever present guardian of sorts, poked his little nose into the open then scampered across the sand.

  “Are you alright, M’lady?”

  She really wished he’d quit calling her that. “I’m fine. Look, you need to go too.”

  He blinked, clearly surprised at the request. “And do what? Is my purpose not better served here?”

  “Not if the City falls. Can you get back to Bra’ka?”

  He stroked his whiskers. “I suppose. There is a garrison on the eastern shore. If I had some sort of transportation, I might be able to get there in a rotation or two.”

  “You can ride?”

  He shrugged. “Depends on the creature.”

  She nodded toward the surrounding jungle. “Find something then. I’ll make sure it gets you there safe and sound.”

  Doubt pinched across his face but he nodded and darted off.

  While he was gone, she twisted around, trying to get her hands to the spot she’d buried Mithrin’s blade. They were tied
to tightly to her chest though and her head kept thunking into the bars. Scooting back again, she started using her chin and by the time Furiem returned, a weird looking cat in tow, she had the tip uncovered.

  “Would you like some help?” he asked solicitously.

  “No, I’m good.”

  She eyed his choice of mounts. It was a cross between a miniaturized panther and a domestic silver and gray tabby. Two long teeth, like a Sabertooth’s, hung from its upper jaw and its silver eyes took her in warily. “Easy, easy now little one, come here,” she urged, snapping her fingers softly.

  It inched forward, drew back and she crooned. She really didn’t have time, but one couldn’t rush these things. Keeping her face impassive she continued to croon and wriggle her fingers, stretching against the ropes as much as she could.

  Eventually it seemed to understand and butted its head into her palm. That was all she needed and passed along her desire on a spark of thought.

  It purred in response then turned and licked Furiem across the top of his head. The ferret sputtered and swiped the drool from his fur, giving it a glare.

  “She will help you.”

  He harrumphed. “Very well, just ask her not to lick me again.”

  She chuckled and dipped enough to stare into the cats eyes. “Get him there safe and sound please. Protect him.”

  It licked its lips and Furiem swung up on its back. “I will return once I deliver the message at the garrison.”

  She lifted her gaze to his. “No. Get all the way to Bra’ka. This is too important. Tell only those you trust. Understand?”

  He sighed and a pained look filled his eyes. “I do not like leaving you.”

  “I’ll be fine. Now go.”

  He turned the cat then paused. “The item is in the fourth tree base.”

  She’d almost forgotten about that. “I’ll get it. Now go!”

  He did, urging the beast into a sprint before they’d even cleared the sand.

  When he was gone, she resumed her effort to get the dagger free. Blowing softly, she uncovered enough of the hilt to get her teeth around it and eased it out. Scooting back, she dropped it and wrapped her fingers around it. Twisting it flat, she tucked it down behind her hands, ready for use when the time was right.