by K V Deal
Still, the rent was free here as long as I kept working for the city. The food, too, if you were willing to go to the small cafeteria on the first floor. It wasn't the best food I had ever tasted, but it saved on money.
It wasn't like I had a lack of funds though. I had over fifty gold coins in my ring, almost sixty if you counted the seven new ones. The problem was that my hoarding instinct made it really hard to get myself to spend money even when I really should. If I had to name one thing that sucked about being a dragon, that would be it.
I reached the door and slid the key into the lock and paused.
Something felt…off.
I frowned as I tried to figure out what was going on. The door was still locked, so it wasn't that.
No... It was that I could feel magic inside the room. Something strong. Not like a dungeon, but more than a normal magic item. I hadn't left anything that magical in there. Hell, I didn't own anything that felt like that. What was going on in there?
Anger began to bloom. I may have all the important stuff on me, but I had left some junk in there, and it was MY junk!
The image of the time the Inquisitors had trashed Charlie's old room flashed into my head. No way I was gonna let someone wreck my room like that! Before I could think things through, my hand had gripped the doorknob, and I threw open the door.
Fire filled my view, streaming past me into the hall, glowing a bright orange as it slid around my body. Most people would have been screaming as they burned down to ashes on the floor right now. Me? One of the nice things about being a dragon was that I was pretty much impervious to fire. My clothes, on the other hand, were not. They quickly burnt off my frame, not that I had time to deal with that.
Laughter came from in my room. “That’s right! Burn Baby Burn!” I could barely hear the voice over the roar of the flames.
I narrowed my eyes, and began to force my way into the room, shoving my way past the flames. Even ignoring the heat like I was, I still couldn't see past the light show rushing at me. I reached out trying to feel past the flames and grab the bastard.
“Whoops! Guess that won’t work!” the voice cheerfully called out.
There was a sound, much like a bubble of gum finally popping. Then the flames and light where gone.
I blinked my eyes trying to adjust to the sudden return to lamplight. As my sight returned, I saw...well, nothing. The room was just as I had left it. There was no sign that the flames had touched a thing.
I spun around. There too, on the doorway and in the hall behind it, nothing. It was as if the flames had never been existed. Had...had I just imagined it?
I dropped my hand to my side and my palm brushed against skin and scales. No, I hadn’t been seeing things. My clothing was gone. What the hell had just happened?
Even if I put the disappearing fire aside, how the hell had someone gotten in here? The door had been locked! And how the hell had they gotten away? I had been blocking the doorway!
I ran a hand over my face as I tried to think. The locks in this building were pick proof. A few experts had tried to get the doors open in the past but had always failed due to the magical nature of the locks. It was the reason that this place had been chosen as housing for city workers.
Still, this wasn't the first time a room here had been broken into. When I had first woken up, an inquisitor had managed to get into Charlie's former room after she had moved out. I knew that it had been investigated, but I never had heard how it had ended. Maybe it was time to follow up on that.
But first, new clothing.
I could have just pulled some out of my ring, I did have a spare set in there, but I wanted to check on everything I had left here.
You know, just to make sure it was safe.
I hurried over to my dresser and yanked open a drawer and then two more. Everything was still there, both the few books I had left behind and an extra set of clothing or two. I let out a sigh of relief.
While I was glad that everything was safe, that meant theft hadn't been the goal. Somebody was out to kill me.
Joy.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Chapter 5
Henry stood in my room glowering as he looked around. The horns coming out of both sides of his head and the cow tail showed he was a Changed, at least a Day Four by my guess. His nose was wider and flatter than a normal human’s, and something about his eyes seemed to give him a permanent angry expression. Although, that could have been a human trait too.
Right now, though, I was pretty sure he was actually angry.
I’d found him buried in paperwork and almost had to drag him up the stairs to look at the room.
“There's nothing here. What? Do you expect me to believe there was somebody in here who just,” he did air quotes with fingers, “magically disappeared?”
Pretty sure he didn't believe my story.
“Look at the ash around the door! That was my clothing!”
“Right...” He gave me a look. “Look, ash comes from a lot of things, especially when you can spit fire. Lemme guess. You lit something up and want an excuse? Don't waste my time!” He stomped back towards the door.
I just watched him, my mouth almost hanging open. He was the most bullheaded…Oops, that's a racial slur. Stubborn. Let's use stubborn. The most stubborn jerk I had ever met!
Henry slammed the door behind him as he left, leaving me to glare after him. “Well nice to know security is on the job.”
I looked around the room. Shadows danced and leapt in the light of my lamp. Usually I could ignore its effect unless I needed it, but right now it just added to my feelings of unease.
My tail was beating at a frantic pace. I didn't feel safe here.
That was about when I realized I was already gathering up everything I considered mine and piling it on the bed. I stared down at the clothing that was in my current arm load.
Guess I had already made up my mind.
I wasn't going to spend another night in this room. Storing everything into my ring, I headed into the hall and down the stairs.
Pausing in the lobby, I took a moment to think about my next move.
If I wasn't going to stay here, that meant I was going to need a new place to sleep at least.
Right now, I really wished I had listened more when Carah was grilling Charlie about how she’d bought her new place.
Well... At least it was easy to figure out where to start. I headed for Charlie’s house.
While I’d heard her boast about it in the past, when I actually got to the house, I was kinda let down. The outside looked like a squat four-story square box made of large stone blocks, every one a different shade of gray. No windows either.
The only nice thing I could see about it was the house was pretty damn big, stretching across three lots. But still, not much on curb appeal.
It did look sturdy and safe though.
Hoping she was home, I walked up to a large, wooden gate set in the middle of the wall. It stretched up at least two stories. There was no way this was practical. If I went through the same guy as her, was this what I was signing up for? Well, not like I had any other ideas. I sighed and gave the door a knock.
There was silence.
I waited a minute or so and then tried again.
“You’re not gonna get an answer! I 'm busy!”
That was Charlie. Hopefully, I wasn't interrupting anything really important.
“Charlie! It’s me!” Hopefully, she could hear me through the wall.
“Jake?” There was more silence, and then, with a creak, the large gate swung open and Charlie looked out. “What are ya doing here so early?”
“Sorry… I decided to buy a house, and I was hoping you had time to give me some advice.”
She gave me an odd look. “Funny ya should be asking about that.”
She took a step back and gestured me inside. I slipped in through the gate, and she closed it behind me. Now that I was inside, I could see that the wall was about three feet t
hick. That definitely added to the feeling of safeness here.
I blinked in surprise as we stepped back out into the sunlight. A skylight?
No! A courtyard! This was completely different from the exterior. Here, plants and ivy grew up the stone walls breaking up the boring gray. A stone path twisted off behind a screen of manicured plants. Not really my thing, but it was very pretty.
“Well, Dragon. Welcome to my home. Come on.” And with that she began to tromp her way along the path. I couldn't help but notice she was still wearing her leather jacket, with the front all closed up. It seemed a little strange, but maybe she was cold. I didn't really feel it, but hey, who knows?
As I followed her, I was starting to realize that just about everything I had seen was just the outer wall. Ahead of us, a roof began to show through the bushes. Judging by the roof’s location, the building it was covering must be against the far wall.
That seemed a bit silly. If it’s raining, you gotta walk this long path to get to shelter?
Anyways, a two-story cottage showed itself as we rounded the bend. It was a pretty thing, dark wood around the windows and decorative metal work across the windows. In front of the intricately carved front door was a stone patio with a large metalwork table.
And Axle and Carah.
I blinked in surprise.
“Jake!” Carah waved at me, a large grin on her face.
“I…thought we were meeting for dinner?”
“Yeah. That’s what I thought too,” Charlie drawled with an annoyed look. “But Axle wanted to talk about houses, ya know, spending that gold ya found. We were about to head over to talk to somebody, when Carah there comes a knocking at my door with an armful of house sketches.”
“Well I’ve never bought a house before. Neither has B! Who else would I come to?” Carah looked up at Charlie.
“It saved us a trip at least.” Axle was comparing two, one-foot-square canvases. Each had the image of a house on the front and a description on the back. About twenty or so more of them were stacked up in piles that were spread across the table.
I stepped up and took a peek at one. It was an immaculate painting of a large house. It was so detailed, it looked more like a photo than a painting.
“Pretty good right?” Cara said, grinning. "I hear they hired a painter with a nifty magic brush to make them.”
“How the heck did you get all of these here?” I asked. “You must have needed…”
Charlie pointed at a wheelbarrow.
“Ah.” Well that answered my question.
“Well… ya might as well pull up a chair.” Charlie sighed and sat down at the table.
I eyed one of the chairs. I really hoped it was going to support my weight. I gingerly sat down. It creaked a little, but it didn’t break.
“So, what brought you over so early?” Axle asked as he looked at one of the paintings.
“Ran into some trouble at the apartment. Figured it was best if I found a new place to live after that.” I picked up one of the paintings and began to study the house on it.
“Wait, what?” Axle looked up at me sharply. “What did you do now?”
“I didn't do anything! Somebody ambushed me in my room! Again!”
There was silence. I looked up from the painting to see them all staring at me.
“Come again?” Carah asked.
“Somebody was waiting in my room and tried to burn me alive. They must’ve used some kind of magic item, since the fire only targeted me. Didn't even touch the rest of the room. Then they somehow got away, just pop and gone. Oh, and security's complete lack of concern really brought it home that I wasn't safe there.” I almost spit out that last sentence.
“Holy shit...” Carah looked at me with worried eyes. “You’re okay, right?”
“Burnt my clothes to ashes in seconds, but I'm alright. Just...” I sighed and rubbed my eyes. “This is the second time something like this has happened. Why does this keep happening to me? Nobody else has said anything about this happening to them.”
“As if they’d survive to talk about it.” Charlie stood up. “Look, ya two keep looking those over okay? I'm gonna grab the dragon for a bit. The mayor needs to know about this.”
“Seriously?” Even though I said that, I was already standing up.
“Seriously. Ya might not have been the first. Depending on how whatever it was works, they could have been doing this for a while, and we just wouldn't be noticing. Seems perfect for assassination.”
Half-an-hour later we were in the mayor's office, where I had just finished spilling out my story again. Third time’s the charm?
Gloria rocked back in her chair, careful to grab the lip of the desk to make sure she didn't topple over as she took in my words.
“That’s...disconcerting. Especially that it could happen in an instant. There was no warning?”
“Well... I mean, there kind of was, but I don't know how many people would be able to tell. I could feel a buildup of magic inside the room before I opened the door.”
“Hmmm... Nice to know you could tell, but you’re right. That doesn't help most people.” She rubbed her chin with a squeak of metal on metal.
“Also, going in there solo when ya know there was something weird going on in there? That wasn't your brightest move, ya know?” Charlie added from beside me.
I grumbled for a second or two before answering. “I thought it might be another dungeon.”
“Ya thought it was a dungeon,” Charlie said in a deadpan voice. “How about ya let me guess. Ya thought that it had come to eat your stuff again.”
I didn’t answer, turning away to look at the wall. Or actually the pile of knickknacks in front of the wall.
Gloria barked out a laugh. “Sorry! But if it was as easy to make dungeons as just you spending a few days there, I got a few warehouses that I need you to camp out in for a bit.”
Alright, I knew that was a bit stupid. But considering what had happened to me, I felt I was justified to worry. I crossed my arms and glared at the two of them.
Gloria coughed. “Right. Serious again. I’ll get some people to look into this. We may need to check all the rooms that are supposed to be occupied if we haven't seen the person in a few days.” She leaned forward, putting her elbows on the desk and interlacing her fingers.
I had always wondered why there were those two cleared spots on the over-loaded desk. Looking at where her elbows were sitting, now I knew why.
“Not sure getting your own place is going to solve anything though. Until we know if this was just bad luck, or if they were specifically aiming for you, living by yourself isn't wise, especially when the Inquisitors might be behind it.” She turned to Charlie. “You have your own place. Can he stay with you for a day or two? In fact, I would be more comfortable if your whole team stayed together for now, just in case they try again.”
“Alright. I see the safety-in-numbers route your taking, but me and Axle aren't fireproof and Carah's just resistant, not proof. Seems kinda dangerous.” Charlie fingered at her jacket, clenching her free hand into a fist.
“Not...,” Gloria said, reaching over and moving a statue of a dancing bear off of a small box on her desk, “…with these.” She flipped open the box showing a set of ruby earrings and a pendant made of some kind of red metal.
I could feel the magic in them.
“I guess it really shouldn't be that surprising, but protection-based magic items are actually more common than we thought. Both of these protect their wearers from fire and heat.” Gloria clenched a fist on the desk. “We used to have more, but we supplied the fire dungeon team...”
And as I recalled, there wasn't a single magic item there when we found them.
“Right,” I said.
"But ya need both earrings for them to work, right? That's two out of three.” Charlie said eyeing the jewelry.
“Of course.” Gloria looked at me. “That’s why I want to buy that ring off of you.”
I blinked.
“What ring?” Even I could hear the edge in my voice.
“The one called ‘The Grandmaster of Fire.’ It’s in your storage.”
I blinked and checked the list. Sure enough, there it was. I retrieved it. A gold ring, the band shaped to look like fire curling and swirling around a ruby set at the center, appeared in my palm.
Ah. That ring.
My hand closed over it as I glanced up at the mayor.
She eyed me. “It’s not for me. We’re going to purchase it, and then give it to your team for protection. It can protect the wearer from fire and has a few other tricks that offer some interesting possibilities, like enhancing fire magic. Not that I know of anyone who can use that magic right now.” She jabbed a finger at me. “None of which are useful for you. So, keeping it when it could save one of your teammates’ lives is the height of selfishness.”
I winced. Looking down at the ring I swallowed hard, then slowly reached out and extended my hand over the box. I hesitated, fighting with myself. It was MY ring…but this was the right thing to do. Twisting my hand, I let the ring drop. It almost felt like my heart was dropping with it.
Stupid instincts.
Gloria snapped the box shut, removing the ring from my sight. She handed the box to Charlie. “Good job. I’ve already started the paperwork to add two gold to your wages for the week. You be able to pick it up in the usual place. Now off you go. I have to get a group together to look into this assassin.” A sigh echoed out of her helmet as she shooed us out of the room.
Out in the hall, Charlie gave me a smile. “Thanks, Dragon. Nice to know ya think were worth more than a ring.”
“Of course,” I muttered distractedly. “Charlie, I didn't know.”
“Didn't know what?”
“Something like this and I didn't even think about it...”
“What, Dragon?” She began to eye me worriedly.
“How did I never ask if we got paid?”
“Really!?”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
chapter 6
We hit Accounting as we left City Hall. I had roughly twenty silver waiting for me. The payment for the ring hadn't come through yet. At first, I was a little bit disappointed. Until now, I had always been thinking in terms of gold. Then Charlie stepped in to put things in perspective.