by DL O'Neal
Drakthe thought it was the ugliest thing he'd even seen.
"Get lost. Go find your own woman."
"Drakthe!" Cheyna scolded, sounding torn between laughter and embarrassment.
He dropped a kiss on her chin. Balancing his weight on his elbows, he stared down into her eyes.
"He's not disgruntled because we're using his bed, Cheyna, it's what we're doing on it he's mad about."
Laughter won.
"Certainly, my lord. Anyone with eyes can see I am his type." Cheyna lifted a scarlet brow in perfect imitation of Drakthe's when he was questioning her sanity. "Only see how well we match. He with his red eyes and blue tongue, me with my blue eyes and red hair. A perfect match." Her mouth quivered with restrained mirth.
Drakthe opened his mouth, a wicked retort hovering on the tip of his tongue, when he closed it and a smug snort escaped.
"See? What did I tell you bondwife? It's what we were doing that has his ba--"
"Drakthe!"
"Has his tail twisted," Drakthe finished with nary a break. He leaned further back on his elbows so he could stare at the runty animal, half-reptile and half-mammal, who was now curled possessively in the hollow of Cheyna's throat. Baleful red eyes dared Drakthe to come any closer.
Drakthe considered flicking the annoying creature away and returning to pleasure. He dropped the idea with a regretful grimace. Abusing a creature smaller than his palm would not endear him to his bondwife. His sorrowful sigh only partly for show, Drakthe heaved to his feet. He stared down at his bondwife's slender form, but spoke to the undersized intruder.
"For your sake, it's a lucky thing my bondwife has a soft heart."
Cheyna gave a gurgle of laughter.
As her mirth rang out, something in Drakthe's heart lightened and soared in the twilight with the sound. That place of ice, hidden deep in his chest, vaporized.
Cheyna sat up, scooping the animal from her neck at the same time. She petted the strange creature with the tip of one finger, afraid even that light pressure would damage the tiny animal.
"I think he is cute, my lord." It reminded her of a geekt, though much smaller. And like a geekt, it seemed to instinctively seek out the companionship of a human. Slia and Sbraithe never forewent an opportunity to tease her about her affinity with the lizard-like animals. Reminded of her foster parents, a pang of homesickness mixed with the still sharp sense of betrayal.
They were part of the past, she told herself. As soon would be Drakthe, an unwelcomed voice whispered. Cheyna firmly shut the voice out. She would deal with that later.
A minuscule blue tongue flickered out and tickled the pad of her finger, distracting her from her morose thoughts. Cheyna fell in love in the space of a heartbeat.
"Uh uh. Forget it, House-daughter. We're not taking him." Unmindful of his nudity, Drakthe headed toward the taigers.
Cheyna wished she could ignore it as easily. All she had to do was look at him and forget what she was thinking. Her bondmate was magnificently formed, a male animal in full prime.
"Ssss."
Recalled to her new friend, Cheyna reluctantly dragged her gaze away from Drakthe and to the contented animal cradled in her cupped hand. "I do not know, my lord. A woman never knows when she'll need such a fierce protector."
Drakthe shot her a derisive glance.
"Well, after all, he did back down the great Merchant Master." She brought the colorful creature up to eye level. A blue tongue reached out and flicked the end of her nose.
Cheyna giggled.
She wondered if the little animal would mind riding in the pocket of her burnuese. If the way he curled up in her palm was any indication, probably not.
Drakthe on the other hand, would have definite objections.
"Cheyna?"
Something in the tone of his voice stilled her laughter, and prompted her to join him at the head of the trail, shrugging into her burnuese as she went.
"Didn't you say a sleeping drquon guarded the secrets of the Crystal Sheathe?"
"Yes." She looked at him inquiringly as she finished pulling her cloak around her.
"It seems, bondwife, that the drquon is about to wake."
He pointed straight down the trail to a jumbled range of huge stones or caves jutting out from a hillside. A lush green veil covered but did not hide the form of a slumbering drquon.
"Is that...?" Her hushed voice barely rippled the air of the deepening night.
"That's it, House-daughter, the end of our journey."
"Do you think a series of caves forms the outline of the sleeping drquon?" Cheyna's voice was quiet as she lifted her face to the cool, damp morning air. She seemed unwilling to disturb the hush, muted sounds of breaking dawn.
Drakthe had no such qualms. "What's the matter, House-daughter? Didn't your magic stones tell you?" he demanded. His words hung in the air. He grimaced in self-disgust at the need to needle her.
She didn't rise to his provocation.
"It's as good an explanation as any," he finally agreed when she didn't say anything. "So far the Advisors have seemed to have an affinity for hiding things in caves."
"They were not 'hiding things'," she objected, "they were protecting the memory crystals."
He waved a dismissing hand. "Semantics." He slanted her a questioning glance from under lowered lashes. "I don't suppose they told you exactly what we're looking for." Guilt flashed across her face. "Cheyna?" His lips thinned. He had a gut feeling he wasn't going to like what he was about to hear.
She stared at the female taiger's ears.
"Cheyna?"
She licked her lips. "A memory crystal."
A long, low string of curses scorched the air. His feeling was correct. He didn't like what he was hearing. The last thing he wanted to learn was another memory crystal existed.
Cheyna turned in the saddle and placed a calming hand on his arm.
He flinched.
She rushed into speech. "I was not attempting to deceive you, my lord."
Drakthe shrugged her hand off. "You can say that after withholding information from me?"
"I did not withhold it. Not exactly."
"No?"
"I knew you would be unhappy to learn of another memory crystal," she blurted out. "I did not want you to fuss." Twin spots of red flamed high on her cheeks.
Drakthe nearly fell off his taiger. It took him a moment to find his voice. "You didn't want me to fuss?" She didn't want him to fuss? The woman who had pushed him into the hot pools without a second thought didn't want him to fuss? Drakthe closed his teeth on the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing. The explanation was so ridiculous it had to be the truth.
She nodded unhappily. "You do not like anything to do with the crystals. You've made that quite clear. Matters were so serene between us," she said wistfully. "I wanted them to stay that way." She played with her taiger's mane, refusing to look anywhere but down. "It was selfish and unwise of me."
Drakthe studied her lowered head. At last, he reached out cupped her chin. He exerted just enough pressure to force her to meet his eyes.
"Unwise," he agreed, "but selfish?" He stroked one finger down the soft skin of her cheek. "I have a confession. I, too, enjoyed the lack of disharmony." Drakthe shook his head in disbelief. Jkael. Now she had him talking with her quaint formality. He went on. "I shouldn't have made you feel you couldn't share with me."
"You did not!" she rushed to refute.
"Are we now going to fight over who was at fault?"
"No, my lord. I will readily agree that the fault was yours." She grinned.
Drakthe leaned over and kissed the smile on her lips. He lifted his head. "No more secrets, Cheyna," he said, serious.
She covered his hand where it cupped the nape of her neck. "No more secrets, Drakthe."
"You know," Drakthe said a long while later startling Cheyna from a light doze in the saddle, "something about that shape bothers me."
Cheyna dabbed at her temples. "What do yo
u mean?" Immediately, fresh rivulets of sweat ran down to drip off her chin. She could not believe how close and hot it was when only hours ago it had been cool and damp.
The jungle crowded in, turning the trail into a claustrophobic green tunnel that seemed to have no end. She licked her lips and blinked heat-induced fatigue from her eyes. Last night, from the crest of the trail, the sleeping drquon had seemed only a few miles away. Yet, they had traversed three times that and were not discernibly closer. She struggled to pay attention to Drakthe.
He shrugged his shoulders in irritation. "I don't know. It's just so . . . symmetrical. Doesn't seem right, somehow."
Surrounded by the dense jungle, Cheyna closed her eyes and pictured the sleeping drquon the way it had appeared last eve. The head and long, graceful neck curved away from the mass that formed the body. It reminded her of an animal just curling onto its side to sleep. Tall spires adorned its spine and marched down the tail at measured intervals. The drquon was perfectly balanced.
Too perfectly balanced.
Rarely does nature draw precise replicas. Nature's beauty was in its imperfections. "My lord." Excitement replaced fatigue. Suddenly, Cheyna was wide awake. "Drakthe, it may be artificial."
"What makes you say that?"
"Because the spires on the beast's spine and tail are spaced at precise intervals."
Satisfaction gleamed in the golden gaze. "I knew something was not quite right about that beast. We're getting close, House-daughter. I can feel it."
"The Merchant Master relies on 'feelings'?" she asked, unable to resist.
"Don't prod me, House-daughter." He aimed a lazy smile in her direction.
Cheyna thought a smile from Drakthe, filled with real mirth, much more dangerous than any warrior skill the Fire Krees might have.
"I'm too content." One ice black brow lifted. "However, if you feel you must...." the implied threat trailed away.
Cheyna stuck her tongue out at him. "I must warn you I have a protector."
He frowned. "A protector?" Sudden comprehension lit his eyes. "Cheyna, you didn't...."
She smiled smugly. "Didn't I?" A tiny form scurried from her pocket, up her arm, to perch, bristling, on her shoulder.
"Ssss."
Drakthe clamped his lips shut, but his eyes spoke volumes.
Certain he had made his point, the small creature curled up and went to sleep, his claws dug into the soft material so he wouldn't slide off.
By late afternoon, they were at the base of the drquon. Only a few hours of daylight remained by the time Drakthe hacked through the growth shadowing the first opening. Fetid air rushed out to greet them.
Cheyna shuddered. A musky, animal odor lingered on the air. She hated to think what manner of an animal claimed squatter rights. Her brush with the firecat had given her new appreciation for the value of caution.
"Let me go in first." He brushed by her, krees in hand. "Cheyna?" Drakthe called moments later, "I think you'd better see this."
Cheyna's mouth dropped open in a silent gasp as she stepped inside.
Light streamed through a brilliantly hued crystal ceiling, creating a shifting pattern of shapes on the floor.
Chapter 18
Stunned amazement held Cheyna motionless, her head upturned. An astonishing array of colors, from amranth red to ndigo blue, flowed and merged with one another.
Drakthe on the other hand, began exploring systematically.
"So beautiful," she breathed as she gazed at an entire cave carved from crystal. Cheyna touched one wall, awed. "Look at the color. I do not think I have ever seen crystal so clear a shade of pale gold." The walls provided the perfect foil for the ceiling.
"You think that beautiful, come in here."
Cheyna looked around but couldn't see Drakthe. To her right there was an opening. She went through it, her gaze flitting about, unable to light on one place and stay. Never, never had she seen anything as beautiful as this cave. The crystal changed from pale gold to a light amethyst.
In the center of a smaller cavern off from the first, Drakthe stood gazing up, an arrested expression on his face.
"Definitely not a work of nature."
Above, taking up the entire expanse of ceiling, a mosaic of a garden gleamed down in jewel-bright colors. Exotic flowers, emerald and saffron colored leaves, and stylized birds cavorted in splendid disregard of the human intruders below.
"Look at this." He directed her attention to the wall on her left.
Carved out of crystal of palest amethyst, was a chair, tipped over onto its side. It blended in with the smooth wall so well she almost missed it. Cheyna looked around, really looked, for the first time. She saw furniture, shelves and all manners of household items carved from crystal, all made to merge with their surroundings, not clash. If you didn't know where to look, missing them would be very easy.
"Why, it is a home."
Drakthe absently agreed. "That'd be my guess." He inspected each piece of furniture with care, opening drawers and checking shelves, but the only thing they contained was the dust of Jkael knew how many ages.
It gave him the creeps.
Drakthe had the unshakable sensation he was intruding in someone's home. That someone was hiding right around the corner and, at any moment, would walk in and accuse him of trespassing. "Come on, let's check out the rest of the place." He didn't breathe freely until they were back outside.
Unlike he expected, the sensation of being watched didn't dissipate. He glanced about, but everything was the same as when they entered the cave. Birds were singing, the wind moved restlessly through the dense treetops, moisture, pooled in cupped leaves, dripped with monotonous regularity onto the jungle floor. In the distance, a firecat roared a challenge. A small ground animal scurried to find a hiding place in the shadowy undergrowth. All normal, everyday sounds. Still, he couldn't shake the feeling of something, or someone, waiting. Although it might be nothing more than a lingering presence of the previous occupants--archeologists wrote of experiencing similar sensations upon discovering intact sites--Drakthe wasn't willing to bet their lives on it.
"Go back inside and stay there until I return," he told her softly.
"Why? What's wrong?" Her voice was just as soft.
"I have a feeling we're not alone. I want to check it out. I'll give a low whistle if it's okay to come out."
Cheyna nodded and went inside.
Drakthe strolled casually toward the taigers. About halfway there he passed behind a tree and slipped into the jungle. Immediately, he stood motionless. Blade in hand, he waited for a long heartbeat, listening for a sound that didn't belong. All around him the jungle was alive with sounds, all natural.
Drakthe remained still as a rock.
Long minutes later, he slid one step to his left and paused. Nothing happened. He took another cautious step, then another, pausing each time to listen and peer intently at the surrounding jungle. Not that he could see very far, he thought in disgust.
Blood pumped in his veins as adrenaline filled his system. He'd had enough of jungle warfare in his younger days, while just a soldier in Krthe's employ. The sound of your blood thrumming in your ears, the smell of your own sweat in your nostrils as you waited for the enemy to show, were all things he'd left behind when he became Merchant Master.
And he didn't miss them. He didn't miss the hot rush of adrenaline upon spotting your quarry that flooded your bloodstream and made you forget the pain and exhaustion racking your body. Jkael take it, so why was he here now, stalking unseen prey in a jungle filled with predators just waiting to taste his blood?
Because Cheyna's safety was paramount over his discomfort.
Blending in with his surroundings with an ease that was second nature, Drakthe made his way around the perimeter of the crystal city. It took over an hour of cautious search before he was satisfied no one was in the vicinity.
Maybe he was just getting paranoid, imagining things that weren't there. Standing so a huge frond hid him, Dra
kthe considered the possibility. He shook his head decisively. No. It was more than his imagination. He was certain of it. The best thing he and Cheyna could do was find the memory crystal and get out of the area.
He gave a long, low whistle. At the signal, Cheyna appeared so fast he knew she must have been waiting just inside the cave. He frowned at her to show her his displeasure. "Let's get this over."
One by one, the secrets of the sleeping drquon were found and explored. Hidden behind veils of unchecked growth, each dwelling was different and each was uniquely beautiful. Whoever they had been, the previous occupants were master builders who utilized both the surroundings and the materials in the area to create not just homes, but works of art, Drakthe acknowledged.
They had carved and sculpted each building, and indeed all the furnishings, from variations of hued crystal, taking exquisite care to see no two patterns were duplicated. Light sparkled and danced on floors and walls, creating endlessly shifting patterns.
Drakthe could only imagine the dizzying array of colors, lights and shapes if the jungle were beaten back, exposing the sleeping drquon in its full glory. As it was, one got the feeling of being inside a flawless jewel, looking out through its prismatic windows.
The sheer beauty of the dwellings took Cheyna's breath away. "Think of it, a city made entirely of crystal." She tugged on Drakthe's arm as they went outside. Decorum went to the wind as she let go of his arm and whirled around, hugging her middle. "An entire city of crystal," she whispered in awe, barely able to contain the excitement bubbling up inside her. "Think what this means."
"Yeah, a fortune in gem-quality crystal."
The edge of her burnuese settled around her ankles as she faltered. She faced Drakthe, positive she must have misheard. He stood, hands on his hips, staring at the last building they'd exited, a considering expression on his face. Excitement drained from her. "You do not mean that. You cannot mean that, my lord."
Drakthe's face subtly hardened.