Flameseeker (Book 3) (21 page)

The afriti promptly ushered him away. Kaijin
looked back at the throne a final time, but the flames blinded him once more.

As they exited the great hall and stepped out into
the fiery desolate land again, Kaijin felt his eyes grow heavy and the world
around him spun. He fell forward, and his eyes closed. When he opened them
again, he was consumed in darkness.

He no longer sensed Bhalzek near him, and somehow
he knew that he was no longer in the Realm of Fire. Kaijin blinked again ...

... and he awoke.

XXIII

Kaijin’s vision sharpened until he could make out
some moss-covered stalactites. He crinkled his nose at the salty tang of
seawater. Voices swelled around him.

“Keep his feet elevated,” a man ordered.

“The diamond dust is getting low. I don’t think we
will have enough for everyone, at this rate,” a woman said.

Several sets of feet shuffled across the cave
floor. Near Kaijin, another woman’s voice began whispering a prayer.

“Is that all the holy water you could get?” a
youthful male voice asked.

“Yes,” a woman replied grimly. “It will not be
enough.”

Kaijin tried to move his body. He wiggled his
fingers slowly, then his toes. He smiled.
I’m alive!
He heard light
screeching next to him, and a furry body brushed his cheek. Startled, Kaijin
turned his head, and Miele licked the tip of his nose.

“M—Miele ...” Kaijin managed to whisper, smiling.
So
none of this was a dream after all.

“
Shyrgra wux grxoal ekes rurlve jakyon?
” a
familiar voice asked.

Kaijin blinked.
Aidan? Where did he come from?
Grunting, he sat up slowly and looked around. Men, women, and a few young
teenagers scurried about the cave tending to a mass of people who were sprawled
out all over the cave’s floor. In the midst of the commotion, Kaijin spotted
Aidan across the cave, his silver back turned to him as he knelt with an
elderly man, who seemed to be praying.

“Hexi, get more water for your mother,” a middle-aged
man standing in the center of the cave instructed a teenage girl as she rushed
past. Kaijin recognized his voice as the man giving orders.

“Yes, Father!” the girl called back, flinging a
lock of her bronze-colored hair behind her.

An elderly robed woman stopped in front of Kaijin
and gasped. “Oh, my! You’re still alive?” She gestured to the middle-aged man.
“Come quickly, Jovi! Look! This one is still alive!”

The middle-aged man rushed to Kaijin and knelt beside
him. Jovi’s slightly wrinkled face twisted with curiosity as he stared at
Kaijin with teal-colored eyes. Then he smiled. “Celestra be praised! He was one
that Rrax tried to revive but was unsuccessful. I am glad that he’s awake now.
Kaijin, is it not? Aidan has told us about you.”

He has?
Kaijin looked at the two strangers
before him. “Where am I? What happened? What is—”

Jovi held up his hand to silence him. “Not so
fast, Kaijin. You might still be injured. My mother—Kerapha, here—will assist
you. We will talk later.” He returned to his previous spot and resumed giving
out orders.

The elderly woman smiled at Kaijin and placed a warm
hand over his cheek. She uttered a prayer, and her hand began to glow.

Kaijin soon felt rejuvenated. “Thank you.”

Miele, seeming to also feel his strength return,
flew up and perched on his shoulder.

Kerapha concluded her prayer and inclined her
head. “There are many others we were unable to save or revive. Perhaps their
souls do not want to return.” With a sigh, she slowly stood and went to tend to
another person nearby.

Kaijin tried remembering all that happened before he
woke up in that cave. He thought about his “dream”—the glorious encounter with
the Firelord. He stared down at his right hand, at Ranaiah’s ring.

“You will never see her again,”
Bhalzek had
told him.

Kaijin gritted his teeth.
Like the hells, I
won’t.

A strong grip on the sides of his arms shook him
out of his thoughts. “Kaijin! Are you okay?”

Kaijin blinked and stared straight at Aidan’s
broad chest. He slowly looked up to his face. “Aidan?”

The giant beamed and released him. “Aidan was worried
when you didn’t wake up before. Do you remember anything that happened?”

Kaijin tried, but the memory of what happened
before the Realm of Fire was still hazy. He recalled seeing water—lots of
water—and hearing screams. Then darkness. “No. I don’t remember much of anything.”

“The ship we were on was destroyed in a storm. It
killed many, including the captain,” Aidan explained. “But this wonderful clan
of Dragons brought us to this seaside cave, which is also their home.”

Kaijin arched an eyebrow. “Dragons? I don’t see
any Dragons here.”

“They are all Dragons, but they have currently assumed
their human forms.” He pointed to the middle-aged man who was still giving out
orders. “Jovi’vezzyvex is clan’s leader. He was the one who found Aidan.”

“Jo ... Je—what?”

Aidan chuckled. “Non-Dragonkin call him Jovi.”

Kaijin’s head spun. He watched the commotion continue
around him. Some of the victims were sitting up, including Zarya and Nester.
Next to them was Omari and Jarial, who remained lying lifelessly on their backs.
“How many survived?”

Aidan’s face fell. “Aidan was the only one at the
time, but these Dragons have amazing ability to revive the dead and have saved
many of the crew and passengers.”

Kaijin noticed more people stirring, but Omari and
Jarial still did not move. “Why aren’t they waking up?”

Aidan glanced over his shoulder, following
Kaijin’s gaze, and his face went pale. “Aidan does not know. Everyone tried and
tried, but ...”

Kaijin gasped.
No!
With a grunt, he stood
and hobbled over to the bodies.

“Kaijin! Wait!” Aidan called, following. He
touched Kaijin’s shoulder.

Kaijin shrugged him off and knelt before the two
bodies, staring blankly.
Omari! Master!

Jovi yanked Kaijin back on his feet. He spun
Kaijin around to face him. “I’m sorry, Kaijin. We did everything we possibly
could. Their souls refuse to return.”

Kaijin’s eyes burned with tears, but he did not
shed them. He wriggled out of Jovi’s grasp and frowned.
There must be a way
to save them.

“Kaijin,” Zarya said from behind him. Her hand touched
his shoulder.

Kaijin looked over at her. Sadness filled her
eyes.

“Can’t you do anything?” Kaijin asked her.

Zarya shook her head. “I’m sorry,” she replied
softly. “Calling back the souls of the dead is beyond my ability. Besides, even
if I was able, if someone’s soul is unwilling to return, then the spell is
useless.”

“Oy!” Still sitting, Nester rubbed his head
groggily. “Now I know ’ow a deader feels!” He looked over to Kaijin and Zarya.
“I think I saw my pa, I did! ’E said it ain’t time for me t’ die yet an’ gave
me a swift kick in th’ ’ide, ’e did.” He stood up slowly and swayed a moment.
After catching his balance, he approached Omari and Jarial’s corpses. “Soddin’ ’ells!
Are they ... Are they ...”

Unable to bear to witness any more death, Kaijin
turned away from them and headed for the cave’s mouth.
I have to get out of
here.

“Kaijin!” Jovi called. “Where do you think you’re
going?”

Kaijin halted and sighed, but he didn’t turn
around. “I just ... I need to go somewhere ... anywhere. Thank you for saving
us.”

Jovi snorted. “Well, if you insist on leaving so
soon, even without your friends, then at least take your belongings with you.”
He pointed to a section of the cave where some of the survivors had gathered
around a mountain of salvaged items—torn bags, tattered clothes, jewelry,
damaged crates, and more—that were piled up. “Of course, whatever you fine
folks don’t take with you, we shall simply keep as ...
treasure.
” He
grinned slightly.

Kaijin looked at the mountain, feeling hopeless,
and sighed.
I guess I should try to find my spellbook amongst all that junk.
He went over to the mound and joined the other survivors rummaging through it.
Miele helped by picking up smaller items with her jaws and moving them aside.
As he worked, Kaijin occasionally glanced back at Jovi, who sent one of the
adolsecents out to fetch more water then turned and crossed his arms, watching
Kaijin.

“Where do you expect to go?” Jovi asked. “You
don’t even know where you are, do you?”

Kaijin pursed his lips, feeling silly for wanting
to leave when he didn’t even know where he was. He tossed aside wet clothes and
ruined books. “No, I don’t. But I know where I
must
go.”

“And where would that be?”

Kaijin stopped working and looked at Jovi directly.
The man’s eyes flickered with an unnatural white glow, as if they possessed magic.
“Are you really a Dragon in disguise?”

Jovi lifted a dark eyebrow and smiled. “And what
if I am?”

“Then I would ask for your great wisdom and guidance.
I am in search of a renegade priest who has fled to Ankhram. I must find him ...”
He glanced toward Zarya and Nester, who both huddled around Jarial and Omari.
Aidan stepped away from them to help Clarice, who had awoke at the rear of the
cave and sat up. “With or without my friends.”

Jovi nodded in understanding. “Fortunately for
you, you are in Ankhram. As for renegade priests, we’ve not seen anything like
that around here, though you may want to consider investigating an area further
inland. There have been recent sightings of strange designs that are drawn in
the sand there, and the area emits divine magic. Many mages from the Harran
have gone out there to investigate, but their results have so far been fruitless.
The designs have been changing every few days or so, as if someone or something
is revisiting that area.”

Kaijin nodded slowly. “It sounds like it’s worth
checking out. Can you tell me more about the Harran?”

Jovi shared his knowledge, and they talked for a
while longer.

Miele gave a happy screech. Startled, Kaijin
turned to his familiar, who was tugging at a wet leather strap. “My bag!” Kaijin
shooed Miele aside and grabbed the strap with both hands, yanking it out from
under a pile of clothes and damaged food crates.

Kaijin examined the wet seaweed-covered leather
haversack. He peeked inside and nearly dropped the bag.
Percival?
Kaijin
stared open-mouthed at the weasel’s waterlogged and bloated body, curled up at
the bottom. Grimacing, he scooped Percival out. Beneath the weasel, Kaijin
discovered Omari’s spellbook.
How did that get in my bag?

Jovi blinked. “What’s a weasel doing in there?”

Kaijin shrugged. “I don’t know, but he belongs to
Omari over there.” Kaijin pointed. “Can you revive Percival?” He held the small
animal out to Jovi.

“I cannot at this time. I am exhausted after expending
so much energy helping the others. But don’t worry. My son, Graask, can help.”
Jovi carefully took Percival’s body with both hands. His teal eyes gave off a
faint flash. “This animal is magical. A familiar, I presume?”

Kaijin nodded.

Jovi beamed. “Well now. This might be just what we
need, then.”

“What do you mean?”

Not replying, Jovi turned and quickly headed to
the rear of the cave, where a young stocky man had been kneeling and tending to
one of the survivors. Kaijin followed, but stayed out of the way.

Jovi showed Percival’s body to him. “Graask, see
what you can do here.”

The young man carefully took the animal and examined
it. Then, holding Percvial in one hand, Graask plucked a pinch of white dust
from one of his belt pouches and sprinkled it over Percival’s body. His eyes emitted
a soft blue glow as he prayed, as did his hands. Graask lowered his hands onto
Percival’s body, encompassing it in light. He shut his eyes a moment, then
opened them slowly. The light faded, and he exhaled. He removed his hand from
Percival’s body.

Percival remained lifeless, and Graask frowned. He
approached Zarya and Nester, who were still gathered around Omari and Jarial.
“Excuse me,” Graask said to them, and they promptly moved out the way. He knelt
before Omari and carefully lay Percival atop him. As Graask stood up again, the
weasel suddenly stirred, twitching his tail.

Percival’s legs moved. Water spewed from his
mouth.

Smiling weakly, Graask knelt again and rubbed Percival’s
soft fur.

Percival let out weakened squeaks and looked toward
Omari’s still body. He slowly leaned toward his master.

“You did it!” Jovi patted his son on the shoulder
when he stood again. “Great job, Graask.”

Graask’s eyes drooped. He swayed slightly while he
stood, but managed to keep himself steady. “Father, I ... I am exhausted,”
Graask said. “May I rest now?”

“You may.” Jovi nodded, helping Graask up. “You’ve
done well, helping everyone. Take Khan’na with you.”

Graask left them and approached a bleary-eyed younger
boy, who was sitting off to the side of the cave with his back against the wall
and holding his head. Graask helped the boy up, and together they left through
the exit, into the dark tunnels beyond.

Percival hopped around on Omari’s chest, lashing
his tail and squeaking louder. His beady eyes went alight with blue-violet
electricity. He crawled to Omari’s face and licked at it several times.

Almost immediately, Omari’s fingers twitched.

Zarya gasped. “Omari! You’re alive! Praise the goddess!”

Omari’s arm moved, and he groaned.

“Welcome back, mate!” Nester greeted.

“Thank the gods you’re okay, Omari.” Taking
Omari’s spellbook out of his bag, Kaijin drew nearer to the other mage. He set
it down next to him, and stood back. “Uh, that belongs to you.”

Omari, now fully awake, slowly sat up. Percival
moved up to his shoulder, where he sat, squeaking and nuzzling against the side
of Omari’s neck. Omari placed his hand atop the book beside him, then gently
curled his fingers over its edge. He looked at Kaijin. “Thanks.”

Kaijin nodded. “Of course. How are you feeling?”

“Like I was just in a tornado.” Omari rubbed the back
of his head and groaned. “Dare I ask what happened?”