Heir of Pendel (A Pandoran Novel, #4) (56 page)

I heard his silent "unfortunately." Still, Alex
had
known, and he'd definitely known it that night I'd left him in Karth. Why hadn't he said anything? If he was a prince, then my grandfather couldn't have refused him. If he was a prince, I wouldn't have had to run off to marry Danton. Why hadn't he told me?

And what could he have done? There's a reason the Estroians have been in hiding for centuries. What claim could he have made without turning himself into Gaia's most wanted fugitive? There isn't a lord alive who wouldn't have hunted him down and tried him as a traitor. But things are different now, and the young prince didn't have an army at the time.

I studied Nexus, not sure I'd heard him correctly. Also, because it was strange hearing Alex referred to as a prince. "You're saying he…has an army now?" I asked.

Yes.

Myez said something from the cave, but I ignored him. "How?"

The correct question would be "who," and the answer is Alioth
.

"Alioth?" I repeated, baffled. "What's he doing in Alioth? The shadowguard already passed through there. Eris owns Alioth."

Not anymore.

"What do you mean, not anymore?"

The young prince helped the people take it back. He is currently gathering what resources remain throughout Alioth, and in another week's time, he will lead the people to fight against your uncle.

"
What
?!" I gasped. I was also thrilled to have confirmation he had not been in Campagna with Sir Torren and his men.

"Daria…?" Myez stood at the cave entrance, glancing between us.

"And you waited two weeks to show up?" I yelled at Nexus. "We could've been helping him, but instead I've been sitting here eating berries while…" My voice trailed as Nexus growled, his pupils narrow and angry
.

I owe mankind nothing.

I fisted my hands at my side and glared back. "If you're so bent on not owing mankind anything, then why did you even come?"

A long silence followed.

Because…I believe you are not like Septimus. I needed to see what sort of man the young prince was, and I now believe he would make a fair and just king. I would live in a world under his rule, and I will do what I can to bring that to fruition. Though I regret to say my brothers and sisters do not agree with me on this point. They would rather leave you to your squabbles and petty wars. Over the centuries, we have found mankind is most effective at destroying itself.

I relaxed my fist. "How many of you are there?"

Seven, including myself.

Seven dragons.

I chewed on my bottom lip. Seven dragons would definitely tip the scales of this war. I'd already seen five of them, including Nexus, and I'd seen the destruction three dragons could wreak.

"Where are the others?" I asked.

Nexus ruffled his wings and stood tall, those huge brilliant eyes boring down on me.
Do you really expect I'll answer that question?

In my silence, Myez said, "Would you please tell me what is going on? I'm completely lost."

Nexus snarled.

Silence your human before I eat him.

"Myez, I'm sorry, but I think you should wait inside. I promise I'll fill you in later."

He looked skeptical, but Nexus bared his teeth. Myez slipped right back into the cave without another word.

I turned back to face Nexus. "All right. So. Will you take me to Alex now?"

No.

I was taken aback. "
No
? What do you mean,
no
? You just said you'd do what you could to help him."

Yes, and bringing you to him as you are now would hardly be helping him at all.

I grit my teeth together and shoved down the rude thoughts threatening to show themselves. Nexus snorted and a wisp of smoke curled from his nose as if he'd heard them all anyway.

Most Draconi get years to practice with our kind before that bond strengthens and dragon and rider can function as one. However, we are charged with the insurmountable task of squeezing those years of training into only a few weeks—at most—with you injured, besides. The young prince has at least as much time before he sets his course for Valdon. Besides, if I took you to him now, you'd only be a liability.

I thought over this. He did have a point.

I usually do.

"Does this training have anything to do with that saddle you were talking about earlier?"

Nexus's lips curled back into what I thought might be a smile, but it really just gave me a slight heart attack.

There's a bit of treasure on the other side of the lake. I'll show you where it is.

"You have…treasure," I said.

But of course. I am a dragon, after all.

I hopped on his back, and he sailed over the black lake in one easy jump, talons skimming the dark surface sending ripples in either direction. Once we landed swiftly on the other side, I saw the crack in the rock wall, which had been impossible to see through the haze from the other size, and it was wide enough even for Nexus to duck inside. He urged me ahead of him into the darkness. I thought about making a light, but then I remembered this place absorbed my magic.

There's no need.

"Nexus, why can't I do magic here?"

A torch sprang to life as though it'd been triggered by our presence, illuminating the cave, and I was momentarily paralyzed in awe. Nexus hadn't been exaggerating. So much gold,
everywhere
—in neat piles, in mounds, mixed with gemstones and golden trinkets, pouring out of open chests. It reminded me of Aladdin's Cave of Wonders. The gold reflected so much torchlight it almost looked as if the cave walls had been gilded, too.

Gaia designed the vale this way. It prevents unwanted persons from using magic to find their way through to us, unless they're Draconi, as you are, who possess something like your brooch. But it also allows for Draconi and dragon to learn to read and trust one another without relying on magic.

A ruby the size of my head hypnotized me, and I suddenly found myself empathizing with Abu. "Where in the world did you find all this?"

I've had centuries to collect, you know.

Not even my grandfather had as much wealth. This collection could singe-handedly pull most of the world from the poverty my grandfather had plunged it into.

Don't get any ideas, my little petulant one. Philanthropy isn't in my nature.

I noticed a sword forged completely out of gold, its hilt encrusted with rubies. We'd come in for a very specific reason, but I had a difficult time remembering what that reason was. And then I remembered. "You said there was a saddle in here somewhere?"

It's inside the dragonstone strongbox.

Dragonstone. The same pearlescent stone drowning my room back at the Pontefracts. I searched and searched for a pearly white chest, but the only white chest I found was one in back, and it wasn't shiny at all. It was simply white rock, unfinished and imperfect, like some ancient sarcophagus that'd survived since the beginning of time.

That is how dragonstone is supposed to look. Mankind likes to preserve it in that abominable gloss, because you humans only seem to find value in shiny things.

"Mm, maybe humans aren't the only ones?" I gestured to his cave.

His throat rumbled behind me.

I picked my way through piles of neatly stacked coins and gemstones and stopped before the strongbox. It was shaped in a cube, its surface marred with etchings of runes and dragons. I lifted the onyx latch then strained as I pushed the heavy lid open, and once I'd pushed it all the way back, I peered inside.

The most exquisite saddle I'd ever seen in my life lay inside. It'd been made of black leather, silvery patterns swirling all over the surface, but as I studied those patterns more closely, I realized the swirls were actually thin strings of runes and words in a language I didn't know. A fat, yellow gem filled with layers of greens and reds and oranges sat in the top of the horn, looking strikingly like Nexus's eyes, and the straps of the saddle were exceptionally long—long enough to wrap around Nexus, perhaps. I trailed my fingers over the leather. It had a rubbery texture similar to Nexus's scales, but the moment my fingers made contact, the swirls glowed and slid over the saddle like moving rivers.

Those are protective charms. They ward off light and dark magic. And fire.

I grinned, reaching in to lift the saddle, bracing myself against the strongbox for leverage, expecting the saddle to be heavy, so I was surprised when it didn't weigh more than twenty pounds. What was it made out of?

Dragon skin. Mine, to be exact.

I glanced over my shoulder at Nexus, who admired his wealth.

You'd already know that if you'd been properly trained. It is what makes the charms so strong and helps bind rider to dragon when in flight. The stone in the saddle is my parietal eye.

I looked back down at the…eye. I knew some reptiles had a third eye on the backs of their skulls. They couldn't really see things with it, though. Just the direction of light.

It also helps me get a better sense of my rider.

I studied the bloodied grooves in the underside of my fingers, compliments of my first ride. "Riders don't…
ever
fly bareback, do they?" I asked.

Mmm….no.

I glared up at Nexus. "I could've fallen off and died, you know."

I know. I must admit I'm quite impressed you did not.

I was about to say something mean, but thought it probably wouldn't do much good arguing with a dragon.

It took me about thirty minutes of climbing and stumbling and hobbling and sliding to wrap the saddle's straps around his belly and neck, and once it was all fastened, Nexus wiggled as if he was uncomfortable.

"Too tight?" I asked.

No, but there's a strap rubbing against my wing.

I walked around and found the guilty strap, then adjusted it so it wouldn't rub. "Better?"

Much. Now.
He stood up to his full height, and I suddenly felt as if a mountain were about to collapse on top of me.
Climb on. We have work to do.

37

ALEXANDER

D
anton took a step back, reaching for the hilt of his sword as he said something to his men. Carter and another stood up, slowly approaching Danton with weapons drawn, watching the dark forest.

Whispers sounded, coming from the forest, muffled and layered like ghosts of words. At the sound, the hair on my neck stood tall. The horses took off running, despite some of the soldiers' attempts to hold them. A shadow moved in the trees. Like a spirit, it slid from the forest in inky black fingers, curling and stretching past a terrified Danton and Carter, and coalesced around one of Danton's men.

"Get if off me!" the man yelled. The oily black shadow seeped into his armor, and then he screamed. It was the sound of nightmares. The man dropped to the ground in a fit of seizures. Danton and his men held back, unsure of what to do, and then the man suddenly went still.

I cursed under my breath. I knew what they'd lured here. Without thinking, I sprinted straight toward them. Danton's man began to stir, but I knew he was no longer Danton's man.

"Danton, get away from him!" I yelled as I ran.

Danton looked in my direction, clearly startled, and that's when the demon struck. The man grabbed Danton by the throat and lifted him with unnatural strength, holding him above the ground so his boots kicked freely in the air. The possessed man's eyes were pure black and his teeth grit in an evil grimace. Carter rushed at them, trying to pull the demon off Danton, but the demon swung back with supernatural strength, sending Carter flying a dozen yards and landing in a pile of snow. Another guard ran at them with a sword. The demon grabbed the end of the sword, snapped it in two, then jammed the point of it into the guard's eye. The guard screamed and collapsed onto the ground. Danton must have been using every ounce of his magic to hold off the pressure at his neck, but he wouldn't be able to hold it off much longer.

I drew Flamebearer free and charged the demon. The demon tipped his head toward me like a bird catching a sound, and then he turned his face, those black eyes burning with hate. With a yell, I brought Flamebearer down upon the possessed man's arms.

Flamebearer burst into white flames and sliced clean through. Danton dropped to the ground, gasping and choking. The demon wailed, a sound that turned my blood colder than this winter. The demon staggered toward me, armless and furious. I raised Flamebearer again and stabbed it right through the heart.

Its screams were deafening—alien and terrifying—and the oily black mass rose from the guard's body in a swell of plasma and smoke. Its tendrils twisted in on itself, faster and faster, condensing until with a final horrific scream and a flash of white light, it was gone. Danton's guard lay ashen and armless and dead in the snow. Other than the guard the demon had stabbed in the eye, the rest of his men were all right. I turned back around to find the tip of Danton's sword at my throat.

I raised both hands, including the one holding Flamebearer, which no longer burned. Danton eyes fastened on mine, the metal of his sword cold against my skin. Carter and the rest of Danton's men encircled me. Wait, these weren't Danton's men; these men belonged to Carter. One, I recognized from the Academia. Garrett was his name. He'd dropped out my third year to return to his family after a series of raids to their farm, the same farm near where Carter had gone to live. It had been too bad, because Garrett had shown a lot of promise at the Academia.

"What are you doing here?" Danton growled, his chest heaving with quick breaths.

I glared at him but otherwise didn't move. "I could ask you the same."