How to Drive a Dragon Crazy
Page 89
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“He told me nothing,” she said.
Of course he hadn’t. The bastard had been too busy screaming.
Aidan glanced at his friends, but both Caswyn and Uther shook their heads. Aidan, however, was made of stronger stuff than that. He cleared his throat and asked, “Anything else that could help us? The queen will want to know—”
“I know. I know.” She snapped her talons. “Oh! There was something. I totally forgot with all that damn screaming.” She went back into the cavern. As one, the three mighty dragons leaned over and peeked inside, terrified at what they might witness but unable to help themselves.
They shouldn’t have looked.
Branwen slammed her claw into the back of the Sand Eater trying to crawl across the floor. Like any dragon without his shell, this one looked strange, all that blood unable to hide the fact that at the moment he was no better than a weak, defenseless human.
“Give us your claw,” she ordered.
“Kill me,” the Sand Eater begged. “Kill. Me.”
“Stop whining.” She pulled her claw from his back and stomped on his forearm. She raised her axe and brought it down, smoothly hacking off his front claw. Picking that up, she came back out of the cavern.
Without even saying a word, all three of them backed up. She didn’t seem to notice. Aidan had heard over the years that General Iseabail and Captain Branwen had spent more time than was good for them with the human queen, Annwyl, but it wasn’t until this moment that he realized the truth to that.
She held up the claw, the palm toward them.
“What is that?” Caswyn asked.
“Tattoo. A rune of some kind.”
“A rune?”
“Runes mean Magick,” Aidan explained. “And Magick means gods.”
Branwen nodded. “Exactly. We need to get this back to the queen.”
“You’ll take it?”
“No need. Rhiannon allows me to communicate directly with her like I do with me mum. And once we finish here, I’m going after Izzy. I don’t know what’s going on but . . .” Her words faded off and Aidan would at least admit to himself that he was afraid to ask her what she was thinking. He didn’t want to know what she was thinking. Ever.
“I understand,” he said quickly before his comrades could argue the point. “We’ll go with you.”
Branwen shrugged, headed back into the cavern. “Whatever.”
Once she disappeared inside, Uther grabbed Aidan around the throat.
“Have you lost your mind?”
“I’m not going anywhere with her,” Caswyn said in a desperate whisper.
“We’re Mì-runach,” Aidan choked out.
“That doesn’t mean we’re stupid.”
“No.” Aidan knocked Uther’s claw off. “But we are loyal to each other. And we’re not about to leave Éibhear alone with Izzy and her.”
“She’s his cousin. I’m sure he’ll be safe.”
“Loyalty,” Aidan reminded them. “Until death. Remember the commitment we made to the goddess of war and death, Eirianwen?”
“Weren’t we drunk at the time?”
“That’s not the point!”
A Sand Eater’s head bounced out of the cavern and across the tunnel floor.
“Sorry,” Branwen called out. “Lost me grip!”
“But that big blue bastard will owe us for this,” Aidan vowed. “He’ll owe us big.”
Chapter 28
Coughing and shaking her head, Izzy tried to get all the damn sand off her.
“Sorry about that.”
Izzy dragged her fingers through her hair, still trying to get all the sand out. “Where the hells am I?”
“Safe.”
“Would you stop saying that. It’s bloody annoying!” She lifted her head and was finally able to open her eyes.
Izzy gasped. “It’s beautiful.”
The dragon who’d taken her smiled. “I’m glad you like it.” He moved around the cavern of the underground cave. “Our ancestors built this place eons ago and it still holds strong.”
Standing in its center, Izzy could see that the cavern went on for miles, with tunnels and chambers shooting off from that.
What she really loved, though, was how open and wide it all was, with light coming not from the few torches attached to the walls here and there, but from the giant colored crystals scattered about.
The dragon seemed to notice that her gaze was focused on the crystals and he explained, “Leagues beneath is a lava river that feeds into the volcanic mountains in your Southlands. The light from that lava comes up through these crystals and illuminates these caverns.”
“It really is beautiful.”
“This is the true land of your people, Iseabail. It’s not surprising you’re drawn to what we have here.”
Another dragon came around Izzy and over to the one who’d taken her. “We should go,” he said low.
“Of course. Please,” he said to Izzy, “this way.”
She followed after the dragons for several minutes until they turned down a tunnel. They traveled a few more minutes until the tunnel stopped at a huge chasm. The other dragon wrapped his tail around her waist and plopped her on his back.
“Hey!”
He didn’t answer, simply took flight over that chasm and kept flying until they reached a well-populated area filled with Sand dragons. Izzy stared with her mouth open. She saw the same colors of dragons that she saw among her own kin, but again, the Sand dragons had that bronze overlay. To her eyes, they all seemed to sparkle, laughter and conversation adding to the moment.
Of course he hadn’t. The bastard had been too busy screaming.
Aidan glanced at his friends, but both Caswyn and Uther shook their heads. Aidan, however, was made of stronger stuff than that. He cleared his throat and asked, “Anything else that could help us? The queen will want to know—”
“I know. I know.” She snapped her talons. “Oh! There was something. I totally forgot with all that damn screaming.” She went back into the cavern. As one, the three mighty dragons leaned over and peeked inside, terrified at what they might witness but unable to help themselves.
They shouldn’t have looked.
Branwen slammed her claw into the back of the Sand Eater trying to crawl across the floor. Like any dragon without his shell, this one looked strange, all that blood unable to hide the fact that at the moment he was no better than a weak, defenseless human.
“Give us your claw,” she ordered.
“Kill me,” the Sand Eater begged. “Kill. Me.”
“Stop whining.” She pulled her claw from his back and stomped on his forearm. She raised her axe and brought it down, smoothly hacking off his front claw. Picking that up, she came back out of the cavern.
Without even saying a word, all three of them backed up. She didn’t seem to notice. Aidan had heard over the years that General Iseabail and Captain Branwen had spent more time than was good for them with the human queen, Annwyl, but it wasn’t until this moment that he realized the truth to that.
She held up the claw, the palm toward them.
“What is that?” Caswyn asked.
“Tattoo. A rune of some kind.”
“A rune?”
“Runes mean Magick,” Aidan explained. “And Magick means gods.”
Branwen nodded. “Exactly. We need to get this back to the queen.”
“You’ll take it?”
“No need. Rhiannon allows me to communicate directly with her like I do with me mum. And once we finish here, I’m going after Izzy. I don’t know what’s going on but . . .” Her words faded off and Aidan would at least admit to himself that he was afraid to ask her what she was thinking. He didn’t want to know what she was thinking. Ever.
“I understand,” he said quickly before his comrades could argue the point. “We’ll go with you.”
Branwen shrugged, headed back into the cavern. “Whatever.”
Once she disappeared inside, Uther grabbed Aidan around the throat.
“Have you lost your mind?”
“I’m not going anywhere with her,” Caswyn said in a desperate whisper.
“We’re Mì-runach,” Aidan choked out.
“That doesn’t mean we’re stupid.”
“No.” Aidan knocked Uther’s claw off. “But we are loyal to each other. And we’re not about to leave Éibhear alone with Izzy and her.”
“She’s his cousin. I’m sure he’ll be safe.”
“Loyalty,” Aidan reminded them. “Until death. Remember the commitment we made to the goddess of war and death, Eirianwen?”
“Weren’t we drunk at the time?”
“That’s not the point!”
A Sand Eater’s head bounced out of the cavern and across the tunnel floor.
“Sorry,” Branwen called out. “Lost me grip!”
“But that big blue bastard will owe us for this,” Aidan vowed. “He’ll owe us big.”
Chapter 28
Coughing and shaking her head, Izzy tried to get all the damn sand off her.
“Sorry about that.”
Izzy dragged her fingers through her hair, still trying to get all the sand out. “Where the hells am I?”
“Safe.”
“Would you stop saying that. It’s bloody annoying!” She lifted her head and was finally able to open her eyes.
Izzy gasped. “It’s beautiful.”
The dragon who’d taken her smiled. “I’m glad you like it.” He moved around the cavern of the underground cave. “Our ancestors built this place eons ago and it still holds strong.”
Standing in its center, Izzy could see that the cavern went on for miles, with tunnels and chambers shooting off from that.
What she really loved, though, was how open and wide it all was, with light coming not from the few torches attached to the walls here and there, but from the giant colored crystals scattered about.
The dragon seemed to notice that her gaze was focused on the crystals and he explained, “Leagues beneath is a lava river that feeds into the volcanic mountains in your Southlands. The light from that lava comes up through these crystals and illuminates these caverns.”
“It really is beautiful.”
“This is the true land of your people, Iseabail. It’s not surprising you’re drawn to what we have here.”
Another dragon came around Izzy and over to the one who’d taken her. “We should go,” he said low.
“Of course. Please,” he said to Izzy, “this way.”
She followed after the dragons for several minutes until they turned down a tunnel. They traveled a few more minutes until the tunnel stopped at a huge chasm. The other dragon wrapped his tail around her waist and plopped her on his back.
“Hey!”
He didn’t answer, simply took flight over that chasm and kept flying until they reached a well-populated area filled with Sand dragons. Izzy stared with her mouth open. She saw the same colors of dragons that she saw among her own kin, but again, the Sand dragons had that bronze overlay. To her eyes, they all seemed to sparkle, laughter and conversation adding to the moment.
