A Turn of Tides Page 11

  I leaned in further, trying to get a better look. They were all gathered around a pool of dark red liquid, surrounded by a ring of flames. They all knelt around it, as though paying homage. One man of the seven, kneeling on a platform a little higher from the ground, was leading the chant as they all repeated it after him.

  A hiss came from behind me. Whirling around, I gasped in horror to find myself staring into bright yellow eyes. It was the swamp creature. It had followed me up the mountain after all. Its jaws were wide open, within three feet of my legs.

  I lost balance and the next thing I knew, I was falling into the crater. Since the entrance to the crater was almost directly above the tub of liquid, thankfully I missed the flames.

  I fell head first into the liquid.

  Had the vessel not been deep enough, I would have broken my neck. But it was deep. Alarmingly deep. Even with the force of my fall, I didn’t touch the bottom. I kicked hard and fought my way to the surface. Gasping, I wiped the liquid from my eyes—liquid I was now certain was blood. A deathly silence had fallen in the cave. I looked around, now only a few feet away from each of the strange men. They stood towering over me, staring at me with a mixture of shock and wonder.

  I hauled myself out of the blood. Balancing on the edge of the pool, I fumbled for the knife I’d fastened to my waist. It was no longer in its sheath. It must have been dislodged during the fall. I looked upward, shuddering as I took in the height I’d just dropped from.

  When I lowered my eyes to the men again, they were still examining me with the same mix of fascination and surprise, as though I were some kind of alien. Much like the expression I was sure that I assumed when looking at them.

  The man nearest to me spoke in a coarse, guttural voice. Although he was looking directly at me, it didn’t feel as though he was speaking to me.

  “Dressed in silk and borne from sky. Skin soaked in the blood of enemies.”

  I gaped at him. Huh?

  A dark-haired man beside him stepped forward closer to me. “Maiden of fire?” he whispered, his voice assuming the same tone of reverence.

  I was half tempted to blurt out that they’d mistaken me for someone else, but… Maiden of fire? I couldn’t quite find it in myself to turn that title down.

  “Could it be?” A third man narrowed his bright eyes on me. “She’s a human.”

  The man lurched forward and gripped my arm. He pulled me toward him and pressed his nose against my wrist, drawing in a deep breath. His lips parted as he looked at me. “This is no ordinary human. Her blood is not like any I’ve ever smelt before… What else could this be but an omen?”

  His response was met with silence as they continued to stare at me.

  “She fell as we were paying homage to the fire that burns through our veins and devours our enemies. We must take her as a gift from our ancestors.”

  I wasn’t sure what to do as he held out a hand to me. I didn’t sense danger in his gesture, so I took it. His skin was hot, almost scorching hot as he led me between two flames and onto the straw that had been his seat. He gestured for me to step up onto it.

  My throat was sore, and it felt like I’d swallowed some blood based on the unpleasant coppery taste at the back of my mouth. My whole body was sticky from the substance as it began to dry on my skin beneath the heat of the flames billowing up around the pool.

  The man let go of my hand and knelt on the ground on one knee, the other men following his lead.

  I stood there awkwardly, waiting for them to face me again.

  They exchanged glances among themselves, and then one of the men stepped forward suddenly and picked me up. Shivers ran through my body as I felt his hot skin against mine.

  Spines began to spread from his shoulders until he was completely covered with scales, and then his whole body began expanding—his head, his arms, his legs, until the creature holding me was no longer a man, but a dragon.

  His heavy wings beat either side of him as he lifted me up toward the hole at the roof of the mountain. The other men transformed too and flew after us.

  These aren’t just dragons. These are dragon shifters.

  Chapter 22: Rose

  I was relieved when the dragon finally touched down on the ground again. His claws scratched my skin, and I was baking hot from the heat of his body. I looked around at the clearing we’d landed in. It was lined with tall trees and in the center was what appeared to be a well.

  The other dragons touched down shortly after us and, remaining in their giant forms, formed a line across the clearing, their fiery eyes fixed on me. I could feel the heat emanating from their bodies even a dozen yards away.

  The dragon who’d been carrying me resumed his human form and strode over to the well. He pulled up a bucket and, taking me by the hand, began to tip water over me. I was grateful for the coolness, but it was bizarre being soaked down by this man. I would rather have done it myself. He tipped bucket after bucket over me, until my dress was soaked and the dried blood had disappeared.

  He placed the bucket on the floor.

  I was afraid to even speak a word lest I shatter their illusion and place myself in danger. But it was hard to keep up the impression of being somebody else when I had no idea who that person was.

  I looked as steadily as I could back at the man, my lips sealed.

  The other dragons approached closer now that I’d finished my bucket bath. They continued to eye me curiously.

  One option was to just wait for them to offer up information, and in the meantime, pretend that I knew what I was doing. But they were standing so still, just staring at me, I realized that they were expecting me to do something.

  If I ever needed courage and confidence in myself, it was then. And those were two things I didn’t possess as I stood there in that clearing, surrounded by the most formidable beasts I’d ever laid eyes on.

  Speaking could either save my life, or be my downfall. I had no idea which one it was. But it felt like remaining silent wasn’t an option any more. I was going to have to take the risk.

  The only flicker of confidence I had was the feeling that they weren’t entirely sure what to expect from me either. They were clearly superstitious creatures, and for whatever strange reason, they’d labeled me as some sort of auspicious sign. It struck me that perhaps they themselves didn’t know what to expect of me. Hell, I’d just dropped through the roof of their cave, it wasn’t like they’d been expecting me. By some fluke, I’d just fallen in at the right minute. Under any other circumstances, God knew what they might have done with me.

  I had to be confident and fill the shoes of this role. If I didn’t, they’d be more likely to suspect me to be the phony that I was.

  Hiking up the hem of my dress so I could walk forward, I approached the nearest dragon to me and reached for his right hand. I pressed my palm flat against his, assuming a look of concentration as though I had any semblance of an idea of what the hell I was doing. Then I looked up at the dragon.

  “I’d like a tour of the kingdom.”

  I found myself assuming a posh British accent, and I had no idea why. Perhaps I thought I sounded more otherworldly—and less like myself, Rose Novak, the weak human girl—if I did.

  The dragon who’d previously been leading the chanting nodded.

  “Charis,” he said, eyeing the man I’d just touched palms with. “You heard her. See to it that the human has what she asks for and is content. We don’t want to displease her.”

  Casting one last glance at me, the leader beckoned to the other men and they all launched off into the air, leaving Charis and me alone.

  As Charis transformed back into a dragon and reached out his giant hand for me to climb onto, I found myself wondering what other requests I might get away with. He was about to close his scratchy fingers around me when I patted his thick wrist. His scales were so tough they were like armor, and he didn’t even sense it. I had to speak.

  “I’d rather travel on your back than in your
palm,” I said, forcing confidence into my voice.

  There was no hesitation on his part as he raised me onto his shoulders. Slotting both my feet carefully into his sharp scales, I clung to the back of his neck as he launched into the air.

  My heart hammered in my chest as he climbed higher and higher, until eventually the well beneath us was just a speck—and the gorgeous, lush landscape was visible. I strained my eyes and saw far in the distance, a range of mountains emitting steam. Volcanoes?

  All this greenery certainly wasn’t the landscape I would have imagined dragons living on. I would have expected a scorched realm, devoid of any signs of life. Perhaps the dragons saved their fire for attacks on enemies.

  It was clear to me now where the dragons made their homes—there were no buildings, just caves bored into hills and mountains, similar to the one I’d fallen into. There were sparkling lakes in between the valleys, and acres of lush flowers.

  But I wasn’t taking in many of the details Charis was pointing out to me as we flew. My mind was whirring as to how I was going to use this advantage I’d stumbled into before it was too late. I didn’t know if they’d figure out that there was nothing auspicious about me, but I had to get out of here before they did.

  I thought suddenly of Bella.

  “And where do you keep your enemies?” I asked, after he’d paused for a breath.

  He slowed and began flying in the opposite direction. He nodded toward what looked like a giant pit dug out in the center of a valley. Reaching it, he hovered directly over it. I found myself staring down into a giant dirt pit. Its walls were steep, and high—it was dug perhaps a few hundred feet into the ground, too high for any ogre to climb out from, and there were no notches in the walls. There was a group of perhaps fifty ogres in there now. I wondered if they’d all been from the fresh catch today.

  “Please lower us further,” I said.

  Charis did as I’d requested and lowered us. I asked him to stoop lower and lower until we were close enough for me to be able to make out the faces. Bella wasn’t there. In fact, I couldn’t see a single female ogre down there.

  Perhaps she’d been killed already. I’d hardly known her long, but I couldn’t help but feel morose. I’d wanted to see her live a life better than the one she’d been dealt, even though I wasn’t sure how I’d ever give it to her. I’d wanted a better fate for her than in the belly of some dragon.

  “Where to now?” Charis asked, breaking through my thoughts.

  How about… back to the human realm?

  I was so tempted to just blurt it out, but I wasn’t sure if I was to be obeyed to such an extent.

  Still, I had to try. I was at least in a better position now than I had been back in the ogres’ kingdom. I wasn’t cooped up in some room.

  “Or would you like to rest?” Charis was still hovering in the air, waiting for my answer.

  “Yes,” I said. “I’d like that.” At least it would give me some time to think out how to broach the subject.

  As soon as I said the words, he swooped down into the valley below and glided along until we reached the entrance to a cave in the side of a particularly wide mountain. He landed inside it, folded his wings, and raised his hand for me to step onto so he could lower me back to the ground. I stared into the cave.

  “Through here.” The voice that spoke now was less deep and rasping than just a couple of minutes ago. I turned around to see that Charis had resumed his human form.

  He moved in front of me, leading the way deeper into the cave. I couldn’t help but admire the beauty of his body. He positively glided even when he walked, all his limbs working in perfect rhythm, his smooth muscles rippling beneath his tan skin.

  The sunshine became fainter and fainter the deeper we walked into the cave until he stopped and pointed to the back of the cavern. I was surprised to see a bed there, covered with some kind of dark animal skin for blankets, the frame made of what looked like carved silver. Other than the bed, there wasn’t much other furniture to be seen in this cave. It was quite plain.

  “The dragon who lived here before died recently in battle. This can be your new home. Erisard will issue orders that no other dragons disturb you. So you can sleep peacefully.”

  Erisard. I guessed that was the dragon who’d appeared to be the leader among them.

  “Erisard is your leader?” I asked, as he motioned to leave me alone in the cave.

  Charis nodded. “Our king.”

  “Oh… And you are?”

  He looked at me curiously. I grew nervous suddenly, wondering whether, as a “good omen,” he’d expect me to know more about them.

  “I am part of his council. There are seven of us altogether, including the king himself. You met us all during a rite we were holding.”

  “I see… And, since you have accepted me as a gift, what do you intend to do with me?”

  “You are to remain with us and be treated with respect.”

  I swallowed hard, bracing myself for my next words. “Since Erisard also stated that I am not to be displeased, may I ask a favor of you?”

  “What?”

  It was time to just spit it out. I hoped that the worst thing that could happen was him refusing.

  “I need to return to the human realm.”

  He paused, then to my astonishment, he nodded. But my relief lasted for but a second when he said: “I can escort you there, but you must understand that I must also escort you back. Because a gift is to be kept, not given away. You belong here with us.”

  Chapter 23: Rose

  Although his words chilled me, I wasn’t about to back down on my request. I had no choice. I had to return to the human realm, even if it meant returning with a fire-breathing dragon.

  Charis questioned me further about the purpose of my visit there. I told him that I needed to find an old friend and help him out of a sticky situation. Charis disappeared for a while, leaving me alone in the cave as he went to discuss my request with Erisard. I was relieved when he returned and said that his king had agreed.

  Next, I had to explain how exactly we were to return. We needed to travel through the gate in the realm of the ogres, because that led directly to the island where I’d left Caleb and Annora. Whether they were still on that island remained to be seen. I couldn’t imagine Caleb leaving without discovering what had happened to me, but Annora was devious and she could have played some tricks in order to convince him. Whatever the case, our first stop had to be the island. It was large, but with Charis roaring and myself shouting, Caleb’s ears shouldn’t have a problem picking up our noises.

  The other possibility was that Caleb had left the island on the boat he’d been building. Even then I hoped he wouldn’t have travelled too far on that primitive thing. Hopefully, Charis and I could track him down in the ocean if we both made enough noise.

  If Caleb hadn’t been a vampire, I would have been much more worried about finding him. But if we managed to make it back to the human realm, I was convinced that if we spent enough time searching for him we’d find him without too much difficulty.

  I told the dragon I wanted to leave immediately, and Charis agreed. Climbing onto his back and holding tight to the scales behind his neck, I clenched my stomach as he launched into the air. I’d told him I wanted to get the job done as soon as possible and he was taking it to heart. His speed was breathtaking.

  We had almost reached the beach when a cry caught my attention down below. It was a familiar voice.

  “Wait,” I said, squeezing my legs against the dragon’s hide even though it was so rock hard, I was sure he couldn’t feel it.

  He slowed down and I scanned the landscape for any clue as to the source of the noise. And then I saw it. A dragon in full transformation cornering an ogre at the entrance to a cave.

  It was the ogress.

  “I want that ogress,” I said. “I want to bring her with me.”

  As Charis hesitated, I wondered whether I might have finally found out how far
these creatures were willing to go to satisfy my demands. But then he dipped in the sky and hurtled full speed toward the entrance of the cave. Landing with a thud that seemed to shake the entire mountain, he moved in between Bella and the dragon who was about to pounce on her.

  “Find yourself another one,” Charis muttered to the dragon as he nudged Bella toward him with his right hand.

  “Bella,” I called down. Her sweaty face lit up as she saw me, the panic draining from her expression and giving way to relief. “Come.” I could see that she’d been injured already. Her right arm was soaked in blood.

  The other dragon didn’t even have a chance to protest as Charis—albeit reluctantly—helped the ogress onto his back. As she plonked herself down next to me, I had to stand up as her huge form almost squeezed the life out of me. Once she was settled down properly, Charis launched into the sky once more.

  As we left that bizarre realm and headed back toward the ogres’ beach, I just prayed that our arrival wouldn’t come too late.

  Chapter 24: Annora

  Caleb’s thirst for me only seemed to be increasing—as could be expected. As a light rain drizzled over the boat, we both sat beneath the shelter. He had one arm around me as he sucked from my wrist. I brushed the hair away from his forehead with my free hand. He barely flinched. I noticed that as the hours passed, he seemed to recoil less when I touched him with affection. Hopefully another sign that he was slowly losing himself to me.

  But I was beginning to grow impatient. I’d been starved of him for so long. I would have given anything for him to just look at me even once with affection. To hold me in his arms. Feel his lips against mine.