Where in the seven hells is this damn dragon?

  I pinch the bridge of my nose and exhale. This is not the time for him to go off on some side quest. There is no sign of a battle or any kind of struggle, so he must have wandered off by himself, or this is not the same entrance, but that can’t be right. The saintess reaches a hand out, but I move to the left, just out of her reach. Why is this female trying to touch me? A simple word will suffice. She does not have to touch me to get my attention.

  “When we find Zika, you are to stick close to his side. You are lucky the frightpest only sought to teach their young how to hunt, and they did not rip you to shreds before you even reached the den.” Frightpest are not known to go after humans, but because these nds are essentially abandoned, it is not surprising that their ecosystem has changed. I wonder what else has changed in the centuries that have passed since I have been here. Are there new species? Have some been wiped out? Or have they simply increased in numbers because there is no other than other beasts to hinder their numbers?

  “I didn’t mean to step away from him,” she mumbles, wrapping her arms around herself. It is not cold yet, but she is human, so perhaps the temperature is too much for her. If my mate has not reached the cave yet, then she must be cold without me there to keep her body warm.

  I sniff the air. The metallic scent of blood drifts from the right. I narrow my eyes and crook a finger to the saintess. A beast must have attacked Zika then. Perhaps a venomawolf. They appeared to have been hunting us, though I did not think they were that close based on their howls. Or perhaps I spent too much time in the frightpest’s den.

  “Keep silent and stick close unless I indicate otherwise.” The saintess attracts problems. It is the energy she gives off. She was much stronger within the temple, but out here she trembles at every sound.

  “Is there something out there? I thought you took care of those creatures.” She rubs her arms and gnces back at the colpsed den. A rack of shivers overcomes her and her breathing comes out in quick breaths. “Oh, my God. There is something else out there. And they killed Zika? How? He can turn into a huge dragon!” She falls to her knees and clutches her head. “I should have stayed in the temple. It was safer. I had food. Shelter.”

  I roll my eyes. “They were pnning to sacrifice you and treated you like an object instead of a person. Is that truly how you wanted to live? The temple god even allowed for a way for you to escape and this is how you repay his kindness?”

  “At least it would have been a quick death than this. If he was such a great god, then why did he even allow for it to happen to begin with? I prayed and prayed, but he never answered. But suddenly you and Megan show up and now the so-called god speaks? Give me a break.” She shakes her head. “No, it would have been better to leave me there.”

  “Do as you wish.” Megan will be upset at first, but she will get over it. I cannot save everyone, nor do I want to. If she wishes to wallow, then let her.

  “Wait!”

  I slow my pace, but I do not stop. The scent of blood is growing stronger. I smell Zika, but I do not know if it is his blood or that of the beasts. He is powerful, but he has also been traveling nonstop, and the journey must have been hard on him. My energy is nearly depleted, but my will is steadfast. No matter what, I will return to Megan’s side before the night is over.

  “You’d just leave me behind?” She huffs.

  “Quiet.” I hold up a hand and crouch down behind the thorn-decorated bush. Zika’s shirt is stained red, but it is not his blood, but those of the beasts that lie on the muddy ground. I pnt my hands on the ground. There are ten dead. My shadows rumble. Ten more on the way.

  Venomawolves are only hunt in pairs if they are mated and yet there are ten dead and more on the way.

  Zika whirls in my direction right as I create a row of spikes behind him. The beasts leap, fangs bared, fur raised. They cry from the pain and struggle to free themselves.

  “When did you get back?” Zika questions.

  I jump over the bush and into the clearing. “Get rid of that shirt. The blood is only going to attract more of them.” It is too bad the rain has stopped. It would have helped with washing away the blood and we do not have time to search for a river.

  He nods as he turns to the side, gncing at the others from the corner of his eye. “We should take some back for food. How long can you leave them suspended there?”

  “Be quick with it. I can carry two if you will carry the saintess.”

  “She’s alive!” His eyes lighten with joy. His smile is wide, though he looks deranged with his shirt covered in blood.

  I frown. He is setting himself up for disappointment. The saintess is not his dead mate.

  “She is over there, by the bushes.” I jerk my thumb behind me. “And do not attempt it, saintess. Those thorns are difficult to pull out.”

  Zika waves at her and then tosses his shirt off. He pulls out a dagger and cuts the beasts’ carotid arteries. The saintess retches. My nose twitches at the putrid smell of the saintess hurling the contents of her stomach behind the bush and the overpowering smell of blood flowing from the beasts. Zika wipes his dagger using his discarded shirt and then hauls two of the beasts over his shoulder.

  “Ready?” He tosses them at me. The other beasts fall as I drop my shadows, reeling them back.

  “I thought you had died.”

  He snorts. “Gonna take more than a few beasts to take me out. Though their numbers are worrisome. If they had all attacked at once, then it may have been a workout. Though I didn’t know you could do all that with your shadows. No wonder you were always so efficient.”

  “There could be more,” I warn, ignoring the rest of his observation because I have been pushing myself tely and forcing myself to adapt to new ways of using my abilities than simply watching my prey and going for the kill. “We will need to hurry in order to make it back to the others. If those beasts are so bold to go after a dragon, then...”

  Zika leaps over the bush and holds out a hand to the saintess. “Do you know how to make wards, or did they keep you confined in a room?”

  “They attempted to teach me,” the saintess replies, wiping her mouth with the back of her sleeve. “Are you really bringing those with us?”

  “Do you not eat meat?”

  “I do... but you just...” She swallows and looks as if she is going to retch again, but she does not, and thank the seven skies for it because I cannot take the smell. “I’m ready to go. I won’t give up again.”

  “Give up?” Zika asks. “Nonsense. As long as their breath in your lungs, you do not give up.” He takes her into his arms. “The rain has washed away the trail.”

  “I made marks on the trees.” And I can feel a part of me within Megan. I did it on a whim when we visited the temple, and it appeared to have fooled them into thinking she had no saintess energy. “You can tell me on the way to how the fight occurred. I am curious about how their tactics have evolved.”

  The trek back to the others takes longer than it should have, but we reach the cave.

  Katsuro stands guards at the entrance and greets us with a smile. “Took ya long enough. Thought I was gonna have to do all the work around here.” He keeps one hand poised over his whip. His ear twitch. Despite his easy-going words, his demeanor is still on alert.

  The cave entrance is rge enough I will not have to bend my head to enter. On the side, vegetation grows along the rocks.

  “Were you attacked on the way here?”

  “Yeah, some beasts with wings tried to go for the young, but we took care of it. Also.” He pokes my chest with his finger. “Ya failed to mention the tree with the three heads was a talking one.”

  “What?”

  “That tree. It talked. All three of the heads. Like it came alive or some shit. Started going on and on about how they are coming, but the tree didn’t say who they were.” He drops his hand and crosses his arms. “We got attacked by that beast after meeting the tree, so maybe it was warning us about those beasts. Nasty fuckers. Had to use my whip to grab a hold of it so Chloe could get a clear shot.”

  My stomach recoils with unease. “And you are certain this tree spoke?”

  Katsuro narrows his eyes. “Are you saying it’s not supposed to talk?”

  “No, it is a tree. It should not be able to speak.”

  “But it has three heads.”

  I close my eyes and sigh. “Three heads that were carved into it as a way of telling others which way to go instead of putting up a sign. But that does not mean I do not believe you. It means there is something more sinister going on with these nds than just the overflow of beasts.”

  “It could have drawn in the energy from the beasts,” Zika says, with the saintess still in his arms. “As dangerous as this trek is to this old vilge of yours, it is good to know what we are up against.” He angles his head down and addresses the saintess. “The temple taught you how to make wards. Is that something you and Megan could work on?”

  “Do not drag my mate into this.”

  “You were going to ask her anyway. Why does it matter if I mention it first?”

  I turn away and walk into the cave. Yes, I thought about asking her, but only after her power has grown. The cave is cramped, but there is enough room for a fire. I pce the venomawolves down near the skin of what Katsuro and Chloe took out earlier and head for my mate. She is in the middle of the cave, adding spices to the pot.

  It smells good. Whatever she put in there.

  The others are off in their pairs, working on garments or covers. I am not sure what they are making exactly, but it seems to put them at ease.

  “You’re back!” She sets the bottle down and wipes her hand on her pants. “Is Edith okay?”

  “She is fine.” I wrap my arms around her and inhale, breathing in her scent. She smells like the forest and the spices she put in the pot. “The frightpests took her back to their den to feed their young, but she is physically unharmed.”

  “That’s a relief.” She pulls back and brushes her thumbs over my cheeks. “You’re kind of a mess. Did you have to fight them off?”

  “It rained, and I had to go into the den to rescue her.” I lean into her touch. “The venomawolves were hunting us, but Zika took care of it and I took care of the rest. Tell me, was there anything odd about the three headed tree besides that it spoke?”

  “Uh...it felt okay. It didn’t feel malicious or that it was out to get us.” She lowers her voice. “Chloe didn’t react to it, so I don’t think the tree had any killing intent towards us. And we were more on guard after its warning, so...” Megan shrugs as if there is nothing to be concerned over.

  “The tree did not speak to me. Did it address anyone in particur, or did it just speak in general?”

  Megan gnces away.

  “Vixen.”

  “Okay, okay. It said my name, but Chloe had just said my name so I didn’t think much of it, and I’ve seen a lot of weird crap since I’ve been here,” she rambles on, talking with her hands.

  I palm my face and sigh.

  AutumnBanks

  Thanks for reading! The puppies are 4 weeks today, and I can't get over how much they have grown in such a short time. They keep finding new ways to break out of their enclosure. Not surprising since they are huskies and that's what huskies are known for.