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Leo patted her hands where she clasped them in her lap.
“Take your time. I’m here for the duration.”
From the doorway, Largin interrupted them. “Well, we’ll
leave you two to visit. Come, Captain, there is a matter I want
to discuss with you.”
The older man waited, and from his stance, Seren
guessed he wouldn’t allow Paladin to argue. She glanced over
at where he stood. Eyes narrowed and focused on Largin, he
seemed about to refuse. Tension swelled while she waited,
holding her breath.
With a curt nod at the old man, he looked at her. “I will
not be far. Call if you have need.”
Nostrils flaring, she drew in a deep breath, holding it as
she nodded. Seren was relieved he’d decided to go. She
wanted to speak to Leo, but with Paladin in the room, she’d
fail to devote her full attention to the questions she wanted
to ask. The man distracted her far too much.
* * * *
Aggravated he’d had to leave Seren, Paladin followed
Largin down the hall to a room on the opposite side of the
one they had just left. Overflowing with tables and
astronomical instruments, the room stretched half the length
of the house. Papers towered on the surfaces. Some of the
papers were bright and crisp, nothing marring them, yet
others were so coated with dust the writing laid obscured,
preventing him from reading them.
He had wanted to remain with Seren, but the wizard left
little room for him to argue. Now, he trailed behind the old
man without the least bit of curiosity about why he wanted to
speak to him. Instead, his thoughts were centered on her.
The warmth of her kiss drove him to complete and utter
mindlessness. He wanted...no, needed her. An ache settled in
his chest. His life would never be the same. The woman from
Earth had seeped into the crevices in his heart created by his
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wife’s betrayal and touched him like no other.
He strode past a low counter and slowed. Dragon skulls
amid a multitude of other bones lay on the surface. A shiver
crawled up his back.
“Not to worry, none of those are from your bloodline.
Rogues all, special ones at that.” Largin commented over his
shoulder. “Similar to the one which attacked Rylen when he
was younger.”
This bit of information caught Paladin’s attention,
diverting his thoughts. Memories of his brother’s agony after
the incident Largin spoke of came to life.
Younger than Paladin by ten years, Rylen had wandered
away from the family during a holiday to the shore. Everyone
in the party had searched most of the day for the young boy
to no avail. Paladin had refused to give up. After hours
combing the beach, he had found his brother unconscious in
the sand. The boy had been severely wounded by the breath
from a rogue dragon. Rylen had lived in a fevered, delirious
state for several weeks before the mystic healers were able to
pull him back to awareness. Paladin never forgot his
brother’s agony. Those memories brought forth a rush of
newer ones.
An image of Seren writhing under his son’s dragon fire
flashed through his mind. He shut his eyes. The pain she had
suffered because of his carelessness was inexcusable. He
shouldn’t have touched her. Even now he should leave her
alone, but his need for her wouldn’t let him go. He shoved
these thoughts to the back of his mind, concentrating instead
on his brother.
Every one of the great dragon guardian wizards had
named the rogue that had attacked his brother Arcane. The
dragon’s strange coloring and bearing set him apart from the
normal clans. His scales had reflected every color of the
different dragons on a smoky charcoal background. A mystic
dragon—a new breed. Even his magic differed from what the
inhabitants on Avaris were accustomed to.
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Paladin moved closer to Largin. “What do you mean?
Similar? I thought none had lived from the clutch of eggs he
came from. None but him.”
“True, true...but these are from the joining of the gold
and black dragon. Thus, they are similar, but not the same as
when the white and black mated.” Largin stopped at a longer
table, riffling through several sheets of parchment. Not
finding what he sought, he moved further down. He did the
same with more stacks of the papers. “The great Lior should
never have mated with that black demon, Sinimal. All the
hatchlings revealed this to the guardian wizards. Too much
unstable magic in the wee fledglings. All of the guardians and
wizards involved counted the fledglings’ deaths a true
blessing.”
Paladin stopped near Largin, watching the old wizard
search. “I agree. But the rogue was driven away. Last I heard
he occupied the lands to the farthest north.”
“So he does…Aha…Here it is.” Largin pulled a dusty, thick
tome from the farthest stack. The papers on top flew and
scattered across the table, knocking over several nearby
piles. A cloud of dust rose, surrounding the wizard.
Waving a hand in front of his face, Paladin took several
steps back to escape. Largin wheezed, then coughed.
Patience wearing thin, Paladin gritted his teeth. The
thought of Seren even this far from him sent a sensation of a
fist slamming into his chest over the spot where his heart
beat. . He had to see her, touch her, even if just for one
second more. “You called me here to speak with me. If all
you want to do is fumble amid dry parchments and speak of
rogues which are not a danger to me then I’ll return to Seren.
I do not care to leave her too long.”
“Ah, but that is exactly why I have asked you to join me,”
the wizard commented, brushing past him. “This way, the
lighting is always best on the other side of the room.”
With a shake of his head, Paladin moved behind Largin,
following him across the room. Paladin grunted. Of course,
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the area was better lit. The small torches, burning in their
holders, caught and held the glow of the many dragon stones
strewn over the counters.
The wizard set the tome on an uncluttered table, “Here
we are. Now let me find the place.” He pulled the book open
midway and glanced over the page. Several moments seemed
to slow to a crawl. Paladin counted each one with an
impatient tap of his toe. When the old man cried out,
marking a place with his finger, Paladin leaned forward,
looking over the wizard’s shoulder. “Here it is. Avaris’
prophecy.”
Another cold shiver spiraled up Paladin’s spine.
Largin shifted out of the way, motioning to his eyes.
“Here, you read it to me. My old eyes...”
He glared at the wizard. Old eyes indeed. Largin saw
better than he. The warning from his father sprang to life in
his mind. He stepped closer to the tome. With one last scowl,
he concentrated on the thin script. Elegant and narrow, the
words were written in an ancient language. Difficult to read,
he still managed to make out most of the letters.
“On thys day, Annual Fourteen, age of the Whyte Dragon,
a human accepted the most magycal of blood from the great
and glorious Lyor, thus opening the door for the upheaval
whych wyll over tyme and space expand across the whole of
Avaris. For from thys blood lyne, the one true Kyng wyll
come.”
A twinge of unease shot through his chest and stopped
Paladin from reading further. He glanced at Largin. The
wizard half-smiled and nodded toward the book. “Read all of
it.” With a deep breath, Paladin focused once more. “He
alone wyll hold Avaris’ future wythyn the folds of hys wyngs.”
He leaned on the edge of the table, unable to go on. The
ever present grain of fear sprouted into a clinging vine within
him and crept through his mind.
Largin touched his shoulder. The gentle weight helped to
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steady him.
“The child is the one. Your child—your bloodline.”
He faced the wizard. Seren’s answers to his questions
verified what Largin said. He desired to deny every measure
of the wizard’s comments, but...
With a finger pointing to the page in the tome, Largin
continued. “If you read further, the mother chosen to give
birth to this babe is spoken of. A woman from the cosmos.
The woman you have brought with you is from the cosmos, is
she not? From Avaris’ sister world—Earth.”
Paladin, heart pounding, fury overriding his normal calm,
gripped the front of Largin’s shirt, lifting the smaller man off
his feet. May the dragon’s fires destroy his father’s teachings.
“Stop playing with me. Speak openly and be quick about it.”
“She will be in great danger once word spreads that she
carries the prophesized king.”
“She is under my protection. None, beast, dragon, nor
human shall ever harm her. This I swear by all the magic of
the dragons.”
Largin’s eyes widened and his mouth fell open. A sudden
spark lit in the wizard’s eyes. He sent quick glances around
them. Paladin sensed his fear and in the sudden lowering of
the other man’s body heat. The older man pulled at his shirt.
Paladin opened his fingers, releasing him. Let Largin and all
who dared to harm what he held dear turn to ash under the
never ending stream of a dragon’s fire. Calmness returned in
slow measures as Paladin silently accepted that he would do
all in his power to keep Seren and his unborn child safe.
When the wizard spoke, his words crackled with alarm.
“Take back your oath, King of the White Dragon Clan.”
Determined, holding true to his desire to protect Seren,
Paladin retorted. “Never.”
The wind slammed against the small, unseen windows
situated high along the outside wall of the room. Their panes
rattled. The storm, having ebbed of power earlier, had
regained its strength. With it, Paladin’s own spirit to fight for
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Seren and his child’s safety built to a white hot boil. He drew
in a deep breath and shook his head, defying the growing
heaviness in the room. “No, I will never take them back. This
I have sworn and this I hold fast. My oath stands.”
Lightning slipped through one window, splintering glass
and wood. The bolt struck a dragonstone resting on top of a
table not far from where they stood. Sparks amid chunks of
stone hurled up, thrown out across the chamber. Flames
flared in the center of the table. The entire room vibrated
long after the thunderbolt had vanished.
“Oh, flying drac’s liver,” Largin muttered. He hurried to
the spot, staring at the shattered remains of a large stone.
“Now look what you have done, my fierce dragonseed.”
Paladin, unrepentant, moved to his side. At the sight of
the shattered white dragon stone, he tilted his chin higher.
The dragons had sent their message to him. He wondered
whether they supported him, or was this their way of letting
him know his life was at an end. No matter, he would
guarantee them a battle supreme if their plans involved harm
to Seren and his child.
* * * *
When the door closed behind Paladin, Seren released her
pent-up breath. At the questioning expression on Leo’s face,
she grinned. “He affects me. A lot.”
Leo nodded. “He’s a good man.”
Her stomach answered him with a rumble. Embarrassed,
hot blood rose to her cheeks and she apologized.
“I interrupted your meal.” He stood, returning a moment
later with something for her to eat. He handed her a filled
cup.
She murmured in appreciation, and placed the cup on the
small oval table between the armchairs. The delicious aroma
of the cooked meat teased her, making her hunger more
acute. Her mouth watered.
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Once Leo settled into his seat, he asked. “You eat while I
talk, if that’s all right?”
She nodded, bringing a slice of meat to her lips. The smell
had done little justice to the taste. Seren closed her eyes,
“I suppose you’re wondering how I arrived on Avaris.
Well, it’s similar to how you came here. I made a wish on a
shooting star. I was in Nam. The night I left Earth, my entire
platoon had been wiped out.”
Leo stopped for a moment. As he stared into the fire,
Seren studied him, wondering what he saw in his mind’s eye.
When he noticed her look, he smiled, sadness reflected in his
kind, dark eyes.
“It was right after midnight. I remember ’cause I didn’t
know how I was going to stay alive for the rest of the night.
My time was short. Charlie would attack at dawn. The
waiting for the final assault made me insane with fear.
“All I wanted to do was live. Praying, I looked up and saw
a shooting star. My Granny used to wish on stars, so I
thought what could it hurt? I repeated the words she taught
me when I was little.”
He grinned at her, and then recited the children’s rhyme.
“‘I wish I may, I wish I might, have the wish I wish tonight.’”
After he finished, a deep laugh rumbled out of his chest.
“Next thing I knew, the land around me lit up like fourth of
July fireworks. At first, I thought it was a spotlight from a
rescue chopper, but it wasn’t. Weren’t no noise. None of the
plants had moved. Next, I thought I’d died. I went to the
light, thinking it was what I was supposed to do. But once I
walked through, I knew something had happened.”
Seren nodded, finishing the last bit of food on her plate.
“Wha
t did you do?”
“I walked. I didn’t stop, either, until I found this place.
Master Largin was waiting for me. He told me he’d felt the
door opening through the star. Didn’t know what he was
talking about, and didn’t care at the time.”
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“Did you want to go home?” Seren placed her dish on the
table. She settled against the chair’s cushioned back, tucking
her feet under her.
“Honestly?” Leo shook his head. “No, ma’am. Didn’t have
any family left. Most of my friends had died in the war. So
coming here didn’t bother me none. Over the years, I made a
good home. Married, even had kids. My wife passed away a
few years ago, but my children are settled with good spouses.
They’re happy, a real joy to me. They’ve given me grandkids.
That’s a lot more than what I might have had back home.”
He grinned at her. “I wouldn’t trade the last thirty seven
years for even one day on Earth.”
Amazed, Seren stared at him. “But it’s so different. How
did you adjust?”
This time his laugh came out full and rich. “There’s no
adjusting. I simply accepted their world for what it is,” he
said, leaning forward. “The inhabitants of this planet take
their magic seriously.”
“I noticed.”
“Maybe, but I don’t think you realize to what degree they
take this stuff. On earth, magic was make-believe, here it’s
not.”
Before he had a chance to explain, a resounding crash
echoed through the house. Seren jerked to an upright
position. She faced the door, listening, trying to figure out
where the sound came from and what could have caused it
Leo jumped to his feet, heading to the door. “Oh, Lord, I
hope Master Largin didn’t turn the captain into a toad.”
Shocked, she untangled her legs and ran after him.
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Chapter Nine
Leo stopped in front of a door down the hall. Seren,
following close behind him, stumbled into his back. He
pounded on the wooden panel, calling out, “Master, are you
all right? Is the captain okay?”
Shuffling came from inside the room. “Yes, yes, Leo.
Nothing to worry yourself with. Just a little disturbance from
the storm.”
Seren, fearing the truth behind Leo’s earlier comment,
ducked under his arm. “Paladin? Are you in there?”