Chapter 31
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
W hoever had come up with the expression like herding cats had never tried to liaise with a vampire-fae, an elf and a detective from the Metropolitan Police.
Hyax would admit his lack of patience wouldn’t win him any awards, but he was frazzled and annoyed, and had given Gwil strict instructions to keep Goya as far away as possible, or he wouldn’t be responsible for his actions.
It had taken several hours for the arrangements to be agreed, and he suspected he’d also got them done in that time because of the imminent dragon threat.
They were back in the cavern. Gwil and Goya were taking the long way, and Hyax had collected Simon and Chris from Crofton Hall and brought them directly via a portal.
His reticence to portal was dismissed by Chris, who’d rightly told him they were about to use a fuck-ton of magic to move it, and a little tingle wasn’t going to be an issue.
Arriving ahead of Goya and Gwil meant they had time to set up, including placing a few light orbs so they could see but not be overly bright, and agree on the plan before Goya could interfere.
Even taking Gwil’s bias into account, he had to agree they could’ve done without the additional scrutiny.
Gwil had the potion with him because he wouldn’t take the risk of potential changes the residual magic might cause.
Chris stood in front of the dragon, his hands on his hips. “He’s a big fucker, isn’t he? Any idea how he ended up here?”
“How do you know it’s a he?” Simon asked.
Chris pointed to a series of ridges on the dragon’s forehead. “Those are a giveaway. That and the smell.”
Hyax sniffed. There was an undercurrent of damp, but nothing he’d had associated with being male or dragon. “I don’t get what you mean.”
“There’s a sweetness, like the type you get from boiled sugar sweets.”
“Oh, yes.” Simon’s brow crumpled. “And that’s the smell a male dragon emits?”
“Yeah, the females are more floral. They tend to leave a scent behind. It’s more prominent after they’ve eaten or orgasmed.” Chris held up several purple balls. “But these will mask the smell. My lavender snoozies, special dragon edition—they shouldn’t have any effect on you.”
Chris placed his dragon sleep aides around their scaly friend. Simon seemed pissed off and Hyax thought this might have more to do with Simon’s other dragon problem rather than this one. They needed to concentrate, and he couldn’t risk Simon getting distracted.
“Right, so once Gwil arrives with the potion, I’ll cast the spell for the portal.
Chris will add in the directional aspect, and Simon will feed in his magic.
I’ll need to focus on the portal itself, so you two will also levitate the dragon into the portal.
I’ll follow behind and return once it’s in the dragon realm. ”
Chris nodded. “Don’t hang around on the other side.”
“I don’t think I’m in any danger of being stuck there,” Hyax said, not sure of the reason for the concern.
“No, but you might get eaten.”
He hadn’t factored in being a dragon’s lunch. “I don’t think he’s going to wake up.”
“He might not, but there will be the other dragons who might think you a tasty snack.” He smiled encouragingly. “I’d bet you’d taste good to a dragon. Your wings would add a different texture.”
Simon tutted. “You’re not helping, Chris.”
“Sorry. I don’t always get the social signals right. Living in a jar for so long can do that, but I’m learning. Jack said I was pretty much house-trained.”
“Jack has to be some sort of saint,” Hyax muttered.
Thankfully, the arrival of Gwil and Goya prevented Chris from offering up any further moral support. Goya bowed to Hyax and Simon. “Your Highnesses, thank you for understanding why I needed to be here.”
Goya’s eyes widened comically as he stared beyond them to see a full-size dragon much bigger than a London bus. “Fucking hell!”
Gwil handed Hyax the potion flask. “We’ll stand as far back as possible. Be careful.”
“I’ll do my best not to damage myself or anyone else.”
Hyax squawked as Gwil pulled him into a kiss. “I mean it, Hyax. You’re playing with a dragon, not a puppy.”
He loved this side of Gwil, but equally, he had to protect the blockhead from himself. “I know. And you need to remember this is untried magic. You keep your distance no matter what happens. You can’t help me by running in to try to save the day. Understand?”
“I reserve the right to intervene if non-magical means can be used.”
“The likelihood of that happening is remote.”
“But not zero.” Gwil laughed, pecked him on the lips and retreated to the side, pulling Goya with him.
Hyax didn’t hear their conversation, but Goya looked pissed off and Gwil was smirking like a smug bastard. He’d take that as a good sign and that Gwil would keep Goya in check.
He turned back to Simon and Chris. “Are you ready?”
They both nodded and took up their position.
Chris at the head, Simon at the tail. Hyax wouldn’t say he was ready, but he was as prepared as he was going to be, and if this failed, they would have time to try something else.
The dragon hadn’t stirred, still deep in sleep, but he wouldn’t stay that way forever.
Hyax unscrewed the potion flask and knocked back the contents in a couple of gulps, determined not to dwell on what was in the potion or its bitter taste.
The book had been vague about the speed the magic would take effect or how it would manifest, beyond it would happen in three steps, as the reaction was species-dependent, but he could already sense the effects.
A low buzz emitted from under his diaphragm.
His magic seemed to sit up and take notice, the essence of Gwil a factor in his magic’s interest; the potion was working.
“Okay,” he called. “The potion is starting to work. My magic is excited to do something. I think this is the first phase.”
He’d memorised the spell, not wanting to bring the book with him; the material was not the sort of stuff he wanted in front of the police. Goya wouldn’t hesitate to act to investigate, and he didn’t want the awkward questions.
He’d taken an array of recreational drugs in his time, experienced the highs and lows, but nothing quite like the flurry of pulses dancing around his sternum. His magic began to pulse, and he heard Gwil gasp.
“Are you all right?” he called.
“Yeah, I think I’m getting some feedback. Nothing bad, just unexpected.”
He suspected that was the sign of the second phase. A bolt of energy shot through him, his magic now on tenterhooks, demanding he stop fucking about. “Off we go!”
He opened a portal, his anchor to the elf meadowlands, which was the closest he could get. Chris needed to do the rest. He muttered the spell, its structure akin to fae, but with elvish and witch undertones. The portal pulsed; the spell was working.
Chris directed a bolt of magic into the swirling orange mass.
Hyax sensed the change in where the anchor was seated.
Chris’s magic redirecting the destination point and, at the same time, increasing the energy level.
Chris’s magic felt like sunshine and honeysuckle.
He’d heard of light elves, but hadn’t realised how pure their signatures were, although even with Chris’s strength, it was still not enough. “When you’re ready, Simon!”
He’d experienced Simon’s magic before, and the dark contrast to Chris’s light was obvious, but they balanced each other, and Hyax thought they were pretty equal in power as well.
The portal increased in size, big enough for a sleeping dragon; they would just need to evict their scaly squatter using a levitation spell.
“On the count of three, lift the dragon and move into the portal. I will follow behind for the final push.”
He’d used portals all his life, but had never tried to move something so large before. Gwil’s vampire physiology had been a challenge, and they’d been able to find a way that he could use Hyax’s portals, but his size had never been a limiting factor.
“Fuck he’s a big bastard,” Simon said as he and Chris began the levitation.
Simon had to jump out of the way of the tail as it uncoiled and swung in his direction.
Hyax needed to concentrate; his magic was beginning to show the strain, but they were making good progress and, apart from a long huff, the dragon didn’t stir.
As the dragon floated into the light, Hyax stepped in behind, on high alert about what might be waiting on the other side.
The portal closed behind him, and he was separated from Chris and Simon.
Their loss made his magic flinch, but it was something he couldn’t control.
They were in an open field, the air had a fizzy quality, and he realised it was his magic reacting to the new environment.
He managed to lower the dragon without too much of a thud.
The dragon had curled back into a tight ball and let out a satisfied sigh. They’d not thought much beyond getting the dragon out of London to a safe enough place. They were out in the open, exposed with no cover, and the dragon didn’t look as if it was about to wake up.
In the distance, Hyax could see the outline of what might be a city, or at least tall buildings, which could be dragon roosts.
There were shapes in the sky, bird-like but being so far away they had to be a lot bigger than birds, and Hyax guessed they must be dragons in flight.
He decided to set up a flare so as not to leave his scaly friend vulnerable and his people would be able to find him.
Then he would slip away as he thought magical creatures would have noticed some disturbance when they’d arrived, and he didn’t want to take the risk of whoever found him flaming first and talking later.