Chapter Seven
Esha seemed hard to surprise. Kendrick had clearly shaken her with his admission but not enough to frighten her away. That pleased him. Probably more than it should if he were being honest.
He watched as her gaze moved to the entry. He knew she was about to leave and found that he didn’t want her to go. He had more things to learn. Then there was the fact that he liked her company. A lot. She seemed curious about him, too—or, at least, interested to learn about the Dragon Kings. But that didn’t bother him. He was just as fascinated with the elves.
His thoughts drifted to the problems Cullen and Shaw had dealt with at Stonemore. The human city abhorred anything involving magic and based their religion around annihilating it. Kendrick wondered how the people of Stonemore would feel about facing elves. After all, those humans had systematically wiped out the villages and cities near them, slaughtering those with magic along the way.
Stonemore wasn’t the only place where mortals feared those with magic. Yet every human who spurned someone for being different put those with magic on the run, fighting for their lives and hiding in fear.
Perhaps those with magic could find a home with the elves. It was something Kendrick would discuss with Esha later. If things worked out between their people and they became allies, perhaps they might join the dragons if there were a war with the humans—though he really didn’t want more bloodshed. He’d seen enough of that for eternity.
“What is it?” Esha asked.
Kendrick started to tell her that it was nothing, then reconsidered. “You said there are humans in Shecrish.”
“There are.”
“And some have magic. ”
“Some do, aye.”
“Would your people accept other humans? Particularly those with magic?”
Esha’s brow puckered. “Why?”
“I can go into detail later, but suffice it to say they’re finding it difficult to live where they are now.”
She seemed to think for a moment before shrugging. “I’m not saying that humans don’t find their way to us—there are those who wander. However, most of the mortals here arrived as infants and simply chose to remain.”
That brought up another question. It seemed every being on this planet arrived as an infant. So far, no one knew who brought them or how they got here. “Do you know how the bairns get to Zora?”
“Bairns?” she asked with a frown.
“Babies,” he explained.
Esha shook her head. “I was going to ask if the dragons were responsible.”
“Nay, lass, we’re no’.” He took a breath, deciding on the next question. “You said earlier that you bring elves here who arrive in other places on the realm. How?”
“Magic, of course. It takes a lot of it, and it’s not something that just anyone can do. We have Callers who gather every month and link their magic.”
“Do the Callers bring elves every time?”
“Yes. Most times, it’s just one, but there have been a few times where there were two. Never more than that.”
“Because the Callers’ magic isna strong enough?”
“It’s been assumed that it was because only those were out there at the time. But now that you mention it, I can’t say that for certain.”
Kendrick nodded, taking that in. He started to open his mouth for another question, but she spoke first.
“I need to see my sister. The longer I put it off, the worse things will be,” Esha said as she got to her feet.
He reluctantly stood, feeling strangely out of sorts that she was leaving. “Of course.”
“I’ll be back. You’ve told me very little about the dragons.”
Kendrick grinned. “I promise to tell you more when you return.”
“Good.”
She stood there, staring at him. The golden-amber hue of her eyes ensnared him. Everything about her fascinated him. A million questions buzzed through his mind, but he kept coming back to wanting to know her . What had her life been like? Who had raised her? And what had occurred to make her join the Rangers?
“This area isn’t heavily traveled. You shouldn’t have any visitors,” Esha said.
“I’m no’ worried.”
“No, I don’t suppose you would be. Does anything frighten you?”
Another war with humans . But he didn’t say that. “Everyone is scared of something.”
“Even you?”
“Even me,” he admitted.
Esha turned her head, causing the chain on her ear to sway. “We’ll speak soon, Dragon King.”
“Good luck with your sister, Sun Elf.”
She grinned and turned on her heel to walk out of the yurt. Kendrick followed and watched as she broke into a run. It wasn’t long before she vanished into the forest. She was quick—something else he filed away about the elves. Was that just something a Sun Elf could do? Or was that all elves? It was another question he’d have to ask her.
Kendrick glanced at the sky. The day had progressed faster than he’d realized. The sun was already on its descent. He sighed and decided to explore the area. He walked the edge of the lake on one side, noting that it was much larger than he’d first realized.
He retraced his steps to the yurt. The rocks along the water were different in size, the stones smooth and brightly colored in an assortment of hues that glistened in the fading daylight. He walked in increasingly larger circles around the yurt, studying the ground for any tracks—be they human or animal.
Kendrick found some that resembled a deer and more that could be something like a fox, but until he saw the animals and learned what they were, he couldn’t say for sure. The lake was large enough that animals had a variety of locations from which to drink, so he wasn’t worried about encountering anything.
Once he was satisfied with his search, he took a walk on the other side of the lake. When the sun was about to set, he made his way back to his camp, gathering firewood along the way. He started a fire and sat before it, watching the sky darken over the shimmering water. He thought about the day, arranging his thoughts. When he next focused, the sky was black.
Kendrick had put it off long enough. It was time to contact Con. Just as he opened the mental link to say Con’s name, he saw movement off to the side. He couldn’t see anything, even with his superior eyesight, which alerted him that magic was being used. It didn’t feel like the entity—there wasn’t a shimmer or anything.
But he knew someone was there.
“It’s rude to stare,” Kendrick stated. “Join me or leave.”
Shadows moved and shifted, and then a Dark Elf walked out. He stood tall, his yellow eyes locked on Kendrick. The elf wore a long, black coat, the bottom cut into six thick strips. The shoulders had armor plating. Beneath the jacket, the elf wore a shirt with chest and abdomen armor. Black trousers were tucked into knee-high boots with armor on the fronts. Kendrick saw no weapons, but that didn’t mean there weren’t any.
He looked at the elf’s face. He had pulled the top part of his long, white hair away from his face, exposing pointed ears. His gray skin showed thick, white brows that slashed over yellow eyes. There were multiple scars on his face. The deepest ran from the inside corner of his left eye and cut diagonally down his left cheek to his jaw. Another bisected his mouth at an angle right to left. A third ran from his left temple through his left brow, then across his nose and along the right cheek.
The elf walked to the opposite side of the fire and elegantly sank to the ground. Kendrick noted the small, silver metal bands around locks of his hair. Two on one side, one on the other.
“I didn’t imagine you to be so amenable, Dragon King,” the elf stated.
Kendrick quirked a brow. “Word travels fast.”
“Did you imagine it wouldn’t?”
“I doona think it matters either way.”
The elf snorted. “That just proves you know nothing of elves or Shecrish.”
“That’s something I plan to rectify.” Kendrick shifted. “Let’s start with names. I’m Kendrick.”
Yellow eyes watched him for a long moment. “Dain.”
“Your entry was interesting. What can I do for you?”
“It’s what I can do for you.”
Kendrick grinned. “Is that so?”
Dain leaned on one hand and propped a foot on the ground, his knee bent. “It is.”
“Why? ”
“You’ll disregard me if I tell you. It’s better if you find out for yourself.”
Kendrick mimicked the elf’s posture. “Or you could just tell me.”
“What would be the fun in that?”
Kendrick hated to admit it, but he liked Dain. The Dark Elf had come for a reason, and it wasn’t just to spar with words—though Kendrick enjoyed it. The warning was real, and he suspected that Dain wouldn’t tell him anything more, no matter how much he pushed.
Dain’s gaze was steady as he held Kendrick’s. “Dark Elves are feared.”
“Is it warranted?”
“Sometimes,” he admitted.
Kendrick nodded. “The same could be said for the Kings.”
“Then you understand.”
Kendrick did, in fact. Those terrified of the Dragon Kings usually had no reason other than they were told to be. They knew nothing about dragons. Esha had told Kendrick that the Dark Elves could be cruel and never showed mercy. That didn’t mean they were evil. It was simply their way.
“Tell me what brought you here,” Kendrick asked as he sat up.
Dain turned his head slightly and lowered his gaze to the ground. “Another time.” The elf rose to his feet in one fluid motion. “One word of caution. Not everything is as it seems.”
In the next instant, shadows flowed around him, covering Dain completely. Then they vanished, taking the elf with them.
Kendrick didn’t have time to think about that before he heard someone approaching. His dragon eyes probed the dark jungle, and he hoped it was Esha. Instead, Savita made her way to him. She didn’t stop until she stood in the same place Dain had been.
“May I join you?” Savita asked.
Kendrick held out his hand, his palm up as he motioned for her to sit. “Of course.”
He thought Savita might balk at sitting on the ground, but she said nothing as she lowered herself. She watched him over the dancing flames, her copper eyes giving nothing away. Savita hadn’t come just to soak in the moonlight. She was here for a reason, but Kendrick didn’t intend to say anything until she announced her intention.
The silence grew, broken only by the pop of the fire and the gently lapping waves of the water on the shore. If the elf thought she could make him nervous or apprehensive, she was about to learn that it would take much more.
“I want your word that you will leave in three days.”
He had expected a time limit to his stay, but not one so soon. “You think we can find this entity and kill it in three days?”
“Is that too much for you?”
“What is it you doona like about me?” he pressed.
She lifted one shoulder. “I don’t trust you.”
“Nor I you. But that’s what I want to do. Build trust.”
“The runes have spoken.”
He didn’t completely disregard the runes or the idea that they could speak to the Readers, but he felt as if Savita were using them as an excuse to get rid of him. Though only she would know since she was the only one who could read them. “What did they say?”
“You bring death.”
“The thing I’m tracking is what brought it to your lands, no’ me.”
She tilted her head to the side. “We’ve faced many dangers in Shecrish, but nothing like this. The runes told me it was something new. Something that came about at your arrival.”
Kendrick’s stomach churned. He had feared such a thing and wasn’t the only one, but he had held out hope that this new foe had been here all along. “Excuse me?”
“You aren’t of our world.”
Shite. Maybe the runes did speak to her. There was no other way she could know that information.
“Nay.”
“Go home. The entity will leave us alone if you do.”
He frowned and shook his head. “You can no’ be certain of that.”
“The runes do not lie,” she stated, a hint of anger in her words.
Kendrick tried to think of something to say when Savita rose.
She looked down at him. “Leave. Or more blood will cover you.”
He watched her leave, her words echoing in his head.