Chapter 24
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Lila
Finally, after what seems like forever, we emerge back into a large cavernous space, one much larger than we’d been through up until now. It’s probably the size of two football fields. I stop dead when I see what is in this cavern, and Tirrian and Silac run into me as I do.
“What the hell, Lila?” Tirrian grumbles, grabbing hold of me to steady himself.
My skin burns under his touch, but it’s a pleasant feeling, like being wrapped in a warm hug or sliding into a steaming hot bath, and I almost sink into his embrace, but I quickly get my shit together before I do something stupid.
“Wow.” Silac’s voice is soft and sounds as amazed as I feel.
Not only is this cavern large, but it’s brightly lit by sunlight shining through holes in the ceiling.
Down in the bottom of the cavern, probably twenty feet below where we are, is a herd of larnuks unlike any I’ve seen to date.
Much like the gem shoved down the front of my dress, these shine like multicolored opals, all oranges, pinks, and blues.
They actually remind me a little of the beautiful but deadly Aaz’axian Brannock.
He wouldn’t look out of place walking amongst them.
I watch as one stretches its wings out, the bright colors reflecting beautifully as the sunlight hits them at just the right angle.
Off to one side, some small—I’m assuming younger—larnuks, are running and playing and kicking up sparks from their hooves on the cavern floors.
One of them trips and tumbles, its wings akimbo as it rolls across the ground, but it shakes itself off and gets back up, running after its friends who didn’t even stop.
The sound of animals crunching on gems echoes through the cabins, but despite the loud noise, one of them has noticed our arrival. It throws its head back and growls that deep, unexpected sound, causing the rest to stop what they are doing and look up.
“We are fucked,” Silac mutters. “Without Zala to possibly control the larnuks, we have no chance of getting the flower.” He points to a small grassy grove that is smack-dab in the middle of the cavern, surrounded on all sides by these beautiful animals.
Probably no bigger than six feet across, the round garden bed contains five plants, all of which have a beautiful, flaming red flower in the middle of it.
The colored petals literally look like flames bursting out of the stem, and I know this is what I need to save Grandpa John as well as my newly revealed grandma.
“I could shift form and fly across,” I suggest, but Tirrian quickly shakes his head.
“The larnuks can fly too.”
“Okay, what about shifting into the earth Elementi and using its powers to tunnel through the rock and come up over there?” I point to the grassy patch, and the infuriating dragon raises one questioning eyebrow.
“Do you think you have the kind of control you need to not come up and destroy the flowers?”
My heart sinks, because damn it, he’s right. I can’t guarantee I won’t destroy them.
“Look, I think you should just try to approach the larnuks. They obviously have some symbiotic relationship with the cavern, and if it’s allowed you to get this far, then what’s to say that you won’t be allowed to continue?
We can shift into our animals and escort you in case they get any ideas.
The two of us are pretty scary if we need to be,” Silac suggests, offering some actual help instead of shooting everything I propose down like the dragon.
A huge sigh whooshes out of me. “Okay, well, I guess that plan sounds the most sensible so far, but if I end up as lunch to a crystal-eating winged horse, then I will come back to haunt you,” I tell the naga, who chuckles.
He and Tirrian shift. Tirrian launches himself into the air, his beautiful pink and black dragon flapping lazily to keep him suspended just in front of me. I’ve seen his dragon form before, and it flicks out a long, forked tongue that slobbers on my cheek before returning to his mouth.
“Ugh, dude, that’s gross,” I tell him, and the dragon chuckles, smoke huffing out of his nostrils.
I shrink back when I turn to look at Silac. I’ve never seen him in shifted form, and it’s scary as fuck. Gone is anything resembling a human man, and in front of me is a large, green hooded, orange and black scaled cobra-like snake. He’s fifteen feet high, and his fangs look as long as my hand.
His head comes down to my level, and I can’t help the little squeal that escapes my mouth, but instead of lashing out and biting me, he just butts my head with his affectionately before twining his body around mine.
As he wraps me up in his coils, I get lifted into the air.
I’m terrified, but I finally realize we are actually moving.
Silac is slithering down the path that winds down the rock face to the bottom of the cavern.
Tirrian keeps pace the whole way, his wings kicking up a breeze with every downward thrust. Eventually, I settle into the journey, Silac’s coils warm against my skin.
I’m no more nervous now than I was the first time we met.
I know he won’t hurt me no matter what form he is in, and this one is kind of awesome, much like Tirrian’s dragon.
His attraction mark on my shoulder throbs reassuringly, which is also comforting.
I now know that I can’t help but add more mates to my harem until my mimic powers are satisfied, and I’m not going to feel guilty about it—or not too guilty.
Let’s face it, Silac is sexy, but despite our mutual attraction, that’s as far as it can go with his arranged marriage, and I am incredibly sad about it.
Hopefully once we get some distance, the marks will fade.
The larnuks follow our path, not returning to grazing, intent on watching our every movement, but they don’t seem scared to have two huge, apex predators entering their home. That in itself tells me everything I need to know. These creatures are just as badass as the two that accompany me.
When we get to the bottom, Silac releases me, waiting until I have my bearings before backing away.
Tirrian also sets down, and they take up guard behind me.
I take a step forward, but the larnuks suddenly move.
Before I can blink, they create a barrier between me and the flower.
If I want it, I’m going to have to go through them.
A lump develops in my throat, and I turn back to look at the shifters behind me. Silac stares at me, his unblinking eyes slightly unnerving, but Tirrian’s dragon pushes his head forward and runs his tongue up my cheek again before nudging me forward.
“I guess you think I should try and get through them?” I ask him, wiping away the slobber again, not bothering to scold him because I think that’s exactly what he wants.
He nods his giant head. Heaving a sigh, I turn back to face the animals.
As I go to step forward again, one of the gangly teenagers comes barreling over, his steps awkward and hurried.
He practically slides on his ass like a rodeo rider’s horse when he comes to a stop, but he puts himself between me and the lead horse that is somewhat in front of the rest of the group.
I pause again and consider taking the form of my fire Elementi, but the thought of burning any of these beautiful animals is abhorrent to me, so instead, I stay in my Rilunese form and pray that they will move to the side and let me through.
Bracing myself, I step forward again, one foot after the other.
Behind me, I feel Tirrian and Silac follow, Tirrian’s lumbering footsteps shaking the ground slightly, but they don’t crowd me.
I expect the larnuks to move out of the way, but instead, the teenager holds his ground next to his much larger herd leader right up until I go to move past them, then he strikes. Before I can even react, his teeth sink into my forearm, sending searing pain through my body.
I scream, the sound echoing through the entire cavern, but within seconds of the pain hitting me, it dissipates, and I feel another sense inside my mind.
It’s the larnuk, and he’s so fucking happy with himself.
He releases my arm, and his chest puffs up, and his awkward, gangly wings poke out as he turns and pushes his way past the herd leader, making a path through his fellow animals. I can tell he expects me to follow.
I look down at my arm that is now bleeding quite freely.
I remove the head scarf that had been holding my hair back and wrap it around the wound, and as I do, my hair falls free around my shoulders, and I blink in surprise.
Gone are the chestnut locks, which are now the same colors as this herd’s coat.
My hair is now completely opalescent, and at the sight of it, every single animal in front of me goes down on one knee and bows their heads in respect.
It only lasts a moment, and then the larger lead animal stands up and throws his head back with a growl.
The rest of the herd follows suit until the cavern echoes with the sounds.
Goosebumps race across my skin as I consider what just happened.
I’m assuming I bonded with the larnuk, but why is my entire hair this color and not just a streak?
And what the fuck am I going to do with a larnuk?
A sense of impatience interrupts my thoughts, and I quickly follow after my new friend.
He is standing in front of the flamegem flower, looking pleased.
He nudges his horn at it before nudging me with the same thing.
I brace for it to pierce my chest, but he just bumps it gently against me, and I can tell the little bugger is laughing at me.
Remembering that I need to change to my Celestian form, I allow my dress to fall away and let the mimic change take over, but I watch in utter amazement as my larnuk also shivers, and his wings change to match the ones that now grace my back.