Page 32 of Consort's Dragon
He spent hours reading aloud, pausing to answer questions, some of which he didn’t have replies to, such as why they called the country Verlora.A trick query as it turned out because Argent knew the answer and smugly told him,Verlora was the name I used before my death.
Hunh.Griff would have never guessed.It led to him venturing to ask, “Did you know that before Verlora’s fall, the explorers of the volcano found the skull of a dragon?”
Mine, most likely,Argent hissed.
“You died here?”
No, but the remains would have been easy to relocate.
“How did you die?”
I told you, to save the humans.
“But how?You seem rather difficult to kill.”
Not when one bows their head and waits for the killing blow.Don’t expect me to make that same mistake again,Argent grumbled.Enough reading.I need to hunt.
Once more Griff found himself clutched and treated to a dizzying ascent to the top of the volcano and then a dip, more terrifying now that darkness had fallen and he could see nothing.Argent deposited him in the courtyard of the citadel and left without another word.
Off to hunt at the same time Griff’s crew—his friends—traversed the city in search of him.He had to find them first.
He entered the citadel and sought out weapons because he could hardly go traipsing about the city empty-handed.The old armory still had swords in decent condition, as well as a dagger for his boot.
He eyed some of the hanging lanterns and debated bringing one.It would be nice to light his path, but it would also pinpoint him.Who knew what lurked at night?Not to mention, Argent would easily spot it from the sky.In the end, he chose to trust his senses.
Once he exited the citadel, he had to choose a route.Chances were his crew would use the same path they’d used to cross the city that first time.He set off in that direction and didn’t make it far before the first threat came chirping from the sky.
He barely had time to duck before something swooped, the loud flap of leathery wings making him think of Argent, only it wasn’t the dragon that attacked.For one, this creature had beady red eyes.A bat, usually harmless, but that was true of the palm-sized version.This one appeared to be almost as tall as him.Another animal grotesquely changed by the experiment that leaked from Verlora’s underground lab.Some kind of growth serum meant to increase the size of crops, only it turned out it worked on the animals and bugs as well.
As it came around to attack again, Griff’s swing missed, and the bat fluttered around for another dive.This time, he managed to stand his ground and sliced through a wing, sending the creature tumbling.
The first of many.As bats plunged from the dark sky, he hacked and slashed, killing them fairly easily, but it meant he made little progress traversing the city.At this rate, he’d die of fatigue before finding his friends.
Seeing as how standing in the open kept attracting the bats, he traveled close to the walls of the buildings still standing, inching along them.Slow moving, however, it did provide some respite from the bat attacks.
What he didn’t expect as he sidled across a doorway?To be yanked inside!
Chapter8
Avera spentthe next few days after the attack learning more about Merisu and its emperor, not that she saw much of Titus.After the assassination attempt, he’d been on a mission to ensure everyone understood she was not to be harmed.To that end, his soldiers sought out those working for the Assassins’ Guild, seeing as how the master of it couldn’t be found.
Prielli kept Avera updated, and on the fourth morning as she arrived with a tray—which she insisted on eating from to ensure there was no poison, despite how much Avera argued her life was also important—her maid announced, “The Assassins’ Guild is no more.The master was located last night.”
“That’s good news.Did they discover who commissioned the guild to kill me?”
Prielli’s lips turned down and she shook her head.“Unfortunately, no.They found his body stuffed in a trunk, dead for days.It would seem someone killed him before he could be caught and questioned.”
“Ironic,” Avera mused.“The head of assassins assassinated.”
“At least now those murderers are gone.”
“You didn’t approve?”
“I believe those with squabbles should face each other and have it out, not pay someone to do the deed for them.”
“Agreed.We didn’t have such a thing on Daerva.Our murder rate was rather low.Most were the result of too much libation or domestic disputes.”Surprisingly, it wasn’t just the husbands that killed.A good number of wives often took the cleaver to philandering husbands.Others leaned towards poisoning their food.
“Merisuan blood runs hot at times and since we birth more boys than girls, that leads to much posturing.”
