Page 72 of Storm of Desire
The scent of sulfur made his nose curl. Every sense felt stronger and more focused. He could barely see, but the mud gleamed a different color to solid ground. Despite the rain, the underground heat seemed to have baked the moisture out of the clay where the track meandered between mudpools.
"Oh, no," Árdís whispered, when they were almost all the way across the field of mudpools.
Oh, no?He looked behind himsharply.
"There's a reason those trolls haven't followed us." She turned in slow circles. "He's here somewhere. I can smellhim."
No questioning who shemeant.
He Who Should Not BeWoken.
"How the hell can you smell anything?" A bubble of mud popped with a splat nearby. "Apart from sulfur, I mean? Perhaps we should move a littlequicker?"
Snorri gave a nervous whicker, dancing on his toes and straining at the lead that tied him to Sleipnir's saddle. The whites of his eyesshowed.
"I can't see him." Árdís pressed a hand to her head. "But I can feel him." She winced. "Damn it. He's in myhead."
"Where ishe?"
"I don't know." Her teeth ground together. "It's all I can do to push him out. But he's aware ofus."
The terrain ahead was far too treacherous, but there were trolls behind them, and adrekiwho even otherdrekifeared somewhere nearby. Not a lot of options. Haakon picked out a path through the bubbling mud pools with his eyes. "There," he said, pointing to the ridge in front of them. "Hurry. I'd prefer not to make hisacquaintance."
Moving forward, he picked his way between mud pools and made it to the base of thecliff.
The horses began to snort, and Haakon reeled in Sleipnir's reins, holding them in a fist just beneath the stallion's muzzle. Sleipnir's ears flickered, and he made a muffledwhumpfsound, his nostrils flaring in asnort.
"Nothing to be frightened of," Haakon murmured, stroking the stallion's softmuzzle.
"They can smell himtoo."
A curious thought occurred. "The same way all the animals on my farm knew what you were?" Well before he did, itseemed.
Árdís nodded, her eyes searching the landscape as she grabbed Snorri's reins and added her weight to the reluctant little beast'shead.
If the horses bolted, they'd drown in a pool of hot mud, or break a leg. Damn it. Haakon used his shoulder to push the flighty stallion onto the narrow path along the side of the cliff. If Sleipnir behaved, Snorri mighttoo.
"Are you all right?" he called back, pausing by a particularly craggy cliff. Steam made it difficult to see properly. "Can you handleSnorri?"
"Suddenly he's my best friend," she shot back. "Better thedrekiyou know, itseems."
An enormous golden eye blinked open, right besidehim.
Haakon swore as Sleipnir shied away. He was suddenly battling both a terrified stallion and trying to draw his sword at the same time, even as his balls clenched tightly.Fuck.
Not a mountain. Not acliff.
But adrekiblending into the slope as if its rough-hewn body was partly made ofstone.
Haakon jerked back, lifting his sword as he shoved Sleipnir behind him. Gravel scattered under his boots. "Árdís?"
"No!" she cried, snatching at his hand and forcing it to lower. "You cannot challengehim!"
Probably correct. The mountainside shivered and shifted, enormous bat-like wings heaving as thedreki'shead lifted from its front paws. The ground shook beneath his feet, and it was all he could do to remain standing. The heat drained from his face as thedrekiturned its head and hissed atthem.
Sleipnir screamed, and reared up on his hindlegs.
"Down!" Somehow he hauled the horse's head low. "Come on, boy. Easy.Easy."
