Page 18 of Winter's Dragons. Frozen Flames
Behind me, one of the nisse whimpered. On the bed, Karasu's form started to contort, ice forming on his feathers and crackling as the tengu struggled to free himself. "You dare! Filthy little half-breed!"
Cassia rolled her eyes. "That's inaccurate. Technically, nymphs are deities too. Well, for the most part. Besides, my nature and bloodline are mostly irrelevant. What matters is that I am the queen on The Realm of The Eternal Ice, and you are not."
"You'll only ever be a poor replacement, and nothing more. I'm free now and I'll—"
"Snegurka!"
Ded Moroz's voice interrupted the exchange between the demonic presence and Cassia. He stepped into the healing room, his gaze fixed on Karasu's bed. "Stop this, please. Haven't you done enough damage?"
Several things happened at the same time. Karasu stopped struggling and turned to give Ded Moroz a long, thoughtful look. Meanwhile, Cassia lifted a hand, literally freezing Ded Moroz in his tracks. "Stay where you are, old man. This is between me and her."
"With respect, Your Majesty, that's a lie and you know it," Ded Moroz said. "Snegurka, I'm begging you. Don't push things further. Just leave."
I didn't expect Ded Moroz's words to have any effect, but shockingly, they did. The malevolent magic flashed one last time in Karasu's body and then a strange gray-blue cloud escaped his form. "No!" Cassia cried. "Don't..."
The cloud dissipated before she could finish the sentence. Karasu slumped back on the bed, his face returning to its regular bright red coloring and all signs of frostbite vanishing. The nisse released identical sighs of relief. Cassia was nowhere near as happy.
"Fool!" she snarled as she stalked toward her still frozen advisor. "Why did you step in? We could have still captured her!"
"And if you had captured her, then what? A couple more centuries of imprisonment in that pit? Forgive me for not wanting that fate for my daughter."
Rage flared in Cassia's eyes, as bright and fierce as the blizzards that often carried her over The Hoarfrost Tundra. She lifted her hand, her fingers once again clawed, like they had been earlier, in the corridor.It was actually a little strange since I'd never seen icicles form around Cassia's digits like that before. It reminded me a little of a dragon female, and despite the seriousness of the circumstances, I found the addition sexy.
The claws would've also done some significant damage had they been used against Ded Moroz, but an unlikely arrival rescued the old man from that fate.
Kasumi peered into the room through the cracked open door. "I just sensed some malevolent energies coming from this direction. Is everyone all..."
She took one look at the scene she'd stumbled upon and trailed off in obvious shock. The rest of our parents, who must have come with her, were nowhere near as discreet.
Isebrand burst into the healing room and let out a cheerful whoop. "It looks like we arrived just in time! Are you eviscerating someone? Can we help?"
"What did he do?" Jerika asked in an excited tone. "Treason? Murder? Oh, this realm is even more exciting than I anticipated."
My own mother seemed to have taken a different approach and was more interested in Cassia's new look than her attack on her advisor. "I didn't realize human mages could have claws. Intriguing."
January stumbled in after them, and it was the appearance of her lieutenant that finally snapped Cassia out of her trance. "I'm not a human mage," she said. "As for what Ded Moroz did... He's been a thorn in my side for far too long, and he's finally crossed the line. "
She lowered her hand and the icicles around her fingers cracked and dissipated. My mother pouted, and I wondered if she had wanted to examine the workings of my soulmate's lovely new claws. In the end, though, the potential enemy she'd stumbled upon took precedence, so she reassessed her priorities and turned toward Ded Moroz as well.
"If you need any help, Your Majesty, we'd be happy to provide it, although I'd like to veto the evisceration method. It's too swift for my liking and traitorous males deserve a greater punishment."
I wholeheartedly agreed with my mother's assessment and would've made the same offer, but I suspected my female had different needs. "Treasure, what exactly happened just now?" I asked. "What is going on? Who was that?"
Alas, my female's response didn't provide me with as much information as I would have liked. "I suppose the best description is... a ghost from the past," she said tightly. "I promise I will explain everything, soon."
Frustration surged inside me, but I didn't press her into revealing more. The reasons for her temporary vagueness were clear, and I had to be a little patient.
Already focusing on handling the problem we still didn't completely understand, Cassia glanced toward the nisse. "Alva, make sure Karasu receives all the care he needs. January, secure Ded Moroz in a cell. I'll deal with him later. Viveka, notify February of what has occurred. Tell him to prepare for a potential attack and then have him report to me in my quarters. That goes for you too, January."
The healers in question both curtsied, acknowledging Cassia's commands. "Yes, Your Majesty."
January bowed as well, as eager to assist Cassia as the nisse. "Of course, Your Majesty."
As Alva rushed to the check up on the tengu, Viveka disappeared in a flurry of snowflakes and agitated magic. The ice around the old man cracked, allowing January to guide him out of the room.
Apparently satisfied with their compliance, Cassia directed her attention to us once again. "Come with me. I have something I must do at once."
She swept out of the healing room almost as quickly as Viveka. My fellow dragons and I followed, as did our parents. Together, we made our way through the palace, back toward the quarters Emmerich, Raijin and I shared with our female.
