Read Fortress Of Fire (Book 4) Online
Authors: D.K. Holmberg
Fortress Of Fire (Book 4) (24 page)
“War is coming, Roine. And I don’t think the kingdoms are ready.”
T
an moved
through the tunnels beneath the palace, waiting for Asboel. The draasin claimed to know a different way to reach the tunnels, a way that didn’t require going through the archives, but wanted to keep the secret from Tan.
Amia stood next to him, clutching a cloak around her. She held a shapers lantern out for light. “Does Roine know what you’re doing?”
Tan shook his head. No one would know what he did here. They couldn’t; otherwise, the draasin would not be safe. After what he’d learned once he returned and managed to open the massive doors that had been closed for centuries—how the lower level of the archives had once been used to trap the draasin—he wasn’t sure he wanted anyone to know. “Until they’re old enough to defend themselves, we have to protect them from Par-shon.”
“Why did you think of here?”
Tan touched the door behind him. A massive rune was marked on the door, one that resembled what he’d found in Par-shon. Now he understood what it was, if not why it would be here. “They’ve been here before. I’ve never specifically asked Asboel before, but this door,” he said, patting the thick wood, “and this rune make sense now.”
He felt Asboel approach. The draasin moved more slowly than usual. How much was from the still-healing injuries sustained during the attack with the Par shapers, and how much was from the fact that Asboel guided the hatchlings along with him? Maybe it was a combination of both.
Bright eyes appeared out of the shadows and peered at Tan.
Maelen. I am unconvinced of your plan.
Where else would you go?
Tan asked.
If you remain in Nara, they will find you. In Incendin, you run the risk of Twisted Fire. The Daughter and I are the only ones who will know you are here.
Tan peered behind Asboel and saw Sashari. She remained silent, nothing but steam hissing from her nostrils. She eyed him carefully. Her long, barbed tail was tense and wrapped protectively around the two small hatchlings Tan couldn’t clearly see.
And Enya?
he asked.
She remains untrusting of your kind. More so now than ever before.
We have given her no reason to think otherwise.
Not you, Maelen. Only Twisted Fire.
He wasn’t ready to share with Asboel that Incendin was not the real danger. The draasin was so focused on what Incendin had done to him and the hatchlings, but Tan would need him to understand what else they faced. Incendin remained dangerous, but after what he’d seen in Par-shon, he viewed them differently. All this time, they’d thought Incendin wanted power for the sake of power. Now Tan had to convince the others that there had been another reason. When he tried healing the lisincend, he’d felt resistance, that he’d wanted only the power the transformation had given him. Now he understood why.
But that could come later, once they determined and better understood the risk. For now, they needed to secure the hatchlings so they had a chance to grow without fearing a bond forced upon them.
We will use your den for now,
Asboel said.
Tan turned to the rune and was forced to stand on his toes to trace his fingers around it. It marked fire, but it was more than that. A powerful mark, one that could have been used in the trapping and binding of the draasin. Perhaps that was why it had been here originally, but that didn’t mean it had to remain used like that.
He pulled on fire, drawing on the power of Asboel as he pulled through the bond. He mixed it with spirit, suspecting it might be the only way to power the rune. It began glowing softly.
Tan pressed on the rune and the massive door swung open, wide enough for the draasin to enter. He stepped aside, letting Asboel lean his head inside.
A spurt of flame erupted from the draasin’s nose, lighting the den, then Asboel withdrew his head.
Sashari and the hatchlings moved inside. Asboel stood outside, guarding the door.
You can join them
, Tan suggested.
Not until I know if it is safe.
Asboel
, Tan started, looking up to his bond pair,
these were made for your kind.
They were.
Have you ever been here?
Not I.
No, the ancients had managed to trap Asboel and the other draasin somewhere else, to use them to power the protections of the artifact.
Others of your kind?
They never managed to force the draasin to bond.
That didn’t mean they hadn’t tried. Why had Asboel allowed the bond to him? Had it only been because Tan could help with Enya?
I’m sorry.
Didn’t you once show me that you can’t change what has happened? You are not like them. You are Maelen.
Tan wished that would be enough.
There is another. He’s more dangerous than any we’ve faced before. He will come again. Now that he knows of you, he will come.
Without the shapers the kingdoms once had, they would not be prepared for what was to come, and Tan wasn’t certain Roine or the others would agree with what he already knew would be necessary: to survive the Par-shon attack, they would have to learn from Incendin.
That was for another day. Today, the draasin were safe and secure in their new den. Amia was safe. His mother was restored. Eventually, Tan would attempt to heal Vel, though he didn’t know if he was too far gone to do much for.
And then? Then the preparations would have to begin in full before Par attacked, to hunt or become the hunted.
Asboel lowered his head and met Tan’s eyes.
Maelen,
the great fire elemental began,
you will never hunt alone.
B
ook
5 of The Cloud Warrior Saga:
Forged in Fire
W
ar is coming
to the kingdoms.
Tan knows a threat greater than Incendin exists, one he suspects will require ancient enemies to forge an uneasy alliance. He must use the control he’s gained over shaping to rescue a friend, protect the draasin, and convince the kingdoms of the true danger, or everything he knows will be destroyed.
D
K Holmberg
currently lives in rural Minnesota where the winter cold and the summer mosquitoes keep him inside and writing.
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T
he Cloud Warrior Saga
T
he Forgotten
/The Sighted Assassin
The Durven
(Part 1)
A Poisoned Deceit
(Part 2)
A Forgotten Return
(Part 3)
T
he Lost Garden