“Serai,” she finally said, after watching him a moment.
“I’m sorry?” he said, looking up from his task. She stood beside him and watched, frowning curiously at the work being done.
“My name,” she continued, her voice never rising above a croaking whisper. “It is Serai.”
***
Morning dawned too early all things considered. Liam rubbed his eyes, making sure things were all still in one piece. Luckily, they had returned with the jewel Ishaq requested. Still, they would not be able to stay long in Manau – or anywhere else in Kalaegh for that matter. He’d already chartered a boat away from the human-run nation to the floating city of Avir. It was a stopping point until he could find something more permanent, a place to allow them to regain some of the money lost in the debacle with Ajana. Plus, he needed to figure out what to do with the naked girl from the cave. He did not want her around, though Reven seemed to want to argue otherwise. It was dangerous to add to their small band. Adding Reven had been bad enough, adding the naked woman would complicate things a great deal. Not that she was anywhere to be found - - that was, until he walked out to the courtyard to find her curled up in a hammock with Reven.
“Wewl,” he said to himself. “Tha’ escalated quickly.”
Liam stretched, cracking his neck before noticing the large mound beside the fountain. He frowned at it, moving around the fountain to get a better look at the odd mound, then felt the blood drain from his face.
Oh gods…
The mound shifted, bringing up a ferocious, scaled head that snorted loudly into Liam’s face.
Drake! Drake! Reven! He thought while being unable to speak a single syllable. It happened more often than the thief-taker would care to admit. The bard mocked him mercilessly for his ‘nerves’ but, in this instance, his nerves were justified.
Breakfast seems to have come to me… the drake responded, its mental voice a deep rumble of thunder that licked its way across Liam’s mind. Now Liam’s mouth dropped, prompting the drake to incline its head towards him with curiosity rather than hunger. You hear my voice.
Liam croaked. He glanced towards Reven and the new girl, both still completely oblivious to anything, both sleeping as soundly as babes.
Reven…
Eventually, he knew, Reven would hear the desperation in his mental voice; Liam just hoped it would happen before he was eaten alive.
“Liam, have you seen Reven?”
Liam turned towards the voice that spoke, the voice of the intoxicating woman that had easily stolen his heart. Ajana stopped short, reaching for a weapon that she did not wear inside the inn but normally carried with her everywhere. She moved too slowly, still recovering, still weak from her lashing. The drake moved quickly, nostrils flaring and giant maw practically grinning with ravenous hunger.
Now, that I will eat, it said.
“NO!” Liam hollered, stupidly jumping in front of the drake as it snapped at Ajana.
Liam felt the sharpness of one of the drake’s teeth rake his upraised arm and Ajana’s rough hands on his shoulders, pulling him back. Were it not for Ajana, he would no longer have an arm. His chest heaved, heart pounding as he tried not to wet himself with sheer relief.
“What the bloody hells,” Reven groaned, rubbing his face.
You cannot command me, mortal creature.
“Watch me!” Liam barked back feeling far too bold for his britches. “Go find somethin’ else t’eat!”
“Liam?” Reven garbled, rubbing his eyes of sleep until finally focusing on the scene before him. He clearly saw what Liam did, practically falling off the hammock to put himself between Liam and the drake. “WHOA! The hells did you come from??”
No, Malek! Let them be!
The drake turned to regard Serai even as she ran to it, putting her gentle hands against the rough scales of its long neck. It took a moment for Liam to realize she’d not actually spoken and that her words were heard in his mind much like the drake’s. If he’d been wary of her before, he was downright terrified now. What had they gotten themselves into?
“Malek…” Liam breathed out, the adrenaline starting to fade away. “That’s its name? Malek??”
Serai looked at Liam, guilt, fear, and regret on her face but nodded silently. Liam passed out then, Ajana trying to catch him but failing. They both fell to the ground. Reven looked at everyone with a heavy helping of confusion and exasperation.
“I am entirely too sober for this,” he said. “The drake followed us home… that’s just perfect. Why under the stars do you have a drake? Can’t people just have normal pets? What happened to cats? And you: stop trying to eat my friends or I’ll kick you bodily back to your cave! Stupid lizard…Worse than my dammed children…”
“You do not have any children, my love,” Ajana offered, wincing from the weight of Liam on her lap. Reven pulled the thief-taker off his injured lover, tossing him over a bruised shoulder before helping Ajana up.
“If I did,” Reven snorted, glaring at the drake. Much like children, the drake was not a complication he wanted to deal with.
Chapter Four
A sharp breeze off the Ione Ocean ripped through the low-lying shrubs and wide fronds of the Skiff. Kaleo Oenel shivered, wrapping his teal wings around himself to keep warm. It was not terribly cold out, but he was not accustomed to being outdoors in anything but full sunlight. Summer in the Skiff was much cooler than his homeland of Esbeth; cooler still than the Phoenix Empire. He sighed, burying his face into his upraised knees, allowing himself a moment of pathetic wallowing for his poor life decisions. He had good intentions when he left home and a head full of foolish pride. Even more pride when he confronted his aunt about his journey. Now all he had was thin hope and an empty stomach.
Hiding, little one?
Fionn spoke as he came
