The fine layer of dust that covered the disused brickyard billowed under the force of my wings as I came in to land. I’d put some thought into my entrance, and I was rewarded for my efforts. Some of the heavies who’d accompanied the Blossom put a hand up to shield their eyes. Some of them stepped back. Only one didn’t react: Hardal, the plain-faced man with the scarred lips. He looked bored with the whole situation, but his eyes were sharp.
The Blossom, to my annoyance, was holding a fan, which she used to keep the dust at bay. The corners of her lips even pulled back in a small, infuriating smile.
The moment I settled on the ground Mak leapt off my back. She didn’t slide or climb, she vaulted, pushing off against the base of my wing with one strong leg and putting every bit of her grace to good use as she landed lightly beside me, all nearly five feet of her straightening to face our opposites.
As the dust settled, the Blossom stood. She snapped her fan shut, tucking it in the sash of her silk wrap, then faced us with her hands down, palms out as though to welcome us into her home.
“Draka! Lady Drakonum!” Her voice carried easily across the fifty feet separating us, and I hated how warm and inviting it was. She took a few steps forward, looking completely at ease, her guards staying where they were. “We’ve already met, of course, but we haven’t been properly introduced. I am Tespril Zabra. Thank you for joining me here, tonight.”
“Did you get my message?” I asked, ignoring her pleasantries. “Are you going to make it worth our time to hear you out?”
“I got your message, yes, though I’m curious why you’d leave it with my sister instead of sending it to me directly. Was it intended as some kind of threat?”
Is she messing with me, I wondered. Was she pretending like the fact that I waltzed into her little sister’s dreams just to leave a message didn’t worry her? Or did she not know? But she was moving smoothly on.
“Whatever your reasons, I’m sure that once we’re done here, you’ll agree that a peaceful coexistence is in everyone’s best interest.” She turned her back to us, returned to her chair, and took a seat. “Now, let’s make sure that we all agree on the foundation of this… relationship that we have. You bear me a grudge. I get that. It’s pointless, but understandable in your position. We didn’t exactly get off to a friendly start, did we? And while I might childishly point out that you started it, I understand that you may not see it that way.”
Even with Instinct screaming at me that we had our enemy right in front of us, that we should kill her now, that there was no point in waiting, I was still hanging onto her every word. Something about her made me want to listen, to hear her out. But it was only strong enough to nudge me, and not so strong that I didn’t realize what was happening. I loved magic and all the messes it made, but sometimes it was a real pain.
Mak, though, seemed entirely unaffected. And when I didn’t speak up, she did.
“I’ve been told that you’re not stupid. And it must be true, on some level, since you’ve gotten to the position you have. But what makes you think that we’d let this go? What could possibly explain or justify your crimes against us and so many others? You had your goons shackle me to a table, then had my sister tortured in front of me! What do you think could possibly be worth more to me than your head?”
Zabra snapped her fan open with a dismissive gesture and resumed fanning herself. “I’m not here to explain myself, and I’m not going to justify anything. I’ve done what I had to, to keep myself and my sister safe. If you took the time to speak to Tark then you know where I came from. You’ve had a taste yourself of that life. You know what it’s like. You did what you could to keep your sister out of it, and I did the same. Let’s leave it at that.”
I finally managed to speak. “You said that you had some reason why we shouldn’t just kill you. Spit it out.”
“You’re even more magnificent than the first time I saw you, you know?” she said, with undisguised admiration, and on the inside I preened at her praise. “The first reason is simple, something that I hope everyone will understand: lives, dear dragon. I’ve lost quite a few, and I don’t want to lose any more. But I also haven’t been trying to kill anyone close to you. Since the mess in the harbor I’ve been restrained, hoping that we could work this all out. If we can’t come to an agreement here, tonight, I’m sure that you will try to kill me. You’ll fail. Draka, I know what you are, and when I say that scarier people than you have tried, I mean it. So you’d try, and you’d fail, and then I’d have to retaliate. I’d start really hurting the people you surround yourself with, and the people important to them. Now, you may think that you can keep them safe. Perhaps you can, for a while, but for how long? How long until lady Drakonum’s sister goes to visit that soldier of hers? Perhaps she finds him dead. Perhaps she meets an arrow somewhere on the way, far from help. Even if you all stay in that lovely inn of yours, how long before one of you steps in front of a window at the wrong time? And that’s not even getting into poisoned goods, legal mischief, or a dozen other ways I have ready to hurt you.”
I started growling, an unconscious warning from deep in my chest that rolled out across the brickyard.
“Oh, don’t be like that,” Zabra said. “I know what you’re thinking. You’re big, and strong, and your scales are ridiculously hard to pierce, I’m sure. And you have that suffocating venom that you can spray. I know. But even trying would cost you more than you could possibly gain. Do you think I would come here without safeguards, without already having given orders? If I don’t return and cancel those orders, little miss Herald’s soldier will be dead before sunrise, and so will mister Tamor’s singer friends and those old acquaintances from your former life, lady Drakonum, that you try so hard to keep hidden. And those are only the easy targets, you see? You have friends, aquaintances, employees and suppliers and loyal guests. In the following days, who knows what might happen? And even if you did manage to kill me, my people are very loyal. They’d want to avenge me, and the people you care for would start dying anyway. So, you see, it’s much better that you don’t try. There’s no point in posturing or making threats. If anything, you should be aware of how lucky you are that I’m not interested in taking this any further.”
“Well,” Mak said, “that’s pretty clear, isn’t it? You’ve done your research, and there’s nothing we can do to threaten you. We have no leverage, and we should be glad to have this opportunity to make peace. Is that about right?”
“That’s about it, yeah,” Zabra said, smiling.
“Draka,” Mak said, looking up at me. “How long would it take you to reach Kesra? Right now?”
“About fifteen minutes.”
Zabra’s smile froze on her face.
“If you wanted to bring her back here, how long would that take?”
“Half an hour there and back. Then it would take me a minute to get her out if I went through the front door and past the mural with all the dogs. Or I could go through the eastern window with the white roses. Then it would only take thirty heartbeats, but getting Kesra out that way would be much less pleasant for her.” I looked at Zabra. “You know how thickly the rose bushes cover that window. Like a damn blackberry bramble. The shutters don’t even open all the way anymore.”
“You’re bluffing.” Zabra’s face was confident, but her voice wasn’t. The fact that she said anything at all in response told me that I’d gotten to her.
“Am I?” I wondered if I should ask Mak to take out the necklace I’d stolen from Kesra. She was currently wearing it around her own neck. “Has your sister not been passing on my messages properly? I told you both that I could find her anywhere. Did you think that taking her to some villa a few miles south of the city would be enough to hide her from me?”
Zabra’s face twitched. It was just a heartbeat of uncertainty, but Mak seized on it immediately. “You see? We do have something to threaten you with. And Draka can cover those few miles much faster than any rider you might send out. So, do you want to have a serious talk, or shall we see who is better at making good on their threats?”
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Zabra scowled, just a little, and before I caught myself I thought that it was a terribly sad thing to see on such a face. “Very well. Tell me what you want, and I’ll explain why it’s impossible. I suppose you’ll want to start with my head and work your way down from there?”
“No,” Mak said. “What I want is to be alone with you in a room for a few days, with some shackles, a knife, and a shelf full of healing potions. That’s the starting point.”
“Well, that’s a little ambitious, don't you think? How about I offer you an apology and a promise not to destroy everything you love so long as you all behave, and we leave it at that?”
Zabra’s smile was gone, but she still radiated confidence, and I didn't like it. She couldn't possibly think that her men could keep me from her if I decided I’d heard enough, so what was her game? She couldn’t still think that we were bluffing, could she? Did she think that we’d back down? If she did, she was about to be sorely disappointed.
I was about to speak, but Mak beat me to it. “Tarkarran talked, you know,” she mused, changing the subject. “He talked a lot. Didn’t care much about protecting you, but once we threatened to bring in Kesra, we could barely shut him up. About you, about your businesses, your… I hesitate to call them friends, but acquaintances.”
Zabra scoffed. “That’s no surprise. As besotted as he was with me a few years ago, the man had preferences that became very clear once Kesra got a little older. And I’ve made sure that he never touched her. I can only assume that he still kept his hope burning. What’s your point? Are you going anywhere with this?”
“My point, you insufferable bitch, is: why not? We know where your money comes from. We know who your most valuable people are. Why not just start destroying each other, and see who suffers more? You may not think much of us, but I hate you. Draka hates you. You may think that you have the upper hand, but Draka, in case you forget despite having her here, is a dragon. Are you sure that you know how much we’re willing to sacrifice for the sake of vengeance? To know that you’ll never hurt anyone else? To tear down everything you’ve built? How well do you really know us?”
I could see Zabra’s mouth move, just a little, like she was about to speak. But she hesitated. She studied Mak for a few seconds then looked at me, then back at Mak, and when she spoke her tone was surprised, intrigued, almost respectful. “You truly want that! You want a war! You want everything to burn, to see how much you can hurt me before you have nothing left!” She laughed. She actually laughed, the same musical sound that I’d heard in her prison. “Mercies be kind to us all. Tark really fucked you up, didn’t he? But, no, lady Drakonum. We will not be doing that. Not unless you truly force my hand. And I can’t help but notice that the dragon in question doesn’t seem nearly so excited about the idea.”
She looked at me instead. “So, tell me, Draka. What will it take—”
I only had a moment’s warning. A glimmer in the corner of my eye. A light in the second-story window of a building to the south overlooking the brickyard. A glimmer of gold.
I grabbed Mak and threw her in the direction of the south wall, getting out of the path of the arrow in the same movement. My roar of, “Archer!” was nearly drowned out by the outraged yells of Zabra’s guards, who all lowered their spears towards me the moment I moved. The arrow thuk’ed into the ground just past where I’d been, but the window shone gold. The next one was almost on its way.
There was a whisper in the air above us, and the golden light in the window shuddered and flickered. A streak of gold flew wide, nowhere close to us, and the light in the window disappeared.
Zabra was yelling furiously as her guards tried to bundle her away, demanding that everyone just “Stop! Stand down you shits! That’s not one of ours! Draka, that’s not one of ours!” I barely heard her over the sound of blood in my ears, red rage creeping into my vision. I leapt the short distance to Mak, preparing to get out, fighting to control myself as Instinct clawed at my mind and tried to take full control and spit and rip and tear until there was nothing but blood and steaming meat left of the treacherous bitch and her men. I was facing a wall of spears, but Instinct didn’t care. Let them try to stand before me!
Mak was getting to her feet, staying crouched and moving towards the wall, but I swept her up in one arm. “Zabra,” I hissed, turning to look the Night Blossom in the eyes. For the first time, a moment I knew that I would treasure, I saw actual fear there. Hot fury and cold malice fought for control inside me. “I told you what would happen.” I grabbed Kesra’s necklace, which dangled from Mak’s neck. With a sharp jerk I snapped the old leather thong, and I threw it to Zabra. She caught it and looked at it mutely.
“Here,” I said. “Something for you to remember your sister by.”
I had barely leaped into the air when I heard a desperate wail of “Wait!” from her. I risked pausing in my ascent for a second, looking down, and I saw that she had pushed past her guards, moving towards me with her arms out, open and unprotected. The necklace dangled from her hand. “Fine! Here I am! Come back!”
I glanced towards the window where the archer had been. Still nothing.
Deep inside I was relieved. Zabra had been right. I didn’t want a war. If I’d gone after Kesra, a war was exactly what I would have started, and there would have been blood shed on both sides. Zabra had said that she had people ready to go tonight, to kill people I didn’t know, but who were important to the members of my family, and I believed her.
Now I had a way out. I didn’t have to start something that wouldn’t stop until one side was wiped out, and I didn’t have to hurt an innocent. And despite that, despite my relief, I was still tempted to start that war right then and there. To finally get what I’d wanted for months, to drop down and tear into Zabra where she stood, and accept whatever it cost to raze everything she’d built to the ground.
It was her desperation that held me back. The way she offered herself up to me to protect her sister, and the way she held her guards back, vehemently denying that the archer was doing her bidding. But even if this had been in no way her fault, the balance of power in this conversation had changed. She had shown weakness, and I was going to exploit it mercilessly.
Rib and Pot, Tam and Val and Barro all arrived almost simultaneously from different directions, weapons ready. They were just in time to see me land heavily in the dust, only feet from Zabra. I set Mak down, murmuring, “Get on my back,” to her in Tekereteki. It was hard to speak. I was almost shaking with pent up fury and the desire to destroy, no matter the cost to those around me. “Cancel your orders,” I hissed at Zabra, putting my face inches from hers. I could taste my own venom, and while she stood tall and proud she was still forced to blink furiously as some spittle got in one of her eyes. “Then go to Her Grace’s Favor. Alone. If you’re not there in half an hour, you will never see your sister in one piece again.”
She nodded once, her sneers and superior smiles replaced with a look of resignation.
I turned to my humans. “We’re done here. Get back to the inn.” Then, switching to Tekereteki, I called out, “Little dragon, if you are out there, feel free to follow this one and make sure she does what she was told.”
Keeping my eyes on Zabra and her men, I couldn’t see Mak’s expression on my back. But her voice was ice and venom when she said, “I look forward to your company, lady Tespril.” Then she leaned forward and clamped down around my neck, ready to go.
Before we left my shadow surged forward, moving the wrong way in the torchlight. It carried with it all my boiling anger. I couldn’t have held it back even if I wanted to. I let it envelop the woman before me, taking a dark delight in the way her eyes went wide before the darkness swallowed her, and only then did I take off.
----------------------------------------
It was at least 20 minutes by foot from the brickyard to the inn. Making sure that everyone got away unmolested, then flying by a roundabout path to the garden and making our way to the inn took the same time. Mak and I arrived at the inn only minutes before the others.
The last few minutes until the half-hour deadline I’d given Zabra were spent in tense silence. I wondered how many plots, schemes, and contingency plans she’d manage to set in motion in that half-hour, and if I’d have to force myself to make good on my threat. I’d made a real mess for myself, because this was one threat that I couldn’t back down from. I had to act on it, and I really, really didn’t want to.
For all that Instinct raged, I couldn’t bring myself to believe that Kesra was anything but a victim of circumstance. I desperately hoped that Zabra would show up, but at the same time it seemed she’d given in too easily, and I was suspicious. If I were her, I’d send my fastest rider to get Kesra out of that villa. It’d be futile; even a fast horse would take too long to get there. Even with a half hour headstart they couldn’t beat me, but that was what I would do in her position. Then I’d gather everyone I could to mount an attack on the inn, forcing the dragon to stay and defend everyone she held dear.
But Zabra didn’t do that. I couldn’t tell how close she cut it. Time-keeping wasn’t an exact thing, at least not without the right enchanted tools, which we lacked. Perhaps my reluctance to take one more step towards becoming a monster bought her an extra minute or two. She came alone. When Mak led her into the cellar, Zabra was dusty and out of breath, her face streaked with sweat. She stopped on the last step of the stairs, and looked around the room.
Her composure was gone, replaced with a mask of impotent anger as she looked at me. Her voice quavered as she spoke. “Do what you will. But touch my sister, and all you love will burn. No matter what happens to me, I’ve made sure of that. Are we clear?”
“Yeah, we’re clear.”
“Good. Well, here I am. Alone. Let’s get this over with.”