Little Water didn’t understand human homes.
The point of a warren was to keep the brood safe and there was no place safer than under the earth. A warren placed underground offered natural protection. It was easier to regulate temperatures and there was less competition with other species, something very important for the estrazi that often operated within other cultures. Space was limited, but there was always the option to put less vital members of the brood on the surface.
Despite the superiority of subterranean shelter, all the human residences were above ground. Worse, they offered no protection, built of flimsy wood or soft stone that would crumble with one half-decent spell. It seemed to her that they cared more for appearances, the surface was certainly more appealing than tunnels of uneven stone, than safety. Something that wouldn’t bother her in the slightest if her human wasn’t being held in one of those flimsy shelters.
Worse, she didn’t know which one. She thought he might be close to the agent, but Lou hadn’t allowed her free reign over the estate to confirm that suspicion. She wasn’t sure she wanted Khan to be close to the agent of chaos. While he certainly wouldn’t be threatened by any of the other humans, she feared for him if he was caught in the center of the next rampage.
She couldn’t deny a bit of trepidation as she walked up the dirt road that led to the estate. So far, the human noblewoman had proved reasonable. She seemed to be amused by Little Water, taking peculiar interest in her scales and tail. However, there was no telling how long that favor would last. No matter how harmless she tried to present as, it was impossible to forget that Lou was touched by the Outsider.
She was kin to the Defiler, the sovereign that almost ended the world. She wouldn’t have been chosen if there wasn’t a trace of that madness. She’d already shone it by toppling a city. If that rage was turned on her, Little Water could only hope to die quickly.
“Welcome back, Little Water.”
Somehow, the human named Earl was waiting outside the front door of the estate when she arrived. There were many strange things surrounding the agent and he hardly ranked high on the list. However, the young was very unusual. Most creatures were vulnerable when they were young. That was why a brood and proper shelter was important. As an adolescent, the boy should have been weaker than the adults around him.
Yet, he was uncommonly advanced. His awareness and speed couldn’t be compared to many of the hunters that had ambushed her group. Aside from that, he also had considerable knowledge. Her guards could handle him but not without injury, maybe even casualties if he caught them unaware. She couldn’t imagine what he would be in a few decades. Or what the agent was planning by cultivating such a talent.
The Defiler was a horrendous threat, but her actions had been straightforward. Much better than an indirect threat approaching from a hundred different directions. An agent that created more agents to spread chaos in different corners of the world would be a headache.
But such concerns were far above Little Water.
“I wish to meet Lou.”
“Please, come in. Your people can wait outside.”
Little Water frowned. It was the first time her servants hadn’t been allowed entry and she tried not to apply nefarious intentions to the action as she followed the steward into the house. He led her to a familiar sitting area and bade her to sit.
As she perched on the end of one of the couches, another human entered the room. The tiny one with the bright hair and the little animals that followed in her wake. Another oddity. Much less of a threat compared to the strange boy, but she was another one that time would reveal her true terror, or so Little Water suspected.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
The young one took up a position leaning against a wall, settling a heavy gaze on Little Water.
“Please wait. I will check if my lady is available to meet you.”
The boy left the room, his steps quick and purposeful. Little Water was reassured that it wasn’t a game; some of her sisters liked to make visitors wait in the uncomfortable tunnels leading to their rooms and she hated it. She ignored the piercing gaze watching her and went over her plan.
The strange creature she’d found was a blessing of the sovereigns. She doubted she’d find anything else that would interest Lou, so she had one chance to get closer to her goal. If she failed, well, it was good that she didn’t have to fear for her safety, but there was a danger of simply being dismissed. It had been several days since she’d been dismissed from the estate and the noblewoman hadn’t even bothered to get in contact with her. Little Water and her plans simply didn’t rank very high in Lou’s priorities. Perhaps she didn’t care at all.
It wasn’t a good thing to be the focus of the creature that was very likely meant to upend the world but, unfortunately, she couldn’t afford to be dismissed.
The boy returned relatively quickly and, better, he returned with a silver cart laden with food and a glass pitcher. “My lady has agreed to see you, but she needs a few minutes to wrap up a matter. In the meantime, please enjoy her hospitality.”
Food and fresh water were placed before her and Little Water didn’t hesitate to indulge, thinking she had touched on the reason her servants had been asked to wait outside. The estrazi understood hospitality. When you welcomed others into your cave, it was looked on poorly if you weren’t welcoming. If the others had been allowed inside, the boy would have been compelled to feed and water them. While she doubted Lou was suffering overly much, there was a dearth of available food in the city. Even those with more than enough would be careful with their stores for the foreseeable future.
It was much longer before Lou entered the room. The agent looked tired, features furrowed with stress as she stomped into the room. Little Water shivered as she took in the violet gaze. She didn’t imagine that she would ever be comfortable with what her people considered an omen of the disaster. The woman’s obvious irritation didn’t help her nerves.
Her anxiousness worsened when a second person followed Lou into the room. While a purple gaze was the mark of the Outsider, estrazi didn’t much like the color anywhere. It wasn’t to the point that they hated it, but it made many of them uncomfortable.
A woman with a purple pallor was bound to make her scales tingle. The opposite of Lou, she strode into the room with a confident smile, she strides quick and sure. As the agent slumped into a seat, the woman with familiar silver hair and long ears walked right up to Little Water. Her snout was grabbed by a strong hand before the estrazi could register the movement, her head turned to and fro. Yet any offense was quashed before it could rise under the weight of the green gaze observing her.
“Oh. I was a little excited when you told me a talking draconid was in your living room but it’s just a little dung beetle.” The woman sighed as she took a seat at the other end of the couch.
“You shouldn’t provoke my guests,” the agent sighed, the reprimand sounding more tired than accusatory.
The purple woman waved it aside anyway. “No offense meant. I’m simply accustomed to referring to her kind that way.”
“…I’m going to regret this. Why a dung beetle? Isn’t that a little too insulting? From what little I know of them, the estrazi are fairly impressive.”
The purple woman scoffed. “Exactly. They are fairly impressive. Raised and given purpose by dragons themselves and all they amount to is fairly impressive. Very self-important lizards despite having no more talent than any other species. They aren’t even born strong like most draconids.”
She grinned. “Our elders joked that if wyverns are the result of diluted dragon blood, then they must have been made from the dragon’s shit. They also have a tendency to go around the world involving themselves in others’ messes without invitation. Hence, dung beetles, rolling up the shit of the world.”
She laughed loudly while the agent made a face. “Saints, it really does runs in the blood. Please just ignore her. She’ll only enjoy it more if you get angry.”
Little Water didn’t need to be told. Instincts honed by dueling her sisters screamed at her that the insulting woman was a threat. The biggest threat in the room. While the agent was likely the greater force, Little Water had no reason to worry that Lou would kill her while exchanging a few words. However, there was a feeling about the other woman, an almost palpable bloodlust, that said she might end Little Water for fun.
“Yes, ignore me. I’m just an observer to this meeting.”