Li was the best dragon. If she had ever doubted, now she knew. Because there was something wrong with the other dragons, and Li was going to fix it. If that didn’t make her the best dragon, she didn’t know what would.
Of course, first she had to figure out what was going on with all of the dragon-people, and the humans, and the strange little dog-kobolds. And Raff. Raff was hers. Not as much as Kaz, because that was impossible, but she had kept the human alive, and, grudgingly, she had to admit that he might have kept her alive as well. That made him useful, and so she would keep him.
Since acquiring the fifth - and last, which really made her a Divine Beast - type of ki, she had not only felt stronger, but more in control. As if this was what she was meant to be, and everything that came before was just a cloud in the sky. Not that she’d forgotten it, because no matter how great and strong and huge and powerful she got, Li would never, ever forget Kaz.
But with five kinds of ki - and an opportunity to observe Kyla’s method of concealment - Li was now able to combine her instinctive camouflage with a learned technique. Using these two together allowed her to move quickly, like Kyla, without the subtle wavering of the image that gave the little kobold away. At least, it did if you knew what to look for.
So now Li dove toward the ground, extending her wings just enough to glide and maintain control, without giving her more moving parts to hide. She stayed away from people of any kind, and swept down to land beside one of the many, many stacks of boxes sitting on the ground.
Kaz was practically vibrating with worry, but he listened to her, as he should. She doubted that would last, especially as the others crowded around him, asking questions, so she opened her senses wider as she began edging around the stack.
“-job is to do as you’re told,” someone was saying. “If you do, you’ll get plenty to eat and drink, and when the job is done, you get paid.”
Someone else snorted. “What good’s money when we’re stuck down here? Let us go! You really think we’re all just going to carry boxes around for who knows how long? I’ll kill you all myself as soon as I get my strength back!”
A hissing laugh was the only response, and Li peered around the crate to see a squat xiyi with a deep red core staring at the powerful-looking human who’d spoken. “You’re not from here,” the xiyi said. “No one is looking for you. No one will miss you. And you won’t get your strength back.” He flicked long, clawed fingers, and a ball of ki-infused flame appeared over his hand. A twitch, and that ball flew toward the human, splashing across his chest and making him howl with pain.
Pointing to the back of his neck, the dragon-like being said, “You each have a device in you, placed before you woke. It tracks your movements, and if you try to remove it or leave this area,” the xiyi motioned around the cavern, “it will kill you. But when we’re done, we’ll take you back to your homes and release you. If you ever enter the area known as Holiander again, the device will kill you then.”
The humans looked at each other, murmuring softly. One of the other humans, the ones who’d been here before, stepped forward. Lifting a hand, he said, “I’m Palcher. This is my third year working this job. First year, they pulled me from the tournament, just like most of you. After a few weeks, they sent me home, along with three hundred gold.”
There was murmuring at this, and Li crept a little closer. She still couldn’t see Raff, though Kaz could, so she knew she was going in the right direction.
“You’re a liar,” the human with the hole burned in his shirt said, but he didn’t look nearly as certain as he had.
Palcher shook his head. “The job is boring, and not a single one of us volunteered the first time, but they treat us fair, and every year you come back, your wages increase by another hundred, and more if you choose to be a supervisor. I’ll get six hundred gold when I go home. That’s pure gold, not Holiander groats.”
Now several of the humans looked much less angry, and they were very focused on Palcher as he dug into the pouch at his waist and took out a brilliant gold coin, which he twisted this way and that. Even Li had to admit that it looked delicious.
“This year they even gave me days off,” the male said, putting the coin away again and tapping at his neck. “Once they know you won’t talk, you get free time. Been nice. I even got to have some good Slavik food a few days ago.”
“Why not just hire people?” That was Raff’s voice. It was a little rough, without the playful edge it usually carried, but he sounded like himself. Li crept a bit further forward, poking her head out around the box. She used just enough power to hide her head, trusting that Kaz would let her know if anyone approached from behind her.
And there he was. It was definitely Raff, not someone else who looked like him. The face and clothes were right, and his eyes were that unusual shade of yellow-brown that some people might have called gold, if they had never been fortunate enough to see her own eyes and scales. But why didn’t he seem to have any mana? His power was so dense that even though she couldn’t see it as clearly as Kaz did, there should have been something visible, but instead he seemed to be as powerless as all the other humans.
Palcher looked toward the xiyi, then shrugged and said, “Don’t know. They do hire sometimes. More often, it’s folks like you and me. But look, here we are, and you have two options.” He raised a finger. “Work hard, get a free trip home, get paid well. Keep your mouth shut, and maybe you come back and make even more. I work a month, maybe six weeks, and get enough to take care of my family for a year. Bought a house last time, actually. More than I would have made in the tournament, that’s for sure.”
Another human stepped forward. “A few weeks of work, three hundred gold, and home? What’s the catch?”
Now the xiyi spoke again. “You sstay here. Keep quiet. No fighting. No running. Fair work.”
High overhead, Kaz was relaying all of this to the others, and Adara was shaking her head. “There’s no way I haven’t heard of this. Even if these people are from other countries, rumors would get back to me. And I’d definitely hear about anyone spending that much gold.”
Kaz shook his head thoughtfully. “Not if gold doesn’t matter to whoever’s spending it.”
Gold mattered to humans. Presumably, it mattered to the other ‘humanoid’ races as well. Gold didn’t matter to kobolds, apparently including these self-proclaimed xiyi. To them, they were getting loyal, secretive workers in exchange for something kobolds would leave lying on the ground.
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“You said we had two options,” Raff said. “What’s the other?”
Palcher sighed. “Die. You know too much, and you can’t be trusted to stay quiet.”
A weak version of Raff’s usual grin crossed his face. “Well, I’d rather skip the work part and go straight to the money and freedom, but I guess I’ll take that deal.”
Most of the others nodded, though there were quite a few who still looked angry. Palcher smiled, pointing to Raff, then four others from his group. “You look strong,” he said. “You’ll be on squad A with Jerit.”
Another male, almost as tall as Raff, stepped forward. “That’s me. Come on. I’ll introduce you to the others.”
The humans began to split up, heading in unpredictable directions, and Li knew it was time to move. Once they were all scattered around again, she would either have to keep her entire body invisible or find a place to hide. But where could she go?
Eventually, Li found a spot between two particularly large crates. They were near the building Raff had gone into, and looked like they would take some effort to move, so she should have time to hide herself before her cover was removed. She settled in, completely concealed in the shadows, while Kaz and the others watched from overhead.
After a few minutes, they saw Raff emerge from one of the largest buildings, carefully carrying a pot that seemed to be carved from stone. He looked around uncertainly as he emerged into the light of the lantern hanging nearby, and one of the stunted kobolds scampered up and gave a sharp bark. Li cautiously poked her head out again, listening for anything that might help find a way to help Raff escape.
“Jar. Follow,” the kobold said, its voice little more than a growl. It was more difficult to understand than any of the kobolds Li had met before, but Raff simply nodded and obeyed.
From there, Raff and his guide took a winding path to a cart holding several large crates. The crates were strapped down so they couldn’t move, but the top of one crate was open, and Li could see that there was already something inside. The kobold gently moved some of the contents aside, and then Raff lowered the jar into the hollow space, appearing to hold his breath until his hands were out of the box.
As Kaz described this to those above, they began to argue about the potential contents of the jar. The guesses ranged from poison or explosives to fragile relics, but Li didn’t pay any attention. She watched as Raff returned to the building, then walked back to the cart, each time carrying another jar.
After the third, one of the humans whistled loudly, and all of the kobolds pricked up their ears before running off. For a moment, it looked like Raff would be left alone, and Li gathered her ki, preparing to move. Then one of the red-scaled xiyi separated from the rest and came over to Raff.
At first, neither Raff nor the xiyi spoke, with the reptilian simply watching the human work. Then, while Raff went to get his fifth jar, the xiyi carefully placed a lid on the crate, and opened a different one instead. He prepared a space inside for the next jar, and when Raff walked back toward the building, the xiyi followed.
This was the most boring rescue Li had ever taken part in. She withdrew back into her dark cave, listening for Raff’s familiar voice, counting on Kaz to tell her if anything was happening outside. Raff spoke first, which really shouldn’t have been a surprise.
“What’s in the jars?” Raff asked. His voice was slightly muffled, so Li shifted until she could hear him more clearly.
“You don’t need to know,” the hissing voice responded.
Silence fell, other than footsteps on stone and the gentle creaking of the cart as more weight was added. Raff tried again.
“Will you really let us go?”
Nothing. Then, “We will. If you do not attempt to flee.”
“Why?” Raff sounded genuinely baffled.
A long, whistling sigh followed. “My people know what it is to be treated as though our lives are worthless. We will not do the same to others.” A beat of silence, then, “Most of us will not do the same to others.”
More footsteps and the soft groan of the cart. Kaz showed Li a distant Raff, now trailing along behind the xiyi, who moved more quickly than the big male, and seemed impatient with the delay.
“You won’t kill us, but you will take us and make us work against our will?” Raff asked.
Li peeked out, seeing that the current crate was being sealed. As the xiyi pulled the lid from the third crate, he said, “Our reasons are not yours to know. Be glad you’re here. There are worse options. Do you understand your task?”
Raff shrugged. “Carry the jars. Be really, really careful with ‘em. Put jars in boxes. When the box is full, close it and load another. Not complicated.”
The xiyi released something that took Li a moment to realize was his version of laughter. Could she make that sound? It was a sort of chuckling hiss that she actually liked the sound of.
“Not complicated,” he agreed. “But remain cautious. Dropping one would be very bad. Five to a crate, yes?”
Raff nodded, and the xiyi gently patted the nearest crate. “When the crates are full, you whistle. Kobolds will come and take the cart. When they return with empty crates, you start again. When the bell rings, you stop.”
“Food?”
Again the sibilant laugh. “When the bell rings.” The xiyi repeated. He walked away, leaving Raff alone. The tall human began his short journey again, back to the large building to gather one more jar.
Li looked through Kaz’s eyes, seeing that no one else was nearby. Pulling on her ki, she hurried over to the cart and hid beneath it, pressing up against one of the wheels. When Raff returned, she waited until he’d carefully placed his burden into its resting place before she bit his ankle. It wouldn’t do to have him drop something explosive on her, after all.
Raff yelped sharply, jerking his foot back as if he’d kick at her. Li hissed, releasing a small cloud of vapor as she glared up at the human. He stared back down at her, utter astonishment written across his face.
“Li?”
She blinked. How many beautiful, elegant dragons did he know? She didn’t count the creatures in their caves overhead. She was clearly superior to each and every one of them.
Raff glanced around, then crouched down. Li was extremely uncomfortable when she realized he actually looked like he had tears in his eyes. “Are the others here?” Raff demanded. “Can you bring them? Use your thing with Blue to let him know I’m here?”
It was vaguely possible that she should have thought about this a little more. How was she supposed to communicate with him? Lifting a claw, she pointed toward Kaz and the others. Raff’s face filled with hope as he glanced up at the wall.
“Are they coming? Better yet,” Raff turned so she could see a thin red line on the back of his neck, “can you get this Pellis-cursed thing out of me so I can go to them?”
Li considered. Could she? Kaz had taken one out of Reina, and more out of Doran and the other male. Of course, one of those hadn’t gone well at all, so there was that. On the other claw, Chi Yincang removed the one in Adara, but honestly, if that had gone badly, no one would really care. But this was Raff. And Raff did matter. Raff was hers, even if only a little bit.
She shook her head firmly. She wouldn’t risk it. Not with Kaz so close. As much as she didn’t like to admit it, Li couldn’t do everything Kaz could do. Of course, he couldn’t do everything she could do either, but that was only as it should be. The xiyi said the stone would kill Raff. If that happened, it wouldn’t be Li’s fault.
Raff sighed, then leaned forward, closing his eyes and resting his hands on the ground. His body relaxed, and for the briefest of moments, she thought his lips moved as though he was speaking, though even she couldn’t hear any words. Then he opened his eyes again, looking at her, and nodded. Standing, he stretched before murmuring. “Two more jars and this cart’ll be full. Head back to our friends now. And Li?” Pausing, he glanced back down at her hiding place. “Thank you.”