“The mistress says we can play with you so long as you don’t die,” the biggest of the brutes stated in a raspy voice that might just be worse than nails on chalkboard.
A hooting noise from one of the Blue Men of the Minch spun the Red Cap’s head, and it barked, “He escaped!”before charging toward?—
A tiger?Where had it come from?
It hit me a second later when I saw Alistair’s empty cage.What the heck!He never mentioned he could shift into things other than people.Then again, I hadn’t asked, just assumed, but he had informed me he could take the shape of those he’d consumed.Why not animals?
The tiger proved a good choice with its strength, agility, and fearsome claws.However, while a definite winner against one—the big Red Cap went down—the giant striped kitty still faced three opponents armed with rusty blades, plus four Blue Men charging to join the fray.One tiger couldn’t prevail against so many threats.Alistair must have come to the same conclusion because?—
Blink and poof.The massive chamber had no issue holding a dragon his size, a dragon that could simply open its maw and chomp its foes.Crunch.That easily, a second Red Cap went down—and obviously tasted bad since Alistair spat.A sweep of his tail sent a Blue Man flying.Another dip of his head took care of Red Cap number three.As for the fourth, its sense of self-preservation must have kicked in because it ran, unlike the remaining Blue Men, which threw themselves at the dragon.
A dragon who outmuscled, outsized, and outfought them all.
With my eyes so wide I almost lost them, I watched from much too close the skirmish that ended almost as quickly as it began, with Alistair unharmed and all but the single fleeing Red Cap dead.
Rather than immediately change, Alistair swung his massive head left and right as if listening before saying, “The one that escaped is sounding the alarm.”
“How many minions does Tiamat have?”
“More than I’d like to face, I’ll wager.”
“What are we going to do?”
“Get you out of that collar for starters.”
“How?The Red Cap who had the key is the one who ran away.”Talk about bad luck.
The big dragon head lowered to eye my problem.“I won’t be able to pry the collar off without causing you harm.”
“Meaning we need the key.”I tried not to sigh at my dilemma.
“Yes, but in the meantime…” He hooked a claw around the bolt in the stone floor and yanked, pulling it free.At least I wasn’t tethered like a wild animal anymore, but the heavy chain rattled noisily each time I moved.
“How did you manage to squeeze your tiger shape through the bars?”Probably not the right time to indulge my curiosity, but I needed something else to focus on.
“I didn’t.You missed me first changing into a snake.”
“Exactly how many bodies can you swap into?”
“Given how many creatures I’ve eaten in my lifetime?More than you can imagine.”
My jaw dropped, because damn.“Are you saying you could be the cow from that pot roast we ate?”
He shook his big dragon head.“To assume a shape, I have to consume the heart, so grocery-store-bought meat doesn’t count.”
“That’s still insane,” I muttered before adding, “Tiamat obviously didn’t know.”
“Because she only ever saw me take on human shapes.A secret that turned out to be handy, else she would have put me in a more secure prison.Speaking of which, if Fiona is correct, then I need to handle this Malone before we escape.”
“You’re leaving me!”Yeah, that didn’t come out too brave because, if he departed, I’d be all alone in the big scary place.
“You heard her prediction.The doctor needs to be eliminated.”
“Can’t I come with you?”
He shook his head.“You would not only slow me down, but the noise from your chain would make it too easy for us to be ambushed.”
“What if the bad guys return while you’re hunting Malone?”
