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Chapter Nine
Angus nodded at the red dragon who dropped like a stone, so close to them he had to fight an urge to step out of its way. It was an old game. The dragon equivalent of chicken to see who blinked first.
The dragon nodded back, approval mirrored in its whirling blue eyes. “Onto my back. Both of you.”
Angus tossed magic over Arianrhod and boosted them onto the dragon. Arianrhod grasped the horns that grew from the base of the dragon’s neck. Angus wrapped his arms around her, enjoying the press of her body against his chest. The dragon spread its wings and was airborne so fast the wind rush nearly unsettled him from his perch.
Fire Mountain spread beneath them in all its harsh, volcanic glory. He placed his mouth near her ear. “Do you have any idea when this world was formed?”
She shook her head. “’Tis always been here. Dragons are older than any of us.”
“Do you suppose it’s the original world? The one all the rest of them came from?”
She leaned into him and turned her head so her cheek was against his. “I doona think so. The dragons seem anxious to have us front and center. Figuring out why is more important than a digression into history.”
Angus thought about it. They’d left Fire Mountain in the midst of chaos to hunt down Eletea. If he knew anything about dragons, they liked to keep their dirty laundry under wraps. “I suspect they want to send us back to your kin with a carefully scripted message.”
Her body shook with laughter that was torn away by the wind. “Now ye mention it, they’ll likely want us to keep quiet about everything else.”
“What’s so funny,virginhuntress?” The dragon turned its head to stare back at them.
“She’s just relieved we escaped Rhukon. So long as you feel like chatting, was Fire Mountain the first world?” Angus wanted to divert the dragon from heckling Arianrhod, and he was genuinely curious about the history of Fire Mountain.
“Of course this was the first world,” the dragon huffed. It turned so it faced the way they traveled, but its next words were quite clear. “We’re the first race, so naturally our world was formed from the ether before any others.” It paused for a beat. “Our biggest mistake in all those years was that infernal dragon shifter bond.”
“Most of the mages have been assets,” Arianrhod pointed out.
“But the ones that turned rogue poisoned the well,” the dragon replied. “Hang on. We’re almost there.”
It turned out to be good advice, since the dragon’s bulk fell out of the air. Angus was reasonably confident they wouldn’t crash. Dragons weren’t into self-destruction, but the transition from air to ground took nerves of steel. Multi-tonal dragon laughter rang out as the creature spread its wings at what felt like the last possible moment, and they floated gently to cracked red dirt, studded with pumice and obsidian.
Angus summoned magic to move them to the ground, but Arianrhod beat him to it. “My turn.” She smiled brightly once they were off the dragon’s back.
He turned to thank the dragon, but its wings were already flapping, and it was gone before he could do more than shout, “Appreciate the ride,” after it.
“Doesna bode well,” Arianrhod muttered as she turned in a full circle, surveying where they were.
Angus recognized landmarks, though they were subtle on this world where everything looked much the same. “That way.” He pointed. “Their council cave is just over that rise.”
She began walking and he followed, enjoying watching the swing of her hips as she made her way over uneven terrain. Her bow and quiver bounced against her body, and four braids fell down her back, reaching almost to her knees. His body responded to her nearness at a bone-deep level. He’d never wanted a woman as much as he wanted Arianrhod.
She wanted him too—he felt her desire and her ambivalence—but she had everything to lose by joining her star to his. At least that was the way she saw things. He’d pushed earlier, trying to argue her away from her position, but he’d backed off. Maybe if he had an established spot anywhere, he’d cling to it with her tenacity. Recognition slapped him that she’d lived a lie so long, it had become second nature. She wasn’t adverse to having sex—hell, maybe the other Celts even knew about her fall from grace—but to proclaim it openly challenged her spot in the Pantheon.
It’s like me and Arawn both pretending he’d tell me about my origins. He knew he’d never do that, and I eventually figured it out, but neither of us ever voiced our knowledge. If we had, it would’ve changed our relationship. Made it impossible for me to pretend I was a free agent.
I’m not. Never have been.
The next question, when it came, shook him.What the fuck am I going to do about it?
Arianrhod stopped fifty paces from the mound leading into the council cave and turned to face him. “Ye’re troubled. What are ye thinking about?”
“Why not just bore into my head?” He sounded surly, but couldn’t help it.
“Because I respect you more than that.” She leveled her gaze at him. “No matter how things turn out between us, doona doubt that I care for you.”
He unclenched his jaw. No reason to be angry with her. Both of them were caught up in something bigger than they were. “We can talk after we get through whatever the dragons have in store for us.”
“Mayhap we could have that conversation while we travel to search out your origins.”
