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Authors: Don Bassingthwaite

The Binding Stone (The Dragon Below, Book 1) (5 page)

BOOK: The Binding Stone (The Dragon Below, Book 1)

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The young man took a deep breath and nodded, sitting up straight once more. Singe caught a glimpse of grateful relief in his eyes. He smiled at him. "You'll do fine, Toller. Have confidence and take charge."

A tall man with a shock of white hair was hustling out from the inn before they had even walked their horses up to it. His eyes darted from the crest on Toller's jacket to the swirling, ornate hilt of the rapier that hung at Singe's side. The Aundairian turned his smile on him. "You have rooms?" he asked. "And dinner?"

"Yes, good master! Of course!" The man practically fell over as he bowed. "Welcome, welcome! My name is Sandar." He spun around and bellowed. "Thul! Thul!"

A sleepy-looking boy poked his head out from the stables. Sandar gestured urgently for him to come forward. Singe swung his leg over his horse's rump and dismounted before the innkeeper could injure himself in his eagerness to serve. "We're not in any rush, Sandar," he said warmly. "Take your time!"

Sandar looked relieved. "Tak, master! That's kind of you. We don't see many of the dragonmarked in these parts, and to have two ..."

"Only one, Sandar. I just work for House Deneith." Singe smiled and nodded to Toller.

Sandar's eyebrows rose so high they almost merged with his hairline and he spun around to face Toller. "Your pardon, good master!" he gasped. "I had thought your servant to be your equal!"

Singe's indulgent smile vanished into a glower while Toller's face lit up. "No apologies needed, Sandar," said the young man, "it's happened before." He stretched so that his dragonmark--the shimmering, swirling colors of the magical pattern that marked a true heir of one of the great houses--peeked out from under the cuff of his right sleeve. Sandar's eyes opened even wider in awe.

"Good master!" he breathed. "The best of my inn is yours!" Sandar stepped back, licked his lips, glanced from Singe to Toller, and back again, then asked, "If it wouldn't offend you, masters, would you mind my asking what business brings you to Bull Hollow?"

"Not at all, Sandar," Toller said as dismounted. "We're here on a mission for House Deneith, looking for recruits for the Blademarks Guild."

A murmur of mingled excitement and concern rippled through the watching "Mercenaries?" asked Sandar. Singe thought he finally saw a hint of caution peek through the man's eagerness to serve. "But the war is over. Surely there's no more need for mercenaries."

Singe snorted. "There's always a need for mercenaries," he said. "Peace requires an iron fist. But I don't suppose you felt much of the war in Bull Hollow, did you?"

"No, master," Sandar admitted. "So far out from the center of the Five Nations, it barely touched us. We do have a veteran living in the Hollow--a great man, though not from here originally--but he doesn't like to talk much about the war."

"I understand."

Toller grinned. "We'll let the veterans swap war stories between themselves tonight, Sandar. Let's start with food." He threw a mischievous glance over his shoulder as Sandar led him inside. "Help the stable boy with the horses ... Lieutenant Bayard."

Singe glared after him, but his mouth twitched with a certain pride. "We'll make a leader out of you yet, Toller," he muttered under his breath.

Dandra woke to the sound of voices and the distinctive sensation of having a roof over her head for the first time in weeks. Panic wrapped around her heart and squeezed. The reflexive discipline of a month of constant dread took precedent, however. She stayed still and silent, her eyes closed and her breathing regular, as she took stock of her situation.

She was lying on a bed, rough and slightly smelly, but a bed nonetheless. She was indoors--warmth, smell, and sound trapped around her. She could hear the crackle of a fire and the murmur of voices. Dandra concentrated on the voices, trying to sort them out. Two voices, one gruff, one softer and more pleasant. Both men.

A memory returned to her. Cold rock at her back, the strange six-legged creatures stalking toward her--and two men, a human and a fierce shifter, appearing from nowhere to come to her rescue. Her own outrage and the way it had drawn energies out of her she had thought drained by exhaustion.

The powerful slap of one of the creature's tentacles. Her impact with the rock she had chosen as her refuge. She focused her awareness on her body. To her surprise, she felt much better than she would have expected. The pains she had expected to find in her chest and in the back of her head were simply not there. The exhaustion that had all but crippled her--that was gone, too. She felt as if she had slept ... for hours.

Panic's grip tightened around her heart.
Tetkashtai!
she called within the darkness of her mind.
Tetkashtai!

Here!
Like a lantern shone along a dark corridor, a yellow-green light blossomed in her mind's eye. The presence that was Tetkashtai swirled around her, wrapping her in a desperate embrace.
Il-Yannah, Dandra. I couldn't wake you. The human cast some kind of spell on you!

Dandra returned the mental embrace.
It must have been a healing spell
, she said.
I feel better than I have any right to. How long have I been asleep?

I don't know
, Tetkashtai fretted.
Too long!
Images formed within her light. Views, seen from the perspective of someone being carried, of trees passing. The men who had come to her rescue,
their faces distorted by Tetkashtai's fear. A climb up a long slope, then back down. A rough little cabin. The range of Tetkashtai's vision was too short to reveal anything meaningful, any landmarks in the distance, and her sense of time was disjointed. In spite of herself, Dandra swallowed.
We need to get out of here
.

Yes!
gasped Tetkashtai.
Oh, yes!
Another image formed: Dandra's hand rising, a cone of flame blasting out to envelope the men.

No!
said Dandra, startled.
They rescued me. I can't do that!

Tetkashtai's silent voice hissed, snake-like.
I can. Let me! They'll regret keeping us here...
.

I don't think they're keeping us. They're only trying to help
. She forced the image of the men burning out of her mind and replaced it with another of them giving her directions, food, perhaps blankets.
They may be willing to help us more!

Tetkashtai coiled in on herself.
All right
, she said.
But don't tell them anything! And if they can't help us, we run--immediately!

Dandra bent her thoughts into a shape of obedience, the mental equivalent of a nod.
Yes, Tetkashtai
.

She opened her eyes and turned her head. "Hello?" she said.

It had been days at least since she had last spoken aloud. Her voice came out rough and cracking. It got the men's attention, though. They had been standing beside the fire. At the sound of her voice, they turned sharply. The shifter reacted as an animal would, arching his back and leaning onto the balls of his feet, ready either to fight or to run. The human, however, hurried directly to her. There was an earthenware pitcher on a small table beside the bed. He poured clear water into a cup and offered it to her.

"Here," he said kindly. "Drink." He settled on the bed and helped her as she sat up. The water was cool and good. She swallowed it with a gratitude that surprised her. The man poured her more. "Are you all right?"

She nodded and water splashed down her chin. She felt Tetkashtai draw back in slight disgust, but the man just smiled. He was ruggedly handsome under the beard and somewhat younger than she had expected--there was an air of responsibility to him that made him seem older. A simple collar of polished black
stones etched with strange symbols and strung on a leather cord hung around his neck.

"My name is Adolan. This is Geth." He gestured to the shifter as Geth moved in closer, his wide eyes shining in the firelight. The shirt that the shifter wore was torn into rags and stained with blood. Through the gaping fabric she could see that his compact body was knotted with muscle and thick with dark hair. He carried no visible wounds--maybe Adolan had used healing magic on him as well--but old scars made a map of bald streaks on his hairy skin.

"Dandra," she answered, gulping past the water. She set the cup aside and looked at both Adolan and Geth. "You saved me from those--"

"Displacer beasts," grunted Geth.

"--displacer beasts." Dandra bent her head and pressed her hands together. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," said Adolan. He tried awkwardly to imitate her gesture, then gave up. "Geth says you're a kalashtar." She nodded and he smiled. "I've never met a member of your race before."

Enough pleasantries!
snapped Tetkashtai.
Find out what we need to know--

As the presence spoke, Dandra saw Adolan frown slightly. His eyes drifted down to the bronze-wrapped crystal that hung around her neck.

Tetkashtai!
she hissed urgently, but the presence had seen the same thing. Her silent voice broke off sharply and her light shrank back in alarm. Her retreat left Dandra feeling slightly empty.

"That's an interesting crystal you wear," said Adolan. "I almost feel as if it's alive."

"In a way," Dandra answered as casually as she could manage, "it is. It's a psicrystal. For a psion, a psicrystal is an aid and a companion."

Adolan's frown deepened in confusion. "What's a psion?"

"A kalashtar wizard," growled Geth. "Which would make this psicrystal like a wizard's familiar." He gave Dandra a suspicious look. "I told you kalashtar had strange powers, Adolan."

"No stranger than magic," Dandra said defensively.

Adolan held out his hands. "Easy," he said. "I'm sorry, Dandra. I didn't mean to upset you." He glanced at Geth. "You should find the elders and let them know that the displacer beasts are dead."

The shifter darted a narrow glance at Dandra, but nodded. "They'll all likely be at Sandar's, and I could use a tankard."

He turned away and shrugged out of his shirt. He flung it into a corner and dug another out of a big chest that stood against the wall, pulling it on over broad shoulders. His big hand picked up one of a pair of fighting axes that stood by the chest and slipped it through a loop on his belt. For a moment, his eyes met Adolan's. The human gave a tiny nod, then looked to Dandra.

"I'll be back in a moment," he said, and followed Geth to the door of the cabin. When he opened it, Dandra's eyes went wide in alarm.

The little slice of the world outside was dark.
Tetkashtai, it's night!

The presence let out the barest spark of yellow-green light.
Il-Yannah
, she whispered.
We need to go
.

Dandra glanced around the cabin. Her spear was leaning against the foot of the bed. Her sandals were on the floor at the bedside. A cupboard beside the fireplace stood open, revealing a loaf of bread and what looked like cheese. Her stomach growled. Food would be nice, but she had mastered the means of sustaining her body with mental energy alone. A blanket on the other hand--her fingers bunched into the rough, scratchy coverings on the bed ...

Adolan stepped back into the cabin, closing the door behind him and smiling at her. Dandra forced her fingers to relax and smiled back at him.

In her mind's eye, Tetkashtai formed the image of a flame. Dandra answered with a reluctant mental nod.

BOOK: The Binding Stone (The Dragon Below, Book 1)

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