Page 59 of Dragon Eternal (Dragon Kings 4)
CHAPTERTWENTY-FOUR
Brandr stood at the border, looking out over the canyon to the forest and then beyond to Stonemore. He couldn’t shake the irritation that had plagued him these last weeks. Ever since the unknown foe had attacked him, he’d been agitated and restless. The only problem that he and his sister, Eurwen, had had on Zora previously were the humans.
What had changed?
Because something evidently had. He wanted to blame it on Varek being brought to Zora. Had Jeyra not been so intent on revenge, she wouldn’t have sought out the crone. Then again, if she hadn’t been able to do the magic to pull Varek from Earth to their realm, then the peace of Zora would’ve continued.
“I’m surprised to find you here.”
Brandr forced himself to remain relaxed as Cullen walked up. “I didna come to chat.”
“A wee bit testy today, aye?”
Brandr had been biting everyone’s head off lately. It was why he’d been out flying on his own. He had intentionally landed far from the canyon and the underground ruins of Iron Hall.
Cullen blew out a breath. “I know what you’re feeling.”
“I doubt it,” Brandr snapped.
“You and Eurwen watched everything we did on Earth. You know the foes we battled. You know how they attacked. Doona be a wanker and act as if you’re the only one who feels anything.”
Fuck. Brandr hated when any of the Kings was right. About anything. “Point taken.”
“Why are you here?”
Could Cullen not leave anything alone? “I doona know.”
“That’s shite. You doona want to tell me? Fine. But doona lie to yourself.”
Brandr turned his head to look into Cullen’s light brown eyes. “I’m no’.”
“Clearly,” he replied sarcastically.
Brandr looked back toward Stonemore. “Eurwen and I focused all our attention on the dragons. We wanted a safe place for them. They had lost one home. We were going to make sure they didna lose another. We couldna stop the humans from arriving here. Nor the children. So, we set up the boundaries. We gave the dragons room to breathe, to roam, to be themselves. We could tell you everything happening on our side of the border. How did we miss what was happening on the other side?”
“Because you didna care.” Cullen shrugged. “I doona blame you. None of us do. I would’ve done the same. You can no’ carry the sins of others on your shoulders.”
Brandr frowned as he faced Cullen. “Innocents died.”
“Unfortunately, that happens everywhere. Innocent dragons die every day. Do you carry that?”
“No.”
“Then doona carry others.” Cullen’s jaw tightened as he crossed his arms over his chest. “Humans doona have a monopoly on being cruel. Every being in the universe shares that. The mortals just have a way of doling it out in particularly vicious ways.”
Brandr looked down into the canyon. He spotted a few of the children playing right outside the hidden door to the city. “Had you no’ helped Tamlyn, we wouldna know what was happening at Stonemore. Those kids would be dead.”
“But they’re verra much alive.”
“I didna want you helping Tamlyn.”
Cullen shrugged. “If you think Con never made a bad decision, you’re mistaken. We all have. There’s no shame in it. You learn from it.”
It was good advice. Brandr hadn’t wanted to like any of the Kings, but damn if a few hadn’t begun to grow on him. “Have Merrill and Shaw still no’ seen our new adversary?”
“They’ve no’. I’m no’ sure whether to be happy about it or worried. Whatever it is moves quickly, and its near-invisibility caught me unawares.”
Brandr nodded. “It’s difficult to explain to others what to look for. I only saw it for a second out of the corner of my eye. I didna feel it’s approach or sense anything.”
“That puts us on the defensive. I doona like that.”
“Me, either.”
Cullen dropped his arms. “It could come at us at any time.”
“At least it hasna killed any more dragons.”
“Did it cross onto your land?”
Brandr shook his head. “I can no’ be certain. If it did, neither I nor Eurwen were aware of it.”
“It might just have sent its magic.”
“True.” Brandr watched him. “You really think it’s another Dragon King we doona know about?”
Cullen sighed as he shook his head. “What else could it be?”
“We have beings here that I was unaware of before. A Banshee.” Brandr blew out a frustrated breath. “What else is there? If Eurwen and I had spent more time with the mortals, we would’ve learned everything.”
“We’re learning now.”
It was a step. Brandr should feel good about that, but something still niggled. He couldn’t put his finger on it. He remembered the first time he and Eurwen had found humans on Zora. They’d been stunned and aghast. They had taken the humans to another realm, but the next day, the mortals were back. No matter how many times he and his sister took them away, they always returned.
Eurwen had been sure the mortals were using magic. So, the two of them had hidden and watched the small group for weeks. If any of them had magic, they kept it to themselves. With nothing else to do, he and Eurwen let the humans know where the boundaries were, and what would happen if they crossed onto dragon land.
They took steps not to repeat the mistakes the Kings on Earth had done with the mortals. He and Eurwen had been so confident they had found the answer. Instead, they had created other problems. They might have been able to foresee some, but they would’ve had no way of knowing about others.
