Dragon-Ridden (37 page)

“What’ll we do until then?” Dewdrop
asked. “That’s not until tomorrow night.”

Night chimed in,
Ryu’s already
searched your room. I doubt he’ll come back. If he does, keep quiet and one of
us will warn you to get out if he looks like he’s going to try look inside.

“You’re right. This is the safest
place we can think of. I’ll set the barrier stones Danny gave me and nobody
will be able to get in. We’ll stay here for the time being.” Tate slapped her
leg in emphasis. “Now, do any of you have any food?”

Setting the barrier turned out to
be easy. She simply had to place one stone on each of the exits, the windowsill
and the door. There was an almost audible pop when things snapped into place,
and it felt as if a circuit had been completed. Both stones glowed briefly,
casting a reddish light on the walls of the room then both sunk into the floor
disappearing from sight. Tate touched the floor where one of the stone’s had
been. Only a slight discoloration in the wood showed where it had rested. When
Tate turned to look at the window, she saw out of the corner of her eye the
faintest ripple of reddish air where the barrier would be. Looking directly at
the door again, she could see nothing. Guess it was working.

The rest of the night passed
quickly. Tempest and Night decided it’d be best to head back to their room for
the time being in case Ryu did come back. This way they’d be there to allay any
suspicions he might have.

Tate gave the bed to Dewdrop and
the boy to sleep in and settled back against the wall with a blanket to stay
warm and dozed off and on throughout the night. She didn’t want to risk going
too deeply into sleep. Nightmares were all that awaited her there and keeping
someone on watch was the smartest thing to do.

Night was just a shadow as he
slipped back into the room and crept to Tate’s side. He sat beside her, his
shoulder brushing hers as he got settled.

“Where’s Tempest?” she asked
keeping her voice down so as not to wake the two sleepers.

Keeping watch.

“Your cubs?”

They’re doing well.

“Good. Good.” Tate rested her head
against the wall, waiting for Night to get around to what he came here for.

For a long time, it was just
myself
. Night began cleaning his claws with his tongue.
I had to be
concerned with my own survival, and I did things that give me nightmares, but
it didn’t matter because it was just what needed to be done. It wasn’t until I
had the cubs that I started to realize just exactly what I was. A weapon.
Little more than an animal trained to perform on command.

Tate moved restlessly. She didn’t
understand what he was getting at.

I don’t want them to be like me
,
he said, his tail whipping furiously.
I don’t want them to become the beast
I was. Our appearance may be that of an animal, but our hearts and minds more
closely resemble our human cousins. If this war comes, as this boy says it
might, they’ll become like I used to be. It’ll be the only way they can survive

Tate didn’t think he would want
false platitudes. Fake words of comfort saying that everything would be all
right. She listened, really listened instead.

What I’m trying to say is that
I’m in this.
His eyes reflected the light.
Whatever it takes. I’m in
this.

A blast shook the floor, the door
flying inwards to slam against the wall. The barrier shattered in a rain of red
shards as dark figures stormed the room. Dewdrop pushed the boy off the bed
towards Tate before turning to jump wildly on one of the intruders. He was
tossed easily over the man’s shoulder and into the hall.

Tate screamed his name even as she
was on her feet and moving. Night let out a resounding roar before leaping to
engage two of the men. Blood sprayed as he lashed out with claws and fangs.

There were plenty more to fight
though, as others spilled into the room. Tate pulled her knife and sliced at
any unfortunate soul who got close enough. She’d sliced one attacker’s arm to
ribbons and managed to trip another one, sending him headfirst out the window.

Tate forced the boy behind her as
she fended off the attackers, locking her mind against any worry for Dewdrop.
It wasn’t the time to think about anything other than slash, stab, duck,
repeat.

Night finished off his opponents
with a few exact slashes across vital spots before moving to meet the next
ones.

Tate snarled as another attacker
ran towards her. She stepped to meet him, letting his striking arm carry him
past her before latching on and using his own weight and the turn of her body
to flip him over her shoulder. She stomped on his neck before wrenching the arm
she held out of its socket. A raw scream escaped the man as he curled around
his shoulder. She kicked him in the head to knock him out and then fell forward
as another tackled her from behind.

Tate clawed at the arm wrapped
around her neck, getting the fingers of one hand between her neck and his arm.
It was enough to keep him from choking her out. She rolled with him on her back
before pulling a knife from her boot. Her lungs heaved from the lack of air and
with her vision fading, Tate plunged the blade into the man’s side until the
arm loosened around her neck. She scrambled away before he could grab her
again.

Tempest joined the fight with a
piercing war cry, his blade flashing silver in the moonlight as he cut through
attackers in the doorway. He’d cleared a way over to the boy near the window
and ferociously defended him, cutting down any who ventured near.

A man yelled, “We can’t leave
without the fulcrum.” His distraction proved his undoing as Night drew his
claws across his neck. He died in a gurgle of blood.

There was a momentary lull in the
fighting, and Tate felt some hope that they’d beaten off their attackers. When
a sword stuck out of Tempest’s chest, there was a moment of shocked pain in his
face before he toppled over. Kadien stuck his arm through the window seizing
the boy. His eyes met Tate’s for one timeless second and then they were both
gone.

“Tempest and the boy,” Tate shouted
running for the window.

A round object flew in, rolling to
a stop in front of her. There was a heartbeat’s pause before it exploded in a
flash of light and a loud boom. The percussion from the blast threw Tate back
against her bed and off the other side. Her head hit the floor with a thump.
The dark rose up to claim her.

The bed was harder than usual, Tate
thought groggily. She snuggled down, rubbing her cheek against coarse sheets.
Her hip ached. So did her shoulder. The cheek resting against the bed throbbed.

She rose to full consciousness
gradually. With consciousness came the realization, this was not her bed. She
was lying on the floor next to it. So that’s why she hurt in so many places.

Her hearing wasn’t working
properly. Neither was her sight, she discovered when she blinked up at the
room. It refused to come into focus, and the world around her was muted and
dull as if she were under water.

She rolled onto her back and
groaned as she tried to sit up. Her body hurt. The muscles, the bones,
everything. She didn’t quite make it all the way up before settling back down
onto the floor.

The wood vibrated under her as what
seemed to be a stampede ran across it. She slapped at the hands that suddenly
grabbed her, hauling her into a seated position with her back against the bed.

She cursed at him, the words not
sounding right to her cotton-filled ears. Strong fingers grasped her chin
pulling it towards him. He threw one leg across hers, trapping her lower body
when she tried to kick. Her hands were seized and held roughly to keep her from
hitting.

Slowly, the world was coming into
focus as the effects of whatever it was wore off. She blinked at Ryu’s fierce
face shoved close to hers. There was still a bright halo around him, but she
could make out his eyes and the shape of his features.

Her lips formed the word “Ryu” but
she didn’t know if she had spoken it or not.

He shook her slightly, her head
rattling on her neck. Her brain felt thick, a weird buzzing sound invading it.
Maybe that was her ears. It made it difficult to focus, to concentrate.

“-hap-. O- me, ed.” Ryu’s voice
faded in and out.

She lifted her head and
concentrated fiercely on his lips, matching the movement to the disjointed
sounds. She finally made out the sentence, “Tell me what happened.”

“What happened?” she unwittingly
shouted. Ryu grimaced at the volume.

“Attacked.” She modulated her voice
slightly, but it was still louder than she intended. “Umi has the boy. Tried to
stop her, but she threw something. Hard to see or hear.”

“It’s a thumper,” Ryu shouted back.
Tate could just barely make out what he said as her hearing started to return.
It still felt like someone had stuffed wax in them, but at least she could
communicate again. “Nasty stuff. Very disorienting.”

“I agree.”

Ryu wasn’t the only one in her
room. Several Kairi moved among the dead bodies, Blood was splattered all over,
and several assessing glances were shot at Tate.

She jerked in Ryu’s arms at a
sudden thought. She tried to rise, but Ryu forced her back down. “What about
Tempest? Kadien stabbed him.”

Ryu’s face was grim as his eyes
held hers. He gave a slight shake of the head.

She settled back down, her body
shaking slightly. Dead then. She banged her head against the bed behind her.
Ryu pulled her away from it before she could do it again.

“What about the others?” she asked,
scowling at him before wrinkling her nose. It and her eyes stung fiercely.
“Dewdrop? Night?”

She didn’t wait for an answer and
shook him off, intending to see them for herself. Ryu was reluctant to release
her, but she batted away his hands and staggered over to Night. She sank to her
knees and checked his breathing, sighing with relief to see his chest still
moving. His fur was matted with blood, and he had some minor cuts on his legs
with a slightly deeper one on his back. Otherwise he was okay.

He was going to be fine. She said a
thankful prayer under her breath.

Next she walked through the fallen,
hoping Dewdrop wasn’t among them. Blood covered the floor, and there was
nowhere she could step that it didn’t squish under foot. She gritted her teeth
and forced herself to examine every face, turning over the bodies that lay
facedown. She exhaled shakily. Dewdrop wasn’t here, nor was he one of those in
the hallway.

“I don’t see Dewdrop,” Tate said
softly. “Did you see him on the way up?”

Ryu shook his head no in answer
before grabbing Tate’s arm and guiding her to the bed. He sat her down and
knelt in front of her, taking her hands in his. They were cold, and he chaffed
them to warm them up a little. His fingers rubbed gently at one of the scrapes
there. His hand was gentle as it rose to brush against the bump on her head.
She winced at the throb of pain it caused.

“You almost died.” His eyes caught
hers and held them with a depth of emotion Tate hadn’t expected to find. It
made him seem vulnerable.

“They have the fulcrum now,” one of
the Kairi said from behind Ryu.

Ryu’s face closed up, locking all
emotion away. It was like a mask had slipped into place. If Tate hadn’t been
watching she probably wouldn’t have known those other feelings had ever
existed. It was a strangely intimate act.

“Your plan didn’t work,” the one by
the door observed.

“Umi has the fulcrum now,” Ryu said
stonily. “We need to focus on getting him back before the ceremony is
complete.”

The three Kairi seemed to carry on
a silent conversation before one said, “Agreed.”

“They’re probably heading for the
Red Lady,” Tate offered. “It was her men that helped Umi with the attack.”

They regarded her arrogantly. They
made her feel like a child interrupting the adults conversation. She bristled
at them and had to fight the urge not to sink in on herself.

Ryu put a hand on her shoulder
signaling for her to be quiet. “I need a moment,” he told them.

They inclined their heads before
turning as one for the door. None of them glanced at Tempest’s fallen body. To
them, he simply didn’t exist

“Hey,” Tate said loudly. She nodded
to where Tempest lay broken on the floor. “Shouldn’t you see to your dead?”

“He is a traitor. His affairs are
no longer our concern.”

“He died defending your damn
fulcrum,” she said stonily. “He may have started down the traitor’s path, but
he died a hero redeeming himself.”

“His actions have led to the loss
of the fulcrum and the key. He and his companions have brought about the
possibility of war. He cannot be forgiven for a single act of contrition.”

“Always with the self righteous rot
and none of you has the right to it,” Tate spat in disdain. “How many of you
could do what he did, knowing you were considered a traitor?”

The Kairi’s leader’s face became
even more implacable. “I do not need lectures from a babe with little
understanding of the ways of the world. Come, we have things to accomplish.” He
turned and led the others from the room leaving Tate sputtering in rage.

Ryu wrapped his arms around Tate
when she struggled to follow them.

“Stop,” Ryu said shaking her.
“You’re in enough trouble as it is without upsetting them further.”

Tate struck Ryu in the chest. He
didn’t budge.

“This is serious, Tate. You saw how
they treated someone from their own race. What do you think they’ll do to you,
the person they blame for their loss?” His face was stern as he glared at her.
“You never should have taken the fulcrum from the warehouse. Jost is furious,
and the Kairi could very well call for your head.”