Kindling Ashes: Firesouls Book I (17 page)

“He had to protect the eggs.”

Her throat was tight and she struggled to talk in a normal tone.

“It’s okay. It doesn’t hurt now,” Simon replied. She glanced at him and saw him pat the stump. “He… how is he?”

“Fine.”

/Better than fine! I’m back here, with him, mountains all around
!/

“Happy,” she amended. She felt a sting in her hand; her nails were digging into her palm. Baltair fumbled for words in her head and she fought to stay her ground for him – but she couldn’t. It was too much. That man would take Baltair away forever.

She ran from the house, just as she had entered, pushing through the small gaggle of people idling near the door. A couple of them tried to speak to her, even follow her, but she doubled her pace as soon as she was out in the open. Baltair was shouting but she stumbled into the trees at the edge of the village anyway, darting through them. Low branches knocked her, needles scraping at her skin. She tripped over rocks and the rough, uneven ground.

/Giselle! Where are you going
?/
Baltair roared.

She doubled over, panting, trying to ignore his mix of anger and confusion.

“Sorry,” she whispered.

He simmered with irritation. The first and only time before now she had wished him out of her head had been the night her guard had thrown her out onto the streets of Tyrun. He had tried to argue that it was good, that he would keep her safe and that her guard was not a nice person – but she had cried on the doorway until her guard had come out to shout at her to leave. Baltair had forced her away and she had hated him with every step.

Now she only wished that he would not see her reaction to this turn of events. She didn’t want him gone, not really, and that was the whole problem. She couldn’t imagine her life without him. He’d always been there. It had always been Giselle and Voice. What would happen after he had his own body? Where would she go?
Back to Tyrun, alone?

He tried to speak but she blocked him, shouting noise in her head so she couldn’t hear. She didn’t want to hear him right now – and she didn’t want him to hear her. She didn’t want him to see the painful, bitter fire twisting in her stomach that had been there ever since she’d recovered from his reaction to seeing Simon. Tears slid down her face, but as much as she tried she couldn’t cry out the burn.

CHAPTER
16

C
orran did his best to not give into his nerves as they walked through the dragon village. He was in the den of his enemy and Frang had been bouncing all morning.

They were directed by Gerard
towards a large, seemingly empty house as Sarra disapepared after Giselle. Garth disappeared as well; he had spiralled into his sickness the past few days.

“Corran?”

Gerard’s hand fell on his shoulder before he could follow the other Firesouls into the building.

“The mayor wants to speak to you.”

“Just me?”

Gerard nodded. “Sorry. This way.”

Corran followed with trepidation, nerves rising. Had they found him out? Why was he being taken away from the others? He had convinced the Firesouls but now there were more people to convince. Would he mess up like he almost had so many times before?

They entered a large house that had been built against the cliff face. Several people were there already – two children playing on the floor, an old man with one arm and Sarra, who paced with worry all over her face. What had Giselle done now?

“You are the Dunslade boy?”

His eyes snapped to the old man who stood opposite, fixing him with a keen gaze, and nodded. He still wore an immaculate blue Flier uniform. That coupled with his stub of an arm painted a fierce picture of a man still at war. Almost, Corran mused, like Lord Huwcyn.

“He’s the spitting image of his father,” the man said to Sarra, unnerving Corran even more. How did he know that? His father would never have consorted with a Flier!

“I am Simon, mayor of Cridhal. Your brothers are on their way.”

“
What?
”

He bit his tongue to stop himself saying anymore. Simon seemed to be waiting for him to slip up. He restrained his impatience for an explanation and tried not to let his eyes linger on the stump of the man’s arm.

“They’ve been following you for a few weeks now.”

“Why?” Corran whispered, unable to think fast enough to come up with a sensible response.

“Why do you think? To catch the Firesouls and find out how to stop the dragons returning.”

He glanced away from the old man to look at Gerard instead. He gazed back, encouragement clear in his face. He was sure of Corran and for a second it made him feel guilty. Then he rolled his eyes at himself for how ridiculous it was to feel guilty because of
Gerard
, of all people.

/Hardly. He’s the reason you
should
be guilty. Him. Henry. Me. Everyone here. Everyone who had their lives ruined because of dragonslayers who’d always been jealous of mountain folk
./

The serious tone set Corran more on edge. Frang never spoke like that.

/Being here reminds me how much we lost
./

He struggled not to scowl.
He hadn’t done anything wrong to feel guilty about
,
it was his father
! And even if he had, they were dragons. Dragons couldn’t live alongside humans. Dragons couldn’t be allowed to live at all.

/Why
?/

“So why are you telling me?” he asked, trying not to give any sign that he was battling with guilt. There must be some reason he had been called here but not any of the others.

“We need to know if we can trust you.”

“What?” He tried to sound suitably outraged. “Haven’t I proved myself enough? Will you people never be satisfied?”

/It’s a shame your acting has improved
./

“Gerard is a good judge of character and I wish I could take his word – but I knew your father. I can’t imagine any of his sons turning out so… mellow.”

Mellow?

This time his outrage was not an act. “Well what do you want from me then? Deciding to condemn me when I’ve done nothing wrong? I’m a Firesoul too!”

“I want to know what your brothers will do.”

He paused his outrage to frown. “How am I meant to know that?”

“You’ve grown up with them.”

He considered shrugging it off as something he couldn’t possibly know, but the hard expression on that wrinkled face persuaded him that wouldn’t be accepted. And maybe if he wanted these accusations against his loyalty to stop he should prove it. He could always warn his brothers later – and he didn’t want them winning too soon, before he had the chance to come out the real champion. So he thought, trying to work out what they would be doing if they didn’t have him as an inside source.

“I heard from the raiders, King Rhian wants Firesouls alive.” It was a half–truth, but plausible enough. Simon nodded impatiently. “They’d go with those instructions and they’d plan for it – but I don’t know if Huw would stick to it.” Of all his brothers, Huw was most like his namesake. “They’d watch and work out the best time to attack. Not here I think
,
there are too many people. If we went anywhere else as a group, they’d try then. Otherwise I think they’d pick people off one by one. Glyn would plan it all, he’s the smartest.”

Simon’s expression was pensive. “And if the Firesouls went up in the mountains?”

“They’d follow – Glyn might not think it was a good idea, but Huw would say it would be perfect for cornering us. But why would we go up in the mountains?”

“We need to recover the dragon eggs,” Gerard said. Simon shot him a frown, but although he shrugged apologetically Gerard continued speaking. “We need them to give the dragons their bodies back.”

/The eggs, of course
!/

Corran’s interest surged – finally, information on how to get Frang out! Weeks of travelling and all worth it! Except how would he find the eggs? If he just went with the others he would be free, but then they would release their dragons too – and rather than eggs or humans, he’d be facing real, fire–breathing, flying dragons. He shuddered as he remembered the gruesome tales he had heard his father tell so often. If he went with them to get Frang out, he’d be setting dragons loose on the world.

/But you want me out! We both want that – so just go with them
./

Frang’s words convinced him more than his own thoughts. His stomach dropped at the prospect of being stuck like this
forever. Except it wouldn’t be forever! That sickness would not ignore him. Was keeping dragons out of the world worth his life?

He couldn’t do this alone. He would have to find his brothers. Together they could follow and prevent any of the dragons being saved. He would work out for himself how to get Frang out using the egg and then destroy him straight away. They would smash the eggs so no one else could try. The dragons would never return and Auland would be safe.

*

It was unlike any other hall he had been in before and Corran couldn’t understand how such a place was in a tiny mountain village. It was triple the size of the dining room at home, but that wasn’t what was so impressive about it. The entire hall had been built straight into the side of the cliff. The scrapes of claws were still visible on the walls, telling him just how the villagers had managed it.

Movement to his left caught his attention and he saw people popping in and out of passages in the walls. This ‘village’ was far bigger than it seemed. It felt empty though with so few people in such a giant space – maybe thirty, when the hall could have held two hundred humans as well as their dragons. Thanks to him, it would stay empty.

The giant hall began to flood with people, interrupting Corran’s imaginings of how it might have looked twenty years ago with dragons around the edges. He hoped the other Firesouls would arrive soon. Gerard had said they were settling into the beds that had been arranged for them around Cridhal. He, to his great annoyance, was stuck with Gerard.

A head popped up next to him and he found himself staring down at a little girl kneeling on the bench. She looked about the
same age as his nephew, with straight blonde hair and dimples shining from her cheeks as she grinned up at him.

“You’re the dragonslayer’s son,” she accused – except with that smile, it could hardly be called an accusation.

“Who told you that?” he asked, unsure whether to grin back, or frown and scare her away. Hoping for the other Firesouls to turn up soon didn’t mean he wanted company from strangers – even tiny children with big smiles that tugged at his own lips. He settled for a grimace.

“Mama said so. What’s your name?” she asked, shuffling around to plop herself down next to him. She rested chubby arms on the table and peered up at him.

“Uh… Corran.”

“Ha! I’m Karen! That’s like you! You’ve got a girl’s name.”

“No it’s not a girl’s name, it’s Corran. With an O.”

“You’ve got a girl’s name!” she sang, tapping her hands on the table in time with her new tune. “Girl’s name, girl’s name – but it’s a good girl’s name,” she assured him. “’Cause it’s my name too.”

She continued to hum the tune she’d made up to herself, swinging her legs under the table and looking all around the hall that continued to fill up. Most people were going to the tables furthest from the entrance so they passed him, trying to be inconspicuous in their eavesdropping. The girl bounced and pointed across the hall at an unusually tall teenager with dark, almost black hair.

“Look! That’s Moira. She’s my cousin. She’s going to be a Flier. My brother will be too, and me.”

“But there aren’t any dragons left.”

Karen shook her head in indignation.

“But there will be soon! ’Cause you’re bringing them back! Moira and Tomlin told me all about it, how you’ve got a dragon in you! Can I see it?”

She peered into his chest, face scrunched up like if she concentrated enough she might see Frang.

“Sorry, I can’t talk to him well. I’m not very good at it.”