Page 68 of Inferno

Well, given that I risked my life to save him, I think I have a right to know what’s going to happen,Nerik said, his tone noticeably sharper, and Yorin wondered about the relationship between the pair of them. According to Nerik’s stories, he and Gosta were close, but now, it seemed all they could do was bicker at each other.

I’m going to head over to the stables in a moment,Stanley interrupted, before Gosta could say anything else.I’m going to offer to train the unicorn, then take him back to my place and let him settle in. We’ll have plenty of time later to figure out exactly what to tell the warriors, and to decide whether we want to set the unicorns up in a similar situation to the vreki. Right now, I just need to buy some time for him, which should be easy enough, so long as the warriors let me take him with me.

What’s a vreki?Yorin asked, trying to keep up with the conversation as well as possible.

That’s what you’d know as a dragon,Nerik answered the question.They run the flying carriage service.Dragons are real, but they’re a lot bigger than a vreki. And a lot more intelligent. They come in different colours; blue or red or black and grey. Some have yellow patches on their wings or their tails. We let humans call vreki ‘dragons’ because explaining the difference would be far too difficult.

So there are dragons in Chalandros? Real dragons, I mean?Yorin had trouble imagining something like what Nerik was describing, largely because the black, winged creatures he’d already seen were terrifying enough. Something far larger must be a nightmare to deal with.

No, not in Chalandros. They originate in a different world from either Chalandros or Earth. There hasn’t been one in Chalandros for over a hundred years.

How the heck do you know so much about dragons?Beetie asked Nerik.It’s always been the mages who-

Coming through,came a halting gasp from Kit, and everyone stopped talking instantly. Yorin sat still, watching the cage carefully, though if all went according to plan, he shouldn’t actually see anything unusual. Kit would be completely invisible, and presumably, so would her cargo of wood.

Over on her bench, Mintesh had her head down, her hands weaving patterns in her lap, her mouth muttering something that Yorin couldn’t hear. Beetie had her hand on Mintesh’s back, and even Yorin could tell that she was poised to spring into action, should the need arise.

Moving past Mintesh,Kit said, her voice strangled even through the mental link, and Yorin could only admire what had to be a monumental effort on her part. He had no idea what was involved in making someone invisible, but it was clear it was costing the witches a lot.

Nearly at the cage.

As Yorin watched, he did actually see the air shimmer beside the cage for a moment, and then a faint ripple of blue snaked down from waist height to the ground. Mintesh gave a pained yelp, and Yorin saw Beetie’s hands move in a quick circle, a faint trail of yellow light flowing from them.

Nerik rolled over, collapsing onto his side. Yorin was alarmed for a moment, until Kit reported,He’s got it.Yorin realised he must have rolled over on top of the logs, to keep them out of sight.Now back to the… patisserie…Kit managed to say. Mintesh was trembling by now, though she soldiered on bravely, her hands never ceasing the patterns she was weaving.

“Oi, what’s wrong with him?” one of the guards asked loudly, slapping his comrade on the arm. He was staring at Nerik, who was lying down on the floor of the cage, presumably attempting to absorb the wood through his abdomen. Yorin had found the sight of it fascinating, though oddly disturbing before, and he hadn’t thought to ask whether it was uncomfortable or not.

Fuck, keep them away from me for a second,Nerik asked urgently, as one of the guards stepped closer to him. In response, Rimdolen stomped his feet and whinnied, rattling the cart.

“Hey, easy, easy,” Stanley loudly tried to calm him, making a show of it for the benefit of the guards.

“Hey, you, move your bloody horse away from the cage, if he’s going to cause a ruckus,” one of the guards told Stanley. “We don’t need no horse causing more trouble. A bloody demon’s enough for one day.”

“He’ll be fine,” Stanley said, in as dismissive a tone as he could manage. “See, he’s already calmed down. No need for a fuss.”

Over in the cage, Nerik sat up, and a moment later, he was back to looking as inconspicuous as possible.Thank you,he said to Rimdolen.

Think nothing of it. Are you feeling better now?

As good as I’m going to get, for the time being.

I’m going to go and see how Kit is, Mintesh announced, standing up abruptly and marching off towards the patisserie.

Let’s give Kit and Mintesh a moment to collect themselves, Gosta said, taking charge once again.And then we can see what we can do next.

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

By the time Kit came hobbling out of the patisserie, leaning heavily on Mintesh’s arm, the square was getting busy – even busier than it already had been. It was just after twelve o’clock by now, and the lunchtime crowds were arriving, eager to buy bread and meat sandwiches from the carts, or treats from the patisserie, and even though it was only Monday, there were still a handful of men looking to sneak a quick pint of ale at the pub before getting back to work for the afternoon.

And that was aside from the steady stream of people all coming to gawk at Nerik. Yorin felt a deep sense of indignation on Nerik’s behalf, and an overwhelming rage at how heartless everyone was being. None of these people were able to look past Nerik’s smoky exterior and glowing eyes to see that he was aperson. Not a demon, not a threat, but a person, with dreams and feelings and the ability to love, just like them.

Were you any better when you first saw him?The thought slipped into Yorin’s mind unbidden, and he chewed on it for a moment. He’d run away, afraid of what he hadn’t understood, but he hadn’t tried to harm Nerik. And it had only taken him twelve hours to come to terms with it, to come back around to having a conversation with Nerik. And before that, he’d been eager to see a fire-dog in person, again, not to harm it, but just out of a sense of curiosity.

But was what everyone else was doing here any different? Yorin had tailed a group of warriors to gawk at the fire-dog – or hellhound, as he would have called it then – and these people were just as curious about a black-bodied, red-eyed demon.

Except that they would be watching Nerik’s execution in the morning.

But if Yorin hadn’t known about Nerik, if his capture had happened a week earlier, would he be any different? No, in all likelihood, he wouldn’t, he admitted to himself, feeling thoroughly ashamed of himself.