“The ground is so dry that it cracks.”
“For a dragon, that could be a merit. Plus, some of the area is adjacent to the ocean, and this dragon is fond of seafood. Angulus said we could pay a tribute of sorts to it for its help. Weekly deliveries of crab, lobster, fish, etcetera. It’s not an ideal solution, but it would cost us a lot less than the crown is shelling out for repairs of buildings and infrastructure in cities and rural areas that have been attacked. Many insurance providers are refusing to cover destruction by dragon, and the king is getting dozens of petitions a week. He feels obligated to help his subjects, of course, but my understanding is that the coffers are running low. And then there are the human losses.” Zirkander grimaced.
“While I can imagine a dragon wanting to lounge around and be fed—” Targoson looked at Bhrava Saruth, even though he was now standing and sneaking glances at Shulina Arya’s chest rather than lounging on the sofa, “—would he truly agree to defend all of Iskandia from other dragons in exchange for a few lobsters tossed in his gullet?”
“He might not have to do anything,” Trip said. “The other dragons fled at his approach. I don’t know what discussion they had, but those dragons didn’t come back. And it didn’t even seem like Drysaleskar was angling for the city. Just the seafood.”
“We might have been part of the reason they didn’t come back.” Rysha touched the hilt of her sword.
Trip spread his hand. “It would be nice to think so, especially since our teams did kill three of them, but I believe it was Drysaleskar’s arrival that ended their ploy prematurely.”
“Which is why the king wants you to locate him and offer him the Steppes,” Zirkander said.
“Which one of us gets the job of negotiating with him, sir?” Ahn looked dubiously at Bhrava Saruth and Shulina Arya. The pair looked like teenagers ready to head to a music festival in the park.
“Captain Trip.” Zirkander met Trip’s gaze. “You’ll be in charge of talking with the dragon.”
“Yes, sir.” Trip found the idea daunting, but he also agreed he was best qualified. Though their two dragon allies seemed to like Iskandia and humans well enough, he couldn’t imagine entrusting negotiations to them.
“If it doesn’t go well,” Zirkander said, “you’ll have two trained warriors with dragon-slaying swords along.” Grady wasn’t there, but he gestured at Rysha.
She looked pleased at this designation and lifted her chin.
“And acid grenades,” Zirkander added. “Are those as fragile as they look, Tee?”
Trip imagined the devices rattling around on the floor of his cockpit as he flew into battle.
“No,” Targoson said. “You’ll have to make an effort to break them when you throw them. I trust it goes without saying that a dragon’s magical barrier would need to be down so they can make contact with its scales.”
Trip nodded, knowing that getting the dragon’s defenses down would be his job. What he didn’t know was if he had a chance at accomplishing that. Not only was a gold more powerful than the silvers and bronzes he’d battled, but this one sounded a lot stronger than a typical gold.
“Pack what supplies you need for the two fliers you’ll be taking, and prepare to depart first thing tomorrow,” Zirkander said.
“Only two fliers, sir?” Ahn asked. “Is that a big enough team if there’s trouble?”
“Two fliers and two dragons. Bhrava Saruth and Shulina Arya have agreed to go with you to help convince Drysaleskar that Iskandia is a lovely country, worth defending and worth not ravaging.”
“It will be even more lovely after I can zip through the streets of your city on roller-skates,” Shulina Arya announced, looking squarely at Trip.
Did she expect them before they left? Those violet eyes certainly seemed hopeful, and Trip sensed the pull of her scylori, the desire to do whatever the dragon wished.
He snorted, somewhat amused that it worked both ways. He could affect people, but if he wasn’t careful, he, too, could be affected.
“I suppose I can work on a pair this evening while I’m being tutored,” Trip said, not certain the idea was entirely his.
“Excellent.” Shulina Arya twirled.
Targoson blinked a few times, and Captain Ahn’s eyebrows climbed. Zirkander didn’t react—maybe he was so accustomed to the quirks of his dragon houseguests that one wanting skates didn’t seem at all odd to him.
Did you know your dragon twirls, Rysha? Trip silently asked, noticing her faint smile.
Yes, she does it in the air too. I’ve been thinking of asking Dr. Targoson for something for my stomach, but I’m a little worried Shulina Arya would be disappointed if I had to take drugs to ride her. Do you think the dragon riders of old dealt with motion sickness? I don’t remember it being mentioned in any of the texts from the First Dragon Era.
I believe we’ve established that those texts were woefully incomplete in some areas.
This is true, Rysha thought as Shulina Arya twirled again, then flounced out the door.
Bhrava Saruth trailed after her, admiring her backside.
Trip tried to decide if Bhrava Saruth was too old for Shulina Arya. In his human form, he only appeared to be about twenty, but he claimed to be thousands of years old. Shulina Arya was only hundreds of years old. Did that difference matter to dragons, or were females considered mature as soon as they started having breeding cycles? Whenever that was. Trip decided his brain couldn’t handle speculation on dragon relationships.
“I think you’ll be fine with your small group,” Zirkander said. “We don’t want Drysaleskar to feel ganged up on. This is a negotiation, not an assault. Besides, we’ve got Wolf and Tiger Squadrons going out in the morning to handle reports of recent dragon activity elsewhere on the coast.” He nodded, somehow including them all in the gesture. “Dismissed.”
“Yes, sir,” Rysha, Trip, and Ahn said together.
Targoson waved a dismissive hand at Zirkander and said, “I’ll invoice you for those grenades.”
“I can’t wait.”
Targoson and Ahn walked together bumping shoulders and murmuring quietly as they headed out. Trip let them go ahead, then followed with Rysha at his side.
“I’m sorry this will delay my plans to make a dragon trap,” he said, “but I’ll get started as soon as we get back.”
“Maybe if Drysaleskar comes to claim the continent and all of the king’s complimentary lobster for himself, that silver dragon will disappear on his own. Or the countryside will calm down, and my father won’t feel pressured to sell.”
“That wouldn’t be as fun as creating a snare for a dragon.”
“You have roller-skates to make before you can start designing traps.”
“Yes, and I understand I have you to thank for that request.”
Rysha grinned impishly at him.
“You can buy roller-skates in a city this big, you know,” Trip said.
“Yes, but whatever you make will be better.”