Whisper Kiss

  Rox saw his fear.

  She certainly shared it. She watched his blood flow across the floor from his torn scales and wished there was something she could do to help.

  "The earth's songs are too slow!" Sloane complained as Rafferty's hum began to increase in vigor.

  His song became a chant, as insistent as marching music.

  Niall was sucked down to his waist. "No!" he roared, pounding on the floor and battling mightily. A wind swirled in the broken building, perhaps a manifestation of his distress, and Rox felt as if she were caught in a tempest.

  "It's not enough!" Thorolf complained. He set to ripping the floor and foundation himself, trying to break Niall free. Each piece he tore loose seemed to fall back around Niall's trapped body, though. He was pulled steadily deeper and the building began to crumble around them.

  Rafferty's song grew louder and more insistent.

  "There's another song," Sloane said. "I hear Rafferty competing against it."

  Rafferty nodded once, not risking a break in his tune. He sang louder and deeper; he sang so vigorously that Rox's bones resonated with the tune. She hung on to him as he hovered over the scene, watching in horror as Niall's wings disappeared into the earth. He was buried to his underarms.

  Sloane looked between the two of them, then raised his voice to join Rafferty's. It was clear to Rox that the Apothecary didn't know the chant as well as Rafferty, but he added his voice where he could. Thorolf continued to rip at the building, anxiety making him move faster and more powerfully.

  It wasn't enough.

  The earth devoured Niall to the shoulders. He shouted in rage and managed to punch one claw free. He breathed dragonfire. He clearly kicked and struggled; he bellowed in terror as his neck slipped into the crack.

  "No!" Rox whispered.

  Just when it seemed that Niall would disappear forever, the foundation began to resonate. Rox saw that it moved in the same rhythm as Rafferty's song, the same cadence that vibrated in her own body.

  "Louder!" she cried. "You're winning!"

  Rafferty's song became bombastic, an anthem demanding that every force surrender to its beat. He tipped back his head and roared, the volume of his song making the walls shake. The foundation began to shudder, caught between two competing forces. Niall gave a cry of pain as he was pulled into the crevasse.

  Only his one talon remained above the floor.

  Rox squirmed from Rafferty's grasp and jumped down to the floor. She ran to Niall and caught his claw in her hand. "Fight it!" she demanded, the spark of the firestorm lighting the room. She held fast and pulled.

  Rafferty sang.

  Sloane sang.

  Thorolf forced open the crack and grabbed Niall by the shoulder. Rox pulled. The floor shook as if they were in an earthquake. It rocked so violently that Rox feared she'd fall, but she held on tightly. The wind swirled around them, whipping Rox's hair against her face and driving debris against her skin.

  And with an abrupt shudder, the crack opened wide.

  Niall erupted from the space, bounding toward the sky as he caught Rox against his side. Thorolf was on his other side, urging him to greater speed. Rox cheered, even as she saw how his scales had been damaged.

  Rafferty and Sloane followed Niall, even as Rafferty concluded his song to the earth.

  Rox hung on to Niall, ferociously glad he had escaped.

  He raged into the gray sky as the rain pelted on his scales, carrying them both away from harm. It was around six, but the sky seemed to be turning a darker shade of pewter. The water beaded on Niall's hide and fell away, his protective embrace keeping her warm against his chest. He was like a mailed warrior.

  And he was safe.

  Wounded, but alive.

  Flying away from potential disaster was thrilling. Rox felt the wind in her hair and her torn T-shirt snapped in the breeze. It was exhilarating to be so free and yet not be in danger. She leaned against Niall's chest and heard the steady pounding of his heart, its accelerated pace telling her that he wasn't as calm as he appeared.

  It was more than the firestorm heating her body, and Rox knew it.

  Rafferty's eyes flashed with annoyance. His opalescent scales seemed to be edged in gold, while Thorolf's scales more closely resembled moonstones edged in silver. Rafferty's wings were golden, like gilded leather, while Thorolf's were silvery. They both seemed ethereal in the rain, ghostly, and not quite real. Rox felt the muscled strength of Niall even as he held her with care, and she knew these dragons were real.

  Just as she'd always imagined. The firestorm made a rosy glow between Rox and Niall, illuminating every point they touched and filling her body with that delicious heat of desire.

  Her cell phone rang, startling her with its sound. It seemed strange to answer it as she soared through the sky in Niall's embrace, but Rox went with it. The caller was Neo, wanting to check on her. He'd seen something of the building's destruction, but Rox assured him she'd left. She pretended to know nothing of the disaster, and Neo said he'd solve everything.

  She ended the call, aware that Niall had heard the whole conversation. She was blushing at Neo's last suggestion of what she should do with her day--and with Niall--and thought she detected a satisfied smile.

  So she changed the subject. "I thought you Pyr defended the earth."

  "We do," Niall said, his tone grim.

  "Then why did it try to eat you? It's just like yesterday, when your building was the only one destroyed." If anything, Niall looked more grim. "Face it--the earth is after you."

  "It's not the earth," Rafferty said with conviction. "Gaia was seduced by a song, a strong song sung by an old singer."

  "But it can't be Magnus," Thorolf said. "Is it someone he taught?"

  Rafferty shook his head. "No. I didn't recognize his voice, except that I heard it yesterday, as well." The older Pyr shook his head. "He sings differently from Magnus, as if his chant is in another language than the one I know. The only reason I prevailed is that he tried to make Gaia act against her principles. He's strong. I could have lost."

  "You might lose next time," Rox said, feeling obliged to note this possibility. Niall caught his breath.

  Rafferty nodded. "That's why we need to figure out what's going on first."

  Rox's heart clenched. She realized Niall might leave her, but not due to his own choice. He might be taken from her.

  This was a puzzle she needed to help the Pyr solve.

  They convened in Rox's kitchen one more time, but this time, Rafferty opened a bottle of wine. Sloane accepted a glass of it. Thorolf treated himself to a beer instead. Rox made a pot of ginseng tea for herself and Niall.

  "Okay," she said when they'd all calmed down a bit. "Walk me through this, and let's see if we can solve it. We have Pyr and Slayers, good dragons and bad ones, and the bad ones target firestorms. Although they usually target mates, this time they're going right for the Pyr."

  "No," Niall said. "This has to do with the shadow dragons. Magnus created the shadow dragons and he also had an affinity with the earth."

  "How did he create them?"

  "With the Dragon's Blood Elixir," Niall said, his words tight. "The shadow dragons were another way for Magnus to increase his power. He discovered that those Pyr or Slayers who had died but had not been exposed to all four elements within half a solar day of their demise--"

  "Twelve hours," Rox said, and Niall nodded.

  "Could be raised from the dead with the Elixir."

  "Ick. That's why Phelan's scales look so dull compared to yours." Rox shuddered. "He looks decomposed because he is."

  "Ick is it," Sloane said, then took an appreciative swig of wine.

  "Who's Magnus?" Rox asked.

  "An old Slayer," Thorolf said, then took a gulp of his beer. "A dead Slayer, which is the best kind."

  Rafferty continued. "Magnus created the Dragon's Blood Elixir. It was a rumor for a long time, but he made it a reality. The Elixir conferred immortality among those who dr
ank it, and it allowed them to heal more quickly from injuries. It also gave some of them the power to cut dragonsmoke and move through it, without the permission of whoever had breathed it."

  "But the Elixir doesn't exist anymore," Sloane said. "Delaney destroyed its source last year."

  Niall gave her a look. "And you don't want to know its source."

  "I can guess from the name." Rox made a face.

  "But this voice inciting the earth to violence is unknown to me," Rafferty insisted. "I am certain he was not tutored by Magnus. His song is too alien."

  "It has to have something to do with the shadow dragons," Niall insisted. "Someone doesn't like my taking them out."

  "So how do you hunt shadow dragons?" Rox asked.

  He grimaced. "I wait until they attack."

  "But where are they hiding?" Rox asked.

  "That's the thing," Niall acknowledged. "The Elixir was destroyed about sixteen months ago, along with Magnus and the academy where he had created the shadow dragons. The shadow dragons had used that academy as a refuge and a rallying point, but then were dispersed. We've been eliminating them ever since."

  "Ginger has been helping to make a list," Rafferty said.

  "And that's all good," Niall said, his expression intent. "But the thing is, I didn't think we'd need a list. I thought they would just all attack, pretty much immediately, and keep on attacking until they were all eliminated. They had already been commanded to attack, and there was no one left to change their command or to call them off. I thought the job would be wrapped up pretty quickly."

  "You're right," Rafferty said thoughtfully. "That would have been characteristic of them."

  "Couldn't they make a plan?" Rox asked.

  "Shadow dragons as a rule are not really home." Niall tapped his temple to illustrate his point. "They just inflict damage and will do anything to win. They keep fighting until they can't."

  "What's happened instead?" Rox asked. She was thinking about Phelan, and trying to reconcile his manner with the idea of his being a shadow dragon.

  "They appear, one or two at a time, usually weeks apart. It's as if they're being released at a controlled rate." Niall frowned. "Although there have been three this week already. It's weird."

  "Maybe it's the eclipse," Thorolf suggested.

  "Not the eclipse," Rafferty corrected. "The firestorm. It draws us, regardless of our allegiance, like a song in the blood. We all feel one, no matter the distance, and they probably do, too."

  Rox thought about the two earthquakes that had targetted Niall. Did that mean the shadow dragons were hiding in the earth?

  "So, the firestorm is drawing them from their refuge, wherever it is," Thorolf said, "because there's still some Pyr in them?"

  "No," Niall argued. "It makes no sense that they would be able to hunt out and find a new refuge, never mind plan these spaced-out attacks. They aren't strategic planners. They'll attack and fight until they either win or are outnumbered, in which case they'll retreat and attack again."

  "Could they have a new leader?" Rox suggested. "Or be under the control of someone else?"

  Niall nodded agreement so ruefully that she knew he'd thought of that. "I've been wondering. But who could control them, other than Magnus?"

  "Magnus's Slayers, Jorge, Balthasar, and Mallory, have disappeared," Sloane said. "No one has seen or smelled them since the Elixir was destroyed."

  "And they were injured, without any Elixir left to heal their wounds," Thorolf said.

  "But Jorge at least can disguise his scent," Niall reminded the others.

  "It could still be them," Sloane said.

  "I don't think so," Rafferty said. "They lack the skill. And this voice is new to me, that of a different Slayer."

  "Could Magnus somehow be alive?" Niall asked the oldest Pyr.

  "I have wondered," Rafferty admitted with a sigh. "I trapped him in the earth and persuaded Gaia to crush him to oblivion." He grimaced. "I did not see his body, though, and Gaia's song has become dissonant of late."

  "Can't you ask the earth for the scoop?" Thorolf demanded.

  "Rafferty has an affinity with the element of earth," Niall told Rox. "And he knows many songs that move Gaia to act."

  "Or not to act, as the case may be." Rafferty shrugged. "Magnus also had an affinity for the earth, which is why we were once friends, before he chose the darkness. I thought it might be his song, here in New York, which was why I came. I needed to listen more closely."

  "But?" Sloane prompted.

  Rafferty shook his head. "This is the work of another, stronger singer, one whose voice I don't recognize. There aren't that many of us who sing to the earth."

  "Great," Sloane said, and finished his wine. "Just what we need--new strong enemies."

  "In this era, when so much is at stake, we must anticipate that old forces will reveal themselves," Rafferty said softly. "There is opportunity in adversity."

  Silence reigned in the kitchen for a minute and the rain drummed on the windows.

  "Tell me more about having an affinity for an element," Rox said.

  "Some of us have strong connections to one element," Rafferty said, seeming to welcome the chance to explain something. "Niall has an affinity with the element of air, just as I have one with earth. It means we have mastered the songs to which that element responds."

  Rox nodded, having heard some of this from Niall.

  Rafferty continued. "Quinn, the Smith of our kind, has an affinity for fire. He can take the assault of dragonfire and convert it to build his own strength or that of his forge for the repair of our armor."

  Rox spared a glance for the rain still slashing against the windows and tried to lighten the mood. "Well, whoever has an affinity for water should talk to the rain about stopping. We'll all float away otherwise." She'd meant it as a joke, but the Pyr exchanged glances and Niall caught his breath. "What did I say?"

  "An affinity for water is a rare relationship in our kind," Sloane said. "Only Delaney and Donovan and I have it."

  "Three isn't a lot?" Rox asked.

  Sloane smiled. "Not over thousands of years. Our affinities take the form of empathy with others, not control over rain."

  "Mates often bring the element of water into the balance," Rafferty said.

  "Why? Because water douses fire?" Rox guessed.

  Rafferty shrugged. "I would assume so. Associations with the other three elements are far more customary, although only the affinity is inborn. To master an element and persuade it to do one's will takes work and practice over many years."

  "No one can control rain? Seriously?" Rox asked. When the Pyr shook their heads, she stood up with purpose. "You must not have any Chinese dragons in your company, then," she said. "In their folklore, dragons do control the rain."

  Niall was both impressed and surprised by Rox one more time. He'd never thought about dragon lore from human cultures, having assumed it would always offer only part of the story. On the other hand, Erik's mate, Eileen, always insisted the most persistent myths and stories had their toes in the truth.

  The trick would be deciding where to draw the line between fact and fiction.

  Rox returned, carrying a big coffee-table book on dragons.

  "Bet the illustrations aren't as good as yours," Niall said, and she blushed.

  "There are a lot of historical images in here," she said, fanning the book. "From illuminated manuscripts and old carvings. I don't like all of them, especially the ones that associate dragons with the Devil."

  "I have never been fond of those, either," Rafferty said.

  "But it provides a lot of inspiration and information." She put the book down on the counter. Sloane and Rafferty immediately turned to it, leafing through its pages. Rox talked about the mythology illustrated or explained on each page, giving them an executive summary of human lore about dragons.

  Niall listened avidly to Rox's explanations. He was amused at her disgust over the assertion that dragons were only interest
ed in virgins, princesses, and damsels in distress.

  "A woman in need of defense does have a certain appeal," Rafferty said softly. Niall watched Rox turn on him before she evidently saw the twinkle in his dark eyes.

  "You're teasing me," Rox accused, and Rafferty laughed.

  "I think you're on to something here," Niall said to Rox. "We might learn more by tracking specific affinities." He booted up his laptop, found a WiFi connection--he loved living in the city--and e-mailed Ginger. He asked whether she could add another attribute to each Pyr's individual record, so they could gather information on affinities.

  In the meantime, he could keep notes. If Donovan and Delaney both had an affinity for water, did that mean affinities ran in families? Those two were brothers, the only Pyr brothers Niall knew about other than himself and Phelan. Did Phelan have an affinity for air? Had he ever done anything to hone it? Niall wasn't sure, but he doubted it.

  "It might even help locate some of the missing Pyr and Slayers," Rafferty said. "Maybe we die near our associated element."

  "I gotta get me an affinity," Thorolf muttered.

  Niall refrained from comment upon that.

  "So, are affinities for defensive purposes?" Rox asked.

  Sloane shook his head. "An affinity can manifest in different ways. Both Niall and Erik have an affinity with air, for example, but they use that gift differently. Erik's affinity gives him foresight, whereas Niall's lets him communicate with the wind."

  "I can summon a storm, but once the wind gets rolling, the storm often takes on a power and direction of its own." Niall frowned, then uttered the strange thought he'd had with increasing regularity of late. "I suspect there's a consciousness in the element that can be awakened, and once it is stirred, it makes its own choices for the future."

  To his relief, no one laughed.

  "I have often thought as much of the earth," Rafferty said. "Although it sounds far-fetched, there is a determination and unpredictability about Gaia that cannot be explained by simple cause and effect."

  "Isn't any unpredictability a result of the earth's being under duress?" Rox asked. "What with pollution and there being so many of us on the planet now, stretching resources thin?"