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The Dragon’s Appraiser
Part Three
Viola Rivard
1
Chapter One
“I’m not in the mood.”
Sevrrn’s hand froze on Madja’s breast. He might have considered ignoring her comment and continuing his ministrations until she gave in, but the look on her face gave him pause. That, and her utter lack of arousal.
No flushed cheeks, no coy smile, not even the barest hint of reciprocity.
It was impossible for anyone to live as long as Sevrrn had without an abundance of patience. And as far as dragons went, Sevrrn was not nearly as impulsive as his sister had been, nor as prone to reckless behavior as his brother. In fact, his patience was quite legendary in many circles, which was why he was almost as a
Two weeks.
It had been two weeks since she had allowed him inside of her and it was trying his patience like nothing before.
Agitation was a parasite crawling beneath his skin, and Sevrrn retracted his hand while serving Madja a withering look.
“Why should your mood take priority over mine?” he found himself snapping. At least, he hoped he was snapping, because to his own ears, he sounded almost petulant.
Madja gave him a look that said she wasn’t impressed, then did what was probably best for the both of them: changed the subject.
“Have you given any thought to what you’re going to do about Allona?”
Sevrrn accepted the distraction as a chance to let himself calm down. He stretched out his long limbs, taking little pleasure in the luxurious bed silks.
“I have considered it, but there is another matter I must attend to first.”
Madja rolled onto her side to face him. “What is it?”
“I have been thinking a great deal about your mortality.” Among many things. “Several years ago, I heard of a human king who is said to be immortal.”
“The king of Dvoria,” Madja said, a spark of interest appearing in her gaze. “He’s said to be five hundred years old. Rumor is that he’s a half-breed, that his mother had an affair with an immortal creature.”
Sevrrn shook his head. “He is human, and from what I have heard, he is in possession of a very rare artifact, one that grants immortality. I am going to investigate this further, and if it proves true, then I will hire someone to obtain this object.”
“I see…” she said, no longer sounding particularly interested. “How long will that take?”
“I will have to go to the other realm. There, it will only take a few days. Here, it could be as much as a month.”
Her brows drew together in confusion, and he realized he would have to explain.
“Time moves differently in each realm. I am unsure of the exact conversion, but I believe a day there is a week in the human realm.”
“But Allona could attack any time now.”
“The islanders are not my concern. You are. It could be years before this artifact is recovered. Each day I do not pursue it is another day that you will age.”
He had thought that his diligence in making her immortal would have pleased Madja. But as he so often was when it came to her, Sevrrn was wrong.
“I’m twenty-five. I’m not going to die of old age any time soon. Defending Erda is more—” Madja gave a sharp intake of breath, then expelled it in a loud sneeze. She apologized and swiped at her nose, her cheeks coloring slightly. “Sorry. I was saying, defending Erda is more important. Besides, time moves slowly here, right? We’re not really losing much time by staying here for a few more weeks.”
“We are not going anywhere,” Sevrrn corrected. “You ca
“What do you mean, I can’t come with you?”
“The air in the other realm is not breathable for humans. You would only survive there for a few moments before asphyxiating.”
The atmosphere in the other realm was rich in aether, an essential element for all of the creatures that humans revered as land gods—beings ranging from the lowliest of magical entities to dragons. Without aether, powerful beings such as himself would gradually die in a ma
Sevrrn’s lair, more specifically, the lake within his lair, was situated over a soft spot, a place where the fabric between the worlds thi
“So you were just going to leave me…for a whole month?”
Madja’s question brought his wandering mind back to reality. A strange feeling stirred in his chest as he looked upon her dejected expression. Why was she looking at him like that?
“Do not worry. There will be a barrier in the lair. No one will be able to penetrate it. You will be safe.” When that didn’t seem to cheer her up, he added, “I will also make sure you have plenty of food before I go.”
Madja opened her mouth, looking as though she were about to say something. Then, she bit down on her lip and gave a small nod before rolling over. Sevrrn stared at her back, the feeling in his chest expanding and intensifying.
Would you die for me?
No.
That was where this had all begun. Since that day, two weeks ago, Madja hadn’t been the same.
What had she expected him to say? Had she wanted him to lie to her?
He had known Madja for less than half a year. Somehow, she was already the biggest part of his life, yet she was just that—a part of his life. As she had said herself, she was only twenty-five. There were gods, true gods, that were younger than him. In terms of logic alone, her existence was wholly insignificant when stacked against his own. How could she possibly expect him to give his life up for hers?
If anyone should be angry, it should be him.
But he wasn’t.
He was something else.
The feeling inside of him spread further still, weighing him down like a blanket of lead.
Sadness? Too vague.
Depression? Too deep.
Melancholy…
Yes, perhaps that was the one.
2
Chapter Two
Madja dreamed of chicken soup. She lay in her four-poster bed, propped up by a half-dozen pillows, as her father carefully spooned the soup into her waiting mouth. The broth was just as she liked it: extra pepper, but easy on the salt. The onions were finely chopped so as not to compete with the chunks of juicy, succulent chicken. She could still smell the delicious soup long after she’d awoken and hauled herself out of bed.
It was the first time since she’d known him that Sevrrn had allowed her to sleep in. Judging by the position of the sun, which she could just barely see through the hole in the top of the mountain, it was some time after noon. She wanted to believe that oversleeping had made her lethargic, but her stuffy nose and scratchy throat heralded a cold.
She found Sevrrn waiting patiently for her, not too far from the lake. There were a few random objects arrayed in front of him, presumably awaiting her appraisal.