Page 6 of Cast in Conflict

“You can ask her.”

Serralyn appeared in the open doorway. “It’s one of the things I want to study, yes. But—” and here, her eyes were a green so bright Kaylin almost couldn’t acknowledge the color as belonging to Barrani eyes “—there’s not a lot more to the old saying. I mean: Dragons. We’re Barrani. They were stories told to children. Dragons don’t like people messing with their stuff. Don’t mess with their stuff. That kind of thing.

“But the language wasn’t just used for children’s stories. I’m certain that it was an entire functional language at one point.”

“But I thought—”

“I know. I think it was, in part, the language of the Ancestors.”

“The ones that look like Barrani but cause way more trouble?”

Serralyn grimaced. “Yes, them.”

“And...if that’s true, it’s considered a language for children how?”

Serralyn actually laughed. Kaylin had never heard her laugh before. “How do you say it? I know, right?”

“That’s what I’d say, yes. You’re really looking forward to joining the Academia.”

“I really am. It—” She shook her head. “I want to say it’s the dream of a lifetime, but that’s just not strong enough. The chancellor let one of the students—Robin—take us on a tour of the facilities. They had to pick me up and drag me out of the library!” She laughed again and added, “One of the librarians, Starrante, did all the heavy lifting. He’s a—”

“Spider,” Kaylin supplied.

“I don’t think that’s the accurate word for his race.”

“I’m not sure I could pronounce the accurate word. Or that I even heard it.”

“It’s another language that would be considered lost.”

Kaylin’s enthusiasm for dead languages was minimal. Her enthusiasm for any learning that wasn’t demonstrably practical was equally minimal. She understood that there were people for whom this wasn’t the case, but had seldom seen someone as all-out excited as Serralyn.

It almost made her reconsider her own position.

Mandoran cleared his throat. “If you want to talk about dead languages and learning, that’s fine—but we’re trying to practice and you don’t need us here for that.”

“Oh, right. Sorry.” Kaylin pulled her gaze away from Serralyn’s radiantly happy face. “I want to know where Bellusdeo has been going when I’m at work.”

“Or at the midwives’ guild?”

“She went out then?”

Terrano and Mandoran exchanged a glance. Terrano said, “Why would you think he’d know? You could just ask Helen.”

“I have. She cited guest privacy and told me exactly nothing.”

Terrano snickered. “Why would you think we’d know?”

“Because you’re already bored. It’s been two weeks since anything has tried to kill you—or us—and you’re fidgeting all the time. There’s no way Bellusdeo could sneak out of this house without one of you following her. It’s either you or Mandoran, but I’m betting on Mandoran—”

“With real money?”

“With my own money. I’m betting that one of you followed her.”

“It’s not safe to follow a Dragon.” This was Fallessian again. She learned he could keep a perfectly straight face, because he did.

Terrano couldn’t. His glance slid off Mandoran, who was grinning broadly.

“Don’t take that bet,” he told Terrano. His eyes were green, his expression verging on smug. Kaylin wanted to kick him.

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