Page 60 of Dragon Heir

He cocked his head to one side as he studied the orb. “There is fire as we all have but something different contained in the magic. Another type of magic.”

Ware knelt down on another side of the orb and examined the fire stone before he nodded. “I see what you mean. There is another color contained with the red fie magic. It appears to be a soft yellow light.” He paused and lifted his gaze to me. “Not unlike the light you exhibit when you extinguished the curse.”

My face drooped. “So what does that mean?”

Ware shook his head. “I have not the slightest idea.”

“Can you touch it?” Enna questioned the old hunter.

Vargas glared at her. “Do not even suggest that to the old fool!”

Too late. Ware stretched out his hand as Will had done and brushed his fingers over the orb. We all leaped back or threw up our arms to protect our faces.

But nothing happened.

Chapter Thirty-Three

Our small group stared blankly at the ball. Ware frowned and prodded the orb against with his finger. The result was the same. Lots of nothing.

Ware wrapped his fingers around the orb and picked it up so he held it in his palm. The red strands that swirled about inside its depths flickered a little but did naught else. “How very strange. I expected some sort of reaction.” Vargas smacked the back of his head. He winced and whipped his head around to glare at her. “Why did you do that?”

“If you expected something to happen then you shouldn’t have touched it!” she snapped.

“Well, it is touched now and nothing happened,” he countered as he stood and held up the orb. “Now what do we do with the thing?”

“You hold it,” Will suggested as he turned his attention to Blake and Saber. “How far is it to the girl?”

Blake nodded at the way ahead of us. “Not more than a mile. She should be there, too. She doesn’t like going out in the dark.”

Ware pocketed the orb. “Then let us be on our way before our two companions here discover some of the orbs hidden beneath the ground-”

Enna’s high-pitched scream interrupted the dragon lord. She jumped back and drew out her sword. “Something touched me!”

A crooked smile curled onto Blake’s lips. “Why would anything want to do that?”

She shot him such a glare that he withered beneath the look. “Something came out of the ground and touched me, you fool!”

Ware, Allard, and Vargas all flung up a hand and fire burst out of their palms. The dancing flames illuminated the ground and everyone’s eyes searched for the source of Enna’s discomfort. The other two hunters drew their weapons and scoured the ground.

Saber yelped and stabbed his sword into the ground. “I got something!”

Allard raised his palm and revealed the squirming figure of one of the black worms. The thing was pinned beneath Saber’s sword but still thrashed about. Its hideous eyes rolled about in its round slimy head before it came to a stop on me. I shrank back from the malevolent darkness in that black depth.

Will lit up one hand with his fire and slammed his flaming fist down on the thing. The worm shrieked and shriveled to a gray ash.

We all froze when more shrieks answered that of the dying one. Vargas screamed and spun around to illuminate the ground behind her. A dozen of the slimy worms slithered toward her. Ware rushed to her side and unleashed a wall of fire that vaporized the worms.

The dragon lord then looked her over. “Are you unharmed?”

Vargas clutched her fire-less hand to her chest and nodded. “I. . .I am fine. It did not touch me.”

“There is more!” Allard shouted as he took a step toward another point in the woods. His light spread across the leaf-strewn ground and revealed dozens more of the worms, all slithering toward us.

Blake shouted and stabbed his sword repeatedly into the earth. “They’re coming out of the dirt!”

Indeed, many dozens more sprang from the soil and snapped at us. We hopped and skipped about while the dragons used their fire to turn the creatures into ash.

“Can’t you guys fly us out of here?” Enna snapped.

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