Page 97 of Galadon
I scowled at him. “Otherworldly visitors?”
“Why would they come here?” Rayna asked, putting her hands on her hips.
Aidan crossed his arms. “Will they cause trouble?”
Kade threw his hands up. “Do I have to explain everything even though it is quite obvious?”
“YES!” they yelled in unison. Except my mother, who studied him strangely in silence.
“Oh, very well.” The older shifter began to pace. “This is everything I know, so if I don’t say it, then I have no idea except to guess. What I’ve learned is that the artifact was stolen from another planet almost twenty years before Galadon’s arrival and brought here—or Kederrawien at the time—and the thieves used the portal to transport it. They buried it with a few spells, but my prophecy tome said the artifact broke through those and laid its own. No, I do not know what is down there except that the longer it is gone, the worse things get for beings on this other planet. From what I gathered, none are like us on Earth, except there is a contingent of dragons. They are a different breed than what we have here, though.”
He continued pacing as a full minute of silence passed.
I rubbed my face, trying to absorb all he’d told us. “Is that all?”
“No.” He put a hand up. “I needed to gather my thoughts for a moment. I’m old, you know. My mind isn’t what it once was long ago. Anyway, descendants of whoever lost the artifact are due to return sometime in the next few years, but I don’t have a specific date. I only know it is sometime after yours and Rayna’s mating. When they come, they will need your help securing and transporting it.”
Rayna’s mouth gaped. “So, we aren’t just guarding that thing here. They may ask us to travel to another world with…whatever lives there?”
“Well, it’s not fully clear, but it sounds like that’s a strong possibility.”
“But why would we willingly go?” I asked, glaring at him.
“First, you two enjoy a good adventure whether you want to admit it or not.”
My mate shrugged, not denying it. I supposed I did occasionally, but this was far beyond an “adventure” and sounded dangerous. We’d be traveling to a world we knew nothing about.
Kade ticked a second finger. “And this world has an advantage the two of you would appreciate and can’t get here.”
“What is that?” I growled, hardly able to imagine anything with that strong of a lure.
He smiled. “There are only a few slayers there, but an interesting fact is they have all the powers of one here, but without the driving need to hunt. Once they pass their initiation, they can easily go years or decades without killing another. They only exist at all because there is a dragon presence, but for somereason, the magic works differently there. You could have the best of both worlds if you were to go.”
Rayna’s brows were drawn as she mulled that over. “But there is still a threat here that I can’t abandon.”
“For how long will you really be needed?” Kade asked, cocking his head. “If you kill at least one Kandoran every week for two years, that is over a hundred. Every other active slayer, will be doing the same. You will run out of Kandoran within a reasonable distance of here, and then you’ll be back to hunting other dragons. How long will Galadon’s neighbors tolerate that? And you’ve made it clear you don’t want the potion, so unless you change your mind, you will be in trouble at some point.”
I was still skeptical of this strange world he described, but he’d just made a very strong argument. A place where she could be a full slayer with all her powers, yet free of the killing urges? That sounded perfect in theory, but there was still so much we didn’t know.
I glanced at Rayna and noted she appeared as torn as me on the matter, so I turned back to Kade. “What do we know about the visitors who will come here?”
He shrugged. “Only that the rightful ones aren’t here to fight as long as you don’t threaten them.” Kade frowned at him. “Perhaps you can practice a friendly version of yourself that isn’t as…terrifying to others. Anyway, they are presented in my tome as desperate people who only want to fix what’s wrong with their world, and they’ll appreciate your help if you offer it. Just be aware others may come that you will need to stop, but you’ll feel the difference if that comes to pass. Their intentions will not be pure.”
“I’ll help them and go if Rayna and Galadon do,” Titan said from where he still walked on the grass. A relaxed, peaceful expression had come over his face, and he seemed entirely at home with the strange vegetation.
I caught his gaze. “Are you asking to stay on my land and wait for this day to come?”
“Hold on.” Lorcan stepped close to me. “Technically, this is Faegud territory, and I can’t just allow a Taugud shifter to move down here without following protocols.”
“No one questioned my mother staying here, and she still belongs to the Craegud,” I pointed out. Of course, no one gave healers a hard time if they wanted to stay a while without the right procedures, but the rules still applied to them.
He opened and closed his mouth. “Oh, very well. We’ll consider him a temporary guest as long as he doesn’t go to the jakhal so often that he raises suspicions.”
“Fair enough,” Titan agreed.
It occurred to me then that I’d just defended him staying, but Rayna’s happiness at the idea influenced me—I could sense joy through our bond and the expression on her face. Also, the shifter was a warrior who now knew the land’s secrets and could protect my territory when I had to be away, as well as look out for my mother. That was a distinct advantage. Of course, after such a long time of living alone, I seemed to be acquiring a lot of other residents of late.
“You can stay in one of my other tunnel quarters. One, in particular, has furniture and bedding,” I said. My mother had used it until we built her house above ground.
