Kiss of Destiny (6 page)

To his surprise, she took a turn just before they entered the garden. The wind that was Aura guided him to the sloping path beneath the garden. It was a barren slope, and the path was hard and dry. There was a single tree, though, its leaves silvery green. Aura led him to it, for some reason, and he saw the breeze that was her rustle the leaves. He turned over the tree and headed back up to the garden, certain she was showing off.

Then there was the garden itself. The shadows were already drawing long in the shelter of the garden and the space was filled with velvety green darkness. He could discern that there was a well-tended orchard below them, and that the boughs of the trees were heavy with golden fruit. He heard the sleepy hum of bees and the trickle of water, he smelled rich soil and herbs like lavender, and knew that this garden must be an earthly paradise.

Aura hastened ahead of him, because the firestorm’s heat dimmed to a glow and the wind that had driven him so far faded to a breeze. There was a sparkle on the ground between the trees, then Aura in her human form appeared. She turned and opened her arms to him in welcome, her smile and her gesture making his heart pound.

Thad flew toward her, the firestorm feeding his desire to a higher pitch with every beat of his wings. He heard her heart and felt his own match its pace, a sensation that nearly overwhelmed him with the conviction that their partnership was right. He was over the trees, preparing to land, when another dragon erupted from the shadows of the orchard below.

The dragon was of deepest green, and he had nine heads, each of which was breathing fire at Thad. His eyes could have been burning coals and his talons were as sharp as knives. There was something of a snake in his agility and form, and Thad knew instinctively that he was ancient.

The other dragon had surprise on his side. He had latched a talon on to Thad’s tail before the
Pyr
could respond.

Ladon, Thad realized. This must be Ladon, the guardian of the golden apples, and another myth come to life. Even as they locked claws to grapple for supremacy, Thad knew he couldn’t injure his opponent. Thad managed to shake his tail free, but Ladon’s teeth left bleeding holes in his flesh. He tried to hold his slithering opponent at bay, but Ladon showed no such restraint. The fire he breathed was burning Thad’s scales, and he bit again, sinking his teeth into Thad’s shoulder.

“Ladon!” Aura cried. “He is a friend!”

“Only nymphs can enter the garden!” Ladon cried with one head. At least that one stopped breathing fire for a moment. “I let no others pass, by order of Hera herself.”

“But I brought him here!” Aura argued. “He is my guest!”

“Never trust a nymph!” Ladon twisted and bit, biting deeply into Thad’s wing with another head. The blood flowed from Thad’s wounds, and he knew that this dragon would willingly kill him.

It was one thing to fight to the death. It was another to let an opponent win a battle for the sake of honor. It was still a third to let a dragon of any kind interfere with the firestorm.

Thad roared with fury and began to fight in earnest.

* * *

Aura had never seen dragons fight, and she wasn’t sure she ever wanted to again.

She had feared that Thad would be easily beaten. Ladon had taken him by surprise and seemed likely to overwhelm her dragon. The smell of burning scales was terrible and it was worse to see Thad’s blood flowing. She worried that Thad was tired from their flight and that even a robust dragon could be defeated.

Had she put him in danger? She felt foolish for wanting to test him and responsible for his injuries. At the same time, she knew she could never fight Ladon and win. Ladon had to be tricked for a nymph to survive an encounter with him.

Just when Aura feared the worst, Thad’s manner changed. He spun and turned on Ladon with a roar of fury that put the ancient dragon to shame. To her delight, Aura realized that Thad had been holding back. He breathed a torrent of fire at the other dragon that was fearsome in both volume and intensity.

Oh, there was much to be admired about a man—or dragon—who used his power with discretion. Aura thought twice about her scheme, but stealthily stole a single golden apple anyway. The tree made a cry of pain, just as she had anticipated it would—they were terrible snitches, these trees—but Ladon didn’t hear the sound.

He was too busy crying out in pain himself. Ladon fell back from Thad’s plume of fire, but Thad flew right after him. He seized the green dragon and spun him around, striking one head then locking claws with him again. They spun through the air, their tales locked and their teeth flashing as they bit at each other. Aura hid the apple in her tunic just as Thad flung Ladon at the ground. The other dragon crashed through one of Hera’s trees, breaking a number of branches, then hit the ground so hard that it trembled. Thad pursued him in furious flight, teeth bared and talons outstretched.

“Don’t kill him!” Aura cried. “Hera will curse you!”

Thad hovered in the air above Ladon, seething. Aura was glad he’d listened to her, but uncertain as to what he would do.

Ladon seized the moment and took advantage of Thad’s momentary hesitation. The other dragon twisted around, then leapt into the air once more. He breathed fire as he launched himself at Thad. Aura lost track of them both in the blazes of fire.

To her dismay, Ladon seemed determined to kill Thad. If Thad was defeated now, it would be her fault! She couldn’t just stand by and watch, and she couldn’t let Thad be burned when he couldn’t fully defend himself. She changed to a breeze and blew into one of Ladon’s mouths in a gust of wind, extinguishing the fire he breathed before it reached Thad.

She heard Thad laugh in triumph and Ladon snarl in frustration. She watched Ladon closely and targeted each of his mouths in turn, stopping the fire he would have breathed. Her efforts gave Thad enough relief from the fire that he could fight back harder. The air glowed between herself and Thad, and sparks danced wherever she touched his scales.

It soon became clear to Aura that Ladon was older or less used to fighting his own kind, while Thad was a warrior accustomed to battle. Ladon had started out fighting hard, but he was fading quickly. Thad was consistent, pacing himself so that he could sustain a longer battle. There were a flurry of punches exchanged, then Thad’s claws tore through Ladon’s wing.

Ladon lost altitude, but bit into Thad’s wing with one set of teeth. He tore the leather and Thad cried out in pain. Ladon breathed fire with another head, moving so quickly that Aura didn’t manage to put out the first spurt of fire. It burned Thad’s wing so that it smoked. Aura extinguished the blaze with a gust of wind, then blew beneath Thad’s wings to keep him airborne.

Ladon bellowed with fury. “Interfering nymph!” He lashed at the air with his tail, as if he would injure her, and his tail cut through the glow of light generated by the firestorm.

Thad’s eyes blazed. “The fight is between you and me!” he cried.

“Then keep her from interfering!” Ladon shouted back.

“Stop, please, Aura,” Thad said, just before he flew directly at Ladon and sank his claws into the other dragon’s chest. Ladon’s blood flowed over his scales from the wounds, and he breathed fire with new desperation. He struggled and bit, even as Thad’s scales smoked, and Aura hated that she couldn’t help.

Would Thad’s sense of honor be his undoing? Ladon took a deep breath and breathed fire with all nine mouths, creating a blaze so bright that Aura couldn’t look at it.

“No!” she cried, but Thad slammed the other dragon into a tree. He held him there, and punched each head until it sagged on its neck. He left one, then cast Ladon high into the air.

“You’re no better than a viper,” Thad declared, sending the other dragon flying through the air with a thump of his tail. “No other dragon would dare to interfere with a firestorm. No other dragon would think to injure a mate!”

Ladon fell heavily and the ground shook with the impact. Thad dived after him, but the other dragon held up a claw.

He coughed and considered Thad. “A firestorm?” he echoed, looking between Aura and Thad. For the first time, he seemed to notice the radiant orb of light between them. His eyes widened as he considered Thad. “You are
Pyr
.”

“Aren’t you?” Thad demanded. He was still agitated, still ready to fight. He flew in restless circles around the other dragon, and his eyes were narrowed to watchful slits. Aura noted the blood that stained his scales and winced that they were so singed.

“I am a dragon through and through,” Ladon said with audible regret. “I have no power to change shape.”

Aura could see that, for there was no alternate guise visible when she looked at Ladon. Thad, though, was clearly surprised.

“I’ve never known a dragon,” he admitted.

“I’ve never known a
Pyr
,” Ladon countered and Aura would have laughed out loud at their mutual astonishment if she’d had a better idea what to expect from the guardian of the garden.

To her relief, Ladon held out a claw in concession. “Help me up and show me this firestorm of legend.”

Thad lifted Ladon bodily from the ground and eased him into one of the more sturdy of the apple trees. The dragon sighed contentment to be there and coiled his tail immediately around the trunk. His wings fluttered to his back and his chins settled on various boughs.

Aura shifted shape and stood at the edge of the forest, close to Ladon. She saw the eyes close on six of his battered heads, but one of his gazes remained locked upon her. A second head watched Thad, while a third surveyed the garden at large, seeking intruders. Thad flew overhead, circling the garden as he peered in every direction. Aura frowned at the delay, but Ladon chuckled.

“They are said to be more protective than the rest of us,” he said softly. “But the treasure held most dear by a
Pyr
is not a golden hoard or even an orchard of golden apples.”

“What then?” Aura asked, curious.

Ladon smiled, revealing many sharp teeth. “His mate.” Aura’s heart skipped a beat and she couldn’t hold Ladon’s knowing gaze. She turned to watch Thad circle back toward her. “You are fortunate, Aura. It is said that there is no woman better loved than the mate of a
Pyr
.”

Aura smiled, remembering Thad’s words.
Let me love you.

The glow around her heart made her think it might not take very long for her to love him back.

But a son.

Thad landed with that athletic grace, shifting shape just before his feet touched the ground, and Aura realized to her dismay that his injuries followed him between forms. He strode toward her, blood staining his strange clothing, and Aura ran to him in her concern. The firestorm’s light brightened as she approached him but he smiled, obviously noticing her fears and appreciating them. “It’s not so bad as it looks. I just need to wash out the wounds.”

“A fierce glow,” Ladon murmured. “Does it hurt?”

“Hardly,” Thad said.

“But it burns,” the other dragon said. “I can see that it must.”

Thad smiled. “But not in a painful way.”

Ladon looked between them, then smiled in understanding. His gaze seemed to linger on the flush in Aura’s cheeks and she assumed he could sense that her heart was fluttering in Thad’s presence.

“I have one favor to ask you before we satisfy the firestorm,” Aura murmured and saw how her words pleased Thad. She might be a nymph but she didn’t want an audience for their intimacy. She took Thad’s hand to lead him to a stream. It was clear how much it pleased him that she touched him first, and she liked the way his fingers curled around hers. They shared a smile that heated her to her toes, and one she thought might have done so even without the firestorm’s help. They had taken a dozen steps when the other dragon hailed them.

“A viper,” Ladon called from the tree, like an old man determined to gossip at the worst possible moment. Aura looked at the ground and tried to summon her patience. “What do you know of vipers, young
Pyr
?”

“Only that they have to be killed,” Thad said. His tone was hard and Aura glanced up to find his jaw set.

“Because you’ve done it?” Ladon was taunting, which Aura didn’t understand.

Thad nodded only once. “I belonged to a force charged with that task.”

“What are vipers?” Aura whispered.

“
Pyr
or dragons who turn against mankind,” he replied quietly. “They sing a spell, low and deep, one that turns men’s minds to hatred and bloodshed.”

Aura nodded. She could already see his sense of honor and duty. Was he a dragon of his word? Aura liked to think so, and she knew what promise she wanted him to keep.

“Then you know what happened to Cadmus.” Ladon’s tone turned sharp. “Maybe you were responsible for the attack on Cadmus.”

“I was there,” Thad said tightly. “We fulfilled our mission.” He looked back at the old dragon slithering in the tree, pride in his stance and confidence in his gaze.

“You failed,” Ladon sneered.

“Only the first time.”

“So you say. Maybe we old dragons can teach you
Pyr
a few things.”

“Maybe not.” They stared at each other, antagonism in Thad’s stance.

What did Ladon know that Aura didn’t? Ladon might be the guardian of the orchard but Aura had never really liked or trusted him. He was owed respect for his role as guardian, but he did seem to like making trouble.