The Divine Unleashed (Book 3) (30 page)

Kade tried to pull the webbing free and failed.  It was firmly affixed to the dragon’s side.  Doren barely hid an eager grin as Kade grabbed just a small strand with one hand, and with considerable effort, was able to break it.  Kade turned toward the white queen who had just joined them.

“Can you free him from the dragon?” Kade asked.

“It will be no difficulty at all,” Rakna said as she bit down on the webbing.  It easily parted.  The grin faded from Doren’s eyes.

Morg was awake and glaring at any and all who dared look at him.  He stopped looking around and his eyes affixed to the one thing he desired more than life itself.  Kade did not need to see to know the man was locked onto the staff.  His expression was of longing and desire.  This staff was everything to the Chosen.  Kade felt a slight twinge of pity for Morg and hated himself for it.  The evil man deserved nothing but torture for the suffering he had caused.

“It will do you no good to hold onto the hate,” Doren said as he saw the look in Kade’s eyes.

“So many have died at his hands,” Kade shot back.

“Yes,” Doren said.  He offered no more.

Before Kade could say another word, Darcienna turned pale and closed her eyes.  She turned and got sick again.  Kade put his hand on her, but before he could call on the healing, she pushed him away and stood up.

“Darcienna?” Kade asked.

“I don’t know,” Darcienna said as she wiped her mouth with her sleeve.  “Maybe I am still not fully recovered from that travel,” she said as she shook her head.  The color returned to her cheeks.

The green dragon finished tearing the grimalkin to shreds and cautiously approached the group.  All turned to see the massive dragon as it slowly slid closer.  If Kade did not know better, he would have thought that the dragon was stalking them.  But, after seeing the interaction between Rayden and the green, it was clear that it was just approaching with uncertainty.

Rayden turned and trotted over to the dragon.  They exchanged several hisses and guttural sounds and then Rayden returned to Kade’s side.  The green edged closer, clearly not comfortable and stopped almost a hundred feet away.  Kade stared in awe.  Two dragons in one month and both of them were right here.

Kade glanced at the tunnel as he considered his next move when he got the light touch on his mind that he was all too familiar with.  He looked at Rayden and rolled his eyes.  He was shocked that the dragon wanted food at that moment.  It was even fair to say he was speechless as he shook his head in wonder.  But, Rayden had earned his right to make this small request after all he had done. 

Kade was readying himself to call on the food when he remembered the staff
.  Would it have this symbol carved into it?
he asked himself.  Kade grinned and closed his eyes.  Sure enough, the food materialized instantly.  Kade smiled from ear to ear. 
No more cooking,
he thought with immense relief.

Rayden eagerly snapped up the steaming, hot meat.  Kade smiled, visualizing a massive chunk of food.  The Divine fizzled and was gone.  Shocked, Kade closed his eyes and called on the Divine only to find that he was still unable to draw on the vast, unlimited amount. 
Fine,
he thought to himself as he conjured piece after piece of meat in rapid succession.  It was a much appreciated improvement compared with how he used to cook.  Kade had well over twenty pieces of meat lying in a pile within seconds.  Rayden was drooling, eagerness flooding the link.  Kade stepped back and nodded his head.  It was more the mental command to eat than the nod, but it still looked impressive to any who watched.

The green looked on curiously as its nose worked rapidly, inhaling the scent.  Kade watched as it started to drool.  He created a piece of meat and tossed it to the dragon.  It flinched back and let the food fall to the ground.  Cautiously, it put its muzzle close to the tasty morsel and inhaled the scent.  It gingerly picked it up in its teeth as it watched Kade, uncertainty in its eyes.  It chewed the food slowly, tasting the flavor and then swallowed.  Kade grinned as he called another piece of meat into existence.  He tossed it, and again, the dragon let it hit the ground.  But this time, it did not take long for Green to pick it up and chew several times before swallowing.

Kade found himself enjoying this, especially since he was not worried about this dragon eating him.  Well…he believed it would not eat him, but the way Rayden was acting....  He had to remind himself that this dragon was wild, but with his dragon close by and the staff in his hands, he did feel considerably safer than he would have otherwise.  He called on another piece of meat and tossed it in the air.  The green caught it, held it in its mouth for a moment and then hungrily swallowed it.  Kade called another piece and tossed it, but this time, he tossed and it landed short.  The green took a step closer, picked up the meat and swallowed, barely chewing.  Kade called another and tossed it even closer.  The green took another step and snapped up the meat.  Kade called another one and held it out.

“Kade,” Darcienna hissed.  “That’s enough.  You don’t know what it will do,” she said as she eyed the dragon cautiously.  It reeked of power.  Its presence was overwhelming as it loomed over them.  Bats started to flutter in her stomach.

“She speaks wise words, Apprentice,” Doren added, but the way he said it was…not convincing.  It was almost as if he had ulterior motives for being okay with this foolishness.

Kade could not resist as he extended the food.  The dragon’s nose worked furiously.  It took a step as it waited for Kade to toss the meat.  The apprentice held it out with no intentions of throwing.  The dragon took another hesitant step as it eyed the tasty morsel.  Rayden stopped chewing.  The beautiful, silver dragon was ahead and to Kade’s right with just a few pieces of meat left.  Its back had been to the green as the large dragon approached, but now, Rayden turned to watch the massive killing machine intently.  Kade held out his hand as far as he could without taking a step.  The dragon stretched its neck, but it was not close enough.  It took another step as it stretched toward the food.  Rayden turned to stone as every muscle in his body tensed.  He eyed the green hard, the food in his mouth all but forgotten.  The dragon stretched even more.  It almost appeared that if it leaned any further forward than it was, it would topple from being overbalanced.

“Kade,” Darcienna hissed in warning. 

The apprentice grinned to himself as he continued to hold onto the meat.  The green huffed and pulled its head back, but its eyes never left the food.  It moved closer and then stretched its neck out once more.  Its wings unfurled slightly and quivered.  Kade was certain it was an instinctual habit for dragons when they readied themselves for action.  He was betting that it was an action that would not end with him losing a hand, but…it would be a lie to say he was not at least a little nervous.  He held the meat by the very end, and the dragon, once again, reached out inch by inch as it closed on the food.  The chunk of meat was just short of two feet long, so Kade knew this was a bad idea, but he just could not help himself.  If that green lunged, it could take his entire arm off with just one snap.

“Apprentice, you have had your fun.  Now feed it and let it go,” Doren said as the Master Chosen stepped back from the massive form that was casting a shadow so large that it covered them all.  This time, the master sounded like he meant it.

Kade heard the stern words given by Doren, but again, just could not resist.  Morg grinned, hoping the unheeded warnings would prove to be a disaster.  The green stretched closer, yet.  Rayden flexed his leg muscles, and his wings fluttered slightly.  The closer the green got, the more Rayden’s lips started to twitch.  The silver dragon slowly edged toward the green as it inched closer to the meat.  Rayden let out a deep rumble as he continued to close in on the green, but the massive dragon seemed to not hear the threat as it put its nose on the meat.  It inhaled rapidly and then its lips started working as it tried to take the food.  Kade loosened his grip.  The green pulled the piece of meat into its mouth and backed up rapidly.  It swallowed while barely chewing.

Rayden turned toward Kade and butted him with his head.  Kade fell on his back side hard and was only barely able to keep hold of the staff.  Doren eyed the ancient wood eagerly and seemed disappointed when Kade kept his grip.  He was almost able to hide the hunger.  Almost.  Morg took everything in and let out a laugh as if he had heard a joke that no one else had been privy to.

“Even Rayden thinks that was stupid,” Darcienna said, scolding him.

“You worry too much,” Kade said, but he could not hide the grin.

“You laugh now, but someday you are going to do something that is going to get you killed,” Darcienna said with fire in her eyes.  “Besides, do we want two dragons around?”

Kade’s laughter slowly died down as he considered her question.  Two dragons would be amazing, but he was not sure if he wanted two.  However, it would be very amusing to see the look on his parents’ face if he came back with both of them.  The size of this one was impressive.  Kade stopped as he noticed Rayden staring at him.

“No one will ever replace you,” Kade said as he got to his feet, wrapped his arms around the dragon’s head and squeezed.  Rayden enjoyed this immensely, and Kade could feel proof of this with a deep rumble that vibrated up his arms.

“Master Chosen,” Rakna hissed.  She took a moment to compose herself. 

Kade and Darcienna became somber as they realized that the issue of the king was still unanswered.  Kade felt a stab of guilt for his playfulness.  His mood turned serious as he locked eyes with Darcienna.  It dawned on both of them that he had not seen the king.  Neither needed to voice the deep fear they felt.

“Rakna,” Doren said gently.  “He fought bravely, giving his life for the clutch and for the cause,” the Master Chosen said with deep respect.  “If not for him, we would have been lost.  He is a hero to be proud of.”

“We knew the risks when we entered this, and we believed the cause was just,” Rakna hissed, trying to stay composed.  “There will be time for mourning later.”  The despair of a crushed heart was plain for all to see.

Kade marveled at her strength.  He glanced at Darcienna, not able to fathom losing her and then back to the queen.  He did not feel half the being he believed her to be.  The loss he knew she was feeling had to be overwhelming, and yet, she stood proud.  He glanced around and noticed that there were a multitude of spiders surrounding them and knew why she had to put on such a strong appearance.  

His eyes opened wide as the realization of his new status with the spiders dawned on him. 
This could not be happening,
he thought.  He did not know what to do as he watched the spiders place their heads against the ground in homage to him.  They gave the green dragon a wide birth but filtered in and out of Rayden’s legs as if he were not even there.  Rayden craned his neck to peer at the clutch as they continually flowed in and out from beneath him.

The green flexed his wings as he glared at the spiders.  Rayden huffed a serious warning and the green settled down.  Going from enemy to neutral was clearly a challenge.  To call them allies was too big a leap for the green.

The queen looked at Kade as the spiders crowded around.  There were close to a thousand still alive.  Kade slowly looked from face to face as they looked back at him, waiting.  Darcienna was watching him, curious.  Even Doren was watching him thoughtfully, patiently.  Kade slowly turned and surveyed the area as the spiders settled down.  They watched their new king and their cherished queen, waiting for their leaders to lead.

Kade directed the silver dragon to lie down and then climbed onto its back.  The green watched in confusion as Rayden allowed the man to stand on his back.  Kade could feel amusement through the link as Rayden eyed the green.  The large dragon continued to back up, trying to stay clear of any spiders as they filtered in.  It was not going to trust these poisonous beings anytime soon.

Kade took a deep breath and felt his emotions start to grow.  He glanced at the queen, and with just a look, she seemed to convey what was expected of him.  Showing weakness through emotions was not one of the luxuries he had.  He did his best to emulate the queen’s strength of character.  After pausing for several long moments, he collected his thoughts and then started.

“We have lost a great king today,” Kade said loudly and firmly but without yelling.  He was doing his best to project his voice without looking like he was putting effort into it.  “Without him, this world would have been in grave peril,” Kade said while holding the staff as though it were a scepter and sticking his chest out with his shoulders squared.  “Many of you mourn the loss of Crayken and rightfully so,” he said as he swept the crowd with his gaze.  “But, instead of mourning this great loss, I say we celebrate the victory that he has given his life to bring to us,” he continued with enthusiasm as he raised the staff for emphasis.  “Not only do we celebrate his victory, but from this day forth, I decree that this day shall be deemed a day of celebration in his honor,” Kade yelled and the spiders cheered.  “This celebration is a tribute to one of the greatest kings to ever lead this clutch, and he will never be forgotten.  Raise your voices with me in honor as we rejoice in Crayken’s victory,” he yelled dramatically as he thrust the staff high into the air and sent a blast of lightning skyward. 

The explosion shocked the spiders but only for a moment.  The words along with the Divine Power were all it took to send the spiders into a frenzy of buzzing as they cheered their hero and their fallen king.  Kade was going to do everything in his power to ensure that Crayken’s name would live on forever.  He waited until the cheering quieted.