Rex’s companions were just about to draw their weapons to begin assaulting the pogona, but Smarluuten stepped between Rex and his companions, with his stump and good arm raised.“Please do not attack him, this is part of the bonding process, we cannot interfere,” he hissed, projecting his voice so he could be heard by everyone.“The f**king thing is going to bite off his arm!” Kealy yelled, starting to draw her daggers from their sheathes, the rasping of steel against leather following her words.“Everyone stop!”All members present, Smarluuten included turned to face Rex, who had now calmed completely and was looking at his group members.“He is not hurting my arm, his teeth aren’t even biting into my arm. There is a strange dangly thing tickling my hand though,” Rex said, turning back to face the pogona with a curious expression on his face.“If he wanted to cause injury to you, your arm would look like my own,” Smarluuten hissed, lifting the stump and showing it to Rex. “Soon you w
With the improved speed of the mounts, Rex and his companions covered much more ground, reaching a town called Ghordan, which Kiri said was only half a day’s trip away from the capital. Stopping the group just as the sun had touched the horizon, Rex turned to his group, “I think we can camp out of town for the night, we have a good elevation to see what is around us in all directions, guards close by with the town and a stream within easy reach for clean water.” “I like the sound of that,” Kealy groaned, not wasting any more time in dismounting, and stretching her legs, “This bloody beastly thing rocks back and forth so much I don’t think I’ll have any more skin left on the inside of my thighs when we arrive.” Her complaining earned her a glare and snort of hot air mixed with spray to the face from her horse. “I think he has grown to like you,” Venya said, stretching her own legs, coming up next to Kealy and bumping her playfully, she leaned in close and whispered something to her t
It took another hour for Dilo and Grub to finish getting the campsite set up enough for Karinna and Kiri to bring a now barely conscious Rex into the tent, Kealy and Venya arrived shortly after the last tent was erected, a large waterskin carried under Kealy’s arm. “Take it into Kiri and Karinna,” Dilo directed, pointing to the largest tent at the centre of the camp. Kealy dashed into the tent, and a few moments later she was ushered back out, “How is he?” she yelled, Kiri’s hand quickly closing the tent flap before answering. “Grub is sure wonky leg will be ok,” Grub said, laying his hand on her shoulder. “He is strong.” “Thanks,” Kealy said, her voice low. She turned to Venya, who laid her arm over her shoulder, and they walked away, Venya turned back to Dilo, “We will have the fire and seating arrangements done in a moment.” Dilo nodded and then took a step back, Grub was staring at her, a strange expression on his face. “What?” she growled, raising one eyebrow. “Wonky leg wil
Knowing Dilo’s intention to drag the most immediate threat away, Kiri dashed forward, and after a quick chant under her breath, reached out and clutched Dilo’s forearm. “What are you doing?” Dilo growled, quickly glancing down at her arm. “Making sure you survive this,” Kiri smiled, looking into Dilo’s eyes with an intensity Dilo had only seen once before. Once Kiri’s spell was complete, she slumped and fell to her knees, panting heavily. Dilo was about to reach down when a sudden sense of danger changed her course to be a roll to the side. Not a heartbeat later an overhead chop passed through the space her head had been in. “Ha! It seems beefcake has gained some speed since we last met and no longer plays a stupid meat shield,” Norian said with a grin. Dilo gritted her teeth at Norian’s use of her old nickname. She has grown up in a place where looks for a woman were everything, and due to her natural muscular body shape, many of the other thinner women taunted her. The moment s
Norian’s head spun toward the town, then after a few seconds, she turned back with a broad smile, “You almost had me, there aren’t any town guards coming? Are there?” “Actually,” Dilo growled, her smile breaking across her lips, “That is the reason we are doing our utmost to prevent you all from leaving. Rex wanted to give you all an opportunity to leave, but I wanted to delay you until our companion returned with them.” “All of your companions are present and…” Norian trailed off, looking toward Grub and Kealy, then down to where Karinna had dragged a barely conscious Kiri to the campfire and had her propped up against a log, then back to Dilo and Rex. “Your intelligence would say one is missing?” Dilo growled, her smile widening as Norian’s smile faltered slightly and the muscle at the side of her eye twitched. “You know our praetorian is busy handling Rosie. But please, don’t rush to decide on your next move, I have all the time in the world.” Since she had stopped fighting, Dilo
“You want to do what!?” the physiker asked, her eyes widening in disbelief.“Rex’s natural constitution does not allow foreign magic to penetrate his inbuilt defences, but if we augment your healing with a little of Dilo’s life force, I believe Rex will not deem it a magical attack and his unconscious body will recognise Dilo and allow the magic to perform its purpose,” Kiri said, her voice still rough and raspy.“You want me to augment my healing weave, with blood magic?” the physiker asked, her tone going cold and flat.“Well technically it is not blood magic, so to speak,” Kiri sighed, rolling her eyes. “Dilo is not the one drawing on blood to boost her own magical ability. It is only being used as a clean and unblemished medium that will be familiar to Rex to allow his natural defences to lower enough for your healing magic to help cleanse enough of the poison his body cleanses the remainder itself.”“You’re trying to sell me on a technicality,” the physiker said with a scowl, put
“Well…” Rex said loudly, lowering his fork onto his plate and sitting it on his lap, doing his best to stifle a loud burp.“That was incredible!” Kealy said, letting the plate she was licking fall away to stare at Grub. “You have to let us know what it was.”“Grub told you, Grub know good meal,” Grub smiled warmly, patting his own full stomach. “Now food is done, Grub’s friends drink good Kuumakun spirit.” He rose from his place at the fire and walked to his lopsided tent at a brisk pace, leaving everyone at the fire staring at his back with mixed expressions.“Am I the only one that was impressed by how he simply threw mystery ingredients into a pot, before adding whatever that thing was he caught, the end result was giving us a meal so good it left us speechless?” Karinna asked, looking around the fire with a grin.“I must admit I may have to up my own cooking game,” Rex said, getting chuckles from his companions. “I half want to know what it was, but on the other hand, knowing what
Rex had just mentally called his mount and leapt into the saddle when Kiri pulled her horse close enough to speak, but not too close to have her mount spooked by the large moving lizard.“You must tell me how you do that.”“Do what?” Rex asked, his nose pinching slightly in confusion.“Being able to command a mount mentally is incredibly rare. Most mounts require verbal communication or physical touch to receive their orders, like these horses. But I never heard you call for the pogona, and yet it came when you looked off into the distance,” Kiri said, eyeing Rex closely.“Uh, it’s hard to explain,” Rex said, stroking his face while trying to think of how he could put what he did with the pogona and Fafnir before that. “The best way for me to explain would be, I put the picture of him in my mind and speak. I still only get broken words here and there as a response, but most times I can fill in the gaps.”“He speaks to you as well,” Kiri said shaking her head with an incredulous smile