The car swept around a corner and the mountain suddenly opened open to an enormous manor with large round columns and tiered black-tiled roofs that curved upward at the corners. The place was huge, arranged in a U with a central courtyard comprised of an ornate garden highlighted with stone statues of fierce dragons in battle. It gave every appearance of being a palace, complete with two dozen guards in black uniforms and swords at their sides.
The second the driver brought the car to a complete stop, Eno and Rayne jumped out. Rayne grabbed the handle to Caelan’s door but waited until Eno had joined him prior to opening the door.
Caelan stuffed down the sudden butterflies that had taken flight in his stomach. Now wasn’t the time. He’d met with the leaders of Caspagir and Zastrad since becoming king. He could meet with the leader of the dragons without creating an international incident. While Zastrad had not ended well, his meeting with the High Luminance at Zastrad had been good.
Poor Lu.
He shoved aside the thought as soon as it formed. He couldn’t afford the distraction. He could mourn for Lu when he was somewhere safe.
A bitter cold wind whipped through the courtyard, ruffling their coats and shoving Caelan’s hair about so that it fell in front of his eyes. As if summoned by the flash of purple before his eyes, the God of Time stirred in his mind. It sounded as if he were drawing in a deep breath. No, scenting the air.
Mmmm…dragons. No one hoards time like dragons, Nyx purred. They have centuries of life to them. Centuries to waste doing so much of nothing. They wouldn’t even notice if we snatched a year here or there.
Caelan ignored him as best as he could. Instead, he focused on the faintest hint of warmth on the air, like an unexpected patch of sunlight or a current of warm air hidden within the cold.
“Your Majesty?” Rayne whispered when Caelan failed to move more than a step away from the car.
“The godstone isn’t at the manor,” Caelan replied in a matching low voice.
“You’re sure?”
Caelan nodded. “It’s on the Isle of Stone. I can feel a hint of something now, but it’s not close.”
“That’s an improvement over Mount Langbo,” Eno muttered.
He had to agree. Even when he’d been standing in front of the godstone of Zastrad, he’d not been able to sense anything from the Dead God. At least now he was sure there was in fact a Fire Stone and it was somewhere on the island. The next trick would be getting Masaru to give them access to it. That was preferred to fighting their way to the goddess.
Caelan led the way across the central courtyard with Eno a step behind his right shoulder and Rayne a step behind his left. His eyes skimmed over the guards who stared straight ahead, seeming to not watch them, but he wasn’t fooled. This couldn’t be normal. This had to be a show of strength to impress the foreign king, or maybe simply intimidate him.
Masaru had to know that Caelan had arrived with just three companions. Even if the closest Erya ship was less than ten miles offshore, it would still take time for reinforcements to be summoned. No, Caelan was at the mercy of the clan leader.
Except Masaru probably thought him a somewhat normal, weak human. Well, maybe he was a little more wary of Caelan’s position as the bonded Guardian of the Godstone, but he didn’t know that Caelan had the power of three gods at his trembling fingertips rather than one.
He curled his right hand into a tight fist to hide the tremor that ran through his body. The shaking hadn’t gotten worse with the addition of Nyx, but Caelan had also not tried to use his gift from the God of Time yet.
Unfortunately, the headaches had increased in intensity and frequency. He was hoping they were brought on simply from fatigue and stress. Once he set eyes on Drayce and knew that he was alive and uninjured, Caelan would be able to breathe easier.
As they reached a set of wide stairs leading to the main building, a tall slender man with dark hair and wrinkled face stepped forward and bowed to them.
“Greetings, King Caelan Talos of Erya. Lord Takahashi Masaru is honored to have you visiting today. I am his assistant, Takahashi Daichi.”
“Thank you.” Caelan offered the slightest nod before motioning toward Rayne and then Eno. “This is my head advisor, Lord Rayne Laurent, and the head of my security team, Lord Eno Bevyn.”
Daichi’s brow furrowed. “Do you not have a third companion?”
“Yes, but he is assisting our generous host with some errands and learning more about your wonderful culture.”
The man’s expression cleared, but he didn’t exactly look pleased. “Excellent. If you will accompany me inside. His lordship is conducting morning hearings to address various clan concerns, but I’ve managed to make a small amount of space for you to bring your needs to Lord Takahashi.”