The Dragon Legion Collection(98)
Tisiphone nodded. She was going to make a polite comment, but the mist chose to burn off in that moment. She stared in amazement at the world revealed. There was a massive structure before her, unlike anything she’d seen before. It had clearly been built by man, but stretched taller and straighter than she could believe. It spanned the broad expanse of water that lapped at her feet, providing a path to a glittering city of impossibly tall buildings. She could see rows of lit windows, more than she could count, all glowing with the same intensity. There couldn’t be enough candles or lanterns in all the world to make that much light, but it was there before her eyes just the same. The night sky was clear overhead, but the light of the city even obscured the light of the stars.
“Manhattan at night and the Brooklyn Bridge,” Viv Jason said with a smile. “It’s a sight that stops me cold every time, too.” She shivered with apparent delight, then beckoned to Tisiphone. “Come on. We’ll find a snack and you can tell me about yourself.”
Tisiphone was skeptical that that would happen. She eyed the bridge and knew she was in the future, maybe even at the point in time forecast by Hera when the darkfire would be set free. At the very least, she’d need time to orient herself, to locate the Pyr and to discover whether the elemental daughters had mated with the dragon shifters.
Viv Jason might be of assistance in Tisiphone’s quest, or she might provide a nice snack herself.
* * *
Aura looked up to find Hera watching her.
“You will love him more even than you do now,” the goddess murmured.
“Not if he dies! Can you help him, Hera?”
Hera didn’t reply, just extended her hand. Aura knew exactly what she wanted, and dared to hope its power would be enough. She removed the golden apple from her tunic and surrendered it to the goddess to whom it rightfully belonged. “I am sorry that I stole it, Hera. I am sorry that I gave him a bite...”
“But you had to know the truth of his heart.” The goddess smiled. “I know you would not be cavalier with such treasures, Aura. I raised you, after all.”
Aura bowed low. “Thank you for banishing she-who-should-not-be-named...”
“She’s not gone, Aura, not really. She is outside of time, waiting for her opportunity. I can’t undermine an edict of Hades, but I could delay it. You and your Pyr will be safe from her, as will your children and their children, but one day, the dragons will have to answer for her sister’s death.”
“I understand.” Aura smiled at the goddess who had been like a mother to her. “Thank you.”
Hera smiled back at her, then considered the apple. She took a bite of it herself, then to Aura’s surprise, the goddess knelt by the fallen pilgrim. Aura had thought he was dead, but he moaned softly, apparently realizing Hera was near.
“Great lady, I am sorry that you see me in this state. I would worship you, if I could,” he whispered.
Hera removed the piece of apple from her mouth and smiled. “You have shown your true measure in being kind to an old beggar woman,” she said quietly. “And by offering the last of your provisions to another.” She touched his lip and placed the piece of apple in his mouth. “And here, pilgrim, is your reward.”
He closed his eyes and sighed, as if overwhelmed by the taste. “This can’t be...”
“But it is. My gift to you, friend. Savor it, and it will see you healed.”
A tear slid from the corner of the pilgrim’s eye, creating a track in the dust on his cheek. “I knew that only the goddess could save me,” he whispered.
“And so she has,” Hera agreed, bending to kiss his forehead.
Aura could see the pilgrim’s color changing, his skin turning to a more healthy hue even as she watched. She was impatient for Hera to share her gift with Thad, but knew better than to rush the goddess. She waited, hands knotted together, gaze flicking to Thad, and watched.
“Sleep now,” Hera bade the pilgrim. “When you awaken, you will be healed.”
But he clutched at her hand, apparently amazing himself with his audacity and ability to move. “But lady, I would serve you, wherever you bid me to. You have given me back my life, and I surrender it to you.” He gestured to his missing arm. “Whatever I can do.”
Hera stood up and looked down at him, her expression benign. “Would you be happy if you worked in my garden?”
“I can’t imagine anything better.”
“Then sleep,” Hera said. “And when you awaken, you will find yourself there.” She bent and kissed his brow again, and the pilgrim fell into a peaceful slumber.
Then Hera turned her gaze upon Aura.
She held up the apple, clearly anticipating Aura’s question. “It won’t help him,” she said quietly. “He has already eaten of it and you have seen the sum of its influence on him.”
“He can’t die!”
“All creatures can die, Aura. Only his own kind can help him.”
“But I don’t know where to find them, or how to summon them.”
Hera watched Aura for a long moment, clearly noting the dimmed glow of the firestorm. “What will you do, Aura?”
“He said we were destined mates. I will stay with him, until the end, whenever that is.” The tree shimmered over Aura’s head, a sweet melody that made her feel her mother agreed with her choice.