House of Darken (Secret Keepers #1)(52)
A hand whipped out from over my head and smacked him in the face. I turned, expecting it to be Jero – Marsil was too gentle, and Lexen didn’t give a shit – but surprisingly enough it was Star.
“Don’t ever talk to her like that,” she snapped at him. “We’re no better than humans, just different.”
He sneered, reaching up to rub his jaw. I mentally gave her a high five. Nice work, girlfriend! There was a red print already forming across his cheek.
“She shouldn’t be here,” he tried again. “It’s bad enough we have to go to their world, but now we’re bringing grubbers back here. Where does it all end?”
Okay, so grubbers was definitely some sort of mean slur for humans. Still, considering it was a grubber planet which was keeping theirs alive, they could be a little more grateful.
“Enough.” That one word from Lexen finally shut orange-hair up.
His eyes shot daggers into me, but when he lifted them to the huge Darken there was nothing but blankness in his blue irises. “As you wish, Overlord.”
I blinked a few times, swinging my head up to Lexen, staring at him like he had two heads. Overlord? I had heard that before, when they were talking about their father.
I was distracted from this as another strong gust of wind slammed against me and I almost lost my footing. Marsil wrapped an arm around me, pulling me closer to him.
The two dragons were hovering at the edge, and I hadn’t noticed before, because dragons pretty much took up all of my attention, but they were tethered together.
And there was something attached to the back of them.
Was that a freakin’ flying carpet?
12
My heart was pounding so hard that it felt like an actual drumbeat in my chest, but I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the fascinating – and terrifying – beasts. They looked exactly the way I imagined a dragon would, minus a few little details: as tall and wide as a house, with four powerful legs, a long spiked tail, huge head, and sharp teeth-filled jaws. One was dark, a shiny, shimmery black, like oil spilled across the top of water. I could see other colors within the inky coat of scales, but for the most part it was darkness. If darkness had thick wings lazily flapping behind to keep it aloft.
The other dragon was white, its coat almost blinding in its intensity, reflecting the light of this world. I couldn’t see a sun in the sky, which was a deep, rich emerald color, but something was definitely illuminating Overworld. I was distracted from my stunned observations by Lexen stepping forward, balancing precariously on the edge of the platform.
The drop below would have to be miles, and I fought the urge to reach out and pull him back. Surely he knew what he was doing, being this overlord and all. Whatever the hell that was.
The white dragon popped its huge head up right before him, and I managed to swallow my gasp, too petrified to do anything except stare. Its head alone was bigger than Lexen’s body. Shit, it probably had teeth bigger than his body. He didn’t seem worried, holding out a hand and waiting for the dragon to press its snout into it.
“Hey there, beautiful.” His voice was low and lilting, emotion resonating on each word. He then switched to another language, one that was musical and so damn beautiful that for a moment all of my fear calmed. I was entranced, focusing only on Lexen and his voice.
“Lotera muschin roatina, Qenita.”
“It’s a dragon,” I breathed, needing to say it out loud.
“Her name is Qenita. She’s bonded to Lexen,” Star whispered in my ear, her eyes lit up.
Ohmygod. Bonded to Lexen. What was happening? How was this my life?
Darkens around us started to move, all of them striding over to the carpet, which was twenty feet wide and the same deep. It was a shimmery white, looking like … well, a magic carpet, right down to the tassels which hung off the very end.
One by one the members of House of Darken leapt across – none of them afraid they were going to fall to their death – landing on the white rug. Lexen, finished greeting his dragon, turned to hurry the stragglers along.
Star used that superior strength to haul me over, letting me go when we neared the carpet. “We’re all taking the oblong sphere home. Don’t be afraid. Once you’re on, your feet will lock in place.”
I flailed my arms and dragged my feet. “I can’t jump down,” I gasped out, sucking in deep breaths. “Learn this about me immediately! No jumping or running. If you need to discuss literature, or help with dinner, I’m your girl, but athletic ability … look elsewhere.” I was rambling, my head feeling light again. Maybe the overload of oxygen here was too much.
“Go on,” Lexen told his family. “I’ll get Emma across.”
Jero winked at me, before he turned and gracefully leapt. As Star had said, the moment his feet hit the … oblong sphere … he didn’t move again, except to cross his arms.
Marsil and Star followed, each of them landing right beside their brothers. Unfair. Not only could they jump the five feet to reach the sphere, they could also aim where they landed.
“I won’t let you fall.” Lexen’s voice distracted me, and I crossed my shaking arms over my body, trying to hide my nerves. “Trust me.”
I snorted, glad when some of my spark returned. But before I could say anything I was being lifted up and tossed over his shoulder like a bag of potatoes. I wanted to scream and smack him in the head, seeing I could finally reach it, but he was moving and I really didn’t want to die today. I closed my eyes when he jumped, opening them again as I felt the landing. I was dropped to my feet almost immediately, and as promised, my tennis shoes suctioned to the rug. Looking down, it wasn’t obvious what was holding them. Clearly magic, because why not?