Fallon didn’t move as he considered what his telroi was telling him. He wasn’t sure he understood.
“What makes you say that?” he asked.
She glanced back down at the girl in her arms, her face innocent and young. “I wasn’t—I’m not—half of me still believes this is crazy.”
“And the other half?” His telroi wasn’t prone to flights of fancy. If she believed this, he had no choice but to do the same.
“Knows it’s true,” she admitted in a soft voice.
“It seems convenient that there would be two dreamwalkers appearing so close together,” Darius said, contemplating Shea.
She nodded. “I agree. I could understand Mist suddenly having this ability. She’s young, but there has never been any sign of this in my past.”
“Are you sure?” Fallon asked.
“I think I’d know.” She grabbed one of the goblets from the table and downed half of it in one long gulp. “No one in my family has shown signs of any strange abilities either, so there’s that.”
There was stress in Shea’s voice. His telroi didn’t like to lose control. She was as steady as the sun and this unexpected ability had thrown her.
He placed a hand on the back of her neck and ran his thumb up and down the bumps of her spine in a soothing caress, letting her know she had his support, no matter what. Fallon would take Shea as she was, even if it meant dealing with a new ability. Compared to negotiating a treaty with the pathfinders, this should be much easier.
She was his world, the light in his darkness, the voice of reason when his primal instincts threatened to subsume the man he was, leaving nothing but a killer behind. She was as vital to him as breathing. They might lock heads, fight and make up, but they were partners too. At the end of the day, he chose her, and somehow, despite everything, she’d chosen him back. He would do anything to protect that gift she’d given him. Kill any foe, conquer any land. He’d wipe the Badlands clean if that was what it took. So, a little ability that meant she might be able to predict future events? That was no big deal.
She took a deep breath, his touch soothing her. It was a secret pleasure of his, being able to comfort her even at the worst of times. It indicated she trusted him even when they fought. It was a rare gift for a man feared by most. It’s true he fostered that fear, but it was something he never wanted to glimpse behind Shea’s eyes.
“What did you dream?” Darius asked.
Shea looked back at him. Her expression warned Fallon of what she was about to say before she said it. Only one thing could put that level of desperation and fear on her face. His hand tightened on the back of her neck.
“That I was back in the Badlands.” She took another drink from the goblet. “There were several mythologicals. They seemed to be the leaders of their species. They were interested in an alliance.”
Fallon sat forward. “An alliance? Are you sure?”
She nodded.
Fallon sat back, tapping the table with his fingers. “That could be an interesting proposal.”
Darius looked between the two of them, confusion on his face. “What are these ‘mythologicals’?”
That’s right. Since he hadn’t been with them during any of the last encounters, Darius wouldn’t know what that was.
Shea was the one to explain. “They’re beasts. Sort of. They’re intelligent, like us. They’re able to reason. Most can speak. They’re also highly dangerous and extremely deadly.”
“I’ve never heard of these before.” Darius looked between the two of them, not quite believing.
“That’s because they’ve been gone for a very long time,” Shea said. “Until recently, we didn’t know they were anything but stories used to scare children.”
“If that’s the case, where have they been all this time?” Darius asked.
Shea was quiet for a moment. Mist shifted, catching her attention and she gave the girl a fond smile. “I think they’ve been locked behind a seal in the Badlands.”
Fallon gave her a sideways glance. This was a new theory. “You got that from your dream?”
She gave an abrupt nod, suddenly unsure.
“How did this seal break?” Darius asked, not missing a beat.
His general was at heart a tactician. If Shea’s new abilities gave him intel he couldn’t get otherwise, he would use it to his advantage. It was the way of a warrior. You didn’t leave a powerful tool on the table just because you weren’t sure where it came from. They were a pragmatic people, and Darius and Fallon were among the most pragmatic.
