Page 42 of Dragon’s Rogue

Well, he’d told her she wouldn’t believe it. But still… “Even if the story is true, who would be stupid enough to remove the Seals from something like that? And if he’s not sealed in, why hasn’t this Draken God woken up?”

Zane shook his head. “How the Seals were lost is a longer story, and Tyr tells it better than I do.” He shook his head, rolling his eyes a little. “Tyr loves to tell it, as a matter of fact. But they were taken from the tomb, centuries ago. The magic has been weakening ever since. And as for why he’s waking up now… we’re not sure. But all the signs show that he’s about to.” Zane paused. “In fact, Thorne calculates it’s going to happen in the next three months.”

Blaze gasped. “Are you telling me you have evidence that a major volcano is going to erupt in the next three months? Where?”

“No, I’m telling you a Draken Lord is going to erupt. A sentient creature who breathes fire that burns like jet fuel and eats humans for breakfast. And as to where…” He waved his hand in the general direction of Portland. “Here. Mount Hood.”

Here? Out of the lone peak that dominated the view of Portland, the long-dormant volcano of Mount Hood? But… scientists would register the volcanic activity, wouldn’t they? She blew her breath out shakily. “That can’t be possible. Wouldn’t the scientists watching the volcano see the activity, even if they can’t see the Draken?”

Zane shook his head. “They see some of it. Not all. But Thorne’s equipment is electronic and magical. It makes theirs look like Tinkertoys. Believe me, the threat is real.”

She stared at him. “You’re really serious.”

“I’m not just serious. I’m fucking terrified. If we can’t find the seals for Vyrkos’ tomb and seal him back in, he’ll blow that mountain to bits. Not only that, but he’ll be hungry and pissed off. And the approximately two million people in the Portland metro area will barely be enough to take the edge off.”

Blaze stared into space, trying to wrap her head around what she’d just heard. Zane was completely serious; she could hear it in his voice. He’d been right the first time—this was almost impossible to believe.

“Who else knows about this?”

“Just me and my brothers.”

Whoa. Here she was worrying about the idol, when everything within miles could potentially be wiped out. “But if there are these Draken Lords all over the world, why haven’t any broken out before?”

“They have,” Zane said. “Pompeii. Krakatoa. A few others.” He paused. “Mount St. Helen’s.”

The 1980 Mount St. Helen’s eruption was a Draken Lord? “Hold on,” she said. “This doesn’t make any sense. Only about fifty people were killed in that eruption. She winced as she said it. As if fifty lives were nothing. But compared to millions… “And Seattle is still standing. So… why weren’t more people killed? What happened to the Draken Lord? Because he’s not flying around, destroying the world.”

Zane said, “When the Draken made their agreement with the Shifter Council and left this world a thousand years ago, part of the deal was that they left Guardians behind. Powerful Draken to monitor the tombs and to make sure the Draken Lords didn’t escape—and if they did, to banish them out of this world while they were still weak from imprisonment, before they could destroy everything in their path. That’s what happened before, with the other Draken Lords. The Guardians won.” He took a deep breath. “But there aren’t any Guardians left now.”

“And what happened to them?” But she already knew the answer from his face.

“They’re all dead,” Zane said. “The last of them managed to contain the destruction at Mount St. Helen’s and banish the Draken Lord Zavrek from this realm of existence. And every single one of them gave their lives to make it happen.”

That was enough to make your blood run cold. “So you and your brothers just… took over?”

“Someone had to,” he said. “But we don’t have anything close to the power needed to banish a Draken Lord. That’s why we have to find the Seals, and put them back in the tomb. We have to keep Vyrkos from breaking free in the first place, or within three months everything from here to the coast is going to be destroyed.”

Chapter 22

Blaze tried to swallow back the dread. “What can I do?” she asked. “Can I help you look for the Seals? I have contacts—”

He smiled tiredly at her. “Sure,” he said. “That would help.”

She gazed at him. “But it’s not enough.”

He blew out a sigh. “It has to be. There’s a prophecy Tyr found buried among the Guardians’ archives, saying that in a time of great danger, the Seals will be found. We just have to keep believing it’s true—that if we don’t give up, we’ll find them in time.”

She tightened her hand around his. “I’ll help.”

He nodded, but she could still sense the disappointment in him. She wished with everything in her that her dragonfly had been the Seal.

She asked, “So… if you’re not Guardians, why are you doing this?”

He shrugged. “Someone has to.”

Despite his casual tone, she saw pain flicker across his face. There were still things he was keeping from her. “So, three months, huh?”

“Approximately.”