Chapter Four
“What was that?” Sophia pushed out of Lunis’ wing.
She had trouble making out the scene before them on the Expanse that was peaceful and pristine moments before. The herd of sheep all scattered while baaing loudly in fright. In the center of where the sheep had been grazing was a small black spot where the ground had been scorched. Around it were bits of sheep... Or what had once been one.
Quiet ran in their direction with panic written on his usually calm face.
“What happened?” Sophia asked, noticing that he was running the opposite direction as the herd.
She couldn’t make out his voice but she saw the shape his mouth was making as he seemed to repeat the same word over and over again: Sheep.
Looking between the scattered herd and the scorch mark, Sophia’s brow scrunched up in confusion. “There’s something wrong with the sheep?”
He nodded, adamantly. Turning around, Quiet pointed at the herd of fluffy white sheep, then at Lunis. Then he wagged his finger, his intention clear. He didn’t want the dragon eating any of the sheep—a dragon’s main food source. It was what the dragons at the Gullington feasted on, but it was also a dragon’s preferred food worldwide and harkened back to their Scottish ancestry, according to the Complete History of Dragonriders.
Lunis gulped as his eyes grew large. “Too late…”
Sophia gawked at him, suddenly worried. “You ate a sheep?”
He burped. “A little one. This morning.”
“Are you okay?” she asked, looking him over.
Lunis nodded, but didn’t appear totally right. “I’ve had indigestion all morning. Thought it was from the cheese puffs I had last night.”
“Go back to eating cheese puffs.” Sophia turned to face Quiet. “Will he be okay?”
He studied the dragon before nodding. And again, he pointed at the herd and shook his finger.
“So the sheep,” Sophia began. “They’re exploding. How is that possible?”
Quiet replied by simply shaking his head again.
“It’s almost like someone is trying to harm the dragons,” Sophia seethed while looking at the hills where the other dragons lounged in the morning sunshine.
“I think that’s an accurate conclusion,” Lunis stated.
“If it is Nevin Gooseman, then how could he accomplish this?” Sophia looked between the dragon and the groundskeeper.
Neither seemed to have an answer. “Okay,” Sophia began, “well, I’ll look into this. But in the meantime, we have to alert the dragons not to eat the sheep. We’ll have to find a new food source for them.”
“We’ll be fine. I’ll communicate with the clan so they know too. We will eat fish from the Pond,” Lunis stated with authority. “In the meantime, you need to go to Roya Lane and find out how to remove the mark on your soul.”
“Fine,” Sophia acquiesced. She knew Lunis was right, but felt torn between helping her dragons and herself. There was always something pulling her in different directions. She’d remove the mark from her soul first though. Then she’d find Nevin Gooseman and make him pay.
Chapter Five
For maybe the first time ever, Sophia was grateful to run into King Rudolf Sweetwater upon stepping through the portal onto Roya Lane.
He didn’t look any different after his imprisonment at Nevin Gooseman’s compound, which was deserted when Rudolf took the Dragon Elite back there. The politician had unsurprisingly fled after the truth about him being behind distortion was exposed.
Sophia had hoped that Nevin went down with his magitech army, but it appeared that he had gotten away. And now, she suspected he was behind the exploding sheep. That man wasn’t going to stop until he had ruined the dragons and the Elite.
Sophia was more worried about what the evil magician would do now. Before he had an agenda to take down the Dragon Elite, believing they had too much power that threatened his abilities to control mortals. He was against the demon dragons and made mortals believe they’d be the death of the world. However, now he had lost everything, and no one was more dangerous than someone with nothing left to lose.
If Nevin created and spread a deadly disease like distortion, Sophia didn’t want to think what he’d do now. She’d figure it out, right after she removed the mark on her soul.
Priorities, she told herself. First, remove curse. Second, figure out why the sheep were exploding and stop it. Third, take Nevin Gooseman down for good.
“You look different,” Rudolf remarked upon seeing her on Roya Lane. “Did you get a haircut?”
She shook her head, disappointed that he could see the mark on her soul too. She expected that from Lunis and Wilder who she was close to, but not someone like Rudolf.
“Did you get glasses?” he asked.
Sophia tilted her head and gave the handsome but ridiculously dumb fae a confused expression. “I’m not wearing glasses.”
“Which would be why you look different without them,” he reasoned, and ran his hands through his shiny blond hair. His eyes widened. “Oh, I got it. You got a mark on your soul.”
Not sure whether to be impressed or worried, Sophia glared at him. “How did you know that?”
He shrugged. “I know things. Met my fair share of evil spirits who have tried to curse me.”
“You have?” Hope rebounded in Sophia’s chest. “Do you know how to remove the curse?”
Rudolf gave her a sympathetic expression as he shook his head. “Sure don’t. Sorry. For some reason, the evil spirits I’ve met always tired of me and ran away. Who knows why?”
“I think I’ve got an idea of why,” she muttered, and wondered if she should ask Rudolf to teach her his ways so that she annoyed her villains into submission. It wasn’t a common approach, but it sure seemed to work for the fae. He was like a cat and had multiple lives, having escaped things that he shouldn’t have.
“Well, if I’m honest, I like the mark on your soul.” He flashed her a toothy grin. “It makes you look dangerous.”
“I thought the sword and dragon did that,” she stated blankly.
He pursed his lips and shook his head. “No, those make you look unapproachable. That blue lizard probably makes it impossible for guys to work up the nerve to ask you out.”
“It didn’t seem to deter the one who stole my heart. And the dangerous appearance would be acceptable if it weren’t for the fact that the mark on my soul makes it hard to sleep and gives me hallucinations.”
Rudolf looked off dreamily. “Oh, that sounds like the sixties for me. Good times.”
Sophia pointed toward the Rose Apothecary down the lane. “I was headed to see Bep about the healing elixir. Now that you’re back, can you get her the dragon egg shells for the next batch of the potion?”
“Yeppers!” he chirped. “And sorry about that whole getting abducted thing and not being able to help with the healing elixir business. I’ve got a plan worked up now though, and want to review it with you after we visit Bep.”
Sophia couldn’t help but laugh. “You wouldn’t have been abducted in the first place if it weren’t for Nevin Gooseman’s vendetta against the Dragon Elite. And thank you for getting us the information that helped bring him down. That saved us.”