"Then have you had any nightmares?" I asked.

"No."

"You're not dreaming at all? That means you're not sleeping well. You're going to need all the rest you can get before we get to-"

"I didn't say I wasn't dreaming," Talon snapped, color rising in his face. "I just that none of my dreams have had Sarad Nukpana in them."

"You don't have to get-"

Talon took a deep breath and blew it out. "I'm sorry. It's just that..."

I waited-and while I waited, I realized.

I'd already known that Talon liked Agata. That much had been obvious from the moment they'd met. Less than half an hour ago, he'd growled whenever she'd mentioned Sarad trying to lay hands on her. I might not be correct in my assessment, but then again, I thought the chances were pretty high that I was. So I did what I thought a father should do, and-pressing my lips together against a smile-waited some more, until it became painfully obvious that Talon was experiencing something else besides love for the first time.

A loss for words.

If one of us didn't speak up soon, we were going to be here all night.

It appeared that if any speaking was to be done, it would have to be by me. "You like Agata, don't you?"

"Yes...I think so."

"For someone who only thinks so, you've been rather obvious."

Talon groaned and dropped his face into his hands. "Am I making an idiot out of myself?"

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"Quite sure."

"But not absolutely."

"Talon."

He dropped his hands to his sides and slouched in the chair, head thrown back, eyes to the ceiling.

Oh, the drama.

"Do you think I stand a chance with her?" he asked, eyes still on the ceiling. "She's not that much older than I am, but she seems that way."

Honesty would be best here, at least I thought so. Talon had probably had as much experience falling in love as I had being a father. We were both treading deep, unfamiliar waters here.

"I met Agata less than two weeks ago," I told him. "Kesyn used to be her teacher, so he's known her for at least a few years. He might be able to give you a better answer than I could. Or maybe not. He just told me that she was the one who chipped his left fang."

Talon sat up and looked at me. "With one of those crystals of hers?"

I shrugged. "Or a rock that was close to hand. At the very least, he might be able to tell you what would make her throw a rock at you. If so, you should avoid doing that."

"Do you know anything about crystal magic?"

"Next to nothing."

Talon slouched again. "Damn."

"Sorry."

We grew some silence between us.

"I do know one thing," I said.

"Which is?"

"Stop trying to impress her and just be yourself-or at least a non-arrogant and less-impetuous version of yourself."

"In other words, it's past time for me to grow the hell up."

I glanced over to see my son grinning. I joined him.

"I don't even believe I'm grown up yet," I told him. "I think your grandmother is still awaiting that blessed event-for me and your uncle Nath. If you grow up before we do, your grandmother won't be able to withstand the shock-and neither will I."

Chapter 31.

The Lastani Islands were rocky and barren, and the only source of food was the seabird population, extremely large turtles, and the eggs they both laid. That being said, the birds' cliff-side nesting locations, and the turtles' poisonous spit and bile, ensured their continued survival. Few were desperate enough to expend that much strength on so meager a return, or take that much risk on a creature whose meat, depending on your poison tolerance, might or might not cause you to die in agony.

As a result, the seabirds and turtles thrived.

But the main island had two things that made it popular with vessels that ventured this far west-a harbor offering protection from storms and an easily accessible fresh water supply from natural cisterns that dotted the main island's interior. We planned to take full advantage of both for the next twenty-four hours.

Two ships would be on guard at the harbor mouth at all times while the third replenished its water supply and the crews had a little time on shore. The Nebians had fallen farther behind, but they were still there. We weren't about to let our guard down.

Talon squinted at the cloudless blue sky through his sunglasses. "Is there a chance we're going to get rained on anytime soon?"

"Maybe, but most likely not," I said.

"Damn."

"We've got enough water."

"Yeah, for drinking."

"I warned you that bath would probably be your last."

"You said probably, not definitely."

"Your nose is too sensitive, boy," Kesyn said, lowering himself to sit on one of the island's many flat rocks. "Soon enough we'll all stink so bad your nose will stop smelling it."

"From traumatic overload."

Kesyn shrugged. "Works just as well either way."

Talon stood and swayed on his feet. "What the hell? Okay, I'm on dry land. Why can't I walk straight?"

"It's called sea legs," Kesyn told him. "You finally have some. So now you're having trouble walking on something that's not moving."

"You're kidding, right?"

"Would I do that?"

"All the time." Talon looked to me.

"He's telling the truth," I said. "At least this time. In fact, you might want to get back on the ship as soon as you can. If you get too used to being on land, you might get sick again once we're back at sea."

Talon swore, creatively and extensively.

"Your choice, boy," Kesyn pointed to where Agata Azul was disembarking from a ship's launch. She had an empty sack over one shoulder. "Though if you want to stay off the ship for a while longer, Aggie said she was going to add to her rock collection. Why don't you go play pack mule for her?"

I don't think Talon heard the "pack mule" part of the sentence. He was off and running at "why don't you go play."

"Are you sure that was a good idea?" I asked him.

Kesyn lay back on the rock with a contented sigh. "Sure. He's a good kid. Basically. And Aggie has one hell of a throwing arm-and a right cross. At least she'll be fine. Whether he'll be fine is up to him." He sighed again. "You know, the sun isn't all that bad. In fact, I kind of like it."

I glanced up and squinted. Even with the darkest lenses in my glasses, the sun was still uncomfortably bright for me. If Aquas's wasteland was anything like my dream, I was going to be only slightly less than miserable. Those who would be going on to Nidaar with me had goggles for the trek across the desert to the mountains to keep both light and sand out of our eyes.

Our twelve firedrakes swooped and played near the cliffs, having been released to feed. Unlike the sentry dragons, firedrakes preferred a more diverse diet. Goblin sentry dragons-at least those native to the coastal regions-ate mostly seafood. The expedition's three sentry dragons were enjoying time out of the ships' holds and were presently basking on the rocks much like Kesyn was doing. Meanwhile, their stalls were being cleaned. The crews had drawn lots for that duty. Those who had drawn the short straws would be paid a substantial bonus.

The sentry dragons were sunbathing.

Not the firedrakes.

They were happily hunting.

They'd earned it.

At the beginning of each watch since we'd left Regor, a firedrake had been released every hour to check the surrounding seas for pursuit or intercepting ships-in addition to checking the position of the two Nebian vessels. Each drake wore a harness equipped with a spy crystal that would send real-time images back to the ship it had been released from. With four firedrakes per ship and a dozen total, each drake would be released twice a day, perfect for exercise and their feeding schedule. We had food for them on board, but if a drake spotted prey, they would take it. If something under the water spotted them and determined them to be prey, the drakes were more than capable of convincing them otherwise. They'd also quickly cleaned the ships of rats.

While we couldn't reach the thousands of seabird nests, our firedrakes had no such problem. They probably liked fish well enough, but the eggs and the birds were a welcome treat. Thankfully there were plenty of seabirds, and drakes had enough sense not to gorge themselves. In the wild, a drake that couldn't outmaneuver drakes from a rival flock when fighting for mates or territory didn't live very long. When they were full, they stopped eating.

Unfortunately, a few of them had discovered the turtle nests.

I quickly went to where Calik was filing Sapphira's claws while she dozed. I was careful to stay out of the sentry dragon's torching range. I took a seat on the rocky beach near Calik and pointed out the adventuresome diners.

"Not a problem," Calik told me. "Drakes and dragons can eat most anything. If you breathe fire and belch sulfur-scented gas, a little turtle toxin is just seasoning. They'll be fine."

Phaelan was sidling over to where we were, trying to give Sapphira a wide berth. The deep blue dragon opened one reptilian-pupiled eye into a slit and watched him. Phaelan saw and sidled faster.

"Don't worry, Captain Benares. She won't fry you," Calik said. "I've told her not to. She always does as told." He winked at me. "Most of the time."

Phaelan saw the wink and chose to ignore it. "The two drakes that went out to have a look at the Nebian ships just came back."

I sat up. "And?"

"They're still there, about five miles out."

Both Phaelan and Calik were looking at me.

Kesyn had wandered over. "That's getting to be annoying."

"As much as I'd like to, we can't simply blow two ships out of the water just for following us," I told them.

"Why not?" Phaelan asked. "And don't give me that 'I'm the king's representative' crap. They're not tailing us because they want to make friends. They're waiting for an opportunity-or a signal from someone."

"We're sitting on a beach and our dragons are asleep." Calik lifted one of Sapphira's newly manicured claws, released it, and it fell limply to the sand. That was a seriously relaxed dragon.

I nodded. "I know. I've been giving it a lot of thought. They know we're going to Aquas, and we can't risk them following us the rest of the way there. I'll be taking my battle mages with me when we go inland, which will leave our ships magically defenseless. The mages on the Nebian ships aren't Khrynsani. They're worse, which until now I didn't believe was possible."

"What are the chances they're not from around here?" Calik asked.

Meaning they were part of the off-world invaders. We had all been thinking it, but no one really wanted to say it.

"Their magic is unlike anything I have ever sensed," I said. "Kesyn?"

"Slimiest magic I've ever felt. Even the blackest Khrynsani magic seems cleaner."

"What do Gwyn and Gavyn have to say?" I asked Phaelan.

"They're all in favor of clearing our wake. We've got enough trouble ahead of us; we don't need it creeping up behind us, too. There are smaller islands on our way once we leave here."

"You're suggesting an ambush."

"Strongly suggesting."

"We'd need to completely conceal the ships," I said. "Douse all signs of life and magic, but even that won't be enough. We'll need to conjure a realistic projection."

"Fake ships?" Phaelan asked.

I nodded. "Just to give them something to chase, or at the very least distract them. It'll be close. I'm sure they're expecting something."