Death Comes To All (Book 1) Read Free Page B

down halfway to their waists. It was a deep,
vibrant red, with orange and yellow streaks intermittent throughout.
It would stay that color until winter, Drom knew from his mother's
teachings, and then the color would disappear completely, leaving it
a stark, bright white. In spring it would become light green blended
with a light brown, like the color of tanned leather, turning darker
in the summer and then back to its current color again in autumn. The
shifting colors helped them stay invisible in the treetops where they
made their hidden homes.
    Sitting
in the far corner of the room, in perhaps the darkest corner, sat two
more figures, a man and a woman. The man appeared human, and the
woman, at least Drom believed her thin, curvy figure to appear
female, he couldn't even make a guess at, since her face was
completely concealed under a thick black hood. Both were dressed in a
black tunic and trousers, with a thick, blood red belt around their
waists. Like everyone in the room, except for Drom, they carried
swords fastened to their hips.
    The
woman's weapon was very thin, ornately carved around the hilt, and
something on the crosspiece glinted in the dim light like jewels.
Drom couldn't tell what kind of jewels they might have been in the
dark room. The man's weapon, in contrast, didn't seem to have any
sort of ornamentation at all. The thick blade, covered in its sheath,
had only a small, unadorned crosspiece painted with a flat black
color. The grip appeared to be nothing more than a piece of black
cloth wrapping the metal underneath.
    While
the woman’s features were hidden from Drom's eyes, Drom could
see the man fairly well. His skin a was a dark, golden copper,
obviously a man who spent time often in the sun, with jet black hair
that fell just passed his shoulders. He was clean shaven, with a
thin, hawk-like nose and angular features. It was not, however, the
man that held Drom's gaze for so long, but the animal that sat on his
shoulder, with its tail wrapped tightly around his neck.
    It
was a dragonling, a rare creature created by magic long ago. A few of
the richest, most powerful mages kept them as pets, or so Drom had
been told by one of the laborers that came through his father's farm.
    Certainly
this man couldn't be one of those , Drom thought.
    The powerful mages rarely left their castles. Even if they did go
out, they certainly wouldn't be found in the Staghorn. There are few
places where rumor had it wild dragonlings could be found. Drom
guessed that the man must have located and tamed one of those.
    The
animal itself was exceptionally beautiful. It had deep blue scales
that glistened in the dim light like sapphires, and an orange crest,
edged in deep red, that ran down its back and around its head.
    It
almost looks as if its back is on fire, Drom thought, enthralled
by the little creature.
    Drom
watched as the man fed it a small piece of what looked like raw meat,
although Drom didn't care to know what it was exactly. Like all
sorvinians, he was a vegetarian, and the thought of any animal eating
meat sent an unwelcome shiver down his spine.
    "Your
food," the bartender said behind him, causing him to jump a
little bit. Drom turned around and saw his generous plate of greens
sitting on the bar before him. The bartender grinned, or at least
Drom supposed it was a grin. All he could see were the sharp,
wolf-like teeth.
    "Thank
you," Drom said simply. The bartender merely grunted and
returned to his work.
    Drom
fell into his food with gusto. He hadn't realized just how hungry he
had been. He had run out of the food his mother had packed for him
the day before, and so hadn't eaten at all that day. He had known he
was close to the city, and so hadn't thought it all that important.
He was not used to skipping meals though, and skipping an entire days
worth of them had certainly given him an appetite.
    So
intent was he on his meal that he hadn't even realized that the door
to the bar had opened, and a new group had