Dragon Forge: The Draconic Prophecies - Book Two Read Online Free Page B

where he’d seen the shifter, and wove his way back through the traffic.
    He was glad he’d chosen a tall body for this persona—it gave him a slightly better view over the crowd. And he was looking for another tall man, so he focused on other heads that jutted up from the masses. A mane of brown hair streaked with blond caught his eye, and he altered his course to intercept the shifter at a side street.
    He lost sight of his quarry on the way, but kept on course until he reached the other street. He stopped at the corner and scanned all around, to no avail.
    “Damn,” he muttered.
    A hand gripped his shoulder and a voice growled in his ear. “Why are you following me?”
    Kauth spun around and found himself face to face with the shifter. The man’s amber eyes bored into his, and his teeth were bared in a very animalistic display of aggression.
    “I need your help,” Kauth said, spreading his hands, palms out.
    People aren’t so different from animals, he thought. Displays of aggression and peace, rituals of dominance and submission. Do animals manipulate each other, though? Do they pretend to be submissive to lull the dominant ones into a false sense of control?
    The shifter’s eyebrows rose. “My help? What in the ten seas do you need me for?”
    You’re so accustomed to being useless, Kauth thought. You’ll do whatever I ask you to.
    “I need strong allies for dangerous work,” he said. “You struck me as a man who could handle the work.”
    “I assume you’re not talking about menial labor.” The shifter’s hand rested on the hilt of a long knife at his belt.
    “Can we talk somewhere more private?”
    The shifter looked him up and down. His eyes lingered for a moment on the flanged mace at Kauth’s belt and the crossbow slung over his shoulder, then he gave a slight nod.
    “I’m Sevren Thorn,” he said, extending a hand.
    Kauth clasped it and smiled.
    Who are you? he thought.
    “Kauth Dannar.”

    Sevren Thorn was a desperate man, quickly won over. Kauth said he was a scout for the Wardens of the Wood, the druidic sect that maintained order throughout the Reaches. Rumors of war were building, not just in the east near Aundair, but also on the Reaches’ western border. He had been charged with infiltrating the Demon Wastes to determine the truth of these rumors.
    Sevren drained his third pint of the dark, bitter ale common in the Reaches as Kauth sipped his first with distaste. “So is it just the two of us?” the shifter asked. “Or are you looking for more strong allies?”
    How many people am I willing to lead to their deaths? Kauth thought.
    “More would improve our chances,” he said. “But too many will draw attention. Do you know anyone who might be interested?”
    “I have a couple of ideas. People I’ve worked with before. People who have some trouble fitting in to city life, like me.”
    “Can you contact them?”
    “It might take some work, but I’m sure I can track them down. That’s what I’m good at.”
    “I’d be glad to meet them,” Kauth said.

    The next evening, he draped himself in a heavy cloak and altered his face and form as much as he could while wearing Kauth’s metal-studded leather armor, and then he made his way to the same tavern. From outside, the tavern’s location offered a splendid view of Lake Galifar and the light of the Ring of Siberys gleaming on its waters. Inside, though, the few small windows in the fieldstone walls were paned with smoke-blackened glass. One roaring fire threw its flickering light over the crowded room, casting large and looming shadows.
    He spotted Sevren Thorn and his two companions as soon as he entered, but he didn’t look directly at them. He sat at the bar and ordered a pint of the vile ale before turning to survey the room. The shifter was at ease with these friends, laughing loudly at some joke, his head thrown back. The changeling smiled despite himself—he had quickly come to like the shifter, whose ready laugh