Dragonvein (Book Two) Read Online Free Page B

know…I’m not really sure. We just did.”
    “We used to call the humans heimskar when I was young,” Ganix told him, smirking. “It means stupid.”
    Ethan looked at the old king and frowned. “ Kraut doesn’t mean stupid.”
    “No? Well I’m sure that whatever it means, it’s not meant to be flattering.”
    Ethan’s hatred for his earthly enemy began to rise. “They’re animals,” he growled.
    Ganix held up his hand. “No need to get upset. I know you will have good reason to think that way. But I wonder how you will refer to your new enemy. I’m sure that not every soldier you fought on Earth was evil. No more than all those in Lumnia who serve the Emperor are.”
    Ethan pondered his words for a moment. Maybe it wasn’t all one-sided either? He had heard stories of captured Germans being executed. Men begging for their lives as US soldiers – the supposed good guys in the war – laughed and taunted them. He hadn’t thought much of it at the time. The Krauts had been just as ruthless and cruel. Even more so. But Ganix was right. Not all of them would have been evil.
    “I should not cloud your mind with this,” Ganix continued. “War is a wicked thing. It can make monsters of us all. Better you stay focused on the task at hand.”
    Ethan nodded in agreement. But as he took his place in the center of the chamber, the old king’s words were still eating at him. He had never considered the enemy as anything other than foul and deserving of death. He remembered the look of terror on the face of the Imperial soldier he had killed. Had he a wife? Children? Who missed him now that his life was snuffed out?
    He closed his eyes and thought hard. Seven. He had killed seven men. Mostly from so far away that he couldn’t make out their faces. But it didn’t matter. They were dead anyway, and regardless of circumstances, he was the one who had taken their lives. He thought he’d come to terms with it, just as every soldier must. But something in what the king just said had hit home.
    The sudden thump of the large, leather bound book being tossed onto the floor by his feet startled him. Ganix’s normally kind demeanor was now hard and determined. Ethan sat down beside the book and opened it to a page near the end. At this point, it was very familiar. He must have read the same entry a thousand times by now.
    “No warm up today?” he asked.
    “No,” replied Ganix. “From now on we will be working on one thing, and one thing only.”
    Ethan’s shoulders sagged slightly with disappointment. Casting the few small spells he had so far managed to master was one of his favorite activities. Dragonfire was by far the most impressive, but it often took far too long to cast to be practical. He had also learned how to levitate small objects, and create tiny balls of flame that he would send crashing into the stone walls.
    Ganix had been a great help to him during his studies. Though unable to wield human magic himself, he could understand many of its concepts, and had been instrumental in deciphering some of the book’s more confusing passages.
    Ethan looked at the text and concentrated. Even though he had it fully memorized, he could never get close to connecting with the power of the spell unless he could make a direct visual link with the words.
    Slowly he began to rock back and forth. The words had to be spoken exactly, each syllable perfect. As he began reciting the spell he felt a warm rush of energy passing through him. With the other spells, this was a welcome sensation…but not with this one. The waves of heat continued to build in intensity until they felt as if they might push him over.
    He reached the bottom of the page, but Ganix was ready for him and quickly turned to the next. Ethan was able to continue without pause all the way to the end of the spell.
    Almost as soon as he finished, a blinding flash of white light erupted into existence. For a few seconds it was scattered and without form, but soon