The Forever Knight: A Novel of the Bronze Knight (Books of the Bronze Knight) Read Online Free PDF Page B

offering after the war. I didn’t much like Baralosus but didn’t mind having such a fine horse, either. I babied Zephyr whenever we were at home in the palace, because out in the desert I demanded so much of him.
    “It’s going to be a long one this time, Zephyr,” I warned. “We won’t be back here for months. No telling what we’ll find in the Bitter Kingdoms. Don’t be scared, though. Don’t be scared . . .”
    Zephyr nodded his big head as I spoke. I swear that horse could understand me. I stepped back to look him over, startled by a ghostly figure crouching just outside the paddock’s gate. I stared for a moment, shocked to realize it was Malator. He had his back turned to me, kneeling as he drew in the sand with his finger. Stupidly I looked down at my sword. It was still there, of course, but Malator had left the magic weapon.
    “Hey,” I called. We were alone, and no one else could see him anyway. He ignored me, not even lifting his head, absorbed in what he was doing. “Malator?”
    “Come look at this, Lukien,” he said. I put down my brush and left the paddock, going to stand over his shoulder. He had drawn what looked vaguely like a dragon in the sand.
    “Nice,” I commented. “So you’re talking to me again?”
    “Look at the dragon, Lukien,” he told me, then passed his ghostly hand over it. The moonlight went through his fingers, striking the image and bringing it to life. The drawing twitched, the mouth and wings suddenly moved. It was a grotesque looking thing, changing quickly as I watched it, sometimes barely resembling a dragon at all. The trick made me smile.
    “I didn’t know you could do that,” I said. “What is it?”
    “I’m not sure,” said Malator. He leaned over to study it, the moonlight passing through his body. “Something I’ve been seeing lately in my mind.”
    Now I was really interested. “What? Like the future?” Minikin had been able to glimpse the future and so could some Akari. But then I said, “There’s no such things as dragons.”
    “The dragon could be anything,” said Malator. “A symbol maybe.”
    “A symbol for what?”
    Malator shook his head and would not answer. He watched the drawing change from a jumbled mass, then to something that looked like bones, and then at last back to a dragon. His unease made me nervous.
    “What’s it telling you?” I asked.
    Slowly he reached out and wiped the thing away.
    “Come on, Malator,” I said. “What was that? What’d you see?”
    Malator stood up to face me. Though he’d been kneeling, not a single grain of sand clung to him. “We need to talk about Cricket,” he said, “and the stupid decision you’ve made.”
    “Now?” I turned back toward the paddock. “It’s too late. We’re leaving in the morning.”
    “You need to listen to me, Lukien. Cricket can’t go with you.”
    “Why?” I looked at him again. “What aren’t you telling me, Malator?” I gestured toward the sand where he’d made his picture. “Did you see something about Cricket?”
    “No,” he said flatly.
    “No. And if you did, would you tell me?”
    “You’re letting her come between us, Lukien.” His face was earnest, even sincere. “You’re special. But I can’t teach you what you need to know if you’re distracted.”
    “Special,” I scoffed. “Are you ever going to tell me what that means?”
    “You’ll know in time,” said Malator. “But not if you take the girl with you.”
    None of it made sense to me. I was sick of trying to figure out his riddles. “I’m going, Malator. And Cricket’s going with me.” I returned to Zephyr, picked up my brush, and continued grooming. Malator floated up behind me.
    “Go to Akyre, Lukien,” he said. “It’s important that you do. But go alone.”
    “Nope.”
    Malator growled, “Stop blaming me for keeping you alive!
You
chose to stay alive, Lukien.
You
made the promise to Gilwyn and White-Eye. Cassandra’s dead. Cricket can’t replace