The Unknown Thief

Part 18

Chapter 18

She landed on her back and had no chance as the creature came barreling down on her. It was just her luck that she had been sent to the one land she may actually need Daisy in, but the dragon was nowhere to be seen.  Before the creature could wrap its mouth around her throat, a beam of light smashed into its side.  Aubrey smiled.  She recognized that magic.  Just as she thought, a familiar hand came into view, helping her to her feet.

She pulled him into a hug before pushing back and sending him a small glare.  “What are you doing here?”

“Mad brother,” Ainsely mumbled with a sheepish smile. 

“A powerful one, I am guessing?”

He let out a laugh while dodging a tiny flying creature.  “A weak man could not send me to the Land of Dragons in my sleep, could he?”

“No,” Aubrey replied while forming a protective shield around them.  It wasn’t very strong. In this land, her magic was feeble.  “Could you not have avoided the issue to begin with?”

He sent her a wide grin.  “And miss out on the opportunity?  No thank you.”

One flew into her shield.  They stood there with their breath held as it wavered before snapping into place.  “We need out of here,” she whispered as her eyes looked to her left.

He snagged her hand before running as fast as he could.  Aubrey didn’t know where he was going, but he was her brother; she trusted him.  They dodged jagged rocks, ducked when flying objects came there way, and made sure that they went nowhere near the large creature sleeping peacefully.  Waking up a dragon would be bad.  Waking up a dragon that size would be deadly.

She glanced up at the route that he was taking her.  As soon as she did, she wished she wouldn’t have.  At the moment, Ainsely was leading her straight into the side of a large mountain.  Attempting to pull her hand away from his, she looked around for other shelter, but found none.  They were only a couple feet away from it now, and she closed her eyes, waiting for the impact to hit her.

She ran into nothing.  Her eyes remained tightly sealed until laughter rained out. One eye opened, landing on Ainsely, before she eased the other open.  Immediately, her eyes narrowed on her surroundings.  Where were they?  Wherever it was, the owner had all the expenses they needed.

“What is this?” she asked, stepping towards the pile of pillows lying on the ground.  Each was covered in a fabric that she knew was well out of the majority of people’s income.

Ainsely stood taller.  Motioning around the room, he took a deep breath and smiled.  “This, my dear, is my lair.” Moving her eyes away from the pillows, she gave him what she hoped was a look that told him to explain. “Fine,” he mumbled.  “I made this the second time I was sent here.  The first, I just ran until I found a way out.  The second, I stayed here until the magic pulled me back.”

“How long was that?” she asked, dreading the answer.

“A week in this land, but an hour in our home land.”

Plopping down on the pillows, she stared at the ceiling.  “What did you do for an entire week?”

“Built this,” he said while sitting next to her.  “The third time I was sent here, I was smart enough to grab someone to come along.”

Jerking up, she scrambled off the pillows while he let out a laugh.  “Sometimes,” she mumbled, “I want to physically harm you.”

His laughter stopped, his head tilted to the side as if he were listening to something, and a large smile spread across his face.  “Luckily, there are two others that can keep your attention off of killing me.”