The Heist of Sigallah (The Kingdom of Dragons Book 3)

I - New, Yet Familiar

Sigallah was very different from what Rhenor had imagined based on what he'd heard about it. He'd never been here, but since it was the largest city in this part of Istamid, it had sometimes been discussed even in Arlow. Usually in awe, which never failed to make Rhenor want to roll his eyes.

But seeing it from a distance now, he may have had a better understanding of why people found it so fascinating. They couldn't see the city itself over the walls yet, but the city walls were quite the statement by themselves.

They looked at least thirty feet tall, but they weren't imposing somehow. He wasn't sure why that was. Perhaps it was the yellow color of sandstone, or their gods carved into the large columns that held the walls together, but it made Rhenor more curious than cautious. An odd feeling, given that he rarely trusted anything strange and unknown.

He had heard that due to Sigallah being a connection for the local towns and the rest of the world, it also wasn't as under the dragons' control as those lizards would have liked. Rhenor hoped that at least that much was true.

Next to him, Kaz flinched as yet another person riding a horse ran past them. Rhenor wasn't even sure if this was just Kaz getting easily frightened or if he was still concerned about someone recognizing him. But that had gotten better after their brief stay in Frostrun. Kaz had been much more comfortable in the two other villages they'd stopped at for supplies. Sigallah was much bigger, though.

Noticing him looking, Kaz gave an awkward smile before staring off at the city before them. Rhenor narrowed his eyes.

Kaz had been acting a little odd ever since their kiss. Rhenor didn't mind taking things slow, but the way Kaz reacted to even being hugged by him was odd. He always tensed up and didn't lean into it as much as he used to. Rhenor would have just assumed Kaz wasn't a hugger, but that hadn't been the case before.

It made Rhenor worry that he'd somehow offended Kaz without realizing it, but since Kaz didn't want to approach the issue, Rhen had no idea what he'd done. If anything. He didn't want to let himself become irritated with Kaz for this, but it was getting difficult. And since Kaz didn't seem interesting in explaining himself, Rhenor would likely have to be the one to start this conversation.

Kaz was still his excited, scholarly self, though, which honestly made all of this even stranger. Surely he wouldn't be so peppy if something were bothering him. Rhenor sighed. He would try to get him to explain what was going on once they stopped by an inn.

As they got closer and closer to the city, Rhenor started to notice that no one was paying the two of them any mind. That was appreciated, of course, but it wasn't something he was used to. Everywhere he'd ever gone, there were curious or judgmental people who wanted to know what he wanted. So this was refreshing.

Rhenor would stay cautious, though. He wouldn't let his guard down simply because he wasn't being ogled.

As they stepped into the shadow cast by the city walls, Rhenor noticed that Kaz was looking at them with delight. And despite not being very interested in buildings, Rhenor had to admit that the massive carvings of Hermea and Andor, the gods of life and death, were something to behold.

Andor had his iconic round hourglass in his hands, symbolizing that their lives were constantly running out—which was always incredibly uplifting to think about—while Hermea was holding her spear in front of her.

That had always been a bit odd to Rhenor whenever he thought about it. It was odd in general that the god of life was holding a weapon, but maybe there was some logic to it. He wasn't particularly religious or educated. In fact, he could barely name the seven gods.

Still, something akin to pride swelled in his heart as they walked down the cobbled road, the statues staring them down. The dragons thought themselves above the gods, but they didn't tear their statues down for the most part, so it was nice to see something truly human and so grand as well, untouched and preserved in such a large city.