Legend of Kataria | Outcasts Book #1 (NEW VERSION)

Chapter 7

Waves rolled, scattering sand across the rocky shore and tossing salt to the breeze. Boots crunched against the shifting tides and his huffs were not missed amongst the wailing of the gulls. Heat pulsed through his veins, flooding his hands with resentful fire as he came across his opponent standing along the shoreline, hands held rigidly behind his back and auburn hair rustling in the breeze.

The man did not look his way but his body responded to the subtle threat and an arm drew out from beneath a tattered cloak--a gesture appearing harmless to most but one that he almost instinctively knew to be dangerous. 

Pebbles flung themselves from the sand and Greeny yelped. An arm flew up to shield his face from the pellets but it had been no action of his--nor was it his hand--that had blocked the impact.

"You should not have come here tonight."

Greeny stopped at this, stunned by the coldness of the tone. He opened his mouth to ask what that meant and who this guy parading around in an anime costume was supposed to be, but instead of his question, words came out that he had never envisioned and a voice that certainly did not belong to him.

"You gave me no choice, Zarron. You threatened my kingdom and that means you threatened me."

The man sneered and the assault ended, the remaining rocks clattering back into the waves. "How is your son, Morto? And your daughter as well, I suppose? It seems congratulations are in order. Rumors are that they are both extraordinarily gifted children, brimming with their father's special magic. I wonder, who was it who gave them that gift?"

Morto? As in King Morto? Wait, why did this dude think he was the ruler of Griffion? Couldn't he see that he was just an adolescent with no recollection of how he had gotten here...or where here even was?

"Wait!" he tried to protest. "Who are you? What is going on here?"

But once again, instead of the words he wanted to say, a sharp retort of fury shot from his lips. "Cretic!" he spat and the man--Zarron's--face instantly grew dark. "If you even think about hurting either one of my children, I swear on the resolve of my entire species, I will never stop hunting you and there will be nowhere in this universe where you will be safe!"

Zarron laughed, but there was little amusement in his cruel smile and his emerald eyes were colder than ice. "Well, I suppose I'd better start running then."

"Blake, rise and shine! Up and about sleepy head, breakfast is in five minutes!"

The din of the alarm clock was greatly overshadowed by the cheery call and bellowing laughter from the dining room. The sizzle of bacon filled the house, stirring Greeny from his uneasy slumber. Jostled awake by this and the sudden jolt of his nightmare, he sat up quickly, drenched in sweat and breathing as though he had just completed a marathon only to decide to sprint across the city as an added bonus. 

Already awake, the constant ringing of the phone proved only a continued annoyance and he quickly lunged to shut it off, missing the mobile and knocking his glasses from the nightstand. The clatter drew Greeny out of the resting snares of his dream and he groaned, reluctantly throwing back his quilt to lean over in search of his lenses. 

What had he been dreaming about, anyway? He'd...he'd been on the beach, but...who he had been...hadn't been him. Why on Griffion was he dreaming about the king in the first place? He sighed, running a hand down his face wearily. It had to have been because of all of Leah's talk of rebellion and corruption that had done him in. It hadn't sat right with him, some of the things she had said, and he didn't like that.