💎A Collision of Fates💎 (Straight to Gay) (MxM) (18+)

118 - Nick

Adam turned to him, smiled, and devoured a mouthful of eggs. He swallowed. "You hear that, dad? I was right, for once."

Nick laughed. "You're telling me that, in the north, there are flying lizards that breath fire?" He raised an eyebrow at Rafie.

The Hollinder looked around, confused. "Of course. We have lichfinds up there."

"Dragons, dad! Fucking dragons."

Nick speared a sausage with his fork and took a bite. He leaned back in his chair, pushing himself closer to Breck, leaning into his soulmate. "How big are these things?"

Rafie shrugged. "Some are about as big as this plate," he pointed at the dish he was eating from, "and some are as a large as a house, even bigger. You'll find the biggest ones in the most remote locations, but, well, you don't want to run into one of those."

Chris rubbed his face. "I can't believe there are dragons here, and we're just learning about this now." He turned to Vinton. "Did you know about this?"

Clearly, Vinton was finding this whole conversation hilarious. He could barely suppress his laugh as he responded, "did I know about lichfinds? Yes. Did I think they bared mentioning, given that we never see them down here? No." Vinton chuckled. "Your wonder at this is amazing, Chris."

Mark leaned forwards. "I guess we're staying out of the north, then."

"They're harmless, mostly." Rafie looked at Djaro, they shared a smirk. "Lord Djaro keeps one as a pet, back in Izal."

"No way!" Adam's eyes went wide. He turned to Landel. "Man, we need to visit Paxta."

Landel laughed. "Just to see the lichfind?"

Djaro put his hands out. "You are more than welcome anytime. You would be treated as honoured guests in the city, I would make sure of that."

Landel put an arm over Adam's shoulder, pulled him close. "We may accept that invitation, one day. But I wouldn't want to impose."

"Are we not brothers now?" Prince Djaro asked.

"Brothers?"

"Through adversity! Together, we pushed back The Golden Spire." He lifted his arms up. "I've been here for months, i've come to see this place as home. I want my estate in Izal to feel the same for you."

Landel lifted an eyebrow. "Well, how could we refuse that offer?"

And the conversation went on like that. Nick watched it happen from his soulmate's side. The dining room was bright, the glasses twinkling in the sunlight that was pouring in from above. But, whenever he looked around the table, he couldn't help but notice the obvious absences.

Kullver and Timot weren't there. They had been a solid, constant presence at their meals, and now they were gone, never coming back. It had been two weeks since they had pushed back the cult, but Nick still half-expected them to come walking through the door of the dining room, smiling.

And then there was King Esteck. Since the death of his brother, he had withdrawn completely from the rest of them. He spent all of his time in his room or his office, refusing visitors, working in self-imposed isolation. Landel didn't seem worried about the situation, he had been making all public appearances on behalf of Esteck. But Sesstria needed a king, a strong king. Especially now.

One of the new stewards, a young man with red hair, poured Nick some pomhue juice. "Can I get you anything else, Master Fulton?"

Nick shook his head. "No. Thank you." He looked at his son, who was smiling and laughing, chatting with his friends. "I have everything I need."