Sinister Magic: An Urban Fantasy Dragon Series (Death Before Dragons #1) - Lindsay Buroker Page 0,63
he found it, went down, and got stuck like I did.
I will check.
“I can verify that the formula that existed in this vial is what the sigil says it should be.” Zoltan pointed at the open book. “I can also verify that a drop of the alchemist’s blood was used in the making, per the recipe. There are two types of DNA present in the sample.”
It was strange hearing a long-dead vampire talking about DNA. “Whose?” was all I asked.
“One belongs to a kraken, the other to a dark elf.”
“A kraken? Where does one find kraken blood, and aren’t krakens poisonous?”
“Venomous and very much so, yes. But not their blood. Their venom comes from their bite, from a venom gland in their mouths, the same as with a squid. Kraken venom is an excellent ingredient to work with. But exceedingly rare. If you come by any, do let me know. I will purchase it at market rate plus ten percent.”
My only familiarity with krakens came from mythology, so this notion that they not only existed but had a market rate was disturbing.
“Kraken blood also cannot be ordered online. It’s likely one has taken up residence nearby, and the blood was collected fresh.” Zoltan stepped away from the microscope.
“I hear Lake Washington is nice. All those fat harbor seals down by the Arboretum to munch on.”
He nodded. “A possible location, or out in Puget Sound. They traditionally prefer deep-sea waters to tumultuous surface waters, and saltwater to fresh, but they can exist for periods of time in fresh water.”
“Thank you for looking up the formula. Is there an antidote? And you said only one person around could have made it. Who?”
“A reversal of the formula could be constructed, something that would essentially clean out the residue in the afflicted person’s system. After that, you would also need a long-acting healing elixir to reverse the cellular damage. I could not guarantee that would be effective. If the disease is far along, it would be too late. One could make the elixir more potent with a drop of the victim’s blood.”
A return visit to the hospital, check.
“And to make the reversal formula, it would require the blood of the same kraken and of the dark-elf alchemist who made it.”
Ugh, I would need more than a visit to the hospital to find those.
“You would also need a highly trained and exceptional alchemist willing to create all this for you.” He smiled.
“Any chance that’s you? Or am I going to have to find this dark-elf alchemist—does he have a name?—and force him to do it at gunpoint?”
“I wouldn’t trust any formula that was made under duress. As to if I can do it, I am capable, but I would not wish to incur the wrath of the dark-elf clan living in the area. My simple home would be easy for them to breach, and I could not fight off many of their mages. Their magic is very strong.”
An entire clan? Great.
“But I would possibly risk their wrath if the price were right and if the alchemist—Synaru-van is her name—never learned of my involvement.”
“What’s your price?” My skin crawled as I imagined him demanding my blood—or for me to bring some of his followers here so he could enjoy their blood.
“You have lingering about you the aura of a dragon.”
The unexpected statement startled me. “He left his aura on me? Nasty.”
“Many of my ancient formulas require a drop of dragon blood. This has been hard to come by. For the longest time, there were no dragons left on Earth, not even as visitors. It seems that has changed.” He beamed his smile at me, not at my neck this time but at me. Or maybe at that crusty dragon aura lingering about me.
I vowed to take a bath later and scrub with my loofah and that high-powered pumice hand-cleaner that mechanics liked. I used it whenever I got an assignment’s blood on me, and I would slather myself from head-to-toe to get a dragon aura off.
“To sum up,” Zoltan said, “I will create both the reversal formula and the healing elixir for you, but I require a drop of Synaru-van’s blood, a drop of the blood of the kraken that she used, and, for my own payment, a vial of dragon blood.”
“A vial? Not just a drop?”
“I have many formulas that require a drop of dragon blood. Thus I need many drops.” He rubbed his cold hands together with hot glee.