39

“The twins will be glad to see you, Your Majesty,” Barine said, looking hopeful.
Zemar snorted, “There’s no way of telling. Those men are as unpredictable as the volcanoes they live in.”
“Wait, what? Volcanoes? What twins?” Jason asked. They had been travelling for a few hours on a huge thick block of ice Muna had made (the second of that day). She had somehow also crafted an igloo on the ice so they could all keep warm. Jaye was successfully moving the ice ship towards an unknown destination while Jason sulked in the corner at the way Zemar paid attention to him while he spoke about places and strategies Jason knew nothing about. Jason had literally been given a time out by Zemar when he had stepped on board the first ice ship Muna had made and had, unaware of his newfound strength, broken it into pieces with his foot, effectively soaking Jaye and Barine who were already on board.
“You will have to be careful until Jaye is able to teach you to manage your strength,” Zemar had said sharply, “you could be a danger to yourself and to others. Sit down over there.” She pointed to a corner and Jason had shuffled there with his tail between his legs.
He still sat and sulked in his corner but the mention of volcanoes instantly brought him out of his immature mood.
“The twins, Tao and Tai,” Barine said with a soft smile, “they rule over the Volcanic Marshes just a few hours away. My queen will protect us all from the larva that covers the marshes but that’s not our main issue. I don’t know who we should fear most: the twins or the dragons.”
Jason gulped, “Dragons?” he squeaked. After his brush with the Kraken, he never wanted to meet another mythical creature again. The Kraken lived in water and was horrifying enough but now he had to deal with fire breathing serpents? He could already feel the sweat gathering on his back.
“Calm down,” Zemar said with an eye roll, “there’s a very low chance we will actually meet a dragon. They dwell in the deepest, hottest parts of the marshes and rarely ever leave their cozy cocoons. Except in search of food.” She saw Jason widen his eyes, “They don’t eat people, okay? But Barine is right about Tai and Tao. They have infamous tempers and could roast a person on the spot. Out here, nobody would question them. You’ll be fine though”
Jason nodded but no, he was not okay. Just a few months ago, his biggest life issue was getting Electro back on its feet and now, he was trying not to get devoured by dragons or roasted by angry fire-breathing twins. What exactly was wrong with his life? This was all insane.
His thoughts were taken away from dragons and being burnt alive when he saw Zemar and Jaye slip out of the igloo. He thought of following them but remembered that they had that freakishly good hearing that meant they’d hear him coming a mile away, especially with the fact that his strength meant he’d be walking like Bigfoot. Damn, he really needed to learn to manage this goddamn strength. Gritting his teeth, he leaned back carefully on the wall of the igloo and waited for them to get back from their ‘discussion’.

Jaye placed his hand on Zemar’s shoulder before she walked right into the water in a bid to get away from him.
“What do you want, Jaye?” she asked snappily.
“I want to talk to my mate.”
“Don’t pull that mate card. Your mate is the woman you have a child with.”
“No. You’re my mate and even the queen can’t deny or delete the power of werinam. Thank goodness for that,” Jaye said and then he smirked, “besides, you didn’t seem so unhappy to see me aboard the ship?”
Zemar twirled around to face him so fast, a normal person would’ve gotten whiplash, “You know that was different. I had to know what Erog wanted me to do.”
Jaye smirked even more and stepped closer to her. Surprisingly, she didn’t move away, “Babe, you already knew what Erog would want you to do. We didn’t need to make a connection for you to have that vision. You wanted to be close to me. Just admit it.”
Zemar spoke through gritted teeth, the wind pulling at her long locks, “Why would I ever want to be close to a two-timing loser like you?”
“Two-timing loser, eh? Then explain why you kissed me on the deck of that ship?” Jaye shot.
Zemar didn’t miss a beat, “I was destabilized by the vision I had. I obviously wasn’t thinking clearly.”
“Right,” Jason, said, eyeing her body appreciatively even through her clothing, “but Zemar, you know I’d never cheat on you intentionally.”
“Well, a five-year old child begs to differ,” she folded her arms across her chest, “and stop looking at me like that, you pervert.”
“What?” Jaye asked, cocking a brow, “Queen or not, you’re my woman. I will never be able to explain the situation with Avery but you know very well that werinam would kill me if I cheated on you knowingly. We will find the answers to that but before that, I WILL have you.”
With that, he pulled her close and crashed his lips to hers.