“The dragon. Vadoma said you were an expert in it.”
He hesitated. Barely, but it was there. “Expert might be… a misnomer.”
“Really,” I said. “Shocking.”
“I don’t know that anyone could be considered an expert in dragons. We can’t exactly talk to them.”
“Hi,” I said, pointing up at Kevin. “Remember me? I can talk to dragons. And because of me, they can talk to everyone else. What does it look like?”
“Serpentine,” he said. “Long and thin. The scales are hardened and the color of fire. The wings on its back are small, but they’re useful when it dives from the air and into the sand, burrowing deep into the earth below. It has razor-sharp spikes that line its back that can flex if attacked from above. It does not have legs, but it moves quickly, especially on top of the sands. Its given name is Jekhipe. It means ‘oneness.’ Because it is one with the desert.”
I paled as I swallowed thickly. “So. What you just described sounds like a gigantic flying snake.”
“Exactly.”
“I don’t like gigantic flying snakes. Or, really, any snakes at all.”
“Ah. Well. Hopefully, you’ll get over that shortly. I’ve always heard that to conquer a fear, you have to immerse yourself in it.”
“That sounds like a terrible idea,” I said. “Why would anyone do that?”
“Because they choose to. You, on the other hand, do not have a choice.”
Godsdammit. “When was the last time you saw it?”
Ruv’s brow furrowed. “Saw… it? What do you mean?”
That didn’t sound good. “When did you last lay eyes on it?”
“Oh! I understand now. The answer is never. I’ve never seen it.”
I stopped walking. “What.”
Ruv looked back at me, confused. “No one has seen the dragon in many, many years.”
“Then how do you know what it looks like?”
“Drawings,” he said, as if I were stupid.
“Drawings,” I repeated. “And how do you know where it is?”
He laughed. “Everyone in the desert knows where the dragon sleeps. You’ll see as soon as we get there.”
“That… sounds worrying.”
“A little.”
“You do realize this doesn’t make you an expert on the dragon. In fact, you’re the furthest thing from an expert there is.”
“I didn’t call me an expert.”
“Vadoma did,” I pointed out.
He shrugged. “She is the phuro. She can say what she pleases.”
“Do you think he’ll like me?” Kevin asked. “Jekhipe. Which, honestly. What a terrible name.”
I looked up at him to find him looking nervously off in the distance. “Why wouldn’t he?”