Hunted Sorcery (Jon Oklar Book 2), B.T. Narro [digital book reader txt] 📗

next morning, but all in all, I didn’t feel too bad. Today would be Cason’s execution, but first I had to fetch the krepps from the docks.

I looked forward to Cason’s death. I knew it was a gruesome thought, but I was furious with Cason. He had killed Calvin along with many others, and he continued to be a threat as long as he drew breath.

Although the thought of his execution never fully left my mind, I was curious to see the kreppen ship. I wanted to find out how it might differ from our ships.

I was a little disappointed when I arrived at the docks as the creatures disembarked from a vessel that seemed no different than the type of large ship I had seen before.

Grufaeragar was the only krepp I’d ever come in contact with. I would hate to misidentify him as one of the other krepps, or worse, not identify Grufaeragar at all, but there were a few who looked just like I remembered him to look.

“Jon!” shouted one of larger krepps as he barreled toward me.

I was relieved at first, but then I was filled with fear as he didn’t slow down. I flinched as he picked me up with incredible strength, throwing me into the air.

Fortunately I had practice being tossed around, so I landed on my feet. I tried to put on a smile through my fear.

“It’s good to see you, Grufaeragar.”

His scaly face resembled that of a lizard, just like the rest of the krepps, but Grufaeragar was as bald as a rock. There were a few females among the group of male krepps, all with black hair that fell to their shoulders. Some of the male krepps had black hair as well, but there was more variety to the way they wore it. Most of them had a clump of loose hair that looked like silly little wigs, as if the lizard creatures were trying to pose as men. The hair of others looked a little more natural to me, just thick enough to stand up as it covered their lizard head.

The female krepps were smaller but still large, most likely outweighing me even though my eye level was higher than theirs. They stood with a hunch, like the males, and their two legs were bent slightly in what seemed to be a relaxed position.

There were different tints to their golden lizard eyes, all with a black line down the middle. Some were bordering on orange, while others were closer to red. Some were brighter, others more dull. Grufaeragar’s were some of the brightest.

They all sported leather clothing, though Grufaeragar was shirtless, his bulging muscles in clear view. Most of the outfits chosen by these creatures showed a lot of skin, including the women krepps. They all had old leather shirts, some brown but most black. Most of the material looked sturdy enough to stop an unsharpened knife. They covered their chests, where subtle curves were evident. The muscle tone of these females made them appear nearly as formidable as the larger males, especially with the sharp claws at the ends of their five fingers and five toes on each hand and foot.

“We get human ship,” Grufaeragar told me as he pointed at the large vessel.

Oh, so this isn’t a kreppen ship.

“Very fast,” he continued. “Humans build well. Weak but smart. Like woman krepp.” Then he pointed at one of the females, who was talking with another. “She is my mate. Shorila. Sha, sha, Shorila!”

The female approached with a big-mouthed smile that might’ve looked friendly if it wasn’t for her sharp teeth.

“Shorila knows common tongue almost good for me,” Grufaeragar said. “We are best!”

I offered my hand to Shorila. “Nice to meet you.”

“Nice, yes. Meet you, yes.” She shook my hand with a firm grip, her claws lightly digging into my skin.

“I’m Jon,” I said.

“Jon, yes.”

“Was it a hard trip on the boat?” I asked.

“Hard trip, yes. On boat, yes.”

“Her common tongue very good!” Grufaeragar said proudly. “Most pretty and most smart krepp! Mine!”

Her accent was a little bit better than his but still prevalent. Like Grufaeragar, she spoke mostly from her stomach. If my ears were paper and the words of these krepps were quills for writing, it felt like they would poke holes rather than scribble anything down.

I wasn’t so sure her common tongue was actually that good, however. She wore the same constant smile as if she might not understand anything we said.

As long as Grufaeragar understood me, I was sure he would explain everything to the rest of them. But before I told him about the execution, I needed to know a few things.

A number of city guards stood around the group loosely, trying not to look aggressive, no doubt. The krepps seemed fascinated with the small buildings around, as they chattered in their deep tongue.

“Do the rest of the krepps know any common tongue?” I asked.

“Some,” Grufaeragar answered.

“Some, yes,” his mate mimicked.

I didn’t know if that meant some of them knew a little or they all knew some. Time was against us, though. On to other matters.

“Do you remember the dark mages from the last time you were here?” I asked.

“I remember. Cheap magic. Try kill me but lose.” He thumped his chest with his fist.

“Yes, lose!” Shorila echoed.

“We have been fighting them since you left,” I said. “We captured one of their leaders. Today we are going to execute him.”

Grufaeragar looked confused, while his mate continued to smile.

“Execute,” I explained. “We are going to announce his crimes and remove his head with an ax.”

“We watch!” Grufaeragar said with enthusiasm.

“Yes, watch!” Shorila echoed.

“It’s going to happen soon,” I explained. “But there is some concern that dark mages might try to rescue him. I can explain the rest as we go to the castle. Did you bring goods for trading?”

“Good trade?” Grufaeragar asked.

“Things,” I specified. “Did you bring things to trade with us?”

“Yes, things.” Shorila answered for Grufaeragar, making me wonder if she did in fact understand after