The guard took his leave, mounted up, and left with the other dracons, heading back to Hekaga. They left behind no extra message for the kobolds, no tricks, no traps, and no unpleasant surprises. The stones were of perfectly good quality, nothing exceptional. Simple, utilitarian stones for building any number of structures. The amount left behind was not enough to build a grand temple or a long circuit of walls, but it was sufficient for a single structure of some size, or maybe some smaller structures of a more modest scale. For a city so steeped in intrigue and deception, an act as simple as moving cartloads of stone with no strings attached was very unusual for Hekaga.

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Kali leaned into Kutur's face, savoring the sensation of his snout on her's. On some level, she knew fully well that this tender moment could be disrupted at just about any time, so she resolved to enjoy it while she still could. She wrapped her arms around him and used the claws of her right hand to gently scratch his back, moving her fingers around in little circles out of instinct. It was a way of attracting a mate, making him feel good to encourage him to stay and keep up whatever it is that he was doing. It was a nonverbal way of saying "I like you" to Kutur.