Free Dragon Venom (Obsidian Chronicles Book 3) by Lawrence Watt-Evans

he somehow survive the last dragon and the last dragonheart.
    T h a t slavers were intruding on bis land, preying on bis guests, in defiance of the law, was disturbing.
    And they came wearing masks. T h a t damnable fashion had arisen years ago, and Arlian hated it. Its advocates excused it on several grounds, including history—supposedly in the latter days of the old Man-Dragon Wars, those brave men and women w h o resisted the dragons' rule and defied the human servants who oversaw the dragons' empire had sometimes gone masked so that their identities would not be reported to the dragons, and their families would not be harmed in retaliation. T h e present-day masks were alleged to be worn in tribute to those heroes of old, as a reminder that humanity was once again openly at war with its ancient foe.
    Those rebellious forefathers had also used false names to disguise their identities and protect their kin. That custom had survived all the intervening centuries, down to Beron being known to all and sundry as Black, and Arlian's own use of the name Obsidian, but the masks had been cast aside when the dragons retreated to their caves.
    Now the masks were back—but Arlian suspected that this time they were not protecting the dragons' foes, but their allies. Someone who knew the signs could tell a dragonheart from an ordinary mortal merely by a good look at the eyes, the face, the movements—and masks hid the face and eyes, enabling dragonhearts, at least in theory, to move freely among the people of Manfort despite the Duke's edict requiring them to undergo the Aritheian cleansing. Magical disguises known as glamours could accomplish the same thing, but a simple mask was far cheaper, and much easier to maintain.
    Unfortunately, Arlian had, so far, been unable to convince the arbiters of style of the significance of this point. New fads and fashions were notoriously difficult to discourage, and masks, with their air of intrigue and mystery, were simply so much fun for many people that Arlian's protests were as useless as steel against dragonhide.
    The two men rounded the final hut, following the sounds of squeal-ing, and found half a dozen girls chasing each other madly across an area of plowed ground that would probably be someone's vegetable patch in a few weeks.
    "Kerzia!" Black bellowed, in a voice he usually reserved for issuing orders to armed men.
    One of the taller girls stopped dead, and whirled on one foot; another smaller one stumbled, then also stopped and turned, somewhat less abruptly. Then the two of them shrieked in unison, "Daddy!" and began running toward Black.
    Arlian watched silently as the pair jumped the low fence and sprang into their father's waiting arms. He stood, waiting, as they babbled cheerfully and Black listened intently.
    The other girls paused long enough to acknowledge that their play-mates were departing, then continued their game, whooping wildly as they charged around the old ash tree and headed for the gallery-floor street.
    Kerzia, the older girl, finally calmed down enough to notice that her father had not come alone; she stepped back, out of Black's embrace, brushed her pinafore down into position, then essayed a quick curtsy.
    Then she glanced at her father, clearly awaiting an introduction.
    Black threw a smile over his shoulder at Arlian, then said, "My lord Obsidian, allow me to present my daughters. That young lady is Kerzia, my firstborn, and this squirming nuisance here is Amberdine."
    "Daddy!" Amberdine protested, as Kerzia's eyes grew wide.
    "Lord Obsidian," she said, curtsying again. "It is a great honor."
    "It is a pleasure for me, mistress," Arlian said, with a bow. "We have met before, as you may recall."
    "Oh, but it's been years!"
    "Indeed it has. You were not much older then than your sister is now."
    Amberdine had finally realized the situation and untangled herself to stand beside her sister. "Have we met, my lord?" she asked.
    "We last spoke when you were not yet