“Not necessarily, but most of the time I feel the magic as it’s being absorbed so at least I know where I encountered the power. Especially if I absorb it by accident.”
Azh studied his companion with a sudden burst of curiosity. He’d logically accepted that Wynn could absorb magic, but he hadn’t considered the finer details of what that meant. Including the danger of being consumed by a magic she couldn’t control.
“Does that happen very often?”
She made a face, as if recalling more than one unfortunate incident. “It did in the beginning, but I’ve developed shields to help avoid most unpleasant surprises.”
Azh’s gaze slid downward. That explained the heavy coat she wore despite the smothering heat in the cramped room. As he’d suspected, it was layered with spells of protection.
“But the dragon magic slipped past your defenses?” he asked.
“It must have.”
It made sense. Dragon magic wasn’t intended to be used by any other creature. Why should she be able to sense it?
Still, it was strange that she’d been able to absorb the power if she couldn’t use it.
“How did you first notice the magic?” he asked.
“The strand just appeared one day.” She pressed a hand against her stomach, as if she wanted to yank it out. “It was weird, but I ignored it.”
“You ignored a mysterious magic that appeared inside you?”
“I ignore a lot of stuff. There’s been too many strange things happening for the past two centuries to get worked up about everything.It wasn’t until it started to expand and interfere with my other magic that I really noticed it. And then the nightmares started.”
“The nightmares must have something to do with the corruption,” Azh murmured.
“How?”
A good question. If she were a regular mage he would assume she had the power to tap into dreams, but he suspected her nightmares were a direct result of her brush with dragon magic.
“Maybe the dreams are trying to warn you. Are there any specific details you can remember?”
She shivered. “The glowing eyes.”
“Beyond the glowing eyes.”
There was a long pause, as if Wynn was afraid to speak the nightmares out loud.
“They’re always the same,” she eventually said. “I’m walking through the streets of London and I notice some demons walking toward me. As they get closer I can see the putrid green light in their eyes. I know they’re infected with some sort of evil and that I can’t let them touch me.”
“Do you recognize the demons?”
She nodded. “Axton and his clan of goblins. They own a shop in Covent Garden. Or at least they did. I haven’t been there in decades.”
“It’s a place to start,” he abruptly decided.
Wynn looked confused. “Even if Axton has something to do with the corruption, how does it help to locate the dragon statue?”
Azh waved aside an inconvenient question. As a dragon he understood that patience was a virtue. How else could he endure endless eons of hibernation? But right now, the need to protect Wynn was vibrating through him with a painful intensity.
They had to figure out how to close the rift before the toxic magic could flood this world.
“Is it better to stay here and chase rumors?” he demanded.
She wrapped her arms around her waist, her eyes darkening with a sudden weariness.
“Right now I just want to find a dark hole and disappear for a few years.”
