“I’m thinking theHall of the Forgottenmight be a good place to begin. Everything else of my father’s has been found there. We could get lucky.”
Thoughtful, the chief nodded. “The scroll depicting the drawings and measurements of his ring were there. If we can’t find it, perhaps we might at least discover a clue.”
“Braxton,” Mom called before I could step out of the bungalow with the others, and my gaze found her half lifting from the bed. “Talk to the Truth Teller. Find her. She could tell you where the crown lies, or, if nothing else, she might guide you on how to defeat the Warlock King.”
7
Night gave way to morning in Caelisium during our visit to theLake of Tranquility, and the first rays of the wakening sun were now painting the horizon. Gleaming oranges and yellows broke through the otherwise purple sky while Evie dozed off in my arms, under the soothing sway of Tharion’s flight back to our Hidden Kingdom.
The last few days felt like the longest I’d ever lived, and rest had been scarce for most of us… I couldn’t explain why, but something told me the days to come were not going to get any easier.
Cradling Evie fully on my lap, I noticed Kingston move closer to me while Imogen retired to her thoughts behind us. Something seemed to be troubling her about our conversation with my mother, so I made a mental note to ask her about it later—though I doubted she was the kind of person to hold things in for long.
The chief looked at me like there were a million things he wanted to say but wasn’t sure how to begin.
“Chief, I still owe you that talk,” I began, believing that to be the reason tension captured his shoulders and features as he crouched beside me.
A sliver of appreciation entered his gaze when he took in the shielding way in which I embraced the woman who’d been his charge for so many years. A breath left him once he nodded, but it was more of a dismissing gesture, like that was the last thing on his mind.
“Will you follow the princess’ advice to seek the Truth Teller?”
Oh, he was worried about that? “Of course, Chief. Do you know where we can find her?”
“Once we get to the palace, youwillrest,” he answered instead, the authority in his voice leaving no room for discussion. “We shall look to your commander afterwards and ask his permission. If he agrees, we will embark towards the Icelands right away.”
Caught off guard, it took me a second to decipher his words. My commander, as in Asher. The Icelands…but what the heck did he mean by Asher’s permission? Was he my guardian now, like Kingston was to Evie? Did he mean I needed my guardian’s consent to embark on that trip? Was going there so dangerous?
It seemed silly for that to be his meaning, but I had no chance to ask for an explanation. Kingston stood and began to return to Imogen’s side on Tharion’s back, except he never made it there.
“Look!” Imogen called, a finger pointing to something in the distance that moved towards us way too quickly for my liking.
“Is that fire?” Evie asked, waking up alert after Imogen’s shout.
No. It wasn't fire. Yet, the red form “shooting” in our direction like a cannonball might as well have been. A giant, swirling mass of raging fire.
“Hold on!” I shouted when Tharion tried to swerve out of the new Dragon’s way, but it flew too fast for him to react in time. Way too fucking fast.
How was that even possible?
“Ardor, stop!”Tharion ordered through the connection.
My essence came to life then, and what I felt from the Dragon left me speechless. A thrilling wave of emotion crashed into me, happiness bursting when we connected.
This wasn’t an attack.
It was an over-excited welcome.
Ardor collided with Tharion’s side, sending us in a downward tumble through the sky. Evanna slipped from my grasp, rolling down Tharion’s back before bouncing off him, along with Imogen and Kingston, while Tharion desperately tried to stop his spinning.
“Evie!” I shouted, thrown off him altogether, and plummeting through the air. Shock and fear gripped my very soul… They were falling to their deaths.
A rope of golden light suddenly burst from my hand, shooting straight for them with an unspoken command. Horror struck me briefly with the memory of Raithian’s green rope tightening on Evie’s neck, but mine wrapped around her torso instead, continuing to capture Kingston and Imogen too.
The magic cord abruptly snapped off my hand of its own volition, and I lost sight of them when my body shifted in the air. My gaze found the red ball of fire rushing towards me when my perspective changed.
She moved faster than it should be possible for a Dragon. ForanyDragon.
Recognition hit me swiftly, and I bent my knees just as she reached me, dropping and rolling over her back mid-fall.
