Nothing. This is our burden to bear.Ksatka turns her massive head toward the other dragons.We seven will dive to meet the wave and release our venom into the poisoned water. It will neutralize what my mate has done. The water that comes will destroy but it will not poison. Your lands will heal. Your people can rebuild.
No!Kiiska cries out, swimming frantically toward her mother.Don’t leave me, Mother. I’m scared.
And then I understand. Dragon venom is not endless. It is drawn from deep glands near the heart. To purge an ocean of corruption would mean emptying themselves completely. They are not simply diving into the wave.
It is a sacrifice.
Ksatka and the others are going to die.
Be brave, my daughter,Ksatka says gently.You are stronger than you know.
The young male dragon’s frightened voice enters our minds as he stares at a pair of seadragons behind Ksatka.Mother, Father, you can’t—
Kae’ko,the emerald male dragon says gently.We must.
“How long?” Rainer asks, looking the seadragon straight in the eyes. “How long until the wave arrives?”
Soon,Ksatka answers.The deep singers work fast when they work together.
“Please, don’t do this,” Rhianelle says, her voice breaking. “We’ll find another solution—“
There is no other way.Ksatka’s voice is firm.I can feel the surge approaching.
I pull Rhianelle close, feeling her tremble against me.
Kiiska’s voice breaks into sobs of wordless grief. She tries to swim toward her mother but the young male clamps his teeth gently but firmly around her neck, holding her back.
Let me go! Kiiska struggles. Mother, please! Don’t leave me!
The young dragon thrashes, words tumbling over each other in a language I don’t understand.
Ksatka silences her with a gentle touch of her massive snout to Kiiska’s head.
You will live, my daughter. You will remember that hatred is not the way.
The crowd has gone silent. Everyone watching this ancient creature choose to die for people who have been her enemies for millennia.
Kae’ko,Ksatka addresses the young male dragon.Care for my daughter. Do not let her follow us.
I swear it,Kae’ko responds, his voice shaking but determined.
Good.The great dragon begins to turn away, her body creating currents that rock our ships. The other six dragons move with her.
Tears stream from Rhianelle’s eyes. “I’m so sorry.”
Ksatka pauses, looking back over her shoulder.When this is over, if your kingdom survives, remember that not all dragons chose destruction today.
Rainer steps forward, drawing his sword. For a moment I tense but he doesn’t raise it in threat. Instead, he slams the blade point-first into the wet sand and drops to one knee. He bows his head in the deepest gesture of respect I’ve ever seen from him.
“We will never forget this,” he declares solemnly. “I swear it on my life, on my blood, on everything I am. Völundr will remember.”
The gesture spreads through the gathered crowd. Warriors and knights follow his lead. Swords slam into sand and wood, heads lowered in respect. Even the common folk on the shore kneel.
Thousands of people, bowing to a dragon who chose mercy over vengeance.
Ksatka’s massive head dips slightly in acknowledgment. Then her form slips beneath the waves, disappearing into depths too dark for mortal eyes to follow. The six other dragons follow. The water closes over them as if they were never there.
Kiiska lets out a howl that is pure grief, raw and terrible.
