44
SAPHIR
"Knowledge can be learned. Endurance can be built. Flight can be mastered. But purity of soul and the ability to open one's mind to a dragon's voice are either there or not.
Before they are presented to my dragons, they must first stand before me."
—Nyxath, Queen of Dragons
The roof of the Citadel had witnessed countless ceremonies over the centuries—bondings, promotions, and memorials for the fallen. This evening, it served a more intimate purpose.
Two chairs faced each other beneath the dancing auroras, with nothing else to distract from the gravity of what was about to occur. No tables, no refreshments, no ceremonial trappings. Just the open sky, the distant mountains, and the vast presenceof Nyxath, who had settled her large body beside me, her scales shimmering with reflected light.
Moki sat on my shoulder, uncharacteristically subdued.
Twenty-six cadets had passed the endurance and flight tests. They would all stand before dragons tomorrow and offer themselves for bonding. Twenty-six was more than usual but still not enough. We had more dragons in need of riders than riders in need of dragons, but that didn't mean that we could allow cadets who didn't earn the right to ascend to the Day of Volition.
I saved my favorite five for last for purely selfish reasons. I knew that they would all do spectacularly well on the interview, and I wanted to end the day on a positive note.
The other interviews had gone smoothly enough. Nervous cadets, earnest answers, the usual mixture of ambition and fear that marked this stage of their training. Nyxath had probed their minds a little more intrusively than in previous occasions, digging deeper to make sure that there were no signs of Elusitor's rot in them and that they were well suited for the bond.
Most would find partners tomorrow. A few might not. The choosing was personal, like choosing a mate, and the process couldn't be reduced to a simple list of attributes.
It was a mystical connection that either snapped into place or did not.
When only the five remained, I asked for Kailin to be brought up first. The interviews were conducted in private, with the cadets awaiting their turn on the floor directly below the roof.
"Shaman Saphir." She inclined her head respectfully to me and then to Nyxath. "Your Majesty."
"Hello, Kailin," Nyxath said. "Congratulations on reaching this milestone. I never doubted that you would, but some tried very hard to prevent you from getting here."
"Thank you." Kailin inclined her head again. "I owe my life to my friends and to Commander Ravel. If not for them, I might not be here today."
"Elu guarded you," I said and motioned for the chair. "Please, sit down."
Kailin sat, her hands folded in her lap. The bruises on her throat had faded to faint shadows, barely visible in the dim light. But I remembered how dark they had been just days ago, the finger marks of a man who had tried to choke the life out of her. I was glad that Alar had killed him, but I had no doubt that the young prince was carrying the scars of taking his first life.
He had done it to protect the woman he loved, and he should be proud of himself for that, but even I, who had lived for over a millennium, still remembered my first kill. I'd forgotten the number of Shedun I'd sent to the deepest of the seven hells, but that first one had stayed with me.
"Little Warrior,"Nyxath said. "That is the nickname Onyx gave you, but perhaps Little Shaman is more fitting, or Little Dreamer."
Kailin smiled. "I should object to being called little anything, but I don't mind. Maybe I will when I get older and more full of myself."
Nyxath chuffed in amusement. "I doubt you will ever get full of yourself. You are modest to a fault. I like that about you, but you should work on projecting more confidence.Riders are inherently an arrogant bunch, and to lead them, you need to develop some of that yourself."
Kailin nodded. "I have been getting better at it lately, and poor Alar bore the brunt of it. But I figured that he should get used to the new me sooner rather than later. I'm not the same girl he met at the Pilgrim's Lodge all those months before."
"No, you are not," I said. "Tell me what you fear most about tomorrow."
I watched Kailin's expression shift as she wrestled with the question.
"My gift will be a burden to the dragon who chooses me," she said. "I will need to draw on their strength to replenish what the prophetic dreams take out of me."
"The bond will strengthen you," Nyxath said. "But it will also amplify what you already are. Your dreams may become more vivid, your visions more demanding. Are you prepared for that?"
"I don't think anyone can be prepared for something they've never experienced." Kailin met Nyxath's golden eyes steadily. "But I'm willing to do whatever it takes to protect Elucia."
Nyxath was silent for a long moment, and I felt her mind working, assessing, weighing factors I could not perceive through our bond.
