I took it reverently and opened to the first page, then kept flipping through. Hundreds of symbols had been meticulously sketched, cataloged, organized, and analyzed.
"This is incredible." This was a treasure trove.
"Scholar Mostel spent forty years documenting every symbol found in temple ruins across Elucia." Hadrick smiled at my expression. "He postulated that they weren't decorations but a language. Despite there being hundreds of unique symbols, which is too many for a simple alphabet, he believed that they were a combination of syllabic elements, syllables, and proper names."
That would explain the complexity and the variations I'd noticed. "Can I borrow this?"
Hadrick hesitated. "It's the only copy, which makes it invaluable."
"Please. I'll take excellent care of it. One week should give me enough time to copy the relevant sections."
He smirked. "One week of no sleep, you mean."
"Probably."
Hadrick laughed. "Very well. One week. But if anything happens to it, you'll answer to me."
"Thank you!"
I carried the book like it was made of glass, heading back to find Shovia. She was surrounded by open journals, making notes in her notebook.
"Look what I found," I said, setting the priceless scholarly work on the table.
She glanced up. "I should have known that you had an ulterior motive for volunteering to come to the library with me."
"Guilty," I admitted. "But it only took a few minutes, and Hadrick let me borrow the book. I'm at your service now. What did you find?"
She pushed her notes toward me.
I sat beside her and examined them. Three different dragon names, cross-referenced with rider deaths spanning decades.
"Vyrassin," she said, pointing. "Captain Odinah's dragon. Five previous riders have all died under questionable circumstances. But Odinah's survived twelve years bonded to him."
"We knew that already."
She glared at me. "I repeated it in case you had forgotten."
"I never forget anything."
"Right." She moved to the next entry. "Morgateth. Three riders. The last one died eight years ago, and Morgateth has not bonded another rider since, so he might attend the Day of Volition."
"I know that as well."
"Show-off," she muttered. "Ixilthar and Syltharion are the other two with suspicious patterns, but the most recent entries don't specify who they are bonded with, and Ravel refuses to tell Kailin who their riders are, which I find suspicious."
"There is nothing suspicious about it. He said that he didn't want us poking our noses where they didn't belong, and we are not going to find out about that in the dead riders' journals. Their riders are still alive."
"I know." She pushed the journals toward me. "But you might find something. You're good at detecting patterns. In the meantime, I'll take a look at your symbol book."
"Be careful." I reluctantly pushed the book toward her. "It's one of a kind, and Hadrick will kill me if anything happens to it."
"Don't worry," she said, flipping through the pages. "I know how to handle old books."
I wasn't sure she did, but I'd promised her I'd help with the investigation, so I dove into the rider journals, cross-referencing them with the death records.
The deaths clustered. Not random across years but grouped together—two or three within months of each other. Like something triggered multiple incidents simultaneously.
Major battles? I cross-referenced dates. Several clusters had occurred after significant engagements with Shedun forces. But others hadn't.
