I made notes, sketching out timelines and connections. The pattern was there, but I couldn't quite see it yet. Like the temple symbols, the answer felt just out of reach.
"Time's up," Hadrick shuffled into the riders' archive. "Library closes in fifteen minutes."
Shovia and I packed up quickly. I held Scholar Nivem Mostel's book carefully under one arm, and she carried her notes.
"We need to focus on the danger right now," Shovia said as we walked back through the long corridors. "Warn people away from Morgateth."
"Easier said than done." I looked around to make sure we were alone. "It's not like they post a list of the dragons who'll be there on the Day of Volition."
She thought for a moment. "I'm sure our instructors know."
"Do we trust them enough to ask?"
The question hung between us. Since the rumors about the Elusitor converts had started, trust had become complicated. How many instructors were compromised? How deep did the infiltration go?
"We trust some of them," Shovia said finally. "Commander Ravel, for one. And Saphir, obviously."
"Then we ask one of them."
We found Kailin, Alar, and Morek in the common lounge. Kailin was curled up in a chair, eating cookies from a plate balanced on her knee. She was getting better by the day, with more color in her cheeks. The restorative tonic Healer Morah had prescribed seemed to be working.
"Where have you two been?" Alar asked.
"Library," I said. "We have some new information. Not much, but some."
We settled into chairs, and I explained what we'd found. "The death clusters after battles indicate a pattern. It's like the dragons were eliminating riders who'd seen something or maybe performed poorly under stress."
Kailin was quiet, nibbling on a cookie. "They don't announce which dragons will be at the ceremony. There's no public list."
"So, we focus warnings on Morgateth," Shovia said. "Since we know he's unbonded, there's a good chance he'll be there."
"How do we warn people without revealing why?" Morek asked.
"Spread rumors," I suggested. "We mention the number of riders he's lost. Anyone can find the information in the library. It's not a secret."
"That feels dishonest," Kailin said softly. "Like we're condemning him without knowing the full story."
"Five dead riders is a pretty damning story," Shovia countered.
"Or tragic," Kailin said. "What if he's just unlucky?"
I hadn't considered that perspective. "So, what do you suggest we do?" I asked.
"I suggest we talk to Commander Ravel about it. He has access to more information than we do and can investigate properly."
"He's not been very forthcoming," I said.
Something passed through Kailin's eyes, and I suddenly wondered whether it had been Ravel who hadn't been forthcoming or Kailin. Perhaps he had shared things with her that she had chosen not to share with us, or maybe he'd made her promise to keep them to herself.
"This is above our level," Alar said. "Besides, there are more important considerations now than dragons with suspicious patterns of losing riders."
Shovia leaned back. "If you are referring to the damn Elusitor converts, it's possible that the two are connected."
That was an interesting observation, and I berated myself for not thinking of the connection myself.
28
KAILIN
