Almost. That hollowness ate any joy she might’ve felt, as if the numbness needed it to stay alive.
She shifted her gaze to Drystan. “Thank you for staying with him.”
The glimmer of humor in his golden eyes faded as he nodded. “I don’t think I’d leave even if you asked me to, but you’re welcome, nevertheless.” He glanced out the window again, the whooshes of great wings growing louder. “Now go, seriously. Rulene wouldn’t have come here if it weren’t important; she knew you needed time.”
“Who’s the other one?” Trefor blurted. Mariah blinked at him, and he nodded out the window at the approaching dragons. “The light-blue one is Rulene; we know that. But what about the other?”
Mariah again turned to stare out the window. The dragons were almost to Amasis’serekah, and she could now clearly see the colors of Rulene’s companion.
Scales that were black from a distance were now a deep, rich indigo. Wings and horns shimmered like the void of a starless night. The gentle darkness that settled between the stars, empty spaces that somehow also felt so full.
Ciana appeared by her side, giving Mariah a knowing look. “Delaynie and I know.”
Mariah cut her a sharp glance. “How?”
Ciana grinned. “Time to meet another god, Mariah.”
Winds and sandsbuffeted their faces, stirred up by great wings. Mariah shielded her eyes against the worst of it and squinted into the bright sun.
Her court surrounded her in a ring as the two dragons—gods—landed in the open space outside theserekah. The earth shook with the thud of their clawed feet, the rustle of their wings, the brush of their long tails across the sands.
They were massive. In the week that had passed Mariah had forgotten how daunting the dragons truly were. Easily over fifty feet long, and even with their necks and wings lowered they were at least twenty feet tall. Just one of Rulene’s teeth, visible as she settled into the sands, was longer than Mariah’s forearm.
Mariah had taken on a form that size. She remembered it, so vividly, even when she didn’t want to. How the world had fallen away into something miniscule and inconsequential, how power and strength had coursed through her limbs, flames burning in her belly and crawling up her throat.
So much strength, and it still hadn’t been enough to save those she loved.
Rulene swung her cerulean head to Mariah, fixing her with that yellow-gold stare.
“Well met, Mariah.” The goddess spoke into her mind, the sound reverberating wildly off her skull as if seeking a magical tether that couldn’t be found. Mariah choked back her grimace and answered aloud into the warm air.
“Well met, Rulene.” She suspected the dragons would be able to hear her thoughts, if she could still hear them. But the thought of inviting them in… She shivered. Not yet. She dipped her head once before her eyes darted to the left of Rulene.
To the great indigo dragon beside her, whose depthless, star-filled eyes watched Mariah with interest.
“It is an honor to meet you, Mariah.” The dark dragon’s voice—rich and warm and undoubtedly male—rumbled into her mind. There was something soft about it, something kind, that made a part of Mariah relax.
“Nice to meet you, too,” Mariah said slowly, her words muted yet curious.
“My Consort has told me much about you,” he said with a chuff of amusement. “It was my honor to send my priestess to aid you and to carry your court here to safety.”
Realization struck Mariah like the blow of a hammer. “You’re Callamus. God of the Night Sky and Secrets.”
The dragon—Callamus—nodded his great head. “There is one other I have brought who wishes to see you.”
Callamus lowered his body to the sands. He dipped to the side, a small figure rose to her feet in the space between his wings. She slid down his indigo scales, black hair blowing slightly in the desert breeze as she landed at her god’s feet.
Signe, the cunning and mysterious priestess who had first told Mariah of the gods all those months ago in Verith’s library, met Mariah’s gaze. “It’s nice to see you again, Your Majesty.”
Mariah stilled for a breath before her feet moved, carrying her across the packed sands. Signe wore a soft grin, hesitant mischief and knowing regret etched across her face.
Mariah extended her hand, and the priestess clasped it in her own.
“Thank you,” Mariah said softly. “Thank you.” She turned her eyes up, back to Callamus’s starry gaze. “Thank you.”
Thank you for going to Verith. Thank you for saving my friends. Thank you for helping me when I don’t deserve it.
All the frayed lines in Mariah’s mind had connected, all the missing pieces she hadn’t found slipping into place.Thatwas where Signe had been headed after meeting them in the inn along Xara’s Road. With whatever foresight she possessed, she’d been on her way to Verith. To warn Mariah’s friends, to get them out of the palace, to do what she could. She couldn’t tell Mariah that at the inn, likely for fear of too many listening ears and watchful eyes. But she’d gone anyway.
