“Well, it means the magic is spent, right? That gemstone is now a bunch of gold. But we were hoping we could borrow some of that gold—whoa!” I stumbled back as the dragon’s head soared toward me.
Tormund grabbed my arm and threw me behind him. He bent his knees and raised his fists, clearly planning to fight dragonfire with his bare hands. Fondness bloomed in my gut, despite the fear raging inside me.
“Stay back,” he warned the dragon.
The dragon’s head swooped closer, but then careened to the side. She poked her snout against the beet sugar bags and sniffed. A smile crept across my face.
“Ah, you’ve discovered our offering. In exchange for some of your treasure, we’ll give you some moss cakes. We’ll have to bake them here, of course, since all our heat is gone in Steingard. I figured we could use your flames?” Some scrabbling sounded behind me. “Oh, and I’m afraid we’ll have to share some with these spiders here.”
The dragon narrowed her eyes.
“If you like them, I will promise to bring you more,” I said quickly. “A steady supply. For years to come. All I need is…five mine carts’ worth of gold.”
“And that gem, please?” Tormund pointed to a gem the color of diamonds, though there was something distinctlynot-diamond about it. I cocked my head at him in question. He swallowed thickly. “That magic you feel coming off that stone? It’s the same kind that caused Tahir’s illness. I think it might be able to undo it, too.”
My heart surged, and I turned back to the dragon. “Did you hear that? Tahir is a dragon, like you, and he would love to meet you and your siblings. But he can’t, because he’s trapped inanother mountain. That gem right there? It might be able to set him free. And you get some moss cakes!”
I clasped my hands in front of me and fell silent, as much as I itched to ramble on, ticking off all the amazing facts about moss cakes. They were extremely high in various minerals that were important to a healthy body. Some of our dwarven scholars had done tests over the years. Those who regularly consumed moss cakes lived longer lives. Their wounds healed faster. They had more color in their cheeks, despite spending most of their hours underground. Despite being a dessert, moss cakes were delightfully healthy.
But I doubted the dragon wanted to know any of this. So I merely said, “They’re very delicious. Right, Tormund.”
I stabbed my elbow into his side, and he coughed. I could have sworn his eyes watered as he muttered, “Delicious.”
The dragon snorted into our faces, and the rush of her breath sent my hair streaming behind me. With the stench of her fire flooding my senses, I watched her shift back onto her haunches, nod once, then poke the sugar bags with her talon.
I could have cheered. In fact, I almost collapsed from the sheer relief of it all. My ridiculous plan had worked.
The dragon wanted some bloomin’ moss cakes.
29
ASTRID
Ireturned to Steingard with five mine carts full of gold. As much as I’d wanted to carry straight on to Rockheim, I needed a fresh change of clothes and a pair of trousers that didn’t have a massive rip in the arse. Dozens of dwarves were clustered around my front stoop, pacing and muttering with worry lining their faces. There was Yulla, of course, fussing over my plants. Jostein was there, too, sitting on my outdoor cot with his head in his hands. Several of the trial contestants were there, including Knut and Puldur. Tormund’s friends, Meral and Altan, were there. Even Balfor had showed.
When the clattering of five heavy carts echoed through the chasm, every single head jerked our way. Jostein leapt to his feet.
“Ah, there you are!” Yulla called out cheerfully, then she ran over and jabbed Balder’s chest. “Told you she’d come back winning.”
A silver-haired elf shoved through the plants crawling across my front door and raced across the bridge. When she reachedme, she flung her arms around me and pulled tight. Into my hair, she whispered, “I’m so glad to see you. Did you really find Hita?”
“Hita? Is that the dragon’s name?”
“Yes.” She sighed in relief. “She’s one of Rivelin’s. She went missing a few months ago, and he’s been looking for her ever since. We were trying to find her when you left. I wish I’d known what you were up to, or we would have helped!”
“It’s all right. We managed.” And then I filled her in on everything that had happened.
When I finished the story, she hugged me tight, then said, “That’s her, all right. She loves cake more than the rest of them. Thank you so much for finding her and for feeding her. Do you mind if I go find my brother so I can tell him? He’s worried sick.”
“It’s fine, Lil. I understand.”
She searched my eyes, her brow furrowed. “You sure? I know the last few days have been a lot. Do you need any help travelling to Rockheim?”
A smile twitched the corners of my lips. “I have company.”
She nodded, a spark of evil glee chasing away any sign of worry. “Yes, about that. I’ve heard some very interesting tidbits from Yulla about you two. And by the looks on your faces, all of it was true!”
She bounced up and down, clapping. A flush poured across my entire face. I wasextremelyaware that far too many of my friends were standing on the ledge, listening to this entire conversation. And if they hadn’t been near enough to hear her voice, the chasm’s echo would have done the job.
