by Logan Jacobs
After a while, the scent of Ramir’s stew filled the air, and my mouth watered as my stomach growled in response.
I was relieved when Ramir stood up and dished us all bowls.
I scooped up a heaping bite and shoved it into my mouth, only to pause and let out a sigh of contentment. Then my eyes closed as I relished the flavors that filled my mouth.
There was squash, onion, garlic, and venison, along with some seasonings I couldn’t name immediately. This was the kind of cooking Ramir had been talking about. No recipe, just him and the food. And it was delicious.
I ate quickly, but just before I was done, I heard the familiar sound of Preyna’s voice, and a second later, Blar ran into the room and directly up to the bowl of stew laid out for him.
“Sorry,” Preyna chuckled as she walked in. “I let myself back in, I hope that’s okay. Well, actually, Blar let us back in. We arrived in your bathroom.”
“At least he landed you inside.” Ramir smiled. “Were you able to retrieve the egg?”
“Right here,” the sorceress said, and she pulled the egg out of a satchel slung over her shoulder.
The egg was large enough that it needed to be held with two hands, and it was a brilliant bright white with small silver lines that spread out like veins. It was one of the most beautiful eggs I’d ever seen, and I thought it was no wonder the egg thief had taken it. The creature inside was bound to be rare and beautiful when it hatched.
“Oh, good,” Ramir said, and he walked up to Preyna, took the egg, and set it on the table next to his cauldron and spell book.
A sudden feeling of terror washed over me, and my chest tightened in response as I instinctively stood up and walked over to the table.
“Rath?” Preyna asked as I reached out and placed my hand on the egg. “Are you alright?”
The terror eased slightly as my hand made contact with the egg, but there was still a sense of confusion and fear. The creature behind the thin protective shell was scared out of its mind, and I had to do something. I had to help him.
“I can feel it,” I whispered. “I can feel the baby inside.”
Chapter 8
“What do you mean?” Kas asked as she rushed to my side. “You can feel its emotions?”
“Yes.” I nodded.
“I thought you couldn’t feel dragons until they were hatched,” Asta said, and her yellow eyes narrowed on me.
“I guess I can now.” I shook my head and placed my other hand on the egg.
The baby inside was crying out for help, and I had to do something.
I closed my eyes and focused on the egg in my hands and the little boy dragon inside of it. He was scared, I could understand that much since it was such a powerful feeling for him, but there was more.
I sensed a presence… a warm, kind presence, but I couldn’t see them, I could only hear them. After a moment, I realized it was the dragon’s mother. He was nearly about to hatch when he was taken, and now he was refusing to hatch. He was ready to come out of his shell, but he was too terrified to do so without the calming presence of his mother to help him.
My eyes pricked with emotion as I experienced all the little dragon was experiencing right then, and I pulled my hands away and let out a deep sigh.
“You’re going to be okay,” I said as I crouched down so the baby could hear me better.
“Is he okay?” Eira asked. “What’s going on?”
“He was about to hatch,” I explained. “He was ready to break out of his shell when he was taken.”
“Oh, no, the poor thing.” Asta frowned, and her plump bottom lip stuck out slightly.
“Is it dangerous for him to stay in there if he’s ready to come out?” Eira asked, and her red eyebrows pulled together with thought.
“Can’t you hatch him?” Kas asked.
“I could try,” I said. “But he doesn’t want to come out, not without his mother.”
“That is so sad.” Asta shook her head and gently placed her hand on the egg. “We will get you home.”
“Yes, we will.” I nodded.
“It may be our only chance to find out where that elf went, though,” Kas pointed out, and she bit her lip nervously.
“You’re right,” I sighed and turned to Ramir. “Will the spell harm the egg at all? Or do anything to scare him in there?”
“Not at all.” The old man smiled in an attempt to reassure me since he was clearly able to see how upsetting this was for me. “I’ll be particularly careful, and you can stay with him the whole time if you’d like.”
“I think I would like that,” I agreed. “Thank you.”
“Of course,” Ramir said. “We’ll make this quick.”
As much as I didn’t want to put the little dragon through the inconvenience of a spell, I reminded myself that was all it would be. The poor thing had already been away from his mother far too long, and I knew he didn’t want to hatch without her. The few minutes this spell took wouldn’t be anything compared to the time he’d already been away from her.
Bedsides, Kas was right, this could be our only chance to find out where the man who’d stolen the egg had been. If we knew where that arsehole had been before he came to Asgard, not only would that give us more insight into the dragon trade, but it could also help us find this little boy’s mother.
“Alright,” Ramir said, and he patted a small cushion he’d set up on the table. “You can set him right here.”
“Okay,” I agreed, and I carefully picked up the egg and put him on the cushion.
“Now, give me just a few minutes,” the old man said with a small smile.
While Ramir got everything for his spell ready, I tuned into the little dragon’s emotions as I slowly stroked the shell of the egg.
He wasn’t quite as frightened as he was before, but he was still confused and scared, and I could tell there was no way he was coming out without his mother nearby.
There was something incredibly endearing and understandable about a baby desperately wanting its mother.
“I feel awful,” Preyna whispered, and her voice brought me out of my own thoughts.
“It’s not your fault.” I shook my head. “Don’t blame yourself.”
“I thought it must have been dormant like all the others we’ve found,” she said, and she closed her eyes as a small tear ran down her cheek. “I’m so sorry, sweet boy, please forgive me.”
“He’s confused,” I told her. “But he doesn’t blame you. And you shouldn’t blame yourself, either.”
“Rath’s right.” Asta nodded. “There was no way you could have known.”
“I suppose not,” Preyna sighed and wiped at her eyes. “But I would like to have you check any other eggs we come across. I don’t want a repeat of this situation ever again.”
“I understand.” I smiled softly at her. “And I think that’s a good idea, but you still shouldn’t blame yourself.”
“It’s hard not to,” Preyna said. “But I also ran into Odin at the castle.”
“Oh, no.” Asta frowned. “Did he say anything about Blar?”
“He just petted him and told him what a good dog he was,” Preyna chuckled softly. “But he asked me to see about a spell for an upcoming event he has.”
“Go,” I told her. “We don’t want to raise suspicion.”
“No, we don’t,” the blonde sorceress said, and she took a deep breath as her eyes drifted to the egg again. “I hate to leave him here like this.”
“Don’t worry.” I smiled. “We’re going to get him home.”
Preyna nodded and then looked up at me with her beautiful soft brown eyes. “If you can, please let me know when he has made it home safe.”
“I will,” I assured her.
“Alright,” she said with a small smile. “I must be going, then. I don’t want to keep the King waiting.”
“No, I wouldn’t suppose so,” I said. “He’ll be okay. Go tend to your duties, we’ll handle it from here.”
A portal
appeared behind Preyna, and I looked down to see Blar sitting next to me. The little dragon must have finished his dinner, though there were still some scraps on his face he’d apparently forgotten.
“Thank you, Blar.” Preyna leaned down and petted the little blue dragon between his horns. “I appreciate your assistance this evening.”
Blar smiled and bumped his head against Preyna’s hand.
“It was lovely seeing you again, Preyna.” Asta smiled.
“And you all,” the sorceress said as she looked at each of us. “I will hope to see you again very soon.”
“We’ll hope the same,” I said, and Preyna gave a small wave, turned around, and stepped through the portal.
“Alright, we’re nearly done,” Ramir said after Preyna had gone, and I turned to look at what the old man was doing.
On the table, the cauldron bubbled with a bright teal-colored substance, and Ramir gave it a good stir before he picked up a small vial and held it out to me.
“What’s that for?” I asked.
“I’m going to capture the essence from the egg,” he explained. “I know you won’t like it, but I’ll need you to move your hands for just a moment. I don’t want to accidentally bottle your essence.”
“I understand.” I took a deep breath and leaned down to the egg. “You’ll be okay, just wait one moment, and I’ll be right back.”
I could feel the little dragon inside panic for a second when I took my hands away, but then Ramir stepped up and started to speak, which calmed the little creature down once again.
“Hello,” the old man said as he moved the little vial around the egg. White sparkles floated off the egg’s surface and slowly filled the bottle as he spoke. “Your shell is quite beautiful, I bet you’ll be a lovely white color when you hatch, eh?”
It didn’t take long for Ramir to collect the sample he needed, but he spoke to the little dragon the entire time, which kept him calm until I was able to place my hands back on his shell.
“Once I add this, we should be all done,” Ramir said as he poured the essence he’d collected into the cauldron.
The teal liquid sparkled with the silver magic from the bottle, and it began to swirl of its own accord. Then the old man picked up Kas’ map from the table, rolled it up, and carefully fed it to the cauldron.
The swirling liquid gobbled up the paper until it could no longer be seen, and my eyebrows pulled together as I watched with both horror and fascination. The spells Ramir performed for us were always so incredibly strange to see, and they never failed to make me nervous, but I’d learned to trust him enough that I didn’t allow myself to worry for more than a few seconds.
Suddenly, the liquid in the cauldron went absolutely still. The teal substance was now placid, and I watched it and waited for something to happen.
“Um, Ramir, is it supposed to do that?” I asked after a few seconds had passed.
“Give it a moment.” The old man held a bony finger up.
A few more seconds passed, and I was about to push the issue, but then the cauldron shook ever so slightly.
“What the fuck,” Eira whispered, and her green eyes narrowed on the large pot.
The cauldron shook again, this time with more ferocity, and the liquid started to bubble so much it spilled out over the edges and splashed onto the table.
A loud belching sound filled the room as the cauldron exploded, and the map flew out of it to land on the floor a few feet behind me. There were drops of teal liquid everywhere, I could even feel some on my face, and I turned to raise an eyebrow at Ramir, but the old man just smiled.
“And there you have it,” he said, and he walked over to pick up the map and brush it off before handing it to Kas.
“Mmm, thanks.” The strawberry-blonde’s face pulled into a grimace, but she took the paper all the same and opened it up to see what the spell had done.
“Did it work?” Eira asked, and she peered over Kas’ shoulder.
“It did.” Kas’ violet eyes widened as she looked over the map.
“Did you expect anything less?” Ramir chuckled.
“I guess not.” Eira smiled. “Thanks, old man.”
“You’re welcome, redheaded girl,” Ramir said nonchalantly, and he grabbed a small towel and started to wipe up the table.
The little dragon in the egg had startled for a second when the cauldron exploded, but he seemed alright now, though I could tell he was more on edge than he had been. We needed to get him to his mother so he could hatch. I wasn’t sure how much longer he could live in his shell, but he was too scared to come out of it without her.
“Where does it show?” I asked.
“It’s on the other end of Alfheim from where we took out the dealers yesterday,” Kas explained. “I don’t think we’ve been over there yet.”
“Oh, no, we haven’t.” Asta shook her head as she looked at the map. “That is the part of my realm where the wealthy elves live.”
“It doesn’t show anywhere near dragon valley?” I asked, and my brow furrowed with concern.
“No.” Kas shook her head.
“Damnit,” I breathed.
“Oh, right.” The strawberry-blonde looked at the egg in my hands and bit her lip. “You don’t think the egg came from this place on the map, do you?”
“I don’t think so.” I pursed my lips. “But I can’t say for sure.”
“I’m guessing the little guy inside can’t exactly tell you, either,” Kas sighed.
“Not exactly.” I shook my head. “I can tune in to his feelings and some of his memories, but since he was inside the egg, I don’t get much visually to help us out.”
“Shite,” Eira breathed. “What do we do now?”
“I was hoping the map would give us some insight into where his mother might be, but if it’s showing us a part of the realm we’ve never been to, then I don’t even know where to begin looking,” I said.
“Wait, Rath, why don’t you try to see through the eyes of the mother?” Kas asked.
“Will that work?” Eira asked, and her red eyebrows pinched together.
“It’s worth a try.” I nodded.
“How will you find her?” Asta asked, and her yellow eyes regarded me with concern.
“I’m not sure.” I shook my head again. “But I have to try something. We need to get this little dragon home.”
“I wonder why he isn’t dormant like the rest of the eggs the council found.” Kas pursed her lips as she looked at the egg in my hands.
“I’m assuming it’s because he was so close to hatching,” I explained. “He’s conscious in there, which makes this all the worse.”
“The poor thing.” Asta frowned. “I just want to hug him and make it better. He must be so scared.”
“He’s frightened,” I agreed. “Less so now than he was when Preyna first brought him here, but he still is refusing to come out until he has his mother.”
“I can’t blame him,” Eira said. “He’s probably traumatized from being ripped away from her just before he was about to come out of his shell.”
“We’ve got to get him home,” I said. “I’ll do my best to try and find his mother.”
“How can we help?” Kas asked, and she took a step forward and lifted her chin slightly.
“Hm.” I thought for a moment. “It might work better if I sit down and am able to relax.”
“Of course.” Asta nodded. “I’ll set up some pillows on the floor so it’s nice and soft.”
“Thank you,” I told the elf girl.
“What about the egg?” Eira asked. “Do you need one of us to hold it?”
“I think I’d like to hold it,” I said. “That way I can feel the baby’s energy. It might help me to connect with the mother more easily.”
“Good point.” The redhead nodded.
“It’s all ready for you here,” Asta said a few moments later, and I looked over to see the elf girl had piled some pillows on the floor in front of the fireplace.
I held the egg in my lap and closed my eyes, and the room went quiet as I focused on the feelings of the small creature in my hands.
The fire warmed my body, and I felt myself relax further into the pillows beneath me.
A sigh slipped through my lips, and then everything seemed to fade to blackness as my consciousness moved from my body into the realm of dragons.
I opened my eyes, and I was no longer myself. The body I was in glided through the trees quickly and swished back and forth as if it were trying to lose someone on its tail.
For a second, I thought the dragon was in trouble, but then joyous emotions overtook me, and I was hit from the side.
A playful squeal sounded as the other dragon and I tumbled around, and I realized we were the same size. The dragon I was in wasn’t large enough to be an adult based on the size of the trees nearby, but it wasn’t freshly hatched either.
I was a young dragon, playing with my friends near the valley.
The sun was sinking low, and the day was cast in a beautiful golden glow while we tumbled in the grass and playfully scratched and bit at one another.
A loud and sudden roar sounded, and the other dragon and I immediately perked up. I knew instinctively that it was my mother calling me home for the night.
I glanced at the purple dragon I’d just been playing with, and he and I flapped our wings and took off toward home.
I blinked, and suddenly I could see through the eyes of another dragon. This time, I was an adult.
I soared through the air over the valley, and though I couldn’t see my own body, I knew I was massive. The shadow below me was huge and stretched from the setting of the sun, but it wasn’t the size of the silhouette that made me think I was of incredible size, it was the feeling of the dragon I was in.
I was most definitely a male, and there was something incredibly regal and protective about the personality of the creature. I could sense his complete sense of responsibility, and it brought with it an overwhelming feeling of satisfaction.
The sight of a large crimson female below me playing with two crimson babies with peach-colored underbellies caught my attention, and a rush of pure happiness flooded my body.