“That is not true!” Thera screamed as tears beginning to roll down her cheeks.
“Screaming at us will not help you, child,” one of the other Elders said.
Thera took a long, steady breath and wiped her tears away with her sleeve.
“I can prove Xyleena is the Dragon Keeper.”
From somewhere in the back of my mind, I heard Vortex shout, Get ready!
“How so?”
Thera waved her hands in my direction, and the bindings and gag vanished. The Elders cried out and guards surged forward. My hand flew to the dragon eye amulet and brushed the jewel that marked Vortex’s presence. A strange, numbing sensation spread through my fingertips as I threw my hand in the air and shouted.
“Vortex!”
A navy light exploded from my hand, and a strong gust of wind burst forth from the amulet. The gale surrounded me in a dizzying whirlwind. I could not breathe as the wind whipped and spun around me, slowly turning navy blue. A heartbeat later, the wind shot upward and converged, solidifying into the sapphire-scaled Vortex. The dragon of wind roared and flared his wings to make a slow descent to the floor.
From the corner of my eyes, I saw the Elders fall to their knees. I ignored them for a moment to walk up to Vortex and pat him gently on the forearm. He craned his long neck to look at me.
“Hello, hatchling.”
“I can’t believe I remembered how to do that.”
Vortex chuckled. “I knew you would.”
“Xy,” said Thera, “the Elders have expressed their deepest apologies and ask for your forgiveness.”
I turned and looked past Thera at the Elders. They still knelt on the floor, staring in awe at Vortex. The guards too were kneeling. A few wept.
I nodded. “Ja lah tído guídemavet.”
Relieved cries echoed in every corner of the room. The Elders slowly rose to their feet and beckoned Thera to come. I freed Teka from her binds as Thera conversed with them.
“Thank the gods you were quick to summon him.” Teka pointed her thumb at Vortex. “I thought we were goners there for a minute.”
I could not help but smile. “Me, too.”
“So what do you think the Feykin will do now?”
“Let us go,” I said as I observed the interaction of the Elders and Thera. “I do have a quest to get back to.”
“Have you thought about taking a little detour?”
“You mean, have I thought about going to the White Woods to see if it restores my memory?”
Teka nodded.
“I have thought about it, but I think there are more important things to take care of first.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right.”
Thera came bounding back to us, a huge grin on her face.
“What are you so happy about?”
“I have just been promoted to Occultist.”
“That’s great!” I exclaimed.
“Congratulations!”
“Thank you.” Thera bowed to us. “The Elders suggested we walk with Vortex down to Amorez’s old hut. It is down on the ground level of town and has room enough to fit three dragons. It is, however, a little dusty from lack of use.”
“The room sounds fine, but I’m not sure the walkways and bridges can support Vortex’s weight.”
“Then I will just have to fly down,” Vortex said with a laugh.
“Can you even get out of the door?” Teka asked.
Vortex snorted and faded into wisps of blue. The wisps swirled around for a moment before shooting out of the door. I lead the mad rush outside just in time to witness Vortex reform and slowly glide to the ground. The few Feykin awake at this hour cheered at his presence, and I could not suppress a smile.
“Show off!” Teka called after him.
“I don’t know about you two, but I am ready for some long overdue sleep. Come on.” I started walking the maze of bridges and walkways.
Moments later, Thera and Teka caught up to me, and the three of us made our way to the ground level.
After reading many logs and even Agasei’s own journal, I fully understand why he did what he did. The loss of a wife and unborn child would send anyone into a blind rage, but then to be sentenced to death in prison because he went against orders to try to save her? No wonder people say he went insane when Raynelif was murdered.
– FROM “A TYRANT’S HUMANITY” BY PRINCESS UNÉ SHARVÍN
I woke to an exceedingly annoying knock at the door. With a heavy sigh, I peeled back the covers and left the warmth of my bed. I grumbled about how Thera and Teka could sleep through such a racket as I yanked the door open. Thera’s uncle Ruwviti greeted me with a smile.
“Kahs gözandí, Iríjhone Keeper. How are you?” Once again, my mind translated the Kinös Elda.
“I am awake,” I said after a huge yawn.
“I apologize if I woke you, but I have something important to speak to you about.” Ruwviti ushered me out of the hut that had once been Amorez’s.
I paused to admire all of the gifts that had been laid outside while I slept.
Ruwviti chuckled. “Tokens of admiration and apology. It would seem our people have taken a liking to your presence.”
“Better than the alternative,” I muttered.
Ruwviti smiled wryly and led me on a slow walk around Thorna.
“I know you will be leaving soon, Dragon Keeper, and I wish for you to take my niece. If there is anyone who can restore Pox to her senses, I know it is Thera.”
“I was hoping she would be coming anyway. I still cannot translate the keys to the Dragons of Light on my own, and Thera is proving to be more than capable of handling the task.”
“So I have heard.” He smiled. “And know this, if you require anything to aid you in your battle against Agasei’s heir, please let us know. We will be more than willing to help in any way.”
“I’m glad to hear that, Elder Ruwviti. I may need all the help I can get.”
He nodded in understanding. The two of us continued walking in silence for a few minutes. Just when I was beginning to wonder what he was thinking, he stopped outside a sizable hut.
“There is another reason I wanted to speak to you alone before you set off.”
“Oh?”
Ruwviti nodded and pulled back the curtain of the hut. I quickly ducked inside, and he followed. When my eyes adjusted to the lighting within, I realized I was standing in a classroom. Several young Feykin glanced up at me from their desks. And the woman at the front of the room stopped her lecture. She bowed to Ruwviti as he and I strode up the aisle.
“This is Q’veca, one of the finest Menta teachers in all our lands. Q’veca, this is Xyleena Renoan, heir to Amorez’s Dragons of Light.”
Q’veca smiled. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Dragon Keeper.”
I touched my fingers to my heart, then my forehead, before extending them outward as I bowed slightly in the honorable Feykin greeting Thera taught me. Gasps escaped several of the children, and Q’veca’s smile widened.
“I brought you before Q’veca today to fill a request from my niece,” Ruwviti explained. “Thera said you had learned much about magic and its uses and suggested having you take the Menta examinations. Should you pass Q’veca’s test, you will be graduated to Menta status.”
My heart skipped a beat. “You mean I can be apprenticed to a Sorcerer if I pass?”
Q’veca nodded. “That is correct.”
I exhaled slowly to calm myself. “When do we start?”
“Recite the rules of magic.”
I thought of that strange memory with the rules and smiled. “One, the caster must know enough ancient tongue to summon the desired element and direct it as he or she wishes. Two, the amount of magic summoned should not exceed the limits of the physical body that summons it, or the caster forfeits their life. Three, magic, like many things, is best learned through time and experience.”
Q’veca glanced at Ruwviti before turning her attention back to me. “What spells do you
know?”
“Do you want me to show you or just list them off?”
Ruwviti chuckled, and Q’veca blinked at me in surprise.
“Um…just list them for now.”
“Heal, light, fire, silence, fire storm, thunder ball, thunder bolt, wind gust—”
“Okay, that’s enough.” Q’veca shook her head and faced Ruwviti. “I don’t think she should be graduated to Menta.”
He and I both frowned.
She raised her hand to prevent any remarks. “She has been using more advanced spells than even some Mages are capable of. Therefore, it is my opinion that Xyleena be graduated to Mage status…if not higher.”
Elder Ruwviti nodded in agreement, and I had to bite my lip to keep from cheering.
“Thank you for your time, Q’veca.”
She bowed and watched as the two of us exited her classroom.
Outside, Ruwviti faced me with a smile. “Congratulations on becoming a Mage, Xyleena.”
“Thank you, Elder Ruwviti.”
“Now, if you will excuse me, I have another matter to attend to. I trust you can find your way back to your hut?”
“Yes, sir.” I watched him walk away before turning in the direction that would lead me back to Amorez’s old hut. I laughed and took off at a full sprint, racing down the walkways and bridges.
◆◆◆
I burst through the door of the hut, causing Thera and Teka to jump and scream. I stood in the doorway breathless and smiling. Thera quirked an eyebrow at me while Teka grumbled incoherently.
“Where were you? You left without saying anything,” Vortex said, snaking his head into the main room from where he was bedded.
“I’m sorry. You were all sleeping, and Elder Ruwviti showed up and led me to a classroom.”
“Ah. My uncle took you for the Menta exam.” Thera nodded. “How did it go?”
“I am a Mage.”
Thera blinked in surprise while Teka fell off her seat.
“Yeow!”
“So you surpassed the expectations of a Menta?”
I nodded and helped Teka up.
“That’s great! I had a feeling you would. Did my uncle tell you who you are apprenticed to yet?”
I shook my head. “No, but he had to leave in a hurry. I guess he was on his way to find me a teacher.”
“Hopefully you won’t end up with Valadri. He is a horrible teacher,” Teka muttered.
Thera laughed and nodded. “How he ever made it to Sorcerer rank is beyond me.”
Vortex huffed. “I hate to spoil this cheery atmosphere, but we have some important planning to do.”
Teka stuck her tongue out at me. “That is what we were doing before Xy scared me out of my wits with barging in through the door like that.”
“What have you come up with so far?” I asked, taking a seat at the long table. A chart from Teka’s ship had been laid out over the surface.
“Well, it would be quicker to sail straight to the Shaking Island instead of stopping in Aissur. But we would need to restock supplies, so we would almost have to sto—”
“Restock here,” I said as I fished for the map within Dragon Diary.
Teka sighed. “I’m not allowed to.”
“Why not?” Thera asked.
I laid the diary map up on the table and compared the two maps while I listened on the conversation.
“I have never been allowed to trade or request goods from any part of the Sorcerers’ Isle because I am not Feykin.”
“You are half. I don’t see what the problem—”
“There isn’t a problem,” I interrupted. “Elder Ruwviti said the Feykin would help me in any way I needed. If my team needs supplies to continue on this quest, I’m sure they would be willing to give them.” I picked up a charcoal pencil and sketched the Shaking Island onto Teka’s map using Dragon Diary as reference.
“Well, that’s a relief.” Teka sighed and leaned in to study the addition to her map.
“Someone is coming,” Vortex announced.
Seconds later, a loud knocking came from the door. Thera sighed and answered the door.
I heard a young woman’s voice from the doorway. “Tanda, Thera. Tic la ja?”
She and Thera continued talking for a few minutes while Teka and I sorted out the details of the maps. Finally, Thera said good-bye and returned to the table.
“You have another gift, one I think you will appreciate greatly.”
I glanced sidelong at Teka, who shrugged. After a moment, I put down the pencil and moved toward the door to join Thera. Curiosity got the best of Teka, and she quickly followed.
“Apparently the smithies worked on it all day and half the night.”
“What is it?” I stared at the large wooden crate set on the floor and watched as Thera broke into it.
A smile slowly crept across her lips as she removed the lid. “Armor.”
She picked out a piece of the plate and handed it to me. I was expecting it to be heavy like the armor of the Temple Knights, but this was extremely light, almost weightless. It was shining silver with beautiful filigree stamped into it, similar to the one I had seen on Zamora… Amorez.
“And it came with these.”
I handed the plate to Teka, who seemed eager to examine it, and took the metal bars from Thera. I chuckled, instantly recognizing the design, and flipped them open.
“A new set of tessen fans.”
Teka whistled. “Wow!”
Wow was an understatement. The fan blades were emblazoned with an image of each of the twelve Dragons of Light surrounded by the elements of their birthing and tapered to a razor-sharp edge.
“I love them.” I breathed. I ran my fingers over the designs—seamless, beautiful craftsmanship. “I wish I knew how they did this.”
“Each item is imbued with magic. The armor can never be destroyed, and the tessens will never go dull,” Thera explained. “And they also added special wards to the metal as they crafted them. I am not sure exactly which wards, but I am sure they will come in handy.”
I returned to the other room to show Vortex, who seemed pleased about the gifts.
“Finally, something you can use.”
We all laughed before setting about on the business of sailing to the Shaking Island. By the end of the day, we had a route planned and a list of supplies drawn up.
Thera delivered the list to her uncle, and Teka went off to prepare her crew for travel. I remained in the hut with Vortex to pack for the days to come.
Instead of continuing to the old, Earthic principals of currency, we implemented a barter system. And with the barter system came the individual castes. Masters of these castes took on students and created different levels to describe their progress in the craft. It was no longer apprentice, journeyman, master; Now there were many levels of progression and learning.
– FROM “THE CHRONICLES OF ITHNEZ, VOL. I” BY ADJIRSÉ DÉDOS
I watched Vortex play with the dolphins as Teka oversaw the task of loading the supplies. He splashed and rolled, dove deep, and terrorized fish– not at all what I was expecting a dragon to act like, but who was I to kill his fun? After all, he had been locked away from the rest of the world for who knew how long.
I smiled and turned to see what Teka was up to. She had been here since before the suns came up, stocking supply crate after supply crate. The Feykin had been very generous with the supplies they donated. I yearned to thank them with a gift but was not quite sure what to give them.
The suns were almost halfway through the sky when the last crate was loaded onto the ship and stored in the decks below. I watched as Teka thanked the Feykin for their help before she disappeared into her quarters. Minutes later, she reappeared in fresh clothes and with the charts in her hand. She winked at me as she strode to the helm to meet with her first mate and helmsman.
Thera sighed, suddenly appearing beside me. “Well, that was boring.”
I nodded in agreement and turned my attention back to Vo
rtex. I snickered, seeing him floating on his back and basking in the sunlight.
“By the way, once we leave the force field around the island, don’t be surprised if things are very different from when you arrived here.”
I frowned at her. “Why is that?”
“You have spent sixteen days here. Outside our force field, about one hundred and twelve days have passed.”
“What?”
“I told you. Time passes differently here.”
I sighed. “I didn’t expect that much time to pass.”
A little over three months had gone by outside the Sorcerers’ Isle. It would now be the time of the Rising of Nahstipulí, I realized. Ríhan’s birthday would soon be here.
“Are you okay? You look depressed.”
“I’ll be okay. I just realized my best friend’s birthday is coming up.” I looked down at my reflection in the water. “Neither of us will be there to celebrate it.”
Thera put a hand on my shoulder. “I am sorry, Xy.”
“I’ll be okay. It just takes time to get over the pain.”
Thera nodded knowingly.
“We have a little bit of a problem,” Teka announced as she walked up behind us.
Thera muttered something while I sighed and turned to face Teka.
“Shadow Dance is so heavy with supplies that we will have to wait until nightfall when the tides are deepest to take off.”
“No, you won’t,” Vortex said with a laugh. He bounded out of the water and shook himself off before continuing. “All you need is a little push.”
I laughed. “That is a great idea.”
“Um…this ship is laden with enough supplies to last the next six to eight months, if not longer. Can you move that much weight?”
Vortex snorted indignantly and braced his head against the bow of the ship. With a grunt, he dug his claws into the beech and gave a huge shove. The Shadow Dance jolted, sending people flying. Vortex repeated the process once more to force the ship into deep enough water for it to start floating on its own.
“That is the last time I ask a dragon if he can move something heavy,” Teka muttered and turned away to check on her crew.
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