Danion sat on the bed opposite him. “It’s too late to look anywhere now. Even the Brothers’ Arms is closed.”
“I know,” Kierion groaned.
Danion chuckled grimly. “Here, have one side of the bed.” He pulled back the covers and wriggled over to the other side. “Don’t snore. Catch a few winks and we’ll look for her in the morning.”
A Brilliant Idea
Hours later, Ezaara started awake.
Roberto was lying beside her, his ebony eyes scanning her face. “How are you feeling?”
“Glad you’re here,” she murmured. He grinned and kissed her. Ezaara snuggled against his chest. “All night, I dreamed of shadow dragons hunting our people, burning them with the bright beams from their eyes and scorching their minds with pain. They’re too powerful, Roberto. Our people are dying in droves.”
Roberto stroked her hair. “There must be some way to defeat them. Something we can do to prevent them from accessing our minds.”
Their eyes locked. They spoke at the same time. “The fountain.”
His eyes pierced her as he shared a memory of the fountain they’d seen on their hand-fasting holiday, just twelve days ago. Carved from opaline crystal, the entwined sea dragons glittered in the sun, sparkling water spraying from their maws into a wide basin.
She swallowed. When they’d been on opposite sides of the fountain, it’d been impossible to mind-meld with each other or their dragons. “Could it be that simple?” she melded.
“We have to try.” Roberto stroked a strand of her hair back from her forehead and dipped his head to brush his lips against hers. “The opaline crystal blocked our mind-melding abilities. It just might work against shadow dragons.” Roberto sprang out of bed and tugged on his breeches, shirt and jerkin as he talked. “I’m not asking the council. I’ll leave immediately and use Anakisha’s ring so I can get there and back in a few hours.” He sat on the edge of the bed to lace his boots.
Ezaara moved to sit beside him and cupped his chin in her hands. “Roberto, we need enough opaline for every dragon rider and dragon. It’s the only way.”
He nodded. “Erob and I will make several trips to Crystal Lake. With the ring, it’ll only take us—”
Gods, the ring. “The rings are jeopardizing Dragons’ Realm. The cracks in the realm gate are growing and seeping that awful black mist. Anakisha warned us that if Zens finds out—”
“I’m sorry, Ezaara.” Roberto took her hands, shaking his head. “I really am, but it’s too late. Zens has the ring Bruno stole from us.” He hesitated.
“What?”
“I didn’t want to break this news to you, but while you were unconscious, Zens kidnapped Master Giddi.”
Ezaara gasped. “Master Giddi?” By the First Egg, that was dire.
Pursing his lips, Roberto nodded. “Kierion brought the news back after the battle in Montanara. Zens took Giddi through a realm gate. The most powerful mage in Dragons’ Realm is in our enemy’s hands. An enemy that uses mages to grow new ones. Can you imagine a hundred Giddis firing upon us?” He turned away and tugged his bootlaces, tying them.
Things were way worse than she’d imagined. “How many wounded in Montanara? How many died?”
“The final count isn’t in yet.” Roberto clamped his lips shut and mind-melded. “I’ll fetch the crystals, Ezaara. Make sure you take time to rest and recover. The war’s not over yet. We’re going to need you to lead us.” He strode over and picked up Erob’s saddlebags.
Her head spun and she lay down again. Gods, she was still so weak. “Roberto, could you please send Adelina to help me while you’re gone?”
He turned back to her, face tight. “I can’t, Ezaara.” His voice was hoarse. A sob broke from him. “My sister’s been missing for days.” Tension lining his body, he went out to their dragons’ den.
The rest of his words were unspoken—he hadn’t found Adelina because he’d been sitting with Ezaara while she recovered. And now he was off to save the realm, so he couldn’t search for his sister.
§
A few hours later, there was a knock at the door, and Sofia entered Ezaara’s cavern. “My Queen’s Rider, look.” She held up a dark headband. “Alban’s making more, but we want you to test this one with Zaarusha. It has an opaline crystal mounted at the front, see?”
Ezaara climbed out of bed, tugged on her boots, riders’ garb, and a cloak. She strode through Zaarusha’s den onto the ledge. Hopefully, with these headbands and the messages she’d sent, they’d stand a chance against the shadow dragons.
Zaarusha shifted on her haunches in the snow as Ezaara approached, multi-hued scales glinting. Her golden eyes regarded Ezaara. “I’m worried about you, Ezaara. Although we must ride out in war, your mind was attacked. You need time to recover.”
“That’s why I’ve been stuck in bed.” Ezaara held up the headband. “If these headbands stop us from melding, they might protect us against Zens’ dark dragons.”
Zaarusha eyed the crystal. “Let’s try.”
Ezaara tied the headband, adjusting it so the opaline crystal was on the front of her forehead. The Dragon Queen dipped her scaled head to be level with Ezaara’s face.
“Zaarusha?” She couldn’t feel Zaarusha’s mind. Or hear anything. “Zaarusha, can you hear me?” Untying the headband, she asked, “Did you try to mind-meld with me at all? Or were you blocking me?”
“I tried, but I couldn’t get through. What about you?”
“The same. Are you sure you didn’t hear me?”
“Not a thing. Those headbands could block the shadow dragons’ screams and help our dragons and their riders focus.”
“Exactly.” Ezaara smiled at Sofia. “Great work. We believe the headbands will be successful. You can let Master Roberto know.”
“He already knows.” Sofia flashed her a smile. “He tested his on Erob. The moment he realized it’d work, he headed back to Naobia to get more crystals from the lake.” Sofia scuffed the snow with the toe of her boot, staring at her feet.
“What is it, Sofia?”
She gazed up at Ezaara. Her voice came out in a hoarse whisper. “I’m so sorry.”
Ezaara sighed. “These yellow crystals do more damage than we can imagine. I don’t hold you responsible for those actions.”
Sofia tilted her head. “What about Amato? Rumors say he had a crystal implanted too.”
Ezaara pursed her lips. He’d committed so many atrocious crimes while under that crystal’s influence. “I really don’t know.” She shrugged. They’d deal with him later. “Would you like to fly with us in battle against Zens?”
“Me, after what I’ve done?”
Ezaara was about to answer her when Zaarusha melded, “Ezaara, you’re needed in war council immediately. I’ll fly you straight there.”
“After days in bed, I need to walk. Tell them I’ll be there shortly.” She weighed the headband in her hand and said to Sofia, “I’ll take this to war council and show them what we’ve developed.”
“Thank you for giving me another chance, Ezaara.”
Ezaara nodded and left. She rushed along the corridor, the headband clenched in her hand. It was a symbol of hope, a light shining among the dark dragons that cluttered the skies and drenched their streets in blood.
Riders in the tunnels nodded tersely in acknowledgment, strides crisp and faces taut. Many thumped their hands against their hearts as she passed. The double doors to the council chambers were open. Ezaara strode inside.
Battle Master Aidan rose from his chair and shook her hand vigorously. “My Queen’s Rider, good to see you up and about.”
Flight Master Alyssa leaped from the chair next to him and hugged her. “I’m so glad you’re all right.”
“Welcome back, Ezaara,” Master Jerrick called.
Ezaara stood at the head of the horseshoe-shaped granite table next to Lars, the head of the Council of the Twelve Dragon Masters. On Lars’ other side, spymaster Tonio sat, his black eyes appraising he
r—no doubt, weighing the effect the dark presence had had upon her. She resisted the urge to cringe. On her other side, her parents’ seats were empty. Shards, where was Ma? She hadn’t even thought to ask after her or Pa. Surely Tomaaz would’ve told her if something wasn’t right. But then again, maybe he was so distraught by Maazini being turned that everything else had slipped his mind. “I see from your gazes that you’re wondering how I am. As some of you know, I have the ability to mind-meld with all dragons. Our own ones—and the dark ones.”
Murmurs drifted around the cavern. Wizard Master Reina’s eyes widened. Hendrik, master of craft, banged the table with a burly fist, muttering, “Well, I never.”
Derek, master of instruction, narrowed his eyes. “That explains a few things.”
The smack of Lars’ gavel on the tabletop rang through the cavern. “Quiet. Please let the Queen’s Rider continue.”
Ezaara nodded her thanks to him. “When we were battling over Montanara, Master Roberto and I decided that I would attempt to meld with Zens’ dark dragons and command them to retreat.” She clenched her jaw, remembering the pain that had ricocheted through her head, nearly splitting her skull; those dark dragons’ screams had shredded her mind and left her reeling. “It didn’t go well. That was three days ago. Yesterday, for the first time since the battle, I awoke.” She shook her head. “Mind-melding is obviously not the right way to battle these dragons.”
Master Tonio glanced around the table. “And where is Master Roberto now? As master of mental faculties, was his mind damaged in battle too?”
“I never said my mind was damaged. I simply needed time to recover.” Ezaara didn’t need aspersions cast on her leadership capabilities now. She was casting enough aspersions on her own. “Master Roberto does not have the ability to mind-meld with all dragons, as I do.”
“But Master Giddi does,” said Reina. “And now he’s with Zens. Imagine the damage he could do.”
“Imagine the damage one hundred of him could do if Zens grows more of him, like he has with the other mages. And think of the advantage we’d have if we could control those shadow dragons.” Master Aidan narrowed his dark eyes, staring at Ezaara as he scratched his short-cropped blond hair. “Could you try to meld with them again and sway them to our side?”
Zaarusha’s snarl echoed off the chamber’s rocky walls. “No. I won’t have you hurt like that again.”
Ezaara spun to face the dragons along the back wall. “It’s war, Zaarusha. I can’t be precious about myself and neither can you.”
“But you are precious to me. I waited eighteen years for you.”
“Our people are precious too.”
“No, I forbid it.”
“Queen Zaarusha forbids me to meld with them again.” Ezaara held up the headband.
Master Hendrik scoffed, “We don’t need headbands or fancy adornments to identify us in battle. You’ll have us wearing jewelry next.”
“These are purely functional,” Ezaara replied. “Master Hendrik, please wear one and stand face to face with your dragon and try to mind-meld.”
Grumbling, Hendrik put it on, muttering into his dark bushy beard, and stood in front of Drikonia, his dragon. He frowned and muttered some more, then spun. “I can’t meld. What is this?”
“Opaline crystal from Naobia.”
“Of course,” Master Tonio said. “It’s been largely forgotten, but opaline prevents mind-melding. I should’ve thought of that myself.”
“Master Roberto is fetching more crystal as we speak,” Ezaara announced. “We’re planning to make headbands for all of our riders and dragons. What’s been happening while I was unconscious?”
Lars shook his head and gestured at Tonio.
“Not good news.” Tonio grimaced. “Dark dragons are spreading across the realm. Every day, more villages are attacked.”
Ezaara nodded grimly. “I feared as much. We need to kit out our riders and dragons with these new head shields and test them in battle.”
Master Hendrik rose and thumped his fist on his chest. “I’ll have my craft makers onto it right away.”
Lars bashed his gavel on the table again. “Before you go, Hendrik, Tonio has another idea about how to defeat these dark dragons. We all need to discuss it. Tonio, please enlighten us.”
The spymaster’s chair scraped on rock as he got to his feet. “Amato knows a secret entrance to Death Valley via a pirate tunnel in the Naobian Strait. I’ve dispatched Kierion back to Montanara to negotiate a crew and ship with an ex-pirate currently running the Nightshader gang. I trust the lad to come through with a crew, but we’ll need a small group of riders to accompany them.”
Ezaara sagged in her chair. There’d only be one reason Roberto hadn’t told her. He must be planning to go to Death Valley with them. A memory flashed to mind: Roberto in chains, being flung into a rocky wall by the power of Commander Zens’ mind. Zens’ cruel laughter rang in her ears. She smelled Roberto’s blood all over again. Saw the gaping wounds on his body. Goosebumps skittered across Ezaara’s arms.
§
Sofia sat in the infirmary with Alban, stitching opaline crystals into headbands. It had been Marlies’ idea that they could help, after Roberto had returned with the crystals from Naobia. How he’d gotten back within a few hours, Sofia had no idea. But no one was about to tell her. The council had many secrets, and she wasn’t one of their most trusted riders—not anymore. She pulled a crystal from a basket and sewed it into a cloth opening in a new headband, careful to stitch around it so the stone wouldn’t move. As Alban reached for the thread, his hand bumped hers and he gave her a tentative smile. Not even he’d trusted her after he realized she’d fed him swayweed and corrupted him. She missed his strong arms and their heated kisses.
She attempted a smile back. His gaze slid to his work.
When the crystal basket was empty, Marlies looked up from the young boy she was tending. “Thank you for helping. Your work’s appreciated. Master Hendrik is run off his feet making these.” She rose, came over, and took a headband to inspect it. “Let’s test these and see if they work.”
Sofia gulped. “We’re about to fight dark dragons?” Since their attempt on Ezaara’s life, they hadn’t been allowed to even go on patrol with the blue guards who defended Dragons’ Hold’s perimeter.
Beside her, Alban’s large frame tensed. His steely eyes flicked over her face, hope flashing in them.
Marlies shook her head. “I’m sorry, not yet. We’ll test our dragons here.”
Alban exhaled. “As much as I expected.”
They each fastened headbands, ensuring the crystal was in the center of their foreheads, then strode outside to the infirmary ledge.
Banikan, Alban’s brown dragon, Aria, Sofia’s beautiful purple dragon, and Liesar, the silver-scaled dragon that Marlies rode, were waiting. They stood face to face with their dragons. Sofia reached out and stroked Aria’s soft nose.
“All right, now I want each of you dragons to try and mind-meld with us,” Marlies said.
There was nothing. Not even the faintest whisper of emotion or thought from Aria.
The door clunked behind them. Roberto strode out to join them. “Any luck?”
“We’ve only just started.” Marlies passed him a spare headband from her pocket. “Here, try this.”
Moments later, Erob landed, snow spraying around his feet. He settled, staring at Roberto. Roberto grinned, a sight Sofia had seldom seen on this tough dragon master’s face.
“Congratulations,” he said. “I think we’ve nailed it. We’ve unlocked the secret to withstanding the dark dragons.”
“Is it true, Master Roberto?” Sofia blurted. “Can Alban and I ride into battle?”
“More people have been turned by yellow crystals than you’d suspect, Sofia.” Pain flashed across Roberto’s face, then the harsh angles of his features softened. He laid a hand upon her shoulder. “I now understand what happened to you.”
Sofia’s jaw dropped. If she didn’t
know better, she’d think he’d experienced a yellow crystal himself.
§
Zaarusha and Ezaara winged over the edge of Dragon’s Teeth, the piercing peaks jutting toward the sky, ready to rip open her dragon’s belly if they fell. On either side of them the muted flap of dragon wings broke the still-as-a-graveyard silence.
“Macabre thoughts for such a pleasant evening,” Zaarusha melded.
“Ah, yes.” Ezaara was in a dark mood, but was it any wonder? Her feelings were still a little fragile, but she wasn’t about to admit that to anyone, not even Zaarusha.
Her dragon snorted. “As if I couldn’t detect that myself. Don’t worry, Ezaara, we’ll win this war. We have to.”
“I thought Handel was the one with the gift of prophecy, not you,” she teased, although her heart was anything but light.
“But I have the gift of hope.”
Zaarusha had put her in her place—once again. No matter what, as Queen’s Rider, she couldn’t afford pessimism. She had to inspire their people to fight. Or die trying.
A dark shape rose from Great Spanglewood Forest, spurting fire.
“Let’s meet this beast head on and blast it out of the sky—and the mage that rides upon it.” Ezaara leaned low over Zaarusha, fastening the crystal on her forehead, making sure it was secure.
Zaarusha roared as a green bolt of mage flame sizzled toward them.
Belching a plume of flame, they flew at the beast, head-on. To her left, Tonio rode Antonika, and to her right, Master Aidan was on Danika. Aidan screamed, clutching his head. Danika clawed at hers as they wheeled off and flew away.
That was strange; Ezaara couldn’t hear anything.
Antonika bellowed, her ruby hide flashing as she dived below the dark dragon.
They were trying to escape mental torture. Bizarre—Ezaara and Zaarusha couldn’t feel anything.
Talons outstretched, the shadow dragon flapped its ragged dark wings, sweeping straight toward Zaarusha. The Dragon Queen belched a gust of flame and swerved.
Pain ricocheted through Ezaara’s head, tearing at her mind. A vice tightened around her skull. In a desperate attempt, she nocked an arrow and fired straight into the dragon’s fanged maw.
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