Tears of War (7 page)

Emallya didn’t understand why no one could sense his magic. Every senior mage was able to sense the magic in another, even a young mage just balanced on the edge of first use. But not with Loki. Something in him kept any of the mages from knowing he was ready to use magic the year before when he went to the Kormai. It had kept Emallya from sensing it in him the moment she met him. But it hadn’t stopped Merru from finding Loki, or bonding with him, too young though Loki was.

Namir looked up at him, water running in streams off his golden scales. His amber eyes held humor in them.
“You might as well find something else to do. Loki and Merru won’t be found until they wish to be.”

“Why do you dragons not make the two behave?”

Vaddoc felt Namir’s mental shrug.
“Merru is his own being. As far as Loki, we like him.”

Vaddoc shook his head. The same answer the dragons always gave when they let Loki get away with too much. The boy could probably set Galdrilene on fire and the dragons would find no wrong it in. Come to think of it, it was probably a very good thing Loki’s magic dealt with light and energy, and not fire. What a mess that would be.

“How is Loki supposed to learn to be a responsible Dragon Rider when he acts like this?”
he sent to Namir.

“Do not worry so, Vaddoc. Loki will be what he needs to be when he needs to be it.”

Heaving a deep sigh, he walked back into the hold. Loki needed training. Vaddoc would leave for Shadereen soon. Hadar would have to teach the boy. If Loki actually behaved and did what he was supposed to.

He met Maleena in the Great Hall. She smiled at him, her violet eyes sparkling with suppressed laughter. “What is so funny?”

“You are broadcasting your thoughts so loudly, I can hear them through my shield. Don’t worry so about Loki. He will be fine. And quit scowling, it makes you look more fierce than you are.”

“How can he be trained if he keeps disappearing? He is my charge now and I cannot keep track of him. What kind of teacher am I that my pupil chases after whatever he fancies?”

Maleena laughed softly. “You are too hard on yourself and have too little faith in Loki. He is a lot like Kellinar. Trust Loki, he will turn out alright.”

“Maybe you are right. I guess he will come to me when he is ready to learn something. If I am not here, Bardeck is and so is Hadar.”

Maleena looked thoughtful for a moment; then a mischievous glint lit up her eyes. “If you still want Kirynn to go to Shadereen, I would suggest you don’t mention sand spiders.”

Vaddoc gazed at her in confusion. “Why?”

“Apparently, Kirynn’s only real fear in the world is spiders.”

“Spiders? She’s completely fearless in the face of armed enemies but terrified of spiders? How do you know?”

“She found a spider about the size of my hand in her bedchamber. She couldn’t even get within zahri range to kill it. Believe me, feeling terror from Kirynn was confusing.”

He threw his head back and roared with laughter Sand spiders were much larger than Maleena’s hand. He tried to imagine Kirynn running in fear from one. His mind couldn’t conjure the image. He shook his head. He would have ample opportunity to see it in person, especially if they visited the border villages in Shadereen.

Maleena’s smile faded and her violet eyes took on a look of concentration. Vaddoc watched her carefully. It was the look she got when her mind was being pulled elsewhere. “Maleena?”

Her eyes flashed to his face. “He let his weave down for a moment. I believe you will find Loki and Merru down by the tanneries.”

Vaddoc smiled. “Thank you, Maleena.”

“You’re welcome.”

He hurried for the broad stairs beyond the outer terrace. In all likelihood, Loki would be gone from the tannery by the time he got there. He paused, turned abruptly, and walked back toward the inner terrace. His long strides carried him past Maleena. She gave him a knowing smile.

He walked out onto the inner terrace.
“Namir, would you kindly take me to the tannery?”

The gold immediately started in his direction.
“Of course. Although I highly doubt either one of them will show any repentance for missing their lesson today.”

“I still have time. If I have my way, they will not miss it.”

He strode to the equipment cave and pulled Namir’s well-oiled saddle from its rack. Although the seat was sized for him, the skirts were made to fit over the shoulders of the full-grown dragon. Though large, it was surprisingly light. He stood on Namir’s leg and settled it over the dragon’s shoulder peak where the dorsal ridge scales were the smallest. It only took a few minutes for him to fasten all of the straps and settle into the saddle. He buckled the two safety straps snug over his upper thighs.

Namir launched into the air without any command from Vaddoc. They were one; two halves of the same being. Their hearts, souls and lives were blended together until the only separation was that of their individual bodies.

His spirit soared with Namir over the edge of the waterfall. It was impossible not to feel the thrill of flight and the enjoyment of being in the air with his dragon. Namir locked his great golden wings and twisted into a sharp dive, pushing Vaddoc against the safety straps. Pure joy flowed into him from the dragon. They shared the love and happiness together.

All too soon, the tannery came into view below. For a moment, Vaddoc understood how Loki might want to escape and be alone on an adventure with Merru. Nothing was quite so beautiful as the gift of a dragon-bond.

“He is there.”

Namir’s sending brought his thoughts back to the present. Yes, taking off and having fun with your dragon was great, but they all had their duties. Duty was something you didn’t shirk lightly. Vaddoc’s upbringing and training had taught him that.

He followed Namir’s sight path and there stood Loki and his golden Merru gazing up at them. The workers in the tannery stopped their labors to watch Namir land. Many smiled and waved. The big gold rumbled a greeting at them.

Tell, the head of the tannery, walked toward them. “I’m assuming you are here for these two truants,” he said as he got closer.

Vaddoc cast a glare at the youngsters. “Yes, it appears they forgot they had a lesson today.” He had to work at holding the glare. The two looked unabashed and so completely pleased with themselves, he really wanted to laugh. Oh the fun and innocence of childhood. It really wasn’t Loki’s fault. He was so young for the position of a Dragon Rider. Nowhere in the histories was there a record of someone so young bonding with a dragon. No one had ever been called before their sixteenth year of age. “I hope they have not caused too much disturbance to your work.”

Tell shook his head. “Not at all. Full of questions, as usual, but careful to stay out of our way.”

Vaddoc looked back at Loki, “I expect you in the hold within an hour.” He sent to Namir,
“Please back me up.”

Namir lowered his head to Merru’s.
“It is time, young one, to behave as a dragon. I trust you will not force this issue. Vaddoc is a fair and patient teacher; he does not deserve this disrespect.”

Merru lowered his gaze to the ground and Vaddoc heard his reply through the mind of his dragon.
“We will be there, Namir. I am sorry. We did not think of it as disrespect.”

Loki stared at Merru for a moment before turning to Vaddoc. “Merru is right. I really didn’t think of it like that. We will be there, Vaddoc. For this lesson and any others. But we still won’t stay in the hold if there are no lessons to attend. We will have some fun.”

Vaddoc nodded. “An acceptable compromise. Thank you for that.” He glanced at Tell, “Thank you for letting them spend their time here. May peace be on your day.”

Namir brought his wings down in a rush as he launched himself into the sky again. He climbed quickly until he was high enough to ride the air currents. He started to coast toward the hold, but Vaddoc stopped him.
“It will take Loki and Merru most of the hour to make it back to the hold on foot since Merru can’t yet carry a rider. Let us enjoy a little flight time.”

“That sounds wonderful.”
Namir turned and soared out over the bay, his golden scales glittering in the sun.

M
aleena stood with Taela at the desk in the records room, the Ka’ti open in front of them. She watched the translations of the symbols as they formed in her friend’s mind.

“Oh, what about that one?”

Taela’s eyes stopped moving over the page.
“That one?”

“No, the one just before. Yes, that one.”

“It does look interesting.”

Maleena nodded.
“It looks incredibly useful, especially since we will both be leaving for crowded cities soon.”

Taela glanced up at her.
“Should we try it?”

Maleena hesitated for a moment.
“We have to know if it works.”

“Who are we going to try it on?”

“Hopefully not the entire hold this time.”
They both laughed at the memory.

“What is so funny?” Mckale’s deep voice made them look up. He stood in the doorway with Kellinar.

Maleena smiled. “Nothing of importance. What are you two doing here?”

“Kellinar informed me you intended to experiment with weaves from the Ka’ti again.” His silver eyes were steady on hers. “Are you sure that is a good idea?”

Taela nodded. “Absolutely. There are weaves in here that can be very helpful to Maleena and me. This one we just found, it may make it easier for us to be in crowded rooms. We have to try.”

Maleena smiled. “We will do our best to keep it from affecting everyone.”

Kellinar cleared his throat and glanced at the taller man next to him. “Mckale and I are actually here to offer ourselves as your victims. Maybe if you have someone specific to aim these weaves at, you won’t involve the entire hold.”

Maleena glanced at Taela. The other woman shrugged and she looked back at the men. “You are sure you want to do this?”

Mckale nodded; warmth and humor in his eyes. “Just try not to do anything permanent.”

“What was the weave again?”
Maleena sent to Taela.

Taela's eyes scanned the page again.
“There it is. Are you sure about using our bondmates for this?”

Maleena glanced briefly toward the men.
“I don’t think this weave will hurt them. In fact, it will be interesting to see if it will even work on bondmates.”

Kellinar looked at Mckale. “Watching them talk in their heads is unnerving.”

“Yes,” he agreed. “Nothing like getting meaningful looks and hearing half said remarks to set you on edge. I hope they don’t have anything too drastic planned for us.”

Taela chortled. “Sorry, we are so comfortable ‘talking’ in our minds to each other; I didn’t think it would bother you.”

Kellinar’s blue eyes twinkled. “Only when I don’t know what you have planned for me bondmate. After all, you did threaten to stab me this morning.”