Chapter 23 ReadyNot #2
“And you flew here on Ingamar, while maintaining control?” Ezra asked.
Lark waffled her hand, “I started out in control, but halfway through the flight, he took over and brought us here.”
“He took over and brought you here, to us?” Ezra asked, stroking his beard.
“Maybe that just means that your bond with him is weak,” Hardin suggested.
“That’s not it. Lark should’ve been able to feel something through the bond if it existed,” Ezra said.
“So, she isn’t a dragonrider?” Hardin asked.
“Maybe she is, maybe she isn’t. And if she is, she wasn’t trained in Astral City or with anyone associated to the Vermillion Keep or Storm Keep,” Ezra said.
“But she did use magic. She had a Hyalite. Ingamar chose to save her over the Hyalite. Why would that happen if she wasn’t a rider? Ingamar must’ve bonded with her when they met in the forest,” Venrick suggested.
“That is not how bonding with a dragon works. It is a monumental event. One that you hope never to forget,” Ezra explained.
“If I’m not a rider, how do you explain the spell. I didn’t use the magic from the Hyalite, it wasn’t even with me. It was already through the portal, and we didn’t have any Yogos,” Lark countered.
“There is only one explanation that I can think of. That being, you are still bonded to another dragon,” Ezra said.
“What dragon? Lark’s dragon died right next to Tel. I was there, I saw it,” Venrick said.
“And you say she took the Hyalite from Marcel?” Ezra asked.
“I can’t remember doing that,” she said.
“How else would she have gotten it? Marcel was the one who stole it off me when I was in and out of consciousness. He came right up to me in his black brismil armor. I remember seeing a glimpse of him holding it,” Venrick said.
“You must have been a powerful rider to have taken a Hyalite from Marcel Heartfell. Maybe from Lamar Keep in the Capital. It’s curious that I’ve never heard of you,” Ezra said.
“That’s what I was thinking. She probably came up in Lamar City after you resigned,” Venrick said.
“In that case, with your dragon slain, it is possible that you formed a bond to the unhatched dragon that will be produced from that mystic orb,” Ezra suggested.
“Can that happen?” Lark asked.
“I’ve never heard of it before, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t possible. Unless your dragon is still alive somewhere. If Venrick is right, however, your dragon was slain. Being bonded to another dragon is the only explanation I can think of, unless you used dark magic.”
“She didn’t. Lark’s magic came from a willing source,” Venrick said.
“Ingamar and I can’t bond because I’m already bonded?” Lark asked.
“I don’t see why bonding with more than one rider at a time or one dragon at a time for that matter isn’t possible. It’s not been done before, but you have something of a bond with that fire fae.”
“Is it a bond? She hasn’t shown herself since Astral City,” Lark asked.
“You were taken away to a warded location,” Ezra said. “She probably couldn’t locate you.”
“She showed herself to me while we were in flight,” Venrick said. “She seemed afraid of being caught by someone.”
“Probably the King of the Night Court back in her realm,” Ezra suggested.
“No,” Lark said, playing with her pendant. For some reason, Lark knew Nix was still in their realm. “Nix is still here in Sataran. I think that might be what I felt coming from the east.”
“What do you mean, felt something? Describe it as best you can,” Ezra asked.
“I get this burning desire to be near that firestorm building in the distance. It’s an instinct, this urge that tells me to go there. Sometimes, it sends a sensation through my necklace,” she said.
“You’re necklace?” Ezra asked.
“This one,” Lark said, showing him her golden pendant.
He examined it, humming to himself. “No Yogos or anything that could store power… This feeling you describe, the desire to go toward the storm, have you felt it before?”
“I have.”
“Is it with every storm?” he asked.
“No, some give me the sensation more than others.”
“And you always feel it through the necklace, too?”
“Not every time with the storm, but it does give me the strange sensation right before I see Nix.”
“That’s curious. I think I can help you.
What you’re describing with the necklace is different than the sensations you get from the firestorms. Your necklace almost sounds like a cursed object.
But if it was a curse, there would need to be a rune, or a jewel capable of holding power, like a Yogo.
I don’t see any on your golden lark. It also doesn’t seem as though you’re constrained by any external force acting on you.
I’m not sure what to make of it that you feel it before this Nix appears. ”
“Got it, she’s not cursed,” Venrick said.
“What about the firestorm?” she asked.
“What you have described concerning the storms is the calling a rider feels when there is power within a storm. Once a rider has bonded with their dragon, they share a connection with the realm of the gods. When power is being forced through the veil between our realms, you can sense it,” Ezra explained.
“As in Yogos and Hyalites?” Lark asked.
“Yes, one or the other. Yogos are the most common, though sometimes a Hyalite is produced.”
“You said you felt this to the east, but Ingamar brought you here. Why?” Hardin asked.
“Maybe Ingamar knew the storm was going to attract unwanted attention and happened upon us?” Ezra suggested.
“Where is the dragon now?”
“Ingamar is here. He’s not far off the road now, watching us and listening to us. He brought us here intentionally,” Venrick said.
“Is that what he is doing? Making us work together to find the Hyalite I lost rather than seek out a new one?” Lark asked.
“Ingamar knows we have a better chance to find what we lost as a group than by working alone,” Venrick said.
“You mentioned that Ezra could be useful with a tracking charm?” Hardin asked.
“I can’t perform that level of magic,” Ezra said.
“So that’s out,” Venrick said.
“I can’t, but I do know an elf who can. And I think she might be interested in helping us find a Hyalite that’s not been claimed by Nordraven or Lamar,” Ezra said.
“We shouldn’t waste time. Tell us where to go. Lark and I can ride to her,” Venrick said.
“This elf isn’t like most of her kind. She will require payment for this service.”
“I have my money, but is it enough?” Hardin offered.
“Her organization has enough money. What she will want is magical energy,” Ezra said.
“I don’t have any on me, I used my last Yogo on the orcs in Astral City,” Venrick said.
“I can’t give away my power if I can’t remember how to use it,” Lark said.
“Which is why we’re going to use Lark’s abilities to find some more,” Ezra said.
“You mean I go into the firestorm?” Lark asked.
“Isn’t that a risk we shouldn’t take?” Hardin asked.
“Time is ticking,” Venrick said.
“Every day that passes the Hyalite could pass into enemy hands,” Ezra said. “This may seem a distraction but if we get the tracking charm to lead us to Sasja it will be worth it.”
“How sure are you this elf will help if we find more Yogos?” Lark asked.
“Positive,” Ezra said.
Ingamar emerged from the forest. Lark felt a faint sense of positivity from him. She sensed that now he was willing to go whether Lark was ready or not.