Forty Four
Alara
“I can sense her,” I tell Varan, quietly. “She misses her children.”
A flash of sadness crosses his face. “I know,” he says, eyeing me. “Can you really talk to her?”
I look back at Inkeri, her eyes are full of pain. “I can feel her emotions, that’s how I talk with them. It’s like a current flowing back and forth between us.” I look at Rohan and then back to him. “You can feel things too, can’t you?”
“I can,” he agrees. “But I’m not sure it’s on the same level.”
“The bond between you exists, I think that’s why.”
“It is,” Rohan says. “It opens a connection, but elves are far more intuitive with nature itself.”
“We are?” I ask him, and all the Dragonbonds look at me.
“Yeah,” he says, clearing his throat. “Niyah will be able to explain more, I’m sure.”
I look down at the dirt. “Maybe,” I whisper.
“Come,” Rohan says, holding a hand out to me.
“Bye, Inkeri,” I say, and she chuffs in return.
Varan looks at me with wide eyes as Durruk leads the way to his section.
With nightfall a curtain of secrecy, we’re able to come here unnoticed.
“There,” Durruk points to his dragon, a Luxem. “Einar.”
The dragon stands when Durruk approaches, little growls coming from him as his chest glows softly.
Durruk pats his dragon and then steps away, waving a hand in his direction.
I squeeze Rohan’s hand and then walk toward him.
The dragon eyes me, his chest a darkened green now at my approach.
“Hi,” I say, and the dragon’s ears flicker. “I’m Alara. We saw each other once at The Graveyard.”
He chuffs, and I smile, humming a little, and I can feel him straight away.
He’s not angry, not sad. In fact... I look to Durruk. He’s as laidback as his Dragonbond.
“What?” Durruk asks, looking between us.
“You both chose well.”
“What do you mean?”
I bite my lip but then straighten my shoulders. “He’s as lazy as you.”
He blinks at me, and I hold my breath, wondering if I’ve overstepped, but then lets out a bark of laughter.
“She has you there, Durruk,” Varan chuckles.
“Nice one, Alara,” Sigrid says, and my cheeks heat a little.
“Yes,” Durruk says, looking at his dragon. “We did match well.”
Einar chuffs, and I laugh.
“What?” Durruk asks.
“He’s proud that he’s a lazy bones.”
Durruk sticks his hand in the cage and scratches under his ear. “Damn right he is.”
I step back into Rohan’s hold, giving them some space.
“Are you satisfied now?” Rohan asks them, and the two male Dragonbonds look between themselves before nodding.
“Yeah.”
“Yes.”
“Then it’s time for the next step,” Rohan announces.
“And what is that, exactly?” Sigrid asks, leaning against the cage, eyes on Einar.
“We try to get as many people on dragonback as possible.”
“Excuse me?” she says, straightening as I place my hand on the arm that has just wrapped around me.
“Did you just say to get people on dragonback?” Varan asks.
“Not just any people—Dragorie.” Rohan pulls me closer. “Alara has been helping us do it. We have one already paired.”
“We can pair them?” Sigrid asks me.
I freeze as three pairs of eyes are on me so suddenly, tension rising.
“Breathe,” Rohan mumbles in my ear, and the command hits as I take a breath. “Good, now, use your words.”
Another breath. “I realized that some Dragorie in the Blackscale clan are drawn to certain dragons over others. Kaldar…”
I look up at Rohan, wondering if I’m allowed to tell them.
“Go ahead.”
I nod. “Kaldar is good friends, I guess you could call it, with Hedoric, one of the dragons, and I think they had naturally begun to produce a bond. He was able to be on his back quite easily because of that, and Hedoric didn’t mind at all, in fact, he seemed pleased. Happy, even.”
“But no one has been able to get on dragonback unless they are bonded,” Durruk says.
“Until now,” Rohan corrects. “We’re actively doing it. We have another two that are very close to being on dragonback and others trying. Not all will succeed, but it’s a chance.”
“Could it really be possible?” Sigrid mumbles, looking off into the distance.
“It can,” I tell her, moving out of Rohan’s hold to go to her. “In Highwing, do you have anyone who is closer to any of your dragons, who is around them often? Who is at ease?”
She thinks for a moment. “Yeah actually, I do, at least two of them.”
“That could be a start.”
“You really think so?”
I look back at Rohan who gives me an encouraging nod.
“I know so.”
She stares at me for a moment, and then leans forward, right into my space. “You are definitely an interesting one.”
She grins, and I smile back.
“Right then,” she says, leaning back and clapping. “Looks like we have Dragorie to round up.”
“You do,” Rohan says, “and then we can have Alara come here in turn to each clan to help. With her being able to talk to them, we can figure out quickly who is compatible and happy to be ridden, and who isn’t.”
“This is all great in theory, but it may not work,” Varan says.
“But it is working,” Rohan stresses, “And even if we can get one extra from each clan, it’s worth it.”
“Worth it to do what, exactly?” Durruk asks.
Rohan and I look up at the dome-shaped bars above until he takes a breath.
“To plan a break out.”