Heath signaled to Boru, urging him to get control of the situation. Violet and sea-green feathers scattered in the mud. Lightning flashed on scales and rolling eyes. Laini tried to take off again, and again Althor yanked her back down.
The cacophony brought still more people to the garden. Soldiers. Nobles. Stewards. All of them Soolens. They gathered in the archway, hands clutching weapons, eyes wide. No one dared get too close to the sparring beasts. Taklin and Reya could barely keep the other dragons from getting into their own fights. Rook chattered and whined, deeply affronted by the whole affair.
Then Laini whimpered, drawing Tamri’s attention back to the fight, which had migrated to a wide flowerbed. Bedraggled plants scattered everywhere, along with far too many sea-green feathers. Althor still had the upper hand, and his attacks were becoming more aggressive, as if he scented blood. Tamri clenched her teeth. She couldn’t let Laini get hurt, no matter what Heath said. She had to do something.
Thunder boomed, hurting her ears, and she wiped rain out of her eyes. The Watermight umbrella was still suspended where she and Heath had been standing a moment ago. Tamri yanked it toward her, spinning the Watermight into a thin silver rope.
While Heath was busy instructing Boru, Tamri crept forward, catlike, getting as close to the scuffling dragons as she dared. Then she whipped the Watermight rope at Althor. The end flicked his neck, and he jolted his head up with a snarl. Tamri whipped the magical substance again, this time striking his snout.
Althor bobbed his head like a sea snake, unsure where the blows were coming from. While he was distracted, Laini managed to disentangle her wings and get her feet under her, wheezing with fear and fatigue.
Tamri spun the Watermight whip over her head, preparing for a third strike. Before she could release it, Althor lunged. His teeth caught Laini’s shoulder where her left wing extended from her body, and he bit down hard.
Laini wailed, the pitiful sound boiling Tamri’s blood. Abandoning the whip idea, she spun the Watermight into an even thinner coil and threaded it between Althor’s jaws, which were clamped shut on Laini’s shoulder. The silvery magic slithered past her feathers and scales, picking up drops of blood, and caught in the dark gray hide at the edge of Althor’s mouth. Tamri hardened the thread and jerked it tight.
Althor howled. Tamri braced herself and pulled back on the Watermight, forcing the razor-sharp thread against the dragon’s mouth as if it were a horse’s bit. Her physical strength wouldn’t be enough to move the dragon an inch, but her Wielder strength was another matter.
She pulled harder on the slick cord. With a mad roar, Althor released his hold on Laini and scrambled back, trying to relieve the pressure of the Watermight bit in his mouth.
Laini scurried for safety, taking refuge behind Heath, who was advancing through the chaos with dragons on either side. Boru rose up on his haunches at his right, bright white wings spreading wide. Lightning flashed on his feathered crest, making it look for an instant as if he wore a white crown. A large golden dragon with black-tipped wings called Zorya prowled at Heath’s left, growling deep in her chest. Althor hissed in fear.
At a wave of Heath’s Fire cudgel, Boru barreled forward and pinned Althor’s wing to the gravel with his full weight. Another swing of the cudgel, and Zorya rushed forward to take the other wing, helping Boru control the rogue dragon. Althor struggled against the two bigger creatures, but he couldn’t escape.
Heath watched the trio closely for a moment, his expression as grave as stone. “You can release him, Tamri,” he said at last. “They’ve got him.”
Tamri pulled the Watermight back toward her, zipping it through the air like a cut fishing line. It didn’t make sense. These dragons had lived and worked together for years. They may not always get along, but they shouldn’t be attacking each other.
Tamri was about to ask Heath what could have caused this when she caught sight of Laini. Forgetting everything else, she dashed toward her sea-green friend.
Laini had retreated to the far side of the garden, away from the other dragons and onlookers. She was shivering like a newborn puppy. Rainwater dripped from her feathers and mixed with her dark-silver blood. Tamri hadn’t realized Cindral dragon blood was that color, like a heavier, darker sort of Watermight.
Scratches from teeth and claws marred Laini’s scales, but the severest wound was on her wing-shoulder. Four long gashes cut through the feathers and scales and into the thick hide below, as if Althor’s teeth had ripped as Tamri forced his jaws back. Darkly glimmering blood gushed from the wounds.
Laini gazed up at Tamri with pained, confused eyes. Tamri was about to touch her when Heath appeared at her side, catching her arm.
“Careful,” he said. “She’s injured. Her self-preservation instincts might take over and make her lash out.”
“She won’t hurt me.”
“She could kill you before she even recognizes,” Heath said. “Just go slowly.”
He released Tamri’s arm and stepped forward, cooing to Laini in a gentle voice.
“Easy there, girl,” Heath hummed. “You’ll be all right. Let me take a look.” He reached into his pocket for a honey cake wrapped in wax paper. “I have something for you.”
Tamri’s heart lurched painfully. Laini looked so sad. But Heath’s gentle words soothed her too.
“I know it hurts. You’ll be okay. That’s it.”
Heath gave Laini the honey cake while he examined her wounds. He inspected the deep gashes in her shoulder then rotated her wing carefully to check its range of movement. The dragon let out a pitiful whimper and jerked away.
“Sorry. I won’t do that again.” Heath eased toward her once more and pressed his coat against her shoulder to staunch the bleeding. “You’re doing so well, Laini.”
“How bad is it?” Tamri whispered. The shimmering silver blood soaked through the fabric of Heath’s coat much too quickly.
“He got a good grip on her,” Heath said. “She may have a ripped tendon. Do you have any Watermight left?”
“A little.”
“Can you seal up this wound? Watermight healing will work better than anything I can do.”
“I don’t know how to fix tendons.” Tamri had only ever repaired cuts and scrapes with Watermight before.
“Just stop the bleeding for now,” Heath said. “We’ll see if any of the Soolen Wielders are up to the task.”
“I’ll try.”
Heath shifted aside, supporting Laini’s wing with a steady hand. Tamri squeezed in as close as she could beside him, drawing the Watermight to the tips of her fingers. She smelled metallic blood and damp wool mixed with a clean leather and honey scent that was all Heath.
She drew in a deep breath. “Ready.”
Heath removed the blood-soaked coat, and Tamri quickly flushed the wounds clean, the silver-white glow of the Watermight guiding her. She remembered how Heath had rejected Watermight healing for himself when she accidentally sliced his arm open. She’d had to sew him up with a needle and thread, and he still bore a scar. He didn’t turn down Watermight healing when one of his dragons was injured, though.
After cleaning the four gashes, Tamri used the magical substance to seal them shut. The storm began to lift as she worked, the rain becoming light and fitful. The thunder rumbled less frequently as the lightning passed on, making it easier to concentrate.