As soon as the mixture of our blood slides down my throat I see the bonds between us form, like silver chords attaching each of us, and I'm suddenly much more aware of them, their feelings, their presence, their magic. It's heady, to feel this deeply intimate connection.
"Very well," Amora says. "I will give you a fortnight to discover who killed my daughter and bring them to me. If you do not, I will destroy this world and you with it. If you do, I will spare this world."
Two weeks. That's not enough time, but it will have to do. "I will need the cooperation of the other dragons to accomplish this in such a short time. And I will need full authority to do whatever must be done."
"As you wish," she says, gesturing for the Dragon Council to approach. "You, my beloveds, are under the temporary authority of the Maiden Fate, who is tasked with finding my daughter's killer. Give her your rings, and afford her every liberty and cooperation. I expect you will not disappoint me in this," she says, giving each of them, as well as me, a pointed glare.
They look none too happy at this proclamation and grumble under their breaths, but they do not argue.
The Earth Dragon steps forward first, tugging the ring off her finger and handing it to me.
Each of them follow suit, silently relinquishing their authority to someone they clearly consider a lesser being. Or at least they did before they found out who I really am.
Still, dragons are not easily humbled. They will obey their mother, but they don't have to like it.
Once I've slipped all their rings onto my fingers, I pause, studying them, wondering what use they are, other than implied authority.
As if sensing my question, Amora shows me her ring. "These symbols on the sides of the ring, if you channel your magic and trace them into the air, will summon the dragon whose ring you are using."
Wow. This is better than text messaging, at least in terms of access. Though I don't particularly want to summon pissed off dragons to me at any given moment.
Racul's face is a study in frustrated anger. "Do not abuse this temporary privilege," he growls.
I smile charmingly at him. "My only goal is solving this murder and saving the world. I'm sure we both want the same thing in this, do we not?"
He glances away, unwilling to answer directly.
Amora begins to float upward, slowly shifting into her dragon form. "I will have eyes on you all. Do not disappoint."
And then she flies through the tear in the sky and disappears.
I look to the dragons, a bit flabbergasted by the shift in power dynamic. But we don't have a lot of time, so I need to start getting answers.
"First question for all of you," I say, skipping the small talk. "What, besides another dragon, can kill one of you?"
Racul glances at her siblings and then scowls at me. "There is nothing else that can kill a dragon."
"So it was one of you," I challenge.
"No." His answer is curt.
"I'm sure you can see how this creates a problem. You do want to save the world don't you?"
From the corner of my eye, I see Callia appear, her silver eyes glowing like the horn on her head, her skin and hair as black as ink. The unicorn woman shifts to my side and whispers in my ear. "They are lying to you. There is one other thing that can kill a dragon." She turns to face me, the horn on her head glowing a bright—nearly blinding—silver. "Me."
The Vision
The night is darkening round me,
The wild winds coldly blow ;
But a tyrant spell has bound me,
And I cannot, cannot go.
~Emily Bronte, The Night is Darkening Around Me
The dragons each transform and fly away, leaving me stunned and deflated as my magic drains from me. Callia is still here, her eyes now locked on the tear in the sky the Mother of Dragons just disappeared into. I leave her to her thoughts and turn to the brothers, who stand beside me like sentinels.
"What the hell just happened?" I ask nobody in particular.
Elijah grins. "I think you just became the most powerful person in this world."
"Shit."
Sebastian runs a hand through his hair, a frown tugging at his lips. "This is… complicated. You bought us time, but if we don't solve this murder, she'll hold you personally responsible."
"I'm not sure how that's any worse than her destroying the world today with us in it," I point out as we walk back to the carriage.
"Good point," Sebastian says, though the worry has not left his face.
I look down at the rings lining my fingers. All six of the dragon rings plus Cole's ring. I can feel the power in them all zinging through my flesh, sending goosebumps up my arms. "We need to get Ana and Zara home," I say. "And then we've got to get to work."
We also need to talk about the oaths they all just took, but right now isn't the time. First, I need to find out more from Callia about how she can kill dragons.
"Explain," I tell her, and the brothers glance at me, then realize I'm talking to an invisible unicorn and studiously ignore us.
"The only way to kill a dragon—other than being a dragon yourself—is to puncture their heart with a unicorn horn," she says.
She glances away, as if caught in a long-forgotten memory. "There were many of us once upon a time. We galloped over the lands free and wild. Until one day, a unicorn and a dragon got into an argument, and the unicorn ran the dragon through with his horn. The dragon died, shocking everyone. This was so long ago most on this world wouldn't remember it, but still the story spread, and then we were hunted, our horns fetching top price from illegal traders. The dragons, fearing the risk we posed, even those of us loyal to the Council, did the unspeakable. They quietly had all the unicorns killed and had all our horns destroyed by dragon fire."
"Did they kill you?" I ask, stunned by the cruelty of it all.
"Yes." But she doesn't expand as we reach the carriage.
I leave the questions for later as I examine the busted wheel. "Couldn't earth magic fix this?" I ask Sebastian.
"No, this is dead wood. I can't manipulate something that has no life left in it."
"You can," Callia whispers into my ear. "You have all the elements and can therefore sing to the parts that are dead, and the parts that yet live."
I'm used to these impromptu lessons from her, and I love stretching my powers, so I concentrate and focus on the wheel, on the molecules that form it, and I visualize it repairing itself like a broken bone. As I do, the wheel shifts, shakes, and begins to move together, the splintered pieces fusing back into one seamlessly, until it's entirely restored.
"Is there any limit to your power?" Sebastian asks, in awe.
"I don't know. How would I fare in a straight up fight with the Mother of Dragons?" I ask. "Because if we don't do what she wants, it might come to that."
They all look like they're about to shit themselves at the suggestion. Even Callia shakes her head.
"You are not ready to face her," Callia says. "She's much more powerful than you can possibly imagine."
I detect equal measure awe and fear in her voice, and I wonder how well she knows the golden dragon. I'm still not entirely used to dealing with beings who have lived such ancient lives. It's a perspective that's hard to fit into a human-sized lifespan.