He slipped off the mountaintop and caught the breeze. He was determined to find some clue to his location. White wings carried him over the enormous trees and waterfalls which spilled down the side of the mountains. Their cascade sang a soothing tune as he passed.
Then it occurred to him what was missing. He turned his wings and lit upon a cliff. Down below the gorge, a river wound its way through the vegetation. What he didn’t see - or for that matter, hear or catch a scent of -was any wildlife. There had been nothing flying in the skies or lumbering across the paradise of plants below. Nothing. How could this be?
He strained to find the whispers again. Who or what made those sounds? Every direction he searched, he still found no answers. No movement other than nature. Staring up into the sky, he noticed the thin clouds drifting across the expanse of blue. As he watched, the clouds gathered close until they had a full plumpness. They stretched and reshaped and became a large Dragon with wings of sky and cloud. Sunlight caught on its wings. The Cloud Dragon turned and, with enormous sweeps of his wings, set a course towards Zelspar.
The Cloud Dragon landed nearby and solidified into a Dragon of humongous proportions. The sleekness of scales were the colors of the clouds and sky; a blending of hues so unique, they gave the illusion of transparency. The graceful sweeping wings were without barbs or hooks, and even the tail was lacking in spikes, down to the smooth but flattened, slightly oval tip. Although the head did have two horns, they met behind the neck where they gracefully curved in a downward position. This Dragon is not built to withstand battle, Zelspar thought. He felt a certain measure of sadness in that contemplation.
The Cloud Dragon turned her head slightly to look face to face with Zelspar. A shock hit Zelspar which jolted him and paralyzed even his blinking mechanism. He could not turn, nor look away. The Cloud Dragon ravaged his mind through her eyes filled with lightning flashes. Zelspar felt internal pops as the Cloud Dragon explored the rivers streaming through his mind.
He felt -- no -- he saw the Dragon flying within his head. It would land here and there, on occasion move a rock or a log snagged in the river’s flow. It wasn’t painful, and yet, each time it happened, he felt a brief charge hit like a snap. Zelspar had the urge to shake his head but knew he could not make any movement. The Cloud Dragon continued moving within him. He saw her flying off to the side and then the back of his head. She shot down tunnels and out again. All the while he had not broken contact with the Cloud Dragon’s eyes.
Suddenly, she was gone. Gone from his mind, gone from the cliff, and gone too were the whispers he had felt when he first arrived. His body folded to the ground. He ached for sleep. Unaware of what else may lurk in this place, he rested briefly before he again soared into the endless blue in search of a sheltered cave. As he flew through the gorge, he spotted an opening by the lack of coloring which surrounded it in washed-out reds and subtle browns.
He adjusted his flight to steer directly towards the darkness and, upon approach, could see the indentation marking an opening. He landed hard just inside the cave, having only a small ledge to slow his landing. Its darkness therein matched a starless night. It was an oblivion and it welcomed him.
His back grazed the smooth coolness of the wall as he sank against it. Breathing deeply, he could detect the scent of water. Good, he thought, no need to fly down to the winding river. He relaxed and curled up, resting his tail around his folded arms. His wings were draped over himself, a cover from the elements. His heavy-lidded eyes blinked twice, then stayed closed.
Chapter 7
Starleira had organized the training sessions and she marveled at how far everyone had advanced by applying all the shared Magic and spells. She felt confident in each and every Dragon, peoples, and faery folk. They would be able to hold the dome of protection, and she had high hopes they would also be able to stand against Flegmorr.
She gazed out of the cave’s entrance and scanned for the white form of Zelspar. She knew summoning the Ancestor would take time, but his absence chewed against her nerves, laying them bare. She wished she would have asked where he was going so Rynik could check up on him. Zelspar would be enraged, she thought. He was old and had only recently recovered from Flegmorr’s attack. The sky held no offerings and she turned to watch Perthorn and Kiel as they shared spells from his book Perthorn was never without.
“Sipta Queen?” Kaida had approached her without notice. “Is everything all right?”
“Oh, Kaida, I didn’t hear you approach. What is it you asked?”
“You look worried and, well, we have practiced well into the long shadows of the day.”
She caught her breath. “Forgive me, Kaida, I wasn’t paying attention to the day.”
The Queen of the Mursei called out, “Please everyone, that is more than enough practice for this day. We have practiced hard and long hours and we will not have a session next sunrise. We all need a break to let all of what we have learned solidify in our minds. Good evening to all.”
Kaida studied her Sipta Queen mother and caught her eye.
“Kaida, yes, you are quite correct. I have been distracted and worried thinking of Zelspar.”
“Would you like me and Zlemtec to go look for him?”
“No, I don’t think we need to do that, my little Dragon. I’m a little anxious because he is … he has been gone now for a few days.” She chuckled reassuringly to break the worry from Kaida’s eyes. “I am sure he is well. He simply loses track of the passing days and nights when he is determined to find answers to help us all.”
“If you need me, come to Molakei’s cave. We are heading there now to prepare food.”
“You go enjoy and rest. We will see what the morning brings,” the Queen said with a wink and nod.
Kaida wrapped her arms against the Queen’s in a parting embrace.
Starleira, the Queen, turned to watch Kaida climb up on Zlemtec’s back and glide out of the training rooms towards their place with Molakei and Flower Bird.
It was a beautiful sight that now seemed commonplace, since the other peoples also were riders. They had ridden up to Urthe, traveled for food, and had been coming up to the training rooms since their return. It was more common to see peoples on a Dragon than to see them without. She shook her head at the thought. It wasn’t that long ago that the sight of peoples on a Dragon was a shocking sight…
After the last few had left the training rooms, she took flight towards home. She hoped that she would find her Bonded there. He and Galdean took daily flights along the borders of their protective dome of Magic, reinforcing any weak parts to assure Flegmorr could not slither his way through. She also was aware Flegmorr was supposedly on his return to Inner Urthe but she didn’t have trust he would actually do so. She needed to speak to Rynik about her concerns. Maybe they were out of place. She caught the ledge firmly with her talons and made her way towards her lair.
Starleira entered her lair to find Rynik and Galdean in deep discussion. It gave her pause. She found herself taking in the sight of him. The broad rippling muscles of his back as he leaned over the object he studied on the table, the warm glow as the light caught the deep gold of his scales, part of his under-body armor, with his top armor the color of a placid lake.
Rynik turned. “Starleira, come. Galdean and I were going over the areas we had already reinforced with our Protection Magic. It would seem our dome holds strong against Magic attacks, at least for the present time. Also, there has been no sighting of Flegmorr.”
“My Bonded, that is excellent news. In your travels, have you stumbled across Zelspar?”
“Zelspar? He didn’t return to the training rooms at the new morning’s light?” Rynik’s questions were Starleira’s answers.
“No, he hasn’t returned. I hadn’t anticipated him to be gone this long, as he only planned to speak with the ancestors.”
As Rynik looked at his Bonded, he noted her brows were drawn tight together in a puzzled and worrisome furrow. “Do you know in which di
rection Zelspar headed?”
“Unfortunately, no. He was in a hurry to leave and had asked me to organize the training. I left him at the cave entrance and did not see which way he left.”
“Rynik,” Galdean said, “there is still enough daylight. We could take a look close by.”
“Yes, yes, my friend. We may meet him on his way back.” Rynik lifted Starleira’s chin and searched her eyes. “We will do an aerial search, my Bonded, but the light is fading. If we do not see him, we will leave again at first light and do a more thorough search.”
“Thank you both. I am concerned he had not fully recovered for such a trip.”
Galdean tried to lighten the Queen’s mood. “You know that old cantankerous Dragon is much too stubborn for any ill to attach itself to him. He probably is on his return, having not paid any mind to the passing of days.”
“You are a good friend, Galdean. I will feel all the better when I know he is safe,” the Queen answered.
She joined the two Dragons on their walk to the main entrance to the caves. As they were preparing to leave, she asked, “Where will you search?”
“We will fly towards the place Zelspar landed when injured. That is the place the Great Ancestor and the other Ancestors came to him. He may think that area is a magical spot. It is still close enough we should have light enough to search and still make it back before darkness wears her stars.”
With a step and a leap, first Rynik and then Galdean took to the sky and headed toward the east. They scanned the ground as they flew, looking for anything that could be Zelspar.
As they flew, Rynik wondered if Zelspar could have breached the protective dome to search out Flegmorr. He brought his thoughts to Galdean, now that they were away from Starleira.
“Rynik, I hear your words and understand your thoughts, but I don’t think Zelspar would have breached the dome to search for Flegmorr. He is the very one who held us in check, knowing what the Ancestor gave as his directive. No interference or those who do so will die. Zelspar knows this. We must allow Perthorn to engage Flegmorr before we can join the battle. I think he is doing what he told Starleira and is talking to the Great Ancestor.”
“I see your point, Galdean, it was, well...under normal circumstances, it is the very response I would expect from Zelspar. He is mightily headstrong and would never back away from a fight, especially when someone he cared about was the target of the attack. Thank you, Galdean, I had to clear my head of my thoughts.”
The miles disappeared under their wings until, at last, they reached the destination. They landed, and sent their roars bouncing off of the mountainside. They would pause, to listen for a response that did not come.
They flew through each cave and landed at all shallow wall depressions that could hold a Dragon but found no sign of him. After exhausting all possibilities in the area, they took off for home, hearts heavy without Zelspar. Rynik knew his Bonded would become even more worried over his continued absence. But perhaps he had returned while they were out. He carried this thought full of hope with him in flight.
The night hid its stars on their way home. The clouds had gathered for a storm and they were flying towards it. Blinding lightning flashed in the distance and carried a chill in the air under their wings. Rynik exchanged a look with Galdean as they pushed their wings to exhaustion, trying to make it home before the storms caught up.
The rain hit their wings in a raging torrent. Their attempt to reach home was buffeted by the winds pushing hard against them. It drained their last reserves of energy. Rynik roared at Galdean to find shelter. They had to wait it out.
A flash of lightning hit the ground up ahead and added the light they needed to spot a cave. Their wings tilted and drove them into the opening only moments before the ground lit up with lightning strikes. The rolling thunder blasted the inside of the cave, shaking rocks loose from the walls. Soon the wind pushed the cold air towards them, chilling their small cave. Rynik searched along the back of the cave for anything to burn, but the cave had nothing to give. Short blasts of their belly fires helped keep the cold away, but their energy could not keep up the fires. They huddled along the back of the small cave and waited out the storm.
Chapter 8
Zelspar was caught in night terrors. That is all his mind could make seem reasonable. He saw his hands fly through the air, making moves. Unusual moves with his voice ripping the air with strange verbalizations. His mind sought answers. It decided he was dreaming as he watched himself. He made clouds form and gather, one arm slicing through the air, and he freed lightning upon the land. The other hand punched, sending hailstones down. He could increase the size of them by pulling his hand away or pushing it forward. His left arm brandished his staff up high as he mumbled incoherent sounds. Lightning bolts crashed to the ground in blue, green and red flashes. When he was content with his storm rendering, he swished his hands and sent it on its way, opening up the sky overhead with the twinkling of stars.
His eyes twitched in his disturbed sleep. He groaned a low rumble and rolled over, facing the wall. Still, his dream would not relent. His head filled with images of crumbling mountains and wide crevices in the ground, like lightning strikes etched on the dirt and rock. A simple wink and the ground opened wide. He kicked out in his sleep, trying to stop the ground from opening. It disturbed him, the chaotic nature of things, but in his dream Zelspar seemed determined to tear the world apart. He shivered and had need of a fire when a blaze lit in the firepit. The dry branches that were left there crackled.
In his dream state, he felt none of the snow falling around him. He moved the first and last digit of his right hand and swirled it gently at first, causing snowflakes to dust the ground. Then he moved his hand in an agitated motion and the snow whipped up a blizzard which swirled all around and buried him to his knees in no time. With a clap of his hands, he dispersed the snow clouds and brought back the night. He yawned, stumbled close to a prone Dragon, and curled up, pleased with his success of Magic. He fell right to sleep.
The softness of the new day’s light broke apart the remnants of the last evening’s storm. Galdean looked out from their shallow cave to see the ground covered in a glistening white. A common sight in the cold months, but not so in the warm months. He was still staring out in disbelief when Rynik lumbered up to join him.
“By all that is Dragon…” he said, “what caused this snow to hit? It isn’t the season for it.”
Galdean shook his head. “I don’t know. The storms that hit us last night were far from ordinary, and now this? If we hadn’t already checked our protective dome, I would think Flegmorr had attacked us with a new form of Magic.”
“Even joining Magic with the ways of Nature, I do not see how he could have breached our dome,” said Rynik in deep thought. “You don’t think…?”
Galdean narrowed his eyes, reading his friend. “How could he, we’ve been keeping up the Magic protecting our area the whole time. There simply isn’t a way he could have passed through our defenses.”
“We need to head home. I want to check with Starleira on any word she could have from Zelspar. If he hasn’t returned, we will scour every possible place until we find him. He would know what to make of all of this.”
They left their small enclosure and flew above the blanket of white. They noted that the sun was already hard at work leaving puddles along the way.
They made their trip in a quick time. As soon as they made it to the Mursei network of caves, they headed towards Rynik’s lair. Starleira met them at the entrance. As their eyes locked, each full of questions, the anticipation all had carried was deflated. The slump of shoulders carried the words none of them would voice.
Starleira broke the tension. “When you did not return last night, I felt sure you must have found him and decided not to try to fly home.”
“No, my Bonded, it was because of the storms we could not return. They were so violent, we had to seek shelter.”
“I am glad you did. The sound
of the storms kept all of us inside, turning from gusty wind to tremendous rainfall to blowing snow. I have never seen the like.”
“It is very unsettling to have storms like we did at this time of the seasons. It is unnatural, if you ask me.”
“What? Do you think it is a Magic used against us? How could that happen? You said our dome of protection is stable,” replied Starleira.
Rynik blew out a long sigh followed by two thin streams of smoke. “That is the part which perplexes me the most. Flegmorr should not have been able to break through our barrier. If it was Magic, it came from inside our dome.”
Starleira’s eyes blinked rapidly, trying to grasp Rynik’s words. “Is it possible Zelspar created the storms?”
“I would not believe so. Have you seen Magic like this sort before?”
Starleira moved her head from side to side before Rynik continued.
Zelspar and the Magicians Page 4
