He took a breath and began to feed the few clouds rising up over his mass of colder air with moisture. It was a delicate balance of working on the clouds for a time, then working to maintain the colder air at the valley floor. He was slowly managing to enlarge the cold area and increase the cloud cover. Alador had no idea how to keep this up. He could already feel his power beginning to pull at the edges of his center. Even reaching for the power of the sea, something he was reluctant to do after his encounter with Dethara, he found himself at his limits. He cursed slightly to himself as he realized he had counted on this being easier than it was turning out to be.
He began to doubt his ability to actually create a blizzard. There was no doubt he could manipulate weather on a smaller scale, but it felt as if every valley, rock, pond and outcropping where working against his manipulation of the storm. There were so many more factors to consider: small pockets of warm air, a shear to the wind he was working with due to landscapes, and even the streams that cut through the land.
A glint of something shimmering up and to his right caught his eye and he lost his hold on the spell for a moment. Realizing it was Rena as she came closer, he turned his attention back to the work before him. Rena circled passed him a couple of times, dancing playfully on the winds in front of him before he heard her land roughly behind him.
She nuzzled his ear when she reached him tenderly. “You are fighting the natural movement of the air stones, beloved.” She rubbed her muzzle along his arm. “It would be better if you used the topography to your advantage.” Her words were tender and guiding as she spoke. “Look for pockets where the land causes the colder air you seek.” She settled down on the ledge beside him.
Alador swiftly cast about for what she was saying. He realized that she was right, there were places that received less sunlight throughout the winter day where the air stones moved a bit slower. He worked to add and connect them to his growing storm. “Thank you, Rena, I had not considered that.”
The clouds above were almost all connected now. He was adding power from the streams, the ponds and the ocean. The clouds broken and gray colors slowly melded into a thick blanket of soft gray wool. Still there was no snow and he sighed with frustration as he fed the clouds more water. If he fed it too fast, he feared it would just collect into hail and he did not know if he could get it back to the snow he needed.
“Rena I don’t think I can do this,” he whispered worriedly. He reached for more from the ocean, but his thread to it felt thin and fragile.
“Yes you can.” She said. She heaved up behind him. “Here, let me give you my magic.” She carefully extended her wings to either side of him. She carefully laid her wing talons into the palms of his hands. They were large; he could barely put his fingers fully around them. “Hold these and continue to work the magic. I will add my power to yours.”
Alador had not known that was possible, but he could feel the depth of fatigue building. He had no doubt that tomorrow his hair would be lighter if not all white. He could feel, much as a runner reaching the end of his endurance, that he did not have much left.
The mage blinked in surprise when a sudden surge of magic filled him. He latched onto it greedily creating a link that surged with power. It was as if a raging river of magic suddenly filled him. Working with Rena, he began to gently fill the clouds with the rest of the needed moisture. The winds began to howl as the warm air became trapped between the layer of clouds and the cold air that he had created down along the valley floor.
“You are fighting it.” Her soft words melded into his own awareness, the surge of power she fed him was sweet and filled him with a longing for more. “Close your eyes, see what you wish to happen, let your vision flow through your fingers,” the dragon spoke in a husky whisper into his ear.
He did as she bid him. He focused on the clouds, imagining the water freezing and the minuscule crystals gathering. Fractal patterns filled his vision as he imagined snow. Beautiful weavings of feathery patterns began to dance in his vision. The power danced along with him as he watched them swirl and collide into one another. Though the snow was far below him, he could feel it, taste it as if it danced right in front of him.
Their powers twisted from him as he clutched the dragon’s talons tightly. He could sense them spiraling around one another as he used it to move the air stones, lift the water to the clouds and form the small crystals. He was so intent on his task that it took a few moments to sense that something had changed.
Rena had moved to press her chest against him. The underside of her muzzle lay gently on top of his head. He could hear a strange hum emanating from her, the rhythm of it thrumming filled his very center. Alador could feel the warmth of her breast behind him. Her wings buffered him from the winds. Her wing talons dug into his palm, and a gentle trickle of his blood slid down his hand.
He realized that his heartbeat had begun to race. His breath came quicker, and he was suddenly very aware of the dragon. So much so, he began to lose his hold on the gathering storm. He opened his eyes in confusion and looked around him.
The wind howled about them now, it seemed to swirl around them masking his vision of the valley below. “Rena, what is happening,” he shouted above the wind.
The dragon moved her muzzle to growl gently into his ear. “Our powers are melding. Do not fight it. It will give you the strength you need. Finish it. You are almost too where you can let it go,” she firmly urged. Her breath seemed rapid as it pulsed against his back.
Alador gave a nod and began again to weave the spell. It had lost no momentum in the brief exchange. He closed his eyes again focusing on the snowflakes, willing his vision into reality.
The power seemed to come freely now. He felt no sense of exhaustion. If anything, there was a pleasure and he pulled on the power with greedy determination. He heard a gasp from Rena and eased up a little. He soon had the storm releasing its cold blanket of confinement onto the lands below them.
The feeling of the amount of power flowing freely through him was intoxicating. Alador decided to work a bit longer expanding the cold air stones along the valley floor. He smiled as the expanding of the spell was now coming easily to him with the amount of power he had at his disposal.
He realized that the power in his hand was beginning to feel and look like one stream of power rather than the spiraling streams before. Rena must have been right, the power was merging.
“Alador…” Rena whimpered in his ear, despite its urgency he could hear the same pleasure in her words.
Alador pushed the moment of concern that filled him aside. “Just a few moments more, Rena.” Alador whispered. “I am almost done.”
The power swirled within him, centering as if it were his own. The pleasure of its movements filled every sense. He could almost taste the sweet flavor of its caress on his tongue. The man could hear the thrumming melody of it combine with the strange sound that Rena seemed to be singing. He could feel it in every cell of his body, stroking his nerves with intense pleasure.
Tighter and tight the power swirled in him. He lost his focus on the storm now raging around them. Snow swept over them both as he closed his eyes and leaned back against Rena. She folded her wings tighter as he moved the hooks in an almost rhythmic dance. His hands conducted the power now, weaving and dancing with the song and the storm.
Tighter and tighter the power welled into the center of him. The pleasure now exquisite, he did not want it to stop. His head leaned back into the base of Rena’s neck. He could feel the dragon shivering behind him. He pulled the power into himself, feeling the intensity of the pleasure it brought surge through him
Time seemed to slow as power swirled through him no longer in his control. The swirl of it became so intense that it hurt. He whimpered, unsure of what to do. His body stiffened with a strange combination of pain and pleasure. Alador’s breath came in ragged gasps. His hands held onto Rena’s talons as if letting go would mean his death.
“Let it go, beloved. Yo
u must release the power.” The dragon hissed urgently in his ear. Her own breathing seemed labored.
At first, Alador did not know how. It seemed to just keep coiling. He felt as if he would explode with it. Then as if his thoughts guided the magic, it burst from him. His back arched as he cried out. The power seemed to shoot from the center of him out every pore of his body. He heard a strange screaming roar. The air filled with the smell of ozone as light blazed outward from the pair.
The pain laced pleasure slowly ebbed, and as it did so Alador realized that the sound had come from the blended voices of Rena and himself. He slid down her body, weak and trembling. Rena folded her wings tight across him and her breast and helped him slide to the ground. Her own nose nestled across his shoulder. He could feel the dragon trembling as greatly as he was.
Neither of them spoke for many minutes, the sensations coursed through Alador and it was all he could do to ensure he kept breathing. He felt as if he had exhausted every muscle into his body to the point that pain slowly replaced the pleasurable rush that he had just experienced. His mind was fogged and he could not seem to form a thought and hold it.
The storm raged before them, and only Rena’s wings protected him from the icy onslaught that he had created. He stared out at the swirling mass of feather light wonders of ice. It was as if he could see each snowflake in its full majesty. The individual fractals formed in the same way and each unique in their swirling dance and glistening patterns.
Finally, he found his voice. Moving his mouth to Rena’s ear, he asked. “Rena, what by the gods just happened?”
“We danced on the wind and power was our wings,” she answered back.
Where had he heard that before: Dance on the winds? He searched his memory and realized that was what the dragons called the strange falling act they did as they mated in the sky. His eyes widened. “Rena, isn’t that what you call mating?”
“Yes my heart mate,” she answered. “Dragons can rarely dance on the wind using power. It takes two melded in purpose and skill."
Alador sat stunned as he took in her words. He cursed softly beneath his breath before asking his next question. “Rena, why didn’t you tell me we would mate?” He pulled away from her in confusion. He felt his anger rising.
Rena pulled her head up, her eyes held her confusion and hurt at his words. “I did not know. I swear it,” she defensively answered over the wind. She loosened her wings slightly as he pulled away from her. “As I said, dragons can rarely dance with power.”
The mage closed his eyes. How did you yell at someone for giving you an experience that words would fail to fully describe? How could you hold anger when it had been so wondrous? He tried to catch his breath, but as he did he realized that exhaustion was close to claiming him.
Rena seemed to sense it in him and nuzzled him gently. “Go back to your cave, my heart mate. I will keep your storm in play until the sun sets. Then I will seek my own.” She loosened her wings so that he could stand. “We can speak of this when we both have had time to consider what happened.”
Alador nodded. He was not sure what he would or could say at any rate. He stood in numbed disbelief. The mage realized he was still clutching both of Rena’s wing talons and swiftly let them go. The blood flowed more swiftly from his palms, but at that moment it was the least of his worries. He swayed on his feet as he stumbled away from her. She nuzzled him slightly with concern.
He turned to fully look at her. The confusion must have been evident on his face as she leaned forward and gently nuzzled her nose to his.
“I will take care of your storm,” she promised. She slowly laid her forehead to his, and he found his hand caressing the side of her head.
He stepped back, the snow crunched beneath his feet as he stared at the dragon still sitting before him. He nodded and closed his eyes. The howling wind and weakness made it difficult, but he managed to envision his cell back in the Blackguard caverns. When the room materialized before him, Alador moved woodenly to the bed. He fell into it not bothering to remove his cloak, snow frozen boots, or stop the bleeding from his hands.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Alador woke to a stern pounding on his door. He opened it groggily to see the High Master standing there. The man looked over Alador’s sodden and somewhat bloody attire with a raised eyebrow.
“I suggest you clean yourself up.” He handed Alador a letter then pulled the door shut as he entered the room, obscuring Alador from curious eyes.
Alador looked himself over and realized he looked a fright. He cast a clean spell then broke the seal from Sordith and quickly read it. Alador stared at the letter with a frown. Leave it to Sordith to drop such news and so casually. He had no idea what it meant to stand as a man's oath keeper in a bonding ceremony. Alador started to tell himself that he also did not want to stand for Keelee's bonding after her betrayal, but a heartbeat later he realized he just did not care. He did not hold the deep hatred that he had felt when he had first learned of her deception.
His mind raced over what he needed to do as he tossed the letter thoughtlessly aside. He had not yet been able to speak to Amaum about the task he was hoping the dragon would agree to perform. He should have asked Rena last night how to find him. The only one's cave he knew was Pruatra's and he was not sure that the dragoness would receive him well if he just happened to pop in. He did not see much choice other than this given that dragons did not exactly have a message system. If they wanted to tell one another anything, they either passed it to dragons that were flying that way, or if it were more personal, they would have flown themselves.
Alador realized that knowledge of the dragons' way of life was becoming his own. He was rarely able to distinguish what he knew or what was gained recently unless he specifically sought to see if it were anything that he could recall. The information would come up as it was needed. There was not a librarian directing one's thoughts, so he was still fumbling about in some areas. He swore aloud and realized that it must have been out loud for the High Master answered him.
"Bad news then, sorry to hear it."
The man was watching, Alador looked up as he felt the eyes of a predator on him. Davin may think this man was nicer, but he was a hunter. He had not hidden it away before Alador had caught it in his gaze. One raptor knew another, he thought. He knew this was something he would not have picked up before, the dragon had given more than just spells to the mage.
"Sorry High Master. I had not meant to let that slip out,” he admitted. "I fear that it is a matter that will send me out of my cell again." Alador picked up the letter and tucked it into his jerkin.
"Do you wish me to see to that letter's destruction, lad?" The High Master's voice held genuine warmth, but Alador could not get that momentary glimpse behind the man's smile out of his mind.
"No, no. I will need it for my next task I fear. I will destroy it when the matter is dealt with properly. Is there anything else, Sir?" Alador causally picked up an apple remaining on his desk and bit into it. He realized he was starving.
"Are you ready to have your confinement lifted?" The big man crossed his arms as he met Alador’s gaze.
"Actually, I could really do with a good meal. Following that, I could use an evening without eyes for a very long bath." Alador considered. "Yes, I think if you could lift it with an order to return to my duties following my half-day with Luthian, I would appreciate it greatly."
The High Master held up a hand. "You mean... IF...you return."
Alador swallowed at the reminder he might not live through the test. "Yes, well I do hope to live."
The big man chuckled. "I was thinking more that you would pass, and they give you that mansion of your father's."
"Oh," Alador answered as he colored with a bit of embarrassment. "I don't think they are going to give a half-breed a place on any tier above the fourth. I will just be happy to open up testing to half-Lerdenian's so that the military is not their only option if they are gifted in magic."
"You're an idealist, lad." The High Master shook his head. "I am sure as soon as Minister Guldalian finishes whatever manipulation he is about, the council will rescind this new decree."
"Perhaps, but, it is a risk that I am willing to take to create a place for those like me that are not necessarily fit for duty on a battlefield." Alador stared across the desk, the vision of bodies lying below him on a great plain filled his eyes. Small streams of red cracked the dusty ground around them. The stench of death filled the air; death birds circled the sky, and many were already feasting on those strewn about like Sofie's dolls.
"Alador!"
The sharp call startled him. The apple dropped from his hand and rolled toward the High Master who stopped it with the toe of his boot. Despite his vision clearing and seeing the man before him again, he could still smell the decay of the dead that had been before him. Realizing the bodies had been below him quickly made it clear that he had seen from a dragon's viewpoint.
"You all right?" The man leaned over and picked up the apple, tossing it into a waste box behind him.
"Yes, I just haven't been getting enough food as you said." He did not want to tell the man that he now saw visions of the past ... or at least ... he hoped it was the past.
The man turned and strode to the door. He threw it open. "Davin, get your pure little arse in here."
Davin hurried in looking pale and worried. "Yes Master Bariton?"
"Get Alador here to the food hall and make sure he eats at least two helpings. I don't want him to return to his rooms till he is sure to burst." The man commanded firmly.
Alador grinned at Davin's expulsion of his breath. "Yes sir! What of the guards for this guardsman?"
Pseudo-Dragon (The Blue Dragon's Geas Book 4) Page 25
