More on this book
Community
Kindle Notes & Highlights
The battered black dragon threw back his head and roared again. The insides of his mouth and throat were bright green with red streaks. When he dropped his head, a red froth dripped from his mouth to sizzle on the paving stones.
He had not uttered a word that she understood. His half-folded wings were ragged and rent. Some of the tears looked old, but there were recent ones as well. He looked both healthy and yet battered.
All the keepers had gathered to stare at the oldest dragon in the world but they had halted at a sensible distance.
Then Mercor had rallied them and together they had concocted the plan that would persuade the humans to help them find Kelsingra. They had thought they were lying when they hinted at a storehouse of Elderling wealth in Kelsingra. Little had they realized that, to humans, the whole city was a vast treasure.
‘You’re not Rapskal,’ she said unevenly, hating that her voice caught in her throat. ‘Rapskal wouldn’t act like this. He wouldn’t talk to me this way. Rapskal was strange and silly, but he was also honest and honourable. And yes, I loved him. I don’t love you.’
The Silver in the wooden bucket swirled sluggishly. No one had jostled it. It had not ceased its restless motion since Carson had slowly lowered the bucket into the stuff, poked it with a long stick to make it tip, and then gingerly hauled it up again. He had held it by a length of dry rope to allow every droplet of Silver to drip back into the well before setting it beside the well mouth on the paving stones. They had all gathered around it, to watch the slow undulation of the liquid within. ‘Is it possible it’s actually alive?’ Tats had asked. No one had tried to answer. And no one had
...more
‘Be smooth and lovely. Bring your beauty to the wood. Shine and gleam. Be as strong and smooth as the face of a placid lake, be strong as polished metal.’ Unevenly, his fingers trailed along the wood, and unevenly did the Silver obey him. Narrow streaks of gleaming Silver-polished wood followed his touch. Where he had not touched it, the Silver darted about, formed itself into balls and danced nervously, uncertainly on the surface of the rough plank.
‘You are like the moon’s shimmering path on a still pond,’ Thymara suggested. Harrikin nodded tersely. ‘Let your beauty on the wood be like the moon’s shimmering path on a still pond.’ He spoke to the Silver, and another narrow streak of gleam joined the first. ‘The glorious strength of molten iron running in a steaming stream,’ Carson muttered. Harrikin nodded and spoke again to the Silver. ‘Add to this wood your glorious strength, like the smooth running of molten iron in a steaming stream.’
Thread by thread, compliment after compliment, the Silver was persuaded to merge with the wood.
Thymara was gazing around at the city. ‘How did they do it? How did they raise it all?’ ‘Very slowly,’ Carson replied. ‘And not with magic alone.’ He seemed to be thinking something through and then he added, ‘I don’t think they used it because magic made it easier or quicker. I think they used it to do things that otherwise couldn’t be done. Then the effort would be worth it.’
He was still not the chubby pink infant she had dreamed of cradling, but she suspected that, for an Elderling’s child, he was very healthy. Tintaglia’s influence was more obvious on him than it was on her or Reyn. His scaling was a decided blue, as were his eyes. His body shape was more lithe than rounded. She did not care. His eyes were bright; he slept deeply, ate eagerly, and stared at her with wide trusting eyes while he nursed.
‘When he dies,’ Malta said easily. ‘When he goes, he’ll die on the deck of his ship, Alum. And everything he was and all he knew of the river and the ways of Tarman will go back into the liveship. It’s how it’s done. And it’s important that there is someone there who is ready and willing to take over the captaining of the ship.’
‘Dragons are on their way to attack Chalced, to punish them for hunting dragons! Send word to Bingtown that they must be braced for retaliation.’ A breathless quiet followed his words. Tillamon shocked everyone when she lifted her voice. ‘And perhaps Cassarick and Trehaug may wish to consider well what happens to cities that harbour dragon-killers!’
To either side of him, in front of him and behind him, dragons flew, some with riders and harnesses, some bare of any adornment.
All the dragons seemed to know whence they were bound, whether from ancient memories or from shared thoughts, he did not know.
Instead, he was uncomfortably aware that both IceFyre and Kalo constantly vied for a spot just behind and above Tintaglia. He suspected he knew the significance of that,
He spoke of dragon wars, when Kelsingra had had to defend itself against raiding parties of dragons seeking to make a claim on the Silver seeps in the river. Reyn was heartsick to hear him speak of Elderlings battling one another on the ground as their dragons fought savagely in the air. Even worse was to know that the dragons’ and Elderlings’ enmity with Chalced reached back, not decades, but possibly centuries.
‘We cannot expect dragons to consider us: it is our duty to consider them.
Tintaglia has spoken of being well treated by the folk that live in the Icy Islands, and along the Black Stone Coast. The Six Duchies, she called it, and said that whenever she visited there, she was offered gifts of fattened cattle and a safe place to sleep. Will destroying Chalced threaten that?’
‘The Six Duchies has long warred with Chalced. They will probably not care at all if we destroy that city. But as one who has fought a city alone, and far more recently than IceFyre, I will say that it was a task that was dangerous and yet became annoying. It takes a lot of venom to destroy ranked soldiers, and while one is smashing ships and towers, one is not hunting, eating or sleeping.’
Dragons were come, to spit fiery acid that would melt the flesh from their bones. Their houses would fall, any man who lifted a hand against them would certainly die, and their orphaned young would whimper and snivel in the deserted and smoking streets. There was nothing, nothing they could do to oppose the dragons, the great and glorious and beautiful dragons that were deserving of their obeisance and obedience.
He pushed himself away from the cushions and onto his hands and knees. Not strong enough to crawl to the edge of the balcony, he slid and lifted his body until he was able to sprawl on the floor and look up at the
‘We will still die together.’ With a shaking hand, she reached for the teapot. ‘Will you have a last cup of tea with me?’ He turned his gaze on her. An odd calmness was welling up in him. ‘I would rather have a kiss. My first and last, I think.’ ‘Your first kiss?’ He laughed shakily. ‘My circumstances have not lent themselves to the giving or receiving of kisses.’ She blinked and the tears spilled faster. ‘For me, also.’ She leaned a little closer to him and then stopped. He looked at her. She had closed her eyes. Her hair was sleek, her skin like cream, her lips pink. Her first kiss would
...more
‘I wish we could live,’ Chassim said wistfully. ‘I wish I could live to see Chalced dragged out from under my father’s foot.’ She turned her face and her soft lips brushed his scaled cheek. ‘I wish we could live,’ she whispered.
‘She comes like a blue star falling through the heavens. She is the Empress of Destruction, the Queen of Vengeance, and if I must die, let her deliver my death to me!’ ‘That is her? She is like the fire inside a blue opal!’ Chassim stared, her eyes wide in terror and delight. Her body was behind his, holding him pressed against the stone balustrade so he could stand, watching the blue miracle streaking toward them. Selden lifted his voice and found that not all music had fled from him. ‘She is both wise and terrible. Cleverness beyond cleverness is hers, swift-winged, sharp-taloned, and keen
...more
‘Little brother, I am always doomed to find you in the damnedest places,’ the rider said, and abruptly Selden knew that it was Reyn who clasped him so securely. ‘You look but two heartbeats this side of death,’ Reyn added.
‘My name is Chassim. And if this glorious queen and her dragons are able to fulfil their mission today, by nightfall I shall be the rightful Duchess of Chalced. And in your debt.’
I am almost shamed to think I considered myself a singer, now that I have heard for myself the poets of old! And there are traditional songs that I must learn, songs for welcoming dragons, for celebrating the first flight of a hatchling, songs to thank dragons for sharing their presence with us. I think it will take me a score of years before I shall again claim I am a competent singer!
Especially Tintaglia’s mate, Kalo. Such a handsome fellow, and so strong!
Alise wondered if the two ships communicated on a level that excluded humans but decided it would be rude to ask.
And if we are to believe what every dragon told us of it, then each one was personally responsible for the fall of the city and the death of the Duke.’ ‘And the rise of a duchess,’ Althea added. ‘We’ve had bird messages from Selden, but they are not very satisfactory.
Leftrin spoke hastily. ‘Your youngster looks like he knows his way around a deck. When you think he’s ready to try a term under a different captain, he’d be welcome aboard Tarman. Things are a bit more rustic and he’d be sleeping in the deckhouse with the crew, but I’d be glad to foster him for a trip or two.’ Brashen and Althea exchanged a look, but it was not the boy’s mother who said, ‘Not quite old enough yet. But I’ll take you up on that offer when he is.
He turned his gaze to Leftrin and Alise. ‘Do you expect to breed soon?’ Leftrin choked on his tea. ‘Not that I’m aware,’ Alise replied demurely. ‘A pity. It might be productive for you just now.’ Paragon was politely enthused.
‘It was Tarman’s suggestion that they might find such information helpful, as so far they have enjoyed breeding, but fruitlessly. That’s all.’ Paragon was unflustered.
And I think there were others on the Cassarick Council that had more than an inkling of what was going on. He was protected.’ He shook his head. ‘Well, they’ll pay a price for that. Tarman will never carry any cargo for them again. Nor will the Warken or the White Serpent.’
The Duke’s palace had fallen to IceFyre’s orchestrated attack. The old black dragon had been both ruthless and relentless. He had not been content with killing the occupants. By the time the dragons had finished, nothing but crumbled ruins remained.
The populace had quickly learned that not even buildings offered any real protection against dragons newly infused with Silver. By evening, a cowed group of nobles offered a surrender, only to discover that the dragons had ‘captured’ the Duchess of Chalced and already arranged terms with her.
‘Chalcedean,’ Leftrin replied. He shrugged. ‘I don’t think she could establish order there any other way. There is still restlessness in Chalced, especially in the outlying provinces, but I don’t think it will reach civil war, as some said. Duchess Chassim seems to be trying for other alliances as well.’ Alise broke in with, ‘We heard an extraordinary rumour that the new duchess was actually negotiating a truce between the Chalced States and the Six Duchies region of Shoaks.’ ‘Preposterous,’ Althea said. ‘No one remembers a time when those two countries weren’t warring.’ ‘So preposterous, it’s
...more
Tintaglia has hinted that some of his illness was simply due to his unsupervised growth. He was young when she Changed him, and away for quite a time, so not all was right inside his body—’
Paragon’s face grew thoughtful. He lowered his voice. ‘Did not they think to treat him with Silver?’ Alise stared at him for a moment, shocked that he would speak such a secret aloud. Then she decided that if it was dragons’ business, then he had the right to know the whole of it.
to the clear blue sky above. ‘Again?’ she groaned aloud. ‘Apparently,’ Tats said with vast approval. He swivelled his head. ‘Where is he?’ Tintaglia was overhead. As they watched, she spiralled upward, ever higher. She trumpeted again, and they heard it answered from the east. They both turned to watch Kalo coming. This was not the leisurely circling of a dragon seeking game, nor the diving fall of a dragon strike. His long powerful wings drove him forward and upward. He looked black against the blue of the sky,
‘I don’t see IceFyre this time.’ ‘That last battle was pretty savage. Alise told me that from what she learned when she first studied dragons from scrolls and records, the males seldom did serious injury to one another in mating battles.’ ‘I don’t think Kalo read the same scrolls she did. I think that after their last clash, IceFyre conceded. Probably went off to kill something big, eat it and sleep it off.’ Tats nodded to himself. ‘The better dragon won. I’m glad Kalo got a mate.’
Tats stood staring upward. Kalo’s deep frustrated roars were answering Tintaglia’s clear trumpeting. ‘Don’t you want to watch?’ he teased her. ‘Thank you, but half a dozen times was enough. Can’t they be done with it for the day?’ ‘I think they’re enjoying it.
Sintara seemed to be making a very genuine attempt to escape Mercor. She looped back once, slashed at him with an angry scream, and then tried to resume her climb. It was useless. The tempo of Mercor’s golden wings increased and his speed with it. Suddenly, the golden dragon overshadowed the blue. His head snaked in to seize the back of her neck in his teeth. ‘He’s got her.’ Tats sounded very satisfied.
His impetus carried him forward and he crashed into her. But as his arms wrapped around her and he carried her to the ground with him, she knew it was no accident. ‘Caught you,’ he said. The impact had driven the breath from her body. She gasped in air and, ‘Yes,’ she answered. ‘You have. At last.’ She saw his eyes widen. Then, as she took a deeper breath, his mouth covered hers. She closed her eyes, feeling his weight on her, smelling him, pulling him closer. The sun was above them, warming the whole world, and the only sound she heard was the joyous trumpeting of dragons.
He took two steps toward her and extended his neck, snuffling the air around her. Today. He offered the word and waited for her. Today, she confirmed. It was time. IceFyre swept past them. He knew better than to attempt to land near her. Kalo had established that with him in several bloody battles. But the old dragon was within his rights and knew it. ‘Today!’ he trumpeted the word as he overshadowed them briefly.
What do I care if the first clutch you lay are his get? The clutches to follow will be mine, and my offspring will need mates. You think like humans! IceFyre issued his proclamation in disgust. Were the clutch not mine, I would not care. But I warn you now, youngster. Disturb the nest and the fight will be to the death.
In the city below her, a slender form emerged onto the tower parapet. He was robed in silver and deepest blue, and Selden lifted his voice to the sky, in praise of the day. The ancient words shivered in her blood, standing up her crest and the ruff on her neck. ‘Today, today, the Queen goes forth today! Her belly is rich with eggs, she carries inside her the generation to come. Today, today, the Queen leaves us today! Sing, sing, all, sing her praise, and wish her good fortune on her flight!’
But suddenly Selden’s voice rose again, in praise of her alone. She set her eyes on him, listening in pleasure. ‘The Queen rises, the blue Empress, Tintaglia, she of the wide wings touched with Silver, she who led the serpents to Cassarick, she who fed the first of the new generation! Eldest of our queens and wisest, bravest, always cleverest! Wide-winged Tintaglia goes to the nesting ground!’
As she watched, other Elderlings emerged onto the tower top. Reyn. Malta. She held aloft the child Tintaglia had saved, and they joined their voices to Selden’s. ‘Today! Today! Today!’ Malta lifted Ephron high on each word, and the baby’s newly found laughter rose to Tintaglia. ‘Today!’ she trumpeted out a blast in response, and felt the good wishes of her Elderlings rise to her as she opened her wings and leapt into flight.
