“Maybe because I didn't think you'd done anything worth bothering him about?”
I scowl. “Blight and I completed your trial. We've more than proven the bond is real, at this point.”
“That isn't her name,” he reminds me, tersely. “And just so we're clear: a bond born of desperation is not the same as one born of freewill.”
“So yesterday doesn't count? Is that what you're telling me?”
He doesn't answer right away, focusing instead on examining one of Blight's wings. Most of the smaller, darker feathers have fallen out at this point, and teal plumage is coming in brighter and thicker than ever.
She watches him with a sharp, steady gaze. She doesn't speak, and I don't feel any more panic or wariness radiating from her; I feel nothing from her, in fact. It's almost as if she's wrapped a supernatural shield around her emotions.
“It was a step in the right direction. I suppose I can concede that.” Gareth finally looks at me. “It should have given you a better idea of what's possible between you two—so maybe now you'll let go of some of your foolish stubbornness and actually try to embrace this bond, hm?”
I bite back a defensive retort, remembering my earlier conversation with Briar. However unfair Gareth is being, playing the role of dutiful mentee will serve our plans better than arguing with him.
At least for now.
Keeping this in mind, I join him in his work, examining Blight's other wing, checking the healing of her few remaining stitches and looking for any signs of infection or strain.
After a few minutes of silence, some of the tension between the three of us settles. That shield Blight wrapped around her emotions seems to have extended to me, making me feel calmer, confident enough to try and start a useful conversation.
“I'm embracing learning about her and other dragons, for what it's worth,” I say.
“Is that so?”
“Yes. And I have questions.” He doesn't outright dismiss me, so I continue: “Questions such as…what do you know of the first dragon-bound queens of Kaldra?”
He hesitates, pausing in the middle of examining the joint where Blight's wing connects to her lean, powerful body. “What do you want to know?”
It takes me a moment to decide where to start. “I read something interesting yesterday, regarding the first divine dragons and their magic—how it differed depending on which god or goddess shaped them.”
“And you're wondering what sort of magic your own dragon might be capable of?” he guesses.
I nod.
“It's usually not apparent until they mature, and their chosen bond has secured and strengthened through time and trust.”
“But surely there are patterns? Parameters those first divine beasts established?”
“I think you're getting ahead of yourself, but…yes. The four you're talking about, specifically…they each represented a different part of a fire's lifecycle. The first humans they bonded with had titles suggesting their role in this cycle, and the magic that aligned with it—most historical texts refer to them as the Hearth Queen, the Inferno Queen, the Ember Queen, and the Ash Queen. The Hearth Queen and her dragon were known as the life-givers, with powers centered around creating things and helping them flourish. The Inferno Queen represented peak power and transformation; a master of fire itself, able to reshape matter through heat and will. Ember was known for endurance and memory, and magic that dealt with the mind, in many cases. The Ash dragon and her queen represented—and wielded powers of—death and rebirth.”
He meets Blight's golden eyes, which remain narrowed and intently focused on him.
“Each of the four god-sanctioned kingdoms had its own smaller, individual flame,” he continues, stroking her neck, “but when all of their different specialties of magic coexisted in the intended, balanced state, a greater flame would also burn here in this central realm of Mouren. And as long as this unified flame burned, the gods would remain connected to this world, even after those founding queens had passed on. They would continue to shape and send new divine dragons to guide each new generation…that was the promise they made.”
“Butdidthe kingdoms keep the flames burning?”
He sighs, his hand stilling against the dragon. “Sometimes. There have been ages of prosperity, ages of darkness…the deeper you dig into the empire's history, the more messy you'll realize it is.”
I'm quiet for several moments, twisting one of Blight's fallen feathers between my fingers, thinking all of this over. “I'm guessing there hasn't been balance for some time.”
“No. And there haven't been any divine-sent dragons, either.”
“Until now?” I glance at Blight, who blinks in response.
“Until now,” Gareth confirms.
I shake my head. “If she truly is divine, I don't understand why she would choosemeto bond with, of all people. I'm nobody.”
