AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“How did you escape?”
“The prince. The youngest, not the one who died, he came and led me outside.”
“That’s…”
“Venard. The one married to the Frostlake princess. I guess not married anymore, I don’t know. He wanted me to… This is quite weird, Naia. He had a lover who died, and had her preserved body. He wanted me to tell him how to revive her, like they had revived his brother. I told him it wasn’t worth it, but he still insisted. I mean, I made a deal with him, but his words were so loosely woven that they’re meaningless. He also asked me to remember he could be an ally. Then he led me to a door at the bottom of the castle, down in the precipice. It was dark, and I was attacked by a giant spider. I guess we know what kinds of creatures live there. That’s how I got hurt.”
Naia’s heart was speeding up. This was all very strange and dangerous, but there was something else she needed to know. “How did you heal so fast?”
“You’re not going to like it.” He had a smile, though, so it couldn’t be anything bad.
“Tell me or I’ll make you demonstrate your healing ability again.”
13
The First Mage
Fel hit the ground with a thud. At least it was soft, with tall grass in what felt like a clearing by a hill. Thick fog prevented him from seeing much of his surroundings. He was himself, wearing the same clothes he’d been wearing when fighting the Ironhold invaders, in that odd, distant, past, but for some reason, it felt strange to be human again. In fact, something felt wrong.
His stomach sank and he realized he had no magic. He couldn’t sense the traces of iron on the earth, couldn’t feel whether there was any metal nearby, couldn’t sense anything. Fel was literally being deprived of one of his senses, which was as important for him as sight or touch. Without magic, the world around him lost its sharpness, focus.
“Hello!” he called. Even using his voice again felt strange. He then tried something different, and sent that word as a thought, the same way he’d been doing as a dragon. It felt the same, but he had no way to know if it worked or if there was anyone around him.
All of a sudden, a strong gust of wind hit him, which cleared up some of the fog. He then realized that what he had thought was a hill was in fact a dragon, much bigger than he would have imagined. Great dragon indeed. Each of his claws was bigger than Fel in human form. His scales were dark brown, like old tree bark. Yes, Fel had heard them say that this dragon was thousands of years old, but now that he stood in his presence, he felt as if he was older than time, older than this world, older than all things for which there were stories, as if this dragon had lived before all that, in a time unknown.
“State your purpose,” a thick, deep voice asked. The sound was not in Fel’s head, but a real sound that felt as if it rumbled the ground, even though the dragon hadn’t opened his mouth.
“First Mage,” this was the title Fel had been told to use, but it felt worse than inadequate now, and made him feel foolish and afraid he was about to fail before even trying. He continued, “I wish to turn back to my human form.”
A deep growl came from the dragon. No, laughter. Eerie and strange. “How can you wish for what you already got?”
Fel looked down on his human body, so tiny and fragile, and yet something he’d been wanting so much. “Is this permanent?”
“You tell me. Is this what you want? This pitiful, weak body, when you could be glorious and free?”
At least the dragon hadn’t said a word about his lack of hands, and now he felt worse than usual, without his magic, without his metal hands. He would feel self-conscious if he weren’t already feeling so small and insignificant in front of such a legendary and old creature. “In truth I want both. But if I had to pick one—”
“You’ll choose the weakest? Well, there you are. You can return now.”
“What about my magic? The human magic?”
“Oh, so you want it all?” The huge dragon lowered his head, so that it was right in front of Fel. Goodness, he’d be able to swallow him whole in one bite. “Or perhaps you should be clearer about what you want. If it’s the stinky, corrupted magic, tell me that’s your wish.”
“My apologies. I want my body back, but the way it was, with my magic. I wouldn’t be myself without it.”
“Hmmm…” The dragon was thoughtful. “You know, I’ve met your father.”
Indeed. Like every dragon except Fel. “Really? He came here with a request?”
“Oh, no. He was smarter than that. He came for words.”
Fel was wondering why the dragon was veering off subject, but didn’t want to offend him insisting on his request, and in truth, he wanted to learn more about his dragon father. He felt that the First Mage was expecting a question, and didn’t want to disappoint him. “What words?”
“Wisdom. Knowledge. In truth it’s everywhere. You can reach out and grab it. The question is whether you’ll use it, that’s the question.”
“What did he want to know?”
“He was very young, not a hatchling like you, of course, but still young.”
