Dragons of Asgard Chapter 8

“What do you mean?” Kas asked as she rushed to my side. “You can feel its emotions?”

“Yes.” I nodded.

“I thought you couldn’t feel dragons until they were hatched,” Asta said, and her yellow eyes narrowed on me.

“I guess I can now.” I shook my head and placed my other hand on the egg.

The baby inside was crying out for help, and I had to do something.

I closed my eyes and focused on the egg in my hands and the little boy dragon inside of it. He was scared, I could understand that much since it was such a powerful feeling for him, but there was more.

I sensed a presence… a warm, kind presence, but I couldn’t see them, I could only hear them. After a moment, I realized it was the dragon’s mother. He was nearly about to hatch when he was taken, and now he was refusing to hatch. He was ready to come out of his shell, but he was too terrified to do so without the calming presence of his mother to help him.

My eyes pricked with emotion as I experienced all the little dragon was experiencing right then, and I pulled my hands away and let out a deep sigh.

“You’re going to be okay,” I said as I crouched down so the baby could hear me better.

“Is he okay?” Eira asked. “What’s going on?”

“He was about to hatch,” I explained. “He was ready to break out of his shell when he was taken.”

“Oh no, the poor thing.” Asta frowned, and her plump bottom lip stuck out slightly.

“Is it dangerous for him to stay in there if he’s ready to come out?” Eira asked, and her red eyebrows pulled together with thought.

“Can’t you hatch him?” Kas asked.

“I could try,” I said. “But he doesn’t want to come out, not without his mother.”

“That is so sad.” Asta shook her head and gently placed her hand on the egg. “We will get you home.”

“Yes, we will.” I nodded.

“It may be our only chance to find out where that elf went, though,” Kas pointed out, and she bit her lip nervously.

“You’re right,” I sighed and turned to Ramir. “Will the spell harm the egg at all? Or do anything to scare him in there?”

“Not at all.” The old man smiled in an attempt to reassure me since he was clearly able to see how upsetting this was for me. “I’ll be particularly careful, and you can stay with him the whole time if you’d like.”

“I think I would like that,” I agreed. “Thank you.”

“Of course,” Ramir said. “We’ll make this quick.”

As much as I didn’t want to put the little dragon through the inconvenience of a spell, I reminded myself that was all it would be. The poor thing had already been away from his mother far too long, and I knew he didn’t want to hatch without her. The few minutes this spell took wouldn’t be anything compared to the time he’d already been away from her.

Bedsides, Kas was right, this could be our only chance to find out where the man who’d stolen the egg had been. If we knew where that arsehole had been before he came to Asgard, not only would that give us more insight into the dragon trade, but it could also help us find this little boy’s mother.

“Alright,” Ramir said, and he patted a small cushion he’d set up on the table. “You can set him right here.”

“Okay,” I agreed, and I carefully picked up the egg and put him on the cushion.

“Now, give me just a few minutes,” the old man said with a small smile.

While Ramir got everything for his spell ready, I tuned into the little dragon’s emotions as I slowly stroked the shell of the egg.

He wasn’t quite as frightened as he was before, but he was still confused and scared, and I could tell there was no way he was coming out without his mother nearby.

There was something incredibly endearing and understandable about a baby desperately wanting its mother.

“I feel awful,” Preyna whispered, and her voice brought me out of my own thoughts.

“It’s not your fault.” I shook my head. “Don’t blame yourself.”

“I thought it must have been dormant like all the others we’ve found,” she said, and she closed her eyes as a small tear ran down her cheek. “I’m so sorry sweet boy, please forgive me.”

“He’s confused,” I told her. “But he doesn’t blame you. And you shouldn’t blame yourself, either.”

“Rath’s right.” Asta nodded. “There was no way you could have known.”

“I suppose not,” Preyna sighed and wiped at her eyes. “But I would like to have you check any other eggs we come across. I don’t want a repeat of this situation ever again.”

“I understand.” I smiled softly at her. “And I think that’s a good idea, but you still shouldn’t blame yourself.”

“It’s hard not to,” Preyna said. “But I also ran into Odin at the castle.”

“Oh, no.” Asta frowned. “Did he say anything about Blar?”

“He just pet him and told him what a good dog he was,” Preyna chuckled softly. “But he asked me to see about a spell for an upcoming event he has.”

“Go,” I told her. “We don’t want to raise suspicion.”

“No, we don’t,” the blonde sorceress said, and she took a deep breath as her eyes drifted to the egg again. “I hate to leave him here like this.”

“Don’t worry.” I smiled. “We’re going to get him home.”

Preyna nodded and then looked up at me with her beautiful soft brown eyes. “If you can, please let me know when he has made it home safe.”

“I will,” I assured her.

“Alright,” she said with a small smile. “I must be going then. I don’t want to keep the King waiting.”

“No, I wouldn’t suppose so,” I said. “He’ll be okay. Go tend to your duties, we’ll handle it from here.”

A portal appeared behind Preyna, and I looked down to see Blar sitting next to me. The little dragon must have finished his dinner, though there were still some scraps on his face he’d apparently forgotten.

“Thank you, Blar.” Preyna leaned down and pet the little blue dragon between his horns. “I appreciate your assistance this evening.”

Blar smiled and bumped his head against Preyna’s hand.

“It was lovely seeing you again, Preyna.” Asta smiled.

“And you all,” the sorceress said as she looked at each of us. “I will hope to see you again very soon.”

“We’ll hope the same,” I said, and Preyna gave a small wave, turned around, and stepped through the portal.

“Alright, we’re nearly done,” Ramir said after Preyna had gone, and I turned to look at what the old man was doing.

On the table, the cauldron bubbled with a bright teal colored substance, and Ramir gave it a good stir before he picked up a small vial and held it out to me.

“What’s that for?” I asked.

“I’m going to capture the essence from the egg,” he explained. “I know you won’t like it, but I’ll need you to move your hands for just a moment. I don’t want to accidentally bottle your essence.”

“I understand.” I took a deep breath and leaned down to the egg. “You’ll be okay, just wait one moment, and I’ll be right back.”

I could feel the little dragon inside panic for a second when I took my hands away, but then Ramir stepped up and started to speak, which calmed the little creature down once again.

“Hello,” the old man said as he moved the little vial around the egg. White sparkles floated off the egg’s surface and slowly filled the bottle as he spoke. “Your shell is quite beautiful, I bet you’ll be a lovely white color when you hatch, eh?”

It didn’t take long for Ramir to collect the sample he needed, but he spoke to the little dragon the entire time, which kept him calm until I was able to place my hands back on his shell.

“Once I add this, we should be all done,” Ramir said as he poured the essence he’d collected into the cauldron.

The teal liquid sparkled with the silver magic from the bottle, and it began to swirl of its own accord. Then the old man picked up Kas’s map from the table, rolled it up, and carefully fed it to the cauldron.

The swirling liquid gobbled up the paper until it could no longer be seen, and my eyebrows pulled together as I watched with both horror and fascination. The spells Ramir performed for us were always so incredibly strange to see, and they never failed to make me nervous, but I’d learned to trust him enough that I didn’t allow myself to worry for more than a few seconds.

Suddenly, the liquid in the cauldron went absolutely still. The teal substance was now placid, and I watched it and waited for something to happen.

“Um, Ramir, is it supposed to do that?” I asked after a few seconds had passed.

“Give it a moment.” The old man held a bony finger up.

A few more seconds passed, and I was about to push the issue, but then the cauldron shook ever so slightly.

“What the fuck,” Eira whispered, and her green eyes narrowed on the large pot.

The cauldron shook again, this time with more ferocity, and the liquid started to bubble so much it spilled out over the edges and splashed onto the table.

A loud belching sound filled the room as the cauldron exploded, and the map flew out of it to land on the floor a few feet behind me. There were drops of teal liquid everywhere, I could even feel some on my face, and I turned to raise an eyebrow at Ramir, but the old man just smiled.

“And there you have it,” he said, and he walked over to pick up the map and brush it off before handing it to Kas.

“Mmm, thanks.” The strawberry blonde’s face pulled into a grimace, but she took the paper all the same and opened it up to see what the spell had done.

“Did it work?” Eira asked, and she peered over Kas’s shoulder.

“It did.” Kas’s violet eyes widened as she looked over the map.

“Did you expect anything less?” Ramir chuckled.

“I guess not.” Eira smiled. “Thanks, old man.”

“You’re welcome, red-headed girl,” Ramir said nonchalantly, and he grabbed a small towel and started to wipe up the table.

The little dragon in the egg had startled for a second when the cauldron exploded, but he seemed alright now, though I could tell he was more on edge than he had been. We needed to get him to his mother so he could hatch. I wasn’t sure how much longer he could live in his shell, but he was too scared to come out of it without her.

“Where does it show?” I asked.

“It’s on the other end of Alfheim from where we took out the dealers yesterday,” Kas explained. “I don’t think we’ve been over there yet.”

“Oh, no, we haven’t.” Asta shook her head as she looked at the map. “That is the part of my realm where the wealthy elves live.”

“It doesn’t show anywhere near dragon valley?” I asked, and my brow furrowed with concern.

“No.” Kas shook her head.

“Damnit,” I breathed.

“Oh, right.” The strawberry blonde looked at the egg in my hands and bit her lip. “You don’t think the egg came from this place on the map, do you?”

“I don’t think so.” I pursed my lips. “But I can’t say for sure.”

“I’m guessing the little guy inside can’t exactly tell you, either,” Kas sighed.

“Not exactly.” I shook my head. “I can tune in to his feelings and some of his memories, but since he was inside the egg, I don’t get much visually to help us out.”

“Shite,” Eira breathed. “What do we do now?”

“I was hoping the map would give us some insight into where his mother might be, but if it’s showing us a part of the realm we’ve never been to, then I don’t even know where to begin looking,” I said.

“Wait, Rath, why don’t you try to see through the eyes of the mother?” Kas asked.

“Will that work?” Eira asked, and her red brows pinched together.

“It’s worth a try.” I nodded.

“How will you find her?” Asta asked, and her yellow eyes regarded me with concern.

“I’m not sure.” I shook my head again. “But I have to try something. We need to get this little dragon home.”

“I wonder why he isn’t dormant like the rest of the eggs the council found.” Kas pursed her lips as she looked at the egg in my hands.

“I’m assuming it’s because he was so close to hatching,” I explained. “He’s conscious in there, which makes this all the worse.”

“The poor thing.” Asta frowned. “I just want to hug him and make it better. He must be so scared.”

“He’s frightened,” I agreed. “Less so now than he was when Preyna first brought him here, but he still is refusing to come out until he has his mother.”

“I can’t blame him,” Eira said. “He’s probably traumatized from being ripped away from her just before he was about to come out of his shell.”

“We’ve got to get him home,” I said. “I’ll do my best to try and find his mother.”

“How can we help?” Kas asked, and she took a step forward and lifted her chin slightly.

“Hm.” I thought for a moment. “It might work better if I sit down and am able to relax.”

“Of course.” Asta nodded. “I’ll set up some pillows on the floor so it’s nice and soft.”

“Thank you,” I told the elf girl.

“What about the egg?” Eira asked. “Do you need one of us to hold it?”

“I think I’d like to hold it,” I said. “That way I can feel the baby’s energy. It might help me to connect with the mother more easily.”

“Good point.” The redhead nodded.

“It’s all ready for you here,” Asta said a few moments later, and I looked over to see the elf girl had piled some pillows on the floor in front of the fireplace.

“Great.” I smiled and walked over to take a seat.

I held the egg in my lap and closed my eyes, and the room went quiet as I focused on the feelings of the small creature in my hands.

The fire warmed my body, and I felt myself relax further into the pillows beneath me.

A sigh slipped through my lips, and then everything seemed to fade to blackness as my consciousness moved from my body into the realm of dragons.

I opened my eyes, and I was no longer myself. The body I was in glided through the trees quickly and swished back and forth as if it were trying to lose someone on its tail.

For a second, I thought the dragon was in trouble, but then joyous emotions overtook me, and I was hit from the side.

A playful squeal sounded as the other dragon and I tumbled around, and I realized we were the same size. The dragon I was in wasn’t large enough to be an adult based on the size of the trees nearby, but it wasn’t freshly hatched either.

I was a young dragon, playing with my friends near the valley.

The sun was sinking low, and the day was cast in a beautiful golden glow while we tumbled in the grass and playfully scratched and bit at one another.

A loud and sudden roar sounded, and the other dragon and I immediately perked up. I knew instinctively that it was my mother calling me home for the night.

I glanced at the purple dragon I’d just been playing with, and he and I flapped our wings and took off toward home.

I blinked, and suddenly I could see through the eyes of another dragon. This time, I was an adult.

I soared through the air over the valley, and though I couldn’t see my own body, I knew I was massive. The shadow below me was huge and stretched from the setting of the sun, but it wasn’t the size of the silhouette that made me think I was of incredible size, it was the feeling of the dragon I was in.

I was most definitely a male, and there was something incredibly regal and protective about the personality of the creature. I could sense his complete sense of responsibility, and it brought with it an overwhelming feeling of satisfaction.

The sight of a large crimson female below me playing with two crimson babies with peach-colored underbellies caught my attention, and a rush of pure happiness flooded my body.

I glided down to the small family, and for the first time, I realized I was carrying something in one of my paws. It was a large deer, and I set it down and let out a small roar to call my babies to me.

The children stopped playing and immediately flew toward me with excited smiles on their faces. They pummelled into my belly, and I used my head and wings to push them away playfully, only for them to return a second later.

The female let out a low roar, and the children tumbled off together to play while she walked up to me and nuzzled her head against mine. The feel of her scales against me sent a jolt of excitement and bliss through my body, and the pure love I felt was nearly too much to handle.

I blinked, and I was yet another dragon. At first, all I saw was a large green stone nearly the size of my home. The rock was so shiny I could see the reflection of the clouds in it even though the sun was setting behind it.

There were large trees all around me, except to the right where a path led out of the small clearing I was in. There was a mass of sticks and leaves surrounding me, so I assumed I was in a dragon nest like the one I’d seen the first time I’d visited Alfheim.

This had to be it, I had finally found my little dragon’s mother.

Suddenly, I was overcome with a terrible empty feeling, and the amount of sadness and despair I felt would have put me on my knees if I’d been standing.

My body ached, too, but it was nothing compared to the overpowering feeling of loss.

I let out a low huff as I set my head against the side of my large nest, and I tried to move so I was more comfortable, but a shooting pain on my right side made me cry out in agony.

I could feel the injury as if it were my own, and I knew it was bad. If we didn’t get her help soon, she could die.

I half expected another dragon to come to my aid, but none did. I wasn’t sure what they could do for me anyway, but I knew I would be in grave danger if I didn’t get some help soon.

Still, there was nearly no fight left within me. My baby was gone, and I was stricken by a horrible, immobilizing grief.

I got the sense this baby meant more to her than she could fathom. She wasn’t a young dragon, but I suspected this was her first time laying eggs, and there’d only been the one. She felt as though this baby was her last chance to be a mother, and now he’d been stolen from her.

I tried to look around again to see if there was anything more I could see to hint at her location, but all I could see were trees and the large green rock. I just had to hope that was enough to find her.

I blinked, and I was back in Ramir’s shop sitting cross-legged in front of the fire.

“Hurry,” I said as I stood up. “We’ve got to go.”

“What’s wrong?” Kas asked.

“Did you find her?” Eira pushed.

“Yes.” I nodded and grimaced. “She’s injured.”

“How badly?” Asta asked.

“She’s going to die if we don’t get to her,” I said grimly.

“Shite,” Eira cursed. “Do you know where she’s at in Alfheim?”

“Not exactly.” I shook my head. “I know she’s near dragon valley, and she’s somewhere with a large green stone.”

“If she’s injured, we need to find her right away,” Kas said, and her violet eyes flared with fiery determination. “What are we going to do?”

“We’re going to have to talk to the locals,” I said, and I fumbled in my satchel to find something I could use to tie the egg to me for safekeeping.

“What do you mean ‘locals?” Eira asked, and she raised her red eyebrows high up on her forehead.

“We’re going to need to go into dragon valley,” I said.

“Is that safe?” Asta asked with a frown.

“They won’t hurt us with Rath there,” Kas said, and she looked at me with concerned violet eyes. “Right?”

“Dragons are not inherently violent creatures,” I said. “There’s no reason to be scared of them.”

“You know they’re massive, right?” Eira scoffed. “I want to help them, but I just don’t want to piss one of them off and get eaten.”

“They won’t eat you,” I chuckled.

Ramir retrieved a piece of fabric from his desk and handed it to me so I could strap the egg across my chest. The baby inside was still confused, but it seemed to sense we were going to its mother, so there was a sort of excitement muddled in with its other emotions.

“I know you’re right.” Kas nodded. “But they are intimidating.”

“I understand,” I told her. “But right now, we don’t have a choice. We need to find the baby’s mother. She needs our help.”

“Right,” the strawberry blonde agreed with newly found determination in her voice. “Let’s go.”

“Blar,” I said as I turned to the little blue dragon. “Can you make one last portal tonight?”

The little blue dragon nodded, and a second later a portal appeared.

“Thanks for everything, Ramir,” I said quickly. “We’ll be back soon.”

“Be careful,” the old man said as the girls and I linked hands and walked through the swirling air into the realm of elves.

The sun was sinking low when we arrived at the cliff that overlooked dragon valley, and I knew the darkness only made this more intimidating for the girls, but there was nothing I could do about that. They would simply have to trust me. I wouldn’t let anything happen to them.

“Come on,” I said as I started to run down the cliff toward the valley.

Once we were a few hundred yards away from the valley entrance, the dragons around really started to take note of us. They turned to watch us walk toward them, and they all began to crowd around the path we were headed down.

“Um, Rath,” Asta said behind me. “I think they’re mad.”

“They’re not mad, they’re just curious,” I corrected. “People don’t usually venture into dragon valley, they just want to see what we want.”

I walked with my chin up and back straight to show the girls it was alright, but I could understand their hesitance. They’d been around large dragons plenty of times, but not like this.

Most of the dragons they’d seen before were trapped in cages, and even though the girls had gotten up close and personal with them, it wasn’t like what we were doing now. When the girls freed a dragon, they knew the dragon understood their intent, but here, that intent could easily get misconstrued.

Usually, the only time people wandered into dragon valley was when they were attempting to steal eggs or freshly hatched babies, and while the girls understood the dragons weren’t violent, that understanding did nothing to diminish the creatures’ monstrous size. I could feel Kas and Asta’s emotions since we were soul bonded, and they were definitely scared, but they trusted me, too, so they were trying to remain as calm as possible.

“Hello,” I said as I walked up to the dragons and stopped in front of the largest one.

He was a light brown color with a green underbelly and eyes to match, and he lifted his head slightly and looked me up and down. I perceived his confusion, he knew we were connected, and I could sense his interest in what I had to say.

“I’m Rath,” I introduced myself. “Someone recently stole this baby from his mother and injured her in the process. I’m here to return him. I need to find his mother quickly, and I need your help.”

The large male looked around at the other dragons around him and then back at me. He let out a low huff, and I could feel the air from his nostrils hit my chest.

“What does that mean?” Eira whispered.

“It means they’ll help,” I said without looking away from the large dragon. “I know she was near a shiny green stone, does that mean anything to you?”

The large male lowered his head slightly and looked around to the other dragons, but none of them seemed to know. I could sense the sadness and frustration among the group, and it was growing within me as well.

The poor dragon mother could be dying as we spoke.

Suddenly, the thud of large footsteps filled the air, and the dragons in front of me parted to reveal an even larger male coming toward me. He was at least twenty feet tall, with a huge green head that matched the rest of his body and sharply raised scales above his eyes. One of his wings had a hole in the webbing, but it looked like it was long since healed, and I wondered how he’d gotten the injury in the first place.

The large dragon walked right up to me and lowered his head so he could look me in the eye.

I held my palm out and placed it against his forehead so I could feel what he felt.

In his mind's eye, I saw the stone I was looking for.

“Yes!” I shouted as I pulled my hand away. “That’s where I need to go. Can you lead me there?”

The large dragon nodded, and then he turned to the side and lowered his body to the ground. He extended his wing out so I could use it to get onto his back, and part of me was shocked he’d offer to let me ride him so freely.

“Rath, what is he doing?” Kas asked, and her voice was high-pitched with concern.

“He wants us to get on,” I explained.

“He wants us to ride him?” Asta gasped, and she turned to look at me with round yellow eyes.

“He knows where the stone is,” I added. “He’s going to take us there.”

“Well, shite,” Eira said, and a wide grin came over her face. “Let’s go.”

I nodded and turned back to the dragon. Then I bowed to him slightly, and he returned to gesture before I walked up to his wing and climbed onto his large, scaly back.

The only other dragon I’d ridden was Ove, and it had been a short distance upward, but even then, I knew him allowing us to ride on his back had been a great honor. I didn’t sense quite the same feeling with this dragon, though, since his emotions were more of concern for the female in need than anything else.

Even though I didn’t think this male knew her, he was still willing to allow us to ride on his back just to get her help. Dragons were incredibly intelligent creatures, and riding on their back was a thing of honor because with their intelligence it was almost as if I was riding on another Asgardian’s back.

It was this knowledge that made me all the more impressed by this random dragon we’d just met and his willingness to give us a ride.

Once I crawled onto the large male, I slid up so my legs were straddling either side of his large spine, and Blar hopped off my shoulder and ran along the length of the male’s neck until he reached his head.

“Blar, no!” I hissed since he’d been too quick for me to stop him.

The huge dragon turned his head to look at me, and a small smile came on his face. He seemed to understand Blar was a baby, and he wasn’t upset about the little dragon climbing all over him.

Suddenly, Inger ran out to the dragon’s head as well, and Uffe tentatively followed her while Kas, Eira, and Asta climbed up the large creature’s back.

“Should we call them back to us?” Kas asked before she slipped and nearly fell down the huge dragon’s side.

“Come on,” Eira said, and she gave Kas a little push.

“Nah, they’ll be fine,” I said as I grabbed the strawberry blonde’s hand and pulled her up the rest of the way.

Kas settled in next to me, and Eira and Asta joined us a moment later.

The girls all crowded around me and held onto me while the large dragon started to flap his wings.

Svass was still curled around Eira’s neck, but she looked out toward the three dragons on the large male’s head, so I gestured forward and told her to go.

The little girl cowered in Eira’s hair for a second, but then the redhead pulled her gently down from her neck and set her on the dragon’s back.

“Go ahead,” Eira said. “You’ll be safe. Blar, Inger, and Uffe will look out for you, just be careful.”

Svass hesitantly walked out onto the large dragon’s neck, but he lifted off the ground just then, so she quickly scurried back toward Eira and up into her hair.

“I don’t think she’s going to want to go out there now,” Kas laughed.

“You’re probably right about that,” I chuckled.

“She’s still so small,” Asta added. “Maybe she’ll want to go next time we ride on a dragon.”

“Does this happen often?” Eira asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Not very.” I winked.

I could sense the little dragon’s excitement against my chest, and I carefully laid my hand on his egg as we lifted toward the sky.

My stomach turned as soon as we were up in the air, and I looked down at the valley below us. Even though we were headed to save a dragon in need, I still couldn’t help but take in the beauty of the valley.

The cavern was filled with dragons, and the sun cast everything in a magical orange glow as it set slowly lowered behind the horizon.

To think I hadn’t even seen a dragon before a couple of months ago was astonishing when I looked down at the glorious creatures below me. The massive creatures were a part of me, and I was a part of them, there was no denying it, and all I could think was how I wished I’d known about them sooner. I was sure it was fate I’d found Blar that day, but part of me wished I’d found him even before that.

The little dragon had changed my life so significantly, and I was now able to change the life of other dragons because of it. The dragon slave trade had been going on for far too long, and even now, on our way to the injured dragon, it was only because of the slave trade we were having to rescue her.

As we flew through the air, I sensed the large dragon we were on had some sort of attachment to the place we were headed. From the flashes of memories I saw, it seemed we were headed to the nest he was born in, and I realized dragons shared nests, they weren’t all specifically made when a female was preparing to give birth. There were already nests around they could claim if they didn’t want to create their own, or if they wanted to have their babies where they’d been hatched.

The male wasn’t young, either, so the nest had to have been there for quite some time, and we were incredibly lucky he’d been near us in the valley because every second counted for the female we were headed to.

I remembered the feeling of her injury, and I had to clench my jaw against the memory of the pain. I could only imagine what kind of agony she was in at the moment, and I was sure it only got worse with every passing second.

We passed over the valley, and then the large dragon turned to the right and took us over a huge forest with white and yellow trees.

The sky was sinking lower and lower, and I was worried we wouldn’t get there before dark, but just a few minutes later, I saw a clearing down below.

The large green rock sparkled with the evening sun, and in the clearing, I could see the huge nest with the female dragon inside. The creature looked nearly dead already, and she didn’t even move as we came into view overhead.

“Oh, no.” Kas’s voice cracked with emotion. “We’re not too late, are we?”

I focused on the dragon below, and I was able to feel her loss and her pain from her injury. She had very little willpower left, and I was worried she might not make it, but we had to do whatever we could to make sure that didn’t happen.

I wouldn’t let her die, not if I could help it.

“No.” I shook my head. “I can still feel her presence. She’s alive, but she’s weak.”

“I’m ready whenever we land.” Kas nodded, and her violet eyes focused on the female blow us.

The dragon lowered his head and dove down to sofly land in the grass near the green rock.

The girls and I rushed down the side of the massive creature, more sliding down his scales than climbing down, and as soon as our feet hit the ground, Kas took off running.

The strawberry blonde rushed over to the female dragon without regard for the fear she had earlier when we entered dragon valley. This mother needed her help, and that urgency took away any fear Kas might have had before.

The little dragons flew down from the large male’s head and landed on the grass in front of him, but they didn’t play or look around. They simply sat and watched as Kas started to work on the wounded female.

The large green dragon lowered his head to watch, too, and I turned to him and gave a small bow to say thank you.

He bowed back, but I could feel he was invested in the outcome of the situation, and he wasn’t going to leave until he knew she was going to be okay.

Against my chest, I could feel the little dragon in the egg stir. He started to swirl around in an excited panic now that he sensed his mother was nearby.

“It’s okay,” I whispered, and I laid my hand on the egg. “She’s alright, we’re going to fix her right up.”

The mother raised her head slightly when I put my hand on my chest, and I realized she could sense her baby.

I walked to her, took the egg out of the sling, and held it out for her to sniff.

The mother was a beautiful deep silver color with ruby red eyes, and her lip twitched slightly as she sniffed the egg and then let out a low moan.

“He’s okay,” I told her, and I laid my hand on her head. “He’s waiting for you. Once you’re healed, he’ll come out to see you, but you have to hold on for him.”

The female sighed deeply before she laid her head back down on the edge of the nest, clearly too weak to hold it up any longer.

I set her egg next to her head and then made my way around to where Kas was bent down near her front leg.

The dragon’s limb was nearly torn off, and there was a large pool of blood around the wound. I was positive I could see the bone protruding from her body, and the sight of her exposed muscles made my stomach drop with despair.

“Kas,” I whispered as I crouched down next to the strawberry blonde. “Is she going to be alright?”

I was so focused on the dragon’s feelings, I hadn’t noticed Kas’s until I got right down on her level. The sorceress had her hands placed on the piece of leg that was still attached to the dragon, and red magic sparkles swirled around her fingers, but her face was pulled into a terrible grimace, and hot tears streamed down her face.

“Kas,” I said, and my eyes widened as I reached out to put my hands on her shoulders. “Talk to me.”

“I-I can’t do it. My powers aren’t strong enough… I… her arm is nearly torn off, and I… I can’t put it back on.” She looked at me with panicked velvet eyes. “She’s going to die, Rath. She’s going to die, and I can’t save her.”

I gulped hard as my eyes began to prick with emotion, and then I glanced over to the bloody nub below Kas’s fingers. The sorceress had stopped the blood from flowing, but there was already so much on the ground below it was hard to imagine she had much more to lose.

There wasn’t much time left, and my healer was unable to mend the wound.

We had to do something, anything.

I wasn’t going to let this mother die.