“Perhaps no man can,” Brianna said, “but maybe a woman could.”
Zollin laughed, but Prince Wilam seemed unconvinced. His face was pinched with worry and shame. He struggled to sit up. His body was healed and there were no lasting effects from the torture, but it was difficult for his mind to accept his new reality. And his strength was drained-both from the long fighting retreat he’d led and the night of agonizing torture he had endured.
“Do you think I might walk a little?” he asked. “My mind is still convinced that my legs are ruined.”
“Physically, you’re fine,” Zollin said. “I don’t see any reason you can’t go for a walk.”
“I’ll take him,” Brianna said. “You need your rest.”
Zollin agreed and sat back, resuming the meal he had yet to finish. Prince Wilam rose slowly. Brianna stood beside him and steadied him as he stood. He was lightheaded and dizzy at first, but that soon passed. They walked out from under the shelter of the tent. The night was finally cooling down and insects sang in the trampled fields around them. They walked slowly, Wilam stretching his legs as they went.
“I am thankful for all you have done,” he told Brianna. “I doubt I would have ever walked again after King Zorlan’s torturer ruined my legs.”
“Zollin has a gift for healing,” she said. “He healed your father from the poison that had made him so sick.”
“That’s right,” Prince Wilam said. “Quinn is Zollin’s father, isn’t he?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“I didn’t make that connection right away. It’s hard to believe that dragons and wizards no longer surprise me. The world is changing.”
“Yes, it is. Hopefully for the better.”
“Well.” The prince thought about Brianna’s hope. “I would like to think so too, but war in the Five Kingdoms is troubling. Were you in Yelsia when King Belphan and King Zorlan invaded?”
“No, actually I wasn’t. But Zollin was there-he helped save Orrock.”
“It seems we owe your friend a great debt.”
Brianna just smiled.
“May I ask why you’ve come to Osla?” Wilam said.
“Zollin could explain things better than me,” she said.
“Well, I’d very much like to learn more,” Wilam said. “Shall we head back now?”
Brianna nodded but didn’t speak. The pride was returning and Selix sent her a mental image of Prince Wilam walking with her.
“Are you okay for another surprise?” she asked.
Wilam looked at Brianna with concern, not sure what was about to happen.
“Just keep in mind that they won’t hurt you,” she said.
Then, before he could ask the inevitable “who” question, the dragons dropped down around them. Selix and Gyia looked curiously at the prince, while Ferno glowered menacingly. Of the four dragons, only Tig seemed uninterested. The smaller blue dragon went behind the tent to a patch of grass, curled up, and promptly went to sleep.
“This is my pride,” Brianna said.
“Oh, my god,” said Prince Wilam.
He had heard of the dragon in the north, terrifying villages and demanding gold. He had thought it a rumor cooked up by King Belphan or King Oveer in order to invade Yelsia. Even after he met Quinn, who gave an eye-witness account of the dragon, he had trouble believing it. It wasn’t until he had fallen under Gwendolyn’s spell that he realized the rumors of magic and dragons were true. Still, nothing could have prepared him to see Brianna’s pride up close.
“This is Selix,” Brianna said. “This is Gyia and Ferno. Over there is Tig.”
“Magnificent,” Wilam said. “They are yours?”
“Well, I don’t control them. I’m part of the pride.”
“Part of the pride?”
“Yes, I’m what the dwarves call a Fire Spirit. I can control fire and I create dragons.”
“You create dragons?” he asked, incredulously.
“Yes,” Brianna said, laughing at the look of consternation on Wilam’s face. “It’s difficult to explain. Perhaps it would be easier to show you.”
She ignited one hand and orange flames danced to life.
“I can’t believe it,” he said. “Is it burning you?”
“No, I feel the warmth, but fire doesn’t harm me.”
“Do the dragons breath fire? Like in the stories?”
“Yes,” Brianna said, as Ferno growled deep in its throat and flames licked out of its mouth and around its broad head.
“Unbelievable.”
“Just wait until you see what Zollin can do,” Brianna said.
“Where did you both come from?” Wilam asked.
“Tranaugh Shire,” she said. “It’s a small village-”
He cut her off.
“Southwest of Peddingar Forest. Yes, I know of Tranaugh Shire. I have not been there personally, but I have spent hours studying the map of our kingdom. I had no idea there were wizards there.”
“There aren’t,” Brianna said. “Zollin didn’t even know he was a wizard until a year ago.”
Brianna told their story-how Zollin discovered his magic and how the wizards from the Torr had come to take him away. The dragons had not heard the story either and they gathered around Brianna as she told it, her hand burning all the while. Wilam sat on the ground, entranced by the story, and didn’t even notice when Gyia settled in around him, the purple dragon’s long body coiling in the shape of a horseshoe.
Brianna told how they had stayed in Brighton’s Gate through the winter and foiled the Skellmarian invasion. She described facing Bartoom the great black dragon for the first time, and how she was captured by Branock, a wizard of the Torr, and taken to Orrock. She explained how Zollin and Mansel had come to rescue her, but that she had escaped on her own, and how Zollin had defeated Branock in a wizard battle in front of the castle. Then she told Wilam how Zollin had saved King Felix from the poison Wilam’s younger brother Prince Simmeron had been feeding their father.
She went on to tell how she and Zollin had gone in pursuit of the black dragon Bartoom, and how they had nearly died in the mountains. She told him about the dwarves that led them through caves and passages deep under the mountains, and how they had given her a beautiful ruby that turned out to be a firestone that unlocked her powers. Then, after leaving the caves, she explained how she had come to realize that she could no longer hunt the dragon, and how she had come to save Bartoom. She even told Wilam and the dragons how she had tried in vain to convince Bartoom to stay with her even though Offendorl was calling to the beast. Ferno growled again, and this time Selix joined the green dragon. It was obvious none of the dragons were fond of Bartoom.
Then she told how she had created the dragons. The pride moved in close when she spoke about their creation, and even Brianna spoke reverently. Prince Wilam was entranced, and none of them noticed that Zollin had come quietly in the dark to hear the tale. He stood back from the group a little ways, not wanting to interrupt the story.
Brianna then told how the pride had flown south and learned of the invasion that Zollin had helped push back. She said they had all agreed to fly south and find him, but they found Bartoom first, and although Brianna tried to reason with the great black dragon, they had ended up fighting instead. She explained how they had found Zollin, Mansel, and Nycoll. Then she told of their second battle with Bartoom and how they had lost Torc.
All at once, Tig, who everyone assumed was asleep, howled almost like a wolf. The blue dragon’s long, lonely wail made the night seem dark and melancholy.
“Then we came here,” Brianna said, once Tig had settled back down. “We saw the battlefield and burned the bodies left there. And the next day we found you.”
“I was foolish,” Wilam said. “I led the army that was defeated. I completely underestimated King Zorlan. I thought we would route his troops easily, but I was wrong.”
“We all make mistakes,” Brianna said, noticing Zollin standing near Ferno for the first time. “There was a time when I lost trust in Zollin. It was foolish, but I pushed him away. I’m glad he didn’t lose faith in me.”