The trio crested one more rise before the trail widened out and sloped back down into a small, secluded canyon. A narrow ribbon of water trickled across the relatively flat space before gravity carried it farther down the mountain side. A few dozen yards in from the edge of the small fall, and well hidden by a mix of conifers and deciduous trees alike, was the entrance to a dark cavern. Jahrra gaped in amazement. Jaax had been right. This cave, if it was even twice as deep as it was tall, would very easily fit all of them.
“Will no one think to check this cavern for us?” Ellyesce asked quietly.
Jaax shook his head. “It is unlikely. This road we take is not the main one connecting the mountain cities, and only a fool would be traveling with that storm approaching.”
He turned around and grinned at both of them. Jahrra only curled her lip and inclined her eyebrows. Well, if he was calling them fools, he was calling himself a fool as well. Regardless of Jaax’s meaning, Jahrra was glad to know they would be safe in this new haven, at least for the night.
The dragon started forward again just as a gentle breeze rustled the leaves and branches of the trees above.
“Jahrra, Ellyesce, take the horses inside. I’ll look for some fire wood.”
Jahrra nodded and dismounted Phrym, leading him toward the gaping mouth of their sanctuary.
“I’ll go first,” Ellyesce murmured, pulling his own horse and Rumble, the large bay gelding loaded with their gear, past her.
Jahrra wanted to bristle, but it was smart to let the elf lead. He had some magical abilities, after all, and would probably be able to search for danger without risking discovery, or injury.
When Ellyesce’s all-clear echoed back out to her, Jahrra encouraged Phrym forward. She trusted Ellyesce’s judgment in this, but when Phrym gave no protest, she felt even more confident about the safety of this place.
The cave, not surprisingly, was almost bone-chillingly cold and smelled of damp, ancient stone. She and Phrym stepped into the darkness, and Jahrra wondered how they would find their way around without torches. As if reading her thoughts, Ellyesce conjured up a mage light, a glowing ball of pale blue luminescence floating just above his fingertips. This was the magic Jahrra had grown used to in the past few weeks, this subtle yet unnerving power. Yes, she knew magic existed. After all, it was her own race, the human race, who’d been transformed into dragons because of a magical curse cast five centuries ago. She’d caught small glimpses of sorcery in Lidien as well, and had even experienced it in the company of the Mystic, Archedenaeh.
A twinge of sadness pierced Jahrra’s heart at the memory of Denaeh, the strange woman she’d befriended as a child in Oescienne. Not a witch living in the Black Swamp, waiting to devour the next child who ignorantly wandered into her domain, as local legend had claimed, but a Mystic, a powerful woman blessed with the gift of far seeing. She had followed them to Lidien, even though her guardian had no love for the woman. Jahrra hadn’t seen her since just before they left, and she secretly added Denaeh’s name to the list of people she hoped were still safe within that great city.
“We’ll have to rely on this until Jaax returns,” Ellyesce commented, indicating the sphere of light floating just out of reach of his fingertips.
Jahrra nodded grimly and strained her eyes to see into the darkness that disappeared deeper into the cavern. And she tried very hard not to think about the types of creatures that might be lurking just out of the light’s reach.
“I’m going to wait closer by the entrance,” she said, reaching into Phrym’s saddle bag and pulling out her journal and a pencil.
“Don’t sit too close to the opening. The storm’s still a ways off, but lightning has a far reach, especially up here in the mountains,” Ellyesce answered, wrapping his cloak more securely about himself as he found a worn-down stalagmite to sit on.
Jahrra waved a hand and strode the remaining fifty feet or so to where the filtered sunlight made it possible to see. Mimicking Ellyesce, she found a flat-topped rock to use as a seat. Peeling her journal open with care, she spread the well-loved tome out upon her lap and carefully leafed through the pages. She’d had the small book for years, adding drawings and thoughts to it as they came to her. Lately, she’d been spending time sketching. The last several pages had been filled up with all of the unfamiliar plants and animals she’d seen since leaving Lidien. Jahrra smiled as she traced her fingers over the intricate antlers of a small-footed rhoon, the pointed ears and long, rabbit-like legs of a memmit, or the beautiful spots of her personal favorite, a Saem River water cat. The river cats fascinated Jahrra because although they were considered mammals, they made their nests in trees and laid eggs. A rare sighting even along the river they were named for, water cats were shy and scarce. When she had reported the sighting to Jaax, he had raised a skeptical brow and suggested it was most likely something else. But Jahrra had been certain. Now, she worked hard to remember the details of the creature, so she could include them all in her drawing.
Jahrra remained at the cave’s entrance until Jaax returned nearly an hour later with enough firewood to last them a week. By then, the sound of the thunder had grown deeper, like a giant rising from a nap only to grumble about his aching joints. The clouds, too, had proved their determination to cross the wide valley separating their range from the one just to the west. Soon, it was almost too dark to see.
“Perfect timing,” Jahrra piped, snapping her journal shut and standing up to stretch. She should not have sat cross-legged for so long atop the boulder, but there was nothing she could do about it now.
Ellyesce unfolded himself from his cloak and stepped forward, conjuring another mage light.
Once Jaax had one of the great logs positioned where he wanted it, he breathed a great emerald flame over the damp wood until it caught. The low fire that resulted didn’t add much light to the cave right away, but at least it heated the frigid air.
Jahrra sighed in delight as the flames worked to chase the ice from her fingers.
“I didn’t think I’d ever be warm again,” she breathed.
Jaax only snorted while Ellyesce smiled, extinguishing his mage light for good as the flames grew and brightened.
The Tanaan dragon used his fire once more to blast away the dampness from the floor. As soon as there was dry earth beneath their feet, Ellyesce and Jahrra worked to lay out their sleeping blankets. Jahrra chose a spot as close to the fire as possible and stretched out. She really should offer to help make the meal for her and Ellyesce, but she was so tired that even her growling stomach couldn’t encourage her to get up.
“I’ll see to the dinner,” Ellyesce finally murmured.
A pang of guilt swept through Jahrra, and she rolled over on her bedroll.
“Let me help,” she started, placing one hand against the ground to push herself up. The elf held up a finger and gave a slight shake of his head.
“No, you rest. I can manage.”
She opened her mouth to argue, but Jaax gave her a hard look. Not having the energy to argue with him, Jahrra released a huff of breath and plopped back down. Not for the first time since Ellyesce had wandered into their lives, did she wonder about his presence and his relationship with regards to her guardian.
Squeezing her eyes shut, Jahrra drew upon the memory of waking up one night only to spy the elf moving across the hilltop towards Jaax’s house. She had been out of bed without anyone’s knowledge, and she’d overheard part of the conversation shared between the two. Only problem was, the exchange had been spoken in another language, but not in Kruelt. The dragons’ language she knew well enough, but whatever her guardian and his strange midnight visitor had discussed was unknown to her. The following days had been even stranger. Jaax had fallen back on his old habits, becoming the domineering, cold dragon she had remembered from her earlier years. There had been a tightness about him, an ever watchfulness with regards to his elvin friend. Jahrra had wondered exactly how the two knew each other and why Ellyesce made Jaax so uneasy. Her guardian seemed to be glad of the elf’s presence, but it was a forced gladness, in the manner a subject must be gracious in paying homage to a sovereign they did not particularly like.