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Chapters (46)
  1. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  2. PROLOGUE
  3. 1
  4. 2
  5. 3
  6. 4
  7. 5
  8. 6
  9. 7
  10. 8
  11. 9
  12. 10
  13. 11
  14. 12
  15. 13
  16. 14
  17. 15
  18. 16
  19. 17
  20. 18
  21. 19
  22. 20
  23. 21
  24. 22
  25. 23
  26. 24
  27. 25
  28. 26
  29. 27
  30. 28
  31. 29
  32. 30
  33. 31
  34. 32
  35. 33
  36. 34
  37. 35
  38. 36
  39. 37
  40. 38
  41. 39
  42. 40
  43. 41
  44. 42
  45. 43
  46. EPILOGUE

She had sky enough left to her that she could free-fall some distance, and, keeping one eye on Draconas, she drifted back toward the river and Dragonkeep beyond. She could afford to retreat, return to the safety of Grald’s lair and heal her wounds. She might have worried about leaving her army vulnerable to attack, but she knew Draconas, knew his weakness.

Draconas was injured, more badly than he’d first realized in the heat of battle, and like Maristara, he had humans who were dependent on him, the irony of which did not escape him.

Because of humans, the dragons had to stop trying to kill each other. Because of humans, they’d started. Both dragons limped away, each knowing that the battle between them was not ended, merely postponed.

“Where is he going?” Edward cried. “Kill them, Draconas! Kill the dragon warriors. Breathe fire on them! Do to them what they did to us! Marcus, talk to him.”

Draconas let his colors go gray.

“You have to kill them!” Marcus urged the dragon. “You saw what they did! You know what they can do to us!”

“The laws of dragonkind forbid me to kill humans,” Draconas replied.

“A law only you obey!” Marcus retorted.

“Maybe so. Maybe I am the only one. Maybe I will be the last. I hope not. Killing humans is too easy for us . . .”

“And the time will come when killing dragons is easy for us!” Marcus said angrily.

“That is what we fear, Marcus,” said Draconas. “Don’t you understand that yet? That is what we fear.”

35

IN THE GRAY TWILIGHT OF EARLY MORNING, THE HIGH priestess of Seth walked the path that led to the Chamber of the Watchful Eye to perform the Rite of Seeing. And though she walked the path alone—for no other except the High Priestess could perform this ritual—it seemed to her that she was being watched by the ghostly eyes of all those who had walked this path before her, and that those eyes were dark with foreboding.

Most of the others were shadowy figures, seen only in her imagination, as she’d heard stories of them from childhood on. One, however, was real to her and close—Melisande, the High Priestess who had come before her, the High Priestess who, some seventeen years before, had disgraced her calling and ran off with a male lover, leaving behind Seth and her responsibilities and duties. Anna had never been close to Melisande—the twelve-year-old girl had always been too much in awe of the High Priestess to dare to even speak to her. Melisande had spoken to her sometimes, though, and always smiled at her kindly whenever they met. Anna had admired Melisande and idolized her. Her fall had devastated Anna. She had refused to believe the terrible story, as it was told to them by Lucretta, the new Mistress of Dragons.