Chapter 52

by Amanda Cast

Pancakes and Sausage

Pandora rose early and enjoyed the silence of the complex. After five years she grew accustomed to the noises of dragons playing and exploring their powers with Greg. In the early mornings Pandora did not get to hear the familiar sounds. Now she was left in her own little world with her own space. She longed for the moments as she longed for the company of someone other than Greg, Serene, and the hatchlings.

Greg helped Topaz form the kitchen more than Pandora or Serene did. It was a complicated work of cabinets and counter tops, and it was always warm. She checked the vents and then the ice box. It was not as nice as her uncle’s had been, but it served its purpose and they had unlimited space without dimension manipulation.

There was plenty of meat in it, but she was uncertain if it would last them long enough. She decided to dry the bear meat so that they could have something during the time she was away. She hoped it would be enough.

“Amazon?” Greg asked from the doorway. Pandora jumped and turned to face him. “What are you doing up right now?”

“What are you doing up?”

“I… had to use the bathroom and your door was open so I thought you would be here.” He walked over to the ice box and peaked inside. “We’re not doing bad. It’s still only the middle of summer.”

“I know,” Pandora said. “But I have to go away for a while, so I want you to be well situated.”

He was quiet for a while and then he quietly shut the ice box. After a tense moment he looked up at her. “Where are you going?”

“Well, first I’m going to go hunt a bear and get you some more potions as well as get some more meat and sinew. I’m sorry, Greg. Serene went out of control and I have to go take care of it.”

“Why can’t I go with you? Why can’t we all go?”

“Because it’s more than just your normal tight spot. She is now the Emperor’s Mage.” Pandora took a deep breath and turned away from him. She could not stand the thought of the realization of betrayal on his face.

“How the hell?” he asked. He said quietly after that, “How did that happen?”

“I don’t know. It was part of the plan, Greg, but we wanted to feel around it first before we came to you about it.” She sighed heavily and walked away from him. Her guilt weighed heavily on her shoulders and they slumped. “She ruined everything and now I have to go and help her.”

“She’ll get you both killed,” Greg said and closed the distance between them in a couple of long strides. He gripped her shoulders and then wrapped his arms around her entirely. She froze and stiffened instinctively. “I don’t want you to die, Pandora.”

“I don’t want to die either, Greg,” she told him and forced herself to relax.

“Then why don’t you let her get out of it on her own? The kids need you. I need you.”

Pandora broke free of him. “Don’t say that,” she said. “I need you to watch over them while I’m gone. I’m taking Topaz with me when we go to the city, but I need to take Rubio with me when I go hunting. Topaz is going to be changing the entrance and making another room today.”

“We are supposed to discuss everything, Pandora,” he reminded her.

“I’m sorry, Greg. There just isn’t time.”

“Why is she with the Emperor?”

Pandora licked her lips and looked away. “You know how we started looking for Uncle Lindal a few years ago after we got situated?” Greg nodded and Pandora mimicked the movement. “Well, we haven’t found him because he isn’t alive.”

Greg’s eyes narrowed and he jerked his chin to the side, but his eyes stayed focused on Pandora. “He’s dead? When did he die?”

Pandora took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders. Her throat trembled. “Around the time we were fleeing he was being beheaded. The head was already delivered before we even left. They were going to show it to us in some dramatic presentation.”

He frowned. “And now you are going out for revenge.”

Pandora nodded.

“Your uncle was a criminal, Pandora.”

“So? We’re murderers. Seems like you’re surrounded by criminals,” Pandora said. “You would be surprised what you had to do to survive, wouldn’t you? Doesn’t matter now, does it? The Emperor made a deal and he broke it. He crossed the wrong twelve year olds.”

“So this is vengeance. You’re going to risk your lives for vengeance? What about the kids?”

“You can take care of them. You know how to and they trust you.”

“I can’t do this without you,” he said softly.

“Yes, you can,” Pandora said. “I leave you alone with them all the time. You’ll be fine.” She stepped farther away from him. “I’m going to make breakfast. Could you get the kids up?”

Greg sighed and gulped. His face was etched in deep emotion pain that made Pandora stop breathing. She did not want to hurt Greg, but she knew that she must. Greg needed passion that she could never give him. Simply caring about him would never be enough. He left her and hit the door frame on his way out.

Pandora squeezed her eyes shut and leaned against the counter. She hated caring so much. Life was easier before she met Serene.

After a moment she started to make breakfast. She made pancakes created from nut flour and made syrup out of blueberries. To go with them Pandora fried up some venison sausage. Only two of the plates had the pancakes, but the other four were piled high with sausage and had little containers of blueberry syrup on the side.

By the time Pandora was balancing the tray through the door Greg already had them at the table and dressed for the day. Rubio was wearing his dark green and brown hunting tunic. There was a cap on the table next to him.

Greg helped her set the table and lay out the food. Pandora bent down and laid Topaz’s food in front of him. He started to gnaw on the sausage right away.

“When is Momma coming back?” Star asked as she speared a sausage with her fork.

Greg gave Pandora a meaningful look and thrust a big triangle of pancake into his mouth so that he would not have to say anything.

Pandora set down her fork and laid her palms on the table. “Momma won’t be back for a while,” she said. “She… um…”

“No, go on, Pandora,” he said with a steel edge in his voice. The children looked from one to the other in confusion. Greg only called Pandora by her name during tense moments, and they knew it.

“She is currently in the Imperial City. I will be leaving to join her.”

“Mother, no!” Rubio said. “What about our hunting trip. Greg said we were going hunting.”

“We are still going hunting,” Pandora said. “It’s just that I have to go help Momma out. Greg will stay here and take care of you. I want you all to watch out for each other. Emerald will be able to reach me in dreams so I can let you know how everything is going.”

“First Momma and now you?” Star asked. “Are you going to abandon us?”

“No, dearest,” Pandora said with shocked sincerity. “We would never abandon you. We’ll just be gone for a little while, and then… then we’ll be back. I promise.”

“Are you going to bring Momma straight home?” Rubio asked. His food was forgotten in front of him.

Pandora shot Greg a desperate look but he was unsympathetic and gave her a stone cold frown. Pandora took a deep breath. “Momma and I love you very much. We are just trying to eliminate a threat to your safety. It is a sacrifice for us because we want to spend every moment with you that we can. I don’t want to leave, but I must.”

“Is there anything else you want to tell them?” Greg asked bitingly. Pandora flinched at his tone.

“I will be taking Topaz with me when I go.”

Star and Rubio started shouting at once. Emerald looked upset for a brief moment but she quickly masked it and started eating without concern.

“Why does he get to go and we have to stay behind?” Star asked furiously.

“Yeah!” Rubio intoned.

Pandora sighed. “Because Topaz chose a form that is easy enough for me to explain having around. He can also get into places that none of us can get into. He’ll be ignored by anyone and everyone. No one will suspect him of spying.” She turned her gaze to Topaz who was gnawing contently at his food. “He already has the art of it down. You, Star, are a beautiful little girl that men would try and hurt and take advantage of. Then you would get all ice cold and blow your cover. Rubio… you should not have listened to Greg about your appearance.”

“What is wrong with his appearance?” Greg asked.

“He’s a half elf with red hair and red eyes. That is a big warning flag. I cannot explain why I have him running around with me in the Imperial City. Granted, most, if not all, humans are entirely ignorant about dragons, but they know that elves and humans do not come in those colors.”

“Well, why can’t Emerald go?” Rubio asked.

“I’m needed here for communication purposes,” Emerald said.

Both Star and Rubio glared at her. “You’re a freak, Emmy,” Star said. “You should be furious, too.”

“Topaz is not mad,” she said as she dipped a small bite in the syrup. “Why should I be mad?”

“Topaz gets to go with her,” Star yelled with an emphatic pointing of her finger.

“I am pleased to stay home,” Emerald said. “Greg is responsible and will take good care of us. It is Topaz’s loss that he leaves. He will not further his training.”

“We have a life time to train,” Rubio said.

Emerald shrugged. “Mother said she will come back to us. She will come back.” Her green eyes bore into Pandora with unfailing trust. “Mother always keeps her word.”

“What about with Momma coming home soon. She said she would come home soon,” Rubio said.

“That was just Mother trusting Momma to do what she said. You cannot blame her for misplaced trust.” Emerald stopped talking to pull the sausage off of the fork and chew it patiently.

Greg, Rubio, and Star seethed quietly for a long time. They ate very little, but Topaz and Emerald finished their breakfast without complaint or comment. Pandora forced herself to eat, but the pancakes stuck in her throat and the sausage tasted bland and dry.

Pandora did not want to leave her haven and return to a world that only wanted her dead anymore than the hatchlings wanted it. Why did Serene always get her into these messes?

<Chapter 51><Chapter 53>

Chapter 51

by Amanda Cast

My Bad

Greg and Pandora sat across from each other for several minutes, but to Pandora it was an eternity. Finally Greg stood up and sat next to her. “What is wrong, Amazon?” he asked.

She gave him a small smile and then it faltered and she sighed. “I met someone today.”

Greg blinked and his brow wrinkled together. “You… met someone?” he asked uncertainly. “We’re in the middle of nowhere. How did you meet someone?”

She sighed again and looked away. “It was a dragon. He was spying on me,” she said. “His name is Lisille.”

“Sounds girly,” Greg mumbled and scratched his ear. “But… what did he want?”

“He wanted me… us…to come and live with him and the dragons… I guess.” She sighed.

“Tokyo told us to stay away from the dragons. They can’t be trusted anymore than the elves can,” he said and glanced over his shoulder to check for the hatchlings. “We had better take this conversation elsewhere. We don’t want little ears to hear.” He tapped his ear.

Pandora nodded and took his hand as she stood up. “Let’s go to my room. Serene put some spell on the door.”

“Serene loves her spells,” he said and squeezed her hand.

She ignored the gesture and led him through the hallway and pushed her door open. She looked around cautiously before leading him through and shutting the door.

“I cannot get over how stocked your room is,” Greg said and went to one of the chairs in the corner. She claimed the other making certain that the ward was working.

“Topaz wanted to make me happy,” she said as she sat down. “I don’t know what to do, Greg. I was so angry…”

She reached into her belt pouch and pulled out the cloth she had found on the twig. She did her best to smooth it out and then handed it to Greg.

“What were you angry about?” he asked as he inspected the cloth. His thumb stroked it over and over again. “It feels nice.”

“I think it’s of elfin make,” she said.

“Looks like camo,” he said and handed it back to her. “Or some sort of it. Um… camouflage, anyway. Look, Amazon, was the dragon wearing that sort of cloth?”

She shrugged. “I honestly wasn’t paying much attention to what he was wearing. I was more concerned with him trying to seduce me.”

Greg blushed and covered his face quickly with his hands. “He was trying to seduce you? How in the world could you tell? No one has ever tried to seduce you before.”

She shrugged. “He thought I was amazing for a human. Immortals are quite frequently attracted to mortality. It makes them feel… something, I think.”

“So you think we’re like drugs to dragons and elves?” Greg asked.

Pandora thought about that for a moment and then nodded. “Yes, I suppose so. Anyway, I was more like a novelty item to him anyway. He had never seen something like me before.”

“Something like you? You aren’t a thing, Amazon. You’re a… fascinating young woman.” He reached up and pushed some hair out of her face. “You should cut your hair again or grow it out.”

“I should leave it for now,” she said. “I hope that Serene comes back soon. I hate that she is not here.”

Greg’s face twitched from a smile to a frown and back to a smile again. “Uh… yeah… that would make things interesting,” he said. “I like being a…”

“What?” Pandora asked.

“Oh, don’t worry about it,” he said nervously. “What do you want to do about the dragon? What can we do about it?”

“I don’t know,” Pandora said and leaned back into the chair. The cushions gave, but stone did not. “He hasn’t been watching for too long. He did not mention Serene. He mentioned you and the children, but not Serene. She’s a bit hard to miss too.”

“That is true,” Greg agreed. “So he knows where we live. Should we move? Can we do it in time?”

“We can move the entrance and change it up a bit. That should make it harder for him to find us.” Pandora scratched her cheek and then squeezed her eyes shut. “He promised to leave and to let me find him when I want him.”

“When?”

“That’s the word he used. I don’t think it will happen. I hardly know him or his uses so I don’t see why I would.”

“Always so pragmatic,” Greg said dryly and then stood. “I had better go get some rest. No telling what a long day I’m going to have tomorrow.”

Pandora nodded and watched him go. She relaxed into the chair and closed her eyes. The day was not good. The traps were empty or destroyed and a dragon knew where they lived. Nothing was working right.

She then remembered Serene pushed out of the chair. She went to her stone chest and concentrated on it hard so that it opened. There was a mirror sitting on top of several layers of cloth. She loomed over it and saw her reflection, but when her hand touched it her reflection disappeared and Serene’s face took its place.

“Oh, thank the gods,” Serene said from the mirror. “What in the world took you so long?”

“I ran into trouble,” Pandora said and returned to the chair with the mirror held in front of her. “Anyway, where have you been? I’ve been waiting to hear form you for weeks.”

“Oh, well, you know… things got sped up a bit.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, you know how I was supposed to change the records at the schools?” Serene asked.

“Yes,” Pandora said warily.

“Well, onethingledtoanotherandIhadtokilleveryone.” She took a deep breath and then smiled, but her eyebrows were drawn so low that half of her eyes were hidden.

Pandora frowned and raised an eyebrow. “You… did what?”

“I killed all the teachers… at all the schools.”

“Why?”

“It was all confusing, but it ended up working all right. There is no one to remember that neither of us completed classes or to even say we never went.”

“Did you kill the students too?” Pandora asked.

“No,” she said uneasily. “I did kill a lot of the journeymen though. I had to make sure that we could get our spots.”

“You weren’t supposed to kill everyone.”

“We can’t pussyfoot around this, Pandora. We’re out for blood, remember? We take down anyone we have to take down. And I hope that you remember that these people imprisoned us and tortured us. Do you remember that?”

“My old teachers never tortured me,” Pandora said. “Did you kill them, too?”

“No, but did tweak their records. I did have to take care of the ones that ran the camps though. It makes sense, I promise,” Serene said. “You’ll have to trust me.”

Pandora sighed and nodded after a long moment. “All right,” she agreed. “What are you doing now?”

“I… uh… I’m the Emperor’s Mage.”

“No,” Pandora said firmly. “This is too soon! You’re taking it too fast. We’re just kids.”

“We’re seventeen, Pandora. We have been through more than people who are immortal. I think we can handle one stupid, egotistical man.”

“And his army,” Pandora reminded her. “This is serious, Serene. You should have come to me first.”

“Well, I couldn’t. It came up. I had to enter the tournament, and they took all of my magical items away. It’s a good thing that glamour rings have wonder hidden enchantments. I’m sorry, Pandora, but you’re going to have to hurry back to the city and take your place by the Empress. You’ll like her.”

Pandora scowled disapprovingly at her cousin. “You were supposed to come back so that we could talk to Greg about all this and then leave. Now, not only have we lied to him, but you’re leaving me to deal with this alone.”

“It couldn’t be helped. You have to hurry.”

“I can’t just leave Greg and the children. I have to get them more potions, and the food stores could get down low… and Topaz isn’t ready.”

“I need you to hurry,” Serene said. “I can give you a month at the most, but then you have to be here. I don’t want to stay here any longer than I have to.”

“You should have thought about that before you went off on your own like that. We had plans, Serene. How could you go and change that.”

“Well, you know what Greg always says,” Serene muttered.

“He doesn’t even know what that means! Look at me, Serene. You’re making me lose my temper.” Pandora took a deep breath. “I have to talk to them in the morning, but just so you know I have a dragon stalking me. I don’t know what he’ll do to them when I’m away.”

“If he’s stalking you, he’ll probably leave the others alone. Don’t worry about it, Pandora. He deserves this after what he did to my father.” Serene’s voice hitched and she shook her head. “Just hurry, Pandora. I need you here with me. The children will be all right with Greg and Topaz will be a great help.”

“What if… what if they try to breed him? He’s only six; he can’t be... doing that with dogs.”

“We’ll cross that bridge when we get there,” Serene said. “Don’t’ worry about it so much. Get the potions from Grizzle and Greg and the hatchlings can take care of themselves. We’ve taught them everything we know.”

Pandora sighed and rubbed her forehead with her free hand. “How can you do this to us, Serene?”

“We planned this together. It’s just going a little different. The best plans of mice and men.”

“That doesn’t make sense. Mice don’t have plans.”

“Yeah, but men do, and they get laid to waste a lot. The plan isn’t demolished; it just had to change a bit. Everything will be fine. I promise. Get the potions and come to me. Same time tomorrow if we can manage it. I’ve been busy. Plus, I think that he is interested in me.”

“That isn’t good.”

“No, it isn’t. Not when you want to kill the man and… well, I have to watch what I say. Just hurry, Pandora. This is serious, and remember: We have to hate each other.”

Well, you’re not making it difficult, Pandora thought. “I’ll do my best. I’ll talk to you tomorrow and let you know.”

Pandora was too annoyed with her cousin for the usual loving farewell. She simply dropped the mirror into her lap and covered her face in her hands. The muscles along her skull tightened and she began to get a headache.

Pandora put the mirror away and left her room. She needed to talk to Topaz, since he was going to be going with her when she left. She knocked on his door and slipped in. He was sleeping on his pile of gold.

“Topaz, dear?” she whispered and edged closer to him. He opened his eyes and blinked at her.

“Mother?”

“Do you remember when Momma and I told you that we would be leaving the family for a little bit?” she asked.

He bobbed his head up and down. “Yes, Mother,” he said and stretched before hopping off of his pile. “Are we leaving now?”

She shook her head and opened her arms so that he could press his flank against her chest. She hugged him close and buried her face into his fur. “No, but Momma has sped things up a bit. I need you to do me a favor and craft another room and move the tunnel entrance a bit so that it cannot be found so easily. I’m going to take Rubio out and we’re going to go hunting bears, so I need you to take care of the others while I’m gone.”

“Does that make me in charge?”

“No, Greg is in charge, but he’s not strong enough to fight on his own. He’s only a normal human man. I might need the three of you to watch over him and make sure that no dragons or elves hurt him.”

“Why would dragons or elves try and hurt him?” he asked and sat down. He leaned into Pandora and she hugged him close.

“I don’t know, love, but I just want to be careful.” She kissed the top of his head. “There are too many people that have tried to kill Greg, Momma, and me.”

“I’m sorry, Mother,” he said quietly. “I will do my best to make a nice room and move the entrance before you get back. Are you sure you don’t want to wait for me?”

“I would love to, but I can’t. Momma sped things up too much and I have to act quickly. It takes too much time to travel. Get some sleep. I love you.” She kissed him on top of his head again and then gave him a good rub down before standing and leaving the room.

<Chapter 50<Chapter 52>

Chapter 49

by Amanda Cast

Dragons Fly

“Mother?” Rubio called from another part of the complex. Pandora took the opportunity to turn away from Greg and leave the den. She was glad for the reprieve. She did not want to hurt his feelings.

“Yes?” she asked.

He peeked his head out of the room. His hair was spiky and red with a bit of orange and yellow. Greg hand talked him into the color and the style. It was one that Greg adopted when he had the products. “Mother! Did you find anything?”

“No, dear,” she said and kneeled down and held her arms out for him. He ran into them and she hugged him tightly. “What have you been up to?”

“Oh, I’ve been reading,” he said. “Do you think that you could trade with Grizzle for some chickens?”

Pandora frowned. “What do you want chickens for?” she asked.

He pouted and she quickly changed her expression. He smiled at her and said, “I want to try and make another dish, but it requires a lot of eggs and chickens. Do you think we can start raising chickens?”

“You know that we can’t afford to keep anything domesticated,” she said. “Greg says we have to have corn and grains and other things to feed them. We would have to keep them somewhere and we can’t keep them near our home. It will attract trouble.”

He pouted again. “But Mother… I really want some chickens.”

She sighed. “I’m sorry, dear, but I can’t promise anything. I’ll talk to Momma when she gets back and we’ll discuss it then. This is too big of a decision for me to make on my own.”

“But you’re not alone,” he said. “Greg is here and so am I.”

Pandora shook her head. “Chickens is a serious decision. All three of us need to be involved. Momma would be very upset with us.”

He pouted and tried to give her the puppy dog eyes that worked so well with Topaz, but red eyes were disconcerting no matter how long you looked at them. The children only had their secondary forms for a couple of months.

“I’m sorry,” she said and stood up. “I need to talk to Topaz. Can you put this back into my room?” She handed him the vial and he nodded excitedly. He darted around her and she turned to watch him disappear around the corner in the hall.

Her boots echoed as she walked down the hall. Since Topaz had decided that he could better serve the family as a dog they had to rethink how to form the door. He could not open anything with a complicated latch. They simply decided on a crudely enchanted cloth that would block out most of the sound. She pushed it to the side and stepped in.

Topaz was curled up in the corner of the room with his nose pointed into his body and his tail covering his head. His ear twitched when he heard her approach, but he did not look up at her.

“Greg says it was his fault that you bit him,” Pandora said. “Aren’t you happy to see me, Topaz?” she asked.

He raised his head and looked over at her with dark brown eyes. His gray, wiry eyebrows were incredibly expressive and he did a good job of looking pitiful. “I’m sorry, Mother,” he said and then buried his face again.

“What is wrong, Topaz?” she asked.

“He didn’t step on my tail,” he admitted. “I… I was having a nightmare during my nap. He came in… and I… I’m sorry. He isn’t mad?”

“No, he isn’t,” she assured him. “do you want to tell me what you were dreaming?”

“You and Momma were in trouble and there were the dark elves… and… the dragons.” He snarled despite himself. “They were trying to kill you and then they… they tried to take Emmy.”

“Ah, darling,” she said and sunk down next to him. “Did you tell Greg about this?”

He nodded. “I’m sorry, Mother. I didn’t mean to bite him. Is he all right?”

“Yes, he is,” she promised. “Now, why don’t you stop hiding here and we can all go out for a little bit for a walk.”

“Really?” he asked hopefully.

She nodded. “Yes, we can.”

“Mother, when is Momma coming back?”

Pandora shrugged. “She’ll be back before we know it. The more you fret over it the longer it is going to take. Come on, I know you want to go for a run.”

He scrambled to his feet and stretched. He was a large hound that was the about the size of Greg when he was on his hide legs. Serene had brought a book back home with dog breeds in it. Royal hunting hounds were his favorite and had chosen them for his secondary form.

No one knew until he turned up as one.

He licked Pandora’s hand with his spotted tongue. “When is Momma coming back?”

“When she usually comes back,” Pandora said.

“What did she leave for?”

Pandora suppressed a sigh. She hated it when Serene was gone. She hoped that her cousin had to go through this nagging as well. “She needed to get you more books as well as get some other nice supplies.”

“Why can’t any of us go with her?” Topaz asked.

“Because, dear,” she said as they exited the room, “You are not trained in the ways of Shadow Magic and you lack subtlety.” She patted him on the head. “You’ll learn though with some practice.”

“Do you think so?”

“You only have eternity to learn,” she told him. “For now you have to learn here, and you have been doing an excellent job.”

“When is Master Tokyo going to visit us again?” Topaz asked.

“I don’t know, dear. Only you and Emmy can talk to him.” Pandora kept her hand on Topaz’s back. “I still don’t understand the stones as well.”

“But you can turn yourself into it,” he said. “Momma can’t do that.”

“That’s because Momma is more of a flashy mage and I’m more of a prudent fighter. I can use what magic keeps me alive and easily melds into what I already know. I can mold my body because I have better control over what it does than Momma does. She works outside of herself and I work from within.”

They entered the living room where Greg was sitting and looking miserable. When he noticed that they were there he smiled at them and then called Topaz to him. Topaz went hesitantly and Greg rubbed him down hard. One thing led to another and they were wrestling on the stone floor.

“Still want to run?” Pandora asked.

“Oh, yes,” he said and Greg and the dragon disengaged. “Do you want to go, Greg?”

Greg chuckled and ruffled the top of his head. “Well, I guess. I’ll go round up the others. There was plenty of room in the den, but he still managed to brush against Pandora as he entered the hallway that led to the private chambers.

“He likes you, Mother,” Topaz said.

“Of course he does, dear. We’re friends.”

One of his eyebrows and ears perked up and he tilted his head to the side. “Mother… for someone so… you… you are naïve.”

Pandora sighed. She knew what Topaz was talking about, but had hoped to dissuade him of his belief. Sometimes children were far too observant. “Don’t let it concern you, dear. I am too engrossed in you four to be of any use to anyone else.”

“Mother, can we get in dragon form and do some flying?” Rubio asked as he entered the room.

“Of course, dear,” Pandora said. “Are your sisters on their way?”

He nodded and bounded across the den at her. He flung his arms around her middle and squeezed as tight as he could. “Ok, ok,” she said, adopting Greg’s common word. “You’re going to kill me if you keep that up.”

“Oh, sorry,” he said and beamed at her. “I’m just so excited that we get to go flying. I can’t wait until we get our scales too.”

“Oh, don’t grow up too fast on me,” Pandora said with a warm smile. “You’ll out grow our caves here faster than Topaz can shape them up.”

Rubio eyed Topaz and then shrugged. “I don’t care. I just want to fly!” He grabbed a hold of Pandora’s hand and dragged her to the exit of the complex.

“We have to wait for the others, Rube,” she said and planted her feet. He tugged and then jerked back. They were strong for children their age, but they were still no match for their “Mother”.

He huffed and went to the stone couch and sat down hard on it. The cushion hissed as air was forced out faster than usual.

“You’re going to rip the seams if you treat it like that,” Pandora said. “We have to work very hard for everything here. I wish you would appreciate it more.”

He looked away from Pandora and Topaz sat down and let his spotted tongue loll out of his mouth. His long hairy tail swept across the floor.

“No,” Pandora heard Greg say, “Put your shoes on. We’re going outside.”

“But Greg, I don’t want to,” Star said. “Can’t we just stay here and play games.”

“Mother is going to let us fly,” Rubio shouted.

“Really?” Star shouted back.

“Yes,” Pandora and Rubio said together, but Pandora continued alone, “Now hurry up and get out here so that we can leave. Emmy? What are you doing?”

“I’m getting my bag, Mother,” she yelled, but was in the den before Star and Greg were. “We’ll need some place to put our clothes when we get to transform.”

Pandora nodded and touched the little dragon’s head affectionately. “You’re very right,” she said.

“I’m glad I’m a hound,” Topaz said. “I don’t have to wear clothes.”

“Well, aren’t you lucky,” Star sneered as she entered the room with Greg following behind her. He already looked exhausted from fighting with her about leaving. “But you don’t get to look as pretty as us either.”

“Please don’t antagonize him,” Pandora said.

“Come on, kids,” Greg said and clapped his hands together with false enthusiasm. “Let’s get this party started.”

The kids whooped and sidled through the tunnel. Topaz waited outside and widened it a little so that Greg and Pandora did not have to do the same, but it was still too narrow for them to go side by side.

When they were outside, Topaz sealed it shut. There was a constant fear from all of them that they would be discovered while they were out.

“So, who is making dinner tonight?” Greg asked as they slid and hopped down the path that led to a small meadow. It was surrounded by trees on all sides, but for some reason it was simply a field of grass and flowers.

“I might,” Rubio said. “I’m the fastest at it, after all.”

“Do you think we could have tea, Mother?” Emerald asked. “I do love your blend.”

Pandora smiled fondly at her. “I don’t know. We might not have anymore sweetener left.”

“We don’t need any if you just use a few more sweet berries,” Greg offered. “I think we might have some stored still.”

“That changes the flavor though,” Topaz said and shook his wiry head vigorously. “It does not need sweetener anyway.”

Greg frowned at his back but did not respond. The young man reached back and pulled his hair off of the nape of his neck. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Pandora jerked him back before he could walk into a low hanging branch and he gave her a shy smile. She simply nodded to him and looked away.

When they reached the meadow Greg took Rubio to get undressed and Pandora took the girls for modesty’s sake. The girls handed Pandora their clothes for her to fold and put into the bag that Emerald had provided.

It did not take them long to change back into dragons, but they did take time to test their wings and stretch them. Pandora sauntered over to her usual spot under the largest tree in the line to fold the clothes and watch the dragons fly. Greg joined her shortly with Rubio’s outfit.

“They are impossible sometimes,” Greg said as he watched Star take off, “But they are beautiful in their true form.”

“They’re beautiful no matter what form they take,” Pandora said as she smoothed out the fabric of Star’s dress.

“So, how do you think their training is going?” he asked and leaned back to watch her.

Pandora turned her gaze onto her children and then shrugged. “It is hard to say, but I think that by the time Serene dies that they will be ready to take on anything. They are raised by humans and near humans, not dragons or elves. They should be able to adapt better than anyone else of their race.”

“Do you think so?” he asked. “I mean, the dragons I’ve met other than them aren’t that great, but they’re pretty scary.”

“We haven’t fought dragons yet,” Pandora said, “Only other Speakers and mages.” She paused and reviewed the sentence in her head, “Only Mages and other Speakers,” she said and then nodded, pleased.

“Do you think we’ll have to?” Greg asked.

“We’ve fought everything else so far,” Pandora said, “Dragons are only a matter of time. I imagine that Serene and I will find a way to kill them should the time come.”

“Yeah, but what if Serene isn’t around. She hasn’t been around a lot lately. She’s always running off.” He looked away from Pandora with his head bowed and brow creased. “I know you worry about her every moment she is gone.”

“Of course,” Pandora agreed. “She is my cousin, and I love her dearly. I have faith in her though. She is a very determined half elf. They have all the great things humans and elves have to offer. Only another half elf speaker who has the use of Shadow magic and Fire and Ice could possibly hope to defeat her.

“What if the Emperor finds her? He’s after you two.”

Pandora frowned and wished that he had never gone with Serene into the cities to gather news. He knew more than either of them wanted him to worry about. “He will not harm her, or I will kill him. I might simply kill him on principle.”

“When do you intend to do that?” Greg asked.

Pandora bit her bottom lip and shook her head. “I don’t know yet, but when I find out… I’ll let you know.” Maybe, she thought, but knew that the thought and words were a lie. Serene and Pandora were already formulating a plan to not only kill the Emperor, but to destroy him as well.

<First><Chapter 48><Chapter 50><Latest>

Chapter 47

by Amanda Cast

Tokyo

“If it is, it’s really crowded,” Pandora muttered. The air moved and murmured with the breathing of everyone in the cavern. If the room was open, Pandora felt nothing of it.

“I can’t see a damn thing,” Greg said. “Oh, they want us to be quiet.”

Pandora frowned and Topaz moved closer to her. The lack of light was disconcerting. They could have walked Pandora around in one big circle and she never would have known. There was a group of the lizard men breathing as one in front of them. Their escorts hissed and the line that connected Pandora to the lizard man went taunt and then lax.

The air pushed back her hair and tugged at her clothes in a noisy exhale. “Greetings,” a large, deep, and very ancient sounding voice said. “I see my friends bring me Speakers.”

Pandora bowed to the sound of the voice. It was where the group was breathing. Then it dawned on her. It was a dragon that was breathing. She blushed at the realization. “Greetings, Dragon,” she said.

“It has been a long time since I have seen humans,” he said, “And I have not seen hatchlings since my own children.” He heaved a heavy sigh. “It is good to see the youth of today.”

“Hello,” the hatchlings said.

“Such respectful little ones,” he said approvingly. “Your parents must be proud of you.”

“We are,” Serene said.

“Oh? A half elf girl and a human boy are your parents?” he asked the hatchlings. “What is the human girl then?”

“We only have mothers,” Emerald said. “Momma is Serene, and Mother is Pandora. They adopted us when we were eggs.”

“How is it that two girl-children come to possess four dragon eggs? These are Septum Hatchlings.” He ho-hummed thoughtfully. “You are very blessed and cursed all at once. How can children hope to protect such precious beings?”

“They are actually pretty good at getting out of tight spots,” Greg said. “You should have seen them back at Varanar.” There was a quick chirrup. “Oh, sorry, man.”

“Getting out of tight spots and protecting are two different things,” he said. “These hatchlings are not even a quarter of the way to their first year of life and already they have seen things that no other hatchling sees until they are at least five.”

Pandora’s hair stood up on end. Her shirt was pulled toward the dragon’s nostrils as he sniffed her. “You smell of death and of stone. You smell of magic. Perhaps I am wrong in assuming that you are a human. No human smells as you do.”

“How many humans have you smelled?” Topaz asked.

The adult dragon chuckled. “I have not smelled as many as you, young one,” he said. “But I know what she smells of. She smells of dragon kin.”

Serene snorted and then choked. “I’m sorry,” she said with sincerity and then cleared her throat. “I don’t think Pandora is dragon Kin. She’s human as human can get. Little boring though.”

“Only she does not touch magic as humans touch magic. It flocks to her. It hungers for her.” His head moved from Pandora. “It hungers for you as well, young one. I can feel my own magic being drawn to you. Perhaps that is why the Shadow and Dream dragons of Varanar were so threatened by you. They felt an attraction that they cold not bear.”

“Surely Speakers are not that rare,” Serene said. “Two stand before you and we’re not even a year apart in age.”

“For many centuries I have locked myself out of the world. I enjoy the people here. Their memories are long and transcend death, but they are refreshing compared to the immortals of the world. They have the mortality that we all crave, but they have memories that we find comfort in.” The dragon chuckled again and then sighed. “They have told me that you are in distress.”

“We are,” Pandora confirmed.

“You have been exiled from Varanar for defeating their leader, who was a Speaker, in combat. Is this true?”

“Yes,” Serene said. “We killed her, and we would do it again. She would not stop until we were dead. She wanted to enslave the hatchlings.”

“I do not think that enslave is quite the word. Indoctrinate, maybe, but not enslave.” He yawned. “What is it that you need, young ones?”

“We need to get somewhere safe to raise the hatchlings,” Serene said. “So far everyone wants to use them for their own gain.”

“You would be safe here,” he said. “You could raise them as you see fit, but ones such as yourselves will grow sick and troubled in the world of darkness. I can already feel madness scratching at your skulls for welcome and succor.”

Pandora wished she could look at her cousin. There were some expressive eyebrows she wanted to share. She rarely had an expression she wanted to share. She gave a quiet sigh.

“Well, I don’t mean to sound short or impatient,” Serene said, “Though, honestly I am both.” The dragon and girl chuckled at the joke. “But I think we would love to get back to the surface. Is… there any safe place for us up there out of the way from the main world but close enough to make it useful?”

“I might be able to find something for you,” he said. “Would you like to be near some natural caves? They will serve well enough for living space until you can craft something better.”

“That sounds great,” Serene said. “Maybe temperate? Nothing too cold or too hot? The hatchlings are very demanding.”

“I like the idea of a nice scorching desert,” Rubio said and Star agreed.

“I think there is a nice little valley that might do you well enough,” he said. “You are lucky that the empire of the human race has not spread there, though how long it is safe from the countries of the surface is beyond me.”

“Uh… Dragon, sir,” Pandora said uncertainly.

“Yes, young one?”

“I was… I was wondering… why do you live here with… uh…the people of the underdark?”

He chuckled again. “Because I am old and tired. I have seen the human race rise and fall many times. I have watched their memories become nothing but ashes and dust. The people here are misunderstood by the other races. They are indigenous much like the dragons. They are what originally inhabited the dark places, and they remember back to when the septum was created.” He sighed. “But the elves will not accept them, and Humanity would not either. They do not accept dragons, so they could not accept something with no capability of looking like you.”

Pandora nodded and said, “You are probably right. Humanity has not accepted me and I am human.”

“It is a shame. You seem like such a wise and likeable child. Perhaps when you are situated I will visit you and your brood. It would please me if it would please you.”

“You will always be welcome in our home,” Pandora said.

“That is all I ask in exchange for helping you,” he said. “I would love to see how these little ones grow.” He paused. “Stay away from the dragon kingdoms. You will be close to the elves, but they should leave you alone because of you, half elf. It is a shame. Come, my young friends. I shall take you to your new home.”

~*~

Time was hard to track without something to track it with. There was no light to tell them how long they had been walking through the dark tunnels. They moved so they could not track it by drops of water or even by the shifting of rocks, not that they could see anyway. Time was tracked by sleeping and steps. Pandora counted steps a lot.

“Mother,” Topaz said.

“Yes, dear,” Pandora said.

“I’m tired. Are we almost there?”

“I don’t know,” she said, and she heard the familiar shuffling of Greg stumbling. “You all right, Greg?”

“Oh, yeah, I just can’t wait to get back to the surface. This dark thing is killing me. I don’t want to be blind. Ever,” he said.

“We are almost there,” the dragon said. “I can hear it.”

“Uh… dragon.. sir…” Serene said tentatively. Pandora had skirted around asking him for the time they had been together.

“Yes, young one.”

“What is your name?” she asked.

“Ah,” he sounded. “I have no name that has lasted. Many call me Master. Some call me friend. If I had a mother I do not know what she would have named me. Name me what you would be pleased to name me. For centuries I have simply been ‘The Dragon’.”

“How about…” Serene trailed off thinking.

“You sound like one of the old Japanese guys on TV,” Greg said. “Maybe if we called you Tokyo just to cover all grounds.”

“What kind of a name is Tokyo?” Serene asked.

“I like it,” Pandora said. “Do you like it, Master Dragon?”

“If Greg thinks that it suits me from his world then I cannot complain. I will be Tokyo. Does it please you?” he asked agreeably.

“It does me,” Greg said and then mumbled under his breath for a little bit. “I mean… it pleases me. It reminds me of home even if I wasn’t from Tokyo—sounds better than Japan, too.”

“Agreed?” Serene said uncertainly.

Tokyo said something that Pandora did not understand and then cloth was shoved into their hands. “We are about to start, but I want to make certain that the light does not hurt your eyes. While they are here with you, you should get your blind folds on over your eyes. It will hurt you if you do not.”

Pandora reached up with the cloth and tried to tie it to her face. It was thick where it was supposed to go over her eyes and the straps were thin enough to work in her fingers, but she felt clumsy. Her escort helped her tie it and assisted her in making sure that it would keep the majority of the light out of her eyes. He spoke to her, but it came to nothing for Pandora.

She took his hands in hers and turned to face him. She could not see his face, but she could imagine from the faces in the stone palace in Varanar. “I wish I could have learned more about you all. Perhaps we can come and visit your people and learn from you,” she said in draconic.

Tokyo translated for her and then said, “He would be pleased to teach you about their culture, and would be pleased to teach you how to speak their language. That is a great honor.”

“I take it as an honor,” Pandora said. “I am sorry for how others treat them, Tokyo. I wish they could be better accepted.”

“Perhaps they will one day, young one.” He took a deep breath and held it before he said, “It is time to begin. They will be leaving you now. They cannot stand the light. It has been too long since their race has seen it.”

They all said good bye to their escorts. Greg had the longest good bye. He hugged them all and his voiced hinted at waving. He sighed heavily as he took his place next to Pandora.

“I’m going to miss them,” he said.

“I don’t know… I just wish I understood what they were talking about. It’s different than Draconic, you know? I just hear and know Draconic. I can speak it…”

“Yeah, but on the bright side your mouth is already made to speak their language. That’s pretty sweet. When this ring runs out I’ll never get to talk to them again.”

“Well, you can at least learn how to understand them,” she said. “You’ll probably learn some draconic while you’re at it.”

“How could I not living with four dragons and two Speakers?” He nudged her playfully and she had to regain her balance.

“It would be nearly impossible, I’m sure,” Serene said. “You’re lucky Pandora likes you or I’d kick you to the wolves.”

“I like him too, Momma,” Star said.

“No accounting for taste,” Serene said.

“Oh, so you can steal my phrases, but I’m lame,” Greg said.

“Whatever,” Serene said.

Tokyo sighed. “I forget sometimes that you are still children. Now, if you will come and join me, Topaz? Perhaps I could teach you through this experience.”

“May I, Mother?” Topaz asked.

“Yes,” she said and patted him on his back. “Behave and don’t do anything before Master Tokyo tells you to.”

“Yes, Mother,” he said excitedly and followed the sound of Tokyo’s heavy breathing.

The ground moved, but the stone made no sound. Serene’s stomach growled and she moaned and thumped her belly. Pandora became more aware of the beat of her heart and the pulsing of her temples at every pump.

Then light began to seep under the bottom of Pandora’s blindfold. Her eyes were both hungry for it and hurt by it. She hissed and pressed the bottom of it closer to her keeps. She squeezed her eyes shut as tightly as she could.

“Yes, the light is bright,” the dragon agreed. “I wonder what the world looks like now.”

“What?” Serene asked. “Are you blind?”

“I was not so lucky as you, young one. When I was much younger my eyes were gouged from my face. The surface is just as dark as the underdark. I am not bitter though, I have learned to cope, and my other senses have heightened beyond anything you could comprehend.”

“That is amazing and sad at all the same time,” Greg said. “Um, how long do you think it’s going to take us to get used to this?”

“It varies. Serene will probably be the first to adjust. Mind the hatchlings,” he said. I will speak to Topaz later and instruct him on how to contact me when you are ready for guests.” Tokyo yawned. “There should be some caves that will fit the seven of you well enough. Fair well.”

“Good bye, Tokyo,” they said and stumbled away from the rock he was using. Pandora waved after him and listened to Topaz tell them how wonderful the experience had been.

<First><Chapter 46><Chapter 48><Latest>

Chapter 46

by Amanda Cast

In the Dark

Pandora could not hear the hissing for minutes more. It was quiet and subtle in the way it seeped into the air. It tickled the fine hairs on her ears. Then there was the smell. Pandora could not place it other than to say it smelled similar to the hatchlings, only it was fishier.

Topaz was still in the stone. Pandora kneeled down between him and their path. Her eyes could only see as far as Serene’s globe allowed. Whatever was out there would see them first.

“You know,” Greg said quietly. “That sounds… sort of like draconic.”

“It’s not draconic,” Serene said. “I don’t understand a word of it.”

“Well, right now I can’t make anything out of it. I have to actually hear it better. But it’s hissing and… well… it sounds a lot like Draconic.” He shifted and crouched down in front of Star and Rubio.

Serene moved to the front and raised a barrier around both sides. “Well, let’s see what we are dealing with out there.” The globe of light flickered.

“Can you put something into that?” Serene asked Pandora.

Pandora frowned. “How do you want me to do that?” she asked. “It’s your spell. It’s a spell.”

“I know that,” Serene hissed.

“Dragons,” Greg murmured.

“What?” Serene asked.

“They said, ‘dragons’,” he told her. “They think we’re young dragons. Of course, they understand and hear what I am saying. They are intrigued because I understand what they’re saying.”

“So they’re close?”

He nodded. “They have good hearing too.” Greg had no weapons and he was not a good fighter, but he tried to shield Star from whatever was to come anyway. His body was slight as an adolescent boy’s body is prone to being, and he did nothing to cover her length, but it was kind of him to try. Pandora smiled fondly.

“Do they eat them?” Serene asked. “No one is eating my children.”

“They might,” he said. “How the hell am I supposed to know?”

“I’m scared, Greg,” Star said and craned her neck to butt him anxiously in his side. “Can you ask them to leave us alone?”

“How about you ask them who they are,” Serene said.

“Well, that’s fair enough,” Greg said. “Who are you?” There was some hissing and he strained to listen to it. There was little fear that they could hurt him with Serene’s barriers up. “They say they are the people of the Underdark. They are not elves or dragons. Oh, I’m sorry, they’re not human either. There is nothing wrong with being human…yeah well… all right, I’m sorry. What did you want?”

Pandora shifted uncomfortably and tried to shake Topaz awake, or at least back to where his body was. It did not work. She moved closer. It was taking a long time for Greg to answer.

“I don’t understand,” he finally said. “What was it that you wanted? You wanted the Stone Singer?” He whispered to Star, “What is a Stone Singer?”

Star shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know. Stones don’t sing.”

“What do they want with this Stone Singer?” Pandora asked.

“Do you know what they’re talking about?” Greg asked.

Pandora sighed and rolled her eyes in frustration. “Just ask the question. What do they want with the Stone Singer?”

“What do you want with the stone singer? Oh, they want to take her to the stone dragons that live in the underdark.” He frowned. “No offense to the dragons present, but I have a problem with seeing more organized groups of people. I think we should find a cave, make Topaz get it pretty and then chill.”

“What will their leader do?” Pandora asked.

Greg repeated the question. “Oh, they just want to hear the story. They have heard of it, but the elves killed the dragon that made the song before he could bring back the tale. Oh, that’s… well… I shouldn’t say it. Anyway, what do you think we should do?”

“Do they mean us harm?”

He asked and then said, “They will not harm us if we will not harm them. They ask if we are armed. What should I tell them?”

“Tell them that between the seven of us we only have one dagger,” she said.

He nodded and relayed the message. “They promise that they will not hurt us. They mean to help us. You won’t try and take the hatchlings from us, will you? No? All right. I guess… I’ll have to ask the others.”

“So long as they mean no harm or to take the hatchlings,” Serene said.

There was more hissing and then Greg nodded to Serene. She stared at him. He rolled his wrist and his fingers flicked emphatically. “Drop the barriers.”

“Oh,” Serene said and dropped them. “I hope they have food and water.”

“Well, I’m sure they do. I just hope they’ll share,” Greg said. “Oh, I don’t think they like the light very much.”

“Well, we can’t see in the dark,” Serene said.

“Um… they don’t want us to be able to see, I don’t think. They fear that the elves and dragons will hunt them down. They think it best for everyone involved. They sense our fear and anxiety.”

Pandora stood up. “We cannot leave without Topaz. He is still in the stone.”

“Maybe one of them can get him out. Serene turn off the light,” he said.

“What are you… oh fine. Your dialect is strange,” she told him and the light went out. It was impossible to see, and Pandora did not leave Topaz’s side.

“Hello?” Greg said. The hissing was louder, and Pandora could make out some subtle chirrups and clicks, too. “Oh, there you are. Your hands are kind of… hard… and cold. Oh, well, that makes sense. Don’t touch the elf. She’s a racist. Haha, yeah, I know.”

“I am not a racist,” Serene said angrily. “What are they?”

“I think they’re the people that were getting slaughtered on the building,” Greg said. “It’s hard to say sense I can’t see them, but you can imagine.”

“They’re reptiles, Serene. They’re intelligent reptiles.”

“Oh, well, that’s cool. They’re like dragons only not as pretty. I get it.”

“I don’t think I’d revere dragons around them,” Greg said. “They only like the stone ones. Oh, that reminds me. We… um… well… that is to say. We have a stone dragon with us, and he was looking for a way out for us. I think he might be stuck.”

The hissing was angry and something ran into Pandora. She teetered a bit and then hard, scaly hands reached out to steady her. He said something and Greg told her not to worry. She could feel the cool tips of his claws on her skin. His breathe was short and smelled of decaying things.

“He needs you to move.”

“He can go to the other side,” Pandora said sternly. “I won’t leave him.”

“She’s not going to move,” he told the lizard man. “You’re going to have to go to the other side…yes, she’s only twelve. Me? Oh, I’m only fifteen. We are going through some rough times right now. Yeah, I know.”

“Great, small talk,” Serene said.

“No, we’re not dragons… neither are the girls. The only dragons here are the hatchlings. Yes, we had some problem in Varanar. It was nasty business. Amazon there almost died.”

“Greg, I don’t know if you should be telling them all of this,” Serene said.

“What is it going to hurt?” Greg asked. “Besides, they seem friendly enough.”

“Yeah, and so did the elves before they tried to kill us in some round about way that would stop them from starting a war or something. So, whatever,” Serene said. “You’ll have to forgive me for not trusting any person who came along offering to help me.”

“Well, this isn’t all about you.”

“Will you two just kiss and shut up already?” Pandora asked testily. “Topaz could be in serious trouble and all you care about is bickering with one another.”

“It isn’t me!” Greg said defensively. “She’s the one that started it.”

“Mother?”

“Topaz?”

“Mother!” he said and leaned heavily into her. “I’m sorry I took so long. Issricra said you were worried about me. I just… I think I got carried away.”

“He said that you are too young and unpracticed to try things like that,” Greg said. “I’m sorry I even mentioned it.”

“It wasn’t your fault. I agreed to do it,” Topaz said. “How could you know the limits of magic anyway?”

Serene snorted and Greg let out a quiet groan of frustration.

“What did you find?” Serene asked.

“It’s going to take years for us to get out on our own,” he said. “I could probably make short cuts though.”

“We’ll see when it comes down to that. Right now we have an invitation,” Pandora said.

“Invitations never end well,” Topaz said warily.

“You’re telling me,” Serene said. “But Greg insists that it’s all right. I guess it’s better that we go. Hopefully we can feed you there.”

“I am hungry,” Topaz said seriously.

The lizards tied ropes around their wrists or legs (respectively), and led them through the dark tunnels. Pandora tripped, bumped into things, and swore under her breath more than once. It was better when her muscles and bones were completely lubricated with movement, but for quite a while she waddled more than walked.

Pandora’s feet hurt from all the walking and bumping before she finally crashed into the back of one of the creatures escorting her. “Sorry,” she said as it stabled her. “Thank you.”

“Are we there then?” Greg asked. “Ok, but can we find some way to see now? I know you want to keep your secret but I think I’m going to get vertigo if I can’t see. Well, I’m not blind and this is disconcerting. All right, all right.”

“What?” Serene asked.

“They say that if the dragons approve they will help us get to the surface. They know a place where they can easily let us out, but we have to stay in the dark for now for their safety,” Greg said.

“That is ridiculous,” the half elf said.

“It is fair,” Pandora said. “If they help us get to the surface then I think we can bear with their paranoia.”

“I agree,” Greg said.

“Well then,” Pandora said, “Hopefully they’ll be kind and place us where we are in and out of the way all at once.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Serene said.

“Well, we don’t have much by way of options,” Greg told her. “Look, we have gotten out of sticky situations before. If this is sticky, we can get out. I have faith in you.”

“I wish we had stayed at the academy longer,” Serene said quietly.

“I’m sorry,” Pandora apologized. “They were convincing. I did not suspect that they would try and kill us.”

“I don’t think they intended to until they found out you saw the story.”

“I saw blood,” Pandora said. “They did not even ask me what it was a saw. I wish I could go back and look at it again. It was very grabbing. It was emotional.”

“It looked kind of hideous to me,” Serene said, “From what I could see of it anyway. Daddy always said that underdark elves were vulgar.”

“I don’t think Uncle Lindal should be judging what is vulgar or not,” Pandora said uncomfortably. She thought his taste was rather vulgar in the gaudy direction.

“What are you trying to say?”

“Nothing,” Pandora said and moved closer to the lizard man.

“Momma,” Star said softly. “I’m tired. Can we rest?”

“I don’t know,’ Serene said. “We’re here though. We have to meet this group of dragons and then we can see.”

“I really hope he’s not homicidal,” Greg said. “I’m getting tired of al this crap.”

“Well, let’s not mention where you come form and we might be all right,” Serene said.

“Speaking of which, we need to start teaching you how to speak our languages without the ring,” Pandora said. “It is going to run out before long.”

“I know,” Greg said. “It is useful though.” There was some hissing and clicking. “Oh, I think we’re here.”

“Does this space feel open to any of you?” Serene asked.

<First><Chapter 45><Chapter 47><Latest>