The Bond (Book 2) (15 page)

Master Doronal spread his hands. “At least to start. As we get more dragonlinked, you’ll all be contributing knowledge about what it is to be dragonlinked. And speaking of which
 . . .” He placed his satchel on the table and started digging through it. “Here it is.” He pulled out a thin leather-bound book and handed it to Willem. “You will begin training immediately.”

Aeron remembered getting his primer all those months ago. Seeing Willem get one made him smile.

Willem picked it up, reverently. “Thank you, sir.”

Digging in the satchel again, Master Doronal said, “The rest of you don’t have to stay for this, as it is purely Magic Craft training. Though, any of you who are thinking of becoming dragonlinked may want to watch. You’ll soon be doing these exercises.”

To Willem, he said, “Look over that tonight and study it as you can. But for now,” he pulled out a set of training bracelets, “we’ll start with sensing magic.”

No one left the office. All eyes were on the magic craft master as he began the training session.

After placing one bracelet on Willem’s wrist and the other on his own, Master Doronal shook the thin chain that connected the wristlets, making sure it was loose between them. Then he removed one final thing from the satchel: a dragon’s eye. “Aeron knows this part well. We’re going to work on getting you to be able to see magic flows.”

Master Doronal placed the semi-precious gem on the table between himself and Willem. It didn’t really look like an actual dragon’s eye. It did sparkle and shimmer, however, much like a real dragon’s eye under certain light.

Aeron liked the enchanted crystals, and even owned a couple of them. One was on his gold dragon pin. Its little dragon’s tail was wrapped around the tiny, glittering gemstone.

“I will cast spells on the dragon’s eye, and you’ll watch as I do so. Tell me if you see or feel anything unusual, okay?”

Willem nodded, an excited smile on his lips.

As Master Doronal removed the enchantment on the dragon’s eye and then re-applied it, the stone would dim and then brighten, sparkles and glints of light softening then resuming their shimmery dance. This went on for several minutes.

“I’m seeing something odd.”

“Oh?” Master Doronal watched him intently.

“Odd how?” Aeron stared at Willem. Could he see magic? Aeron had tried testing him before, with no results.

Willem glanced at Master Doronal and back at the gemstone. “When you cast the spell, I see thin lines surrounding the gem, arcing out and back in graceful shapes, almost like
 . . . spiders’ webs. But not like any webs I’ve ever seen. The lines are of varying colors, too.”

Master Doronal’s smile was shared by Aeron.

“You can see magic!” Aeron thumped Willem on the shoulder. This went a long way to proving Willem could be a dragonlinked.

I told you he was a good candidate.
Anaya sounded sleepy.

I know, dear-heart. I’m just really excited for him.

Master Doronal continued the exercise, to see if Willem could feel the rhythm of magic, but after several minutes, the others lost interest. They couldn’t see anything after all, not having training bracelets.

“I think I’ll head out,” Cheddar said. “Not much to see, and I’ve got chores early in the morning. There’s a big print job we’ve got due soon, and we’re running behind. It’s always feast or famine with printing, and right now it’s feast.”

“I’ll head out, too.” Sharrah looked at Willem. “Keep practicing, and good luck!”

Gregor took his leave as well, though he grabbed a dragon notebook for more reading. He’d be through with them all very soon at the rate he was going.

Master Doronal called an end to the night’s exercise half an hour later. “Do not fret, Willem. It takes time and practice to do this. If it were easy, everyone would be a sorcerer.”

“I suppose you’re right, sir.”

“And don’t forget to read the primer. There is no particular section to focus on at this point, just read along from the beginning. If you have questions about anything, ask me any time. Or, I suppose you can ask Aeron, too.” He looked at Aeron. “Just be sure you don’t explain more than you fully understand, yes? Magic is dangerous, deadly even. Neither of us wants Willem to come to harm.”

Aeron looked at Willem, saw the hint of alarm in his eyes. “Yes, sir. I certainly don’t want anything bad to happen to him.”

“Just so.” He removed the training bracelets and began packing away his things. “We’ll continue tomorrow afternoon, if that’s okay with you, Willem?”

“Absolutely.”

“Though we should probably decide on a set schedule for training. Let’s think on that tonight and talk about it tomorrow.”

“Alright,” Willem said.

Aeron smiled. Willem was starting Magic Craft lessons! This brought him even closer to being a dragonlinked. Aeron couldn’t wait.

After Master Doronal left, Willem turned to him, a large smile on his face. “Can you believe it? I—”

Hot breath. Soft lips. Slow breathing.

And, thank the gods, no hint of flowers. Willem’s scent was earthy and woody, with the faintest trace of leather. It was amazing.

Lord Eldin adjusted his jacket for the fifth time. He also adjusted his position in the elaborately carved chair again, fidgeting. His fingers, stroking the armrest, only stopped long enough to wave off the servant who came to top off his already full cup of coffee. He glanced at it, sitting on the small table next to the chair.

Another attack from those damned creatures. The station master had been killed, and the region manager insisted that guards be hired, at least two per station, to stand shifts. Though it would add to their overhead, Lord Eldin regrettably agreed. The company’s reputation was at risk. The stations could not be seen as anything but absolutely safe. Phase two of their offerings required it. Nahual had no interest in any cargo the trains of cars might carry, but their passengers and the people at the stations were another matter. He had to convince the others of the necessity.

Taking a sip of coffee, he glanced at the large mirror before him. At twelve feet wide by six feet tall, he’d had to clear one of the larger of the private rooms in the Caer just to house it. The looking glass had cost a small fortune, too, as had the other three. Thankfully, each partner paid for their own. The custom-made devices were worth the cost, however.

The chronometer rang out with its delicate chime seven times. He stood and walked the dozen feet to the mirror. A touch at the proper location and in the correct pattern, and the looking glass came to life. Thin black lines spread from where his fingers touched and divided the mirror into three sections, now somewhat darker than before. Each section was empty, only weakly reflecting the room.

Why was he always the first? This further illustrated his point about everyone using coordinated time across the continent. Something would have to be done or arrival and departure schedules at stations across the land would be even more impossible to manage than their own meetings.

He returned to the chair. After sitting, he saw that Helena had arrived. The auburn-haired woman, starting to gray at the temples, occupied the center of the mirror. That section no longer reflected his room at all. Instead, it showed her and the room around her as if there were an opening in the mirror to where she lived.

She bowed her head slightly. “Lord Eldin.”

“Lady Helena.” Raising his cup in a kind of toast, he said, “Good morning.” He was certain she had someone else activate her ether mirror. Not once had she ever appeared except while already seated. There was a slight delay after activating a mirror, but as reserved as she was, he couldn’t imagine her rushing to her seat to be ready before transmission began. In fact, the idea of her hiking up her skirts in a mad dash for her chair almost made him laugh.

She bowed her head slightly. “Good morning. You’ll forgive me if I do not have coffee with you, it is noon here.”

“How are things in the east?”

“The same as always. Though there are rumors about mules or horses or something. And those creatures you wrote about, too, nahual. Their attacks continue.”

He was about to ask for details about the attacks when, remarkably, the remaining two partners connected one after the other, filling in the left and right ends of the mirror. So instead, he lowered his head in a small bow.

“Welcome, all.”

“Why is it that every time you call a meeting, it involves spending more money?” Master Brutten, thick mustache bristling, stared at him from the section on the right.

“We must address this issue. There have been attacks at several of our locations in the last month alone, and a station master was killed in this most recent nahual incident. His body was found by the region manager. There is no telling how long he’d been dead, though it was likely less than a day. Scavengers would have been at him otherwise.”

A look of distaste twisted Lady Helena’s mouth. “Why can’t they defend themselves?”

“Would you be able to defend yourself against one?” He turned from her to the others. “Would any of us? I have it on good authority that the beasts use magic, as well. Our station employees are not fighters and most are not sorcerers. But they aren’t even the most important point.”

He stood and started pacing in front of the mirror. “Our company is new. We have no history to stand on, only what we demonstrate now and in the future. If word gets out that our stations are not safe, no one will want to travel with us. Our cargo business might not suffer, but we’d lose all hope of passenger travel and the much higher profit margins that could come from it.”

Stopping in front of his chair, he turned to face them. “We must ensure that our stations are safe and secure. Our reputation is at stake.”

“I understand your point,” Lord Paxton said. “But we’ve spent so much already. We all have.”

Lord Eldin nodded. “Yes, we’ve all invested much. But even with the additional guards, our overhead will remain quite low. The cost to run a locomotive and its train of cars is minimal. Repair and replacement will be the only expenses beyond that. The same goes for the stations, the shipping yards, and the tracks themselves. Except for expansion, of course. But expansion means new markets and new profits, too.”

“Even so,” Master Brutten said, “spending more—”

“We’ve already procured land purchase agreements for our next two expansion phases at very favorable prices. The company will be doing so well by the time we want to expand beyond these agreements that we’ll not be worried about cost.”

“I have worries about cost now!” Master Brutten did not seem to want to understand. “Even if the company is successful, the amount of money we’ve spent so far—”

“Will be made back in just over a year.” Lord Eldin glanced calmly from the angry master archivist to his other partners.

“What?” Lady Helena’s eyes narrowed.

Lord Paxton sat up taller. “When did you come up with this information? What are you basing it on?”

“Just recently. I used conservative estimates calculated from current shipping methods and their prices. Though we will charge a bit more, I think, as a premium for the much reduced delivery time we can provide. I also included revenue from passenger travel, using fares based on an average of standard and luxury stage lines. The figures look very promising.”

Master Brutten looked less upset. “A year to recoup what we’ve spent, you say?”

“Yes. And remember, we’ll be making that in pure profit every year after that.”

“That’s good to hear. Very good to hear.” Master Brutten leaned back in his chair, a thoughtful look on his face.

“There are a few working on engines similar to ours,” Lady Helena said. “Though most are further behind in development. Those who are already in business, have much smaller-scale plans than we do.”

Lord Eldin glanced at the thin woman. Her contacts at the Smith Craft Guildhall were invaluable. “Exactly. We planned for the future. We planned to dominate. And I assure you, we will.”

“What about Baronel and his dragon?” Lord Paxton said. “There are some interesting rumors going around. It can travel very fast, from what I’ve heard.”

“Are you implying he might be competition?” Lady Helena raised her brows.

“Who knows what the man wants dragons for?”

Lord Eldin waved that concern away. “I’ve got someone in Caer Baronel monitoring the dragon,” he said. “Baronel has but the one.”

“Yes,” Master Brutten murmured. “And what if something were to happen to it?”

“We can set that concern aside, for now.” Lord Eldin returned to his chair. “I’ve already put some plans in motion to slow him down. If I learn that Baronel is attempting to increase the number of dragons he owns, or if it seems he might be competition for us in any way, then we can discuss more . . . direct remedies. For now, I’ll move forward on bolstering our security division. They already patrol our yards. All that’s needed is to expand their ranks to cover our stations as well.”

+ + + + +

Aeron stood next to Willem, looking in on the nearly complete dragon stable.

“It’s identical to yours,” Willem said.

Aeron nodded. “Yep. Which is perfect. It’s worked quite well for Anaya and myself, so far.”

The third stable was well along, too. And the framework for the fourth had been started on. All that was missing now were more dragonlinked. And more dragons.

Aeron shook his head.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

Willem crossed his arms. “Nothing?”

“Nothing important. Hey, do you need help with our magic lessons?”

“Nah, I think I understood them. How about you?” There was a glint in his eye. “You need help with your spell test this week?”

Aeron laughed. His spell test for Magic Craft would involve apprentice-level spells. Willem would not be able to help at all. “No, but thanks. I’ll be ready for it with a little studying each night.”

“It’s coming along, isn’t it?” Master Canneth walked up to them, eyes on the stable.

“That it is,” Willem said. “It’ll be done by the weekend, I’m guessing.”

“Are you ready to move in?” Master Canneth had the same mischievous glint in his eye that Willem had earlier.

“I–I guess so,” Willem’s eyes were large. “I mean, I don’t have a dragon yet, but I certainly wouldn’t mind moving in.”

Master Canneth laughed. “No need to get flustered, Willem. Moving in might be a good idea. It’ll put you next door to Anaya, let you learn more about what Aeron does to take care of her on a day-to-day basis. It might give you a leg up for when you need to care for your own.”

“I don’t want people to think I got special treatment, though.” Willem didn’t quite look like he believed his own words. “Not everyone gets a place all to themselves. Maybe we should wait. Besides, I’m here practically all the time already. I don’t mind waiting until I get a dragon.”

Aeron frowned. More like
if
he gets a dragon. Despite Cheddar’s efforts, they had yet to locate another place to find any.

Master Canneth shrugged. “We’ll see. At any rate, Master Doronal and myself have worked out a training schedule based on your discussion the other day. We’ll do Magic Craft lessons on Duviday afternoons, and Animal Craft lessons on Therday afternoons. That should allow plenty of time on the other days of the week for primary craft chores and lessons.”

“That sounds good to me,” Aeron said. It seemed doable. Certainly at the pace they’d been going so far.

Willem looked at Master Canneth. “To me, too.”

“Great. As soon as Gregor gets here, we can get started.”

“Gregor's taking lessons, too?” Aeron was surprised.

“He’s an accomplished healer of people,” Master Canneth explained, “but he knows little of animal physiology, ah, animal bodies. Where the bones are, where the organs are, and such. He’s going in with no preconceived ideas about what to expect. Which is good, as dragons may prove to surprise us in that regard as well.”

“Makes sense,” Willem said.

Sharrah came running around the corner.

“And of course,” Master Canneth said, smiling, “Sharrah would never let me hear the end of it if we didn’t let her sit in as well.”

“I didn’t miss anything, did I?” She was breathing hard.

Aeron laughed. “No. We’re waiting on Gregor.”

“Good.”

“As Aeron and Willem already know the basics of dragon care—we’ve all discovered those together—I felt we could do a deeper investigation of dragons, of Anaya.”

“And that,” Sharrah said, “is exactly why I wanted to be here.”

Her breathing had returned to normal by the time Gregor arrived.

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” he said. “I wanted to review a spell with Master Inndrus before I used it on Anaya today.”

“Oh?” Master Canneth said.

“I’ve used it several times before, just not recently.”

Aeron frowned. “It’s not dangerous, is it?” There was no way he would allow a risky spell to be used on Anaya.

“Oh, no,” Gregor said. “Not at all. I just wanted to go over the finer points of the spell’s abilities, its usage.”

“Okay.” Even so, he’d keep an eye on Anaya through the link.

“I think you’ll all find it very interesting.” Gregor smiled. “We should start inside, though, out of the sun. The spell’s results will be better viewed indoors.”

Everyone stood in an arc in front of Anaya where she sat in her den.

Today you will all study me?

Aeron smiled.
That’s right, dear-heart.

“I’m extremely curious to see what we find,” Gregor said.

He stared at her a moment, then Aeron felt magic wash over him, saw it surround Anaya.

“I can see the spell,” he murmured.

“You can see the spell?” Gregor looked at him, brows raised.

“Wait,” Willem said. “I thought you had to wear training bracelets in order to see a spell someone else was casting.”

“Or, if the spell is cast on you.” Aeron turned from Anaya to Gregor. “It’s the link. I can see spells cast on Anaya, and I bet she can see those cast on me.”