Page 172 of Blood of the Stars

Hope grew in Aeliana’s gut. “How many soldiers are there?”

“At least six thousand,” Sylmar said. “He’s still waving, and each wave represents a faction that survived.”

They counted two more waves and spurts.

“Eight thousand? Then most of them left Islara before Durriken arrived.” Aeliana’s hopes soared.

“We might have a chance after all,” Sylmar said.

They set up camp while waiting for Velden to make it back down the canyon. He arrived long after most of them would have been asleep, but everyone was eager to hear his news. They sat around the campfire, squeezed in tight due to the canyon walls. Kendalyhn served him a bowl of stew, but the questions came too quick for him to eat.

“Only a couple of factions were lost,” Velden said. “They left in intervals. Some knew nothing of Durriken because they left days before his arrival. Others left only half a day before he came. Several attempted to turn back and defend the city. Most of them had family in there. But it quickly became apparent that they wouldn’t stand a chance against him.” His grin faded, and everyone grew quiet as they remembered the horrific scene they’d left behind.

“How did the dragon not see them on his way from the mountains?” Kendalyhn asked.

Velden’s face bunched up in thought. “That’s the curious part. Several of the soldiers admitted to seeing the dragon flying both directions. He paid no attention to the troops. It’s almost as if he didn’t care about them.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Holm said, his face grave in the firelight. “She would’ve told him to attack the soldiers.”

Velden raised a finger, and a sly grin crossed his face. “Unless, maybe, she told him to attack Islara. Maybe he knew exactly what she wanted, but he got around it by doing exactly what she said instead. It does leave room for the possibility that he was never truly working with her.”

Aeliana bit her lip, hesitant to show any pleasure at Velden’s words. It was hard to be grateful that Durriken only killed the townspeople instead of the soldiers, but still… if he’d been a prisoner to Mayvus, she’d made the right choice by letting the dragon go free. Velden gave her a small nod before finally slurping down some of the stew.

“So they’re prepared to launch an attack by the week’s end?” Sylmar asked.

“They’re all lined up in the Valley of Krahn, waiting for further instruction. They were planning to launch an attack and retrieve Emeris whether or not they saw us in case we’d perished in Islara.”

“Tomorrow we’ll have to meet with the generals to study their plans.” Sylmar leaned against his staff, staring into the fire’s light. “They probably have a better idea of how to approach the fortress than we do if they’ve been scouting it out these past weeks. Realistically, they can do whatever they want to attack her fortress. They’re a means of distraction.”

“Distraction?” Cyrus asked. “I thought they were helping us get in.”

“They are,” Sylmar said. “They’re helping us get in by distracting her soldiers so we can sneak through a side entrance.”

Everyone began talking amongst themselves, less concerned over the details now that their task seemed possible, the threat less intimidating. It was all too new for Aeliana to hold the same confidence. She watched as their shadows flickered against the canyon wall—far more formidable than they actually were. It was exactly how they all felt tonight. Stronger, surer of themselves. But in the morning when the firelight was gone and their shadows receded, what would the Sun reveal? Was this a task they were truly ready for?

“You’re quiet,” Velden whispered. “I thought you’d be happy to hear they had survived and that your dragon might not be so bad.”

She smiled more for his sake than because she actually felt any sense of happiness. “He’s not my dragon.”

He hummed, bobbing his head back and forth. “You’d be surprised at the memory of a dragon. Your actions won’t be forgotten. He owes you his life.”

“How do you know about dragons’ memories?” Aeliana sat up taller. “They say Durriken is the only one.”

“He’s the last one,” Velden corrected. “There was another when I was young—possibly Durriken’s father. They flew together, making their nest in the cliffs on the northeast side of the Myndren Mountains. People could go years without catching sight of them. Made us all wonder if they could cross the barriers. But they still turned up.”

“To hunt people?” Cyrus leaned in to join the conversation.

“No, actually.” Velden paused to tip his bowl back and take in the last of the stew. “They would take cattle now and then, but until Islara, I hadn’t heard of dragons killing people. At least not since the wars. Although Durriken hadn’t been spotted for over ten years until recently. Who knows what he was doing in that time?”

“So what about their memories?” Aeliana couldn’t stop thinking of the way Durriken had given her his memories, the way she’d sensed his desire for her to know his past. Guilt pricked at her when she realized she’d never told anyone what he’d done. But if he was free now, did it matter anyway? He should be long gone.

“Ah, that’s more from legends. Cities used to set out portions of their herds and crops, almost like an offering to stay in the dragons’ good will. The dragons each had their regions and were kept happy. Eventually, men were disgruntled at the arrangement, figured dragons could hunt for their own food. Which they did. They hunted among the people’s farms.” Velden laughed and shook his head. “Except one family continued leaving meager offerings for the dragons. Their farm was never touched.”

“It doesn’t surprise me,” Aeliana said. “His gaze held an intelligence and focus beyond most people’s. It was unnerving, but also sort of…” She trailed off, not sure how to describe it.

“Comforting,” Velden said. “It’s like they see straight through your soul, but they just keep looking, taking you in and assessing without judgment.”

His words reminded Aeliana of Kendalyhn’s statement that people liked to be truly seen—seen and accepted. She scanned the camp for the other woman, who sat near Lukai, leaning in to whisper something that made him laugh. Something inside Aeliana twinged along with her bond mark, but she shook it off, not ready to examine if a tiny seed of jealousy meant their bond was starting to take.

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