Page 55 of The Iron Flower

“I’m sure.” I’m ready to use whatever pull I have with Lukas to fight the Gardnerians.

The fowler’s eyes dart toward me uneasily as he tucks my note into a small fabric bag and ties it to the leg of one of the rune-hawks. Anticipating the journey, the hawk ruffles its feathers and makes an abbreviated hop on its perch. Deep green runes are set on to iron bands that bracelet both of the hawk’s legs, restricting it to travel between the hawker and the destination point marked with identical runes, each half of the spell set by the same Gardnerian Light Mage.

The intricate patterns of the small runes glow in the dim light, mesmerizing in their verdant beauty. The ability to perform rune magic is a rarity everywhere, but it’s rarest among Gardnerians, as it requires a strong light affinity line. There’s only one known Light Mage able to perform rune spells in the entire Magedom, and I’m fascinated to see his work up close.

The fowler winds the north-facing window open, and a gust of icy air blasts inside, ruffling my hair. Unhooking the hawk’s leg chain, the fowler releases the bird from its perch, barely restraining the excited creature on his gauntleted wrist as he carries it to the window.

I watch, darkly resolved, as the fowler makes a clicking sound with his tongue. The hawk spreads its wings and launches itself into the air, flying northwest into the chill dawn.

Past the Verpacian border and over the Spine.

Winging its way to Lukas Grey.

the iron flowerlaurie forest

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

DRYADS

That evening, a luxurious black-lacquered carriage pulls up at the base of the North Tower’s hill, the silver dragon insignia of the Gardnerian Fourth Division military base on its side. Two Level Three soldiers flank the carriage on horseback, and a Level Four soldier sits on the wand-guard seat.

One of the soldiers opens the door for me, and I’m surprised to find the carriage empty.

“Where’s Lukas?” I ask warily.

“We have instructions to take you to him, Mage Gardner,” comes the succinct reply, the soldier’s handsome face rigidly devoid of emotion.

I don’t budge. “Where?”

He gives a swift glance northwest. “At the edge of the Spine, Mage.”

My unease spikes.Why there? There’s nothing but farmland and wilderness.

He stands, expressionless, waiting as I glance toward the jutting white shards of the Northern Spine, the peaks snowcapped and silvered in the moonlight.

Gauging the situation for a split second, I take a deep breath and climb into the carriage. The door clicks into place, and I have the unsettling feeling that I’ve just crossed a dangerous threshold.

We drive through bustling Verpax City and eventually out of it, the lights of the city receding and soon dampened to a halo of light in the distance. The stars glitter coldly over the farms and wilds of northwestern Verpacia, the full moon suspended just above the Northern Spine and glowing like a specter.

After over an hour’s ride, the carriage comes to an abrupt halt by a deserted field covered with glittering, ice-encrusted snow. The wilds encircle the field, the forest sloping upward over hills that lead to the base of the ghostly white Spine.

The door opens, and I step out into the cold air. I glance around, searching for Lukas, a prickling apprehension taking hold.There’s nothing but wilderness here. Lukas’s Fourth Division Base is clear on the other side of the Spine.

“Where is he...” I start to ask, but the carriage is already in motion, the soldiers riding away alongside it.

“Wait!”

I run to keep up with the carriage, but it soon outpaces me, and I’m left alone, leagues away from anything. With nothing but the barren fields surrounding me and the black wilderness beyond.

Fear seeps into me. And cold. My breath curls white on the air.

What are you playing at, Lukas?

A sudden, piercing shriek sounds from the direction of the Northern Spine. I turn to see a winged creature descending over the Spine’s apex, silhouetted against the ivory stone and snow. The thing shrieks again, soaring closer, and my pulse races with a mixture of fascination and apprehension.

A dragon.

I step back as a fuller realization dawns.

---