Jovari the Blue

Chapter 7: Ancient Hatching Grounds

Somewhere Up North

Saffra gnawed on her lip, waiting. The cold dread of worry seeped into her bones as quickly as the chill in the cavern. The black surface of the lake, shrouded in darkness, left her itching.

For long minutes she waited, resisting the urge to jump in. Then, finally, a ripple. She blew out a breath, her shoulders relaxing as Bedelth's head breached the surface. "Oh, thank the gods," she muttered. He began swimming for shore. "Anything?" she called. Her voice echoed off the cavern walls. She winced at the sound of it.

"No," he shouted back.

Her stomach plummeted straight to her feet. "You're sure?"

"I'm positive," he managed before wading out of the water. He muttered a word and the heat from his hands dried his clothing.

They'd agreed he would be the one to go into the freezing water. With his dragon fire warming him from the inside out, he wouldn't succumb to its frigid temperatures. Still, it had been near torture waiting for him. Not knowing what lurked beneath the surface. Anything could have swallowed him up, like a giant fish. Did they exist down here?

Bedelth knew exactly what to look for. She'd used their connection to share images of each stone's hiding place, careful to include every detail. He knew what was waiting at the depths of this cavern lake. Still, she couldn't help but ask, "Did you check the whole lake bed, just to be sure?"

"I checked everything, Saff. There was no sign of it. The place it used to be was empty. We are too late."

Her legs wobbled and she sank down onto her bottom, onto the shale beach. Too late. Again.

The first failure might have been a fluke. After searching north and east of Zaikar's lake, they'd come up empty-handed. The green stone hadn't been there, though there'd been signs of it. She'd almost felt its power, remnants of it soaking into the land where it had rested for months.

"The blue stone should have been here," she whispered, biting her lip. It was impossible to ignore the sense of dread settling over her shoulders. The sense of failure. Her breaths came faster and faster until tears clouded her eyes.

"We should leave," Bedelth said, a warning. There were things lurking in this deep cavern that frightened even him. But...she hardly heard him.

"What's the point of it all," she demanded. "Why would the gods show me a vision when it comes to nothing? Maybe it was meant as a warning, not a call to action. Maybe all I've done is send us on a wild goose chase."

Her stomach knotted. Just another bad decision. Like the one she'd made that had gotten Claire kidnapped and sent back through the gate.

Would their absence cause something bad to happen in the capital? Something they wouldn't be there to stop. "Oh, gods."

"Saffra, come. We need to leave."

"What's the point?" she cried again, this time slamming her palm down onto the shale beneath her, hardly caring that it cut into her skin.

Bedelth swore under his breath. "All right, enough of that." Before she could blink, he scooped her up and marched them out of the large cavern. She managed to regain her footing and they walked the remainder of the way out of the tunnels. She blinked against the sunlight.

"Do you need a minute, or are you ready to go?" Bedelth eyed her warily.

"I...go where?"

"North, obviously. For the red stone."

She snorted. "Like it will even be there."

"Saffra," he warned. She heard the years in his voice. It made her feel young, childish. But, could he blame her? They'd been traveling for weeks now, searching. Searching. Days spent studying the terrain, pinpointing iconic places in the landscape to narrow down each stone's location. They'd never had a fighting chance, had they? Kane knew exactly where the stones were because he'd put them there for safekeeping, and it had taken him no time to retrieve them. He was probably ten steps ahead of them already.