The Rider's Legacy

Chapter 6 | To the skies

Chp 6 | To the skies

I didn't have many opportunities to visit Nethore while I recovered. Cryaeni had brought me up twice but Nethore had been determined to let me recover and spent his days with the mer-soldiers, searching Ithrall for living souls. His lack of flight frustrated him, but he was recovering far quicker than I was. 

So instead, in the Grand Chamber, I spent my time waiting with the children of Ithrall. They had gotten over their fear of the Vidalin Rider quicker than their parents and often clustered around me, asking me to play with them or to see the shadows around my arms. They would run through the Grand Chamber, chased by a thread of shadow and a cool whip of it would snake around their wrist.

Caught.

They would ask me to tell them stories about being a Rider. I would tell what I could, leaving out the darker elements. That day, Emilia was stuck to my side. Gus had been given a wash and he was pinched tight to her side. She waited until the other children were distracted before approaching. Leaning up to whisper, she looked very serious and solemn. "I have got some chocolate."

"Oh? Was it nice?"

She nodded, still very serious. "It was."

She watched as I sat down on the armchair. She took a step closer, looking pointedly to my lap. Sighing, I leaned forward and plucked her up. She sat on my lap, tucking Gus between us. "He likes to be held."

Again, she looked at the other children, before whispering, "I saved you a square of my chocolate."

I couldn't hide my smile. "That's very kind of you."

"I know." She rummaged into her pocket and pulled out a torn wrapper. One half melted square of chocolate remained. "Papae says that you always have to share with friends."

"Your Papae sounds very smart."

"Is your Papae smart too?" She handed me the chocolate expectantly.

"Dad was very smart." My smile faltered and I was glad that she didn't see it, too busy fussing over Gus again.

"Dad." She giggled. "You say funny words. Will you come and play with us again?"

"I hope so."

She sobered. "You won't be staying here."

"No."

"And if the demons come and you are not here?" Emilia asked, meeting my gaze.

"Derralann is protected by great mer-people. They are great warriors," I reassured her. "And a city underwater cannot burn."

She was assuaged by that, her attention going to my Mark. "When I'm older, I'm going to be a Rider too."

Too young to have her dreams crushed, I didn't dare tell her that the chances of that were very low. That the number of dragon-eggs were low and the ones in Ithrall were now buried by a floating island and the rubble of Parliament. The other children returned to us, demanding that I play with them and unable to say no, I spent the next hour playing hide and seek again and again.

Did I cheat? Yes.

Was I caught cheating by Cryaeni when she returned to fetch me? Again, yes. She had little reaction, save for raising a brow as she surveyed my competitors. Competitors who cried in indignation as I stepped out of my hiding spot – a seam of shadow that they had stepped through multiple times in their attempt to find me.

I followed Cryaeni out into the hall. Only then did she speak. "I was bothered by the mention of the Sister Lakes. There must be a reason why such a volume of water is uninhabited. We are not pressed for space out in the human realm. We have cities that humans could never comprehend, hidden in the dark depths of the ocean. In Valaxia, there is less space."