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Chapter Eight
Part Four

“Ah! You’re well!” Saeaera said as Daniel and the others emerged into the great hall of Waldhafen. “Core’s guardians, Dark Warrior, you know how to scare people.”

“Yeah, I’m sorry about that. I had no intention of attracting the Dragon Lord’s attention to you when I came here.”

“That’s not what I mean, silly. We were worried by how badly hurt you were.” She gave him a crooked smile. “And you never stood a chance of sneaking around behind his back, you know. Anyway, Shadavar would be crippled but for him. He sent aid.” She snorted briefly.  “That’s going to ruin the reputation he’s been cultivating, especially with the stories coming out of Caerdu.”

“Stories? Caerdu?” Daniel asked.

“Shadavar’s okay?” Mela said simultaneously.

Saeaera smiled at Mela. “He’s still recuperating, but that dragon healer the Dragon Lord brought with him stabilised him until we could get someone there.” She shook her  head. “A dragon who can heal – that should be impossible.” She looked back at Daniel. “Speaking of healing, we’d better see to your mother. At least I assume that nasty case of Essence Burn is why your father sent her with you.” She gestured with her hand and two young dryads ran up. One took his mother’s bag while the other put an arm around her waist and helped her away towards the living quarters.

“Yes, it is,” Daniel said. “She’s never been this bad before. He said someone was aggravating it.”

“I’d agree with that diagnosis. But we can fix her up, I promise,” she said.

“I hope so.” Daniel stared after his mother for a moment, then looked back at Saeaera. “What were you saying about Caerdu?”

“Oh, the Mountain King sent us an imp. The message it was carrying was disturbing. It seems refugee nobles from Elapyron city tried to stage a coup and were using some sort of mind control on his subjects. They tried to kill your siblings as well.”

“He said something about Elapyron being rott- wait, how did you know they were my siblings?”

Saeaera looked down. “The forest listened to your conversation with the Water Warrior,  Daniel. You mentioned the light warrior was your sister and that you were a quadruplet. Then Dariad’s imp said she was there with her siblings, who were the Fire and Ice Warriors. It’s not exactly a leap of logic.”

“No, I guess not,” he said.

“Can I see Shadavar?” Mela interrupted.

“Of course.” Saeaera led them up a ramp to a large treehouse which was clearly acting as a makeshift infirmary. Shadavar lay on a bed of  bracken at one end. The rest of the single large room was filled with beds containing a surprising number of young dryads and forest haltia. None of them seemed to be injured but most of them were unconscious. Attendants of various species drifted between the beds checking on them.

Daniel looked at Saeaera questioningly as Mela rushed over to Shadavar and knelt down beside him.

“What happened to them?” he asked.

“We’re not sure. Shadavar was the only serious injury, but the dragons did take some prisoners… and then they returned  them. They’ve been fed on but they’ll all survive, and they’re otherwise unhurt. We thought they might have been  subverted somehow, but the ones who’ve woke up have sworn to a unicorn that they aren’t and their minds don’t seem to have been tampered  with. Then that imp arrived from Caerdu and it seems this isn’t the first time the blue ones have done this.”

“What do you mean?” Daniel asked. When she sighed and told him the rest of what the Imp  had shown them, he paled. “No wonder he said the place was rotten.” He frowned back at the rows of beds. “But I’ve never heard of dragons releasing their prey.”

“No,” she agreed as they walked over to join Mela by Shadavar. “Some of them treat their renegades well enough, I suppose, but the rest of us?” She shook her head. “This is new.”

“Blues raiding is new as well, Sae,” Shadavar said. He sounded tired as he looked up at Ebona. “I’d greet you properly, shadow sister. But they won’t let me try and stand yet.”

“I understand, life brother.” Ebona knelt beside him and touched horns with him. “He’s right though. Blues don’t generally raid for prey, or they didn’t until about eighteen mon- oh!”

“Ebona? What is it?”

“My herd used roam in Moralan, which is near the edge of blue dragon territory. There were several waves of a mysterious plague in the area at the time. Everyone who survived – which weren’t many – fled. Moralan is still abandoned.”

“I remember that.” Saeaera said. “It was intractable and attempting to heal it just aggravated it. We found a cure eventually but it had already burned itself out. You think there’s a connection?”

“What if the plague also affected the blue territories, or even originated in them?”

“A population crash would explain why they started raiding. It doesn’t explain them returning their captives.” Saeaera looked up as the alarm gong sounded. It wasn’t a frantic claxon like when the dragons had attacked, but a more measured beat. “What the hell?”

“What does that mean?” Daniel asked.

“Someone’s got past our defenses but the guards aren’t sure if they’re a threat,” she replied. “We’d  better go and see what’s happening.” She reached into her skirt and produced the life heart bracelet. “Before I forget, Sarah and Birke left this for you.”

“Thanks!” He took it and followed her to the door.  “We’ll  come with you.” He looked  around to check that Ebona and Mela were following him.

Saeaera stared at him for a moment and then nodded. “Very well.” She led them to the same observation platform he’d been to with Sarah Tyler. While Saeaera went and spoke with the guard who was sounding the alarm he stared out at the town. It wasn’t as burnt as he had expected  from the amount of fire the dragons had been throwing around during the attack. Some of the trees had obviously had singed branches pruned and he could see where the odd charred wall had been hastily patched, but the place was basically intact. A board creaked behind him and  he looked around to find Saeaera standing there, frowning.

“We have a small delegation of blue-eyed goblins and renegade speakers outside the gates.” She sounded baffled. “They have a binding truce flag and claim they’ve been sent to negotiate.”

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