Page 200 of Salt in the Seas
Aeliana’s fear and sorrow magnified as she sensed it flowing through Durriken and back again as he shared it with her.
Your mother should be safe. Mayvus won’t harm her if their life forces are connected.
A bitter laugh crawled up Aeliana’s throat but got choked out by the tears she held back. “Others will take my mother’s life if it’s a last resort to save all of Rhystahn. She’ll probably offer it to them.”
The same way you offered yours?
She flinched. “It’s different.”
Durriken’s hum held clear disagreement.
Aeliana ignored it. “I’d like you to take me to the palace. I want your help finding a way to defeat Mayvus while keeping my mother alive. But I want it to be your choice, not something you feel obligated to do because of a brand.”
Durriken sat back on his haunches and pawed at the earth beneath him with his single front paw, the mud squelching between his claws.You want to remove my brand. Do you not want to be tethered?A strange emotion emanated from him, almost like the thought caused him pain.
She hesitated. “You said your ancestors were tethered to half-lights. Can’t we remain tethered without the brand? Would it be strong enough to protect you from Mayvus trying to rebrand you?”
Durriken paused, studying where the mud hid his brand.Perhaps if Orra seals it. Then it might be strong enough.
“Orra?” Aeliana’s breath caught. “She can do that?”
It’s how it was done for my father and his father before him. Our tether has formed, but until a Star seals it, it’s strength might not be enough to override the blood magic of a brand. But a sealed tether is a permanent connection, severed only by death. In many ways, it could be considered worse than abrand if it’s not something both of us desire. The vulnerability returned to his words, making Aeliana’s throat tighten.
She let his meaning sink in, making sure her decision was not made lightly. She hadn’t wanted her bond with Lukai, and clearly she hadn’t wanted to be branded by Mayvus or even Gaeren. She’d constantly been looking for a way out of her brand on Durriken because it hadn’t ever felt right. But a tether held give and take with mutual understanding.
From the moment she’d met Durriken, she’d wanted the world to be wrong about him. He was grumpy and could be vicious, but he was also hurting—and had been for a long time. Maybe the others were right and she had a weakness for defenseless creatures, one that might come back to hurt her down the line. But Durriken had become far more than an animal to save.
“I would gladly bind myself to you with a tether.” A ripple of pleasure crossed the air between them, and his nose dipped to the ground in acceptance. He lowered his entire body, offering his back for her to ride. She hesitated, then used her dagger to split her already torn skirt, grateful she’d worn the leathers underneath.
As she climbed up behind his neck, his scales flattened instead of flaring, giving her safe passage to the leathery place that held one of his only vulnerable spots. It made her realize that for a dragon to allow a rider, it had to make itself vulnerable. There was a two-way trust, as she expected him to safely carry her through the skies and he expected that she wouldn’t stab him in the back.
As his three paws lumbered across the swampy ground and the power of his hind legs lifted them into the air, the sensation was both frighteningly unfamiliar and strangely nostalgic. When she’d flown in his mind, it had been smooth and consistent. But now his muscles rippled beneath her and forced her to learn the rhythm of gripping his neck and anticipating the pattern of the beat of his wings.
After a while, she grew used to it, but she knew she’d be sore in the morning—if she made it to the morning. Her stomach grew queasy, but she wasn’t sure if it was a result of the rise and fall through the air or her nerves at approaching the palace.
“Orra will likely be at the Sungazer,” she shouted to Durriken,pointing at the building on the eastern end of the palace. When she realized he couldn’t see her arm behind his head, she fed the image through their tether. Her subconscious use of his noetic skills left her all too aware of how this might change things. Losing the brand would likely make her lose the noetic skills Sylmar had encouraged her to learn.
But it would be worth it to give Durriken his freedom.
He adjusted his trajectory, and with the descent, Aeliana’s stomach grew even more unsettled. As he landed, a figure emerged from the Sungazer, and Aeliana recognized the statuesque frame of Orra patiently waiting for them as if she’d expected them.
Perhaps she had.
“I should have known the two of you were involved,” Orra said as Aeliana leaped off Durriken’s back.
“Involved in what?” Aeliana asked.
Orra spread out a hand, gesturing toward the palace. “All the commotion. Dozens of soldiers being called into the palace. Are they gearing up to face a dragon? Or is this more than a simple misunderstanding?”
Orra’s question left a hollow ache in Aeliana’s chest. Six months ago, Orra would have been telling them what would transpire. But now she had just as many questions as Aeliana. Was her power that weak? Or was her restraint that strong?
“Felk showed up at the wedding,” Aeliana said.
Orra’s eyebrows rose. “He followed my note, then.” A small smile crossed her face. “It was a gamble, but they refused to let the winex stay at the fortress. So I gave him the choice of ignorance and freedom or following a trail that might lead to you. His loyalty goes deep, and that is not something to take for granted.”
“Well, his trail also led him to Mayvus and her fleet of ships, which are currently arriving at the harbor.”
Orra’s face paled, and she reached out to grip the stone wall of the Sungazer. “She’s come here?”
