Mist Dragon, page 20
part #5 of Dragon Misfits Series
“I have done everything to protect it,” the forest dragon said. “That is why I wasn’t able to help any more than I did.” An image of the iron dragon buried beneath the ground formed in his mind. Here he had feared that he had tapped out all of her strength, but that wasn’t what he had done at all. She had limited him, preventing him from reaching more power.
“What do you mean that you protected it?” Jason asked.
“There have been attempts to find me,” she said, turning her expression once again to the egg. “I have prevented it.”
Jason frowned. “Dragon Souls?” He didn’t know whether the forest dragon would understand the Dragon Souls, so he used the connection they shared and reminded her of what they had been through within Lorach.
An image formed, one of mist, strangely rumbling earth, and a hint of what looked to be smoke.
Lorren.
“Lorren came for it.”
“Came and failed. I have protected this egg.”
She snorted, and another streamer of fog drifted from her nostrils, and once again, the illusion around him solidified. There was incredible power within that illusion. Jason could feel that power—and the way it formed—as it surged around him. It wasn’t just an illusion, though. There was something more.
Power. Jason could feel that power. He could feel the egg. He could feel everything.
This was what had drawn Lorren.
He was aware of a misfit.
He knew far too much about the dragon misfits. It wouldn’t surprise him that he would recognize when one had been laid. He probably had some way of following it.
By sitting here and controlling everything around her, the forest dragon had shifted reality. She had done what she needed to create the reality necessary to protect this egg.
Of course she would have. Jason wouldn’t have expected anything else. She was powerful enough that he could easily imagine she could hold onto that power in a way that gave her the ability to ensure the safety of the egg.
“What can we do to help you?”
“Nothing,” she said. “The egg is safe.”
“If others are trying to find you, then it’s not safe.”
“Others have been trying to find me ever since I hatched,” she said.
Jason sat there, thinking about the power here, everything around him. Could Lorren break through this illusion? He had control over illusions, but despite everything that he’d already demonstrated, Jason didn’t know if Lorren could shatter this one. If so, he would come for this egg. He knew that Lorren would do anything to reach a dragon like this upon its hatching.
“Do you remember anything about what was required for you to hatch?” Jason asked.
The dragon turned toward him. “There was nothing,” she started, “and then there was something.”
He looked over at the egg. “That doesn’t help.”
The forest dragon turned her attention to the egg. “Much like now. There was nothing. And now there is something.”
Jason held his hand out toward the egg, waiting for her to give permission. When she did, he crawled forward, resting his hand on it. Unsurprisingly, the egg was warm. It had an irregular surface, but there was something about it that seemed almost grooved. As he twisted from side to side, he noticed a faint glowing from within the egg. For a moment, he thought it might be his imagination, but as he continued to swivel in place, he became increasingly certain of that glow coming from the egg. There was power from within it, as well.
This was what he had detected when he’d chased Lorach. This was the power he had recognized within the forest. The egg was the source of it.
“How long have you had it?”
“A few weeks,” she said.
Jason shook his head. How could she have had the egg for that long? “I shouldn’t have borrowed your power.”
“I only permitted what I could. Had I been able to give you more…”
Jason shook his head. “I’m sorry. Had I known you were protecting the egg, I wouldn’t have borrowed from you at all.”
Of course, had he not, the iron dragon would have died. The forest dragon must have been aware of what she had done and the gift she had given him. It was because of her power that he’d gained a connection—however slight—to the earth dragon. Had she not lent him what she had, one of the misfits—one of her hatch mates—would have died.
“How long do eggs take to hatch?” Jason asked.
The question was directed partially toward the forest dragon, but Sarah had an understanding of dragon eggs as well. She had worked around the dragons long enough that she should have some understanding of what it would take.
“Usually many months,” Sarah said as she scooted up alongside him. She held her hand out, watching the forest dragon the entire time. She waited, as if concerned about getting too close. She wanted permission.
Sarah was skilled at working with dragons. This was the right strategy with the forest dragon. She was skittish, but at the same time, this was her egg. It reminded him of the sense he had from her when she had been willing to come and work with the storm dragon in the first place. She had taken a risk that she normally wouldn’t. She might be skittish, but she was strong, too.
Not that he had ever doubted her strength. It was just the kind of strength she possessed, the energy within her, that was different.
The power coming out of the egg radiated toward him, practically palpable. It was easy to know the misfit that would emerge from this egg would be impressive. It would take on qualities of the forest dragon, the storm dragon, and perhaps whatever environment the forest dragon had provided for the egg.
“How long do you think this egg has left before it hatches?” Jason asked Sarah.
Sarah leaned closer. “This is different than others I’ve known,” she said. “I would have thought this egg was five or six months along, but if it’s only a few weeks…” She looked up at the forest dragon and frowned. “With these dragons, perhaps everything is all a bit different.”
He had been looking to understand what it would take to have the misfits hatch, and here he had a misfit egg in front of him. He could learn firsthand. All he knew about misfit dragons was that they took on elements of their environment. There had been the ice dragon, the iron dragon, the forest dragon, the jungle dragon, and the storm dragon. All of those dragons had been created by Therin based on where he had placed eggs. The river dragon was still out there, and Jason had not yet come across it, and the jungle dragon had died.
Then there were the dragons who had been created by what Lorren had done. The earth dragon. The mist dragon. He could only imagine what other dragons Lorren may have attempted. He had talked about smoke dragons, but what other dragons could there be?
As he looked around the inside of the darkened clearing, the shadows swirling around, the moonlight shining down, Jason couldn’t help but wonder what sort of power this dragon was taking on. What would this environment do? It would have to have some aspect of the forest dragon and the storm dragon.
“Why here?” Jason asked, looking up at the forest dragon. “You could have created a place for this dragon anywhere. Why here?”
“Because this is where I needed to be,” she said.
“How did you know?”
“I could feel it. I could feel the way the egg needed to be placed here, and the energy within it.”
Jason held his hand over the egg, doing nothing other than attempting to probe for power. There was a faint trembling within it, but nothing more.
Jason closed his eyes, focusing on the egg itself. He couldn’t discern anything more from it. Just power.
When he opened his eyes, leaning back and looking up at the forest dragon, he frowned. “How long do you think it will take for your egg to hatch?”
The forest dragon watched him, and there was energy coming from her. Nothing more than that, just power.
“You don’t know,” he said.
The forest dragon breathed out a streamer of mist, and the energy of the illusion formed again, solidifying around him.
“I don’t know,” she said.
“Do you fear the egg?”
“I fear for my hatchling,” she said. “It is why I have taken the precautions I have to protect it.”
Jason looked around, feeling the illusion she had created. There had to be something more he could offer. Could he summon other dragons to offer protection? Even if he did, would it be enough? Maybe the forest dragon and her illusion was all that was necessary to protect this egg.
Strangely, he could feel the egg pulling on him. He focused on the other dragon misfits, and there came a surge of power. It called on him, coming from the egg. Almost as if…
“It’s feeding,” he whispered.
It was as if the egg were calling to him, pulling power from the ice and the iron dragon.
He leaned back, releasing his connection to the other dragons.
“Did you feel that?” Jason asked the forest dragon.
She breathed out slowly. “He stirs,” she said.
“He?”
She curled around the egg. “He stirs.”
Jason glanced over at William and Sarah, feeling power flowing outward. The egg was trying to draw from him, pulling on the iron dragon and the ice dragon. It had required strength on his part to separate from it. He didn’t want to diminish them too much, but he wondered if he could help the dragon egg.
“What is it?” Sarah asked.
Jason held his hand out across from the egg, and could still feel energy radiating. “There’s something within the egg calling upon the power I’m holding. It’s almost as if the egg itself is trying to borrow from that energy.”
“What do you mean borrow it?” Sarah asked.
He stared at the egg. Was it glowing more brightly than it had been? “The egg was drawing power off me.”
“An egg shouldn’t be able to do that. The dragon within wouldn’t be developed enough.”
“Even if it is farther along than it seems like it should be?”
Jason could feel the energy within the egg, the way it was stirring. There was a fluttering sensation, something that reminded him of the forest dragon, though stronger, if possible. There was something about the egg that he thought he needed to better understand. He wanted to test it, pushing power into it, but at the same time, he didn’t want to run the risk of it overwhelming what he could do.
“Even if it’s further along than you know, we’ve never seen an egg draw power off another dragon. We’ve tried. We use the energy of the dragon pearls, but nothing has happened when we did.”
Jason couldn’t help but wonder if it was because of him or whether it was something within the egg. Either way, the strangeness of it tugged at him, an awareness of the egg and the power that came to him, building within him. He needed to know.
He reached for the ice dragon first. He had the most power remaining, and more that he could draw upon. By holding onto that energy, Jason could push a little bit of power outward, and it flowed toward the egg. It was an ongoing sense building within him as it rolled forward, radiating to the egg.
Gradually he pushed it into the egg.
He barely released much. The egg suddenly latched onto that power and began to take it from him.
Power flowed through Jason, funneled through the ice dragon, drawn into the egg.
It was strange, but it reminded Jason of what had happened with the iron dragon when he had pushed power from the dragon pearls into him. Now he could feel power flowing, the way that energy radiated toward the egg. He shifted, adding a hint of energy from the iron dragon, and let that flow into the egg.
A sense of the iron dragon flared within him, heat coming off his glove. More and more power was siphoned through him, going into the egg and coursing outward. The powers mingled within the egg.
Jason started to withdraw but struggled. It was similar to when he had tried to separate initially. He had to force himself back, ripping the power away before he could cut it off. When he did, he leaned back, sagging as the heat and energy that flowed within him began building again.
There came a rustling through the trees, and he looked up to see the iron dragon slithering toward them. The iron dragon circled before coming to lie next to the forest dragon. Heat built from him, radiating toward the egg. There came another stirring, and a shadow dropped from the sky. The ice dragon approached, landing and taking a place near the egg as well. Power radiated from him as well.
“What are you doing?” Jason asked the two dragons.
“The egg needs to feed,” the ice dragon said.
“You will allow it?”
“It must be done,” the ice dragon said.
Jason couldn’t tell whether the egg would draw too much power from them, though he had a sense that both the ice dragon and the iron dragon were willing to allow it. Both dragons pulled upon energy, buried deep, and it flowed from them and into the egg. That power flowed through Jason, filling him, and he knew what he needed to do. Both of the dragons pushed upon him.
He had no choice but to start forward and hold his hands above the egg. Power flooded through him, coming through the iron dragon and the ice dragon, even distantly through the forest dragon, spreading into the egg.
“Jason?”
He looked over to see Sarah watching him, her eyes wide.
“What are you doing?”
Jason shook his head. “I don’t know. The dragons compelled me to do this. I don’t know if it’s something I’m supposed to do or not, but I feel the egg trying to draw this power off me.”
“You need to be careful. I can see you glowing with power.”
“I can’t help it. It feels as if…”
Jason didn’t have a chance to finish. The energy built within him and the egg seemed to stir, the power within it building and swirling, drawing through him. Jason wanted to try to separate, but even as he attempted to cut back on that power and withdraw, pressure built again, squeezing on him to force more through him. There was no point in resisting. It radiated out of him, rising with intensity. He couldn’t back away even if he were to want to.
The egg was drawing on him.
This time, he could feel it drawing on him as well as the other dragons.
Somewhere distantly, he felt a rumbling.
For a moment, he thought it came from the earth dragons, but there came a crackling of energy all around. He glanced up, and although the sky was still a bright shining moon, a burst of lightning came down and added to the egg. The storm dragon had come.
“What’s happening?” Sarah asked. There was panic in her voice. Jason understood. He had no idea what was happening to him, only that he couldn’t move. Energy flowed through him, coming from all of the dragons as it built around him. It came from everywhere.
The egg started to take on a faint glowing, and it seemed as if the darkness swirled around, night swallowing the egg. Or perhaps the egg was swallowing the night. It pulled all of it in.
It started to tremble, the energy within the egg building to an intensity that Jason could scarcely stand. The other dragons remained near him, power pressing from them, mingling, the four misfits all binding together through Jason.
Still, Jason was aware of something more.
More power.
There was another misfit out there. Several others, actually. If he could call upon the earth dragons, maybe he could use their power, though he didn’t know if he could summon them and use the rumbling power that he knew existed.
He had to try. He focused on what he remembered from within the illusion, the power that he had felt from the earth dragon. Stored energy started to summon through him, drifting in a way that called upon even more power. Jason fought the urge to cry out. It came with a vibrant intensity, building within him. He couldn’t do anything other than let it build. It swirled through him.
He braced himself.
Strangely, the rumbling in the earth continued to build as if he had formed a connection between the earth dragon and this egg. Everything crackled around him. It seemed as if energy writhed within the air.
Heat built in his hand. He looked down to see that he was still holding onto dragon pearls.
“Jason!”
He glanced over at Sarah only to see her trying to get close to him, but the dragons had blocked her out, holding her back. William was back there somewhere as well, though Jason couldn’t see him.
He turned his attention to the egg, focusing on the power within it. The more he focused on the egg, the more he thought he could feel something rising within it, mixing with the energy that built within him. He had to push it out from him, feeding the egg. Power flowed in a torrent into the egg.
Then it stopped.
Everything felt suspended.
The crackling energy of the storm dragon. The illusion of the forest dragon shimmering around him. The heat of the iron dragon, a furnace of fire that blasted him. The cold ice dragon energy. Even the deep-seated rumbling coming from the earth dragon. All of that filled him, swirling around.
Jason could finally pull his hand off the egg. He backed away, watching it. There wasn’t anything different about it, only that shadows swirled around it. Energy still radiated from it.
He stopped near the iron dragon. Heat radiated from him but started to retreat, receding back to a soft glowing. Finally, the iron dragon slipped away into the trees. The ice dragon launched himself into the air, shooting higher and higher, calling cold to him. Jason could feel the energy of the ice dragon as it replenished, summoning it from the sky, his power restored again. He glanced over to see the forest dragon now asleep, the illusion still around her, though not as potent as it had been. Only the storm dragon remained distant. Jason recognized his power, but nothing else about him. He was out there, even if Jason couldn’t see it or see how the dragon held onto his power.
He watched the egg as he backed up. Power glowed from it.
