Slowly he turned to face the noise sounding from the shadowed back wall. Although he couldn’t quite see the dragon in the shadows, he attempted to sense it. When the sensation didn’t come, he grew frustrated. He’d known that his magic had an expiration date after Jazz died, but he had continued to be able to use a fraction of his old magic until his arrival at the castle. As he stood in the center of the chamber, Ivan wondered if this dragon that he couldn’t see was Killdoor? If so, why hadn’t Killdoor attacked him or at the least growled? Unless it wasn’t Merglan’s dragon?
Ivan moved cautiously toward the back of the enormous room, stopping again when he heard the dragon move. As the dragon shifted its position, its scales slid against the stone floor; he saw a flicker of movement in the darkness.
“Jazz?” Ivan asked, speaking just above a whisper. “Is that really you?” He waited several breaths, but didn’t hear or feel a mental response from the dragon. Ivan again stepped lightly toward the creature, tiptoeing nearer.
Then he heard it, a low grumble reverberating off the chamber walls. Ivan stopped when he saw white fangs glinting in the darkness.
“It’s me, Ivan,” he said, holding his hands out as if to calm the creature from a distance. He took a step closer, moving carefully. The dragon didn’t reply, so Ivan took a step closer, hoping he could reason with the creature. Ivan wished that he could use his senses to gauge the emotions of the dragon. Was it scared, angry, lonely? He couldn’t tell. All he could do to satisfy his curiosity was continue to move closer in hopes that the dragon would accept him as nonthreatening.
“I can help you,” Ivan said in a calm whisper. He heard the dragon shift, moving away from him as its scales scraped against the stone floor. “It’s okay, you don’t have to be afraid of me,” he said, trying his best to exude a calming presence.
The dragon’s throat hummed a low growl again and Ivan saw the flicker of fangs once more. He slowed, but noticed the dragon was shying away from him and not standing its ground. This told Ivan the dragon feared him; it was scared.
“I promise I won’t harm you,” Ivan said, hearing the metal clinking as the dragon moved away from him yet again. Ivan paused, Was the metallic sound armor or chains? he wondered. Resuming his slow advance, he added, “I can free you. I’m being held here against my will, too. We could escape.”
Suddenly Ivan heard the beast spring from the ground, whooshing as its leathery wings carried it into the air. As soon as the creature left the floor, Ivan saw the welling of fire glow in its chest. Illuminating the darkness with its swell, the dragon’s heart glowed, shining a brilliant green light between the gaps in its overlapping scales. With little time to react, Ivan leapt to the right, tucking behind a stone column as the room erupted in flames. In a wash of heat, the dragon bathed the space where Ivan had been standing in fire.
The flames parted around the pillar licking the air to either side. Ivan tightened into a ball as the heat burned all around him. He hadn’t felt this alive since his glory days as a young rider in the dragon wars. Singeing his clothes and pinning him behind the column, the dragon released its deadly spout of flames two more times.
That’s definitely not Jazz, Ivan thought as he peeked out from behind the pillar. Even if Jazz didn’t recognize me, which is unlikely, she isn’t the kind of dragon to belt hellfire at anyone without trying to sense his or her aura first. She would’ve known my intentions were pure and let me assist her, unless, he wondered. Staring into the sudden darkness, Ivan relied on his hearing as he tried to listen for the dragon’s location.
His brain churned as he went over what he knew about a dragon’s bond: I know the bond lasts a lifetime for both recipients, but what happens if death is reversed? Surely I would feel some connection with her. Or would all memories of me and our bond be wiped clean from her mind and senses? Would she even be the same dragon if Merglan really brought her back? Myriad questions ran through his head as he tried to think of a way to calm the dragon down. He needed the dragon to escape, even if just to break the spell that was holding him within the castle walls.
As he flattened his back against the stone pillar, Ivan could hear the dragon’s anxiety as it moved continually, dragging the chains back and forth across the floor. He peeked around the pillar slowly, keeping his eyes wide to catch any flash of movement from the creature. The dragon lurched once again, flapping into the air and pulling tight against its metal chains. As the dragon’s momentum came to an abrupt halt, it fluttered to regain its situational awareness. At that moment Ivan rushed across the floor, locating the chains by sound.
If I can unclasp these chains, then maybe the dragon will see me as a friend and not an enemy, Ivan thought. Finding the metal links, he followed them to their anchor, bolted into the back wall. Feeling for a pin or release mechanism, Ivan continually pulled back his hands to avoid getting caught in the ebb and flow of the chain’s tension. He could not afford to risk broken or maimed hands if he wanted to escape.
When he failed to locate any release from the bolts, an idea crossed his mind. Acting on instinct, Ivan began to climb the chain. He rocked back and forth, the chain moving violently as he climbed. The sudden jerking and pulling caused him to let go, but he tightened his grip and let willpower push him higher. The closer he climbed to the dragon the more the dragon moved, flapping frantically in its attempts to escape. If he could release the chain from the dragon’s harness, Ivan thought he might be able to ride the dragon away from the castle.
Thrashing back and forth, the dragon spewed fire. In the light of the flames, Ivan could see how far off the ground he’d come. Each time, Ivan gained a better idea of how the chains were secured. At the same time, he also saw how easily he could become seriously injured from the dragon’s thrashing at such a height.
With his forearms pumped and struggling to hold onto the chain, Ivan reached the dragon’s body. The sporadic flames guided his sight as he climbed onto the dragon’s harness. The chain was clasped in several places on the back and front of the harness. Ivan used the dragon’s small spines as handholds as he worked to undo the two clips attached to the rear of the harness. Excited by the possibility of an escape, Ivan managed to wrap his legs around the base of the dragon’s neck. Spurring his ankles into its side, he held on for dear life as it thrashed, snapping and writhing against the two remaining chains.
In a bright burst of flame, Ivan located the two remaining clasps. Feeling the dragon duck suddenly to the right, one chain began to slacken. He grabbed it quickly, trying to undo the clasp, but the dragon turned back. Letting go just in time, he heard the chain snap tight as the dragon pulled against it once more. Poised for another chance, he released the right clip when the dragon moved again. As soon as that chain was free, the dragon felt the release in pressure and began to pull harder against the single restraint, seeming to finally realize that Ivan was trying to set it free from bondage.
“Hold still so I can get this last one,” Ivan whispered. “If you calm down, I can free you.” To his disappointment, the dragon didn’t understand and pulled harder than before.
As the wild creature flapped and twisted, Ivan managed to undo the final clip on the chains. He held tight as the dragon flew freely in the open chamber. As he pressed his chest against the dragon’s scales, Ivan felt something in the dragon calm. The creature’s frantic movements settled and it lightly touched down, landing on all fours. Ivan sat upright on the dragon’s back and said, “That’s it. We can work together just fine.”
He patted the dragon’s neck lightly, admiring the green scales in the starlight. It trotted across the floor into the light near the north wall. Ivan stared at the scales in disbelief. The female’s wings and other bodily features matched those of his Jazzmaryth. At a loss for words, Ivan’s breaths quickened as he considered whether this could really be his bonded partner. How else could he explain her sudden change in temperament? Perhaps his sitting atop her scales jogged her memory of their connection?
Suddenly clapping broke the silence, echoing through the empty chamber. The dragon turned to face its origin. Ivan clenched his jaw when he saw the culprit. Standing in the open doors to the second-floor corridor, Merglan clapped. The slow and steady sound mocked Ivan’s efforts.
“Well done, William,” Merglan said, flicking his wrist to light the torches lining the pillars, the large open room suddenly awash in light.
Whispering to the dragon, Ivan said, “Come now, Jazz. Let’s make our escape. Fly!” He spurred the dragon forward. To his disappointment, the dragon made no attempt to flee.
“I didn’t think you would actually succeed in removing the chains,” Merglan said, stepping into the room. He motioned to Ivan, “Come down and let me have a look at her.”
“Jazz, come on,” Ivan said, heeling the dragon in the sides once more. “Fly with me!”
Merglan continued to walk with his arm held out as if to assist Ivan down from the dragon, like a gentleman would a lady from a carriage.
With his deepest emotions and channeling all his thoughts, Ivan willed the dragon to listen to him and flee now. The dragon walked several paces, then sat back on its haunches. Ivan nearly rolled backward, catching hold of the stunted spikes along its spine just in time. As he clung to the dragon’s back, he scowled at Merglan, “Was this all a ruse? Was this the same as the bedroom?” He moved, letting go and dropping to the floor, wincing as his heels tingled from the landing.
“In a way. Let me explain,” Merglan said, holding his hand out to Ivan.
Ivan pushed Merglan’s outstretched hand aside and stood to his full height. He turned to the dragon, seeing her in the light for the first time. She was female and green, as Jazz was, but something was different. Ivan felt foolish for thinking, even briefly, that this dragon could’ve been his bonded partner.
Why? Ivan asked, thinking the question before speaking it aloud.
“Because, my dear friend, I want us to be happy. With you on the back of your former champion, we’d be unstoppable,” Merglan said.
Ivan frowned, “That’s not my Jazz.”
Merglan nodded, “Sure it is. Can’t you tell?”
Ivan studied the dragon. She looked similar to Jazz, yet he couldn’t help but feel that something was off. “You’re controlling her?” Ivan asked, finally understanding why the dragon had calmed down.
“No,” Merglan said slyly. “Well, maybe a little, but that was just so the two of you could become reacquainted after all these years. It must be strange for both of you.”
Ivan hesitated to answer. Instead, he asked, “What’s wrong with you? Why make me think I’m helping her escape when she’s under your influence? What’s in it for you?”
Merglan splayed his hands, “I wanted you to feel as though you’d accomplished something. You did help that poor creature escape a dreadful situation. Now she owes you gratitude and you two can begin to reconnect on a more intimate level.”
“Why would I need to connect on an intimate level with a dragon I’ve already bonded with? That is not Jazzmaryth,” Ivan said.
“You’re confused, Will. You haven’t been thinking straight,” Merglan said.
