Anders looked at the group of people. There were fewer than the two dozen he’d seen in the mountains outside Brookside. “We need healing,” Anders said. “I won’t come with you until we’ve had a chance to heal our dragons. They’ve gone long enough without it.”  

Two of the dragonriders who had escorted them put their hands on the hilts of their swords. The one who’d been talking stayed them with the wave of his hand. “Go ahead, heal them. But know that if you try anything, you won’t see the army you wish to return to.”  

Anders envisioned what it would be like for him to take on so many dragonriders. He had no way of knowing their skill level without testing them. If one of them was equally matched, which didn’t seem unreasonable since he’d only had limited training, they could hold him while the others took control. The only thing he had that he knew they didn’t have was the crystals.  

Anders, you can’t use the crystals, Zahara said, sensing his thoughts.  

We could transport ourselves out of here and back to the army, he said. 

And you would waste valuable energy stores that we will need to fight Merglan, or do I need to remind you that he didn’t come directly after them when he learned they were missing.  

We don’t know for sure he knows who has them.  

It wouldn’t have been hard for him to send the riders to hunt them down. If he sent demons and wraiths, he could’ve sent dragons. That means he isn’t concerned that we have them, which does concern me, greatly.  

What other power source is greater? He spent years harvesting them. 

I don’t know, but it must be stronger, otherwise he’d be coming after us.  

“Any time you’re ready,” the rider said, shifting his stance, seemingly readying himself if Anders intended to pull something on them. 

“Sorry, I was talking to my dragon,” he said, knowing that they would likely understand his delayed response.  

“Anders,” Maija whispered. “I don’t have much strength left. I don’t think I can heal Raffa, and,” she winced.  

Anders grabbed her as she crumpled momentarily. “What’s wrong? Are you injured?” 

 “It’s my head,” she said. “It’s been throbbing ever since that rider broke me.” 

“What’s going on over there?” the rider asked, stepping closer.  

“I’m trying to see if she needs my help,” Anders said angrily. 

“But she is bonded is she not? She can heal herself?” the rider said. 

“She’s only recently bonded and hasn’t had much practice.” 

“How can that be? She has such a strong magical energy about her,” the rider said. 

“It’s not hers, it’s the,” Anders stopped himself before he let them know what was in their saddlebags.  

“If you are trying to hide the fact that you have inhabitance crystals, we already know,” the rider said. “Just look at your saddlebags, they are glowing.”  

Anders looked at Zahara and Raffa. He was right. The bags glowed in the dark. And a blue-hued beam shone through the tear in Zahara’s saddlebag. “Is that why you brought us here?” Anders asked. “To take them from us?” 

“If we wanted to do that, we would have done so when you were in that port town a week ago, or we could’ve done it anytime between then and now,” the man said.  

“How long have you been watching us?” Anders asked angrily. 

“Just heal your dragons and we can talk about it after,” the man said.  

Anders snorted angrily. He focused on energy reserves within his body. Using them, he worded the spell to heal Zahara’s flesh. Once her wounds were gone, Anders was weakened so she fueled him with some of her strength’s reserves. Anders used the energy Zahara provided and applied it to healing Raffa’s wounds, which were less extensive, but deeper than Zahara’s. Feeling as though he might faint, Anders drew in the remaining energy from the smaller sapphires embedded into Lazuran’s pommel. The sapphires offered enough strength to restore his own energy reserves nearly to their full capacity. Anders still felt that something had happened to Tarron. He feared sapping away all of the energy from the sapphire that Tarron’s soul inhabited. With a renewed sense of strength, Anders healed Maija’s cuts and the burn on his own back. The effort took less energy than he’d expected. There was plenty left over to attempt healing Maija’s mind, but to his surprise, Anders didn’t sense any lasting damage. Anders finished by giving half of the remaining energy in his stores to Maija. The whole time Anders was focused on these tasks he had allowed the light of the energy to dance from his hands to the actions he’d undertaken. When he’d finished and turned back to the riders, he saw them staring with a slightly different expression than they’d had before.  

The one rider who appeared to be in charge said, “She was right about you. You do know how to use them.”  

Anders frowned and looked at Maija confused. She shook her head and shrugged.  

“Now you will come with me. They’ll be back soon,” the man said.  

Anders and Maija hesitantly followed the stranger. Raffa and Zahara remained close at their sides. Anders could feel that Zahara was on edge and poised to leave at a moment’s notice. But his own curiosity was piqued; he wanted to know more about this group of dragonriders.  

They were led to a cluster of rocks and told to sit down. Anders and Maija shared a seat on a large rock and waited in silence for the rider to explain who they were waiting for. After several minutes, it was apparent that they wouldn’t be told. The rider who’d led them stood up from his rock and said, “They come.”  

Anders felt the presence of approaching sorcerers. There were many, but one felt decidedly stronger than the others. While he probed at all of them to see if any had their walls down, he found a familiar presence. He sat up straight and looked at Maija.  

“What is it?” she asked. 

“Kirsten,” he said. “And Thomas. Evans and Inama are with them, too.” 

“But why?”  

Anders shrugged, “Kirsten and Evans have inhabitance crystals, but Inama and Thomas don’t.”  

“Bo’s not with them?” Maija asked.  

Anders shook his head and stood as he watched the dragons approach. Anders recognized the rider who had given him the Westland soldier taken by the wraith. That rider had kept the crystal. The other dragons carrying their friends and the remaining riders followed. They landed just out of sight.  

With dozens of questions running through his mind, Anders held Maija’s hand tightly. The man escorted them toward the dragonrider who he’d seen outside Brookside. The armored rider had stepped down off his saddle and was removing his helmet when they received a signal to stop behind him. Though it was dark, Anders could still see by the light of the stars.  

Surprised, he now noticed there was something feminine about the rider’s figure. Anders could see that this rider wasn’t much larger than he was. After securing his helmet to the saddle horn and running a hand through his long brown ponytail, the mysterious rider turned to face them, revealing his face. Anders heard Maija inhale quickly when they saw that the rider they’d both assumed to be male was, in fact, a woman. All at once Anders saw that Maija’s surprise was not a reaction to the female rider’s gender but to her appearance. Anders stared at her in shock, clearly seeing his own face mirrored in the woman’s. She looked just like him, but female. He stared blankly, blinking at the young woman standing in front of them.  

“Anders,” she said, thrusting her hand out to greet him like an old friend.  

Anders took her grip and shook it firmly, unable to reply. 

After a long moment during which they studied each other’s faces, the rider released her grip and shifted her attention to Maija. At first, she motioned to greet her in the same way she did Anders, holding out her hand. When Maija took it, however, the rider brought it up to her chin and gently kissed the back of her hand, saying, “It’s refreshing to see a fellow female rider, miss...?” she left the end of her greeting open for her to answer.  

“Maija,” she said. “Just Maija.”  

“And you are?” Anders asked, still trying to determine if they were somehow related. 

“Hannah,” she said.  

Anders eyes grew wide, that was my mother’s name. Could she be? No, she’s much too young, younger even than me. Anders snapped out of his shocked state of mind and focused on his irritation at having been flown so far from their objective. “Okay, Hannah. I don't know if you've noticed, but there is a war on and we can’t afford to waste any more time. So, maybe you could skip the pleasantries and tell us why in damnation you’ve brought us here?” 

“I thought so,” she replied. 

Frowning, Anders shook his head.