Kull held his sword high, screaming something, though I couldn’t make out his words over the din of beating wings. Seren dove at the warrior with his teeth bared but rammed Kull with his thick tail at the last minute. Kull fell back, landing with a heavy thud several feet away. The dragon skittered across the floor toward Kull, its side-to-side lope reminding me of a Komodo dragon’s movements.
Kull raised onto his elbows. Time seemed to slow as the dragon sank its teeth into Kull’s side. My mind tried to grasp the situation. I held my breath as time slowed to a crawl.
I felt my magic release but didn’t remember calling upon it. Amber-white light pulsed from my hands, glowing outward, the tiny light particles aimed for the dragon.
The light penetrated the dragon’s hide.
Suddenly, time seemed to fast-forward.
Seren screamed. His eyes burst from his head, still attached by bloody tendons, and the dragon took flight. It flew on uncertain wings, hitting the walls and shrieking with a maddening scream. Like a bat guided by instinctive forces, its body steadied, and soon, Seren joined the horde circling above.
The dragons flew from the room, retreating from the amber light emanating from my skin. As the last of the creatures left, the cavern was left empty except for me and Kull.
Holding his sword tight, Kull flashed me a crazed grin.
I still wasn’t certain he recognized me. “Kull?” I asked, taking a careful step forward.
“I saved your life,” he said, stumbling. “And for you—” his smile faded as blood dripped from his mouth. His knees hit the floor, and his sword dropped, landing with a hollow clatter that reverberated through the chamber. “—I give my life.”
Chapter 31
I grabbed Kull under the arms and helped him lie on the cavern’s floor. The dragons’ cries echoed in the distance. I glanced through the hole in the cave’s ceiling, looking for the winged shapes of dragons against the stars, but saw none. Their cries faded. We were indeed alone.
Kull’s breathing came out in labored gasps. Blood bubbled around his cracked lips, so I pulled off my pack, found my canteen, and handed it to him. He took a small sip, although his eyes were unfocused and he choked as he swallowed the water.
“Kull,” I whispered, stroking his cheeks, “you’re such a brave, mad fool. Why in the world would you do such a thing?”
“Because… they would have killed you.”
“But how did you find me?”
“Tracked you. You made… so much noise trekking through the forest. It would have been impossible not to find you.”
“I wasn’t that loud.”
“You were. I could’ve been tracking an elephant.”
“How do you know what an elephant is?”
He groaned.
I inspected his side, where I found several punctures. “You’re lucky he didn’t take a chunk out of you.”
He looked at his wound. “How deep is it?”
My stomach clenched at the sight of his wound. Ten-inch gashes ran the length of his ribs. Dark blood pooled out, possibly indicative of a liver wound. Excessive liver damage could lead to excessive bleeding, which could kill him.
I couldn’t tell him.
“Not too deep,” I lied. “You’ll live.”
“It’s bad, isn’t it?” he breathed.
My shoulders sagged. “Yes,” I whispered. So much for not telling him.
“Can you use magic to heal me?”
As soon as he asked, I knew the answer. My magic was gone. Whatever power I’d used to defeat the dragons had completely drained me. I grabbed my pack and rummaged through it. Something in this pack must be able fix him. There had to be something. I pulled out a scarf and pressed it to his wounds, but it was a temporary fix. It would only stall the inevitable.
Tears stung my eyes. He placed his hand on mine, and only then did I realize I was shaking. He turned his gaze to the ceiling, staring unfocused at the stars overhead.
“My grandfather,” he said. “I found him in the forest.”
“Are you sure it was him?”
He winced and didn’t answer.
I applied more pressure to the wound. If I could create a portal to Earth and cross worlds… but I’d have to have magic to do that. Maybe I could use my own blood as a transfusion. But I’d need medical equipment. There had to be something. I couldn’t let him die here.
“He was an old man when he died,” Kull finally said. “I knew he would never see me grow into a man, although I’ve imagined that he was somewhere looking down on me. Now I am sure he has been there all along, for I have seen him. In the ship, I doubted it was him, but now I know I was mistaken. My grandfather found me here. He has spoken to me.”
“What did he say?”
Kull didn’t answer.
“I’m sure he would be proud of you,” I whispered.
“Yes.” He said with closed eyes. “Yes, I hope so.”
“Kull,” I said as gently as possible, “we are even closer to the island where the dark creatures dwell. It is possible that with our nearness, their powers have grown stronger. Their magic may be clouding your judgment and making you see your grandfather when he is not really there.”
“No.” His hand tightened around mine. “It was him. I am sure of it.”
“How?”
“He spoke to me. He told me things that only my grandfather would know. He told me the story of his quest to find the Valkyrie’s lost sword—the tale he told me as a child. How could some creature’s mystical spell know such a thing?”
“Because the magic is working with your own memories. I understand magic, and sometimes magic is nothing more than illusion. If the spell works by using a person’s own thoughts, then it would be easy for you to recreate conversations that you and your grandfather would’ve had.”
“No,” he whispered hoarsely. “It had to be him. It had to be.” His face paled, and he turned away from me.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
“Yes,” he answered after a pause. “Is there any way to rid my
