That dark creature, the Leviathan that had come to consume him, revealed itself to be a creature of beauty and hope. Malliath scooped up Alijah in his front claws and made for the surface. The waves gave way to the dragon and he flapped his powerful wings, clearing The Hox altogether.
It was only seconds before their flight came to an end.
Alijah felt wet sand beneath him as Malliath’s claws released him onto the beach. He turned his head as much as his fatigue would allow and laid eyes on his eternal companion. The dragon appeared just as exhausted as he did, his purple eyes struggling to stay open.
Malliath… he called across their bond. Take us home.
Alijah opened his eyes and awoke with a start. Dream and reality bled into one, colliding with dizzying effect.
There were memories, just beyond his reach, that beckoned his attention. He could hear clashing steel in the passages of his mind, then the staccato of devastating spells. Galanör Reveeri’s voice called out to him, though his exact words escaped Alijah’s grasp.
It all felt so surreal.
Before sitting up, his fingers investigated the ground beneath him - wet sand. He could smell the ocean, hear its crashing waves. He lay within a cavern of stalactites, each glistening like the stars.
Alijah knew instantly where he was. Sanctuary. The king sat up, aware that his surroundings were a construct of his mind, a place where his bond to Malliath was given physical form. As always, it was beneath the ruins of Korkanath, in the cave where ancient mages had forced Malliath to dwell while he guarded their island. It had also been the first place Alijah had made real contact with the dragon, beyond the machinations of The Crow.
Something darker than the shadows stirred in his periphery and he knew it to be Malliath. Alijah picked himself up, ignoring the sand that clung to him - it wasn’t real after all. On his feet, the king glanced at the cave entrance where The Adean leapt at the island with an incessant rhythm. He paid the view no heed, instead turning his attention to the dark corners of the cavern.
Two purple eyes looked back at him.
I have no memory of coming here, Alijah confessed.
That is because I brought you here, Malliath answered, his voice the perfect resonance inside the king’s mind. Just the sound of it slowed his beating heart and steadied his breath.
Alijah inspected his fist before clenching it. I am hurt, he deduced in a softer tone.
Yes… You nearly died, Alijah. Malliath’s tone took the king back to his youth, reminding him of the way his father would speak to him after doing something foolish or dangerous.
But you saved me, Alijah replied with a swelling heart. As always, he added.
You weren’t prepared enough, the dragon chastised. It nearly cost you your life. Malliath drew in on himself, his thoughts and feelings his own for a moment. I could not live without you, he finally declared.
Alijah welcomed the words and the emotions that accompanied them. Even after seventeen years, he knew Malliath still found it difficult to voice his deepest feelings, preferring to convey them without words.
I can feel you protecting me, Alijah commented, tapping the side of his head. Whatever condition I am in, I can handle it. Show me.
Malliath tilted his horned head and it all came back to Alijah then with clarity. Adilandra had opened a portal at his feet and dropped him into The Hox. That certainly explained why he was hurt. Another flash cut through his mind and he saw that final bolt of lightning before it struck him… and Galanör. Putting the elven ranger aside for the moment, the king turned to his companion with the most important question of all.
Did it work? Alijah asked, almost afraid of the answer.
Malliath didn’t respond straight away. I believe so. The magic I see in you appears different, just as I feel different.
How so? Alijah pressed.
Magic moves like the currents in a river, Malliath explained. It flows through us, coursing from the source, through the realms.
The Tree, Alijah added.
Yes. But I can no longer sense those currents. The magic that resides in us is that of a spring now, flowing in and out of our bones.
Unlike dragons, Alijah had no way of detecting that for himself, though he trusted Malliath implicitly. He only wished there was a way to test it, before he destroyed magic and put his companion’s life at risk. He didn’t even want to entertain the idea of ruling Verda without him.
There is more you should know, Malliath continued, before you wake to the harshness of the world.
I told you - I can handle it. Show me everything.
Sorting through all of his memories, and combining them with Malliath’s, Alijah quickly relived the events on Qamnaran. Seconds after Alijah had hit the water, the dragon had witnessed the tower of silvyr fall into the sea, taking some of the island with it. Though the king couldn’t say for certain, he knew in his heart that his grandmother could never have escaped the tower before it collapsed.
The queen of elves is dead, Malliath announced confidently, having already come to the logical conclusion.
Alijah could feel the dragon probing his thoughts and emotions then, searching for any sign of remorse or sadness. The king didn’t want to disappoint his companion with a show of such weakness, not after all they had gone through to rise above the drudgery of an ordinary life. Aware of his desire, Malliath assisted him in quashing any regret or guilt, burying it deep beneath an overwhelming sense of righteousness.
Moving on from the loss of his grandmother, the king focused on something else he had lost, something of great value.
The book of the Jainus, he lamented, his head hung low. It was inside the tower.
It shares a grave with Adilandra Sevari, Malliath stated without a hint of emotion. Good riddance, the dragon added.
Alijah didn’t share his companion’s
