MasukIslaThe pain in my arm reduced almost as soon as Björn had touched me. He laid me on the bed and Magnus sat on the edge of it opposite his brother. Laying in the middle of the bed, with the two men on either side of me, I easily slip back to sleep. They each kiss my forehead, something that Magnus does easily but Björn only does when someone is watching, and the pain dissipates completely.As I drift deeper into sleep, I feel the dragons come to me. Guðmundur nuzzles me and I feel Magnus wrapping his arms around me. Ragnvaldr also nuzzles me as Björn presses against me and cups my cheek. The dragon speaks to me, but it is the man’s voice that I hear.“Forgive me.”I am unable to think about what he wants me to forgive him for. Even if I could, there are too many things to choose from. Leaving me here. Dagmara. Ignoring me. Trying to get me to leave.As the list grows, I slip further into the dark silence of sleep. Even as I reach out for them, both dragons move just out of reach. A p
SeathThe little dragon that belongs to Agnetha appears in the great hall of my brother’s keep. I see him as he steps out of the flames, but it is obvious that no one else does. Then my brother says my name and I look at him.“Yes, I see it.”“See what?” his wife asks.If she survives this pregnancy, I will learn her name. Until then, she is simply my brother’s wife. Or number four. I don’t answer her, he can do that.Turning my attention back to the little dragon, I watch him walk across the floor. He pauses and takes a chicken leg from the platter at the edge of the table. I’m amused when the warrior reaches for it, only to find it gone. He looks around and then takes another piece, still not seeing the dragon who just walked behind him. The flames on the black body are almost out at this point.As he climbs the small set of steps to the dais, the last few flames go out. He sits next to me and looks up like a favored dog rather than an adolescent dragon. Reaching down, I scratch his
IslaI don’t know how long I’ve been in the root cellar, but I’m sure that the sun is skimming the far horizon. My leg is aching like it does in the coolness of the evenings. A chill has settled in the root cellar and my body shivers to ward off the cold.There is no light here, no way to know what is going on. Reaching out through the dark, I try to call to either of the dragons. Our connection is faint, almost like it has been broken and now only a thread remains.Aegir had brought me a dress shortly after I was locked in here. It is not warm; the chill is slowly seeping into my bones. But the new dress and small blanket are keeping my teeth from chattering. For how long, I don’t know. Small shivers are running through my body and my leg begins to ache more.Metal scrapes against metal as the door leading down to the cellar is unlocked. Light streams through the door, blinding me as Aegir appears with a skein of water, a bowl of stew, and a blanket. I want all three. I will take non
BjornTappen’s blue dragon lands in front of Magnus and me. I’m already upset and now one of my men is disobeying me. He was supposed to stay in Drekiby and keep Isla safe. Instead, he is here, running towards us without a single stitch of clothing on him. If I wasn’t mad at him being here, I would be amused at the situation.“My lords! You must come home. Isla is in trouble. Dagmara plans to kill her at sunrise.”A loud angry roar fills the air. I’m shocked to realize that it’s my dragon making the noise. Beside me, Magnus joins with the same angry cry. I don’t even strip out of my clothes; I just let them shred as I shift and launch into the air.“Pack up the camp and leave with the morning tide,” Magnus commands the warriors that came with us. “Once you’re out to sea, away from the shore, push the boats.”My beast chuffs in appreciation as we move further away from the camp. I’m thankful that he had the presence of mind to stay and command the warriors. The thought of losing Isla i
IslaSomething is wrong.I can’t explain it or even tell anyone why I think that something is wrong. I just know. It is kind of like the same way that you know when it is going to rain. The air feels different. But you can’t really explain how.The dragons usually come to me a few times during the day. Of course, I never see them. I just sense them, sometimes I can hear them. This is something that seems odd, because I have never heard of dragons communicating with people. Not even their own shifters.Yet ever since I started calling them Ragnvaldr and Guðmundur, they have slowly started talking to me. It was not as if they had to learn the language. They speak quite well.When they first started speaking with me, they were not certain that they should. Ragnvaldr even said as much. Guðmundur told him that he was wrong. They needed to speak with me.A tension has been building between them over the last few nights. I feel it even with the men. There is something that cannot reach an ag
MagnusOur camp stretches along a low bluff overlooking the sea with our dragon longships resting in a sheltered inlet with white cliffs to the North. Our ships have been pulled high above the tide line; the high tide stretches in to touch them but cannot. The tall square sails, striped with a faded red and cream with the thunder’s black mark on them, are furled tightly against sturdy masts.Instead of the towering mountains and fjords of home, the landscape is distinctly southern. I can’t complain about the sheep roaming the green hills. My dragon has feasted on them for the last few days. I would willingly give them up if we could head home.Wild grasses and purple heather grow along the dunes between our camp and the beach. Looking at them, I wonder if we should take some back for Isla. Would she like them? Can she do anything with them? Do they have any type of healing properties?Strong oak and ash grow on the backside of the camp providing shelter and protection. I’ve already g
IslaThe sun has started its trek into the sky and the farm is awake, getting ready for the day. Vola told me of a healing spring and took me to the clearing where it is. She stripped off her clothes and slipped into the water.I see the mark on her arm, and I can’t stop myself from staring at it.
IslaSomething wakes me.False dawn has not even broken, but something is prodding me awake. I have felt this before. A burning pain is radiating from the mark on my arm. Reaching for the salve, I feel the other sensation.There is no other way to describe it. Claws are poking around at my mind. Th
BjornThe meal with the local lord is adequate, it lacks flavor and any real entertainment. He has invited every eligible maid to feast with us. So far, the only one that has piqued my curiosity is the widow with the young daughter. The widow has agreed with me that her daughter is too young, but s
IslaThe mornings were still chilly in the spring; small patches of snow remained in the dark shadows of the woods. I dug through a patch of the snow in the Black Woods to get to the cold root of the black tree. As the snow melted and the ground warmed up, I will have to dig deeper to get what I ne







