“By the time Olaf abandoned the place where he had found refuge, it was burned and blackened, smoking with destruction. Nothing moved. Nothing uttered a sound.
Rania watched, fascinated, as Olaf took flight and disappeared into the blue.”
“Olaf returned to his own lair, abandoning Boreus and his mate,” Alasdair said. “Their firestorm was consummated and no longer of interest to him. He was determined to take vengeance upon Notus in retaliation for his injury. He waited for Notus to have his firestorm. He hid himself from both Pyr and Slayers, letting Notus believe he was dead.” The vision showed a dragon sleeping in the dark shadows of a cave, his breathing so slow and steady that he might have been made of stone. Only the faint glimmer of his eyes and the occasional wisp of smoke revealed that he was alive. Rania was struck by the similarity to Hadrian the night before, when she’d appeared in his studio. Olaf appeared to be soundly asleep or even dead, but she could see the telltale glimmer of his eyes. He was awake and watching. “He banked the fires, as my father would have said, and he waited more than a hundred and fifty years.”
The sudden spark of the firestorm made Rania jump, even though she’d expected it. The firestorm flared at a distance, but its powerful spark touched even the darkness of Olaf’s lair. The glow was white, exactly the same as the light that burned between herself and Hadrian, and their firestorm felt stronger even with the illusion of the one long satisfied. In the vision, the sleeping Olaf lifted his head, inhaled deeply and smiled. The malice in his expression was a warning.
“When Notus had his firestorm, Olaf sensed the first spark. He was determined to strike at the heart of his opponent, stealing what was of greatest importance to Notus in retaliation for his own loss.”
Rania saw Olaf emerge from his lair and take flight, a dark and fearsome silhouette against the sky. He flew hard and fast, his wings beating furiously, as he raced toward the firestorm. The Slayer landed in the fields outside a village in the darkness of the night, when the moon was new. There was a quick shimmer of blue as he took his human form. Rania realized there was already a man on the road, walking toward a small village.
She sat straighter, fearing Olaf’s intent and his viciousness. He couldn’t have succeeded, because Hadrian had been born of this firestorm, but the suspense made her heart pound. As she watched, Olaf stealthily followed the other man into the town, keeping to the shadows to disguise his presence.
Once again, there were dark clouds gathering in the distance, as if a storm was brewing. The wind whipped around the pair and they both pulled their cloaks closer, indicating that the wind was cold. The slate blue color of the clouds made Rania think they were snowclouds, just as the clouds had been when Boreus’ mate had been attacked by Olaf and Notus had intervened.
The streets were quiet in the town, although music flowed from a tavern, along with the sound of laughter. The spark of the firestorm and the other man’s path led Olaf to a comfortable house with a single light burning in a barred window. Olaf lingered in the shadows to watch as Notus, in his human form, spoke quietly to someone inside. The firestorm’s light bathed him in silvery radiance, like the light of a full moon, adding to the faint light from the chamber. The wind danced around him and the first flakes of snow began to fall.
Alasdair cleared his throat. “Notus’ mate was Argenta, the daughter of a wool merchant and a maiden who a talent for spinning. Her older sister, Dora, had been able to spin straw into gold, and after her efforts added to her father’s wealth, word of her skill had spread. She’d been married to a local prince, who kept her spinning all the day and night.
“Argenta, in contrast, could spin ice into silver, and her father didn’t let that opportunity for gain pass either. She was locked in a chamber and compelled to spin day and night, while her father tried to keep the truth of her abilities secret. Rumors were already spreading in the town when her firestorm with Notus sparked.”
Rania was struck by the difference between ideas of family. The Pyr defended