means, don’t you?” Arkin asked.
“Yes, it’s for when he gets married.”
“Exactly. I haven’t told you about Elven society as much as I have Legon and Sasha. I should have included you in that. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. Why does it matter?”
“When elves get married, they stay connected mentally, and after years of having a perfect insight into their partners they almost become one mind,” Arkin explained.
“Ok, so that’s why they’re able to stay married forever. If you understood the other person, really understood them, it would be hard to split up.”
“Yes, but there is more. They rely on each other to the point where they are completely dependent on the other person. That means that when one dies, the other is always quick to follow.”
“What do you mean?”
“Their bodies do not become frail like ours, but losing that connection kills their mind and their will to live. Once that happens, the body follows.”
Kovos sat pondering this new information. It was amazing to think about people so close to one another that one dies when the other does. Amazing, but also sad and beautiful.
“I want that,” he said with a surprisingly high amount of conviction.
“Good. You can have it. You have the ability to connect with someone if you try. Now remember, you are your thoughts.”
“So I’d better start being the man I want to be with the kind of mind that Emma will want to live in,” he said, smiling.
Arkin patted his shoulder. It felt like a great weight had been taken off him, and he decided that from that point on, he was going to work his hardest on himself. He was going back to Salmont to get Emma, just as soon as they got Legon and Sasha to the border.
* * * * *
Arkin rode separate from the others for a while trying not to let his fatigue show, when suddenly he felt Legon’s presence.
“Are you ok?” Legon’s voice said in his mind. It was followed by energy that coursed through his veins. Arkin told Legon about the Iumenta searching for them, and almost at once Legon offered his strength to him. It was rare that Arkin felt the pull of other magic users on his spells this hard. He pushed it from his mind knowing the drain wouldn’t last long. Legon inquired about what kind of spells he could use for protection. Silently, Arkin explained that wards were passive forms of magical protection. You could have a ward active and feel no drain until it was needed. Legon was months away from using the complex magic needed for masking them, but Arkin could use Legon’s considerable magical power to do it himself.
Suddenly Arkin felt a huge drain on his wards. There was thick forest on all sides of the road now. Legon rounded up the others, bringing them in close to him. It was easier to protect things that were close to him as magic was affected by space. Arkin felt his heart race as another huge hit on his wards drained energy from his magical reserves and his body.
“Dragon,” he said in a hoarse voice.
They all moved off the road and Legon came up next to Arkin, placing his hand on his shoulder. He felt Legon open the connection between their minds all the way. The power was amazing. He felt a deep well of magic in him, but still it was nothing to the dragon that was coming. They might be able to resist the seeking spell if the dragon wasn’t looking that hard, but if it noticed the drain on its own power it would be sure to investigate.
* * * * *
Legon felt the pull on his magic and now his body. He rushed to connect his mind with the others and the horses. As he made the connection, he began to siphon off energy. There was a dull thud in the far distance. Sweat was forming on Kovos’ brow from the drain, but he kept his mind open. The thudding was closer now, much closer. He needed more power. He tapped Sasha, Sara, and Keither, and saw all of them place their hands on their chests from the sudden taxation.
THUD… THUD.
More. Where was there more? There were blue dots popping in his eyes and he saw Arkin slump in his saddle. The horses. He could use more from the horses.
THUD.
Phantom was starting to shake. Still there was more needed. He rummaged in the minds of the others, spiking hormones and endorphins, causing their