Kylia leaned against a tree. Now you've done it, she thought angrily to herself. You've gotten yourself lost, too. Some searchparty you make. She sighed and sat down on a rock. Staring ahead of her, she wondered where the boy had gone.
Everyone had been mystified when M'iki suddenly disappeared. Two sevendays later, Kuzalth had come back, riderless. He was in such a fit that no one could get any straight answer about where M'iki was. Lorith was slowly turning paler by the day, and she refused to eat. All Kuzalth did was moan and cover his head in his talons. None of the other dragons could find M'iki, either; he had closed his mind so well that they hadn't even a trace to go by. Retill, one of the candidates, had sworn he saw him and Kuzalth on the beaches.
So Kylia had decided to try her luck. M'iki trusted her, unlike some of the other people, whom he was just polite to. He was always polite, even to the flits.
She sighed again and pulled out a small flute, and began playing.
He heard.
Everything was loud. Everything was different now. They knew. He knew they knew. Or, he just had a very good hunch. Whatever, they would have figured out in time. Damn the rune. This never would have happened if he had never seen the damned rune!
Ten years ago. Was it only ten years? It seemed like an eternity. He had found the rune. He had only been three, but already appreciated its significance. He took it to his father. His father cracked the crystal. And then it chose him. Why had the damned rune chosen him? Why not someone else? Someone who wanted it. No, that was not how the True Runes worked. More or less, it was his fault. But he hadn't known what he was doing.
Panic swelled in his head as the little voices jeered at him, saying it was his fault, over, and over... He curled into a tighter ball, breathing quickly, covering his ears, and immediately feeling the effects the cold was having on his fingers. Damn the rune, damn the rune to hell, why did this have to happen to him...
And then he heard it. It was soft, almost hidden. A flute. Who was out there? He couldn't go out and check. It was dangerous. They'd know. Then they'd demand an explanation. And then they'd fear him. Who wouldn't? He was a freak, a defect.
It was louder. He heard someone sigh. He knew it. It was her, Kylia, Trymmeth's rider. What was she doing here? He shook his head. He couldn't go out. Too dangerous. But...
