"But this tiger of hers…" Ruar probed again.

"She does not explain it," said Lysanne.

"Mayhap it is more 'wild magic,' " volunteered Melor.

"Perhaps," replied Lysanne.

They came to a large room with wooden doors-of various subdued colors-uniformly spaced 'round the walls. There were comfortable chairs and lounges arranged in clusters all about the chamber, with tables here and there. On one of these tables in the center of the room the Elves found their personal equipment piled; someone in the stables had unladed the horses and ponies and had brought their gear to the common room. "Those are the guest quarters," said Arilla, gesturing to doors. "Choose any room you like, at the moment all are unoccupied. Perhaps you need to freshen up-there are bathing facilities within." She glanced at an elaborate waterclock on the wall. "What say we meet here in four marks, yes? At that time I will relate what little I-what little we know of the Dragonstone. And then we shall have a midday meal, after which Lysanne will tell you, Lady Arin, how you and she working together will attempt to find your lost memories."

"Mayhap we don't have time," said Perin as he moved to the pile of gear.

"Time for what?" asked Biren, helping his brother sort.

Perin stopped and looked at his twin. "Mayhap every moment counts, and if we stop to refresh ourselves, we will have missed whatever opportunity there is to do whatever it is that can be done."

"But, Perin, we have already been on this, um, mission since midsummer, and now is the dead of winter. What count another four watermarks, eh?"

"Hai! In four watermarks I can run three full leagues and some, and mayhap whatever it is that's to be done, wherever it is that we have to go, we will be just three leagues short when the doom falls."

Arilla cleared her throat. "You assume, my friends, that it is you who must carry on with whatever it is, if anything, that can be done. Yet perhaps your only part in this affair was to bring word of the vision to us."

"But mayhap not," said Rissa, taking the gear handed to her by Perin. "The vision, after all, came to Arin, hence mayhap it is we who must avert this thing, if it can be averted at all."

"Please," said Lysanne, her voice soft. "Let us neither argue nor speculate. When we discover what else it is that Lady Arin saw, then we may have a better grasp on exactly what is to be done. Till then, I suggest we all do as Arilla says, for I need Lady Arin well rested before I can begin." She looked at Arin. "You must sleep well tonight, my dear, for tomorrow we shall make our first attempt at uncovering what else you may have seen."

"Tomorrow!" exclaimed Arin, dismayed.

Lysanne nodded and smiled, tiny crow's feet crinkling about the corners of her eyes.

Arin shook her head. "But what if Perin is right and we have no time to spare?"

"Then, my dear, we will simply be too late. Yet I cannot do this sooner, for I can see your ‹fire› is too low."

"Energy, durance, vigor. Your vitality has been sapped by your long, hard journey. But a good night's rest will restore much of what we will need."

"Enough!" snapped Arilla. "You must do as Lysanne says, else you may never reveal that which is now obscured."

Arin sighed and nodded in glum resignation.

Satisfied, the Sage glanced at the waterclock. "Four marks, and we shall return."

As Arilla and Lysanne left, gloomily Arin watched them go. Biren handed Arin her gear, and, fretting, she chose a muted-green guest-room door and moved toward it, Aiko at her side.

Bathed and somewhat rested, four marks later Arin stepped into the great common room. Waiting were Arilla and Lysanne, pouring tea from a service. Ruar and Melor were already there, as were Biren and Perin. Aiko was there as well, the warrior having moved her gear in the interim to the red-doored room adjacent to Arin's green. As Arin took a cup from Lysanne, Vanidar and Rissa emerged from their room, Silverleaf laughing.

When all were arranged in comfortable chairs, tea in hand, Arilla cleared her throat. All eyes turned her way. She took a deep breath and began: "Let me tell you of a day long past at the gates of Blackstone when the Dragons came to call."

The air over the Grey Mountains of Xian was filled with bellowing roars and the thunder of leathery wings. Dragons, mighty Dragons-glittering red and silver and black and green and other sheens-filled the summer sky. Down they came, spiraling and spiraling, 'round the towering Black Mountain where Wizards dwelled. Gate guardians cried out in fear and fled inside, slamming the great portals to. But still the Dragons descended, to land on mountain crests all 'round, settling like weighty, gleaming monoliths atop the lofty spires… all but three of the mighty Fire-drakes, and these came to rest before the shut iron gates of the Wizardholt. Two of these Dragons were massive and black, deep violet glints shimmering as they shifted about, and they had ebony claws like sabers which scored the dark stone of the foregate court. And they flanked a third Dragon, small by Dragon measure-if any Dragon could be said to be small. Green, he was, with a yellow cast, and seemed cowed by the other two. And in one claw he held a leather bag, tied tightly at the top by a thong.

"Wizards, we would parley!" bellowed the monstrous black Drake on the left.

The Drake on the right turned and hissed in rage and spoke in a tongue from the dawn of time, the words sounding like great brass slabs grinding heavily upon one another. ["I shall be the speaker here, Daagor, for I occupy the highest ledge!"]

Daagor's massive tail lashed furiously. ["Only because I was in Kelgor, Kalgalath, at the time of the mating."]

The green Drake in between crouched lower.

At that moment a postern gate opened and out stepped a Mage dressed in a dark red robe.

Black Kalgalath eyed the Wizard, and then turned to Daagor. ["We shall settle this once and for all at the time of the testing. But for now it is I who will speak for all of Dragonkind."]

Daagor roared in challenge, shifting his bulk to face his nemesis. Black Kalgalath bellowed in response.

The green Drake scuttled backward, out from between these rivals, and the Mage at the gate clapped his hands over his ears in pain.

But from the mountains all 'round, a hundred or more Dragon voices were raised, thundering bellows of their own blaring through the air, and the mountains entire shook and boomed with the echoes of Dragon shouts.

Warily, Black Kalgalath took his eye from Daagor and scanned the crests above, and Daagor did the same. Then Daagor hissed, ["The ledge was and is rightfully mine, Kalgalath, yet even we together cannot defeat all of them, hence I will permit you to speak to this Mage."]

["I need no sanction from you, Daagor, for that which is rightfully mine."]

Now Kalgalath turned to the Wizard and spoke in the common tongue, though his voice still sounded as great brazen slabs dragging one upon another. "Mage, we have come to parley."

The Wizard stepped forward. "Parley?"

"Yes, we have a small favor to ask."

"A favor?"

"The tiniest of things."

The Mage barked a laugh and flung his arms wide, taking in the entire assembly of Drakes. "The whole of the Dragon nation comes knocking on my door and then requests the tiniest of favors? I think not, Kalgalath."

"You know my name?" Black Kalgalath turned his head and gloated at Daagor.

"Yes, and Daagor's as well."

Now it was that dark Drake's moment to exult.

"Who would not know the names of the two mightiest Dragons in Mithgar?" asked the Mage rhetorically. "Dragons visit woe unto the world-Kalgalath and Daagor most of all."