When they climbed out of the dwarf ruins, they found that Barnabus had their dinner nearly ready. Nellus and Thrain were watching the empty space where the bronze door had been and seemed relieved when Alex and the others emerged.
“What happened?” Nellus questioned.
“I’ll explain as we eat,” said Thrang, moving toward the campfire. “We’ve learned some things, but not everything.”
Barnabus served the food, and Thrang slowly recounted what he had read from the giant book.
Alex had a hard time paying attention to the story or his food; he was still trying to remember what it was he had forgotten and what his strange feelings reminded him of. He knew the answer would come to him eventually, but for now, his thoughts were cluttered and confused.
As the others prepared to sleep, Alex remained by the fire. They all agreed it would be a good idea to keep watch, and Alex had drawn the first shift. Arconn also remained by the fire, but remained still and quiet. Alex listened to the breathing of his friends as he watched the fire burn down, still trying to relax his mind.
“You seem troubled,” Arconn said at last.
“The feelings we had earlier today remind me of something, but I can’t remember what,” said Alex, shifting his position slightly.
“Yes, I feel the same way, though I don’t know why. Perhaps an answer will come to you in your sleep. Often our minds find answers when we stop looking for them.”
“Yes,” Alex agreed. “I suppose I should try to sleep.”
Arconn said nothing more, and Alex slowly moved away from the fire and lay down on his blanket. Closing his eyes, he forced himself to relax, and before he knew it, he was asleep.
How strange,Alex thought in his dream.
He felt awake, even though he knew he wasn’t. He was sitting on a beach, possibly the beach they had landed on that morning. The wind blew his hair, and the smell of the sea reminded him of the sailors he’d met on the Seeker.For several minutes he remained seated, and then he slowly rose and looked toward the land. It looked exactly as he remembered it from earlier in the day, with one large exception.
Sitting directly behind him was an enormous dragon.
“So, you are what Kat could feel. The presence that moved away when she got too close,” said Alex.
“I thought it best that we meet in your dreams,” said the dragon, its voice softer and friendlier than Alex had expected. “I hope you will forgive my intrusion, but meeting face-to-face would have been difficult.”
“I am surprised to see you here,” said Alex, watching the dragon for any sudden movement and trying not to look into its eyes.
“And I am surprised that you are so young,” said the dragon.
Alex was not afraid, though he thought perhaps he should be. This dragon was much larger than Slathbog had been, and even if this was only a dream, he knew the dragon still had a great deal of power.
“I require your assistance, young wizard,” the dragon said. “I can offer several things in return for your services.”
“Why do you require my help?” Alex questioned.
“Because you are what you are,” the dragon answered. “You are a wizard of great power, and I need that power to accomplish my goals.”
“Why would I agree to help a dragon?” Alex asked. “I’ve met one of your kind before, and I doubt your goals will be something honorable.”
“Yes,” said the dragon, its voice sounding thoughtful. “You met Slathbog and destroyed him, as was right. And because of your encounter with Slathbog, you mistrust me, which shows wisdom on your part. However, I am not like Slathbog; I do not hoard wealth nor seek out the lesser races to destroy them.”
Alex considered the dragon’s words for several minutes before he replied. It seemed to be true that this dragon did not care about the dwarf treasure scattered across the island. Still, dragons were dragons, and Alex knew he had to be careful.
“What is it you wish of me?” he asked.
“A spell,” the dragon answered. “A spell to hide this island from all who seek it.”
“Why do you wish that?” Alex questioned, surprised by the dragon’s request.
“So the past will not be repeated,” said the dragon, sounding strangely sad.
“It was you, then,” said Alex as he considered how dangerous a dragon might be in a dream. “You destroyed the dwarfs that lived here.”
“Sadly, yes,” said the dragon. “I did not mean for it to happen, and while most of the blame is mine, the dwarfs still share some of it.”
“Will you tell me what happened?” Alex asked.
“Long ago I chose this place to hide,” the dragon began. “I had grown tired of my long travels and wanted only to sleep and to dream. This island was a good place, far from the lesser races and secluded by the sea. For hundreds of years I slept here, and then the dwarfs came.”
Alex remained quiet.
“At first I was not aware of them,” the dragon continued. “The dwarfs dug their mines and found their treasures, and I remained asleep. Then they opened new mines and looked for more treasures. That is how dwarfs are, so I cannot blame them for that. The mining was noisy, and it slowly woke me from my long sleep. They had a wizard with them, and he was the first to realize I was here.”
“So you destroyed the dwarfs before they could attack you,” said Alex.
“No, nothing like that,” answered the dragon. “The dwarfs attacked me while I was not yet fully awake. Their wizard, a dwarf named Languinn, had great power. He believed that he could drive me away or even destroy me. When I woke fully, it was to his attack. Startled by his magic, I thought only of defending myself. But my anger began to burn inside of me, and being a dragon, my rage got the better of me. I swept down on my attackers and destroyed most of them before I was able to shake off my madness.”
“You destroyed most of them, but not all?” Alex questioned.
“No, not all. Languinn and some of the other dwarfs hid themselves in the underground archives. I tried to apologize, to make things right, but Languinn would not speak to me, even in dreams.”
“So he and his people are still down there?” Alex asked, stunned by the idea.
The dragon shook his head. “They died off, until only Languinn was left. Even then, alone in the dark, he would not speak with me, though I tried many times.”
“So we will find their remains on the third level when we go there tomorrow,” Alex said, wondering how much of the dragon’s story was true.
“Yes,” answered the dragon. “Perhaps that will convince you I speak the truth, though there is an easier way, if you dare.”
“You would have me look into your eyes,” Alex said, feeling a strange desire to look, despite knowing the danger.
“We are in a dream so our powers are not what they might be,” the dragon said. “And I will give you something to protect you, if you will trust me.”
“What can you give me for protection?” Alex asked. He wanted to trust the dragon, yet he knew that trusting any dragon could be fatal.
“I will give you my true name,” the dragon answered.
Alex considered the offer. He knew that dragons often had many names, but they each had only one true name, a name that gave them their power and made them what they were. He also knew that having that true name would give him power over the dragon, power to control and command the dragon to do whatever he wanted it to do.
“How will I know the name you give me will be your true name?” Alex asked.
“You will know,” said the dragon with what might have been a smile on its face. “I am Salinor, oldest remaining of my race. I am the lord of dragons, the most ancient, the guardian of the past.”
“Salinor,” Alex repeated, feeling the incredible power of the name even in his dream. “Yes, I will trust you. I will look into your eyes.”
Even before he looked, Alex knew that Salinor had told him the truth. As their eyes met, Alex could feel Salinor’s power, and he could see some of the details of the dragon’s long life. Salinor was far more powerful than Slathbog had been, and Alex knew that he could not defeat this dragon, not in the same way he had defeated Slathbog and not in any other way he could think of. Then, to his surprise, Alex realized that Salinor could not defeat him either. They were equals, an even match.