"Bertin,.Joanne.-.The.Last.Dragonlord.(1998).ShareConnector.com" - читать интересную книгу автора (Bertin Joanne)

She heard booted feet on the deck behind her. Not one of the sailors, then; they were all barefooted. There was only one person it could be.
"Why are you still up, Rynna?" a musical voice asked from the darkness and then Otter stood beside her. His eyes met hers in the faint light of the deck lamp, his head cocked in inquiry. He said gently, "What are you worried about?"
She shrugged to hide her surprise. "Why do you think I'm worried? IЧ um, I was just thinking how good it will be to see cousin Maylin again. And Kella. She must be a big girl now."
He made a rude noise. "I've known you since you were a child playing with my imp of a great-nephew by the firesideЧremember? Believe me; I know when you're worried. You don't eat and you stare off into nothing, chewing your lip all the while. Hah! You're doing it again. Now what is bothering you?"
Memories of childhood came back to her: she and Raven sitting at Otter's feet as he spun his tales for them before the winter hearth, and so many of them about the Last Dragonlord.
. . . Raven's fifth birthday, a time of both great solemnity and great rejoicing. For this on this day his hair, allowed to grow unchecked till now, was cut off at his shoulders, all save the lock at the nape of his neck that was braided for the first time. As of this day Raven was truly a part of his clan. Maurynna was happy for him, of course, but most of her joy was for the man who had traveled far for this day and now sat before them, for Otter told her stories of her hero.
Raven rocked back and forth in excitement, the firelight glowing in his red-blond curls. "Did you really see the hag before Linden Rathan did, great-uncle?" he asked breathlessly.
Otter nodded. "I did, boyo, and barely had time to warn him. It was pure luck that he heard me yelling in that storm; the wind was howling louder than all the souls in Gifnu's nine hells.''
' Why didn't you mindspeak him?'' Maurynna demanded. "You can do that, can't you?"
"Ah, but I didn't know him well then, remember; it was only the second time I'd met him. And I can't really mindspeak Linden, even now. It's just that if I think hard enough about himЧHere now; haven't you ever knownЧ-just knownЧthat someone was thinking about you?"
Maurynna turned to Raven, knowing he'd be doing the same. "Oh, yes,'' they chorused. "We know. "
"Well, then, that's how Linden knows when I want to talk to him, Rynna. I can't be too far from him, either, or it won't work. But to get back toЧ''
"Linden Rathan killed the evil hag, didn't he?'' Maurynna bounced in anticipation. "He can do anything!''
Otter laughed and went on with the tale. . . .
Linden Rathan had indeed killed the evil hag. Gods; he'd been her hero for so long . .. She blurted out, "OtterЧhang the Sea Mistl And hang what my family will say! I want to go with you to Dragonskeep."
There. She'd said it. She waited for the bard to pin her ears back for an idiot. And Otter could do that very well indeed.
But beyond a gasp of surprise, the bard said nothing for a long time. When he did speak, his voice was quiet, concerned. "Rynna, you wouldn't, not reallyЧwould you?"
She gripped the astrolabe so hard it was a wonder the brass didn't buckle. "Yes. No. I don't know. It's justЧIt's just that ever since you first talked about it, there's been a yearning in me to see Dragonskeep, to meet a Dragonlord, to meet him. It's tearing me in two. I want my ship; it'll kill me to lose her. But even more I want, I wantЧoh, gods; I don't know what I want."
But she did. She wanted to follow the fool's dream that burned in her soul.
"Have you spoken of this to any of your crew?"
Maurynna snorted in disgust. "Of course not. I may be mad, but I'm not stupid."
He laughed at that. "Don't, then. Because I promise you this, Rynna: I will bring Linden to meet you. However I have to do it, I will."
Her breath caught in her throat. "Otter, is this a joke?"
"No, dear heart, it isn't. My word as a bard on it."
He smiled gently at her. She couldn't speak. Otter loved to tease, but this he meant body and soul. Tears choked her; she swallowed them.
"Thank you. I'll be patient, then." Her voice was husky. She turned to looked out over the midnight sea before he could catch a glimpse of the betraying wetness on her cheeks.
When she could, she said, "Do you think I'm wrong? Would I be better off not meeting him? He's been my hero for so long. Linden RathanЧ he's not, I mean, he's not an ass or anything like that, is he?"
Once again Otter made a rude noise. "Of course Linden's not an ass. Dragonlord or no, I wouldn't inflict him upon you if he was. Gifnu's hells, girl, I wouldn't have inflicted his company upon myself these past forty years!"
Other fears rose to torment her. What if he thought she was an ass? What would she have to talk about with a magical being more than six centuries old?
She buried the first and asked the second.
Otter shook his head. "You'll find he's not that different from you, Rynna."
Puzzled, she asked, "What do you mean?" How could Linden Rathan not be different? He was a Dragonlord, magical, nearly immortal.
Otter paused, as if considering his next words carefully. He said, "Linden told me once that something happens to Dragonlords when they go through First Change. He didn't know how to explain it beyond we fall out of time.' My guess is that once they Change, they mature the way a truedragon wouldЧincredibly slowly. To a truedragon, Linden would be considered a babe, even though he's over six hundred years old.
"He wasn't that much older than you when he first ChangedЧonly twenty-eightЧand many times over the years I've forgotten that he was older. True, sometimes I've seen something more ancient than I can ever imagine in his eyes, but the next moment it's gone."
Flinging a hand up to include the Sea Mist and the ocean all around them, Otter said, "As for what to talk about. . . Tell him about your ship, Maurynna; tell him about sailing and what the sea is like in calm and storm. Tell him about making a port for the first time, the patterns of the waves and what they mean, what the gulls sound like at dawn. He's rarely sailed and he likes learning new things. Don't be surprised if he asks if he can sail with you someday."
Maurynna's head reeled. She couldn't speak; there were too many things to say at once. Linden Rathan? On board the Sea Mist! That would be a dream come true indeed.
Sherrine hid behind a pillar. She peered around it, taking care not to be seen and laughed quietly as she ducked back into hiding.
Linden Rathan was descending the stairs. From the way his head turned this way and that, she knew he searched the crowd.
And she had little doubt for whom he searched. She was well pleased with herself. She'd struck just the right note with him: unafraid, bold yet not overbearing, challenging. She'd seen the look in his eyes change from boredom to interest as she'd dared to tease him.
She peeked out once more. He'd paused on the steps. Her gaze roved over him with appreciation. The ceremonial regalia of a Dragonlord suited his tall, powerful frame well. None of the young men she knew would be able to carry off the antique cut of the black tunic, the wide sleeves with their dagged ends and scarlet silk lining. They'd be laughable even at a masquerade.
But not the tall Dragonlord. He wore it with an unconscious dignity that made him look ... She pondered a moment. Dashing. That was it; dashing, like the hero in an old tale.
He was at the foot of the stairs now, ready to plunge into the crowd.
Keeping to the shadows, Sherrine made her way out of the hall. It was not part of her plan that he should find her again this night.
She would find himЧand at a time and place of her own choosing. She thought she would enjoy that next meeting. There was something in his face that she instinctively liked, a kindness in the dark grey eyes.
She shook her head. Bah! She sounded as bad as Tandavi. This dalliance was business. War even, her mother would say; truehuman against wer-edragon.
Still, she hoped she need not wait long.

Seven

Maylin was just taking the last loaf of bread from the oven in the fireplace when her little sister Kella came running into the kitchen.