Page 50 of Bound By Honey

"Possibly. I may be able to work something out with them where we can send information and vials back and forth, but I may need to be more hands-on as well."

Prince Finn sighed and ran a hand through his hair, frustration apparent on his face. He seemed conflicted and was obviously worried about her going back, but he managed to compose himself enough to give her a tight smile.

"Don't worry," she said, leaning across the table and lightly touching his arm. "I'm not giving up on helping you."

Prince Finn looked down at where her hand rested. He cleared his throat as if trying to shake off the feeling.

"I understand." He nodded as Sage removed her hand and leaned back onto her cushion. "Let me know when you need help. What do you need to know about my magic?"

Everhunt

SageleftPrinceFinn'stent, and to her surprise, the sun had already set. Their conversation had left her with a jumble of thoughts and feelings. He had seemed so alone and yet so full of passion. Notes of everything she could think to ask about his fire magic were now tucked safely in her pocket, along with her ideas to share with Rachel when she saw her next.

As Sage returned to the large tent, she was drawn to the sound of laughter coming from inside. She looked in to find Asher, Sawyer, and Colby seated around a table, playing a card game.

Sawyer spotted her and waved. "Sage! Are you going to join us? We're just playing Everhunt and could use a fourth."

"I don't know how to play." she admitted. Their cards showed detailed illustrations of dragons and other fantastical creatures.

"It's easy. We can teach you," Asher said, gathering the cards. "Okay, the basic rules are—"

"No, no, no,” Sawyer interjected. "That's not how it works. You need to tell her the point of the game first! The rules don't make much sense without knowing why you must follow them."

Colby rolled his eyes. "Just let him explain. Then we can get into the goals of the game."

"Right," Asher continued. "So as I was saying, Everhunt is a card game where two or more players attempt to build the strongest dragon and ultimately have the largest hoard at the end of the game. The object is to power up your dragon and win items that add to your hoard. The person with the largest hoard at the end of the game wins."

"But," Sawyer jumped in again, "if you don't strategize your moves carefully, you can find yourself in a tough spot.”

"That's right." Colby nodded. " It's an intense game, and you gotta be smart if you wanna win."

Sage listened intently as Asher, Sawyer, and Colby continued explaining different strategies for playing and how each item worked as she examined some of their cards. She wasn’t sure if she understood it all, but it looked like a lot of fun.

When Asher concluded his explanation, he glanced at her face to gauge her understanding. Satisfied, he closed his mouth and clapped his hands together. Placing his hands on the tabletop, he shuffled the card deck with practiced ease before dealing out four hands of eight cards and placing the rest aside.

"Okay," Asher began as everyone picked up their cards, "now let's start. Everyone pick one card from your hand and place it face down before you."

Sage followed Asher's instructions and chose a card. She placed it face down on the table, feeling a bit nervous. What if she chose something totally useless?

"Now," Asher continued, "place the rest of your cards on your right face down for the person beside you to use. Before you pick up your new deck, flip over the one you selected to keep."

One by one, they did as instructed.

Sage looked around the table at the face-up cards and found that each had chosen a dragon that matched their natural magical ability. Her laugh earned her raised brows, but she said nothing.

Sage gulped before turning over her fire dragon card, and she honestly didn't know what to choose to help it. What could she choose that would make a strong dragon?

After arranging the cards she got from Asher in her hand, she drew another card to get her hand back to eight and studied them for what felt like forever. Sage finally selected a spell card and added it to the table upside down before pushing the remaining ones beside her to Colby. He took them eagerly, his eyes lighting up as he examined them with interest.

Some items only worked for certain types of dragons, and others took multiples to earn any points. It wasn't until everyone started playing that Sage understood what was going on—how some items worked better together than others or how some strategies led to more significant rewards. In contrast, others cost you points at the end of the game.

The game moved quickly as each player maneuvered their way around their opponents, trying to power up their dragon and amass the biggest hoard possible by trading off items or earning bonuses from their luckiest draws.

As soon as the attacks began, the air was rife with tension. Bets were raised, and Asher thrust his earth dragon into the fray.

"Time to get greedy!" he cackled.

Sage was caught off guard but not for long. "Well, if that's how you want to play it," she grinned, flipping over two defense cards and launching a retaliatory strike. "Let's see how much loot I can get away with!"

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