Page 201 of Golden Queen
Seeing all those sharp, deadly weapons went some way toward tempering the disappointment rolling through my chest. Especially when I saw what lay on a stone slab in the center of the room.
Pale, white, and ethereal lay the Dagda's elderwood sword. I knew it must be it—though I had only ever seen a crude drawing of it in some old book.
It was long—even longer than a longsword should be, and so massive I was sure that even Io would need two hands to swing it.
It had no embellishments, not even a grip wound around the handle. I was sure leather could not have survived so many millennia anyway.
There were no adornments at all other than the simple crosspiece with faintly curved ends. It was a single piece of ancient petrified elderwood that looked so organic it reminded me of bone.
No one knew how the sword had been made. Petrified elderwood was known to be the hardest material in the world, unable to be carved, broken, melted, or manipulated in any way.
Unlike with Sangui, where my hands had been drawn to the hilt, I had no desire whatsoever to wieldthatblade. It looked positively ominous.
I did not even dare to lay my hands on the smooth gray stone under it. I knew what would happen if I touched the sword.
The pain would be enormous and disabling. The madness it brought with it had been known to kill even strong, healthy men.
Even if they were right about me having the blood of the gods, only the Dagda himself could wield the elderwood blade. Even Danu, the Morrigan, could not touch it.
"Careful," Io said from behind me.
I turned and just the sight of him made the tears of frustration begin to prick against my eyelids again.
He turned me away from the sword and kissed me, softly on the forehead. "It's not hopeless, Sera. They'll find another spell. Pettal said to tell you she will not stop until she gets them off. If someone was able to lock it, she says she will be able to unlock it."
I nodded, feeling a bit more hopeful despite the maudlin turn of my thoughts. I had felt out of sorts since the moment Cassius gave me his theories about the prophecy.
I turned back to the elderwood blade. "I have always wanted to see this.”
"I've always thought it a bit underwhelming."
I looked at him doubtfully. "You find one-million-year-old petrified elderwood that was once wielded by the king of the gods...underwhelming?"
He shrugged. "I always expected flames or lightning."
I laughed. "Pick it up. I'm sure you'd feel the lightning in it then."
He chuckled. "Perhaps I would. But first, I want to show you the dragons."
His smile was playful, and I knew he was trying to make me feel better.
It worked. But then, he always made me feel better.
We flew back toward the Reach.
Just on the other side of the mountain, the wide, dark mouth of a cave came into view.
It was nowhere near as large as the Meroway cavern. In fact, it looked only slightly larger than Veles' wingspan. I was nervous as we approached, imagining him running into the sides.
But he did not enter. Instead, he landed on a flattened plateau outside the entrance where I could see a narrow path leading back down to Dragon's Reach.
The Dragon's Rest, as it was called, did wonders to soothe my irritated soul.
Outside the cave, dragons rested in the snow—some old, some young, in many different colors. Some were even wild dragons, as Io informed me.
"Be careful of them, especially. They will not know you and can be very dangerous."
The dragons looked at us with only slight curiosity, but Io must have picked up on the fear his words elicited because he told me with a cocky grin, "Don't worry. You're with the Lord of Darkwatch. No dragon would dare harm you when I’m here."
