Page 130 of Dragons of the Great Wyves: Fire and Song
Where it met Lizzy, there was… not a gap exactly, but blemishes. A thread here that would be better there, another that was loose, two that were tangled…
“You are not matched,” I said. “Not perfectly. Yuánchi chose to bind you, but a wyfe of war is not his intended partner.”
“I know,” she said.
“That left flaws.” Now that I had seen them, I could not look away. My chuckle hurt; I had practiced so hard to overcome this. “Imperfections I obsess upon.” A reckless idea built. “My affinity is manipulating bindings. What if I can break your binding?”
Her eyebrows climbed. “What?”
“Bindings cannot be broken,” Mr. Darcy said. “They are until death.”
“I broke one,” I said. “Not a draca binding, but something like it. I broke the binding between one of those large crawlers and a captive wyfe.”
“Those are drug-fueled perversions,” he said, “not true bindings.”
Mary spoke up. “Draca and crawlers are related, perhaps even the same species.” Mr. Darcy scoffed, and Mary bristled. “I performed an experiment—”
“Mary, please wait a minute,” Lizzy said. She watched her husband. “Your mother was a wyfe of healing. You told me she released her wyvern.”
“Released,” Mr. Darcy agreed. “She did not break a binding.”
“What is the difference?” Lizzy stood. “This could save Yuánchi, and the wyves could bind correctly. Emma with him, then…” She left the rest unsaid, but her finger rubbed the blemish on her cheek from Fènnù’s breath.
“I dislike it,” Mr. Darcy said.
“Idislike it,” Mr. Knightley agreed. “Emma, I was there when you broke the binding. Your mind was gravely affected. I had tocarryAugusta. And that was only a crawler. This is a dragon.”
“I have the amulet now,” I pointed out.
“It is still dangerous,” he insisted.
“May I speak yet?” Mary asked.
“In a moment,” Lizzy said. “Let me ask Yuánchi.” Her eyes became distant, then she swallowed. “I can barely feel his mind… Yes. Do it. Yuánchi is failing.”
“Just like that?” Mr. Darcy exclaimed. “Without… debate?”
Firmly, Mary said, “That is what I usually say, so it is my turn. First, the debate is short. I saw the great song, or whatever glimpse of it a human mind can perceive. The song is complex and perfect, and it is built on three foundations—the three dragons’ songs. It will be impossible to heal the great song if they are mis-bound.” Mr. Darcy opened his mouth, and Mary said, “Second, Georgiana and I located the third dragon. So, this is not insanity. We can try to bind the dragons.”
There was an explosion of questions.
Lizzy ignored them and asked me, “How do we break Yuánchi’s binding?”
“Give me your hands.” I reached out to her and Mr. Darcy.
“Not yet,” Mr. Darcy said to his wyfe. “I agree we should break the binding. But if you are not bound to Fènnù, and she returns, you will be defenseless. We must get everything ready first.”
“What else?” Lizzy asked.
I answered. “We must raise the dragon of song.”
37
FIRE AND SONG
MARY
Georgiana was answeringthe flood of questions. “Mary solved it when she saw the valley walls.”
