Page 98 of Elemental Becoming

Calryx levels out, her wings cutting through the currents with practiced ease.

Her voice breaks the silence.

“The wards have stood for centuries, maintained by dragon magics. They are not simply barriers, nor are they walls built of human hands. They are woven into the fabric of this realm itself. And they are weakening.”

I already knew this—Valen had taught me as much in our lessons. The wards were not just ancient; they were tied to something greater. They pulsed with the rhythm of the world itself, a force unseen but always felt.

But hearing it from a dragon . . . feels different.

“What happens,”I ask quietly,“if they fail completely?”

Calryx’s silence stretches a beat too long before she finally answers.

“If the wards fall, it is not just your kingdom at risk. It is dragonkind itself.”

A shiver prickles down my spine.

I tighten my grip on the saddle straps.“What exactly do the eggs have to do with the wards?”

Calryx rumbles, a sound of thought rather than immediate response.

“Dragons do not know what it means to be without our young. Not like this.”

A flick of her tail sends us banking into a relaxed turn.

“For three decades, the eggs have remained dormant. Never before has so much time passed without a hatching.”

I already knew that much. Valen had mentioned it, a quiet concern buried beneath everything else we had studied. But hearing it from her—feeling the significance of it through the bond—is something else entirely.

My stomach tightens.“Why?”

“We do not know.”

There is an edge of something (frustration? uncertainty?) beneath her otherwise steady tone.

“Some believe the eggs are waiting. But for what, we cannot say.”

Eggs do not wait. Life does not pause. It either thrives, or it fades.

“What do the Guardians say?”

Another rumble comes through the bond, edged this time. I know she is not frustrated with me.

“They share only what they can. What they are able to do.”

“And what is that?”

“The eggs cannot hatch while there is this imbalance.”

My pulse spikes.“Then the wards will fail and all creatures will perish—dragons included. Why won’t they share more? It could make the difference we need.”

I feel Calryx gather herself before answering.

“The dragon way is woven into the world,”she says at last.“Older than your kingdoms. Older than your wars.”

Her wings shift, guiding us into a gradual descent.

“A species that has endured as long as we have does not change quickly. Not even when danger rises. The Guardians do what they believe preserves balance. Not only for dragonkind . . . but for all who live within the realm.”