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  I trust him, I really do, but I can't tell him yet. I can't endanger Shan's life further, so that means not revealing the eggs to Daelis until we're away from Aes. I'm certain he'll understand.

  I'm supposed to be writing about the Hycinth feast, but I can't find much to say. It was impressive, but uneventful. Gur told us the celebration was for the birth of a healthy baby, so we were grateful to be included as guests. We understood little of the dancing and singing going on around us, but that was all right. We were comfortably seated to the side of the party and people came by often to refill our cups and bowls.

  Onions made up a large portion of the meal, which surprised me. They tasted exactly the same as the onions back home. There was also a bulbous root that looked like a radish but tasted like a buttery lemon. Meat was carved of a large carcass that sat on a central table. I assumed it was one of the six-legged sheep-like creatures that grazed near the lake. I expected a mutton taste, but it was more reminiscent of crab. We ate until it was difficult to move. The celebration grew quieter, so we figured it was ending and returned to our rooms to digest. It's louder again now, and music dances through the windows, but we're done for today.

  We're done with Aes, too. We'll find Gur or Afa in the morning and get our lanterns back, and then we'll return to the labyrinth. Back to sleeping on stone, back to stalking monsters, back to the darkness. It's time to resume the fight for home.

  Day 30

  Thirty? Thirty days, one month, seven hundred and twenty hours. That can't be right. The hours have numbered in the millions, the days infinite. My numbering system has never been more wrong than it is today. We've been here far too long for it to only be a month. We've been injured and recovered from those injuries, and that enough tells me my time perception is off by at least a factor of two, possibly three. I shouldn't worry about it too much. I can figure out real time when I'm outside with the sun upon my face. I can't remember what that feels like.

  Time lost, cave lost, sense lost, lost, lost, lost. Family found. How strange. I flipped to the earlier entries of my journal a while ago. I found Yana on Day 5 and Daelis a day later. That doesn't make any sense. Yana has been a part of me forever, so I must have known her longer than twenty-five days. It took months for me to fall for Daelis the first time, so why do my numbers show it took less than two weeks for him to mend what he had broken, what should have taken years of awkward and intentional cooperation to even consider approaching? I look at him now as he helps Shan gather our supplies and all I feel is affection. I feel like we're already married and have been for years. We talked about that last night before we fell asleep, and we both fully intend to go through with an elopement when we escape the caves. Only in an impossible abyss would I consider reconciliation with the elf who thoroughly shattered my heart so many years ago. Not just consider. Accept him willingly into my soul and never let him go.

  Thirty days and my perception is a liar. My family knows it as well as I do.

  I'm a liar, too. I've written lies into these pages. There are things I suspect but haven't said. I can't write them. I can't speak them. This isn't like the omission about the eggs, the true reason we're leaving as soon as the Hycinth bring us the supplies they're gifting. This is something deeper and more painful, and I can't bear the thought of anyone reading it if I happen to be wrong. I've already said too much and now if they read this they'll wonder. I'm just going to scribble out this paragraph and keep going.

  The Hycinth are bringing us blankets and medical supplies and food. We are leaving before we overstay our welcome, so our departure is amicable. Afa expressed some concern about my ability to walk long distances, but she did not try to dissuade us. We will travel slowly at first and rest often. Every step brings us closer to home, and we need to take this first step to progress anywhere.

  Daelis hands me my sword before giving me a kiss. "Ready?"

  My fingertips dance across his cheek and through his hair. I inhale the faint lilac scent of his skin and my heart flutters. It will likely be a while before we're this clean again. Soon we'll be comprised of sweat and mud and bruised flesh, misperceived time and frustration. This is our last moment of peace before we descend into unexplored chaos. I want to linger like this for more than a moment. I want to send the children out to play and take Daelis to bed with me right now, but I can't. We have to leave before the violet serenade of Aes draws us in any further. Aes is not our home and never could be.

  "Ready," I whisper. I smile as I watch Yana stuff as many lengths of not-sheep jerky as she can into her pockets. I don't want to disrupt her sense of relative safety by yanking her back into the darkness, but I must. "Let's go home."

  Day 30, part 2

  Afa and Gur led us to the mouth of a wide tunnel. Sparkling quartz flecked the black stone ground. They told us this was the path the scouts of generations past took before they were burned by the starlight. Our historian friends didn't know where the scouts went after entering this tunnel, but at least we didn't have to pick at random which of the many passageways out of Aes to take. Our lanterns were buried near the entrance to the tunnel, so we retrieved them, thanked the historians for everything the Hycinth did for us, and left the violet glow of Aes behind.

  The path was relatively smooth and flat, but we had to stop often so I could rest my leg. The Aes glow was still visible for the first couple of stops, but it's gone now and has been for hours. I needed yet another break and Yana wanted a nap, so now the four of us are resting together against the wall. I'd forgotten how much comfort a simple blanket can bring when you're sitting on rocks. The blankets aren't as nice as the bed in Aes, but they do provide a decent cushion.

  We still haven't told Daelis about the eggs. I told Shan earlier to wait until we were more than a day from Aes before disclosing what he hid in his satchel. Daelis will find out, but not yet. Not when there is still time to turn around and return to Aes.

  "How are you doing, Mom?" Shan asked just after we stopped here. He took out a water skein and drew a gulp before offering it to Daelis.

  "I don't know if I'll be able to go any further today," I admitted. Yana laid down with her head on my lap. She stared up at me while she chewed on a piece of jerky. "Feels like it's starting to swell."

  Daelis held out his lantern and spun a slow circle. "We can stay here. Yana, you need to drink more water if you're going to keep eating all those salty snacks."

  "I like how they chew. Make me thirsty. I eat less." Yana grinned and shoved the jerky she'd been working on back into her pocket. She had gained weight since I first found her and her face looked healthier and more filled out. Aside from her coloring, she appeared quite elven now. She accepted the skein from Daelis and drank it nearly dry. She tilted her head from side to side and sang a little melody. "Y-A-N-A, that spells Yana. Yana is me and I am Yana and this is my family." She yawned and let her bent legs relax to the ground. "Tired now. I'll sleep."

  It didn't take long before her breaths fell into the rhythm of deep sleep. Shan sat down next to me and Daelis sat next to him. It was silent for a time, long enough that I assumed they were asleep. I was about to find a way to lie down without disturbing them when Daelis's voice startled me fully awake.

  "I think I know who did this to us. Who the Jarrah are." Daelis reached over Shan and rested his hand on my knee. Shan leaned away from Daelis's arm. Neither of them had been asleep at all.

  "Master Parada and her ruthless band of half-breed-hating scholars?" Shan asked. It took me a moment to recognize that he was serious. He shrugged and let his head dip to my shoulder. "Obsessed with order, once gave a lecture on the benefits of slavery, and thoroughly hates me because I'm not a pure-blood anything. She's ripped apart every bit of research I've presented since I started at the University. A few of her claims against my work were justified, but most are nonsense. I guess if she hates me that much, maybe she hates my parents for creating me and she got her merry band of Jarrah to toss us all here."

  "Interesting t
heory, but unlikely, especially since Rin was taken first and I'm not sure they intended to bring you here at all. Your abduction seemed to be an afterthought, a little twist that popped up in their game." Daelis exhaled deeply and leaned forward so he could see me better. "My thought was the Emberflights. They fit the profile. Matriarchal dragon breeders from the Canyonlands. They also happen to be rivals of my mother's family. Have you ever had any dealings with them?

  I closed my eyes. The name was familiar, but from where? Oh yes, I remembered. "I apprehended an Emberflight not that long ago. Six months, maybe seven depending on how long we've been down here. Freelance job. Your father was actually the one who hired me for it. Well, his secretary, since I doubt he speaks to many humans directly. It was an easy job and I didn't have to travel, so I didn't think much of it. What was her name? Rihalana. She was wanted for poaching on Goldtree land."

  "Rihalana Emberflight. The favored daughter of their matriarch, Faralana." Daelis closed his eyes and stifled a laugh. "Shan, do you know any Emberflights?"

  "I dunno. Maybe. There might be a couple at the University, but I'm not good with names and not many of the other scholars are willing to talk to me." Shan stood and stepped around my legs so he could recline next to Yana. "Sorry, I sound bitter. I'm not ashamed of what I am, but it can be lonely and difficult at times. Don't let me deter you from having more kids together if you're planning on that. Personally, I think you should, as long as Daelis doesn't lose his mind and run off again. I'm working hard at tearing down those exclusivity walls, so things should be better for half-elves in a couple years. Back to Emberflights... I don't think I've directly offended any of them, but who knows... they could have just kidnapped me to further harm you two."

  "So, we can add the Emberflight family to our little list," I said. It made sense, but I wasn't entirely convinced.

  "Have you seen their family crest?" Daelis asked. He propped his forearms on his knees and drew a pen across his palm as he spoke. "Black background. Flame flanked by a pair of red dragon wings. Then there is a symbol in the center of the flame. Triangle pointing downward, and there are lines in the triangle. Two horizontal, one vertical. Like this." He held up his hand to show me the triangle. "The lines make it look like the Jarrah mask, don't they?"

  I shook my head and sketched out an oval on a blank journal page. "Wrong direction. The Jarrah mask had three horizontal lines with the longest on the bottom, implying a triangle pointed up. Still, the symbolism is similar enough that it can't be discounted. I've seen a couple instances of groups inverting their symbols to signify something like rebellion or distress."

  Daelis shifted closer so his shoulder was against mine. "We're getting out of here. Then we're going to find the Jarrah and they will be punished. Hopefully we'll also find a way to free Yana's people, but I don't know if that will be possible."

  "One step at a time, Dae. Rescue first, revenge and liberation later. Sleep now. You look like you need it."

  Daelis laid down next to me, but didn't close his eyes. I twirled his hair with my free hand as I wrote. Maybe he was on to something with his Emberflight theory. We'll have to think about it more later.

  "Come sleep, Rin. I can't seem to sleep anymore unless you're in my arms," Daelis says with a yawn.

  Sleeping on rocks again doesn't seem nice, but it's all we have now. Rocks and darkness and each other.

  Day 31

  I woke to a soft yellow glow not far from my face. Our lanterns gave off blue light, so this was something else.

  I opened my eyes and propped myself up on my elbow. Yana and Daelis sat cross-legged and facing each other, a dragon egg nestled in each of their laps. Shan was behind me, still asleep.

  "Did you know about this?" Daelis whispered. He touched the egg as if he were petting a cat. Yana mirrored the motion and smiled.

  "Yes," I said. I tried not to yelp as I sat upright. My leg felt worse than yesterday. Today would be an arduous hike.

  "Yana was looking for paper to practice writing on and found them in Shan's satchel. Where did they come from? Why didn't you tell me about them? I thought you trusted me." Daelis's voice is calm, but his eyes reveal discontent.

  I laid my hand on his knee and sought contact with his eyes. "I do trust you. I'm also determined to protect our son from harm and I thought it would be best if no one knew about the eggs until we were well out of Aes. That included you. Not because I don't trust you, but because I was afraid one of us would do something to draw suspicion."

  "And where did Shan find them?" Daelis asked.

  "Under Erisda's foot. He picked them up to examine them, then mindlessly put them in his pocket when we called for him to leave. He didn't even notice that he'd done it until we were almost out of the chamber. Then we got back to our room and he showed me. The Hycinth may seem peaceful, but they're still related to the Varaku and we have no idea how they would react to the theft of Erisda's eggs. Even though they're small, and I'm sure they're old enough to be rocks, and are as viable as unfertilized chicken eggs, they belong to Erisda. What would the Hycinth do to him if they knew? Imprison him? Torture him? Execute him? So now we're stuck with dragon eggs because there is no way I'm letting anyone hurt my Shan. Don't even suggest taking them back to Aes. As much as I love you, I would sooner leave you alone in the dark than let you go back to Aes."

  Worry overtook his face as I spoke. Then, something else. Calm, acceptance, and possibly the spark of an idea. "I'm not going to take them back. I'm somewhat hurt, but I understand why you didn't tell me. Some secrets are too dangerous to share."

  You have no idea, my love. No idea at all.

  "So what do you think we should do with them?" I asked. Shan rolled over but didn't wake.

  Daelis bowed his head and scratched at the back of his neck. "All we can do is take them with us, take them home. I suppose I can ask my mother what to do about them. She does not enjoy conversing with me, but I believe the prospect of solar dragons will interest her."

  "Even fossilized ones?"

  "Rin..." His eyes brightened as he exchanged a knowing smile with Yana. "Rin, these aren't fossils. They're certainly small, but some dragons do lay small eggs and some eggs can survive for hundreds, possibly even thousands of years before the mother even births them. A couple nights ago, we were listening to what I thought was a dreaming dragon. Now that I've held these, I think I was wrong. Not dreaming, though the sounds were quite similar and I'm sure she dreamed her way through it. Labor noises. She was laying her eggs. I'd be surprised if there were only two, but it's possible. If she had a large clutch, I doubt the Hycinth would notice any missing if they knew she laid at all."

  "So she laid them after we arrived?" I asked.

  Daelis held my hand over the top of the egg. It was warm. "Yes. And they're alive. Desert dragon species lay eggs that can withstand large temperature fluctuations, so I think they'll stay alive without heat incubation. Rin... Shan didn't steal egg-shaped rocks. He stole baby solar dragons."

  "I did?" Shan muttered. His eyes were open and fixed upon the egg in Yana's lap.

  "Shan has babies," Yana said with a giggle.

  Great. This may be worse than fossil eggs.” I removed my hand from the egg and asked, "So, when should we expect the granddragons? What's the incubation time on these things?"

  Daelis's eyebrows knit together as he shrugged. "I don't know. Some species are months, some are years or even decades. I'm thinking more on the order of months for these two. Usually, the smaller the egg, the shorter the incubation."

  I sighed and buried my hands in my hair. "Congratulations, Shannon. Make sure you're there for the hatching. They're slightly less likely to eat you if they imprint on you first."

  Daelis rubbed his knuckles over his lips. "We need to get back to Jadeshire. If my mother won't discuss them, we'll take them to my grandmother in Mountain Home. She's the only member of the Nightshadow family who seems to be fond of me."

  "Let's concentrate on getting to Jadeshir
e first," I said. I bent my knee to test my thigh. Stiff, sore, and deeply objecting to the strain. "We need to keep going. I'm going to be slow today."

  "Then we'll all be slow today," Daelis said. He gingerly wrapped one egg in a gauzy fabric and passed it to Shan. "These eggs are your responsibility, Shannon. Dragon eggs are extremely sturdy compared to bird eggs, but they can still break if mistreated. Protect them, but remember that there are more valuable things in this cave than these precious, priceless little solar dragons. Three irreplaceable things, and their worth is infinite. Yana, your mother, and you."

  Tears fell from Shan's eyes and splashed upon the egg. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I took them. I shouldn't have... I shou–"

  "Occasionally I've witnessed a wrongdoing bring about something fortunate. I believe this is one of those occasions." Daelis handed Shan the second egg and smiled reassuringly. "I'm not angry with you. Slightly disconcerted, but not angry. And I have this odd little hope that I may finally earn a touch of my mother's approval. Pack the eggs away and we'll get ready to keep going. We need to cover as much distance as Rin's leg will allow in case the Hycinth happen to notice the absence of two little eggs."

  Onward now, toward daylight, toward home. Respect the pain, don't embrace it. Don't push yourself too far. Mind sharp and sword ready, into the darkness we go.

  Day 31, part 2

  Someone, probably Shan, once told me about an eccentric elven nobleman who documented every waking moment of his life from age ten onward, from the mundane to the spectacular. He kept every letter sent to him, every doodle he drew on a scrap, every bill of sale, all stuck between the appropriately dated pages. When he died, he left a library full of journals, each one a meticulous record of his existence. His widow made the mistake of reading through some of his documentation. What she found was a century of marriage detailed with brutal honesty. Her husband had written out her perceived flaws, his frustrations about her, and every foul insult that danced through his head. Mixed into all of that were a great deal of loving words about her, but she couldn't see them through the veil of the negative. She only made it through a week's worth of entries before she threw herself off a cliff.