DragonFire Read Online Free PDF

at all.”
    Regidor groaned. “Perhaps you shouldn’t have developed a sense of humor, Sir Bardon. It doesn’t wear well on you.”
    Gilda perched on the edge of the table where Regidor had set her bottle. “I tire easily, dear friends. Why have you come? To pay your last respects?” Despite the gravity of her questions, her beautiful features flashed with a slight mischievous sparkle.
    A nervous chill ran through Kale. She looked from Regidor to Bardon, then to Granny Noon. The old emerlindian offered her a tilted smile. “Don’t doubt your good news now. You may tell her, Kale.”
    She took a deep breath and released it. She almost preferred to continue the pointless banter. Before she saw Gilda, she was confident of the cure. But now…
    The expectant look on Gilda’s face pierced Kale’s heart. She had to speak. “We think we have found the process that will reverse the effects of Risto’s spell.”
    Gilda spun around to Regidor. “Now?”
    He inclined his head. “If you are ready.”
    “What do I have to do?”
    “Go back into your bottle one last time. When I call you out, you will form into the solid composition Wulder originally created.”
    Gilda asked no more questions. The mist that imaged her body thinned and swirled upward, then poured into the blue bottle.
    Kale and Regidor moved to the table, standing opposite each other. Gymn came to perch on Kale’s shoulder while the other minor dragons settled on Granny Noon, Bardon, and Kale. Granny Noon stood behind Regidor and placed a hand on his shoulder. Bardon stood close to his wife and encircled her waist with his arms. Regidor looked into Kale’s eyes, and she nodded.
    “Wulder, guide us,” whispered the meech.
    Without discussing the matter, Regidor took the lead and Kale gladly followed. He formed images in his mind of the smallest particles in Gilda’s system. With malformed properties, these elements whirled out of synchronization with the others. Fragments repelled each other. Slowly, Regidor realigned the configurations. Upon occasion he isolated a unit and totally annihilated the foreign substance.
    Kale assisted by keeping the images sharp. Her cooperative efforts allowed Regidor to concentrate on minute parts, while Kale sustained a larger picture. The others provided a flow of energy. With Gymn’s presence in the circle, the healing aspect of the procedure progressed swiftly. Filia delved into Regidor’s deepest memories and pulled out any information that would aid him in his task.
    Finally, Regidor scanned through the work he had done and tweaked a few minor segments. One last sweep through the whole process, and the meech dragon was satisfied with the natural cohesion reestablished in Gilda’s composition. He pulled his thoughts back from the others.
    They broke connection, both mentally and physically, stepping back from the table and exhaling.
    Granny Noon sank onto a stool and clasped her hands in her lap. All eyes focused on the blue bottle.
    Regidor cleared his throat. “Come out, my love.”
    The moment stretched. Kale fought back a surge of panic.
    Oh, Wulder, please!
    Smokelike billows erupted from the narrow opening of the bottle. Kale held her breath. This did not look like Gilda’s usual controlled, and somewhat staged, entrance. The pillar of cloud speedily descended to the floor. Everyone stepped back as it roiled in place.
    Metta burst into song, breaking the silence. Pure, sustained notes in a soothing melody vanquished the tension. The turmoil within the cloud quieted. The mist thickened, coalescing into a recognizable form. Gilda looked as she had before she entered the bottle the last time.
    Kale blinked.
    No, I can’t see through her. She’s truly solid. It worked!
    Gilda’s eyes roamed from one face to the next.
    Ignoring her training not to pry into others’ thoughts, Kale plunged into the meech’s mind. Gilda looked for some difference in those who watched her, as if her transformation would be