357 Dragon City: Houdinya (1/2)

The woman's head was wrapped in a red silk scarf, and her clothes appeared to be standard leather. There was no sign of horns, nor did she give off an aura of strength. She had dark skin and light brown eyes that brimmed with intelligence. Where Deidra gave off a feeling of power, Tai'Qui seemed more like a scholar. ”This is a surprise; I am Tai'Qui, the Dragon Master of Houdinya.”

Nix was surprised when she bowed slightly. Her face appeared to bear a hint of sadness. ”I am Nix, the Guild Leader of Inferno. I assumed that Deidra told you that I would be in contact.”

”Well met, Guild Leader Nix, Deidra did mention that, but I didn't imagine I would be first.”

”Just Nix is fine.”

”Feel free to address me as Tai. Do you want to get started?”

”Yes, assign me as the temporary controller, and I will bring Houdinya in.”

Nix waited a few minutes while she complied with his wishes. ”Enable Direct Control, Houdinya.”

Direct Control of Houdinya has been established.

As Nix understood it, the process was very straightforward. ”Link Houdinya with Inferno City.”

Tai watched as her own Interface hud activated, and her city moved for the first time in decades. Moving a city around required a lot of energy, so in an effort to save their own strength, the Dragon City Masters never did it. ”Link will be established in fifteen minutes, Nix.”

Nix nodded; he received a similar countdown. ”When it does, assign the power grid to me, and Inferno City will assume permanent control of Houdinya's power requirements.”

Tai nodded slowly. ”Is travel to Inferno City going to remain restricted?”

”It is.”

/Houdinya City Announcement: Tai'Qui: We are moving the city so that we may once again join with the other 18 Dragon Cities. Once we are connected, it will once again be possible to travel between the cities on foot.

Nix watched as she made the announcement; she seemed less severe than Deidra. Comparing the two dragons, he decided that Tai made a much better first impression. ”I wish to talk with you concerning a personal matter.”

The first hint of a smile crossed the woman's face. ”Doesn't Deidra take care of your personal needs?”

Nix couldn't stop the laugh that roared up. ”That makes it sound like our relationship is intimate.”

Tai shrugged comfortably. ”There are rumors.”

”We are only allies, and I hope friends.” Nix began to think that Tai was messing with him.

”What do you wish to speak about? I will help you if I can. This city link will lift the death sentence that has been lingering over all of us.”

”I wish to speak about Nihlus and Sindi.”

Tai's face lost all hit of humor or goodwill. ”They have both been killed, although I haven't made that public to anyone.”

Nix understood the sudden chill the Dragon Master was giving him. If it were still a secret, then he would have no way of knowing unless he'd been involved somehow. ”I ran into them in the City of Eidengal; they were part of a quest to win the Sword of Kings.”

Tai nodded. ”A stupid sword that wasn't worth the life of either of them.”

Nix gave her a detailed account of the action, including the mistake each of them made during their fight with Phedor.

Tai listened carefully. ”That fits them. Sindi was the better swordsman, but he was entirely too impatient with his attacks. Nihlus was patient and smart; it doesn't surprise me that he performed better.”

”I'm sorry for your loss.”

Tai stared at him for a moment before the cold look left her face. ”Thank you for telling me, Nix. Such a thing is easier, now that I know what happened.”

Nix nodded in agreement. As someone who dealt with the loss of family members, he understood that the small comforts were important. ”After the link-up, I'd like to visit you in person.”

”I will open a Breach for you to visit me in my Grove. I assume you've been to Deidra's a few times?”

”A few.” Nix was hesitant to continue discussing a delicate topic over the holo.

Tai waited while the cities established a link; the surge in power within the city was evident immediately. She found herself flooded with relief; she would have laughed had she not been grieving.

She said goodbye to Nix and gave him a few minutes to wrap up things with the Controller Interface.

Tai sat on the grass in her Grove. Unlike Deidra, she didn't have a Majordomo. Her luck with offspring was substantially worse than other dragons. Nearly all of her eggs were unable to support life. Nihlus was one of two in the past five decades.

After waiting a few minutes, she opened a breach for Nix to enter her Grove.

Nix stepped through the breach that appeared next to his Control Interface in Inferno City. He wasn't overly alarmed at her ability to open a breach inside of Inferno City. He stepped into her Grove a moment later.

There was no pond filled with Dragon water in her Grove. There were a few very comfortable looking chairs along with what Nix could only call a mud-bath. The basin was about ten meters across and filled with a slowly bubbling brown mud. ”Earth magic?”

Tai didn't seem as friendly in person as she had over the holo. Perhaps she felt the intrusion in her otherwise private retreat. ”You wished to speak further?”

Nix nodded. ”It's my understanding that sometimes the eggs in dragon nurseries don't sustain life.”

The statement felt like a dagger in her side, Tai took a deep breath and only nodded. The human had touched a sensitive spot with his first words. ”Did Deidra tell you this?”