The other three riders were settling in with their dragons when they arrived at the stables. Kaden would have thought the four dragons would have shown concern at the stress they had endured without them, but none of them seemed bothered in the least. When the two of them walked up, they scattered to attention, Reese even trying to give the Lord Commander an awkward salute.

Kaden turned to say his goodbye but the Lord Commander already stuck his hand out. “We won’t be able to talk much tomorrow during the ceremony, but I want you to remember you four have my support. If anything happens to you out there, we are indebted to you all for what you have done here at the Citadel. We will help you if you need it.”

The shake he gave Kaden was tight and firm. If he didn’t know the Lord Commander, he would have taken his abruptness as a threat. Instead, he felt it was that of comfort and acceptance.

Kaden gave him a deep nod. “Thank you, sir. I mean it.”

The briefest of smiles showed on the older man’s face before it dashed away as he nodded and turned around. He left before anyone else could say anything to him. Kaden turned to his companions and they all were waiting for him to say something.

“Did you guys know he was two hundred and sixteen years old?”

He didn’t tell them much of what he had said. He felt that was more for something between himself and the Lord Commander. Reese knew he was older, but the rest were just as surprised as he was. They briefly talked about the crazy evening they had, but it wasn’t long before they were all asleep.

The phrase “The waters are tainted” played over and over in his mind. Did this mean the water nation itself? Was it referring to the water mages? The matriarchs were clear as mud sometimes and he wasn’t keen on it. The thoughts kept bouncing around in his head before he finally drifted off to sleep, too.

Kaden awoke to Reese kicking him. “Get up! We need to get dressed now or we’ll be late! They moved that damn ceremony up to this morning.”

Wiping the sleep from his eyes, Kaden groaned and rolled out of his fluffy bedroll. The rest of them were pulling things out of their bags, nicer clothing. The water temple had told him he needed to bring one outfit that was more presentable. They had explained to him that some nations required more pomp than others when they visited.

He had told them he had nothing nice to wear, but Tranlee brought him a proper, elegant mage robe soon after he made that comment. He was looking forward to discussing the new changes he had with the man when they went back. Maybe he’d be able to help him understand the mess that it was becoming with all the visions.

Part of him was thrilled to be going back to the water nation already. So far, it was the only thing that had been somewhat familiar to him. He’d see the mage friends he had made and he’d at least somewhat know about the people.

What he wasn’t looking forward to was having to report directly to the king himself. He knew that the loss of the ambassador would hit them, more so seeing as he was one of the causes of a direct attack on the central government. He wasn’t looking forward to the fallout it would cause.

That’s not even considering the actual investigation that is going on in the water nation at that moment. It wasn’t like they’d just be able to stroll in and greet the lords and matriarchs at the various temples. There wasn’t going to be any ceremony for them, no round of applause for their visiting. No, they would be coddled and controlled as they hid everything from these outside visitors.

He hadn’t told them what was really happening there, not the full details. Sayori knew some of it, seeing as she had been there for the glow stone delivery, but he wasn’t going to be able to keep it quiet for long once they were actually there.

He watched as she buttoned up her own specialized mage robe. It was a deep emerald green with golden embroidery across the front of it. Even the sleeves had golden threads stitched into it in various designs. Each of them had a special mage robe that showcased their nation’s colors. The four of them started to actually look like proper representations of their respected nations.

In that moment, he felt a swell of pride overcome him while looking at his fellow riders. It wasn’t a ceremony that did it, nor was it the lecturing that had done it. They supported him, joined him in a fight against unknown opponents with little hesitation. They defended him when they didn’t have to and believed him with little question when he told them of wild tales with the matriarchs. That is what made him feel like he was part of a team.

Once again, he had to part ways with Zuma. They were humming next to Taldor, already the best of friends. Neither of them were very bothered by the group of them leaving again. It made his heart happy that their dragons were getting along so well. He had once thought that the different breeds wouldn’t care to intermingle, yet here theirs were doing just that. Even here at the citadel, two matriarchs of two different elemental breeds were surviving and thriving together.

The fact that white mages existed at all was evidence enough that the elements could coexist in someone. He wondered what exactly it was that made the matriarchs believe someone was worthy of the gift. Even more so, he wondered why he was worthy of such gifts.

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It didn’t take them too long to get down from the stables. Meinor was waiting for them near the lifts and they followed him down toward the hall. Even from a distance, the sweet aroma of flowery incense was hitting Kaden’s nose as they neared.

Meinor waved his hand at them as they followed. “This is mostly pomp and vigor. Just nod your heads, agree to the things they say, and everything should run smoothly. We should be out of here in maybe an hour. There will be a grand meal afterward. You’ll see the tables set up behind the council room. They will expect you to rub elbows with people they deem important. Seeing as you lot have caused such a controversy lately, you might not get out of here that quickly.”

They saw Laudy waiting for them at the entrance to the hall. He stopped and turned around to them. “Okay, Laudy will escort you to the stage. They are only waiting for you four to arrive, so it’s about to go down! Good luck!”

He stepped to the side and waved for them to continue on. Laudy nodded to them and turned around to lead the way. Kaden was behind Sayori, but in front of Evonne. Reese was leading them forward. With him having the most mage experience, they felt he probably should be the one to go first.

The hall opened up and he saw the on-looking eyes. They were walking down a makeshift path that was leading them to the council room. Everything was decorated with the colors of their realms while intertwined with gold. Their robes fit the aesthetic incredibly well. All the different nations were represented in the faces they passed. The colors of their outfits mimicked that of the mages.

He didn’t know if everyone there was a mage themselves, but he did know that today was a day for representing the different realms. He wondered how many of the people in blue clothing would approach him later. Every face that passed was a new one for him. Not a single one was recognizable. He did his best to try to imprint them into his mind for later.

They reached the council room that was now decorated with various pieces of sheer colored cloth that was draping from the ceiling. Everything was so colorful and bright. Just the day before, this place was boring and white. Nortu stood at the podium with four chairs behind him. He assumed it was for them.

Laudy led them down the steps and motioned toward them. Reese turned to her, gave a deep bow before ascending to the platform to shake hands with Nortu. The rest of them copied his moves and soon all four were standing behind the white mage councilor.

The crowd filed into the empty seats, quickly filling the room. Everyone was clapping for them and Nortu was nodding along. It was a surreal setting. Putting his arms out, Nortu calmed the crowd and everyone sat down. Kaden looked to Reese to see if they needed to sit as well, but he didn’t move.

Nortu’s voice echoed out across the crowd. He spoke of unity and strength in their uncertain times. It was very poetic, but Kaden couldn’t quite focus on anything as his eyes scanned through the crowd. The councilor waxed on about the importance of these pilgrimages and how they were going to be a shining example of bravery for all.

Kaden’s eyes cut back to Nortu as he said, “If it was not for these brave young riders, we would have lost far more than we did on the Night of Fallen Wings.”

They named the battle already; he mused. He wondered if that title would catch on or not. His eyes flicked to where the lord commander was standing. He watched to see if he made any visible sign that he had an opinion on that title. His face remained still as he watched the proceedings.

Nortu continued praising them for their heroism from that night, describing how many lives they saved. When he stopped, Kaden jumped in surprise at the applause they received. All eyes were on them as the roar of celebration filled the council room and flooded out the halls.

He looked awkwardly around as a few people stood up in praise as their hands slapped together. He felt Evonne’s hand wrap around his arm as she tried to brace herself. Being in the spotlight was strange for him, but he could nearly feel the anxiety pulsing through her grip as she used him to steady herself.

He had to remember that it wasn’t only him that was being forced to confront a crowd of adoring public. If they were going to be traveling together, he needed to support them as much as they were supporting him.

Nortu turned around and shook each of their hands before taking a seat. They looked around at each other, confused on what they should do when Kaden saw the three ambassadors coming down the aisle toward them. Shifting his weight from one leg to the other, he tried to calm his nerves as he watched them join them on the stage.

Remni was the first to speak. “While we celebrate our riders, we are saddened to say that not all of us could be here today. It is with sadden words I share with you all that Ambassador Laramee was one of the victims of the attack. He was gravely injured and is being sent back to the water realm in hopes he can recover from his injuries.”

She stepped back and Kartok took a slow step forward. “We honor him and everything he had done for the realms. We wish him a fast recovery and hope he is able to rest knowing that his rider honorably defended us as he had.”

Kaden’s face rushed with blood as he stood there, embarrassed. The crowd had another long session of clapping. None of them knew that what the other ambassadors were saying was a straight up lie. The water ambassador was the reason people lost their lives and here they were talking as if he was some grand person. He could feel an anger rising in him knowing how many deaths occurred due to the man’s action and that no one clapping for him now would ever know how horrible of a person he truly was.

He felt another squeeze on his arm. This time it was Sayori. He titled his head toward her and she gave him a slight nod of her head. Somehow, she must have known what he was thinking and was giving him a reassuring connection.

Malfor then spoke up. “It may be some time before another water ambassador will take his place, but we know he would be here to see these fine riders off if he could. So much has happened so quickly. That said, we have faith that these young riders will lead a new generation into a peace between the nations. They will go on their pilgrimage after today with a desire to protect those who need it. They will represent their nations well and we are pleased to call them our riders.”

More applause. They presented them with some medal of some kind for their actions on the Night of Fallen Wings. There was more applause, they gave another speech about the importance of the magic users going from realm to realm as an act of good will and before Kaden knew it they were whisking them away toward the tables. He didn’t even get to sit in the chairs behind him. He wondered why they had even put them there.

As they were walking toward a table led by Nortu himself, Kaden was looking around at the people filling in. There were people who looked like royalty, and others who looked like they were just incredibly rich. His gaze was bouncing around as he just continued following his companions. He soon found himself colliding into Sayori, who had collided with a stopped Reese.

He heard Reese let out a small squeak of a noise before saying in a shaky voice, “Father?”