The Dragons of Ice and Snow by J.J. Thompson Page B

do
much. I need a spell that uses intense cold, like their breath
attacks, not frozen water. At a guess, I'd say their scales would be
more than thick enough to block an ice spear. And the hail?
Doubtful.”
    Aeris floated up and down,
looking thoughtful.
    “ So you need to
learn an offensive spell that attacks with deep cold, is that it?”
    “ Exactly.”
    “ And we think you
can help,” Kronk piped up.
    Aeris stared at him.
    “ Me? Well, that's
very complimentary, I'm sure, but I don't know any spells. No
elemental does. You know that,” he said to the earthen.
    “ True enough,”
Kronk replied. “But we know the magic ,
don't we? You know how air magic works. I know how earth magic works,
correct?”
    “ Well,
yes, but...”
    “ And
you know someone who understands how to use cold-based magic.”
    Aeris
looked puzzled.
    “ I
do?”
    “ Yes!”
Kronk said, exasperated. “Granted, his powers are over water,
but he can use cold to enhance those powers.”
    Simon
watched, fascinated, as Aeris' puzzled expression turned to one of
comprehension.
    “ You're
speaking of the water sprite, Aquamastis?”
    “ Exactly,”
the wizard said. “I watched him freeze an entire swath of the
river during my fight with the black dragon. It had to take not just
a massive amount of power, but incredibly intense cold as well.”
    “ Okay,
I agree. So what do you want to do, approach him and ask him how to
summon the deep cold?”
    “ Basically
yes.”
    Simon
impatiently pushed his hair off of his face and yawned suddenly. He
blinked an apology at the elementals.
    “ Sorry,
I don't know why I'm tired. Anyway, Aeris, you've spoken with
Aquamastis a few times. Do you think that he would be amenable to
sharing that information?”
    To
his credit, for a change the air elemental answered the question
directly.
    “ No,
I don't,” he said with an apologetic shrug. “I don't
think he would care enough to bother, to be quite honest.”
    Kronk
stepped closer to Aeris, looking indignant.
    “ Not
care enough to bother? Who summoned him to Earth? Who gave him the river he now calls home? Our master did! Does that sprite not
remember that?”
    Aeris
looked taken aback by the little guy's anger and retreated a few
inches.
    “ No,
it's not that. He appreciates Simon's aid. But he feels that helping
our dear wizard defeat the primal black was his part of the bargain.
In his mind, they are now even.”
    He
looked up at Simon.
    “ It
isn't ego, really. But an elemental as powerful as Aquamastis would
not share something like the key to using the deep cold magic without
expecting something in return. And what can you offer him that he
would want?”
    The
wizard had to agree. The water elemental had been quite clear after
the death of the black dragon. He'd told Simon that they were even
and that was that. What could he offer Aquamastis for his knowledge?
Simon felt himself deflate. Nothing. Nothing at all.
    “ Relax,
Kronk,” he said. The little guy's red eyes were still glowing
with anger. “Aeris isn't the bad guy here. Neither is
Aquamastis. It's just his nature. And you're right,” he told
Aeris. “I have nothing that the sprite would want. So, I guess
I'll keep researching. Maybe somewhere buried deep in Daniel's notes
is a clue that I can use. I mean, it was just a thought anyway,
getting help from a being that powerful. We're no worse off than we
were before.”
    Kronk
looked up at him, slowly cooling off as he stared at Simon.
    “ You
aren't upset, master?”
    “ What
would be the point? I just wish, I dunno, that things didn't always
have to be so complicated.”
    Simon
stared off into space blankly, suddenly too tired to think. He
guessed that attuning the staff to himself had used up more of his
energy than he'd realized it would.
    Nothing
that some sleep wouldn't cure, he thought wearily.
    Kronk stood still, staring
dejectedly at the desktop, his little red eyes barely glowing.
    Simon glanced at Aeris and
was surprised to