Estella, the companions, and all of the vampires were traveling in the middle of the day. The curse worked and Estella's only problem became how to grant all of the vampires' passage to Famarikind. They had no coin to pay the toll and Estella knew she didn't have enough money for the thousand or so vampires to cross the straight of Adonai.
Then, the idea finally ran across her head, she could return to the cave of Garthanax, where she found the amulet which is healing her father, and fill her bag with its many treasures and hope the ship's captain would accept some bargaining. A bag filled with treasure was surely enough to convince the captain.
The sun was beating down on the vampires and they showed no sign of fatigue as they neared the port. This was a good sign, Estella felt very proud of herself for creating such a powerful spell. A small sense of pride infested her humble body. Her powers were growing stronger with each passing second. It pained her greatly to not cast a spell every so often. The staff in her hands didn't seem to help the process, her magical blood was surging.
"We wait here," she said as she stopped walking. "I need to go get some gold to pay the captain to let you pass the straight." She said directing her statement towards the vampires.
A whirlwind consumed her, she closed her eyes, and she was transported back to the cave Garthanax protected. He was startled awake by the sudden arrival of Estella. He stood up on all fours and was prepared to fend off any cave robbers, but as soon as he realized it was Estella he lowered his guard.
"You wear the white robes now. Are you ready to accept your position?" He spoke.
"What position?" She asked.
"Your role in the war."
"I have always understood I have a large role to play. I'm willing to risk my life for the war."
"Good, you will make for a great warrior. I have a feeling the queen would like to use your skills further. I had a dream about you meeting with her."
"What was this meeting about?" Estella asked.
"I don't know; the universe didn't allow me with much information. I only saw a door closing behind her and you. Why are you here?"
"I need to fill a bag with jewels to pay for all of my men to cross the straight of Adonai."
"This is the last time I will allow you to take from my treasure. I don't wish to be viewed as a weak dragon. Others will come and try to fight me off if they hear word of how I granted favor to a human."
"But I am the spirit stalker," Estella argued.
"This does not matter; my keep must not dwindle. I protect one of the largest piles of treasure and wish to keep it this way. Gold means everything to a dragon's worth."
"What does it matter if you protect gold?"
"This is how a dragon is judged."
"What if you were to protect a city?" She asked.
"I would never guard any of the king's cities."
"I wasn't talking about a king's city; I was talking about the elfish city of Darkwood."
"Very interesting proposition. Does the queen require more protection?"
"I imagine she could always use help defending her city," Estella said.
"The dragons are neutral to any of these fights. We do not wish to get involved with the wars created by men, especially corrupted ones."
"You would be fighting on the side of the queen. She doesn't have a corrupt bone in her body."
