By the time Danyla received the contract Earl Hightower had personally signed and stamped with the seal of House Hightower, daylight had fully broken. Somewhat weary, she returned to her room with the assistance of his eldest daughter, Emily, intending to rest before dealing with affairs in Oldtown.
Myracis stood quietly on guard outside Danyla's room, giving her a complete sense of safety. After a quick wash, Danyla collapsed onto the comfortable velvet bed.
She placed her Valyrian Steel Sword, Dawnlight, and her dragonbone-and-Valyrian Steel dagger, Firefall, beside her pillow.
Yesterday, when the rioters charged the dragons, Danyla had felt Dawnlight and Firefall grow scorching hot as she sang the sacrificial incantation. Even now, they still felt warm to the touch.
The words "Walk with the Gods" on Dawnlight seemed to have grown clearer, while a phrase in the tongue of Old Valyria had appeared on the Firefall Dagger: "Drink blood without end." The magical energy within them had also grown stronger and more turbulent.
Danyla knew the two Valyrian weapons had changed because she had sung the sacrificial incantation while burning those rioters to death. But she still had no idea what those changes actually did.
Exhausted, Danyla soon fell asleep on the bed.
In her sleep, Danyla's consciousness seemed to sink slowly into the depths of a cold, dark ocean. A chilling sense of dread abruptly brought her awareness into sharp focus.
Only then did she realize that her consciousness had reached the pitch-black ocean floor. Strangely, though, she could breathe freely underwater. Yet she kept feeling as though hostile eyes were staring straight at her from all around. She hastily began swimming upward with all her strength, trying to escape the dream.
But the dark, still water suddenly began churning violently, forcing Danyla to swim upward even