"Explain them," she said.
"Well, if you're going to Teleport a very short distance, the rules are very lax," he answered as they passed the building where he, Sarraya, and Jegojah had taken shelter from a sandstorm. "If you're Teleporting where you can see, or someplace within just a few hundred spans, you can do it without knowing the area very well. There's another rule about Teleporting in a confined area called domain, too," he continued. "Jenna could Teleport into the dining room because it's hers. She's the Keeper, and the entire Tower is her domain. She can Teleport anywhere in it or on the grounds, because it's all hers." He stepped absently over a place where he knew a Dwarf skeleton lay buried under the sand. "Jenna can do it, and most of the Sha'Kar can do it too, though they can't go everywhere. They can only go to public places or areas that they consider their personal domain."
"Why is that different?"
"Mother makes it different," he told her. "It's the Goddess' influence that changes the rules. She wanted it to be much easier for us to Teleport in the Tower, I guess. Though why someone would Teleport when they can walk is beyond me." He threw his braid back over his shoulder after a gust of wind pushed it around him. "The third rule is the rule concerning what I just did. If you're Teleporting a great distance, or somewhere that isn't your domain, you have to be very familiar with the area to do it. You have to know exactly what you're looking for in order for the spell to find where you want to go. You don't have to get down and study every rock and pebble, but you do have to be able to conjure up a very detailed memory of the place you want to go. And I mean detailed. I could come here because I spent three days studying every rock and pebble in a longspan-wide radius of that arena to give myself an advantage over Jegojah. But I didn't need that kind of preparation to be able to Teleport here. I could have done it just by spending a day or two camped in one place in the city, staying in that one place long enough to get a good detailed feel for it and a good memory of it. I might be able to Teleport to Amyr Dimeon, but I'm not sure. I also might be able to Teleport to the Great Canyon, but again, I'm not sure. I spent a goodly amount of time in both places, and some pretty memorable things happened, memorable enough for me to possibly be able to make a connection with those places."
"Could you Teleport to Dala Yar Arak?" Allia asked.
"Easily," he replied. "I could also Teleport to the Star of Jerod or the Dancer, because I was on both ships a long time."
"But they are not where they once were," she protested.
"That doesn't matter," he told her. "I'm Teleporting to the ship, not to the place where the ship is. No matter where it is, I can Teleport onto the deck, because it's that deck that's my target. Not the location where the ship happens to be."
"Ah. I understand," Allia nodded. "What happens if you try to Teleport to a place you are not familiar enough to reach?"
"The spell fails," he answered. "It can't find the destination, and the spell unravels before you can release it."
"Quite a restricting rule," Sapphire said. "Wizardly Teleportation is much more liberal. You can try to Teleport anywhere you want to go, but the less familiar you are with a place, the greater the chance that you miss."
"Miss? What is a miss?" Tarrin asked.
"Not appearing where you intended to appear," she answered. "If you happen to Teleport inside a solid object, you won't live to learn from your mistake. That's why it's not done without extreme care or a great deal of desperation."
"Ouch," Sarraya said, and he felt her shudder a bit on his shoulder.
"Can you do that?" Tarrin asked.
She shook her head. "There's a size limit for the Wizard version, and dragons are just a bit past it. Besides, I'd much rather fly. I've never in my life felt a need to get somewhere faster than my wings can carry me."
"I wonder if there's a Druidic version," Tarrin mused.
"I doubt it," Sarraya answered. "Transplanting yourself like that absolutely defines unnatural, Tarrin. You know how the effort goes up when you cross that boundary."
"It's theoretically possible, but not even I would care to experiment," Sapphire agreed. "You'd either succeed, or you'd die trying. I'll leave making that kind of a choice for when I have nothing more to lose."
"I think I agree with you, my friend," Tarrin nodded sagely.
It took them about an hour to get to the edges of the city, where there was much, much less sand. The winds blew predominantly from west to east through the wide valley in which the city was nestled, and the stone buildings of the city formed a barrier that broke up the wind and caused the sand to pile up on the western edges. After they passed the last building, Tarrin and Allia followed Sapphire as she got what she considered to be a safe distance from the outlying edge of the city, out onto bare, windswept rock that was strewn with rounded stones from the size of Tarrin's fist to large boulders, too large for the summer winds to pick up and carry away. She stopped suddenly and turned around, then opened her arms expectantly. Tarrin stepped up and embraced her warmly.
"Now you be careful, little friend," she said. "Did you think to bring my bell?"
"I have it with me," he told her with a smile.
"That's a good boy," she said, looking up at him with a satisfied smile. "If you need me, call me. I'll come."
"I appreciate that, my friend," he said as he let her go. "Have a good journey, and try not to be too hard on your brood when you get home. Remember, they're young."
"That's the problem," she said with a dry smile. "Take care of him, Allia," she called.
"He will be safe with me, honored dragon," Allia replied confidently. "This is my home. I will not allow its dangers to take him unaware."
"That is the only reason I'm letting him out of my sight," she told the Selani calmly. "Step back now, both of you. I need some space."
The space Sapphire needed, as they both well knew, was a good hundred or so spans. They retreated well away from her, and then they watched in mute fascination as the human female shell that had held her was cast aside, and she quickly expanded and regained her true shape. She was absolutely majestic in her true form, a proud, handsome, noble and stately creature, and her gigantic immensity still did not fail to boggle Tarrin's mind. She had to have blood vessels inside her body so big that he could stand inside them without having to stoop. It was almost unbelievable that something could be so huge. She only had to take a few steps towards them and crane that seventy or so span long neck over to get her head almost directly over them, and amber, serpentine eyes, each larger than Tarrin was tall, regarded them with unblinking intensity. Sarraya had never seen Sapphire in her true form before, and the little Faerie's hands were clutching the fabric of his shirt so tightly that she was about to punch her fingers through it. Tarrin was only as large as one of Sapphire's clawed fingers, but Sarraya wasn't even as large as one of her scales. The difference in size between the dragon and the Faerie was as profound as one could possibly imagine.
"Am I impressive now, sprite?" Sapphire asked with light humor in her deep bass voice, a voice that actually vibrated the air around them, making them feel the words more than hear them.
Sarraya could not reply rationally. All Tarrin heard was a series of high-pitched squeaks and stutters. Tarrin wondered idly if the dragon, with its huge eardrums, was even capable of hearing so shrill and mumbled a sound.
"I thought so," she noted with eyes narrowed in amusement. "Well, little one, this is farewell," she sighed. "I hate leaving clan alone, but you have your duties, and I have mine. I'm sure we'll meet again."