Gilmreth the Awakening

by Raymond L. Weil

  Chapter Sixteen

  Jalene strode angrily back and forth in her quarters, upset by the previous night’s events. The smashed furnishings laying haphazardly about the room reflected her dark mood. It had been a long and frustrating night, spent mostly without sleep. Even now, she wondered what exactly had occurred.

  When Gilmreth had been driven toward Galvin by the power of the Stone of Loraine she had followed the dragon, keeping a light mental touch on his mind, seeing through his eyes as the dragon swept low over Firestorm Mountain and then toward Galvin. She could remember the anticipation. The flushing orgasmic excitement of what she knew was soon to come.

  However, as Gilmreth neared Galvin she lost her mental contact with the dragon as if the dragon or something unknown had erected an invisible wall sealing her off from the dragon’s mind. One moment she was seeing everything the dragon saw; the next absolutely nothing! Never before had she encountered such an obstacle from Gilmreth.

  Was there some ancient danger from the far past that Gilmreth feared? What could possibly frighten the powerful dragon? Doubt filled her eyes as she pondered the consequences of the question. If it was Gilmreth that severed the mental link, then how much control did she actually have over the dragon? Was he just using her as she had been using him? These questions and others had been running through her mind for most of the night. Her continued control of Gilmreth ensured her dominion over Draydon. Without the dragon, she would have to rely on her own powers, and if the dragon wasn’t under her control, he could be a dangerous threat to all of her plans!

  She finally sensed the dragon returning to his lair just before dawn. From the satiated glow which surrounded the dragon, it was obvious Gilmreth had disobeyed her. She felt cheated and unsatisfied, recognizing the bloated condition the dragon was in. He had fed on more than four victims; many more! Her anger flared out at the dragon like a raging flame. The Stone of Loraine glowed fiery red in its protective case, reacting to her sudden wrath, but Gilmreth continued toward his lair unaffected, seemingly immune to the power of the stone.

  Jalene was unable to arouse Gilmreth as he quickly fell into a heavy, almost drug induced sleep, his mind a myriad of jumbled thoughts and twisted memories. Jalene could see a village in flames, and numerous victims falling to the voracious depredations of the rampaging dragon. Due to the earlier loss of her mind link with Gilmreth, she wasn’t sure what had happened!

  Gilmreth must have destroyed Galvin completely. Jalene clenched her fists tightly in anger, her long fingernails drawing blood. She suspected when the temple guards arrived at the village all they would find would be a smoking ruin of blackened ashes and mutilated bodies drained of life, testimony to Gilmreth’s nearly uncontrollable appetite for destruction.

  It was quickly becoming evident to Jalene that she had considerably less control of the dragon than she’d believed. What really frightened her was the possibility that she might not have any control of the dragon at all. She glanced with growing apprehension at the softly glowing Stone of Loraine. Could he actually resist the stone? Was he that powerful? The ancient dragon scroll stated quite specifically that Gilmreth was uncontrollable.

  Going to a closed cabinet Jalene opened it, taking out the prized, ancient scroll. Taking a seat at the long table that held the protective case for the Stone of Loraine, she carefully read the ancient writing on the withered scroll, looking for some clue as to Gilmreth’s unexpected behavior. After reading it, Jalene stood and returned to her nervous pacing. She had much to think about. In the back of her mind, she knew she’d made a mistake in sending Gilmreth to Galvin. Because of it, she might have lost control of the dragon!

  The Stone of Loraine was powerful, extremely powerful, but so was the dragon. Gilmreth could destroy everything she’d built in a single night if he went on a rampage. He could totally destroy Draydon with his dragon fire! She walked out onto the balcony, looking out over the city.

  The sun was just rising over the distant mountain, casting its first bright rays of sunlight over the still sleeping city. In her mind, she pictured it in flames, with smoke and ashes blotting out the sun. People screaming in terror as the dragon killed and burned everything around it. She turned slightly and gazed at her temple, seeing it in ruins and the dead lying everywhere. What had she done? Shaking her head and closing her eyes, she rejected the fearful vision of the future. Turning, she walked back into the main room of her quarters.

  She wondered worriedly what she should do. Perhaps another sacrifice was in order once the dragon was ready to feed again. She could show Gilmreth that it was best for him to obey her. Perhaps if she couldn’t control the dragon with the Stone of Loraine, the promise of continued sacrifices might entice the dragon to continue to do her bidding. She would have Storn and Baelen double the number of sacrifices for the next ritual.

  A sudden whisper of sound alerted her to the presence of someone else in the room. She whirled, startled at the sound of quiet footsteps behind her. Jalene’s face was tight with frustration and anger, ready to lash out at whoever had dared to interrupt her deliberations.

  Storn Daes stood in the doorway, his face showing nothing of his internal thoughts or emotions, glancing stone faced at the smashed ruins of the room.

  “You summoned me, Milady?” he asked calmly, stepping into the spacious room and shutting the door firmly behind him.

  “Have our men left for Galvin?” Jalene demanded, her voice still seething with emotion, her face livid with anger.

  “They left at first light,” Storn replied, his dark blue eyes on Jalene, noticing quickly with inner satisfaction the turbulent emotional turmoil she was in. From the destruction of the room’s furnishings, she was obviously extremely upset. Something had evidently gone severely wrong with her plans. “They’re mounted on swift horses and should arrive in Galvin the day after tomorrow. They will have no trouble subduing the village. One of our temple priests is also with the guards to ensure that suitable women for the next dragon sacrifice are found. We don’t want the men despoiling potential young candidates. They’ve also been instructed in detail about the Sylvars.”

  “They may find nothing when they get there!” snapped Jalene, glaring at the man and striding back to the center of the room, kicking a broken chair across the floor. She paused, staring moodily at the glass case, which held the now quiescent Stone of Loraine. How could Gilmreth throw off the control of the stone so easily?

  “What do you mean?” Storn asked, his eyes narrowing fiercely. Hints of anger edging into his normally rock steady voice.

  The village wasn’t supposed to have been destroyed! He thought he had made that perfectly clear to Jalene earlier. He had his own personal vendetta against the Sylvars. What had this fool of a woman done? She’d better not have endangered his own plans. Her unstable emotional state had always been a problem; a major weakness.

  “What happened? Didn’t Gilmreth go to the village as ordered?” Storn demanded, his face turning dark slipping out of its concealing mask. He was getting tired of playing these ridiculous mind games with Jalene. Perhaps it was time for him to show her who was actually in charge of Draydon.

  “Gilmreth destroyed the village,” replied Jalene, turning swiftly to face Storn, startled at the anger showing on his normally emotionless face. What was so important about Galvin to him? She’d wanted the Sylvars, but what had Storn wanted? Why did he look so angry? She felt suddenly uneasy looking at Storn.

  “What do you mean Gilmreth destroyed the village? I thought you controlled the dragon!” Storn said harshly with a hint of anger in his voice. He focused his unwavering gaze steadfastly upon Jalene, looking deep into her dark eyes. “I thought we agreed you would limit Gilmreth’s feeding. That only a small part of the village would be harmed!”

  “Don’t use that tone with me, Storn!” snapped Jalene, fixing him with an icy glare. How dare Storn talk to her like that! What had gotten into the man?

  “Don’t threaten me!” Storn said darkly, h
is withering gaze meeting Jalene’s without fear. “I control the temple guards and the priests. You are nearly powerless without me. We rule Draydon together!”

  “You ungrateful fool!” growled Jalene, preparing to cast a spell, her anger coming to a boil. “You will do as I say! I and I alone rule Draydon! My sorcery is supreme. Nothing and no one can stand against me, not even you! Do you really want to die here and now?”

  She gazed at Storn, her eyes glowing in anger, ready to kill the man with just a thought. The Stone of Loraine could turn Storn into ashes in mere seconds. A bright red glow came from the stone as she tapped into its nearly limitless energy.

  “Perhaps I spook too harshly,” Storn recanted in his calmer, more pacifying voice, thinking swiftly about his options. “I was just surprised when you said Gilmreth destroyed the village.” It might be best to wait until this situation with Gilmreth was settled before he laid all his cards on the table. “But you still haven’t told me why the dragon disobeyed you.”

  Jalene eyes looked piercingly at Storn. His response was so much different than she’d expected. He seemed now to want to avoid a confrontation. She hesitated; she’d been about to use her sorcery to burn Storn to ashes where he stood, but he was right. He did control the temple guards and the priests. If she had indeed lost control of Gilmreth then she might still need Storn, at least for a while. She could gradually give Baelen more control until she was ready to remove Storn.

  He was acting so strangely, showing no fear of her at all. Didn’t he realize just a thought from her at the Stone of Lorraine was all that stood between him and imminent death? Jalene was beginning to realize there was much more to Storn Daes than she’d previously thought. She had a sudden worrisome premonition that her sorcery might not work against Storn.

  Jalene hesitated, and then answered. “Perhaps some occurrence in Gilmreth’s past; an event that occurred on the other side of Firestorm Mountain long ago, which the dragon didn’t want to repeat. Whatever it was, the dragon didn’t obey me once he was over the mountain. Gilmreth is now in a deep sleep caused by a feeding frenzy. Galvin has to have been destroyed. Nothing else could satiate the dragon to the extent I observed.”

  “Is there anything else you’re not telling me?” Storn demanded. “Do you have any idea if something around Galvin could have caused the dragon to disobey you; some force or power that could’ve frightened the dragon?” He wondered worriedly if sorcery could have been involved. Perhaps the Sylvars were not quite as powerless as he had been led to believe.

  “Frighten Gilmreth?” Jalene said, astonished, but wondered herself if she might be missing something. “The dragon fears no one! There is nothing on the other side of the mountain that could harm or threaten the dragon. No; it has to be a memory from Gilmreth’s past, perhaps from the time the dragon faced Malcon Sylvar. It’s the only thing that makes any sense.”

  “There was nothing else?” asked Storn, gazing at Jalene, his eyes seeming to stare deep into her soul.

  “No, nothing else,” replied Jalene, trying to remember everything that had occurred the previous night. “It has to be the past conflict between Gilmreth and Malcon Sylvar. The dragon must still remember it!”

  “You think Gilmreth destroyed the village completely?” continued Storn, not pleased with this unexpected development.

  “Yes,” responded Jalene, getting tired of Storn’s questions. “From the condition the dragon is in it’s obvious he destroyed the entire village. Perhaps he took out his anger from the past on the village and that’s why he destroyed it completely.”

  Storn was silent, looking contemptuously at Jalene as she turned to look toward the open balcony doorway and distant Firestorm Mountain. The mountain’s lower slopes were still covered in dark, slow moving morning shadows. Perhaps she was right. The dragon had remembered its conflict with Malcon Sylvar from many years ago, and that was why it had disobeyed Jalene. It actually made sense.

  At times, Jalene demonstrated unbelievable weakness, even with the awesome powers she possessed. The woman was still woefully inept. This problem with the dragon disobeying Jalene’s commands worried him. He wondered just how much control she had over it. He glanced at the Stone of Loraine. With the stone and her powers, the dragon should have obeyed. Why didn’t he?

  His men would arrive in Galvin soon enough and then he would know what actually happened. Even if the dragon had attacked the village, surely there would be some survivors. The Sylvars may have survived the attack. Their farm was a considerable distance from Galvin. Perhaps they could still have their sacrifice, and he his long awaited revenge.

  Of more concern was the worrisome fact that Gilmreth had demonstrated how easily he could throw off the effects of the Stone of Loraine and disobey Jalene. This was a disheartening development, one he would have to think about very carefully. He’d been uneasy from the very beginning about awakening the dragon so soon. However, without the dragon the new city of Draydon couldn’t have been built or the populace subjugated so quickly. It’d made things so much easier.

  “Don’t ever threaten me again!” Storn said quietly and firmly from behind her. “You don’t know who you’re dealing with!”

  Jalene whirled around, her face a mask of unbridled anger. “Out!” she screamed, her face white, her pupils dilated so that her eyes were black holes of rage rimmed by a thin line of red. Her fingers poised to cast a spell. The Stone of Loraine brightened visibly. She would end Storn’s life now! She was fed up with his newfound insolence!

  Storn turned and opening the door, walked calmly out, leaving Jalene standing in anger. Ignoring her rage, he shut the door firmly behind him, totally unafraid and unconcerned.

  Jalene stared at the closed door for several long moments, finding it hard to believe what had just transpired. Storn would have to be dealt with immediately. His insolence could no longer be tolerated. After all, she ruled Draydon, not him! It was her temple and her dragon. Then again, Storn knew all that and seemed unconcerned, as if he knew something she didn’t.

  That thought was enough to frighten her long after her anger faded. Why didn’t he fear her sorcery? What was the secret that Storn was hiding? Jalene had a sudden intuition that everything would soon be revealed. She felt icy fingers walk slowly down her back. For an instant, it was as if death itself had entered the room. She paused for a moment, shivering. She felt as if her childhood nightmares had returned.

  Walking over to the balcony, she looked out over Draydon, becoming lost in thought. She pulled her cloak tighter about her to fight off the morning chill. Jalene stood on the balcony for a long time dwelling on the events of the night as her gaze returned to Firestorm Mountain and the dragon that slept there.

  -

  At the head of the temple guards Anton Par, Daes’s right hand man, paused, swinging his burly form around in the saddle to glance back at the men following him. The late-morning sun shone warmly down on the temple guards as they quickly rode along the rutted road. They were armed with long hunting knives, which were all the weapons they would need to control a small village.

  Anton looked forward to the job ahead. He had been to Galvin years back and remembered the peaceful little agricultural village. His orders demanded that he bring back several qualified candidates for the next dragon sacrifice. He always took personal pleasure in checking the young women himself to see if they qualified. Of course, if they didn’t they would be turned over to his men for their own enjoyment.

  After he was through subjugating Galvin, a small detachment would be left behind to garrison the village and the temple priest would stay. The priest would begin the village’s indoctrination into the worship of the dragon and Lady Jalene, who controlled the ferocious beast.

  Urging his mount forward, Par set a quick pace. Even in a village as small as Galvin there would be booty to be divided and women, of course; there were always the women! He also had Daes’s special instructions for the Sylvars.

  The long line of horsemen wou
nd down the road, stirring up the dust as they rode forward following their leader. Many of the men came from small groups of brigands that had once preyed upon the unwary traveler or merchant; they made ideal temple guards. They would do whatever Par told them, and he obeyed Daes without question.

  Daes put the fear of God into Par. Something about the man was frightening, even deadly. Daes eyes were the coldest that Par had ever seen. He wasn’t a man to be crossed! Looking ahead, Par could see the road began to weave through the mountains following the low passes that led safely to the other side. He knew it would be cold in the passes and possibly even snowy in some places. In a few more weeks, the snow would be deeper and the passes much more difficult to pass through. Then, a few weeks after that, they would be nearly impassable.

  They would ride far into the night and then set up camp for a few hours rest before rising at dawn to continue their journey to Galvin. Daes wanted them in Galvin as soon as possible. He’d told Par that the dragon had been sent to destroy a small part of the village to soften up the villagers and prepare them for indoctrination.

  The swirling dust, stirred up by the shod hooves of the horses, floated in the air around the long line of horsemen, seeming to follow them toward the waiting mountains. All wore the dark uniforms of the temple guards with heavy black cloaks to ward off the frigid cold of the mountain passes. For the most part they rode in silence.

  -

  Lynol looked out her bedroom window toward distant snowcapped Firestorm Mountain, resplendent in the bright late morning sunlight. Never had a day seemed so bright nor colors more intense. It seemed as if it had only been a few hours since Gilmreth had destroyed Handon’s Ferry. She’d tried to get some sleep and had managed very little; only a few hours at the most! She had tossed and turned and there were the nightmares; vivid dreams of Gilmreth attacking Handon’s Ferry. They replayed themselves over and over again as Lynol slept.