Whispers of Time

by Gwendolyn Ilimaris

  Paige rolled her eyes, “It doesn’t make me uncomfortable. It does make me wonder why in the world you’d pick me to date if you’re so much older than me.”

  “You are special,” he said with a smile. It slipped from his face a second later when he noticed the look of disapproval on Jake’s face. “I believe we should discuss this later.” Raven made a point not to look back at Jake.

  They all fell silent for a while before Jake looked back over at Raven. He still did not understand something.

  “If Rin is considered to be very young, why does she have so much responsibility?” he asked. “I have heard some of the elven warriors refer to her as a general and that is how she introduced herself to my father.”

  Raven looked up to reply but glanced behind Jake instead. Jake turned around and found Wren standing there looking down at him.

  “Why do you wish to know about my sister?” His expression gave nothing away as he regarded Jake.

  “Mostly curiosity, I guess,” Jake replied. “I’m still trying to figure out how this world works, and something seems off with your sister somehow.”

  Wren tilted his head and his eyebrow rose before he sat down next to him. “You appear to be far more intuitive than I gave you credit for,” he began. “You are correct in your observation that what involves Rin is not the norm.” Jake nodded but did not say anything as he waited for Wren to continue. “You are also correct that she has far too much burden on her shoulders for one so young. Knowing what I do now, I believe our father placed this burden upon her out of spite. She would not become what he wanted her to be, so he would assign her impossible tasks. He attempted to cause her to fail.” He paused with a grimace and looked over to make sure Kaedin and Rin were still asleep. “I have said too much. She does not know father tried to set her up to fail. Be certain that none of you speak of this.” Once they all nodded, he stood up to leave.

  “So, she really is a general?” Jake asked.

  Wren frowned, “Yes, she is the general of the dragon riders and a commander of the ground troops.” He paused, and his expression became serious. “She is quite skilled and performs as one far beyond her years due to my father’s constant pressure. Now, no more about my sister. It is time for us to leave. Prepare yourselves.” Without waiting on a response, he walked away.

  Rin woke after what felt like only a few minutes to Kaedin gently shaking her by the shoulder. She rubbed her eyes trying to keep them open when she looked up at him. When she moved to sit up she gasped. Her whole body felt like it was being jabbed by tiny pins and needles. Looking down at her arm, she noticed that the veins were still getting darker. She opened and closed her hands while rotating her forearms. Everything still seemed to be working right. She did not want to have an issue when she was up on Kaedin and prove her brother right.

  “He is watching,” Kaedin whispered to her. “Are you certain that you will be all right? You appear worse.”

  She looked up at Kaedin and could see his face was drawn with worry. He glanced out of the corner of his eye in Wren’s direction before he shifted enough that she was hidden from view. She grimaced as she fought to repress the pain running through her.

  “I shall be fine,” she replied, her voice determined as she stood up and looked over at her brother. He raised an eyebrow in response before turning to gather his things off the ground.

  “How long do you estimate she has before she cannot handle it anymore?” Wren asked as he looked up at Jaeha.

  “Hours at most,” he replied with a low growl. “We shall have to remain close.”

  Wren was not pleased as he glanced beside him when he noticed movement. He watched as Jake walked up to him while Jake spun the staff in his hand.

  “I guess I’m with you this time,” Jake said, his voice giving away his discomfort.

  “Get situated and I shall be up in a few minutes.” Wren replied before he headed over to where Rin and Sara were climbing onto Kaedin. Rin was already in place when Wren reached them.

  “Take my hand,” Rin said as she reached down. Sara stood on her tiptoes while balancing on Kaedin’s front leg and was just able to reach Rin’s hand. Once Sara had a firm grip, Rin pulled her up in one smooth motion. Sara scrambled to get to the open spot in Kaedin’s spines behind Rin.

  “Are all of you prepared?” Wren asked when he stopped beside Kaedin.

  “Yes,” Rin said, her voice sharp. She gripped her hand while it sent sharp pains up her arm after helping Sara.

  Wren noticed and sighed but chose not to argue with her. She would find out soon enough that she would not be able to stay alone on Kaedin. He walked back to Jaeha and once he was on his back all the dragons again rose into the sky.

  “We should practice the mind blocking spell,” Rin said after they were in the air for a while. “You must learn to use it as soon as possible.”

  Sara hesitated, “Are you sure you’re okay for that?”

  “Yes, I am fine,” Rin’s reply was short when she glanced back over her shoulder.

  Sara looked down at Kaedin’s back. “I can feel you shaking,” she whispered.

  “I am fin--.”

  “I can as well,” Kaedin interrupted.

  Rin sighed before she slid forward enough that she was no longer touching Sara. “Both of you shall quit worrying this instant,” she said, her voice still short. “I am not foolish enough to continue when I cannot handle something. If it becomes too severe, I shall tell you. Now, not another word about it.”

  Kaedin let out a low growl but wisely did not say anything else. Rin frowned when she could sense he was unhappy with her.

  “Okay,” Sara said. “I will practice.”

  A little while later, Sara had made no progress in being able to use the spell on her own. She still needed Rin to push her magic out and was becoming frustrated. Rin finished helping her for the fifteenth time when Rin leaned forward suddenly. She rested her head on Kaedin’s back for a few moments before she sat up, her breathing increasing.

  “I need you to land,” she gasped. “I am going to be sick.”

  Kaedin looked down and his face grew concerned, “I cannot land.” They were flying over the southern end of an enormous lake and the closest shore was a couple miles away.

  Rin looked around for a moment trying to figure out what to do before she slid to the right. She held onto the spines on his back to keep from falling off.

  “Slide forward and hold on,” she said between hard swallows. “I shall return in a moment.” She climbed forward a little bit before she slid down Kaedin’s front right leg. He opened his claw and caught her. She managed to pull herself forward enough to be hanging off the edge of his claw before she began to vomit. It was several minutes before she eased back into his claw. She laid there until her stomach stopped churning and her breathing returned to normal.

  “Please help me back up,” she said, her voice quiet.

  Kaedin lifted his claw as high as he could, and Rin made the short jump back to his back. She grabbed at and almost missed the spines on his back. Sara gasped and clutched at her arm causing Rin to flinch with a gasp, but she allowed Sara to help her back into place. Once she was sitting again, she laid her head against his back.

  “Thank you,” she whispered.

  Sara was concerned as she looked down at her. When she grabbed Rin’s arm, she could feel that Rin was burning with fever and Sara wondered how she could keep going. Rin heard her thought and closed her eyes against the rising nausea.

  ‘I do not wish to be a burden,’ Rin thought.

  “I don’t think they’ll think you’re a burden if you let your brother help you,” Sara said.

  Rin sat up and turned so that she could see Sara, “I did not say that out loud.” She flipped her left hand over and attempted a simple spell. Her eyes widened when it did not work. “I cannot do magic.” She gasped as a wave of coughing shook her body and when she pulled her hand back there was a small streak of blood.

  “
I believe I have reached my limit,” she muttered.

  Kaedin growled but before he could respond he suddenly veered to the right as multiple black orc arrows streaked by barely missing them. Rin spun in place when she heard Sara scream. She was not holding on like she was supposed to and went flying off Kaedin’s back. Kaedin tucked his wings and plummeted down while he spiraled around so that he could drop underneath her. He caught up to her in seconds and swooped under her. Attempting to slow down, he spread his wings with slow movements, so he did not slow too fast. Once they were fully extended, they drifted upward toward her.

  Rin reached out to grab Sara’s hand, but she was flailing around too much. “Take my hand!” She yelled as she reached for her again.

  Kaedin struggled to remain level as he was forced to continue to drop as Rin tried to catch Sara. When they were not far above the water, he noticed they were too close to shore. He roared when the orcs started firing more arrows at him and they bounced off his side.

  “Reach Sara!” Kaedin was distracted for a moment when Rin yelled at Sara again. He let out a small pained roar when he could not dodge the large rock, thrown by a troll, and it slammed into his wing. The main bone in the front of his wing cracked from the force of the impact.

  “Come on, Sara!” Rin tried again to get hold of her, but her hand slipped through hers. She glanced away from Sara for a moment and paled when she saw the orcs reloading another volley. As they pulled back their bows, Jaeha appeared between them and the orcs. He breathed a massive cold breath attack as he flew by them. Rin finally managed to get hold of Sara and pulled her back onto Kaedin’s back. As soon as Kaedin felt her back in place, he pulled up and began to climb. He was at such a steep angle both girls leaned forward to stay with him. Jaeha kept pace at his side until they were out of range. Kaedin was panting from the strain of carrying two and his injured wing. He floundered in the air for a second before Jaeha bumped his side with his nose to get him righted.

  “Glide,” Jaeha said while he flew beside him. Kaedin opened his wings as far as he could and started to regain his breath. He glanced back over his shoulder his face filled with worry. Rin, who was now past her point of endurance, was collapsed forward on his back beside the spines. She was exhausted.

  “Hold steady,” Wren called to the dragons as Jaeha and Hikaru glided up right next to Kaedin. Wren leapt off Jaeha and landed on Kaedin behind Sara. Kaedin growled when he floundered again with the sudden added weight.

  Jaeha nudged him, “Easy.”

  Kaedin did not reply as he struggled to remain in the air while Wren grabbed Sara and leapt with her onto Hikaru. Raven helped Sara sit down in front of him. Once Wren was certain that she was safe, he jumped back to Kaedin.

  “I cannot heal you in the air,” he said as he picked up Rin off his back. “We shall take the added weight and divert course to a protected valley. Can you make another twenty miles?”

  “Yes,” Kaedin replied with a pained growl. His wing was sending sharp pains into his side. Wren leapt back over to Jaeha, leaving Kaedin with no passengers. He sat back down and put Rin in front of him. The dragons made a wide sweeping turn and headed to the south, toward the closer mountain peaks.

  “There is a valley beside that mountain,” Wren said as he pointed to a peak in the distance. “It is protected on all sides by steep cliffs and there is fresh water. We shall have to remain there a day or two until Rin and Kaedin recover. The stronghold is too far.” He looked back at Jake and when he only nodded, he turned his attention back to Rin. He had laid her sideways across Jaeha’s back so that he could see her face. She was resting back against the arm around her back.

  “I told you to stay with me and not return to Kaedin,” he said, his voice firm. “I have witnessed what this poison causes.”

  Rin gave him a dirty look before she sat up off his arm. “If I had then Kaedin would have had to catch Jake and Sara.” She paused to take a couple breaths. “If Jaeha were to bank too sharp now, Jacob would fall. He is not holding on with his legs.”

  Wren glanced back and sighed when he saw that she was right. He raised an eyebrow and Jake shrugged with a slight grimace.

  “Sorry,” he mumbled.

  Wren turned back around when he felt Rin collapse back against his arm. She was coughing again, and her breathing was becoming labored.

  “Be at ease,” he said, his voice gentle. “This is the worst part and by tomorrow it should start to lessen.” She only nodded and closed her eyes.

  A little less than an hour later they came upon the valley in the mountains that Wren mentioned. It was a beautiful haven locked in between snowcapped peaks. There was a small lake in the middle that was fed by a waterfall that ran down from the mountain above. There was a small clearing to the south of the lake and the rest of the valley was filled with trees.

  The dragons made one large pass before they dropped to the ground in the clearing. Kaedin moved into the cover of the trees and plopped down. He left his injured wing stretched out. Hikaru just laid down where he landed. Even though he was much larger than Kaedin, carrying three was difficult for him. Raven reached up to help Paige and Sara down when Wren walked up to him.

  “I know that you are already tired,” he said glancing at Hikaru. “However, I must know what is in that orc party and whether it is safe to remain here. I need the two of you to scout them.”

  Once Paige and Sara were off his back, Hikaru stood back up. Raven jumped up onto his back, “We shall return as soon as we are able.”

  “Stay out of sight and be cautious,” Wren said. Raven bowed his head before Hikaru eased off the ground. Paige and Sara raised their arms to cover their faces from the wind created by his wings. Once he was far enough off the ground Paige watched them fly away. Her face was worried when she looked back at Sara. She did not want him to go back.

  Hikaru flew hard away from the valley and headed back the way they had come. They made the flight back to the lake in half the time now that Hikaru was not concerned about dropping Sara and Paige.

  “Arāesya,” Raven said when they approached the shore. They disappeared from view and Hikaru landed in an open portion of the beach a fair distance from where they were attacked by the orcs. Once on the ground, he crouched down and concealed himself under the cover of the trees. Raven slid off his back and disappeared into the forest without a word. He slipped through the dense underbrush without making a sound. After a few minutes, he heard the guttural sound of orc voices up ahead. He slowed and crept forward until the edge of a clearing came into view. Easing closer, he concealed himself in a bush as he watched the activity. There were several dozen orcs rushing around gathering and sharpening weapons. He watched for a few minutes before his eyebrows shot up in surprise. Several humans entered the clearing from the far side. They retrieved some of the weapons before returning the way they came.

  Raven eased out of the bushes and skirted around the clearing. He caught up to them and followed as they led him to a second, much larger clearing. Pausing, he glanced all around before he slipped across the path unseen. He started to move through the underbrush again when something large, moving in the clearing, caught his eye. His breath caught in his throat when he saw a fully grown elder red dragon in the middle of the clearing. He hesitated for only a moment before he moved as close to the dragon as he dared.

  “You are a fool,” the dragon snapped.

  Raven frowned when he could not see who it was speaking to and shifted to the side to try and get a glimpse. The dragon snapped its tail and Raven’s eyes narrowed in anger when he saw Jyldar.

  “My plan would have succeeded if the orcs were not useless creatures,” Jyldar said as he folded his arms over his chest.

  The dragon roared and whipped around to face him, “If you had waited on the rest of the dragons like you were told, the prince and that entire unit would be dead. Instead, he has now escaped due to your incompetence.”

  Jyldar flinched back from the dragon. It was so angry that s
mall flames were beginning to spark from its mouth.

  Raven took several cautious steps backwards so that he could head back to Hikaru. He had to get this information back to Wren. He only made it a few steps when the dragon whipped around and sniffed the air.

  “It appears that you have an uninvited guest,” it growled as it looked in Raven’s direction. Raven froze in place until he noticed Jyldar look right at him. He glanced down and cursed when he realized his invisibility spell wore off. Without looking back up, he took off at a sprint into the trees.

  “Stop him!” Jyldar yelled.

  Dozens of orcs and humans chased after Raven, but he did not slow as he dodged around trees and leapt over clumps of bushes. When he reached the smaller clearing, he let out a high, shrill whistle as he continued to run. More orcs leapt to their feet and took up the chase. Arrows were whistling by all around him when he broke out of the tree cover. As soon as he was out in the open, Hikaru plucked him up off the ground and flew away at top speed. Raven scrambled up his leg and climbed onto his back.

  “They have an elder red,” he said as he sat down between the spines. Hikaru growled under his breath and pushed himself to fly faster. They did not make it far before they heard an ear-splitting roar from behind them. Raven rotated to look back and saw the red dragon rising up out of the trees. It headed straight toward them. Hikaru shifted their course and headed away from the valley. He continued to fly hard and managed to keep the larger dragon from catching them until they were back by the mountains. It breathed a large stream of fire in their direction causing Hikaru to go into a sharp dive to avoid it. Spinning to the side, Hikaru streaked into a tight corridor through several mountain peaks where he had the advantage. He was much more maneuverable than the massive red dragon. The larger dragon trailed behind him and waited for its moment to strike. As soon as the narrow pass ended the red dragon lunged at him. It slammed into his side and knocked him into the side of a cliff. Hikaru roared in pain but twisted enough that he could breathe an ice attack in its face. The red dragon backed off to shake off the ice. Hikaru took the opening and shot ahead of it. Howling in anger, the red dragon breathed a fireball at him which he only managed to dodge partway. It collided with the left side of his back. He roared in pain again but managed to duck behind a large outcrop, hiding them from view.