Groth held up his hand as he chuckled. “We won’t rob you, and I just ate. Who are you?”
“I’m known in these parts as Nichasin, the trader of trades and chandler of chandlers.”
“Now we’re getting somewhere,” Groth replied.
“If only I were. What do you want from me?”
“We would like to know how you sparked a portion of Ereman’s words on that dagger,” said Flint. Nichasin looked about for his voice without success. The dragon emerged from his magical shroud and crouched beside them. The chandler’s eyes grew wide. “I uncovered the first part, a mage another, and a fairy queen another, and now you—but only a small portion. We have no desire to harm you, but we could use your help.”
“Fine,” Nichasin heaved a defeated sigh. It came as a surprise to Celesia that he wasn’t moved by the dragon’s appearance. “So long as you don’t speak of our meeting to anyone. I’m something of a magician, but nothing elaborate. If you want something more than canaries flying out of my sleeves, you’ll be disappointed.”
Taika flew close to Nichasin. “I see more than barter tricks in this one.”
“Off with you, horsefly!” Nichasin backhanded the fairy and missed. Taika blew him a raspberry as she flew away. “I don’t need a pesky pixie telling my life’s story.”
“But can you cast magic?” Celesia asked. “That’s all we want to know.”
“Depends on who’s asking—so who might you be?” Nichasin said, somewhat rudely. “You’re either rather gifted in dealing with strange and magical creatures or you have a serious death wish, young lady.”
“This is Princess Celesia,” Groth declared, just as a royal announcer would. “Daughter of King Lýnivad the Third, from Bëdoustram. Need more introduction?”
“Your Highness!” Nichasin bowed low on one knee. “Forgive my discourtesy to you and your friends. Do you have any idea the price your father has decreed for your return, or any news concerning your welfare? You have turned the land of LaVóndia upside down.”
“For a good reason, I can assure you,” Celesia said. “You won’t speak of our meeting, either?”
“Of course not!” Nichasin agreed. “Although why you’re residing with this lot seems unfavorable. May I ask why you’re traipsing about with these creatures?”
“What problem do you have with creatures like us?” Groth asked degradedly. “I can’t believe I’m allowing myself to be insulted in front of the Princess!”
Celesia didn’t want another quarrel to start. “They’re aiding me with a task that I must perform. Why do you have a strong prejudice against creatures of magic?”
“Begging your pardons—I haven’t had the greatest experiences in the presence of such creatures.” Nichasin stood up, and brushed the dirt from his modest velvet robe. “I attract the oddest creatures wherever I go. The other day, on the border of Trisontia, a troll ambushed me! The villagers thought I was mad after I told them of that ghastly oaf. But that’s not the worst of it.”
Groth pointed at the chandler. “It was you!”
Nichasin grunted. “It was me, what?”
Groth looked like he had solved a puzzle in his head. “Master Flint, remember our time with the elves? They spoke of a magician. They asked him to send a decree to other creatures of magic. Problem is, no one received their silly decree, did they, Mister Nichasin?”
The man looked taller when he reached his feet. He had the appearance of a young man, but his eyes were dull, if not ancient-like. Nichasin fidgeted with his robe and tied his sash with a more secure knot. “You don’t have to rub it in. I’m not the best Castor of Magic, but I’m the best I know of, and I told the woodland people what I told you. I can’t do more than simple tricks. Why they believed I had the means to send out a ridiculous decree to every creature is beyond me. I put on a show and made them think I accomplished what they desired. They threatened to hang me by the ankles for a month if I refused. What would you have done in my shoes?”
“I wouldn’t have slunk into the ground like a worm,” Groth said. “We happened to stray into their border, so you know. They had it in them to execute Celesia.”
“That’s old history, Groth,” Celesia said, holding out her hand to stop the ogre from moving forward. “Flint saved us. There’s no point in carrying this on.”
Groth relaxed his arms. “Suppose you’re right.”
Flint nodded to the chandler. “As you can see, the ogre is highly protective of our princess.”
“Quite,” Nichasin muttered. He turned and shifted for something in his beaten cart. Neither the ogre nor the dragon’s presence spooked his horse. Celesia looked at its eyes. Thanks to Master Mayhew’s teachings, she knew the horse was blind. “I’m something of a wizard, but can’t do more than sprout a new leg on a crippled frog. I don’t know what you’re doing in this forsaken land, and I don’t care. May I check my provisions for damages and move on with my sorry lot?”
Celesia bowed her head. “If you have magic enough to summon these words, I think you have more magic in you. It will flourish if you believe in yourself.”
Nichasin blinked several times. An uncomfortable silence ensued after she spoke, but Celesia meant what she had said. Many doubts had raced through her mind in the last month, with countless temptations to leave the journey and return home, but the prospect that Bëdoustram was no longer her home was the one fear that kept her moving. Nichasin ceased his browsing and walked up to her. He was nearly two feet taller than her, and his eyes beamed with a renewed glow.
“Spoken like a true daughter of royalty,” Nichasin said, bowing again. “You’re the first in many years to see me for who I am, not as others expect of me.”
Groth’s head sank below his shoulders, his furrowed brow looking abashed. “Accept our apologies?”
Nichasin nodded like a showman. “I see that you’re all weary and worn like the pebbles at the bottom of a lake stream. That’s how I’ve lived most of my life.”
“How old are you?” Celesia asked.
“I may not look much older than you, but that is a wizard’s trait,” the chandler said. “I fear I am the last, burdened by creatures of magic for petty favors.”
“What about Sarandretta, the mage of Olgena?”
“I won’t speak of her,” he said venomously.
The chandler’s response stunned Celesia. She wanted to know why he spoke that way about the mage when a terrible scream sounded over the hills. The cry turned to neighs, followed by the clomping of desperate hooves. Everyone turned to the west, searching for the creature as it approached. Nichasin’s horse bucked back, startled as another horse emerged from behind a distant hill. The stallion whipped his head, as if looking for anyone.
He paused at the huddled group staring at him.
“Hilander?!” Celesia gasped. “Is that you?”
The stallion skidded to a halt on the stony road, with panic covering every inch of his long face. Evidence of a struggle was on his side, including patches of mud and a scar on his neck. All of Celesia’s ill feelings since the stallion left them had vanished instantly.
“Please help!” Hilander shrieked. “I’ve been trying to find someone all morning. A huge monster has attacked my sister. Please follow me, or she’ll die!”
Flint scowled as he ordered Nichasin to climb on his back. The chandler didn’t seem to know what to make of this until Flint insisted, promising he would explain. Hilander offered his back to Celesia after she flung her arms around his strong white neck. She nearly cried into his long, flowing mane. Groth agreed to follow them with the horse and cart, so no one would steal them. They left in a hurry, pausing their quest to save another.
Celesia prayed that they weren’t too late.
Chapter 19
Feeling the Flight
Hilander ran at a pace that quickened Celesia’s troubled heart. Her auburn hair danced behind her shoulders as the pair dashed over the hills. Celesia never could’ve anticipated this situation, since
the stallion had made no mention of a sister. Perhaps his sister was the reason why he left their company in the first place? Although Celesia was thrilled to be with the stallion again, she had to know why he left them. Flint flew on ahead—just a minuscule speck in the distance. After an hour of hard travel, she saw the dragon hover in the air before diving to the ground. They were close to the wounded mare.
As they escalated over the last stretch of land, Celesia saw the creature in a patch of shriveled grass. Nichasin knelt by her side, while Flint crouched behind them and went invisible. The closer Hilander neared, the more serious the mare’s condition appeared. Scars covered her sleek body, blackened with burns on what would be layers of fine white hair, like her brother. Strange tracks covered the ground around her—giant claw marks.
Has a dragon done this?
The mare trembled.“Dragon ... dragon!”
“Now look what you’ve done. We should’ve landed away from her line of sight,” Nichasin reprimanded the dragon. “This poor creature has suffered enough!”
Celesia dismounted. “What happened to her?”
“Dragon ... dragon!” the mare whimpered.
“Can you help her, Magician?” Hilander asked, his voice trembling. “Can you save her?”
“Why do you insist that I do this?” Nichasin asked, facing the invisible dragon and the stallion in turn. “You demonstrated more magic by causing roots to grow out of the ground to knock me off my feet. What more can I do? Why can’t you heal this creature?”
Flint sighed. “Healing is a power that I’ve never had. Work what magic you can. If you can grow a frog’s leg, you can mend sliced skin and fractured bone.”
“Dragon ...” the mare’s voice weakened.
Nichasin studied the creature and pulled his sleeves back with a rigorous frown. He then hovered his hands over her, and placed them above her wounds. Nothing happened. Nichasin drew back and sighed with defeat. Celesia encouraged him to try again, as did the others, including Taika. Nichasin closed his eyes and pressed his hands on the mare again. A soft glow flowed from his palms. The black scars disappeared. Every blemish on her skin became new in a few miraculous seconds.
The mare stopped shaking and fell asleep. Nichasin removed his hands and collapsed, his face sweating.
Tears streamed down Hilander’s face. “Thank you, Magician. I knew you could help her.”
“She’s fortunate,” Nichasin said, gasping for breath, as if having finished a race. “That level of magic was beyond me. I don’t recall ever conjuring that much.”
“Hilander,” Flint said, removing his invisible veil. He looked cautiously relieved. “I’m without words to see you again, but do tell us what happened here.”
“You are not angry, even though I left?”
“Out with it!” Taika bellowed. “What happened to your sister? The land is scarred all around her.”
“It is hard to say, but I should start from the time I left.” Hilander lowered himself to the ground, looking as exhausted as the magician. “That night, you displayed a side of yourself that I needed to see, Princess. Your kindness to this banished fairy reminded me of my dear sister’s kindness. Being banished from my herd, I nearly lost my memory of her, the only one who would speak with me. I left to find her. My efforts were unsuccessful, that is until I found her grazing north of the ruins.
“She was so excited to see me, we danced for hours. Then I told her everything that had happened after my banishment—and when she knew that I was involved in this quest, she grew intrigued. She insisted that I bring her with me. I warned her of the many dangers, but she wanted to see you, Princess, more than anything. We thought you would have found the next fragment by now, so we planned to travel eastward to intercept you. Before sunrise this morning, that thing appeared.”
Celesia swallowed. “What thing?”
Hilander shook again. Celesia could see that he was reliving the terrible incident in his mind. “It looked like a dragon, but I can’t tell if it was one. It had wings, it heaved fire from its mouth and body, but the creature seemed without life. It was rigid—without breath. Before I knew it, the creature attacked my sister. I kicked its leg. I have never kicked anything that hard in my life. My hoof felt shattered after that. If not for the rising sun, I think the creature would have finished us.”
Flint looked to the sky. His blue eyes thinned with vengeance. “It flew away because of the sun? Did it cry or screech when the sun’s light met its scales?”
“Not a sound! It saw the sun and flew west.”
“What does that mean?” Celesia asked.
“A creature of dark magic,” Flint answered, his voice eerie and cold. “Something about these tracks ... they are lifeless. I sense the work of Alkivar in them.”
Taika darted around his head. “Is he near?”
“I can’t know for sure. Even if he is walking among us, how has his magical influence remained so strong? You’re wearing most of the Dragon’s Heart, Celesia. Without it, he’s powerless. I have no idea what has done this. Is there more to your story, Hilander?”
The stallion shook his head as he stood and walked next to his unconscious sister. He knelt beside her and drifted to sleep by her side. The others watched them. Celesia wanted to ask what his sister’s name was, but she didn’t have the heart to disturb their deserved rest. Nichasin had fallen asleep as well. The timing was right for all to be weary. The sun would set in the hour.
Flint and Celesia had nothing to do but wait for Groth to come with Nichasin’s cart. She began foraging for wood when Flint blocked her with his tail.
“No fire tonight. I dare not risk the chance of being seen in this wide of a plain, especially if a dark creature is flying in the skies. I’ll be on my guard tonight.”
“Good. I feel better when you’re around.”
He chuckled. “Can’t survive without me, huh?”
“Not at all, Flint! It’s the other way around.”
They watched the sunset until Groth appeared from the southeast. He had a flustered look on his face when he let go of the horse. The dragon explained everything that had happened while he was absent, and the ogre whistled at the tears that scarred the earth around them.
“How unusual,” Groth hummed. “These are dragon markings, but somewhat clumsy and unsophisticated. A real dragon would be ashamed of herself, if she ever left such an eyesore like this. I agree, Master Flint. There is assuredly something foul at work here.”
Without a warm fire, the ogre fixed up a flour broth. Feeling grateful, Celesia drank her meal for the night.
˙ ˚ ˚ ˚ ˙
Groth’s snoring made little difference in how the others rested. The others slept soundly in their pacifying dreams as Celesia gazed at the starry night. She feared the possibility of having to face the beast that had slashed its claws into the helpless mare. All she could do was feel the pounding of her heart as she gripped the hilt of her dagger. How many lives would be marred or lost if she didn’t find the rest of the Dragon’s Heart?
What if she couldn’t find Flint’s name?
She imagined what his true name would sound like. It had to be exotic, like the rest of his family, but no suitable name seemed right. It had to have a kingly flare.
She was certain of that.
“Why aren’t you asleep?” Flint asked from the other side of their camp, also surveying the sky. “Your heart’s beating like a frightened jackrabbit. What’s wrong?”
I don’t want to concern him any further ...
“The stars are brilliant tonight.”
“Indeed they are. The northern sky makes them so—for it holds magic. The last days of winter will depart us in the morning. A full moon will greet us tonight.”
Celesia sat up. “Another full moon?”
“Mmhmm.” Flint ceased his unending patrol of the grounds and sky, his smile broadening. “Which means we’re in luck. We’ll see a real blue moon tonight.”
Flint observed the plains while
Celesia waited for the soft glow of a full moon to appear. The sun had set a little over an hour ago. It wouldn’t be long now—just a few minutes. A soft halo loomed above the northern peaks, but something was creeping over the mountains.
A blanket of clouds rolled into the rising light.
Dark mists drowned the glowing stars. Celesia saw a faint blue light peering over the mountaintops, but the same murky overcast obstructed her view. There was no way for her to see the blue moon clearly. The clouds continued to drift southward. A thin layer of dreary mist would cover the entire sky for the rest of the night.
Celesia had stayed up for nothing.
Flint caught her frustration. “Something wrong?”
“The clouds. I wanted to see that moon.”
“Oh? I didn’t think you were interested. ” He craned his neck low. “Has it risen?”
“Yes, but it doesn’t matter. See you in the morning.”
Flint growled softly. “You’re giving up already?”
She rolled back to her side and looked at him.
“Come on, Celesia. You’re not a quitter.”
“I’m not, but there’s nothing we can do.”
Flint raised his brow. “Are you sure?”
Celesia returned his curious gesture.
“There is a way to see a blue moon in conditions like this.” The dragon crouched on all fours and lowered his head next to her. Without speaking or providing a clue, Celesia knew what he had in mind. She stood up and tied her cloak around her waist. An unusual warmth radiated from her heart the moment she climbed onto his neck. Was this safe? She had flown with the dragon a couple of times before. Why did she hesitate now?
“What about the others? Will they be safe?”
“I’ll keep an eye on them,” he answered.
The Dragon's Heart Page 18
