Dragons of Summer Tide (The Dragons of Hwandor)

by Robert Barton

  A short time later the boy had gathered his few things in his sack and he was quietly moving through the kitchen and out of the back door to the garden and then the stables. Soon he was standing inside the door to the stables listening to the sound of sleeping horses. He found his horse and he began to try and saddle it. Though he had learned how it was done he was still physically quite small and so getting a saddle on something as tall as his horse was a challenge. But he knew that he was only a few minutes away from being on his way to find his dragonet and help her.

  “Good morning,” said Cyerant. “Nice to see that you are up so early.”

  “How did you know I was out here?”

  “Because I know myself, and my father and my little brothers. You are doing what any of our family would do at your age – something stupid. I knew last night that you would come out here and try and leave.”

  “I have to find her,” the boy said as his voice cracked from tears.

  “We have to find her Daralce. We have to find her together. Family and friends – companions. You can’t do it by yourself.”

  “But I have to go now.”

  “I understand, but the sky is starting to lighten for morning. In a short while we can all go together. Come on.” Cyerant turned to go back into the tower with a reluctant younger brother in tow.

  As the two brothers walked into the kitchen of the tower they could see that Shira and Veer were now awake. Shira looked up and said. “There you are. We were starting to wonder. So you were right last night; he did try.”

  Jolss looked frustrated and just stood silently until Cyerant turned and asked him. “Are you sure that you can feel her to the west?”

  “Yes, she is that way,” the boy said pointing westward.

  “Cyool?” Cyerant looked at the Shira. She just nodded and moved over to the door and opened it. Cyool followed her to the opened door and then went outside and a moment later the sound of her wings driving her into the sky came back through the door.

  A short time later the companions were leaving the gates of the city and heading west. This time there were no puppies with them, the non-bonded dragonets having been left at the stables with instruction to the orphan from the inn to feed them meat each day and enough gold to cover the expense. The company that started on the westward road was made up of two young men, a young woman and a boy who looked about eleven years old. Each was riding a horse and there was one pack horse, a yearling looking colt and a big guard dog. And they were moving quickly.

  “I hope that the old man is going to be alright,” said Veer.

  “He is,” said Jolss. “I found a passage about what happened to him. He almost killed himself with that spell. But if it were going to kill him he would have died right then. He could have burnt himself out and been unable to ever do magic again but if that would have happened he most likely would have died soon after. So he is definitely going to live and will probably still be able to do magic. But he is going to sleep for a few days and he will be weak for at least a sevenday or maybe a couple of sevendays.

  “I think Cyool has found something,” said Shira. “There are a lot of travellers on the road but most are coming toward Deelt because the ferry got burned out. But there is a single man headed west and he has two horses and a pack animal. And he is moving really quickly. To get that far ahead he must have rode most of the night.”

  “Why do you think that it is him?” Asked Veer.

  “Because Green Eyes is following him.”

  Cyerant said. “That’s right, I haven’t seen Green Eyes around.”

  “Not since yesterday before I got attacked. She followed Partonius and me around the city,” said Jolss.

  Veer said. “If Green Eyes is there I wonder why she doesn’t just bite him. She seems to want to bite everyone else.”

  “Poison ropes,” said Shira. Cyool can smell them on the air. He must have Prin tied up with one in order to keep her from escaping. And that would explain why Green Eyes is keeping her distance.”

  “How far ahead is he?” Asked Cyerant.

  “He is already at least a day ahead,” said Shira. “There is something in the woods.”

  Veer pulled his sword and turned toward the forest beside the road as Drace started to dart off toward the nearby trees. “Where?” Demanded Veer.

  “Not Here,” said Shira. “There where the man is riding. The road I still following the river on one side but in the trees on the right side of the road there are people, or something. Cyool can’t quite make them out but there are several of them and they seem to be moving along through the tress keeping pace with the man.”

  “Great, now someone else knows that he has a dragon and wants it too,” said Veer.

  Jolss urged his horse into run along the road dodging the occasional traveller here and there.

  “Daralce, “Cyerant called as he pushed his own horse into a run.

  Shira and Veer just urged their horses into a gallop knowing that Cyerant would catch Jolss soon enough and they would catch up before long.

  A few minutes later Cyerant, being a much more experienced rider, rode up along side of Jolss and then he urged his horse a little ahead so that he could lean over and grab the bridle of the horse on which Jolss was riding. Cyerant then slowed both horses down and brought them to a stop.

  “Let me go Cyerant.”

  “No, you can’t run the horse all the way there, you would kill the animal and then be on foot and never catch the man. We all go together – we stay together.” Said Cyerant. “Now we will wait here for the others to catch up and let these two horses rest.”

  A short time later the companions were once again riding together when Veer spoke. “What are we going to do about those foreigners who are around trying to catch dragons? We are bound to meet some soon enough. I’m all for fighting them.”

  “Fighting the foreigners isn’t our goal, getting the dragon back is.” Answered Cyerant.

  Veer sighed in frustration and continued. “So do we have Cyool come back and warn us to go into the woods when the foreigners are near?”

  “Cyerant shaking his head said. “No, that would slow us down. Cyool should keep an eye on the man that we are following. We will keep riding on the road as quickly as we can and Corth and Drace can stay in the woods and shadow us travelling along beside us. That way if we see any foreigners the dragons can still move through in the trees hidden from view.” Cyerant glanced at Corth and gave a mental direction and the dragon bounded happily toward the trees and disappeared into the undergrowth of the forest.

  “Alright,” said Veer. Drace quickly joined Corth in the trees.

  “The party rode on as quickly as they could without harming the horses. Shira could feel her dragon far ahead and occasionally caught glimpses of what the dragon was seeing. Jolss could feel Prin as she was growing weaker somewhere ahead of him. Cyerant and Veer could feel their dragons moving along through the forest keeping just out of sight and pacing the companions.

  They made s few short stops during the day in order to rest the horses. Once during the day they passed a set of Ducal guards who seemed bored and thought nothing of the companions as they continued their own search. Well after dark Cyerant called a halt and the small company went into the trees to make camp. They ate a cold meal from their packs and set their watches and rolled into their blankets to sleep. Shira had first watch and noticed that near the end of her watch the man that they were following finally left the road and himself made a cold camp. She woke Veer to take second watch and as she was preparing to sleep Cyool showed her glimpses of the man as he hobbled the horses so that they could eat in a small meadow. She also watched as the man pulled out his little prisoner and gave it food and water and then stuffed the poor creature back into the sack. As Shira drifted off to sleep she had an idea which she shared with Cyool and with a satisfied feeling she fell into a deep sleep.

  *****

  Cyool had been airborne for all of one day and half of a n
ight with only a few short breaks to rest and drink. She landed far enough away from the man so that he could not hear her wings and she waited and rested while the man went to sleep. She felt a deep sense of satisfaction for what she was about to do. Once she was sure that the man was in a deep sleep she quietly went to the small meadow like clearing in the forest where the horses were hobbled. The horses watched as a harmless dog walked up to their ropes tied to their feet and dug the stakes securing the ends out of the ground. Then the harmless dog rose up on her hind legs and spread her wings and hissed at the terrified horses. The horses fled in horror and though they were very tired from a long day they would run until they were exhausted.

  What a wonderful idea and Cyool felt so happy that she had done as she was asked. The dragon only changed the plan a little bit and instead of scaring away all three animals, she ate one. It had, after all, been a long day. Then she found a nice place to sleep. She noticed the four watchers in the forest but she knew that they meant her no harm as they watched the man and as they watched her sleep.

  Dinmael awoke very early just as the first pre-dawn bird songs began. He prepared himself to travel by feeding and watering his little prisoner and eating a quick breakfast of dried meat and water. He organized his packs and he was ready to get moving before dawn even started to lighten the sky. The last step was to fetch his horses from the nearby clearing but when he got to the edge of the clearing there were none to be found. He ran to where he had left the animals tied to hobbles and he found that someone or something had dug up the stakes that he had driven into the ground. He started to search the area for his horses and mule. He soon stumbled onto his mule but something had killed it – and eaten part of it.

  The man went back to his camp to retrieve his short bow and then he made his way to the tree line where he had a clear sight of the road. He knew that he was going to have to waylay a couple of lone travellers. He also remembered from the day before that most people travelled in groups on this road so he knew that this could take a while, so he sat with his back against a tree. He was just settling in to wait for a single traveller to come down the road and into range when an arrow found him and he died waiting quietly in the brush just inside the edge of the forest – sitting there leaning on a tree with his still open but sightless eyes never seeing a road that they still watched.

  A very short time later one of the watchers slipped, like a shadow, into the camp. So quietly did she move that had anyone been left alive in the camp he would not have noticed her passing. There she found a cloth sack atop the packs and saddle. She carefully opened it and took out the tiny prisoner, no larger than a raven. While she moved into the camp even Green Eyes, sitting in the tree tops, had not noticed her until she held the young magic dragon in her hand. Now Green Eyes watched intently as the first rays of dawn glinted off of a dagger poised at the throat of her sister. Then a moment later a simple flick of a wrist ended it.

  The hated poisoned twine fell on the ground and with another quick flash of the dagger the second twine had been cut from the leg of the dragonet and she was free. The poor little dragon was exhausted and very weak but she would survive. Cradling the small creature in her hands and holding it next to her breast the watcher willed some of her strength into the animal as she silently slipped back into the forest causing no more disturbance than a gentle breeze blowing through the brush.

  *****

  As the first dawn songs began the companions all awoke Cyerant who had taken last watch had started a small fire and cooked some porridge of oats and dried fruits sweetened with honey. The smell of the smoke and food heartened the others. Cyerant said. “Eat quickly so we can get moving. It is going to be a long day and we will need the energy. We will have to move quickly if we are going to catch that man. He is probably already up and in the saddle.”

  “No, not yet,” said Shira. “He won’t be in the saddle for a while.”

  “Oh, can Cyool already see him?” Asked Veer.

  “No Cyool is just starting to wake up, she was very tired from yesterday. Last night after the man went to sleep as I was going to sleep myself I sent Cyool to scare away the horses. So the man has no horses right now, and he isn’t going get very far or go very quickly until he can get some more.”

  “Good idea,” said Cyerant. “But be careful with these foreigners; remember those ropes that they have. We don’t want to have to rescue two dragons.”

  “Something has changed,” said Jolss. “Something is different with Prin. I can still feel her but she doesn’t feel as weak or like she is in pain anymore. I don’t still feel like something hot is tied around my neck and my ankle.”

  “Maybe she escaped,” said Veer.

  “I don’t know. I can feel her there but she isn’t trying to reach out to me so maybe she is asleep.”

  “Well, let’s get the horses saddled and get moving because we have a much better chance of catching up to that man now.” Cyerant said as he stood and started to head toward the horses with his saddle. Veer and Shira quickly followed with Veer carrying his own saddle along with Jolss’s saddle. It went faster if Veer did the saddling while Jolss cleaned up from the meal. A very short time later the companions were moving. And Cyool was once again in the air while Drace and Corth shadowed the companions through the forest.

  For some time Shira had Cyool search the area around the man’s camp but all of the glimpses that the dragon shared with the girl showed and empty camp with packs stacked and waiting. Shira assumed that the man must be hiding near the road somewhere so that he could try and steal some horses to continue his journey. Cyool kept sharing glimpses of something else but Shira could never quite tell what it was. There seemed to be four of them in the thickest parts of the forest near the camp. They were some kind of creature but Cyool could never get a clear view of them.

  “So we can catch up to them today if he has no horses? Jolss asked.

  “I doubt today,” said Cyerant. “He was too far ahead.”

  “If he doesn’t get horses and start moving again we will catch up some time, in the late morning tomorrow.” Added Shira. “He must be hiding in the trees because Cyool can’t see him anywhere just his empty camp with his packs all ready and waiting. I’ll have her go down and look for him.”

  “No,” said Cyerant. “Not worth risking those ropes if he has seen her. He might be trying to trap her too. We’ll just keep moving and hope that he doesn’t get any horses.”

  “And if he does get any, Cyool can scare them away in the night too,” said Shira. “Cyool enjoyed doing that, she thinks that the horses were fun to scare and delicious…. Oh, oh I’m going to be sick – she… she ate one of the horses. Oh gross. Have your dragons ever shown you what something tastes like?”

  “Nope, never,” Veer said as he started to laugh. “And considering some of the things that I have seen Drace eat, I’m glad.” Cyerant and even Jolss joined into the laughter. It was the first time in many days that any of them really laughed.

  The day passed uneventfully as the companions rode west. Again they passed a party of guards who did not seem to think that Cyerant fit the description of the young man they were looking for. Cyool kept watching the camp but never saw the man return. Shortly after sundown Cyerant called for a halt.

  “If we ride through the night we can catch up to Prin before dawn and take the man while he is sleeping,” Jolss said as he remained on his horse while the others dismounted and started removing their packs and saddles.

  “Nice plan Daralce,” said Cyerant. “Except that we need these horses and we can’t ride them into the ground. After we get Prin back we have to get back to Deelt and arrange our journey to Verat City. The air feels like there is going to be an early winter this year and so we are going to be travelling through the cold. We will get her back – tomorrow.”

  A frustrated Jolss got off of his horse then and sulked about the camp until it was time for him to go to sleep. Cyerant woke the boy early and for the first time
he shared one of the night watches. He insisted on waking everyone early, before even the pre-dawn bird songs started and by the time the sky started to lighten the companions were on their way.

  The companions made one short midmorning stop to rest the horses and to relieve themselves. They passed a few travellers moving east toward Deelt. The time passed quietly and shortly before noon Shira called a halt. “His camp is back in the forest from here. Cyool is looking around but his camp hasn’t changed at all. It’s like he just vanished. And there is still something watching – actually four somethings watching.”

  “I can feel Prin nearby,” Jolss said. “She is in that forest somewhere but she still feels like she is sleeping.”

  “Well, now we know why she hasn’t seen him,” Veer said to Cyerant who nodded in agreement.

  “Who hasn’t seen what?” Asked Shira.

  “Cyerant said. “You, well actually Cyool hasn’t seen the man who took Prin. He’s dead. Just inside the brush line. Corth and Drace just found him.

  “I’m going to find her,” said Jolss as he jumped down from his horse and headed for the trees.

  “Not till we know how he died,” said Cyerant. “And we search together. Something killed him and it may still be around here.”

  The companions looked up as they heard that familiar shrieking of Green Eyes in the nearby trees. “There’s a sound I didn’t miss,” said Shira as he dismounted and headed for the tress as a dog sized dragon landed beside her.

  “She’s probably what killed the foreigner,” Veer said as he too dismounted and followed Shira.

  “Let them check and see how he died, Cyerant said. “Then we can make a search plan and find your dragon.”

  A short time later Veer and Shira returned. “Arrow,” said Veer. “An arrow killed him. He is just sitting there with his eyes open like he is watching the road. But there is an arrow in his side buried very deeply into his heart.”

  “A strange arrow too,” Shira said. “Not a Hillfolk arrow and not one of those arrows like the foreigners use. It looks almost delicate. Long and thin with grey fletching.”