“Be quiet, Jaker,” scowled the leader as he stared suspiciously at Gorgi.
The leader’s eyes rose and scanned the forest for any signs of other tribesmen. He saw nothing to disturb him.
“Dismount,” the leader said loudly. “We are going to accept Gorgi’s invitation. Stay alert.”
The Jiadin dismounted and tied their horses to the trees. The leader approached Gorgi and extended his sword hand in promise of a truce. Gorgi readily grasped the leader’s hand.
“I am Niger,” stated the leader. “Although we have never met, I have heard of you, Gorgi. You are known as an excellent tracker and swordsman. The Extala should be proud to have you.”
“The Extala were always proud to have me among their fold,” smiled Gorgi, “but the tribes are not what they used to be. Today everyone is considered a Fakaran. There is no more rivalry.”
“Tell that to the tens of thousands of Jiadin who still roam the wilds,” retorted Niger.
“The Jiadin are Fakarans,” insisted Gorgi. “You are our brothers, and you will be accepted into the fold.”
“And live in cities like women and children?” balked Niger. “That will never come to pass. Real Fakarans are warriors, not farmers.”
“I don’t know,” shrugged Gorgi as he walked to the fire and rotated the clova. “I like a good fight as much as any man, but I also want the chance to have a wife and children. Besides, there is going to plenty of fighting to come soon enough.”
All of the Jiadin had gathered around the fire. They were all listening intently to the conversation.
“Fighting?” Jaker asked suspiciously. “What fighting? Are the tribes coming after the Jiadin again?”
“The tribes have been trying to round up the Jiadin,” confessed Gorgi, “but to welcome them as brothers, not to exterminate them. Thousands have already joined with us, but that is not what I was talking about.”
“What were you talking about?” asked Niger.
“The Dragon Prophecy,” Gorgi sighed. “Haven’t you heard about it?”
“There are dragons…” began one of the Jiadin.
“Shut up,” shouted Niger. “I am talking to Gorgi,” he said more calmly. “Why don’t you men begin eating? And make sure that you save some for me.”
The men started carving the clova, but there attention was still on the conversation.
“What is this prophecy that you talk about?” asked Niger.
“It was foretold that one day Fakara would be engulfed with dragons,” stated Gorgi. “The dragons would terrorize the riders of the plains and the hikers of the mountains. The dragons would multiply and continue to feast upon man and horse alike until the new king arrives.”
“King?” echoed Niger. “We don’t need no king.”
“Ah,” smiled Gorgi, “but we do because that is the only way that the dragons will stop eating us. You do not have to worry about bowing down to any king, though. That king just might be you.”
“Me?” laughed Niger. “Now that is a prophecy that I like. I would make a good king.”
“You might at that,” smiled Gorgi. “All you have to do is defeat the King of the Dragons in battle. Whoever does that will be King of Fakara.”
“One man against a dragon?” balked Niger. “What fool would attempt that?”
“That is why I am here,” retorted Gorgi. “I plan to fight the King of the Dragons.”
Niger stared at Gorgi with skepticism. He stepped back to take the measure of a warrior who would willingly pit himself against a dragon. He shook his head.
“You may be good, Gorgi,” stated Niger, “but no man is that good. You would be better off riding with us. You have shown that you have courage.”
“Someone must defeat the dragons,” replied Gorgi. “For when the dragons are gone, the real battle begins.”
“What real battle?” asked Niger. “What are you talking about?”
“The invasion that is coming,” answered Gorgi. “You really need to learn more about these prophecies. A massive army is coming from across the seas. Over a million men will seek to annihilate all life, not just in Fakara, but in Khadora and Omunga as well.”
“Nonsense,” blustered Niger. “These are tales that you spinning. Nowhere in the world is there such an army.”
“You call them tales,” Gorgi shook his head, “but the prophecies are real. You may not believe in dragons, but I can tell you right now that the Bone Mountains and the Giaming Mountains are full of them. The Fakarans are sending all their women and children to the eastern coast to safeguard them.”
“There are dragons to the east?” Niger asked anxiously.
“Lots of them,” nodded Gorgi. “I am on my way to the Bone Mountains to find the King of Dragons and battle him. Oh, why bother. You can’t possibly understand what I am trying to tell you. You probably have never seen a dragon.”
“Oh we have seen them,” frowned Niger. “They infest the Fortung Mountains in the west. That is why we were heading east. Is there no place safe any more?”
“According to the prophecies,” replied Gorgi, “there is only one place that the dragons will not go, that is until the King of Fakara is crowned.”
“Where is that?” asked Niger.
“Vandegar,” answered Gorgi. “It is said that the dragons will avoid Vandegar. It is forbidden for them to approach it. But on the day when the King of Dragons is defeated, the new King of Fakara will ride the King of Dragons, and he will fly to Vandegar to gather all Fakarans to prepare for battle against the evil horde from across the sea. That is when the real fighting will begin.”
“Vandegar?” frowned Niger. “That place is a dust bowl. There is nothing to eat there.”
“I heard that the Fakarans are sending wagonloads of food there to feed the people,” shrugged Gorgi.
“Why would they do that?” questioned the leader. “There are likely to only be Jiadin there.”
“As I said before,” answered Gorgi, “the Fakarans want the Jiadin to join with them for this great war that is coming. They must feel that they have to keep you alive until then. At least that is what I think.”
“Is this true?” asked Niger. “Have you seen any of these food caravans?”
“I saw one when I left the new city of Meliban,” nodded Gorgi. “Of course, many Jiadin are electing to just join with the Fakarans now. You could do that as well. I know that you and your men would be welcomed.”
“We are fighters,” Niger shook his head. “We have no use for cities.”
“Then Vandegar is your only hope,” replied Gorgi, “unless you each plan to fight the King of Dragons alone.”
Niger looked up and stared at the distant peaks of the mountains to the east. He sighed and shook his head.
“I think we will continue east for a while to see if what you say is true,” declared Niger.
“Understandable,” nodded Gorgi. “Many men must learn things the hard way. Let me ask you a question, Niger. If you find dragons, and I am sure that you will, will you return to Vandegar or fight them.”
“Fighting dragons is not a fair fight,” Niger shook his head. “If you have told the truth, we will turn towards Vandegar and sample the Fakaran food, but we are not going to live in any city.”
“And if the day comes when the King of Fakara flies to Vandegar,” probed Gorgi, “will you join with him to defeat the evil hordes?”
“I find your prophecy hard to believe,” chuckled Niger. “I cannot imagine an army so large, but the Jiadin were born to fight. If your king flies to Vandegar on a dragon, then I will believe your tall tales.”
“Fair enough,” smiled Gorgi. “I have a large sack of food near my log. I am not going to need it where I am going. You are welcome to take it with you to Vandegar.”
“You are leaving now?” asked Niger as Gorgi started walking to his horse.
“I am,” nodded Gorgi. “It is time for me to try my hand at slaying a dragon. Good luck to you and your men, no matter wh
at path you take.”
The Jiadin watched the tribesman leave. They quickly returned to devouring the clova.
“Do you believe his tales?” asked Jaker. “I think it is a bunch of nonsense.”
“It might be,” mused Niger, “but I wonder what the point of it would be. I do know that Brakas was working for someone overseas. So were those strange magicians that hung around Grulak. And we did see dragons in the Fortung Mountains. There is just enough truth to his tales to cause me to wonder. That is why we are continuing to the east. I want to see for myself if dragons exist in those mountains. Perhaps it is just a ploy to keep the Jiadin from seeing what the Fakarans are up to.”
Suddenly, one of the Jiadin pointed skyward and shouted. Everyone looked up and saw the dragon circling overhead. As they scrambled for their horses the dragon swooped down and hovered over the trees just to the east of the campsite. It belched short bursts of fire into the air and roared loudly.
The Jiadin did not dare enter the forest or they would have to pass directly under the dragon. They raced across the ford and galloped to the west. The dragon swooped down on the fleeing Jiadin shooting long tongues of flame that heated the backs of the riders.
The dragon circled overhead and occasionally swooped down, its huge talons just barely missing a rider on each attack. After a while, the dragon gave up the attack and flew eastward. The Jiadin raced onward for another five minutes before finally coming to a halt.
“I guess that answers the question about the eastern mountains,” sighed Niger. “That fool Gorgi is going to die. No man can fight those beasts.”
“I’ll take my chances at Vandegar,” interjected Jaker. “Even if there is no food, that is better than being eaten alive.”
Niger nodded and looked up to scan the sky. “To Vandegar, men. Let’s hope Gorgi was right about the food.”
* * *
Mistake and MistyTrail sat near Tamar as he guided the ancient elven scout ship across the calm waters.
“Have you thought any on how we are going to get back into the temple?” asked Mistake.
“I have been thinking about it constantly,” nodded MistyTrail. “Haven’t you noticed me shivering?”
“Me, too,” admitted Mistake.
“You did it once,” interjected Tamar. “Why not do it the same way?”
“The last time was an accident,” frowned Mistake. “We really were lucky to escape with our lives.”
“It wasn’t luck,” MistyTrail shook her head. “I know that Kaltara was watching over us. I hope he does so this time, too.”
“We should have brought Tamar’s men with us,” frowned Mistake. “At least we would have a better chance.”
“I don’t think so,” MistyTrail disagreed. “I think what helped us last time was the small number of people in our party.”
“There is wisdom to that, MistyTrail,” smiled Tamar. “Often a small group can succeed where larger ones fail. Still, I worry about just the three of us. Neither of you are capable of wielding a two-handed sword with any precision. I wish we had worked harder on that before the lessons stopped.”
“I could ask Emperor Marak for help,” suggested Mistake. “I am sure that he would help us.”
“I am sure that he would as well,” nodded MistyTrail, “but I fear that he would offer to come with us.”
“What is wrong with that?” asked Tamar.
“He is the Torak,” answered MistyTrail. “The world cannot afford to lose him on the Island of Darkness. Besides, he does not have enough time to do everything that must be done to prepare for the invasion. I think we should tell him what we are doing, but not ask him for help.”
“You are right,” agreed Mistake. “How are we going to get the king out of the cell? Should we try the same trick we tried the last time?”
“What did you try the last time?” asked Tamar.
“We entered the temple through a second-story balcony,” explained Mistake. “After we got to the ground level, Eltor acted like a Motangan guard and made believe that MistyTrail and I were his prisoners. We marched through a long corridor of cells that was loaded with krul guards, those big ape creatures that I told you about.”
“And the kruls believed the act?” asked Tamar.
“They were skeptical,” replied Mistake, “but we also did not try to remove a prisoner. That might make a difference. It is quite different to be adding new prisoners versus taking one out. The guards are meant to make sure that no prisoners leave.”
“That is an important difference,” nodded Tamar. “It is quite similar to how we got you two out of prison. It is always easier to bring someone in.”
“So it is likely that we will have to fight our way out of there?” asked MistyTrail.
“I think we should try to avoid it,” replied Tamar, “but we had best plan to be prepared for it. I should have brought one more man with me. I think four would be the perfect number. You two can help Avalar while I and another warrior protect you. Maybe we should return to Elvangar and get someone to go with us?”
“I will not take the chance of returning to Elvangar,” Mistake stated adamantly. “Besides, we have a lot of human friends. I am sure one of them will come with us.”
“Why would a human risk his live to save an elf,” questioned Tamar, “especially when the elves refuse to aid the humans in the coming battle?”
“Because they are our friends,” answered Mistake.
“Friends can be counted on to help you get out of trouble,” frowned Tamar, “but that is not what you will be asking them to do. You will be asking them to join with us in getting into trouble. Let’s be honest about this. You will be asking some human to give up his life for an elf. There is an extremely good chance that anyone who comes with us will die before this is over. I say we go back and get one of my men. They will risk their lives for the King of the Elves.”
“I am not going back,” declared Mistake. “We will go to the Island of Darkness alone.”
“I know someone who will come with us,” MistyTrail said softly.
“You cannot ask a human to give up his life to save an elf,” Tamar shook his head, “even if that elf is the king.”
“I would not ask HawkShadow to give up his life for an elf,” replied MistyTrail. “I doubt that I could convince him to come if that were the case.”
“If that were the case?” echoed Mistake. “Tell me that you are not going to lie to HawkShadow to get him to come.”
“I would never lie to HawkShadow,” MistyTrail replied, her voice quaking slightly. “He would not come to save an elf, but he would volunteer to come if it was to save my father.”
Tears came to MistyTrail’s eyes as she thought about HawkShadow.
“Who is this HawkShadow?” Tamar asked softly.
“He is a Sakovan assassin,” answered Mistake. “I have worked with him in the past. You could ask for no better person at your back. MistyTrail is right. HawkShadow would come to help MistyTrail save her father. They were very close when they worked together.”
“I look forward to meeting any human that my princesses look up to,” smiled Tamar. “If he is willing to risk his life to save MistyTrail’s father, he surely must be part elf. How can we contact him?”
“I will contact him,” MistyTrail offered as she wiped her eyes and rose.
MistyTrail walked to the bow of the ship and wove an air tunnel to StarCity. Mistake watched her for a moment and then wove her own air tunnel to Angragar. Tamar watched curiously as Mistake spoke to someone and asked to speak to Rejji.
“Mistake,” Rejji said happily, “are you alright?”
“I am fine,” answered Mistake. “MistyTrail and I are in a ship heading towards Angragar. We have an elven friend with us. I wanted you to know so that the Qubari do not get upset and attack us.”
“The Qubari would never attack the elves,” Rejji replied. “Still, I will pass the word that you are coming. Was there a problem in Elvangar?”
�
�Somewhat of a problem,” replied Mistake. “I will tell you all about it when we arrive. We have to return to the Island of Darkness. Can you procure the chart that Emperor Marak had made of the island? I think a copy of it would be helpful to us.”
“You want to return to the Island of Darkness?” balked Rejji. “I do not think that is a wise idea. What could possibly be so important to you to make you choose such a dangerous path?”
“It is a long story,” sighed Mistake.
“Tell him,” urged Tamar. “If you are asking him for help, he has a right to know the truth.”
Mistake nodded to Tamar. “We are going to rescue a man from the temple there,” Mistake told Rejji. “The man is our father. He is also the King of the Elves.”
“King of the Elves?” echoed Rejji. “But that means…”
“I know what it means,” sighed Mistake. “It is enough of a shock to MistyTrail and me that we even have a father. I do not want to think further about the implications.”
“I will round up men to go with you,” Rejji declared.
Tamar’s eyebrows rose. He tapped Mistake on the shoulder and leaned close to her ear.
“Why?” he whispered. “Because the man is your father, or because he is the King of the Elves? Ask him.”
Mistake frowned at Tamar and shook her head. Tamar nodded his head vigorously.
“Are you still there?” Rejji asked worriedly.
“Yes,” answered Mistake. “I thank you for your offer, but we don’t want men to go with us. We want to keep the party small. Just get us the chart.”
“You will have the chart and anything else you need,” promised Rejji. “I will talk to you when you get here about how many men you will need.”
“Rejji!” protested Mistake. “I know you heard me. Why are you being so insistent?”
“Two reasons,” Rejji replied. “I would do anything to see you reunited with your father, and I would do anything to rescue the King of the Elves. We need their help, Mistake. I am sure that you know that.”
“We will talk when we arrive, Rejji,” replied Mistake. “Please do not make any plans regarding my trip to the Island of Darkness before I get there. Don’t make me sorry that I told you what we were up to. Promise me.”
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