Dragons, Power, Courts, And War (Book 2)

by Vic Broquard

  “We do need to protect these frail humans here on Adapazan, right dad?”

  “Yes, we owe them for giving us a new chance at life. Back on Voss, we all would be dead by now if Zoran and his baron friends had not given us golds sanctuary on Adapazan, Gonda, Gladno, Terra, and Cosma. What I haven’t told Zoran yet is that the reds and blacks are also raiding those other four worlds as well as Adapazan.”

  “Wow. I didn’t know that, dad. I guess I have been concentrating too heavily on my magic of late. Is it as bad there as here? Why not tell him?” Emil asked.

  “I’ve been staying in touch with my friends on the four other worlds, son. I’ve heard their reports, though the barons there have yet to realize what is going on. Only Zoran is on top of it and only because of Mage Jarka. Now that is one clever human,” Aldrick commented.

  Emil chuckled, “And a thief, albeit a good one. She sees deviousness everywhere, I swear.”

  Aldrick chuckled. “Aye, she does at that. This time, she is right. No, we need to see if we can nip this crisis early before things escalate and get out of hand. The one thing we must avoid at all costs is for the humans of the Federation of Planets to go to war against dragon-kind.”

  “Damn, we’d have to take sides then, wouldn’t we?” Emil considered what his dad wasn’t saying. “Humans are our friends and magic teachers, but we dare not side with them against our own kind, dad.”

  “I know, we will be damned either way, no matter what we do. Somehow, we must avoid any further escalation on the part of these raiders, son.”

  “Hey, those two new women from Jing — they claim to have slain nineteen greens. Do you suppose that somehow those human women could have actually done this, dad? I find that so hard to believe. They are just women, not the strong, male fighters.”

  “Yes, they are Duska son, never forget that. We both know that short of powerful magical spells, about the only way a dragon can be harmed really is through the use of magically enchanted weapons. Zoran told me that the women and their band all had magical blades. So yes, son, I do believe that they have slain nineteen of the Green Dragons. Dragons ought to be very wary of humans bearing magical weapons. There are just not many Archmages around for them to be a serious threat. No, it is those magical weapons that dragons ought to fear,” Aldrick stated dryly.

  “Say, Verushka is supposed to be coming along with us dragons. How much of what we find out from the raiders are we going to tell Zoran? Will we be able to keep sensitive information from Verushka? She is an Archmage after all.” Emil probed.

  “That is going to be tricky, son. Above all, we must not say or do anything to alloy Zoran’s trust in us. If we betray that trust, then we too could easily become his enemy.”

  “But he’d be a fool if he didn’t think that if push came to shove that we would side with our own kind over humans, dad.”

  “Zoran is not a fool. I am sure that he is well aware of this but for twenty years now, we have kept his fortresses protected. Only we stood between his freedom and an invasion from his enemies. He knows this and feels obligated to us, I’m sure. Still, we must not betray his trust, not yet anyway.” Emil didn’t quite know what to make of his dad’s last statement and decided to let it pass for now.

  “So are we going to actually kill some of the raiders, dad? We both know that they will put up a fight and not just sit down and surrender to us,” Emil asked what more concerned him at the moment.

  “Not if we can help it, though I suppose that such might not be avoidable, unless we allow them to escape. If we do, such must look like a bonafide escape though, especially if Verushka is present,” Aldrick pointed out.

  “Got it, dad. But you must know more than you are saying about these raiders. If they are raiding the other four planets too, you must know where they are coming from and why,” Emil probed a bit deeper.

  “Well, I am on the High Council of Dragons now. Since it was mostly my initiative which led to the rescue of all of us dragons on Voss, I was promoted to the High Council of Dragons. I have kept myself informed. Yes, I have some good ideas about who and why, but the humans will need something more tangible — something that they can relate to,” Aldrick replied. He added, “If we don’t handle this right, things could get very ugly very quickly.”

  Unknown to Aldrick, those were the very words that Jarka uttered at the same time to Zoran and his planners. “If we don’t handle the raiders promptly and effectively, things could get very ugly very quickly!”

  One warlord asked, “Baron, how do we kill dragons anyway? We’ve heard rumors that you have given sanctuary to a pair of dragon slayers. Is this true? How can mere men fight such giant beasts?”

  “I just don’t know yet. Magical weapons were used by the two Duska women that I gave sanctuary to here in Brn. At the moment, magical weapons in the hands of Duska seem to be the only real way and even then it is highly dangerous. One of the women lost the lower part of her left arm to the last dragon that she killed. Perhaps our Archmages will also be able to lend assistance. I sincerely hope that we do not have to begin slaying dragons. They all are not evil. The Gold Dragons have been our friends and protectors for twenty plus years now, and we’ve never had the slightest trouble with them,” Zoran attempted to defuse the question. He just did not want his people to begin to ponder how to slay dragons. That could only escalate the current situation, especially if others began harassing the golds.

  He knew well just how vital the golds had been and were continuing to be to him. Unlike the other barons, he did not have to raise, train, and equip a huge standing army to help fend off possible attacks from his many enemy barons on other worlds. Instead, for the last twenty years, he had focused all his efforts and all of the funds that he’d acquired into humanitarian projects all over Adapazan. New roads had been his first priority. Next came schools and public works, then education. Now twenty years later, no longer were the outer provinces seen as barbaric. The life of the average person had taken giant leaps forward into civilization. While he still had a long ways to go, the grim situation on the huge continent was vastly improved everywhere. True, the arts, which were so advanced on many of the other “have” worlds, were still in their infancy. Time, time, that was all that Zoran needed to bring all of Adapazan into a great civilization.

  Mage Jarka’s huge charts now threatened that advance. So many raids, so well-coordinated could only mean that his enemies had not been idle these past twenty years. If left unchecked, the damage they could wreak on Adapazan might well undermine all of his advances! This was his greatest fear, one that he shared only with Zdenka at night in their bedroom. Her advice, as always, was valuable. “Continue on your path. Continue to do well, improve things, flourish as never before. Make Adapazan prosperous and our enemies will fall away and give up utterly.”

  For a moment, Zoran wished that he could go back some fifteen years when he had held little Tomas, Nadia, and Jarmila on his lap. They were so full of life, such happy children. The future looked so bright then. Now dragons threatened all that he’d worked for, including his grown up children.

  Zoran came out of his reverie, hoping that the others had not noticed his inattention. “Don’t worry. We will be personally transporting all of your shipments from now on. Duskas and mages will handle it for you. As always, I will make up any loses any of you suffer. You just continue all of the public works projects. Make the lives of your people better and better.”

  “But shouldn’t we be forming up armies to fight the dragons?” the warlord asked.

  “No. Look, an army isn’t going to stop a dragon. If you recall what two golds did to the Baron’s army when he took out Warlord Mikolas twenty-plus years ago, thousands of soldiers were killed or injured, and Emil and Renata did not have a scratch on them. No, if we ever have to fight the dragons, an army will be of no use at all. Focus on the public works projects; help our people have better lives. Leave the dragon problem to me, please.”

  He didn’t add, “A
fter all, I brought them here in the first place.” However, Jarka and Zdenka both “heard” what he just left unspoken. They knew that Zoran would ultimately have to deal with the decision that he’d made over twenty years ago.

  Jarka ended the digression. “Okay, so when you need to ship funds or valuables, have your mage contact me and I’ll arrange for its safe transport. Let’s thwart these raiding dragons.” They agreed and the meeting ended. Zoran gave Jarka a knowing nod of appreciation.

  Barons Gang, Jie, and Li sat around Gang’s private study, lounging in the plush chairs. “So what the devil are we going to do about our rogue sisters?” asked Li. Their spies had now confirmed that the two were indeed staying at Baron Zoran’s fortress at Brn, Adapazan. The brothers had decided to wait until they had confirmation of this, not just their suspicions.

  Jie piped up, “Well, they are out of our hair now. What can they possibly do to interfere with us now — hold up on another world? Besides, Chan lost her arm, so she’s out of the fighting business anyway.”

  Li added, “We’ve put the Dragon Raiders out of business. What more can they do now?”

  Gang grimaced. “Idiots. Are you both idiots? True, Chan is out of the fighting picture now, but they can foment all manner of trouble for us. Look, they have a strong backing in the marsh lands beyond our reach. They can raise all kinds of trouble for us, rebellions or worse. Besides, you forget, they are next in line for our thrones. Dad had established them as heirs until his grandchildren are of age and that’s another nine years for my boy. If anything happens to one of you, you can bet Chan or Wen will demand your Circle — she has still got that right — as long as she is alive and able. Too bad the slime didn’t take both Chan’s arms and Wen’s too. Then the whole ascension problem would be handled — incompetence. No, brothers, as long as Chan and Wen are alive and free, they pose a very serious threat of all three of us. Hell, they could hire one of Zoran’s assassins to eliminate us and take our thrones. Have you even thought about that eventuality? I thought not! That’s why dad gave me the main Circle here on Jing.”

  “So we send assassins to Adapazan?” asked Jie, rather flushed. He had always liked his sisters, while they were growing up. Still, the possibility that Chan would send assassins to kill him just to get his Circle and fortress bothered him.

  “Think, brothers!” Gang chided them both. “No, first, we use political pressure. We need the whole Federation to realize that we have a righteous beef with Chan and Wen. Then, when that fails and we send in assassins; in the eyes of our other peers, we will be totally justified in the actions that we take. No recriminations against us.”

  “Okay. You are right. So what do we do now?” asked Li.

  “First, we make a direct request of Baron Zoran to return these fugitives to us now,” Gang replied.

  “But Zoran is not going to do that, is he?” asked Li confused. Why bother asking? Everyone knew that Baron Zoran would do anything to upset the political balance of power. Look what he had done on Adapazan twenty years ago!

  Gang laughed. “Duh? Of course he is not going to just hand our sisters over to us. Are you a complete imbecile? No, politically, this is the first step that we take. At the next High Council meeting, we can then make a formal presentation to the Federation and other barons, demanding that they make Zoran hand them over. We will be able to use his earlier refusal to help convince some of the neutral barons to back us, you see.”

  “Ah, then the other barons will force Zoran to hand them over to us. Good plan,” Jie replied.

  “Idiots! You are both idiots! Of course Zoran will defy the High Council and not hand them over. Haven’t you any political acumen at all? He will refuse. That then makes it acceptable for us to send in our assassins with the backing of the High Council. Plus, it puts Zoran on the defensive and in a very bad way with respect to the other barons for refusing us. We accomplish two vital actions in one fell swoop!” Both younger brothers grinned, finally imagining Baron Zoran fighting against all of the other Federation barons.

  “Okay, I am going to make my presentation to Zoran now. You hold the fort. This should not take but a couple of minutes, if I know Zoran,” Gang ordered. He focused his mind and stepped into the Shadows. Soon a brownish globe appeared in the swirling grey-black masses of the Shadows, Adapazan. Gang focused on the Circle of Ascension at Brn, knowing that Baron Zoran would instantly know of his intended arrival there.

  Zoran and Jarka were just walking out of the meeting room, when Zoran’s Duska senses activated. He knew someone was approaching his Circle of Ascension from the Shadows! He paused mid-step and focused. Baron Gang Meerong of Jing requesting an audience with you, appeared in his mind.

  Granted. One minute while I lower the defenses, Gang.

  Jarka had seen that not-there look before and knew something was happening with the Circle. Zoran looked up and said, “Baron Gang of Jing wants to speak with me personally. He’s going to arrive at the Circle. Come on.” While Zoran concentrated and opened a Mystical Door to the heavily protected basement Circle of Ascension room, Jarka fired off a Message spell. She and Zoran stepped through and arrived in the basement room, dimly illuminated by magical lanterns. While he cancelled his protection spells, Jarka commanded the lights, which blazed into brilliance. Another Mystical Door opened and his daughter, Archmage Nadia, stepped quietly in beside the pair. A moment later, her husband, Dusan, Shadow Walked in beside her.

  “Got to watch your back, dad,” Nadia teased him, annoyed slightly that it had been Jarka who had sent her the Message. She continually felt that her dad was always taking far too many risks. She gave a nod of appreciation to Jarka, who flashed her a fast smile. The three took up a defensive position, allowing Zoran to stand before his Circle as Baron Gang materialized from the Shadows, stepping out onto the center of Zoran’s Circle.

  “Greetings from Jing, Baron Zoran. Good to see you again,” Gang started off politely, shaking Zoran’s offered hand.

  “What brings you to Adapazan, Baron?” Zoran asked, though he already had a suspicion.

  “My sisters. I’ve heard that they have taken refuge here. As you probably know, they are wanted on Jing as Master Criminals. Can you believe that they have murdered two dozen of our invited Green Dragons? Yes, it’s true. We, well dad rather, gave the greens sanctuary on Jing so that they could avoid a starvation extinction. Now my two sisters are going around murdering them. We simply cannot stand for this wonton murder and violations of the dragons’ sanctuary on Jing any longer. I have come to ask that you hand my sisters over to me so I can take them back to stand trial on Jing for their deeds. Everyone must he held accountable for their actions, you certainly agree with that principle, right?”

  Zoran cringed a bit; he had been right about the purpose of this meeting. Further, since Gang had come alone, he hardly expected Zoran to hand his sisters over to him. What was he going to do? Hold their hands? Even if he brought the women here to Gang, they’d simply Shadow Walk elsewhere. No, Gang obviously did not expect Zoran to comply. So why was he here?

  He replied, “Oh I do agree that we are all accountable for our actions and failures to act, Baron Gang. Of that, there can be no doubt. Unfortunately, I have granted the two women sanctuary here on Adapazan. When they came, I was unaware of their alleged crimes on Jing. Chan was extremely injured and in need of immediate medical attention. How could I not fail to help other Duskas in their time of great need? I am sure that you would have done the same if some Duska women from Adapazan suddenly arrived on Jing in dire need of medical attention. Since I have already given my promise of sanctuary to them, I cannot now revoke it. How about a compromise, Baron? I will give you my word that they will not again return to Jing, unless you so request their presence there. That way, you can rest assured that they will not be returning clandestinely and murdering more of your Green Dragons.”

  “Then you will not return my sisters to me? I will hold you to your word. My sisters must not return to Jing, exce
pt to surrender themselves and stand trial for their murdering rampages,” Gang declared.

  “I give you my word, Baron. If they violate it, I will have cause to cancel my granting of sanctuary and will return them to you,” Zoran replied diplomatically.

  “Accepted. I will, however, pursue other means of having the two murders brought to justice. For now, I accept your pledge, Baron. I must get back to Jing, business never stops, does it?”

  Zoran chuckled, “No, Baron, it certainly does not. See you at the Fall High Council.”

  “Of course.” Gang bowed respectfully and stepped back into the Shadows, smiling to himself. He was surprised that he had even gotten this slight concession from Zoran! At least his sisters would not be allowed back on Jing overtly. If they did, he would easily be able to force Zoran’s hand in this business. Still, he knew that he would have a strong case to present to the High Council come fall.

  “Well, I guess we ought to have anticipated that,” Archmage Nadia commented when Gang had vanished.

  “Idiot, what did he expect? We’d just hand them over to be killed? Boy, he sure twisted the facts around,” Jarka added spitefully.

  “Dad, will Chan and Wen agree to this new restriction?” asked Nadia, a bit concerned that this could become something of a political mess.

  Zoran grinned, “For the moment, I think that they will go along with it — at least a couple more months until the High Council meeting. I suspect that there will be political repercussions then. Right now, I need those two practicing their fighting skills like mad. If they are going to survive, they must be more than able to defend themselves, especially Chan. I hope that I have been able to buy them the time that they need to prepare for the future. I guess that I ought to go speak with them now.” Jarka grinned, that he’d better do at once, she thought.