Dawn of the Dragons

by Sarah J. Stone

  “Thank you,” he whispered, putting his forehead on hers. “I'll walk you out.”

  “Don't,” she said. “It will be too hard.”

  Her eyes flashed, though, it was with more than emotion.

  “You don't want them to know you have a weakness, an attachment.”

  “Usurpers are threatened their whole lives,” she said. “They will find anything to try to take me off their throne. It might be twenty years before this settles.”

  “If only you could make them promise to just not attack Jeffro.”

  'If only diplomacy was that easy,” she answered. “I think I have everything.”

  “I'll bring it back to you if you don’t,” he said. “Personally.”

  Saying goodbye to Eliza was always the hardest thing he ever had to do. But this time, as the ship took off, he felt his heart rip out.

  “The Jurors are already aware of the situation that unfolded on Natrine,” Desmond said, when Nathaniel joined him in the cockpit. “We'll be met in the hanger.”

  Nathaniel expected as much, and tried not to show his fear.

  “And?”

  “You and I will both be questioned, likely half the night,” Desmond said. “In solitary.”

  “In solitary?” Nathaniel said in shock. “Why?”

  “Because if the killing of a natural born monarch was premeditated, our ideologies could spread,” Desmond said. “And the last thing they want is for us to recruit others.”

  “But it wasn't ...”

  “I know,” Desmond said. “But those are the rules.”

  “Wait,” Nathaniel replied. “I have a Tiro who needs me. They can't keep us apart. No one can separate us, those are the rules.”

  “That is true,” Desmond said. “So she will be questioned, as well.”

  'But she wasn't even there!” Nathaniel cried.

  “Nathaniel,” Desmond said. “Are you thinking with your head? You know these are standard procedures”

  “But Sienna's different,” Nathaniel said and Desmond gave him a sad smile.

  'Yes, that's been the case all along, hasn't it?” Desmond asked. “They have always made allowances for her, for us.”

  “They haven't made it easy,” Nathaniel answered. “We've had to lie to them, to seal her files, to go over and under rather than straight through. How were we supposed to train her, when they put all those roadblocks in our way? They crippled us from the start.”

  “They told us that she wasn't going to make a good witch, for so many reasons,” Desmond answered.

  “They did not mean to damn her. It was the way of Nature, Nathaniel, that her body is the way it was, and we are trying to go against the laws of Nature, with these drugs, with this training. She isn't meant to be a witch, Nature didn't intend that.”

  Nathaniel said nothing, staring out into space as he let out a long breath.

  “I can't think about this,” Nathaniel said at last, leaving forward. “Why don't you get some rest? I'm going to fly manually for a while.”

  “Manually?” Desmond asked in surprise “It's a long flight.”

  “I know, but I want a distraction,” Nathaniel answered. “The only way this could get worse is if they just filmed the fact that Eliza and I kissed in her bedroom. Which, knowing the Jurors, they probably already know.”

  “Nathaniel,” Desmond ran a hand over his face. “Was Mariah and I getting us exiled not enough of a warning for you?”

  “Devon is staying on board with us,” Nathaniel said. “Like Maestro, like Tiro.”

  Desmond wanted to say so much, but he stayed silent, rising. Sienna was no longer his to reprimand, praise or comment on.

  “Call me if you need me,” he said. “I don't mind taking over. Or, in reality, putting it on autopilot.”

  “Thanks,” Nathaniel said, half-heartedly

  “It's been a ride,” Desmond said, putting his hand on Nathaniel's shoulder “I don't regret it. I'm not sorry it happened.”

  “It's been an honor,” Nathaniel said, meaning that as his former Maestro left. He just hoped that honor didn't turn into horror when they landed.

  Chapter 20

  “You are clear to land,” came the voice crackling over the radio. “Be aware you will be met by escort officers, to quarantine”

  “Copy that,” Nathaniel said, as the sun rose over the planet. He loved flying into the sunrise. It was a golden explosion of beauty and colors. Today, though, as it erased the darkness, it made him feel like his time to hide was over. Facing the dawn meant facing the future, and he knew it was going to difficult. “Landing procedures in place.”

  The radio crackled silent, but it wasn't silence in the cockpit.

  “Can you tell her?” Nathaniel turned to Desmond. “I don't want her to be alarmed when we land. I've seen other escorts meet ships and it's aggressive”

  “No,” Desmond said,. “That's not my responsibility to tell her.”

  “I'm asking you as a friend,” Nathaniel said. “You're better at inspiring calm than I am. I feel like I'm going to shoot through the roof. I need to land this ship, focus on something simple.”

  Desmond debating refusing. As a Maestro, you had to multi-task, calm your Tiro, while dealing with the most chaotic and high trauma situations. It was not ever easy, and Nathaniel had never had to experience that. There had always been two of them.

  What Desmond noted was that it wasn't just nice to have that support, it was needed. There was no way a Tiro with needs like Sienna could be effectively managed by one Maestro. There had never been a Tiro like her, and there would likely never be a Tiro like her again. They had failed.

  But, in a way, Desmond thought, they had succeeded. They had learned so much about themselves, about her, about working through difficult situations, about managing over walls and under tunnels. They had advanced medical trials and survival rates in the locust gene, and relations with so many nations who simply adored her, who loved the fragile but determined Tiro.

  They had succeeded.

  Except, with her heart, her status, and her training. They hadn't made her a witch because they weren't ever supposed to.

  “I'll tell her,” Desmond said, getting up. “For old time's sake.”

  “Excellent,” Nathaniel answered, not looking at him.

  Sienna was not alone, as Desmond expected. She and Devon were snuggled up, playing with her tablet. They looked bright eyed and awake, happy, young.

  Desmond saw himself reflected in the scene. His early days with Mariah played in his mind. He couldn't help but clear his throat, despite telling himself that he wouldn't reprimand her.

  “Maestro,” Sienna couldn't help but jump, looking caught. Devon raised an eyebrow, with no intention to move, daring Desmond to say anything. “We are ready?”

  “To land? Almost. Nathaniel just got the landing instructions, so a few minutes left. I need to talk to you, though.”

  “Oh?” She sat up a bit more.

  “Alone.” Desmond glanced at Devon, who turned to Sienna.

  “Do you want that?” he asked.

  “Devon,” Desmond hadn't ever gotten along with this boy. He had tolerated him, for Sienna's sake, but he didn't have time. “Out, if you please. I can have two minutes.”

  “It's all right,” Sienna said, after a moment. “Desmond probably just wants to go over my packing list and make sure I didn't forget anything.”

  Devon kissed her on the cheek and hopped off the bed, giving Desmond a smirk as he did. Desmond resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he left, instead sinking into a chair.

  “It is that, isn't it?” she asked, turning to him. “My clothes? My things?”

  “That's all packed,” he said. “I just wanted to talk to you about landing.”

  “Nathaniel is landing?”

  “He is,” Desmond answered. “We're cleared to land. But when we do, we'll be met with an escort guard”

  “What?” she asked. “Why?”

  “I think you kn
ow why,” he answered.

  “But…but…Nathaniel didn't mean to,” she said. “It was an accident. Eliza was in danger.”

  “Sienna,” Desmond said. “I'm not going to sugarcoat things for you. You are smart, you are educated, you know how many dangerous factors are at play here. We will be taking into solitary, into quarantine. You'll go with Nathaniel, of course…but it will be a trial.”

  She paled, her hands twisted into fists and her eyes flooded with tears. He hadn't quite expected it, but then, she had an emotional few days.

  “But—”

  “I don't want you to be scared,” he said. “When they approach. You know that there will be no violence, and whatever care you need, they will give you. But they will be quite serious about it, and every detail will be gone over. Your association with Devon probably won't help matters. Especially given the fact that…”

  “You and Mariah were already in trouble.” She picked at the blankets. “Why did Nathaniel send you?”

  “Because I'm better at staying calm,” Desmond said. “And Nathaniel's scared.”

  Sienna gripped the blankets tighter.

  “I can't walk off a ship right now. Not on my own. But I'd like to.”

  “So, one last time,” he said. “Between the two of us, then, toward defying the Jurors.”

  “Desmond, do you have a plan?” she asked.

  “Why do you ask that?” he said, but a smile played on his lips.

  “Because you always have a plan,” she said. “Especially when it comes to defying the Jurors.”

  “Ah, little one,” he said, and she felt the familiar surge of affection. “You do know me well.”

  She giggled, and the tension dropped between them.

  “We'll be all right, Sienna,” Desmond said. “Don't worry.”

  “I never worried,” she said. “Not when you were leading the calvary.”

  “Cavalry?” he asked, wondering if he needed to correct her on the translation. But he decided that it was fine. It made sense, even if it was a bit odd. He would miss that about her.

  Devon, the young witch potential, and the rest of the crew de-boarded from the ship first, allowed to enter the academy, the city, roam free.

  Sienna, sandwiched in between her two Maestros, watched Devon go as if she would never see him again.

  “As soon as we hit the ramp, they will take us into cuffs,” Desmond said to Sienna, ready in case she fell. Nathaniel was silent on the other side of her, his jaw set. “They won't be rough, but we do have do as they say. A witch's guard is the top of any police force. They govern every other body.”

  “You've done this before,” Sienna said, at last, looking up at him.

  “Many times,” Desmond answered. “And I've always walked away, lived to tell another tale. We will this time. It just might not be the same tale.”

  “Are you ready?” Nathaniel asked Sienna, and she nodded. He put his hand on the keypad, glancing to Desmond as the doors whooshed open. Everything was uncertain from this point onwards

  It was exactly as Desmond had described. They reached the bottom of the ramp, Sienna gripping their arms as they were taken into custody. They were gentle with her, as Desmond promised that they would be, and the quarantine rooms were not as cold and unforgiving as she thought. However, she still stepped back, not letting the guards get close, cowering behind her Maestros as she had done her whole life. She looked to them for comfort, for reassurance, for hope, and Nathaniel saw a flash of the child she once was, so long ago. That world seemed a million years ago, a different person, a different life. He put an arm across her, indicating that they were to stand down. He was the one that had committed the crime, she was just an innocent bystander.

  Luckily, they obeyed, and were only kind, only merciful as the process of booking them in began.

  At Nathaniel's request, they reattached IVs, although her vitals rose now that she was back at home.

  “Will you tell them the truth?” she asked, once they were settled in.

  “Yes,” he replied. “And I will hope that they make allowances if needed.”

  “It will be all right,” she said, comforted by the fact that they were back at home, in the walls she was raised in. “You will get us through this.”

  “Mm,” he said, leaning his head against the wall. He wanted to give her confidence, wanted to tell her everything would be all right and he would take care of it, as he had done before.

  “Do you have a plan, too?” she asked. “Like Desmond?”

  “Yes, little one,” he said, his heart heavy. “I have a plan that's best for all of us.”

  “I knew you would,” she replied, with a smile. “It's going to be all right.”

  They were brought before the Jurors at dawn the next morning. Nathaniel had been in trouble with the Jurors before, but he had never felt as intimated by then as this moment. They were all in traditional garb, and their faces were expressionless Sienna had never seen them in their high court gear. Even Mariah's face was smooth, unable to offer her usual helpful and kind smile. In a circle, with intimating faces all around then, she shivered.

  But then she turned to Desmond and Nathaniel, and knew that it was going to be fine.

  The doors flew open, and Thomas hobbled in, also in high-court gear. The Maestros dropped to their knees, their heads bent as was ceremony Sienna was seated, but she dipped her head, staring at the floor and reaching for Nathaniel's shoulder to show solidarity.

  They had been in trouble before, and it had always been fine. Even when it seemed like there was no way out, her Maestros had always found one. Despite the fact that Desmond would leave them after this, she had found a way to look forward to a future with Nathaniel and the adventures they could have.

  She hadn't even thought about what she would say because they had always taken care of it.

  “This court is now in session. Maestro Nathaniel, Maestro Desmond, do you know why you have been called today?”

  “Yes,” Nathaniel said. “The King of Natrine was caught in defensive crossfire while we were protecting the Queen of Jeffro. As a natural born leader, the laws of Nature were interrupted.”

  “That is the charge against you,” Thomas said, and internally, Sienna breathed a shy of relief. By procedural law, if they were being investigated for anything else, they would have to disclose it up front.

  She was sure everything was going to be fine now, because she knew Nathaniel had only worked in self-defense and he had not intended to kill.

  “Who fired the shot?” Thomas asked. “The killing blow?”

  “I did, and I alone,” Nathaniel answered. Thomas's eyes shifted to Desmond. “Desmond was in the room, but he did not fire.”

  “You are the sole cause of death of the King?” Thomas asked.

  “Yes,” he replied.

  “And you have a defense?”

  “I do,” Nathaniel answered. “An explanation”

  “Then,” Thomas leaned back. “Begin.”

  “Jurors,” Nathaniel said. “It is no excuse for a witch to be distracted by any means,” he said. “But distracted I was. As you may have heard already, Maestro Desmond and I had decided that going forward, I would be training our Tiro solo. In the moments before the attack, I was distracted by her health, which as you know, has always been fragile.”

  “Sienna, you were not present?” Thomas asked.

  “No,” she said. “I wasn't…able.”

  “She certainly was not able,” Nathaniel answered, not revealing that it was her fault in the moment that she wasn't. “And so, like times before, we decided that her fragile health would mean she would stay on the ship. Normally, one of us would stay with her, but both of us were needed with the Queen…and I was her only Maestro. We both went. Her vitals crashed, as I heard the gunshots. I saw the Queen of Jeffro bleeding on the floor and the King of Natrine prepared to fire again. I acted out of shock and panic.”

  “I see,” Thomas said, taking it all in. The othe
rs stayed quiet, their hands templed at their lips or clenched in their lap. “That was not the only death during that quest.”

  “No,” Nathaniel said. “There was a young witch potential we were bringing back that died during an attack. I could not defend both my Tiro and the witch potential.”

  “That wasn't your fault,” Sienna cried out. “It was mine. I was upset, I distracted you.”

  Nathaniel glanced to her, but said nothing.

  “Before we reach into the details,” Thomas said. “What is it that you recommend for the outcome of this case?”

  “I recommend,” Nathaniel said. “Given my multiple failures in the protection of my Tiro and my quest assignees, that I be removed from Sienna's training.”

  “What?” Sienna said. She felt like she was going to faint.

  “I recommend this as the best course of action for all involved,” Nathaniel said, holding Thomas's gaze

  “You would leave your Tiro Maestro-less,” Thomas said.

  “Yes,” Nathaniel replied. “Sienna has a future outside of the path of being a witch and we encourage her to follow it, to serve Nature in other ways.”

  “Nathaniel—” Sienna cried, her eyes wide.

  Nathaniel couldn't look at her, or he would lose his nerve. He knew this was best, and he knew that she could flourish if she could just walk away from this place, see a new dream.

  “The Jurors will consider your pleas,” Thomas said. “Please tell us the rest of the story.”

  Chapter 21

  “Little one, listen to me,” Nathaniel said, as they stood just outside the Jurors chambers. It was the same place they had stood when they had accepted her as a Tiro, all those years ago. She was inconsolable, in disbelief. “Listen.” He got down to his knees, holding her wrists. “This is best. This is best for everyone.”

  “You promised me—” she cried.

  “I promised you that I would always take care of you,” he said. “And I am doing just that. Look at how much fun you had with Devon in the past few days, how many stories he told of his life outside of the Order. That is the life you are meant to have – the life you should have had.”