***
It was a surreal spectacle to behold: two dragons in such close proximity to a human. Pryllan’s green tail was entwined around Kahvel’s golden one. She complimented him well, Steve thought. Both dragons were conversing amongst themselves, completely ignoring the increasingly frustrated human who was trying nonchalantly to be noticed.
There were joyous shouts in the distance as Sarah and the soldiers appeared over the bluff. She ran into his arms, sobbing hysterically, while all the soldiers breathed a collective sigh of relief. Sir Steve had been returned to them, appearing to be unharmed.
Sarah finally disengaged herself from her husband. “Are you okay? What happened to you? I was so worried!”
“I’m okay. Minor headache, and a few aches and pains, but nothing significant.” He faced Rhenyon. “Where’s Jalen? I’d personally like to thank him for such a wonderful outing.”
Rhenyon paused. “Jalen is still missing. I figured he was involved after he did not return when ye were reported missing. I have already informed the castle. They will find him. But what happened to ye? Do ye remember?”
“Tell you all about it in a sec.” Steve turned to the green dragon. “Pryllan, thank you very much for the rescue. I owe you one, big-time.”
Pryllan lowered her long graceful neck down to meet Steve’s gaze. “Ye are welcome, human.” Raising her head back up, she looked at her mate. “Kahvel. Be safe.” Unfolding her wings, she took to the air and disappeared into the distant clouds.
Steve looked at the huge gold dragon. “Thank you very much for getting her involved. I don’t know how she managed to find me, but I’m damn glad she did.”
“Ye are welcome, human. Yer disappearance was hampering our progress, so ye had to be found quickly.”
“I don’t suppose you have anything to eat?”
The question caught Sarah off guard. When was the last time any of them had eaten? She hadn’t teleported dinner for last night or breakfast from this morning. She looked at Rhenyon, who was talking to his men.
“Excuse me, sorry to interrupt, but I have a question.”
“Yes, Lady Sarah.”
“Ummm, with all that has happened, I didn’t get you guys dinner last night nor any breakfast this morning.”
Rhenyon’s face went blank as he realized she was right.
“So my question is, what will the castle do if we miss a couple meals and you haven’t reported in?”
The captain’s eyes widened. “Wizards be damned! His Majesty will assume the worst and dispatch men to our last known location. Quickly, fetch the quill, ink, and some parchment!”
Rhenyon hastily wrote a progress report and handed it to Sarah, who sent it straight to the king’s desk. She looked at the captain.
“How long before I check for a response?”
Rhenyon scuffed his foot on the ground. “Best to give him a few minutes so that I might be properly reprimanded.”
A few minutes later, Rhenyon was reading the king’s response. He had indeed dispatched several squadrons of troops which had just left the castle. They were called back. The king even went so far as to have the food pack filled with fresh food.
As they all ate, Steve relayed all that he could remember, from the time that he was thumped on the head to when he had discovered he had been snatched by a dragon.
“Sorry to have put you guys through all of that,” Steve said. “What are you going to do about Jalen when you find him?”
“I have not decided. I will deal with that later. For all we know, he could have been one of those that went over the edge of the cliff. How well did ye see their faces?”
“Not well at all. I guess he could have been one of them.”
Finishing their meal, Sarah returned the pack to the castle. Rhenyon gazed off into the distance.
“Do you see that ridge, maybe ten leagues distant?”
Both Sarah and Steve nodded.
“That ridge,” Rhenyon explained, “is the southern border to the valley we are looking for, adjacent to Lake Raehón. We should be able to make that ridge by nightfall.”
“I will see all of ye there, then.” Kahvel unfolded his wings and took to the air.
There was a much more laid-back attitude amongst the camp that night. Rhein was cracking jokes. Kern told several stories, heroic tales of high adventure that his ancestors were allegedly a part of. Steve juggled three fireballs. Sarah even hid Rhenyon’s prized daggers. The soldiers roared with laughter as their captain dumped the contents of his pack all over the ground, trying to determine what had happened to them, only to discover moments later they had mysteriously reappeared back on his belt.
Later, as they settled down for the night, both husband and wife snuggled close under the blanket.
“I am so glad you are back. Don’t ever do that to me again.”
“How did I know that I was going to get knocked on the head by one of our own?”
“Would you like me to get the vial and heal you? That’s a nasty bump you have there.”
“No, thanks, save it for the serious injuries. I can survive a lump on my head.” As she started to protest, Steve kissed her. “I’ll be okay. Hey, did you hear what Rhenyon said earlier?”
Recognizing her husband’s attempts to steer attention away from himself, Sarah shook her head. “About making it to the lake tomorrow? Yes, I heard.”
Steve sighed, becoming groggy. “I hope it isn’t too hard to find.”
“You think an entrance to the dwarven realm is going to be easy to find?”
Steve snorted.
The Prophecy Page 31
