by Sarah Hite
“Right, and with the traders in town, there are plenty of thieves about, and they won’t know who to blame,” Oden said, and the other men agreed.
“Who will knock him out then?” Daemon asked.
Silvrin chuckled. “You.” Daemon, Oden’s youngest son, was just older than Lukair.
A few hours later the village men met at the barn’s main door to cause the planned distraction. They had drugged a few of the more troublesome soldiers and brought them to the barn. The men called Noben out, leaving Neil alone with the egg. They claimed the men passed out after drinking too much ale, which they were not going to pay for; the guardsmen demanded the villagers be the ones to punish them. Noben refused and an argument ensued.
Thus distracted, Daemon came in through the side door; Ania followed, and because someone was scheduled to clean the barn that day, the soldiers did not stop them. Once inside, she went to a stall where she found a wheelbarrow, and then she picked up a nearby pitchfork. Daemon continued forward; he passed Neil and went to the other side of the barn where he picked up a shovel and proceeded to clean up the floor, throwing the debris into another cart.
Neil eyed the boy for a moment, and then he turned away and began thumbing through a book. Hearing the argument outside grow louder, Neil looked up. As he started to stand, Daemon snuck up behind him and struck him with the shovel, hitting him in the back of the head. He went down hard. Ania did not wait; she sprang forward and carefully picked up the egg, which she laid in the wheelbarrow she had filled a third the way with straw. She carefully covered it with more straw, and filled the wheelbarrow the rest of the way as Daemon set Neil’s body back in his chair. He arranged it to look like the soldier was only asleep. The kids left the barn by the side door—Daemon pulling the cart and Ania pushing the wheelbarrow.
Once they were several buildings away, Ania turned down a side street and Daemon continued down the road. After another half block, she met Lukair. They quickly shifted the egg to a deep two-foot-long basket. It was the same basket Stone had in the market more than a week ago, and it was seen often enough not to draw attention. Lukair pulled a good number of herbs out of a burlap sack and covered the egg. Together they went to the market where they pretended to shop. They could hear the argument dwindling down in the distance. They “bought” a yard of material from the wife of a guardsmen, and Ania placed the material over the egg. A few other items were “purchased” in order to keep up their ruse.
They were about to leave when they ran directly into one of Pycan’s more inquisitive ladies, one of the worst gossipers. “Well, what do we have here?” she inquired. “Where do you two think you’re off to this morning?”
Ania was momentarily thrown off by this unneeded meeting. She recovered quickly and replied, “We’re on our way to see Lukair’s mother. She asked me to run some errands for her and I asked if Lukair would come with me.”
“Really?” the tall, thin woman replied unenthusiastically.
Pointing his thumb in Ania’s direction, Lukair answered, “Ania has finally decided to let Mother teach her to sew, and Ania didn’t want to ruin any of Mother’s material, so she bought some.” Ania nodded in agreement.
“Well, well. It’s about time… about time, indeed,” Saline stated with mild satisfaction, “A woman’s not a woman, lest she knows how to sew. It’s very important; a necessity, in fact. A woman should to be able to mend her family’s clothes, the linens, and make new ones if needed…”
Saline had much more to say on the subject of sewing, however, and other subjects as well. She kept up the conversation for several minutes. She went on to talk about every topic that was considered “women’s work” and everything else, including the weather, the villagers, the soldiers, and the mysterious item in the barn. The kids looked at each other in amazed disbelief and mild disgust. How could she keep going? Finally fed up with her endless monologue, Lukair interrupted her and said, “I’m sorry, but we really must be going. We were due to meet Mother a while ago.”
Ania agreed and added, “He’s right, and I wouldn’t want to miss my first lesson.” They took their leave and continued down the street until she was out of sight. Then they ducked behind a house. They took a moment to collect their thoughts and catch their breath before going on. Ania looked at Lukair somewhat annoyed and declared, “You do realize I already know how to sew?” He smiled and replied, “I know that, but she doesn’t.” In fact, Ania was one of the best seamstresses in Pycan, but only his family and her grandfather knew.
The teens carefully made their way to the outskirts of town. They were to meet Nealson and Madia at the edge of town. Kaimen met them by his family’s home and warned them that the argument was over and Noben would soon notice the missing egg. Layon joined them and affirmed what the other boy had said. The four teens quickened their pace and soon met their families. Nealson had his wagon waiting for them, and after they climbed in, he spurred the horse on.
A few minutes later they pulled up in front of Aiden’s barn. The old farmer was waiting for them in front of his small home. Their garden was still flowering, and the vegetables were nearly ready to harvest. The fields that surrounded the homestead were filled with grain, barely, and wheat, and they were turning gold in the early days of autumn.
They met Silvrin, Oden, Martus, and several of the elder guard members a few minutes later. It had taken them longer to arrive due to the argument they had kept up until Noben finally agreed to pay for the ale the men had drunk, although he still refused to let the villagers punish them. Now the group had only one thing left to do; now they just needed to decide who would go to Dragons’ Keep.
“It should be someone who’s strong,” someone said.
“No. It should be someone who’s clever,” another called out.
Silvrin cut several other suggestions off. “We have already decided who is to go.” Before the men could ask, he continued. “There will be more than one person going. We need someone who is smart, someone who knows how to fight. We also need someone who isn’t skittish around dragons. Now, some of you will be staying here, not because we don’t want you to go, but because we will need you here after the others leave.”
“He’s right,” Nealson agreed. “After those of you we have chosen leave, the rest of you will need to help hold down the fort, so to speak. Now, we have thought this through and we have decided to send a group. This group will be small—three to five people. Each person will contribute to the team. The first we have chosen is Lorex. He is a good leader, although he can be pig-headed at times; Lukair will keep him in line.” The brothers looked at each other and nodded, grinning.
Oden spoke next. “We can’t send the boys along without Stone.” He turned to Silvrin, “I know you don’t like it, but the girl has skills that may come in handy.” Silvrin nodded. He did not like it, but knew he was right. “But, most importantly, we need someone who understands dragons—someone who knows them, someone they can trust. This is why we have chosen to send Ania along.”
“What? You’re going to send girls to do a man’s job?” an older guardsman cut in.
Silvrin cleared his throat drawing their attention back to him. “Both girls have skills no man in this village has. Ania has more understanding of dragons than anyone I’ve ever seen, and Mariah has an ability to create meals out of nothing. Her jewelry alone could finance their whole trip.”
Nealson was about to stand when Lukair cut in. “Ania has other skills, too,” he said. “She knows how to use a sword, and she’s the best hunter in the village.”
“Is this true?” Oden asked.
Ania sat on the porch, the basket by her side. She watched her grandfather as he answered. “Yes, I taught her to hunt, fish, and even to chop and fashion wood. She could build herself a house if she wanted to,” he said with pride. The rest of the men looked from him to Ania and back again. “What? She still knows how to cook and sew, along with everything else women should know. I raised her to be independent, in
case she had to spend large amounts of time traveling.” He lowered his gaze, sorrow in his eyes. “Those were her father’s last wishes.” The men made no further objections.
Stone arrived a few minutes later and was told who was going. At first she objected, but after hearing their reasons for selecting her, she acquiesced. She then asked if she might volunteer a girl from the village. The girl’s father, now a blacksmith’s hand, had been a soldier in their army before moving to Pycan. She had seen them fighting mock battles with short swords and practicing with throwing knives behind the smithy. “If she wishes… and her father approves,” was her father’s answer. One of the boys went to ask them, and soon the girl and her father returned with the boy. After speaking to them the elders realized that this tall, muscular girl, who was wearing an ankle-length dress with slits from ankle to hip up both sides, was a more skilled fighter than most of the boys in the village. The girl and her father had dark skin and black hair and spoke with a thick accent. Her father, a man by the name of Doren, his wife Tyra, and their daughter Tyanna came from a land east of Altera. Their people revered dragons and were honored they had been asked to help.
Once the supplies were packed and they had donned their packs, all except Ania, they said their farewells to the men and the men left. Now only Silvrin, Madia, Nealson, and Doren were left. Doren said something to Tyanna in a language the rest did not know, then he took off his necklace and gave it to her. He kissed her and left momentarily.
Nealson hugged Ania. “Your parents would be proud,” he said. Then he handed her a pack he had made and stepped back. The pack consisted of several sheets of leather. The base and back of the pack were stiff leather, the sides were a softer, malleable leather, and the front was a combination of the two. Soft leather made up the majority of the front piece, but it had a strip of firmer leather up the front to reinforce it. The top flap matched the front. The clasp that held the pack closed was a piece of carved antler.
As Ania opened the pack, she noticed it only held one item, a long, thin horn. It was delicately carved and brightly polished. She also noticed that the pack was insulated. Nealson told her it had been created for the sole purpose of holding the egg. It was both insulated and cushioned to protect the egg. She hugged him and pulled the egg from the basket. She carefully nestled the egg at the bottom of the pack. Then Nealson took a piece of cloth that had been carefully folded and covered the egg. He closed the pack and helped her put it on.
Silvrin and his children had finished their farewells, and he looked them over. “You each know what needs to be done. If you help each other, you will succeed.” He looked at each of them in turn before continuing. “Protect the egg, protect each other; return the egg, and return home safe.” Lorex and Tyanna were about to turn and go when Silvrin spoke again. “One more thing: you may need some help finding Dragons’ Keep. Go to the old guard complex on the mountain. There, you will find the help you need.”
The Beginning
The teens walked quickly. They had a long way to go and needed to get there as quickly as possible. The weather was excellent for travelling; the air was warm but a light breeze kept them cool as they walked. After a quick discussion, they left the path and took an old deer trail, barely visible in the tall grass. They walked along the trail in single file, in an effort to confuse any soldiers who might come looking for them. Ania walked behind Lukair and Stone. She reached out a hand and let the tops of the grass slip through her fingers as she walked. It was not long before they heard the bell chime and they quickened their pace further. Pycan Mountain was only ten miles from town, and they needed to make to the foothills before dark—farther if they could. They kept alert for soldiers as they went.
They branched off the trail after about half a mile, then wound their way back toward the road. As they carefully approached the road, Lorex raised a hand to stop them. At the edge of the woods where the road split stood a young man just a few years older than Lorex. He was talking to a group of soldiers on horseback. “Are you sure you haven’t seen anyone come this way?” one of the soldiers was asking.
“Yes, I would have seen them. I have been here for a while now. I can’t seem to remember which of these roads leads to Sal Den. I’ve been sitting here trying to figure it out,” the young man said. His voice was smooth but thickly coated with an accented undertone.
“Well, if you see anything, report it to our commander in Pycan.”
The young man nodded, then asked as the soldier began to turn his horse away, “If I may, what did they do?”
“They stole something of great value from the Duke. They need to be found as soon as possible,” he said as he looked back. Then he turned his horse away and spurred it down the road.
“If I see anything suspicious, I’ll report it,” the dark- haired boy called after him.
He stood there, watching the soldiers ride east. When they disappeared from view he turned north and looked at Pycan Mountain; then he turned and looked back down the road toward Pycan. Finally, he walked off the road to a small camp and sat down by a fire. A very long sword was resting against a boulder and a bow was at its base. The sword was not military issue, and the bow looked handmade. A short distance away, a tall black horse was tethered and eating the nearby grass. As he sat down on a boulder, he began to laugh. “Something of value.” He shook his head and dug a strip of dried meat from his pack. As he chewed on the meat he continued his monologue. “If the Duke knew the true value of that object—”
He stopped midsentence and changed topics slightly. “The person who has it would know better than to take the road.” He paused and looked off into the distance, then sighed. “I wouldn’t turn them in anyway, and I highly doubt Vidar actually owned what they took. He probably stole it first.” He shook his head again and finished the meat.
Ania looked at the youth. She was sure she had seen him before. She studied him from behind the trees and slowly became aware of that same uneasy feeling she had a few days ago. His dark, shaggy hair hung down to his broad shoulders and an equally dark grizzled beard completely covered the lower half of his face. As she studied him, he stood and went to his horse where he checked the stallion’s tether. He then lifted the horse’s head to examine one of the main bridal straps and returned to his place by the fire. She suddenly realized that this was the same person she had seen in the market. She pushed the uneasy feeling to the back of her mind and weighed their options. He blocked their way to the road from here, and it would be another quarter mile before the road turned and they would be out of his sight. She decided to take a chance and warily stepped out of hiding, without waiting for the others.
As she did, she stepped on a twig. It snapped loudly. The dark-haired youth spun around, grabbing his bow and an arrow as he rose. Ania stopped dead when she saw the arrow pointed at her face. Seeing her, he froze and slowly lowered the bow but kept it drawn. Startled, she looked up at his face. Hard, dark brown eyes glinted from underneath his brow. She looked down, but quickly looked back. Quietly she asked if he knew the way to Sal Den, choosing the same town he had been looking for. He lowered the bow so that it was pointing down. “Did you lose your way, too?” he asked, not unkindly. She needed to gauge his personality, so she quickly thought of a ruse. Pretending to be timid, she quietly answered, “I’m afraid I have. I had to sneak out of town. Soldiers have taken over; they wouldn’t let anyone leave, so I snuck out and took a shortcut through the woods.” She paused and looked down. Then, with a hint of fear and anxiety, she added, “It’s important that I get home as soon as possible. My mother has fallen ill, and my father needs help caring for her.”
He studied her, as if he were trying to decide whether or not she was lying. “You’re from Sal Den?” he asked.
She nodded. “I grew up there but I have been staying with my aunt and uncle in Pycan. My aunt is a healer and was teaching me the trade. Which is one reason my father requested I come home.” “To be honest, I was trying to remember how to get the
re myself.” He sat back down and set his bow aside. He looked up at her, his eyes now showing a gentle kindness that put her at ease. The way he spoke and his mannerisms showed evidence of an extensive education, although his clothes were rather plain and worn thin. He had been well trained for battle, but he did not care for it, and his reaction to her approach gave her the impression that he was expecting an attack.
She looked at him for a moment and then decided, “You’re not from around here, are you?” He laughed. “By ‘around here,’ do you mean Mobren’s land… or the Duke’s?” he asked in return.
Lukair, who had convinced the others to stay behind, knew Ania’s ability to sniff out good character. He knew it was better to let her decide if the young man could be trusted. As she smiled and glanced toward the trees, he knew it was all right. He and Stone began to leave the woods just as the boy said, “No, I was born in a tiny village just outside of these lands. Our ruler often forgets we exist, so many of us leave and go where we are able to find somewhere to live or work.”
Ania looked him in the eye. “I’m sorry,” she said.
“Things happen,” he said with a shrug. He looked over and tensed as the two approached, but Ania put a reassuring hand on his shoulder and welcomed the siblings. Lukair gave her a quick nod; Stone said nothing and hid behind him. The older boy relaxed as she greeted them and welcomed them himself. They echoed his greeting, but before anyone could say more, Lorex joined them, followed closely by Tyanna. He got in Ania’s face, forcing her to back up. “What are you doing?” he demanded crossly. “We can’t trust him. We know nothing about him.”
At that point the young man rose. He grabbed his sword, unsheathed it, and whirled it with uncanny speed. He had brought the tip to Lorex’s throat before he realized what had happened, catching him off guard, “You’re right,” he declared. “You know nothing about me, but, then again, no one does.” He twisted the sword slightly as he challenged, “That still doesn’t give you the right to speak to her like that.” He held Lorex’s gaze and slowly lowered the sword. “Are we understood?” Lorex nodded. “Good.”
