by Sarah Hite
“How did we miss that?” Ryell said more to himself than anyone else. Lukair merely smiled; he, like his father, was used to her pointing out what everyone else had missed, and this action caused him to believe that she was feeling more like herself. They had been stunned when she had showed them the letter and told them about the dream memories of dragons passed. What had shocked him more was the fact that none of the dragons could figure out how it was possible.
The council soon agreed that this would be an ideal target and began to figure out how they would get the army there without giving themselves away. Several routes were recommended, but none would provide the cover they would need. As they tried to figure out which of the recommended routes would be best, Ania zoned out.
As the group finally decided on their route, Ania snapped back to attention. “Wait, which route did you say?” She thought she had heard them but wanted to be sure.
“What’s the matter? Not paying attention?” Tyanna said somewhat scornfully.
“Tyanna, that’s enough!” Flame declared before Ania could retaliate. He turned to her and asked, “What is it? Is there a route you would prefer?”
Ania did not answer right away. She looked at the floor and said quietly, “Dras Liet is a good choice, it has all the cover we need to hide the army, and would give us enough hunting ground to feed the men, as well as the dragons, but I wouldn’t recommend it.”
“Why not?” Captain Harden asked.
“Not even the dragons would take that route. Rockslides are a constant. They are unpredictable and deadly, that’s why the dragons called it Dras Liet; its short for dras ekan san liet, death by falling stone. We would lose half the army if we tried to navigate those mountains.” The others stared at her in disbelief. “What? If you don’t believe me, ask a dragon!” she challenged, clearly irritated. Many of their allies still did not believe in her abilities and regarded her suspiciously.
“How do you know?” Tyanna retorted mockingly. “Did the memory of a dead dragon tell you that?”
Ania looked away. It was still hard to deal with the memories, but sometimes they did prove useful. Quietly, she gave her answer, “Yes.” She stood suddenly and said, “If no one’s going to take me seriously, maybe I should have stayed in that cave.” She left the room quickly, slamming the door shut behind her. Tyanna did not answer. She really had not expected Ania to say yes; she thought, perhaps she had made it up. Flame glared at her and followed Ania from the room; he knew she was still struggling with the memories, and it was not fair of them to treat her like that.
Ryell called one of his messengers and asked him to ask Moon if she would come to the window. The boy ran off, then he stood and opened the large glass plane. After a few moments Moon met them at the opening. She yawned a greeting and Ryell apologized for waking her. They all knew that between looking after Shaelynn, seeing to Kwan’s health, and their mock battles, she was exhausted.
Upon hearing that they had agreed to take the Dras Liet Valley to reach Magree, she surprised them by agreeing with Ania. “Dras Liet is a deadly path. More dragons have been killed by rockslides in that valley than by war or famine. None take that path now. It would be better to find another route.” Ania had reached the far end of the corridor before Flame caught up to her. “Ania, wait!” She did not stop; she left the corridor and fled to the courtyard where she finally stopped at the gazebo and sat down on a bench. She had her head in her hands when he found her. He put a hand on her shoulder and sat down beside her. She turned and cried into his shoulder; he held her and let her cry. She had been so strong for so many, and it was time someone was strong for her. He wiped the tears from her eyes, “As long as you believe in yourself, nothing else matters. Do what you know is right. I have faith in you.” As he spoke, she felt the same uneasy feeling that she had felt the day they first met. He suggested that she return to her room, and he would handle the council.
Flame returned to the conference room and was told Ania had been correct. “Is there one you would suggest?” Flame asked Moon; she took a moment to answer. “What about the Sarduc Pass?” It was a small valley that connected the Jehu and Emri provinces and was easily over-looked. The Sarduc was only half as long as Dras Liet, but had as much cover and opportunities for resupplying the army. The only problem it presented was that they would have to cross most of the Jehu Province to reach it. Moon had flown the pass before and knew how the peaks could hide someone from sight. She stated that it would indeed be a safe and quick choice; as they were the traveling force, it would be best not to exhaust the troops. Flame agreed with her and they agreed to take the Sarduc instead, and soon the council was excused.
She had noticed Ania’s absence and asked Ryell and Flame, who had not yet left, where she was. Lukair returned to ask the same question just as Flame answered. “I sent her to her room. She’s been having a really hard time with this, and having her friends and allies think it’s a joke is not helping. She needs to know we believe in her, that her abilities are real and not something to be feared. If we, her friends and allies, don’t believe her, or trust her, she won’t trust us. We need to defend her, as much as she defends dragons. She is in as much danger as Shaelynn.” They all agreed and vowed to look out for her better in the future.
The next day, Ryell issued the orders to move out in three days. The army had been split into three brigades. Each brigade held three battalions which consisted of four companies. There were five detachments per company and each detachment held six units. Each unit had eight squads of twenty men; 230,400 men total at this time. Not all were here; however, each brigade was made from one province. Lord Ryell and Flame led the first brigade; the second by Lord Mychal; and the third by Lord Kayton; although he and his men would not join them for a while. Kayton was supposed to be neutral; his added forces would be a surprise to Vidar’s army and considerable help to the King’s Men.
Lord Ryell’s men would move out first. The plan was to draw the duke’s attention away from the other provinces while Mychal’s troops moved out. The two forces would join together while crossing the Sarduc Pass. After the men had gone, Lord Mychal excused himself to depart to Sheadod in order to prepare his men. Chekal had offered to give him a ride. It was only a few hours to Sheadod as the dragon flies. This way he would not have to waste the three days returning home. He had accepted the invitation and went to meet the young dragon.
A few week later they were looking out over Lord Gunner’s land. They could see Magree only ten miles away. The route Moon had chosen had indeed led them right to the city’s gates. Magree was well fortified; nonetheless, it would take them hours to gather their forces. The lords dispatched several teams, five or six men each, who would enter the city at different times and in different places. They would attach from within in an hour’s time. When they received the signal the army would begin its assault.
Ania stopped her horse just inside the city’s main gate. She waited for Flame to catch up. They dismounted and slowly led their horses toward the marketplace. As they walked a wagon passed them. They nodded to Lukair and Stone, who were pretending to be bringing crops to market. Tyanna joined them a moment later. She pretended to ignore them and pushed her way through the crowd. The five friends had a special task: they were to signal the men when it was time. They were to use the city’s warning system against them and use the bell as the signal. The bell was usually rung in a slow steady manner; they were to ring the bell as fast as they could.
They had less than an hour and had to move into position. The bell was at the top of the northernmost tower of the guard house. Tyanna stopped her struggle through the crowd at the base of the eastern tower. She waited only a moment to make sure that the coast was clear and then slipped inside. She would attack from there and keep them distracted while the siblings made their way toward the bell. Flame started to mount his horse again and fell off. Ania glared at him. Flame had kept Ania close at hand; he knew she could be the best chance of winning the war, a
nd he valued her input above most others. He also knew that no one would dare torment her if she was with him.
“Already?” she questioned angrily. “We have only been in town a short while and you’re already drunk?” She pulled him to his feet. Flame stumbled and fell on one of the city’s guards. She pulled him off the guard, and apologized to him. Flame grumbled as she apologized several more times. She held him up as he threatened to topple again. She began to lead Flame back to their horses when he tripped and this time fell on a man who had been carrying a number of packages. The boxes fell and scattered around the square. Ania pulled Flame, who was mumbling apologetically, off the man. She then helped the patron to his feet and helped him gather his belongings. The man thanked her for her help but said, “You should take him home, before he gets into trouble.”
“Of course,” she replied and once again began to lead him to his horse, only to have him stop and look at the soldier he had fallen on earlier. He poked his head in the man’s face and mumbled incoherently, only allowing every so many words to be clear. Ania begged the man’s forgiveness and tried to get Flame to his horse, only to have him wander off to a nearby booth, swaying the whole time. She sighed, “I’m afraid you may have to arrest him until he sobers up.” She turned to the soldier, who was staring at Flame in disbelief. He nodded and walked over to the boy, who was irritating the booth’s owner as he began to play with a child’s toy sword. “Come on, chap,” the soldier said as he approached. “Let’s get you sobered up.” He pulled out a pair of shackles and tried to put them around Flame’s wrists, only to have him pull away and stare up at the man in dismay.
“Why would you wanna do that?” he asked, slurring his words. “Because you’re acting like a drunken fool!” Ania shouted at him angrily.
Lukair looked out the single window on this level of the tower. He heard Ania shout and quickly led Stone up the stairs. He pulled his sword from its sheath as they ran. They had only a few moments to reach the bell before they succeeded in arresting Flame. They heard the commotion below; several other soldiers had arrived to assist their friend in apprehending the drunk. They stopped on the level directly below the bell.
Here they waited a moment and listened for any soldiers who may be on this level. Nothing. They quickly and quietly crossed the landing to the stairs that led to the bell tower. They were halfway to the top when they heard a door creak open. The siblings stopped in their tracks; Lukair tightened his grip on his sword. Ahead of them a burly man, more than twice Lukair’s size, rounded the corner and nearly knocked him down. He steadied himself and looked up at the man’s face. The soldier was clearly taken off guard by this encounter. “What are you kids doing in here?” he asked somewhat crossly.
Lukair did not answer. He swung his sword and ducked under the man’s arm, taking the higher ground. Stone raced past him and ran for the tower. She did not wait for Lukair; their hour was up. She could hear them fighting in the stairwell and hoped Lukair would be all right. She ran through the door and into the chamber. She halted when she saw the bell; it was massive. Its polished copper surface dimly reflected her image as she tried to pull the cord. She stopped. No wonder that particular soldier had been up here; he was probably the only one who could pull the cord, she thought. She quickly looked around the chamber. A section of wall caught her eye; she quickly ran to it and discovered that the wall was un- der construction. She spotted a large hammer among the tools and picked it up.
She ran to the bell and struck the hammer against its side. A clear, deep tone filled the chamber; it resonated within her bones. She ignored it and struck the bell again. Another note filled the room. She continued to strike the bell as quickly as she could, increasing her strikes until they almost joined together. She heard nothing over the sound and was sure she would not be able to hear anyone for hours afterward.
Ania watched as the man tried to arrest Flame. The soldier almost had him, then Flame thrust the wooden sword at him. The soldier called for reinforcements, and soon Flame was surrounded. They tried to arrest him, but he continued to elude them. However, Flame did not have too much longer. The soldiers looked up in surprise as the bell sounded, its beat quickly increasing. When they turned back to him, they were even more surprised to find him holding a real sword. The soldiers turned as they heard the rasp of metal; roughly twenty men, including the booth’s owner now held weapons. As the men attacked the soldiers in the marketplace, Ania quickly drew her sword. The polished metal flashed as she swung at a soldier, freeing Flame as the soldier pinned him between the wall and a wagon.
As the man fell to the side, she helped Flame steady himself before he lost his footing. “Whose idea was it to pretend to be drunk again?” he asked. “They should be thrown in the stockade.”
Ania chuckled. “Yours!” Flame smiled at her as she spun off to engage the soldiers once again. After several minutes, or what seemed like several minutes, Stone peeked out the window. Below she could see the blue and silver tunics of the King’s Men engaging the soldiers. She slowly walked to the stairwell and peeked down the stairs. The overly large soldier shoved Lukair hard. He lost his footing and fell against the wall. The soldier quickly took advantage of this distraction; he raised his sword to Lukair’s throat and kicked his sword away.
Stone did not hesitate. She ran down the stairs and swung the hammer at the man’s outstretched arm, catching him in the wrist. His bones crunched. He bellowed in pain and dropped the sword. Stone ran passed them and Lukair followed, picking up his sword as he ran. They burst through the tower’s base in time to help Ania fight off a group of eight men. The Guardsmen who had played the part of the vender tossed Stone a sword as he ran past.
Three times Stone had seen Lukair almost killed since the battle had started. She had seen Ania and Flame both detained by a larger force. Even though they experienced harrowing circumstances, they always managed to get out of them. Stone was angry with herself; no matter how hard she tried, she could not fight as well as her friends, and often found herself surrounded and outnumbered. She could not fight them off on her own.
She watched as the dragons began their assault. Moon barreled into a building as she dodged a volley of arrows. She leapt from the rubble and took flight, angling toward a group of Gunner’s men who had several of the king’s soldiers surrounded. She tore through the men before they knew she was there. As the dead bodies of their comrades fell to the ground, the men panicked and fled. Stone snapped back to attention as a sword passed her cheek. She blocked the next blow with the cross guard of her sword. She fought to stay on her feet as the soldier pushed her backward. She managed to push him off and, to her surprise, knock him off his feet, but he quickly covered his footing and started after her again.
She channeled all of her fear, anger, and frustration into one stroke. She swung so hard her blade went right through her opponent’s armor, and slipped from her fingers, disarming her. She stood there, confused and unsure of what to do. “Retreat!” Flame, hollered. “Run!” Lukair screamed, but the soldiers were already gathering. Stone looked for a way out. She was surrounded; there was a tall stone wall fifty feet to her left. The soldiers were coming in fast, and she backed up toward the wall. Then, just as she was about to lose hope, she saw something—a shadow, a mere absence of light. At first she thought she had imagined it, but then she saw it again. It came toward her faster than one of Ania’s arrows. All of a sudden the ground around her shook as a dragon landed heavily on the wall, throwing the soldiers off their feet and Stone up against it. This was not a very large dragon. He was only about the size of a large draft horse but bulkier. He reared back his head, flared his wings, and snarled.
The young Ryou had taken a liking to Stone while in Aretell. He was not about to lose her now. “If only they knew you can’t breathe fire,” Stone laughed. “No, but I can still rip them apart,” he replied. Chekal watched as she joined Flame and Lukair before returning to the air. Stone spotted other shadows that revealed Moon and Pai
. Each dragon seemed to be staying with a group of the team. The soldiers feared the dragons, with good reason. The two Mountain dragons could breathe fire, and the three of them had extremely sharp claws and teeth. The battle had begun to turn in their favor. The duke’s men were running in fear. Then, just as the King’s Men were beginning to sense victory, a pained howl split through the sounds of war. A dragon had fallen.
Ania turned toward the sound; it was Pai. He had been hit by a javelin while dodging a volley of arrows. “Moon!” she yelled, trying to gain the Princess’s attention. Moon had also been looking to see who had been hurt. She dispatched the soldiers she was fighting with a swift kick, then reared back and locked her neck. She let loose a jet of blue white flame that left nothing standing. The soldiers scrambled away from it and to any possible safety. Most perished in the flame; those who survived were too injured to be a threat. Moon stepped clear of the carnage and leapt to the air. She caught Pai just before he crashed into one of the buildings. Together, they landed outside the city, at the rear of the king’s camp. “No! Don’t remove it,” Lord Mychal ordered, rushing over. The surgeons were trying to remove the post from Pai’s chest. They stopped, confused. “Pack the wound as best you can. The tip of that javelin is close to his heart. If it’s moved, it could kill him.” The surgeons looked at one another; they knew nothing about dragon anatomy and took his word for it. They packed the wound tightly, binding the lance to his chest.
