by Sarah Hite
Moon nodded. “That will help.” She paused and then spoke softly. “I heard how Ania got him to eat. Now she has saved two dragons this way, both who are dear to me.”
Kei-ata looked down, he knew about Shaelynn, but he knew she could not be talking about the youngster. He realized that she must mean the one the humans called Bones, the one she addressed as Kwan. As he realized who he must be, he also realized that Ania had saved and knew more about dragons that any of the Guardsmen that he had ever known. She was indeed special. He looked back up at her and then over at the thin dragon asleep in the sun. Shaelynn was curled up next to him. When he returned his focus to her, there was a deep regret behind his eyes. “Moon, I’m sorry. This never should have happened.” He looked her in the eye. “I know you are not ready to go home, but I can assure you that the dragon truly responsible for this whole mess has been apprehended.”
She looked down. “Even so,” she said sadly, “we would never be accepted, especially Shaelynn. They would try to kill her. No, if Kyeon wants me to return to the Keep, he can come tell me himself.” She began to turn away when a trail of dust caught her eye. “Wagon approaching!” she shouted and launched herself in the air, leaving the shaman to stare after her.
As the wagon drew closer, the men took their positions in case the coming wagon bore them ill will. However, as the wagon neared, they saw that it carried only two men, as well as several women. One of the women raised the flag of the Dragon Guard. “Friendlies!” one of the soldiers shouted, and the others lowered their weapons.
As the wagon pulled to a stop inside the camp, one of the Guard captains extended his hand in greeting. The driver accepted his hand as he stepped to the ground. Tyanna, Stone, and Lukair had come to meet the newcomers and were shocked to discover who they were. “Martus!” Stone shouted and ran to him. He turned toward her voice and was just as surprised to see her. He hugged her as she reached him, and then clasped Lukair’s shoulder when he approached. The women had heard them call out and turned to see the kids. They exchanged greetings just as the Lords came to welcome them. Lukair introduced them to Martus and Daemon, and then introduced them to the women. “Welcome,” Lord Ryell greeted. Lord Mychal called to one of the men and issued orders to get the newcomers settled. A cheer rose through camp when the men heard that the group had come from Pycan.
As the women moved off, Martus explained that they had come to help tend the wounded. The Lords invited the two men to the command tent for a debriefing, but Martus asked to wait. Before he could explain why, the alarm rose for two approaching riders. As the men once again raised their weapons, Martus hollered above the crowd, “Wait! They’re with me!”
The men slowly lowered their weapons again as the riders came to stop next to the wagon. Before the two women could dismount, a cry rose from the onlookers. “Mother!” the three kids shouted at the same time. The women leapt from their mounts and embraced their children. Martus smiled at the union and introduced Madia and Tyra.
As the group made their way to the command tend Madia asked, “Where are Ania and Lorex?” As their company remained silent and their expressions turned troubled, she knew something was wrong. After a moment, Lukair turned to her and responded, “We will explain later, but before we do, we want to hear how you escaped.” Flame met them at the command tent and was introduced to Pycan’s surviving Guard. After everyone was settled, Lord Ryell turned to Martus and invited him to start.
Martus nodded and slowly began. “After you kids headed off, we tried to keep the soldiers distracted so you could put some distance between you and Pycan. This worked for about two days. After that we ran into trouble.” He paused and looked down for a moment. As he spoke, Flame and Ryell noticed the tent flap quietly open. Another person silently took a seat on the ground in the shadows. Madia picked up the story for him. “Two days before they arrived, little Iad came running in our front door. Luckily, your father was home. The boy told us that his father had sent him to warn us. They were returning from a hunting trip and saw the troops approaching from the east. They were still leagues away but would reach Pycan before we the end of the week. We quickly devised a plan. Your father had the men draw straws. Those who drew the short straws would escort the women and children to the old complex. There, we would wait until the soldiers left, since it would be easily defendable.”
Martus continued, “Daemon and I drew the short straws. We quickly gathered as many provisions as we could carry and took the women and children to safety while everyone else held the soldiers at bay.” He paused again but, after taking a breath, he continued. “We could hear the sounds of battle from the peak. It lasted for more than a day, and then we smelled it. Daemon and I went to see where the smoke had come from. The village was ablaze, the whole village. It burned for more than a day, until there was nothing left to feed the fire. It had burned itself out by the end of the third day. We waited several more days until we were sure that the soldiers had left. We don’t know where they took everyone else. When we returned to Pycan to see the damage, and to scavenge for any possible supplies, we found only a few dead, so we know that they had been arrested.”
“We would need to get the children to safety. We knew that the Duke would not stop until every threat from Pycan had been eliminated. We also knew that the kids wouldn’t be safe in Zimri. We had to bring them within your boundaries, to Omri,” Tyra said, turning to Ryell.
“How did you get here? With the Duke’s men searching for anyone from Pycan, it would have been difficult traveling,” Flame said.
Martus chuckled. “Yes, it was. However, someone was keeping the soldiers preoccupied enough for them to leave us be, especially after we had split up into several smaller groups.” He looked at the kids knowingly. “We heard the rumors and, after rejoining the others in Tillet, we decided that we should help. We volunteered to aid the army while everyone else stayed in Tillet to care for the children.”
Ryell nodded. “Tillet was a good choice. It’s large enough so a large group of people wouldn’t be noticed hiding there, and small enough to escape notice. Also, it’s well fortified in case it were to fall under attack.”
Madia turned to her son. “Now tell us what happened after you left.”
Lukair started off by telling them how they had come to meet Flame and Pai, and how they had helped them bring the egg to safety. He also explained how Flame had taught them to fight. Stone cut him off and told her of their experience in Lenten. Madia was shocked and asked her if she was all right. Stone assured her that she fully recovered; then she continued their story. She told them of meeting Moon, and how they had discovered the young dragon was royalty and the egg’s mother. She continued her narration with the hatching, Lorex’s betrayal, Ania’s disappearance, and their lives since they had arrived in Aretell.
Lukair took over the story again and began with Kwan’s arrival, and then told them about the festival where they had met Ania, Lord Ryell’s secret guest of honor. He ended with the Battle of Magree, Pai’s injury, the arrival of the shaman, and the call for the Guard.
The adults looked at each other and Madia requested to visit the dragons. Ryell nodded and they stood to leave. As they were about to leave they noticed the person sitting in the corner. She slowly rose and said simply, “Follow me.” She left the tent, leaving the others to stare after her.
“Was that who I think it was?” Madia asked, turning to the others. Ryell nodded, “I wouldn’t worry about it. She has a lot on her mind right now.” After a pause he said, “I would hurry after her; I doubt she waited.”
He led them out of the tent and pointed out the girl who was thirty feet away. Madia quickly followed her, leaving the others to follow at a slower pace. Ania had stopped at the cooks’ tent, giving Madia a moment to catch up to her. As she did, she saw the head cook give her two buckets. They appeared heavy. Ania handed Madia a bucket filled with water and continued on. Madia wordlessly followed her through the crowd. As they made their way to the rea
r of the camp, Madia studied the girl. Her skin was tanned, and her dark hair had been lightened by the sun; she wore her hair in a tight braid that fell over her shoulder. Madia noticed that she wore a cloak of deerskin and that she carried a birch wood staff.
As they reached their destination, Madia was shocked by the seriousness of the injury. She noticed that the shaman was not there. Ania walked over to the small feeding trough and carefully poured her bucket into it. She asked for the one Madia held, and poured some into the other bucket to rinse it, and then poured the remaining contents of both buckets into the trough. She knelt next to the young dragon and carefully woke him. As he opened his eyes, she quietly said, “It’s time to eat.” She stepped back to let the dragon reach the trough and returned to Madia. Madia watched in pained wonder as Pai drank from the trough. She turned to Ania only to find her speaking to another dragon. As Madia watched Ania care for the dragons, she realized why her the kids had not responded. Madia sighed and turned back toward the tent that been assigned to her.
The Message
Chekal reached Dragons’ Keep within days. He had taken this route many times while carrying messages between the Guard and council. He flew nonstop, not even stopping to eat or drink. He flew high above the clouds, where anyone on the ground might mistake him for a bird. Then, as he neared the mountains, he angled on a downdraft and dropped into the hills and out of sight.
As he neared the Keep he tilted his wings; using an updraft, he rose higher than the main entrance. If his memory served him well, the entrance widened on the inside to allow for the passing of dragons. He did not plan on stopping, though, and dove straight for the entrance once he had aligned himself with it. He had to be quick; someone may be leaving at any minute. At the last moment he flared his wings, just to slow himself enough to keep from crashing. Once on the landing, he ran for the tunnel, folding his wings as he ran. “Hey! Watch where you’re going!” someone yelled. He had almost knocked over the guard. “Sorry!” he called back without stopping.
He continued his reckless pace through the tunnels, occasionally jumping over something in his way sometimes even dragons. He decided he would see Elder first and turned toward his chambers. He would know where his sire and grandsire were; but as he rounded the next bend, a large, haphazardly stacked pile of supplies almost completely blocked the tunnel. He could not stop. He crashed into the pile sending supplies in every direction. The workers who had stacked the supplies came out of a nearby room; they were not happy. They complained about the mess and demanded that he clean it up. They chided him for being there; he should have known that section was closed for maintenance. He tried to explain to them that he had not been to the Keep in many years and could not stay and clean up the mess, which, he considered their fault because he had an important massage to deliver. They did not believe him, thinking he only wanted to get out of restacking the supplies, so they demanded again. When he refused they called in a guard.
“What?” he asked quite rudely. Chekal looked up at the overly large Fire dragon. As a Fire dragon he was extremely intimidating and very ill tempered.
“This boy refuses to clean up the mess he made,” one of the workers complained. He referred to Chekal disdainfully.
“Keeps say’n he ’as more import’nt things to do,” another added.
“Is this true, boy?” the guard asked. Chekal looked up at him, he collected his courage and replied, “Yes, sir, but—”
He tried to explain about the message but the guard cut him off. “You will clean this mess up. Then you can do whatever it is you were doing,” he said.
Chekal tried again, “But the message, it can’t—”
“The message can wait!” the guard snarled, cutting him off. He seemed so vicious that Chekal took a step back. The guard then turned to address the workers; Chekal stole the moment and made a run for it, but the guard caught him and growled, speaking quietly. “When someone gives you an order, boy, you are expected to follow it.” He gripped Chekal by the shoulder so hard his claws cut deep into the muscle, causing him to cry out.
“Enough! Release him, immediately.” An angry voice ordered from behind. They all jumped at the ice cold edge in his voice, something never heard, and turned to look at Prince Seoung. The Prince had come to check on the workers’ progress and had walked in on the argument, just before Chekal had tried to sneak away. He intervened quickly, knowing that the Fire dragon could do the boy greater harm. He walked over and inspected Chekal’s shoulder. “You drew blood.” He looked at the larger dragon dangerously, his voice still holding its edge. “What would cause you to be so rough?” He already knew the answer, but he wanted the other dragon to think about his actions. News of a young dragon running through the tunnels had already reached the lower levels, and the guards had been asked to have him slow down. He turned to Chekal who was sitting, with his tail wrapped about him and staring at the ground. His leg was tucked under his chest; Chekal spoke up, very quietly, but there was an edge to the boy’s voice. “You shouldn’t have done that.” He took a shaky breath and continued. “My grandsire will see that you’re punished.”
Seoung studied him for a moment, and then informed the older dragons in his usual tone of voice. “I believe the boy is telling the truth.” When one of the workers tried to object he stared them down, then he went on. “No one would run through these tunnels at that pace unless it was very important.” Chekal looked up at him. “What is your name son?” Prince Seoung asked.
He looked at Seoung and spoke to him but focused his attention on the guard; he answered with the formality of a trained messenger scout, “My name is Chekal Ryou, and I have a message from the shaman, Kei-ata Lorbrein, to the Council of Dragons’ Keep.”
Seoung took Chekal to his chambers. He made sure he was comfortable and insisted that he have something to eat. Chekal refused, saying the message was more important. Seoung called in a young dragon, about Shaelynn’s size, and sent him to retrieve Elder. Then he told the little dragon to go home afterward. The hatchling was mostly a creamy brown, but he had a peculiar mixture of splotches: a mix of dull blues and greens, reminiscent of the Forest dragons, and the bright colors of the Mountains. He also had a row of spikes down his spine like the Forest dragons. “Sayden Konjon, my nephew,” Seoung explained when he saw Chekal looking after the little dragon. At Chekal’s confused expression he explained, “He’s my sister’s son.” Another egg survived. He could not wait to tell her the news. Seoung went to wait for Elder in the entry chamber.
He was soon to arrive and somewhat confused; Konjon’s message had not made much sense. Seoung led him to the next chamber where he made sense of the young dragon’s jolted speech. He went over to Chekal, who had fallen asleep, and inspected his shoulder. It was still bleeding and needed to be cleaned. He would not be able to tell the extent of the damage until that had been done.
They decided to let him sleep and went to speak in an inner chamber. There Seoung told Elder what had happened and why he had been rushing through the Keep to begin with; and then he agreed that the injury did not look good. He told Elder what the boy had said about the Fire dragon being sorry, and then told him his name. “Chekal?” Elder said the name as if asking.
Confused, Seoung asked, “Do you know him?”
“He was one of the scouts who did not return during the recall. He worked with a student of mine once.” He stopped to think a moment and Seoung asked, “Then he is a Ryou?”
“Yes, Lyong’s grandson; his eldest’s second clutch. He’s almost grown.” After another moment of quiet thinking, Elder mused, “We will have to send Hana to fetch them.” Seoung merely nodded.
Elder left to gather some supplies to tend the injury and Seoung went to find his brother, he and Kym agreed to send Hana to fetch the rest of her line, and said they would hear the message after he had something to eat.
Upon waking late into the next day, Chekal was startled to find himself in Seoung’s inner chambers. It took him a minute t
o remember what he was doing there, but wait, this was not the same room. He had been carefully moved to another chamber deeper into the mountain. He groaned as he stretched his sore limbs. He was not accustomed to flying so far and, at such a pace, his wing muscles hurt. Then he realized he could neither feel nor move his injured leg. He curved his neck to look at it. The injury had been cleaned, packed, and sealed. A thick layer of cormin—made of elm pulp, beeswax, and some type of plant had been smoothed over his shoulder. Cormin hardens as it dries, almost as hard as stone, but much lighter. He realized Elder must have used a paralytic to numb the shoulder.
Hearing him awake, two adults came in from the next room. “I will send for some meat,” Seoung said, turning back the way they had come. Elder nodded and approach him.
“Come,” he said, helping Chekal to his feet. “Let’s get you something to drink.” Chekal did not argue. He balanced himself on his other three feet, and then flared his wings for balance. A small stream flowed through the chamber at the other end. Chekal hopped ungracefully to the stream, followed closely by Elder, and drank. He had not realized how thirsty he was until then. Afterward, Elder made sure he got back to his place at the other end of the room. Seoung arrived with his dinner soon after.
After he had finished, they led him back to the original chamber. On the way Elder told him that his grandsire, Lyong, had returned to his clan for a much needed vacation and was not due back for at least a week. Chekal was sorry to hear this but was heartened when Elder went on to say that his aunt, Hana had been sent to find him.
They entered the next chamber to find the rest of the council waiting. King Kyeon allowed him to skip the formalities, considering the boys injury and since they already knew why he was there. Chekal started by telling them where he had been for the last sixteen years and then he gave them the shaman’s message. The council was unsure of what to make of Lorbrein’s word; they knew he had not been himself in the days preceding his disappearance, and may be mistaken. Chekal could tell that only Elder seemed to believe him, so he told them the whole story, starting with the Nesting Cave and the egg turning up in Pycan, and ended with the lords’ decision to go to war; and why the dragons had helped, resulting in Pai’s injury. He also told them that an heir to the throne had been found and was also fighting.
