Warlords Rising

by Honor Raconteur

  Most of the flight was sensations for him more than visual as he refused to look down, just up. The air whipped around his face, often pulling strands out of his braid so that hair got into eyes and mouth. He now understood why Krys kept his hair short. It felt good up here, though, exhilarating in a stomach-dropping sort of way. He was torn between wanting his feet on the ground and staying up here for a little longer.

  The dragon that carried him often tilted her head so that she could peek down, checking on him. It relieved him to know that she was keeping a careful eye on his wellbeing. In the long history of the world, the dragons had always been good friends to the magicians of every type and in every age. Their loss had been keenly felt when they migrated to the far north, out of the range of human civilizations. That was why Kaya had been such a joy to all of them when she adopted Krys.

  They went through a cycle of hot air, cool, hot, and cool again as they went from day to night and back to day, continuing to fly steadily for their destination. Downright cold, actually. Part of that was the season, part of it was being this far off the ground, but another factor was that they were much further north now than they had been. Trev’nor couldn’t see much as it was pitch black and the thin crescent moon wasn’t able to illuminate much. There were mountains. He gathered that much. Maybe big trees too.

  His dragon carrier banked a hard right, descending rapidly enough to make his cheeks flap out. He felt like holding on for dear life, only there was nothing really to hold onto. His dragon’s claws were like an iron cage around him—he definitely wasn’t going anywhere—although he slid backward into her grip from the force of the descent.

  Trev’nor’s head snapped back as she abruptly back-flapped, braking hard in midair before touching down with only one front paw and two back feet. Trev’nor opened his eyes and found that she had turned her head around to peer at him intently.

  “I—” He cleared his throat and tried again, the words coming out husky. “I’m good. Thanks. Nice flight?”

  She didn’t know any of those words, but she understood something from his tone as she bobbed her head in a pleased fashion and let him all the way to the ground. Trev’nor was heartily glad to have both boots on rock after being in the air most of the day. Looking around, he spied Becca and hailed her softly.

  Neither of them could see much in this place. Trev’nor felt rock under him, but also a massive amount of trees—come to think of it, the trees were unusually large. They made the ones around Q’atal look a little on the small side, and he’d seen people carve houses out of those trees. But it was only his earth sense that gave him any sense of navigation. Becca was clearly uncertain about trying to move far as she had no light to see by.

  He went to her, offering a hand to steady her. “How are your legs?”

  “A little shaky,” she admitted cheerfully. “But that was a fun ride. How are you?”

  “A little nauseous,” he responded, swallowing hard. “I’m just glad it didn’t last any longer than it did. I wouldn’t suggest moving any further than this without me guiding you. We’re on a rocky ledge with massive trees all around us.”

  “I can kind of see that,” she allowed, peering hard in all direction. “My eyes adjusted enough to see silhouettes, at least. Nolan is way above us, isn’t he?”

  “On an entirely different ledge,” Trev’nor confirmed, craning his neck to look up, although that was a futile gesture. He couldn’t see a thing, not with his usual eyes. Magical sense just let him see Nolan standing like a bright spot directly above him, and lots of rock and vegetation. “I assume he’s talking to the dragon king. Do dragons have kings?”

  “You’re asking me?”

  Right, their animal expert was not with them. “Well, what do you want to do?”

  “Lead me to a place where I can take care of some private business and then I guess we find somewhere to settle in while we wait for Nolan. I am rather hungry, though, are you?”

  “Not right this minute, but give my stomach a little time to settle, and I will be.” Part of being a growing teenager was a perpetually growling stomach.

  Trev’nor played guide for Becca to make sure she maneuvered around without falling off the ledge. They shifted around the dragons as they moved, who seemed to be growing in number every time Trev’nor turned around. Word must be spreading among the…herd?...of dragons that there were visitors and they all wanted to come and take a look for themselves. The bolder ones stretched out their noses to get a long sniff, and Trev’nor carefully did what Nolan had instructed and laid out a flat palm so that they could do so.

  The blue dragon, which had carried Becca, didn’t venture far from their sides and seemed intent on being next to them at all times. After Becca had eaten, the little dragon nudged the pair of them closer to her with a tail and encouraged them to settle in against her side. Trev’nor was extremely grateful for the offer as he hadn’t a clue where to lie down without encroaching on someone else’s nest, and he didn’t want to offend his hosts. He really, really didn’t want to do that.

  “Oh, she’s warm,” Becca sighed in delight, curling in next to that smooth hide. “I’m glad she’s snuggly like this. It’s rather cold out here.”

  “I thought dragons don’t like cold, like dragoos don’t.” Trev’nor was rather sure of that, actually.

  “They might be forced to deal with it in order to have a source of food.” Becca sounded uncertain. “I think a lot of them are snuggling up with each other to share warmth.”

  “You can see that?”

  “More like I can hear it. It’s the same sound as when Kaya’s brood snuggled in with her.”

  Ah, now that she said it, it was a sound he recognized.

  Becca stroked a hand along the hide and leaned in. “You’re a nice dragon. Thank you.”

  He recognized that tone in her voice. “Are you seriously going to sleep without waiting on Nolan?”

  “He’ll wake us up when it’s time. And I’m tired. I didn’t sleep last night.”

  Trev’nor hadn’t either and he was absolutely exhausted, but he found himself too on edge to think about sleeping. Becca had always been the sort that could turn her mind off when she wanted to rest but he had never been able to develop that talent. So he sat with his shoulder touching hers, soaking in the warmth along his back, and waited with as much patience as he could muster for Nolan to come down.

  At some point, who knows when, he fell asleep. And dreamed. They weren’t good dreams. In fact they were confusing and scary, dreams where he was being chased and cornered, forced to turn and fight. It was like a mashup of the last two battles he had been in, only he wasn’t against normal soldiers this time, but some sort of demonic version of them. He fought and screamed and tried to find Becca and Nolan in the madness, but no matter where he turned, it all looked the same to him.

  Something hard and warm settled on his lap, the weight of it knocking the breath out of him just enough that he flailed awake in sheer panic. He found himself staring at the elder green dragon dead in the eye, clear golden that had warmth and sympathy for him.

  Knowing he wouldn’t understand the words, but hoping he’d understand the tone, Trev’nor breathed, “Thank you.”

  “It looked like a bad dream,” Nolan said quietly, coming around to stand at both their sides.

  The green dragon had not budged, so Trev’nor was not able to sit up like he wanted to. “It was a mix between memory and nightmare.”

  That golden eye rolled toward Nolan, and he obviously said something, as Nolan picked up the roll of translator. “‘You are afraid of fighting?’ he asked.”

  “No,” Trev’nor responded honestly, “but the weight of the lives I took is heavy. And I’m scared of losing people dear to me in battle.”

  Nolan dutifully translated, listened, and repeated, “You did not choose to fight. You chose to survive. Anyone that enters a battle chooses life and death. Their souls are not yours to carry.”

  For days now
, they had assuaged themselves by saying they hadn’t had a choice—and they really hadn’t. They’d had to fight. They had to survive. They’d had to rescue themselves. But this reasoning hadn’t helped Trev’nor accept what had happened and he wasn’t sure why. Was it because they honestly hadn’t been prepared for an all-out battle like that one and they kept feeling that with their magic, they should have been able to win the conflict with less bloodshed? Or some other reason entirely?

  These words, given to him by someone from a different species, who was who-knows-how-old, struck a chord in him when nothing else had had any impact. “I’m not responsible for their lives.”

  “You are not,” Nolan translated. “Only family and leaders are responsible for the lives of others. You are not either.”

  Trev’nor reached out and found the exact spot on the nose bridge where Kaya always enjoyed being scratched. “You are wise. Thank you.”

  The dragon’s eyes fell to half-mast in a sign of pleasure and he heaved out a warm sigh, which felt very welcome in the cool morning air.

  “He said you have wonderful hands and you can keep that up until your arm falls off,” Nolan informed Trev’nor dryly.

  “Kaya tells me the same thing.” Trev’nor found it relaxing, soothing, to have such peaceful contact with another living being after that nightmare. So he kept it up for longer than he normally would have. “What did the dragon leader say?”

  “Wait, let me get Becca up first so I don’t have to repeat this.” Nolan bent down and nudged her in the side. “Bec. Wake up.”

  Becca’s eyes sprang open, not unusually, as she wasn’t a deep sleeper in unfamiliar places. Especially in a place like this, she would be sleeping very lightly. She sat up and stretched her arms above her head, taking in Trev’nor’s guest with a startled laugh. “Making friends, Trev?”

  “This must be a universal spot for dragons.”

  “Must be.” Turning to Nolan, she cocked her head. “What did the dragon chief say?”

  Nolan plopped down to the ground, crossing his feet, looking beyond tired. Then again, he was the one that had stayed up all night. “First off, he’s really mad. Like, steaming mad. I literally saw steam coming out. According to dragon memory, the magicians have always been friends and allies, and that’s proven true even in this generation after Krys visited with Kaya. So the idea that we’ve become slaves? He’s ready to go tear the country apart right now.”

  Trev’nor felt a flash of panic. “You did explain to him there are innocent people over there too? Not just bad guys?”

  “He realized on his own, and he’s not going to, but he’s eager to help us. He said, ‘Bad men must go squish.’ I’m not paraphrasing when I say that, those were his exact words. We talked a good portion of last night on how he can help us. First off, he wants to let each of us partner with a dragon.”

  Becca let out an unintended squeal, which got the attention of every dragon around her. Trev’nor had to settle for a pump-fist of victory, as his lap and other hand were still occupied.

  Nolan grinned at them in perfect understanding. “I know, right? At least something about this trip is going according to plan.”

  “Do we know who wants to partner with us?” Becca asked.

  Shaking his head, Nolan explained, “Too early to tell. He wants to talk to everyone first, but he said he’ll try to stay out of it leave it up to us and his own dragonlings to decide. Next, he’s saying that he’ll make dragon…um…” Nolan paused and frowned. “Not sure how to translate this. Covens? Clans? Wards? Groups of dragons that live together in designated areas.”

  “Let’s go with clans,” Becca suggested. “Dragon clans in Khobunter?”

  “Right. This area is nice enough but they’ve grown too large to comfortably support it, and if they keep hunting in this area, all of the game will be gone in a few years. He wants to divide dragons up and send them to different areas, make mini-clans, so that they can live safely but have enough to eat. Trev,” Nolan had a distinct twinkle in his eyes, “you said before that we couldn’t conquer Khobunter because we didn’t have an army or a way of safeguarding the cities after we conquered them.”

  “I think a clan of dragons will manage that just fine,” Trev’nor managed hoarsely. The mental picture in his mind was throwing him for a loop. Dragons as guardians? Dragons as comrades in arms? Was the world supposed to work this way? “To clarify, they’ll fight alongside us?”

  “They will, but their main task is to protect the areas we assign them to. He doesn’t want them to be always in battle, just for as long as we need them to be, as otherwise they’ll be sucked into being battle mounts.”

  “That’s actually wise,” Becca allowed. “He’s right, putting dragons into warfare will just make the carnage more intense. And it’ll make people want to hunt and enslave dragons. It’s better not to open that door.”

  “I agree.” Nolan blew out a breath, tired but victorious. “So. Did I do alright in my first international negotiations?”

  “We couldn’t have asked for a better ambassador.”

  “Relieved to hear it.” Nolan rubbed at his eyes, fatigue in every line of his body. “I was seriously flying by the seat of my pants all night. I realized five minutes in that Krys didn’t tell us the half of his trip to dragon territory.”

  “You’re telling me.” Trev’nor looked around, or tried to, but he still had a dragon partially in his lap. “I’m not even sure if we’re allowed to explore this area freely.”

  “The dragon chief assured me that we had free rein to the area, although he asked that we stay out of the nesting grounds. You can’t mistake the place for anything else, there’s remains of shells littering the area.”

  “Duly noted,” Becca responded. “I take it that he wants us to stay several days?”

  “He does. To get acquainted with everyone but also so that I can help them. Some of the dragons have a few ailments or birth defects that he wants me to address.”

  That made sense to Trev’nor. If they were allies, then of course they would trade favors like this. “We should tell him too that I’ll help as I can. If he needs the landscape changed at all, I’m ready to work.”

  “I’ll pass that along,” Nolan promised, fighting back a yawn.

  Gently pushing a giant head out of his lap, Trev’nor sought to stand. “Well, first things first.”

  “Breakfast?” Becca drawled.

  “It’s like you read minds.”

  “The day you stop thinking with your stomach first, Trev, is the day that I know you’re dying.” Becca levered herself up to her feet. “Breakfast first, and then I think we should explore and introduce ourselves to the dragons.”

  “Great plan,” Trev’nor enthused. “Sorry, Nolan, you’ll have to nap later.”

  “Much later,” Nolan responded with a look over his shoulder. “You can’t see it from your angle but we literally have a line of dragons wanting to meet us. Funny, I don’t remember Krys mentioning that mages are popular with dragons.”

  “I have a feeling that Kaya had something to do with that.” Becca dug through her pack, laying out food as she did so. “Remember how possessive she was, especially in the beginning?”

  Trev’nor tilted his torso, trying in vain to see around two dragons blocking his view, and caught no more than glimpses of a multitude of different colored hides. “What are the odds that our new dragon partners are going to be the same way?”

  Around a mouthful of jerky, Nolan informed him, “Really, really good.”

  “I had a feeling you’d say that.”

  Becca stepped out to the ledge of what she had assumed to be a cave, only to find it was nothing of the sort. The dragons here apparently did use caves—she saw some tails sticking out of the mountainside, as well as a few noses—but the majority of them lived in trees. The trees here were massive, large enough to hold full sized cabins, and could take a dragon or two with ease. The ledge she stood on was actually inside the trunk of a tree
, hollowed out so that there was room to stretch out in. Some of the tree openings looked too uniform to be natural, but others were obviously natural growths.

  Slowly, she did a full turn, looking around her. Three massive waterfalls shimmered in the morning light, making a soft roar of never-ending sound. The scents of greenery, of running water, of rock baking under the suns, permeated the air. Mixed in with all of this lush scenery was the multitude of dragons. From the purest of whites to the darkest of blacks, and every color in between, they were everywhere. A dragon lover would have keeled over on the spot in sheer happiness at such a sight.

  Nolan shifted to dragon form—which garnered a roar of delight and approval from the watching dragons—long enough to get Trev’nor and Becca to a plateau further down. This turned out to be a wise decision as the waiting multitude wanted to touch noses to them. She could just picture having all of those dragons trying to squeeze into the hollow of a tree. They would have been squished like a grape.

  Surrounded by dragons on all sides had to be one of the most unique experiences in the world. Becca turned, hands outstretched, touching noses and looking into their eyes. The suns were warming up, reflecting dully off their hides, and making the musky smell of their scales a little stronger. It was not an unpleasant experience but definitely overwhelming.

  Becca and Trev’nor, not knowing how to communicate, let themselves be bombarded with noses and the dragon equivalent of nuzzling. The tamed version, fortunately, as their usual approach could throw human beings a good fifty feet. Nolan was the one that was actually talking to them and being constructive.

  He waved them closer, then pointed at the dragons hovering nearby. “I’m doing a very rough translation of their names, alright? This is Wind Soars High and his mate, Blue Sky Before Storm. They said that they would like to have Rurick as their territory.”

  That cemented Becca’s attention. “They do understand that no one’s there right now and that they’ll probably have to fight often to keep it? At least until we have the surrounding cities conquered?”