Dragon Scepter

by Angelique Anderson

  “Yes, yes! Of course!” Miralee exuberantly linked her arm through the crook of Hekla’s elbow to lead her away. “The rest of you stay here, make yourselves comfortable.”

  Svana nodded, while Jakobe gruffly rubbed the back of his neck, and Jetevius paced back and forth nervously. Isabella, still on guard, flattened herself against the wall, trying to remain as inconspicuous as possible.

  “I’ll be back, I need to check on Lingaria,” Svana said as she exited the room, focusing on seeing Lingaria, needing to reassure herself that he was alive.

  Svana rushed to the back bedroom, where she opened the door and saw a dragon curled up on the bed.

  “Human, it’s good to see you,” Lingaria whispered, his dull yellow eyes narrowed as the small dragon looked up at her from the bed.

  “Lingaria!” Svana smiled, hurrying to sit on the edge of the bed. Instinctively, she reached out, and caressed his firm, round belly.

  “You’ve eaten?” Svana asked surprised.

  “Yes, the water walker made me,” Lingaria said, his voice still weak, clear he wasn’t up to par yet.

  Svana chuckled. “You’re lucky. I wish someone would force me to eat.” She patted her stomach with meaning.

  That brought a feeble chuckle out of Lingaria, who closed his eyes. Seeing that he was still tired, she took a seat in the opposite corner of the room.

  “Rest, Lingaria. I’m back to stay, and I’m not leaving until your better.” She could hear his gentle rumbling snores before she even finished her sentence. Curling up in the coral chair, she tucked her head into her arm, and quickly joined him in slumber.

  Hours had passed when she finally opened her eyes, in her mind, she was still in the orb, underwater. Her heart immediately began pounding with the rush of adrenaline, as she thought about fighting her way out, until she realized she was safe in Miralee’s home, her dragon sleeping a few feet from her.

  “About time you woke up, your grumbling stomach woke me up,” the dragon said, lifting his head slightly off the pillow to look her over.

  “Sorry,” she said sheepishly. “I supposed my body needed to rest more than I had realized. Hekla!” she said suddenly, jolting out of the odd shaped coral chair.

  “She’s fine, she came to check on me. Said she’d return when you awoke,” Lingaria paused and looked to the door “speak of the devil…”

  Jakobe and Hekla appeared at the doorway with Jetevius and Isabella behind them.

  “Jetevius, Isabella… will you excuse us for a moment. I need to speak to my sister,” Hekla said.

  The two nodded, and departed and from where Svana sat, and she could hear Mira and Hekla’s friends engaged in lively conversation in the other room.

  “Why did you send them away?” The fiery haired woman sat up, dread immediately overcoming her. “Something happened, didn’t it?” Her eyes went wide with fear, as she braced herself for the worst.

  “No, no… Calm down, Svana. Everything is fine, we’ve come to help your dragon,” Hekla spoke quickly, eyebrows furrowed in concern, blue eyes watching her older sister intensely.

  “I’m sorry, I just… Hekla, Lingaria isn’t better yet. He needs your help…”

  “I know, calm yourself. We’re here to see to him. Jakobe, shut the door, please. Speltus, please join us… we need you. Only dragon magic can cure a dragon’s ailment.”

  The little blue dragon emerged from the tip of her scepter, and landed on the bed, eyes watching his dragon brother.

  “Of course, it will take the both of us to help him,” Speltus said with concern. His wings fluttering gently behind him, tail flicking back and forth in swift motions.

  “Ready?” she asked, lifting the staff over Lingaria.

  Speltus nodded, his body nearly sapphire colored in the reflection of the pastel coral room. “Ready,” he answered.

  Jakobe stood back, as he watched the scene unfolding.

  “Enviduium, Verilium, Enchantum, Ehealium” Hekla began chanting.

  “Expandum,” Speltus chimed in, increasing the power of the spell.

  The colored magic exploded out of the scepter; all colors known to man emitted from the orb. The brilliant hues of reds, greens, and purples made waves over the red dragon, as he lay breathing peacefully. Yellows, oranges and shimmering reds swirled and spun, covering the tiny red beast.

  The vibrant colors were too brilliant, and too bright for them to look at, and Jakobe turned his head away.

  “Enviduium, Verilium, Enchantum, Ehealium!” Hekla yelled again, her body growing tired under the power of the spell.

  Slowly, Lingaria showed improvement. Then he was sitting upright, wings flapping gently behind him, eyes returned to their brilliant yellowed hues.

  “Ceasum,” Speltus said quietly, and the magic returned to him, and the scepter.

  Silence filled the room. Even the conversation taking place outside of the room had ceased. They all sat in silence for several minutes before Svana dared to speak.

  “Feeling better?” Svana asked.

  “Not completely, but I think I’ll live,” he said with toothy grin.

  “Safe to say, I think he’s going to be all right,” Hekla said with a grin, and to emphasize her point, the beast flew into the air, dissipating in a haze of red and shimmering swirls, where he entered her sword again.

  Svana let out a sigh of relief as she could almost feel the balance restored in both the sword and herself.

  I feel whole again, she thought.

  “Well, my dear sister, my gratitude to you, and Speltus.” Svana hugged Hekla tightly. “I’m afraid it is time for me to depart back to Telluris, I have been away too long, and there is much to do. Much needs repaired.”

  Hekla nodded. “I understand, but aren’t you at least going to eat first?” she teased her.

  “Of course!” Svana laughed.

  Jakobe opened the door, never one to stay silent, he found himself speechless from all he had witnessed. His expression still didn’t look like it processed that dragons truly existed in this world.

  “Finally!” Miralee said with a grin. “We’ve been laughing away out here, please have some food.”

  Svana sat for only a moment, eating what she could, devouring the island fruit as if she’d never eat again. Then she and Jakobe excused themselves.

  “Thank you, for your hospitality, Miralee, and for caring for my precious cargo…” she emphasized the last two words, before she snatched up another Aequoran pear, and she and Jakobe waved their goodbyes and exited the home.

  “Ready to return?” Jakobe turned to ask her as they left.

  “No, but it’s time,” she said.

  He nodded in response.

  It was well past time.

  37

  Hekla

  If someone is in a dark place, a truly dark place, it is hard to bring them out. Logic and reason are often not the answer. You must dig deeper than that. Emotion is the strongest factor that intelligent beings have. You have to bring your emotion forward and connect it with theirs. Only then can you reach them. You must dig deep and let it all out on the table. But even then—you may not reach them for long. It all depends on what is keeping them in such a dark place, and how much of a hold it has on them. But—don’t give up. That is the worst darkness in the world—the feeling that everyone has given up on you. Do not let them feel that. Ever.

  King Rowan the Observant, First King of Telluris, 235 A.V.

  “We’re out of Aequoran pears,” Luna said.

  “Blast it, Svana,” Hekla muttered. “How many did she eat?”

  “At least a dozen,” Luna said, laughing.

  Hekla rolled her eyes. “She’s always eaten too much.”

  “Are you well rested?” Jetevius asked as he approached.

  “I am.” Hekla smiled.

  “We need to discuss what we’re planning on doing. With the—” He looked to Luna and cleared his throat. “Recent information, I don’t know if we’re going to have as easy of a
time as we had previously thought. Though, we never believed it would be easy.”

  Hekla nodded. “Yes. It’s gone from hard, to near impossible, but we’ll find a way.”

  “What’s impossible?” Luna asked, her eyes wide with curiosity.

  Hekla smiled. “I’m sorry, Luna. This is something we’re going to have to discuss. In fact, I believe it is time that we make our way back to Aequoris.”

  “Do you always have to leave so soon after you arrive?” Luna asked.

  Hekla hugged the little girl. “I wish it weren’t so, but I made a promise—not only to you, but to all of the Aequoran people, that I would do everything I could to restore peace in the kingdom. That is what I must do now.”

  Luna nodded and hugged Hekla even harder.

  Hekla hated saying goodbye, and she hoped once everything was done, once peace was restored in the sea, and across all of Verdil, she’d be able to spend more time with Luna and all the Aequoran people.

  But for now, she had work to do. She gathered her things, said goodbye to Luna and Miralee, and left with Jetevius, Ecthelion, and Isabella. The others had already returned to their homes.

  “What do we do now?” Jetevius asked.

  “We need to call a meeting,” Hekla said.

  “A meeting?”

  “We need to let everyone know about this dragon, and we need their opinions on what possible action we can take to protect Aequoris. I think this is something we should all be involved in.”

  Jetevius nodded. “Would you like us to gather everyone?”

  “Of course. Meet me at the second camp outside of Aequoris on the southern side in an hour. We’ll discuss everything then.”

  Jetevius nodded. He and Ecthelion left, each of them taking off in a different direction. Hekla was left with only Isabella.

  “Why don’t you go home and rest for a bit, Isabella?” Hekla asked.

  “What home?”

  “Oh—I—”

  Isabella shook her head. “No, I don’t have a home. My mother was killed when I was young, if you remember, and my mother’s best friend who took care of me, died a few years ago. It is only me, and I’d prefer to not be alone.”

  “Very well. Perhaps we could talk about you and your life as we walk to the camp.”

  Isabella raised her eyebrows. “You’re interested in my life?”

  Hekla nodded. “Of course. I would also like to know more of Aequoris, if you’re willing.”

  Isabella smiled. “Of course.”

  They talked over the next hour. Isabella telling Hekla of her childhood growing up in Aequoris, and what life is like for the people. Hekla paid close attention, fascinated, not only in Isabella, but an entire civilization living under the sea.

  When they reached the camp, Hekla was welcomed with open arms. She’d become well-loved among the Aequorans. Hekla made sure to greet every person they crossed paths with as they made their way into the camp. An underwater camp was quite different than a camp above. They didn’t need tents, and they didn’t have fires, but they did have sparring sessions, and hunters catching fish with spears. Hekla’s face turned up at that. She already didn’t like fish, but Aequorans didn’t cook the fish. Their teeth were extra sharp, and they ate the fish raw.

  Isabella noticed her upturned nose. “Do you not like fish?”

  Hekla shook her head. “I’m more of a fan of your fruit… but I’ve never liked fish.”

  Isabella smiled. “Perhaps you just haven’t had the right fish yet.”

  Hekla’s lips pressed together firmly. “No thank you. I’ll stick to the fruit.”

  Isabella laughed.

  They waited in the camp for another hour before Jetevius and Ecthelion arrived with an army of Aequorans. Hekla’s eyes grew wide when she saw how many had followed them. The camp wasn’t large enough to contain them all.

  “How many?” she asked.

  “Eight hundred,” Jetevius said.

  “Nine hundred,” Ecthelion said.

  Hekla’s eyes widened. “This camp already had over fife-hundred.”

  “And they are all loyal to you,” Jetevius said.

  “How?” she asked. “I’ve only led small forces.”

  Jetevius shook his head. “No, you’ve been a part of much larger conflicts than that. There were over a thousand in the first battle against Telluris. And they all saw what you did in that battle. They saw your compassion for not only them, but all the races of Verdil. You have won their hearts, Hekla,” Jetevius said.

  “They will all follow you,” Ecthelion said.

  “But the king—”

  “Isn’t loved by the people like you are,” Ecthelion said.

  “More soldiers follow you than the king,” Jetevius said.

  Hekla didn’t know what to make of that.

  “We could march on Aequoris and take the kingdom. And everyone here would follow you,” Jetevius said, glancing at Isabella.

  Hekla shook her head, also glancing to the king’s daughter, who seemed emotionless on the subject. “No. I will not start a coo. Besides, it would be foolish with what we now know about the dragon and undead army. We will need all the help we can get. If we fight—even if we win, we will be weakened. What if the undead then decide to attack? We would surely lose. No, we need everyone’s help. And perhaps more than just us. We need to call out to the Tellurians and Caelestans. This is an opportunity to rebuild the alliance we so desperately need.”

  “How?” Jetevius asked. “How are we going to convince those still loyal to the king to join us?”

  “I’m working on that,” Hekla muttered.

  “They need to see the undead,” Isabella said.

  Hekla turned to look at her.

  “If they saw the undead—the creatures… and the dragon—they would realize how much we need to be united. We cannot defeat them apart,” Isabella said.

  “So… the question is… how do we show the undead and dragon to the rest of the Aequorans? They won’t listen to us. What we saw is unbelievable,” Jetevius said.

  “We’ll need to lure the dragon out of the canyon,” Hekla said.

  “How?” Jetevius asked.

  Hekla bit her lip. “Let me worry about that.”

  “The king and dragon have to be in an alliance,” Ecthelion said.

  They all turned to him and looked at him with concern. No one spoke for a long moment.

  “Or, like the Tellurian king, he is under the influence of the dragon. It could be the dragon controlling his mind,” Hekla said.

  “I need to try and break through to him one more time,” Hekla said.

  “No,” Ecthelion said. “You’ve tried once before. Either he’s truly evil, or the dragon has too strong a hold on him. He cannot be reasoned with.”

  Hekla bit her upper lip. “We know more now. We know that he’s feeding gold and jewels to the canyon. We know what the dragon is doing with them, and we know about the undead army. What if the king doesn’t? What if he only knows he’s giving gold and gems to the dragon? What if the dragon is making the army in secret?”

  “It’s not going to make a difference,” Ecthelion said.

  “We have to at least try,” Hekla said.

  “You’re stubborn,” Ecthelion said.

  “I have made my decision. I am going to the castle, and I’m going to speak with King Renault one last time. I’m going to tell him about the dragon’s army, and the danger to Aequoris.”

  “And if he doesn’t listen?” Ecthelion asked.

  “Then we will move ahead on our plan to bring the army out of hiding for everyone to see.”

  “And how do you plan on doing that again?” Ecthelion asked.

  Hekla raised her eyebrows. “Trust me.”

  Jetevius stepped forward, rubbing his temple as he looked at the ground. His expression was full of concern as his gaze finally met Hekla’s.

  “You’re not going to see King Renault alone,” he said.

  Hekla smiled. “No, I’m
not.”

  “Good,” Jetevius said as he checked that his sword was secure at his waist.

  “Isabella will be coming with me.”

  “What?” Jetevius said, his eyes growing wide.

  “What?” Isabella repeated Jetevius’s question, her eyes even wider than his and her mouth parted.

  “If we’re going to break through King Renaults defenses, he needs to see someone he cares about. When the Tellurian king was under a spell, it was only his niece who could break through to him. She broke the connection between the wizard and the king.”

  Ecthelion shook his head, his long, sea-weed hued hair appearing to blow in the water current. “A dragon is much more powerful than a wizard.”

  “A daughter holds much more power than a niece,” Hekla retorted.

  “I can see that nothing I say will stop you. All I can ask is that you’re careful.”

  Hekla nodded. “We will.”

  “Wait,” Isabella said. “I never said I was going along with this plan.”

  Hekla turned to Isabella and placed her hand on the princess’s shoulder. “Please, Isabella. If there is any way to save your father… it has to be through you.”

  “What if I don’t want him to be saved?” Isabella asked as tears came to her eyes.

  Hekla’s eyebrow raised and she opened her mouth to respond, but Isabella didn’t want her to talk.

  “He’s done nothing for me!” Isabella yelled. “He had my mother killed. He allows greed to consume him. Father doesn’t care about me. He’s never been there for me.”

  Isabella wiped the tears flowing freely down her face. “When we’d go to visit mother’s grave… he would always whisper that he wished mother never tried to stop him. That she should have just let it go.” Isabella’s face turned red with heat. She clenched her teeth. “Who says that?” She took a deep breath. “Who says that they’d wished you’d never spoken about the foolish things you were doing so they didn’t have to have you killed? What kind of person says that?”

  Hekla reached out and grabbed Isabella’s hands. At first, Isabella tried to jerk her hands from Hekla’s grasp, but when Hekla wouldn’t let go, Isabella finally relented.