"Just don't forget your other friends," Korinn declared. "At least now, for the first time in all the years I've known you, I won't have to be worrying about you."
"We've all spent enough time worrying about Thelvyn to last a lifetime," Solveig said. "For such a strange, awkward kid, you've turned out to be quite a handsome dragon."
Early the next morning, the two dragons collected Sir George and departed for the east. They wandered a bit on their way, checking to see that all the damage from the invasion of Rockhome was in the process of being repaired. The rains of late spring had done much to restore the blackened steppes of the Ethengar to their familiar green. The herds were gradually returning, and the clans of the Ethengar would soon return from their exile in the mountains of northern Rockhome.
The return of the Dragonking to Windreach the next day was a matter of great celebration. The dragons feasted him and his companions all through the night. The next morning he presented himself to the Parliament of the Dragons, for he knew his time to leave was at hand. He formally introduced himself as Diamond, the new dragon Immortal, who had been sent back into the world to guide and to protect the dragons, and he briefly assumed his Immortal form to prove his statement. He explained that finally the prophecy of the dragons had been fulfilled, not as they had feared but with the hope of lasting peace for the future for dragonkind. He added that he would no longer be their king; the Parliament of Dragons would govern their affairs, and he would only be an advisor.
He tried to give the Collar of the Dragons back to them, but the parliament refused to accept it and asked him to continue to hold it in trust. Marthaen explained that the dragons had already discussed the matter, and it was their wish that Thelvyn should always hold the title of Dragonking in honor of the great battle that he had fought for them.
That night the dragons feasted the Dragonking a second time, after which they went out into the mountains of Nor-wold to sing. In the past, the dragons had sung their ancient songs on special nights of the year, such as midwinter night and midsummer night, but they had lost heart for the old festivals when the Great One had left them some three decades earlier. Now they felt like singing once more.
This was something very new for Thelvyn, who didn't know any of the ancient songs. He listened with delight as the dragons sat back on their haunches, looped their tails about their legs, lifted their long necks high, and sang to the stars. The song of the dragons was legendary, even among other folk, for dragons had very strong, clear voices, and their great chorus would ring through the mountains on a clear night, carried on the wind for great distances. Elves would walk hundreds of miles to hear them, and weep with joy at the sound.
They built great bonfires on the remote plateau where they gathered, and they brought out barrels of wine and large, deep drums to keep time while they sang their livelier songs. To the surprise of all, it was Kharendaen herself who was the first to dance. Everyone was even more impressed to see how well she danced, for she was young and strong, and very lean and graceful. She rose up on her long hind legs with her wings half furled, bending and swaying between quick, prancing steps in time with the rhythm of the drums. The gold and tan patterns of her armor seemed to shimmer in the dancing firelight, and her large eyes glittered. Watching her, Thelvyn was proud that her love was given to him.
"There has never been another like her," Jherdar said in admiration. "Cleric and warrior. Wise and fierce, brave and beautiful. Only an Immortal could be worthy of her."
Sitting close to his own mate, Daresha, Marthaen smiled in wry amusement. "My little sister has grown up."
Sir George had brought out a bottle of cherry liqueur from his pack, which he now lifted in salute. "To the best dragons that ever lived!"
"Who is that?" Jherdar asked, staring down at him.
"Why, the whole damned lot of you, of course," the old knight declared. "I hope you're all proud of yourselves, because you've earned it."
"You make us sound like heroes," Jherdar laughed, but then he paused and looked more serious. "I regret that many of our actions from the start were nothing to be proud of. We look at things quite differently now."
"That's what the Great One wanted most of all," Thelvyn said. "He would tell you not to regret your mistakes if you haye learned from them."
"Then you forgive us for the grief we caused you?" the red dragon asked.
"I forgave you long ago," Thelvyn said. "Actually, getting to knock you around when I first became Dragonlord made me feel a lot better."
Jherdar laughed. "The only fight I ever had that I'm happy to have lost. But since this night seems to be for handing out praise, there is another who should not be overlooked. First Speaker, what honor do we have for the prince of drakes?"
Marthaen turned his head to look at the old knight. "I hereby proclaim Sir George Kirbey a Fellow of the Parliament of Dragons. At special times, he will be brought to Windreach to speak before parliament on behalf of the dragon-kin. And if Sir George Two-Hands would be gracious enough to give us the hook that he wore for so long, it will be given a place of honor among the treasures of the dragons in the Hall of the Great One."
"That's a bit much praise for me," Sir George remarked. "But I think I will accept it all the same, since it's high time for the dragons to stop overlooking the dragon-kin."
"We promise," Marthaen assured him. "We will never forget that you were there to protect the Dragonking when the dragons refused to."
They sat in silence for some time as they watched Kharendaen dance. She seemed tireless, and she gave the dragons a dance they would not soon forget. Finally she left the firelight, and others took her place as she walked over to sit down close beside her mate. They rubbed their muzzles together softly.
"When are you going to lay that egg?" her brother asked her.
Kharendaen lifted her ears in alarm. "You know about that?"
"You smell pregnant," Marthaen said in jest. "Actually, Thelvyn spoke of it to the Great One that last night in the west. I am pleased the Dragonking will leave an heir among us."
"I appreciate your offer to raise our child in Windreach where she belongs," Thelvyn said. "Kharendaen and I have much to do."
Kharendaen turned her head to look at him, and there were tears in her large eyes. "I thought you had to leave us."
Thelvyn placed his hand gently on her neck, just below her ear. "You've been at my side almost every moment since I first became the Dragonlord, sharing every danger and hardship. I could not leave you behind now."
She settled close against him, and he held her tightly. After a moment, he looked up at his companions. "I must leave now. As you know, the Immortals are not permitted to act directly in the mortal world. An exception was made in my case in order that I could defend you against great danger. But now the old balance must be restored."
"But you will be back," Jherdar said, looking sad.
"I will return to you often," Thelvyn promised. "But from now on, my part will be only to observe and advise, for I still have my mandate from the Great One to help the dragons discover their destiny. But the Great One has allowed me to select four companions among the gold dragons to serve and assist me, once they have proven Themselves worthy of such a duty. You must admit that no one has proven herself more worthy than Kharendaen."
"That leaves three more companions," Sir George remarked, looking rather pointedly at Marthaen. "Perhaps there are likely candidates who wish to volunteer."
"My place is here," Marthaen insisted, frankly alarmed at the suggestion.
"I agree," Thelvyn said. "And since you believe in the dragons the way I do, you will best serve me here. Still, there is no hurry to decide anything."
They sat in silence for a time, watching the lively dancing of the young dragons. The conclusion of their labors was at hand and difficult times were behind them, but the end had turned out not as sad as they had anticipated. They were content.
"What about you?" Thelvyn asked Sir George. "If you pl
an to return to your former life of adventure, then I'm going to have to spend every free moment I have worrying about you."
"Adventure?" Sir George asked. "I'm merely an old dealer in antiquities, mind you. But I think the time has come for me to go home. I've been living among dragons quite long enough. It leaves me dizzy and confused, and I need to be comfortable for a while. I am only a dragon-kin, and I feel rather out of place among true dragons."
EPILOGUE
Three years had passed since the Dragonking had defeated the Overlord and brought a sudden end to a devastating war. After the evening of singing on the plateau, the Dragonking had departed for the east, and he had never been seen again. No one seemed to know what had become of the hero to whom they all owed so much. Sometimes people saw a solitary dragon riding the winds over the distant mountains, and they would think fondly of the brave dragons who had, against all expectations, fought so fiercely to protect them from an enemy they could never have faced alone.
Now most of the signs of war had been erased from the Highlands, except for Braastar, which had suffered much during the invasion. It was a generally prosperous time throughout that part of the world. Most folk were grateful for being saved from certain death or enslavement, and they remembered how everyone had set aside his differences to stand together against a common enemy. And so most lands were still at peace, because people had acquired a new respect for how valuable it was.
On a spring morning, when the sun was bright and everyone hurried about his business, two strangers appeared in the streets of Braejr. They were an odd sort, obviously foreigners-one man and one woman, each of them tall and thin but strongly built, with black hair and large eyes. No one had ever seen them before, but they were well dressed if not conspicuously so and obviously of refined manners, and so no one took much notice of them. The Flaem were getting used to not only seeing foreigners but also having them live among them, so a pair of innocent-looking strangers was not a matter of particular concern. Times had changed indeed.
The strangers presented themselves at the home of Sir George Kirbey, a comfortable townhouse in a well-to-do area of the city that was just down the street and around the corner from where he had lived for several years with Thelvyn Fox-Eyes. The old knight had apparently stepped out for a while, and so they let themselves in to wait. Although the door had been locked, the strange magic commanded by the tall, dark man made quick work of that. There was no one at home except for a rather noisy bird, a large green parrot with a long red tail and a beak that might have done credit to a griffon. The parrot sat in its cage in the den, alternately ringing a bell that hung from a chain and then laughing hysterically. It was so unlike Sir George to keep such a thing in his house that they were fascinated by it. But the parrot refused to speak, continuing to ring its bell and then laugh its deep, hearty laugh.
Sir George himself returned only a few minutes later. At first he did not recognize his two visitors, since he had never before seen them in the form they now wore. Then he realized that their features resembled the Eldar of Windreach, and he knew that they were Thelvyn and Kharendaen. He could not have been more delighted, insisting that they sit down in comfortable chairs in the den with glasses of his best cherry liqueur. He prepared himself for a long chat.
Unfortunately, it was immediately obvious that they would have no peace from the bell-ringing bird. Sir George cursed it in some strange language, threw a heavy cloth over the cage, and then removed it to a back room and locked the door. He had only just returned when they heard the distant sound of a
ringing bell followed by an evil laugh.
"You were never one for pets," Thelvyn observed. "Except, perhaps, for an orphan dragon you once raised."
"Oh, that bird is no pet," Sir George declared. "It's the bane of my existence, the punishment for my every sin, the very scourge of my patience. But it was also my inheritance, so what could I do?"
"Inheritance?" Kharendaen asked. "I hesitate to ask what you may have done to deserve it."
"The key to my inheritance, I should say," Sir George explained. He sniffed his glass and sighed, his contentment restored by the sickly sweet scent of the vile cherry concoction. "That red-tailed moron came to me with the compliments of Mage Artacious of Ierendi, a long-time acquaintance of mine and fellow expert and collector of rare antiquities. He passed away earlier this year, and he wanted me to have a cache of ancient treasures he had recently located. Artacious was very fond of puzzles, and also of his little jokes. Only the bird knew where to find the treasure."
"But the bird doesn't talk," Thelvyn observed.
"The bird doesn't like to talk," Sir George corrected him sullenly. "The only sadistic joy in its miserable life is ringing that bell and laughing. It can ring that stinking bell day after day, night after night, for weeks on end and never tire of it. I did everything I could to try to get it to talk. Finally I called in Perrantin, hoping he could suggest something."
"Did Perrantin know what to do?" Thelvyn asked. Both he and Kharendaen were having difficulty hiding their amusement.
"Oh, yes. He took away that damned bell, and inside of two hours, the bird was talking its head off. The only trouble was that we had no idea what it was saying. It took us two more weeks to figure out that it speaks only in an old dialect of the Heldannic clans, a rather uncouth language suitable only for disgruntled Heldannic wizards and obnoxious parrots."
Thelvyn finally gave in and laughed out loud. "Now I know why I've missed you so these last few years."
Sir George frowned. "You sound as if any cause for missing me had escaped you until now. That's not my fault. You had to go away, even though things were finally beginning to settle down enough for us to enjoy ourselves."
"You said you needed to go home and be comfortable for a while," Thelvyn reminded him. "You seem to have found yourself a comfortable home, but I can't tell whether or not you've cut back on your adventures."
"Actually I have," Sir George insisted. "Once the threat of invasion was past, Solveig had a lot of work getting the Highlands back in order, especially with all those people freed from the will of the Overlord who were settling here. Once you were gone, Solveig was the only wayward child I had left in my care. I came back here so she could tend to her business."
He spent some time telling his visitors about Solveig and all that she had done in the last three years. The Highlands had continued to prosper, enjoying an increasingly important place in that part of the world. There was a good deal of trade to the south with Darokin and east with Rockhome, and the Flaem were now on reasonably good terms with all their neighbors except for a vague but growing unease with the Ethengar. The clans had become more aggressive and more hostile to travelers since the war. They had lost a great deal in the burning of the steppes. Even though the land itself had long since recovered, the herds had been decimated, and the Ethengar often turned to raiding as a means for making a living.
Solveig remained the head of the council, keeping the Fire Wizards firmly in line while she encouraged them to make positive contributions. Alessa Vyledaar was still a close friend and supporter of Solveig's, and that did much to maintain unity between the Fire Wizards and the government. Solveig had also been successful at beginning to defuse the hatred the Flaem held for the Alphatians, which in the past had consumed a great deal of their time and resources. Unfortunately, there were signs that the Alphatians were beginning to devote some thought to their old interest in expanding their empire, but that was a matter of more immediate concern for their closest neighbors, such as the Thyatians. Curiously, the Alphatians were also trying to sneak back into their holdings in the Norwold, which just proved that some people never learned their lesson no matter how much it cost them.
Things remained much the same in Rockhome. The rebuilding of the damage from the invasion had long since been completed. The greatest concern now was that King Daroban's health was slowly beginning to fail, and it seemed increasingly likely that Korinn would be the ne
xt king. Whether or not his brother recovered enough to be king, Korinn was now quite famous and respected by all, and his brother seemed comfortable in the role of his chief supporter and advisor.
Solveig had settled down and had recently married Darius Glantri, who came to live with her in Braejr in the house that had once belonged to Thelvyn. Kharendaen's lair was still kept ready to serve the needs of dragons visiting Braejr. Sir George believed that the newlyweds were likely to return to Thyatis sooner or later. Solveig had often spoken of returning to her family home in Thyatis.
"What about the dragons?" Sir George asked at last.
"Time passes slowly for the dragons," Thelvyn answered. "To them, it is as if the war has just ended, and their lives are only now beginning to get back to normal."
"Do you think they'll remember the lessons that the Great One wanted them to learn?"
"Oh, they'll remember," Thelvyn said emphatically. "It just might take some time to notice anything. Changes that would take years in some lands might take centuries with the dragons. But some things will never be the same. They've discovered their hidden nobility, and they're finding it harder to act like beasts than they once did. It should be interesting to see what becomes of the Nation of Dragons a thousand years from now."
"If we weren't talking about dragons, I'd be tempted to say that sounds like an awfully long time," Sir George remarked philosophically. "What about the two of you? Have you hatched any eggs yet?"
"Two years ago," Kharendaen said, obviously proud. "Thelvyn always knew that it was a female, but he kept that news to himself. Her name is Therandael. Marthaen and Daresha are watching her now that Thelvyn and I have more to do here in the mortal world."
"I think I'd like to see a little dragon," Sir George mused. "Are you likely to have any more?"
Thelvyn shook his head. "I would have to surrender my Immortality to sire any more children, and that's not practical."
"Then what have the two of you been doing lately?"
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