by Nathan Roden
“And neither do I,” Tanner said. “It is merely a precaution.”
“Very well,” Lamont said. “Shall we begin?”
The men prepared to bind Simon between two large trees. Captain Finn stood in front of Simon.
“I don’t know if you are doing this for my benefit. Or Magdalena’s. But I want to thank you. I will never forget it.”
Simon could think of no words to say. He nodded. The men finished with the ropes without comment. They stepped away and waited.
“I have to tell you,” Simon said. “I have made this transformation every full moon for over twelve years. Each time, I try with every fiber of my being to hold my tongue. I have never succeeded. The pain is…such that I cannot describe. This night may not be pleasant—for any of us.”
The men nodded in agreement.
“Please stand behind me at all times,” Tanner said to the men. “And be as silent as possible.”
Tanner faced Simon and opened the journal. Caleb stood at his side. Tanner read words from the journal in a tongue foreign to all of them—except for Caleb. On two occasions, Tanner stumbled over words. Caleb immediately whispered the words to Tanner. Noah and Nicholas exchanged nervous glances.
Minutes later, Tanner began repeating a series of unknown words. His voice changed—becoming deeper and echoing as if they were standing inside a canyon.
Tanner dropped the journal to the ground. Sparks burst from Tanner’s fingers and tiny bits of lightning crackled from his hair.
Simon’s head rolled backward and forward. A low growl built in his belly. He threw back his head and roared—spitting fire high into the air. Sparks and bolts of lightning sprang from the dragon’s body.
Tanner’s body shook. His eyes rolled back in his head as he continued to chant. Tanner fought to remain standing. Caleb moved behind Tanner and pushed his hands into Tanner’s back. Captain Finn took a step forward. Caleb’s head spun around. His unseeing eyes blazed with a raging orange fire.
“No!” Caleb bellowed in a voice like a giant’s. Finn froze and held his breath.
Simon continued to roar into the air in short bursts. The thick ropes stretched as the dragon’s limbs whipped at them. The air was concentrated with thick, dark smoke.
Nineteen
Jaclyn insisted on carrying the dress herself, although it was very heavy. Belinda Jacobs saw Jaclyn leave the assembly hall. She rushed to her side.
“What are you doing?” Belinda asked.
“We’ve made a dress for Magdalena,” Jaclyn said.
“I’ll go with you,” Belinda said.
“Why do you care for her?” Jaclyn asked.
Belinda put her hand on Jaclyn’s arm.
“She is one of us, my queen. I know it.”
“Then we should hurry,” Jaclyn said.
They stepped sideways at times and pushed through the trees, being careful to protect the fabric.
“I told you to stay back!” Jaclyn snapped at the guards who followed them. “I will tell you when to come ahead.”
“We’re only trying to help, my queen,” a guard said.
“You do not help by ignoring my instructions. I am carrying this dress for a reason. Show some respect for a woman’s modesty.”
“Yes, my queen.”
“Stay,” Jaclyn said. “Stay right where you are.”
Jaclyn stepped into the clearing.
“Magdalena?”
Magdalena’s head appeared from behind a large tree. Jaclyn gulped. Magdalena was still growing.
“We made you a dress.”
“Are you alone?” Magdalena asked.
Jaclyn pointed.
“Lady Jacobs is here. There are two guards behind us. But I ordered them to stay away.”
“Thank you,” Magdalena said. “You are very kind.”
“I’ll...I’ll give you some privacy,” Jaclyn said. “Then perhaps we could talk for a while.”
“Of course,” Magdalena said. “If you wish.”
Jaclyn sighed with relief when she saw Magdalena in the dress. It was even a little too big. Jaclyn hoped that would last.
Magdalena forced a smile and then looked away. She sat down quickly on a fallen tree. She kneaded her hands together, nervously.
“Does it…does it hurt?” Belinda asked.
“No,” Magdalena said. “Yet I can feel the tingling in my skin. A deep vibration—as if lightning reverberates within me.”
Magdalena would not meet Jaclyn’s eyes.
“These trees—I tore them from the ground by their roots. In a fit of rage. A rage I could not control. As if—”
Magdalena’s voice broke.
“As if something forced me to do it—something terrible and angry.”
“My first thoughts were that this is a good thing. I could be a valuable asset in the war. But if my life and Simon’s are linked together, this places him in even more danger.”
Magdalena’s head fell into her hands.
“And if he does not survive—then everything we have been through means nothing.”
“That’s not true,” Jaclyn said. “Ending Sterling’s reign will benefit the kingdom no matter who takes the throne.”
“This is all my fault,” Magdalena said. “The only person I had ever loved was taken from me. My beautiful daughter—my Arienna. She was not born of love—she was the product of cruelty and dominance and evil! When she was taken from me, my mind could find no peace. I was blind with anger. All I wanted was revenge. And I made a deal with the mad queen. It may as well have been a deal with the devil.”
Magdalena wept. Jaclyn and Belinda had never seen such a sight.
“I suffer the punishment of the gods,” Magdalena said. “And it is what I deserve. My selfish desires cheated the kingdom of its king—and cheated a man with a true heart of his rightful place.”
Magdalena glanced briefly at Jaclyn.
“How could I expect to find love when I deprived the king of the same?”
Magdalena struck herself in the chest with her fist.
“Simon loves you, Queen Jaclyn. And he cannot have you. I am in love with Captain Finn. And I will suffer the same fate. This is the justice of the gods.”
“No,” Belinda said, shaking her head. “This curse will not last forever. I believe it with all my heart.”
Magdalena looked at both ladies.
“I have lived my entire life without hope of love—or of friends. Your words give me such a hope. I would be proud to call you my frien—”
Magdalena’s arms shot out to her sides. Her head rolled backward. She loosed a scream of agony into the night.
The guards ran forward. Jaclyn jumped to Magdalena’s side. She gripped her giant hand and Magdalena screamed again. The guards stopped in their tracks when they saw the giant sorceress.
“Magdalena!” Jaclyn yelled. “What’s wrong? What is happening?”
Bolts of lightning crackled around Magdalena’s body. Jaclyn’s hands were knocked away. A force of light surrounded Magdalena, forcing Jaclyn to keep her distance.
“What is happening?” Jaclyn screamed into the night. The guards did not move closer.
Magdalena’s arms remained out to her sides. Her head whipped from side to side.
And then Jaclyn saw the sleeves of the dress becoming longer. No, that was not it at all.
Magdalena was becoming smaller. Her screams became less violent as the fabric piled on the ground.
Could it be? Jaclyn thought.
Has the curse lost its power over Magdalena?
Jaclyn’s head whipped around. She found the moon in the sky.
No, the moon is not full, she thought. She remembered her father’s request to keep Lady Magdalena away.
Magdalena. Her brother, Tanner. The sorcerer’s journal. Simon.
The curse.
They have removed Simon’s curse!
Jaclyn ran past the guards.
“Follow her!” one guard said to the other. “On Lord
Lamont’s order, the queen is not to return to the village!”
The guard caught up with Jaclyn as she reached the main gates.
“Stop her!” the guard yelled.
Four guards blocked Jaclyn’s way. She ducked beneath their arms. One of them grabbed her arm.
“How dare you!” Jaclyn spat. “I am still the queen of this kingdom. I could have your head for touching me!”
“Please, my queen,” another guard said. “We are acting on your father’s orders. He does not wish to be disturbed. Surely, you understand.”
Jaclyn jerked her arm away.
“I understand that the word of a queen carries greater weight than the word of a viceroy! Let. Me. GO!”
The guards were not willing to ignore the queen’s orders.
Jaclyn ran past the gates and into the darkness of the south road. She saw a faint glow in the distance. Twice she stumbled and almost fell. Jaclyn saw the outlines of men in a clearing lit by torches. She did not slow down.
****
Lucien, Brendan, and Reese were on their way to a pub after spending the afternoon training. They heard shouts and saw guards running out of the gates. Lucien turned and hurried in their direction.
“What is happening?” Lucien asked a guard.
The guard looked at Lucien with fear in his eyes. Was it his duty to tell? Or his duty to inform the king? Was Lucien even the king anymore?
“It’s the queen, Your Grace.”
“I have renounced the throne, soldier. What about the queen?”
“She was to stay with the sorceress, your…my…”
“Out with it, man!” Lucien snapped.
“She was to stay in the forest on Lord Lamont’s orders,” the guard said.
“Why?” Lucien said angrily.
“I…I cannot say.”
Lucien shoved the guard in the chest. The guard fell on his backside.
“Get me a torch,” Lucien said.
The guard jumped to his feet.
“Yes. Yes, straight away.”
Lucien turned to Brendan and Reese.
“Come on.”
****
Strong hands reached out and grabbed Jaclyn.
“Jaclyn?” Noah said. “What are you doing here? You’re supposed to be with—”
Jaclyn struggled against Noah’s grip.
Noah was joined by Lord Lamont.
“Jaclyn, I instructed you to—”
Jaclyn tore away from Noah’s grip. She ducked beneath the hands of her father and brother and ran into the clearing.
She stopped.
And stared in disbelief.
Twenty
A guard rushed forward to help the young man remove the ropes. He wrapped a cloth around the naked man’s torso. The young man breathed heavily and rubbed his wrists where the ropes had cut into his skin.
And then Simon Morgenwraithe, the man, looked up into the eyes of Queen Jaclyn Lamont Morgenwraithe—
As a man—for the very first time.
Jaclyn covered her mouth with her hand. Tears streamed down her cheeks. Her knees grew weak. Noah and Nicholas Lamont caught Jaclyn before she fell.
Guards surrounded Simon as the last of the ropes fell to the ground. They gave him a pair of trousers. No one had remembered to bring a shirt.
Jaclyn regained her balance. She took one step forward. And then another. She stood in front of Simon. Her lip quivered and her tears continued to fall. She lifted a trembling hand and put it against Simon’s cheek.
“You’re real,” she whispered.
“I’ve always been real,” Simon said.
“Yes. You’ve always been real. Your eyes…your eyes are the same.”
Simon put his hand over Jaclyn’s. He felt her shudder.
“I can’t...I can’t believe this is happening,” Jaclyn said.
“It was time,” Simon said. “I hope this brings an end to Magdalena’s torment.”
Jaclyn nodded.
“Yes. It has. I saw it myself.”
“That is wonderful news,” Simon said. “Perhaps we should get this spectacle over with, so we can concentrate on the war.”
Jaclyn gripped Simon’s hand. Hard. She stared into Simon’s eyes.
“No. Don’t move—not just yet. I have been waiting for this moment for an eternity. I don’t want it to end.”
Nicholas and Noah heard men approaching. They turned around and saw Lucien, Brendan, and Reese.
Lucien stopped when he saw Jaclyn and Simon—his wife and his brother, his brother the man. Brendan and Reese stepped past Lucien. Lucien grabbed their arms.
“No. Stay here.”
“But—”
“I said ‘stay’.”
A minute later, Simon and Jaclyn walked toward the others. Simon stopped when he saw Lucien. Lucien stepped forward.
“Is it…is it over?” Lucien asked.
“Yes,” Simon said. “The dragon is gone.”
Lucien lowered himself to one knee.
“Stand up, Lucien,” Simon said. Lucien stood.
Simon stepped forward and wrapped his arms around his brother. Lucien tensed like a wild animal, before he gave way to tears.
“Our new world begins today, my brother,” Simon said.
Lucien was unable to reply.
Twenty-One
Lilly returned to her father’s building. She watched out the window, waiting for Willem to return. When she saw four cloaked figures approaching she opened the door.
“Lord Sawyer,” Lilly said. “You’ve come.”
“Aye,” Sawyer said. He pulled off his cloak and shook water from his hair. He introduced two of his apprentices.
“I’m sorry—” Lilly said.
Sawyer held up his hand.
“Say no more, my lady. Your father has explained the situation. I would do the same if I was you. This will not be the first storm I’ve fought.”
“I can’t thank you enough, my lord,” Lilly said.
“Let’s just say I owe a debt of gratitude to a citizen of Morgenwraithe,” Sawyer said. “Though that is a story for another day.”
“When do we sail?” Lilly asked.
“Just before dawn,” Sawyer said. “If these Varylquin find someone as fool as I am, we won’t be far ahead of them.”
****
The winds died down, but the rain was relentless. Sawyer loosed the last of the mooring lines. The ship lurched into the harbor, knocking all four people to the deck. Sawyer grabbed Lilly’s arm.
“Get below!”
“No,” Lilly yelled. ”I am not a child. I can help. I know what to do.”
Sawyer pressed a rope into Lilly’s hands.
“Here. These ropes are lashed to the mast. I don’t want to lose you.”
Sawyer and his apprentices lashed themselves around the waist. Sawyer barked orders at the young men. Lilly did not have to be told what to do. She had known her way around a ship since she was a child.
The first half hour was tense and exhausting. All of them had emptied their stomachs from the rise and fall of the waves.
At last, the ship settled over deep water. The ship’s four-person crew lay on the deck, soaked to the bone and fighting to catch their breath.
Lilly rolled her head to the side. Sawyer coughed and wiped his mouth. He turned his head to face Lilly. He smiled.
“Aye, this is what I live for, Missy.”
Lilly groaned and clutched her stomach.
“You’re as mad as my husband, Lord Sawyer.”
Sawyer pushed himself to his feet. He helped Lilly to hers. There was finally a little light behind the clouds. Sawyer shielded his eyes and looked to the south.
“If it gets no worse than this, I think we’ll make it. I’m getting hungry. How about you?”
“Ask me a week after I step onto dry land,” Lilly said.
****
Lilly was jolted awake from a deep sleep when she was awakened by cries from the deck.
“Land ho!�
��
She pushed herself up from the bunk. She did not remember how she had gotten there.
The skies remained dark and the clouds were full of a seemingly endless rain. Lilly ran to the ship’s wheel where she found Captain Sawyer.
“What happened?” Lilly asked.
Sawyer laughed.
“Your father has taught you well, Lilly. If you were not Lord Bellamy’s daughter, I would make you my first mate. You outlasted both of my apprentices during the storm—they are still below.”
“Is that Islemar on the horizon?” Lilly asked.
Sawyer pointed.
“It is, indeed.”
****
Three Islemar guards stared out of the windows of the watchtower. None of them were comfortable with the dragons perched on the bastions, in spite of the knowledge that the dragons had become their allies.
All three guards dropped their bows when they heard the screeches of the dragons. One by one, the dragons left their perches and flew out over the harbor.
One guard raised a spyglass to his eye with trembling hands.
“A ship!” he cried. “A ship approaches the harbor!”
One of the other guards ran down the steps. He ran into the village square, announcing the ship’s arrival.
Noah and Lieutenant Winston were on their way to the pub owned by Noah’s uncle.
“A ship?” Noah said. “Who could that be? The storms have just passed by the harbor.”
Noah and Winston followed the guards to the docks. They lit torches. As the ship drew nearer, Noah squinted into the darkness.
“No…it cannot be!”
“Lilly?” he called.
”Noah? Is that you?”
Noah leaped onto the ship’s deck. He embraced his wife and smothered her in kisses.
“What are you…do you have Olivia?”
“Noah, you must listen to me,” Lilly said. “Three members of the Varylquin are coming.”
“Varyl—Varyl what?” Noah stammered.
“Varylquin,” Winston said. “Giants. Giants who wield powerful magic.”
