Unquiet Slumber

by Paulette Miller

  Zarin stopped talking and sat silently.

  Gabriel spoke words that were both a question and a statement of fact. “Tianna isn’t human.”

  Zarin shook his head, “No, she isn’t. In her heart, she questions what she is. She knows she’s different.”

  Marcus cleared his throat. “So what exactly is she?”

  “Her mother was Faye. Have you seen the mark on Tianna’s back?”

  Marcus nodded. “Yes, she showed it to us this morning. What does it and the symbols mean?”

  “I’ve been trying for years to decipher the symbols with little success,” Zarin responded with a sound of frustration. “I know these symbols are very important, and they are one of the reasons she must remain hidden from the evil we face.”

  Marcus and Gabriel stared at each other intently.

  Zarin continued. “Her mother Arielle disappeared before she was able to tell me what other natures are in her. Over the years I’ve identified some of the races I think are in her. She’s one of the most gifted wizard apprentices I’ve ever met. Some of that comes from the Faye but some from something I have yet to identify. Her connection to nature makes me believe she’s part Inari. It’s a given she has Draak in her as well.”

  Marcus nodded to himself. “When we’re near her, her scent makes us think of home. That’s a trait usually reserved for females within our Draak Setts. She seems to have the strongest connection to both Nathaniel’s Healer Sett and Gabriel’s Warrior Sett.”

  Gabriel added, “She seems to have tracking abilities like our Tracker Sett too.”

  Marcus sat back in his chair. “Today, I saw her calm the blacksmith’s reaction to Gabriel. That could be a trait from my Sett.”

  Zarin said to Marcus, “You Draak Architects are known for leadership and negotiation skills, which require self-confidence. Those traits may yet wake in her but, being raised in a village where all fear her, she’s filled with self-doubt. Even with her human family, she has never had a true sense of home. In her heart, she knows that she doesn’t belong here.”

  Gabriel smiled in amazement. “If she does have multiple Setts within her, she would be truly unique. No Sett has ever mixed with another. The combination would give her the potential to be very powerful.”

  Zarin nodded, but when he spoke, his voice changed to one of concern. “I’ve taught her all I know. During our training, I’ve been trying to test the extent of her powers without her realizing exactly what I’m doing. I have led her to believe that she’s a normal wizard for her age. In reality, her current and potential power is unmatched in any wizard I’ve ever encountered. I think that if she embraces what’s hidden within her, she’ll be the greatest talent in all of Lagrangia.”

  Zarin put his hand on Marcus’ arm. “I’ve done all that I can. Now it’s your turn. You’ll have to teach her who she is and bring out her talents.”

  Gabriel stared at Zarin with a puzzled look and asked, “What are you saying? You want us to take her with us?”

  Zarin nodded. “That’s exactly what I’m saying. She was brought to this world to fulfill a destiny. You met her in the woods not by accident. It was fate guiding events. I‘ve taken her this far, but you and your Draak brothers must take up her training from here.”

  Seeing their uncertainty, Zarin continued. “Evil has been growing stronger every day. We must act or all will be lost. I’m not sure exactly how but I know Tianna is a key player in all of our futures.”

  With genuine interest, Marcus asked Zarin, “What exactly do you want us to do?”

  “First, you must tell her what you are. I know she’ll accept it without any fear. I need to tell her that she must leave this world she knows behind and embrace the magical world you’re going to introduce her to. When you leave, you’ll take her with you. Take her back to your home of Haven and teach her all you can. As you continue your quest, introduce her to the magical world. She’ll need to be gently but firmly pushed to embrace every hidden part of her nature. You need to remember that as she discovers the magical world, it will also discover her. She needs to be protected whether she likes it or not… and odds are she won’t like it. She’s very strong willed and is used to doing things on her own.”

  Both Gabriel and Marcus nodded their understanding.

  Marcus hesitated but then voiced his final concern, “We’re on a quest to find the warrior that will bring peace to our land. I haven’t found this warrior and don’t want to return to my home empty handed.”

  Zarin patted Marcus’ arm. “I understand, but I fear that nothing is more important than helping Tianna embrace her magical side. Continue your quest on the way back to Haven. If you aren’t successful in finding your warrior, you can continue your quest after she’s safely within Haven’s walls.”

  Marcus sat up straight in his chair and put his hand on his mark. He gave his Draak oath, “So shall it be. We’ll protect her with our lives and deliver her safely to Haven.” His eyes flashed at the same time the eyes on his mark flashed. “We’ll begin our return journey right away.”

  Zarin held up his hand in a gesture to tell them to slow down just a little. “Once she’s told of the Draak, I need three days to prepare her for the journey. You can leave at that time. Although she can learn of you and other magical creatures, keep the secret of her birth and the magical heritage that stirs within her. You’ll have to tell her when the time is right and there will be a sign when that time has arrived.”

  Before Marcus or Gabriel could respond to Zarin’s last statement, the door opened and Tianna and Seth stepped in. Tianna scrutinized the three men huddled closely together in a deep discussion. “Well, I hope Zarin hasn’t been boring you with more embarrassing stories of my life.”

  Marcus regrouped quickly. “Not at all, my lady. He has been telling us all kinds of stories of life in this wonderful home.”

  Tianna knew something was up but decided not to press it. “It’s late. I hope you’ll consider staying here for the night. We have the cot room. It isn’t fancy but you’re welcome here.”

  They all accepted her offer with a bow. It had been a long day so they settled in for the night. Marcus knew tomorrow was going to be another very interesting day.

  During the night, Tianna had another of her recurring dreams. It was the same as the last one and she once again woke up with a scream. Several of the men came running into her room to check on her. She made up a story about a mouse crawling on her that scared her. She didn’t want them to know the truth.

  Except for Gabriel, all of the rest of the men nodded and went back to their beds. Gabriel stayed for a moment, scrutinizing her expression. He could see her body shake and knew she was genuinely afraid of something. Given what he had seen from Tianna in the woods, he knew she would have welcomed a mouse into her bed. He wondered why she was trying to deceive them. He gazed down at her with concern and asked, “Are you sure you’re alright?”

  Tianna was shaking. “I’m fine. Just being a silly girl. Go back to bed. I’m sorry I woke you.”

  Gabriel agreed but knew there was something going on that she didn’t want to tell them. He would try to find out the truth.

  Chapter 8 - Secrets Revealed

  Tianna was making morning meal by the time the men in the house rose. Seth immediately began helping her with the food.

  Within a few minutes, Nathaniel walked through the door, avoiding Tianna’s gaze. He seemed rested and had a slight glow to his skin. Tianna assumed the glow was from the fact that he must have had a very good night. The thought caused a tightening in her chest, which she tried to ignore.

  Gabriel walked over and told Seth that Marcus needed him and Gabriel took over his cooking tasks. Tianna watched as Marcus, Nathaniel, and Seth headed toward the barn.

  Gabriel saw Tianna’s questioning stare and put his hand on her shoulder. “They’re just going to check on the horses. They’ll be back in time for morning meal.” Gabriel tried to act as if nothing was wrong and they went on wit
h their cooking.

  Once in the barn, Marcus told Seth and Nathaniel the story that Zarin had shared with him and what they were asked to do.

  Seth jumped up and said with excitement in his voice, “I knew there was something different about her!”

  Nathaniel, on the other hand, sat motionless staring at the dirt floor. At first he was thrilled to hear that she was part of the magical world. The excitement he felt hearing that he would get to spend more time with her quickly turned to fear. He said, “It’s too dangerous for her to go back with us. What if we encounter the Drenn or something worse?” He gazed up at his brothers, blue eyes blazing with worry. “She isn’t strong enough for what Zarin is asking.”

  Marcus stood up straight and spoke in his most commanding voice. It was the voice that said the topic wasn’t open for negotiation. “The decision has been made. She’s coming back with us. Our job will be to keep her safe. We have three days to prepare for our journey home.”

  The discussion was over and they headed back to join the others.

  After everyone had finished the meal, Marcus said it was a beautiful day and suggested that they take a walk through the woods. Tianna agreed with a brilliant smile.

  Once they had walked into the woods far enough that they wouldn’t be seen by any villagers, Marcus stopped. They were now standing in a small clearing.

  “Tianna.” Marcus’ voice was unusually serious. Tianna stopped talking with Seth and turned to face him. Once he had her attention, he continued. “There’s something we need to tell you. Actually, there’s something we need to show you.”

  “What’s wrong Marcus?” Tianna sounded concerned.

  “All will be clear in a moment.” Marcus proceeded to take off his shirt and sandals, loosen the tie on his pants, and closed his eyes.

  Tianna rubbed her arms as she felt the tingling surge of energy in the air. She noticed the skin on his chest next to his dragon mark beginning to glisten. To her great surprise something resembling scales started to appear.

  The change moved like rippling water across his chest, down his arms, up his neck, stopping with scales on his cheeks and temples. She assumed the scales went down his legs as well, although, she couldn’t see for sure because he still had his pants on. She noticed that his hands and feet had also changed. Instead of fingers and toes he now had something resembling talons. Within seconds, right before her eyes, he had changed from a human to some man and animal mix, standing over a foot taller in this new form.

  Marcus opened his eyes and they were as violet as wine and shone like stars. He nodded to his left and then to his right. The other men had taken off their shirts and were going through the same transformation. Gabriel’s eyes were now the color of fire and Nathaniel’s the color of a deep summer sky. Their eyes were completely filled in with color and were so bright that they seemed to glow. Their pupils were elongated, much like a cat’s eye. She found it hard to look away.

  Seth didn’t stop at removing his shirt but stripped completely down. Instead of a rippling transformation, he burst into a full creature.

  Tianna staggered when she felt a burst of energy pass through her, much stronger than the tingling she felt when the others partial shifted.

  Seth let out a great roar and spread his wings as if to stretch. Fully shifted, he was twice the size of his human form. They all stared at Tianna, who was trying to find the ability to speak. Seeing Seth in his fully shifted form, she knew exactly what they were.

  She managed to get out in a low whisper, “Dragons.” She said it as fact, not as a question. In a stronger voice she added, “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  Gabriel answered, but his voice had changed. It came out lower and sounded a little more like a growl. “We’re actually called Draak. We spend most of our time in a human-like form, although we have the ability to shift into dragon form. It’s against our laws to share our secret with any humans. Humans fear dragons and would hunt and kill us. Other than knowing magic exists in the form of wizards, the human world is ignorant to the full extent of the magical world.”

  Tianna asked, “Then why tell me now? I’m human.”

  Marcus struggled to find the right words to say. He hated to lie to her by not telling her that she was also a magical creature, but he heeded Zarin’s warnings. Instead he said, “We’re far away from our home and need to enlist the assistance of those we trust. We need the skills of wizards such as you and Zarin so we’re making an exception in your case.”

  Given Zarin already knew several of the Draak and had visited their village, Tianna put her hands on her hips and said, “Zarin already knows, I assume?”

  Marcus nodded. “Yes. We’ve known Zarin for many years and he has already gained the trust of the Draak.”

  Tianna walked toward the closest Draak, which was Gabriel. She examined his scales for a moment. He didn’t move for fear that he would frighten her.

  Instead of fear she was fascinated. “May I touch you?” she asked with pure curiosity in her eyes.

  He nodded. She hesitantly moved her hand so her fingers gently rubbed up his arm. Given his now even taller height, she could only comfortably reach to his elbow without stretching. Although the scales looked and felt hard as steel they were extremely soft to the touch and glistened in the reflective sun. She closed her eyes for a moment and sighed. The heat that was emanating from Gabriel’s skin was like standing next to the welcoming warmth of an open cooking fire. She now understood the feeling of heat whenever she was near one of them.

  While she examined Gabriel, Marcus moved beside her while Nathaniel went to speak with Seth, who had remained apart.

  Each Draak seemed different. Their scales held a multitude of colors but had an overall hue that matched their eye color. With closer inspection, she also noticed that the color of their eyes wasn’t a solid color either. The color was much lighter and brighter toward the center and changed to a darker color as it moved out to the sides. It was also marbled with very thin swirls of silver specs. These specs made the eyes appear to glow and reflect light. She guessed that they had excellent night vision.

  Where their mark was on their human chest, it now glistened as a crest on their dragon chest. Although their face had some scales, they were still very recognizable.

  She inspected each Draak in turn. “Each of you is a different color. Does color have meaning?”

  Marcus nodded and explained. “Our color identifies our Sett. A Sett is what we call a group of Draak’s with similar characteristics. I’m from the Architect Sett, which is violet. Gabriel is from the Warrior Sett and their color is red. Nathaniel is blue from the Healer Sett, and Seth’s color is the green of the Tracker Sett.”

  Tianna was fascinated. “Does your quest group represent all of the Setts or are there more?”

  Marcus continued, “There are more. There’s also the Silver Dragons which make up the Craftsmen Sett.”

  Gabriel’s face turned somber and he added but with some reluctance, “Don’t forget the Black Dragons.”

  Given the reaction in the other Draak, she knew there was something very special about the Sett that Gabriel mentioned. “What Sett are the Black Dragons?”

  Marcus really didn’t want to go into the darker side of Draak history but he thought she needed to know the important points. “The Black Dragons came from the Wizard Sett. They were destroyed over 860 years ago. Their Draaken was taken over by evil and destroyed all of his people that wouldn’t follow his evil path.”

  Nathaniel left Seth and rejoined the group adding, “…which was every other member of his Wizard Sett. The legend says that his brother was an exceptional wizard, and the Draaken feared that he possessed the power to destroy him. He hunted his brother down and, in his rage, he killed him. Fearing retribution, he took what human followers he had and fled beyond Lagrangia’s borders.”

  “Some believe that he left to build up his power base and created unstoppable human-based warriors. They believe that all of the current
evil growing is because the Black has returned to this land. They also believe that the attacks made on villages are being carried out by his followers of evil—the Drenn.”

  Tianna wondered if this evil Draak was connected to the creatures of her nightmares. She was going to ask about the creatures of the ground, the Dregg, but she didn’t want to say their name out loud. Instead she asked about the Draak himself. “What was the name of this Draaken?”

  Marcus spoke the name solemnly. “Kai.”

  At the mention of his name, she felt every Draak tense.

  “But, if the Wizard Sett was destroyed over 800 years ago, surely this Kai is long dead.”

  Marcus responded, “That’s what we all want to believe. Draaks can live well over 500 years but I’ve never heard of a Draak surviving into the 800s. Given Kai was several hundred years old when he became Draaken and he was a Draaken for quite some time before he went evil, if Kai were alive, he would be well over 1000 years old.”