The elves had tied ropes around certain trees. The ropes were then brought together into one large rope that was pulled by a team of giant deer. The deer were all struggling to keep their footing as they fought against the strain of pulling the trees back.
This is amazing. I have never seen anything like it. Hayden told Draek. Draek turned his long silver neck so that he could see Hayden but he looked over Hayden’s head. What is it? Hayden asked.
Look. Draek nodded in the direction over Hayden’s head. Hayden turned in his saddle and realized that Kirin had taken them to an elf city, and all the inhabitants had come out to see them.
Chapter 5
Hayden heard the creaking of wood, the crack of ropes snapping and turned to see what was going on. The elves were scrambling to keep the trees bent open but it was only a matter of time before they snapped shut. More elves jumped on the ropes that were dragging the elves through the snow and mud. The elves cut the ropes to allow the deer to run free. The trees snapped back right when Rilora was lowering down to land. Cass and Shaylin had already made it to the forest floor.
As the trees shot back in place the branches swung forward like a whip and cracked against Rilora’s backside, sending her plummeting to the ground below with a deafening thump. The vibration of the impact traveled through the ground and Hayden felt it in his saddle.
For a split second the forest went into a frenzy. Birds went flying in all directions and animals bolted to get as far away from the loud noises as possible. As the chaos died down the forest became silent as everyone, Hayden included, held their breath to see what the hot headed copper dragon would do after being spanked by a tree.
Hayden leaned close to Draek’s body and braced himself for Draek to move suddenly in case Rilora had to be controlled. It proved to all be for naught as Rilora just roared her frustration but listened to her rider’s comforting words.
“Rilora, you’re just fine. They did not do it on purpose and see, no one is laughing at you so there is nothing to get upset about. It was an accident.” Shane patted his copper dragon on the side and did his best to keep her calm.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief as Rilora gave one last look at the trees overhead and lowered herself to the ground so Shane could get off. As Shane lowered himself from his saddle Hayden, Cass and Kirin started undoing their straps.
Once the riders were off, Draek and Shaylin moved over to lie next to Rilora. Kirin’s green dragon looked like it wanted to join them but thought better of it and laid down by itself.
“This is the hidden city Feren, you should feel privileged. You are the first Metallic Riders to be welcomed here since Isaac the Golden.” Kirin told them as they made their way towards all the waiting elves. Hayden did not believe her when she said they were to be “welcomed” judging by the looks on the elves’ faces.
Draek we will be right back, let me know if anything strange happens. Hayden looked back to see both Draek and Shaylin huddling up close to Rilora.
Draek raised his silver head out of the pile of metallic scales to look at Hayden. And you try to stay out of trouble this time. He replied.
“Shane, great job with Rilora. You did amazingly well in calming her down.” Cass said as they walked.
“No it was all Rilora, she controlled her anger all on her own. I am just glad she didn’t lose it and try to burn the forest down.” Shane truly looked relieved because they all knew that there was a real possibility that that could have happened.
“That would have never had happened.” Kirin said with all seriousness.
“How can you be so sure? You have never seen Rilora when she really loses her temper.” Shane asked. Kirin stopped walking to face them and answer his question.
“I have that much faith in my archers. They would have killed you both long before the forest would have burned.” Kirin turned around and continued walking, leaving the young metallic riders behind.
“Why do you hate us?” Hayden yelled, loud enough for all the elves around them to hear.
Kirin stopped walking but did not turn to face him. “I do not know what you mean.” Her voice was back at the fake friendly voice they had heard back at Out Post.
“Enough! Enough of your games and your lies. Answer me or we are heading back to Out Post.” Hayden continued to yell.
“Hayden calm down.” Cass grabbed Hayden’s arm and tried to pull him back as he stormed off towards Kirin but Hayden pulled away from her.
“And who says you can leave?” Kirin asked with a questioning look on her face as she turned to face Hayden.
As one Draek, Rilora and Shaylin stood up and roared with all their might. This time it wasn’t just the animals that went running but a majority of the elves ran for cover from the deafening noise.
Kirin’s green dragon tried to look intimidating as it stood up to face the dragons but one look from Draek and the green dragon laid back down.
“Answer me.” Hayden lowered his voice but it did not take away from his seriousness. He made it clear this was the last time he was going to ask.
“I hate everything the three of you are.” Kirin finally said. Tears quickly welled up in her bright green eyes. “I hate the Metallic Dragon Riders and all they stand for. I hate what they have done to my people.” Kirin ripped the top of her shirt open just enough to reveal the two brands underneath her collar bone.
“I hate what they have done to me. I hate that we cannot be free and that we have to ask the Metallic Riders who rule over us for permission to do anything as if we were children. If we do something out of place our punishment is whatever cruel thoughts the Metallic Riders have in their heads at the time. But the three of you get to run away with your dragons and the worst you can be put through is a severe talking to.” Kirin’s hands were balled into fists and shaking as she ranted on.
“My whole life I have despised what the three of you are. But the thing that I hate the most is that for the life of me I can’t seem to hate you.”, and the tears began to flow down her elegant cheeks.
Hayden walked towards her with the intent to say he was sorry but he couldn’t say it. How can I say I am sorry for being me? He asked himself.
“Kirin, things will change one day. They are already changing with us.” Cass spoke up when she realized that Hayden was having a hard time finding the right words.
“They will change in a few years when you return to be in charge of the forest, but that will only be for a year. After that the next group of riders will come and things will be back the way they are now.” Kirin regained her composure as she spoke. Hayden watched as her stern expression took over and pushed away the tears that had been there just moments before.
“Now, shall we continue?” Kirin’s voice told Hayden that the short moment where they got to see the real Kirin was over and it was time to play along with her game again.
“Of course Kirin, we would love that.” Cass said in a sorrowful tone. Kirin turned and walked in the direction of the elf city Feren. The elves were coming out of hiding but they kept looking suspiciously at the three metallic dragons the whole time.
As they walked Hayden made sure that Draek and the other dragons were staying put and not trying to follow them. He saw the Kirin’s green dragon was obviously still nervous and wanted to stay far away from the other dragons.
“What’s its name?” Hayden asked as he ran to catch up to Kirin.
“What’s what’s name?” She replied.
“Your dragon, what’s your dragon’s name.” Hayden asked as he fell in step beside her.
“Nignra, her name is Nignra of the Summer Woods.” Kirin allowed a little pride to slip in her voice.
“I’ve never heard of the Summer Woods, what’s that?” Shane asked.
“It’s a place in the forest, a place that is untouched by the other seasons as it’s always summer there. The flowers are always blooming and the woods are full of life. It’s in the Summer Woods that the green dragon eggs reside.” Kirin looked ove
r her shoulder to see Shane as she said the last sentence.
“I would love to see the Summer Woods, can we go there next?” Shane asked. Kirin only laughed and it was Cass that had to answer.
“No one but the elves have ever been to the Summer Woods. Humans have never even laid eyes upon it.” Cass spoke in a hushed tone.
“One human has, Fendrel.” Kirin corrected Cass.
“Fendrel?” Hayden asked loudly. “My Fendrel?”
“I am not sure who your Fendrel is. Our Fendrel spent a few years among us and learned a great deal about our people. He was the first friendly human we had met in many years and my father trusted him with the location of the Summer Woods.” Kirin stopped talking as they entered the city.
Hayden wanted to ask more questions but it wasn’t the time for that. The elves were starting to come out to meet the riders.
The elves that stayed at Out Post and that they had met around King Aelfrie had all been dressed the same and in the best of clothing. If Hayden had to guess he would say that the elves he had seen so far would be the upper class of elves.
The elves of Feren were more curious and less formal than the elves they had previously met. Where the other elves held their heads up high and did not make eye contact with them, these elves openly stared at them. Mothers kept their children close to them while young elves poked out their chests in defiance, as if Hayden and his friends were a threat to their home.
Hayden hated feeling like the enemy without having done anything to harm them but he could not blame the elves for thinking badly about them.
“Why are they staring at us?” Shane’s deep voice whispered behind Hayden.
“Because Metallic Riders have done nothing but kill and enslave their people. It’s hard for them to think of us as anything different.” Cass responded with cold understanding.
“You speak true Golden Rider.” Kirin spoke up as she walked.
The first thing that Hayden noticed when they made it into Feren was the smell. Hayden had lived in a small town but he still remembered all the smells of home. The aroma of fresh bread baking at the inn, the smells from all the different cooking fires in the homes around the town and of course the ever present odor of sweaty bodies and animals living together.
Those smells did not seem to exist in Feren. The city smelled no different than the rest of the forest around them. There was no hint of food or fires burning. Not even the ever present stench of waste that always lingered around towns and cities. If Hayden closed his eyes he would not have been able to tell that he was walking in an elfish town with dozens of its inhabitants flowing out of their homes to see him.
The homes in Feren seemed to be carved out of the very forest and plant life around them. Homes made of tree limbs and brush held together to look like overgrown bushes. The larger homes were made of fallen trees that were propped up against stones and other trees.
If Hayden had been in a hurry he could have ran right through the center of Feren and would have never noticed he was in a city. If Hayden hadn’t seen the elves coming out of their homes he still might have missed it. Kirin stopped just short of the elves and waited until Hayden and his friends were close behind her.
“Brothers and sisters of Feren, may I introduce to you the Metallic Riders Hayden the Silver, Cassidy The Gold and Shane the Copper.” None of the elves said anything; they just stared in silence. Kirin turned to face Hayden and his friends.
“Riders, these are the brave people of Feren.” She said with a slight hint of pride in her voice. Kirin might not have wanted to let Hayden and the others know what she was thinking or feeling but it was obvious that she cared for these elves.
The elves continued to look at each other with a terrified expression. Hayden was not sure if their fear was because they were Metallic Riders or because of all the noise their dragons had just made. Then, during the silence, something unexpected happened. The elves began to bow down before Hayden and his friends.
It all started with one elf that lowered himself to the ground nervously, then another and another, till it was like a wave moving over the growing crowd.
“No, no you don’t have to bow to us. Please get up.” Hayden begged as he stepped forward to help the closest elf back up to her feet. The elf instead quickly backed away as if she expected Hayden to hit her.
“I don’t understand.” Hayden had never felt so defeated since he had watched Fendrel die.
“This is what the Metallic Riders before you have done. This is your legacy.” Kirin spoke with a voice full of both pain and anger.
“Enough, I am done with this. I want to go back to Out Post.” Cass spoke through clenched teeth.
“What’s the matter golden rider? I thought you wanted to see the people of the forest?” Kirin asked sarcastically. She gave up the act and made it very clear that she was enjoying seeing Cassidy getting angry.
Hayden grabbed Cass by the hand and led her away before she could try to fight Kirin. Shane followed close behind and as they approached, their dragons quickly got up. Kirin tried to yell out to them but none of the riders heard her, all they heard were threats mumbling from Cass.
Cass broke free from Hayden and climbed back on Shaylin while Shane quickly vaulted up the side of Rilora. As Hayden made his way around to Draek, Kirin walked up to them laughing.
“And how do you, the three great Metallic Riders that you are, plan to get out of Feren? The trees are closed in case you haven’t noticed.” Kirin crossed her arms while the elves crowded around them. None of the elves wore the same smug look as Kirin.
Draek, burn it down! Hayden’s thoughts rang clear as a bell and Draek did not hesitate to answer Hayden. Draek’s head shot up towards the trees and released a spout of flame stronger then he had ever created before.
Hayden looked up as the flames danced among the tree tops. The snow melted away as the leaves shriveled up and turned black. Rilora and Shaylin lifted their heads and added their fires to Draek’s. The elves panicked and backed away, not wanting to be the next target of the dragon’s fire.
Hayden was burning up in his winter clothes but he said nothing as the open sky began breaking through the charred gaps in the trees. The fire began to burn into the trees and catch against the now dry wood. Hayden smiled at how powerful Draek and the others had become.
Kirin began shouting at Hayden and the others but no one listened. She turned to scream at her fellow elves but there were none left standing around her. Her dragon was the only living thing willing to be so close to the burning woods.
The forest around them was dancing with light and bright colors as the flames continued to shoot up to the tree tops, or what was left of them. It was one of the most beautiful sights Hayden had ever seen, and one of the saddest. Sad because of what Kirin had done to force them to do this. Sad at what the elves had been forced to do. Sad at what the Metallic Riders before them had done to them. But most of all he was sad about what was going to come in the future. He knew Kirin was right, Hayden and the others could only make a difference while they ruled over the forest but after a year they would be gone and things would go back to the way they were. It would go on forever, unless someone did something about it, something permanent.
When Draek finally ended his flame, Rilora and Shaylin did the same. There was little hesitation as they jumped into the air where tree tops used to be. Hayden inhaled a breath of smoke and started coughing as they passed the tree line. Shaylin took off next with Rilora letting out a ferocious roar before taking to the sky.
As Hayden’s eyes cleared from the smoke he leaned over Draek to look at the forest underneath him. His stomach knotted up as he felt guilty at what he saw beneath him. The forest was a beautiful sheet of snow and dark greens that now had a smoldering black scorch mark in the middle of it.
Hayden could see Kirin desperately trying to get on the back of Nignra but they had no hope of catching the metallic dragons already in flight.
We had to do it. Draek
’s voice sounded somberly in Hayden’s mind. Hayden knew he was right but it didn’t make him feel any better about the tall tower of smoke rising up behind them.
What will they do to us now? Hayden asked. The relationship between them and the elves had been rocky and stressed at the best of times, now that was all about to change.
They can do nothing to us. Draek’s words didn’t make sense to Hayden but before he could give voice to his questions Draek spoke again. We are Metallic Riders, even if we are not supposed to be here. If we run away the elves would get in trouble but they would be wiped off the face of Arvain if they killed us.
Hayden realized that Draek was right. Even though they were not supposed to be here the elves could not harm them for fear of what the Metallic Riders would do to them. Hayden and his friends might be runaways but they were still dragon riders and that meant a lot.
She is faster than she looks. Draek said. Hayden’s gut knotted up as he turned around expecting to see Kirin flying behind them, but he only saw Shane and Cass. Look Down.
Hayden followed Draek’s words and looked down to the forest bellow. There was a line of trees behind them that had no snow on them and Hayden realized why. Kirin and her green dragon were jumping from tree to tree, knocking off the snow as they passed. They had given up stealth in order to catch up to Draek and the other metallic dragons.
Well, are you going to let her think she has caught us? Hayden asked Draek. He was in no mood to deal with Kirin right now. He just wanted to be alone with his friends.
Draek responded with a roar that startled the green dragon underneath him and caused her to almost miss a tree they were aiming for. Draek began pumping his wings harder and faster, the effect was instantaneous.
Draek began pulling away from Kirin and her dragon; he also began pulling away from Rilora and Shaylin. Hayden heard the green dragon trumpet her frustration behind him and turned around to see that Rilora and Shaylin were struggling to not fall so far behind.
The Clash of Land and Sea_The Dragon Riders of Arvain Page 6
