by C. E. Swain
Rylee sat in his camp, and waited for the man with the dragon armor to leave Argnon. He did not like to work alone, but had no choice this time, and besides, he was only ordered to watch and report. He saddled his horse as fast as he could, keeping to the brush to lessen the chance of discovery, and tied him to a tree nearby. He did not have to wait long for the dragon man to reappear, with three other men, and they met a forth in the great road before riding east.
Rylee was about to mount his horse and follow them, when he spotted the boy running into the woods where he had planned to ride. He changed his mind at the last minute, and decided to ride back to the north to report to Avren. It was that decision that saved his life, but it was to be the last smart decision he ever made.
Chapter Eight
Menimeth stood as if in a trance. He was well aware of everyone around him, and of the passing of time, but he no longer felt the pull east. The voice in his mind that had been so vague and jumbled before, no longer was. He heard it clearly now, and it seemed so natural. It had always been there, he knew that now, and the voice had a name.
"Are you alright master?" Chanry asked with a worried look on his face.
"Yes, I am just fine." Menimeth replied. "Why would I be otherwise?"
"You looked strange there for a minute, and we feared you may have been poisoned." Kyler said.
"Yes, and you turned pale as well." Javen added.
"There is no need to concern yourselves my friends, there is nothing wrong with me." Menimeth said, as he looked around the room at his friends.
Litlorn was not worried about the warrior because he had seen that look before, and he smiled at the men around him before turning to Menimeth.
"What is his name?" Litlorn asked, as he looked at the warrior.
"Danorathin." Menimeth replied, as he turned to face the Elvin prince.
"Who is Danorathin?" Feran asked, the quietest of the group.
"He is a dragon." Litlorn said
"A dragon! There are no more dragons, and have not been in more than five hundred years." Javen exclaimed.
"There is now, and he is not far away." Menimeth said. "I can speak to him even now."
"How is that possible?" Javen asked.
" Because I am his rider." Menimeth replied
"Why have you not talked to him before today?" Kyler asked.
"It is the dragon stone in the circlet on his head that allows him to talk to his dragon." Litlorn told them. "In my youth, there were many dragon riders, and they all wore one. This must be the first time that he has put it on, or he would have talked to his dragon sooner."
"Do you wish me to come to you master?" The voice in his head asked.
"Yes I do." Menimeth said out loud. "I will meet you on the road south of Argnon tomorrow morning."
"I will meet you where you wish, master."
The companions looked at one another at the words that had come from their friend out of nowhere. This was strange to them, and Kyler looked at Menimeth, and asked.
"Yes you do what? And how can you meet us on the road, if we are with you when you leave?"
"He is talking to his dragon." Litlorn said. "He will talk out loud like that sometimes, it is the way of dragon riders. You can always tell by the far away look in his eyes when they talk to each other."
"I do not ask any of you to go with me on the rest of my journey." Menimeth said to his friends. "You have families to go home to, and money enough now to prosper, you should go home and enjoy it."
"We have seen and heard enough to know that you are here for a reason." Feran said. "You helped us when we needed it, even though we did not know we needed any help. We could not leave you now and face our families with honor, when you have done so much for us."
"I did not help you to enslave you with servitude." Menimeth replied. "And I would have done the same for anyone else."
"That is why we will go with you." Kyler said, speaking for the rest of his friends. "It is our choice to go, and we have this new armor to wear. It would be wrong to accept such treasures as these, and not use them."
"Besides, we have never seen a dragon, and a dragon has never seen us." Javen said with a grin.
"I will be joining you as well," Litlorn said. "That is why I am here. There are things you will need to know along the way, and I may have the knowledge to help you."
"It looks like I have no choice in the matter." Menimeth said with a smile. "If you are going with me in the morning, than you had better get some rest because we will be leaving early."
Chanry sat on the bed, and listened to the men as they talked. He had never seen such wonderful things before, and he looked at his knife with pride. It was the greatest gift that he ever received from anyone, and he ran his fingers around the designs on the sheath as he listened to his master. He could not wait to see the dragon of his master on the road in the morning, but did not show his excitement to the men.
While the others went to their beds, Menimeth and Litlorn walked to the door of the room to exit. He told Chanry he should get some sleep as well, as he walked out of the door and closed it behind him. Chanry grabbed his knife and held it close to his chest, as he went to the bed made for him by the window. He believed that he was too excited to go to bed, but before long, his eyes began to close, and he drifted off to sleep.
Menimeth followed Litlorn to the main room of the inn, and to a table by the fireplace. The box with the ring was still in his hands, and Menimeth looked at it as they sat by the fire. Farlin brought them a pint of mead each, before returning to his duties behind the bar, and Litlorn looked at the ring, and then at Menimeth before speaking.
"You should try it on." He said.
"I have never seen anything like it before." Menimeth said, as he removed it from the box.
"It was made a very long time ago, long before dragon riders filled the skies." Litlorn said. "But it was not made for any of them."
"Who was it made for?" Menimeth asked.
"I think it was made for you, but I will not know for sure until you put it on." Litlorn said, as he motioned for Menimeth to do so.
Menimeth slipped the ring on his finger, and felt a calmness come over him that he had never felt before. It felt strange but good he thought, and he was no longer tired from the day's activities.
"It fits well, however, I could have sworn it was too big when I put it on." Menimeth said, as he looked at the ring on his finger.
"It is a magic ring, and only one man can wear it." Litlorn replied. "A dragon rider."
"But why was I chosen to wear it? Was there no dragon riders when it was made?" Menimeth asked.
"No, but none of the dragon riders of the past have ever been able to wear it, though many have tried." Litlorn replied "It chooses who it belongs to, and who is fit to possess it, no one else."
"But I am not from this land." Menimeth said. "It makes no sense for me to have it."
"Only the rider who wears the golden dragon of the empire can use the power of the ring." Litlorn said. "It is the emblem that marks him as the king of the dragon riders, and of the empire."
"Then I must decline your gift, for I am no king." Menimeth replied, and tried to remove the ring, but it would not come off. "That is strange, it moves around on my finger easily but I cannot remove it."
"That is because it is part of you now." Litlorn said. "It was made with the help of the great mother dragon, and she is the one who gave it its power. Only she knew who it was crafted for, and gave that knowledge to the ring."
"But I am not the king of this land, or any other, my friend. I am just a man who avenges the deaths of the innocent, when I can."
"That is what kings do, if they are any kind of king at all." Litlorn replied.
"I have only just found Danorathin moments ago." Menimeth said. "And now you say that I am the king of this land. I do not see how I could be, and I do not think the people of this land will agree with you."
"I can see you will not be convinced
by me, so let us discuss this another time." Litlorn said, as he stood from the table. "I must retire to my room at the castle now, but I will see you in the morning."
After the Elvin prince had gone, Menimeth sat and thought about all he had said.
"I am not a king," he thought, "and do not wish to be one."
"You are what you are, master, and you cannot change that." Danorathin said.
"That is true my friend, but I am not a king." Menimeth told his dragon.
"That is not for you to decide master, the decision is for those that would be ruled, and no others."
"You are a very smart dragon, and I am not your master, I am your friend."
"Then I will call you Meni, like the boy if I may?"
"That is acceptable, and I would like it very much." Menimeth said, surprised that Danorathin knew of Chanry.
Menimeth sat by the fire awhile longer, and thought of the quest he would be undertaking in the morning. It would be too dangerous to take Chanry along, and he liked the boy very much. Farlin would let the boy stay until his return, he was sure of it.
The next morning Menimeth was up early and went to see Captain Brannor. He told him about the highwaymen at the crossroads, and of their deaths at his hands. Captain Brannor studied the man before him, and paused before he spoke.
"We have received reports that highwaymen are robbing and killing people to the north and south of Argnon. It does not surprise me that they would be at the crossroads as well."
"Do you have no patrols out that can catch these men?" Menimeth asked.
"Well, yes, but we cannot find them." The captain replied. "It is like they know we are coming, and disappear before we can arrive."
"It sounds like there is an informant among your men." Menimeth said.
"I would agree, but none of my men know where we are to go, until we are on the way."
"Then it is someone in the castle." Menimeth said.
"That is what I thought as well, but we have watched the servants and the other workers in the castle for many days. No one has spoken to any strangers, or left the grounds to meet with anyone to betray us."
"It is possible that you are the one being watched."
"If that is true." Captain Brannor said. "There is a network set up, and we will have a hard time solving our problem."
"It still does not explain how they know where you are going." Menimeth said, as he thought about the mystery.
"No, it has to be someone on the inside." The captain said, as he looked back in the direction of the gates, and the castle beyond. "They could never reach our destination that quickly, otherwise."
"If they know of your patrols, then they know where I am to go this morning." Menimeth said.
"I fear it is as you say." Captain Brannor said. "So you must be careful not to fall into any of their traps."
"I will do the best I can." Menimeth replied.
"From what I've seen of your talents, the highwaymen will be out matched, of that I am sure."
"I hope you are right." Menimeth said, as he looked to the south, and in the direction they would be headed. "I will find out soon enough."
Menimeth made his way back to the inn, and a table in the corner of the main room of the tavern. Farlin stood behind the bar, and dried the mugs and goblets that he had washed for the morning patrons. When he saw Menimeth enter, he smiled and offered him a mug of Blackbeer.
"This will help you get the morning started." He said, as he handed the mug to Menimeth. "I will be glad to help you with that problem of yours, I will give him a good single room of his own, and see that he is fed."
"Thank you Farlin, you are a good man. Here is a gold piece to pay for the room and board." Menimeth said, as he held out the coin.
"You have already paid more than you owe, I will not accept it. I like the boy and will do it because I want to, but thank you just the same." Farlin replied, and refused the coin.
Menimeth was sitting at the table in the corner with his back to the wall, when Feran, Kyler, and Javen, walked into the room. They made their way to the table and their friend, by way of the bar.
"This Blackbeer is the best ever." Javen said, as he took his place at the table. "I wish it was this good at old Bailen's place back home."
" Enjoy it now Javen, it is the last you will have for a few days." Kiler said.
"Everything is loaded on the packhorses." Feran said.
"And the horses are saddled and waiting." Javen added.
"What about Chanry?" Kyler asked, "He will be hard to leave behind."
"Farlin will care for him until we return, I have seen to it." Menimeth said, and stood from the table, facing his friends. "It is getting late now, and we must go. I was waiting for the map that was to be sent by Falendor, but I guess we do not really need it."
The horses stood in front of the inn and were ready to travel, so the four men mounted their steeds, and rode from the tavern. When they reached the old road that separated the town from the castle, Litlorn was waiting for them.
"I have a map for you from the regent." The elf said with a smile. "He wishes you a safe return from your travels."
"I'm sure he does." Kyler whispered.
Menimeth took the map and looked at it. The church was marked on it clearly, along with the quickest route. He did not think the regent was setting a trap for them, and believed he did want the key they were after, but he did not trust him.
"We will take the road south, only so far before we move under the cover of the trees I think." He said, after studying the map.
They all agreed, and the group turned, and rode east out of Argnon. The road south was no more than two miles away, and they reached it quickly, but they did not see the small figure run from the building to the trees, as they rode from the town.
The road south was much smaller than the great road that they had come from, and they had to ride in pairs while Javen rode behind them, with the ropes to the packhorses tied to his saddle. The companions rode for a couple of miles in silence, thinking about what lay ahead of them.
"Where do you want me to land Meni, I do not want to startle the horses?" The dragon said.
Menimeth stopped abruptly and looked around. Kyler almost ran into Donner, and had to turn his horse quickly, to avoid him.
"In the road in front of us, I guess." Menimeth said to no one.
"That will take some getting used to." Feran said, as he looked at their leader.
"Danorathin is coming. You should hold the horses, or they may get spooked."
"This will take some getting used to even more I think, Feran." Litlorn said with that smile he often wore, but even he was not prepared for what was coming.
The Great Bronze Dragon came over the trees, and with a single stroke of his massive wings, landed in the road. He looked at the men with his large black eyes, and lowered his head at Donner's feet. Menimeth dismounted, and standing beside his dragon, laid his hand on Danorathin's huge head. The dragon's head was half as tall as Menimeth was, and just as long as he was tall. Javen had a hard time keeping the packhorses from bolting, but soon had them calm enough so he could look at the dragon better. Kyler and Feran were on the verge of bolting themselves as the dragon landed, and Javen would have also, had he not been busy with the horses.
Litlorn sat on his horse and looked at the Bronze beast. He had never seen one so big and so beautiful, and had never heard any tales of one this color. His father Loran had told him they were very special, but he did not understand until now.
"I do not believe it, it is a real dragon." Javen said, wide-eyed.
"He is very big too." Kyler added.
"I hope he does not decide to eat me along the way." Javen said quietly to himself."
Danorathin raised his head and looked at the young man holding the rains to the packhorses.
"Why, would you rather be eaten now?"
Javen looked around him, and at his companions, before speaking.
"Who said that?" He
asked.
"The dragon." Litlorn replied, smiling.
Javen looked at Danorathin, then Menimeth, before looking back to Litlorn. The Elf nodded his head, and Javen once again looked at the dragon.
"I would rather not be eaten at all, sir, if you do not mind." He said
