by Nathan Roden
Her lip quivered as she stared into the void to the south.
“Tanner?” she whispered.
****
“Something is wrong,” Finn said.
“Is it your arm, Captain?” Jaclyn asked.
“No. My arm is…healed. By a miracle. I should have died. My friends have saved me to fight another day.”
“Caleb,” Jaclyn said. “I did not know that such magic existed—anywhere on the earth.”
“I did not know it, either,” Caleb said.
“I cannot tell if there is anyone inside the Border Guard camp at all,” Winston said. “There are no guards in the towers. I see no patrols.”
“Still, we should go no closer,” Finn said.
“Where do we go, Captain?” Jaclyn asked. “Sterling will come for us. Raynard and the wizard as well.”
Finn sighed.
Jaclyn slid off of her horse.
Caleb climbed onto it and led the horse directly toward the mouth of the canyon.
“Caleb!” Jaclyn said. “What are you doing?”
Jaclyn ran after Caleb.
Winston climbed off of his horse. He helped Finn down.
“Stay here, Captain. I will see to them.”
“Caleb!” Jaclyn cried. She lowered her voice. “You must come back! They may see you!”
“They will not see me—but they may see you. Go back, my queen.”
“But where are you going?” Jaclyn cried.
Caleb pointed into the canyon.
At the wolf that stood there. Waiting.
“I have to go with her.”
****
“Ready your bows!” Lamont cried. “Someone is coming!”
Magdalena transformed into human form north of Drakal. She took the reins of the horse and led Caleb toward the assembly of men, women, children, and dragons.
“Who is this boy?” Sir Edmund asked.
“He is a friend,” Magdalena said. “And he is here for a great purpose. I have no idea what that purpose is.”
Caleb slid down the horse’s side. He walked past people and soldiers, alike.
“Hello. My name is Caleb. Caleb Brewer. Where is the mother?”
“The mother?” Sir Edmund said.
Helena took Caleb’s hand.
“Helena,” Caleb said. “I have missed you.”
Helena stifled a cry.
“I’ve missed you too, Caleb. I’ll take you to Mother.”
Helena led him toward the injured dragon. When they reached the side of the great male, Caleb stopped. He reached out his hand and laid it on the dragon’s side.
Everyone held their breath when the dragon bent low in front of Caleb’s face.
Caleb reached out his hand and patted the dragon’s head.
Caleb stepped in front of the mother dragon. He spoke quietly to her, in words that no one else could hear. He reached out his hand and laid it on her side. She jumped just a little as did everyone else.
Caleb’s hand began to glow—dimly at first. A murmur grew among the people. The glow grew brighter and more intense. I became like the sun itself, and the only one who did not have to look away was the boy who could not see.
Caleb’s hand fell to his side. He took a step back. And then another.
The mother dragon’s eyes opened. Her jaw worked open and closed. Open and closed again. With a lurch that knocked over the makeshift tents, she sat up. She stood.
The baby dragons ran to her. They danced around her. The male dragon raised his head and blew a blast of fire eighty feet into the air.
Mother screeched into the air and spread her wings. She folded them again and lowered her head.
She laid her head on the ground, at Caleb’s feet.
“It’s time to fly, Mother,” Caleb said.
The male roared again. And then, mother, father, and children launched into the air, disappearing over the mountains.
As the celebration sounded loud, Magdalena took Simon aside.
“Jaclyn and two of Lamont’s men are hiding near the border. They were chased there by Sterling and Raynard, and the giant. I don’t think we have any secrets left.”
“I have to go,” Simon said.
“Be careful, Simon. We have survived the day. This is no time to be careless.”
Seventy
Simon flew high over the eastern boundary, fighting against the snows and high winds of the forbidden mountain. He was not concerned with comfort, or with conserving energy. He had all the motivation he would ever need.
He was going to her. He was going to Jaclyn.
He squinted in the crosswind and looked to the west. He saw what he was looking for, at last—the banners that flew over the camp of the Border Guard.
He circled over the foot of the forbidden mountain until he spotted the horse. He landed nearby.
“Jaclyn!” he called out.
“Who goes there?” was the rough reply.
“Simon Morgenwraithe! I come in pe—”
He did not have time to finish. He barely had time to open his wings to accept the queen’s embrace when she vaulted out of the trees.
When Simon saw Jaclyn, his feelings were bittersweet. The baby she carried was very noticeable. The baby boy would be born in a matter of only weeks.
The baby was his brother’s child. And he would be heir to the throne if all things remained the same.
Their revolution—their rebellion—would not play host to three descendants of King Bailin. It was impossible.
Simon and Jaclyn laughed together. They cried together. They told clipped versions of their stories to the amazement of Finn and Winston.
“The boy healed a dragon?” Winston asked.
“You’re surprised?” Finn said. “He—he saved my life.”
“Look!” Jaclyn cried. “They’re coming!”
“Come with me,” Simon said.
“I…I can’t, Simon! My mother! Sara and Zeke!”
She put her hand on her belly.
“They’ll kill Lucien if I go. I know it! I have to go back. Take Finn and Winston with you. Captain, I will have to tell them that you were kidnapping me.”
“But, to what end?” Finn asked.
“For ransom—does it matter?” Jaclyn cried. “They will take your heads if you stay!”
Finn hung his head.
“So, it has come to this.”
“You will be with my father. It had to come to this, Captain Finn. We just did not know it would be so soon.”
Finn pulled Jaclyn into a hug with his good arm.
“How I miss carrying you on my shoulders—when you were my little Jackie.”
Jaclyn squeezed Finn tight and kissed his cheek.
“I’ll always be your little Jackie, Doll.”
Finn laughed.
“Doll-Finn. Aye, I had forgotten that you used to call me that.”
Jaclyn climbed onto the horse.
“I have to hurry.”
She gave Simon a last look and turned the horse around.
She kicked its flank, and the horse bolted to the north.
She yelled out
“I love you!” and she was gone, before Simon had a chance to reply.
Seventy-one
Simon flew with Finn and Winston to Drakal.
The exchanged stories and strategies with Lamont and Sir Edmund until late into the night.
Simon spent time with Boone and Helena. Ben was nearby, playing and talking and cuddling his baby, while the baby’s grandparents looked on. Caleb waved his hands in the air, making orbs of light dance. The baby giggled and clapped her hands.
Boone built a fire just before the sun disappeared behind the trees.
He pointed to the sky.
“Look who’s back.”
The two baby dragons landed nearby.
“I think they like you, Simon,” Helena said.
Caleb made a little dragon noise. The babies answered him back.
Simon stood up.
> “Let me guess, Caleb. They want to play the chameleon game again?”
“Right you are! I only wish I could see it.”
“I wish you could, too.”
Simon took two steps toward the little dragons. His scales turned crimson red. One little dragon changed his scales to red, and then the other one did the same. Simon led them in cycles of blue, red, orange, yellow, and green. The military men stopped their serious discussion for a few moments and cheered loudly.
The little dragons made one last display of fire and left for home.
Lord Lamont joined Simon and the others.
“We’re going to turn in. It has been a very long day. We’ve discussed what to do next and decided to rest here for two days. The wounded can be treated and plans made. Rolf Roball is doing much better. He says that he wishes he was a dragon! Sir Edmund is sending men to four more villages in the morning. He believes that we can be five thousand strong before we march north.”
“Two days of rest sounds good to me,” Simon said. “Do you believe five thousand to be enough?”
Lamont looked troubled.
“These five thousand, alone? No. If our neighbors in the north do not join us—well, let’s not dwell on that tonight. Tonight, we need to sleep the sleep of the just.”
Seventy-two
Jaclyn was sure that Simon, Finn, and Winston were safely in the air, but she rode hard to the north, anyway.
She was surprised to find only Raynard and three other soldiers riding south.
“My Queen,” Raynard bowed his head and then squinted past Jaclyn to the south.
“Were you able to escape? Or did the traitors realize that their plan was doomed to fail?”
Jaclyn shook her head and pretended to cry.
“It was awful, Captain Raynard! I don’t know what those terrible men could have been thinking! They spoke of gold, and ransom! They intend to escape into the south!”
“Yet, you managed to get away. One girl against two soldiers,” Raynard said.
“They lost their resolve when they found out that you were on our trail,” Jaclyn said. “How did you find them so quickly?”
“It seems that following you has become a most popular pastime,” Raynard said. He pulled on his reins and turned his horse to the north.
“We should be going. The king is just over the next hill.”
“The king?” Jaclyn asked. “But why—?”
Jaclyn had a bad feeling about Raynard’s words.
They crested the next hill. Lucien and Sterling stood on the side of the road, holding onto theirs horse’s reins. Jaclyn saw the enormous back of Dathien, on horseback, riding over the next hill to the north.
Oliver was shoveling dirt onto a mound at the side of the road.
Oh, no…Jaclyn thought as she slid from her horse.
“Is this…is this a grave?” she asked.
She saw the tear stains mixed with dirt on Oliver’s face and thought the worst.
“Yes, my queen,” Oliver croaked.
“A soldier of the King’s Army died here, today. Timothy Stoddard.”
“A soldier of the King’s Army who was recently assigned to the Border Guard,” Sterling sneered. “He had no cause to be here. One can only assume…that he had deserted his post!”
“No!” Jaclyn said. “I don’t believe it!”
“We will know the truth, soon enough,” Lucien said. “Squire—are we finished here?”
Oliver wiped his forehead with his sleeve.
“Yes, My King. I would like to say a few words over him if I may.”
“Yes. Be quick about it.”
Oliver bowed his head and silently mouthed some words. Jaclyn bit her lip and tried not to cry.
“All right, then,” Lucien said. “Captain Raynard?”
“Yes, My King?”
Lucien pointed at Oliver.
“Place this man under arrest. And introduce him to our dungeon.”
“What?” Oliver cried. “My King, I beg of you—why are you doing this?”
“Lucien,” Jaclyn cried. “What are you doing?”
“The charge is treason.”
“As you wish, My King,” Raynard said.
Sterling smiled an evil smile.
“Oh, Captain Raynard,” Lucien said.
“We don’t want my squire to be lonely.”
Lucien pointed at Jaclyn.
“Find a suitable cell for the queen, as well.”
Seventy-Three
Simon was dreaming.
They were not the haunting dreams that had spoiled his sleep for most of his life. Not dreams of being pursued. Not dreams of being shot at, cursed at, or spit upon.
No, in this dream, he was a boy—a happy little boy of six.
The dream was better than reality had ever been. He was with his parents; but in the dream his parents were perfect. They were not royalty—they were just ordinary citizens; living and working in a happy, ordinary village.
Both of his parents had dimples that danced on their cheeks when they laughed. And they laughed often—delighting in their bright little boy who was the sun in the universe of their happiness.
In the dream, Simon was aware that he had a brother. But for some reason he never saw him.
It was the eve of his sixth name day. He had caught his parents whispering several times of late. When they knew they had been caught they burst out laughing and hugged their son intensely.
There was a big surprise coming and Simon could hardly wait.
The surprise woke him the next morning.
A furry, little brown and white puppy licked his face while his parents roared with laughter. Their dimples danced.
Simon pushed and pushed at the puppy but it just kept licking. Licking, and licking, and
Simon opened his eyes. He was being licked in the face—by a wolf. He jerked his head away violently and set fire to a grove of trees.
“Magdalena!” he growled. The wolf transformed into the woman before his eyes.
Boone and Helena arrived together breathing heavily.
“I told you she would get here before we did,” Boone said.
“Well, of course! She has four legs!” Helena said.
“You’ll want to see this, mate,” Boone said.
“What is it?”
“Your little dragon friends are back,” Magdalena said.
Simon closed his eyes and let his head fall back to the ground.
“They were just here. I’m exhausted. And I was having such a good dream…”
Boone, Helena, and Magdalena grabbed onto Simon’s leg and pulled.
“Come on, come on, come on!”
“All right! All right! Stop pulling on me!”
Simon stood and stretched. He followed behind the others, who urged him to hurry. They walked around the grove of smoldering trees and to the grassy hillside.
The two baby dragons were there, just as they said. Caleb stood next to them patting their heads.
Behind them, spread across the hill, were thirty more dragons. There were more circling overhead.
“By the gods!” Simon gasped.
“They’re all fairly small,” Magdalena said.
“I think they’re all babies,” Helena said.
When the skies were empty there were seventy-two dragons on the hillside. Their translucent scales flickered in the moonlight.
Caleb stepped back from the two dragons. They had grown since Simon first saw them. They stood at the same height as Caleb.
One of the dragons raised its head and screeched. The other did the same. They looked at Caleb.
Caleb faced the hillside and raised his hands into the air.
“What are they doing?” Boone whispered to Simon.
“I have no idea.”
“Look!” Helena pointed.
The first baby dragon changed in color, to a fiery red. The second did the same. They changed colors, one after the other; slowly at first. Red. Yellow. Orange. Red.
Yellow. Orange.
One at a time, the other dragons did the same thing—in random patterns. Soon, the colors flickered and danced—and the dark hillside came to life in a sea of dancing virtual flames.
“It looks like…just like fire!” Helena squealed. “It’s so beautiful!”
One of the dragons screeched again, and the symphony of fire fell back to darkness.
“That was amazing!” Boone said.
Caleb raised his hand again. A bolt of light shot into the sky and exploded into a shower of sparks.
The words, “King Simon” hung in the air.
“I don’t believe this,” Magdalena said.
The baby dragon screeched again. The dragons lifted their heads.
Darkness vanished in the glow of seventy-two pillars of flame that threatened to light the clouds on fire.
And then, there was quiet again.
“What does this mean?” Boone asked.
“It think it means that the old ways are not necessarily dead and gone,” Magdalena said.
“Do you think they’re willing to live beside us?” Simon asked.
“Even if it means…war?”
“Perhaps a king who is both dragon and man could make that happen.”
One of the dragons took to the sky. Others soon did the same. They circled over the hill until they were all in the air.
“What are they doing now?” Helena asked.
“Isn’t it obvious?” Caleb asked.
“They want to share their sky,” Boone said. “With their brother!”
“And their king!” Helena said.
Simon threw himself into the sky to the roars of young dragons and the cheering of his friends.
