The Last Dragon 4

by LeRoy Clary

  “So, I will have to make an official notification and request an audience with the king. To gain his attention in the traditional manner, I could have impressed him by arriving in a vessel with an entourage and letter of introduction, as well as a minister to negotiate a meeting. I have none of those. A request might take months for a response.”

  “There are other ways.”

  “Your crown of light. Maybe you can make a few rumbles of thunder, too. My point is, nobody will notice us if we do nothing to draw attention.”

  I said, “That was the intent of the crown.”

  “Not at first. You’re too smart not to have figured out the Young Mage has already sent his representatives there, probably years ago. They have laid the groundwork for his invasion, as was happening in Dire. My plan—for now—is to enter the city quietly and listen to the people. They talk. They tell what is really happening. All we have to do is listen. Then we adjust to what is important.”

  “So, a royal entrance is out?”

  “Not completely. After we find out what we need, we can then ‘make’ an entrance suitable for a princess. It may take us a day or two. Or more.”

  “I did think of the same things as you, but not sneaking into town and skulking around for information. That is a good idea.”

  She gave me a playful punch on my arm. “Not sneaking or skulking around. Information gathering is more accurate.”

  I didn’t laugh. “It’s not going to be as simple as striding up to a welcoming king and asking for his support in your war, is it? Telling him you’re a stranger but want him to commit all his treasury and resources to help a princess from somewhere up north.”

  She punched me again, harder. “No. It’s never as simple as it seems from afar. When the ship sails closer, the urgency and danger will increase proportionally.”

  That last could have come directly from one of her many books and may have. I turned to watch the shore pass by and think. Did she want me to warn the others, or to give them instructions? A quick look at the determination in her face told me that was not what she wanted. Trying to solve her problems for her wasn’t either.

  She wanted to decide what to do. She was in charge. Kendra and I had our new powers to prop us up, but Elizabeth had her royal position. The three of us made an impressing combination.

  I looked over her shoulder at Anna. Knowing I could silently talk to her in her mind gave me no idea of the other powerful magic she controlled. Or those that she would one day control. Anna was growing on me. Whatever might lie in our future, she’d be part of it. It was a determination I couldn’t make alone. Both Elizabeth and Kendra had to be part of it—but our band of three was to become four.

  Anna was also a puzzle. She was our puzzle. Without discussing her future with her, Kendra, or Elizabeth, I knew she had somehow managed to become part of our pseudo-family and would remain so.

  My attention turned to Will. He was a good man, strong, honest, and he had been a warrior. He was now on a mission to serve his king. For all of his good qualities, he was not one of us, not like family. Neither was Captain, of course.

  Three women and a man. And a dragon, if Kendra could get it to obey her again. Our small group had a mission of its own. We were going to defeat the strongest mage of all time. That might be a little intense but felt true. There may have been stronger mages, but we hadn’t heard of them, so they didn’t exist in our world.

  My magical powers were nonexistent as far as trained mages were concerned. They had spent years and years teaching and learning about their powers, how to best use them, what was possible and what was not. I knew a few tricks that were probably equivalent to the first month of their first year of study.

  The Young Mage should have killed me on the mountain pass where we’d first encountered the Blue Lady. There were chances he should have taken. The trails had wound along the side of a cliff. He should have either sheared off rock above or spooked my horse.

  I said, “The Young Mage didn’t kill me when he could have.”

  Elizabeth turned to face me, her face as serious as I’d ever seen it. “He’s scared of you, Damon.”

  “Me? Why?”

  “He had great power or perhaps is ruthless enough to carry out this great plan of his, I don’t know which. But there is something about you that scares him. Maybe he thinks your powers are so great that he is afraid to antagonize you. If you lash out with your mind, what damage to him can you do?”

  Elizabeth went silent for a while, then said, “Do not take this the wrong way, or as fact, what I’m about to say. I’ve been thinking. No, dwelling about it is a better word. Obsessing on an idea. The more I think about it, the more it seems to make sense. Either that or maybe I’m totally wrong and reading into it things not there.”

  Her tone and the words pouring from her mouth in a spew so fast they ran together scared me. I drew a breath and said, “Whatever you’re talking about, you’ve managed to say nothing. Tell me without the hysterics.”

  “I think the Young Mage has known about you always. Certainly, after you arrived in Dire, however, that came to be. Maybe he learned of you later, but the point is that he knew. His plan with Emma and Anna was not hatched like an unexpected chick from an egg several weeks old. It was the culmination of planning.”

  “Why didn’t he just have me killed, if that was his objective. We didn’t even suspect while growing up so it would have been easy to assassinate me.”

  She said, “There could be many reasons, but the most obvious is that failure of the plan would warn you and cause you to respond, to fight back. If you are more powerful than him, or he suspects you are, he wouldn’t attack until he knew he would be successful. There is also Kendra and she might scare him—her and her association with the dragon. He might feel that he would only get one chance, and that might be true. Or maybe he only thinks that.”

  “You’re guessing,” I accused. “Everything you’ve said is a guess.”

  “Of course, I am. If I knew for certain, we’d be having a different conversation.” Elizabeth turned away. She was not irritated or anything. Just thinking deeply, trying to make rationalizations that fit the facts. She was a princess and used to considering a topic and making a royal ruling.

  I was more of an achiever in my actions. Thinking, or over-thinking a subject was not one of my weaknesses. Being impulsive was.

  But her conjecture might hold more than a grain of truth.

  I said, “Listen, tell me if this sounds stupid, but hear me out. The Young Mage has gone to extraordinary lengths to kill us. Whichever of us is his target is beside the point right now. He tried in Trager, during the storm at sea, when we got close to Kaon, and then at the chain of lakes outside Dagger.”

  “You’re just talking endlessly, or do you have an idea?” Elizabeth asked, her total attention focused on me. I noticed both Anna and Kendra listening.

  “We’ve passed a few fishing boats in two days. All of them waved or talked to Captain. Why have no boats sent by the Young Mage caught up with us? No warships, no soldiers chasing us, no Wyvern attacking. Nothing.”

  “He does not know where we’re going?” she mumbled.

  “He’s too smart not to know. His men searched the desert south of the lakes. He knows we didn’t go to Dagger because he has it blockaded. That leaves the coastline to the south. It would take half a day to move troops there and find out if we’d been seen. As close-knit as the fishing community is, one of them would take the generous reward he probably offered.”

  Elizabeth shrugged and said, “Maybe they sailed around the other side of Dead Isle.”

  Even Kendra appeared satisfied with her answer.

  I raised the level of my voice a little. “Maybe there is a Waystone or two in Landor and Fairbanks—I’d bet on it. He has been planning his expansion for years, so why wouldn’t he have mages and assassins already in Landor and Fairbanks? Especially if the local king is ill. We all know what that means. If not, he didn’t c
hase after us, he just sent them via the Waystones to wait in ambush.”

  She seemed to shrink in size. “Why chase after us when we are sailing right into his hands?”

  Will spoke for the first time, “Damon, you are welcome to my recommendation for military planning any time. I will personally give my approval to our king to make you an officer.”

  “So, what do we do?” Kendra asked in a hushed voice. “I can’t get the dragon to fly, so there goes our best protection.”

  “Have you tried today?” I asked and immediately wished I hadn’t. Her scowl would make me think before speaking on that subject again.

  Elizabeth turned away from the rail and faced everyone in the boat, her face haggard, her eyes dull. When she spoke, the words included Captain. “I’m sorry. We cannot sail to Fairbanks or Landor—at least not yet.”

  Captain spilled the air from the sail and swung the tiller. I didn’t know where we were going, but only where we were not, same as him.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  The fishing boat ceased to move ahead. Instead of the sail keeping the boat steady as it plowed ahead, it bobbed and rolled with each movement of the wind or sea. We were all huddled together near the bow, under the shade of the tarp.

  Will said, “We have options. Better that we figured this out now than after reaching port to find a company of soldiers waiting for us.”

  Elizabeth asked Captain to display his charts again. He removed them from the waterproof tube and unrolled the first. When it didn’t contain what she wanted, he allowed it to spiral back into the rolled shape of a tube and spread another.

  Elizabeth pointed to Lander at the very bottom. “The map ends just below there. What is to the south?”

  Captain hesitated, choosing his words carefully. “I do not have a map nor been there, but all sailors talk. The sea goes on and on. A great city-kingdom lies there to the south, a powerful nation called Malawi.”

  At the mention of the name, five sets of eyes went to the stash of weapons leaning against the hull at the bow. They looked at my damaged sword, presented by our king to me. The singing-sword. Made of Malawian steel, the finest in the world.

  I was stunned but shouldn’t have been. I’d known it was far to the south. Elizabeth had even mentioned it when she told me about fitting all the maps together, but she had mentioned several kingdoms with unknown names, and it had escaped me.

  My heart pounded and my breath halted for so long I almost passed out. Malawi, the place where my sword had been made. Where it had been enchanted to sing when it encountered Prince Angles’ sword, or whatever the right word was for the keening we both heard. I couldn’t speak.

  The others were a little better off.

  Elizabeth said to Captain with a forced calm, “A great sea kingdom, you say? With sailors, so they also have a navy?”

  Captain realized he’d struck a nerve and just nodded as he watched for more strained reactions.

  Elizabeth closed her eyes for a moment and a faint smile grew. “I have the basics of a plan to discuss with all of you. Please allow me to provide the bones of it, and then we can flesh it out.”

  Everyone waited. My mind was on my sword. As long as the boat sailed for Malawi her plan would sound good to me.

  “Here is the outline. This boat will sail to the Landor coast tonight where Kendra and Anna will depart. They will make their way to Landor City and Anna will communicate what they find to Damon, using their unique communication skills. They will do nothing but observe and report.”

  Kendra gave her a curt nod of agreement.

  Elizabeth continued, “The Young Mage probably has plans ready for Landor, but we are going to leap ahead to Malawi, where he probably has only begun. Captain will either steer the boat to Malawi or sell us the boat and we’ll sail there. I’m sure Will can manage to hug the coastline until we reach it.”

  “I’ll take you,” Captain huffed. “But I cannot remain. My family.”

  “Good. Will must go with Damon and me because he will not leave my side because he has an oath to the king to uphold, so instead of fighting that directive, I’ll compromise, but request that he reconsider. He can better serve me, our group, and his king if he accompanies Kendra and Anna who will be alone in a foreign land. We, meaning I, will attempt to contact the Malawian authorities and secure their help. The plan will develop from there.”

  I relaxed slightly. While my sister would go to Landor, I’d be sailing to where my sword was created. The nick in the blade might even be repaired there, but there might be more information about it to learn. Most of all, I might learn about why it ‘sang’ when near Prince Angle’s sword. Instead of worrying about Anna and Kendra, my mind stayed with my sword.

  I said, “Are we sure the Young Mage will not have people waiting there also?”

  “I expect he will,” she said. “But at the beginning stages. An attack there wouldn’t happen until Dire, Fairbanks, and Landor are conquered and officially part of Kaon, or well on their way to defeat. Malawi is far enough away that he will need those kingdoms to send his army. Every day’s travel away is harder for any army.”

  “So, the people supporting him there will be an advance group. Spies, if you will.”

  “Exactly,” Elizabeth said. “At least, that is my hope.”

  Will spoke with reluctance and controlled excitement, “Forgive me for not realizing we were sailing into a trap. As a military leader, I have failed in my primary duty to prevent Princess Elizabeth from entering danger. Now, I believe protecting Kendra and Anna will best protect my princess. I’ll accompany them to Landor.”

  “I didn’t expect that,” Elizabeth replied.

  Will said, “The greater danger to you and your mission for Dire lies in Landor. That is where I should be.”

  I watched the shifting in the conversation and the plans devised which were like the sands in the desert. From one moment to another, they were never exactly the same. Elizabeth, in her new role, didn’t order everyone to their tasks. She gave a vague outline and modified things as everyone made suggestions.

  Even Captain made a few. He’d turned the boat in the direction of Landor again, but had eased off on the sails so we would arrive after dark. He added, “I heard mention of Landor City earlier. There is no city to speak of. What is to se seen there spreads out from a fortification constructed on a stone outcrop high above the seaport. It is a vast defensive castle more than a city.”

  Will asked, “Most residents live within the walls.”

  “That’s true enough,” Captain said. “These days, there’s a fair amount living outside because the population outgrew the walls. There are docks and a shipyard or two.”

  Elizabeth said, “Both Landor and Malawi are ruled by kings. Fairbanks too, but mostly it is small family farms on marshy land with interconnected lakes, small rivers, and streams. There are sayings about you can’t go anywhere in Fairbanks without getting your feet wet.”

  While they talked, I filled the canteens. It was a task that pleased me. Easy to do and helped us all. The water that seemed to flow from my fingertip was cool, tasted good, and was clear. It also didn’t make us ill. Drinking water normally was like gambling with experienced cheaters. You might get away with it once, twice, or even three times, but sooner rather than later, you would cramp at the very least. From there, it could be days in an outhouse or even death.

  Water is a carrier of a hundred sicknesses. Bad water kills. That’s why we add a fair measure of wine to it. Drinking water treated with wine seldom makes people sick. Or we drank beer or ale.

  While the plans were discussed, dissected, and adjusted, I played with my magic, stretching my abilities, trying new things. Ahead of the boat, I made a small rainstorm the size of a small ship and then reduced it in size by half. My eyes watched it as I shrank it more, forcing it down to a few steps across and no taller than my waist. It resisted going smaller. I insisted.

  I held it in place, just off the bow, and gathered more mag
ic and compressed it again. It was now knee high and one large step from side to side. But that wasn’t enough. I held it in place with one part of my mind and used another to gather lightning from the air around us. It was mostly gathered in the dry sail, hidden in the cracks and seams.

  I moved it to the tiny cloud and forced it to gather until like a kernel of dried corn, it popped. The difference was that my tiny cloud exploded in a sound that forced my hands over my ears. The surface of the water vaporized in a column of steam, and my raincloud was gone.

  Six people in the boat looked at me. I shrugged and said, “Just experimenting.”

  “Sinking this boat with your experiments is not a good idea,” Anna said.

  “Can you swim?” I asked.

  She curled one corner of her lip. “How far?”

  Everyone laughed at her answer but me. I suddenly thought of the Slave-Master and how he knew more of magic than me. Not how to do it, but how to make use of those who did. It seemed everyone knew more than me. I sorely needed a teacher before I put a hole in our boat, and we sank.

  I reviewed what I’d heard or witnessed other mages do. Storms, for certain. Lightning as weapons. But also, fire. Fast-travel between Waystones. They made arrows either hit or miss targets, and they moved about in daylight without being seen.

  A pattern of sorts formed in my mind. Mages, who always seemed so composed had powers used for war. Were their powers intended for war or had mages modified them or only used magic for that purpose?

  That was an interesting question. Magic could be used for good. A rainstorm over an area with crops that needed water was a simple example. We were on a fishing boat. A use of magic might fill the nets. Information about an illness might be spread to other kingdoms and a cure returned. I found the list of magic for good endless. Was it always used for evil?

  I didn’t know. What I began to see was that the mages I was familiar with were always in the company of the powerful, the generals, the kings, and queens. Their magic was used to enhance that power—and it seemed that the mere threat of magic was all that was required most of the time. Who in their right mind would fight against it? I chuckled over that thought.