The Fire Within

by Nicholas Clausen

  Draek, do you see a way to get in here? Hayden asked as he began searching the walls for the entrance. He figured he had to be at the base of the mountain and that there should be an opening large enough to fit a dragon through.

  Let me look. Draek replied. Hayden couldn’t hear anything outside the noise he was making as he looked through the room. There was nothing in the giant chamber at all, but Hayden knew that this is where the dragons must have stayed.

  I think I found the way in. Draek replied. Hayden searched for a few more moments before the light from his torch illuminated the metal and stone door that led to the outside. The door was nearly three times as tall as Hayden and was wide enough for two dragons to walk through side by side. With Draek’s height, he would have to keep his head down as he entered.

  I found the door as well, give me a few minutes to see if there is a way to open it. Hayden told his dragon. He gently put his shield down and propped it up against the wall beside the door.

  Hayden quickly looked around the edge of the door to see if there was any kind of lever or wench to open it, but the walls were completely smooth.

  I can’t tell how to open it. Hayden admitted.

  I think I know how this works. Draek said. There was a low grumble sound, and Hayden backed away from the door. A loud thud sounded in the room and dust shook off the door as Draek slammed into it from the other side. As hard as Draek hit the door, it still stood, resisting his attempts to get in.

  Hayden heard Draek roar, and this time he hit the door with all his might, knocking the door down flat with a crash and an explosion of dust. The wind from the door falling in blew out the torch in Hayden’s hand, shrouding him in darkness.

  Really? Hayden asked. Draek looked around, quickly examining the room.

  This will do for tonight. Draek said as he stepped on the fallen door and made his way into the room, ignoring Hayden.

  Hayden shook his head and moved around to stand with Draek. Over the next few minutes, Hayden took the saddle off Draek and set up a small camp. When he was finished, Draek was coiled around Hayden, and they had a small campfire, more so for light than heat.

  Hayden had tried to look over Draek’s scratches, which Draek allowed, but his stubborn dragon wouldn’t let him clean them. They had scabbed over and didn’t seem to bother him, but Hayden had a bad feeling the scales were not going to grow back over it, and there was going to be a large scar on his chest.

  Do you think we will find the dwarves early tomorrow? Hayden asked, trying to change the subject knowing that Draek was listening to his thoughts. He sat down and leaned up against Draek with his face to the fire. The room no longer had a dusty, stale smell to it since Draek knocked down the door.

  I can’t think if anything else that could have caused the light we saw. Draek said. Draek’s head was resting near his tail, and his eyes were closed, but he hadn’t fallen asleep yet.

  How do you think they will handle what we have to tell them? Hayden asked.

  I am sure they will not be happy to see us, but if they want revenge for what happened to them, then we are their best chance for that. As Draek spoke Hayden reached over to his pile of gear and grabbed his dagger. On the sheath, there was still the small hammer that he had gotten from Elizabeth after she had murdered the dwarves.

  If they want revenge, they should kill us. Hayden said as pain arched through his chest.

  No, they shouldn’t. We were defending ourselves, and it was war. Death happens. What Elizabeth did was wrong, and she alone can be blamed for it. We do not carry the weight of her actions so quit putting it on your shoulders. Draek said sternly.

  Hayden held his dagger to his chest and closed his eyes, thinking back to everything they had done. The good and bad deeds stood together, side by side, neither out shining the other.

  You are right, but I must carry the weight. If I don’t then I might make a decision like that in the future because I don’t understand it’s cost. With Hayden’s words, Draek opened his silver eye and looked at Hayden.

  Carry it if you must, but do not let it pull you away from our cause. There is much to be done over the next few days, and I don’t need you doubting yourself. Draek replied with all seriousness before he closed his eyes again.

  Hayden closed his eyes as well, and his mind began to wonder. Cass was first on his mind, but it didn’t take long for thoughts of Erskine to wander into his mind. He thought about how it had looked in his youth and how it looked now.

  As the night grew silent and Draek began to snore, Hayden tried to stop his mind from thinking about what had happened to the people that he had called friends. He tried to stop his mind from thinking about the sounds and smells that he would never experience again. He tried his hardest to not let his mind wander to the thoughts of Marge and Rob. He tried, but he failed.

  In the silence of the Stone Gates, in the shadows of the Bergimir mountains. Hayden cried for all that he lost.

  Chapter Five

  Hayden sat upon Draek’s back as the sun reached over the mountains and shined onto the Stone Gates. Together they looked to where the light had shown the night before. Hayden was amazed at how big the one mountain that stood before them was and how he had been unable to see it. He would never admit it to Draek because he knew his dragon wouldn’t let him live it down.

  What should we do, fly around the mountain? Hayden asked. There were no signs of anyone being on it.

  It won’t take long to fly around it and see if there are any signs of the dwarves. If we don’t find anything, we can come back and figure something else out. Draek suggested. Without any better ideas, the pair took to the air and began the climb to the mountain.

  Within the hour, they were beginning to circle over the mountain, and both Hayden and Draek were doing their best to look for signs of life. Hayden thought that they might find a camp or something like the Stone Gates carved into the mountain, but the face was nothing but stone from base to top.

  It wasn’t until they made it to the other side of the mountain that Hayden and Draek found what they were looking for. The entire back side of the mountain had once been carved into an ornate, multi-level castle. Towers were protruding out of the castle at seemingly random angles. The craftsmanship was unlike anything Hayden had ever seen before. The buildings started at the base of the mountains and ended at the very top.

  There were giant dwarves carved into the stone, locked in eternal battle with carved dragons that worked their way up the mountain. It was one of the most amazing structures they had ever seen, but as they got closer to it, Hayden saw the damage.

  There were burn marks on several areas, and one of the stone dwarves was missing its weapon which lay shattered at its feet. They found what had once been two giant, magnificent doors that when opened would have allowed Draek to fly through.

  The doors were shattered and lay scattered on the stairs that climbed up to the doorway. It looked like the doors had been blown out from the inside. A battle had taken place, and the dwarves had lost, again.

  Look at it. Draek said in awe. How did they build something like this? He asked. They flew between two towers, but the left tower fell and crumbled just as Draek passed it.

  The entire side of the mountain was in ruin, and there were no signs of the dwarves still being present.

  Should we land? Hayden asked.

  We can, but we need to be careful here. Draek insisted, and he lowered himself to the main path that led to the ruined doors of the mountain.

  Draek carefully landed, sending rubble down the steps to the base of the mountain.

  Hayden wasn’t eager to get out of the saddle, but he knew some of the areas to search were far too small for Draek to fit in. He undid the straps without looking down, he kept looking around for any kind of movement.

  Hayden guessed that the battle that had claimed the mountain had taken place long ago. The stones were faded, and the piles looked as if they had been there for some time, having small patches of g
rass and plants growing up through them.

  I don’t smell anything. Draek said. I think whoever lived here has been long gone. Draek raised his head up to get a better look around.

  Hayden lowered himself to the ground and looked at the stones that had broken apart. There was no sign of dwarves except for the buildings. There were no tools or discarded weapons laying about to show if they had just abandoned the structure.

  Someone has to be here. We saw the light coming from somewhere up the mountain. When Hayden finished talking, they both looked to where the giant doors had fallen in.

  Hayden didn’t have to ask Draek if it was a bad idea to go in, but he knew they didn’t have a choice. They needed to find the dwarves quickly, or they would have to fly to Celestial City without them.

  Together the two began walking towards the nearly collapsed entrance, making sure to keep their eyes open for any signs of life.

  Draek had to move some of the fallen stones and rubble out of the way to allow himself to fit inside. Hayden went first while Draek shoved the last of the rocks out of the way.

  Dust filled the air as beams of light shined in. Hayden couldn’t see the walls of the room they had entered or ceiling, they were shrouded in darkness. From what he could see of the floor it was polished and smooth, unlike anything he had ever seen. He didn’t know that stone could be smoothed to such a texture.

  He crouched down and ran his hand across the floor, leaving a trail in the dust that had formed on the stone.

  As he was crouched, Draek was able to move the final stone and join him.

  The air in here is stale. Draek said as he sniffed the air. It smells old. Hayden was about to agree when he saw something on the floor.

  Draek, look over here. Hayden said as his heart began to race. He quickly walked across the stone floor, his footsteps echoing softly compared to the thundering sound of Draek walking.

  What is it? Draek asked as he neared the spot Hayden was pointing to. Hayden knelt to the floor and carefully lowered his hand.

  Footprints. Hayden said as he used his hand to wipe away the dust next to the footprint. He compared the two prints, his and the one that shouldn’t be there. Both spots looked the same, and dust had not begun to settle back in the print to fill it up.

  They were made recently. Hayden stated. He stood back up and looked around, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

  I still don’t smell anything. Draek said. Hayden slowly walked back to Draek and began digging through the saddle bag until he had his armor out. He quickly started putting it on, and while it was hard to do on his own, he was able to manage.

  Hayden strapped his silver blade to his back, his copper blade hanging on his hip. He put his eagle helmet on and carried his shield in his left hand. He kept the torches they had found in the Stone Gates, so he pulled one out and had Draek light it.

  We need to be careful. Hayden said, and Draek rumbled his agreement.

  I don’t like that I can’t smell them. Draek admitted. Hayden had to remind himself that they were trying to convince the dwarves to join them, not fight. As he held the torch up in the air and began walking further into the darkness, following the steps on the floor, he had a sinking feeling that he was stalking an enemy. Or possibly being stalked.

  If we find the dwarves here, what are we supposed to say to them? Draek asked as they moved together slowly. Hayden turned around to see the light from the entrance, but the darkness was growing around them. They still hadn’t made it to a wall yet to know how large the room was.

  I am not sure Draek. Hayden admitted. Wondering around and asking for help has worked thus far. He smiled under his helmet. He needed to make a joke because his nerves were screaming at him that they were walking into a trap.

  They were surrounded by an orb of light shining from the torch, but they couldn’t see anything around them. The entrance was a glowing white light off in the distance. As they slowly walked forward, a large object came into view.

  Hayden and Draek both jumped and faced whatever it was as that the light from their torch had fallen on. Hayden pulled his shield up to his eyes and slowly stepped forward.

  You see it? Hayden asked as he continued walking. He slid his feet forward instead of picking them up as he walked. Draek moved to be able to protect Hayden in an instant if need be.

  Yes. Draek replied shortly. The pair continued to slowly creep forward until they were able to make out what the light revealed to them. At first, it looked like a stone bowl large enough for Hayden to climb into, but one of the sides had a groove cut into it that led to a channel that was carved into the floor and disappeared into the darkness.

  What is this? Hayden asked as he walked up to it, his nervousness slightly subsided.

  I am not sure. Draek admitted as he investigated the stone bowl. It has something in it that has an almost rotting smell to it. The stone bowl was almost as tall as Hayden, so he struggled just to see past the rim.

  Hayden leaned over and saw that there was some sort of brown mud in the bowl and as he lowered his torch to see it the liquid caught fire. It was slow burning, but the flames started in the center of the bowl and crawled to the edges.

  It moved slow enough that Hayden was able to watch it grow and step back as the flames reached over above the bowl and lit up the area. It’s a stone brazier. Hayden stated. The glow from the brazier reached out further than his torch.

  They watched as the fire slowly crawled down to the crack of the brazier and continued down the channel in the floor. Whatever was burning was old because the flames were creeping along as if the liquid was resisting the fire.

  The fire continued down the channel, lighting up the darkness until another brazier came into view and within a matter of moments the second one was lit.

  This reminds me of the chamber that led to the maze under Celestial City. Hayden thought as more channels caught fire and soon there were trails of fire splintering out in several directions like cracked ice.

  What? Draek asked. Hayden had to remind him of his second trial to get his dragon egg and how similar the rooms were. The tenth brazier caught fire, and columns that must have held the ceiling up became visible. The columns were as wide as one of Draek’s wings, and they disappeared into the darkness above because the light from the braziers was not strong enough to reach the top.

  This is unreal. Draek admitted. Both of them were in awe of what they were seeing. There was no furniture of any kind in the room, but the columns had details carved into them that made them look as if they were alive.

  Where do we start? Hayden asked. He could sense that Draek wanted to roar as loud as he could to let anyone in the mountain know they were here, but Hayden stopped him before he could. No roaring. Hayden said when Draek’s jaw twitched.

  Fine. Draek said begrudgingly. Draek looked around as Hayden tried to find the footprints again. Look. Draek said as he turned his face to one of the columns that were now illuminated by fire. The fire had crawled its way up the column in a spiral revealing a staircase carved into it.

  Should I climb it? Hayden asked, giving up on the footprints. He had taken his eyes off the nearly invisible footprints and had lost them.

  Draek looked up at the fire that was still climbing high into the darkness. I don’t like us being separated. He admitted reluctantly. But we need to find the dwarves. He said.

  Hayden agreed with him and hated the idea of going on his own, but there was simply no way Draek was going to be able to follow him. He didn’t want to risk Draek flying into the darkness and possibly crippling his wing.

  I will go and just see what is at the top of it. Hayden decided. Then I will come back down. If we can’t find anything else, we will leave and go back to searching the outside of the mountain. Maybe we can find that cave somewhere near the top. Hayden said without taking his eyes off the column of fire. It appeared that the fire had gone as high as it could, and a small portion of the stone ceiling was now visible.

  Alri
ght. Draek agreed, and Hayden could tell by his voice that neither of them thought that was going to happen. Something was at the top of the stairs, and they were about to find out what.

  Together, the pair made their way to the flaming column, and Hayden looked at Draek before starting the climb.

  I will be back soon. Hayden promised. He still wore his armor and had both his shield and swords.

  Draek did not respond with words but brushed his nose against Hayden. Hayden turned and started the climb. The stairs were wide enough that Hayden could easily walk up them and someone could have walked beside him. There was no handrail, just the channel carved into the floor that was now on fire.

  As Hayden began to climb, he got uncomfortable not being able to use a rail to help his climb. Looking out over the room made him even more nervous. He kept having to push back the growing fear of slipping and falling off the stairs.

  The fires from the braziers were all lit, and Hayden could see the walls now. There were no doors or halls that seemed to branch off the giant room.

  It was large enough to house dozens of dragons at once but seemed to have no other purpose.

  As Hayden made it to the halfway point, he was out of breath, so he turned and sat down on the stairs. The fire from the stairs was not putting out a lot of heat but wearing his armor and carrying his swords and shield was taking its toll on him.

  I didn’t think about how hard this was going to be. Hayden admitted. He looked over the edge at how far down Draek was below him. He quickly looked away as his head began to swim. He could feel himself teeter a little on the edge and stepped back.

  Hayden tightened his grip on his torch and felt the sweat on his palms. Draek was so far beneath him that he looked about the size of a dog.