(Dragonkin) Dragon Rider (14 page)

   "He went this way." Menimeth said, and followed the footprints as they led away down the hall.

   The four men followed the tracks as they turned one-way, and then another, leading them deeper into the dungeon. When they found him, Chanry was laying on the floor in a deep sleep, in the room where he had found the artifacts. The men rushed into the room, and Menimeth picked the boy up and held him in his arms, before noticing the objects lying on the table. Litlorn examined them closely without touching them, and then he put them in a bag. Chanry still held the box in his hands, and Menimeth left it there, as he carried the boy back to the chapel.

   Chanry was pale and cold, so Menimeth wrapped him in his blankets, and though it warmed him, he did not wake. Menimeth watched over him while he slept, and worried that he would not wake. When Danorathin returned that night and landed in the courtyard, he settled down beside the doors to the chapel, and went to sleep.

   When Menimeth woke the next morning, he looked at Chanry's bed, and the boy who lay there sleeping. He was very worried about him, and often paced the floor beside his bed, and then he would stop and watch the boy, as he lay asleep, before pacing again. Four days had passed since the incident, and still the boy slept.

   Litlorn inspected the artifacts they had discovered in the room where Chanry was found, and was excited about them. These were Darious's personal possessions, and were highly sought after by mages, as well as people of position. Their magic was very powerful, and was rumored to be the reason Darious became the High Priest of Glansford.

   The book was written in a language even Litlorn did not know, and was very old, and bound in a skin of unknown origin. The words were in a flowing script, which seemed to come off the page as you tried to read it. There were strange symbols on many of the pages, but no one knew what they were, or the drawings that appeared throughout the book.

   The sword was in its scabbard, and had the name Da'Thintahar written on the side in gold inlay. Runes were all over the scabbard as well as jewels and gold designs. Litlorn tried to remove the sword from the scabbard, but it would not come out. Kyler tried next but could not get it to budge, and Feran had even less luck. Menimeth tried several times, but was unable to free the blade from its scabbard, and in the end, he gave up. Litlorn thought it was a magic spell, and tried many different counter spells, but still the blade could not be removed.

   The Stone of Knowledge was the smooth round stone found by Chanry when he entered the secret room. It was beautiful to look at, and was older than all other things in the land of magic, except for the great mother dragon. Only those few, who had the magic in them strong enough to light the stone, could use it. Less than a handful of people were still alive that knew its origin, or how it was used, but only the great mother dragon knew when, and why, it was made.

   Danorathin would fly away in the mornings to catch a deer, but returned to the same spot after he had eaten, and did not move again until the next morning. His master worried about the boy, and Litlorn tried to use magic to wake him several times, but it had no affect. Man and dragon both feared for him, and his life.

   After several days, the solders that had stayed behind became used to the dragon laying so close to them. At first they would always avoid him when he was there, but slowly they calmed down, and went on about the daily routine of a solder.

   When Chanry finely awoke, seven days had passed. It was early in the morning and everyone still slept, so he walked out of the chapel, and into the courtyard. Danorathin was lying by the doors like he had for many days, and Chanry walked up to him and rubbed his head. The great dragon opened one eye, and looked at him as he stood there. The boy was not afraid of the dragon that towered over him even lying down, and looked back at the giant eye.

   Danorathin raised his massive head and looked at the boy who stood so boldly at his feet. He liked Chanry, and the way he treated his master, and his master was very fond of the boy as well. Menimeth came from the chapel quickly, and stopped when he saw Chanry standing in front of Danorathin. It was obvious that he was relieved by the look on his face, and the dragon shook his head and laid it back on the ground at Chanry's feet.

   "We have been worried about you." Menimeth said at last. "How do you feel?"

   Chanry turned to his master, and with bright eyes and a huge smile, said.

   "I found it Meni, I found it. It was in the chapel all along."

   "Yes, we know. It is still on your bed where you have been for a very long time." Menimeth said, and smiled at the boy's excitement.

   "Bed? How long was I in bed? I feel fine." Chanry asked, with confusion in his voice.

   "You have been asleep for a week, and we feared you would not wake at all." Menimeth replied.

   "A week! I was asleep for a week?"

   "Yes you were, but you are awake now."

   "I am, very hungry, is there anything to eat, Meni?" Chanry asked, as he walked to his master, and stood looking up at him.

   "I am sure we can fix you something to end your hunger." Menimeth said, as he guided Chanry back into the chapel.

   Kyler was up and cooking when the two walked into the small room where they slept, which was to the side of the main room. A stove and oven were built into the wall at the back, and Kyler stood there, busy with their breakfast. Feran sat at the small table and smiled at the boy when they entered. They were all relieved to see the boy awake, and he ate enough for three grown men that morning.

   The next day, Captain Brannor returned with his men and the ten prisoners just before midday. Commander Rayden and his battle group were with them, and they observed all of the military protocols expected in this situation when they arrived. He placed his troops outside of the monastery, and entered with only his officers, and Dorben.

   Danorathin was lying on the ground only feet behind his master, and Chanry stood in front of him. Javen walked to his friends who stood beside Menimeth, and greeted them with smiles and laughter as they were reunited.

   Commander Rayden, Dorben, and the two officers that accompanied them, froze in their tracks when they saw the dragon. They looked around at the men who camped inside the monastery, and were surprised that they seemed not to notice it. Men went about their duties as if it were normal to have a dragon in their camp, and walked around the beast to get from one place to another.

   After several seconds, the four men advanced to where Menimeth stood smiling at them, and bowed to him in the formal greeting of a solder to royalty. Captain Brannor introduced them one at a time, and in the military fashion, then stepped to the side, and waited to give his report. Menimeth acknowledged each one as they were introduced, and offered them something to eat when the introductions were finished. As they walked into the chapel, the four men from the Lost Cavalry eyed the dragon suspiciously as they passed him.

   The men told their stories while they ate, and soon were at ease with one another. Several barrels of ale were found when the brigands were run out of the monastery, and the men drank while they talked.

   Litlorn joined Menimeth and Commander Rayden after they had finished eating, as they walked around the monastery and talked. Menimeth listened to Commander Rayden's plea and thought about his plight, and after a long pause, he told Commander Rayden what he believed was happening, and what must be done to stop it. The men listened to Litlorn as he told the story of the first war, and about what was happening now that Arnoran had awakened. They had never seen an elf before, and listened intently to what he had to say. Menimeth told them both about Chidren, and what his part in all this was, as far as he could tell. Not enough information was available to them, but he was involved in the brigand influx somehow, and Menimeth hoped these new prisoners would shed some light on what was happening. The outlaws were questioned, but in reality they were trained solders, and talked very little.

   Menimeth, with Danorathin's help, persuaded one outlaw to talk. He learned about the plan to demoralize the people of the empire, and kill as many of the young men as they could, without getting caught. The brigands were about to start setting traps for the guards all across the west as well. They believed that the west would crumble quickly when the forces attacked from out of the Wilderlands, and the rest of the empire would not last long when it did.

   Chidren was sending troops into the Wilderlands, but he had only just begun to do so within the last week. The solders that were sent to impersonate outlaws had been the first ones to arrive in the western realm, and start their reign of terror. Arnoran wanted the White Kingdoms for their riches, and to acquire two fronts with which to crush the Great Empire. Nothing stood in his way once the men had made it through the realms, so Chidren was to overrun the White kingdoms first. The people that he enslaved from the five kingdoms would help him conquer all of the lands of men.

   Commander Rayden agreed to help Menimeth, and believed he could be trusted, but when he told him how many men he really commanded, Menimeth was speechless. The White Kingdoms had only six thousand solders in all of the five kingdoms, and none had a cavalry of even close to that size.

   Menimeth told Commander Rayden he should move his main camp to the southwest, where the game was more plentiful, and there was plenty of grass for his horses, without having to move them every few days. The supplies they needed for the solders in the main camp could be purchased in Argnon, and they could find other goods that the solders often coveted as well. It would help his cavalry stay out of sight, and the men could visit the towns in small groups.

   Commander Rayden agreed, and sent ten men back to the town of Frothing, to relay the information to the men south of the town, and then on to the main camp with their orders. Twenty men he kept with him along with Dorben, and the rest were sent to look for a good place to set up a main camp.

   The next morning, Captain Brannor set about packing up the camp while Menimeth and Danorathin went hunting. Litlorn and the other companions packed their supplies and the artifacts in bags, and loaded them on the packhorses. All of the weapons and armor that the outlaws had worn, as well as the horses found in the monastery, were confiscated, and Captain Brannor's solders traded their inferior equipment, for the better ones of the outlaws. Captain Brannor's men were riding horses that belonged to the regent, so Menimeth gave each one a horse of their own. When they left the monastery behind, and headed north again, all of Captain Brannor's men were better armed, and better protected.

   Menimeth met the long line of solders at the bridge, and dropped from Danorathin onto the ground. His friends rode at the front with Captain Brannor and Commander Rayden, and led the party back to Argnon, and Chanry held the rains to Menimeth's horse, as he mounted Donner for the return trip.

   On the morning of the third day after leaving the monastery behind, the group rode into Argnon to the shouts of the people of the town.

Chapter Eleven

   Darik, Finor, and the fighters that were chosen to go with them, rode east across the wild and overgrown countryside. It would take several weeks to get to the great road, and more to reach their destination, by the route they had chosen. It was not the straightest route, but it was the fastest way to get there unseen. Anyone who did happen to see them would think they were ordinary travelers, on their way to the Great North Road.

   Darik was not liked by the men of the party he rode with, or any of the solders in the main camp for that matter. A mage of his level was looked at with suspicion and jealousy because of his abilities, and was avoided by the others in the camp. Even though midlevel mages were used for mundane purposes when not in battle, and were considered disposable by the commanders, ahead of seasoned solders.

   Riding at the back of the group, offered him the opportunity to keep an eye on the solders as they traveled. Knowing he would not be making the return trip to the camp in the north, he had packed all of his belongings before they departed. Freedom from the service of Arnoran was waiting for him at the journeys end, and he was looking forward to it. None of these fools would be returning to the camp as well, he would have to see to that, because Avren would believe he had died along with the solders in the ambush, and would forget about him all together, or at least that was the plan.

   As they camped at night along the way, Darik slept apart from the solders. He built his own fire, and cooked his own food, and did not speak to any of them except Finor, unless he was forced to. His only real concern, it seemed, was where to go once he had regained his freedom. His home was gone, and he knew no one in this far away land that he could turn to, but he knew things even Avren did not about the campaign. He would wait and see what happened at their destination, and go from there. His life was about to change, but he had no idea how much.

   The great stone road came into view, almost two months after leaving Avren and the camp behind, and there the group turned south. The solders did not know it at the time, but they were being watched as they traveled. Darik, on the other hand, had seen the man twice, but said nothing to Finor. He knew that the man followed them, and had been since they reached the great road.

   They were still at least two months from their destination when the solders spotted the man who shadowed them in the trees. They searched the area but could not find him, and soon gave up and returned to the road. Darik had cast a spell to hide the man from the solders, and make them believe it was no more than shadows they saw. When Finor ordered the men to reassemble and continue south, Darik followed. The man who shadowed them must not be from Avren's camp, or he would not have tried to hide, he thought. He looked into the eyes of the stunned man and smiled, as he guided his horse forward to follow Finor and his men.

   Two nights later a voice spoke to him from behind a tree as Darik was gathering wood. Two of the solders were watching him, so he continued to gather wood, and showed no sign of his visitor as he talked to the man. The man was not a servant of Kath, but was not from the Great Empire, either. He despised Arnoran, and would do anything to thwart his plans. Darik told him of the ambush planned at Glansford, and of the camp in the north that was responsible for the brigands that flooded the empire.

   The man disappeared as fast as he had appeared when the two solders walked in Darik's direction. Darik turned just before they reached him, and walked passed them to his camp that was set aside from the others. After looking around the place where Darik had been gathering his wood, the two solders returned to their campfire.

   Darik thought about the man he had talked to, and what he had to say. The man always kept his face hidden in such a way that it looked almost accidental, but Darik knew better. Come to think of it, he had never seen the man's face. Even when he looked into the man's almond shaped, eyes, while they were on the road, his face was still covered.

   There was something about the man who shadowed them that put Darik at ease. He had a smooth way about him and his speech was flowing and graceful. He had the intelligence in his eyes of an old man, but could not be more than in his mid twenties. Darik did not know who he was, or from where he had come, but he trusted the stranger more than he trusted the men he was with. After all, the men he was with were ordered to kill him when the ambush was over, and their objective was retrieved.

   The road was beginning to show signs of use, as people traveled to the towns along it. Finor had to hide his men whenever his scout reported that people coming their way, and it was happening more as they traveled farther south.

   By the end of the fifth day on the road, the group was hiding more than they were traveling. Finor decided to leave the road, and ride through the trees far enough to the side to go unseen, but the way was hard, and they made slow progress.

   When the ambush party turned from the road and headed east, the men were grumbling. Finor had to try and find an easier route, but they were still six weeks away from their destination. The road was busy in this part of the empire, because the brigands had not made it this far to the east, or into the northern realm. Finor worried that they would not reach the ambush site in time, and pushed the men harder. It was important to get there unseen, and Finor was determined to accomplish it.

   Darik rode in the back of the group, and lagged behind the others as they made their way through the rough and overgrown countryside. He looked around him at the thickness of the brambles, and the trees that seemed to close in around them. The wild lands of the empire did not extend much farther east than Glansford, but it was difficult to travel in them. The northern realm was populated more on its eastern side, but the western side was mostly wilderness.

   Finor would have to use the bridge on the great east road to cross the Imlador River. It would not be easy to do it and go unseen, but if they

went across in one's and two's, maybe it could be done.

   They were still more than a month form the main crossroads, and another week to the bridge from there. Darik hoped they would not make it without being noticed, but he made no effort to draw attention to them, for fear of having to fight all of Finor's solders by himself, and at the same time. He had the time to plan his escape, and the death of these vile men, but he needed some help to do it. The ghost who shadowed them was still there, and Darik hoped the man had friends who would end this ambush before it began.

   Another week went by before the trees began thinning out, and the way became easier for the group to travel. They were less than a mile from the road once again, and making much better progress than in the days before. Finor pushed the men harder than usual, to try and make better time, but they were getting tired. Darik used magic to slow them down and make the men wearier, but was careful not to use more powerful magic than that. If Finor suspected him of anything, he would have a hard time surviving. Twenty-one solders were just too many to fight up close, even with his powerful magic, and the protection spell in place.

   That night as they camped, the stranger reappeared, and told him the information he had given them had been relayed, and the dragon-man would be ready. Darik went to sleep that night, with hope of escape for he first time in over a year. There was a chance he would make it through this nightmare after all he thought, and then he would find a way to make the evil mage king pay for his crimes. Once he unleashed the power of the Staff of Dragons that he carried, the full extent of his abilities would be reveled, and the forces of evil would feel its wrath.

*****

Donderan's pony plodded along the road, and he was lost in thought, while Brylen followed silently behind. The land had changed as they rode south, and farmlands begin to appear on the east side of the road. The west side was where the wild lands of the northern realm started, or ended, depending on which direction you were going, and was the wild nut harvesters domain. The men who combed the wild lands of the northern realm, stayed within the boundaries of their realm, to harvest the trees of their bounty. In the past, the wild pecan and the wild walnut were common in the markets all over the empire. Men still sold them in the markets of the west, but now it was harder to harvest them, and get back alive. The eastern merchants paid three times more for the nuts when they could get them, but that was not often.

   It was close to midday when the two rode into Haverton, and stopped in front of the Red Fox inn. The pair had not seen a town in more than a year, and wished to eat food they did not have to kill and cook themselves. Brylen tied the horse and pony to the rail, while Donderan shoved his head into the rain barrel beside the corner of the building. The dwarf was too short to reach the water in the barrel, so he jumped up on the rim and thrust his head in while he held on with both hands to the rim. The sight of the dwarf upside down in the barrel was more than Brylen could take, and he burst out laughing.

   When Donderan had dried the water from his head, the two went inside, and found a table by the fire. It had rained on them for several days after they saw the dragon, but they only had to camp for two days while the hardest part of the storm passed. They were lucky and found an old abandoned farmhouse with a good enough roof to keep them dry. They had gathered enough wood to last them for several days, and they were glad that the fireplace worked well, because it had grown colder with the rain.

   Donderan ordered his ale two pints at a time, while he ate the meats and cheeses offered by the tavern. Brylen had not eaten food like this since he began this whole nightmare so long ago, and he attacked it with reckless abandon. He wanted to stay in a room for a few days, and sleep in a real bed, and Donderan could see no harm in that.

   Over the next two days they heard the rumors of bandits from the patrons at the inn, as they sat in the tavern during the day. There had always been highwaymen on the roads of the empire, but what they heard was far more than that, and Donderan thought about the incident at the stream where Brylen had acquired his armor and sword. The men there were dressed like bandits, but were in fact solders, and it was no coincidence. Trouble was coming, but Donderan had been preparing for it for a long time.

   On the third day, the two travelers packed their bags and loaded them on the packhorses. They were sitting in the inn as the morning light began to fight back the darkness, drinking Blackbeer, and thinking about the road ahead. It was just before daylight when Donderan and Brylen made their way to the table by the fire, and the inn was already busy. The farmers had already been working for several hours, and now they were coming into town to get supplies, and meet at the tavern to talk. Brylen listened to the men as they talked, and heard stories of a warrior in dragon armor, and of his accomplishments in Argnon. He thought about the cove, and the statue on the island, and wondered about the warrior and his armor, but he had never heard of Argnon, and did not know where it was from where they now sat. They did not notice the man in the back of the room who watched them as they sat by the fire.

   The sun was peeking over the horizon when they rode from Haverton, and on the road south again. Brylen was impressed with the farms they passed, and asked many questions that Donderan could not answer.

   "Dwarf's are not farmers." Donderan said. "We are miners."

   "Don't you eat vegetables?" Brylen asked him, curious about the habits of the dwarfs.

   "Well of course we do, lad, we just don't grow them."

   "Then how do you get them?"

   "We buy them, lad, we buy them."

   Brylen shook his head, and rode beside Donderan in silence for a while, then looked at the dwarf, but did not speak. Brylen thought about the life of a dwarf, but had some trouble with the length of time compared to that of men. He knew that the dwarfs lived much longer than men, and he understood how one hundred years could pass before they may pass through a town again. However, to work at a single task for two hundred years before completing it, was beyond his comprehension. He had difficulty working on something for a week, and often left things undone that took longer than a day to complete.

   The unlikely pair stopped for the night in the walled city of Venteno, the seat of the northern regent. The Wayward Traveler was the best inn in the city, and that is where they went. Donderan had been here before, but doubted if the innkeeper would remember him. He was not even sure the man still worked here, but asked for the man anyway. The younger bartender walked to the back, and a short round man in his fifties emerged a few minuets later. He smiled at the dwarf and clapped his hands together.

   "My but it has been a long time, master Donderan." The man said, as he guided them to a table by the fire.

   "Yes it has my friend, yes it has." Donderan replied.

   "It has been twenty years since you were here last, and a lot has happened since then." The man said, as he looked at the dwarf with a smile. " I own this place now, and the young man behind the bar is my son. He was just a small child then, do you remember him?"

   "I do remember the wee lad, no bigger than my knee he was. And you know how short that is." The dwarf said, and the two started laughing uncontrollably.

   "What brings you here to the Wayward Traveler, master dwarf?" The proprietor asked Donderan, after they had calmed down enough to speak.

   "We are on our way to Glansford." Donderan told his old friend.

   "Now what could be in that old ghost city that would draw such a curious pair as yourselves?" The proprietor asked.

   "This young lad needs to learn about dragons." Donderan told him as he slapped Brylen on the shoulder, "And I thought Glansford was the place to go to teach him."

   "You are right about that, my friend. No place in the empire has more to do with dragons than Glansford." The proprietor replied.