(Dragonkin) Dragon Rider (49 page)

   As the banquet began to reach its end, but before any of the guests had departed, Valiny Kyler and Javen, all announced their engagements to the women they had escorted to the banquet hall. The people inside the great hall, as well as those outside in the courtyard, received the news with applause, and shouts of encouragement to the three men. When the applause had died down enough for Menimeth to speak, he rose and announced that he was calling a council of regents, and that it would be held right before the weddings. It was not that uncommon for a council to be called when a regent was getting married, especially when the regent was marrying the daughter of another regent.

   With that announcement made, Menimeth bid the guests good night, and walked from the banquet hall, and out into the courtyard where his dragon waited. Within seconds, dragon and dragon rider were gone, and slowly the guests began to depart. It was the grandest banquet that the empire had ever seen, and those that attended, talked about it for many years to come.

   When Menimeth reached his private suite, he sent a messenger to summon the western regent, as well as Brylen and Semeon to his private office, and it was to be done without alerting anyone else to the summons. Kyler, Feran, and Javen, were to be summoned as well, but not until just after the regent had arrived, and the two had spoken. Menimeth wanted to discuss the changes he was making to the empire with the men it would be affecting the most, but it was Falendor that was the key to how the changes would be received by the people.

   Pacing the floor as he waited for the men to arrive, Menimeth thought about the method he would use to allow the refugees from the defeated kingdoms to acquire land in the west, and build another life for themselves in the empire. He needed people to settle the western lands, and to retake the rich and fertile farmlands that had faded back into the forest over the last five hundred years. There were still grasslands to the south, where the domestic livestock that the empire relied on for its food could be raised, and there was now a large demand for stone and lumber, that would offset the cost of clearing the land.

   Semeon was the first to arrive at his private office, and Menimeth greeted him as he entered.

   "I am sorry for bringing you here so late." Menimeth said. "But there was not enough time to speak with you earlier."

   "It is not that late." Brylen said. "But it has been a grand evening."

   "Yes, it was well received." Menimeth said. "But that is not why I called you here."

   "How can I help you sir?" Semeon asked. "Is there some problem I am not aware of?"

   "No, it is about some changes I am making to the empire." Menimeth said, just as the door opened, and Brylen walked in followed by the western regent.

   "They must be important changes, for you to call us all here so covertly." Falendor said with a smile. "And before the council."

   "Yes, I believe you will agree when you have heard them." Menimeth said. "But please, sit, before I begin."

   The three men looked at one another curiously, as they sat in the chairs provided for them around the desk. This was not the usual way that the king conducted his business, and the men wondered at the change. Menimeth watched them as they chose a chair to sit in, and worried about the reaction he would receive when he relayed his plans to them. The empire had remained the same for hundreds of years, and Menimeth feared that changes of the kind he was making, would be looked on with outrage by the people who lived there.

   "I will start with the hardest part first." Menimeth said, when the men were seated. "And save the easiest for last. First, I am splitting the west into three realms, the same size as the realms in the east, to allow for faster growth."

   "You are taking two thirds of my land from me?" Falendor asked with a look of alarm.

   "No, not really." Menimeth said. "You will no longer be the regent of the western realm, but will become the Steward of the west."

   "Steward of the west." Falendor said. "What will my role be as Steward of the west?"

   "The same as Semeon's will be in the east." Menimeth replied. "Each of you will be responsible for your half of the empire, and all of the business of your realms will go through you, before it comes to Brylen. You will be responsible for collecting the taxes from each of your three realms, and you will decide all legal matters that do not require the intervention of the king."

   "If you are splitting the west into three realms, who will be my regents?" Falendor asked. "And what of my home in Argnon, are we to leave the castle of my ancestors?'

   "You do not have to leave Argnon if you do not want to." Menimeth told the new Steward. "You can live anywhere in your half of the empire that you wish, and you can build a castle if one is not available, but everything you wish to do in your realms, will have to get my approval."

   "That is acceptable." Falendor said. "And what about my regents, who are they to be?"

   "Feran will become the regent of the southwest, and Kyler will be the regent in the northwest," Menimeth informed the men. "And of course Javen will become the new regent of the west."

   "But they are no more than commoners." Semeon said. "Though I do not disapprove of their appointment as regents, there are those that may."

   "If you had seen them in the battle for Argnon, you would not say that." Menimeth replied. "But I chose these men because they will be loyal to their people and to their realms above all else."

   The three men were silent for several minutes, after the three new regents had been reviled to them, while they let the news sink in.

   "I believe they are the best choices for the position." Falendor said at last. "All three of them are from the west, so they will be accepted by the people they are to rule. Kyler will be tied to the east through Dralessa, and Javen will be tied to me through Chrisanna, so the people will accept them as royalty."

   "Then you do not disagree with the changes I am making in the west?" Menimeth asked Falendor.

   "No, it would have to be done sooner or later anyway." Falendor replied. "With all of the refugees that will be moving into the west, the other regents would eventually demand a change be made with the hope of receiving a part of it."

   "Then it will be your responsibility to assist in the building of the Castles required to house the new regents." Menimeth said. "But the empire will help with the cost."

   "Does my soon to be son in law know he is to be a regent?" Falendor asked. "Or Feran and Kyler?"

   "No, not yet, but I have summoned them as well, and they should be here soon." Menimeth replied. "And since you are to be their Steward, you can tell them what you expect of them as your regents."

   "I believe Chrisanna will instruct Javen on how best to run his, realm." Falendor said. "Regardless of what I, tell him"

   "And Kyler has Dralessa to help him." Menimeth said. "But Feran will come by it naturally, I think."

   "Yes, he is the most intelligent of the three, but he is the quietest as well." Falendor replied. "He will fit into the family of regents faster than the other two, but not by much, I think."

   "What is my role in all of this?" Brylen asked. "You only mentioned my name vaguely."

   "Your job will require you to keep track of all that is happening in the empire, and to make most of the decisions regarding the business of the realms." Menimeth said. "Basically, You are the one that will decide if I am to decide a matter, or if it is something that can be taken care of by you, and your knowledge of how kingdoms operate."

   "Then I am to keep doing what I have been doing all along." Brylen asked with a smile.

   "Yes." Menimeth replied. "But you do not have to worry about the realms, that will be done by Falendor and Semeon, which should allow you more time away from the offices than in the past."

   "I do not understand why I am in such a high position, when I am not even from the empire." Brylen said. "Why would the stewards and the regents accept me as their superior, and allow me make such important decisions in your name?"

   "Since you are not from the east, or the west, you will make your decisions based on the facts that you have." Menimeth replied. "You cannot be accused of showing favoritism, because you have no family ties to bind you to a realm."

   "You do not want the job, and that makes you the only man who can do it." Falendor said. "And we will accept your decisions because of it."

   "Besides, you know more about how to conduct the business an empire, than all of the rest of us combined." Semeon said with a smile. "And you look good in purple."

   By the time that Feran, Kyler, and Javen, finally arrived at the private office of the king, Brylen had accepted the role that he had been given, and agreed to represent the empire to the best of his ability. He was still not sure that he was the best man for the job, but the two stewards that he would be overseeing, believed he was.

   "Come and sit by me, son." Falendor said to Javen smiling, as the three men entered the room. "We will be seeing a lot more of each other now that you are to marry my daughter, and will be moving to the west."

   "I am being sent to the west after the wedding?" Javen asked, with concern in his voice.

   "You will all be sent to the west." Menimeth said. "And you will report to Falendor when it is required. Or the council" He added.

   "The council." Javen said. "What council?"

   "The council of regents of course." Menimeth replied. "The west is to be divided into three separate realms, and I am appointing Kyler as the regent of the northwest, Feran is to be the regent of the southwest, and you will be the regent of the west. Falendor is now the steward of the western side of the empire, and everything you do, must go through him."

   Feran, Kyler, and Javen, all sat in stunned silence, and looked at the men who sat smiling at them, but still they were confused.

   "How is this possible?" Kyler asked. "We know nothing about being a regent, and we were no more than farmers two years ago."

   "We have made our decision, and it is not for you to question." Falendor said, "You are the new regents, and you must accept it."

   "When will all of this happen?" Kyler asked. "When will we be officially known as regents?"

   "It has already happened." Menimeth replied. "When you walk from this office, you will be the regents of the new realms, and it will be announced at the council, as soon as it begins."

   "Why me?' Feran asked, speaking for the first time, since entering the offices. "Javen and Kyler I can understand, because they are to marry daughters of other regents, and would have some claim to the title, but not me."

   "You were chosen because you would be accepted by the people of your realm without question, and you will do all you can for them." Falendor replied. "You are the best choice, so you were chosen."

   "This will take some getting used to." Feran said. "For all of us, I am sure."

   "Do not fear my friends, you will have all the guidance and support you need to build your realms, when the time comes." Menimeth said. "And people to fill your towns, and build your farms. Your duties to your realms will be made clear in time, but for now, go and spend the rest of the evening with your families, free of concern."

   Menimeth walked out into the courtyard when all of the men had gone, and wondered what the future had in store for him. He knew the day would come when the full might of the mage king would be on their doorstep, but it was still several year's away, and there was plenty of time to prepare for them before they arrived. Whatever it was that was in the east, that pulled him and his dragon in that direction, was still unknown to him, but the time was coming to find out what it was. There were still many unanswered questions that he would have to answer in time, and all of them were important to the empire, but some were more important than others.

Chapter Forty-One

   Menimeth walked from his bedroom, and out into the darkness of the courtyard, where his dragon lay curled up in his favorite corner, asleep. He should have been asleep as well, but something in the north had lifted him from his dreams, and brought him out into the night. He stood looking into the distance for several minuets, as he searched the horizon for any sign of its source, but knew that what ever it was, it was still very far away. After several minuets, he returned to his bed, and his slumber.

   The next morning when he woke, the feeling was gone, but it had not disappeared from his mind. He thought about it while he dressed, but was no closer to an answer than he had been the night before. He sat in his office and shuffled the parchments on his desk around for several minutes, before he walked out into the courtyard to look north once again. He was about to return to his office when he realized he was being watched, and he turned to his dragon smiling. Danorathin lay with his head on the ground, with one large eye open, looking at his master.

   "Did I wake you my friend?" Menimeth asked his dragon. "It was not my intention."

   "I was not asleep." The dragon replied. "Just looking with a different kind of sight."

   "You feel it also?" Menimeth asked. "In the north."

   "Yes, but it is not a threat to the empire that you feel." Danorathin replied. "It is our destiny."

   "That is a very cryptic response." Menimeth said, as he looked at his dragon. "What kind of destiny?"

   "The kind you cannot escape." The dragon replied, and rose from his bed. "I am going to go hunting, I am hungry."

   "Then I will see you when you return." Menimeth said, and watched Danorathin as he vaulted into the air, and flew to the southwest.

   Menimeth returned to his office, and thought about what his dragon had said. A destiny he could not escape was in the north it seemed, but he did not know what it could be. The Elvin kingdoms were in the north, so what ever it was, the elves had some hand in it Menimeth thought.

   Danorathin returned after more than an hour, and curled up in his favorite corner, to sleep off some of the meal he had consumed. Menimeth walked from his office and looked at the dragon as his eyes closed slowly.

   "Will you not tell what this destiny you speak of is?" Menimeth asked his friend. "To ease my mind?"

   Danorathin raised one eyelid half way.

   "They are coming." He said, and his eyelid began to close again.

   "Who are, they?" Menimeth asked.

   "Narnethin, and Azandra."

   That was the last he could get from the already sleeping dragon, and Menimeth wondered who they could be. He looked at his friend, and then to the north, and he felt an excitement he had never felt before come over him. He did not know it then, but his life was about to change forever, and it would not be the last time that it did.