Dragons Shining (6 page)

“Xn is Zana, the female Vampire Dragon. She is the oldest dragon save for Znost, her mate. Briana may not even know yet that Zana and Znost have been waiting for their masters for ten thousand years. Even so, she cast the immortal spell upon Zana, I guess because she sensed the old dragon was dying.”

“Her mount then, I trust, and I thought that spell was the most difficult in all of magic.”

“Yes, Sire. And yes that was the most difficult spell ever cast in all Magi memory: so far. It has never before been successfully cast upon another than the caster. She should have been killed. Everyone else who tried that has died along with whoever they were trying it on. Owen must do something similar for Znost, who is also dying I fear. Perhaps in dragon form they are much stronger with magic. This is a first, so we are unsure of their capabilities.”

“So then, she did this for a dragon, not knowing if she would live through it? Hah. We need not worry about her, Albrite, or Owen, if he carries through. It would mean they both value others more than themselves.”

“You are right for now, Sire, but we will all be truly tested in the years to come. Oh, I have heard there are twelve dragon yearlings, my lord: Six male and six female. This is a perfect count for the coming Lords.”

“So we are given the rope to either hang ourselves or climb the mountain. I am for climbing, Albrite, how about you?”

“Certainly, Sire. We shall climb. Oh, here come the boys. The weapon masters are through with them for the day. I lost track of time.”

Bruce and Jason came running up to them, panting. They were sweating and dirty from weapons training. Both had a few bruises and cuts. They fought hard always.

“Hello Father, and Albrite”, they both said at the same time.

Jason let Bruce continue. “Father, may we go camping this evening and then hunting tomorrow? Jason saw a fine stag when we were riding over by Waller Creek a few days ago.”

“Who is we, Bruce?” asked the King.

“Well me and Jason... and you of course, if you like.”

“Ha. Well I have some visitors to entertain this evening. Baron Josef and Selsy are coming to visit. They will be staying through tomorrow morning, and they will have Jennifer with them, by the way.”

“Jennifer”, said Bruce, with interest. “Uh, Jason why don’t you go after that stag? I think I will stay.”

“I think he passes that way every three days by the tracks he leaves. Don’t you want to take him later then?”

“You go ahead, Jason. Something else might get him, and I want him over the mantle in Father’s study.”

“Is he that fine, Jason?” asked the King.

“He is a drop tine on both sides, Father, and symmetrical. More tips than I could count. Twenty eight inch spread or thereabouts.”

“Then by all means go after him today, but take Rolph and three of his scouts. They are good in the woods, and I do not want you going alone. I mean it, Justin”.

“
The Captain and three Royal Guards
” thought Jason. ”
I will be lucky to even see the stag. But Rolph is a good friend. He might cooperate
”.

“Ok, Father. I will bring them as you wish. Right now, I need a bath. You too, Bruce or Jennifer will turn her nose up at you!”

“Bath or not, she would turn her nose up at you, Jason!”

As they left, Kirklan could hear Jason say, “Well maybe I should stay and then we will see.”

“Oh no you don’t. You go ahead and get that stag”, Bruce said quickly. Then they were gone.

“Justin has no interest in Jennifer because Bruce has claimed her”, said Albrite, laughing. “Not that he doesn’t set his eyes on every other buxom girl that passes”.

“I know. He needs to meet one of those females I saw in the glade, the sooner the better. None of the girls around here would come out well with Jason. He would break their hearts and be very sad for it. I don’t want that, and I doubt seriously if he wants to be entertained by a whore. Perhaps we should arrange for Denice to visit here every now and then. See if you can arrange it, won’t you Albrite. She is only about forty miles away at Count Herald’s place, right? Jason would like to meet her, I am certain. And the two up north, Paul’s son Charles and the girl Sandy, right. In fact, we should gather them all together. Start the ball rolling if you can. Perhaps we should meet them up there, closer to the Dragons, the Elves and the Dwarves. We need to send an expedition to mine for star metal anyway. We will need to outfit as many of our Knights as we can with better armor. That will be a good way to get them very close to the Dragons and we will see what happens then. The Dragons will take them, I bet. It should be possible to combine this expedition with a visit to the Northern Capitol to fetch the other aspiring Dragon Lords and Ladies. Set it for two years hence. They will all be sixteen then. From what the messages indicated, that may be all the time we have. Ask Kevin to write the necessary letters. Come see me when you have the letters ready, and I will set my seal on your protected and coded copies.”

“Yes, my Lord. I will send for Denice, speak with Kevin and instruct your stewards to begin the reunion plans, but remember, Sire: The females are not like our ladies. They are fighters like the males, and just as powerful.”

“We will leave that to Jason, I think. Good day, Albrite. I need to clean up, myself. I took a go at the weapon master this morning earlier. Oh. Perhaps you should hone your skills a bit as well, Wizard!”

“Yes, Sire”, he called after the King. “
He doesn’t understand how we torture ourselves with spells to ‘flex’ our abilities and make them stronger
”, he thought. “
Maybe I should bring him in to watch his sons throwing spell after spell at each other. There as well, Justin is very patient with Bruce. No, that might upset him. He does not understand magic
.”

An hour later, Jason, Rolph and three other Elite Royal Guardsmen, Jerold, Pomroy and Ender rode through the Palace Gate and over the draw bridge across the Palace Moat. Their steel shod horses’ hooves echoed between the gate watchtowers on both sides. Men with crossbows paced the three levels of the towers, and others manned the giant Wyrm Bows, but the large pitch barrels were not fired, and were not manned. They altered course to pass single file aside a supply wagon headed into the Palace. 

As they rode through the cobbled town streets, Jason could smell the fruits and vegetables in the markets.  Women in pastel colored clothes and a few men in leather and denim walked to and fro in the markets: buying goods with Capitol Coins of gold, silver, and copper. The copper coins were of no real value, yet were guaranteed by the royal coffers to be tradable for a set market value compared to the hard gold value. As the value of gold rose and fell, so did the copper coin. The coins were produced by the Royal Mint, with intricate designs and were magically coded to emit a rainbow of color when wet. Forgery was not likely and was punishable by death. A similar system was used in the Northern Kingdom, yet the colors and designs were different. The northern and southern kingdom coin had become mixed over generations, so you might see either in use at the same value.

Further from the Palace, people were not dressed as brightly and there were more of them. Jason’ horse was getting a bit nervous after accidentally stepping on a man’s toe. The man had glared up at Jason, but quickly lowered his eyes after recognizing the Prince.

“Rolph, we have plenty of time to get to our camp site. Why don’t we dismount and lead the horses instead of knocking people down.”

“That would leave you more vulnerable, Jason. Look up at all those windows that could conceal an assassin”, said Rolph as Jason dismounted.

Cursing under his breath, Rolph dismounted. “Jerold, You and Pomroy take the lead. Ender, you cover the rear”. He tied his horse to Jason’s pack, so that he could walk outside of him, between Jason and the crowd of people moving in the streets.

Jason could still see the shops, the blacksmith forge, carpenters wares behind glass windows, and the Winged Owl Tavern and Inn as they led the horses toward the outer city fortifications. He did not notice the Raven with all of the commotion, or the fact that the Raven’s mind was sealed with strength far beyond that of a Raven. It flew from building to building, following the small band of hunters.

“Whoa, Missy. We are not here for you”, said Rolph as the beautiful young whore sidled up toward the Prince. She could have been no more than fifteen.

“I not interested in you”, she said to Rolph while eyeing Jason up and down.

Jason flipped a Royal Gold piece to her and said, “Here, take some time and find another line of work. Do not waste your youth and beauty upon the basest lust of men.”

She caught the piece and held it tightly in her hands, staring in disbelief as they moved off. Then she tucked the treasure away, and walked toward her mother’s house to change clothes. Not knowing that Jason had compelled her to it, she was headed to the Palace to apply as a handmaiden or cook’s apprentice.  There were openings because of two accidental deaths, which had not yet been filled. She was to say Prince Jason sent her.

Out of the shops and lodging district, they remounted and trotted up to the main Northern Gates. These were double gates, set on each side of the enormously thick and high wall that surrounded the entire city. The wall was thirty paces high and forty paces thick. There were large machines of war spaced along its length, on great wheels so they could be moved from place to place on the walls. Great Trebuchets to throw burning pitch covered rocks or iron balls. Great Wyrm Bows to take down war birds and “Black Dragons”. These were not true Dragons, but flying snakes partial to the spawn of darkness and their sorcerers.  True Dragons seldom attacked humans, and then only if severely provoked. There were spring-powered portable rams to dislodge siege towers and ladders. There was a passageway in the wall all around the city, with apartments and Army barracks inside of the wall structure. The wall continued to bedrock below ground, so tunneling under it would be very difficult.

At one time there were only the two human Capitol Cities, Windhaven in the South and Snowden the North. Before that, only Windhaven, whose walls they saw before them, a product of centuries labor. When mankind first landed upon this mainland two thousand generations ago, it was on Longboats they rode. It was said a great cataclysm sunk mankind’s great islands in the sea, and only two hundred Long Boats had escaped, full of refugees. Rather than build their main city upon the seashore, only sixty leagues further to the South, they had built it here in the low hills, the first hills to be found north of the Sea.  They did build a town there, Southport. They demolished the ships and built the first town with the planks from the ships. Southport had been destroyed by storms and tidal waves countless times since then, but it was always rebuilt. The natural harbor affords the only safe seaway access point for three hundred miles in either direction, with the wide river Great Aconda that runs from the Mountains down to Southport providing riverboats access through the heart of the mainland. Windhaven sat in a bend of the river along the West side of the city. The West Gate was a river gate, with a man made canal running through the gate from the Palace to the river. Security and fortifications along that vulnerable access were formidable, and if all else failed a deadfall of rock waited to seal the canal just outside of the gates.

As the hunting party approached the inside Northern Gate, the gate was already opened and a contingent of six soldiers eyed the comings and goings, sometimes stopping a traveler or wagon for questions or a search. They saluted as Jason and the Elite Guardsmen trotted past. Inside the wall, torches along the walls helped with the dim lighting. They passed soldiers and travelers, wagons, mules, oxen and horses. A natural breeze moved through the enclosed spaces, denoting the genius of the original architects and their painstaking plans for ventilation, sewage treatment and aqueducts throughout.

The Raven waited patiently to see if his quarry would leave the city safety once more. Before long the trap would fall.

After leaving the wall behind, Jason and his Guard veered northwest into the adjacent wood. This area was the King’s forest from here to the river and five Leagues Square. All other forestlands in the area were open to the general public, unless privately owned.  The canopy was high in the King’s woods, allowing little low growth except along the spring beds, the river and a number of large man made fields kept with summer and winter crops to help keep a healthy wild grazing population. These crops also fed the people of the city in uncommon hard times of war when the far-reaching communities fell back to the city proper.