Dragon Clan #5: Tanner's Story

CHAPTER TWO

Carrion was unable to talk or describe what was happening because he was in the trance-like state he entered when communicating with the red dragon. His attention was solely on what he was doing. . . And what the dragon was doing.

Tanner remained quiet and watched it appear from over the sea. He caught a glimpse as it made a wide turn and began the attack. Carrion’s body went rigid as he controlled the fight. It swept between the mountain and volcano, low and fast, unseen by the green and guided by Carrion’s eyes. Tanner drew in a deep breath. This was the moment where discovery could cost the red’s life. Its wings beat as fast as Tanner had ever seen, and it flew to the nest from the side.

At the last moment, it dived, front talons extended. The female on the nest sensed the danger and snapped her head around. As she looked up, the red dragon attacked with a fury unlike any Tanner had ever experienced. It used the full weight of his body and the speed of falling from the sky to strike, rip, tear, and claw so fast Tanner couldn’t follow it all in the distance and fog, and doubted he could have if he stood beside them.

The anguished screams of the green mixed with the reds. Without conscious thought, Tanner backed a few more steps and checked over his shoulder for a clear path to run. His heart pounded as if he was in the fight instead of the red. He fought the rising fear of unknown battles.

The green had been knocked from the nest in the initial attack. Now Tanner saw a wing shattered and gouges streaming blood. The green was mortally wounded. Her upper body so large Tanner could see the blood staining the black rocks from the slope of the mountain, even from where he hid with Carrion.

The fight continued, with more screams curdling the air. They rolled on the ground, claws raking, teeth snapping, but the red had the initial advantage and used it to pin the other as its claws raked the flesh of the green. The red suddenly leaped into the air and pounced on the green, knocking the air from its lungs. The red remained on top, Biting and slashing.

After killing the green by ripping out her throat, the red emitted a cry of victory so loud and long that it stilled the blood in Tanner with the primal announcement of victory. It stalked to the nest and crushed all three eggs with its forefeet before taking flight. Carrion’s eyes sprang open and tears flowed. He stood and turned his back on the scene as he walked away, shoulders slumped.

Tanner had only watched Carrion enter the mind of the dragon a few times. He usually lay down on his back and closed his eyes. His mental link placed him in the mind of the dragon, seeing through the dragon’s eyes, hearing through the dragon’s ears. Laying down prevented him from falling over, but his concentration and mind were one with the dragon. A rogue chipmunk could defeat him as he lay there, so normally another of the Dragon Clan was present.

The fight with the green had only lasted long enough for Tanner to hold a single breath, but at the end, he wanted to puke. The taste of bile filled his mouth for a long while, and he wondered what it must be like for Carrion, who felt and lived every part of the attack.

They eventually followed the same path the other two Dragon Clan had. Carrion knelt to check the age of the footprints, making sure he and Tanner didn’t overtake the pair. They made excellent time, the path descending and reaching further inland. At a place near the road, they found a jumble of boulder larger than huts or houses, looking as if some giant god had thrown a handful to pile on the almost flat plain.

Carrion pointed, “Over there.”

Tanner followed as Carrion used one boulder to climb on and reached up to a higher one for a better view. On the ground, Tanner checked out the nearby area for a safe place to spend the night. He found one almost surrounded by boulders, almost like a cave with no roof. Someone in the past had stored firewood beside rocks ringing a pit.

He felt the charcoal. Cold. Yet, someone had made a camp within the last day or two. That worried him. In the time they had watched the greens, people had been at this place. Unusual for a campsite in the wilderness to have three groups so close together, and at the same time.

Still on top of the boulders, Carrion used the height to look over the area, especially in the direction of the road. Then he called softly, “There they are. Just started a campfire, something we need to do.”

The shriek of an anguished dragon split the air. Another joined in. They howled in anger and terror as the last rays of the sun were cut off by a bank of clouds near the horizon. The shrieks continued as Carrion slid down the face of the boulder and met Tanner’s eyes.

“They returned and found her and the eggs,” Tanner said.

“We can make a fire and sleep for a while. Hang our clothes and boots to dry, but before dawn, we need to be far from here.”

Tanner didn’t have to be told. He listened to another anguished shriek and shivered as he placed tinder under twigs. A fire might warm his outside, but inside he felt like a small boy facing an angry bear. What had they done?

Once the fire was going Tanner asked, “Will those two people be able to see our fire?”

Carrion shook his head. “We’re in a small valley and the boulders are between the fire and them.”

“What if they don’t leave early? The two greens might find and kill them.”

“If you were one of them and heard those screams, along with the ones we’re going to hear most of the night, would you stay around here?”

Tanner rotated his boots near the fire, like cooking a slab of meat. He didn’t want to burn any one side, but all needed to dry. In the morning, the leather would be stiff and dry. He’d use oil or grease at the first opportunity to soften them, or he’d have blisters in no time.

His blankets were damp, almost wet. He held one up and let it warm, careful to keep it far enough from the flames. Steam came from his shirt and pants, but in the night chill, he still wore them. They would dry enough to spend the night in. Tomorrow, everything would dry in the sun.

Tanner said to Carrion, “Was it bad?”

“Quick. The red was in a fighting mood by the time he arrived. I think it must have picked up the hatred and anger from my mind because dragons are somewhat stupid. Somehow it focused that hate and anger on the green. It was over by the time the green looked up to see him.”

“I saw the red attack. Then nothing but blood.”

Carrion closed his eyes and shook himself. “You didn’t bring a flask of cider?”

“No.”

“If I scream tonight, don’t try to wake me, or you might find a knife between your ribs.”

Tanner paused, wondering briefly if that was a joke and deciding it was not. “How’s the red doing?”

Carrion’s eyes glazed and then his attention returned after he checked on the dragon. “It’s tucked into a nook on the side of a cliff south of here.”

Tanner and Carrion were silent as they dried nearly everything they owned by the fire. Each still had a few small handfuls of nuts. Their water was almost gone, but since they’d come to this area from the south, they knew a small river and several streams crossed the road, only a short distance away. He moved everything back from the fire and spread his blankets.

He was almost asleep when the twin shrieks of the returning greens startled him, again. The second joined the first, doubling the volume, seeming just over the nearest hill, but he knew they were much farther. Tanner felt minuscule as he pulled his knees to his chest and closed his eyes.

The dragons screamed well into the night. Tanner rose and started packing his backpack long before the sun came up. Carrion woke and stood, stretching and kicking dirt on the orange coals. Wearing their blankets wrapped around their shoulders, they left the boulders and found the road.

The still-warm fire pit that the two of the Dragon Clan, in front of them had used, told they had also departed. The grass was matted down where they had slept. Their footprints were near the stream where Tanner filled his water jugs. One normal size and one small.

Carrion took the lead. He followed the two other Dragon Clan members at a safe distance. They wouldn’t be spotted even if the pair stopped because Carrion insisted they travel off the road and under the shelter of trees instead of on the road. While the road wound around the base of a relatively small mountain, Carrion and Tanner followed animal paths on the lower slopes, catching a glimpse of them now and then.

Later in the day, a woman and young girl carrying baskets spoke with the two in front. Carrion eased closer, but they couldn’t determine what was said. The woman and girl continued on, away from town, but then surreptitiously turned off the road and doubled back to Shrewsbury on a trail that ran beside the road. They were careful to remain out of sight of the Dragon Clan.

They passed only steps from where Tanner and Carrion watched. Their baskets were nearly empty, indicating they were less than honest about gathering mushrooms or whatever. When they were out of hearing, Tanner said, “That was odd. They seemed like they were going to pick mushrooms or berries, but didn’t.”

Carrion said, “They were sent to intercept those two.”

“How did anyone know they were coming?”

Carrion shifted his eyes to the top of the hill above them. “Want to bet me that we can find a watcher up there? If placed right, he could see the road for almost a half day’s walk.”

Tanner glanced up the hill, imagining a lone watcher. His duty would be to keep an eye on the road, so he must have seen him and Carrion, too. But they were far off, and later had moved from the road to the concealment of the trees so perhaps he was lazy and only watched the road. A lucky thing. Still, the man and the girl ahead had stayed on the road and had been spotted and checked out. It was a stern warning.

Carrion said, “Watchers for the road and that woman to check out visitors tells me that there will be a greeting party for those two up ahead.”

“Let’s see if we can get up there and see if we can help,” Tanner said.

They moved slowly, aware of the eyes from atop the mountain as well as those of the two Dragon Clan, not to mention others that might be lurking nearby. As they neared Shrewsbury, the security tightened.

Tanner watched the man and girl round a bend in the road, speaking to each other, and when they came to a stream, they paused for a short discussion. Then they carefully stepped off the road and walked upstream. Good. It appeared they were also wary.

Following the two was easy. The stream covered any noise they made, and the forest grew thick, with underbrush head high. When they made a cold camp in a small clearing, Carrion backtracked to one of his favorite places, the low hanging branches of a cedar tree.

Cedars often had branches hanging low enough to touch the ground, but closer to the trunk was a space tall enough to sit upright. The ground was covered with an accumulation of cedar leaves, dried brown and as deep as his hand could dig. It was soft enough for a comfortable bed, and most insects avoid cedar.

They spread their blankets and went to sleep with talking further. Voices in the forest are often like those on the water. The softest words can float vast distances, yet at other times, they go nowhere. Better to say nothing when only a few hundred paces from others that you wish to hide from.

Carrion’s hand placed on his mouth woke Tanner. Lying perfectly still, he heard the nearby footsteps. One set. They passed ten or twenty paces away, making the sort of crashing and snapping of twigs that only a city dweller makes when in the forest.

The pink of predawn provided enough light to catch a glimpse of a heavy-set man following the tracks left by the other clan members. Carrion mouthed, “Wait here.”

Tanner nodded, but as he watched Carrion slip out from under the branches of the cedar, he found himself becoming angry and resentful. If the family council placed him in charge, why was Carrion giving him orders?

He calmed. The fact was that it had been Carrion, who had slept so lightly that he woke to hear the footsteps. I would have slept through it, and been fortunate if the man hadn’t heard his snores. Carrion was far more experienced. He had lived in the forests for months on end. And of course, if he needed help there was a red dragon at his beck and call.

Tanner sat with his back to the trunk and waited. It took far longer than expected and he was dozing when Carrion slipped back under the branches and held his finger to his lips for silence. Later, they heard voices approach and then retreat as the pair walked in the direction of the road.

After they had been gone for a short while, Carrion said, “Those two won’t need much protection from us. You should have seen that little girl. The constable slipped into their camp and took their knives off their hips. But when she awoke, her hand went to a dagger strapped to her ankle. That constable never even knew he was in danger.”

“That makes me feel better. I was beginning to wonder what sort of incompetent fools another family sent.”

“After seeing them in action, they’re inexperienced, but both are top-notch. The man, she called him Gray, braced the constable who was probably twice his size. He even suggested that the little girl, who is older than she acts, take a few steps back and nock an arrow.”

“What did the constable want with them?”

“Like we figured. They didn’t arrive in town as expected, so he went looking for them.”

“So the people in town are wary and watchful,” Tanner said.

“Both indicating they have some reason for their actions and something to be vigilant about. We’ll have to be careful.”

Tanner said, “We need a plan in case we get found or questioned. Why are we sneaking around, and why are we here?”

Carrion shrugged, “A sneak thief stole a necklace that belonged to my mother in the middle of the night a few nights ago. We followed him on the road to Fleming, and he went in this direction at the fork. We lost the trail so we came here to find him. A short fellow, scar over his lip.”

“You really are a good liar.”

“I’ve had a bit of experience in telling tales to cover for my actions through the years. Give a story that wakes them up and they’ll believe it unless you go too far. Skimp on the details and they catch you every time.”

Tanner said, “Now what?”

“They went into town. I think we should too, but we’ll stay in the forest and watch from there instead of strolling down the main street and attracting attention.”

“Are we ever going to get any food? I’m starving.”

Carrion tossed both hands into the air. “You’re the fool they put in charge of this mission. I should be asking you, when do we eat.”

“Maybe we can find some in town,” Tanner said, unable to hide his smile.