The Last Dragon: Book Three

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Damon

Kendra had said to me, “I’m ready to send the dragon to sink the mage ships, Damon. This won’t be easy and will tax my abilities, so I’ll need quiet and safety while I concentrate. I want you beside me the entire time for support, and in case I need anything. You also have to protect me because of the concentration required. Even a bee or snake can attack without me defending myself.”

“Of course.”

She continued without pause as if I hadn’t spoken, “Before you say anything else, understand that neither you nor I know what we’re doing. Magic is new to me. The idea of controlling a Dragon is still unbelievable. Knowing what to do and what not to is beyond what little I’ve learned. It might go well. It might not, but I’m going to ask her to attack the ships.”

That had all been discussed earlier in the morning when the air was still cool and fresh. Now, I sat in the heat and watched my sister lying beside me, both of us on the bank of the river in a patch of shade with her closed eyes as she communicated with the dragon. She had been at it all morning.

What she said to it, or how she said it without speaking out loud was beyond me. No, that was not totally true, and I knew it as soon as the thought entered my head. What she did with the unseen dragon was only a little different than what Anna and I did when we communicated without words. The only real difference was that she did it with a dragon instead of a little girl.

Not only was she communicating with a true-dragon, but she was also telling it to attack a pair of ships at sea, both with mages aboard. People would probably die. However, people had already died at the hands of the mages, more than a few—and we knew there would be many more to follow. We were trying to prevent future deaths—but that wasn’t the heart of my problem.

Right in the center of my thoughts was the one fact that only twenty days ago Kendra and I were mere personal servants for Princess Elizabeth. Our concerns of those days had been to argue about what to wear, who to speak with to learn of new rumors, and what the three of us should we eat for dinner. There were always parties and balls to plan, and who to invite. Occasionally, the king gave Elizabeth tasks suitable for her position, ones usually quickly and efficiently handled. That was the extent of our lives.

That idea of our past childish freedom brought to the forefront of my mind how things had changed. Emma and Anna were now only a portion of our new responsibilities that we’d inherited if that was the right word.

The new responsibilities could be handled. However, there were more considerations. While Anna and I could mind-speak, I knew Emma was more like Kendra, Like a dragon-tamer. She was probably far more powerful than either Anna or me and possibly even Kendra. I suspected Emma was mage-strong but too young to know how to use her powers, or even what they were. Of course, after she had knocked me out with a blast from her mind for an afternoon after I’d attempted entering her head unbidden, what else was there to think? I’d never heard of such power.

Tears still seeped from the corners of Kendra’s eyes now and then, but she hadn’t moved or spoken in so long it started to worry me. Flier had taken the girls into the shallows of the river where they splashed and played and otherwise allowed the two of us uninterrupted time.

Finally, Kendra opened her eyes and looked at me. Now the tears ran like small torrents, but she refused to sob. “It’s done.”

With those two words, she confirmed that the ships with the mages who held the Gallant back had been sunk. There may have been another solution to allow Princess Elizabeth to travel to Vin and then on to Dagger, but if so, I couldn’t see it.

I said, trying to deflect the conversation I knew was coming, “We need to go on our way. No food, dirty river water to drink and the day will grow hotter.”

“And our legs are sore and stiff from walking yesterday,” she said as she slowly stood and stretched. “Why in the names of any three gods would anyone wish to live in such a disagreeable place?”

That was a good question. It was also possibly part of our problem I realized. What sane person, if given a choice, would choose to live in the intense heat and burning sand of Kondor instead of the pleasant wooded hills and mountains of Dire? No ready answer came. I said, “My legs don’t hurt so much as the skin on my neck, and even my ears are sunburned.”

She scowled at me and smirked as she said. “Didn’t you make fun of Flier and his reed hats?”

“Of course, I did. They look silly, and if we encounter anybody out here, mine is coming off my head.”

“If we don’t meet anybody?”

“I’ll fight to wear mine. When are you going to tell me about the ships?”

She pursed her lips as she thought about it, then seemed to relent. “I can’t see through the dragon’s eyes or anything. I just directed it to the two little blips that told me where the mages were and suggested the dragon doesn’t like them.”

“The blips are the four mages, two on each ship?”

“Not anymore. Two winked out of existence, then a short while later, two more. I also think the dragon was in a terrible fight with Wyverns. Several of them.”

“The dragon cannot talk to you?”

“Of course, not. That would be silly because dragons can’t talk and anyway, they are not very smart. It sends me emotions more than anything else, and I interpret them to fit the circumstance. Happiness, fear, anger, and the like. It likes you, you know, although I can’t understand why.”

“Me?”

“It has an attachment for me, but when it sees you, it always floods my mind with affection, and maybe even love.”

“I don’t get that,” I said. “We’ve never talked, and I’ve never even touched the nasty thing. Even if I could get past the stink, I wouldn’t.”

“Who can explain love?” The evil and snarky sisterly smirk appeared on Kendra’s face as we walked to join the others at the edge of the river. She said, “I don’t know why it likes you either. I’ve tried to correct it, but the beast has a mind of her own.”

“Seriously?” I said. “That’s your best answer?”

“Seriously, I think it is because she understands you try to protect her and me. That gives me two protectors.”

Flier stumbled in the shallows in our direction. From the soaking of his clothing, it appeared the girls had won the water fight. A big smile, the widest I’d seen on Flier since we’d offered to return him home, was plastered on his face. He said, “We need to go. We should have left while the day was cool, but you seemed occupied.”

I accepted the rebuke better than Kendra. For a moment I thought she was going into the river and starting another water fight, or worse. I glanced at Anna. She flicked her eyes in Emma’s direction. I turned to Emma.

“I’m sorry,” she said just loud enough to be heard over the whisper of the river.

That made no difference. If I’d ever heard a sincere apology before, hers bested it. I didn’t know what she was apologizing for. Before we could clear that up, Kendra grabbed her pointed reed hat from the sand and shook it to remove the sand. Once on her head, it rose to a point in the center and spread outward, a lopsided cone. A chinstrap kept it in place.

In another time and place, I would have laughed. She looked goofy and awkward, but before making fun of Kendra, I took note of the shade the hat provided on her neck, face, and shoulders. My exposed skin felt hotter. It was my imagination but no less real. I reached for my hat, the most carelessly made. Anna pointed to it and laughed as it went on. I ignored her. She was a child, and I knew that I looked good in the oblong hat. Sort of.

We followed the river east. The bank on our side was high, the ground was firm, and brown water was there to drink whenever we were thirsty enough to take a drink. Complaining about the dirt or taste wasn’t in my vocabulary, not after our experience the day before.

Flier said, “All of you, keep watch on the desert, the trees, and especially any ridges or hills.”

“What are we looking for?” Anna asked.

“People. Any people. We want to see them long before they see us.” Flier didn’t explain further, nor did he have to. Most strangers would be enemies. That is the way of any wilderness, and especially Kondor in times of political strife.

We remained near the river because the banks contained good footing, free of the hardness and sharp rocks of the desert floor. It held shade from the sun provided by the tops of trees, and partial protection from any who were watching. Flier explained to me as we walked, “It isn’t a case of if anyone is watching, it is who. A person traveling this land will be near the river for the same reasons as us, so that is where they watch.”

“Who?”

“Thieves, criminals who’ve escaped custody, refugees from Trager, slavers from Kaon, rogues or hermits, and soldiers who’ve deserted their armies, to name a few. Out here, all are enemies until we’re sure they’re our friends.”

He had echoed my thoughts as if he could read my mind. I looked at Kendra and found she was listening to his every word. I said, “When will your dragon return?”

“Quit calling it my dragon. She will be here around first-dark.”

“I wish you’d give it a name, so we didn’t have to keep calling it your dragon. A good choice might be if you consider calling her Smelly.” My attempt at humor didn’t fall on deaf ears.

Kendra ignored the giggles from the girls. “I was thinking of telling her that you would make a good evening snack.”

“Momma Beast,” Emma shouted.

“Big Momma,” Anna added gleefully.

I didn’t dare suggest another name of my own or laugh at theirs. Ahead of Kendra, where she couldn’t see because she was turned and glaring my way, Flier’s shoulders were shaking with laughter, but he didn’t make a sound. Smart man.

Kendra had sat in the shade all morning as she directed the dragon to attack the ships, and I shouldn’t have teased when the subject was so serious. Or, perhaps that’s exactly what she needed. Stewing about a hard task for too long never helps. Effective planning for the future is one thing. Dwelling on the past is another. In the first, you cannot make changes. It has already happened, and you can hope never to make the same mistakes again—but you cannot change them. Planning on using those mistakes to decide what to do next was the best option.

Sure, I know all the answers to Kendra’s problems as most brothers think about their sisters. When I knew the same answers for mine, I’d celebrate. Two ships and four mages were at the bottom of the sea, and probably more people, many of them innocent. No, that was not true. If they sailed those ships, they knew what they were doing so I couldn’t say they were innocent—at least not completely innocent.

The inactivity all morning while she directed the dragon had worn on all of us. We needed relief, exercise, and maybe a little humor to smooth our way. The walking was loosening the kinks from my body. My legs no longer hurt.

I allowed my mind to wander, just enough to locate a bit of humor to share, even if it was only to introduce a new name for the smelly dragon. The sluggish river was on our right, the heaviest of the trees on our left, we walked at the edge of both. Beyond the trees was featureless desert and far beyond lay mountains.

*People ahead,* the thought from Anna came to me like a blacksmith’s hammer striking steel.

My first reaction was to shout a warning, but to any watching, that would be the signal for attack. I wore my sword, but my longbow had been lost or taken by the slavers on top of the pass. Kendra had her spinning knives. Flier used a stick as a cane, as his leg was still not completely healed. He’d deny that, but as the day wore on, he moved slower and used the cane more.

*How many,* I asked, then added quickly, *Don’t look at them or tell the others about them, yet.*

*I’m not stupid. There are four.*

*How far away?* I asked.

*Up near that big tree where the river bends.*

*Can you tell if they are friendly?*

She made a mental snort directed at me, worse than Kendra or Elizabeth rolling their eyes at me when I said something stupid. I didn’t want to tip off the enemies that we knew of them, but each step carried us closer and our time might be better spent running away. The tree Anna had indicated stood a few hundred steps ahead, far enough to provide a measure of safety unless we kept walking. I felt the unseen eyes waiting for us to get nearer before springing their trap.

I tripped. At least, I hoped it appeared that I had. I placed one foot behind my other and fell forward, where the soft river sand broke my fall. The others stopped and rushed to my side, all but Anna. She stood and grinned, facing away from the tree and the dangers.

“Are you all right?” Kendra asked, kneeling at my side.

“Do not turn and look because there is nothing to see right now, but there are four enemies ahead. They are hiding behind the biggest tree near the bend in the river. Flier, use your cane to swing while you shout. Kendra free your knives. I’ll have my hand on my sword. Emma and Anna, at the first sign of them, you are to run into the river and cross it to the other side.”

“I can help fight,” Anna said.

One glance her way found a determined girl who was set to argue. I changed my mind, slightly. “Of course, you can. Okay, when they appear, run to the river bank and be ready to run into the river, if you need to. I want you and Emma to throw rocks at them. It might distract them enough to give us an edge. But if they have arrows or rush you, take to the river.”

I got a knee under me and gingerly stood. When I noticed both Flier and Kendra believed my act, the smile returned.

“Limp,” Flier suggested.

We continued, slower than before. It was hard to look anywhere but at the tree, and around it. I warned the others three times but still found my eyes centered on where the attack would come from if it came at all.

*Their excitement is growing.*

Anna’s warning justified my increasing fears. I couldn’t use my magic to sense them and assumed Anna must have a power similar to Kendra’s, where she could not only know where people were but their feelings.

If we were attacked by warriors, meaning ex-soldiers or slavers used to fighting, we were in trouble. Other than that, we stood a chance. I believed my training and my sword would quickly end two from fighting, especially if we allowed them to get close enough to be surprised by my skill. Two slashes of steel at the same time a crack of lightning sounds, and two would be down.

Kendra’s spinning knives would take down another. That was the plan. And as the King’s Weapons-Master at Crestfallen had repeatedly told us, the plan was good until the first arrow flew or the first blow struck.

They rushed at us far too soon. Their element of surprise evaporated with the first shouts.

We were still more than a hundred steps away when four men broke from cover and charged. One held a sword, two of them held crude clubs, and the last a knife as long as my forearm so it might as well have been a second sword. All screamed war cries of their own. Three were normal sized men, all from Kondor from the brief look. The last was a giant of a man, a full head taller and he brandished one of the clubs, a huge trimmed limb of a tree.

All were dressed in rags and ran slowly because of the soft sand beside the river. As the younger girls ran to the edge of the river, the three of us spread out to meet them. Their pace slowed well before they reached us. The sand took its toll, as did their lack of physical training, and each of the men was thin as yearling trees.

The giant and the man with the large knife were coming at me, and I stepped forward to meet them, my sword moving in intricate warmups, the blade flashed in the sun. Kendra held a throwing knife pulled from her sleeves in each hand and Flier had raised his cane like a club he would swing. The younger girls both held rocks, looking ready to throw. The odds were with us, overwhelmingly so. My reaction was sympathy for the men. I felt I could defeat all four tired, out-of-shape and starving attackers without help.

The smaller man with a club stumbled at Kendra and fell face first into the sand. He did so without even throwing his arms out in front to protect himself. He lay still. The other three turned to look at him in confusion, but then came warily on. Another fell.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Emma rearing back to let another rock fly—and I understood. She was using her magic to both guides her rocks and to increase their speed. The attackers were still twenty paces from us, unaware of what had happened to their leader, but knowing he had fallen and was not getting up.

The giant stumbled to a halt, turning to look at the pair of prone bodies lying in the sand. His club was held loosely at his side as he looked. The knife wielder ignored them and charged at me. In a display of skill and bravado, my arm and wrist went to work without thought. My blade flashed in the sun again as I performed a well-practiced warmup designed to utilize a dozen flamboyant moves only a master swordsman could accomplish.

My obvious skill drew him to an abrupt stop. I said evenly, “Drop your weapons, and you will live today.”

He turned the knife to grip it by the blade as if he intended to throw it.

Kendra said, as she held up her left hand to display the deadly two-bladed knife in that hand, as she drew her other arm back to throw. “Don’t do it. Your knife will never leave your hand.”

The knife slipped from his fingers as if it had sat in the sun and became too hot to hold. Only the giant still held a weapon—his club. My experience with large men, especially large fighting men, was that they seldom had to use their power and size. Their opponents assumed the giant would win and quickly surrendered. Therefore, they seldom actually fight.

However, the smaller men who have to work for respect or to stand an equal chance in battle, even mock fights on the practice fields, is far better trained and more dangerous. Even though he’d dropped his massive knife, I watched him.

The giant held his club as if trying to decide what to do. Finally, he let it slip from his fingers to fall at his feet. The smaller man rushed at Kendra in a move so fast it caught us by surprise, even as a very small knife appeared in his other hand. He intended to grab Kendra and use her as his hostage, probably with his knife held at her throat.

He was too close to throw her knives, so she held up both of her knives in front to defend herself. He leaped at her; his knife held high. However, Kendra was better trained in close combat than most soldiers. She instantly dropped to her knee while raising the knife in her right hand. The attacker flew over her, Kendra’s knife drew a streak of blood as he did.

Her cut was not deep, and he landed on a shoulder and rolled to his feet, spun and charged her again. Then, as I almost reached him, a hollow sound, like that of a dull drum sounded once. I saw the rock bounce off his head and fall to the sand at his feet. The attacker crumpled as if struck by a blow from the giant’s club.

The giant looked from us to the little girls. Emma held another rock, ready to let it fly. The giant figured out what had happened to his three companions and raised his hands to protect his head while shouting, “No.”

Flier strode to the giant after picking up the knife from the small man near Kendra. He used it to cut the lower portion of tunic the giant wore, then tore it into strips. Before the giant could object, his hands tied behind him. Flier moved back to the smaller man and tied him with the last of the strips, and far fewer.

He went to the other two and cut more strips and tied them, also, then came to my side and said, “Take the big one and women and get out of the sun. I’ll bring the others.”

His voice sounded like an officer for the first time since we’d met, and I wondered if he would become an officer in his king’s army again when we reached Vin. But the crack of authority was unmistakable.

“To that big tree,” I pointed. Then to Emma and Anna, “You too.”

The giant walked ahead. Kendra said, “Take us to your camp.”

I had my sword prepared to prod him, but there was no need. We had a lot to talk about. A look over my shoulder found the girls rushing to catch up, and Flier kneeling at the side of one of our attackers. Overall, I was glad to have the giant with us. He seemed the most reasonable, and there was a lot we needed to know. If he was reluctant to speak, the appearance of the dragon at dusk might loosen his tongue.