Dragon Riders of Etrea 2—Chapter 17

“Have you grown old and fat yet?” Anslie asked as she walked up to Henrik.

Henrik laughed. “Well, if I turn out anything like Garnell, I’ll be just fine. In fact he was quite slender last I saw him.”

“Ha! Good one,” Anslie said, slipping her arm around his waist.

Henrik moved his arm around her shoulders and squeezed her. Together they stood at the edge of the small pond, right where water leaked over and became a narrow stream that crossed the area and eventually disappeared somewhere down the mountain. They watched the waterfall for a moment.

“It’s just so beautiful out here,” Henrik said. “I never dreamed life could be like this.”

Anslie wrapped her other arm around Henrik’s waist and hugged him tightly.

“I’m going to have to fight him, aren’t I?” Henrik asked after a long pause.

“Who?” Anslie looked up at him.

“Emyss. When he senses Calduin, he’s going to come looking for him, and I’m going to have to fight him. That’s one of the reasons I have the sword.”

Anslie hugged him again, just as tightly as before, but it felt different. Her arms were tense. She rested her head against his shoulder as if she were afraid to touch on the subject.

“Yes,” she finally said. “When Calduin gets older and his mind becomes stronger, Emyss will sense his presence. He’ll fly down here and come looking for him. Once he finds Calduin, he’ll become enraged, and do anything he can to kill him. Once he kills Calduin, he’ll try to conquer your mind. Trust me when I say you’re not ready to face him.”

“I believe you,” Henrik said. “How can I do it?”

Anslie shrugged. “I wish I had answers for you. Even Tossyth and the others struggle with snow dragons, and Emyss is a particularly large and grumpy one. Our only saving grace is that he is old and prefers to just sleep beneath piles of snow for decades, centuries at a time. I believe in you, Henrik. But I don’t know how you’re going to do it.”

“I’ll find a way,” Henrik said as he stared at the waterfall. “I always manage to find a way.”

“Come on,” Anslie said, pulling him away from the pond. “Let’s go think of happier things.”

Henrik turned and walked with her across the grassy field. As they approached the apple trees next to the garden, Anslie suddenly stopped.

“Hold on. Tossyth is out hunting, and she sees something. People.”

That stopped Henrik in his tracks. Were the orcs coming back for revenge? Had Duke Ardun sent someone to find them?

“Oh, I think it’s Rasud and Shel,” Anslie exclaimed. “Yes, it is! It’s about time they returned.”

“I’m sure they’ll be glad to relax after a week in the saddle,” Henrik said. 

Together, they continued across the valley until they reached the narrow pass in the mountain wall. Calduin was waiting for them at the mouth of the cave; he could feel when Henrik was close to him. The small dragon ran forwards and rubbed against Henrik like a cat, albeit an overly large and mildly aggressive one. He laughed, then reached down and patted Calduin on the head.

“He seems to really like you,” Anslie said, watching the young dragon jump around and play. “I think that bodes well for the future. Tossyth is pleased as well. She says he has a strong mischievous streak, but is otherwise doing great. As long as you can keep your temper, I don’t think we’ll have any problems with him.”

“It’s hard to be angry with you around,” Henrik said, smiling at the beautiful blonde woman.

Together, they walked to the edge of the landing in front of the cave. They stood there for a while, right where the ground dropped and began its gentle slope down the mountain. Calduin continued to leap up and down and rub against Henrik, until he finally reached down and picked the dragon up.

“Oh man, you’re already getting too big for this,” Henrik said, jerking his head back to avoid a flailing wing as the dragon squirmed and wiggled in his arms. 

Anslie laughed at the sight of them. “That’s something I never thought I’d see.”

“Okay, buddy. Time to get down,” Henrik said. He bent down and gently set the dragon on the ground. Calduin rubbed against his hip, sending thoughts of affection and trust.

After a while, Henrik saw Rasud and Shel riding up the gentle slope. Calduin saw them as well and sent a question to Henrik. He seemed to be asking if they were friends…or food.

“They’re friends,” Henrik said. “Be nice to them. Remember, we don’t eat people.”

Calduin made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a scoff.

“Welcome back,” Anslie said when Rasud and Shel finally reached the flat landing. 

Calduin, in all his excitement, wanted to smell the horses, which of course scared the shit out of them. Henrik had to pick him up and carry him close to the cave just so Rasud and Shel could pass by.

“Thanks, it’s good to see you both,” Shel said. She seemed a lot more comfortable in her human skin now, and to Henrik’s surprise she was wearing a dress. Even to his untrained eye he could tell Rasud had spent a good bit of coin on her clothes. If nothing else, the plunging neckline was evidence the witchman was behind her new attire.

“So, what news do you bring of home?” Henrik asked, then turned back to his dragon. “Hey, calm down a bit, okay? I’ll come see you in a bit. I need to go talk to my friends right now. Your mother will be back soon. She’s getting food for you.”

At the mention of food, Calduin practically trembled with excitement. Henrik pointed toward the cave and the dragon turned and walked into the mouth. He turned and sat on his haunches, his tail wrapped around his legs as he watched the humans.

“Lots of problems back in Selfoss,” Rasud said. “I don’t even know where to start.”

“Well, let’s get you off those horses first,” Anslie said.

They followed Rasud and Shel through the narrow entrance to the valley, then helped them untack their horses. Shel hugged Anslie, then after a moment gave Henrik a brief and awkward hug. She never seemed to feel entirely comfortable around Henrik.

As soon as Rasud was on his feet, he went toward Anslie’s cottage. “I could use some of that cider,” he said.

“Of course,” Anslie replied. 

Together, the four of them went into the small cottage and sat, Henrik on the bed, Shel and Anslie at the table. Rasud remained standing, and drained half of his mug of cider in a single pull.

“So, what’s going on?” Henrik asked. “Does Ardun want our heads or something?”

Rasud shook his head. “I wish that were all. He’s offering ten gold for either of our corpses.”

“Not bad,” Henrik said. “I do feel I’m worth a bit more, though.”

“Or, a hundred gold each for bringing us back alive,” Rasud finished. “Oh, and it’s not Duke Ardun any longer. Now, he’s King Ardun.”

Henrik nodded. “Doesn’t surprise me in the slightest.”

“His soldiers took over very quickly,” Shel explained while Rasud downed more cider. “There was some rioting in the streets, but the new king sent his soldiers out in force to keep the peace. At least, that’s what they call it when they hack the rioters to pieces.”

Henrik frowned. He had a strong feeling their story was about to take a turn for the worse. “So, he took the throne, surprising no one. He sent out some soldiers to quell the riots. What else?”

Rasud held up a finger. “Day one, he took the throne. He bought out half the king’s guard and moved quickly, so there were minimal casualties, although the king and his family were among them.” He held up a second finger. “Day two there were some riots, but his soldiers quickly stamped those out. Soldiers loyal to the previous king could either swear fealty to Ardun, or just leave the city. It seemed that he was going to keep things peaceful.”

“Oh, no,” Anslie said. “I don’t like the sound of that.”

Rasud held up a third finger. “On day three his soldiers took to the streets again, but this time they went to the south, the harbor district. Henrik, they killed hundreds of people down there, maybe thousands. Part of Ardun’s efforts to clean up the city, according to what others told me. Many of our old friends and colleagues are dead. Slaughtered in the streets.”

“I can’t understand a king killing his own people like that,” Anslie said. Shel just looked at her. She had probably seen it her entire life with the orc chiefs.

“I greased the right palms and learned that he’s building up an expeditionary force to come out here,” Rasud continued. “He is dead set on getting that dragon egg. Of course, it’s clear he doesn’t know it hatched, although I’m not sure if that would stop him. His wizard, Kelthorn, is pushing for that. Ardun wants to be all-powerful, it appears, and dragon magic is the best way to do it.”

Anslie’s face hardened. “If he comes up here, Tossyth and I will make short work of his army.”

“You can’t face five hundred soldiers, Anslie,” Rasud said. “Especially if they have archers. One of those arrows will eventually hit you, and then it’s all over. Also, rumor has it his wizard might be coming with the army.”

“His magic can’t harm my Tossyth,” Anslie said.

“Maybe, but he can harm a lot of other things,” Rasud said. “He’s an academy-trained wizard, so he’s going to be incredibly skilled with magic and power-hungry enough to use it to reach his ends.”

“How long do we have until they get here?” Henrik asked.

“Oh, a while. That’s the good news.” Rasud set his mug down on the nearby table. “He’s recruiting men and training them right now. He knows it’s a difficult task, so he’s taking his time preparing. It’s hard to say how long it will take them, but I’d bet some coin that it’ll be two months or so. Maybe longer.”

“That long?” Anslie asked.

“Moving that many soldiers through the lands you call the orc wastes is difficult,” Shel explained. “They need food, tents, and most importantly, water. Their horses will need the same.”

Rasud nodded. “He knows he has the numbers to come out here and find both us and the dragon. He’s in no rush.”

“Do you have any good news at all?” Henrik asked.

“He bought a house,” Shel said.

Henrik hadn’t been expecting that.

“Yeah, one of the smaller places on the north side,” Rasud said. “Of course, I bought it before Ardun began killing people.” He sighed. “And now I wouldn’t feel safe in my own home. I know I look different, but I’d have to take on an entirely new identity.” He shrugged. “Or, I guess I could just kill Ardun.”

“Well, this changes things,” Henrik said. He looked over at Anslie. “I need to go find Isobel soon, don’t I?”

She nodded. “You’re going to have to fight an army, as well as an ancient snow dragon. You need all the help you can get.”