Legend Warrior

by Liara Woo

  Halthren anxiously looked up at the sky, as if afraid it would bite. "But…since there isn't an ocean to cross, couldn't we walk?"

  Loriina laughed. "Sure, if you want to reach the griffins in a couple of years. Besides that, Dralantia is a tangled jungle of trees, vines, and poisonous creatures. And I can take one look at you, Halthren, and come to the conclusion that your flesh is soft and tender and juicy…exactly what those poisonous creatures crave. Personally I prefer that kind of meat, but I wouldn't eat you. After knowing and speaking to and carrying potential prey, I lose interest."

  Halthren swallowed nervously and tried to laugh. "Well…that's—that's good, Loriina."

  She grinned mischievously and continued, "Don't let your guard down. I might not eat you, but just about everything else in Dralantia wouldn't hesitate. In fact, some of them even want to eat me, but snake fangs, spider fangs, rat fangs, frog fangs…none of them can pierce my hide."

  Katie and Halthren exchanged shocked looks. "Frog fangs?" Halthren mouthed.

  "How do you keep them away from you?" Katie asked, fearing that the dragon would answer something like "I don't."

  Instead Loriina answered, "I burn a circle around my lair. The little critters are all green, so they stick out like sore thumbs on surfaces of gray and black. When I see them, I burn them, too. Now come on! Are we going or not?"

  For once, Halthren was seated on Loriina's back before Katie was, despite his broken arm and crushed toes. Loriina turned her head to look at him and smirked teasingly. "I thought elves liked animals."

  "We do," Halthren affirmed, but Katie noticed hesitation in his voice as she pulled herself up behind him. "But…I had a bad experience with a venomous creature, and it's not something I would recommend to anyone—even a demon."

  Then Loriina sprang up from the ground and entered the sky, her wings beating furiously as she fought the wind currents threatening to drag her back to the ocean behind her. Halthren's muscles tensed involuntarily as the ground fell away beneath him and he lowered his head, closing his eyes and trying to imagine he was safely on the ground, riding Rennav. Katie bit back a laugh of elation at the weightless, thrilling sensation of flight and patted Halthren's shoulder sympathetically.

  "What happened with the venomous thing?" she asked after the excitement of Loriina's take-off had faded, her curiosity unable to be contained any longer.

  "Uh…well, a giant green spider had snuck into a bag of dragon-forged shields traded to the elves in exchange for jewels. Somehow that spider found me, and it…er…it bit me in the stomach as I slept. It was the second-most painful experience I've been through, and I couldn't move for a few weeks."

  Katie winced at the thought. "That must have been terrible. But you're an elf; I thought all animals worshipped you or something."

  Halthren gasped and spun around to face her despite his fear of heights. "Of course not! We are no more idols than you are horse! We protect the land we live in from destruction; we help the wildlife around us as much as we can—out of love. In exchange the animals and plants let us take from them what we need in order to survive—out of gratitude."

  "Okay," Katie said in a small voice, somewhat taken aback by his outburst. I must have insulted him pretty bad. "I'm sorry."

  Halthren gave her a gentle smile. Katie's heart leapt. That small, kind smile of his made her feel as though all of the strength had left her limbs. "It's alright," he replied, facing forward again.

  "Let me warn you of something," Loriina said in a dark voice a few moments later. "The older a dragon is, the more superior he thinks he is. Most dragons aren't hesitant to eat an elf. Many consider you a delicious delicacy… so be careful if we happen to come across a full-grown dragon, because I won't be able to fight one off. I'm only a child, after all."

  Halthren lowered his head. "I don't think I like this place," he murmured. Katie stroked his shoulder again, trying to give him comfort, there was a nauseating feeling settling into her stomach at the thought of being devoured.

  "It'll be alright," she assured, trying to quell her fears as well as his.

  Below them was a massive sea of green—yellowish grassy green; dark velvety green; vivid summer green. The trees were entangled with each other; branches were bound together by thick, thorny vines. Katie grimaced at the mere thought of trying to go through the dark jungle beneath the sun-kissed canopy above, even without the deadly prospect of poisonous creatures. There were a few clearings here and there, marked by sooty ground, charred stumps, and deep holes stretching into darkness—the lairs of dragons.

  "My heart aches for the dryads and the fairies," Halthren murmured as he gazed down at one such gray circle (while holding onto one of Loriina's spikes with his good arm so hard that his entire body shook from the effort). It must, Katie thought, have taken a lot of courage for him to look over at the ground.

  "What about you elves when you build your towns?" Katie asked. "How can you do that without killing the fairies?"

  "Very carefully," he responded. "And with a lot of caution. We dig up the plants living where the buildings will go—with their consent, of course—and we replant them somewhere safer. As for wood, we only cut down certain limbs off of the trees, and only with their permission. It doesn't hurt them; it's more like you or I having a haircut."

  Katie looked at Halthren's long hair (it went well past his shoulder blades) and deduced that Halthren didn't have too many haircuts.

  "Fruit, milk, and grain," he continued, "are given to us out of gratitude for their protection, along with water."

  "What about meat?" Katie asked, thinking with longing about roasted turkey and hamburgers and hot dogs and chicken wings dipped in hot sauce…

  "We only eat meat when there's no other choice," was Halthren's response.

  "Then…is there an exploding population of those white deer?"

  "No. The wolves take care of that, and they don't overpopulate because enough of them die of old age and sickness every year to keep the numbers at a safe place—our winters are bitterly cold and cruel."

  "That reminds me," Katie hurried on, thinking of Starling, the white deer she'd met with Joran. "On Earth, a lot of creatures in our mythology are similar to beings here. In one culture or another, you can find something from Allagandria. How did that happen?"

  "Give the poor elf a break," Loriina said in an exasperated voice. "That's your fifth question!"

  "I don't mind in the slightest," Halthren replied light-heartedly. Katie's heart grew warm at his words. "Over the eons, beings from our world wandered through the Forest of Mist and travelled to your world. Human legends must have arisen from sightings of these Allagandrians."

  "Cool," Katie said. She'd been wondering about that for a while; Relenthus and Joran had been unable to answer her.

  "What?" Halthren sounded surprised. "But…it isn't cold at all. Or even remotely chilly. I mean…I suppose the wind is somewhat cool, but…"

  Katie giggled. Aww, he's so cute when he's clueless. "On Earth, some people say 'cool' when something is interesting."

  "Oh," Halthren responded, confused.

  "We're here," Loriina announced. She folded her wings at her side and plunged from the sky, the wind whistling. The charred gray ground came rushing forward to meet them, and for once Katie felt a chill of fear slip down her spine as she imagined the three of them smacking against the hard, sooty surface like a bug against the windshield of a car. She closed her eyes and cringed, waiting for the inevitable pain to follow… but Loriina spread her wings at the last second and fluttered gently to the ground.

  Katie breathed a sigh of relief and slid to the ground, wobbly legged and shaky after the dizzying plunge. The wind that had raged in her ears was gone, replaced by a cacophony of insect clicks and monotonous buzzing sounds, by strange swooping hoots she'd never heard before, by the shrieks and chirps of tropical birds. Loriina folded her wings at her side and yawned widely, evidently still tired from the long flight across the ocean the pre
vious day. Halthren's face was as white as a sheet. There was a dazed expression on his face.

  "Are you alright?" Katie asked in concern. Halthren nodded shakily.

  "I don't like heights," he said in a trembling voice, sliding to the burned ground and leaning heavily on his staff, pinning it under his arm so that his hand was free to grab his sword if necessary. Katie suddenly remembered the threat of fanged frogs and edged closer to him.

  "Over here," Loriina called over to them, circling a large boulder in the center of the clearing. "Verenithia sen," she chanted, and the boulder disappeared, shimmering, to reveal a cavernous dark hole. "Down there. Use the ladder."

  Katie looked at Halthren. "I'll go first," she volunteered, jogging towards the hole and then descending by means of a long wooden ladder. As she went down, the symphony of rainforest sounds faded away and she began to hear the drip of water, echoing loudly in the sudden silence, and a golden light shone ahead, illuminating the darkness. Katie stepped off of the ladder and began to walk towards the light, accidentally stepping into a hidden pool of water and quickly withdrawing her foot.

  A sharp intake of breath sounded from behind her, and she turned around to see Halthren slowly making his way down the ladder, hopping awkwardly on one foot and using only one hand. When he reached the ground she could see, even in the dim light cast from above, the pain etched in his face. She instantly regretted not offering to help him down.

  There was a snakelike whisper of "sherenae sen" as Loriina, in human form, climbed down the last few rungs on the ladder and joined them. At her words, the boulder had magically reappeared, blocking the way out—and the way in for venomous critters.

  Loriina cleared her throat nervously, turning to face her companions. "Well… this is my lair; I hope you like it." Then she spun on her heel and hurried into the darkness, followed closely by Halthren and Katie. The slap of their shoes against the stone joined the steady dripping of water, echoing loudly in the darkness. They came to a large cavern with multiple stalactites hanging from the roof, but the ground was smooth. Tunnels branched away from the cavern, leading to places Katie could only guess about, and hanging along the wall were nets full of glowing orange pebbles, similar to the pink and blue ones she'd seen in the unicorn realm.

  "What are those?" Katie asked, her curiosity piqued.

  "Enchanted fire-stones," Halthren breathed, in awe. "Those are exceedingly rare… where did you get them?"

  "I found them in this very room, the day I moved in," Loriina responded proudly. "They were everywhere! And…now they're still everywhere, but I've organized them."

  "Amazing," Halthren murmured.

  Loriina, returning to her dragon form, led them through a tunnel leading left, her silver-blue scales gleaming orange whenever they passed the fire-stones. Katie walked next to Halthren, and after half a minute she slipped her own hand into his, enjoying the feel of his long, slender fingers clasping hers. She looked up at him, just barely able to discern his elegant features in the faint glow of his skin. As if sensing her gaze upon him, he turned his head and offered her a gentle smile. Their shoulders were nearly touching.

  Loriina turned right, entering a vast cavern filled with treasure—golden coins, statues, jewelry, bronze figurines, golden daggers; russet-colored bows and arrows with eagle feathers; rubies, sapphires, emeralds, and silver coins and necklaces. "This is my hoard," Loriina proclaimed smugly. "Everything in here is the work of elves, except for the coins, which were made by dwarves. The elven work in here was given to me in exchange for the swords I forged for them—for you. The dwarfs paid me with coins when I made mining tools for them. Of course, I don't value monetary gain. There are other reasons for gold."

  It was the most treasure Katie had ever seen in real life—more than what was shown in movies, more than she could have ever imagined. She simply stared, her eyes wide and her mouth hanging open. It was enough to furnish everyone on Earth with a nice home, running water, and electricity. "This…this is surreal."

  "What on Allagandria do you do with all of this?" Halthren asked curiously.

  "I sleep in it," Loriina grinned, and her tail flicked back and forth. "You two, with such soft skin, could never imagine how good it feels to be buried in treasure, rolling around and frolicking among it as if swimming in a lake or a river. It's the best fun there is, and after a long day of making swords and flying all over creation it feels like heaven."

  "I'll take your word for it," Halthren replied with a small quirk of a grin.

  "My hoard has one other purpose, though," Loriina said, her elation suddenly dissolving. "When you know that in a few weeks or even days you'll be saying farewell to a friend forever… this lair provides me with a wide variety of gifts to choose from, to ensure that this friend never forgets her adventures." She looked directly at Katie, whose amazement swiftly faded away, much like sunlight does after a cloud passes over it. I don't want that day of parting to ever come…but at the same time I can't wait. How can I choose between my parents and the amazing friends I've made here?

  "You ought to stand back," Loriina said, spreading her wings and diving into the towering piles of treasure, sending coins, jewels, figurines, and other assorted valuables flying in every direction. Gently Halthren pulled Katie back a few steps (she was still in a daze of indecision) and stood in front of her protectively, not wanting her to get injured on accident.

  Only seconds later Loriina emerged again, pieces of treasure falling from her scales like raindrops. She turned to Katie and showed her what lay grasped within her forepaw. "I'm giving this to you so that you will never forget us when you're back on Earth. Keep it with you forever, because although you might think something like this will last in your mind for eternity, the details will inevitably fade from your mind. With this, your memories will never fade."

  Katie leaned forward and saw a delicate silver chain with links shaped like tiny leaves with the stems curled around to touch the top of the leaves on either side. Hanging on the chain was a small silver pendant shaped like an elf aiming his bow high in the air. Every detail, from the hem of the elf's tunic to every individual strand of its hair, was perfect. "It's beautiful," Katie murmured, completely enchanted.

  Loriina smiled sadly again. "Wear it always so that you will remember us forever."

  Katie lifted the necklace in her hands and pulled it over her head. "Thank you," she murmured, touched and simultaneously saddened.

  Loriina shifted awkwardly from one foot to the other. "You're welcome. Now, you two stay in here while I make your sword, Katie. I'm not good at working under pressure, and being watched really makes me nervous. I'll see you in a few two hours." With a clever reptilian grin similar to that of a leopard gecko, cocky and mischievous, she whirled around and pranced out of the cavern, back into the tunnel.

  Katie smiled half-heartedly, a cloud of melancholy settling over her soul and preventing her from sharing her friend's joy. "She sure is excited."

  "More than we can imagine," Halthren agreed, wandering around the vast room, slipping on the mounds of wealth. For once Katie was not gazing at him; she had eyes only for the elf pendant hanging from her neck. He looks a lot like Joran, she thought.

  "Katie, come look at this!" Halthren called. His voice was different now, more urgent and excited. She walked over to where he stood looking at a long piece of animal skin nailed to the wall. There were markings on it.

  "It's a map," she observed.

  Halthren nodded eagerly. "A map of Dralantia. The red circle is Loriina's lair, and just east of here is the king's lair."

  Katie instantly realized just what he planned to do. "Don't even think about it," she told him firmly. "No way. There are fanged frogs out there, remember? And hordes of other poisonous creatures bent on having you for dinner, too. There are better ways to die than being eaten by an amphibian, Halthren! Don't do it!" A sudden, terrible image came to her mind of his fair face screwed up in pain as a dragon ten times larger than Loriina swallo
wed him whole. It's like the Jurassic Park movies…only real.

  "I can't face the possibility of dragons fighting against us, Katie," he said desperately. He looked at her, his silver-blue eyes wide with fear. "We'd be slaughtered. Loriina isn't even fully grown, and yet she can annihilate a battalion of demons. Even one adult dragon could kill all of the elves…all of my kin…in one fell swoop. Few things can pierce a dragon's hide, and we don't have many of them."

  "What are they?"

  "Dragon claws and teeth," Halthren answered, turning to leave. "On Loriina's toes and in her mouth. I'm not asking you to come with me or to approve of what I'm doing. But please do not try to stop me. I must win over the dragons before Nashgor does."

  "Halthren, please don't," Katie begged, hardly listening to his words. She pulled at his shoulders. "You might be eaten! Poisoned! Burned to a crisp!"