by C E Johnson
I like this one, Xena whispered. Emily closed her eyes, smelling grass, hay, sweet oats, and a fresh summer wind.
“Magnificent, isn’t he?” As the white-haired man studied her, his tone changed. “Built for strength and speed.” His body smelled overly sweet, as if he had showered in powder and perfume. He spoke quietly, running his jeweled hand through the horse’s mane, “His name is Bronte.”
“Is Bronte for sale?” Emily laid a hand on his twitching withers, astounded by the latent strength there, muscles firmer than solid rock.
“All things are for sale, my dear, but you could no more ride this horse than you could ride the wind. No man can tame him and only the greatest of warriors will be able to ride him. His gallop eats the ground and his leap unseats master horsemen. I’ve never seen the warrior yet that could remain in his saddle.”
You can, Xena encouraged her.
“I can ride him,” Emily said with as much confidence as she could muster.
Lampos snorted and then looked at her shrewdly, likely taking in the fine make of her garb. “Perhaps, you could buy this horse and then you could eventually tame him. Do you have family with you? I was going to sell him at the castle in Angkor, but if you would like to make a better deal before we get there …” He shrugged, letting his words trail off.
Emily pulled out a handful of coins from her bag, grimacing at the greed in Lampos’ wide eyes. “This would be just enough to purchase Bronte,” Lampos kept a firm grip on the coins. “I must warn you, though, that I won’t return your money to you if you’re unable to ride the beast. Once our deal is concluded, he’s yours.”
Circling the horse speculatively, Emily simply nodded. Lampos scurried away to find several witnesses to seal the arrangement. One of the witnesses appeared disgusted, “Lampos, there’s no way she’ll ever be able to ride the gigantic war horse. You’re a thief.”
Emily quieted their protests with a satisfied expression telling them, “I’m very happy with the deal.” She carefully chose a saddle from the assortment Lampos offered and then walked over to her steed. Gathering up her pack and her weapons, she secured them to her saddle. Murmuring worriedly as the war horse stamped restlessly, a crowd gathered to watch her attempt to mount the beast. Emily stroked the war horse’s nose whispering her incantation that worked so well with Apache, Armus. Staring up into his eyes, something changed. A warmth appeared, radiating affectionately from his brown eyes. He stilled. She could feel a sense of peace stretching between them. Giving him a mental warning of what she was about to do, she vaulted into the saddle in a smooth motion that drew gasps of awe from the merchants.
Bronte stood at attention, head held high, staring down at his previous owner, who approached cautiously. A breeze came up and flowed through the war horse’s mane causing it to cavort wildly like the rippling flames of a bonfire. Xena stood at attention next to the imposing creature. There was already a bond forming between the two strong and intelligent animals.
“Let’s see what you can do, Bronte,” Emily laughed. She felt happy and relaxed like a young girl again, not a violent killer. She put her heels into his side, and they were off galloping and leaping through the fields past the caravan. She looked back once to see the merchants clapping their hands in wonder.
Nobody can stop us now, Xena exclaimed, racing next to the war horse just steps from his fleet hooves.
After a short ride in too short a time, Emily could see the spires and towers of Haran. The first step of our mission is almost complete, she thought. The sun was descending. Dreaming of a steaming bath, Emily became eager to enter before dark.
There are warriors ahead, Xena warned, in the guard-house.
They approached the city wall, ten feet tall and bleached from the sun with evenly spaced stone battlements of protection perched on the structure replete with arrow slits. Hanging from the sides of the gate tower were banners with a field of rich blue with pale green borders and a snake-like brown and black dragon in the center. The banners rippled and snapped back and forth in the breeze.
“Halt, young lady. State your business.” The guard sauntered over from his slouch against the wall, leather armor creaking faintly, a tall wooden spear tipped in steel in his hand, and a sword in a worn leather sheath at his side.
With Xena’s help, Emily could smell ale, meat, and bread on his breath as well as unclean cotton and wool mixed with his boiled leather. She had been looking forward to meeting a soldier of this world, but he certainly wasn’t as impressive as she had hoped.
“I’m headed to the castle to gain advice from Ladon,” she offered.
The guard finally noticed Xena, and his eyes widened slightly. “Is this your bondsmate?”
“Yes. Bondsmate, fighting partner, friend,” Emily answered. She was startled by an impatience that was building within her. She was so close to her goal. Would this man try and block her entrance after all she had been through?
He’s certainly not going to move quickly, Xena complained. She yawned and lay down in the road.
“Where did you get this tremendous horse?” The guard ran his hand along Bronte’s flank. The war horse snorted aggressively.
“From Lampos, a horse merchant. He’ll arrive at your gates shortly,” Emily pointed back in the direction from which she had come.
More soldiers appeared above her along the wall. The guard stood back and assessed her again. “Is that blood on your armor?” There was a new hint of uncertainty in his question.
“A few yapoks tried to jump me,” Emily said quietly. She would never confess to the enormous battle she had fought. Who would believe her?
“I’ve never fought a yapok,” the guard said in a hushed voice while straightening his posture. “Well, keep your horse in line. Don’t give us any trouble, young warrior.” He awarded her with a grin of admiration and opened the black iron gate respectfully. “Good luck seeing Ladon. He only talks to a few people these days. I doubt you’ll get an audience with him. I haven’t seen him in a very long time.”
Emily again wondered who exactly Ladon was. She pictured an old hermit in her mind’s eye. Running her fingers along the weathered stone of the gateway as she entered and sighing quietly, Emily felt a weight lift off her shoulders. She straightened as she rode slowly through the gate. Suddenly, her ki shouted inside her head, Ladon.
A shadow crossed the setting sun, and a dark shape dove from the sky, unfurling wings at the last second that caught like sails and eased the hulking giant into the swirling dust. The wings were left unfurled to their greatest extent, and they beat softly just above the ground, framing the awesome form of pure power. Bronte reared, and Emily gripped his bridle, soothing him as best she could while the guards edged back along the wall, mouths agape. Claws like swords clicked closer to Emily, and an immense face with scales the color of freshly-turned soil appeared in her line of vision. Dragon-eyes of molten gold met hers as an ancient voice shattered both aloud and through her mind.
“Welcome to Haran, capitol of Angkor, Emily. I am Ladon, son of Vadonth and I’ve been waiting for you.”
Epilogue
Emily questioned the giant creature towering above her, “How do you know who I am?” She hoped her budding magical mind shields would somewhat protect her from the dragon’s mental strength, but she knew this idea was probably foolish She could feel the underlying power in this beast. Ladon was fairly pulsating with magic, and regardless of her magnified talents, she knew he could crush her in a second if he so desired. Currently the scaled beast appeared to be displaying patient restraint. Luckily, he isn’t forcefully reading my mind, she thought to Xena.
Conceal your heightened powers, Xena warned. Emily felt like she was walking a tightrope, learning from the dragon without irritating him.
“King Dalton told me you would visit Haran,” the golden-eyed dragon spoke slowly as if he thought she was dim-witted. “He informed me that you are to be called the princess of our land.” Ladon sighed as if he were baby-sitti
ng a troublesome brat.
Emily was silent for a moment, marveling that she was so far into her adventure. She was proud that she was entering her first city on this planet, she had accomplished so much. I must focus, she thought to herself as her heightened mind listened to the shallow sarcasm in the dragon’s voice. How he must laugh at petty mortals, she thought.
With his strength and knowledge, he must feel invincible, Xena whispered thoughtfully. Stroke his ego … if that’s even possible.
“I’m impressed at your strength and power, Ladon, perhaps you’ll advise me while I’m in the city of Haran.” Emily bowed to the mighty dragon.
Ladon opened his incredible eyes slightly wider, appearing to immediately realize her game. “You’re not what I thought you would be,” the dragon said in a different, more admiring, tone. Emily wondered if he was already learning about her from her few spoken words. He peered at her intently, narrowing his golden eyes. “I’m sure my queen, Tiamat, would enjoy talking with you one day.”
His scent is so unusual, Xena said with a shallow snort. She approached the huge creature, smelling his scales. Emily closed her eyes and basked in the unusual information her bondsmate was sharing through their link—wisps of scents of animals the giant had killed for food, traces of fragrances from within the dragon’s nest.
“I’ve never seen such a bondsmate,” Ladon said while widening his awe-inspiring golden orbs once again to study Xena. Emily again wondered how much information he was gathering from their exchange. He was enormous, about the size of several elephants put together, large enough to carry several men on his broad shoulders and still be able to fly. He appeared to grow bored of leaving his leathery, bat-like wings at their greatest extent, and he folded them along his back. His body was completely covered in tough scales, almost metallic in appearance with a faint brown glow. The scales overlapped perfectly without an open seam; she didn’t see any crack where she would be able to strike the dragon or thread an arrow if a conflict arose.
“She’s a Doberman,” Emily said in a hushed voice.
“It would be an honor to advise you,” Ladon stated all at once. Emily was certain now. There was definitely a difference in his tone. She wondered if there was a potential that the great beast might one day become her friend. “King Dalton informed me that you will only be here a short time. I will announce your arrival while the guards guide you in. Pendon will bring you to my lair in the castle when the time for your presentation arrives.”
“Presentation?” Emily started to question, but Ladon ignored her, dashing across the ground with a startling beauty and grace before taking easily to the air. He resembled a small fighter plane as he flew, banking toward the castle in the distance.
Bronte never moved before the dragon, showing no fear of the enormous beast. Emily was proud of her decision to purchase the steed. She guided him toward the city, nodding appreciatively to the steady stream of guards that emerged to escort her. She studied her environment as she rode. On the highest peak of the surrounding hills, she saw the ruins of a building which she presumed was once an impressive fortification. The massive demolished structure dominated the area and she wondered who had once lived there and how the structure was laid low. It was hard to imagine any force aside from dragons or magicians being able to cause such destruction. The road led into the city of Haran, an orderly city of whitewashed wooden and stone buildings. Trumpets blared to announce her approach, and soldiers stood at attention. Well, Z, this is more than I could have hoped for.
Xena agreed. Instead of fighting strange beasts, we’re royalty for few days. Bronte and Xena pranced impressively as they entered the city of Haran. The wind whipped through the outer iron gates of the city, whistling happily as they entered.
A middle-aged man came riding up to Emily just inside the main city walls. He seemed confident and appeared athletic, sitting easily in his saddle. “I’m Pendon, the director of Castle Dalton. Ladon let me know who you are, and I’m thrilled to meet someone of the Dalton line. We can go a generation without meeting a Dalton. I’d like to welcome you to your ancestral home. Ladon also told me you’re not from the mainland of Acacia, and that I’m to teach you all I can of our area.”
Emily started to protest that she was not truly a Dalton, but she realized there was no benefit to explaining things here. For the people of Angkor, Andrew Dalton would be something more than just her godfather.
“Come inside, you look worn out,” Pendon gestured toward the castle. He turned his horse to ride by her side, leading her current guard escort. She could see Pendon eyeing the scattered yapok blood still coating her clothing.
“I had an unfortunate conflict with several yapoks in a nearby valley,” she said while involuntarily shuddering at the thought of her recent battle.
“There’s a large group that’s been camping in the valley for quite a while.” Pendon raised one eyebrow. “They’re impressive fighters and they could cause a lot of damage around Angkor. We aren’t sure why they came here, but they’re far from home.”
“Have you seen any black dragons near their valley?” Emily was curious if they were truly in league with the three men she had seen.
“Yes, we’ve spotted three black dragons with riders flying in formation near their caves.” Pendon rubbed his temples. “I’m sure Ladon knows who they are. I was worried they might be directing the yapoks.” A silence stretched between them. Pendon glanced back toward the forest outside the city. He rubbed his hands over his face and sighed. “The yapoks are tricky, they like to set ambushes and wait until they have overwhelming odds before they attack. We’ve left them to their cave system in the valley, attempting to avoid their warriors. Although I think a war is about to break out in the sectors around Angkor, life’s been fairly peaceful here lately. I really hope the yapoks don’t cause any trouble.”
“Are there many yapok magicians?” Emily asked. She pictured the terrible yapok chieftain that had led the creatures against her.
“Yapok magicians are very rare,” Pendon answered thoughtfully. Emily didn’t ask any further questions as they passed through the castle complex perimeter gates with huge thick doors, a mixture of wood, stone and metal. The doors were held open by a small detachment of soldiers, all with rich blue cloth shirts beneath their leather armor. They stood at rigid attention and saluted their party. Pendon returned a salute.
Inside the gates was a grand plaza with smoothly worn cobblestones. A contingent of thirty cavalry soldiers was at attention, adorned with similar rich blue markings both on their shoulders, and saddles. The cavalry leader also saluted Pendon.
Another burst of wind howled through the courtyard. “At ease, Commander.” Pendon saluted back. The courtyard was a great square, surrounded by buildings with three massive arches. Towers extended above the archways, and the building eventually merged with an awe-inspiring castle. There were clusters of trees around the edges of the plaza.
“Incredible,” Emily murmured quietly.
Pendon flashed a proud smile. “I do try to keep this place to a high standard. He dismounted from his horse and Emily followed his lead. Several women rushed forward from one of the buildings, curtseying and then touching her hand. They all had a look of wonderment in their eyes. “Maggie will take care of you,” Pendon said, gesturing to one of the women.
“We so seldom see a Dalton,” Maggie gushed from Emily’s side. Emily could hear the underlying current of excitement in her voice. “We have a unique capital,” Maggie began breathlessly. “Many years can go by without our seeing one of our ruling nobles.” Maggie glanced questioningly at Pendon. Her voice became eager, “Are we going to have a celebration tonight?”
Pendon addressed everyone in the courtyard. “Yes, Ladon wants to have a formal presentation this very night.”
“Wonderful.” Maggie clasped her hands together enthusiastically.
Emily smiled at her, attempting to wear a mask of serenity, but inside she was a mess. She was wondering how
her godfather was doing and when she would be able to obtain the prophecy from Ladon. How can I allow myself to spend time at a party?
You deserve this, Xena said firmly.
Pendon and Maggie led Emily and Xena into one of the buildings and up several stairways. “Here are your rooms,” Pendon began. He opened a door of ironwood. “We keep them ready, just in case a Dalton returns.”
“Thank you,” Emily said with heartfelt appreciation as she glanced at the sumptuous room. “Do you have someone who can help me take care of my horse, Bronte.”
“You won’t have to do a thing,” Pendon assured her. “I’ll put Bronte in the best stall in the stable and I’ll have our stable hands see to his care. He’ll be ready when you need him. We’ll leave you for a while, until it’s time for the celebration.” Pendon gave a small bow. “Maggie will return shortly to prepare you.”
Once the door was closed, Emily went straight to her bed. She collapsed in the warmth with Xena instantly at her side. The bed sheets were soft as silk, and Emily felt drowsy. We’ll just stay here for a short time, Emily promised Xena before the two both fell into a deep and dreamless sleep.
The Dragon Prophecy
(incomplete)
From ancient bloodlines most rare,
From the Houses of the Elves and Humankind,
Two offspring stronger than steel,
Their futures intertwined,
One will depart raw,
One will depart trained,
One the sword, one the shield,
Power deeply ingrained,
Glossary of Auras
Colors of auras, and their inborn spell advantages
Black – Speak to spirits of Ater, form Mavet raa
Blue – Shields
Brown – Shape change