Tales of the Northern Kingdoms volume 2

by Barbara G. Tarn

  Splendor put the torch between two rocks and they almost dived into the heap, checking things and trying on necklaces and crowns. He was admiring a great sword when a voice startled them.

  "What do we have here?"

  Both screamed as a big reptilian head leaned to look at them from up close. A dragon! A full-fledged green dragon with horns and scales and bat-like wings that fitted perfectly in the entrance tunnel, but probably wouldn't be able to go through smaller tunnels, unless he took down the whole cave.

  "Shit!" Billinda dropped everything and unsheathed her sword. "We shall fight to the death!"

  "Why are you in such a hurry to die, young maid?" the dragon asked with a perfectly Human voice.

  "Don't call me young maid!" she snapped. "I know you dragons are quite touchy when one invades your territory."

  "It's true, but sometimes we don't mind visits... please, take a seat."

  "Billi... I don't like how it stares at us," Splendor whispered.

  "He's only taking his time before having us both. For lunch," she muttered back.

  "So, what's up?" The dragon crouched between them and the treasure. "It's been some time since I've seen such a long-lived Human."

  "Who?"

  "Aren't you Splendor of Bold Castle? You were born more than a hundred years ago, it's very long for a Human..."

  "How do you know?" Splendor asked, jarred.

  "I am Fajrulo, and we are the longest living creatures of the Magical Races. I'm still but a baby for my people, but compared to you... much older! So tell me how come you're still so young and handsome. Were you struck down by a spell?"

  "Somehow, yes. But I won't tell you more until I find out what you know about me."

  "Everything, Splendor. I was present at your birth and during your childhood, then my wanderings took me away from your father's castle..."

  "There were no dragons at my father's castle!"

  "Stupid Human, Fajrulo are shape shifters." The dragon morphed into a blond young man with commoners' clothes. "Do I look more familiar to you now?"

  "Adalbert the Minstrel! I loved your stories!" Splendor grinned as Billinda gaped. Shape-shifting dragons, real witches... She was glad she hadn't lived in Splendor's times. And he was worried about living in her times?

  "We are quite good storytellers," the minstrel said. "And you were a beautiful boy who listened to me with wide baby blues..."

  "I cried when I heard you were gone," Splendor said.

  "You were fifteen and were already thinking more about girls than stories." The minstrel chuckled.

  "I missed you, though. You know, you're the only person who met me as a child."

  "Thanks, but I'm not Human, you know."

  "I do now. How can you keep your Human form?"

  "Told you, we're natural born shape shifters..." The Human form blurred and the dragon appeared again. "Except, like I said, I'm still quite young and I can't keep the Human form for long. Once I lost it in front of dozens of people. I had to fly away, the stupid peasants wanted to kill me! The day before I was a revered guest and suddenly I was a monster!"

  "How old are you?" Splendor asked.

  "A couple of centuries... The last Moren Emperor had finally been found when my egg opened. My mother had been killed by dragon hunters and I was found by a powerful half-blood who didn't have an ounce of Fajrulo blood, but he was immortal and he took care of me. I'm sure he's still around somewhere."

  "I'm sorry, dragon hunting was a great pastime when the Moren Empire fell apart."

  "But I taught you to respect all creatures with my stories, remember?"

  "Yes, and now I know why! Those stories were beautiful, they explained how every creature is useful in the world..."

  "Great!" Billinda rolled her eyes. Now the prince was going sentimental. For a dragon. Maybe he wasn't as smart as she thought.

  "It's true!" Splendor snapped.

  "Whatever!" she snapped back.

  "What were you looking for in my poor den?" the dragon asked.

  "Look, one thousandth of what you have here would be enough for us to live happily ever after," Billinda said.

  The dragon showed his fangs. "Treasure thieves!"

  Splendor went on his knees. "Please, I beg you, I lost everything, if you don't donate something, I'll end up a thief for real! My father's castle is lost..."

  "Sad destiny, my handsome prince." The dragon snorted and looked away.

  "I thought you liked me!"

  "Like and love are Human feelings. You are a fond memory for me, that's all."

  "You're a greedy snake!"

  "Your insults don't touch me, Human."

  "Dragon, please..."

  "Now you beg? Don't be ridiculous!"

  Splendor pondered as the dragon put back the things they had displaced on the heap. Billinda watched them both, curious of the outcome. Splendor had formed some kind of bond with the beast, maybe he could pull it off better than she would.

  "Dragon... if I tell you my story, will you give me some gems?" Splendor suggested with a hopeful smile.

  "Mm... fine. I'll pay both your stories as they deserve. Please, start."

  Let's hope he likes them enough, Billinda thought. The dragon – or Fajrulo, like he called himself – didn't look like he was going to kill them after all.

  Prince Desire

  Billinda left the dragon cave, relieved to be still whole. Probably Splendor's presence had helped, since the Fajrulo knew him. She couldn't believe dragons were sentient beings, but if they were members of a Magical Race, it made sense.

  Not that Billinda had any experience of the Magical Races. She doubted even Splendor ever saw any of them. They'd vanished from the northern lands after the fall of the Moren Empire – either they were hiding or they'd moved somewhere else. There was still too much magic around to think they'd gone extinct.

  Besides, she'd just met one of them. Who hadn't killed them and had given them a very very small part of his treasure, enough to carry in small purses but it would allow them to buy things for a year or more. Depending on what way of life they chose. Billinda could survive on those gems for two or more years, probably, since she couldn't be idle for long and would be working anyway.

  The heap of riches had held strange artifacts that had left them gaping when the Fajrulo had explained what they were. There was a greatsword forged by dwarves to be used by holy champions and inset with obsidian. The blade was made of cold iron. It summoned darkness and gave the owner an aura of command. It could only be used by females, which had made Billinda shiver with excitement until she'd heard the rest. It had been used to kill a suspicious number of former owners. As far as anyone knew, it was lost, and she had decided it was better it stayed that way after all. Too dangerous.

  The Fajrulo had even offered a suit of splint mail traditionally used by the persecuted that had been partially lacquered pale blue. It suited Splendor perfectly. The metal parts were iron and apparently it created walls of water. It was one of a matching pair, but the Fajrulo had only that one. Splendor refused, since he didn't think he needed any kind of armor and the suit was heavy to carry around.

  So they had taken only small items, and a big two-handed sword that Splendor carried on his back. Billinda hadn't asked what it did or where the Fajrulo had found it, and neither had Splendor. It was better and lighter than his own old sword and he had gracefully accepted the gift.

  "Not bad, your Fajrulo friend," she said as they headed back down the mountains. "He was nice and definitely a good storyteller."

  "Yes, but staying with him meant living in the past, and I'd rather move forward," Splendor said, thoughtful.

  "Wise decision..." She glanced at him and noticed he was staring at his family medallion again. He wore it proudly around his neck after finding it in the Fajrulo's treasure – a golden chain and an engraved medal with little gems encrusted in it. "Why do you keep looking at your family medallion if you're so eager to move forward?" she teased.
<
br />   "It was nice of him to give it back to me," he replied, hiding it under his tunic again. "He found it on a corpse..."

  "If he hasn't made a corpse of the owner himself," she commented with a scoff.

  "Oh, Billi!" He snorted but kept following her in silence.

  Going down was less exhausting than going up, but the prince was still a slow walker. He must have been used to riding everywhere, or maybe use carriages. Billinda wasn't going to spend her money on a horse she didn't know how to look after and that would deplete her money quicker than any lavish lifestyle she might choose. Besides, she couldn't ride. She was a fisherwoman!

  Maybe she could reach the sea and become a sailor... although with Splendor tagging along... I don't know how he will adjust to these times. We'll see. She wasn't in a hurry anyway.

  ***

  Leaving the mountain slopes, they found themselves again on farmland. As night fell, no villages were in sight, but a lone farm had been in their way for a few hours. They reached it when the sun was down and lamps had been lit inside the low building with pitched roofs.

  They knocked on the door and were welcomed into a big living room where a family of ten was ready to go to bed. The children were already slumped on a mattress in a corner and the adults were finishing getting ready to follow them.

  The parents gave Splendor and Billinda a loaf of dark bread and a piece of cheese, then apologized for lack of better lodgings.

  "Would you like to use the barn?" they suggested, since the places were limited inside the house. "It's not too cold anymore and you should be fine..."

  "That's perfect," Billinda said a little bluntly. "Thank you."

  The barn was a wooden building behind the house.

  "Better sleep with livestock than with peasants," Billinda muttered.

  "They've been very kind," Splendor chided.

  "It's the law of hospitality, honey," she retorted. "As long as one comes in peace, one is welcome to share meals and beds with the family. Except I wasn't too keen on sleeping with a batch of children."

  "At least they have people working in the fields with them," Splendor said. "They don't need to hire help."

  "Oh, please!" Billinda settled on the hay and snorted. "Don't tell me you liked the shiny happy family in that house."

  "They looked nice and decently happy for peasants," he said cautiously. "I mean, they don't have much, but they make the most out of it."

  "And how many of those children do you think will survive into adulthood?" she asked defiantly.

  "I don't know, I hope all eight, why?"

  "I was also one of nine, and only three reached adulthood."

  "Oh." Splendor lay next to her. "So you have a big family like that one?"

  "Had," she snapped. "I don't miss them."

  Splendor sighed. He did miss his family and friends. "Good night, Billi," he said as she switched off the lamp the farmer had given her. He rolled on the side and soon was asleep.

  ***

  Another night under the stars. In the two months spent traveling, there were still too many of those. Village inns weren't to Splendor's taste, but they were better than nothing. He wondered if Billinda was avoiding more populated places on purpose, or if she was as lost as him in the vast lands of the north.

  "Trying to save money," she'd muttered once. They had stopped at Flamai where they'd managed to exchange a gem each for coins, but they hadn't stopped there for very long.

  "I could grow a beard," he had suggested at first, but Billinda's glare had made him change his mind.

  "You'd save money if you learned shave yourself," she'd told him. So he had learned, since he couldn't ask her money for such menial things.

  He didn't know why he was trying to please her so much. Maybe he was still afraid she'd dump him somewhere. Splendor hadn't seen anything or anyone he could trust more than the woman who had awakened him.

  She might be gruff at times, but she still kept him fed and mostly sheltered, except when they camped in the middle of nowhere. Like now. Splendor hoped they'd find another inn soon, or a city, castle, whatever. Maybe even another happy farm.

  The weather was nice, but he hoped Billinda didn't spend winters like that. Summer would be a good time to wander the lands, though. And it was fast approaching. Soon he wouldn't need the travel cloak anymore.

  He stared at the ring on his finger, another piece of the Fajrulo loot. It seemed that the dragon's cave had been filled with things taken from Bold Castle, as if the people hadn't gotten very far. Cursed indeed – his whole family and belongings.

  "Is the ring a memory too?" Billinda asked him as she roasted a hare.

  Splendor was amazed at how resourceful she was. She'd placed traps around the clearing where they camped before sunset, and while she prepared a circle of stones for the fireplace and swept the clearing for the night with her feet, she'd managed to catch something without using bow or arrow, and now they had roasted meat for dinner. She must be very used to that lifestyle.

  "Yes. My brother's." Splendor stared at the 'D' engraved on the ring.

  "Right, your brother. Dead six months after his wedding, right?"

  "I'd rather remember other things of him," Splendor muttered. She was resourceful, but heartless.

  "Like what? Were you similar? Did you get along?"

  "We didn't fight, but we were different," he answered as the scent of roasted meat reached his nostrils. "I think the big difference between us was that he believed in love, he thought love at first sight existed and that destiny would make him meet his bride. I only wanted to have fun."

  ***

  Desire had been a prince who dreamed of marrying for love. Being the second born, he was allowed to hope, but Love didn't seem to be willing to knock on his door.

  One day during a hunt, Desire and Splendor were separated. On his own, Desire met a boar. His horse unsaddled him and he prepared to die, but someone shot an arrow and killed the boar. Desire called his savior, but nobody showed up. He put up an announcement, wishing to thank the stranger, but again nobody showed up.

  He went back to the forest on foot, sad and depressed. He really wanted to thank the person who had saved him, but didn't know where to look.

  And then he saw a beautiful young woman carrying wood.

  "Wait! Who are you?"

  Encumbered by her long gown, she couldn't run away. "I'm Astrid, the woodcutter," she answered warily.

  She was so beautiful that he fell in love at first sight. He loved her in the forest, not caring that she was a commoner. But he woke up alone.

  He had lost her! No amount of searching in the whole kingdom brought back even a woodcutter named Astrid. She must have lied.

  And then the king told him that a princess was willing to marry him. Heartbroken, Desire agreed. On his wedding day, Desire looked like the unhappiest groom on earth, but when he looked at the bride...

  Princess Astrid was a noblewoman who knew how to shoot arrows and didn't mind gathering wood in the forest. She was the archer who had saved him and the woodcutter he'd made love to.

  Suddenly Desire was the happiest groom on earth and married his beloved, overjoyed.

  ***

  "And they lived happily ever after," Billinda commented with a hint of sarcasm.

  Splendor was too lost in memories to react, though. As he spoke and told his brother's story, they'd eaten the hare and were now preparing to sleep.

  "So your younger brother married before you?" she asked, now genuinely curious.

  "Yes, I was still unsure..." He sighed.

  He should have chosen faster. Or maybe Leondina would have cursed him anyway. But again, Ruth and Giselle were really interchangeable for him, and his father might have chosen Leondina if he didn't make up his mind.

  Truth was – he'd seen his brother fall in love not knowing what Desire was going through.

  "How lucky of him," Billinda said. "He falls in love with a woodcutter and discovers she's a princess! But what was a
princess doing in the woods?"

  "She had run away from home," Splendor answered, amused. "Her castle was near ours, I suppose she trespassed unknowingly into our part of the woods..."

  "Still wondering why a princess ran away from her comfy castle," Billinda said.

  "Maybe to find love," he replied.

  "It's just an illusion, love doesn't exist."

  Puzzled, Splendor stared at her.

  "You don't believe in love?" he asked.

  "No, or I wouldn't have awakened you, would I?" she replied.

  "Yes, well... I believe it exists," he said, frowning in worry. A woman who didn't believe in love was unheard of. Although that was probably why she had awakened him. She couldn't care less, like Leondina had wanted.

  He might have not chosen his bride yet, but he knew he wasn't supposed to marry for love. And now, being free of his obligations, he could actually consider it. He wondered how Desire had felt, and if he'd ever feel it himself. It didn't have to be love at first sight, but...

  "Best wishes and male children," Billinda said, lying down to sleep.

  "Billi..."

  She ignored him. Strange woman.

  The curse continues

  Billinda wasn't too keen on stopping at castles, but she knew Splendor was tired of sleeping under the stars. And after four months of travels with him, she knew he looked forward to meeting one of his peers. City dwellers weren't really like him. Peasants were below him, even though he tried not to be haughty – often succeeding, since he was a very sweet and meek prince.

  Thus, when she spotted a castle up a hill – with a neat moat and square towers – she asked him if he wanted to sleep there. His relief was so obvious, that he didn't need to say yes.

  "You handle the noble lord," she warned. "I'm not the most diplomatic person on earth."

  "I noticed," he said, amused. "Don't worry, I can do this."

  Before reaching the drawbridge, they passed through a small village, unbothered. The castle gate was open and the guards waved them in with bored looks on their faces.

  "Definitely peace time," Splendor commented. "Not even asking our business..."