Dragons of Summer Tide (The Dragons of Hwandor)

by Robert Barton

  “They have wings.” Shira called to his back. “I don’t think that we are going to get away that easily.”

  “Just ride! Oh great! Look up, even Green Eyes is following us,” Veer said in frustration as he pointed toward the little dragon flitting along the tree tops keeping pace with the horses.

  After about a quarter of an hour Veer slowed their pace to a walk since they were not really on a trail and it was rough going for the horses not to mention that the young man was taking a few small limbs to the face in his haste. Another half hour brought them to a trail. Veer climbed down from his horse and looked around and said. “This is the trail I was telling you about. If we go up it that way it goes deeper into the hills and eventually into the mountains. If we head down it we run south but it stays parallel with the mountains just this far in the foothills right along the edge of the plains.”

  “So which way do we go?” Shira asked as she climbed off of her horse, deciding that she might as well give it a rest while the two of them talk. “South, along the trail or do we go into the hills?”

  “This is strange. This trail doesn’t get used much, just a few trappers coming down to go south to market their furs. But look at it.” Veer looked up and down the trail as he spoke.

  “Well somebody has been using it this spring and summer – and using it a lot.” Shira noted. “So this is the southern part of the Furway, I know it back up north of here. Would be about two weeks that I travelled south at the edge of the plains following those foreigners and Talenger. He has staying a day behind them and I was staying a day behind him.”

  “Yes, this is the Furway, the Northern branch joins it a couple of days up-trail on the other side of some hills.” Veer nodded. “But the trappers didn’t wear the trail like this, there just aren’t enough of them, they go down-trail in the spring and come back up-trail in late summer so they can be back in their trapping grounds by first snows.”

  “Maybe all of the bandits that we have been hearing about have been using the Furway to get around without being seen. All you have to do is ride west toward the mountains into the hills and you will find the Furway and that can take you into the mountains or along the edge through the hills.” Shira said.

  “That old ranger said they weren’t bandits. When he was dying he told me they were foreigners. But I think that they are just passing as bandits. You could move a small army along the Furway,.” Veer answered.

  “Looks like that is what somebody is doing,” Shira said

  “I wish that I could see some clear tracks so I would know more but the last ones are old and washed out,” Veer said

  “No, they aren’t washed out I can see them clear as day,” said Shira

  “I grew up in these hills and I can track and there isn’t anything readable on the ground right now, I have eyes,” said Veer.

  “Then you need some eyebright, ‘cause I grew up in these hills too and I was trained by a hunter and a ranger and I can see clear sign on the ground right now,” said Shira. “But the prints don’t look right something odd about the shoes on the horses.”

  “Odd how? I know horseshoes, my da was a smith and I had to make shoes, a lot of shoes like a ferrier, right after I spent forever making nails,” Veer responded.

  “I don’t know how to describe it, oh look there it is,” Shira said pointing to the ground under one of the horses. “See that print where your horse stepped, that is a normal horseshoe like we have around here. But look there under my horse and you can see the difference.”

  Veer walked over to the pack horse and lifted its hoof to look right at the shoe and said. “I see it now, look right here you can see when we are shaping the metal we, oh never mind why it’s just different. That’s strange because flatlanders and southlanders all make their shoes the same way that we do. These people are from far away and there are a lot of them. Who are they and what do they want around here?”

  “You said that Talenger told you that they were foreigners, I guess that he was right, they are,” Shira said. “Do we follow the tracks north and deeper into the hills? The ones we are looking for must have gone that way. You also said the Talenger gave you something to give to the Rangers in the capital and a message for the king. It must have been about these foreigners.”

  Veer sighed. “I just want to find the rest of the ones who killed my people. My family was there and my friends. There were little kids and they just killed them all and burned them.” In anger Veer kicked a rough spot along side of the trail. The little human eyed dragon had walked up next to the two young people and he spread his wings and shook them while he let out a little grunt of anger. Veer looked at the little dragon which was now knee high to him and was the size of a medium dog. “See, even he wants to find them because they killed his mother.”

  Shira smirked. “I don’t think that he even knows we are hunting the strangers who killed his mother. He is angry because you are angry. He’s your dragon, and I think that when you get angry he does too.”

  “My dragon – my dragon!” Veer snapped at the girl letting his temper go just a bit as his voice raised. “Will you stop with the stuff about bonding dragons like some old stories?” As Veer raised his voice the human eyed dragon that had become so attached to him started to rear up and screech at Shira also.

  As quickly as a rabbit runs the slightly smaller dragon which had bonded with Shira jumped in front of the screeching dragonet and reared up on her hind legs spreading her wings and hissing at her larger sibling. The two young people stood there in amazement as the young dragons snapped and hissed at one another. Veer was so shocked that as his own anger slid from him, the larger dragon seemed to calm down and stopped threatening. The smaller dragon then settled down but remained protectively sitting at the feet of the girl. Without a word Veer climbed in his saddle and started heading south along the trail. “So I guess it is south then?” Said Shira, but Veer didn’t answer.

  After another quarter hour of riding Veer said. “We can’t fight an army, but if we can take this message to the Rangers and let the flatlander king know what is happening he might send an army.”

  “He’s our king too,” Shira responded.

  “No he isn’t. I’m from the Hillfolk and we are a free people. That king only rules flatlanders. We don’t pay taxes to him and we don’t ask anything from him.”

  “I’ve heard it all before,” Shira said. “But it seems to me we are heading to ask something now.” With that statement tense silence stood for a while.

  After a few minutes of riding Shira broke the silence. “Look we are on the northern end of the middle Furway so we will have to travel the whole middle which takes trappers more than a week and then the lower Furway takes a couple of weeks to ride. Then we hit the new mountains and have to go flatland on one of the highways to the capital. If we ride out of the hills and go flatland now we can head west and take the Mainway down to the capital and it is a lot faster with inns and supplies.”

  “Do you want to do that with a bunch of baby dragons following us?” Veer asked. “Hundreds of people will be passing us going north and south on the busiest highway in the flatlander kingdom? That will be good. They can just ignore the dragons and we’ll be fine.”

  “I don’t think that people see dragons when they look at them,” answered Shira. “I think that people see ponies and puppies or birds. I think that people see what they expect to see. I don’t even know for sure if the horses see dragons. Maybe these horses think that we have some dogs with us.” They rode on in a silence that extended for some hours.

  “Ok look, I don’t really like crowds of people, it’s strange. Even the harvest gatherings in the hills have too many people for me. I had to go with my grandfather on a flatland trip last year. We got out of the hills and there were these big open plains. Just open with nothing but grass, no forest just an occasional tree. It always felt like somebody could be watching from miles away. It was just spooky and felt dangerous. Can’t trust it like you
can trust the hills and the forest, it just isn’t natural. Besides how long till some dog decides to try and fight one of these puppies? I think folks will notice that the puppy is really a dragon then. Or if one gets hungry and decides to eat a goat?”

  “It isn’t all plains, my Da said that most of the Mainway has forests and farms all the way along it. I guess you are right about the dragons. Someone is going to notice eventually,” said Shira. “But what do we do about the foreigners using the Furway?”

  “We just have to watch and pay attention so none of them sneak up on us. The Furway has sites all along it where trappers camp year after year. We’ll just move along it like trappers do and make a camp every night. If we see any foreigners we will get off of the trail,” Veer responded.

  “Veer? Do you ever feel like you are being watched?”

  “Yes, but my gramp said that there is always something watching in these hills and that it is even worse in the mountains.”

  “My father said that too.”

  Six

  “Ho there on the trail, travellers!” Came a loud male voice. Veer and Shira both turned toward the sound and reached for their knives. The stranger saw a couple of the dogs that the two travellers had with them move toward him and start to growl. “Calm ya dogs down, they’s safe enough. Just a traveller’s greet. That’s what we do on the Furway. Unless you’s some of those damn strangers that been here abouts lately. Don’t return a greet proper like, drive you out of the camps and take anything that they want, what you got. You don’t look like strangers they, ain’t got dogs and you’s lookin’ like good Hillfolk to me.”

  Veer and Shira saw that the voice belonged to a big grey haired, bearded man of indeterminate years standing in one of the traditional open camp spots along the Furway. The two young people saw that the man had his right hand raised and open in the traditional Hillfolk greeting that shows no weapon or ill intent. Shira and Veer both quickly put away their knives and raised their palms up and open toward the man in the same gesture. “Ho there in the camp.” Responded Shira in the traditional greeting.

  The man lowered his hand and said. “Didn’t mean to give you a start. It’s an open camp and it will be dark soon, come on in if ya’ve a mind to.”

  Veer said. “Thank you, but we’ll keep riding and make camp down trail.”

  The man shook his head and said. “Night ridin’ is dange’ous with not much moon to see by. Not even a quarter moon showing tonight. ‘Sides the next camp is two hour after dark down trail from here. You’ll pass right by it in the dark. C’mon in, I don’t bite and they’s two o’ you and you got all them dogs with ya fer protecti’n ya anyway. ”

  Shira looked at Veer and quietly said. “We have to stop somewhere and he sees dogs not dragons. And he might be able to tell us more about what is going on.” Shira looked back at the man. “Thank you, friend we’ll gladly share camp. Blades against the night.” She finished in the customary statement of the Hillfolk promising mutual protection. “I am Shira and this is my friend Veer.”

  “Blades agin’ the night. I’m Slance” Called back the man to finish the formal greetings. “Slance Keervorna and I trap in these mountains far north of here.”

  “I am Shira, Shiradane Koraston.”

  “Shiradane, that be an old name; Shiradane. They’s some as tells it that is an old elf name.”

  “I am Veer; Veerdrayer Amicious. My father was a smith. But now we are both orphans”

  Slance looked thoughtful and said. “Koraston, hunh? Yer da was a woodsman a couple o’ weeks uptrail then. I knowed ‘im, Ain’t seen ‘im in fifteen year but I knowed ‘im. And you, you’s an Amicious. Then your da was the smith just uptrail and over in the hills o’ the Wall. I knowed him, hell he made my fightin’ knife what I still carry. Must’ve been 20 year ago. Best knife I ever had. Ain’t seed ‘im since harvest market gather six year ago. So ye must be that boy what was giving ‘im fits at the market. They was both good men, real good men. I am truly sorry fer yer loss. The loss from yer home is a loss from the hearts of all.” The man finished with the very formal expression of condolences customarily given by friends who are not related.

  “Thank you, for your kindness and for sharing in your heart the pain of my hearth.” Both teenagers responded in the formal Hillfolk manner.

  After a pause the trapper continued. “Heared ye talkin’ as you’s ridin’ up. They’s always somthin’ watchin’ ye in these hills, and it do be worse in the mountains. They’s some as say that it would be elves which still live here abouts but mostly keepin’ to some secret valleys way back in the mountains in the far north. Or maybe even a dwarf iffen one ever comes up from the caverns under the mount’ns.” The old trapper gave Shira an odd look as if he were wondering something then he turned to Veer. “Took a deer earlier today. Hangin’ ten minutes back down trail. I was worried that a lot of it’ll go to waste ‘cause I’m moving. But I reckon now twixt you two, meself and all them dogs you got we’ll get a good meal outta it tonight and somethin’ to start our day at sunrise.”

  “I’ll start unpacking horses.” Responded Shira as she immediately set to unloading the packs and preparing the camp.

  Slance looked at Veer and said. “Why don’t you come with me and we can carry back two haunches of meat, ‘twas a small deer anyway ‘twern’t very old so’s it‘ll take two haunches fer us all.” Turning his attention to the girl he continued. “I already drawed up some water from that stream back in the woods along that little trail right there. I filled that little pot yonder and they’s twa leathern water bags hangin’ on that tree right there. I gathered some wood already but aint started it yet.

  Shira looked up and responded. “Ill take care of this, you two get going so you can be back before dark.”

  The old trapper looked at Veer as he headed out onto the trail and said, “Welp, let’s walk on then.” The young man followed and along with the boy walked a knee high human eyed dog. Moving along overhead from tree to tree top was a green eyed crow which occasionally would let out a challenging caw. From time to time the man would look up at the strange bird which was blue black but had bright green angry eyes. If the old trapper thought that the bird was strange he said nothing about it as they walked along.

  After a short walk the older man stopped and raised a hand as he spoke. “Smell ‘at? ‘At’s cowra berries just off the trail back in these trees. It’s how I know the spot. They smell sweet but they’s poisoned. D’you know ‘em?

  “Yes I know them. I know that nothing can eat them and live. My gramp taught me to hang meat near them because bears won’t go anywhere near them.”

  “Good man then, yer gramp. Ever’body ortta have a good gramp, I say. My own never taught me a thing, ‘cept maybe how to find the bottom of a keg. Which is somethin’ I rarely look fer ‘ese days. But he was a lot of fun at a party, well ‘till he’d start a fight then he weren’t no fun ‘t all. Reckon ‘ats how I know aint nothin’ useful at the bottom of a keg.” As the man stepped into the forest in the direction of the smell he called back. “They is one thing what can eat those berries though, dragons. “Least ‘ats what some say. Veer froze and could feel the blood drain from his face. “C’mon son, can’t stand around. ‘T aint no ghosts here ‘bouts.”

  Veer hesitated a moment and then falteringly responded. “No, it’s just the smell is so strong. We were camped for a few days and all that I have been able to smell was smoke until we started travelling again.”

  “Camp nose is it? Ye gotta watch ‘at camp nose. A bear can sneak right up on ye and ye won’t smell ‘im comin’,” the man said with a chuckle. “Becha gramp told ye that’n too. Here they are tied up here, I’ll lower this’n and you lower that’n right there.” Slance said indicating a nearby tree.

  Veer could see the cowra berry bush and noticed that the older man had his back to it. Then the green eyed dragon fluttered into the bush and started to eat the berries and as the human eyed dragon joined the feast at the foot of the be
rry plant Veer felt suddenly sick. If the trapper turned around he would see the two dragons.

  “Boy!” Veer was startled as he heard the old man call to him. “Right there on that tree, untie that rope and lower the meat down to yeself.” Veer immediately started to do as the man directed. “We better get ye back to camp ye look like ye’s comin’ all over sick.”

  “No, I’m just tired. But we should get back with dark coming on.” Veer quickly finished coiling the rope, put it over his shoulder and picked up the haunch of meat and headed back toward the trail praying to the gods that the old trapper did not look behind him. Then he heard the sound of the older man following and as they both reached the trail Veer felt relieved.

  “Better call ‘at dog’” the man said as he started back toward camp.

  Veer quickly searched for a name to call the dragon and grasped on the name of an old dog from the village when he was very small. “Come on Drace,” he called back into the forest. After about five minutes he heard the sound of the dragon walking up behind him and then the sounds of Green Eyes fluttering in the tree tops.

  “One noisy bird, ‘at ‘n what keeps following ye. Queer sight too, a crow with green eyes. Never seen ‘at ‘afore.”

  Veer walked on silently for a few more minutes and then he began to smell the smoke of the fire at camp. As he walked into the camp he saw Shira busy with the new fire. “That didn’t take long,” the girl said.

  “Nice fire.” Slance said nodding approvingly at the girl and noticing that she had already gathered a bit more wood and had prepared meat skewers and forked sticks and had them ready and waiting for the meat. “Ye know what ye’re about doin’ girl. Ok, let me see, I’ll commence to cutting; meat fer the fire, boy ye start feeding those dogs of your’n.” Both men sat down and started at their respective duties while Shira took some herbs from the baskets and added them to a pot. Slance started to speak. If’n ye stop at these camps like this un here ye’ll always find a stream o’ some sort nearby all up and down the furway. If’n ye go t’ the streams t’ get water I say that ye should walk upstream a dozen or so paces t’ get yer water. They’s bandits runnin’ these parts lately. For’n bandits. They’ll stay in these camps and then they’ll relieve th’selves near the water. What kinda nasty folks relieve th’selves near water? ‘At’s how I know they’s gotta be for’ners. Seen ‘em do it. Hillfolks know better’n ta do ‘at ‘afore we can walk. Nope not a drop o’ highland blood in ‘em, can’t be. Nasty, just nasty,” the man said while shaking his head.