Kill the Dragon (Lake of Dragons Book 1)

by E. Michael Mettille

  Chapter 21

  The Road to Truth

  The faces and voices all melted together into one waving blur as Maelich made his way out of Havenstahl on the main road. Both sides of the great, stone road were lined with people. It seemed at any moment a parade might come drumming and marching out the front gate. Of course, there was no parade. All the people were there for him, there to bid their savior good fortune on his journey to face the dragon. Unfortunately, even as he looked at those faces, he knew he’d never remember one of them. The only faces he cared about in that moment were the ones he had just waved good-bye. He could still taste the salt of Perrin’s tears on his lip. If only he were riding back into the city instead of out. Alas, there was work to do, and he was the only one who could do it.

  It seemed Validus could sense the homesick feeling already coiling itself up in Maelich’s gut. The journey past the gates, past the village, and down into the valley was probably the slowest leg of any journey the horse had ever taken. Maelich waited until they had made the valley before urging the horse to a trot. One last glance over his shoulder, a short wave to the crowds still gathered, and they were on their way.

  After his time with Brerto on Mount Alharin, Maelich didn’t need maps or directions. He had developed a connection to the things around him. It was subtle, something he couldn’t explain. More like a feeling or a hunch than anything tangible or definable. When he thought about it, the best way he could describe it was a knowing. That knowing guided him along his path. The path he knew he should take. However, there was something else lurking in his consciousness. It was another, different idea or hunch. Something he just couldn’t ignore. He tried. He did. During his time with Ymitoth, the grizzled, old warrior had drilled a sense of duty in him that was nearly strong enough to keep him on his path. Nearly. Despite his best efforts to ignore this other thing, this yearning, the calling was too strong. There were answers far to the north and east. He had no idea what the questions were, but he knew there were answers, answers he couldn’t rest until he learned.

  Maelich followed the path he was supposed to take all the way until his first crossing of the river Galgooth. Then he left that path. Straight north into loose groupings of trees. It wasn’t long until he was crossing the river again, this time after it rounded Mount Elzkahon and doubled back. There was another path beyond the second crossing of Galgooth, a path he’d never traveled, a path which led to answers. He couldn’t explain how he knew. He just knew. The path before him was his path.

  Just as his journey back to Havenstahl from Alharin, time meant nothing. He and Validus charged on untouched by the weariness of travel. This was another gift Brerto had seemingly unlocked in him but not explained. Something within him seemed to constantly recharge both him and Validus. It wasn’t something he could will or control, but he was aware of it. The road continued and so did they.

  Maelich had no idea how long or how far they had traveled, but as they crested the Edge Mountains, it felt like only moments had passed since departing the gates of Havenstahl. The Forgotten Forest expanded for miles from the base of the mountain below. It stretched so far, he couldn’t see its end in any direction. Somehow, he knew the place. Despite never having been there, and having no knowledge of the place, he knew he was looking at the Forgotten Forest, and he knew that within its trees there were answers waiting for him.

  The sun was setting as they breached the forest. Though it was quite dark, Maelich’s vision was unaffected. Another of his gifts, the forest appeared as bright as an open field at midday. He allowed Validus to see through his eyes and the steed made his way through the darkness without incident. Maelich could feel they were close to the city. Myth indeed, Druindahl was real, and he was upon it.

  The air changed suddenly. A light whisper sliced through it, and an arrow bore down on him. He prepared to dodge the brand slicing the air toward him, but its trajectory was all wrong. It would pierce the ground harmlessly, three feet to his left. Either someone was a very poor shot, or it was intended only as a warning. It was probably the latter. In a whisper he was off Validus’ back and standing sword-drawn on the forest floor.

  A shape fell from the trees, landing softly on the forest floor. No other eyes on Ouloos would have noticed it, but Maelich could see everything. The hooded warrior was no doubt the owner of the errant arrow. The warrior quickly drew his sword and leveled it at Maelich. No tricks. One should fight a warrior as a warrior. That’s what Ymitoth would say were he standing there. Though he could suck the air from the hooded swordsman’s lungs and leave him helpless and twitching on the ground, there would be no honor in it. It would be sword against sword. The only edge he would allow himself was his superior skill with a blade.

  Maelich circled to his opponent’s left, inviting an attack. His adversary took the bait. The blade whistled toward his throat. It was almost too easy to parry the assault. The condescending stance he attempted in mockery of his assailant was not. The next attack came immediately. Maelich would have to take him seriously. This time he attacked, flicking his wrist to make an opening and thrusting toward his opponent’s heart. The warrior’s defense was superb. Maelich was impressed. The hooded swordsman from the trees had an answer to every one of his attacks. The battle raged on.

  The warrior was relentless, as was Maelich. Neither one could gain an upper hand. For every slash there was a parry. For every thrust there was a dodge. This hooded man was a student of the blade. Maelich was well matched. It was time to change tactics. He thrust and slashed his way close enough to strike with his elbow. His opponent blocked the blow, but it threw him off balance. He charged to take advantage of the effects his elbow had. Suddenly, he was on the ground. The man had dipped and swept Maelich’s feet. He rolled to his left just in time to miss being run through by his attacker’s blade. He kicked the man in the face and leapt back to his feet.

  The man stumbled backward and Maelich followed up with a kick to the midsection that sent him sailing. He pounded into a tree, smacking his head and falling to the ground. As the hooded swordsman slowly regained his feet, he lost his hood. Maelich dropped his sword and gaped, dumbfounded. He was looking at himself, only softer, feminine. Suddenly, he knew her. He knew everything about her. It all came flooding into his mind at once. She was Daritus’ daughter, but not really and…

  “Cialia!” Maelich yelled, confused surprise dripping from his words.

  She bore the same expression, “Maelich?”

  They circled each other, each filling with the other’s memories and emotions. Both completely confused and in dire need of answers. Many they got from each other. Many went unanswered. Then a vision.

  Maelich spoke again, “Your mother…she…she looks like you?”

  “Yes,” she answered in the same confused tone. “You haven’t a memory of a mother.”

  “She flung herself off a cliff in despair of what I meant to her. Your father is not your birth father. You know not of your birth father.”

  “Your father is the king of Havenstahl. He trained you as a warrior as mine did for me. He is not your birth father either. Your father is…your father is a lake?”

  “The Lake of Dragons, my mother bathed in it and became pregnant. It is my fate…well, you know all of this, don’t you?”

  Cialia looked away briefly, “Yes. But how?”

  Maelich looked away as well, “I don’t know. I know all your thoughts. You look like me.”

  “And you me.”

  Their conversation was interrupted by another. “Well, well, well, if it isn’t the lad of the Lake all grown up. Off to slay the Dragon I presume.” It was Daritus, the same condescending tone he had when last they met.

  “I killed you once, vermin,” Maelich growled. “This time my blade will be true.”

  Daritus looked at his daughter and then back to Maelich. A shocking realization hit him. Something he hadn’t noticed when they fought. Perhaps he was too disoriented when they had met on the trail. It was righ
t before his eyes now, staring at him. The lad of the Lake was Cialia’s twin. He tried to shake off the vision, but it wouldn’t leave. They were mirror images of each other. His eyes widened in disbelief as he ran his hands through his hair.

  “You’re twins!” Baffled, he continued, “That means…come with me, both of you.”

  Maelich sheathed his sword, as did Cialia. They followed Daritus to a cart, out of place on the forest floor. This was no crude thing. Carved with elegant patterns and richly-stained, it belonged in a palace. Impressive as was the design, the real marvel was the smooth movement of the thing. This wasn’t some rough contraption consisting of ropes and pulleys, as one might expect. If Maelich closed his eyes, he wouldn’t even realize he was moving.

  The moment the cart reached the end of its journey, the door slid open on its own. The fabled city of Druindahl spread out before Maelich’s eyes. He gasped. It was twice again as magnificent as the stories he’d been told. The way the builders had incorporated the trees into the construction of the round huts among the canopy spoke to the skill of the planners and builders. Connecting all of this was a series of wooden walkways exhibiting equal craftsmanship. Nothing about the design was simple. Posts and rails were more than just functional, they’d been carved with reliefs, intricate, artistic expressions, each telling a piece of the story of Ouloos. Of course, the story depicted wasn’t the one Maelich knew. This was some alternate, false history told from the perspective of wicked men in service of the dragon.

  Travelling among this false history, the small group eventually reached the center of the city and a building larger than the rest, higher among the canopy too. Another cart pulled them up to a balcony populated by a couple of guards who were obviously for more than just show. They both carried the marks of real soldiers with hard eyes and scars a plenty. The rough looking men bowed in unison to Daritus who responded by absently waving them off as he guided the twins past them.

  A hall stretched out from them in either direction rounding the circumference of the building. From what Maelich could see, it was lined with many doors. Apparently, he wouldn’t get to explore them just yet, as Daritus led he and Cialia through the one directly in front of them.

  The walls inside the room were polished prang, shimmering in the torchlight and resembling the sky at sunset. A narrow, burgundy carpet ran from the doorway up to two thrones It was flanked on both sides by heavily armed guards. One of the seats was empty. The other was occupied by an enchanting beauty. Her golden hair flowed all about her, while deep brown eyes—which seemed to carry a lifetime’s worth of knowledge—peered out from soft, flawless skin. As perfect full lips parted into a welcoming smile, Maelich instantly knew her face. He tried to run to her, but his legs went slack beneath him. He fell.

  The guards helped him to his feet as the queen ran to him. He lost his feet again as she wrapped her arms around his head and pulled him to her bosom. He felt helpless as a babe. She rocked back and forth as she cradled him. He tried to speak but no words would come.

  Then she spoke, “My sweet boy, I’ve been calling to you. I was beginning to think you wouldn’t hear my voice.” She stroked his hair.

  Maelich tried again to speak. The words were in his mouth but wouldn’t come. His eyes were pleading as he gazed up at her. She just smiled and pulled him closer, surrounding him. Her scent was sweet, like wild flowers of the field. Daritus, Cialia and the guards looked on in shock as the queen cradled him, all of them knowing but none believing.

  “Yes,” she whispered softly to him, “I am your mother.”

  He shivered in her arms. His heritage had always been a mystery to him. Accepting that his father was a lake rather than a man was hard enough to deal with. Learning of his mother’s demise was worse still. All he knew were lies. She didn’t take her own life. She wasn’t dead at all.

  His mind was a swirling pool of questions and doubts. How could Ymitoth have lied to him all those years? How could this woman, his mother, so perfect in every way live in the service of such evil? Maybe it wasn’t true. Maybe this was the lie, a vile witch promising a mother’s love but hiding a black, villainous heart. No. Despite his best efforts to convince his mind otherwise, his heart knew she spoke only truth.

  It suddenly occurred to Maelich that on this day he had gained more than just a mother. Cialia was his sister, his twin. He’d spent his life believing he shared blood with no one alive, and now he had a family. The room began to spin, the walls, the people, the faces. They all circled round him as if held aloft in a whirlwind. It was all too much. Their faces faded as consciousness fled, and the world went black.

  Maelich woke a few hours later–saved from dreams filled with confused images and contradictions—in a plush bed surrounded by four large, decoratively-carved wooden posts at its corners. What the room lacked in size, it made up for in lavish decorations. Moonlight poured into the room from its only window, slicing through the darkness and giving everything inside a ghostly glow.

  Maelich glanced around at his surroundings. The grandeur of the place lost on him as he desperately tried to get his bearings and make sense of everything. He didn’t know what to think or what to believe. His mother, who he thought had taken her own life, was in fact the ruler of a people fighting to protect the very evil he sought to destroy. He had quite literally spent his entire life training for a task to which she led the opposition. A shape stirred in the corner and pulled Maelich away from his fruitless effort.

  “Who’s there?” he whispered, scrambling to his knees as he prepared to defend himself.

  Cialia spoke softly as she moved into the light, “Maelich, my brother, is it true what father has said?” The moon’s rays glowing on the soft curves of her face gave her a dream-like appearance.

  Tension gave way to confusion as Maelich scratched his head and asked, “Who is your father? You mean the Lake has spoken to you?”

  “What lake?” she shook her head. “Daritus is my father. Well, he’s not really my father, but he acts as such. He married our mother in my fifth year. Ever since then, he’s raised me as his own.” A slight grin crept onto her lips as she continued, “Apparently, he’s done rather well in training me. You’re lucky I only used one of my blades.”

  He grinned through the anguish, “Yes, indeed. You are quite handy with a blade. Ymitoth spoke of your abilities to me as well. It seems you’re quite the assassin.”

  She looked defiant, defensive, “We take life only when we must to protect our own. The demon king of Havenstahl would have killed my father had I not done what I did. And those guards would have killed me if given the opportunity. Besides, I was called to the task by my god, Kaldumahn.”

  “What? Demon king?” Maelich was shocked. “Ymitoth raised me in much the same fashion Daritus raised you. Stern? Yes. Loving father? Also, yes. And he fights to protect Havenstahl and all Ouloos from the horror you protect. I know nothing of this Kaldumahn of whom you speak, but your faith is false. Is he the dragon?”

  “Kaldumahn is no Dragon, but, like me, he protects her from those who would do her harm.”

  “Her? The dragon is a her?” the idea seemed ridiculous to him.

  Cialia’s anger rose, “You think that strange? Women can’t be powerful? Does not your own mother govern the great city Druindahl? Daritus is king only through marriage to our mother. She governs the people of this great city. She makes and enforces the laws for these people. Helias, the Dragon is the Great Mother. She guides and nurtures us all.”

  “Helias? So, the beast has a name. Well if she is a she, then she is the evil of this world, and I intend to extinguish her flame.”

  Cialia stood and stormed to the door, “There are many who will lay down their lives in her defense, including myself. Your quarry will be no easy prize!”

  A wide confident smile spread across Maelich’s lips, “I respect your passion, but there are things about me you don’t know and couldn’t possibly understand. If your people wish to lay down their lives
to me, I will have no choice but oblige them. However, my quarrel is only with the dragon. I truly hope I have no cause to spill any blood but his. Excuse me, hers.”

  Cialia slammed the door, and Maelich was alone once again. It wasn’t a condition he liked all that much, but it was better than fruitless debate with one who obviously knew very little about the world and how things are. None of it made any sense. How could such an evil being earn such passion and respect from these people? How could his own mother serve the beast? How could anyone see something caring and maternal about a winged monster who belched fire and sought to destroy the race of men? Yet, they did.

  His thoughts were disturbed when the door of his room began slowly creaking open. Great, Cialia returning for a second round of debates? However, once the door swung wide, it wasn’t his twin’s face scowling at him. Instead, Maelich’s gaze was met by the friendly smile of his old friend, Hagen.

  “What on Ouloos are you doing here?” Maelich blurted while wondering if his feet would ever again find solid ground.

  Hagen’s smile widened, “I was searching for truth, and, at the end of my journey, I wound up here.” He continued into the room and sat next to Maelich on the bed.

  “Truth?” Maelich shrugged, “What is truth? I have been told so many things by so many people I don’t even know what that is anymore. My eyes have seen things I can’t believe. Everything I know contradicts everything I’m hearing. The only thing I can have faith in is The Book. Right at this moment Kallum’s words are the only thing keeping me centered.”

  “You sound just as I did,” Hagen said quietly as his smile gave way to something more like sadness. “Maelich, I have been around for quite some time, quite a bit longer than any man should. These old eyes have seen their fair share. However, I was raised much like you were, much like all the men from Havenstahl, much like all the men from all the great cities, for that matter. Even dwarves are taught the same things. From the time we are old enough to understand, they begin teaching us the words of Kallum. They tell us his laws. They scare us with the violent repercussions which will surely befall us if we don’t submit and grovel before him like scrods. They make us afraid of things we’ve never experienced by calling them evil. Have you ever met a Dragon? Of course not. Have you met anyone who has faced a Dragon? No one alive in the cities of men has. Still, you like everyone else, believes she is evil. Well, you believe he is evil. In Kallum’s book, men rule. Women serve only to give them sons and clean up their messes. The power to give life is credited to the staffs of men not the wombs of women.”