The King's Treasure

by Carol M. Vaughn

  5-Secrets

  Arianwyn stood up from scrubbing the floors, her back aching. This was an even farther cry from the inn she used to work in. However, it seemed to be a good deal safer, so long as she stayed out of the way of the nobility. A fair trade off.

  She had been here for several weeks and had worked hard to keep her place. Tess slowly gave her more work to do in more prominent places, but never where she would interact directly with the nobility. Her high mountain accent was offensive to some of the nobles. That suited her just fine.

  She rolled her shoulders and went back to work. It was a little strange thinking that she was cleaning the King’s Bedchamber, but she was not about to pass up the work. She was better fed, clothed, and sheltered than she had ever been. Plus, she had a little extra money given each month for personal spending.

  She went to the basket of rushes she had brought and scattered them around the floor, their smell permeating the air. She twitched the bedcovers one last time to make sure they were straight, and then surveyed the rest of the room. She frowned when her eyes fell on the fireplace. Two brass fixtures were bolted into the ground, part of the décor of the fireplace surround. She walked over to examine the right one closer. It looked worn to her. She reached out and touched it and was startled to feel it wiggle.

  She wiggled the brass fixture a little more looking for loose screws or bolts. It pulled toward her. Curiously, she pulled harder on the fixture. Her eyes opened wide as a section of the wall next to the fireplace swung silently open. :Now that’s interesting,: Dragon muttered. Arianwyn couldn’t help but agree. Cautiously, she took a step toward the opening. There was a breath of fresh air from the passage, indicating that it opened up somewhere else. Unable to resist, Arianwyn entered the tunnel.

  The tunnel immediately took an upward turn. She followed the steps spiraling ever upwards. It did not take long for it to grow dark. She glanced back at the reassuring light, then ahead at the pitch blackness. :Go see. I’m curious.: She rolled her eyes. Dragon was always curious. But then, so was Arianwyn. She put one hand on the wall and continued up, hoping that the trend of upward spiraling with no breaks would continue.

  Perhaps because it was dark, she felt like she was walking forever. Her legs ached and she wondered if she should head back. She knew it had not been forever, however, so she continued. Eventually, she noticed a dimness growing in the passageway ahead of her. Encouraged, she pressed forward, hoping to reach the top and make a quick descent before anyone noticed her absence.

  All at once, she was standing in a large cave, the opening not too far off showing a clear blue sky. Glancing around the cave, she wandered to the edge of the opening. She gaped, wide-eyed, at the vista before her. The city was sprawled out below, buildings and people made tiny by the distance she was above them. :What a perfect cave,: Dragon commented. There was no access to the cave from the outside, unless you had wings. The edge fell away to jagged edges and sheer cliffs. The breeze coming into the cave was chilly, despite the warm day and Arianwyn wrapped her arms about herself.

  A soft whuff sounded behind her and a puff of warm air hit her back. She froze, wondering belatedly what wild creatures might live here. Inside, she felt Dragon’s mind go on high alert. Arianwyn heard what she swore was the earth chuckling and felt the whuff again.

  Turning slowly, she searched the darkness, eyes wide. A gleaming, golden eye peered at her, capturing her gaze. The mouth filled with jagged teeth below that eye quickly turned her attention, though. A red tongue flicked between the teeth. :DRAGON! RUN!: Dragon cried in shock. Arianwyn staggered forward, and then realized the dragon was blocking the doorway back down.

  “Dragon!” she cried, spinning around. Her vision was overthrown as Dragon panicked and overpowered her mind. All she could see was sky above and clouds speeding below. Closing her eyes did not block the shifting scene. She became disoriented. She saw Dragon frantically winging her way toward the mountain, too far away to catch her if she jumped. She slipped, feet sliding off the edge. She twisted as she felt the edge scratch her legs but was unable to pinpoint or see where she was.

  Desperately, Arianwyn tried catching the edge with her fingers. She attempted to pull her mind back from Dragon’s, but Dragon’s panic was too strong. Her fingertips touched the edge of the rock. She flexed them into claws, trying to hold on. Her side banged against the side of the cliff and her fingers slid from the ledge. She wrestled her vision back with a jerk and wished she had not. Bile rose in her throat as she saw the dark, jagged forms of rocks rushing to meet her. She opened her mouth to scream, still trying to grab onto the cliff. If she made sound, she never knew as the wind roared in her ears.

  A shadow came over her. The giant black dragon spun in mid-air below her and pinned her deftly against the wall, his claws digging great gouges into the rock. She grabbed his claws unconsciously, her near death temporarily overcoming her fear of the dragon. She clung to his claw, gasping and whimpering in fear. :I’m coming,: Dragon called, fear filling her. The black dragon repositioned its grip, and jumped away from the wall, carrying Arianwyn with it.

  Arianwyn allowed Dragon back into her mind and could see the dragon from her viewpoint. She swallowed. It was a lot bigger than Dragon was. While Dragon’s back was lined with ridges, it had sharp spikes, a frill lining its head. The tail ended in a spiked club instead of a point as Dragon’s did. Its black skin soaked up the sun, reflecting no light back. Through Dragon’s eyes, Arianwyn could see its muscles rippling powerfully as it beat its wings to stay aloft. Vaguely, Arianwyn sensed from Dragon that this dragon was a male.

  :Dragon, don’t engage him! He’s too big!: She thought frantically to Dragon. She felt Dragon snarl angrily in her mind. With a backwing, the dragon landed on the cave ledge and set her down. :I don’t think he’s going to hurt me. Stay hidden,: she urged Dragon. She backed slowly away from the giant dragon. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. She swallowed. “I didn’t mean to intrude on your cave and I’ll be going now. I won’t tell anyone, I promise.”

  The dragon regarded her as she edged back toward the door. He moved his head closer to her and she stopped. He sniffed her. “Dragons don’t like to eat humans,” she whispered, hoping that what Dragon had told her was true. His head reared back in surprise. He lowered his head and sniffed her again, shifting agitatedly. Arianwyn spun and ran down the stairs as he threw his head back and roared. She threw the fixture back into place and ran out of the King’s Bedchamber.

  :Slow down!: Dragon hissed. Arianwyn forced herself to a stop. Without her feet pounding, she heard other feet running along the passageway. Around the corner ahead, she saw a man sprinting toward her, six other men in hot pursuit. She flattened herself against the wall.

  The man in the lead threw open the door to the King’s Bedchamber. He slammed it in the face of the other men. They took up positions around the door, tense and alert. Arianwyn turned away and forced herself to walk to the corner. When she reached the corner she removed her shoes. Lightly, she ran back to the kitchen, taking whatever route would keep her away from people. She could still hear the dragon’s roar ringing in her ears.

  Rael

  Rael charged up the hidden stairs to the cave, taking deep breaths to bottle his temper. Charon was still bellowing. :Will you tell me what's going on?: Rael asked again, struggling to make his mental voice heard above the frenzy of the dragon's mind. He came to the cave. Charon was blocking the entrance. He appeared to be trying to squeeze down the tunnel. Rael pushed the giant black beast back and entered the cave.

  :There was a female here!: Rael froze. His eyes scanned the dragon, searching for any injuries. Charon snorted. :She did not hurt me. I saved her from falling.: Charon's chest puffed with pride at that admission.

  Rael frowned, striding to the edge of the cave to look up and down the cliff. “How did she get up here?”

  :Through the tunnel.:

  “Blast it, Charon, why didn't you call me sooner!” Rael snapped. “She c
ould be a spy or an assassin.”

  Charon rumbled a chuckle. :Not that one.: Charon settled down, his earlier excitement forgotten.

  Rael rubbed his forehead. “What did she look like?”

  :It was more her scent that caught my attention,: Charon said, dropping his head onto the ground. Rael leaned on the giant head, rolling his eyes.

  “Her scent does not help or interest me.”

  :It should. She smelled like a female.:

  Rael laughed out loud. “And why wouldn't she?”

  Charon snorted and shoved Rael with his nose. Although gentle, the push still had Rael staggering a few steps. He turned and grinned at the dragon. :Not just as a female human. She smelled...:

  The dragon trailed off, disgruntlement coloring his mind. Rael sighed. “For my peace of mind, what did she look like?”

  An image of a tiny, red-haired woman in castle livery flashed into Rael's mind. Her features were blurred, as Charon had never really paid attention to what human faces looked like. :She smelled different,:Charon said. :It was a good smell.:

  Rael shook his head. “You're too soft-hearted, old friend. It's going to get you killed one day.” Charon's whuff followed him back down the tunnel.

  Rael hurried down the tunnel, putting his mental blocks up so that Charon would not react to his state of mind. Once he was away from the dragon and his barriers were back up, Rael allowed his anger to come back. Someone had found the entrance to Charon. His dragon's life was in danger. He would let no one harm Charon. He would kill the woman before she had a chance to kill him.

  6-Brides

  Arianwyn avoided anyone of authority for the next few days. There was a lot of talk around the Castle about the dragon bellowing madly and the king running out of a meeting with his generals. “Arianwyn, there you are!” Tess said. Arianwyn jumped. She had been so careful to avoid seeing Tess that it surprised her when Tess saw her first. “I need you to clean the King’s Chamber, wash the bedding, clean the guest chambers in the West Wing, and then start cutting up potatoes for dinner. The southern thane is arriving today and we have to make sure dinner is prepared.”

  Arianwyn nodded, a short jerk of her head while she tried to hide the pounding of her heart. She set out for the King’s Chambers, eyes darting about to watch for any differences from her last visit. She did not wish to be caught unawares again. The changes were immediately obvious. Two guards stood outside the doors, where before there had been none when the king was not present. She stopped outside the door and stared at them. They stared back. Finally, she cleared her throat. “I’m supposed to clean the King’s Chambers.”

  “About time,” one of them muttered. He opened the door and followed her in. It was strange cleaning while someone was staring. She was careful to stay far away from the fireplace this time. She quickly stripped the bed and replaced the bedding, gathered the rushes and replaced fresh ones, picked up the dirty clothes littering the room and headed out the door, arms full. The guard followed her out, closing the door behind her. She walked down the hall, struggling not to shake. “Have you seen that one before?” she heard one ask. The other muttered something. “I was just curious. I don’t remember her.”

  She made her way to the West Wing where it was blissfully quiet and empty. She dropped the laundry outside the door to the suite of rooms reserved for visiting nobility and went in. She threw open the drapes and opened some windows to air the rooms out. She made her way through the rooms, stripping beds and replacing new bedding, changing out the rushes, dusting everything in sight and preparing the fireplace to be lit when the visitors arrived.

  She collapsed in one of the chairs when she finished, exhausted. She was not ready to face everyone. Her mind drifted back over the last several months and the changes she had gone through. She sat up, remembering the lesson with Speaking. :Is Air the only thing I can affect? Can you show me more?:

  :Of course,: Dragon responded. :Move over.: Dragon slid into her mind again, taking over her vision. :This is Earth.: Her vision shadowed into shades of gray, brown, and green. She moved carefully toward the window. The walls and floor were a light brown color, everywhere air was looked nearly pitch black. Chairs and other objects made of wood were a dusky gray. Dragon backed out a little, giving control over to her. She thought a minute. What could you do with Earth?

  She looked out the window. She could feel the warmth of the sun, but could not see any of its light. She was awed at the areas of live wood, glowing a brilliant green where they lived and gray where they had died. She sighed. “Stop,” she muttered to the vision and it dissipated. It did not seem that you could do much with Earth except see living and dead objects and stone or earth. She blinked as the light came back and headed out of the room, glancing over it once more to make sure it was clean.

  She carried her loads of laundry to the washroom. When she arrived, her ears were assaulted by the typical gossip of the washerwomen. “The king is frantic to find whoever angered his dragon,” one of them commented.

  “Why does the king have a dragon?” Arianwyn asked. “I thought it was just symbolic.”

  They laughed. “Oh, you high mountain people are certainly backwards, aren’t you?” They giggled some more as Arianwyn blushed.

  “I heard some high mountain man arrived in town babbling about a woman flying away on a dragon!” a second woman stated.

  Arianwyn straightened up slightly, turning her attention to the woman speaking. Before the woman could continue, the first continued. “All of the kings have been Bonded to dragons. And all of the queens, too. Of course, this will be the first queen the king chooses who isn’t Bonded.”

  “Why won’t she be Bonded?”

  “There isn’t a female dragon in existence to Bond,” the eldest woman said, tone and eyes serious. “As far as the king can determine, they’ve left us, for there’s no evidence of them dying…just disappearing.”

  “What about the man who came, the one talking about a woman flying away on a dragon?” Arianwyn asked, keeping her tone casually interested. It would not do for anyone to suspect.

  “Oh, I’m sure he’s mad. There’s always talk of one kind or another of strange dragon sightings. Once, the king chased down the rumors. Now he knows it’s just dreams and wishing.”

  Arianwyn thought back to the web covering Dragon and frowned. :Were they going to kill you?: Dragon shrugged mentally. That was what she had assumed. “Why does it matter if the queen is Bonded or not?”

  “My goodness, they really don’t teach you anything in those mountains, do they?” one of the younger women smirked.

  “Will you please just answer my question?” Arianwyn sighed.

  The talkative girl rolled her eyes. “When the king or queen Bonds to a dragon, it grants them gifts beyond what normal people can do. For example, the king is a most impressive warrior. He’s faster and stronger than any other man, able to engage in battle in the blink of an eye. Some claim he knows about attacks before they happen. They also say the dragon granted him greater height than other men.”

  “His physique is most impressive,” one of the other girls murmured. The other giggled again in agreement.

  “You shouldn’t talk of the king that way,” the older woman remarked disapprovingly. The younger women rolled their eyes. “It’s disrespectful. And if any of his possible future brides hear you’ve been looking at him that way, you’ll be whipped and dismissed from service. And don’t think you can lie to the king about what you’ve said. He knows when others lie to him…a gift you’ve all conveniently forgotten about.” That comment had a more sobering effect on the young women.

  They descended into harmless, idle gossip. Arianwyn thought about what she had learned, about special attributes being granted to those dragon-bonded. :I guess that explains why I can suddenly ‘see’ Air and Earth.:

  :And probably Fire, Water, and Spirit,: Dragon added. Arianwyn blinked. She had not even thought of those. She finished washing the laundry and carried it to
hang out to dry before heading to the kitchen to help in dinner preparations.

  :Who do you think the man was? Do you think he was from the village?: Arianwyn asked.

  :You’ll have to do some digging. It could be troublesome if he is able to describe us accurately.:

  Arianwyn silently agreed. Her hands paused in peeling potatoes and she stared thoughtfully into her bucket for a moment. :What does Spirit look like?: Dragon took over and started her vision. Nothing happened. Arianwyn shrugged. It probably didn’t work. She returned to peeling and dicing potatoes, listening to the chatter of the other kitchen servants.

  They had not been working long when a fanfare of horns sounded. Silence descended over the kitchen, quickly replaced by a flurry of gossip and speculation. They did not gossip long. “Quickly, quickly!” Cook urged. “We don’t have time. Our preparations are incomplete and we cannot serve a meal fit for the king. Quickly!”

  Everyone bent over their tasks, silence descending over the kitchen except for the sound of chopping and the cook’s occasional order. Tess bustled in, checking on the progress. “Cook! They have arrived at the gates of the city. Where are the refreshments for their rooms?” Cook pointed out various trays. Tess snapped her fingers at several girls and gave orders on where each tray was to be delivered. Arianwyn was relieved to be left out of the group.

  As the visitors neared the Keep, everyone moved more frantically and tempers flared. Finishing touches were put in the rooms. Flowers were added to freshen the air, refreshments were set discretely on tables, there were last minute previews of the halls for any stray speck of dust, and any tapestry found leaning was immediately straightened. The Grand Dining Hall was set in order for dinner in a few hours, servers reviewing their duties to avoid confusion or disruption to the diners.