[Vankara Saga 03.0] War of Atonement

by SJ West

  “While he is in my care, I will continue to hold him just to make sure.”

  “Woohoo!” Thomas shouted again as he began to laugh with glee.

  “Ahh, to be as carefree as him,” Vincent said longingly. “I can remember when I was just a little dragonling. It seemed as if nothing could hurt me. I think we’re braver in our youth when we don’t know the perils that exist within the world.”

  I remained quiet because I feared this may be the last time in his life that Thomas would ever have the chance to think like a child. Even though he wouldn’t be fighting in hand-to-hand combat, there was no way I could shield him from witnessing its aftermath. In a few short days, he would have to face the horrors of war and lose the innocence of childhood.

  “I never thought of it like that,” Aurora admitted. I could feel her emotions swell into sadness, just like mine were at the thought of what awaited Thomas. “Then let him enjoy what time he has left to be a child, Sarah.”

  I loosened my death grip around Thomas’ waist. As he continued to holler in glee over riding a dragon for the first time in his life, my eyes filled with tears because I knew what truly awaited him after this war was over. He would be forced to grow up quickly if he was going to be of any use to us. The guilt over using him in battle overwhelmed me, but I reminded myself that it was his own determination to help his country that changed my mind about him joining the fight in the first place. Aurora was right. I needed to allow Thomas the freedom to act like a child while he still could. It was the least I could do considering the sacrifice he was about to make.

  As we approached the valley where the other dragons were staying, I involuntarily gasped at the sight of them. Every color of dragon was represented, only yellow seemed to be in short supply, but that was to be expected. Dracen told me that the yellow dragons really weren’t fighters. Within dragon society, they primarily functioned as the scholars and record keepers. From my aerial vantage point, I only saw two yellow dragons present.

  “Are the two yellow dragons here to record the war for your history?” I asked Vincent.

  “Yes. They will be responsible for telling those back home what happens here and to remember the events in exact detail for later generations.”

  “They must have excellent memories.”

  “It is one of their hallmark traits.”

  I noticed that the most predominate faction of dragons present were the red ones. This fact wasn’t exactly surprising since they were the strongest of all the dragons. They acted as the lawmakers and peacekeepers within dragon society. The rest of the dragons (blue, green, and black) made up the rest of the contingent equally.

  “I’m surprised so many of the green dragons decided to come,” I told Vincent. “Dracen said that they are solitary creatures for the most part and try to stay away from the rest of you.”

  “That is very true,” Vincent acknowledged, “but they are also known for their need to see justice done. None of us particularly cares for the way Tyr and the others are portraying us to the human race. It is not how we want to be remembered by your people. I think I speak for all of us when I say that preventing Tyr from achieving his dream of enslaving humanity is just as important to us as it is to you. We do not want to go down in history as standing idly by while one of our brethren enacts such a diabolical scheme. Tyr will have to pay dearly for what he’s done.”

  “Pay in what way?” I asked, even though I was positive I already knew the answer to my question.

  “Let’s just say, I don’t see Tyr surviving this war. Gregoire can’t allow him to live. If there is one thing I can admire about Tyr, it’s his tenaciousness. Once he sets his mind to something, he does everything within his power to carry it out. Unfortunately, he’s never used that particular talent for good. Considering his track record, Gregoire will have no other recourse than to kill his brother. If he doesn’t do it now, Tyr will simply bide his time and try to do something like this again.”

  “Why does Gregoire have to do it? Tyr’s his brother. Wouldn’t it be better if someone else executed him?”

  “That isn’t the way it works with us. Tyr is Gregoire’s responsibility because they’re family. Even if we tried to kill Tyr to unburden Gregoire of the task, he would never allow it to happen.”

  As Vincent floated down into the valley, making a graceful descent, my mind suddenly became bombarded by the thoughts of all of the dragons below us speaking to one another. The combined rush of their thoughts all at once quickly overwhelmed me, and I half wondered if I was about to go mad.

  “Oh dear,” Vincent said worriedly. “I should have warned you this would happen. I’ve become so accustomed to us speaking with one another that I completely forgot you haven’t been around us for very long and certainly not so many of us at one time.”

  “What does she need to do, Vincent?” Aurora asked urgently. “Can I help her?”

  “I’m not sure, little one,” Vincent said. “We’ve never allowed a dragonling as young as you to bond to a human before. If you were older and had been raised by us, we would have taught you how to use your mind to help filter the thoughts of the others for Sarah.”

  “Okay,” Aurora said with newfound hope, “I can try to do that.”

  “Sarah,” Vincent said, “you will need to learn to use Aurora as a shield for your mind. Concentrate on her voice and simply let the others fall away until all you hear is Aurora. This is something you will need to learn for when we go into battle as well. It will help you shield your own thoughts from others. If you can’t hear what they are thinking, they won’t be able to know what you are thinking either. You will need to learn how to direct your thoughts to your intended target. Up until now, you’ve basically been sharing everything indiscriminately. That was fine because you were mostly in the presence of friends, but now it’s time you learned better control.”

  While the others in our party dismounted their dragons, I remained seated.

  “Thomas, I need you to go join the others,” I encouraged, giving him a smile to camouflage the turmoil my mind was in. “I’ll be down momentarily.”

  “Okay, Queen Emma,” Thomas said, being a good little soldier and not questioning my order.

  After Thomas was gone, I tried to do what Vincent and Aurora told me. I concentrated on Aurora’s voice as she spoke encouragingly to me and desperately tried to shut out the thoughts of the other dragons, but it soon became obvious that I was doing something wrong.

  A few minutes passed before I heard Dracen ask, “Is there anything I can do to help?”

  I had been concentrating so hard on Aurora’s voice that I didn’t even realize he was beside me until he spoke.

  “There are too many of them,” I told him, grimacing from the noise of them all inside my head. “Aurora and I are having a hard time shutting them all out.”

  “I am trying, Sarah,” Aurora said, sounding disappointed in not being able to help me.

  “The very first time I went to the dragons’ islands, I thought I was going to go insane,” Dracen told me. “Up until that time, I had only been around a handful of dragons at once. I experienced the same pain and confusion that you are now, but after I placed my full trust in my bond with Trill, he was able to share only what was important for me to hear. Lean on Aurora now, Sarah. Draw strength from her to help you shield your mind from the others. I wish I could give you specific instructions on how to do it, but I can’t. Every person who has bonded with a dragon must learn how to do it on their own. Aurora hasn’t had the benefit of learning how to perfect the technique from the others, but I believe it is something she can innately do, much like crawling for the first time is for a baby.”

  “I am trying, Sarah,” Aurora said tearfully. I could only assume she was feeling both frustrated and sad over her inability to help me.

  “Little one,” Vincent said in a calm voice to Aurora, “you must concentrate on Sarah’s thoughts and help her filter out what is important and what is simply chatter. A
lmost everything will fall into the latter category, but you must be the one who ultimately decides that for her. The mind of a dragon is made to withstand the invasion of a multitude of thoughts all at once, but a human’s brain cannot function with the cacophony.”

  “I can do it,” Aurora said confidently, and one by one, the thoughts of the other dragons slowly began to ebb away. I sighed in relief, feeling the ache between my temples gradually subside.

  “Can you hear me, Sarah?” Aurora asked.

  “Yes,” I said, thankful that Aurora’s voice was the only one I could hear. “Thank you for shielding me from the others.”

  “I think it’s best if I only allow you to hear me and one or two other dragons at a time while we are in the valley. If we end up having a conversation with more than that, I believe I can switch them out quickly enough so you don’t miss what they say to you.”

  “Can you still hear all the dragons in the valley?”

  “Yes, but as Vincent said, my mind was made for such a thing. It doesn’t cause me pain or confusion like it did you. Trust in me to act as your guide while we are here, Sarah. I will inform you if I hear something you should know about.”

  “Thank you, Aurora. I think we’re ready to go meet the others now.”

  I could feel Aurora’s excitement over being among so many of her own kind. It almost made me feel guilty that she was stuck living with me instead of being able to live among the other dragons on their sky islands.

  “Nonsense,” Aurora told me, having read my wandering thoughts. “There is nowhere else I would rather be than with you, Sarah. You and I shall live a full and happy life together. That is all I will ever desire for my life.”

  Dracen held out a hand to me. “Are you ready to meet your army of dragons, Your Majesty?”

  I placed one gloved hand into Dracen’s. “You know you don’t have to be so formal with me when we’re alone.”

  “You are the Queen of Vankara,” Dracen said as he helped me stand from my saddle. “You need to remember that from here on out. Everything you do and say represents the people of your country. Whether you want to or not, you hold the welfare of all Vankarans in your hands now.”

  “Was that supposed to be a pep talk?” I asked while we walked down Vincent’s outstretched wing. “Because all it did was make me feel more nervous.”

  “I only meant it as a reminder that you can’t think of yourself as only Sarah right now. These dragons have come a very long way to serve a queen. Make sure you give them one who is worth fighting and dying for.”

  “I will,” I pledged.

  Dracen was right. If these dragons were going to risk everything for me and my people, I had to assure them that they didn’t come to Vankara to fight in a hopeless cause or for a people who didn’t deserve it. This war wasn’t only being fought so we could retake what Nuala had stolen from us. It was also being fought to restore the honor of all dragons. Tyr had tarnished their reputation and legacy, and they were here to set the record straight. I, for one, would do everything I could to make sure history remembered dragons as the honorable creatures I knew them to be.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Walking among so many dragons seemed to bring into focus just how small I was in the grand scheme of things. I wondered if this was how an ant felt in the presence of humans. The creatures surrounding me were ancient by any measurement. Some were even older than the valley we stood in now. I gently tugged the Mantle of Vankara away from the front of my neck because I was beginning to get incredibly warm in it. Although it was still winter in Vankara, the temperature within the valley itself had risen to summertime levels. I could only assume the increase in temperature was due to the accumulation of body heat given off by all the dragons grouped together.

  Gregoire, Seneca, and Vincent walked in front of us to clear the way to the center of the valley. They walked in a small V-formation, allowing us frail humans to walk within their protective center. Once we reached a certain point, Seneca and Vincent stopped walking while Gregoire kept his measured pace. The rest of us followed Dracen’s lead and stood still between Seneca and Vincent.

  “The Queen of Vankara is here to speak with us all,” Gregoire announced to those present. “I expect for you all to show her the respect she deserves.” Gregoire turned to face me and promptly laid down on the ground. All of the dragons in the valley followed his lead.

  Dracen turned to me and said, “I’m going to walk Thomas around among the dragons so he can get a better look at them. The more details he’s able to remember, the more realistic the ones he conjures will appear.”

  When I looked down at Thomas, who was standing between Dracen and me, he looked back up at me with naked excitement. I was happy to see it, but I still felt a need to remind him why he was here.

  “Remember,” I told him, “we’ve given you an important task to perform during the attack on the Fae capital, Thomas. I’m counting on you to do it well.”

  Thomas’ face lost some of his excitement but none of his courage.

  “I will, Queen Emma,” he said determinedly. “You can count on me.”

  I watched Dracen and Thomas walk off. They were soon swallowed up by the sea of dragons before us.

  “Now,” Gregoire said to me, “please tell us what you and your military advisers have planned.”

  I went on to tell them about splitting the troops up. Gregoire called upon three of his red dragons to take the instructions Nicole had brought with her from Iron City. Each set of instructions were housed in an iron canister to make it easier for the dragons to hold with their talons. Once our messengers were on their way, I told the rest about the second part of our plan.

  “So you believe this old queen of the Fae will help you?” Gregoire asked, not sounding confident that my plan would work. “Are you sure she’s even still alive?”

  “Well, no,” I said hesitantly. “I can’t say for sure that she’s still living, but I see no reason why she should be dead. She may be old, but she seemed surprisingly spry for someone her age when we met. She also seemed to have all of her mental faculties and a true hatred for Nuala. I didn’t know why at the time, but now I understand. I think she will jump at the chance to dethrone the woman who snatched it away from her in the first place.”

  “Hmm, you may be right,” Gregoire agreed. “Although, her cooperation isn’t exactly necessary for our mission to be successful.”

  “No, it’s not,” I conceded. “But it would certainly help prove to the Fae that we have no desire to rule over them. Hopefully, our ‘invasion’ will be viewed more as a coup by their citizens to restore Lanai to the throne.”

  “I hope your plan works,” Gregoire said sincerely. “It would certainly make matters more manageable. I have no desire to kill any of the Fae if we can help it, but we will defend you and your troops if they force us to.”

  “I understand.”

  I noticed Dracen and Thomas walking back to us after their tour of the dragons.

  “And this one,” Runa, the leader of the yellow dragon faction, said, “what do you believe one so young has to offer us in this war?”

  “Thomas is a fine sorcerer,” I told them. “Since we will need to send the bulk of your forces to Iron City, he will make it appear that we have more dragons with us than we actually do during our battle.”

  “An interesting ploy,” Cassius, the leader of the black dragon faction, said, “but one that can be easily seen through.”

  “Perhaps,” I admitted, “but if it’s timed right, it could prove to give us a slight advantage.”

  “If it’s believed by the others.”

  “Yes.”

  “Cassius,” Gregoire said, “you will lead the assault on Iron City. I plan to go with the queen to the Fae side of the island. If the so-called feral dragons are still there, I need to know what’s made them go mad.”

  “I’ll be going there as well,” Seneca declared. “I need to know what happened to Vorana. Aurora and the queen both
said she was acting like one of these feral dragons over there. I want to know what Tyr did to turn such a gentle creature into one who would try to kill a human so viciously.”

  “Of course you should accompany us, Seneca,” Gregoire said understandingly. “I would need answers if that happened to my mate too.” Gregoire looked at Runa. “Why don’t you come with us, Runa? Ari can go to Iron City to record what happens on that front.”

  Runa dipped her head slightly in Gregoire’s direction. “As you wish.”

  “Titus,” Gregoire said to the leader of the green dragons, “you will be second in command to Cassius in Iron City. I will only choose five dragons from each faction to take with me to the Fae capital.”

  “And what should we do with Tyr if we come up against him there?” Cassius asked. “Odds are he’ll be the one leading the dragons into battle.”

  “If he is,” Gregoire said, “kill him if you must, but I would prefer you left him alive, if possible, so I can carry out his execution.”

  Cassius dipped his head in Gregoire’s direction just like Runa did, accepting his order about Tyr without question.

  Gregoire looked back to us, “Are you ready to leave now or do you need some more time to prepare?”

  “I promised Trill I would say good-bye to him before I left,” I told Gregoire aloud for the others to hear. “After I speak with him, we can begin our mission.”

  “Would you mind taking me inside too, before we leave?” Gabriel asked me. “I would like to retrieve something.”

  “What could he want from inside Dracen’s home?” Aurora asked, her interest piqued.

  “I’m not sure,” I said, also curious to know what it was Gabriel wanted to get. “I assume it’s something he left behind while he was living there with Kira.”

  “Interesting. …” Aurora mused.

  “Vincent can take you back to the top of the mountain and bring you back down when you are done,” Gregoire said.

  “Actually,” I said, clutching the pendant Dracen made me with my right hand. “I can transport Gabriel and myself inside the mountain with this necklace, but we will need a ride back down.”