by Teresa Grant
As the Dragon and the Queen passed, they seemed to spread a small ray of lightheartedness. First the men would smile at the thought of the scare the Dragons had given their fearless leaders, and then an even wider grin would appear at the thought of the advantages the Dragons would bring to the actual war.
The dread of yet one more night of battle was soon replaced with anticipation.
“Want to talk about anything, Elise?” Darion offered.
Elise quickly looked at Darion’s face, trying to read if he guessed her secret, or if it was just general concern for what they were about to face together.
“I guess I’m just tired Darion. I am beginning to feel a lot better though. I apologize again…”
Darion cut her off, “For the last time, I don’t think my scales will shrivel from a little royal vomit.”
Snorting with laughter, as she did as a child, she punched Darion playfully. “Don’t be disgusting. It was very embarrassing you know. Can you imagine if I’d been riding your father?”
Darion laughed hard at that.
“I’m just glad to hear you’re feeling better. Wars are hard enough at the best of times, but to go into one with a flu would be horrible.”
As the light faded, the two made their way back to the command post.
Something was being discussed with great animation and they hurried over to hear what was going on.
One of the sentries closest to the volcano was giving his account, “I tell you; something is different now. There were no sounds coming from below, like every other day before she spilled out her filth in the evenings. The morning started out the same, but around noon everything went quiet. Whether it’s a good sign or not, only time will tell, but if you ask my opinion, it bodes ill!”
Chapter 6
Inside the castle, Angelica halted all efforts of her own army. They were useless anyway. She wanted what was in there, Garr’s Scale. She climbed up and looked upon it so often she could not stand to wait a moment longer. There were things in the depths of that pool of disease on the evil side, that she had never dreamed of. It made her measly little efforts with her breeding pits laughable in comparison, and the things she had been able to coax from the top were mere minions.
She watched the other side of Garr’s Scale as well. She never missed a chance to call out to the female figure she could see amongst the light, telling her how the world had changed. It wasn’t worth her efforts any longer. At first, she was not sure if the woman could hear or understand her, but the more she shared her stories, the dimmer the light seemed to get.
All was finally ready.
That imbecile son of hers agreed to go through with her plan, not that it didn’t take a few well-polished lies and promises to edge him along. One of her furry little friends could fly over and add his liquid to The Scale’s bowl for her. It was a simple spell.
Chapter 7
By midnight they were convinced nothing was going to be forthcoming from the gates. It was decided that Elise and Darion should get some rest while Drake, Fynlaylyn, and Branadon, would do a little exploration of the mountain. He normally could not fly that well carrying two men, but the Elf was so light it was just as easy as carrying a large man, even though Branadon was no featherweight.
They flew to the top of the volcano where the men dismounted and bid Drake to keep well back. The lip overlooking the smoking chasm looked unstable at best. Laying down, the two belly-crawled the rest of the way in order to peer over the edge and into the pit.
Fynlaylyn gasped, “By the Blood of Rhom! Garr’s Scale is huge! My father told me all about how Rhom hid it long ago. How did she bring it back?” he cried. This, is even worse than we’d imagined.”
“What about the bleeding Scale?” the Dwarf demanded. “Speak up Elf, what’s all this to do with Elise and Darion?”
“Not here Branadon, let us move back to a safer position.”
They carefully inched their way back until they could crouch and crawl their way back to Drake.
“Okay, what is it? And please spare us the Elvin hoopla. Tell us plain and simple Fynlaylyn. That’s all there’s time for.”
“Generations back the Scale was erected by a great wizard named Garr. He built it to represent the forces of good and evil. The wizard was also a scholar and had originally constructed it for purely ethical reasons, naively never considering anyone would try to use the device for personal gain. Garr was murdered many years later, and The Scale was enlarged to the monstrous proportions that you just saw.
“There are valves at the bottom of each side of the Scale, put there to even the flow. He experimented and found that by allowing even too much good, it impaired the Scale horrifically. He came to the conclusion, that balance needed to be kept between them, at all costs. “Rhom was barely able to restore that balance the last time he manipulated it. There for, he hid the Scale in another dimension and left his faithful guardians to maintain the valves.”
“Shorter Fynlaylyn, shorter!” Branadon interrupted impatiently.
“The witch is attempting to tip Garr’s Scale.”
“Too short!”
“What about Elise and Darion? What do you expect them to do about it?” Drake questioned.
Fynlaylyn tried again to explain, “The prophecy reads ‘He who controls the fire within, being of nobility, wearing the lost crown upon his head, and having the blood of ‘Rhom the Conqueror’ flowing freely through his veins, shall tip the Scales, should balance need be restored. They are the only ones able to stop it from happening.
Turning back toward the opening, he added, “I need to take another look if we’re going to devise a plan.”
Drake watched and waited as the two again inched their way towards the edge of the volcano. Once at the edge, Drake watched helplessly as the volcano suddenly gave a mighty belch, and smoke came pouring up through the gigantic opening. His two companions slipped from the edge and fell into the abyss.
Angelica had rocked Garr’s Scale when she added her son to the mire.
Drake leapt into the air circling as close as he dared, trying to see if the men had survived the fall, or maybe only fell a short distance, but they were nowhere to be seen. He screamed a frustrated bout of fire into the air, not caring anymore who was witness to his rage.
With a heavy heart he headed back towards camp to give his report.
After hearing of the tragedy, Faradon and Cameron were first to agree that Elise and Darion need not be told of the loss until later. At first light they would be sent into the mountain to do what they were born to do. It would take a clear mind and a whole heart to make their attempt work, time enough later for grieving.
Elise slept near the fire, curled up by Darion’s feet, no warmer or safer spot in the camp.
She was feeling slightly better than the previous morning by the time Sir Cameron came to fetch them. He and Faradon drew straws to see who would accompany them on Drake. Sir Cameron won the honor, and now went over their all too vague of a plan. He explained that Fynlaylyn and Branadon were scouting all night and just went to bed. Elise thought it odd, but didn’t question the man. She saw Drake approaching and all thoughts turned to the task ahead.
Cheers arose from the ranks at the glorious sight the Dragons made, flying into the sunrise towards the massive gates located just up from ground level on the mountain’s side. They had never gotten close enough to test the gate’s strength before but felt that Drake and Darion ought to be able to break through anything that stood in their path. Previous attempts on the gate had been violently turned back, but so far there was still no sign of resistance from within.
Even stranger was the fact that when they arrived at the gates, nothing held them closed. They were merely shut, and nothing locked them.
Landing just outside, Cameron called to the rest, “Careful now everyone, the place reeks of a trap!” He then leapt from Drake’s back, and together they manhandled the enormous doors open outward.
Without waiting f
or them to remount, Darion quickly flew inside with Elise on his back, in order to catch anyone lying in wait just inside the entrance.
Though they saw no one or nothing waiting there, the doors slammed shut behind them, sealing Drake and Cameron on the outside.
Chains rattled and steel grated as giant bolts shot across the doors, securing them inside. They could hear Drakes cry of rage and tiny flames shot through little chinks in the metal doors.
“That wasn’t quite what we were expecting, was it?” Darion asked Elise, staring dumbfounded at the doors. “Even if I survive this, my father is going to kill me.”
“You’ve never been known for your hesitant nature, have you?” Elise added sarcastically. “Well, we’re supposed to be the prophecy twins, so I guess we continue on alone. I don’t think Drake and Cameron were meant to help anyway, if it makes you feel any better.”
“Sure, tell that to my father,” Darion answered morosely, as they could hear the thunderous assault taking place on the gates.
Elise felt safer remaining on the Dragon’s back. Darion quietly walked into the large tunnel-like entranceway. There was nowhere else to go, and nothing along the way that anyone or anything could be hiding behind. It seemed to get lighter further up, but for all the stories they heard about all the activity and awful creatures living in the mountain, there was an unearthly silence as they walked along.
Nearing the end of the tunnel, they could see an opening about half the size of the front gates.
As they passed through, it opened into a large empty room with hundreds of small cave-like fissures honeycombing the walls.
They knew it was probably a trap, but they also knew there was no other way but forward. They just had to take their chances and hope they would be able to handle whatever the Witch had in store for them.
As they made their way into the center, the torches lining the walls suddenly went out.
Chapter 8
The night before, while Angelica poured Sedric’s essence into the Scale, she was amazed to find an Elf and a Dwarf falling past her. The Dwarf was dead by the time she got to him. But finding the Elf close to death on the cavern floor below, was like a little present sent from heaven. He was already delirious before she started her questioning, and it was easy to coax the information she was seeking from his dying lips with a few spells.
Not only was she hours away from tipping Garr’s Scale, as she waited for it to fill the bowl higher and higher, but now she could tie up a few loose ends. She would have a bit more fun with the daughter than she had got with the mother. Elise was like icing on her cake of destruction. She would never admit it, but deep down, what she resented Elise for the most, was being the product of love between her parents, Allan and Natalia. A love she had always craved for herself. Her relationship with Allan had always been one of duty and greed, duty on Allan’s part, and greed on her own. Their son Sedric had taken a few, very inebriated, attempts to conceive. Elise’s survival, when she had finally heard of it, had been a constant thorn in her side.
This morning as Darion and Elise entered her lair, being prewarned by the Elf’s dying words, it was a simple thing to plunge the cave into darkness and send her minions to capture the two.
They swarmed from every direction. The darkness was so complete that once Elise was pulled from Darion’s back, the Dragon was afraid to breathe his fire for fear he would harm Elise as well. It took everything he had not to retaliate.
He heard her scream and suddenly the lights blinked on again. Elise was pinned to the wall by a giant troll. He held her head between his huge paws and looked triumphantly towards the Dragon, daring him to try to come and get her.
Darion stood motionless, as chains were shackled to his legs, and one large band was wrapped around his snout clamping his jaws painfully together.
Once this was done, a small wooden door at the other end of the room opened, and out of it came the most beautiful woman Darion ever laid eyes on. However, it took only seconds for him to form his opinion of the witch as she greeted them, “Ah, my honored guests. The little Elf who dropped in on me yesterday told me I could expect you. How nice of you to come.”
As she said this, torches flamed, shedding light on the gruesome sight behind her. Hanging from the wall like trophies, were the bodies of Fynlaylyn and Branadon.
Elise screamed as she fainted, sliding to the floor where the troll let her fall with a sickening thud.
Moments later, she came around right where she had landed, as Angelica paced the room in front of her and Darion. She could not decide what she wanted to do first.
Killing them was far too easy, and way too quick.
“What to do...? What to do?”
“Seems a pity my dear, that you are so oblivious to your humble beginnings. I’ve been told you don’t even know who your father is.”
“What has that to do with anything, Witch?” Elise growled. Darion was heating up so much beside her that the tiles beneath his claws were glowing red.
“I just thought you might want to finally meet your father, before you die. After all, I guess you technically are my stepdaughter,” Angelica sneered, enjoying the shock she saw fanning across Elise’s face.
“You’re lying!” Elise raged, jumping to her feet. “My father would never have married anyone as hideous as you.” That sounded stupid, she thought. The Witch was uncommonly beautiful, but Elise was so horrified by Angelica’s actions, she only saw the festering ruin beneath the skin-deep beauty.
“Oh, but he did! I’ll give you a little family history lesson while we're at it... I killed your mother.”
Elise was too speechless to interrupt. These were lies, all lies, but she could not stop herself from listening. It was like watching a horrifying accident where you just couldn’t look away, no mater how much you wanted to.
“I had assumed you were dead too,” Angelica continued. “That bastard Elf and his minion Dwarf thought they were soooo clever. Until my son Sedric, Sedric Slater, you may remember him? Yes? He is your half-brother. Wouldn’t that have made some good stories to pass around the dinner table with your half-wit children, if you had actually married him?
“Pity you didn’t just accept him at the beginning though. It would have saved us all a lot of trouble. I blame that on your father as well. His weak blood contaminated the poor boy so that he could not hold onto you the first time.
“Sedric paid for that little defect. I almost forgave him when he just about took control of the Dragons, but… out came that pathetic weakness again.
“Well, at least I got rid of your wimpy papa before he could warn the silly boy of my intentions. Don’t look so upset my dear. I didn’t kill him. I told you, I might even let you meet your daddy. Would you like that?”
Darion was spitting fire through the tiny holes in his muzzle. The chains around his legs were red hot and starting to smoke. Elise hoped they melted right off him. She would enjoy watching him devour this horrid woman.
“Back to the history lesson,” Angelica went on. “Pay attention my dear. Your whore of a mother sidled into town one day and thought she could steal your father away from me. Well, I showed her. I ran her out of town with her tail between her legs. The poison I was feeding her, finished her off while she was giving birth to you. Your father abandoned you the night you were born, and came running home to me.
“I hid Sedric when he was born, just as those two friends of yours hid you. What fun it was keeping him right there under everyone’s noses. By then of course I figured out your father’s little fib. The only manly thing he ever did was that lie! He told me you were dead. I was still young and naïve, and I believed him, but that little lie got him where he is today. The fool!
“I even had a spy within your walls to keep me apprised of everything when I wasn’t visiting the area, ‘incognito,’ of course.
“That crown of yours would have been a valuable souvenir, had you trusted my little jeweler friend with it.”
She str
olled over to Elise and reached out as if to take it from her head, then stopped. Turning back, she sauntered to her desk and sat down to continue.
“Sedric sounded more like the prophecy than you ever did anyway. You were a girl! All my son lacked was the royal blood. If you would have cooperated and married him, he would have been a King,” she hissed, narrowing her eyes.
“That business about the fire within, I don’t think it has anything to do with these scaly Dragons,” she told her, pointing at Darion as if he were a lap dog.
Standing once more, she continued while pacing the floor. “You see, it is the evil we all carry in our souls,” she explained. “The all-consuming fire we feed each time we do something that we know is wrong, and secretly delight in.
“Sedric’s fire was raging within him when he made his sacrifice. Garr’s Scale is past rebalancing now. Sedric was finally able to accomplish my wishes. Soon the Scale will come crashing down and be beyond repair.”
Suddenly she stopped, placing an elegant finger to her lips, and smiling, she questioned Elise, “While we wait, what about your father? Would you like to meet the man who abandoned you, for me?”
Angelica turned, as she did so, she waved her hand and all the heavy drapes along the walls slid back to reveal row upon row of mirrors.
Only each mirror looked more like a moving picture. Elise stepped hesitantly up to the closest one and peered at the woman she saw reflected within. As she watched, the woman looked up and peered right back at her with a look so profoundly lonely, it broke Elise’s heart. The mirror reflected the room around the edges of the prisoner, but she seemed to be trapped between the glass and the metal behind. Elise’s concentration was broken by the laughter coming from Angelica.