Vankara (Book 1)

by S. J. West

  As Fallon and I cautiously walked our horses into the city, I felt somewhat disconcerted by the fact there were no fae to be seen anywhere. It was as if every fae within shouting distance was hiding inside their homes. As we passed by one of the redwoods, I saw a young girl, no older than four, standing just inside one of the fae dwellings, peaking out through a small crack of an open door. A woman within the home yelled, startling the little girl just as the door was slammed firmly shut effectively cutting off the child’s curiosity.

  Had the fae been forewarned of our coming and told to stay within their homes? Their behavior seemed unnatural and made a knot of uneasiness form in the pit of my stomach. If they intended to shun our existence even as we walked among their homes, perhaps I had made a terrible miscalculation in seeking their help.

  Suddenly, a darkness blocked out the sun, causing us to look up to seek out the reason for its sudden disappearance. A dragon, two times larger than the one Fallon had slain, sliced through the sky, its wings cracking the air like a whip. For a moment, I wondered if the dragon was the true reason all of the fae were hiding inside their homes. If it was, were they really as cold hearted as every vankaran child was warned and just going to leave us to its mercy?

  Fallon must have had the same thoughts as I, unsheathing his sword and struggling to hold it up by his side, prepared to fight even though we both knew he wasn’t in any condition to be victorious a second time.

  We watched as the dragon inclined his body downward as if its intentions were to land right on top of us. Just as it was about to reach us, the dragon shifted its descent upward causing a billow of wind in its wake and landed a few feet down the dirt path from where we stood. Now that we could see it properly, I couldn’t help but be awed by its fierce beauty. Its scales were a deep emerald green. As it lowered its body to the ground, I could have sworn I saw a shimmer of gold glint across its scales. Its pale yellow eyes watched us with an intelligence I had not expected to see. It was only then I remembered Lanai’s words about the fae having domesticated some of the dragons in the area.

  It wasn’t until the beast laid its chin down against the ground that the dragon rider came into view. The rider sat in what looked like an ornate saddle made of polished wood and inlaid gold. It was strapped around the dragon’s neck and midsection by a thick black leather belt decorated with gold studs. The man swung his right leg over the pommel of the saddle and leapt to the ground in one swift motion, bending his knees gracefully as his feet impacted the ground. He turned his face towards us before rising to his full height, as though he were sizing us up before leaving his relatively safe position.

  Fallon turned his head towards me with an unvoiced question in his eyes: friend or foe?

  “I think if he meant to harm us he would have just landed his dragon on top of us,” I said in answer.

  Fallon sheathed his sword but kept a wary eye on the dragon rider.

  The man started to walk towards us.

  He was dressed in what looked like a suit made from the hide of a dragon. Its color matched the deep emerald green of the dragon he rode. The jacket was high collared and slim fitting to the waist, from there it flared out almost like a short skirt to his knees. Gold buttons centered with round sparkling emeralds emblazoned on the front of the jacket from his neck to his waist. His pants were of the same material and slim fitting, disappearing into a pair of black leather boots. His long, one length dark brown hair was combed back from his face and fastened into a ponytail which hung loosely down his back to his waist and swung from side to side as he walked. As he got closer to us, I noticed his eyes were a bright purple-grey. They were the most beautiful eyes I had ever seen in my life.

  He stood before us looking from Fallon to me and back again. We waited patiently to see if he would greet us as friend or foe.

  “I send you greetings from Queen Nuala,” he finally said in a deep baritone voice. “My name is Kian. I have been asked to escort you both to the palace.”

  I took a step towards Kian. “I am Queen Emma Vankar and we heartily accept your gracious offer of assistance.”

  Kian bowed at the waist to me. “It is my pleasure, your majesty.”

  He stood back up and turned towards his dragon.

  “Up!” He commanded in a voice which expected nothing less than complete obedience.

  Without hesitation, the dragon rose to its feet and leapt into the air as if the action of lifting its great weight were effortless. It soared up past the top of the trees and banked off to the right, disappearing from our sight.

  “Please, follow me.” Kian said to us, walking down the winding path deeper through the fae town.

  Curiosity got the best of me as the silence of the inhabitants of the town began to grate on my nerves.

  “Kian,” I said to gain the others attention.

  Kian was walking in front of us and turned his head to peer at me over his shoulder.

  “Are we the reason all of your people are hiding in their homes? Are they afraid of us?”

  “Not exactly,” he said coming to a stop to turn towards me while we conversed. “Queen Nuala asked everyone to stay inside until we knew what your intentions were for coming here. I hope you don’t take offense but considering the history between our two peoples, it was a natural precaution.”

  “No, I understand. But, how did you know we were coming?”

  “We received word from one of our aerial scouts you were on your way.”

  “Do you have a lot of those dragons?” Fallon asked. Even I knew Fallon wasn’t just making polite small talk with his question. The military man inside him wanted to better understand what we were up against.

  “We have a few,” Kian replied before turning back around and continuing down the path.

  Fallon scowled slightly at the evasiveness of the answer. I had to press my lips together to prevent a grin. I felt sure if the tables were turned Fallon would have given the same sort of answer, elusive enough to not give anything away and polite enough not to ruffle many feathers.

  As we continued down the dirt path, I wondered what sort of ruler Queen Nuala was. Even though I hadn’t known Lanai for very long, I felt sure her warnings concerning Queen Nuala’s trustworthiness were well founded. It was evident the fae Queen had a great deal of control over her people considering we had only seen one curious child and Kian since we entered their town. That type of control could only be caused by lacing well founded fear inside the hearts of people. If the fae were that afraid of being reprimanded by their Queen, then she was indeed someone I would have to be careful dealing with.

  As humans, we often picture things in reference to how they are in our own lives and surroundings. So when Kian said he was taking us to the Queen’s palace, the picture in my mind had instantly conjured up a building made of stone even though I had already seen how the fae lived.

  When we rounded a bend on the road we were on, Kian announced, “Welcome to the Queen’s home.”

  Although not what I expected, the Queen’s palace was still breathtakingly beautiful and befitting someone of her station.

  It was composed of what looked like ten giant redwoods which had grown so close together the base of their trunks had fused into one giant fortress of wood. A multitude of tree limbs burst from the top of the trunk like water from a geyser. The tree had a surreal feeling surrounding it, like it wasn’t a natural part of the forest but made to mimic its surroundings in order to fit in. It glowed with an inner beauty, not tangible with the naked eye yet awe inspiring to the soul.

  There was no visible door which led into the palace of the fae Queen. Kian walked up to one of the massive roots sprouting from the ground and gently pressed an open palm against its rough bark. As if alive, the root rose up from the earth and made an archway revealing a black marble pathway underneath leading towards the central trunk of the tree. Walking down the path towards the great chamber, the smell of the forest seemed stronger somehow. The earthy aromas of fresh earth, wo
od and water mingled together and triggered my mind to flash back to the thick wooded forest surrounding my home in Peony.

  Ever since accepting my role as Queen Emma Vankar, I had worried myself sick over not knowing how to be a Queen. I hadn’t been raised in a privileged household where my every whim was immediately satisfied. My mother and father taught me to cherish what little I had to my name and how to make it on my own. They taught me right from wrong and how to work my way through the grey shadows between the two.

  Just as Kian led us into the great chamber of the fae Queen’s palace, I finally realized being a Queen wasn’t just about how much you had in material wealth. It was about how much faith you had in yourself and the decisions you had to make everyday for the people who counted on you to do what was right for them. Unknowingly, Liam and Imogen Harker had raised a Queen who would hold the well being of the people of Vankara above her own needs and desires. I may not have been born into the ancient lineage of Vankar blood but I was the Queen of Vankara and knew without the fear of doubt that I would hold true to the values of my parents no matter what adversity I might face as I tried to lead Vankara into a brighter age of reason and prosperity.

  I felt the peace of fully knowing what the purpose of my life was as we entered the great chamber of the fae Queen.

  My eyes were immediately drawn to the Queen. She sat serenely on a throne made of polished redwood limbs entangled in a web of finely spun gold. Her hair was long and the color of fresh cinnamon. Her commanding eyes were as green and alive as the forest she lived in. Her skin was fair with a sprinkling of sun kissed freckles across the bridge of her nose and cheekbones. She wore a white gown made of cotton tightly fitting across her ample bosom and narrow down her slim waist, flaring out across her legs to the floor.

  Lying beside the Queen with its triangular head held high and proud was a dragon with shiny ruby red scales. From its broad forehead to the tip of its tail was a line of sharp looking white horns with black tips. Its blood red eyes studied us cautiously as we made our way to stand in front of the Queen.

  Kian dropped to one knee in front of his Queen, resting his right arm across his bent knee while bowing his head.

  “Queen Nuala,” he said raising his head to speak. “I present to you Queen Emma Vankar and her escort.”

  Kian stood to his feet and walked up the carved out stairs to the Queen’s dais only stopping once he stood beside her chair. He turned to look back at us.

  A guarded closed lip smile spread across Queen Nuala’s face as she studied us.

  “I have to admit you’ve caught us a bit off guard, Queen Emma,” she said in a softer voice than I would have expected. “Your visit is unprecedented. We haven’t had a Vankaran on our lands for quite sometime, at least not one who survived the ferals living by the wall.” Her eyes fell on Fallon’s torn jacket. “You are the first of your kind to survive a feral dragon’s attack, sir. You are to be congratulated.”

  “Fallon is quite adept with his sword,” I told her.

  “How is it that you are still standing?” She questioned Fallon directly.

  “One of your people helped heal my wounds.” As soon as the words left Fallon’s mouth, I inwardly winced, not wanting Nuala to know of Lanai's help.

  Queen Nuala’s head tilted slightly to the right as she considered Fallon's words. “All of my people were told to stay inside their homes,” her voice was strained as she attempted to conceal her temper behind the guise of curiosity. “Who helped you so I can thank them properly?”

  “The person didn’t give us their name,” I replied, not wanting to bring Queen Nuala’s wrath down upon Lanai because of her kindness. “But we are eternally grateful your people would extend their hospitality to us in our time of need. I’m not sure Fallon would have survived otherwise.”

  The head of the dragon lying beside the Queen’s throne turned to Nuala like a human would when addressing someone else. The Queen turned her head to the dragon and then nodded as if she understood what the dragon wanted.

  “Queen Emma, would you mind revealing the dragonling you have hidden underneath your cloak?”

  Until that moment, I had forgotten all about the small dragon still sleeping on my shoulder. I saw no reason to not show it to Queen Nuala so I carefully folded the left side of my cloak over my shoulder to reveal the still slumbering dragon.

  Nuala stood from her throne and walked down to me, never taking her eyes off of the dragonling.

  “How did you come to possess her?” She asked as she stood in front of me.

  “Is it a girl?” I asked. The sex of the creature hadn’t even crossed my mind.

  “Yes,” Nuala said, flicking her eyes towards me for a second before returning them to the dragonling. “There are very few female dragons born each generation, probably only two or three.” Nuala’s eyes looked back at me with undisguised hostility showing her displeasure in my having possession of one of her prized dragons. “What I don’t understand,” she said in a controlled voice, “is why it chose you to bond with.”

  “I don’t understand it either,” I said, deciding to not show how well I understood her gentle gibe. "Is it possible it would bind itself to you or someone here in the capital? I honestly don't see how I can take it back home with me.”

  “You must,” Queen Nuala’s eyes grew wide, horrified I would even consider such a thing. “If you refuse to take her with you, she will mourn your going and die of heartbreak and starvation. To leave a dragonling, much less a female one, in such a way is blasphemous. She is bound to you for life whether you like it or not, Queen Emma.”

  “I see,” I said, not really seeing at all. “Well, I guess I’ll have to figure something out.”

  “You shouldn't have let her bind with you in the first place,” Nuala said, as if what happened was my fault.

  “She didn’t give me much choice,” I defended. “Vankaran’s aren’t taught much about your ways. Perhaps if your people and my people knew more about one another, situations such as this could be avoided.”

  “That’s why we have the wall,” Nuala’s tongue was as sharp as a whip. “So we can live separated from one another and not have to deal with each others customs.”

  Without another word, Nuala turned her back to us and returned to her throne. After she sat down, she looked back at me.

  “So tell us, Queen Emma, what exactly has brought you to our lands? I’m sure you didn’t travel all this way just out of idle curiosity.”

  I took a deep breath to steady my nerves. Queen Nuala’s rebuff about the dragonling caught me off guard and I needed to be careful about what I said to her concerning the source of the plagues. I had no intention of starting a war with the fae over hearsay and unfounded conclusions.

  “I have been told your mages believe the plagues our lands have suffered through the past few years are magical in nature. I came to ask if you have any proof of this to be true.”

  Nuala’s eyes narrowed on me suspiciously. “Why would you need proof from me when it is your mages who have caused the plagues?"

  "Our mages protest they are not the ones who have caused the plagues. What makes you believe otherwise?"

  "I am not a fool Emma Vankar. Don't waste your lies on me."

  "Now just wait one damn minute..." Fallon said, taking a step forward as though he might rush up the stairs to have it out with the Queen.

  I placed a gentle but steady hand on his chest, careful not to push too hard but firm enough to make him stay where he was.

  "If I thought our mages were responsible for the plagues," I said, returning my attention to Nuala, "I can assure you I would have the culprits arrested. We have lost people just as you have. If you have proof the Vankaran mages are responsible, please present it to me so I can confront them directly."

  "And if I give you proof," Nuala said guardedly, "what will you give us in return?"

  "Hopefully an end to the plagues," I said. "I refuse to believe any Vankaran mage could be responsib
le much less the entire college. But, if I can show the Royal Sage proof the plagues are caused by magic, she might be more willing to help me find out who or what is behind them."

  “I want something more than your rhetoric, Queen Emma.”

  “What is it that you want?”

  “I want you to promise me you will stop trying to send spies into my land. I want your people to leave mine alone and abide by the treaty which was signed by our ancestors. We want nothing to do with you or your people. As far as we’re concerned, you’re simply a poison on our lands leeching out what was once good and pure here.”

  “I can promise you there will be no more spies sent to this side of the wall and we will try our best not to intrude in your lives any more than is absolutely necessary.”

  A cold silence settled over the great chamber as Nuala seemed to weigh the truthfulness of my words in her mind. I wasn’t sure she would give us what we asked for but then she turned her attention to Kian who still stood at her side.

  “Ask Lorenna to bring a vial please,” she requested.

  Kian walked down the stairs and disappeared down a hollowed out corridor which seemed to lead deeper within the palace. A few minutes later he returned with a young woman dressed in a plain dark blue dress. The woman looked to be barely twenty years old with short black hair cut bluntly at chin level. She was petite in stature and in features. Her eyes held wariness which not only seemed for us but also for her Queen. In her hands, she held a small tear-drop shaped glass vial filled with a liquid which shimmered a phosphorescent yellow.

  “Give Queen Emma the vial, Lorenna,” Nuala ordered.