Dwarven Steel

by D. L. Harrison

  Bryce sneered, “Shut the hell up you pain in the ass,” and walked around me and started casting.

  I was torn in that moment, I wanted to know the truth, but I feared the only way I’d get to the truth would be to turn on one of the people I was supposed to protect.

  Turned out, I needn’t have worried, the creature glared at him and looked into his eyes. Bryce immediately stopped his spell, and seemed frozen. I could also feel his terror, and I changed my mind. She wasn’t using mind control, she was doing something else, scaring her victims somehow with her mental abilities. I was sure now she didn’t have telekinesis or empathy, just a powerful telepathy, and her water magic.

  The creature stared at me in confusion, “Why are you not afraid. You wish to know what I am? The two legs have earned far more than their deaths, and I will see to it they pay for what they did.”

  “They’ve done nothing, you’re mistaken, and blaming them for the transgression of others, the ones that came before them.”

  She screamed, “Lies! You wish to see my true form, very well.”

  Her body tore and bones crunched, and she grew, and then she grew some more. I gaped at what she’d become, and the senseless words just fell out of my mouth in a tone of pure awe.

  “Gerard, didn’t you tell me dragons were just a myth?”

  Gerard choked out, “They are a myth. No such thing.”

  I laughed at his denial, but I knew exactly how he felt.

  The blue dragon with beautiful glittering blue scales, long leather-like dark sapphire wings, and swirling ochre eyes, reared back on her hind feet. She was the size of a van, not counting the wings, or the neck and head, and I got the impression that made her just a child of her race, but she was still huge, and intimidating. Then she inhaled deeply.

  Oh shit, I knew it was just legend, but I wasn’t about to take chances.

  I teleported the four of us two blocks away, and I was heartily glad I had when the icy breath streamed out of her mouth in a cone, and sparkled against the fire and air magic of her prison.

  For about a second.

  Then the spell fizzled spectacularly, and the cone of ice breath hit where we’d just been standing and layered a half block of street and buildings in ice. She pushed off with her hind feet, and took to the air.

  I said, “My love. Reptile, scales, big, breath attack of its magical element, and has wings and can fly. By definition, that’s a dragon. She even has dragon fear.”

  Although, technically that last one was just a telepathic thing, I wondered if I could learn how to do it.

  Lynn said in a shocked voice, “Dragons are just a myth.”

  I snorted, “Well, we’ll have to settle for her until a real one comes along then.”

  Lynn glared at me for a moment, but then laughed a little hysterically.

  Bryce still looked terrified, and I wondered if he’d snap out of it, I didn’t want to dig in there and try and undo it since I didn’t completely understand what she’d done.

  “The crystals, right? They are the bones and scales of your ancestors? Do you object to them using the crystal, because they didn’t know, they just found it here.”

  It seemed obvious to me now, her gorgeous glittering sapphire scales almost looked like she was covered in that crystal sand. The secret… the dark secret of dwarven steel, was that it was partially made with the remains of a dragon’s body and magic. I had so many questions.

  Her mental voice almost destroyed my shields, if I hadn’t been the most powerful human with mental powers from my world, she would have destroyed my shield, and quite possibly my mind. It was a little sobering that this young dragon was my mental equal, I’d hate to get on her bad side in a few centuries.

  “I care not for the remains. I hold my mother’s memories of the past. It was the two legs that committed genocide on my race long ago. I am the first hatchling in millennia, and I hatched alone.”

  She must think we’re all the same. At a guess, somehow the water flooding the mine must have caused her to hatch, which meant she was sixty years old, and grew up with old bitter memories. Then the earthquake three weeks ago either forced her out, or opened up a new passage for her to escape, and she found the dwarves.

  I sent her mental pictures of all the different races, and then said, “Not all the same. Some good, some evil,” I showed her the elves, dwarves, and humans, and then the evil races, demons, ogres, goblins, and orcs, I explained the differences in the good and evil races, and then added, “I suspect these are the ones that performed genocide on your people, am I correct?” I asked as I held up the mental picture of the demon example.

  Dragons were a very magical race, even more so than the dwarves and elves, their scales and bones had to be full of powerful organized magic for it to last for millennia after death. I could imagine a demon’s chaos magic would literally shake the dragon’s scales and bones apart into dust if they got close enough and overcame the dragon’s magical defenses. Maybe that’s what she feared so much, and why she was so cautious, but the dwarves couldn’t do that to her at all.

  I supposed it was a good thing she’d been fearing them mistakenly, or she probably could have murdered every dwarf in this city by now if it wasn’t for her very cautious approach.

  It might also be why she’d been hiding what she really was, and shapeshifted into a dwarven form. Maybe she thought they had a weapon specifically for dragons, and only revealed herself because she’d needed to, in order to escape the trap Lynn and Bryce had set.

  I also wondered if they were supposed to be the fourth “good” race. One that had been wiped out early by the evil races and relegated to mythical status. She still didn’t seem evil to me, merely sad, lost, and angry at those she believed killed all the rest of her kind so long ago. I’d feel better about my assumptions though, if I could actually feel her mind and emotions, but they were still blocked off.

  She was so beautiful, and I felt awe as she circled above us. Small young dragon or not, her claws were as big as I was, and she could probably eat me in one bite. It was rather humbling. I actually had tears in my eyes, both of awed joy at the creature flying above me, and sadness that a whole race had been eradicated by evil. To say I was a little messed up in the head in that moment was an epic understatement.

  “Will you speak to me, and tell me what happened? How did you come to be born? What is your name?”

  I had many more questions too, but I stopped sending them.

  Bryce finally snapped out of it, and said angrily, “We need to kill it.”

  I asked, “Is that what the contract says, or do we just need to stop the killing?”

  Bryce said coldly, “The murderous creature must die, if we are to earn our weapons and shields.”

  I sighed, nothing is ever easy, but as he didn’t start casting I ignored his comment for now. But… there was no way in hell I’d kill the last dragon in existence, she was just a confused angry child that was lashing out at a perceived evil. I don’t care what the deal was, I didn’t care what it cost, and I knew by what she’d said that my goddess was in agreement. In the end, that’s all I needed to know.

  I was going to go with my feelings, and with what was right.

  The young female dragon roared, and then flew toward the west.

  She sent, “I must think on what you’ve told me, and go over my mother’s memories again. If you have lied to me, you will be the first that dies when I return.”

  Well, that was comforting, sort of. At least we didn’t have to worry about more dwarves dying…

  Chapter Fourteen

  We were back at our table at the tavern, and I took a long drink of ale. Getting drunk would be stupid, but slightly tipsy I could handle and still not lose control of my powers. We were all silent for a while, and lost in our own thoughts.

  I had no doubt baron asshat was plotting how to kill the dragon.

  Lynn said, “The trap by the mine has been destroyed, the…” she trailed off, and sh
ook her head, before she reluctantly said, “dragon must’ve destroyed it and gone back in its watery lair.”

  I decided it was now or never, and shared my silent communication with the dragon with everyone else at the table.

  Bryce sighed in annoyance, “So? We still have to kill it. We need those weapons, and the king is depending on me to get them.”

  I shook my head, “We can’t kill the last dragon in existence, not if it’s just a confused, lonely, and angry child dragon. She’s not evil, just confused. We need to talk to the king tomorrow, and renegotiate. He just might jump at the chance, she has first-hand knowledge of a war we never knew even happened from her mother’s memories, not to mention if she decides the dwarves aren’t at fault, they have a good chance of getting a dragon as an ally out of it.”

  She’d said she’d been hatched alone, but she hadn’t said she’d been the only egg. But even if that last thought was just wishful thinking on my part, there was no way I’d kill her.

  Or let anyone else do it. If nothing else, I bet I could get Queen Aleisia to take her in, the elves would watch over her. They revered nature after all.

  Gerard said, “She’s right. The situation has changed, we were expecting a monstrous or evil creature, not the last female of a sentient race we believed to be nothing but a myth. The current path is simpler, but it’s also an evil decision.”

  “Shit, now the bitch has got you speaking out of turn too? Shut the hell up, both of you. We’ll do what I say, when I say. The creature dies.”

  I snapped, “The bitch doesn’t work for you, and I don’t work for King Alexander either. I work for Arella, and I’m here as a favor to my husband. I won’t kill her, not unless its self-defense and absolutely necessary, and I won’t let anyone else do it either. Especially not some arrogant asshole who doesn’t know right from wrong.”

  Wow, maybe I shouldn’t drink ale after all. I’m pretty sure I’d just referred to myself in the third person, and called myself a bitch, and then called a Baron of Trelin bad words. At least I used the honorific for the king.

  Crap. He was turning purple.

  Oh good, and now Holmarra and Sanath were coming. That was no surprise, I imagine a lot of dwarves had seen the large dragon flying overhead, and it’d reached the king’s ears if he hadn’t seen it himself. Probably not a conversation he wanted put off until tomorrow morning.

  He finally blew, and roared at me, “How dare you speak to me in such a tone!”

  Yup, so much for being careful how I went about it, and not making any enemies. Lynn looked shocked, but also a little amused. It wasn’t really my fault, I’d been holding my temper just fine, and had even taken the abuse from him and let it roll down my back… until he’d verbally attacked my husband instead of me that is. He’s lucky I didn’t smash him into a wall.

  Lynn said, “Perhaps it isn’t a horrible idea to consider. It might be easier to negotiate something new with the king and the dragon, than actually killing the dragon, even if it’s a young one, it’s extraordinarily powerful, especially in its natural form.”

  He scowled, “We need to make sure the contract goes through, we need those weapons and shields.”

  He was like a broken record, maybe he’d drunk too much too?

  I frowned, “We do need it, but I won’t murder an innocent to get it.”

  He roared, “I don’t need you to, I just need you to shut up!”

  I raised an eyebrow, his magic hadn’t done jack shit to the dragon, and he’d be dead if it wasn’t for me. The dragon would squash his ass without Gerard’s and my assistance, and I wouldn’t be giving it.

  Holmarra cleared her throat, “My father would like to speak to you. Now.”

  Bryce gave me an evil look, that quite clearly said I better not talk, at all. Then got up and walked toward Holmarra. Lynn gave me a look, and shook her head. I almost felt guilty, like I’d somehow let her down, but Bryce was an asshat, that clearly wasn’t my fault. She stood, and Gerard and I followed our charges as we went to see the king of the dwarves. It was clear though, that I’d just made a lifelong enemy. His lifetime anyway, not mine, unless young nobles inherited the grudges too? Then I might be in trouble.

  My pocket said, “Hello?”

  I blushed as I pulled the communicator out, “Hi mom, now’s not a good time.”

  She said, “Okay, just calling to let you know the education pad is finished, so stop by soon okay?”

  “Alright, I’ll be by as soon as I can, for the day if possible.”

  I was drawing a lot of looks, and shrugged after we said our goodbyes. I turned the mute back on, and stuck it in my pocket.

  It also reminded me of the Gerard anti-aging issue, he looked around twenty-four still, but I had no doubt it would drop another year or two in the next couple of days. Or maybe it wouldn’t, and this was his target age of whatever she’d done. I suppose I’d have to wait and see.

  Lynn asked, “Who was that? And what was that?”

  I smiled, “The Goblin Queen of Chilik, my mother. And that was a communication device that doesn’t use magic, it uses science.”

  I felt more in control of myself by the end of the walk. The columns were dim but still gave enough light to navigate the city at night. The cooler air seemed to clear my head as we approached the king’s small mansion, this time we were taken to the front door, and inside the house itself.

  Holmarra took us to a room right off the front entry, which had a table and several chairs. The king was still dressed simply, but now his leathers were immaculate, as were the queens, and he was very clean. The heir wasn’t present, but he was the only one not here. Sanath nodded to us as we sat down on the opposite side of the table.

  The king got right to the point.

  “While I appreciate you saved the life of that young dwarf, perhaps in the future if something like that happens late in the evening you could come straight here to report? Especially if it involves a creature long thought to be nothing but a myth.”

  Bryce said, “Of course your majesty. We almost had the creature down, but one of our guards, Katherine, pulled us away prematurely. I’ve taken her for task for this failure, and we’ll destroy it soon.”

  Wait, what? I’d saved the asshole’s life, he was standing there as frozen as a statue.

  The king frowned, “Call me Nabrec. I was told by many witnesses, that had Katherine not magically pulled you away a couple of blocks, the dragon would have frozen you all solid. I was also told, the dragon effortlessly destroyed your magical traps and returned to her lair.”

  Bryce said, “I’m not sure I understand Nabrec.”

  Holmarra snorted and said bluntly, “He means you’re a damned liar, your guard saved your life. I also believe your shifting blame because you’re angry at the woman. Something only a human would do. I heard what you said to the guard before you knew I was there, I’m very interested to hear what she might have to say. Since it was her that figured out where the dragon was from, and she’s the only one who’s done any damage to it at all. She’s also the one who found it both times. All you’ve done is throw around magic that didn’t work to find, trap, or kill it. Now you sit there and blame your failures on your guardian? From what I understand about you humans, even for your race that’s dishonorable behavior.”

  I almost felt sorry for him, as he sat there helplessly. What could he possibly say? He might be able to politic his way out of it in front of a human, but dwarves? Not a chance. Lynn looked amused, but gave me a warning look, which I understood. Bryce would find some way to take this out on me at a later date.

  Nabrec nodded in approval at his daughter, and then turned to me. It was what I wanted, but it also freaked me out at the same time.

  “What do you say Katherine?”

  I sighed, and decided it wasn’t important right now, I could be known as Katherine to the dwarves, and two human nobles.

  “I think the facts change everything, and we should renegotiate our deal.”


  The king’s face turned stony, “Explain.” Apparently, the dwarves took deals very seriously.

  “We believed it to be a murderous creature and evil. What we’ve found is a dragon, the last of her kind. She’s killing your people in the mistaken belief that you’re responsible for the genocide of her race. She has racial memories of the war between the dragons and another race, before the dwarves got here. The problem is she’s young, and didn’t understand there were differences. She called us two-legs, and believed we were all the same. I believe I convinced her otherwise, and also believe it was the demons who you chased south that had killed her ancestors, but she’s gone to think on it, and if she decides I was lying, she promised to kill me first. So, for now your people are safe from her, I think.

  “I’m not positive, but I think the flooded mine failure from sixty years ago somehow caused her egg to quicken and hatch, and over three weeks ago the earthquake either drove her out or freed her. She found the dwarves, and she found dwarven steel, and drew some wrong conclusions. So, I propose for our services in working out a treaty of sorts between your people and the dragon, instead of killing it, we would still get the same items we asked for. The situation has changed, and I believe so must the solution. I’ll not murder a child, even if she did do terrible things in ignorance. Although, if she keeps doing it now that I’ve told her the truth of things, I’ll kill her in self-defense, but I think she deserves a chance.”

  Nabrec asked, “What does our steel have to do with it?”

  “I suspected the truth immediately when I saw her sparkling sapphire scales, and when I asked her about it she confirmed it. The crystals you use to make dwarven steel are the bones and scales of her ancestors, that’s why the magic matches as well, because dwarven steel is literally part dragon magic. She also said she doesn’t care about that part, they’re dead and gone, she just wanted revenge against those who caused the genocide of her race.”

  Nabrec asked, “So you spoke to her?”

  I nodded, “Mentally I did, apparently she has both water magic as a blue dragon, and telepathy. It’s how she causes fear in those she attacks, literally getting inside of their minds, and was why the dwarven victims couldn’t flee or even cry out. I know she’s killed, but there’s a good chance she could be a powerful ally to the dwarves, or at least a good neighbor, once she accepts the truth. I am loath to kill an innocent, and she is innocent.”