Dragon Hero

by C. L. Woodward

  My mood perked up at the chance to talk about Talestria, “Huh? Oh… good.”

  Bolam smiled, “It really sounds like you two make an ideal match.”

  Jerak walked beside us, “I don’t know… she is a bit mean.”

  Bolam laughed, “That is because you provoke her.” Jerak opened his mouth to argue but just sighed and shrugged.

  Bolam turned back to me, “I don’t know much about women, but I can really see you two…”

  Jerak jumped in between us, putting his arms over our shoulders. He laughed, “If anyone knows about women it is me! I don’t know… sure, she is what you would call “hot” for a grey-skinned dark elf, but she is… Talestria!”

  I looked at Jerak, “What do you mean?”

  Jerak backed away and shrugged, “I am just saying, if you are going to become a legendary hero like myself… well, she is infamous, after all.” Jerak put his arm over my shoulder again, “What would people think?” His words felt painful. Jerak walked in front of me, “She isn’t…” Just then, I punched him.

  “Blake!” Bolam cried out. I stared down at Jerak with my fist still clenched in anger. Bolam ran over and stood between him and me. Teltar moved over to check on Jerak. “Jerak didn’t mean it!” Bolam said while waving his arms. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I heard Jerak laughing, but it wasn’t in a mocking tone. I opened my eyes and saw Jerak get back up with a bloody lip, “I am proud of you!” Bolam moved away and Jerak stared at me with a bloody smile. I could only stare at him, confused. Jerak wiped the blood on his lip, “I approve of you two!” I think even Teltar looked a bit surprised by that.

  “You what?” I said.

  Jerak laughed, “Oh it is an old trick! Whenever a man falls for a girl, it is his buddy’s duty to put stress on it. Just to see how strongly his friend really feels.” I glanced at Bolam who was scratching his head. Jerak tapped my shoulder, “If you didn’t care about her you would have caved, but you fought back like a man!”

  Teltar shook his head, “That’s a dwarven method. You just did what most dwarf men do.”

  Jerak glanced at Teltar and gave a shrug, “Well don’t blame me for using a good tactic!” Teltar scratched the back of his head and just kept moving. I did feel better that Jerak didn’t mean those things about her; it helped confirm things with her and me.

  We hiked along the road for another hour. Jerak and Bolam made some small talk while I daydreamed about Talestria. After pondering about my feelings and the thing Jerak did, perhaps I really did… A loud voice boomed ahead of us on the road, “Stop right there!” I looked over and could feel goosebumps cover my body instantly. Torkuhl stood there, blocking the road with several Shadens. Many of them had crossbows aimed at us. Torkuhl took a few steps, “Wait, I know you guys!”

  Jerak took out his mace, “Oh, man! It is Torkuhl, Blake!” I cringed as he said that.

  Torkuhl looked at me, “Oh, it is you! I couldn’t tell with your helmet on!” Torkuhl grinned and stared at me. The four of us stared at the crossbows, though I stared more at the large minotaur. He sneered at me, “I will break you for what you did to my eye!” I counted at least six crossbows and a maybe four other Shadens standing by Torkuhl. Things looked very grim for us.

  I glanced at my friends and said something without thinking, “I challenge you…”

  I cringed after saying those words. Torkuhl smiled, “Oh?”

  I took a deep breath, “It is between you and me, right?” Torkuhl nodded and waited for me to continue. I looked at my friends who seemed surprised I said it, “How about your men and my friends are off limits-just you and me.” I bit my lower lip and was surprised at myself for saying those things.

  One of the Shadens laughed, “Fool! We could just kill you all now!”

  Torkuhl shoved that man so hard it might have injured him, “Don’t you dare mock a challenge!” Torkuhl took out his war hammers and smiled, “I gladly accept!” He stared at his men expectantly. They all backed away and put away their weapons. I was glad I had a helmet on since I knew panic was written all over my face.

  I put down my pack and Jerak walked over to grab it, “Good luck man!” Bolam and Teltar looked at me with worried expressions. I swallowed hard and took out my axe.

  Soon everyone from both parties moved away and gave us plenty of space. Torkuhl twisted his head, causing his neck to pop which made even me flinch. He tilted his head up in a gesture signaling me to make my move. I tightened my grip on my axe and charged him. Before reaching him, I moved to the side to fake him out. There was no way I would just go at him head on. He fell for it and swung at the air between us. I then stepped in and swung my axe but he blocked it with his other hammer. Torkuhl grunted and shoved me back. Oh, there was no question that this guy could overpower me like this. He stepped in and swung downward at me.

  I jumped back and just barely missed the heavy attack. His other hammer came at me from my right. I parried the blow with my axe but the force of it was enough to knock me off balance. I back-stepped and felt the pain in my right hand from the shock of the blow. I was not fighting any mere human, but a freaking minotaur! I took a deep breath and distanced myself a little more. He could easily overpower me but… maybe I could out-move him? It was worth a shot.

  I charged toward him again. This time he appeared to be ready for a fake out like last time. I moved to the side in an attempt to get around him. His side was exposed and I saw an opening. As I brought my axe in for a strike, I saw the backside of his right war hammer as it came at my head. Less than a second later, I felt a great pain and everything went dark.

  The ringing was almost deafening and I found myself on the ground. Torkuhl casually walked over to me and pressed his hoof on my chest. I could hear some yelling around us but I couldn’t tell what was going on. Torkuhl turned his head upward and appeared surprised. He sprinted away as if something scared him. I cringed from my massive headache but, before I could even figure what happened, a loud roar filled the sky.

  I barely lifted my head just in time to see a huge ball of fire fall from the sky. I heard screaming and then saw some massive green creature land nearby. The creature had big sharp teeth, long horns that grew at the back side of his head and vast scaly wings. The creature seemed bigger than a truck and could no doubt tear someone apart with its large claws. My head cleared up just long enough to realize that I was looking at… a dragon!

  One of the Shadens screamed as the dragon moved toward him then bit him. The lower half of his body dangled briefly as the dragon leaned its head up and opened its mouth to let the rest of him fall in. I laid there in total shock as the dragon ate that man like nothing. My jaw dropped-I felt helpless to do anything but watch the dragon seek out another snack. This one appeared to have already died from the fireball. After that morsel, the dragon looked toward me. Oh, crap!

  The dragon walked toward me. Its head was just freaking enormous and the teeth… This was not good. The dragon sniffed at me. To my surprise it leaned back and made a whimpering sound. The dragon lowered its head like a scared puppy and backed away. It quickly turned and spread its wings. The dragon glanced at me once more and took off back into the skies. I took a deep breath and quietly spoke, “Thank you, Dragon Spirit.”

  My head hurt like crazy. My helmet did wonders against swords and arrows but a war hammer to the face still messed me up. I was sure without the helmet I would have been a goner. I looked around and saw a few things on fire-a couple of trees, several shrubs, and one guy… nope that was a Shaden. I winced from my relentless headache and looked around for my friends.

  I wandered around, still having a ringing sound in my head, for about half an hour until I spotted Bolam sticking partially out from a bush. I waved at my companions. Teltar was the first to come out of his hiding spot. “Oh, man! I thought the dragon was just a rumor around here!” Jerak said as he jumped down from a tree.

  Bolam brushed some leaves and twigs from his hair, “I can’t believe you sur
vived that!” I tapped on my chest and he nodded, “Oh… that makes sense, I guess.”

  Teltar took a few steps and looked around, “I doubt that minotaur or those Shadens will be bothering us for a while.”

  I stared up at the sky, “Yeah, we are better off if we just keep going.”

  The rest of the day was quiet as I recovered from an intense headache. Bolam and Jerak kept looking around the sky for the dragon. Teltar and I just didn’t care. I would normally be trying to find the dragon with them, but my head hurt too much and I didn’t think that dragon would bother me. We came to a fork in the road. One side led to Jerak’s home town and the other down through the canyon. Jerak was already walking toward the canyon road while the rest of us considered getting supplies… but seeing that we had plenty and that Jerak really didn’t want to visit his home town, we headed into the canyon.

  “My brother and I used to get into trouble hiking through this canyon,” Jerak said cheerfully. Getting his way had put him in a good mood. It was getting really dark and we still hadn’t reached the way out. Teltar yawned, “It might be best if we camp and tackle the canyon again in the morning.” No one disagreed with that suggestion. The four of us went off the trail a ways and found a nice spot that would keep us hidden from the road in case Torkuhl or the surviving Shadens wandered by. Since there was a dragon roaming the country side, we went without a fire as well.

  I knew one shouldn’t sleep after getting hit in the head but it had been several hours and, since I seemed to heal faster when resting, I figured it might be safe. That fight with Torkuhl really scared me. That guy was just scary all together. I let out a deep sigh and took out my contact stone. “Tales? Hey… sorry that it’s late,” I said to her through the stone.

  I could tell she was really tired by her loud yawn, “Huh? Oh… I was wondering where you have been.”

  I smiled, “Oh, sorry. I had a problem earlier… I did see a dragon.”

  Her voice perked up, “Are you alright? Dragon? Really?”

  I could see Jerak walking toward me, “Yeah, I am fine. The dragon came right up to me but the Dragon Spirit scared it away.”

  Talestria laughed, and it sounded a little evil. “Oh, you live a much more exciting life than me!”

  I chuckled, “It does get old, though.”

  Jerak sat down and let out a huge yawn which caused me to yawn as well. “Blakey Poo? Are you sleepy?” Talestria asked. I rubbed my eyes and another yawn escaped, “A little, but we can talk still.”

  Talestria even yawned again, “Now I am getting sleepy.”

  I laughed, “It’s contagious, eh?”

  She just sounded quiet, “There is something I wanted to talk to you about.”

  I froze and could feel my heart stop for a moment, “What? Is it something bad?”

  She giggled, “Aw, no it is something really good… I hope. I’ve just been thinking about us and…” She let out another loud yawn, “I think it might be best if we both get some rest and let this thing charge up so we can be clear-minded when we talk about it.”

  I sighed deeply and felt like I was stuck at a major cliffhanger for some television series and had to wait till next week for the outcome. I closed my eyes, “Good night, Talestria.”

  She replied in a soft tone, “Take care!”

  As soon as I put away the contact stone, Jerak started to tease me like always. I glared at him, “What do you want?”

  Jerak grinned, “Oh, just to tell you that you have third watch tonight, and to bug you!”

  I didn’t get much sleep but my watch sort of played a major factor in that. At least my head felt better. Jerak woke us all up pretty early, really excited. “I know the perfect way to get to the old fort!” he said, looking like an excited puppy that knew it was going on a walk.

  I popped my helmet on, “How far is it?”

  Jerak smiled, “The main road will take a while, but there is a rougher trail that will cut some time!” The rest of us were too sleepy to debate. Considering we were on Jerak’s turf, he might an ideal guide.

  Icreryn Canyon was quite impressive with tall rocky cliffs and a cool breeze winding through the gaps in the mountainside. Jerak’s shortcut was on a very rough trail that didn’t appear to have had any traffic in years. It was much too narrow at several spots for even a horse. It almost reminded me of my years in the Boy Scouts. I felt a little homesick again but just took a deep breath and let my mind wonder about other things. This might be the day I would collect the final pieces of the Dragon Armor and free the Dragon Spirit. I was sure he must be quite excited.

  “So what are you guys going to do after we finish this quest?” Jerak asked while taking the lead up a steep climb.

  Bolam relied on his staff to make the climb, “I am planning to use my research to maybe write a little book and gain some respect from the magic guild.”

  Teltar scratched his head, “Oh… I guess I’ll go back to my old job.”

  Jerak laughed, “Ah, that is boring! Not going to do anything neat?”

  Teltar shrugged, “At most, I might join the dwarven army again.”

  Jerak looked back at him, “You were in the military?”

  Teltar nodded, “Yeah, I served in it for a while then got a job at the inn.”

  Bolam wiped some sweat from his forehead, “How come you never mentioned that before?”

  Teltar took a few more steps, “You never asked.”

  Jerak shook his head and muttered under his breath, “It won’t kill you if you take some initiative in a conversation.” I laughed a little.

  “So Blake, what are you going to do after you are done with this?” Bolam asked.

  Jerak answered in a mocking tone, “He is going to back to his girlfriend!” Before I could even answer Bolam, Jerak spoke again, “She sounded like she wanted to tell you something last night.” I bit my lower lip; I had been thinking about that, as well. I had a good idea what she wanted to say, but I felt sort of lightheaded just thinking of it. Suddenly, a voice boomed from above us. We all stopped and looked up the steep cliff side. It was Torkuhl!

  “Aw, crap” I muttered quietly.

  Torkuhl stood way above us, holding a large rock over his head. “You thought you could escape from me, huh?!” he shouted. I had no idea how he found us or how the heck he managed to get way up there. It could have just been dumb luck. “This is the end for you!” he shouted as he hurled the large rock down toward us. The four of us quickly moved closer to the side of the cliff. From that angle, we were in his blind spot and safe from the falling rock. After hearing the large stone crash into the ground, he started to shout incoherently. He started tossing more rocks, sounding angrier each time. Eventually, he ran out of anything to throw at us and we saw just bits of dirt falling down from above.

  Jerak looked at me, “Is he even trying anymore?”

  After Torkuhl’s failed attempt at revenge, we resumed our travel back on the trail. Jerak stared up, “I don’t know how he got up there, but I wish he would tell me… I bet you can see everything from up there!”

  Bolam shook his head, “We really should just keep moving and hope he doesn’t bother us anymore.”

  Teltar glanced up, “I think we broke his spirit.” I kept looking up and around to be sure he didn’t just keep trying.

  The rest of the way went a lot easier after one more climb. There was no sign of Torkuhl, which made me feel a bit more secure. My stomach made a gurgling sound indicating it wanted food. “Jerak, how much further is it?” I asked while covering my stomach.

  Jerak stopped and looked around, “Not too far from here, maybe a few more bends around the cliffs.”

  Bolam walked up beside me, “I do hope we don’t see that dragon again.”

  Jerak was right; it didn’t take all that much longer to reach the old fort. The surrounding area was fairly flat, scattered with broken stone pillars and walls. At the far end laid the original entrance which had caved in years ago. “I used to climb on the
old walls and see how far I could balance myself,” Jerak shared. I could tell he was debating whether to give it another try. The rest of us sat down under a tree and had our lunch. Jerak was too much in his old memories of this place to settle down. I chewed on some dried meat while he wandered around the area. “Hey! The old iron gate here is open now!” he shouted.

  “That thing was rusted shut when I was a kid. Looks like someone has been here,” Jerak muttered while moving the gate open and closed.

  Teltar walked over with his meal still in his hand, “It could be choguls.”

  Jerak looked at me, “I hope no one took the gauntlets.”

  Bolam laughed, “I highly doubt anyone would, considering they are cursed.”

  I swallowed the last of my meal, “I hope no one took them either; Otherwise, it will be a pain to figure who took them.”

  We marched through the old rusted gate. It led us down a long route inside. The air wasn’t as bad as in the tombs that I had traveled through. No scent of death so far, which was good. The only light we had was generated from Bolam’s staff, so we gave him the job of taking lead.

  The old fort had several interesting chambers filled with old pots and rusted weapons and tools. There were signs of wooden furniture but they had all rotted over the years of neglect. All that was left of them was nails and dust. I was happy that there wasn’t any indication of the unliving around. Teltar spotted an old rusted lantern which, to our surprise, still retained some oil in it. The glass portion of the lantern was long shattered but it would still offer some light. Teltar claimed it and helped in shining more light as we traveled deeper.

  I had a hard time figuring out where we were going. There were so many small rooms that looked similar to each other and it was too dark to really get a clear idea which way we were going. “I am not seeing where the gauntlets would be stored,” Jerak muttered.