by Sam Ferguson
The Dragon’s Test
By
Sam Ferguson
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this book are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
THE DRAGON’S TEST
Copyright © 2014 by Sam Ferguson
All Rights Reserved.
This book is for you. Without your support, Erik’s story would never be told.
Contents
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTYONE
CHAPTER TWENTY TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
CHAPTER ONE
Erik and Braun exited an alley and turned right onto a narrow dirt street lined with squat, rectangular houses topped with cracked gray cedar shingles. A group of men stood in front of one of the houses, talking amongst themselves. As Braun and Erik walked by the men the three of them stopped talking and stared. Erik straightened his sword belt and glared back at the trio. One of them spat on the ground and grinned as his hand went to a knife at his belt. The other two stepped out into the street and pulled swords free from their scabbards. Erik fell back to his training at Kuldiga academy. He calculated the distance between him and the three men. Then he glanced around. “Anyone on the rooftops?” he asked Braun.
“No,” Braun said quickly.
Then, another thought came to Erik. He called upon his power and used it to discern the trio’s intent. He then put a hand out and steadied his companion. “These are not our enemies,” he said confidently.
“That isn’t what I would guess,” Braun quipped. His hand went down to his sword. Erik turned back and shook his head at Braun. Braun stiffened, and took a step back. “If they so much as breathe wrong…”
“Stay calm,” Erik said. Then Erik turned and walked toward the trio. The man in the middle spat on the ground again and removed his hat, revealing a bald head encircled about with shaggy brown hair just below the scalp. He smiled wide, showing a pair of missing bottom teeth. The man at his left held a long sword out and abruptly set the point down atop his worn, faded black boot. The man at his right did likewise.
“You don’t remember me?” the man in the middle asked with a gleam in his eye.
Erik shook his head. “My apologies,” Erik said. “But, I meet a lot of people.”
The bald man smiled and brought the tip of his dagger up to his mouth, pointing at the gap in his teeth. “How many of them did you take two teeth from?” the bald man asked.
Erik smirked. “As I said, I meet a lot of people,” he repeated.
“I don’t like this,” Braun whispered from behind.
“Well,” the bald man continued. “I remember you.”
“I have urgent business,” Erik said. “What is it you want?”
The bald man laughed and slapped the back of his hand into the man on his left. “What do I want?”
“You attacked the senate,” the man on the left said. “There are a lot of people in this city that are looking for you.”
“Some of the lower circles have put a price on your head,” the man on the right said.
Erik nodded. “Well, I can tell that you are not here to collect the bounty, so what is it you seek?”
The bald man grinned wide and nodded his head once. “You are as perceptive as ever,” he said. “I am here to make good on my debt to you.” He slid his knife back into his belt. “When you took my teeth, you also spared my life. You may not remember, but you happened to catch me on the highway some years ago. At the time I was relieving a merchant of their coin.”
The men flanking him laughed and nodded. “We were there too,” they said in unison.
“You gave us a walloping to remember, Master Lepkin” the bald man said. “But, you found mercy in your heart and told us to change our ways.” He gestured to his comrades. “Since then we have sought honest work where we can get it. Mostly as hired hands out in the nearby farms, but lately we have been here in the city. We work at the Singing Serpent as bouncers. We keep order in the place.”
“Not exactly the most honest kind of work,” Braun commented.
“Better than what we had done in the past,” the bald man said as he peered around to Braun. Then he looked back to Erik. “In any case, we owe you a debt of gratitude for giving us a second chance.”
“How did you know we would be here?” Braun asked.
“We knew you were in the area, but we weren’t following you, if that is what you are asking,” the man on the right said.
“This is my home,” the bald man said, pointing behind him. “We were just deciding whether to go out and look for you when you came around the corner. It is as if the gods themselves brought you to me.” The bald man pointed a finger to the sky. “It’s a sign that they are pleased with my new life. They are giving me the chance to make good on my debt.”
“We should go,” Braun insisted.
“Master Lepkin, come inside. Allow me to repay the kindness you once showed me,” the bald man said.
“Remind me of your names,” Erik said.
“I am Lester,” the bald man said. “This is Dax, and the man on my right is Korbin.”
Erik nodded to each and then walked forward. “Alright, let’s go inside.”
“This is not wise,” Braun said.
Erik turned and shot Braun a fierce look. “They mean us no harm.”
“These are not our kind of people,” Braun said.
Erik smiled. “Don’t judge with your eyes,” he said. Then he turned and followed Lester and the others into the house.
The brown door creaked and squeaked against Lester’s push. A heavy scent of wood smoke wafted out from the opening that made Braun sneeze. Erik’s eyes stung a bit as he walked into the main room. A crackling fire in the hearth spewed smoke around a large, black kettle. A long green sleeve hung over the side of the kettle.
“Had a run in with head-lice,” Dax said as he pointed to the kettle.
“Wonderful,” Braun said. The man nervously reached a hand up and scratched the back of his scalp.
“Wait here for a moment,” Lester said as he disappeared behind a patchwork blanket hanging over a doorway that led to a room in the back. Dax and Korbin moved to a door on the right and opened it. Inside Erik saw a couple braids of garlic and some tobacco leaves dangling from a cast iron rack hanging by an old chain from the ceiling.
Lester returned a moment later with a pair of brown over cloaks. “Take off your clothes,” he said.
“I beg your pardon,” Braun retorted.
Lester eyed him with a grin and then tossed the robes over the back of a wooden rocking chair. “Don’t worry, you aren’t my type,” Lester shot back. He pointed to Braun. “You look like you are employed by a noble house. You would do well to try to blend in a bit more until you get out of the city.”
Erik nodded. “Even then we might do well to dress down a bit,” he agreed. “No need to draw attention to ourselves.”
“Exactly,” Lester said. “If you are shy, you can change in the back.” Lester disappeare
d through the doorway again for a few minutes and came back with an armload of clothes. “Here,” he said as he plopped the pile on the rocking chair. Braun looked from the clothes on the chair to those in the boiling water over the fire. Lester noticed his gaze and laughed to himself. “That is a load of clothes from the neighboring family,” he explained. “The lice didn’t come to us.”
Braun nodded, but he didn’t look any more eager to put on the old clothes.
Erik stripped down to his undergarments and changed first.
“My clothes are plain,” Braun said. “Changing won’t make much of a difference.”
“To the contrary,” Lester said. “The people out there searching for you are looking for a well-dressed pair of men. Just because your clothes have a bit of dirt on them doesn’t change the fact that you are dressed as a noble.”
“None of my garments show my master’s coat of arms,” Braun argued.
“But they are of a very high quality,” Lester countered. “Your black trousers are made of cotton. Most of the commoners around here wear wool, which has a very different appearance. Beyond that, your sword belt is clasped with a steel buckle. A man in these parts would only be able to afford iron, and most of the time it would be much older. Your boots are highly polished, if a little scuffed, and your tunic is rimmed with a silk strip around the neckline and again on the sleeves. No one around here would wear anything like that unless we were invited to the king’s table for dinner.”
“He’s right,” Erik said. “Change your clothes.”
Braun grumbled to himself and started undoing his sword belt. “We are wasting time,” he gruffed.
“How much more time would you lose if you were being jumped by a gang of thugs around every other corner on your way out of the city?” Lester shot back.
Just then Dax and Korbin came back into the room, carrying a couple of old saddle bags. “It isn’t much in the way of fine dining, but it will get you started,” Dax said.
“Beans, bread, dried meat, and some walnuts,” Korbin announced as he set the bags on a table nearby.”
“Thank you,” Erik said. He was pulling on the scratchy wool trousers and tying the drawstring tight when Dax took off his own shirt and grabbed Braun’s clothes from the floor.
“What are you doing?” Braun asked.
“Decoys,” Lester said flatly. “I will walk with you both to the west gate, and Dax and Korbin will go to the south gate.”
“But the west gate is farther away,” Braun said. “Besides, my horse is at the south gate.”
“Exactly,” Lester said. “And everyone looking to collect the bounty will be going to the south gate for that reason. I have a horse stabled outside the west gate that you may take.”
“There are two of us,” Braun said.
Lester grinned. “Then I suppose you will have to find another horse at the west gate.”
“Thank you,” Erik put in before Braun could say anything else. “You are going to a lot of trouble for us.”
Lester looked to Erik and nodded. “You are a bit different,” he said. Lester looked at Erik for a moment and then shrugged. “Perhaps that is what time does,” he said. “Hurry and finish changing. We should get moving. Trade your sword belts with Dax and Korbin too.”
Erik paused and looked to Master Lepkin’s sword.
“Keep the sword,” Lester said. “Just let us use the scabbard and sword belt. It won’t do much good to change your clothes if everyone can see your sword hanging from your hip.”
Erik nodded slowly. “I will be back for it,” he said as he pulled the black sword out from the scabbard.
“Of course,” Lester said.
Korbin approached and gave Erik his own scabbard while he took Erik’s. Korbin slid his own, plain long sword into the black scabbard and clasped the belt around his waist after he had finished putting Erik’s clothes on.
Within a matter of minutes the change was complete and Erik and Braun slung the saddle bags over their shoulders. “Thanks again,” Erik said.
Lester shrugged, “Let’s go.”
The five of them walked out the front door. Dax and Korbin went to the left, toward the south gate while Lester led Braun and Erik out to the west gate.
Erik took in the scene as Lester led them through streets he had not seen before. Instead of luxurious houses and manors, there were stone and brick houses all smooshed together. If not for the occasional door it would be hard to tell where one dwelling ended and the next began. Several people were out, many of them going about their business as if nothing had happened. An older woman talked to herself as she hung out the day’s wash on a line stretching from her window to a tree in front of her house. A pair of stray dogs nipped at each other over a bowl of bones someone tossed out onto the street. Smoke hung in the air in this part of the city, but not all of it was from wood.
“Even Drakei Glazei has a darker underbelly,” Lester said flatly.
Erik nodded, but said nothing. He was not unsettled by the dirt. As a small child he had lived in similar areas before. He had stayed with a family once that didn’t even have a door on their small, one room dwelling. They just hung a thick carpet over the entrance and placed a wooden crate behind it at night to keep prowlers out. Erik could tell he had changed over the years though, for now he knew that this was not the way men were meant to live. It was a strange feeling for him, as if he was caught in the middle of two worlds. Around him he could see the dirt, the toil, and the hardship to which he had been born and abandoned. Yet, as he looked to Braun he was reminded of his home at Lokton Manor. A life with servants, guards, and more land and food than one family could use on its own.
Erik noticed something about Braun then that struck him. Braun kept looking left and right, as if he expected someone to jump out of the houses and strike. Even in the face of battle, Erik had not known Braun to appear as nervous as he now did. Could it be that Braun was so accustomed to his life in the manor that he was unnerved simply by walking among those poorer than him?
As if on cue, Braun turned and shot Erik a wary glance. “Keep your eyes peeled,” he said.
“You are safe here,” Lester said. “These people are too busy with living day to day. They have no time for politics.”
“What about bounty money?” Braun asked.
Lester chuckled. “Most people in this quarter can barely afford a knife, let alone a sword or a mace. Relax.”
Erik put a hand on Braun’s shoulder. He was about to reassure the man that all would be well, but Braun turned and Erik caught sight of a ring dangling from a leather thong about Braun’s neck. It was his father’s emerald ring. Immediately a gnawing knot tore through Erik’s stomach and he knew that it was not the location which had Braun on edge. Seeing the ring, and thinking of his father, brought back the dragon’s warning. House Lokton was soon to be attacked.
“We’ll get there in time,” Erik said.
Braun nodded and reached a hand up to the ring. “I hope so,” he said softly as he tucked the jewel back under his tunic.
The afternoon sun was just starting its descent as the three of them exited the dirt streets and found themselves only a few blocks away from the gate. The high, thick walls towered above the shops and houses in this district. As in the other part of the city they saw more people out in the streets, but these people were formed into various groups. Some of them were shouting about the murder of various senators, while others chanted their loyalty to King Mathias.
“Which side are you on?” someone shouted at Lester. Lester waved the man off hurriedly and tried not to answer. The man didn’t give up. He ran up to them and stopped directly in front of Lester, placing a hand on his chest. “Do you support the king?” the man demanded.
“Move,” Lester growled. He reached up in one swift move and grabbed the man’s hand, turned it around and bent the wrist back. The man hunched over and hollered out in pain as Lester pushed him away.
“Hey!” the man protested as he
stumbled to the ground.
“Today is not a good day to be out late,” Lester commented dryly. The others who had been talking with the first man now stared at the three of them. “I am too busy feeding my family to cry over dead nobles,” Lester said to the others.
The first man scrambled to his feet and walked away, grumbling and rubbing his wrist.
“That was subtle,” Braun commented wryly.
Lester shook his head and kept walking.
A group of guards came around the corner of the street on horseback just then. One of them stood in his saddle and blew his trumpet three times. Then, the guard at the front of the group halted his horse and addressed the groups on the street.
“By order of his majesty, King Mathias, all citizens are to return to their homes immediately.”
The group of men shouted back at the guards, cursing them and throwing stones. “Go back to your castle!” someone said.
“The king sends us home when he should be arresting Lepkin for destroying the senate!” someone else bellowed.
The guard was unamused. “Go back to your homes now, or we will be forced to take action.”
Several more groups of people poured into the wide street from nearby houses and alleys, all shouting and yelling angrily.
“This does not bode well,” Braun said.
“Lester,” Erik started. “Thank you for everything you have done, but now would be a good time to leave.”
“No, I am with you until we get to the gate,” Lester said.
Erik reached out and turned the man around. “You need to go, now.” Erik looked into Lester’s eyes. “Your debt is paid. Go home.”
Lester nodded slowly and ducked into the nearest alley.
“What is it?” Braun asked
“None of these groups are friendly to the king,” Erik said.
“How can you tell?” Braun asked.
Erik surveyed the growing crowd. “It is one of my gifts that I have been developing at Valtuu Temple. Just trust me.”
“What is the plan?”
“There are only twenty guards, and well over a hundred people here,” Erik said.