Dragon's Keep: The Complete Dracengard Series

by Christopher Vale

  “That is unfortunate, but sadly not unusual,” the knight said with a frown. “Very well, I shall speak with him on the morrow. Good night, My Lady,” he said with a bow and turned to walk back toward his tent.

  “Good night, Sir Galt.” Anne breathed a sigh of relief. She waited until Sir Galt was out of sight and then rushed to find her horse, Isabella. She had no time to lose and needed to be as far from camp as she could before morning.

  Anne soon found Isabella corralled with the other horses. As she was untying the palfrey she heard a voice from behind. “Who goes there?” Anne spun and saw a guard watching her, sword drawn. “I apologize, m’Lady,” the guard said with a bow of his head. “I did not realize it was you.” He slid his sword back into its sheath and then walked toward her. “May I assist you with something?” he asked.

  “Yes,” she said with a sweet smile. “My horse has something stuck in her right front shoe, but I cannot seem to get it out.”

  “Well, let me have a look,” the guard said. Anne took a step back so that the guard could stand beside the horse. He touched the horse’s right shoulder and then slowly moved his hand down Isabella’s leg to the hoof. He lifted the hoof to look at the shoe. “There doesn’t appear to be anything in there now,” he said and then felt the cold steel of a dagger blade slice his throat from behind. He stood, turned and saw Anne standing there holding her dagger. He took a step toward her as he gripped his throat, but then fell to the ground dead.

  “Very good,” she heard a harsh voice whisper and she looked up to see what could only be described as a man’s shadow standing before her. It was almost impossible to see because it blended in with the darkness, but there was definitely a figure standing there.

  “Who are you?” Anne whispered her voice trembling with terror. She heard a raspy chuckle and then the dark figure stepped backward into the night and vanished.

  Anne quickly untied Isabella and led her away from the other horses. She slowly and quietly led the horse a fair distance from the camp before she climbed up into the saddle. Anne squeezed her legs against the horse’s flanks and Isabella cantered forward.

  Chapter 6

  The sun was barely in the sky when Prince Willem set off to Avonvale carrying his Dracenstone and escorting his prisoners, Terrwyn and Dillan. Willem wore a dark gray armor consisting of a breastplate, gauntlets, and greaves covering his shins. He wore no cape or helmet, but a short sword was strapped to his side.

  Willem had insisted that Terrwyn and Dillan be allowed to ride. “They are my prisoners and they are also royalty. I shall not have them walking all the way to Avonvale,” he had informed the draks. Nor were their hands bound. “After all,” Willem laughed, “where are they going to run off to?” The small convoy included six draks and ten mounted lancers loyal to Willem.

  The night before, Willem had overruled his mother and allowed Terrwyn to spend the night in the chambers of his sister, Ella. Terrwyn had taken a bath and changed into some of Ella’s clothes consisting of a brown riding skirt, dark green blouse, and matching riding gloves. Her long, auburn hair was washed, brushed, and braided into a single braid behind her head. Dillan had also taken the opportunity to bathe and Willem had offered him a change of clothes as well. He now wore a dark brown shirt and light brown pants, but still sported the tricorn hat atop his head.

  The convoy made its way down the hill from the royal family’s palace with Willem leading the way flanked by two draks. Terrwyn and Dillan followed, also flanked by draks, and the lancers brought up the rear. As they reached the bottom of the hill, they came to an intersection of the road that ran alongside the river. Just as Willem began to turn his horse northward along the road, he drew his short sword and slashed down, slicing the neck of the drak on his right. He then swung the sword to the other side, splitting the skull of the drak on his left before it had time to react. The other draks shrieked and drew their weapons as the lancers lowered their lances and spurred their chargers forward to attack the beasts.

  “This way!” Willem shouted to Terrwyn and Dillan as he turned his horse southward along the road. He urged the horse to a gallop and Terrwyn and Dillan struggled to catch up as they rode behind. Dillan glanced back over his shoulder to see the lancers finishing off the draks. The surprise attack had worked and all six draks were killed without losing a single lancer. Willem looked up at the palace atop the hill and saw more draks, alerted by their comrade’s screams, rushing down the hill. His lancers would hold them off as long as they could, each of them intending to make the ultimate sacrifice doing so.

  The royal trio galloped for a few miles before Willem reined his horse to a stop near a small trail that disappeared into the Great Forest. Terrwyn and Dillan reined in beside him. “We’re going on foot from here,” Willem said. He quickly dismounted and Terrwyn and Dillan followed suit. Willem unstrapped a bundle wrapped in a gray blanket from his horse and tossed it to Dillan. “You’re going to want these,” he said. Dillan unwrapped the blanket and smiled to himself as he found his sword and cutlass—both still strapped to his belt.

  “Thanks,” said Dillan as he quickly buckled the belt around his waist. Willem then tossed Terrwyn’s dagger to her and she shoved it into her belt. He removed a sack carrying food and two water casks from his horse’s saddlebags. He tossed one cask to Dillan and kept the other himself. He then slapped his horse on the rear causing her to gallop off down the road. Terrwyn and Dillan did the same and all three horses galloped southward. Willem led his former prisoners down the trail into the woods.

  The trio moved quickly, Willem in the lead followed by Terrwyn, with Dillan bringing up the rear. They had run for about five minutes when Terrwyn stopped. “Willem, wait!” she shouted and he stopped and spun around to face her. “We have to go back!”

  “Why?” asked Willem and Dillan in unison.

  “We have to get Taite.”

  “Taite should be much safer than we,” Dillan assured her. “The Vagabond set sail last night.”

  “What?”

  “I instructed Starron to sail south if he did not hear from us by nightfall. I told you that I did not trust Willem’s family.” Willem opened his mouth to respond, but thought better of it and closed it once more. To Willem’s own shock and surprise, Dillan’s mistrust had turned out to be well placed.

  “Where are they sailing to?” Terrwyn asked.

  “A cove near the mouth of the river where it empties into the Glass Sea.”

  “Well then, let’s get moving,” Willem said as he turned to walk away.

  “Wait!” Terrwyn shouted.

  Willem turned back around, arms held in the air.

  “Where are you taking us?” Terrwyn asked.

  “Away from the drakmere,” Willem responded. “Why does it matter where?”

  “It’s a fair question, Will,” Dillan said. “Last night, you were ready to turn us over to the Wizard to save your crown. Now, we are supposed to just blindly follow you into the woods?”

  Willem turned his gaze to Dillan. “I never intended to turn you over to the Wizard,” he said. “Draks burst into the Great Hall. They were supported by my mother, and the only persons in the hall armed, other than you, were guards who clearly knew what was going on and had been ordered to stand down. What should I have done? Let everyone in the room get slaughtered? Fat lot of good that would have done any of us. I decided to play along knowing I would have a better chance to free you and escape with my own life later, which I have done. Trust me, I would never let any harm come to Terrwyn.”

  Dillan glanced at Terrwyn to see she was grinning at Willem. “I knew you wouldn’t betray me,” she said.

  “So, where are we going?” Dillan asked.

  “Honestly, I’m not actually sure. My planning really ended after the escape phase. But if we do not start moving, our destination will be a cell, because the draks will catch up with us soon.”

  “Well then let’s go,” said Terrwyn. Dillan nodded and Willem turned and led t
he way down the trail. Terrwyn followed and Dillan once again brought up the rear. They jogged along the trail for about half an hour before slowing to a walk. The trail ended a few hundred yards later.

  “Now what?” asked Dillan.

  “This way,” Willem said as he walked off into the forest, stooping under a tree branch. “I may not be exactly sure of our ultimate destination, but I have been exploring these woods since childhood.”

  They wandered through the woods and made their way down a hill. Willem climbed over a fallen tree and then offered his hand to Terrwyn. She accepted it, stepped up onto the tree, and jumped off on the other side. Dillan climbed over the tree behind her. They soon came to a small brook and Willem offered his hand again, but before Terrwyn took it Dillan stepped up beside her.

  “Let me help you,” Dillan said and took her hand helping her across the brook. She stepped on a rock in the middle of the brook and then stepped over to the other side. Dillan leaned forward to assist her, but leaned a little too far. He slipped and fell face first into the water with a splash. He quickly stood and climbed out of the brook shivering from the cold.

  “You should be more careful,” Willem said.

  “Yeah, thanks,” said Dillan as he stood on the edge of the brook dripping.

  They traversed the forest for several hours, stopping only occasionally to rest and drink water from their casks. Soon, the sky began to change from blue to orange as the sun set behind the hills. Willem looked for a good place to stop for the night, finding a large rock formation which fashioned into a small cave in the side of the hill. The rocks extended overhead to provide not only a good hiding place, but also shelter. They could sleep with their backs to the rocks making it difficult for anyone to sneak up on them from behind. It would also give them a decent view from which to see danger approaching.

  “Let’s make camp here for the night,” Willem said.

  “Thank goodness,” said Terrwyn as she ducked under the rocks and sat down. Willem handed her a cask of water as he sat down beside her. “Thank you,” she said as she drank deeply.

  “Are you hungry?” he asked.

  “Famished,” she responded. He opened a sack and pulled out some bread and handed it to her.

  Dillan stood in front of the rocks surveying the forest. He turned back to Willem. “We cannot live in the forest forever. Any idea of what to do next?”

  Willem nodded as he bit into an apple. He pulled one out of the sack and tossed it to Dillan. “We should try to find the elophim,” he said once he had swallowed the bit of apple. “They live here in the forest.”

  “Elves?” Dillan asked with a laugh. In the common tongue, the elophim were called elves. Legend claimed that elophim were seraph that had stayed behind in the Middle Realm following the last Realm War. They were supposedly the ancestors of the royal families, having mated with human women. They were punished for intermingling their blood with that of humans by having their wings taken and exiled to the Middle Realm forever, never to return home. “I do not believe in elves.”

  “I assure you, the elophim are real,” Willem said. “I have seen them.”

  “So, how do we find them?” Terrwyn asked, trusting her friend.

  “I do not know if we can find them. I am hoping that they will find us,” Willem replied.

  “Great,” said Dillan sarcastically. “We are going to wander aimlessly through the Great Forest, hoping to be rescued by elves. That’s a masterful plan.”

  “It’s better than the alternative.” Willem snapped.

  “Barely,” said Dillan.

  “Okay, what would you have us do?”

  Dillan did not even pause a moment to think. “First, we should cross to the other side of the river. Then we make our way south to the Glass Sea. We can meet up with the Vagabond and sail to the Island of Avalon, assuming it exists, and find Dracengard. If it does not exist, we can sail the ship up the coast and come back down the Strom River and disembark in Caerwynspire, where we can seek sanctuary in the White Fortress.”

  “I admit that yours is a more thoughtful and detailed plan than mine,” Willem said and took another bite of apple.

  “How do we cross the river?” Terrwyn asked.

  “There is a ferry about a day’s walk from here.” Willem informed them. “Assuming it has not already been taken by the draks, we can cross there.”

  “Well then, in the morning I think we should make our way to the ferry. If we are lucky enough to be rescued by elves in the meantime, all the better,” Dillan smirked.

  The sun set behind the hills and the three settled in for the night huddling close together, backs against the rock, Terrwyn between the two men. Willem and Dillan agreed to sleep in shifts so as to keep watch throughout the night. Willem took first watch while Dillan and Terrwyn slept.

  An hour into his watch, Willem heard a twig snap, then another. There was rustling in the trees and Willem heard someone or something walking through the leaves. He reached over and tapped Dillan who sat up with a start and looked around. Willem pointed to his ear signaling to Dillan that he had heard something. Both men sat motionless staring out into the darkness.

  The draks burst out of the woods in a flash. Dillan and Willem leapt to their feet and drew their swords, but they knew it would do no good. There were too many draks to fight off. Terrwyn woke from the noise to see draks closing in on them. She screamed in terror as she struggled to her feet.

  Dillan held a sword in one hand and his cutlass in the other, ready to fight to the death. Suddenly, there was a blur of movement and Dillan was spattered with green blood as he saw the headless body of the drak nearest him fall lifelessly to the ground. Dillan, Willem, and Terrwyn stared in amazement as warriors came out of the woods moving at incredible speeds. The warriors fought the draks, but it was not really a fight at all. The draks were no match for them and all of the monsters soon laid dead just a few yards from the humans.

  The warriors stopped and turned to look at Dillan, Willem, and Terrwyn. There were only four of them and they had killed twenty or more draks in mere minutes. The warriors stood facing the trio wearing clothes of brown and green, which blended in well with the forest. They were all men, with smooth young faces and their long, golden hair was pulled back into ponytails. Their skin seemed to almost glow in the darkness and their bright eyes stared at the three they had just saved.

  Willem leaned over to Dillan without taking his eyes off the warriors. “Looks like we’ve been rescued by elves,” he whispered into the other man’s ear.

  “We prefer to be called elophim,” said one of the warriors demonstrating his superior hearing. “My name is Vidar. I bid you welcome to the Great Forest.”

  “Thank you,” said Willem. “I am Willem of the House Magnus, Prince of Elophborne.” He motioned to Terrwyn. “This is Terrwyn of the House Valestead, Princess of Avonvale. And this is Tybalt, also called Dillan, of the House of Calder, Prince of the Stromland.”

  “What a distinguished party of young royals to find hiding in a cave!” Vidar chuckled. “Come, nephilim, we shall take you to safety.” He turned and began to walk away through the woods with the others walking behind him.

  “What is a nephilim?” Terrwyn whispered into Willem’s ear.

  Willem shook his head. “I am not sure I know,” he responded and followed the elophim. Terrwyn looked at Dillan who shrugged. They both followed Willem with Dillan still clutching his weapons.

  Chapter 7

  Alaric stood on the cliffs and watched the elophim lead the three humans through the forest toward the waterfall. He was dressed in a suit of green and brown and his golden hair was pulled back into a ponytail. Alaric was the leader of the elophim and elophim, like all seraph, could speak to animals. He had been told by the animals that three humans were in the forest being hunted by drakmere and he had quickly dispatched four of his warriors to find and save them. Now they were returning.

  Alaric was quite eager to speak with these humans. To he
ar of drakmere in the forest was very disconcerting. They were quite far from the bogs that drakmere preferred. He desperately wanted to know what was occurring in the world outside of the Great Forest.

  They reached the waterfall and Vidar led the humans up the sides of the rocky cliffs along stones that had been specifically placed by the elophim a thousand years ago to act as steps. Alaric continued to watch them until they disappeared behind the waterfall. Then he climbed down, but it was so quick that it would have been barely visible to human eyes.

  ***

  Terrwyn ascended the side of the cliff beside the waterfall following Willem. It was still dark and she was terrified that she would fall off. She glanced over her shoulder to see Dillan following her, looking every bit as nervous about his footing as she was hers. She was quite relieved when they finally stepped into a cave behind the waterfall. She walked through the cave and emerged in a small valley on the other side of the hill. They followed the elophim into a clearing and Terrwyn looked up to see small houses built into the trees. Four more elophim suddenly appeared in the clearing as if from nowhere, their skin shining in the darkness. One stared at her as if he knew her.

  Vidar stopped and motioned to Willem, Terrwyn, and Dillan. “Brothers,” he said to the other elophim, “we have rescued three nephilim from the clutches of drakmere. May I present Prince Willem of the House Magnus, Prince Dillan of the House Calder, and Princess Terrwyn of the House Valestead.” The other elophim smiled brightly as if they had been told the most wonderful news. Then, the one staring at Terrwyn stepped up to her and threw his arms around her in a huge embrace. Dillan let his hand fall to the hilt of his sword, but did not draw it. He caught Willem’s eyes and Willem shrugged his shoulders.

  The elophim pulled back and looked Terrwyn in the eyes. “Welcome to our home—all of you,” he said as his eyes darted to Willem and Dillan. “My name is Alaric. I am the leader of the elophim. We are most pleased to meet you and if we can assist you with anything, please do not hesitate to ask.” He paused and looked around at the other elophim. “I am sure my brothers are as anxious to get to know you as I am, and they must have as many questions for you as I do,” he said as the elophim nodded in agreement. “But, I have no doubt that our guests also have many questions, and we shall let them ask their questions first.” He looked at Terrwyn. “Come,” he said and everyone, humans and elophim, followed him to a large circle with wooden benches. In the center of the circle, a large fire flamed. Alaric motioned for everyone to sit and Dillan and Willem protectively moved to sit on either side of Terrwyn. “What are your questions?” Alaric asked.