Dragon's Keep: The Complete Dracengard Series

by Christopher Vale

  “Let’s take this elf to the stockade,” Woorin said. He then leaned in close to Erec and whispered in his ear, “I promise you’ll dance for me there.”

  They dragged Erec out of the baker’s shop and down the street. As they walked, Erec glanced up and saw a finely dressed man staring at him. He caught the man’s eye for just a second and then quickly looked away as he recognized him. It was Prince Willem’s uncle, Lord Hansel. Did he recognize me? The Prince tried not to panic. Not that it mattered, captured was captured, whether or not these thugs knew the importance of the person they held.

  The guards soon turned a corner and dragged Erec off of the main street. They led him down an alley and then behind some other buildings.

  “You there!” Erec heard a voice shout. “Stop!” Woorin turned his head to see Lord Hansel approaching them. The guards stopped and spun around turning Erec to face Hansel, but Erec kept his face to the ground.

  “Good morning, m’Lord,” Woorin said.

  “Who have you got there?” Lord Hansel asked as he stopped just in front of Erec.

  “Some troublemaker who attacked us in the baker’s shop.”

  “Attacked you?” Hansel asked. “Why?”

  “Don’t know, m’Lord,” Woorin said.

  “I think he’s touched,” Ralph volunteered.

  Lord Hansel slipped his hand under Erec’s chin and forced the Prince’s head up to face him. He smiled at Erec then let his head drop back down. Hansel began to laugh and patted each of the guards on the shoulder. “You lucky bastards,” he said.

  “M’Lord?” the guards asked confused.

  “You have no idea who you have captured, do you?” The guards looked at each other, but shook their heads. Hansel leaned in as if to bestow a secret. “Prince Erec from Avonvale,” he whispered. Erec bit his tongue as he glanced around trying to plan his escape. He did not like the odds with two armed guards and Lord Hansel to stop him.

  The guards’ eyes widened. “His Imperial Majesty will be wanting him,” Woorin said smiling broadly referring to the Wizard. “Maybe even give us a reward.”

  Lord Hansel laughed. “A reward?” he asked and the guards nodded. “Forget a reward,” he said. “If we get our story right, there may be a knighthood in this for the two of you.” Both guards beamed now, standing straighter and puffing their chests out. “But let’s not take him to the stockade just yet. We don’t want the Commander of the City Guard taking credit for this. Take him to the Market Inn. Tell the innkeeper that I sent you and to give you a room. We’ll get our story straight there and determine how best to proceed so that all three of us get what we deserve.”

  “Yes, m’Lord,” both guards said.

  “Do not harm him anymore. We want him fresh when we take him to the King,” Hansel said as he pressed a gold pince into each man’s palm.

  “Yes, m’Lord,” both guards said smiling at the gold before turning back around and heading for the inn. In their minds they had already been knighted and they chattered on about wooing ladies and jousting matches.

  ***

  Half an hour later, Erec was seated in the corner of a dirty room at the Market Inn with Woorin and Ralph watching over him carefully, hands at the ready on their sword hilts. They were not going to allow their little meal ticket to escape. Soon there was a knock at the door.

  “Who is it?” Woorin demanded in a gruff voice.

  “Lord Hansel,” a voice on the other side of the door said. Woorin smiled at Ralph, crossed the room, and unlatched the door swinging it open. He bowed his head slightly to Lord Hansel, but frowned when he saw two lancers with the Lord. Hansel walked past him and stood above Erec looking down. “Well, Your Highness, are you ready to go?” he asked as his lancers drew their swords.

  “Wait,” Woorin said as he moved to stand beside Ralph between Erec and Hansel. “We don’t just want to hand him over to you and you get all of the reward. We want what we deserve.”

  “Of course. You shall get what you deserve,” he said with a sly smile. The guards smiled broadly, until they saw the flash of the lancers’ blades and felt the cold steel of the swords stabbing them through the chinks in their armor. The guards fell to their knees, gurgling and dying. “All collaborators deserve to die,” Hansel said as the guards fell forward, dead.

  Lord Hansel offered his hand to Erec and Erec grabbed it and was lifted from the floor. “Are you alright?”

  “Better now,” the Prince replied. “Thank you.”

  “What are you doing here?” Hansel asked.

  “It’s a long story, but the short version is, I am encamped in the Great Forest and came to scout Elwood to determine the Wizard’s strength here.”

  “He is not as strong in Elwood as he appears. Much of his forces have moved on to Elophdale to raze the city as punishment for our allowing Willem to escape with Prince Tybalt and your sister. The residents have been warned, and the seraph help those that do not flee. Our biggest concern is actually the collaborators like these two. These thugs enjoy bullying the people. Edward has been named king and the people would follow him. I have almost convinced him to lead an uprising, but he is scared. The biggest challenge is his mother’s influence.”

  “All collaborators must die,” Erec reminded Hansel.

  “You know that policy is always more delicate when dealing with the King’s mother,” Hansel said. Erec nodded.

  “How is Ella holding up?” he asked of his betrothed. Hansel shook his head sadly.

  “The Wizard took her and Geoffrey to Avonvale. He said they are to join his Imperial court there, but everyone knows he took them as hostages. That is the other reason it has been difficult to stage an uprising.”

  “We have to rescue them,” Erec said, suddenly very concerned for his betrothed.

  “But how?”

  “I don’t know. Is there some way I can contact you without coming back into town?”

  “Meet me back there at night in five days,” Hansel said and pointed to the window. Erec looked out and saw that the edge of the Great Forest was about one hundred yards away. “The innkeeper is a good man and on the right side. We can meet at the edge of the forest, but may come inside to speak if necessary.”

  “Very well,” Erec said with a nod. “I shall see you in five days.”

  “My men will escort you to the edge of the wood,” he said motioning to the two lancers.

  “Thank you, Lord Hansel,” Erec said extending his hand. Hansel accepted and shook it.

  The lancers escorted Erec to the edge of the wood, where he disappeared into the trees. He walked along the edge of the forest until he reached Alaric. The elophim smiled to see that Erec made it back alright, and they all began to return to the elophim village while Erec explained what had happened.

  Chapter 13

  Ashleen and Terrwyn led the two columns of Paladin as they rode south along River Road. Willem and Dillan rode behind them, while Sir Auberon and Sir Tomfrey followed Willem and Dillan, at the head of the Paladin. They were confident that the Wizard had no presence this far south and thus their troubles with drakmere were far behind them.

  “But how does a woman who is smaller than most male warriors, like you and I, counter their superiority in size and strength?” Terrwyn asked Ashleen. The two had been discussing fighting and military tactics all day and Terrwyn was astounded with the depth of Ashleen’s knowledge of the subjects. Terrwyn realized that she had a lot to learn if she expected to become a warrior as well.

  Ashleen chuckled. “Terrwyn, do you think you are mentally inferior to men simply because you are a woman?”

  “Certainly not,” Terrwyn responded.

  “Big men will often rely too heavily on their size and strength, and will, thus, be easy prey if you fight with your head.” Terrwyn stared at her cocking her head to the side. “Forget fighting men for a second,” Ashleen said. “Let us talk about our most likely adversary—drakmere.”

  “Good idea. That goes exactly to my point. Drakme
re are certainly much faster and stronger and certainly a lot bigger than I. How do I defeat them?”

  “Are drakmere not bigger, faster, and stronger than male warriors?”

  “Yes,” Terrwyn replied.

  “Did you not see your lancers defeat drakmere?”

  “Yes,” Terrwyn replied.

  “Because they fought with their heads,” Ashleen said. “One on one, strength against strength, there is probably no man alive that could best a drak, but draks are stupid creatures. They attack forcefully, relying completely on their size and strength to overcome their opponents. They think only about their current move, while we have the capacity to think multiple moves ahead. Most of the time, draks come at you swinging downward. Wait for the swing to begin and then step to the side, safely out of the way. Then their entire flank is exposed to your attack and their size and strength means nothing to them anymore.”

  Dillan and Willem rode along behind Ashleen and Terrwyn listening to their conversation. Willem leaned over in his saddle and softly spoke. “Interesting girl,” he said nodding toward Ashleen.

  “Yeah,” Dillan agreed.

  “How long have you known her?”

  “We met a couple of years ago,” Dillan replied.

  “Any romantic interests?”

  Dillan laughed. “Will, if you think you’ve got a shot, don’t let me stand in your way,” he said.

  Willem considered that for a moment. He did not know if he had “a shot.” She was a member of an elite military order and had already bested a cave bear. She wasn’t looking for a crown as she was already going to be sovereign of her own kingdom. What did Willem have to offer?

  Willem was handsome of course. Not roguishly so like Dillan, but in a clean cut, princely sort of way like Erec. In fact, he feared he reminded Terrwyn of her brother. Perhaps she even thought of him too much like a brother. After all, they had been friends since childhood. He still had a chance to make an impression on Ashleen, but had no idea what kind of man a warrior princess wanted. As they rode, he saw Ashleen turn and give Dillan a gentle smile. Willem chuckled to himself. Of course, warrior princesses wanted the same type of man as every other woman in the realm, the swashbuckling buccaneer type.

  “Halt!” a gruff voice shouted and Ashleen and Terrwyn reined in as men leapt out of the tree line aiming notched arrows at them. The Paladin did not miss a beat, quickly dashing forward and surrounding the princes and princesses protectively. Dillan stared through the mass of golden armor at the men standing in their way.

  “Wait!” Dillan shouted. “Wait! Don’t kill them. These are my men.” He pushed his way through the ranks of Paladin to ride out in front. He looked down on the four sailors before him.

  “It’s the Cap’n,” he heard them shout.

  “Yes, now stop pointing those arrows at these Paladin before they cut you men to shreds.” His men quickly obeyed, lowering their bows.

  “Oh, thank the seraph,” Terrwyn said. She could barely contain her excitement to see Taite again.

  “What are you doing out here?” Dillan demanded.

  “Ship needed repairs, Cap’n. We was set upon by draks,” one of the sailors said. “We’ve been fixin’ it.”

  “Draks?” Terrwyn mumbled to herself.

  Dillan nodded to the men. “Take us to the ship.”

  “Aye, Cap’n,” the sailor said.

  The sailors led the way along the road, with Dillan leading the columns of horse. Terrwyn galloped up beside him. She smiled at him and he returned it, reaching out and patting her hand. The sailors led them off of the road and through some light brush to a little cove. Terrwyn saw the Vagabond and could wait no longer. She urged her mare to a gallop and rode straight for the ship. “Taite!” she shouted. “Taite!”

  The sailors watched as she rode past them and dismounted her horse. The crew had a makeshift camp set up on the bank of the river. Terrwyn scanned it for her sister as she heard voices crying out, “It’s the Cap’n!”

  “Taite!” Terrwyn shouted again, and then noticed Ramo. “Ramo, where is Taite?” she asked smiling at him. He would not meet her eye, but walked away toward Dillan, pretending not to hear her. Terrwyn looked up at the deck of the ship and saw Starron staring at her. She walked forward toward him as he took hold of a line, wrapping it around his feet and sliding down the rope to the ground. “Mr. Starron, kindly fetch my sister,” Terrwyn said sweetly.

  Starron walked toward Terrwyn. “I cannot, My Lady,” he replied. She saw sadness in his eyes.

  “Where is she?” Terrwyn asked, but did not give him time to respond. “Taite!” she shouted as loudly as she could, spinning around and looking about the camp, the ship, the forest around them, but saw no sign of the little girl. “Taite!” Her panicked eyes met Dillan’s. The Captain was smiling broadly, excited to see his crew, but when his eyes met Terrwyn’s his smile faded. He had dismounted his horse and was surrounded by his men all joyfully patting him on the back and shoulders. Dillan pushed his way past them toward Terrwyn.

  Terrwyn spun back to Starron. He had tears in his eyes. “The little princess is gone,” Starron said.

  “What do you mean gone?” Terrwyn asked.

  Starron dropped down to both knees before Terrwyn and removed his thrummed cap, holding it in both hands over his chest. “I am so sorry,” he said. Dillan was standing beside Terrwyn now, looking down at his first mate.

  “What happened?” Dillan demanded.

  “We were beset by draks, Captain. They took the girl. The drak which had her, leapt back to its ship, but the wolf caught it in midair. All three went into the drink.”

  “She was captured?” Terrwyn said.

  “I don’t know, My Lady,” Starron said as he looked at the ground. “I did not see her come up. I think she has drowned.”

  “No,” Terrwyn whispered.

  Dillan placed a hand comfortingly on her shoulder. Terrwyn spun and embraced him, burying her face in his chest. “Where is Stark? He was supposed to protect her,” Dillan said. He was angry now. Angry at himself. He had promised Terrwyn that Taite would be safe aboard his ship.

  “Stark is dead, Captain. He tried to protect her, but we lost half of the crew,” Starron answered solemnly.

  Half of his men dead? Taite drowned? Dillan clenched his teeth. “I am sorry, Terrwyn,” he said softly. “This is my fault,” he said, taking responsibility for the failings of his crew. Terrwyn wanted to be angry at Starron. She wanted to be angry at Dillan. She wanted to hate them all for allowing this to happen—for letting her little sister drown. But she could not, because she knew she had no one to blame but herself. Had she not insisted on leaving the ship and going to the funeral, Taite might still be alive. They might all have been safely on the Island of Avalon by now. Dillan had warned her that Elwood might be dangerous, but she was stubborn, so proud and rebellious, that she ignored his warnings. The blood of Taite and half of the crew of the Vagabond was on her hands and she knew it.

  “No,” Terrwyn replied between sobs. “It is my fault.”

  Dillan squeezed her tight and patted her hair as she cried into his chest.

  “It was a Stromish ship, Captain, crewed by Stromish sailors that overtook us,” Starron said. Dillan closed his eyes hating that his brief moment of joy had turned into one of misery. He glanced over at Willem and Ashleen, both still mounted and watching them solemnly.

  ***

  Ashleen and Auberon stood beside Dillan watching the sailors hoist the newly repaired sails up on the reinforced mast. “How long before we can set sail?” Ashleen asked.

  Dillan considered the question for a moment. “Hopefully we will able to leave in the morning,” he said. He turned to face her. “We cannot take the horses and your men will have to sleep on the deck.”

  “I understand,” she said smiling. Dillan returned her smile. “Sir Auberon, kindly see to the night watch,” Ashleen commanded.

  “Yes, Commander,” he replied and then spun on his heel and walked
away.

  Ashleen turned back to Dillan. “It’s good to see you again,” she said as she took a step closer. This was the first time they had been alone since meeting up and she wanted to tell him. “I had a vision of your family just before we found out Riversmeet had fallen.”

  “And?” he asked.

  “I am so sorry it ended that way for them.”

  “What did you see?”

  She shook her head.

  “Tell me,” Dillan said through clenched teeth.

  “The Black Knight, he killed them. He laughed while he did it. The drakmere…” she stopped, her eyes filled with tears.

  “What?” he asked. “What about the drakmere?”

  “I could feel it,” she said. “It was as if I was there. The drakmere feasted on their flesh. I could feel it as if their fangs were sinking into my own skin.” Dillan turned away from her, not wanting her to see his eyes. She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. “I was so relieved when I realized you weren’t there.”

  “You are sure it was the Black Knight?” he asked.

  “Yes,” she replied. “Lord Rayfen, they called him.”

  Dillan turned back to face her. “Your father owes me a great debt,” he said. “He has promised me a title, lands, and a marriage to one of his daughters. That was the reward for saving you and your mother from those bastard pirates.” Ashleen nodded. “I will forgive that debt, if, when the time comes, you give me your Sword of Light to kill that bastard shedom and send him back to hell.”

  “I will,” she replied.

  “Thank you,” he turned away from her again and began to walk toward his ship, but then stopped and spoke without turning to face her. “I’ve missed you, too,” he confessed and then walked away.

  Ashleen watched him as he walked over to his ship and began to climb up the knotted rope to the deck. She turned away and as she turned, her eyes fell on Terrwyn who sat alone on a log staring at her. Terrwyn wanted to be alone. Willem and Dillan had both tried to comfort her, but she pushed them both away. But now she was watching Ashleen. She crooked her finger at Ashleen and Ashleen swallowed hard. Ashleen had not meant to offend her by talking to Dillan. She had thought about him everyday since he had left Caerwynspire, so it was very difficult not to wrap him up in her arms and cover him with kisses, but she knew he belonged to Terrwyn now and she was truly trying to be respectful of that.