The Broken Scale (The Dragon Riders of Arvain)

by Clausen, Nicholas

  “Hello, Shane, you going to the blacksmith too?” he asked. Hayden liked Shane, but he always felt like there was something in the way of them becoming true friends. He enjoyed spending time with him and they got along great, but something just wasn’t right. “Shane nodded his head vigorously; he could not help but stare at Hayden with a big smile on his face.

  Hayden thought he knew what was on his mind but he decided to play along and ask him. “What are you in such a cheerful mood for this morning?” he asked, watching the excitement bubble up inside of Shane. He got worried that if Shane did not let it out soon that he would blow up.

  “It’s Rilora. Last night before I went to sleep she kept complaining about how itchy she was, and I figured that I might not have cleaned her good and something was stuck between two scales. But she said she itched all over and you’re not going to believe why.” Shane gave Hayden a few seconds to guess, during which Hayden had a quick battle inside of his head as he tried to figure out if he should ruin Shane’s fun as a joke or play dumb. In the end he figured paying dumb was the safe way to go.

  “I have no idea, tell me.” He did his best to sound like he had no idea and Shane must have believed it because he could not have smiled any bigger if he wanted to.

  “I went to clean her again, and this time when I did her scales started to come off, she was shedding Hayden. All of her scales were replaced with new, harder and bigger copper scales. Just wait till you see her, she looks like a whole new dragon.” They walked together to where the blacksmith was, and Shane continued to talk about his eventful night, and Hayden listened to the great detail in which Shane described how he pulled off the dragon scales around Rilora’s face.

  As they neared the entrance to the blacksmith Shane expected Hayden to be on his way to the blacksmith for a tool or some other thing. “They will be measuring me for my armor today; they will then use the scales from Rilora to make my armor. I cannot believe this moment is finally here, I am almost a fully fledged rider. By the way, what brings you here to the blacksmith, trying to replace your dagger that you had lost?”

  Hayden had decided to not to tell anyone that he had given his dagger to Fendrel, he actually did not want to mention Fendrel’s name at all. Hayden figured that enough attention had been brought to his old friend that mentioning his name at every available moment would just continue to make people ask questions about him.

  “Actually no. I am here to be fitted for my armor also. Draek started shedding this morning and I just finished helping pull off all his old scales.” Hayden knew that it did not feel good to always be in someone’s shadow. Having them best you at everything that you do; Hayden needed to watch that he did not do that.

  “But Rilora was shedding first, that is crazy. She is bigger than some of the coppers that are already a few years old isn’t she?” Hayden tried to get back on the subject of Rilora so Shane wouldn’t feel like Hayden was trying to be the center of the world again.

  Hayden saw a physical change in Shane as he praised his dragon. “You are right, she was the first one, and she is huge. I think she might be the same size, if not bigger than Giles’ tiny silver.” Hayden laughed at the insult Shane had made. Shane pushed the door open to the blacksmith and Hayden followed him in quickly, letting the heavy door slam shut behind him.

  Hayden had become somewhat familiar with the blacksmith’s shop. It was made up of two large rooms; the first was a shop filled with beautiful trinkets and shiny weapons that were more for decorative use than real battles. In a real fight the person holding the glittery gold encrusted sword that is loaded with gems and jewels usually doesn’t live that long.

  There was a counter against the far wall; behind it was a large door that led to the workroom. The workroom only had the one wall were the door was, and the ceiling that stood over the work shop was held up by four large pillars. Each pillar was covered in various tools; a giant forge took up the center of the open room.

  There were four identical stations by each of the pillars; they each had one anvil and a cooling tank. This is where Hayden had done his short apprenticeship; where he had made his dagger. There was a small shed just outside the awning that was always locked, and inside was all the molds that they use to make most of the items. The more expensive stuff was all free-handed, but Hayden had only ever seen the master smith work without molds.

  There was an older man at the counter trying to haggle with the girl behind the counter. It was over one of the decorative swords that normally hung on the wall; now it resided in man’s grubby hands. The girl was thin, covered in tight muscles that had come from working as a smith. Her dark hair pulled back in a ponytail, she wore the same grey clothes that most young girls wore, the same that Cass wore.

  “Look, little missy, this sword is at best worth three hundred gold, but you have it priced for four fifty. So let’s say I give you three hundred and we call it a deal?” He spoke with the authority of someone who is used to being obeyed.

  The man did not know that he was talking to the master smith’s only child. She knew as much about metals as her father did. The only things she was better at then her father were haggling prices and sword fighting.

  “Let’s say you pay me what I am asking for before I tell every respectable smith in the city that you are a cheapskate. Now that is a well balanced blade, sharpened evenly. The handle is solid gold, with three identical rubies and three sapphires on either side of the hilt. The sword is worth four fifty, the scabbard is another hundred. Take it or put it back were you found it. Either way hurry, because I have customers waiting behind you.” The man turned to see the two young men standing there. Hayden smiled politely but the man turned around quickly.

  He huffed and puffed for a few seconds, looking between the sword and the girl behind the counter. He pulled out a small bulging bag and loosened the opening at the top; he pulled out the gold coins and slammed them on the table. Putting the sword back in the scabbard, hard enough so that Hayden heard the clink of metal on metal when the guard hit the end of the scabbard, he pushed past them towards the door.

  “I am so glad you two showed up, if not I would have had to have given him that sword for a discounted price. I knew he couldn’t be told what to do by a little girl, ha-ha. He had no choice but to pay full price and I even got him to over pay on the scabbard,” she told them as they made their way to the counter.

  “Glad to help, but we are here to see your dad, he is expecting us,” Shane said awkwardly. When Hayden had worked here he had only seen her in passing, never saying more than hello and goodbye. He had heard that she had made her interest in Shane known, but Shane had politely declined. Now he was even more nervous than normal around her.

  “Of course, you know where he is.” She pointed at the door behind her. Shane nodded his thanks and Hayden followed him through the door. As soon as the door opened Hayden heard the familiar sound of a hammer striking an anvil.

  “You two took your time coming here didn’t you?” A deep booming voice came from the largest man Hayden had ever met. The master smith, Rokesten, was tall, but it wasn’t his height that intimidated people. His broad barrel chest was like solid stone, his arms too big for any armor Hayden had ever seen made; he looked the part of a blacksmith.

  “Sorry Rokesten, we did not intend on being late,” Hayden said. Shane might not have had a smooth tongue for the smith’s daughter, but when he was getting yelled at he clammed up completely.

  “Well I should hope that you did not intend on being late, if you had I would not be making you two your armor.” He turned to face the boys, and in his hand he had a shield he had been working on, but the front was not smooth metal like most shields, it was covered in silver dragon scales.

  It was then that Hayden noticed the buckets of scales, half of them silver from Draek and the other half copper from Rilora. He had only just started putting the scales on the silver shield, but Hayden saw Shane reach for another shield that was propped up against the
nearest pillar, this one was finished and covered in copper scales.

  Hayden had not gotten the chance to examine a dragon rider’s armor up close yet. Shane’s shield looked like he had taken it off of Rilora in one whole piece.

  “So I take it you approve, young Shane?” Rokesten asked, and he laughed as Shane nodded his head as he found his tongue no longer obeyed him. Shane looked at his own reflection in the shield, he marveled at how the scales flowed together just like on Rilora herself.

  “Well I know you young riders are busy with the Festival of Games coming up, and with me having to make your armor I won’t be sitting around doing nothing either. So let’s get the measurements done so you can be off on your way.”

  Rokesten put Hayden’s shield down and led the way out into the open area behind his shop. There was a table set up that had various pieces of armor on them, none of them fancy by any means.

  “I will get you two to try these all on, then I will use the ones that fit you as a template to make your real armor. Any questions?” Both of them shook their heads, it seemed simple enough. The table had different kinds of each piece of armor and varying sizes. There were helmets, sabatons which are worn over a leather shoe, greaves which are worn over the shins and quisse which cover the knee and thigh of the rider.

  Hayden had to ask what the proper names of most of them were because he had no idea what to call them. He knew what the breastplate was and the chain mail that were on the tables. Then Rokesten brought out a few different paldrons when none of the ones on the tables fit them, paldrons to cover the arms and shoulders.

  The last things that they tried on were the gauntlets, which a rider wore over his hands when he wasn’t wearing dragonauts. Hayden and Shane tried on each piece enthusiastically, taking them of just as fast as they had put them on so that they could put on the next piece.

  It took longer than Hayden would have thought, but by lunchtime there were two piles of complete armor. No two pieces matched, but they all fit and that was all that Rokesten needed. He was going to use the armor as molds to make a complete matching set. Hayden and Shane could not wait to see the result, they were about to have their very own sets of armor.

  _________________

  Hayden stood alone in his room, he was about to put on his shirt when he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror. He could barely remember how he had looked before coming to this place. His body had become tanned by the working in the sunlight; the body that had once been smooth was now covered in muscles.

  Hayden now saw the changes after months of work, but he had not been able to see it during the struggle.

  Like all of life’s journeys I guess, you never see why you went through it till you are done going through it. He no longer thought to himself because he knew that Draek was always there, whether he wanted him there or not. Draek agreed with him, but he was busy working on diving from high in the sky and striking at targets on the ground.

  Hayden would have normally been training today, with the Festival of Games only a week away, but he had been given the day off to take care of something very important. He was to get his dragon riding armor today; one of the last things that would make him a fully fledged Dragon Rider of Arvain. All that was left after this was to make it through his first flight ceremony, which happened after the Festival of Games.

  Well I guess there isn’t a lot left, huh? This time Draek didn’t even acknowledge him.

  Chapter 18

  Hayden sat on a bench with his head held low as he tried to calm his breathing. His heart was racing and his nerves had gotten the better of him. It was about to be his turn and although he had been training for these games he was still nervous.

  He was sitting around with a bunch of other men and women wearing different variations of armor and carrying every kind of weapon that Hayden had ever seen. This was the Festival of Games, the first event was about to start, and Hayden had signed up for it; he had actually signed up for almost every event.

  They were using a field just outside the city as the arena; Elizabeth had a crew set up stands to hold scores of people that would make up the crowd. They put tents up around the arena to house the waiting participants and gear for the events. Hayden was in one such tent now, awaiting his turn.

  The event was one-on-one combat, with any weapons. Elizabeth was in the process of addressing the people and officially starting the Festival of Games. Hayden was wearing his new dragon armor and it weighed more than ever at this point; he stood from his seat and made his way to the flap of the tent.

  He almost walked right into Shane as he entered the tent. Hayden hadn’t had a chance to really talk to him since the day they went to the blacksmith together. Shane was wearing his new armor also, which matched Hayden’s expect for the copper color his metal had and the copper scales that covered his chest plate. The handle to his large broad sword stuck out over his right shoulder and he wore his kite shield slung over his back. Like most of the fighters he carried his helmet in his hands, it was too much trouble to wear it all the time.

  Most of the fighters in the events weren’t riders, the riders saving their strength to participate in events that allow them to have their dragons with them; there were foot soldiers from within the city and from some of the surrounding towns. This was their chance to make names for themselves.

  That was part of the reason that almost everyone had different styled armor on, and the biggest difference between their armor and everyone else’s was their helmets. All the riders had the same design for their helmets; their helmet covered their heads and the back of their necks, the length of the helmet going almost to their shoulders. They are very plain, with a T-shaped section cut out for the person wearing it to see out of and breathe easily. The bottom part of the helmet fanned out so that if a sword did glance off them it would be forced out and away from the body. No decorations or anything unneeded was placed on the helmets.

  Shane and Hayden both had all their gear on, making it obvious that they were both riders, and they stepped out of the tent to allow them to talk freely without everyone listening to them.

  “There are some strong opponents in there.” Shane nodded as Hayden spoke.

  “There are some strong opponents out here too.” Shane added.

  “You realize that we can’t both win right, we might have to face each other.” Shane spoke somberly. Hayden had thought of that and he did not want to have to face his friend in a fight.

  “If I am going to lose to anybody, I would be ok with it being to you.” Hayden did truly feel that way, but he would much rather not lose. Hayden wanted to talk to him more before the events started, but before he could a runner came sprinting around the tents and ran straight into the tent they had just left.

  “I wonder what that is all about,” Hayden said. Shane shrugged his shoulders and together they made their way back into the tent to catch what the runner was saying.

  “Everyone has to come now.” They had walked in while he was in the middle of a sentence. The man was hunched over and holding on to his knees as he spoke. He tried to catch his breath in between words.

  “What is going on?” Shane asked bluntly to the crowd. “Where do we have to go?”

  “He tells us that Elizabeth the gold wants us all out on the field to fight at the same time.” A woman spoke up from the front row of people who had formed a circle around the still panting man. She had on leather pants and a black chest plate that was shaped to cover a woman’s chest. She had two short swords on her back that Hayden was sure she knew how to use.

  “How could we fight at the same time, the event is supposed to be one-on-one.” A different person in the crowd asked this time.

  “Come and you will find out. If you want to compete then you must follow me, otherwise if you stay here you forfeit this event.” The runner turned around and walked back the way he had came, but this time at a much slower pace. Hayden looked at the others in the tent, and when no one made a move to leave he t
urned and walked after the man.

  He quickly heard the clinking of armor as the others fell in behind him. They walked in between the tents until they came up to the main road that led into the arena. The arena looked to Hayden like a giant bowl that was made out of stands, with only one large entrance that they were heading for. As they got closer Hayden lifted his silver helmet up and lightly placed it on his head. Once he was sure it was on right he hooked the leather strap underneath his chin and tightened it till it was snug.

  Good luck, Draek’s voice spoke in his mind. Draek was off hunting with the other dragons since they would soon be competing and they needed all the strength they could get before their events started. Hayden was amazed at how smoothly he was walking when he felt like his legs were water about come out from underneath him at any moment. For the fifth time since he had made it into the tent, which was less than an hour ago, he had the sudden urge to use a washroom to relieve himself.

  Hayden took a deep breath and tried to push his nerves and other feelings out of his mind and focus on the event that he was about to have to perform in. He wanted to do good, he wanted to win, he needed to win.

  The walked into the center of the arena to the roar and thunder of the crowd; the audience jumped to their feet as soon as they saw them. The arena had once been a grassy field but now, from all the workers walking over it constantly, the ground had become hard packed dirt.

  They stood together in the center of the field, looking up at the platform where Elizabeth sat with the other two rulers. She was the only one of the three standing to great them. They still wore the same decorative armor and they had servants around them with drinks and foods in case they needed anything.

  Elizabeth smiled down on them like an owner would smile at their fighting dog, not out of love for them but for what they could do for her. The more Hayden learnt about her the more he disliked her.