Windcatcher: Book I of the Stone War Chronicles

by A. J. Norfield

  Throwing some more wood on the fire and switching out the cooled stones with hot ones, his brother sat down next to him.

  “You should get some sleep, too, little brother.”

  Raylan shook his head.

  “I don’t want to leave Galirras or move him away from the fire. I think he needs the warmth of the fire, so I’ll stay here.”

  Gavin wondered if that was the right thing to do. Everyone on the team needed to be fully aware of the dangers surrounding them, and tired people make mistakes.

  “I can always sleep with my back against the rock,” said Raylan, conceding a little.

  “Do you think he’ll make it?” said his older brother, nodding at the little dragon.

  “I don’t know…he seems really weak. He kept saying it was too early. I didn’t understand at first, but I think he meant it was too early to come out of the egg.”

  “He looks quite pale. Has he awakened since he ate this afternoon?”

  Again, Raylan shook his head.

  “No. I was wondering if I should try and wake him up.”

  “I would let him sleep for a little while longer. Perhaps try to feed him some of the soup and cooked meat, later. It’ll probably warm him up inside. Just let me know if you need anything.”

  As Gavin moved to stand up, Raylan grabbed his arm.

  “What will we do now?”

  Gavin sat back down.

  “What we came here to do. Retrieve the sacred relic of the Empire.”

  “But it’s not a thing anymore. He’s alive, able to think and to communicate. You can’t just ship him off,” objected Raylan.

  “I think our original mission has changed little. Bring back the stolen relic. But instead of the egg, I think we should get Galirras back to the Tiankong Empire. They can decide what will happen to him next.”

  Raylan shifted uneasily. He did not like the sound of that, at all. What if they take Galirras away from him? The Empire was far away and did not look kindly on strangers trying to enter their territory. What if he was not allowed entry into the Empire? What would happen to Galirras?

  “For now, let’s focus on getting south and finding the Drowned Man’s Fork. We only have eight horses left and ten riders—eleven, if you count your new companion. Some people will need to share their rides. On the other hand, we’ll be able to travel more quickly now without the wagon, getting away from the path, and perhaps, losing our pursuers,” added Gavin.

  His brother poked the fire with one of the sticks they had gathered.

  “Unfortunately, Peadar said one of the Azurna pigeons broke its neck in all the chaos this afternoon, so we’ll only have one shot to get word back to the harbor, requesting pickup by ship. It’s going to be a big gamble.”

  Raylan felt Galirras stir on his leg. The soft, irregular breathing rumbled deep in his chest.

  “I really wish Xi’Lao could tell us more. She’s so difficult to gauge. I know she’s on our side in a fight, but she’s always dodging my questions and acting so mysterious. She’s been distant with everyone, except you. You two seem to have hit it off.”

  “She’s an interesting woman, to say the least,” Gavin admitted, with as much grace as his blushing permitted. He was glad the weak light from the campfire prevented Raylan from noticing.

  “…but she is often as much of a mystery to me as to you, little brother.”

  “Okay, so perhaps you can enlighten me about this afternoon. What the hell was up with that? Do you know?” Raylan said, slightly irritated. “She suddenly showed complete disregard for the incredibly bad situation we were in and lost it…it was nothing like her.”

  Raylan tried not to show his annoyance too much.

  “I mean…normally she’s so in control. It’s a wonder most of us got out of there at all.”

  Gavin stayed quiet for a moment, just staring into the flames.

  Raylan softly stroked Galirras’ neck to give some comfort, while he waited for his brother to answer.

  Gavin let out a deep sigh.

  “I’m sorry. You’ll have to ask her yourself.”

  “Oh, come on. You know I can keep a secret.”

  Gavin shook his head.

  “It’s not my place to say. You should ask her. Earlier, she said she needed to talk to you, anyway; so, you’ll get the chance soon, I reckon. I’ve got a feeling she’ll open up more now that Galirras is here.”

  Getting up, he gave Raylan’s shoulder two taps.

  “I’m going to check on the watch and then turn in. I’m up for early morning watch duty.”

  He walked off, leaving Raylan with his thoughts.

  For a while, Raylan was by himself by the fire. He woke Galirras up and fed him some boiled horse meat soup, thickened with the blood they collected from the carcass. The little dragon eagerly ate everything, although it seemed that he was almost sleepwalking. The weak, young dragon did not react to any of his questions. His eyes were constantly swirling around, unfocused, and his tail made little involuntary jerky movements.

  By the time Galirras slumbered again, Xi’Lao joined him by the fire.

  “Hey,” said Raylan, as he wondered what she would say.

  “How’s he doing?”

  She whispered the words in order to not disturb their sleeping comrades.

  He noticed her accent more when she talked softly. It never bothered him before; but now, he felt annoyed by it. It reminded him that she was not of his homeland, and it made him wonder if she had a different agenda, a secret one.

  “He ate quite a bit again, just now, but it takes a lot out of him,” he replied, pushing his thoughts to the side.

  Galirras grumbled, as if to confirm the statement.

  Staring into the fire, Raylan remained silent. He did not feel like talking to her, afraid of what she might say.

  “I…I think I owe you an apology,” she began.

  A bit surprised, Raylan looked up and stared at her. That was not what he had expected.

  “What for…?”

  “My outburst this morning...it was…was not how I normally am.”

  She was stammering, slightly, as if she suddenly had trouble with the foreign language. It made her sound vulnerable. Raylan felt his irritation evaporate. Suddenly, he just saw a person who felt very much alone and in need of a friend.

  “It’s okay, you know. You don’t have to talk about it, if you don’t want to. Gavin told me to ask you what caused your outburst. I’ll understand, if you don’t want to tell me.”

  “It is not that…it is just that this is difficult to talk about. I am not sure anyone would understand. We are from very different cultures. I was afraid it would turn people away, but I see now that not telling is probably worse.”

  “I think you’re a valued part of this group. You’ve been searching, relentlessly, for Galirras’ egg since the beginning, never once complaining about the hardship of the journey. And, you definitely held your own in a fight. I believe you’ve helped this group come this far, together with my brother, but I’m sorry…I’ve still got a gnawing feeling that you’re not telling us everything.”

  Xi’Lao was silent, for a moment.

  “It is true. I have not shared all the information I have, but I have my reasons for that.”

  Instead of telling him that reason, she looked him in the eye, as if sizing him up.

  “Can I ask you a question?”

  “Errr, sure.”

  All of a sudden, Xi’Lao’s tone turned very serious.

  “What do you plan to do with Galirras? What do you think will happen?”

  Raylan was on guard, right away. Was she testing him? Checking to see if he would try to take away the Empire’s property? Besides, it was strange to hear the question he had been asking himself for the entire night, said aloud.

  “Honestly?” said Raylan, trying to decide if he should speak the truth or tell her what he thought she wanted to hear. In the end, the truth seemed easiest.

  “I’ve been aski
ng myself that very same question. I think he’ll have to decide for himself, when he is well enough.”

  “That is not good enough. Galirras will look to you for a lot of things, knowledge about the world, right and wrong. Your opinion will weigh heavily on his decisions. So, what will you do?”

  “Really, I’ve got no idea. At this moment, I just want Galirras to survive. It scares the hell out of me that he might not make it, which is weird, because I’ve known him less than a day.”

  “What if he lives? What do you think should happen?”

  “Should happen? Get out of here, of course. Away from those living statues, away from those people trying to kill us. Keep him safe…I guess.”

  “And after we get out of here and return to Aeterra?”

  Raylan felt frustrated. He was not any closer to an answer since he started asking himself the same questions this afternoon.

  “I just don’t know. We’ll have to go report to the king and the council on this mission. He’ll want to see a real life dragon for himself, I reckon. As long as I can stay with him and protect him.”

  “It might not be your choice, in the end.”

  “I know, but I’ll try everything within my power so we’ll not get separated. He’ll need protection from people who mean him harm. He’s still so fragile. People might try to use him for their own good.”

  Apparently satisfied by his answers, Xi’Lao gave a small nod and continued the conversation.

  “I’m glad you’re taking this so seriously. I think you have a good heart, which I feel will take responsibility for Galirras, even if the road is not an easy one. Therefore, I would like to ask you to come with me to the Empire. Actually…I think you will need to,” said Xi’Lao, with a small smile.

  “Why’s that?” he said, with a wondering expression on his face.

  “Because I have a feeling that Galirras will not go unless you go, too. You say that you always had a feeling about me not telling you everything, right? Well, I think it is time I tell you what I know.”

  This made Raylan wide awake. Maybe he would finally be able to get his questions answered.

  Trying to find the right words, she took a moment to think about what to say.

  “See, the stolen relic…Galirras’ egg…I just…it is more personal than you might think. It is not just the Empire’s safety and honor that is involved. You see, my full name is Xi’Lao Wén. The high monk, the one that skinny, blatantly insulting wretch was talking about this afternoon, the one person who was responsible for protecting the egg, his name was Lai’Ping Wén…he was my grandfather.”

  Raylan looked at her with a gaping mouth. A few moments passed before he found his words.

  “What do you mean, your grandfather? Were you at the place that got raided? What did you call it? The monastery?”

  “No, I was never there. I mean, I have been there when I was younger. My parents died when I was very little, so I never really knew them. My grandfather raised me, at the monastery. However, I had been living in the capital, for a number of years, before the attack.”

  She pulled up her knees and put her arms around them. It made her look much younger than Raylan knew she really was. Tears filled her eyes.

  “Sometimes, I wish I had been there. Perhaps I could have done something, saved my grandfather…but the reality is, if I had been there, more than likely, I would be dead, too.”

  Raylan did not know what to say, precisely. He could relate to losing a parent while still little, but it seemed like her entire family was taken from her.

  She looked at him, apologetically.

  “That is the reason I snapped this morning. Here was this loathsome, self-contented bastard, impudently claiming to have killed my grandfather, like he was announcing he had a slice of bread for breakfast. I could not take it. I wanted him dead, at all costs…I still do. For my grandfather. For the Empire. For my family’s honor…dead!”

  She tensed her fists talking about it.

  “But I know we have more important things to worry about, especially now, with Galirras out of the egg. We have got to get him to safety, away from enemy hands. Who knows what they plan to do with him,” continued Xi’Lao.

  Raylan could not agree more.

  “So…why you? If I may ask. What about other family? No brothers, no sisters?”

  She shook her head.

  “No. I was an only child. There is my mom’s sister, but she lives in the south of the Empire, away from the capital. We do not talk often.”

  “I’m sorry. That…must be lonely.”

  Xi’Lao gave him a little smile, but he felt the sadness behind the mask.

  “The problem is, although my grandfather was killed the night of the raid, his dishonor—by failing to protect one of the Empire’s greatest treasures—befalls the entire family. I refuse to let that stand. I want to restore our family name to its original honor. Make sure my grandfather gets the respect he deserves for his dedication, and life in service, to the Empire. So, I begged the Emperor to give me a chance to head out and restore my family’s honor by retrieving the egg…”

  “…But things are a lot more complicated now…” added Raylan, immediately, now that he was catching up and seeing more of the whole picture.

  “Exactly…with a live dragon, we will have all kinds of people chasing after us. They will want to capture Galirras and to use him. It might be for a good cause; it might be for something extremely bad. I think it is safe to assume that our pursuers do not have the best intentions for him. I expect they will not be the last to try and get their hands on Galirras.”

  “I won’t let them.”

  “I know. I believe you. But you’ll need all the help you can get. Let’s find our way back to Aeterra and then continue on to the Empire. It will be the best place for Galirras, I’m sure of it.”

  “What makes you say that?”

  “Because of our history. The information that I told you about dragons…it is actually only the tip of the iceberg. The Wén family, our life’s work…our destiny, was to collect and keep any and all information on dragons for the use of the Empire. For centuries, my family maintained the official dragon archives in the main capital and kept positions of great honor throughout the Empire.

  “But, over the generations, the family has been dwindling, for more than a century now…diseases, accidents, old age, disputes about our sacred duty. I am…the last in my bloodline, and responsible for the archive. I have been educated in the knowledge of dragons, as was my father before me, my grandfather before him, and his father before him, going back all the way to the time when dragons roamed the skies by the hundreds, even thousands.”

  Raylan’s head spun with the idea of so many dragons living in this world. Coming back to the point, his reaction was one made out of insecurity.

  “So, all this time, you’ve been playing dumb? What if I did something wrong? What if I did something to hurt Galirras?”

  “Look, I am sorry. I did not mean to offend you; but I needed to know, first, how everything would play out. I had a feeling you would link with the dragon once it hatched, but I could not be sure.”

  “What do you mean link?”

  He pinched the bridge of his nose. He was only getting more questions like this.

  “Please, Xi’Lao, tell me what you know. You’ve got no idea how frustrating and confusing this all is.”

  “I will, but even I do not know everything. We are not in the Tiankong Empire. We are on the run and in constant danger. It is not what you call a nice and stable situation to figure out how to best approach this new creature and his needs. The historical archive might provide some guidance, but it will not be even close to the real situation, not to mention it is thousands of miles away. I am afraid we are mostly on our own in figuring things out.”

  Xi’Lao shifted to make herself more comfortable.

  “Okay, let me start at the beginning. A thousand years ago, the Empire flourished, in what we called the golden
age of dragons. Man and dragon lived, side by side, in society. Some dragons remained wild and lived in the vast faraway areas where few humans went, some worked together with humans of their own choosing.

  “Dragons were a common sight during the day, in markets, in farming fields, in fisheries, and even in mines. The creatures came in various subspecies that shared common characteristics, but differed from each other in many ways.”

  “This was not always the case. One or two ancient scrolls speak of men fighting beasts, in those dark times before the golden age; but we know little of those times, as nothing was recorded at the time.

  “The royal family often had one or more rare dragon species in their surroundings, which was considered an honor for both dragon and human. Protecting the royal family was the responsibility of the Drakk'maru—the Dragon Guard. Dragons and their chosen riders, who excelled in both aerial and ground combat, would be given the honor of serving the royal family as part of the Drakk'maru, an honor which was rarely passed upon.”

  Xi’Lao fell silent, for a moment, as she decided what to tell next.

  “But, the current archives only date back about two hundred years. The scrolls from that time, tell of a major disaster hitting the Empire and, in particular, the dragon population. Things are not completely clear on what happened, as almost all scrolls—and other recorded materials—were destroyed in those turbulent times.

  “There are multiple theories on what happened during that era, from epidemic diseases, to dragon rebellion, to invasion. But the truth is, no one knows for certain anymore. The only fact that remained, in a matter of months, dragons vanished without a trace from everyday life. The Empire was plunged into chaos as multiple factions tried to use the confusion to make a grab for the throne. High lords that had recruited their own armies, fought each other, constantly. Villages were wiped out of existence, cities were burned for days. It is estimated that a third of the Empire’s population did not live to see the end of those troubled times…it took decades before the rightful heir to the Emperor’s throne returned and a more peaceful era began again.”

  “And all this happened because of the dragons vanishing?”

  “We are not sure, but the dragons had been a form of regulation, in conflicts. They were sentient beings that understood the society of humans, but could remain completely impartial. They often mediated between rivaling factions, coming up with peaceful solutions, if possible. If a peaceful way could not be found, they sometimes were referees, making sure battles were fought honorably.”