Windcatcher: Book I of the Stone War Chronicles

by A. J. Norfield

  “It can only mean the egg has hatched. It can be nothing other than a dragon, by what they describe. MY DRAGON!”

  Another cut, across her thigh, provoked an agonizing scream.

  “Please, sir. Please, no more. I’m sorry that I offered myself to you. Please, let me go…I...uhg…hmpf…”

  Corza ripped a piece of cloth from her dress and stuffed it in her mouth.

  “You misunderstand, child. You’re here just to listen!”

  Tears ran across the girl’s cheeks as she tried to move away from the blade. Two more cuts, this time on her hand and cheek. The cut on her face stung as tears and blood mixed together.

  “See, this creature—this dragon—was going to be my weapon. Under my command, it would destroy anybody trying to oppose my will.”

  The point of the dragger slid along her skin to her right breast. Corza straightened the blade, and put pressure on the point, as it pushed itself slowly into her skin. The girl’s muffled cries supported the panic in her eyes.

  “Just like High General Wayler. That son of a bitch got what he deserved when I threw him off the cliff.”

  He dragged the point through her breast, making a large cut on the top of it, across her nipple.

  “Oh, sorry, did I accidentally cut your sweet, little pink nipple?” Corza joked, crudely.

  “But that dragon will be mine, I’ll tell you that.”

  Another cut.

  “With it, I will walk up to the Stone King. No shadow will be able to stop me!”

  Another cut, and another.

  “And, destroy him completely! Or perhaps, just get rid of that devilish arm of his and take a leg or two…I have not decided, yet. But be assured, once I’m done, none will be my equal!”

  The girl barely reacted to the cuts anymore; her body was in shock and unaware of any new injury done to her. Blood flowed, rapidly, down her skin, as she let her head hang; she was unable to stand on her feet any longer.

  Corza lifted her head and looked her in the eyes.

  “It seems like you’ve learned your lesson.”

  The girl looked at him, her blank stare slowly turning into hope. Corza smiled.

  “Of course, now that I’ve told you my plans, I could never let you walk out of here.”

  As he turned around, the girl started to scream. Corza walked over to a chest in the corner of the room and opened it. He took out a scroll and turned back to her.

  “Might as well get some use out of your body…” he said, as he approached her and started the incantations.

  Chapter 14

  Rescue

  Raylan put his hand in the crack around the corner of the boulder. Pushing off with his feet, he shifted his weight onto his right leg. This was always the tricky part, but he was getting used to the movement he needed to make—which was not all that strange since he had made the climb multiple times per day for the last twelve days straight.

  The first time, it took him several attempts to find a suitable route. He had gotten stuck a number of times, until he finally found the hidden handhold on the blind side of a large, overhanging rock.

  They had traveled for six days along the coastal cliffs, before reaching their current encampment. More than once, the group was forced to backtrack as their route led to a dead-end. Taking it slow, they took all the precautions not to run into any patrols.

  During those days, Galirras often took flight below the cliffs, playing with the wind currents swirling around the rocky shore. An animal unable to see the wind would have trouble navigating the swiftly changing currents of air smashing into the stone. Anything flying too close would risk being thrown into the rocks, or being swallowed by sprays of seawater.

  The only animals daring enough to fly near the cliffs were small, arrow-like birds. They appeared to have nests built into the rocks, and feasted on small insects living on the forest’s edge. The speed and agility of these little creatures allowed them to quickly adjust to any changes in the unpredictable air currents. Their flight patterns were very reactive, filled with sudden movements; unlike Galirras, who was learning to read the wind and to anticipate its changes before they happened. Nonetheless, the little creatures were a treat to watch, and Galirras highly enjoyed trying to imitate and to chase them, even if it would take a thousand of them to fill his stomach.

  On the third day they had come across a sea lion colony, much to the pleasure of the hungry dragon. He was amused by these animals that had no real legs and flopped around on land, rather helplessly—until they hit the water and suddenly darted in every direction at lightning speed. He had grabbed one on land, fairly easy, but then made the mistake of diving into the water to see if he could catch one there…it had cost him, dearly. Going into the water had not been the problem; dismissing the fact that he completely missed his prey, it took him a great amount of energy to get out of the water again.

  It gave Raylan some terrifying moments; he had been afraid he would be forced to watch as Galirras drowned, without being able to help him. With no ground under his feet, Galirras had relied on his wings to get out of the water, but he could not raise high enough out of the water to use them.

  As Galirras used all four limbs and his tail to push himself forward, wave after wave crashed over him. After what had seemed like ages to Raylan—who watched from the cliffs—the desperate, water treading dragon finally reached some small rocks to climb on. Exhausted, Galirras had pulled himself onto damp ground, grateful he had a moment to catch his breath. It had taken quite some time until Galirras was rested enough again to get back onto the cliffs. The remainder of that day, the dragon had stayed very close to Raylan, only traveling on foot. From that moment on, whenever they saw the sea lions, the dragon gladly focused on the ones he could take, by surprise, on land. Raylan also noticed Galirras would not fly as low to the water as he did before.

  When they approached the end of the landmass, they had ran into a large rock wall. It blocked them from reaching the most western point, where the Drowned Man’s Fork was located. So, they decided to move along the wall toward the south, to see if another path would allow them to continue. Following it for the day only led the group to the south side of the landmass, but the rock wall never lowered or gave way. It was like someone had knocked the entire western point upward with one giant kick, lifting the ground everywhere, at the same time.

  The south cliffs had not offered a better view of the Drowned Man’s Fork, which left them with two options; they could place a lookout at both the northern and southern coasts of the landmass to keep an eye on the ocean, or they would have to come up with a way to get up there.

  They had surveyed the wall for possible climbing routes, which took them another day to map out. After many attempts, Raylan had been the one who managed to finish the climb, successfully, for the first time. His discovery of the hidden handgrips had allowed them to reach the top of the wall. From there, it was just a short journey to an excellent lookout point. It provided a full view of the three mighty pillars and allowed Raylan to see the water of the Great Eastern Divide from a wide angle. No ship would go undetected from up there.

  And so it came to be that Raylan made the climb, at least once—but more often multiple times—per day. Their group had established a small campsite, which was hidden from view…unless one accidentally wandered right into it.

  Rotating small scouting parties, they kept an eye out for any enemy patrols; but, they had not encountered them on the landmass, yet. A direct confrontation would be disastrous, as they would not have a lot of places to run, or hide, if they were to be discovered.

  Gavin had not liked their options; every day the chances of being discovered increased. But, it could not be helped. If they wanted any chance of getting home by ship, they had to stay here and signal the ship when it arrived…and Gavin hoped, with all his heart, it would arrive.

  As Raylan pulled himself over the top edge, he heard Galirras approach and land a small ways from him.

  �
��I did not see anything, yet. I do not understand why you do not just let me fly around the pillars, from time to time, to check out the water for any ships,” Galirras remarked, “it would save you a lot of energy by avoiding these climbs.”

  “I’m fine,” Raylan said, while catching his breath. “Besides, a dragon flying around a well-known landmark is bound to draw attention…from the wrong people…which we don’t need. I promise, when we leave these lands behind, there will be less sneaking. We can go see places, explore. I will show you the far corners of Aeterra, and Shid’el, of course. I think you’ll like it there.”

  “Tell me again what it is like,” said Galirras.

  “Well, the kingdom itself is vast. Spanning from sea to sea. Shid’el, where I was born, is built against the face of a large mountain that is part of the Crescent Moon Massif. They call it that because the mountains rise up from the coastal area in the west and run both north and south like the points of a sickle moon, bending off toward the east. The city lays on the southern side of the northern moon point, bathing in as much sunlight as the seasons can give.”

  Raylan had told the story a dozen times now, but he saw Galirras’ eyes swirl around, excitedly, as if it was the first time.

  “When you stand on the walls of the city, you can look across the tremendous grass plains with patches of forests and yellow farmlands that reach as far as the eye can see. Beyond it, on the far horizon, the mountain peaks of the southern moon point can be seen, but only on a clear day,” continued Raylan.

  “It takes a horse and rider just under a week to reach the southern end of the crescent moon ridges…but I bet you could fly it in a day or two.”

  “What else?” said Galirras.

  “The lands that go east are filled with rolling hills with grass and trees. Turn north, and you get to the thick forests of Dahales. That’s where Kevhin and Rohan are from, by the way. Dahales guards the north, but the northern wilderness holds no real threats, nothing more than a few scattered outposts…or so we thought, up till now,” said Raylan, as he pictured the large Doskovian force that had traveled the northern regions.

  “Eventually, those thick forests give way to the impassable mountains of the White North. We had to travel awfully close to that harsh region, with its high altitude mountains and everlasting ice, in order to get to you, you know? It’s completely bare of vegetation with little wildlife worth mentioning.”

  Galirras shuddered, thinking about the freezing air of those high peaks.

  “And finally, if you go south, you can follow one of the many valleys south to reach the southern borders of the kingdom. You have to get around the southern moon point to do so, of course. The valleys are smooth, but wet with many lakes and rivers. So, traveling in a straight line is difficult. The lowest parts are all high above sea level. One of my father’s customers once said, the summers are nice but way too short, while the winters are filled with unpredictable weather and often very harsh.”

  “What else? What about the people? And those outside of the kingdom?” said the dragon, as they continued their walk to the lookout.

  “Haven’t I told you this many, many times already?” said Raylan.

  “I have no idea what you are talking about?” answered Galirras, obviously playing ignorant.

  Raylan let out a laugh.

  “Fine,” said Raylan, giving in once more with a laugh. “Aeterra, and it’s people, have a tumultuous history. But, that was all before my time. The last Great War ended almost a hundred years ago, but Aeterran history is filled with bloody royal family feuds, betrayals, deceits, and all-out wars. In the end, all that was left were three of the larger noble families, trying to come out on top. The king’s family, being one of the final three and ruler of Shid'el, managed to turn things around—against all odds—and put a stop to the fighting. For the first time in many years, people carefully worked together again. Fragile peace treaties turned into more trusted arrangements, like joint marriages, and—ultimately—into the Aeterran Kingdom. But because of its history, the Aeterran people are definitely a mixed bunch. Each region has its different ways and habits.”

  “How do you know all this?”

  “I have my dad, and a certain girl’s rich family, to thank for that,” said Raylan, not making Galirras any wiser.

  “Do many people come to Aeterra?”

  This was a new question for Raylan. One he had to give some thought before answering.

  “Some? Many? I don’t know…there are always those that will look for good fortune somewhere else. I’ve run into escaped slaves from the southern cities. And you can always find those that are fleeing from whatever warlord is trying to control a piece of the southern wilderness, next. Others are perfectly content with the way they live, like the people of the Water Clans. They’re nomads, fishermen, spread out over the islands in front of the southern cities on the eastern coast. But, don’t be fooled, not all people are friendly. I’ve even heard of tribes that eat people, if they’re caught trespassing…although the guy that claimed this did have half a bottle of rum in him…”

  “You have seen so much of the world already,” said Galirras, perhaps a little bit jealous.

  “Really, I haven’t. But sailors like to brag, and I know a lot of sailors. There are so many places still to see. Aeterra, the mountains, the plains and rivers, the southern cities, Tal’Kabur, the Arosh’ad Islands…I can keep going and going…and let’s not forget the mysterious Tiankong Empire.”

  “Xi’Lao said the Tiankong Emperor would like to meet me,” Galirras said, with some excitement in his voice.

  “Exactly. And, I think it will be good to see the lands where you came from, even if you were still an egg. But first, we have to get there, which means we’ve got to lay low for a little while longer,” said Raylan, referring to Galirras’ earlier remark about flying around the Drowned Man’s Fork. “So, just hold on, okay? If we’re discovered here, there’ll be nowhere to go for us…at least for the ones without wings.”

  “I would never abandon you!” said Galirras, offended.

  “I never said you would, but one shouldn’t forget to keep other people’s limits in mind when planning ahead. We’re all in this together.”

  As they walked the last stretch to the viewing point, Galirras let out a sigh.

  “I guess you are right.”

  A short while later, they reached the lookout point. Raylan had chosen it well. A flat stone, warmed by any amount of sunlight it could catch. It proved a fairly comfortable seat. It was even possible to slide down next to it and take a quick nap. His seat provided views of all three pillars and most of the north to western part of the ocean. If he wanted to check the southern side of the landmass, he only had to walk three hundred feet, where he would reach a gap in the low shrubbery, allowing him to see miles down the southern cliffs. There were a number of inlets down south, some bigger than others; although it was hard to tell, as the majority of the inner reaches of the inlets remained out of sight because of high cliffs and forested hills.

  After checking the waters, Raylan took his place on the stone slab.

  “Looks like it’ll be another day of waiting.”

  Galirras took his place next to Raylan, head resting on his front legs.

  “I heard those strange sounds, again, last night when I woke up. They seem to be coming from the south,” he said.

  “Did they wake you?” Raylan asked.

  “No…I was dreaming again.”

  “The song from before?” Raylan looked at him, wondering.

  “Just bits and pieces…it always sounds like it’s coming from very far away. What do you think it is? The creaking and cracking that is…”

  “I don’t know. It doesn’t seem to be getting any closer. It’s been almost two weeks since we’ve first heard it, no matter if it’s day or night. It’s not getting any closer and I don’t think it’s an animal, at least I hope not, because it sounds big.”

  They had first heard the noi
se, in the early morning, when arriving on the landmass. Up until that moment, the terrain must have blocked most of it; or, it was drowned out by the constantly crashing waves against the cliffs. Ca’lek had scouted south a bit, but did not want to get too far away from the main group. He came back empty-handed, so to speak.

  “The sounds have a familiar feel to them. It’s almost like the sound of a sailing mast being tested by strong winds,” said Raylan.

  “Whatever it is, I do not like it much. It gives me a bad feeling when I listen to it during the night.”

  Raylan took another look across the sea.

  “I wonder if the ship will show up today,” said Galirras.

  “I don’t know. It would be most welcome. Everyone is getting pretty restless, staying in one spot for so long, after being on the move constantly. But, everything depends on that one pigeon…if it didn’t make it, we’re waiting here for nothing. Gavin said, if all went well, the ship should have gotten here days ago, but it was likely they might encounter low wind days, or perhaps get caught in a storm, delaying them.”

  “At least Galen has recuperated well, with all the rest. He looks more relaxed, and Richard told me he seems to be back to his old self, again.”

  “True…”

  Raylan let himself sink backward onto the stone. As the sun rose to its highest point, the stone slab got pleasantly warm and Raylan felt himself doze off.

  “Raylan, wake up…”

  He felt Galirras’ nose poke him, softly, in his side. He grunted, it felt as though he had just fallen asleep.

  “Raylan, wake up. I think I see a ship.”

  He shot up and looked around. From the looks of the sun, it was just past midday.

  “What? Where?” he said.

  “There…” said Galirras, using his head to gesture, “on the horizon, just left of the second pillar.”

  Raylan followed Galirras’ gaze and squinted his eyes. The water reflected a lot of the sunlight, making it hard to look that far out. The dragon’s eyesight was far better than that of any human; it took some time before the little dot on the horizon was big enough for Raylan to recognize it as a ship.