Home at Last

by Alex Sapegin

  Ania, covering her eyes with a translucent film, surreptitiously watched the Viking and the orc. They didn’t leave her. The morning of the fifth day, in front of the cave the miur Irran appeared. The commander knelt and said that she would serve her, as she had served Kerr before. The viking and the orcs didn’t take vows, but their silent support spoke for itself, and in the evening, Lilly appeared in the cave. The elf brought with her a roll and a wool blanket. The little pest sustained a verbal battle with the dragon under the accompaniment of a yowling Mimiv and stayed with her for the night.

  The next evening, Tyigu stood at the cave entrance. Ania looked at the girls, thick as thieves, and silently pointed to a place by the fireplace. The girls settled in the cave. The girl’s grandfather, who appeared in the valley to collect his granddaughter, returned home empty-handed. Lilliel proved that her character was not in the vein of her gentle father, but in that of her stubborn, iron-willed grandfather—the supreme elder of the New Great Forest. Seeing that he could not out-stubborn his granddaughter, Evael took her word that she would study earnestly with the teachers he would send there. The grandfather’s list consisted of eight positions, but Irran reduced it to four. The little elf would be engaged in magic with Ania, Ilnyrgu, or Dorit. There would be no problem with mentors in the field of martial arts, either. She could learn history, rhetoric, and etiquette from the Hermit, with whom the miur had good relations, and so on. Under the pressure of all these arguments, the old elf gave up.

  Time passed. At first, Ania for the indigenous inhabitants of the valley was the wife of THEIR KERR, but at some point, she became THEIR ANIA, the young Mistress. They went to her for advice, help or a blessing. Somehow it turned out that a real school was organized in the village, in which there were a dozen mentors for two dozen pupils.

  The boys were jealous of Tyigu and Lilliel, who trained with the combat masters. With black envy, they haunted the door of the Mistress’ cave, near which classes were held, until Olaf began to catch them. The viking didn’t think long about what to do with the barefoot brotherhood. He pointed to the tall sequoia growing on the opposite shore of the lake and explained that if anyone wanted to run to the redwood before the shadow of the cliff touched it, he would be accepted as his student.

  Everyone got there in time. Olaf scratched his head, but you can’t un-say what you’ve said... And it turned out, a combat master should be able not only swing his sword. The teachers sent by Evael, along with the local instructors, got a whole cohort of students. The dwarfs Gmar and Glir made tables and benches and brought a black board and paper from Gornbuld. Ania herself did not suspect that, having forgotten about her former life, she would be drawn into all this for two and a half months. Jagirra flew into the valley a couple of times. The old Mistress was greeted cordially, but after the second visit Ania spotted the Empress’ strange look on her. The black dragon realized that she was elementarily jealous. Ania silently swallowed the undeserved jealousy and proudly lifted her head. She didn’t tell Jagirra that she owed much to the two girls, the viking, the orcs, and the miur, not to mention the Hermit, who took in the teachers sent by Evaal. They became the support and help for the dragon; through their diligence, she became the Mistress. They became family to her.

  More than two and a half months had passed since the day Kerr disappeared. The Mellorny grove that he planted had grown; the crowns of the trees with a silvery bark tickled the soft underbelly of the clouds at a height of a hundred yards. A thick branch of the nearest Mellorny reached out to the rocky cave entrance, curiously curved and crawled upward, clinging to the stones with its finger-like branches. Like a grapevine, a branch twisted between the protruding boulders but did not put down roots. This was apparently the work of Kerr, whose magic limited growth of the forest giants. Once Ania tried to go out on the branch, which easily held the dragon’s massive body. Since then, the branch had become an observation point.

  Ania never believed that her husband had been taken away by the gods. But even if he had, he would find a way to cross Bifrost and return. Kerr simply couldn’t leave her and their unborn son. The black dragon perched on the branch of the giant Mellorny every evening and waited, peering at the horizon and the darkening sky.

  Many days passed. Her belly rounded. The baby would be born two months later. The boys’ lessons were over a few hours ago. Lilly and Tyigu had returned from Ilnyrgu’s lessons, but she continued to sit on the broad branch and watch. The horizon was empty. There was no need to wait up any longer today. She would come again tomorrow. Ania shook her head sadly, looked at the girls, and was just about to return to their cave-nest when she suddenly froze on the spot. In the darkening sky, among the airy seeds bearing fruit for the first time in three thousand years, the cross-shaped outline of the dragon appeared. The membranes of his wings shattered the rays of the setting sun into thousands of small rainbows.

  EPILOGUE

  “… It’s an interesting gadget, a kran. It’s the brainchild of an alloy of magic and technology. I never thought that with its help, I would keep a diary. What can you do if you don’t have any other options? I can’t speak or write either. My skeleton is being reconstructed. My vocal cords are changing. I would have flipped my tail a long time ago already, (now that’s something I can say), but Andy (I never got used to calling him Kerr) taught me how to dive into settage[SJ(S55].

  “If you ask me whether I regret that my brother took me to another world, I’ll answer—not at all! True, maybe it’s because on Earth I was already becoming a white elephant and different from ordinary people. I don’t know. I don’t presume to guess, but here I felt whole, you know? ...It’s probably because here, I became myself. Now, remembering our first days with Ira on Ilanta, I laugh. We looked so stupid. Like chickens, not the sisters of the Crown Prince. Yes, it’s funny in a way, to think about it. But once you get thinking about it...

  “When Andy turned into a dragon, I almost pooped my pants, although I had expected something like that, and I thought I was ready for any surprises. But the reality shocked no worse than the prickly hairs of a black earthworm. I was so surprised I felt like a fish on ice. Ira went into quiet hysterics, but it was okay; I explained to her that she didn’t need to freak out. Just relax and enjoy the flight. Look at the awesome view below! And I must give her due; she managed to pull herself together. Hehe, it’s true, when we flew into the mountain valley, and the black dragon rushed to Andy with a roar, Irina fainted. Honestly, I was not far from my sister. The sight of a monster flaming towards you is not for the faint-hearted. During the height of the experience, we somehow failed to notice two little girls running after the dragon. The devil wasn’t as scary as we thought...

  “When my sister came to, my brother turned into a man and managed to pull on his canvas pants and shirt with a red belt. (The most handsome guy in the village.) He introduced us to his wife. The girls looked at us with laughter. I don’t know what I looked like, but Irina’s eyes were competing in size with two loaves of Russian black bread. One of the girls was an elf, and the other an orc. Their names were Lilliel and Tyigu. My brother’s wife is called Ania. It’s a beautiful name, which I told her in the language taught to me by Rosugar. The dragon and the elf were surprised, but Andy quickly interrupted the oohs and ahs and drove the girls into the cave, saying something to them in a language I didn’t understand.

  “A few minutes later, Lilliel brought a glass vial with a brown liqueur. The tincture turned out to be dragon’s blood and was meant for me. My brother put the cup in my hands and ordered me to drink. I had to obey. While I licked the “medicine” from my lips, Andy was dismantling an Ilizarov frame. He forbade me to get up from a wheelchair, saying that I was not recommended to put weight on my leg for two hours. Dragon’s blood works wonders of course, but it’s better to be on the safe side. Magic... While we were getting to know each other and chatting, it got dark. We decided to continue the conversation and acquaintance in the cave, and tomorrow we were planning to mo
ve to the guest house. We didn’t have time to reach the cave when a silver rectangle appeared in the sky. Dragons started pouring out of it!

  “‘Mother has come,’ Andy told us. ‘Behave yourselves; I’m going to be in trouble as it is.’

  ‘Who?’ Irina asked.

  ‘The Empress, my second mother,’ Andy explained, looking at the dragon V-formation. ‘And my father. I have two pairs of parents now. Oh, and the advisers, Targ. I was wrong about the trouble; I should’ve said I am in huge trouble.’

  “Two dragons descended onto a rocky platform first. They were about as big as my brother and his wife and of similar colors. At first, I thought that the black dragon was the Empress, but I was mistaken—the Empress was a dragon with golden scales (it became clear who Andy was going over to). Before she even landed, the dragon turned into an elf. Before us appeared a tall, stately woman with a strong unyielding gaze from her blue, almond-shaped eyes. She had silver-snowy hair braided into a tight braid, a fitted dress of a rich blue color that complemented her eyes and the topaz in her pointed ears, and simple yet elegant slippers. Andy bowed. Irina made an elegant curtsey. I also tried to bow as far as I could in a wheelchair, which caused the crowned person to smile slightly.

  “The ceremony of acquaintance and presentation of the sisters of the ‘prodigal son’ went well. It all began decently, and then they sent us, I mean myself, Ira, Lilly, and Tyigu, to the cave, and outside a real tongue-lashing began. My brother was right about “huge trouble.” After a while, the yelling stopped. As it turned out, someone thought of putting up a curtain of silence.

  “Ania appeared in the cave in the morning. We saw Andy only two days later. My sister and I were settled in the guest house by that time. My brother waltzed into the house accompanied by some man. He introduced him, quickly said goodbye, and disappeared for another week. The visitor turned out to be a sharp-wit magician. He was invited specially for the accelerated training of two young Ladies (yes, the magician wrote this word with a capital letter) in Alat and Edda. The magician gave us six lessons in four days, received three test tubes with the dragon’s blood as compensation, and went home satisfied. He’d taught us the languages, but my head hurt so bad after the mental lessons! It was easier for me than for Ira; I’d learned a bit of Edda on Earth. But Irina became totally fluent as well. But she was in a bad mood. Besides a headache, my sister’s stomach hurt, which meant she was going to get her period soon. That didn’t cheer her up any since there was no drugstore anywhere in the nearest district. She was walking around the house giving off sparks, so I decided to get her out of there, and she went to the orc ladies for help. They showed her some healing spells, and that’s how everyone found out that Irina can do magic...

  “Coming back seven days later, my brother brought a cohort of teachers, tailors with cuts of various fabrics, and a governess with him, who was instructed to teach us how to be Ladies in two weeks. I cursed everything. Irina regretted a million times that she’d signed up for the adventure with the move. The culprit of our troubles appeared just like that every three or four days. He would run around for fifteen minutes, kiss us on the cheek, talk to the mentors, give everyone a shove of encouragement, and then be on his way. His effect on the teachers was like lighting a fire under them. I don’t know what he promised them, but they plowed for twenty-five hours a day, and us with them. For another hour, they grabbed him from above. On the fifteenth day, a “dandy” entered the guest house. If it weren’t for the blue eyes with yellow vertical pupils, we would never have recognized our brother in the white-haired elf. After an examination arranged by the jerk in charge, we were declared provisionally prepared to come out in high society. (I almost killed him then. Irina’s eyes too seemed to be burning with a thousand and one ways to do in the pointy-eared slime ball.) That… that… I just can’t find the right word or name that’s bad enough for him! Anyway, he told us to get our things together; he would give us time... Did I mention he was a jerk? Let me just say it again. He was a totally scummy toad. Lower than a toad—a flea! Not even a flea. Flea poop. Of course, he was acting in our best interest out of love, but we only realized that later on.

  “Outside, a surprise was waiting for us, a portal to Orten. Together with Ania, Lilly, Tyigu, and ten strict miur bodyguards, we were transported to the city. By the efforts of Andy and the dragons, this place had turned into the center of the international and interworld politics of Ilanta. The day was dedicated to shopping and visiting beauty salons. For the first time in my life, I learned just how obliging and accommodating sellers and business owners could be. At the exit from the beauty salon our group visited last, there was a huge mirror. In it, I saw four princesses. In two of them, I hardly recognized Irina and myself. In the evening, there was a dinner party with a narrow circle of people. It was Andy’s friends and their wives. Irran was guarding the girls in a separate room. The Count and Countess Soto had sent the invitation. Our “sponsor” and benefactor stayed as long as social norms dictated and then ran off to the garden, where he changed hypostasis, ate half a bull, and leaned against his wife’s black side, covering her with a wing.

  “On the second day, there was a school of magic and an arc with a smoky veil. The school was being actively reconstructed. Hundreds of workers built new educational buildings and dormitories for students. As our escort rector Valett courteously explained to us, this year an unprecedented influx of foreign bookworms from the First and New Forests was expected. There would be many Ariates and Rauu elves. It was well known that the Emperor of Pat had lifted the ban on training in other states, which was strongly promoted by the dragons... The Celestial Empire extended the protectorate to the southern tip of the land mass; in the east, the dragons stopped at the borders of the Steppe.

  “Walking along a beautiful park, we came to the purpose of our visit. Andy set out to determine our magical gifts. The results did not surprise him at all, which could not be said about the arc operators, rector Valett and the governor of the province Etran, who decided to join us. Two universals. The elder had a predisposition toward dark magic, and the younger to the magic of reason and life, which was surprising—I’m neutral, that is, I didn’t show any preference for either dark or light magic. The rector disintegrated in courtesies and expressed his wish to see us in the classroom. To his great regret, complete universal mages, combining all the elements, are rare. The last time such an event occurred was last year, but that young man turned out to be a dragon. At that, the “young man” changed his elven face to the good old Kerimov face and smiled wide, showing all thirty-two teeth. He introduced himself as the brother of the two beautiful ladies. The bald rector hiccuped and muttered that now he understood everything. He still wanted to get the two promising pupils in his school, but he asked us not to organize a massacre and not to destroy the school’s shooting range. A lake of magma they had there didn’t cool for two weeks. This seems like a cool place!

  “In the evening, we had dinner with another friend of the one who destroyed the school shooting range. And on the third day, a spatial portal opened in front of the governor’s residence...

  “At the official celebrations on the establishment of diplomatic and trade relations with a state from another world, the important people attending were as follows: the Empress of the dragons, Jagirra, with the heir. The Empress’ husband did not attend the reception; he stayed behind to look after the heir’s bride, who was not feeling well due to her “condition.” The King of Tantre, Gil II the Soft-spoken with his son and heir, and the King of Rimm, Lere the Just, with Queen Taliza. When he saw the queen, Andy almost spit with venomous saliva out of malice. High Prince of the Rauu Miduel with his grandson and some other Rauu royals, the King of the dwarfs Gabrug the Clever and his wife Queen Omit, and also the Grand Prince and head of the Ariate Council of Chiefs, Yarosh the Mighty with his son. There was also a long list of dukes and duchesses, counts and countesses, marquises, and other royals and nobility. Oh yes, I almost forgot to men
tion the Empress’ wards, the sisters of the “heir.” We got to the breeding ground of the monarchs and thanked our brother for two weeks of torment.

  “On the Russian side, the reception was attended by the following: the Russian Foreign Minister, Lieutenant-General Sanin (as dad later told us they suspended the General’s last star, tore the seat on the British flag, but they pardoned him), a few diplomats and consultants, and mom and dad. That was a real surprise! Dad called the fact of his and mom’s participation in the delegation a gesture of goodwill on the part of the people making all the important decisions in Russia. The important people very much wanted to get on the dragons’ good side. Andy quietly added that of course, they wanted to! So much was happening here!

  “At the preliminary meeting, he cautiously divulged the fact that dragons can prolong people’s lives and cure many diseases, not to mention rejuvenation and cosmetology. In General, the elven and miur dugarias are pretty good at what they do, although he himself does not like snotty trees. When the reception was over, Empress Jagirra took our parents to a separate room, I guess to get acquainted. Then we went to the park together as a whole double family, where the second stage of our acquaintance was held. Mom almost killed Andy, and dad and Jaga shouted to the heir to the throne who was trying to get away as fast as possible that if he got a chance, he could hint to his mother who his wife is! Irina didn’t shout anything. She threw frequent glances at the windows of the second floor of the residence and thoughtfully fiddled with the girdle on her dress. Why, eh? Does she have yet another boyfriend on her horizon?