by Trista Shaye
“Where?” Diana tried to follow the invisible line from his finger to where whatever he had seen was.
Her eyebrows rose and she put a hand to her mouth – the air she expelled with her gasp actually felt good on her frozen fingers. “I think … I think it’s a dragon,” she whispered, not wanting it to hear her – though from their distance it probably wouldn’t have been able to.
“You think?” Kendel asked, leaning forward a little further, though whether that really helped anything, Diana wasn’t sure.
“Let’s follow it,” Diana said and began to sneak forward to find a way down into the crevice.
“Wait, Diana!” Kendel hissed after her.
He looked behind him once, at the trolls and gnome that were hanging out under their shelter and then quickly glanced back towards the fairy. She had already disappeared from his immediate sight.
“Must moths,” he muttered and set out after her.
Eighteen
Kendel caught sight of Diana scurrying down a rather steep, unsafe looking trail towards the pathway and he kicked himself for having not stopped her sooner. This was dangerous, something terrible could happen and none of the trolls or Matilda knew where they were or where they were going.
He picked his way carefully down the same path that she had taken, muttering to himself along the way, until he almost slipped and fell the remaining distance to the bottom. After that he ceased everything else, pouring all his concentration into where his hands and feet were.
When he made it to the bottom, Diana was just a short distance up the path, crouching behind a rock and peering over. He came up to where she was hiding and peaked over the stone with her. Kendel gasped and looked at Diana then back at the creature that stood a little ways up the path from them. It was most definitely a dragon.
The creature was small, just a tiny thing, maybe its back would come to his waist and its head to his shoulder if he stood next to it. Its thick hide was covered in scales that ran down its back like a thick blanket of deepest royal blue, flickering and merging into black in places. It had sharp looking spines that poked up along its back, running from its forehead to the tip of its tail, which ended in a curled-back diamond. The leathery wings were pulled in close to either of its sides and held loosely there to hang, all curled in on themselves so as not to get in the way and trip it when it walked. Two large horns on either side of its head seemed to rise from behind the large oval shaped ears that were covered with such delicate scales they were hard to make out.
The little dragon was sniffing the ground and nosing around some other boulders in the opposite direction of their hiding place. Diana grabbed Kendel’s shoulder in excitement and he glanced over at her with a grin.
“Look,” she whispered ever so quietly, “it’s gorgeous.”
The mage nodded, at a loss for words himself. He was surprised they hadn’t seen these creatures before now, they stuck out quite well against the white snow. But maybe, this wasn’t a young dragon at all, maybe it was a grown up and they were all this same small size and that was why they weren’t as easy to see.
“Imagine,” Kendel chuckled to himself, having dreamed of colossal sized beasts that flew over the mountains in great circles and droves.
The dragon perked its large ears and half turned, hearing the sound from behind him – the two friends held their breaths. He sniffed the air and his ears perked more, then he bolted up the trail so quickly they could hardly follow him with their eyes.
Diana jumped up and began to dart after him, calling behind her, “We can’t lose him, come on!”
The mage and fairy ran together up the narrow path, winding in and out of the way of boulders and trying not to trip on anything unexpectedly. Finally, out of breath, they stopped and looked around. They had lost the dragon, he was nowhere to be seen.
“Come on,” Diana sighed, leaning over to help herself breathe more easily. “We’re going to freeze out here with nothing to show for it.”
“Yeah.” Kendel pointed at her, his head tilted back, the air coming from his mouth and nose rising in great puffs through the air. “That.”
“Who are you?” a voice rose out of nowhere and the two jumped and then grabbed each other’s arms and darted their eyes about them. There wasn’t any place for anything to hide right here and yet, the voice sounded close.
“Who are you!” demanded Diana, spinning and looking about and spinning again.
“Just a tracker,” the voice said casually. “You know I smelled you long before I heard you. You carry quite the odor and now that I see you, quite the color, as well. You stick out like a stone drek on a sunny day. You’re practically screaming that you want to be eaten, or kidnapped, or whatever it is you want.”
“Well, I’m certain it’s none of the things you mentioned,” Kendel said under his breath.
The voice laughed and slowly, they saw some snow peeling away from the side of the gorge and shifting. Gradually, the blue dragon they had seen before emerged from the white background before their eyes.
“Wow,” Diana mouthed. “You can change to match your surroundings.”
“Yes.” The dragon nodded his head. “It’s handy when you don’t want to be found by just anyone and everyone. Your little party has been watched by several of us ever since you arrived here. We’re tracking you. Today was my turn.” He shook his head and his ears wiggled.
“We’ve been searching for you this whole time, and you’ve been right there?” Diana was a little upset, but she wasn’t sure at whom her anger was focused.
“We didn’t know why you’d come.” The dragon set one foot forward as if to brace himself and make a point. “We’ve had to be wary of late who enters our realm. A wizard was here not long ago stirring up trouble, we saw you had one of his kind with you and didn’t know what your intent was.” He poked his snout in Kendel’s direction.
“If you’ve been hiding from us since we arrived.” Kendel tried not to step back from the dragon’s nose, and gulped a little. “Then, why are you showing yourself to us now? This wasn’t an accident, I’ll bet.”
“No.” The dragon laughed heartily. “I’m not that clumsy, whatever they may say about me. I wanted to see what you were here for and who you were. Thought I’d lure you away from the trolls first, they can be quite unmanageable at times.” He winked. “Almost mistook you two for trolls at first, what with all that lovely paint spattered on you.”
“You are quite a little dragon,” Diana noted, feeling less and less afraid of him.
“I’m rather large for my kind, thank you.” He snorted. “I’m a dwarf dragon, you know, made to be small and light on my feet – you saw how quick I run, that’s a talent we smaller dragons possess. Oh, there are bigger dragons here, yes, some even bigger than several mountains, but they stay in their caves and hide most of the time. They only really go out to feed.” He leaned toward them conspiratorially and motioned with a clawed foot for them to lean in, as well. “If you ask me they have rotten tempers and are worth avoiding at all cost. But don’t ever tell them I told you that! They’d have me as a roast instead, heh.”
“Don’t worry, we won’t tell them.” Diana smiled and pointed to the mage. “This is Kendel.”
“Ah, the wizard kin.” The dragon nodded and sniffed at him again.
“And I’m Diana.” She dipped her head in greeting.
He followed her lead and did the same. “A fairy of The Magic Vale, a rare visitor indeed. I am Exto, lead tracker and scout of the The Dappled Peaks. Greetings travelers and welcome to our inhospitable region of rock, snow, and much larger rock.” He spread his wings for effect and blew smoke out his nose. “I’d come back in the summer if you were hoping for nicer weather. Its gorgeous views and beautiful snow on the peaks – mind you, just on the peaks, not everywhere else. This time of year even the air you breathe is trying to freeze you from the
inside out.”
The dwarf dragon settled down and sat on his back legs, with his tail wrapped around and his front feet on his tail. “It keeps them warmer this way,” he explained with a dramatic sigh. “I’m trying not to get frostbite this year. It’s a terrible ordeal.”
“I can’t even imagine,” Diana replied, thinking that must be terrible and wondering how close to frostbite she was herself. She shivered.
“So, getting down to the nitty-gritty – that way I don’t have to keep you here longer and I don’t have to be out here forever – what does bring you here to The Dappled Peaks?” Exto asked, looking between them expectantly.
They both shared a look, trying to decide where to begin or what to begin to say.
Finally Kendel shrugged and said, “We’re looking for the wizard you were talking about earlier, the one who’s done some questionable things of late. He’s been rather busy about all the realms and we’re hoping to find out who he is and stop him … somehow.”
“We’re also wondering,” added Diana as Exto nodded and hmmed over the mage’s words. “If perhaps he stole something from you? Well, not you particularly, but from a dragon – from amongst the treasure.”
“Ah, you mean an enchanted object, I assume?” Exto declared flapping his ears against the slowly falling snow.
“Yes, that’s what I mean exactly,” the fairy nodded.
“We have reason to believe he’s in possession of dragon magic and he’s already broken one of the primary rules,” Kendel quickly explained. “We were hoping maybe you could help us figure out what it was he stole. If I know what it was, I have a chance to disenchant it and thus, he’ll bear the consequences of his actions instead of shoving them off on someone else to suffer.”
“Hmm, that does sound quite important,” Exto mused, thinking. “I don’t seem to recall any of the dragons in the scouting league having been stolen from recently.”
“Recently?” Diana was a bit shocked. “Does it happen often?”
“Well yes, and no. Not in the way you’re thinking. But there’s always some minor and petty theft amongst dragons, especially when you get this many of us living together in one place. Oh yes, The Dappled Peaks are far and wide and many, but so are the dragons. We have all types too, it’s quite a menagerie.” He stretched and stood to walk a bit.
“Yep, we got the hoarders, the kleptos, the gang groups, the introverts, the solitary giants. We have dwarf dragons like me who often stay in massive – and let me tell you they are massive – family groups. We have scouts, and patrols, we have security for the nobles, we have the meat market dragons who sell the game they catch and the fishmonger dragons. The stone carvers and wood burners – all the craftsman and fine arts you can think of. We have it all. Right here in this frozen lump of a place.” He cleared his throat. “I mean this lovely, lovely home of ours.”
“Do you know of where we could ask or where we could go to see about anyone who might have recently been stolen from, not by another dragon either, but by this wizard?” Kendel questioned, clasping his hands behind his back and walking alongside Exto on the pathway, they’d begun to meander down it to keep themselves warm.
“Hmm, I suppose I could ask around the base when I report in from duty today, there’s usually always a good amount of gossip going around.”
“That would be lovely,” Diana said, though she had hoped he could take them somewhere now so she could get out of the chilly wind that was blowing straight down the narrow gorge with some force.
“Though, I suppose I could take you somewhere now,” Exto said, musing aloud and weighing his options.
“Oh!” she exclaimed. “You read my mind.”
The dragon laughed. “Oh no, I have several talents, but that’s not one of them, miss. That’s another species of dragon you’re thinking of. Tigh-o I believe is the one. Very odd carrying on a conversation with that lot. Half the time you’re not sure if what you said in the conversation was aloud, or just in your own head. It’s rather unnerving if you ask me. I try to avoid them most of the time.”
“Are there dragons you don’t try to avoid?” Kendel wondered aloud.
“Well, let me think.” Exto paused his speech and his movement. He shook his head after a very short pause. “No, not really. I have a few friends, but most everyone else I avoid. That’s why I’m such a great scout, you know, not worried about the long days out and about, alone. But that’s another thing entirely and you’re wondering about stolen objects and wizard business.” He shook his head and kept walking. “This trail will lead us right on down to the dragon market – it’s a nightmare and I try to avoid it, but it has the wanted ads, so we’ll look there first.”
It seemed like a good place to Diana and Kendel so they kept their mouths shut and followed their guide along the ravine.
“I’ll have my men pick up your companions and take them somewhere warmer, too,” Exto said. “Wouldn’t want them worrying about you or freezing in this weather. This is the worst weather we’ve had in some time and honestly, I would be avoiding it, but this is my job and I guess someone has to do it.”
He talked on about the weather for a time and then about the dragons they were likely to see and what not to do and who to not make eye contact with and when to run in the opposite direction. In fact, he talked the entire way to the dragon market.
Nineteen
“Here we are, duck inside and to your left,” Exto instructed, ushering them in through a narrow slit in the mountainside. “This is a back entrance, only for the little guys like me. It’s the perfect size for you, as well.”
“How quaint,” Kendel admired, ducking in first with Diana close behind.
They stepped to the left and stared out into the gigantic cavern under the mountain with awe. The dragon market was enormous and very vibrant in color, personalities, and wares. The place was lit up by candles and lanterns set on large wooden poles or hanging from the different stall’s structures – some of the dragons even glowed themselves, which added another layer to everything there was to take in.
Vendors were hawking their wares and crying out loudly for the passers-by to come see what they had to offer – like no one else around, was the common boast. Fish booths and meat booths, booths with odd fruit that neither of the two friends had ever seen before; and there was even a candle making dragon and lantern cage maker, cloth weaving dragons and spice selling dragons. There were hot tea booths and cold colored ice booths, there were booths where you could sharpen your claws and talons and booths to get your scales shined. A refurbishing booth to quote, “make old treasure sparkle like new”, and their little tag-line: “here to help your treasure shine for what it’s worth; bringing out the best in your bling.” There was even a treasure exchanging booth – for not all dragons had the same objects in their hordes and not all vendors took just any type of treasure as payment for their goods.
Diana couldn’t see every stall, as there were rows and rows of them spread evenly throughout the colossal cave. She thought it might take the better part of a day to walk through and see everything there was to see.
“My goodness,” she gasped, staring at it in wonderment. “I’ve never seen something quite like this before.”
“Yes,” said Exto, standing behind them. “It’s such a mess isn’t it?”
“I think it’s rather enchanting, actually,” Diana replied, smiling at the little dragon, who seemed to be quite the hermit.
“I suppose, if you like that sort of thing.” He shrugged and his ears flopped. “Shall we look at the ads? See if anyone’s reported anything missing of late?”
He led them over to the blank cavern wall just a bit more to their left. Well, it wasn’t really blank, it was full of papers and parchments that had been tacked to the rock with a sticky substance adhered to the back. Most of the papers were a bit torn and perhaps a little scorched in places.
“Oh these?” Exto shook his head. “Naw, these are from just this week.”
“All of them?” Kendel asked, surprised.
“I did mention petty theft and such, didn’t I?” The dwarf dragon sent an asking look their way.
“You did.” Diana nodded. “I didn’t know it was this bad, though. I would call this more of an outbreak or something.”
“Why do they all look so old, then?” the mage questioned.
“There’s a booth down the way, you can get a poster written up for a small fee to report your stolen goods. But you see, Rendel, the scripter, he’s always had bad allergies and the dust in this cavern is particularly obnoxious to them. He sneezes a bit when he works and sometimes the edges get a bit scorched. Not his fault, poor fellow. Anyways, that’s why they look a bit beat up and tattered.”
“Oh!” Diana exclaimed. “That does sound awful for him, having to work here every day, too.”
“Yes.” Exto sighed. “We have treasure hunters and bounty hunters who come in here everyday, too. They always scour this wall pretty thoroughly so you better look quick and grab what you want or it might be snatched up by tomorrow.”
“So the ad we came for could be gone already, then?” Kendel’s shoulders sagged. “This theft would have happened several weeks ago, now.”
“Well, if the dragon in question was offering a decent reward for whatever was stolen, then yeah. I’d reckon it’s gone by now.” Exto’s ears perked. “Sorry ‘bout that.”
“It’s alright,” Diana said, scuffing her foot on the ground.
“Do you know where we could find a bounty or treasure hunter?” Kendel turned from the wall, giving up his search through the papers, knowing what he wanted probably wouldn’t be there any longer.
Exto appeared to be thinking it over for a moment. “I suppose we could go visit a friend of mine, but he’s not the most polished of dragons and can be a bit mean or rough if the mood strikes him.”