The True Dragon

by Andy Holland

  “Nice man,” Crystal commented. “I can’t imagine he was a popular King. Is that why the Kingdom crumbled? Infighting after he became King?”

  “No, that wasn’t the reason. Just after the war, the True Dragon appeared. The official story was that it was attracted by the Dragonstone. The King had changed it somehow, corrupted it, and in its new, corrupted form it drew the creature in. My people believed that it was just drawn in by the bloodshed. Either way, the True Dragon devastated the whole area, destroying all of the cities above ground, as well as several underground. We abandoned the Circle, and after that, our enemies took advantage of our weakened state and attacked us everywhere.”

  “How did the King corrupt the Dragonstone?” Crystal asked, hoping that this was going somewhere. “What did he do?”

  “He broke his own laws,” Pam replied, “laws designed to protect the Dragonstone. You see, as it was so important to us, there were strict laws governing what you could do around the stone, how many people could be near it, how long you could stay near it, but the most important rule was that no one could ever touch it with your hands. Doing so when the stone was small had scarred it, and the King had passed laws to prevent that from happening again. Those who cared for the stone had to use carefully chosen tools and couldn't stand within arms' reach of the stone. Anyone who wanted to view the stone could only do so from above, in that chamber you saw. Guards were always stationed near the stone to enforce this law, and this was an honour and a privilege, as they would benefit greatly from the stone's power.

  The King, however, was above the law. He frequently went down to where the stone carers worked so that he could bask in the stone's power. His family did the same. But the King went further than anyone, and one day, he decided to actually touch it. Who knows what possessed him to do so, knowing as he did that it could damage the Dragonstone. The official account records that the Dragonstone turned black upon his touch, losing its healing power and becoming toxic instead, killing him instantly. The poison spread throughout the city and all those that escaped died shortly afterwards. The city was abandoned and without the power of the Dragonstone, our people began to age normally….”

  “What about the other story?” Crystal interrupted, sensing that this still wasn’t the real explanation. “What does that tell us?”

  “I’m getting there,” Pam replied, refusing to be rushed. “It was hard for some people to accept that the Dragonstone was gone, and a third story emerged, claiming that the Dragonstone wasn’t destroyed, and that it hadn’t lost its power, but is still in the city. They claimed that when the King touched it, instead of killing him, it did the opposite and made him immortal, and that he is still alive. Most of us dismissed this as wishful thinking, hoping that the stone was still there, that we could somehow go back to a time that…”

  “The stone is still there,” Crystal interrupted. “But there was no sign of the King. If he’s immortal, where is he?”

  “This is where it gets very difficult to believe,” Pam replied. “Just one guard saw what happened and lived to tell the tale, so the story says. When the King touched the Dragonstone, it forced him to transform. Not into his usual form, but into a monster, a gigantic, enraged creature that turned on his guards and killed all but one of them, as well as most of the residents of the city. The King broke his way out of the chamber, tunnelling his way to the surface before flying away, his terrible roars loud enough to shake the whole city. Can you guess what he had become?"

  "The black True Dragon!" Crystal gasped. "He was your King!"

  Pam nodded. "So the story tells us. This was always difficult for us in the valley to accept. Too fantastic, implausible. When the kingdom crumbled, we were isolated, and we have remained so ever since. Our leaders were more closely aligned to the fourth son, the one who was defeated and killed by the King’s grandson. They loved the old King, and although they dutifully recorded the official narrative of these events, they couldn’t believe he was responsible for the start of the collapse. Once the collapse was complete and we were isolated, blame shifted to the grandson, and many believed that story. Either way, we all abandoned our homeland, leaving it to the monster.”

  "Why did no one stay there, live underground?" Crystal asked. "You would have been safe there."

  "Not if you believed that the creature was a giant Worm Dragon, which many did. Nowhere nearby would be safe. I've never heard any reports that suggested that it had ever burrowed underground to attack anyone, but no one was willing to take the risk. No, the Circle was a forbidden place to us all. We faded quickly after this. Without the stone, our people aged as you might expect. Living longer didn't extend our productive years and births didn't keep up with deaths. With a rapidly falling population and a sudden loss of strength, we fell victim to a series of devastating wars, all with other Worm Dragons. We faded to less than we were before we had the Stone. Our age had come to an end."

  "And the other three dragons?" Crystal asked. "Other members of the Royal Family?"

  Pam shook her head. "The black True Dragon was the only one of its kind for a long time, and new ones didn't appear till long after all of his family had died. No Worm Dragon would go back into the Circle while it was there. But although we had fled the Circle, neighbouring races continued to visit. It was very dangerous, of course, but then the desperate will try anything. Then one day a new dragon appeared, the green one. Green Dragons were among the most frequent visitors to the Circle, and a few people believed that one of them had made the same mistake as our King and had touched the Dragonstone. Over the next few years, additional True Dragons kept appearing, with the small brown one the last one. We could have tried to destroy the Dragonstone or sealed up the entrance to keep any visitors out, but after that time it became unnecessary. The creatures did the job for them, attacking all who came near the Circle and none survived to get close enough to touch it. It was we Worm Dragons who first called the place the Circle of Death, because that is what it had become."

  "Ah, so there were more True Dragons!" Crystal said excitedly. "Have they been hibernating?"

  "No, they don't do that. There were more and at one point there was six of them, but the black one killed all but the green and brown ones. Who knows why he did it? They couldn't leave the Circle so there would be a limit to how many could survive in there, so maybe he did so to preserve resources. There haven't been any new ones for hundreds of years."

  "Till now," Crystal said softly.

  "Yes," Pam replied. "A new, bronze coloured True Dragon. A bit like gold, bronze, wouldn't you say? One that attacked the black True Dragon when it got too near to you, but left you unharmed. Tell me, did you see this True Dragon eat Daisy, or just carry her off?"

  Crystal put her hand to her mouth, unable to reply. Pam nodded and continued.

  "Tell me, how does this new one fly? Pretty fast, I would imagine if it has avoided being killed by the black one."

  "Like the wind," Crystal replied in a whisper. There was only one place where this conversation could go.

  Pam nodded and smiled sadly. "I'm sorry, Crystal. This was a one-way transformation. John might not be dead, but he may as well be. There may be something of him still alive in that thing, but it won't last forever. There's nothing of the King still in the black True Dragon or anything human in the other two. I'm afraid it's just a matter of time before he will be nothing more than a dumb beast. A voracious killer like the others."

  "You don't know that for sure," Crystal retorted. John had clearly been trying to protect them all from the black True Dragon, behaving exactly as she would have expected him to do. He could never become like those monsters. "None of the other dragons were Golden Dragons, were they? It might be different for him."

  "Then why hasn't he transformed back into a Golden Dragon?" Pam asked. "If he is so different, why hasn't he communicated telepathically? Tell me that."

  Crystal said nothing. Why hadn't John transformed back into his human form? Was he unab
le to, unwilling to or had he just forgotten how? And why hadn't he communicated telepathically? All dragons could do that.

  Pam put her hand on Crystal's shoulder. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to give you false hope. But I think I have answered your questions, have I not?"

  Crystal shook her head. She couldn't accept that John was lost, but there was no point arguing with Pam. Not when there were more important things to find out. "Not completely. How do we defeat the black True Dragon, or at least, how do we stop it from attacking us?"

  Pam sighed wearily. "As I said, you can't defeat it. Attacking it would be suicide. It's just too powerful. But, maybe it could be persuaded to return home."

  "How?" Crystal demanded. "How could we do that? You must tell me, thousands of lives are at stake here."

  "Abandon the Circle, as we did before," Pam replied. "We don't know this for certain, but we believe that the Dragonstone traps the True Dragons in the Circle. As the Rainbow Dragonstone, its effect was only positive, but as the Black Dragonstone, it became toxic and somehow ensnared the True Dragons. But there is a limit to its power, and when other dragons are in the Circle, you also draw from its power, weakening its hold on the True Dragons.”

  When you are near the stone, you draw from its power. Just as John felt better, so would everyone who is in or near the Circle. Just spending a couple of days there would probably lengthen your life just a little bit. But when you do this its hold on the True Dragons is weakened. We think that when that huge Blue Dragon army passed it weakened the stone and allowed the True Dragons to leave and attack their army. Since then many people have taken up residence in the Circle, lots of your people and with lots of Blue Dragon prisoners. I bet you'll find that any Blue Dragons who were injured have recovered very quickly while staying there. If you all left, they might, just might, be forced to stay in the Circle."

  Crystal thought about this. She had heard one of the Golden Dragons comment about how quickly some of the Blue Dragons had recovered, so it did make sense. And it might not be too difficult to do. Many of the prisoners had already been released as part of the peace treaty, leaving just those who opposed Kanesh. Although there wasn't that many, the Golden Dragon population had remained to make sure no one came after them. There was no real justification for so many to be there. "It's worth a try. I will make it happen."

  Pam nodded, smiling politely. "I'm sure you will. Now, you must stay the night; it is too late to travel. Would you like something to eat…"

  After they ate, Pam let Crystal sleep in one of the rooms meant for sick patients. There were four of these rooms, but there were no patients there at the moment, so Crystal didn't see any other Worm Dragons till the next morning when she was woken by the guard who had met her yesterday. He was in a far better mood this morning, presumably because she was leaving rather than arriving.

  "Flying back to Furnace, young lady?" he inquired cheerfully, holding the door for her as she left her room. "It looks like a fine day up there."

  "Yes, back to Furnace," Crystal replied absent-mindedly, questioning her response as soon as she said it. Should she head back to Furnace? Or should she head south?

  "I'm sure you will have a good flight," he continued. "You are welcome to visit again, but please, never arrive so late again. That's for your safety as well as ours."

  He beamed broadly at her as he spoke and Crystal wondered if Pam had said something to him. "That's kind of you; I would love to visit again. I promise I won't arrive anywhere near as late as that again. It was very foolish."

  "I'm sure you won't. Pam asked me to apologise for her absence; she's working on the other side of the valley this morning. But she looks forward to seeing you again." He offered to carry her bag for her and chatted quite affably as he accompanied her back to the surface. But Crystal's mind was on other matters. How long before Mark and the others sought out the black True Dragon again? How long before it visited Furnace? Could she afford to go back to Furnace? Of course, her absence would have been discovered by now, and everyone would be very worried, but what she had to do was far more important. Perhaps she could find someone to take a message back home instead.

  The guard left her at the surface, telling her that she would be safe now that it was light, even now just after sunrise, although he suggested that she might not want to wait too long before transforming. She didn’t delay in doing so, wanting to get moving as soon as she could. She always struggled with navigation so decided that it would be better to head north east first, not travelling all the way to Furnace, but flying until she reached the road that went south east towards Obud from the capital. She could fly along that and avoid getting lost and being on a major route, she had a better chance of meeting someone flying in the opposite direction who could take a message for her.

  It didn’t take long to reach the trade route by mid-morning, but instead of meeting someone going in the opposite direction she met a familiar dragon flying in the same direction as her.

  Crystal, fancy meeting you here. I didn't think you would be flying on your own at a time like this.

  It was Jerome, who was also flying solo. Crystal couldn't hide her amazement. I could say the same to you! What are you doing here?

  Oh, my servants will be joining me, but they fly too slowly, Jerome replied indifferently. I have to visit one of my properties in the Eastern Principality. It's been damaged by that wretched creature.

  Crystal was surprised how casually he spoke as if it was just a minor nuisance. Aren't you frightened of meeting it? It's very fast.

  Oh, I doubt it could sneak up on me if it's as big as everyone claims, Jerome replied. Besides, you're flying alone as well. Are you frightened?

  Terrified, Crystal replied, without exaggeration. But I have to fly. I wouldn't otherwise. I have to do something very important, and I was hoping to find someone who could help me deliver a message back to Furnace. Perhaps you could send one of your servants back?"

  Jerome listened patiently while Crystal told him about her trip to the Valley and what she had learnt, having forgotten her promise to keep the place secret. Jerome was unreadable, staring directly ahead as they flew and not reacting to anything till she finished.

  So you see I have to fly to the new cities and tell them. Otherwise, they will fly to their deaths quite unnecessarily. But I also should tell everyone where I am so they won't worry.

  Crystal, Crystal, you've missed the obvious solution, Jerome replied. Instead of getting someone else to take your message back to Furnace, why not let someone else take the message to the new cities?

  Crystal was taken aback. She hadn't expected Jerome to suggest this. What, you would really fly all the way to the new cities? Do you think you would make it in a day?

  Jerome snorted. I know you have sped up, Crystal, but perhaps you had forgotten that some of us were always able to fly at this speed, even if your friends aren't there yet. In case it escaped your notice, I caught up with you.

  Crystal hadn't noticed it, but he was right. Jerome did fly very well and always had done. But what about your business, can it wait?

  Of course! Don't be deceived; I'm not acting out of selfless motives. If the True Dragons go home, then I can start rebuilding more quickly. Don't worry, I have always wanted to visit the New Cities, so you're not inconveniencing me in the slightest. Besides, what do you think will happen when my servants tell your friends and family where you are? Do you think they'll worry more or less?

  Really? Well, if you're sure–

  Of course, fly back to Furnace, Jerome replied smoothly. I will see you in a few days. Have a good flight.

  Crystal felt a little unsure about this, feeling that it was her responsibility. But Jerome was right, telling her mother that she was flying all the way to the new cities wasn't going to reassure her in the slightest. And he could pass on the message just as well as she could. In the end, it was an easy decision, and after thanking him and bidding him farewell, she turned around and headed towards Furna
ce.

  She found that she had flown further than she realised and it took quite some time before she reached Furnace. To her horror, she discovered that no one was even aware that she was missing. None of her friends had called, and her mother had assumed that she was already in the West.

  "I can't believe you flew there on your own," her mother scolded after she had explained where she had been. "Anything could have happened to you. We don't know anything about these Worm Dragons. I can't believe this is the second time you've been there and you never told me."

  Something almost did happen to her, Crystal thought, remembering how close the Valley Cat had come to having her for dinner. She had left that part out of her story.

  "Never mind that now," Crystal replied. "It had to be done, and I did it. But what about you, mother? When were you thinking of leaving? Father doesn't work here any more, and if I was in the West, then you don't need to be here. Why stay?"

  "Well, dear, someone has to take responsibility for making sure all of our things are packed. I can't just get up and go. We lost too much money when the Blues destroyed our house in the south. I can't risk losing everything we have here."

  "Mother! It's just money. It won't help you when you've been eaten!"

  "Come on, Crystal, there's no need to be so dramatic. Besides, if you're right, I won't have to leave at all. Are you going to tell your friends? It would cheer them up."

  "Tomorrow, first thing," Crystal replied, still feeling annoyed that no one had visited. She had been gone for a whole day, and not even her cousin had thought to call on her. "They can wait."