“Yes, General.”
“Dismissed.”
5
Devarius opened his eyes. Sunlight streamed through the slats of the barn. His muscles ached. He had hoped to stay in a bed for at least one night, not a pallet of hay. A few others stirred, waking up for the day. He knew they couldn’t stay long. They would have to leave before more village guards found them. So much for purchasing boats. Too bad, since boats would have taken them south along the river all the way to Laeraed. Their journey could be much easier if Devarius didn’t have to lead everyone on foot.
The door to the barn opened as roosters crowed. Devarius felt for his dagger, a weapon he wasn’t used to carrying, but after recent events, he’d decided to equip it. Devarius relaxed when he recognized the old man from the night previous entering. The man held a large bowl of scrambled eggs and bacon. The scent made Devarius shiver with delight as he inhaled. The pleasant aroma brought the tired villagers awake.
The old man smiled. “I thought you might be hungry for a bite to eat before you begin your journey.”
“Bless you,” Devarius said.
When the bowl was scraped clean, the old man headed for the door.
“You best be off soon,” he called. “With all the guards after you, it will not be safe.”
“We’ll leave at once,” Devarius assured him.
Wings flapping outside startled the group. A bird wouldn’t be loud enough to hear. The old man waved his hand at them in a sign of warning. Devarius hushed everyone in the barn and ushered them into the large piles of hay. He made sure everyone hid deep inside the straw before dashing to a pile of hay on the other side, where he could keep an eye on the other hidden refugees. A chill overcame him as he felt the straw surround him.
The old man tossed the empty bowl to the side as he went to open the door. As his hands reached the handle, the door burst open. A man strode inside. He stood tall, his black hair curled in long wisps, a thin beard covering his lower lip and chin. His body was covered with steel platemail, and a leather scabbard hung at his side. The platemail bore an emblem of a dragon on its chest, defining him as a dragonrider.
“Where are the traitors?”
“Traitors? I am but a farmer. All I know is my chickens and cows.”
“Do not play coy with me, old man. I will strike you down here and now. Give me the location of the traitors, and I’ll give you your life.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Oh you don’t, do you?” The dragonrider glared around the barn. He tilted his head back and sniffed the air. “Tell me, farmer, why does it smell like bacon and eggs in here? Do you feed your chickens and cows bacon and eggs for breakfast?”
The old man tensed. “No, but I eat them.”
The dragonrider unsheathed his sword, took two steps toward the old man, and cleaved his head from his shoulders with two hard blows. Devarius watched from behind a bale of hay as the man’s head crashed to the ground and rolled toward the other hidden refugees. He saw the wide eyes of the two children. Devarius prayed the children wouldn’t make a sound. Their mother pulled them closer, putting her hands over their mouths. The hay rustled against her touch. Devarius winced, hoping the dragonrider hadn’t heard the sound.
After impaling the ground with his sword to clean it of blood, the dragonrider stormed out of the barn. Devarius waited for several minutes before crawling out of the hay. He didn’t know what he could do. If he distracted the dragonrider, perhaps the others could escape, but he wasn’t trained like the dragonrider, nor did he have a sword. Besides, where would everyone go without him?
Something burned his nostrils.
He turned his attention to the door. Smoke entered from underneath. Dragonsbreath sounded from outside, crackling against the walls of the barn. The dragon was going to burn them alive.
Devarius moved quickly, ushering his companions out of the hay. He turned to the barn door. It was aflame. Most likely, the dragonrider stood right outside. He sprang for the rear. Smoke filled the barn, strangling his breath and clouding his vision.
Finding the exit, he called, “Everyone, to me!”
Paedyn helped him usher everyone to the rear door. While Paedyn rounded up everyone, Devarius tried to open the door, but it was jammed. He crashed against it several times, trying to force the door open. Fire blazed through the pallets of hay his company had slept on. He gritted his teeth and tried harder to break down the door. Paedyn soon joined him. Nausea overcame Devarius, and he had a hard time swallowing. He felt that he’d condemned his party to die because of his foolishness.
“One, two, three,” Paedyn whispered.
Devarius and Paedyn threw their shoulders against the door. It shattered. They stumbled out of the barn as smoke poured out all around them. They coughed in fits. Their party crawled out behind them, hacking and coughing, gasping for fresh air. Devarius counted to make sure no one was left behind, and exhaled in relief. Spent, he collapsed to the ground.
A scream filled the air. Footsteps approached. He opened his eyes to see the dragonrider behind him. At the man’s side sat a massive red dragon.
Devarius cursed.
The dragonrider smiled. “Good morning.”
6
Captain Vesryn strolled into the camp, his silver cape fluttering in the breeze behind him. Ten dragonriders stood at attention as he walked the thin path between them. He stopped at the end and turned around, studying each of the men. They were hard warriors, good men. And they’d been scouting the land for the traitors.
“I do not need to remind you how important it is that we find these traitors.” Vesryn watched his men’s expressions. “We have been tasked by the general with bringing in these scoundrels. If we fail, we’re to report directly to the emperor. We mustn’t fail.”
The other dragonriders gulped.
“Leave no rock unturned. We’ll stay at camp for another day waiting on correspondence from our other riders before we separate and continue our search.”
Flapping wings broke Captain Vesryn’s concentration. None of his dragonriders should have been returning so soon. They’d been told to return the following day with any news. If one found the traitors, they were supposed to send word … but not return. A blue dragon and its rider descended into the camp. He did not recognize the beast or the man. Vesryn had never seen a blue dragon before. He’d thought all dragons were red.
The captain stood at attention with his hands crossed behind his back as the man climbed off his dragon and approached. He wasn’t part of the Dragonia Empire army. His armor was mismatched, like it’d been taken off several different men. The man walked straight toward Vesryn, not bothered by the ten dragonriders standing at attention.
He withdrew a parchment, which he handed over, disdain clear on his face.
Vesryn grabbed the parchment as he looked up and down at the man. “Who are you?”
“My name is Derkas.”
“The mercenary?” Vesryn snarled.
“I see you’ve heard of me.” Derkas smirked.
Vesryn unrolled the parchment. When he finished reading, his fists clenched and he crumpled the letter in his hands. “We don’t need aid from a bloody mercenary. We are doing just fine on our own.”
“So you’ve found the traitors then?” Derkas asked.
“Not yet.” The grinding sound of his teeth could almost be heard by the furthest dragonrider.
Derkas raised a brow. “Progress?”
The ten dragonriders stared at Vesryn, their fingers twitching over their sword hilts. “The general seems to think we’re in need of aid from this mercenary. I have orders to discuss our plans with him, and give him anything else he … requires.”
“Do you have any progress?” Derkas challenged.
“We have ten dragonriders out scouting the nearby villages from Dundair down to Kaedur.”
“Could the villagers have traveled that far already?”
“Not likely
. We’re concentrating most of our efforts on these northern villages.”
“Good. Let me know if you find anything.”
“As you wish.” Vesryn rubbed the pommel of his sword.
“What are your plans once you find them?” Derkas asked.
“Take them to the general. I’ll let him decide.”
Derkas nodded.
A bird flew over the horizon toward them. Everyone turned their attention to the lone pigeon with a small piece of paper tied to its foot. The captain turned around and held out his arm. He fished in his pocket for some seeds to give to the bird. The pigeon gratefully ate out of his hand as Vesryn pulled the piece of paper from its leg. After reading the note, he dropped the rest of the birdseed on the ground.
“Prepare the camp. We’re leaving,” he instructed his men.
“What is it?” Derkas asked.
Vesryn scowled as he tossed the note at Derkas’s feet.
Derkas knelt to snatch the note and read it.
Found traitors. Captured. Kaed. Awaiting orders.
Derkas pressed his lips together as he handed the note back to the captain.
Vesryn spat on the ground. “As it turns out, we don’t need you. I told you I had everything under control.”
“Do you now?” Derkas whispered.
Vesryn turned away from the mercenary. “Come on, men, snap to it. Take down the tents, pack up your belongings. We leave tonight.”
“Should we send a message to the general?” a dragonrider asked.
“No. Not until I have them in my custody.”
“As you wish.”
Vesryn strode to his tent. It was time to take it down. He organized all the stakes in a pile and carefully rolled the fabric tight, packing it in a bag along with the stakes. Vesryn kept his possessions in pristine condition and well organized, something he didn’t trust his men to do for him. Once everything was in a neat pile, he turned around. He wondered if the mercenary planned to travel with them. Since he received direct orders from the general, he needed to make sure the traitors were indeed captured. Vesryn did not look forward to having a mercenary watch his back. At least his mission was nearly complete. He scanned the camp. Everyone was busy tearing the camp down and organizing the supplies. Derkas was nowhere in sight. One of his men walked past him. Vesryn reached out and grabbed the dragonrider’s arm.
“Where is the mercenary?”
The man’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t know, Captain.”
Vesryn strode over to his other men and cleared his throat. “Has anyone seen where the mercenary went?”
All of the men looked to each other, then glanced around the camp and back to their captain.
The mercenary was gone. Vesryn cursed under his breath. There was a reason he didn’t trust mercenaries. “Finish packing. We need to leave at once.”
7
Devarius clenched his fists as he struggled against the chains securing his wrists. There was no escape. Besides the dragonrider chaining all thirty of them together, a dragon stood watch over them. Devarius studied the beast. He’d never been so close to a dragon before. The creature both horrified and fascinated him. It was massive, larger than the barn they had hid inside. The saddle on its back looked small compared to the rest of its body.
He looked away from the dragon. While the creature was beautiful, it was also terrifying. He searched for anything he could use, or do, to get away from the dragonrider. Devarius saw nothing. He hated the wait, but there seemed little else he could do. His companions hadn’t spoken since being captured. He hoped they would continue to stay silent. Most were too petrified to speak.
“What are you going to do with us?” Devarius asked.
The dragonrider turned away from the fire. He held a blade in his hand as well as a grindstone; he grinned. “I do not know. That will be up to the captain when he arrives. I’ve already sent word. I suppose I could question you before he gets here.”
“You will not find answers,” Devarius replied.
The dragonrider lifted an eyebrow. “Is that so?”
Devarius didn’t respond.
“I am quite good at extracting answers. Even if I can’t determine anything, the captain will.”
“What is your name?” Devarius asked.
The dragonrider smiled. “Tirask … and yours?”
“Devarius.”
“Well, since you seem to be the leader, I should be asking you the questions.”
“You won’t receive any answers,” Devarius repeated.
“I suspected as much. That’s why I never planned to question you.”
Tirask walked to the rest of the party and studied each person in turn. He stopped in front of a trembling Dasyra. A slick grin spread across his scarred face. She glanced nervously to Devarius, her eyes pleading with him to do something. Devarius could do nothing, and was afraid the dragonrider had found their weak link. Tirask grabbed Dasyra, unfastened her chains, and dragged her away from the others. He unsheathed a dagger as he held Dasyra by her blonde hair. The dagger pressed lightly against her bare arm, piercing skin. He slid the dagger across the length of her forearm as she wailed.
“Where are you traveling?” Tirask asked.
Dasyra didn’t answer. Tears streamed down her face. She choked over sobs.
The dragonrider grabbed her other arm and began carving into it.
“Stop!” she yelled halfway through.
“Are you ready to talk?” he asked.
She nodded.
“Where is your party traveling?”
“Laeraed.”
Devarius sighed inwardly. He was thankful he hadn’t told the entire party of his intention to travel past Laeraed to Vaereal. Only he and Paedyn knew that information.
“Whom are you to meet there?” Tirask asked.
“I don’t know,” Dasyra hiccuped through sobs.
“I’m to believe you don’t know who you’re looking for?”
“We don’t know any actual Resistance.” She wiped her tears with her free hand. “We are only following whispers and hoping they’ll find us.”
“I see. And there are whispers pointing to Laeraed?”
“I don’t know,” she responded. “We planned to stop in every village along the way.” She looked to Devarius. “Devarius was hoping to learn where the Resistance hid.”
“A pity,” the dragonrider said. “Information on the Resistance would be quite valuable.”
“We have none,” Devarius said.
“I still don’t believe that … but my captain has better torture methods. And I’m sure he’ll question each one of you.” He grinned.
A growl in the woods broke Tirask’s concentration. Crunching leaves and breaking sticks sounded from the forest. Tirask eyed the company suspiciously. He turned to face his dragon, who stood at attention with ears cocked toward the woods.
“Go, check out the noise.”
The dragon glanced to Tirask for a second before leaping into the woods.
“Dragons are intelligent? They can understand?”
Tirask’s face twisted into a snarl. “They can understand commands. They are nothing more than beasts. However, all beasts can be trained.”
Devarius’s eyebrows furrowed. The dragonrider didn’t seem to respect his dragon much. He pondered on the potential weakness to exploit.
A roar shattered the silence. It repeated, followed by another. The second roar had a higher pitch, like it came from another creature. Tirask turned toward the woods, his forehead crinkling as he licked his teeth. He stepped toward Devarius and the others, checking that they were securely chained to a tree.
The sounds of a fight between beasts ensued. Tirask growled, unsheathed his sword, and ran into the woods.
“What’s going on?” Paedyn asked.
“I have no idea,” Devarius replied.
The air around them grew cold. Devarius shivered, as did the rest of them. A blue fog seeped into the small clearing. The chains turned from
gray to light blue. Devarius reached to touch the strange chains and recoiled. They weren’t hot … but cold, so cold they burned his hand when he touched them. When the chains became a darker blue, his brow furrowed. He clenched his fists and pulled hard. The chains shattered, falling to the ground like chunks of ice. He paused for a second as he stared at the shattered pieces of metal on the ground. Shaking his head, he went to the others and began breaking their shackles. All of the chains shattered, but he couldn’t get the shackles off anyone’s wrist. They’d have to figure that out later.
He hesitated when it came to freeing Dasyra. Her wounds had stopped bleeding, but she lay unconscious on the ground. He debated whether or not to take her along.
“What is it?” Paedyn asked.
“I don’t know if we should release her. She’s been nothing but trouble since the beginning. And she’s our weakest link. Anything we learn, she will spill if they catch her again.”
“Yes, she will,” Paedyn agreed. “But we can’t leave her to be tortured.”
“What do you suggest?” Devarius asked.
“Drop her off at the next village.”
Devarius nodded. “I don’t know if we can continue to travel to the villages. She already confessed our path to that dragonrider. No village will be safe.”
“True,” Paedyn said. “But we’ll figure out something. I don’t think we should leave her.”
“You’re right.”
After breaking her chains, Devarius tossed her over his shoulder. When he turned around and noticed everyone standing, transfixed, waiting for his orders, he sighed.
“Come, let’s get out of here before that dragonrider returns.”
He dashed into the woods opposite where the dragonrider had disappeared. Everyone followed him.
8
Captain Vesryn stood at the new camp, hands clasped behind his back. His eyes were slitted as he studied the ground. No one dared say a word. He strode forward, inspecting the shattered chunks of metal.
“You say you returned and this is all you found?”
Dragonia- Dragonia Empire series Box Set Page 4