Dragon Bonds (Return of the Darkening Series Book 3) (8 page)

But everyone here looked more like they were ready for a tavern brawl and not a council meeting. We were also back to the same arguments as the other day—attack or seek help.

“Do we sit and train and allow the enemy to grow ever stronger?” Ryan growled at Mordecai.

Even though I was siding with Mordecai on this one, I was impressed by how Ryan was standing his ground against Mordecai—the instructor had once struck fear and terror into the hearts of every Dragon Rider recruit.

“If you open your eyes, boy, you’ll see we do not have the forces needed for even a small victory,” Mordecai said, his tone weary and his shoulders slumping. “Yes, we can raid and hit and run, but what does it matter if we become a minor irritation? We do not have the army or riders or dragons enough to defeat Lord Vincent. If we wish an end to this conflict, it seems clear, we have is to find the Southern dragons and their riders and entreat them for aid.”

“That could take months,” King Justin said. He didn’t sound angry, but he looked tired as any of us. We had all been in this meeting for the last two hours with opinions and going back and forth. I doubted anything could be decided before nightfall.

Mordecai straightened. “Then we take months! By the First Dragon, our forces could do with the rest. And we have maps for the hunting, after all; the commander was doing all the hard work to find the Southern dragons.”

Commander Hegarty looked up and then glanced at the king. He frowned. To my dismay, he also looked at Seb as if the commander was unsure who was being referred to. When he had ascertained that there was no other commander present—Reynalt, to my shame, had still not rejoined the king—Hegarty coughed and stood, slowly rising from his seat.

I saw Seb’s face tighten with worry and his brown eyes darkened—we were both worried about Commander Hegarty. It seemed as if new gray hairs appeared in his hair and mustache every day and new lines marked his face, leaving him looking old and worn.

“Uh—yes, Prince,
um,
King Justin,” Hegarty said. “As you know, your father, the old king, tasked me with finding out all that I could about what lineages and breeds of dragons the Southern Realm had—orange tails, double tooth, sunglares and the like. There are several great enclosures for their dragons, and the messengers and travelers I questioned told me where they might be found.” His shoulders slumped. “But I have lost the maps.” He sat down, muttering, “Marvelous breeds. The double tooth is as fierce as our greens.”

“Yes, thank you, Commander Hegarty,” King Justin said, sounding even more exhausted than before. The implication was obvious—the king did not think the commander would recover sufficiently in time to lead us. We might spend the next few months following his absent-minded guesses.

To be honest, I rather agreed with the king on that.

Ryan cleared his throat and said, “We have our own Dragon Riders that we need to find—and more still who are under the spell of Lord Vincent. If we free them, we can add them to our numbers and then we stand a chance.”

The king waved a hand. “Perhaps we should take a brief break while I consider our options.” He stood up, followed by the shuffling of the entire room as everyone stood to salute or bow to him. The king turned to the back of the pavilion, sweeping aside the heavy canvas tent flap and striding outside. His guards started to follow him, but he waved them off. Not even Ryan was allowed to go with the king—he truly wanted to be alone, and for the first time I saw how the decisions were weighing hard on him. Thousands of lives—and the fate of the kingdom—depended on him making the right choices.

Inside the tent, a moment of quiet held before grumbled conversation broke out again, and Beris said, his voice loud, “We all seem to agree that we need to find more men and dragons. If we have to go all the way to the Southern Realm to do it, then that is just what we’ll have to do!”

I nodded, but I was still torn. My family was out there somewhere in the wilds—if we left Torvald to fly south we would effectively be leaving them to fend for themselves.

“At last, someone sees sense,” Mordecai muttered loudly.

“We can take ’em on. My marchers have taken down two of ‘em wild dragons ‘afore.” One of the captains—a tall man with long, slate-gray hair and an eye patch, shifted in his chair and nodded. He was from one of the border outposts.

Another captain shook his head. “You didn’t see the monster Lord Vincent rode. There’s talk of all sorts of things now—dragons with two heads or four wings or that breathe cold…”

“Children’s stories. Rubbish.” The first captain shook his head.

“Not so, actually.” Commander Hegarty sat up. “If you study the lore, it was once common for there to be many different kinds of dragons. Depending upon how exposed they have been to wild magic, it was said some could grow to monstrous size and others had multiple tails, heads or could even bring storms.”

I heard one of the captains mutter that the commander had lost his wits, but Mordecai was nodding. “Yes, so then let us hope there is little wild magic left in the world—and that the Southern Realm has so far been spared.”

From the Darkening?

I looked to where Seb sat. He had scrubbed a hand through his brown hair and it was standing on end. His mouth pulled down. He seemed to sense my stare for he looked at me and muttered, “We need to find the Dragon Stone. That is what is going to save us—not hoping to bump into a few more Dragon Riders or fleeing for the South!”

“We wouldn’t be fleeing,” Beris said, a shadow of his old grumpiness back in his tone. “We would send scouts and riders ahead to entreat with our allies.”

“What allies?” Syl stood and waved an arm around the group. “Who here has ever talked to a Southerner before? When was the last time that anyone saw a Southern Realm lord at the palace? And what of the South Raiders who have joined with the Darkening? Why do we think the Southern Realm will be spared in this war? I think Seb is right. We have to find the Dragon Stone—the one that controls them all.”

Mutters lifted up—some against, some for. Mordecai sat in his chair, shaking his head. Seb hated talking in public, but he turned to me and pinned me with a look that left me squirming. I knew he wanted me to back him, but I wasn’t certain he was right. The other stones we found had brought more dangerous magic to Lord Vincent—not to us.

Next to me, Beris shook his head. “What do we have but scraps of parchment written down by someone long since turned to dust who might have been making it all up for all we know?”

Syl glowered at his partner, and I could tell this was an argument the two of them had been having for some time. “We have evidence, Beris. Cross-referencing, multiple sources, common descriptions even
.
”

“But do you know where this Dragon Stone can be found?”

Syl didn’t answer. And that was the problem. We had looked before this for the one Dragon Stone that controlled them all. And in our search for the Armor Stone, we’d only found that through sheer luck. Or maybe we’d found it because the stone had wanted to be found. But I didn’t want to put more powerful magic into Lord Vincent’s hands. However, I wasn’t sure that flying south would get us anything, either. Glancing around, I said, “We should think about saving our people first—and that means getting help from the Southern Realm. That could be our best chance.” Beris nodded, and Syl pressed his lips tight, but he didn’t argue.

“
Thea?
”
Seb whispered, his voice full of disappointment.

“Seb, the king needs us. The
rightful
king,” I said pointedly, trying to make sure he knew what I meant.

I was certain Beris hadn’t been the only person sent out by Lord Vincent to start rumors that Lord Vincent was the true king. And, with my brother out there plotting his own rise to power, King Justin’s position seemed tenuous at best. We couldn’t let him down. We had sworn to uphold the throne. And we needed to protect our people.

The arguments started up again, but one word cut across them.

“Enough!”

We all looked up to see that King Justin had returned. He stood just inside the door flap. I wondered how long he’d been standing there—and how much he had heard. His stare swept over the crowded tent. It seemed as if he had made up his mind about something. He looked more composed, less tired. He straightened and something of a regal air settled onto him, like a handsome cloak. Perhaps walking alone through the makeshift tents and camp kitchens of his shattered people had made him realize they needed a true leader.

We all stood to attention, and I think it was more from a response to his kingly air than to any courtly expectations.

“I have decided what it is we are to do and where I will be leading you.” The faintest waver caught my attention.

Is he still just a little bit undecided?

I bit my lower lip, hoping for his sake that he would do well in this critical moment.

“It seems to me that although our arguments are heated, there really is very little difference in what we want—we want our kingdom back, and we want to be revenged against those who took it from us.”

A few muttered ‘ayes’ sounded in the tent. I resisted looking at Seb, but I could feel his unhappiness with King Justin’s speech.

The king glanced around the tent. “To do that, I have decided Instructor Mordecai is right—at least a little. We do
need more forces—more dragons and riders. But I will not abandon my people to their fate! And neither will I stand idly by while Lord Vincent and his thieves seek to occupy the royal palace.”

Frowning, I wondered how he intended to hold the palace against any concerted attack by our foes. The city had fallen once already—it would fall again if we tried to occupy it.

The king didn’t explain, but said, “A small delegation will travel south. The rest of the army will stay close to Torvald, to the west and south of the city. We will use our foot soldiers to harass the enemy, and let our people know that all hope is not lost. Given a few successful attacks, we will find and free other Dragon Riders. More will rally to our banner. Those who have fled to the wilderness will return. And once our forces are gathered, we will strike at Lord Vincent.”

I could swear the king flashed a brief look at me and then at Ryan as he said
those who have fled
. Was the king banking on the possibility that Reynalt and his Storm Claw and the other squadrons would return? I rather doubted that was even a possibility. The Flammas were a stubborn lot, and if Father had convinced Reynalt that King Justin was a lost cause, then Reynalt would be done with taking any orders from the king.

But the king had come to a balanced decision. We had to be here for our people, and we had to seek aid where we might be able to find it. I noticed the king had not mentioned the Dragon Stone—I knew it was not because he didn’t believe in it. We had all had too much contact with the stones to doubt them. But I thought he must feel as I did—we could not afford to find more magic that Lord Vincent would take from us.

I couldn’t help myself, I was proud for my childhood friend—he was becoming a true king. Someone started the cry,
“All hail the king!”
I took it up and echoed the words. But I didn’t hear Seb’s deep voice shouting those words.

Casting a look over to where Seb was still sitting, I saw he looked pale and worried. I wondered if that had to do with the fact that Commander Hegarty had left the tent, or because the king had not mentioned trying to find the one Dragon Stone that controlled them all.

King Justin held up a hand and urged us to get what food that we could and to rest. “Tomorrow will be a long, hard day.”

Standing, Seb made for the exit flap and slipped out without waiting to speak to me. A knot tightened in my stomach. Had I let him down? Was he expecting something more from me? But he had to see that this was the right course of action, surely.

Surely?

I
couldn’t believe
Thea hadn’t argued for finding the Dragon Stone. What was wrong with her? Did she not remember how Lord Vincent had used the Memory Stone on all of us and almost destroyed the entire kingdom with his powers? And Commander Hegarty had once mended a fatal wound Lord Vincent had given Thea with the Healing Stone—she had to know their powers.

But now Thea was siding with Beris—two noble-house protectors backing the king.

A surge of anger choked me. I knew it was mean and selfish, but I couldn’t help it. I had felt so helpless when she had been hurt, and now I was almost as helpless again.

It had taken me a long time to realize I was good at something, and that something happened to be as a Dragon Rider. It had taken my friendship with Kalax to find that in myself—and it had been hard work. All the time, Beris had kept saying I wasn’t good enough. I was just a blacksmith’s son.

Beris—what did he care about the people? Or King Justin—he really just wanted his kingdom back, his power and his palace. He wanted revenge more than anything. What we needed to do was defeat the Darkening—forever. And for that we needed the one Dragon Stone. We didn’t need a war that went on and on, with more people dying.

A sudden memory of how light Thea had felt in my arms when I’d carried her out of the cave after we’d faced Lord Vincent the first time and how warm her blood had been on my hands twisted my stomach. I’d been unable to stop it. Were we headed for another battle with more losses—with Lord Vincent taking more lives?

A wave of sympathy touched with impatience swept over me, coming from Kalax.
Enough. Why pick at something that has already healed?
She didn’t understand human emotions very well, but she was surprisingly good at giving advice.

Kalax was right, of course. I was worrying about the past—and I was afraid to go off on my own to find the Dragon Stone because I didn’t want to leave Thea behind. I didn’t want her going up against the Darkening and Lord Vincent without me and Kalax there so we could all look out for each other. That meant I needed to convince her that she should come with me and Kalax on this search. But where did we even start?

Varla, Merik and Syl were still arguing over the symbols on the old scrolls and what they might mean. I had been back once to Jodreth’s small hut, destroyed by the black dragon and had found nothing of use—but Jodreth must have left us clues somewhere, maybe in the old Draconis Order monasteries. We didn’t have time to search every single one, so we had to find some better way to go about this. Except I wasn’t sure what that way was. We had a few symbols, but none of the meanings were clear.

One thing I knew for certain—staying here to battle the Darkening’s forces was a good way to lose good people. And going south to find maybe more dragons and riders seemed to me just a way to get the Southern Realm into this war. What could they do that our riders couldn’t? No, they’d be beaten by the Darkening, too. Lord Vincent was just too powerful.

The only hope that we had—for our own forces as well as for our people—was to find the one Dragon Stone said to control them all. With it, we could break the hold the Darkening had over the wild dragons and the Wildmen. We would be able to drive back the Darkening forever.

And we were getting close—we had to be. Now that Syl was helping Merik and Varla, that was one more person to help dig out the truth from the old scrolls we had found, so we could at least know where to begin the search.

If only Thea was helping, too.

But how to convince her?

With a shiver, I stamped my feet. The night had grown cold and a fog was coming up from the river. My steps had taken me to the edge of the camp. Fires burned behind me, but I was headed in the direction where most of the dragons were sleeping. I could hear their soft breaths, which warmed the night and stirred the fog. Clouds had gathered, blotting out the stars and moon, leaving the sky dark. The splash from the river mixed with the dragon’s breath, and the scrabble of night animals and calls of night birds. The woods thinned. The tall trees did not allow enough light for saplings. In the trees, a shadow moved, and I stiffened. I’d come out without a sword or even as much as a knife. I glanced back at the clearing, at the flutter of dark tents and the faint glow of lanterns, and then looked back to that shadow.

The shadow came toward me, taking on the shape of a man. His dark cloak flapped around his boots, and he hummed a low, tuneless melody as he headed toward me. A faint light from the camp glinted off the sword that hung from his belt. My throat tightened and my heart thudded hard.

Ridiculous. It’s just a rider, checking on his dragon or one of the foot soldiers out on patrol.

I suddenly recognized the short and stocky silhouette as that of Commander Hegarty.

He came up to me, stopped humming and clapped a hand on my shoulder. “Rider Smith, nice to see you again, boy. Did I tell you I knew Monger’s Lane a long time ago? Different place now though. So different…” His words trailed off.

I wondered if he was speaking of the difference between his years there and mine, or how different it was now it had been burned to the ground. I started to ask what the commander was doing out here—was he as unhappy as I was with the king’s orders?

But Kalax thought to me,
I called him.

You can speak to the commander?

I wondered if Kalax picked up on my astonishment. Exactly how many other things could Kalax do that I wasn’t aware of? I had thought a dragon only shared their thoughts with their riders and with other dragons. But I knew anyone with the Dragon Affinity could talk to any dragon.

Yes,
Kalax agreed.
He has some affinity. A touch of the old magic
.

That made sense. The commander’s half-brother, Jodreth, had been something of a wizard—but even his power hadn’t been enough to defeat the Darkening.

Before I could ask why Kalax had called the commander, she thought to me,
He is fogged. You need him. You need a friend, as does he.
She settled back into a light sleep, ending the communication between us. I was left feeling grateful and staggered at how wise she was.

Commander Hegarty leaned forward to stare at me for a moment, and then his eyes seemed to focus on me as if he was really seeing me for the first time in days. I realized Kalax had called him to help clear his mind with the Dragon Affinity.

“Ah, Seb.” His words came out clipped and sharp, more like the Commander Hegarty of old. A rush of hope lifted in my chest—we at last had the old commander of the Dragon Academy back with us.

In the dark night, he let out a long breath. Sadness deepened his voice. “I remember when my dragon used to talk to me.” He shifted on his feet, the leather of his jerkin creaking in the night. “But never mind that. You know what is at stake—Torvald. We must …” His words stuttered off, just as they had been doing over the past few weeks. He glanced around us as if unaware where he was or why he was here.

No!
I thought, reaching out to him with my hands, heart and mind.

I seized his shoulders to shake some sense into him. A charge like lightning jolted through me, searing my skin, but I reached out with my mind, with the part of me that was always connected with Kalax. I could sense the commander with the dragon’s senses, but this time something more came into my thoughts.

I sensed the commander’s Dragon Affinity—his link to dragons was like a shining thread, and I knew it was not natural born to him but had grown over decades of living with dragons.

I couldn’t connect with him the way I could with Thea or a dragon, but I could see now the fog that had been placed on him by Lord Vincent’s Memory Stone. It was there in dark shadows, lurking and rising again. I saw how black lines like the tendrils of a vine clung to his mind, waiting for him to think anything about defense or fighting. No wonder his mind kept wandering—Lord Vincent had woven in a dozen ways to keep tripping up Commander Hegarty. The Darkening hadn’t just sent Hegarty back to us as useless—it had left the commander a danger to all those he commanded.

A growl of reptilian anger stirred in my mind as Kalax woke and sensed my connection to the commander. She added her own courage and determination to my efforts. For a moment, we struggled with the tangle of darkness in the commander’s mind. Every vine I cut shrank back, but then another sprouted. Kalax gave a roar and light blasted through my mind, brilliant as the sun and hot as dragon fire.

A stabbing pain shot through my eye. My head throbbed and I could see only blinding light. I slapped a hand over my eyes and staggered back.

“Easy there, Seb.” Now Commander Hegarty had his hands on my shoulders, holding me up. He leaned against the nearest tree. He looked pale and his features gaunt, as if he had run a race, but his eyes were clear. I reached out with my affinity and this time could see no darkness in his thoughts.

“Commander,” I gasped, rubbing my temples.

“Take your time, Smith. The pain eases in a short time.” Hegarty patted my shoulder. The commander let out a low chuckle. “Jodreth taught me much about the affinity, and a few things of the old lore. But knowledge alone didn’t save me. I thank you.”

Swallowing hard, I nodded. Jodreth had given his life to save me, Thea and Kalax. His house on the mountain was now rubble, destroyed by Lord Vincent, and I doubted the sorcerer could have made it out alive from the rocks heaped down on the hut.

Hegarty took a deep breath and turned toward the camp and their low fires, which were now being put out, one by one. “Although fogged, I remember what happened at the council meeting. You are in the right, Seb. We must find the stone of legend—the Dragon Stone of the king, the First Rider. It is the only way to stop the Darkening, and we must stop it forever this time.”

“What of the Southern dragons? You said in council we needed their help. I’m…. confused.”

“You know as do I, Seb, there is no real sign they will come to our aid. And if we could not defeat Lord Vincent and his forces, what hope do they have? He has the stones of power. He will use them on any who oppose him.” Slapping my shoulder, he said, “Walk with me, young rider.”

I fell into step with him and he slowly started back to the camp. Voice deep and soft, Hegarty said. “I’ve a clear mind now, and I know why Kalax brought me here. It wasn’t just to clear my thoughts. Whatever happens next, whatever the king announces or orders, you must leave and search for the one Dragon Stone that controls them all. You, more than anyone, Seb, know the danger in the Darkening.” He looked at me pointedly.

Panic tightened in my chest. “So—so you agree with the old stories? The Dragon Affinity is more of a curse than a blessing? That it will lead to me becoming like the Darkening…to becoming one with it?”

“No!” Hegarty sliced the air with one hand. His cloak fluttered around him. “The Darkening—it’s wild magic. It’s twisted beyond all measure. For it to take hold it needs corners to hide in and evil it can bleed into. That old story—the one of the middle son, the prince who wanted power over everything. Over everyone. It wasn’t the Darkening that called him—he called to it. Did you know that the Wildmen even have a name for that ancient prince? They call the Darkening and the prince who called it into our kingdoms the
Ghoul
. The tribes I once treated with in my youth feared and hate that old, black power. They kept the old stories alive and told them around their campfires. The Ghoul became over the long decades a tale to frighten their young with—until it came back again at Lord Vincent’s hands.”

“Even the Wildmen want to be free of the Darkening?” Remembering their savage faces as they raced into battle, I hunched a shoulder.

“Not all of those who are different from us are our enemies, Sebastian. You should know that. And now, I have already spent too long asleep—both in mind and in action. I need you to continue this quest, Seb, no matter what happens next.”

I kicked at a stone in our path. “I’m not sure I can. Thea—”

“Seb, you must find a way. We cannot rely only on the one Dragon Stone. We will have to fight our way to where it can be used against Lord Vincent, and that means we need troops. I know the way to the south. I mapped the locations of the Southern dragons. I will go.”

I opened my mouth to protest, but the commander straightened and said, his voice clipped, “You have your orders, Rider Smith.”

“Aye, Commander.” I gave a nod. I wasn’t sure the commander was in a fit state to be traveling for weeks across difficult terrain. He looked thinner than he had once been, and in the light of the last fire burning in the camp, his face seemed pale. But what I could I say? He was still my commander.

As if sensing my thoughts, Commander Hegarty gave me a crooked smile. “Chin up, Seb. The end isn’t here yet. And we have much work to do before any of us can rest. I thank you, Rider Smith and Kalax, for aiding me. Now see to your dragon and recruit your protector to your task at hand.” Wrapping his cloak around him, he headed for the king’s tent.

Arms crossed against the chill of the night, a small bubble of happiness rose in me to see his stride firm and strong again. But my stomach churned at the thought of what I had to do next—convince Thea she had to help me find the one Dragon Stone of legend.