Dragons Descended Upon the Wicked (4 page)

After waking for miles they finally arrived to Lord Senvot’s castle. They walked up a staircase made up of only thirty stairs before walking on a stone walkway that lead to the main doors. Nick noticed as he walked the path that there was nothing but a flowing river below them. They were walking on a bridge; he could only imagine what sort of creatures crept in those waters below him. Terrible stories of Terrel told to him since he was a child polluted his mind, although his perception of the city was already being changed.

The doors opened to a luxurious main hall. Everything was white from the shiny marble floors, to the hand painted walls of intricate designs. The king’s room could be seen through a plane of painted glass a few hundred feet directly in front of them.

The guard who lead the three men through the streets and into the castle directed the men to walk into a room to the right with a fountain made of glass that made up an entire wall and a circular wooden chair arrangement. He shut the door behind them, then looked at the three men, and asked, “Who is in charge here?”

Andrew stepped in and said, “I am.”

“I did not want to send the entire city into a panic. I did not even want to send the guards into a panic. But you three flew here on a dragon, did you not?”

“It is true,” said Andrew.

“So why should I not throw you into a cell and toss the key into the sewers?” asked the guard.

“The dragon means no harm to you or anyone else,” said Andrew. “In fact, that dragon could very well be the protector of this good city should we be able to only talk to Lord Senvot.”

“So I just have to trust your word?” asked the guard.

“Yes,” replied Andrew. “You have to trust us for only a few minutes. Give us the floor with Lord Senvot. I know that Hentrio has left a bad taste in your mouth. In fact, it leaves a bad taste in all of our mouths at the moment. I promise to you on everything I know and love that we will not send that dragon upon this city. We will do everything we can to protect Terrel. We will do everything in our power to keep you all safe from the evil forces that have been brewing in Hentrio. Please, sir...Please let us see him.”

“Alright,” said the guard. “However, I warn you, I will be present in this meeting and I will not hesitate to lock you up or end your life where you stand if things go bad. Do you understand?”

“Yes, sir,” said Andrew.

The guard left the room and closed the door behind him. They could hear the door being locked from the outside. Andrew smiled and nodded at the two young boys. They were left there in the room for close to an hour. There was no talking amongst the men. They knew what they had to say. They knew what they had to do. They only sat while listening to the downpour of water from the fountain. The fountain was shaped and carved to look like a giant willow tree. The artist must have been extremely talented to make glass curve like that. Nick had no idea how something so intricate could be produced. He was taken back by the beauty of it. The weaving and defined lines that made up the trunk and the branches captivated the eye. Before he knew it the hour had flown past. The door was unlocked and three guards stood at its opening.

“Follow,” said one guard.

The three men sprung to their feet and followed the guards. They were taken to the king’s room. A throne sat on top of a pyramid shaped staircase about twenty feet tall. There were a dozen guards placed along the stairs. The room was barren. There was no intricate paintings or sculptures. It was made of white marble and it was simplistic. The throne was not much of a throne compared to the one they were used to seeing. It was a wooden throne that resembled a simple dining room chair. In it sat Lord Senvot. He was seventy-eight years old and was big in terms of height, but even bigger in the waist. He had a bushy grey beard that complemented his long grey hair that flowed to his shoulders. He was blind in his right eye and had a permanent patch made of silver attached to his skin. He smiled at the men to reveal his two top middle teeth missing.

“Thomas Bell, it is you,” said Lord Senvot.

“Good to see you again,” said Thomas as he kneeled before the lord.

“And who have you straggled along with you into my city?” asked Lord Senvot.

“These are my friends; Nick Bint and Andrew Tarrax,” said Thomas while holding up his hand at the two.

Nick and Thomas both appropriately kneeled before Lord Senvot. He raised his hand to tell the men to stand back up.

“And why are you here?” asked Lord Senvot.

“Well...” said Andrew.

“Stop,” said Lord Senvot cutting off his words mid sentence. “I was asking Thomas. He is the only one I’ll allow to talk.”

“My lord, we are all in grave danger,” said Thomas. “The six have taken Hentrio. City by city, they have taken over and released their merciless rule upon thousands.”

“I have heard whispers about this so called six,” said Lord Senvot. “But how do they concern me?”

“My lord, I have heard their leader speak in person,” said Thomas. “I was a Refect as you know, so I was there when they came to take Vincot. Three of them rode their dragons, releasing breaths of fire wherever they wished and sending the city into a panic. It was not until after they released all of the murderers into the street that the man named Vicon talk to us above the city gates. He talked of a new world, one in which he ruled. He did not talk about a new Hentrio. He even said that no place was safe from him taking it.”

“You wish me to believe that the man rode to your city on the back of a dragon?” asked Lord Senvot.

“I do,” said Thomas. “We rode to yours on the back of Nick’s dragon.”

The king stood to his feet and the dozen guards around him pointed their weapons at the three men.

“You wish to bring death and destruction to my city!” yelled Lord Senvot. “I will have you all hanged!”

“Please, my lord,” said Nick. “The dragon is part of me. I can command him as I please. The dragon can protect your city from the harm the six could inflict with their dragons. How do you think they were able to command their dragons and ride them into the cities? The dragons do as they commanded, so long as the person has the gift to do so.”

“I do not like this,” said Lord Senvot. “I do not like this one bit. You shall have me trust your word on this matter?”

“No,” said Nick. “I will personally show you how I can ride a dragon. I will show you, and you will see with your own eyes the power that can be controlled and harnessed through the might of the dragon.”

“Let us go then,” said Lord Senvot.

“Before we do, we have terms,” said Nick.

“You have terms?” asked Lord Senvot. “You have no bargaining power here. A person from Hentrio bows to my terms and my terms alone.”

“We will not protect your city if you do not comply,” said Andrew. “We have witnessed our king die. We have witnessed the crushing power of supreme Rezas.” Andrew raised his hand and lifted his sword in the air. All of the guards quickly pointed their weapons at him. He placed his weapon back into its sheath. “We have witnessed cities crumble only to bow to a source of evil. We have been driven from our homes. Winter is upon us and we are out in the wild. Thousands face a cold winter with the hope of survival resting on the chance that we will have enough fires to keep ourselves warm.”

“Get to the point,” said Lord Senvot. “What is it that you ask of me?”

“We protect your city in exchange that the few thousand we have can set up camp within your city walls. Where we can buy food and wood for our fires. Men, women, and children depend on us.”

“I cannot allow it,” said Lord Senvot. “I will not open my doors so that thousands of murderous Paplon and Reza can run rampant within my city.”

“I ask you to save your final answer until after you see the white dragon,” said Nick. “See the dragon, then make your decision.”

Lord Senvot reluctantly nodded his head in agreement. He waved his hands and all of the guards faced forward simultaneously. They began to march down the pyramid stairs while Lord Senvot followed. Nick, Thomas, and Andrew turned around and began to walk out of the king’s room.

Andrew leaned towards Nick’s ear and whispered, “I hope you know what you are doing.”

***

Nick walked around the giant tree and found the white dragon laying on the ground. He was given specific instructions to stay far away from the city to not initiate a mass panic. The people could not see far past the city’s walls, thanks to their spectacular height.

“Time for a good show,” said Nick.

He climbed on top of the dragon and sat down. “Silner.”

The dragon spread its wings and took flight into the sky like a bolt of lightning.

Lord Senvot, his guards, Thomas, and Andrew stood on the balcony above the gate and watched as the dragon and Nick flew into the sky.

“He really is on that dragon, isn’t he?” asked Lord Senvot.

“The dragon does as he commands, my lord,” said Thomas.

Nick commanded the dragon to fly up, down, left, and right in the far distance near the mountains.

“Fitoro,” said Nick.

The dragon let out his breath of fire. The fire stretched far beyond the dragon’s mouth and left a trail of black smoke in the air.

“Lithicos,” said Nick.

The dragon then let out its breath of ice. It left a solid and massive patch of ice in the air that hailed down onto the ground.

“Vez,” said Nick.

The dragon now turned its flight towards the city. With each flap of its wings the dragon grew hundreds of feet closer to the city’s gate. The dragon also grew in size to the eyes of Lord Senvot with each passing second.

“What is he doing?” asked Lord Senvot. “Ready your bows!” he yelled.

Nick directed the dragon to head directly for the balcony. When the white dragon was a few hundred feet out Lord Senvot yelled, “Fire!”

The dozen guards unleashed their bows onto the dragon. All of the arrows landed their mark. All of the arrows simply bounced off of the dragon’s armored like scales. Not even a drop of blood fell from the dragon.

“Taltu,” said Nick.

The white dragon placed its feet along the wall of the balcony and dug its claws into it. It lowered its head to reveal Nick.

“Grab them,” said Lord Senvot.

A guard grabbed Andrew and placed a sword at his throat. Another guard did the same to Thomas.

“Surrender yourself now or your friends will die,” said Lord Senvot.

“You see, Lord Senvot, your arrows do nothing to a dragon. Your swords will bend and break at its scales should your men even get close enough. I say the word and my dragon will light your whole city to the ground. You say the word and my dragon will defeat the dragons that will try to destroy your beautiful city.”

“I don’t believe you can command this dragon at all; they are mindless beasts,” said Lord Senvot.

Nick looked at the ceiling ten feet above the men on the balcony and yelled, “Fitoro!”

The dragon raised its head and unleashed a breath of fire upon the ceiling. The roof above them was covered in flames and the heat nearly burned all of them.

“Lithicos!” screamed Nick and the dragon unleashed a breath of ice, eliminating the fury of fire.

“Enough!” yelled Lord Senvot. “I am listening. What are your terms?”

“The terms are that you let our camp into your city for the winter. Terrel’s army will fight on our side should a fight be destined to happen. In exchange you will have the protection of a dragon. One of the biggest dragons in the world.”

“Fine,” said Lord Senvot. “The dragon will stay outside. Your people will be subject to our laws. No crimes will go unpunished. Your people will stay until winter is over.”

Nick stepped off of the dragon and walked up to Lord Senvot. He held out his hand to shake Lord Senvot’s.

“We have a deal,” said Nick.

“Yes, we have a deal,” said Lord Senvot.

Nick and Lord Senvot shook hands.

“We will be back soon,” said Nick. “I had to take drastic measures to get you to see the power of dragons. I hope you understand that.”

“I understand,” said Lord Senvot. “I know I can be the most stubborn as them all. Let us hope that our perceptions of our people will change for the better. Terrel has never opened its doors to people who hail from Hentrio since the battles of the old war. We have had good reason to keep our doors shut. Let this be an opportunity for growth and prosperity.”

“We will not disappoint,” said Nick. “We are simply good people struggling to fight for a just cause.”

The dragon turned its body and lowered its wing so that Nick could climb on top. The guards lowered their weapons. Thomas and Andrew followed Nick on top of the dragon. They sat and prepared for flight.

“Silner,” said Nick.

The dragon flapped its wings and a gust of wind pushed Lord Senvot’s hair backwards.

As the dragon grew in altitude the three men began to cheer and smile.

“You did well, boys!” yelled Andrew. “Taking the dragon to his face was a grand idea, although risky.”

“That sort of edginess is something I learned from the arena,” said Nick. “Sometimes drastic measures are needed in order to gain the most unobtainable of results.”

The white dragon flew the men back into the south. It headed towards the mountains that bordered Hentrio and Terrel. Good news awaited their camp at the north bend.

CHAPTER FOUR

The white dragon flapped its mighty wings and descended into the north bend. Nick, Thomas, and Andrew were successful in their efforts and were eager to share the news with the members of the camp. As the dragon clenched its claws into the rocky terrain the three men jumped off and stood before a crowd of eager faces.

“Make way, make way,” said Jeffrey in the distance.

Jeffrey slipped his way through the crowd and stood face to face with the three men. The rest of the king’s men followed in Jeffrey’s footsteps.

“What happened?” asked Jeffrey.

“We are to protect Terrel from the six with the white dragon,” said Andrew. “Lord Senvot is to give us shelter within his city’s walls until winter has passed, and his army will be at our side should a war be initiated.”