The Dragons of Ash and Smoke (Tales from the New Earth Book 5) (34 page)

Kronk chuckled as he
followed the wizard to the back gate.

“
I doubt that much
would make these animals 'freak out', master, but I will be happy to
watch over them for a while. I think they will be fine, but you never
know.”

“
Thanks again.
Aeris, would you head up and tell Brethia that she and Orriss can go
back to their regular duty shifts?”

“
Will do,” the
air elemental replied and he shot straight up toward the top of the
tower.

Simon walked through the
gate and plodded tiredly around the building. He glanced at the
stable and wondered how the horses would react to the cows and
vice-versa. But he was simply too exhausted to care and shrugged as
he walked by. They'd work it out.

After an invigorating cup
of tea and some slices of bread smothered with jam, he felt much
better and his headache subsided enough for him to think. And he
began to smile.

Amazingly, they had
actually succeeded! They had rounded up some cows and put them out to
pasture without harming any of them, which was the important thing.

Nothing feels better than
success, Simon thought happily. And now that they'd managed to do
that, he felt encouraged enough to begin to fantasize about the other
things he wanted to try to achieve; like getting a dog.

“
You look as if you
are a million miles away, master,” Kronk said to him as he
walked in through the open door.

“
Hey there. Do I?
Yeah, I guess so.”

Simon watched as the
little guy tapped over to the fireplace and placed a small log in the
middle of the low-burning fire to keep it going. Then he jumped up on
the kitchen table and looked at the wizard quizzically.

“
Is something wrong,
master?”

“
Not at all. Just
the opposite actually. I was thinking about our new cows and how well
it went today, everything considered. And about what other animals
out there that used to be domesticated that we could bring home to
help us.”

The little guy looked
intrigued and nodded slowly.

“
Interesting. What
sort of animals, master?”

“
Oh, you know.
Useful ones, like maybe some chickens for eggs. Or pigs for pork. Or
maybe,” he hesitated, “a dog.”

Kronk looked at him keenly
and smiled his slow smile.

“
You want a dog,
master?”

“
Well, yeah. I've
always loved dogs. Cats too. We had pets growing up, you know, and I
thought it would be cool to maybe take in a puppy or two.”

The little guy watched him
without comment.

“
Um, what do you
think?” Simon asked him anxiously.

“
I? I think that
whatever you want is fine with me, master. You know that I enjoy
being around animals; the more the better. We have as much land as we
could wish for and my brethren and I can easily clear more if you
wish to expand the open area around the tower. So if you would truly
like a working farm-like home, with sheep and chickens, pigs,
whatever you'd like, then we can do that.”

He smiled and winked.

“
Even a dog or
three. Your wish is my command, master.” He looked around
before continuing. “Aeris will complain though, just so you
know.”

Simon chuckled and then
stretched, his head feeling better than it had in days.

“
I can handle Aeris,
don't worry about that.”

“
You can handle me?
Why do I need to be handled?”

The wizard grimaced as the
air elemental came sailing down the stairs.

“
Brethia and Orriss
are back on schedule, by the way,” he said as he flew over to
join them at the table. “You were saying?”

“
Nothing important.
Just that I want to try and bring in more animals,” Simon told
him. “You know, make the place more self-sufficient.”

“
Well, I think that
is a splendid idea. Why, did you two think I would object?”

“
You do not like
noise and chaos,” Kronk told him seriously. “Master would
also like a dog or two. Would it not bother you to have such
creatures running in and out of the tower?”

Aeris looked puzzled.

“
When exactly did
you decide that I hated animals?” he asked Kronk, obviously
baffled. “You have known me for several years now and yet I
wonder if you really know me at all.”

“
Well, in Kronk's
defense, you can get a little,” Simon paused and chose his
words carefully, “irritable. Sometimes. By small things.”

“
That was the old
me,” the air elemental told him loftily. “I've changed a
lot since then. Loosened up and all that.”

Simon got up and cleaned
his cup.

“
Loosened up? You?”
Kronk said incredulously. “When did this remarkable
transformation occur and where was I?”

The wizard bit his lip to
keep from laughing and kept his back to the elementals while he
worked at the sink.

“
You obviously
aren't terribly observant, Kronk,” Aeris retorted. “I am
much calmer than I used to be. It's called personal development. You
should try it sometime.”

Before the little guy
could continue the argument, Simon turned around as he dried his
dishes and looked at them both.

“
Let's not get too
sidetracked here. Aeris, you reported that you spotted some wild dogs
in Florida, right?”

“
That's correct. I
saw several packs actually. Why? Are you thinking of taking a trip
down there to catch a puppy?”

He sounded a little
dubious and Simon frowned at him.

“
That's exactly what
I was thinking, oh calm one. Why? You disagree?”

Kronk folded his arms and
watched Aeris with a jaundiced eye.

Aeris looked at them both
and shook his head.

“
Why are you two
ganging up on me? No, I don't disagree. But may I remind both of you
that Florida is now the domain of the red dragons? In fact, I'd guess
that most of that country to the south, what was it called? America?
Yes, well, I'd guess that the dragons have claimed it all by now. Are
you sure that you want to risk being burned, again, just to find a
dog?”

Simon put away his cup and
a few plates before answering. Was he willing to risk his life, again
as Aeris pointed out, just to get a pet? That was a bit crazy.

“
Maybe not,”
he said dispiritedly. He leaned back against the counter with a sigh.
“It was just a thought, you know.”

Kronk nodded silently and
looked just as dejected at Simon felt.

Aeris looked from one of
them to the other and then threw up his hands in disgust.

“
You two give up too
easily,” he said forcefully.

“
What?”

“
Do you actually
believe that the only dogs to survive are down south? Why not look
closer to home? Your home city, Ottawa, must have had many dogs, did
it not?”

“
Well yeah, of
course. But the winters here are bad now, Aeris. You know that. How
many dogs could have adapted to that?”

“
How should I know?
Have you actually tried looking?”

Simon stared at him
blankly and then noticed Kronk's look of surprise.

“
Perhaps we did not
see the forest for the trees, master?”

The wizard had to grin at
that.

“
Perhaps. Okay
Aeris, since this was your brilliant idea, how about doing some
scouting for me?”

“
Now you're
talking,” the air elemental said vigorously. “I could use
something to do, beyond my usual chores, which I love to do of
course.”

“
Of course,”
Kronk rumbled.

Simon glanced out of the
window and saw that the sky was beginning to turn red.

“
Okay, but I don't
want you out there after dark. You can start in the morning. I'll
leave it up to you to decide where you go to search. And keep an eye
out for anything else that might be of interest to us, right?”

“
Right.”

The wizard tried to resist
naming any of the beef cows, thinking that it would make it easier to
take them in to be 'processed' when the time came. He did name the
heifer, calling her Snowflake and her baby, also female, Misty.

“
Not very
imaginative,” he said to Kronk as they stood outside of the
back gate and watched the cows grazing. “But the names just
seem to fit, you know?”

“
I think they are
perfect, master,” the little guy replied. “But you will
not name the others?”

Simon explained his
reasoning and the earthen sighed and nodded sadly.

“
Very well, master.
I understand that they are not pets. I just wish...”

The wizard looked down at
Kronk with a fond smile. He really does have the biggest heart, he
thought yet again.

“
Try not to think
about it, my friend. Besides, it won't be for a while. Now, did Aeris
say where he was going to search today?”

The air elemental had gone
out every day for a week but so far, he'd had no luck spotting any
dogs or potential additions to their pool of livestock.

“
Yes master. He has
decided to begin at the southern edge of the city and search a
hundred acre section at a time, covering as much territory as he can.
He told me that it was a quicker way of doing things than just
randomly searching in all directions.”

“
That makes sense. I
just hope he finds something. If not, I may chance a trip down south.
After all, if I use the Magic Mirror spell first and check out a
location before I Gate there, I should be fine.”

Kronk looked concerned but
nodded his reluctant agreement.

“
Whatever you say,
master.”

A definite lack of
enthusiasm there, the wizard thought to himself. Ah well, that's just
his way.

“
Simon, can you hear
me?” came a voice from somewhere nearby.

He whirled around, looking
for the speaker, but he couldn't see anyone.

“
Who is that?”
he asked loudly. Except for the cows wandering around sedately, he
and Kronk were alone.

“
It's me, Tamara.
What, you've forgotten me already?”

“
Tamara?”
Simon relaxed and grinned. “Hey there! Sorry, I forgot that you
and Sebastian can use the Magic Mirror spell now. How are you?”

“
We're fine, thanks.
Look, sorry to bother you but this isn't a social call. We have a
problem.”

The wizard exchanged a
glance with Kronk, who was listening closely.

“
We meaning you and
your brother or the castle as a whole?”

“
All of us,”
Tamara replied. She sounded tense. “Are you able to travel?
We'd like you to join us.”

“
Um, yeah. I guess.
Could you elaborate on what's going on?”

“
Not really. It will
be easier just to show you.”

“
Okay then. Give me
a minute to get ready and I'll be there. Are you in an open area?”

“
We are. Thanks for
this. See you soon.”

Her presence faded and
Simon knew that he was alone again.

“
Come on,” he
told Kronk as he hurried through the rear gate. “I need to get
my staff.”

He glanced down at his
plain, gray robe and decided that it wasn't too dirty. He'd have to
change his shoes though; they were filthy.

“
Master, is this a
good idea?” the little guy asked as he tip-tapped along behind
Simon. “Should you not have gotten more details before deciding
to just blindly Gate to the mage's home?”

“
She sounded like
she was in a rush. Besides, Tamara is my friend. If she wants my
help, she has it. Simple as that.”

He rushed into the tower,
kicked off his shoes and grabbed another pair from the clothes
cupboard next to the door. Then he took up his staff and looked down
at Kronk.

“
You ready?”

“
What about Aeris,
master? If he returns and we are gone, he will worry.”

Simon ran his fingers
through his hair, hoping it didn't look too wild. His blackened eyes
had faded to purple, but there wasn't anything he could do about
that.

“
I'm sorry, but if
Aeris comes back before we do, he'll just have to be patient. If you
want, you can stay here, you know.”

“
Oh no, master,”
the earthen said stoutly. “You may need me. I will come with
you.”

“
Good. Now, are you
ready?”

Simon began to picture
Tamara's face in his mind, but was interrupted by Kronk tugging on
his robe.

“
What?”

“
Master, should you
not cast your Shield spell before you Gate?”

“
Oh, come on now.
Tamara's a friend. I'll be perfectly safe.”

“
Yes master, I am
sure you will be. But it will not hurt to be careful, will it?”