Tales of Vyscher Book 2

Chapter 20

"Are you sure you want us to do that?" Vic asked Gyrtek. She was shocked at the orders that had been given.

"Lady Bawnia signed the orders to ambush Luce and Fehrys. She didn't care which Bishops died, she just wanted some dead. Her assistant Wahvel is her cousin, and while he takes orders from her, is really no better. Jondure wants them both dead and wants it to send a message."

"I figured we'd be taking them back here for a trial," Rek said with a shrug. "But I'm more than happy to carry this mission out. As long as she dies, then I'll feel like Luce got some justice."

"I'd rather have her back though," Vic said glumly.

"Me too, me too." Rek wrapped her up in a hug. "But we can do the next best thing!"

"Right. Make them pay." Vic looked grimly at Gyrtek. "Who do we have for a ride?"

"Junnter again. He's ready whenever you like."

"Perfect." Vic nodded once. "Every day she lives is a day too long. We'll make sure that ends quickly."

It took over two days for Fehrys to fly back to the dragons' lair, since a storm had grounded him for most of a day. But he finally arrived, cold, tired and hungry to find the cave dark and quiet. While unusual, it was very late, and he assumed that Alia was asleep, and the dragons in their lair. He moved quietly, not disturbing anyone, and heated up some stew that was still good, then went to bed. Hopefully Czanther and Hrushmia would explain what to do with the weapons in the morning.

As uncomfortable as the bed in the little room he used was, he had little trouble sleeping that night.

He was startled out of his sleep by Alia, who looked thin and exhausted. What had happened here over the last few days? "Come, you haven't much time." She tugged on his arms, making him stumble through the cave in his sleep clothes. "The dragons need to see you right away, there is no time to waste."

Alia led him through the caves that he'd seen many times, and through the door that led to the room that he'd always assumed led to the dragons' bedroom. But beyond the doorway was a cavern that made Kraulth's look like a closet. The cave stretched so far and wide that it looked as though the entire mountain had been hollowed out. Mounds of treasure were everywhere, along with gems, statues, and fine art. It was astounding, but not as much as the sight of the dragons themselves.

Had I not known that Czanther was a blue dragon, and Hrushmia a red, I would have been terrified. They were immense, each double Kraulth's size, and were laying in a V shape, with their heads at the base, pointed right at me. Well, not exactly. They were pointed at a much smaller dragon, this one steel grey in color and perhaps 30 feet long, that was curled up in a ball between them wearing a gold ring on one claw. Both Czanther and Hrushmia were almost still, I could barely see their bodies rising and falling as they breathed, and both looked faded.

"What's happening?" I asked in awe. "They have a child?"

Alia sniffled, and Fehrys looked over to see her crying. "Yes. They created a new dragon, but it cost them too much. They won't last much longer."

"What does that mean, they created a dragon? Like they had a baby? It hatched from an egg?" Fehrys had no idea how dragons mated, but he always assumed that it involved sex, eggs, and hatching.

"Dragons are magical, they can create life. Yes, they can mate and lay eggs, but they can also create life, and place it almost anywhere. In the old days, they would create life in the womb of a woman, which is why so many of us have the colored eyes, and the magical cores within us. We are the descendants of dragons who used magic to impregnate people in the past," Alia explained in a soft voice.