Omensent: Princess Of Dragons (Book 5) Page 7

  Brody sniffed at his tankard's contents suspiciously for a moment, then took a small experimental sip. "This is surprisingly tasty." The elven man said with some surprise. "It's not as good as elven wine, but it is still quite refreshing."

  Sly took a long drink from his own tankard, and then burped thunderously. "The recipe is close to being perfected," He grumbled, his expression unhappy. "but there still seems to be missing something. I just can't seem to put my finger on it what it may be."

  "Why don't you try asking Slither?" Raven suggested. "He almost drinks as much ale as you do."

  "That's not a bad idea." Sly told her with a nod of thanks. "Where is he?"

  "He went to go investigate those goblins that the work crews were complaining about." Leia told him, a small frown crossing her face. "He should have been back by now. I don't know what could be taking him so long."

  It was late evening by the time that Slither finally returned to the castle.

  "It's about time that you found your way back." Damion murmured to the huge shadowspawn as he entered the warrior's office, where Damion, Lady Skie, and Sly were busy discussing the few remaining details of running the castle before their departure the following morning. "Something has come up. Raven, Shirk, Damarius, and I are going to return to the Elven Islands with Ava Delilah and Etha Brody, while Aunt Skie, Sly, and Leia look after Sevria. I need you to make sure that you stick close to Leia while we're gone."

  "Do you not feel that ssshe isss capable of defending herssself if the need arisssesss?"

  "She knows just enough to get herself into some serious trouble if she is not careful." Damion chuckled. "Hopefully with you around to help keep her reined in, she won't get herself into anything too serious."

  "Where have you been anyway?" Sly asked the huge shadowspawn curiously.

  "SSSlither went to invessstigate the reportsss of goblinsss near the trade road." The huge shadowspawn hissed in reply.

  "And?"

  Slither shrugged. "There were sssignsss that goblinsss were sssomewhere in the area, but SSSlither wasss not able to locate them. They may have moved on."

  "I doubt we'll get that lucky." The scruffy little man grumbled sourly. "I have the feeling that we haven't seen the last of them."

  "SSSlither will contact the ssspawn and alert them to their presssence. If they return, the ssspawn will eliminate them for usss. They dessspissse goblinsss."

  "I think that I have located everything that I may need while we're gone." Damarius reported as he suddenly appeared in the doorway with a slightly harassed look on his face. "It took me a while to find everything under all of my notes and formulas." He frowned. "I may have to take a couple of weeks once we return and straighten my workshop up a bit. It looks like a tornado passed through there."

  "Considering how many times you've had one of your experiments blow up in your face and destroy your workshop, it's a miracle that you were able to find anything at all." Damion snorted in amusement.

  "What should we do if a new trade agreement arrives?" Lady Skie asked curiously.

  "Let Leia look it over." The huge warrior answered after a moment's thought. "She needs to learn what it takes to run this city, and deciding which trade agreements would be beneficial for Sevria, and which are not, is a large part of that responsibility. It should also help keep her occupied while we're gone."

  "Are you sure that you want to leave little Leia here?" Sly asked doubtfully. "Wouldn't it be wiser to take her with you so you can keep an eye on her yourself?"

  Damion shook his head. "We don't know what we'll be dealing with once we reach the Elven Island, and I don't want to place Leia in harm's way. It's better that she remains here where we know that she'll be safe."

  "But what about our safety?" The scruffy little man demanded with a scowl. "That little girl of yours can be a bloody menace when she gets angry! If you're not around to look after her when someone upsets her, then who will reign her in if she decides to start turning people into toads?"

  "I doubt she would do that." Damion chuckled. "She's not that short tempered."

  "Don't be so sure about that. She acts a lot like you when you were her age, without the overwhelming size and strength."

  "Yes," Damion agreed with a sheepish grin. "she does, doesn't she?"

  "I can handle Leia if she starts getting out of control." Lady Skie assured Sly with a dismissive wave. "I was able to handle Damion, wasn't I?"

  "If you say so." The scruffy little man snorted doubtfully. "I seem to remember a number of incidents where Damion let his temper get the best of him, and he did something that he shouldn't have."

  "Name one time." The huge warrior challenged him.

  "Okay," Sly agreed. "There was the time when you went to retrieve the Dragon Sword from the trolls and ended up turning their underground cavern into an open crater."

  "That was an accident." Damion objected with a frown. "How was I to know that the Dragon Sword would amplify my magic?"

  "How about when you turned that Deirian into a tree because he annoyed you?" The scruffy little man asked pointedly. "Or when you turned that false sorcerer that you encountered in Jaghera into a donkey? Or how about the time that you used your magic to give that Deolan clan chief, Krel, boils all over his backside?"

  "Okay, okay." The huge warrior grumbled sourly in defeat. "I said name one time."

  Raven came hurrying into the room with a rather weary look on her face. "Leia is still unhappy about your decision to leave her behind. I think that she feels left out. She says that her birthday was completely ruined, and it's all the elves' fault."

  "What did you expect?" Sly asked in a reasonable tone. "You haven't let her out of your sight for more than a few minutes since she was rescued from the Dragon God, and now you want to leave her behind while you two go running off to a island paradise. How would that make you feel?"

  Damion frowned. "I'll go have a word with her and make sure she understands why we must leave her behind. I'm sure that she'll understand the reasoning behind it."

  "That would probably be a good idea." Lady Skie agreed. "Otherwise, you may find her and Xaxis waiting on the island for you to arrive."

  Damion immediately made his way to his young daughter's well appointed chambers, where he found her sitting on the edge of her bed with a slightly petulant expression on her face.

  "Go away." Leia growled at him as he entered the room. "I don't feel like talking."

  "Good. You can just sit there and listen." He took a seat on the bed next to his daughter. "I wanted to explain why I feel it would be best that you stayed behind in Sevria."

  "You already told me that you think it would be too dangerous." She said in a sulky tone.

  "Exactly. Do you know what it would do to your mother and I if we allowed you to accompany us to the Elven Island, and you were injured or killed? It would destroy us!"

  "I understand the reasoning behind your decision," Leia sighed. "but what exactly have you been training me for, if not to provide aid in such matters?"

  "You have been training to ensure that you can handle yourself in case you ever find yourself in danger," The huge warrior told her. "not to get you prepared to go running off into battle."

  "Of course not." She rolled her eyes. "That's your job, isn't it?"

  "Yes, it is." The huge warrior sighed heavily. "When we faced the Draco, and forced Him to violate the Pact of the Gods, we unleashed the gods onto a world that had learned long ago how to get along without them. Many of them immediately returned to the wars that once threatened to destroy the world, and since I am the one who made it possible for them to return, it is my responsibility to try and put everything right again."

  "But why can't I help?"

  "Because you're not ready." Damion told her bluntly. "You still don't have full control over your magic. You allow it to burst out of you completely uncontrolled. That can be deadly, especially in a fight. You could end up hurting innocent people that way, and then how wou
ld you feel?" He shook his head. "It would be safer for everyone if you remained here in Sevria. Besides, Aunt Skie and Sly are going to need your help."

  "With what?" Leia asked suspiciously.

  "With running the castle, of course. It takes quite a bit of effort to keep things running smoothly around here, and it's time that you started to learn what it takes."

  "Does that mean that I'll have to deal with visiting ambassadors and merchants, and negotiate new trade agreements, and all of that?" She asked with wide eyes.

  "It does." He nodded. "You'll also need to make sure that the trade road remains safe and in good repair for the caravans moving through the mountains, see that the supplies that the citizens used over the winter are replaced, make certain that all of the caravans passing through Sevria pay their taxes before they depart, and ensure the people of Sevria are safe from any danger that may present itself."

  "Is that all?" The young girl asked in a sarcastic tone.

  "That's not even close to being everything." Damion chuckled. "Everyone will be looking to you to solve every little problem that they have. There will be a seemingly endless line of citizens and merchants with every problem and complaint imaginable, and they'll all expect you to find a solution that will make them happy, even for the things that they should be solving for themselves."

  "How am I supposed to do all of that?" Leia demanded in disbelief. "I don't have any experience solving other people's problems!"

  "That's one of the reasons why I want you to stay behind. It's time that you learned." He laughed at the look of apprehension that crossed her face. "Don't look so concerned. You should be happy! Most fathers gives their daughters a doll or a pony for their birthday. I'm giving you an entire city!"

  "You're not funny." She told him with a scowl. "You seem to forget that I've been listening to you complain about running this city for years. Now you want to dump the responsibility into my lap, while you and mom go hunt down a bunch of elves!" She shook her head. "That's some birthday present."

  "Don't worry about it." He told her reassuringly. "Aunt Skie will be here to help you keep from making any serious mistakes." He smiled fondly. "Her insights were invaluable when it came to rebuilding Sevria after it was destroyed by Kaviel. I had even less experience with running a castle than you do, but with her help, we've managed to rebuild and prosper." He leaned down and gave her a reassuring hug. "Just listen to Aunt Skie's advice, and you'll be fine."

  "If you say so." Leia sounded doubtful. "I still think that this is a really bad idea."

  "I'm depending on you to take care of everything until we return. Make me proud." He rose to leave, then paused. "You know that I wouldn't give you this responsibility if I didn't think that you were fully capable of handling it, right?"

  "I know." She nodded. "I just wish I were as confident with my ability to deal with people as you are. I've never had to negotiate for anything in my entire life. I usually just run to you, bat my eyes a few times, and you give me whatever I want."

  Damion laughed, and then turned to leave, but stopped once again. "Just do me a favor, don't turn anyone into a toad, or any other creature for that matter."

  "I won't make any promises." She told him, her tone still doubtful.

  "Oh, and by the way," He gave his daughter an impish grin. "Happy birthday!" The huge warrior laughed again, then quickly hurried from the room as the young girl began to hurl a barrage of pillows in his direction.

  He hurried back to his office, and found Raven and Sly awaiting his return.

  "How did she take it?" Sly asked curiously. He had placed his cask of ale onto the chair next to him and was leisurely dipping his tankard into it with a contented expression.

  "She's not very happy, but she understands why we need her to stay." Damion replied, grabbing his own tankard and dipping it into the cask. "She's a little nervous about taking on the responsibility of running the castle, but I'm sure that she's up for the challenge."

  "It should help keep her out of trouble, if nothing else." The scruffy little man shrugged. "Without you around, there won't be anyone here who can keep her in check if she really gets angry."

  "Where is Aunt Skie?" Damion asked curiously.

  "I think she snuck off to spend a little time with Shirk before we leave." Raven said with a knowing smile. She turned to Sly. "It wasn't very nice to expose their little secret in front of Damarius, you know." She told the scruffy little man in disapproval. "That was really low, even for you."

  "Was it?" Sly asked in an unsympathetic tone. "Now that Damarius knows about them, they can finally move on with their courtship. Damarius will grow to accept the idea in time, even if he doesn't want to. Besides, it's about time that they took the next step."

  Slither suddenly appeared in there doorway looking slightly disconcerted.

  "What is it, Slither?" Damion asked, noticing the shadowspawn's anxious expression. "What has happened?"

  "SSSlither attempted to locate the ssspawn to alert them to the goblinsss presssence, but wasss unable to find any of them anywhere." The huge beast looked baffled. "It isss unlike the ssspawn to vacate an entire region ssso quickly. SSSomething ssseriousss musst have happened to make them all flee at once."

  "Who cares why they left." Sly grunted with a dismissive shrug. "They haven't exactly made life easy for everyone, you know. I, for one, will be happy to not have to worry about them any longer." He took a long drink from his ale, then burped thunderously. "It's still missing something." He stared at his tankard with a slight frown. "I just can't seem to put my finger on what it is." He dipped another tankard into the cask and offered it to Slither, who immediately accepted it with a nod of thanks. "Tell me what you think."

  Slither drained the tankard in two huge gulps, then handed it back to Sly. "It'sss good," The beast hissed with a shrug. "but the sssugar is overpowering the malted barley. Try usssing honey next time."

  "That's an novel idea." Sly murmured, his eyes thoughtful. "It may take a bit of work to gather enough honey, but it's worth a try." He glanced back up at the huge shadowspawn. "I'll give it a try. Thanks."

  "No charge." Slither grunted, handing the scruffy little man the empty tankard for a refill.

  "Is everything ready for our departure in the morning?" Damion asked, turning to his young wife.

  "I think so." Raven nodded wearily. "I've gathered everything that we may need, alerted the castle staff to the fact that Leia will be in charge while we are gone, and ordered the stable hands to have the horses ready to leave at dawn. I think we're as ready as we're going to be."

  "Then all that's left to do is alert Tempest to what is happening, and ask her to stop in and check on things while we are gone." Damion drained his tankard, then rose to his feet with a sigh.

  "Why not just leave it to Xaxis?" Raven asked curiously.

  "He still a little young and inexperienced." Damion frowned uneasily. "He can be a bit unreliable at times. I think I would feel better if Tempest were keeping an eye on things." He glanced to his tired looking wife. "Why don't you go ahead and get some rest. It may be a while before we get to enjoy our own beds again. I'll join you as soon as I return."

  He quickly made his way out of the castle, then paused for a moment, and turned to look up at the upper floors of the castle. "Snowfeather, I'm going to go pay a visit to Tempest. Would you care to join me?"

  "Why are you going to see Tempest?" Snowfeather asked, appearing from the battlements above and gliding down to circle overhead. "Has something happened?"

  "We have received a request from the Queen of the Elves to come to their island and help them with a matter of some urgency. It seems that the god Hetris has returned and gathered His children, the blood elves, in an attempt to destroy the followers of the elven goddess, Petra. If we do not intervene, Petra's followers will be destroyed, and the blood elves will reach out to other lands and start spreading destruction. We'll be leaving first thing tomorrow morning."

  "Another journey
to save the world, huh?" The huge owl hooted, gliding down to settle on the huge warrior's broad shoulder. "It's getting a little old, don't you think?"

  "You can say that again," Damion grumbled aloud as he started to make his way through town. "but I have to continue to attempt to put things right. It is my fault that the gods have returned and reignited their wars, and I must try to put an end to those wars before they engulf the entire world."

  "Your sense of responsibility is noble and all, but you cannot blame yourself for what has happened. It was the Dragon God that violated the Pact of the Gods, not you. You cannot help that your refusal to surrender Leia caused Him to forget himself. Although," The huge owl conceded with a chirp. "I can understand why Draco lost control like He did. You can be an extremely stubborn individual to deal with. Once you get an idea in your head, you absolutely refuse to let it go, even if it might get you killed."

  "You noticed that, did you?" The huge warrior laughed. "I guess it's not one of my better qualities, is it?"

  They quickly made their way through the massive granite wall that surrounded the city and kept its inhabitants safe from the untamed mountains surrounding Sevria, then they stopped as they reached the dark trade road.

  "Want to race to Tempest's cavern," Damion asked with a smile. "or are you afraid that I might beat you again?"

  "You only beat me last time because I stopped to snatch a nice fat rabbit that happened across my path, and even then, you barely beat me."

  "Sure, sure." The huge warrior said sarcastically. "I think you're just getting old."

  "Dream on, hairball." Snowfeather hooted, launching himself from his perch on the huge warrior's shoulder. "Snow Owls can live for over a hundred and fifty years, and I'm not even thirty yet. I'm still a teenager, by human standards."

  "I'll see you there, then." Damion laughed, watching as his familiar disappeared into the darkness.

  "I'll be waiting."

  Damion laughed again, then carefully gathered in his magic and focused it inwards on himself, allowing his body slip into the sleek form of a black panther. The instant the transformation was complete, he dashed off into the night, eager to enjoy a quick run, something which had become somewhat of a rarity in the years following the Battle of Sierra. He sped down the trade road at breakneck speed for several miles, then suddenly cut off down a scarcely visible game trail, and set off through the heavily forested countryside, moving confidently through the darkness along a path that he had taken hundreds of times before, until he finally reached a steep cliff side which appeared nearly impossible to climb. He dashed forward and hit the cliff face at a full run, using his momentum to propel himself upward to a narrow ledge which jutted out from the stone. In two more powerful leaps, he reached the entrance to a large cavern that led deep into the cliff side.