Chapter One

Anzig

“Just take a deep
breath, Boss. Everything will be alright.”

I turned to my left
to face the silver dragon by my side and snarled. Vinzent had no right to judge
me like that, but his words were probably true. I looked down at the terrifying
sight below me. Representatives of the forty-two draconic clans packed the
massive main chamber of the royal Xital clan almost to capacity. My father, the
Ddraig of Laxtal, probably the greatest leader our clan had ever had, was busy
fighting in the south so he required me to take his place. I, as the
representative for Clan Laxtal, was to speak to the clans about the war that
was devastating our land.

I had witnessed it
already. We had been travelling in the western regions of Laxtal’s territory; a
small group of drakes including my mother, whose adventuring spirit never let
her stay in the confines of the central Lair. Travelling through the forests
there, we hadn’t suspected any danger.

Then the ambush came
and my memories become vague.

Somehow I escaped the
carnage, fleeing through the undergrowth on paw. I had thought my mother was
following just behind me. It wasn’t until silence fell and the threat was gone
that I realised I was all alone. With great reluctance I retraced my steps.
Nothing could have prepared me for my return to the scene of the ambush. The
mutilated bodies of drakes I had known my entire life lay strewn across the
small clearing between the trees. With no sign of our attackers, I scampered
through the devastation, trying to find some signs of life in my companions.

Then I found her.
Zhara, my mother, was lying in the mud with her wings shattered and blood
pooling around her. She still lived – just. The spark in her eyes was already
fading as she somehow mustered the strength to look up at me. She whispered my
name and then she was gone...

“Boss? Are you
alright?”

I ignored Vinzent as
I tried to focus my mind. It was no use reliving my mother’s last moments.

“I’m not ready for
this,” I whispered to Carlee, my aging, brown-scaled mentor. She had protected
me for longer than I could remember, and had always been there to help me.
Though I often resented that she still treated me like a hatchling who needed
constant supervision, I was very grateful for her presence.

“Anzig, listen to
Vinzent. For once, the youngster is actually right,” she admonished, just as
quietly.

I looked back down at
the sight below, and couldn’t quite bring myself to believe them. I half-opened
my wings and contemplated flying down, but my legs didn’t want to kick off from
the ground yet.

“Go, Anzig,” Carlee
said, seeing my hesitation. “Your father has complete confidence in you. The
entire clan has confidence in you, or else you wouldn’t be here. Just relax,
you’re a natural leader, you’ll be fine.”

“I don’t feel like
one,” I muttered, but I fully extended my wings anyway and slowly drifted down
to the floor below. I tried to ignore all the pairs of eyes that turned to look
at me. Without exception, they all turned away again as they submitted to me.
As the representative of Clan Laxtal, I was one of the most powerful drakes in
the chamber, even if I didn’t feel it. They recognised me by the azure stone I
wore around my neck; the icon of Laxtal. Only Clan Nixa and the Royal Xital
Clan were higher ranked than Laxtal.

As a result of my
clan’s power, the Laxtal representative was reserved a position right at the
front of the chamber. To our left was a single red dragoness from Clan Nixa,
the clan of magic. She was slight in stature, but the way she held herself showed
that she was not short on confidence. I tried to straighten my posture to match
hers. I only needed to look confident; no one had ever told me I actually
needed to feel it too.

To our right was a
large emerald green dragon from Clan Nyri, the most powerful clan from the
northern lands. Two smaller dragons, presumably his guards, stood by his side.
I didn’t know much about Clan Nyri, just that they came from the very edge of
the inhospitable and cold tundra to the far north.

In all, ten clans sat
near the front of the chamber, with thirty-one filling in the space behind us.
Clan Xital sat at the very front, facing out to all the drakes gathered before
them. They were the unquestionable leaders of dragonkind. They would make the
final decision on what was going to occur. Forty-two clans in total. Judging by
the noise that was quickly building behind me, each and every single one of
them had sent a representative.

I tried to block
everything out behind me. It was much easier if I just imagined that the only
other drakes in the chamber were the five Xital drakes in front of me. I
recognised Ddraig Tsona right away. This large dragon with golden scales was
Xital’s Ddraig, making him the outright leader of dragonkind. He was unusually
agitated. Every time I had seen Ddraig Tsona in the past, he had been revealed
no emotion, not moving at all except to speak. Now though, he was very
animated. His tail moved in a constant back and forth motion while he looked
around the chamber with jerky movements. His wings opened slightly as though
ready for flight. That even he showed so much fear did not help my confidence
at all, and I sunk just a little lower where I stood.

I waited. Carlee and
Vinzent by my sides remained in silence. I tried to slow my breathing down, but
I could feel my heart racing away inside my chest. I began to regret eating
before coming here. I should have waited until after the gathering, but Carlee
had convinced me that I would need the energy to shake off the night’s chill.

When Ddraig Tsona
stepped forward from the other members of his clan, everyone fell silent. I
could hear a fly buzzing somewhere near the ceiling, high above me.

“Gathered Ddraigs and
Haeraigs,” the Xital Ddraig said quietly. Because of how the chamber was
shaped, I knew that even the drakes at the very back would still be able to
hear the Royal Dragon’s words. “We have called you all here at the requests of
Clan Nixa and Clan Laxtal. They both have important issues to discuss. I ask
that you hear them both out before speaking. Clan Laxtal, if you would like to
speak first.”

I quailed under the
direct gaze of Ddraig Tsona as he turned to look at me. I opened my mouth, but
I was unable to speak. My heart felt like it was about to tear out of my chest.
I shut my eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. I could do this, I told
myself. I didn’t know what I was going to say though. Everything I had planned
to say was gone, chased from my mind by the abject terror I felt.

I slowly released the
air from my lungs and opened my eyes again. I stepped forward, turned around
and addressed everyone gathered.

“I am Haeraig Anzig
of Clan Laxtal,” I announced in a small voice. I doubted the volume carried
much farther than the Nixan dragoness almost right in front of me. I tried to
speak a little louder. “My father, Ddraig Astar, couldn’t speak to you directly
because bloodshed has broken out on our southern borders.”

I paused for a moment
to look up at everyone, half expecting someone to speak out, to chase away this
pretender who thought he had any influence over them. Against the lightly
sanded floor of the chamber I could feel my paw shaking. I hoped no one else
would notice, and I tried to stand a little more upright.

“We have been
attacked without warning, and without provocation. We need the help of all of
you to end the fighting, or else I fear we will lose, and many drakes of our
clan will die,” I pleaded, forcing myself to meet the eye of a dragon close to
the back of the chamber. The yellow-eyed dragon turned away and looked into the
ground.

“Is this an
accusation of any drake present, Haeraig Anzig?” Ddraig Tsona questioned,
meeting my eyes as he looked over to me. I could not keep his powerful gaze for
very long. I kept my eyes anywhere but towards him. I realised I had not
actually mentioned who it was who had attacked my clan, and I felt foolish for
it. A representative from every clan would be here. I was sure many of them –
especially those that bordered Laxtal – would be confused or concerned that I
was accusing someone of attacking us. But it was no drake who threatened
Laxtal.

“It was humans who
attacked us. They have crossed the Gota-Sxinix and have moved into our
territory,” I explained, ignoring the whispers that began to spread through the
chambers. I understood their concerns. Humans had not been in open war with
dragonkind for many generations. In combat they were dangerous adversaries with
their advantage in size, numbers, and in the weapons they had begun to make in
recent years. Unless all the dragon clans united we would have a lot of
difficulty in defeating such a threat.

To my right, Ddraig
Tsona let out a quiet hiss and tilted his head to the side. Behind him, the
other Xital drakes had remained impassive, barely doing so much as blinking. I
found their behaviour disturbing. It was as though they had known exactly what
I was going to say and had been prepared for it, and that their Ddraig’s
reactions were just for show.

“You are sure of
this, Haeraig?” Ddraig Tsona asked, still holding his head at an angle. I could
only nod in response and he hissed again. “Thank you then for telling us about
this. If Clan Nixa could come and speak now. Let us hear what they have to
say.”

In gratitude I
retreated away from the front of the chamber to rejoin Carlee and Vinzent. As I
sat down the Nixan dragoness confidently strode up to take her place next to
Tsona. Her dark red scales glittered regally in the sunlight streaming in from
above. Even next to Ddraig Tsona, the most powerful of all Ddraigs, the small
Nixan’s confidence and poise was remarkable.

“I am Haeraig Zeena
of Nixa, and we may actually have an answer for Haeraig Anzig’s problem,"
she said in a loud and powerful voice. I looked up sharply at her, wondering
how she could already have a solution to the human invasion.

Haeraig Zeena took a
moment to pause and take a deep breath. “The Axinstone was not lost as we told
you, we are not that careless, and Ddraig Krateos was rather disappointed that
some drakes actually believed this lie. It was stolen from us, and we now know
who by. A human called George, who we believe to be the human’s Ddraig – or
Haeraig, we aren’t certain which – possesses our Stone.” Zeena stopped speaking
again to look around the chamber, her eyes lingering on any drake who did not
drop their gaze.

I had heard of the
Axinstone before. There wasn’t a drake who hadn’t. It was a large stone, little
more than a shard of rock emblazoned with the burning shadow of a dragon’s
head. It was used to strengthen the magic of all nearby Nixan drakes. Given
that only drakes from the Nixan clan could ever have magic, and the Stone held
no other use, no Ddraig had ever felt the need or the desire to try and take
the powerful object from Nixa.

“We believe his
Human-Nixans are using the Axinstone to increase this human’s power over his
own kind. If what Haeraig Anzig has said is true, then this has given him the
confidence to attack us too.” Again Haeraig Zeena stopped, but this time it was
not through her choice. A murmur of disquiet had spread from one of the corners
of the chamber, and had quickly grown loud enough to distract the Nixan
dragoness.

Ddraig Tsona hissed
quietly and stepped forward. I did not like the look in his eyes. He was
furious at the interruption. “Does anyone have something to say about this?” he
asked. I thought I could hear a threatening undertone to his voice, as though
he was daring anyone to answer and risk his anger.

The murmurs ceased
instantly, but then one lone voice emerged from the very back of the chamber,
among the lesser clans. “Human-Nixans? Are they...”

The dragon who had
spoken must have realised Ddraig Tsona’s anger, or another drake near him had
forced him quiet, as his voice petered out pitifully. Haeraig Zeena understood
what the concern was about though. “Humans who can use magic? Yes,” she said,
finishing the dragon’s unfinished question as Ddraig Tsona stepped back again.
“We have known of their existence for many years now. But they are irrelevant.
All that matters is taking back the Axinstone. Without it, perhaps the humans
would have to retreat. We could solve both our problems here.”

“Do you know where
the Human Ddraig is keeping your Axinstone?” Ddraig Tsona asked, stepping
forward so that he was level with the Nixan. He did not look at her though,
instead keeping his eyes towards the back of the chamber, unblinking and
unmoving. I resisted the urge to turn and see what he was looking at.

Haeraig Zeena turned
her head to look at the side of Ddraig Tsona’s head as she replied. “We do,”
she said simply. She paused again, as though waiting for some kind of reaction
to come from the Xital Ddraig, but he remained completely impassive. It was as
if he hadn’t even heard her, or was preoccupied with more important thoughts,
though I could not think what could be more important than this at the moment.
I was not the only one either to sense Ddraig Tsona’s lack of concern. By my
side, Carlee was restless, though her inferior position within the clan meant
she was unable to speak her worries.

After a pause of over
ten seconds, Ddraig Tsona blinked twice and shook his head. He glanced at
Haeraig Zeena and tilted his head slightly in request for her to continue. As
though nothing untoward had happened, the Nixan obliged.

“We understand the
Axinstone to be within the human’s lair on a small island well beyond the
Sxinix,” she said. “It won’t be easy to recover, but with Clan Laxtal’s news in
mind, I believe this is a very important issue.”

Ddraig Tsona looked
sharply across at Haeraig Zeena with a quiet growl from the back of his throat.
“I decide what is important, Haeraig. Return to your place,” he said quietly,
only just loud enough for me to hear it at all.

The Nixan dragoness
bowed her head in apology, and without once looking up, returned to the space
to my left. For just a moment she caught my eye, and I could see how truly
scared she was. Then, to my surprise, she looked away before I had chance to do
so. I continued to glance in her direction as Ddraig Tsona began speaking
again. I heard nothing of what the Xital Ddraig was saying until Carlee nudged
me in the ribs.

“Pay attention,” she
hissed under her breath so that none but I could hear her. No one was permitted
to speak when the Xitals were, except when they had something important to add.
Rebuked, I turned back to face Ddraig Tsona and try and work out what he was
talking about.

“...have any
suggestions?” he prompted, practically glaring around the chamber in an oddly
venomous fashion, as though he wanted the floor to remain silent, without
suggestion or idea.

It was an open forum
now. Anyone could speak without first seeking permission from the Xitals. “Why
don’t we just attack back?” someone called out from near the back of the
chamber. “They attacked us, so why don’t we gather our full strength and fly on
their lands. We’ve defeated the human armies before, we can do it again.”

“Tchaa, no, that
would never work,” a dragon near the front of the chamber protested. I
recognised him as Aranat, the Ddraig of Clan Axaatl, the closest clan to
Laxtal’s eastern borders. I could not see Ddraig Aranat as I was unable to see
over the heads of the other drakes around me, but I knew him to be a powerfully
built blue dragon. A few years prior I had heard that he had wrested control of
his clan from its previous Ddraig. “I believe I know which lair it is that
Haeraig Zeena refers to. I have seen this place with my own eyes. Even if every
dragon alive were to join this attack, we still would not succeed.”

 “Then what do you suggest we do?” the first
dragon challenged. Given how far back in the chamber he was, I doubted he had
much right to speak to Ddraig Aranat like that. The Axaatl didn’t rebuke the
lesser dragon at all, though a few surrounding the two did hiss and growl
quietly.

“I don’t know,”
Ddraig Aranat replied calmly. “I wasn’t suggesting an idea, just saying that
yours can’t possibly work. The loss of life would be too great, even in the
unlikely event of success.”

“You heard what
Haeraig Zeena said. We need to get the Axinstone back. Risks must be taken in
war,” another dragon said in a raised voice, somewhere off to my right, and a
little further back.

“A risk must have a
chance of a positive outcome. This idea does not,” Ddraig Aranat rebuked,
turning his anger to the second dragon. “If it’s allowed, then it shall be
nothing more than a suicide mission. The humans would probably kill us all
before we laid a single claw inside their lair.”

There were a few
seconds of silence as everyone waited for each other to offer further
suggestions. What actions could we take? I certainly couldn’t think of anything
to add, and nor it seemed could anyone else. We seemed to be left with just one
option, and like Ddraig Aranat, I believed it would be nothing but suicide to
launch a direct attack on the humans.

“If no one has
another suggestion, then I have no choice but to authorise an attack on the
human lair,” Ddraig Tsona declared with a resigned sigh. “Some action must be
taken today. Matters are too serious to wait for another council to be called.”

I wondered why we had
to send almost all of dragonkind to retrieve the Axinstone. If just a few
survived the attack, even the Axinstone would be unable to help the survivors.
The humans would be free to pick off the remaining clans at will. Surely we
would be better off sending a couple of drakes to try and claim it. It meant
fewer drakes would die, and they probably had the same sort of chance to
recover the Axinstone as an entire army would.

“Wait,” I said,
before I was even aware of what I had done. Every single pair of eyes was on
me, I could feel them boring into the back of my head. All five of the Xitals
glared at me, and I immediately began to regret speaking up. However, if I said
nothing I would be disgracing Laxtal and my father; he would never trust me
with anything again.

“Yes, Haeraig?”
Ddraig Tsona said expectantly.

“There is another
way. If we send a small group to the human lair, a dozen at most, then if
Ddraig Aranat is correct, they will have the same chance of success. If they
fail, we lose fewer drakes.” I spoke quickly, too quickly, but the pressure of
having everyone’s attention on me was overwhelming. Ddraig Tsona’s eyes
widened, but whether in disdain or respect I could not tell.

At least one
dragoness was not amused by my suggestion though, and she loudly objected.
“That is absolutely ridiculous. You would send a dozen drakes against the
entire human army? That is nothing short of idiocy.”

I felt like curling
up and tucking my head under my wing, but some small, vestigial sense of pride
kept me standing, though I could not stop my head from sinking down lower.

“No, I don’t think
it’s such a bad idea,” Ddraig Aranat commented to my complete surprise. I
noticed it was to Ddraig Tsona’s complete shock also. I hadn’t expected anyone
to agree with my opinion. I barely agreed with it myself. “I doubt Haeraig
Anzig was suggesting sending a dozen dragons to fight the humans. We’d send
them to steal the Axinstone, just as they stole it from Nixa.”

Hardly any drakes
sided with the Axaatl Ddraig. In fact, the only one I could see was the Nixan
Haeraig. I hadn’t even thought of Ddraig Aranat’s suggestion. My only concern
had been minimising the number of casualties if the mission failed. Ddraig
Aranat could turn my quite ridiculous idea into a true possibility. Though I
hadn’t really done anything, I still felt a little pride that the older Ddraig
had been able to build upon my suggestion. It was just enough to inject a
little confidence into my posture, with my head rising back up as I stood tall
again.

“Where is your sense
of honour?” the same dragoness said from somewhere near the middle of the
chamber. “You would rather steal something than fight for it? I for one refuse
to be part of any such tactic, and I hope I do not find myself in the minority,
or else dragonkind would be the lesser for it.”

“The humans showed us
no honour in stealing it from Clan Nixa,” Ddraig Aranat said with patience and
calmness. “I don’t see why we should feel obliged to show them honour when they
will not return the favour.”

“That is not their
way,” the dragoness whined. “Humans are not an honourable species. We should
not sink to their level, or we would be no better than them.” I had the
impression the dragoness was losing the argument, but I didn’t believe she
would give in very easily, and nor would many of the other drakes in the
chamber.

“In a choice between
dishonour and death, I would choose dishonour every time,” Ddraig Aranat said.
A few uneasy mutterings broke out at his words, but the Axaatl Ddraig was not
perturbed. “I urge the Xital Clan to not disregard Haeraig Anzig’s suggestion
just because it could be deemed dishonourable. There are times when we must
ignore our honour and pride to undertake acts of theft, and other less worthy
deeds.”

Ddraig Tsona had been
intently following the argument of the Axaatl dragon and the other dragoness.
Now that Ddraig Aranat had turned the talk back to him, he seemed caught
unawares. It was a few moments before he even reacted to the sudden silence in
the chamber.

“Yes, we shall take
that in mind. If there are no further suggestions, we will take Haeraig Anzig’s
plan into consideration too,” he said, taking a step back towards the other
four Xitals. Not a single drake spoke. After a pause of almost a minute, Ddraig
Tsona nodded. “We of Clan Xital shall discuss this in private, and will return
with our answer shortly.” Without a further word, the five Xitals left the
chamber through a small opening behind them. The instant Ddraig Tsona’s tail
vanished into the darkness, everyone started talking at once.

“See, Boss? What did
I tell you? Everything went alright,” Vinzent said in a low whisper. I chose to
ignore his words. I closed my eyes and tried to slow my breathing down to an
acceptable pace. I wasn’t even aware of the approach of someone else until
Carlee hit me with her tail.

I opened my eyes to
see the Nixan dragoness standing in front of me. She was nervously smiling, and
I couldn’t help but notice that she never once attempted to meet my eyes. “I
understand that honour means nothing in war. Your suggestion will save
thousands of lives, and if your actions lead to the recovery of the Axinstone,
my father will grant your clan great rewards,” she said softly, before placing
her head on my shoulder in a sign of affection. I was too surprised to even
move, and I let her keep her head there. “You have my thanks, and that of my
clan.”

With that she pulled
away and returned to her place to my left. She shot a shy glance across at me
for a moment, before looking away and staring resolutely towards the front,
where the Xitals had gone.

“Not bad at all,
Boss,” Vinzent whispered with a sly look I did not like in the slightest.
“She’s quite nice isn’t she? Nixan, yes, and a Haeraig, but I’m sure her father
and Ddraig Astar could arrange something, if you wanted.”

I turned and growled
at the young dragon. “You keep those thoughts to yourself in future, or you’ll
find yourself in serious trouble. Do you understand me?” I threatened, keeping
my voice to a quiet hiss so that no other but Vinzent and Carlee would be able
to hear.

Vinzent nodded,
though I doubted he had taken the warning very seriously. His pale-blue eyes
were showing no sign of apology or regret for his actions. If anything he was
still quite amused. His eyes lingered on Haeraig Zeena until I firmly stood on
his paw and butted him on the underside of his jaw with my blunt horns.

“Hey, that hurt,”
Vinzent complained, trying to pull away from me, but the pressure I was placing
on his paw prevented him from going anywhere.

“Good. Now
concentrate on where you are. And please, for once, act like a mature dragon,”
I said, releasing Vinzent’s paw and staring him in the eyes as he stepped back
from me. I could tell he was fighting the urge to come up with some retort, but
fortunately for his sake he was able to restrain himself. Sometimes I forgot
that Vinzent wasn’t actually old enough to be considered an adult. For a dragon
of his age he held a lot of responsibility, and he was usually able to act
sensibly.

Only when Vinzent
turned and stared at the ground did I look away. There was a good deal of
restlessness around us, thankfully none of which was caused by Vinzent’s
immaturity. Instead, all the talk was on what the Xital drakes would decide,
for it could ultimately decide the eventual fate of the species. Or at least,
that seemed the opinion of the few clans nearby. The fact that my suggestion
could be the one chosen dizzied me.

After an anxious wait
that felt much longer than it was, the five Xitals returned to the main
chamber. This time it was not Ddraig Tsona who stepped forward to address the
gathered drakes, but a slight dragoness whom I was not familiar with. The
Ddraig of Xital remained with the other three of his clan, his tail twitching
in agitation.

“On a count of four
to one, we have chosen on Haeraig Anzig’s suggestion to retrieve the
Axinstone,” the Xital dragoness announced. I was so shocked by what she had
said that I almost missed the rest. “I ask the Ddraigs and Haeraigs of the ten
ruling clans to meet us here after the sun’s peak to discuss who should be
sent. That will be all.”

Leaving it at that,
the Xitals turned again and left. I didn’t even know why Ddraig Tsona and the
other three had felt the need to come back out, so short a time they were
there, contributing nothing. Their behaviour in general was most unusual. In my
mind, the fact that they preferred my suggestion confirmed something was amiss.
I didn’t know what, and I didn’t know any reason for it to be. I could not
understand why so many more experienced Ddraigs had been unable to better my
hasty and ill-thought out idea.

Neither Carlee nor
Vinzent appeared to share my concerns. Though Vinzent’s were a little more
muted, both had nothing to say to me but praise. I did not pay attention to
either of them. Did I deserve the praise? I couldn’t shake the feeling everything
that had happened was planned. But planned by whom? For what reason? Again, I
could not begin to imagine.

I looked up to the
sky, visible through the entry at the top of the cavern, where some drakes were
already starting to leave. Why couldn’t I be full of pride at what I had done?
Why did I have to suspect that another drake had meant for things to turn out
this way?

“Are you alright
Anzig?” Carlee asked, breaking into my musings. I looked across at her and
sighed.

“Yeah, just a little
cold,” I lied, turning my head back towards the sky. I couldn’t stop my voice
sounding as dull as my thoughts. “Let’s get back into the sun. I’ll feel better
out there.”

Without waiting for
an answer I spread my wings and flew up towards the fresh air. I could hear the
other two following close behind, but I did not slow down for them to catch up,
nor did I once look back.

I emerged into the
sunlight high above the ground. The Xital Lair was spread out over a great
distance. Many interconnected caves were pocketed in small rocky crags
scattered throughout the otherwise flat terrain. The main lair was visible from
many miles away, a lone mountain towering up from the flats, marking the
central point of draconic society. It was the oldest populated lair, and one of
the most visually striking. The entry to the main chamber, situated halfway up
the mountain and completely surrounded by sheer cliff walls, was inaccessible
to anything without wings.

I had barely left the
shadows before I heard someone call my name. It was a voice I could not fail to
recognise, and it belonged to a dragoness who had been my near-constant
companion since my hatching day. She was my closest and most trusted friend –
the dragoness, Keita. She had waited for me on a small ledge not too far from the
entry to the chamber under the watchful eyes of two guardian drakes. I wouldn’t
have been too surprised if she had eavesdropped on what was being said.

Slowly, Keita flew up
to me from where she had been waiting, giving Vinzent and Carlee the chance to
catch up. As the masses of drakes began swarming out from the chamber, they
buffeted into Keita in complete disregard of her presence, forcing her to dive
lower again. I was concerned by their disrespect, and swooped down to join her.

“You shouldn’t let
them bully you like that,” I told her once I was by her side. But Keita just
looked away with her pale eyes. She had always had difficulty with her sight,
having injured her right eye when she was a tiny dragonette. The damage had
never fully healed; as a consequence she had little ability to judge distance.
She slowed her flight slightly so she was flying to the right of my tail before
she answered.

“They’re Ddraigs.
They have to respect you, but they have no reason to do the same to me,” Keita
said, staring down to the ground.

I looked up towards
Vinzent and Carlee, who had not flown down to join us. Instead they continued
to fly on above us. “You can be what you want to be,” I said, looking back at
Keita, as always entranced by the unique beauty of her partially translucent
red wings. It was my humble opinion that Keita was the most beautiful dragoness
I had ever laid eyes upon. Though I had rarely given thought to the matter, I
knew one day I would ask her to become my mate. I did not know whether Keita felt
the same way for me. I knew she loved me as a lifelong friend and companion,
but it was impossible to tell if she could love me as a mate too.

Keita must have been
aware of my gaze, for she did not look towards me. Instead her eyes were
squinted as she tried to look up at something above us. There was a momentary
flash of alarm on her face. Too late did I hear the rush of wind against wings.
Too late did I feel the slight shadow against my back. I had no time to move.
The next I knew I was falling with a drake on my back, pinning my wings in
place, preventing me from going anywhere. The more I struggled, the tighter my
assailant’s grip became.

I could not hear the
sound of pursuit. No one was chasing to help. I didn’t have time to think why.
The ground grew closer at an alarming rate. At the last moment, I could hear my
attacker flare their wings, slowing us instantly. Then they released me,
sending me tumbling down to the ground. I rolled twice and clutched my head in
my paws.

“I got you that time,
Ziggy!”

I groaned. I knew
exactly who it was, and I should have guessed earlier from the manner of the
attack. Only one drake I knew used such tactics when they fought. I looked up
to see my younger cousin, Ellian, gently come down to the ground. She looked
rather pleased with herself. I hissed at her, but otherwise ignored her smug
look.

In complete disregard
to my foul mood, Ellian lay down right next to me, her head resting on her
paws. “Well, how was it in there?” the azure scaled dragonette asked with an
air of intensity. “Will Ddraig Astar need to send me next time?”

“If you want to, then
I’m sure I can arrange something,” I replied. I wasn’t sure if I was being
sarcastic or hopeful. Though my earlier fear had abated, I was really unsettled
by what had gone on. I didn’t know what to expect from the meeting with the
Xitals and the Ddraigs of the ruling clans. I hoped it didn’t feel like it was
all happening according to a plan I was not aware of.

No matter what I
thought, Ellian knew what she wanted, and that was most certainly not the
opportunity to represent our clan in an official position. “You’re being
silly,” she said with a mischievous smile. “I’m too young to be taken
seriously.”

She was right of
course. She wasn’t yet old enough to be considered an adult, but, at just
thirteen years old, she was also one of the most mature drakes I knew. Though
she may consider it otherwise, I secretly believed she was far better suited to
the role as Laxtal Haeraig than I was.

At that moment
Vinzent and Carlee landed a few feet away, and I gently returned to my paws,
while Ellian quickly scarpered away to join Vinzent. The two talked together in
quiet tones. I watched as Ellian rested her head on Vinzent’s shoulder. The
silver dragon looked over at me with a touch of alarm for a moment before
rejoining their private conversation.

The two had always
been close friends. Ellian had known Vinzent for about as long as I had, but I
couldn’t help feeling surprised at this apparent latest development in their
relationship. If their closeness was them moving beyond friendship, I wasn’t
sure what I really felt. Partly I was worried. Neither were adults yet, though
Vinzent was less than a year from being called one. However, I knew a lot of
Laxtal dragons, and I believed that out of all of them, Vinzent was the one
dragon I would be happy for my cousin to become mates with.

I turned from them
and looked up at the dragoness I desired to become my mate. Keita was still
descending. A lack of ability to judge distance was not good for aerial
creatures, and she had to be a lot more careful when flying near the ground,
especially when landing.

Once she was on the
ground she tucked her tail behind her hind legs and sat down, staring at the
ground. I was about to move across to her, but Carlee stepped in front of me,
cutting me off.

“You seem troubled,”
she said simply, placing her body in the way of where I wanted to go. Her tail
wrapped around my foreleg when I tried to back away. “What’s the matter?” she
asked, seemingly determined to know why I was so distracted, which I knew I
was.

I knew I could trust
Carlee with any of my worries. My father trusted her with his concerns, though
I never heard any of what they were, unless he told me himself, which was
rarely. Whatever I would tell her, she would keep to herself until she died, if
that were necessary.

“It all seemed
planned,” I said quietly, so that no one else, not even Keita, would be able to
hear me speak. “Everything that happened in there, everything that was said, it
sounded like it was organised, and I wasn’t told about it. I don’t think Ddraig
Aranat was either.”

Carlee didn’t appear
all that surprised, but she was unable to give her thoughts about it as Keita
had stood up and was walking towards us. Instead, Carlee said, “You did well in
there. I think your father will be proud. You saved the lives of many drakes
today.” She bared her teeth as she smiled, then turned away, allowing Keita to
approach me unhindered.

We did not rub heads
like Vinzent and Ellian. I kept my affections for the dragoness hidden from all
others. It was expected of me, as the clan Haeraig, to mate with a dragoness
who held a higher, more powerful position within the clan. It was only through
the strength of Keita’s father and her friendship with me that she held any
sort of power within the clan. Without those, she would be one of the lesser
dragonesses in Laxtal.

“Azlak wants to speak
with you,” Keita said softly. She lay down on the grass in front of me,
spreading her wings out to absorb some heat from the sun. I frowned. Azlak was
an enigmatic dragon, both greatly respected, and yet scorned too. He was a
Laxtal with magic, something that was meant to be impossible. Only Nixans were
meant to possess magic, and yet Azlak was very much a Laxtal dragon. Marin, Azlak’s
father, was one of my father’s strongest and most powerful supporters, and was
proud of being the latest in a long line of pure Laxtal drakes.

I resisted the
temptation to lie down next to Keita. Azlak’s words were usually too important
to ignore. The diminutive gold-scaled dragon had an erratic, but usually
correct, ability to see into the future. As a result, his advice was always
invaluable.

“Did he say what it
was about?” I asked Keita, but she lazily shook her head. Her eyes were closed,
and she looked like she was asleep. “Lie closer to the fire tonight,” I told
her, smiling to myself. She didn’t reply. I stood there watching the gentle rise
and fall of her chest as she breathed for a few moments, before turning my eyes
away with regret.

I turned to Carlee,
who was still standing a few feet away, waiting for me. “Watch over her, and
bring her back when she’s ready,” I said, tilting my head down to Keita.

“Of course,” Carlee
said. She settled down in the soft grass and spread her wings too.

With one last,
lingering look back at Keita, half-hidden by the long grass, I left the two
dragonesses alone to doze and absorb the heat of the sun. I ambled towards
Vinzent and Ellian, who had their backs turned to me as they sat together,
looking out over the Xital lands. Ellian’s head was rested upon Vinzent’s
shoulder, and his wing was wrapped around her body.

“Ellian, I want you
to come with me,” I said, making both drakelets jump in fright. Vinzent pulled
his wing off of Ellian with an embarrassed look on his face. “Vinzent, you’re
to look after Keita with Carlee.”

“Must I?” Ellian
grumbled, but quickly changed her mind. “See you later,” she muttered sulkily
to Vinzent. The young silver dragon did not once look at Ellian. His eyes were
solely on my paws. I didn’t have any idea what he was thinking. It looked as
though he half expected me to attack him for showing affection to my cousin.

Vinzent didn’t move
as Ellian slinked away.

“No further,” I
warned him, before taking to wing. I paused only to make certain Ellian was
following me. I knew exactly where Azlak would be; in the chambers designated
for visiting Laxtal drakes, about a ten minute flight to the south of the
central Xital lair.

Ellian flew up to my
right, keeping wing just behind my shoulder. “What did you say to him?” she
demanded.

I turned my head
slightly to look back at her. “I told him no further. You’re both still too
young to be mates.”

“You’re not my
brother, Ziggy, you don’t have to act like one,” she said bluntly, a touch of
annoyance in her voice.

“Since when have you
not treated me like one?” I asked gently. Ellian had been orphaned from a very
young age, and ever since then she had been placed in the care of my father.
Her real brother had been old enough to fend for himself and he had gone out to
live with the nomadic drakes, but he had been forbidden from taking his only
sister with him. As my father was usually busy, it had been left to my mother
and me to care for my younger cousin.

We had very much
grown up as siblings, and it hurt me to hear Ellian throw that away almost
casually. I could tell it had hurt her too.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t
mean it like that,” she said, drifting a little closer to my wing. She took a
deep breath and let it back out as a deep and prolonged sigh. “I’ll try. I’ll
tell Vinzent too. We’ll wait.”

I thought it best not
to say anything then, but to silently acknowledge her decision. By that time we
had reached the part of the Xital Lair where we were lodging. From the air it
appeared simply to be one of the many low hills, but underground it was a
complex series of caves and tunnels. Because of our clan’s importance, it was
not linked to any of the other networks, where the lesser clans dwelt, nor to
the Xital drakes’ own caves.

Azlak had taken the
smallest, dampest, and coldest cave in our network. Even though we were nowhere
near close to filling the small cluster of caves, the little seer was so
insecure and bereft of confidence that he refused to take anything more
comfortable. Whenever someone suggested a move to him, he invariably muttered
about him not deserving any better.

The seer was not
surprised to see me when I arrived at his chamber. Ellian had already left me,
choosing to remain at the surface and stay in the sun. Though I had forbade her
to return back to Vinzent, I allowed her to remain on the surface. I didn’t
particularly want to spend more time underground, and I wasn’t sure how Azlak
was able to put up with it: he was usually only outside to eat.

“I’ll be quick,
Haeraig, we don’t have much time,” Azlak said as soon as I came into view.
Though he was less than an inch shorter than I was, the difference appeared
much greater, as he would often press himself down into the ground and he
seldom looked up, making him appear smaller than his actual size.

“What do you mean?” I
asked, when Azlak had, contrary to his words of being quick, paused.

“I saw how you get
the Axinstone, and I know we don’t have much time before we lose that chance,”
Azlak said, looking down into the floor as I stared in shock at the top of his
head.

“Me?”

For the first time,
Azlak looked up and acknowledged my presence, his golden eyes gazing balefully
into mine. He gave a slow nod. “I have looked for other ways, but I’ve not
found another who can succeed. I didn’t see who else you take with us, so you
need to use your judgement for that.”

“Us?” I was
temporarily unable to utter anything longer than a single syllable, and my mind
wasn’t processing anything at a much faster rate. I couldn’t believe I would
have to carry out the near suicidal task of breaking into a human lair, and
stealing what I expected to be the most highly guarded object inside.

“I know I go too,”
Azlak said. He was not enthralled at the prospect of going either. His voice
had taken on a dull and sombre tone; one I often heard from him whenever he
foresaw danger or death. I only hoped he had seen the former, and not the
latter, but I did not have the courage to ask him which it was.

“So when do we
leave?” I asked instead, forcing my voice out through my strangled throat.

“Today. We need to be
out of Xital this afternoon. I’ve seen a place where we can sleep for tonight,
but then it’s all a blur until we’ve recovered the Axinstone. If I see anything
more, I’ll tell you. Gather who you think we’ll need, inform the Xitals of
this, and I’ll wait for you outside.”

Though it was odd to
hear such words coming from Azlak, being almost orders, or at the very least,
strong advice, I took heed of them and left at once. I already knew I would
have to take Keita and Carlee with me. The two of them would not allow me to
leave their side. Ellian would have to remain behind. My cousin would become
Haeraig in my stead, so it would fall to her to lead the clan and to inform my
father of the proceedings, once he returned from the south.

I did not feel that
would be enough though. I had said about a dozen drakes would be suitable, and
Ddraig Aranat had said nothing to contradict that estimation. But I could think
of no one else I would want with me. That would mean just four of us travelling
across the mountains, and then almost the entirety of the human lands, and next
across the water to the humans’ island lair. I could not think who else to ask
of this dangerous task, for they would have to be from beyond my clan, but I
did not have long to decide.

***

My decision to
undertake the task of recovering the Axinstone was not taken well by the other
ruling clans. It was just after noon, and the Ddraigs and Haeraigs of the ten
ruling clans, as well as Ddraig Tsona, again representing the Royal Clan, had
convened back at the central chambers. I was, by some considerable margin, the
smallest dragon present, and I was having a hard time to not be intimidated by
the others.

“I urge you to
reconsider this,” Ddraig Tsona was saying, not for the first time. “As a
Haeraig, you are too important to risk on such a dangerous task. I know you
mean too much to Laxtal to be lost.”

“I feel it is my duty
as a Haeraig to do things I would not ask of anyone else to do,” I replied
quietly, not wanting to be though to deliberately going against a Royal’s
wishes. “And I’ve been told I will succeed. I have the assurance of a seer,
whose word I trust.”

The only one present
who had kept silent was Haeraig Zeena of Nixa. She had not uttered a word since
greeting me when I had been the last to arrive. But now she took a half-step
towards me and spoke. “Which seer?” she asked. One of her claws absently
scratched at the floor in her confusion. “I brought none with me.”

“Azlak. He’s not of
Clan Nixa. He’s of my clan,” I replied.

“Ah, him,” Zeena said
simply. I knew most Nixans refused to accept that Azlak was a Laxtal dragon.
They said it was impossible a drake from outside their clan could ever possess
magic. Opinions ranged from Azlak being little more than a lucky fraud – that
he only pretended to see into the future – to him actually being a Nixan and
lying about his heritage. While I knew these opinions to be wrong, I had never
convinced a single Nixan of this.

“I know what he has
Seen is true, and I know that if I leave today, I will return with the
Axinstone,” I said, addressing Ddraig Tsona again.

“You’ll need help,”
the Xital dragon said. I took that as his permission.

“I will. I still need
perhaps five drakes, four at the least, ready to leave before this afternoon,”
I said, looking around at the other nine drakes, wondering if any of them would
be willing to assist me in providing the other dragons I needed. I wasn’t
disappointed.

“You are risking
yourself to retrieve a Nixan artefact. It is only right that I send you some
assistance. I have two dragons with me who you may take,” Haeraig Zeena said
without hesitation. “Isikian is a healer, and his brother, Inilta, is able to
control and create fire. Both their talents will come in useful at some point,
I am sure. They will accompany you to the human’s lair and back without
complaint.”

No sooner had I
nodded my thanks to her, did another dragon speak up. “I can send you Okazuni.
He’s young, but he’s eager to prove himself,” the Nyrian Ddraig said, whose
name I did not know.

“Nataik is our finest
fighter. She accompanied me here, and I’m sure you’ll find use of her in this
act of espionage. She’s chameleonic,” said a third, the Ddraig of Clan Xigax.
Xigax was an eastern clan, and their elongated, almost serpentine bodies leant
well to their unique style of fighting. They were heavily influenced by old
human teachings of speed and stealth. Their long, whiplash tails were a weapon
as deadly as the sharpest tooth or claw. There were also a select few drakes
from that clan who could even change the colour of their scales to match their
surroundings. It was not magic, but in the right circumstances, it was just as
effective. Having such a dragoness with us would certainly be a significant
boost to our chances.

No one else was
willing to offer any drakes to my cause. The other six Ddraigs and Haeraigs
looked amongst each other awkwardly, as though waiting for each other to say something.
In the end it was Ddraig Tsona who broke the silence. “Four more companions
should be suitable, don’t you think Haeraig?” the Royal dragon asked me.

“I believe so, yes,”
I replied. Though it was less than my original estimation, I really had pulled
that number out from nothing. I doubted having more companions would make a
great deal of difference.

“Then
we shall keep you no longer. Go and prepare. All I ask is you seek me out
before you leave,” Ddraig Tsona said. I stayed just a few moments longer to
organise where and when I wanted to see the drakes that had been volunteered. I
offered my final thanks and left the ten drakes to continue their discussions.