A Mysterious Visitor

There weren’t always dragons in the Valley. Knox Drurian gazed out the small window of his book shop towards the distant mountains and reflected on that thought for a moment. Then he looked back at the man standing in front of him. His visitor was just above middle height, and wore a gray robe, his face shielded beneath a hood, although his piercing eyes almost seemed to glow forth, even in the dimly lit room, with the fading natural light of the sinking sun slowly diminishing with each passing minute.

The man had quietly made his appearance just as Knox was closing up his shop for the day, noiselessly slipping into the room just as he had been making his way to the front door to lock it. His plan for the evening had been to lock up; and then to build a nice roaring fire in the large fireplace in the back room, and sample some of that fresh loaf of bread that Mrs. Lennian had sent over earlier along with a wedge of aged cheddar that he had been saving for just such an occasion. This in conjunction with a new book that he had received by post from his friend who was a bookstore owner in the capitol, would have constituted the perfect evening.

The arrival of his mysterious visitor had changed all that. When the stranger broke the silence it was with a soft but slightly ominous voice, with a hint of a hiss almost, or had he imagined that? The stranger offered no name, but launched straight into is business. “Mr. Drurian, I have been sent to make a business proposition.”

“Well, that is straight to the point, and no beating around the bush, Mr. ahh, what was your name again?” the book seller countered. The other ignored the query, and continued, “My ermm employer has a request of a sensitive nature that requires all discretion, your sake as well as his own”. He went on, “Have you heard about the recent events at village of Greenwatch?”

“You mean the fact that it was burned to the ground by a dragon, or perhaps dragons plural; and that as far as anyone can tell, no one survived the massacre?”

The hooded man paused slightly before replying, “Are those indeed the facts?”

“Well, when a village along the southern frontier is found in smoking ruin, with smoldering corpses scattered in the streets, what would be your presumption?”

Again, the slight pause, as if the man was weighing his words carefully. “Did anyone actually see a dragon?”

Now Knox was the one to pause. “Well, as I said, there do not seem to have been any survivors, so we don’t have any eyewitnesses. However, I would repeat my earlier question—what else could have possibly caused such devastation?”

This time no pause, “I do not know what happened at Greenwatch, but I can tell you for sure that it was not the work of dragons.” He continued, speaking faster now with some vehemence, “I do not expect you to believe me, a stranger to you, but we have been told that you are a man who is fair, and one who knows things that others do not, and that you are a wise person among humans. We want you to help us prove what happened at Greenwatch, and we are prepared to reward you for so doing”.

Knox was taken aback at this, but tried to hide his surprise, and replied calmly. “I hope that I have always been a fair-minded person, as to wisdom, I fear I have less than I would wish to have. Nonetheless, your proposal begs many questions.” He raised his left hand and counted off on his fingers, “Firstly, why is it important to you to know what happened? Secondly, how can you be so sure that it was not dragons as everyone assumes? And finally, and perhaps this is the most important question, as I think that the answer to it may shed some light on the first two; who is “we?”

“I’ll answer your final question first”, came the reply. “What would you say if I told you that I was sent by the dragons themselves?”

A thrill of excitement ran through Knox’s body, as a young boy he had daydreamed often of encountering dragons. In his imaginings, he was a valiant knight, defending the kingdom and perhaps a fair maiden against mighty fire-breathing dragons as in the tales of old. Yet, aside from a brief stint in the Gray Legion (which was as close as he came to ever being a knight before his military time was cut short by a leg injury); none of these dreams had come true, although it led to his lifelong interest in the study of all things relating to warfare as well as quite an extensive study on dragons and other legendary creatures. A lifetime collecting books had led to his eventual establishment of this small bookstore in the southern valley town of Brasofia.

There certainly had been no chance of seeing a dragon when he came to the valley nearly fifteen years ago, as the creatures had been thought long extinct, with some doubting that they had ever existed. Yet for these five years past, the existence of dragons had been proved beyond a shadow of a doubt. Their raids and depredations since their return had thus far been confined to remote fortresses, as well as river trading towns south of the mountains and down along the coast.

Eventually at least two distinct dragons had been spotted in this very valley, and yet they had as of yet committed no outrages (in contrast to the tales of horror that occasionally arrived from the lands to the south). Hunters and other wilderness dwellers sent a stream of continuous reports of dragon sightings, but no real contact had happened, and as the years passed, the fears of the townspeople abated somewhat. Petitions to the King for an increased garrison had been mostly ignored, besides an initial detachment sent early on. These troops, numbering no more than a hundred, had confined themselves to repairing the old garrison quarters at Southwatch Tower, before being recalled just last year during the increased tensions with Drognovia to the east.

He snapped back to the present, realizing that his visitor was awaiting an answer. “Well, that is a rather incredible assertion. I can’t say that I’m an expert on dragons, but whoever heard of them seeking a human to do their bidding, and why would they do such a thing now?”

He could have sworn that he could almost detect a hint of a smile emanating from beneath the hood. “Ah, Mr. Drurian, I fear that perhaps you are being a bit too modest. You see, I’m told that you ARE an expert on dragons as a matter of fact, a leading authority!” He stepped back before continuing, “As an expert on dragons, then you will not be ignorant of the existence of dracones?” Here he paused, throwing off his hood, revealing a rather startling appearance. His form seemed human enough, but his hair was unnaturally red, his eyes amber, fangs slightly protruding, and his skin a bit leather-like. The overall effect was a bit reptilian (aside from the un-reptile-like presence of hair at all).

Knox nodded slowly, “Dracones, or as they are sometimes better known in the common tongue, dragon-kin, or humans that are allied to or that serve the dragons”.

“Just so” replied his visitor, “now perhaps you believe that I was sent from a dragon?”

Knox nodded slowly, “It certainly seems so, but now I have even more questions than before!”

“Perhaps I can even answer some of them, all in good time, but first am I to understand that you are willing to help us with this task?”

Knox thought for a moment, “I don’t know, for one thing I’m not sure that I’m the person you need for this job, and besides, please forgive me for pointing this out, but dragons have a bit of a reputation you must admit for being, well, dangerous…”

The ghost of the smile returned to the thin lips of the stranger, with his sharply pointed teeth even more in evidence, “The reputation is deserved, and your concerns understandable. Dragons are dangerous, but in this case, you are completely safe. Dragons are also, as you are no doubt aware, honorable creatures; and as my master has offered you safe conduct to the meeting place, you would be as safe as you are here in your own bookstore; safer in fact…” he trailed off ominously.

Knox decided not to think too long about the implications of that last statement, and instead asked, “Am I to meet with your master then?”

“Certainly, he will have the details of your mission, and the answers to some of your questions as well no doubt.” He went on, “If you accept, then tomorrow morn you should go to the city stables and secure the use of a horse for the next month”. He reached into the pocket of his robe and came up with a small leather bag, which he tossed onto a nearby table. “That should cover initial expenses should you accept our proposal, and if not, consider it a gift for hearing me out and for your silence regarding this matter. Should word of my visit here should come to the City Watch, then the meager walls of this town will not protect you from a fiery vengeance”.

A slight flush of anger crossed the book seller’s face, but he spoke calmly, “There is no need to threaten, I have no intentions of reporting anything to the City Watch, as there is nothing that requires reporting at this time. However, I fail to understand why you seem to be so concerned with the accusation that dragons burned a mountain village on the one hand, while you are quick to imply danger for my own town the next moment”.

“I am not at liberty to answer any more questions at this time. Should you wish to know more, than do as I have told you. Take horse, and ride south towards the pass. Are you familiar with the old castle ruins that overlook the first line of the southern hills, perhaps sixteen furlongs west of the imperial highway? My master will meet you there, and he guarantees your absolute safety. Then maybe you can have answers to some of your questions.” With that, the stranger replaced his cowl, turned suddenly and slipped quietly out the front door.

Knox ran to the front window to see which way he went on the street, but there was already no sign of the stranger in the twilight. He shivered slightly, dropped the bar across the front door, and crossed into the large living room in the back of the shop. There were already logs previously laid in the large fireplace, so he took a few pieces of kindling from the box, struck flint to steel; and within a few minutes had a roaring fire that began to quickly warm the room. He sat down across from the hearth in his favorite chair, and stared into the flames, replaying the strange conversation of moments ago in his head. What could it all mean, he wondered. So many questions whirled through his mind, but he suddenly grew weary. As his eyes drooped, he fell into a troubled sleep where the fire in the fireplace suddenly seemed like a burning village. His last thoughts before he dozed off were, “Tomorrow to meet a Dragon”!

--- to be continued…---