Overlay

“There weren’t always dragons in the Valley. Sure, there had always been reptiles around in the Pioneer Valley, but none of any great size or importance. Now, don’t get me wrong, the dragons are fine. It's the feral ones, the wyverns and drakes that came with them, that I can’t stand.” Amber grumbled, flicking the reins in her hand. The older woman glared up at the sky and cast her gaze across the cliffs as the oxen pulling her wagon ambled up the old road. Slightly bowed with age at nearly eighty years old, she seemed almost too frail to be driving the wagon to market. But the slightly bent frame, mass of gray hair, and slightly knurled hands were the only signs of her age. Her clothing was well spun wool, dyed in a style she called tie-dye. On the front and back were a large starburst of colors emanating from the central point. The words “Amber’s Deadheads” Were stitched around the starburst.

“Of course there weren’t always dragons, Grandma.” A young man riding the back of the wagon replied. He cursed slightly as the wagon wheel hit a pothole and the suspension springs failed to absorb most of the impact. He had his hair cropped short, with designs cut through the dense hair down to his scalp. He was wearing a long tunic that went down to just over his knees. It was gathered at his waist by a belt of woven reeds, the dark brown of the reeds contrasting against the light green dye of his garment. At his belt he wore a small quiver with a dozen quarrels. The thirteenth was currently loaded into the small crossbow resting beside him.

“Don’t you sass me. Just because you’re fourteen now doesn’t mean you get to sass me.” Amber called back. William rolled his eyes behind his grandmother’s back. “And don’t you roll your eyes at me!” They both broke into smiles, their long-standing ritual finally completed. “Did you remember to apply the sun lotion? You need to be careful.”

William sighed and grabbed the jar of lotion and started applying it to his exposed skin, rubbing the white paste into his skin until it was absorbed, making his brown skin glisten. He hated the feeling of the slimy lotion, but his grandmother was adamant on longer trips.

“You better do what Amber says.” Delphine chuckled from atop her horse. Four years older than her young cousin, she was broad where he was thin, her muscles standing out against the riding pants and tunic she wore. Her hair was formed into a multitude of tiny braids, none dropping farther than her chin. “You know how Gram can get.” She looked towards the sky, twisting in her saddle to make sure nothing was coming towards them.

“Do you believe her?” Her younger cousin asked.

Delphine thought for a moment before replying. “Yeah, I guess I do. There are so many objects around that just don’t work, and no one over sixty is able to use magic. I believe her when she says the world changed sixty years ago.”

William was about to interject when a loud roar from atop the Notch reverberated down the cliffs. He chuckled. “Well, whether or not what she says is true, there are dragons here now and everywhere.”

They rode in silence for a while as William finished applying the sun lotion to his skin. They were crossing out of the Babbling Wood and past the Atkins’ Trading Post. A massive two acre, three story barn for housing food and wares was surrounded by five acres of land set aside solely for caravans and stalls on market days. Beyond these were massive fruit orchards, with a large part of the old college being taken over by farmer housing, a smaller school for agriculture, and vegetable gardens.

People could be seen working in the orchards and gardens from their position on the road. It was too early in the year for any large market gatherings, but there were always a dozen or two stalls that had become semi permanent. Delphine could see some small dragons amidst the working people. Some were helping to weed or plow the fields, others were digging, while a few were helping crafters. She could see the dragons singing along as the crafters chanted their spells, enhancing the magic of the human. She couldn’t see the draconic markings on them, but she knew each of them had it.

“Hey…are you worried.” William asked, seeing where his cousin was looking.

“Wh…why should I be nervous?” Delphine looked away so he couldn’t see the fear in her eyes.

“You know they can be…very exacting in who they allow to serve them. And you know how hard it is to get a posting as a mage without a dragon’s blessing.”

“I know!” She snapped at him. Cursing herself inwardly, she took a deep breath and recited a mantra her mentor had taught her. “I’m sorry. I’m terrified.” She hung her head, wishing she had a free hand to run through her horse’s mane. She bit her lower lip, trying to keep herself from crying.

“I mean, it’s not as if we are asking for a blessing from one of the wyrmling families. I’m sure they’d say yes. You have the basics down.” William said, trying to cheer her up.

“Our family didn’t make a bargain with one of the Wyrmling families though.” Amber called from up front. “We made our deal directly with the Lazrael clan of Dragons. They only ask for one child a generation, and we are people of our word.”

“What if they don’t accept…the child?” William asked, glancing towards Delphine.

“Well, so far only your great Aunt Kendra and your Uncle Eugene have been given, and both accepted. I haven’t heard any of the other families who made similar bargains with the Lazrael having their children turned away. I don’t rightly know.” Amber answered, flicking the reins to keep the oxen plodding forwards.

The caravan wound its way up into the Notch, using the steep main road, as the smaller paths were too narrow for the repurposed car frames. On these old relics were tributes to the dragons who ruled the Valley, goods for trading, and the supplies the family would need while Delphine was to be tried and examined to see if she was worthy to serve as her family’s representative to the Lazrael dragons.

Halfway up, they noticed the young dragons flying above them, chirruping in the brisk spring air. A few of the older ones, near the size of horses themselves, flew down close for a better look at the caravan. The oxen lowed with fear, stopping in their tracks. Rolling her eyes, Amber called up William to get the oxen moving.

With a chant coming from deep in his diaphragm, the slight youth chanted a soothing song to the oxen, the magic of the words causing them to forget their fears and continue onwards, oblivious to the dragons flying above them. Despite the scowl on her face, Delphine could see the pride in her grandson’s abilities shining in her eyes. He had powers people of her generation would never have, and it would make their lives easier.

As she watched her cousin sing to the oxen of the caravan, her thoughts turned back to the growers and crafters accompanied by their wyrmlings. They all had skills that they could offer to their dragon clans and communities. Even those without companions could still learn to cast basic spells or master any number of trades and skills. Looking down at where her right arm had never been, a sting of loss washed over her.

Delphine wasn’t sure how the dragons would react to her. While she had seen many smaller of the dragon species, she had never come into contact with a, as people called them, ‘True’ Dragon. She had always heard stories that they were arrogant and haughty, their standards far above that of most mortals, as they lived for tens of thousands of years. Would they look at her and see a one armed human? Would they immediately assume she was somehow inferior because she had one less limb?

Delphine had been selected for this role by lottery chance. When her name had come up, most of her family had suggested they pick again. Only her father stood up for her, demanding that she be treated the same as all the other children who could have been selected. She had given herself fully to her training, the same that her Uncle had undergone before selection.

She knew she was as good a candidate as anyone else, and she was determined. But inside, the fear that the dragons would react to her as everyone else reacted gnawed away at her confidence. It was a pain, seated deep in her gut that wouldn’t go away no matter how many times she listed off her accomplishments in school and recited her calming mantras.

Finally, the Notch came into view around the bend in the road, the cliffs giving way to a small forest preserve where the Lazrael made their nest. The gnawing in Delphine’s stomach increased from a dull pain to a stinging emptiness, her joints turning to water as they were finally here. It was a minute before she realized that her horse had stopped and Amber was holding onto the reins, waiting for her to dismount.

“I remember defending my undergraduate thesis.” She started, jerking Delphine from out of her reverie with the non-sequitur. “I was terrified. Nearly left while everyone was waiting inside. My friends, family, classmates, and professors, all waiting there to examine me on what was the culmination of my work up till then.”

“Why didn’t you?” Delphine asked, her hand gripping the reins in a white knuckled fist.

“Because, I put too much damn work into it to chicken out right at the finish line!” She retorted, her voice loud and acrid with conviction. Her face softened for a moment, “of course, it was my girlfriend who yelled that at me when she caught me trying to sneak out of the building. But I figured a grandmother might have a near similar effect.” She smiled up at the young woman. Delphine returned her smile and slid off her horse, landing solidly on her feet. “Breath Deep.”

“Fly high.” Delphine replied. Their smiles grew as the small saying her grandmother taught her from her youth slipped easily from her dry throat. Nodding her head, Delphine mentally squared her shoulders and braced herself. No matter what the dragons said, she had worked too hard and put too much effort into her training to turn back now.