Rise of the Dragon Sorcerer

There weren’t always dragons in the valley, and even now no one truly knew whether the tales of the fire breathing beast in the stories that were passed down throughout generations were fact or fable. For centuries, stories of dragons were told by the people in the Kingdom of Zantanova. The nature of the stories changed with time. In some stories, dragons were peaceful tranquil creatures that could be trained to live alongside humans and other creatures harmoniously. In darker tales they were fearsome indomitable monsters who terrorized our Kingdom by burning cities and villages to the ground. Those were the stories most recently told. The stories that gave children nightmares, stories that made anyone both young and old wary of traveling through the valley. It was once known as the Valley of Bones, it was said that centuries ago, the valley was nothing more than dry scorched earth, nothing flourished or survived there, nothing besides the dragons. The only evidence that any other living creature had ever dwelled in the valley were their bones that were left behind. The dragons allowed nothing else to live, but that time was long behind us. Today the valley was lush and vibrant, and many living creatures thrived there. Strangely enough, no dragon bones or skulls were ever found, which is why most people in our Kingdom did not believe that the dragons had ever even existed. It was as if they all had simply vanished. I was one of the few who believed in their existence. Anything was possible.

The hem of my dress floated around my ankles as I walked hastily through the corridors of the castle and tried to avoid detection while I headed to my destination. It was still fairly early, not yet midday, so there were few people roaming through the halls. Only few guards doing their rounds, busy maids going about their daily tasks and an occasional courtier. I turned a corner finding the hallway empty, and took a quick glance over my shoulder. When I was sure that no one was behind me I slipped through a door to my right. The room was ill-lit despite having three large windows. Heavy curtains obscured any illumination from the sun leaving the room stale and draped in shadows. It was a sitting room that was seldomly used. A settee sat in the center of the room with a small table on either side. There were also a couple of upholstered armchairs that were seemingly out of place from what their original location in the room might have been. Framed paintings hung on both sides of the wall, each about six feet tall and four feet wide, depicting images of scenery. I walked over to wall at my right and ran my hand along the panels beside the painting, my fingers became coated in dust. I stopped and firmly pressed my palm against the wall at a particular spot where one of the panels opened with a click. I reached inside to flip the small switch behind the open piece of wood and heard a sudden creaking noise beside me. The wall behind the painting opened to a dark narrow passageway. I pressed the panel back into place and walked over to step into the darkness.

I stood with knees slightly bent, my hands pressed against the stone wall as I gazed through a small opening that gave me a view of the great hall where a council meeting was being held. The room was so large that the voices echoed enough for me to hear what was being said.

“Your Grace, this is the third sighting this month.” A grey-haired man who I recognized to be Elder Kinsley spoke from his seat at the large oak table. “These sightings have become more frequent in the past few months, before now there have only been two other reported occurrences.”

“Are we sure that we can consider the villager that reported those two sightings as being credible? In both of those cases the villager claimed that he saw a large winged beast in the sky flying high above him, so large that it casted as shadow. Other villagers in the area who know the man says spends far too many hours in the sun for his age, it is possible his vision has been impaired due the frequent exposure to sunlight. He may not have seen what he believes he saw.” This time the voice was a woman's

“That could be possible councilwoman Umbaro but we cannot overlook these recent sightings. One of which was made by several members of our own army,” Elder Kinsley replied.

“I had small group of soldiers who were traveling through the valley just yesterday all having claimed to have seen what looked like a dragon passing over them heading towards the mountains, they rode back here making no stops to give word. I could tell by the looks on their faces that they must have seen something monstrous. If they say they saw a dragon I believe them,” Commander Maddock spoke. He shifted slightly in his chair turning to wait for a response from my father, who sat in his tall chair at the end of the table, a stern and deliberate look crossed his face. They all waited in silence for him to speak, all fourteen members of the council eight men and six women. I was so engrossed in my eavesdropping that I hadn't noticed footsteps approaching behind me and was startled by a tap on my shoulder.

“I knew we would find you here,” Ari said in a triumphantly. I could barely see in the darkness but I could recognize her voice anywhere. I knew she was not enthusiast about having to brush through cobwebs in her search for me, but was likely just pleased to find that her effort was not in vain.

She had discovered me here plenty of times. I suggested she spy with me but she would always say how she simply did not care for politics or discussions that she had no actual say so in. I didn’t bother to argue with her about it, I knew most girls our age were more concerned with the latest fashion or scandalous gossip of court.

“We?” I asked. I turned to find Ari standing alone behind me.

“I'm here too,” exclaimed a muffled voice from somewhere in the blackness and then I saw a shadowy figure approaching. “Ow, did no one think to bring a lantern or maybe a candle?”

“No Felix you should know your way through these passages by now. It’s been what? Seven years? We have been doing this since we were ten,” Ari replied, slightly annoyed.

“Well, it's been about a year since I last walked through here, I barely remember anything.” Felix complained. “Have you still not been able to persuade your father to allow you to attend their council meetings?”

“I have asked him plenty of times and the answer is always the same. He says I should not have to worry myself with such matters, that I should enjoy life without being burdened with our kingdom's problems,” I sighed.

“What is so bad about that?” Ari asked. He wants you to live a happy life free from stress.”

“The kingdoms’ problems are my problems, as his heir I should be taking part in these discussions and helping find solutions to any issues that arise. It is my burden just as much as it is his, I do not want to be dismissed like I am an incompetent child.”

“Maybe he's just waiting until you come of age, you still have a year until your eighteenth birthday.”

“That could be the reason,” I said. though I was doubtful. “It's just that Rema and Leone were both sixteen when my father decided to include them into council meetings, I should be there right now seated at that table.”

“Your time will come,” Ari said. She placed her hand on my shoulder.

“But I guess until then Princess Amara, you’ll have to settle for gazing through the cracks in the wall,” Felix said jokingly. I turned to roll my eyes at him even though with the lack of lighting I knew he could barely see my expression.

“You are rolling your eyes at me right now, aren't you?” he said. “I can feel it.”

“You know me so well,” I replied sarcastically. He started to say something else but I stopped him abruptly upon hearing my father’s voice. “Shhh, I need to hear this.”

“I believe that those who witnessed to have seen a dragon is telling the truth. We have all heard the stories whether we believed them or not. It was said that dragons would roam in the valley once again and it seems that time has come,” My father said. His hands were placed flat on the table in front of him. He looked like a king who had both heard and seen the impossible. It was as though nothing really phased him.

“Your Grace, how can you be so sure that this isn't just some hoax to rile up the people?” Asked Elder Kinsley.

My father’s face showed no emotion. “Zorel,” he said flatly. There a few gasps followed by low murmurs among the council.

“Zorel has been dead for several years, how can this possibly have anything to do with him?” Another member of the council asked.

“He was in possession of a dragon stone that he claimed would give him access to another realm where he could then summon dragons. As for his death, he was gravely wounded, the blow from my sword should have been fatal but somehow, he mustered up enough strength to portal himself somewhere. He was there right before my eyes and then in a split second he was gone.”

“He just vanished? I thought you watched his lifeless body fall over the cliff into the sea?” Elder Kinsley questioned.

“That is what I said at the time, he was as good as dead. No one should have been able to survive being cut through as the way he was wounded. I withheld the truth because I knew it would only cause people to be fearful of his return and I needed to bring peace back to this kingdom. There was no point in raising alarm over a dead man.”

“How do you propose we handle this situation now Your Grace? If it is Zorel and he has summoned dragons he may be more powerful than he was in the past.”

My father clinched his fist then, when he spoke his voice was harsh. “We will track him down and this time I'll make sure I kill him.”

Several hours had passed, it was now after sunset. I walked through the castle halls towards my father’s study, the light from the sconces on the walls glowed. I wanted to ask him about what was discussed during the council meeting, I needed to know more. Was Zorel really alive? It had been over a decade since his death. I was around seven years old when it happened, as a child curiosity clung to me as the stories were whispered throughout court, his name occasionally being mentioned in a conversation. I could not understand how the man I once called Uncle and who would perform what some people saw as miracles and the harmless magic tricks that had made me smile in amazement was the same man who was being called a traitor that attempted to overthrow my father. I was filled with questions and when I was old enough, my father told me the story of Zorel’s demise. He was a sorcerer, brilliant, talented, and powerful was how my father described him. He and my father had been friends since childhood, my father regarded him as if he were his own brother. Zorel was his advisor, and his battle strategists during the war that happened before I was born. Their friendship became strained when Zorel started to abuse his position and power, using magic to manipulate people and inflict punishment on anyone he felt did not align with him or the crown. He let his power consume him, He had his own plans for our kingdom with new laws and when my father did not agree Zorel told that he was too weak to be king and sought out to replace him. There was a battle between them that ended in Zorel being killed by my father or at least that is what everyone believed until now. My father was not the same after that battle, neither was my mother too many lives were lost.

I stopped at a halt, so buried within my thoughts that I almost walked past my father's study. I knocked on the door, it was a special knock I had created so that he would always know it was me, I waited for him to answer.

“Come in” his voice boomed.

I stepped into the room and closed the door behind me. My father was looking down at his desk as he was writing, his hand moving swiftly across the documents that were before him. He looked up and gave a small smile, it was a genuine smile the wrinkles around his eyes stretched, he looked tired but I knew he would not allow himself to rest for several more hours.

“I wondered how long you would wait until you came to ask me about the topic of our council meeting today. But I’m sure you already know,” he said. His eyebrows lifted in question.

“Yes, I know. Though I wish that you would have allowed me to be there in person to hear it,” I frowned.

“It seems as though you are able to get the information you want perfectly fine without being in attendance, though I would rather you not snoop around the castles’ hidden passages to retrieve it.”

“Why show me them if you had no desire for me to use them? Weren’t they designed for snooping around?” I countered. Though I knew that was not actually why they were created.

“They were designed to create a way for us to move throughout the castle unseen, and escape if any of our enemies managed to get inside. Now that it is a possibility that Zorel...” His voice trailed off, he grimaced, his expression was a look of both pain and disgust. “If he is alive and responsible for the dragons reemerging then those passageways are not safe, he knows everywhere they lead. The castle is heavily guarded but him having control over dragons and the ability to use magic makes us vulnerable.”

“All the more reason I should be included in the council meetings. How am I supposed to be prepared for any potential danger that I do not know about? I am old enough. I am two years older than what Rema and Leone were when you allowed them to be part of the council.”

My father took a long breath. “It’s not your responsibly to prepare for any potential danger or for you to be involved in any way.”

“Why not? How am I supposed to be ready to rule this kingdom one day if you continue to keep me in the dark about these things, treating me like a child. I am the Heir to the throne,” I snapped as I succumbed to my annoyance.

“That is right! You are the Heir. My only Heir and it was never meant to be your responsibility,” he said voice raised. “I made a mistake with your brother and sister, I should not have allowed them into the council as soon as I did, or gave them the combat training that made them become so confident and eager to fight in a battle they were not ready for. I already lost two children fighting against Zorel I will not lose another.”

“I’m sorry,” I apologized now feeling guilty about pressing my father about the situation. It had been about ten years since my twin older siblings had died. They were the same age as I was now, seventeen. I missed them still, and thought about them every day, but as the years passed the memories from my childhood became more distant. For my father it had to be agony to have lost two children especially at the hands of a man we had all once trusted and considered family. My mother was never the same. After their death she barely socialized and was hardly ever seen. She stayed hidden away in her chambers buried in grief. She had recovered but not to her full ebullient and affectionate self. She always seemed distracted. Physically she was present but her thoughts and feelings were elsewhere. Whenever she gave me attention I was always coddled. She regarded me as though I was a most precious being who needed special care and attention while still putting enough distance between us that she could not form a deep emotional attachment.

“No, I’m Sorry,” My father spoke. “You are not a child and I should be preparing you to be the next ruler of this Kingdom. You are ready to take on more responsibilities as my heir, it is me who is not ready to accept that you have grown up.”

“Thank you, and I promise to be more patient,” I said sincerely. Though I could not help but chuckle at my own statement. We both knew patience was not a quality that I possessed.

“I doubt that’s possible,” he laughed and gestured over to the chair across from his desk. “Have a seat and I’ll tell you everything you want to know.”