The Innocent

Chapter One

A woman banged on the door of the chamber. She was ignored. She screamed. The guards suddenly realized what was good for them, and for their ears, banged on the door in return, and shouted,

“Shut up in there! Silence, I say!” She refused to be silenced, however, and continued to shout, and plead, for help. The guards, realizing the pursuit was futile, went back to being indifferent to the noise.

The acting king of Meon, the land of women, had imprisoned her here, for the “crime” of having a male child. Her husband was only to be the king for a brief period of time. Female children inherited the throne. Males were to be treated as second class citizens, under the Great Code of Law, and the monarchs were not allowed to have male children, although the other citizens faced no such restrictions. If the monarch did have a male child, the child would be imprisoned for life, along with monarch. So, here she was. Therefore, her husband, acting monarch of the realm of Meon, had held to his oath, and ordered her imprisoned for life. She cared not for her own future, but for the future of her dear son, Mark.

Suddenly, she heard a body dropping to the floor. And then another. And another. This continued until she assumed the six guards posted outside of the chamber had fallen to the floor. Still, she had no way to be sure, but she erred toward cautiousness. She knew better than to scream, knowing it would alert the presence outside of her existence, so she simply waited, hoping she would remain unnoticed. She gasped, therefore, when she saw a member of the resistance group, Boreal, or the North Wind, stepping through the door.

“Hello, my queen.”

“Why are you here?” The masked being laughed lightly.

“To rescue you, of course, m’ lady.”

“Why? What have I ever done for you?”

“Nothing. But you are invaluable to us.”

“Invaluable? I am useless now.”

“Believe me, no one is ever useless, least of all you. We must not dally, however. I will explain everything as soon as we have escaped. Your husband will send guards to investigate this disturbance soon enough.” The former queen leapt up; the bundle that was her son tucked safely under her left arm. However, she noticed that there was a major flaw in the plan.

“You do realize that there are only three of us, one an infant, and hundreds of guards?”

“Yes, and that is why we must not dally!” They ran from the chamber, down a long hallway, then another, until finally they reached a secret entrance. The resistance member tapped a nook in the wall, and it slid open to reveal an earthen tunnel. They ran into it, and continued running for the next half hour, until they reached another wall. The resistance member tapped the wall gently with its finger, and it moved aside, revealing a forested landscape. They could hear the clamor of numerous guards behind them, causing the former queen and her liberator to run into the forest with all haste. They ran into the forest, the guards, of which there were at least ten, on their heels. They ran, and ran, deeper, and deeper into the wild undergrowth of the forest, the guards right behind them. Suddenly, the former queen tripped and fell, landing face first in the muck, the bundled baby flying from her arms, lost in the undergrowth. The resistance member backtracked, trying to lift her up, but he could not move her. She had landed roughly, and fainted. Before they knew it, the guards were upon them. Using whatever means necessary, they subdued the resistance member. The Captain of the Guard, a tall woman, seeing the former queen, and resistance member laying bound, and gagged upon the dirt floor, smiled.

“Bring Queen Eleanor, and that scum back to the palace. Make haste!” The other guards, all females, rushed to obey her orders. The baby was utterly forgotten. Within minutes the female guards carried the former queen, and the resistance member off in the direction of the palace, leaving the poor baby behind, surely to perish in some gruesome manner. The baby wailed, cried, and screamed, yet no one heard him. That is, nobody heard him, yet something heard him.

A small, white bearded, yellow dragon, its scaly skin wizened with age, came crashing through the woods, intrigued, and saddened by the sound of the infant’s misery. Upon seeing the child, the dragon’s heart was cleaved in two. The dragon was not harmless, yet he detested hurting people, even though he could do it if the need arose. The dragon picked up the wailing infant in its small claw, and slowly began to retrace its steps through the forest. After a long, and tiring walk, the dragon, and the infant, arrived at the dragon’s den. As soon as they arrived, the dragon curled up, and fell asleep. The baby stopped crying, and soon fell asleep as well.

Chapter Two

King Alfred paced anxiously. What would the people think of him now that he had lost his own son in the forest? There was a dragon in the forest for goodness sakes, although it rarely injured anybody, thus it was left alone. Now he found himself stuck in a corner, with no other options other than sending fully armed battalions into the forest to retrieve the boy. And for what purpose? The boy was to be imprisoned for life anyway. King Alfred sighed wearily. There was still time yet. He called to the guard outside his chambers.

“Summon my wife.”

“Yes m’ lord.” He heard no motion.

“Now!” he bellowed.

“Yes, your majesty. With all haste.” This time he heard motion and sat down in his over-stuffed armchair by the roaring fire. Soon his wife, formerly Queen Eleanor, stood before of him.

“Eleanor, dear, what happened to the boy?” he said in a dangerously quiet voice.

“I dropped him Alfred, as I told you the first time you questioned me.”

“And you left him there to die?” the king bellowed.

“This seems good for you, does it not, Alfred?” she said, ignoring the question which obviously weighed upon her heart. “Now you need not kill an innocent child, the act might have been done for you. And, even if the child survives, he will never know your crimes.” The king resisted the urge to strike her.

“No, dear, it is not good for me, because now the people know that I cannot even manage my own imprisoned wife and child! Do you think that will increase their confidence in me?”

“No, and good riddance.” The king once again resisted the urge to strike her.

“You are dismissed. I have gleaned all I could from you. Leave now.”

“Yes m’ lord.” As soon as she had left, he pounded the arm of his chair in rage. He would do anything, including putting up a million Dwallic ransom, a fortune, all to find the boy. He had already sent two armed battalions into the forest to kill the irritating dragon, and to retrieve the boy alive. Then he would imprison them. He and his mother.

***

The small, yellow, bearded dragon awoke with a roar. There were soldiers in its den! It leapt to its feet, causing the baby to fall on the floor, and begin crying anew. The dragon leapt up, and took to the air, lighting the soldiers alight in yellow flames. The screams of dying soldiers filled the air, drowning out the screams of the poor infant. While the dragon was occupied, a soldier crept up behind the fearsome dragon and stabbed it in the back, the scales being too old to halt the fatal blow. The flow of fire ceased, and a choking sound filled the air. The dragon fell from the air, dead before it collapsed on the ground, its scales a sickly gray hue. And, quick as that, the battle had concluded. The guards laughed in delight and picked up the bawling baby. They left the den, not bothering to retrieve the bodies of their fallen comrades and rode off into the night.

“Good work, Captain.” said King Alfred when they returned to the palace. “You have pleased me. Your reward will be delivered to you on the morrow.”

“Thank you, my king.” the captain said proudly. This victory put her quite high up on the political chain, leaving her as a candidate to be considered for the monarchy. The king knew this and despised her. In fact, he had already signed the warrant for her death on fake charges, all unbeknownst to the captain of the guard. She was to be executed tomorrow, along with the king’s wife, son, and the Member of the Boreal.

“You may go, Captain.”

“Yes, my king.” She turned on her heel and left.

The next morning, dawned clear, and bright, the smell of rain in the air. King Alfred awoke and stretched and prepared for the execution of the traitor taking place that morning. He dressed, and followed by an honor guard, a tradition of the people of Meon, walked to the dining room. He ate his breakfast in silence. After he had completed this task, he walked to the field in front of the palace, where the execution was to take place.

First, the screaming Captain of the Guard was brought forth, and the noose looped around her neck. The floor opened beneath her. Her screams suddenly ceased.

Next, the masked member of the Boreal was brought to the podium.

“Unmask him!” the king called. The soldier complied; the mask was ripped from the resistance member. They saw his face clearly, and the king nearly fainted. His brother, Maxime, stood there with a noose around his neck. He began to speak, saying,

“My brother the king has betrayed you! He seeks only personal gain. When we were children, we were swimming in a pond, laughing, and splashing. Suddenly, something grabs me! And do you know how my brother reacted? He swam away without a second thought and stood there laughing on the embankment. This time he showed his lust for power by killing the Captain of the Guard, who threatened his power! Kill the king and replace him with a suitable candidate!” General consent flickered through the crowd, as echoes of “Kill the king!” were heard. The guard next to the king suddenly grabbed him by the arm, and threw him from the palace balcony, into the waiting arms of the mass of people beneath. The king was jostled as the crowd forced him to the podium, removed the noose from the king’s brother’s neck, and placed it around the king’s own neck. Ignoring the screams of protest from the king, the wooden ground opened, seeming to swallow the king alive. The king’s screams suddenly halted, and his limp body swung beneath the gallows.

The queen’s sister was designated as the new queen, and life began anew for the people of Meon, free from tyranny, until the end of days, when the Great Dragon would return to destroy the earth with its fiery breath, according to legend.