The King of Nowhere

"There weren't always dragons in the valley." Grandpa whispered. You had to be quiet when speaking about the dragons- or the King may hear and his Guard would drag you to the Pits. Grandpa looked at the end of the alley where the street was full of people shuffling by, huddled together for warmth under the cold bleak winter sky as they walked. Grandpa licked his lips and they burned; they were cracked from telling this story to anyone who would listen. He didn't have much time. They had been tracking him as his story spread through the town like a savage wildfire. There was unrest among the people; they would soon find the source of the rumors.

Grandpa leaned forward. He had lived on the streets a long while during his hiding and all of the neighborhood kids of Nowhere called him Grandpa. He was proud of that fact, they all felt like his children too. The lines in his face told many stories, more than he could ever tell. Normally playful, his brown eyes were now serious. "Dragons had ruled the world long before our old King." He sneered the word with great distaste. This alone could have him dragged away. He looked at the end of the alley and continued, "The dragons have always been fierce creatures but they ruled the land fairly. Still our people wanted a home where no dragons roamed. Legends told of a lake that shimmered under the sun and glittered in the moonlight. A lake that no storm could cross." He looked up dreamily " A lake so full of trout and salmon." Grandpa looked back to the children energetically and he exclaimed, "So full and abundant was the lake that the fish would jump out into your arms." Grandpa grinned and mimed catching a fish out of the air and holding it like a trophy. The audience of children giggled delightedly and held up invisible fish of their own. His muscles groaned and Grandpa winced with age, slowly he lowered his arms to rest on his thighs. "We traveled far and faced many hardships until the lake was found-"

"Were you there Grandpa?" A grubby child had spoken, eyes full of wonder and dirt smeared across his face.

Grandpa nodded as patiently as a great oak tree. "I was." He looked up to the gray skies thoughtfully. "I am the last of the settlers alive today." He looked back at the street, as if reminded of something. "The King has made sure of that." He trailed off absentmindedly. Years of memories clouded his vision.

"What lake was it?" The boy asked impatiently. Patience comes with age and the child looked to be nearing ten.

Grandpa looked back from the street and smiled. "It was Lake Hallelujah." A sigh of excitement passed through the children. Every child knew that Lake Hallelujah had been the saving grace of the people who settled the town of Nowhere; the songs were sung every year at the King's Festival- an annual celebration in honor of the King.

During the search for the lake, starvation had crippled the settlers making them weak. Just when hope had become a phantom of the night, the lake had shown itself. Cradled in the arms of the vast mountain range, the band of ragged settlers had almost wandered past. A scout climbed the mountain to a ridge and spotted the lake. Looking down the face of the mountain, he exclaimed, "Hallelujah!" with such joy that the people knew that they were saved. The lake was named such because of the scout's exclamation and the combined sense of salvation the settlers had finally felt when gazing upon it. Lake Hallelujah held magic in its waves and gave the town of Nowhere everything they needed- food, water, shelter from storms, and most of all, an icon of a new-found hope. But the lake had turned sour years ago and refused to help the people any longer. The misdeeds of the King were to blame.

The old man sighed and the lines in his face looked deeper than his skin could allow. He stared at the dirt beneath his worn boots. "For many years, life was full of bliss. We were so happy then" he paused. "Until the King sealed the cave."

"The cave?" A murmur crept through the crowd. The cave was not common knowledge and for good reason. All the settlers of Nowhere knew of the cave and all of the settlers had since been found by the King.

"Yes. A cave. The cave a dragon dwelled in- Brooding Cave." Grandpa's excitement came back, the ever enthusiastic story-teller. "As I said, there weren't always dragons in the valley. When we first settled here it was decided that the mountains surrounding the lake were perfect to protect the valley from outside threats. Including dragons." Grandpa looked into each child's face. All were entranced, hanging on to each of his words. He continued, "Dragons were never seen in the valley, until ten years after our settlement had been built. We did not dare attack for it was a special breed of dragon. This wasn't an ordinary dragon that came to visit, no- it was a King Dragon." The children's eyes open wider in shock. King Dragons were a breed of dragon that ruled over all magical creatures in the land and even the other various breeds of dragons. King Dragons were extremely rare and had not been seen since the golden era of the valley- for good reason. A child in the back of the crowd slipped away to the street, unnoticed in the animation of Grandpa. Grandpa sat straighter, comprehending the seriousness of what he was about to tell them. He started to sweat, despite the cold- it was time to share this last tale. Although a tale it was not. It was true, and would soon become legend.

"There once was a dragon," Grandpa began, "That lived for a time over Lake Hallelujah on the Mountainside. He was the King of all dragons and ruled the lands; until he found humans had settled below his mountain with a King of their own. Content with living in peace, the Dragon King allowed the settlers to stay. He laid about his cave and slept during the day. He hunted outside of the valley and left farmer's livestock be. The land was peaceful but the townspeople were leery. The people had seen the destruction of dragons in their homeland and the King scaled the mountain to talk with the dragon. The dragon gave the human a scale filled with dragon magic for friendship and an oath that the town nor its people would be harmed. The dragon scale gave all the humans who lived in the kingdom of Nowhere the gift of magic. It was a great gift, for humans are creatures of the earth and cannot use magic. But the human King saw the horde of gold within the cave that the dragon lay and became filled with greed. The King devised a plan to steal the gold away from the dragon." All of the children watched in awe, surely they could see the mountain of gold in their minds.

Grandpa's old ears caught a faint noise in the distance. Through the winding streets and the sound of the townspeople's feet shuffling by, a soft 'Ting-Ting-Ting' of The Guard's metal armor could be heard far away; the rhythmic gait of the Guard's jog was impossible to ignore. "The King devised a plan," Grandpa rushed his words, he had to hurry now, "and when the dragon went hunting one night, the King crept in secret- knowing the people of Nowhere would not support his costly decision. The King used spells of magic to control his Guard to act as an extension of his own arm. Once under his control he used The Guard to climb high onto the mountain. Before the dragon could return, The Guard combined their energy for a spell to cause an avalanche that blocked the entrance to the cave!" The clinking of metal armor was louder now, there was no point in being quiet- Grandpa had been found out. "The King sealed the cave and stole all of the dragon's treasure, but little did he realize, there was much more in that cave than gold and jewels. Deep within the cave, an egg had been laid. For the Dragon King was not a King but a Queen." A gasp rippled through the children. Whispers of "An egg?" "A Queen?" could be heard from the children- some excited, some scared.

"Down there!" A boy yelled, his arm raised and pointing to Grandpa. The Guard had arrived at the mouth of the alley, many in their numbers. They filled the girth of the alleyway as they ran down toward the storyteller. A guard stopped before the boy that had slipped away earlier, the boy's arm still raised. "I left before he started the story!" The Guard's stare was blank, the King was inside his mind. "Please! I-I'm with the King!" The Guard's stare unwavering, his sword raised quickly into the air. Without hesitation, the boy was cut down and fell with a sickening thud into the muck.

Grandpa rose, standing above the children, his body bent with age. "The King has stolen a dragon's egg!" His voice raised into a shrill shout, "This is why our village is plagued by dragons! This is why our stores are empty and our children starve! This is why Lake Hallelujah refuses to feed us and protect us from storms! We must give the egg back!" The Guard was almost on him now. "I am the last of the settlers of Nowhere, I am the last of whom knows of the egg." A small smile crept over Grandpa's lips. "And now you do too." Just as he finished, silver appeared- a sharp rush of sword sprouting through Grandpa's chest. His sternum could be heard splitting with a crack as loud as crashing lightning. The sword grew like a silver flower from his chest until the hilt was pressed against the skin of Grandpa's back. A look of shock crossed Grandpa's face. Oddly, the children sat in silent horror. Grandpa looked down, a tear rolling from his eye and gaining momentum down a wrinkle in his face. He whispered softly, "The king has stolen an egg from the dragon Queen, and doomed Nowhere. The egg must be returned." Grandpa took an unsteady breath, "Run.. and don't let him.. catch you too." The sword was pulled roughly out and Grandpa fell to the cold ground. With his last breath, Grandpa's eyes saw as much as the Guard's and he felt as much as their touch did; he thought as many thoughts as their own minds. All was cold and all was dark.

Children scattered; screaming, crying and trying to avoid the reaching swords of The Guard. All while The Guard chanted, "There is no egg, do not fear. Our gracious King will protect Nowhere."

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A boy sat up in bed sweating and panting for air. His bed sheets were soaked with sweat from his nightmare. The memory he shoved down during the day continued to appear every night in his dreams. Grandpa's unseeing eyes bored into his soul- pleading with him to find a way to save the people of Nowhere. 'But how?' The boy thought desperately. He had barely escaped the alleyway that day with his life, let alone the scar to mark his cheekbone- missing his left eye by a thumb's width. That was nearly ten years ago; and everyday since the King had grown in power and his Guard had grown larger.

There had to be a way. Grandpa would not stop visiting his dreams and, despite what the King and his Guard said, the boy believed in the dragon egg. The entire world was in despair. Magical creatures were at war with one another since the disappearance of the King Dragons, a race of dragons so powerful that they ruled the world justly. Unable to sleep, he laid back into his bed and stared into the darkness. 'I will find a way to return the dragon egg Grandpa, I promise. Then the world will be at peace and there will be no more need for The Guard. Lake Hallelujah will bless us once more.' With his silent vowed in tact, the boy was allowed to drift off to sleep. Visions of a peaceful kingdom flowed before his eyes- where the people of Nowhere and magical creatures, including dragons, lived in peace. A kingdom, without the mistakes of the King.