Heritage Ch. 02

Here is the second installment it is just back ground information. I am sorry about the short chapter I promise they do get longer. I hope you all Enjoy the chapter please vote and comment.

I would like to thank everyone who read, voted and commented.

Thank you Phoenixbreez for her wonderful editing skills my story would not be half as good without her. Thank you Resapoo for all your help. thank you Mokkelke, Fatality, Lostchicken for proofing and telling me that I screwed up.

Now for the chapter...

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Greagor's mind wandered back to when he first met his daughter. He had decided to celebrate his promotion to arch-wizard by visiting a couple of comrades at the main compound of the Order of The Dragon. He figured the trip was just what he needed, as the weather was nice and the compound was roughly a week's walk to the North.

The first three days of the trip were pleasant and relaxing. On the afternoon of the fourth day, everything changed. Just as he was just about to reach the top the last hill on his path, he heard the distinct sounds of battle. Reading himself, Greagor slowly crept over to the crest of the hill. Peering over he saw several Orc's in the valley below him. What he saw them doing both incensed yet sickened him. A large Orc was beheading a man; the body already had several arrows embedded in the body. A few yards to the left, he saw a woman desperately trying to defend a baby from three more. From his vantage point, he could see that the woman had suffered several grievous wounds.

Greagor chanted a spell quickly allowing him to control the large Orc's mind. Commanding the Orc, he sent it to attack the other three that were assaulting the woman. Greagor watched while the large Orc cleaved one of the others cleanly in half. The large Orc then stabbed one of the two remaining in the chest caused it to bellow out a scream of pain. Before it was able to withdraw its sword from the chest the remaining Orc standing near the woman sliced the large Orc across the stomach, effectively disemboweling it. The slash caused the internal organs and a large amount of blood to spew out on to the ground in front of the larger Orc. Watching the large Orc fall, Greagor chanted another spell targeting the last Orc by the women. Greagor viewed the Orc as it grabbed its head, screaming as blood poured out its ears, eyes, nose, and mouth. Eyes rolling back in its head the creature fell to the ground never to move again. The remaining Orc's could not comprehend what had happened, afraid they dropped their weapons and ran for their lives. Greagor allowed them to retreat.

Greagor headed down the hill towards the woman to assist her and the child. The woman was bleeding badly while doing her best to cradle the baby in one arm, holding a sword with the other.

"Stay back!" The woman shouted." You will not take my child."

"Lady I am not going to harm you or the child; please let me help you." Greagor pleaded softly. Arms open, palms uppermost to show her he meant no harm. He approached slowly but deliberately.

The blood lost was taking a heavy toll on her strength; she was waning fast. Dizziness claimed her and she could no longer stay standing. She dropped the weapon then collapsed on to her knees. She was pleading fervently with the man walking toward her. "I know I will not survive. Please help my baby. Keep her safe, raise her, and love her as your own!"

Greagor rushed forward as she spoke slowly lowering her fully to the ground. He took the baby from her arms laying her gently beside her mother. He could see the pain in the woman's eyes. Greagor chanted a spell to make her mind forget she was in pain he proceeded to cut her dress away so he could have assess the wounds. He worked as fast as he could. Greagor bound the wounds to curtail her blood loss. Finally having gotten all the wounds bound and cleaned up he had her drink a broth he had stored in his pack.

Despite his best efforts, he knew she would not live long. The damage was just too severe, too much blood had been lost, and she was getting weaker. Over the next few hours she started running a fever, he did everything he had known to try to get it to break. He even considered trying to move her to the next town along the road but did not think she would survive the trip. Sometime during the night of the second day, the woman's fever was down making her coherent enough for him to gleam some information from her. He managed to get her name, Kindra. She was a member of the Oaken River Circle, and her father was the circle leader. He found out that the man who had been slain was her husband Roshin. Roshin had been a knight sworn to protect the circle. They had fallen in love four years prior and were married sometime after. When she got pregnant, both families had been delighted but Roshin's parents had not seen the child so they had decided to go visit his family. Kindra told him the baby's name was Melinda and she was born eleven days before the attack. While Kindra had started to tell him about her life with Roshin Greagor made some more broth. He had truly hoped that this rallying was a good sign for her.

Unfortunately by the next morning the fever had returned and she was sicker the ever. She went through bouts of delirium in between bouts of unconsciousness. The few times she was awake and coherent she made him swear to take her of her baby to love and raise her. She would agonize about the loss of her husband, about leaving her daughter alone. He promised her repeatedly to care for, love and protect her daughter as if she were his own. He vowed he would teach her of her heritage and her parents. He further promised to get into contact with both their families to let them know of their fate. He cared for her as best as he could, watching as she progressively grew weaker by the hour. On the fourth day, he held her hand as Kindra passed quietly into the next life.

Greagor came out of his revelations, noticed his eyes were wet even after all of these years it still made him choke up when he allowed himself time to remember. He set there for a couple minutes getting his emotions under control before he looked over at the most important people in his life. The daughter he had raised watching her grow into a strong young woman. He was so proud of her. Then there was his wife, the love of his life. He looked around the camp and knowing everything was all right; slowly got lost in his memories again.

Greagor had wanted to give his daughter a way to see what her parents looked like in life so he found a small mirror, using his magic he created a perfect likeness of her birth parents in the mirror. It had taken most of the day to build a proper pyre for Kindra and her husband. While preparing Roshin body he noticed the arrows that the Orc's. He noted they were magically imbued to kill someone with god's blood in them.

At sunset, he fulfilled his promise and burned them together after praying that they would find the peace they were denied in this life in the next. He swore a blood oath to both of them to raise and care for their daughter as his own and that he would make sure she knew how much they loved her. He tended the fire for three days, as was her family tradition, only allowing it to burn out on the fourth day.

Greagor knew he had to get moving soon. He had been using his magic to convert water to milk for the baby. He had no idea if what he was doing was right; feeding the baby until she seemed full and content, he used what he could find to in his pack to cover the baby. In his past he had stared up in to the face of a horned demon and was not as scared then as much as, he was now faced with trying to care for this precious little bundle. Every time he looked at her, he fell more in love with her.

Greagor recalled how he rushed towards the next town where his old friend Primos lived. Whatever had possessed him to think a male dragon would know anything about raising a fey child was beyond his grasp. Looking back, he realized though Primos did not know anything his wife Gretchen did. Within twenty minutes of his arrival, she managed to come up with a wet nurse that would be able to nurse the child proper. She then arranged for him to hire a woman that would willingly teach him the finer aspects of child rearing. He was forever indebted to Elizabeth for everything she helped him with during Melinda's first fifty years of life. Elizabeth was still one of his closest friends and Melinda's godmother. Elizabeth had remained in Melinda's life up until they fled from their home world.

He was jarred out of his memories when he heard his wife stirring. She had been sleeping fitfully and started to cry out in her sleep, she calmed after he talked to her soothingly. Even though he knew there was nothing more he could do right now, he wished he could at least do something more to lesson her pain.

As he was about to settle back down when he heard a noise alerting him something had triggered his wards, warning him someone or something was approaching the camp. The wards also woke up his daughter who immediately grabbed one of the bows and knocked an arrow. Greagor chanted a spell to grant him and his daughter better night vision. Readied a sword, he got up to move to a better position.

Peering out into the forest to try to ascertain what triggered his wards, he saw a glowing reddish-orange ball streaking towards them at incredible speed. He heard Melinda scream out to him.

"FIREBALL!"