A Dragon's Tale Ch. 04

Chapter 4: It's always darkest before dawn

* * *

Beth skipped down the corridor, which was no small feat considering she was carrying an armful of books. She hummed a joyous tune as she went; she was engaged to a good man! Finally! In the months since she'd become eligible, her suitors had been of increasingly questionable character.

It was ironic. She had always dreamed of being rescued from an evil dragon by a gallant knight. Instead, she had been rescued from an evil knight by a gallant dragon. And despite being a dragon, Ethan seemed as wonderful as any man.

And -- if the stories were true -- she was in for quite a treat on their wedding night. She felt a familiar sensation in her loins at the thought. Her fingers were nice, but her maids were clear that fingers were no match for a man who knew what he was doing. She hoped Ethan knew, but she was more than willing to let him practice on her after they were married.

She imagined lying in bed as her gallant dragon lay on top of her, kissing her and telling her how much he adored her and how beautiful she was. She wasn't quite sure what the kiss would feel like, but she imagined it would be wonderful. Then he would remove her dress and make sweet love to her in the candlelight.

Beth stopped at the door to her room and juggled the books around so she could open it. Two near book drops later, she was inside and nestled in her favorite reading corner. The sun had just come up, and she could barely believe that only a few hours before she had been riding Ethan as he soared through the sky. She grabbed the top book on the pile -- entitled "A Complete History of Dragons" -- and started to read.

She was nearly halfway through the book when a knock at the door broke her concentration.

"Who is it?" Beth called.

"Alana Staff-Maker to see you my lady." The butler called

"Let her in."

The door opened and Alana walked in and the door closed behind her. She looked... odd. She was wearing the same knee-length green dress and her hair looked brushed. However, her face looked decidedly the worse for wear. Her eyes were slightly red and oddly sad.

"Hi." Beth jumped up, ran to her, and held out her arms. "You look like you could use a hug."

Alana gave her a half smile before accepting Beth's hug. Beth wasn't sure what else to do, so she gave Alana the best hug she could manage. After almost a minute, Alana pulled back.

"Thanks." Alana said. "I needed that."

"Any time. But what's wrong? You look like your favorite pet just died."

Alana tried to laugh but failed miserably, which made Beth clap her hands over her mouth. "It didn't... did it? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."

"No one died." Alana said, and this time she managed a small but genuine smile. "I just came to say something and then I'm off to your father's enchanting shop, which enchants things for the bank. He offered me a job since I helped rescue your brother." She added at Beth's quizzical expression.

"I just wanted to ask you to be the best wife you can possibly be to Ethan. He's a wonderful person and deserves..." She stopped and seemed to get choked up. "I'm sorry, I'm not... I have a scratchy throat."

"Did you want some tea with honey?" Beth asked, unsure as to what was really going on.

"No, I'm fine. Just... Just take care of him for me, would you?"

"It would be my honor, but why..." Beth started to say, and then it clicked in her mind. "Wait, you two aren't... I mean you're not... Are you?"

"It's complicated." Alana replied.

"You're in love with him." Beth covered her mouth with her hand.

"No I'm not." Alana said flatly, but there was no conviction behind her voice. "I mean, of course he's a good man and I like him as a friend. And he saved my life a few times, but that doesn't mean I'm... you know... interested."

"I won't tell a soul." Beth promised.

"Thank you."

"So, why are you asking me to take care of him if you..." Beth started to say, and then it dawned on her. "Oh. Because I'm going to marry... and you want to... I'm so sorry Alana." Her face fell as she realized the position that the wonderful wood elf was in.

"It's not your fault." Alana said. "Ironically, I have only myself to blame. I was the one who suggested we try and rescue you and your brother in the first place."

"But still."

"Playing the 'what if' game won't help." Alana said. "What's done is done. While we can learn from it and do better in the future, we still have to live with it."

"I'll be the best wife to Ethan I possibly can." Beth said. "I promise."

Alana's eyes grew watery again. "Thank you. I... I have to go."

She gave the blonde a half-hearted smile and then left the room.

Beth returned to her reading corner but -- for the first time in her life -- she didn't have the heart to pick up a book. It felt like someone had dumped a bucket of cold water on her fantasies of a romantic wedding and passionate wedding night. Alana had saved her life, and here she was stealing her man-- err, dragon.

It didn't seem right to Beth, but she didn't see a way around it. She briefly considered refusing to marry Ethan, but then remembered her promise to Alana. She couldn't keep her promise without marrying Ethan, which would make the wood elf miserable.

When did life get so complicated?

* * *

Rachel Delmar was in a truly foul mood, or at least she thought she was. It was getting hard to tell these days.

She was saddle-sore from riding non-stop for way too long. She had stopped only to switch between the several horses she'd taken from Wurven's men. Changing mounts and riding hard had allowed her to travel from the forest to Gralden in less than a day.

She was glad that the dragon and his companions had escaped. She also hated them for escaping. They needed to be tortured for daring to fight against Lord Delmar because... because...

She didn't know why.

Rachel shook her head trying to clear it. She needed to find and kill them. Slowly. She needed to make an example out of them for anyone who would challenge her father.

But what had they done that was so bad?

Despite her best efforts, thoughts of revenge and gruesome death flitted through her mind.

She rode into the city and sold all but one of the horses, which she boarded at a stable for a few days. She was almost positive that the dragon would have returned here. The town gossip about the banker's daughter and son returning the previous night confirmed it. The town crier let everyone know Lord Borden was planning an announcement for late that afternoon.

Rachel hoped the dragon would be there so she could kill him, but there would be guards -- some of whom might be mages -- and she wasn't very good with a bow. She figured she'd wait until the announcement and plan from there.

Noon couldn't come soon enough.

Several hours of conflicted brooding later, Rachel was in the town square with hundreds of other people. Lord Borden stood on a raised platform, flanked by his wife, children, guards, and a man Rachel didn't recognize.

"Thank you all for coming." Lord Borden said. "As you all probably know by now, we have a hero in our midst."

Lord Borden waved the man forward. The man looked ordinary in every way; almost too ordinary. He was the average height, average build, and was wearing the most average clothing, with the average hair color, length, and style. Rachel would've bet her right arm it was the dragon using a disguise gem. She used a drop of mana to look deeper and could indeed see that his current form was magically generated.

Lord Borden continued. "This man saved my children from the bandits that have plagued our city for many months. Furthermore, he slaughtered them to a man. You no longer need to fear them thanks to this man!"

At this pronouncement, the entire town square erupted into wild cheers and applause.

The applause died down when Lord Borden raised his hand. "True to my word, he shall receive an honorable position at The Bank for his services. Further, he has captured the heart and hand of my daughter Elizabeth. They shall be married within a fortnight."

Rachel swore under her breath as the whole square erupted into wild cheers and applause again.

Two weeks.

She had only had two weeks before the wedding -- when security would be strained because of extra guests -- to plan an infiltration. Worse, the dragon would have two weeks of access to a massive pile of gold, which could make him harder to kill. She mulled this over as the applause died down.

Lord Borden motioned the disguised dragon and Beth forward so they were standing in front of him facing each other, and then he turned to the disguised dragon. "Will you promise to marry my daughter and treat her with honor until your marriage?"

The dragon took a deep breath and then spoke. "I will."

Rachel couldn't help noticing he didn't look very excited for a man about to marry a beautiful and extremely wealthy woman with powerful family connections.

Lord Borden turned to Beth. "Will you promise to marry this man and treat him with honor until your marriage?"

"I will." Beth replied. There was a wide smile on her face, though she too didn't look perfectly contented.

"According to our ancient customs, betrothal binds two souls to be married by sacred contract." Lord Borden continued. "A contract so sacred only divorce may break their betrothal. Therefore, to make the betrothal complete, it will be sealed with a proclamation of love."

Lord Borden nodded to the dragon. Ethan took a deep breath and then leaned forward to kiss Beth on the lips. Rachel had been expecting a typical betrothal kiss where the couple usually dragged it out, as they wouldn't be allowed another kiss until the wedding ceremony.

But this was subtly different.

The dragon kissed her tenderly, but very briefly. It was long enough to be a proper sealing of the betrothal, but stopped short of a couple in love. Rachel could see a flicker of disappointment on Beth's face, though she had worn a look of bliss while their lips had been joined.

"The betrothal is complete." Lord Borden announced. The crowd erupted into cheers and applause again. He waited until they died down before continuing.

"Please join me in wishing them the best. May Illuminar watch over you both and bless your marriage with wealth, health, and many children."

After that, everyone on the platform bowed and left, while the crowd slowly dispersed to go about their day.

Rachel was conflicted. Her heart went out to Beth for that kiss. It was clear to her that although the dragon liked her, he wasn't in love with her. However, she was clearly smitten with the man she would marry.

Then something inside of her clicked.

The dragon would marry Beth.

Instantly, Rachel felt an overwhelming urge to maim and kill her. She fought the urge harder than any impulse she had felt before. Her mind went back and forth, as the skin under her ring began to itch.

She fought silently with herself for an hour before the compulsion began to gain ground. Lord Delmar would want her to kill Beth. She knew that. She'd seen him do the same to countless enemies over the years. Killing someone intimately close made a rival sloppy, which Lord Delmar always exploited.

But to hurt Beth...

Something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong. She couldn't put her finger on it though. It was like something in her head diverted her attention every time she tried to figure it out. A few years ago, she had found it hard to kill spiders because she didn't want to hurt them. Now she was planning murder...

Something was definitely wrong.

* * *

Anthiel found herself getting lost in the flow of the music. She let her fingers flit over the harp's strings and allowed the tune to take her wherever it willed. She had lost track of the time she'd been playing when some thunderous applause and cheers erupted from the town square outside.

Anthiel sighed. Lord Borden must be announcing Beth's engagement. She waited until the noise subsided and began to play again.

Not long after, she stopped because of a less deafening, but equally intrusive sound, and perked up her pointy ears to listen. It sounded like someone was crying. She stepped away from her harp and followed the sound. It took her several minutes to find the source.

It was a wood elf dressed in a knee-length green dress in fabric that resembled leaves. She was short but pretty with rich, chocolate-brown hair. She was seated on the floor of an out-of-the-way closet with her arms wrapped around her legs. Her eyes were puffy and red, tears flowing freely down her cheeks. There was a large wet spot on her dress, and she had clearly been crying for some time.

"Hello dear." Anthiel said.

The wood elf looked up and tried to hide her face, but instead burst into another round of sobs. Anthiel squeezed into the closet and sat down beside her.

"Let it out." She said comfortingly as she put her arm around the wood elf. "Anything that feels so bad shouldn't be kept inside."

The wood elf cried into her shoulder for a whole minute before she composed herself.

"I'm sorry."

"For what? You've done nothing wrong." Anthiel replied kindly. "What's your name?"

"Alana." The wood elf said between sobs.

"Alana. That's a pretty name. Now what could be so wrong?"

"It's nothing. It's stupid."

"Anything that would make a woman cry like this while hiding in a closet is hardly stupid."

"It's just..." Alana said through the tears. "There's a... I haven't known him a whole fortnight, but he just... he saved my life and I thought that I-- I mean that we... and he loves me but he got betrothed today and... It wasn't his fault and I'm just... I don't know what to do. It's just so stupid. We just met."

Anthiel pulled her closer. "At least you're not bonded with him. That would be..." she trailed off at the sudden look of fresh pain on Alana's face.

"Oh no. You are bonded to him, aren't you?"

Alana nodded again. Her tears, which had stopped flowing, began to trickle down her cheek again.

"Wine." Anthiel said. "You need wine, lots of strong wine. Fortunately, ship-masters get a huge discount at Lord Borden's pub."

"You're a ship master?" Alana asked.

"Yes, Anthiel Cloud-Song at your service. I captain Lord Borden's personal airship, or I will when it finally launches. Now, what do you say to that drink?"

After some gentle coaxing, the heartbroken elf consented to leave the closet and join her at the nearest tavern. She pushed around her mulled mead while they talked, barely drinking any of it. Anthiel was on her fourth tankard of mead before she managed to draw a genuine smile from the distraught wood elf, mostly by telling stories about her children when they were little.

"Your family sounds lovely." Alana said after taking another sip of the mead.

"They are." She eyed Alana's still mostly full mug. "You know, drinking to drown your sorrows only works if you actually drink?"

"So you keep telling me."

"It's been true every time."

The little wood elf took another sip of her mead. "I wish I could find a family like that." She shook her head.

"Maybe you're not looking in the right place?"

"I didn't mean starting a family, I meant the way you talk about your family. I never had siblings and I always wanted some sisters. I always thought being one of seven sisters would be neat."

"Oh?" Anthiel said, hoping to keep her talking.

"My parents didn't have any other children at home when they raised me, but I always wanted..." she got a faraway look in her eye. "It's funny, the day I met Ethan I was wishing for a few sisters and a good man. I guess you don't always get what you want."

"One of my daughters is about your age; I can introduce you the next time she visits me."

Alana appeared to get very choked up and her eyes became watery. "Thank you. That would be... that would be great."

They talked long into the night. The more they talked, the more Anthiel was impressed by the young elf. She was very mature for her age, had a sharp mind and a very big heart. She was truly one of the most delightful women the airship captain had met in her long life.

If both her sons weren't already married, she might have tried to set one of them up with the wood elf. She almost wanted to anyway since they lived outside Lord Borden's lands where polygyny was more accepted by the lords. Lord Borden had a particular disliking of it, but no other lord did. She knew the wood elf would never be happy with anyone but Ethan though.

By the time Alana wanted to turn in, Anthiel was ready to find this dragon who had broken her heart and deck him; hard. Sadly, that wouldn't help anything and she wasn't given to needless violence anyway. She did resolve to put the fear of Illuminar in him if he ever set foot on her airship. Not that she'd hurt him, but a little intimidation and a few threats might serve the idiot whelp good, and hopefully teach him a lesson in the process.

* * *

Ethan thought there was something surreal in having dinner with Beth's family. She was a wonderful woman and he liked her a lot. But he missed Alana. How he'd fallen for her so completely in the short time they had known each other, he'd never know. When he thought about life without her, it was just...

He couldn't believe it.

Seriously.

Some part of him refused to believe she would be out of his life forever. Something about the idea sounded so completely impossible. It felt blatantly and categorically untrue, like someone saying the sky was red, the grass was blue, and rocks were made of cheese. He had this certainty that she wouldn't be gone from his life forever. Despite all evidence to the contrary, he just couldn't believe they wouldn't end up together.

It just didn't feel true, even though itlooked true right now.

After the betrothal ceremony, he spent the evening with Beth and her parents. She had been cautiously cheerful the whole time and did her best to keep his spirits up. He really appreciated it and genuinely enjoyed her company. She was a lovely girl, but he wasn't feeling very cheerful.

Her parents had peppered him with questions as to where he came from, but Ethan answered half-heartedly and with few details. They were very nice and welcoming, her mother especially, but her father was more reserved and eyed Ethan occasionally in a manner that was a bit unsettling.

They showed him around their impressive mansion before setting out a lavish feast before him at dinner, served by some of their many servants. The food was exquisite but just felt 'blah' in his mouth. He would've preferred dry bread and water with Alana to a feast without her. Though, having Beth at this imaginary feast would be nice too.

He missed the wood elf so much already and she hadn't been gone a whole day. He knew it was strange, but assumed it was partially because of their bond. Quite beside his own pain, he could feel sadness and grief coming from Alana. He hadn't looked at their bond -- he had respected her request -- but the emotions were so strong they were hard to miss.

Oddly, she seemed more upset about his absence than his marriage to Beth.

"Ethan." Beth touched his arm.

"Huh, what?" he looked around the table to see everyone staring at him. "Sorry, my mind wandered."

"Do try to keep your mind on what's in front of you." Lord Borden said significantly with a glance toward Beth.

"I will sir."

"Daddy was just asking when you wanted to start at The Bank." Beth said.

"Is there any chance I could start tonight?" he asked, thinking gold would be a welcome distraction from missing Alana.

Lord Borden nodded. "Absolutely. I have great plans for you in The Bank, assuming your nature stays under control. I can hardly think of anyone who would guard the gold more diligently; can you?"