A Dragon's Tale Ch. 04

The moment Alana suggested that the gold belonged to someone else, a mask of pure rage and hate covered Ethan's face. She saw too late that Ethan's dragon nature had fully taken over.

"HOW DARE YOU!" he shouted as his face twisted into a mask of rage.

This wasn't Ethan.

This was the dragon.

He raised his spear and lunged forward, the tip pointed straight at her heart... but the spear's tip stopped just short of her breast. She could feel the tip just brushing her dress.

She stood her ground.

He was breathing heavily, which came out as a series of noises that were halfway between a grunt and a snarl. He seemed to be fighting with himself, and the turmoil coming over their bond was proof.

Just two weeks ago, if someone had told her a dragon could restrain itself around gold like this, she wouldn't have believed him. After all her conversations with Drousin, she didn't think one could. Yet Ethan was doing it.

She smiled.

When she did, the dragon blinked several times as if to clear its head.

"Alana?" Ethan looked at the spear pointing at her, and then dropped it like it was a poisonous snake. "What's... what's wrong with me?"

"Gold Ethan; it's the gold."

"My gold." The dragon hissed.

"It's not your gold."

Ethan disappeared, replaced by the dragon as it raised a clawed hand as if to maul her. She locked eyes with him and stood her ground. His hand faltered, still raised high for a strike. Slowly, he lowered his hand and began stalking around her, circling like the seagoing sharks she'd often heard of.

"Ethan, you can't stay here forever."

"Why not!" the dragon snapped.

"It's not your gold."

The dragon was clearly irate, yet didn't seem able to hurt her. He stepped right into her personal space, which was rather intimidating considering he was nearly twice her size. Cold fury was written in his eyes, but he made no move to hurt her. She took a step back and he continued to advance, so she took another couple steps back.

It wasn't until she felt a tiny bit of pressure -- that felt like a thin cord or wire -- on the back of her leg that she realized her mistake.

She had stepped off the main walkway.

THWANG!!!

Her shoulder exploded in pain.

The dragon's eyes bulged, clearly as shocked as she was. She looked down to see a crossbow bolt sticking through her shoulder. If she wasn't so short, it would've gone through her heart. She started to feel a little lightheaded as blood ran from the wound.

She collapsed forward and Ethan -- not the dragon, but Ethan -- caught her.

"Are you okay!?"

She felt a little loopy, dreamy, and sleepy. "I'm better now." She said as he held her in his arms. He was holding her; her Ethan was holding her. Well, not quite 'her Ethan', but at the moment, she wasn't too concerned. In fact, she wasn't concerned about anything.

That was her last thought before the world faded to black.

* * *

Beth had been up and reading for almost an hour when she had heard Ethan roar. She had dressed as fast as possible and ran out the door towards the vault. She got to the steps just in time to see her father escort Alana inside, but the guards hadn't let her go any further than the bottom of the stairs. Denied access, she had paced outside for what seemed like an eternity.

Finally, her father came down the steps.

"What's going on Daddy?" Beth asked. "Is Ethan okay?"

Lord Borden glanced around to make sure no one was near before answering. "He was reluctant to leave the vault. I believe Alana should be able to persuade him otherwise."

"But why Alana and not me." Beth asked. "I'm his betrothed."

"They have... history." Lord Borden replied, though she got the impression he wasn't telling her something.

"Now, I have business to attend to." He said, then he swept past her toward The Bank's main building in town.

Beth paced for another few minutes before she heard a commotion at the bank entrance. Ethan came running down the steps carrying Alana in his arms. The left side of her dress was streaked with blood, and a crossbow bolt was sticking out of her shoulder. She was also white as a sheet and clearly unconscious.

"Where's the nearest doctor?" Ethan shouted as he took the steps two at a time.

"Follow me." Beth yelled and turned towards the local healer's building. Two minutes later they burst through its door. The entryway wasn't large, but it led into a large two-story courtyard. Lining the courtyard on both levels were numbered doors for patients and in the center of the courtyard was a large stone fountain

"Madam Hygea, we need help!" Beth shouted.

Moments later, an elderly elf glided into the entryway. Her hair was white with age and her skin wrinkled, but despite that she still maintained a youthful air. Her eyes shone bright and she wore simple white robes adorned with Illuminar's emblem of a sun. Her gaze locked onto Alana the moment she entered the room.

"Bring her in here, boy." The elderly elf said and led the way into a long rectangular room with evenly spaced beds lining both sides.

"Put her here." She ordered, indicating a bed, and Ethan set her down tenderly.

"Balsom, get in here and bring the cutters!" She yelled.

Moment later, a strapping young man came in with a tool that looked like crude bolt cutters. Madam Hygea, pulled Alana up while Balsom deftly cut the bolt's wooden shaft.

"Three, two, one, now." Madam Hygea said.

Balsom pulled the bolt out just as Madam Hygea started quickly but calmly pouring magic into the wound. There was a tense few seconds while the elderly elf worked. Beth waited with bated breath and could feel Ethan doing the same beside her.

What if something happened to her?

She didn't even want to entertain the thought, but the wood elf looked so pale. Her normally tanned face was white as a sheet and there was so much blood on her dress.

She looked at Ethan, but he only had eyes for the injured wood elf. He was staring unblinking at her and seemed to be muttering under his breath. She wasn't sure, but it sounded like he was praying for her. Finally, Madam Hygea removed her hands from the wound and sat up.

"She's lost a lot of blood, but she will recover."

"Can't you do something about the blood?" Ethan asked.

"I'm afraid not." Madam Hygea replied. "I can mend flesh, bone, and sinew easily enough; but you can't create something out of nothing. The most powerful mage alive couldn't conjure a single drop of blood."

"What about a transfusion? You must have donors."

"Transfusion? What nonsense are you talking, boy?"

"I just meant... nevermind. Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Not now." Madam Hygea said. "A blind mage could see you two are bonded, though how your bond is so strong at your age is beyond me. She may wish to speak with you when she wakes."

"You and Alana are bonded?" Beth felt her jaw drop; her betrothed was bonded to another woman!?

"Yeah." Ethan replied, but he went silent for several seconds at the look on Beth's face. "I thought you knew."

"I most certainly didnot know!" Beth said, a little louder than she intended. "When my father finds out he's going to... to..." She didn't know what, but she knew he would be furious.

"He already knows." He replied.

"What!" Beth almost shouted.

"Enough." Madam Hygea said. She didn't raise her voice and she didn't sound mad or upset. However, her voice suddenly radiated a power that allowed no disagreement or argument. Beth suspected it was magic, but whatever it was, it burned her anger out almost instantly.

"This is a place of healing, Lady Borden." Madam Hygea said. "The boy can stay because he's bonded, but if you cause a commotion or disruption in any way, I will send you home. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes ma'am." Beth replied, feeling a little sheepish at her outburst.

"Now, I'm going to get some rest." Madam Hygea stood up and turned to Beth and Ethan before she left. "I suggest you two talk this out like civilized adults."

Beth took a deep breath -- ignoring the fact that her father betrothed her to a man who was already bonded -- and then turned to Ethan. "How did this happen?"

Ethan gave her the whole, unabridged story of how he and Alana had bonded.

"I'm sorry for my outburst." Beth said when he finished. She could feel her cheeks getting a little warm as her embarrassment burned them.

"It's okay." Ethan said. "Considering what I just did, I have no room to judge anyone."

"What happened?" Beth asked, and he told her what happened in the vault.

"It wasn't your fault." She said when he finished.

"I'm the reason she was there in the first place, and I backed her off the walkway so the arrows triggered, so yeah I'm the reason she got shot."

"It still isn't your fault." She said because she couldn't think of something else to say.

He didn't respond.

She couldn't come up with anything else to say, so she sat down next to Ethan and laid her head on his shoulder. He seemed startled at first but didn't make any attempt to move her. After a moment, he relaxed slightly at her touch and put his arm around her.

"I need to respect her wishes." He said after a few minutes.

"What do you mean?"

"She asked me to leave her alone." He replied. "To give her some space and distance so our bond could weaken."

"I don't think bonds work like that Ethan. Bonds might stop getting stronger, but they don't go away."

"She thought if I bonded with you it might break the bond." Ethan said.

"Maybe, but I doubt it." Beth replied. "I've never heard of a bond being broken that way. I suppose it might, but it just seems more likely to create a second bond.

"I suppose two bonds would be better than not bonding with my wife, right?"

She nodded. "I'd rather it break your bond with her, but..." Beth trailed off.

She really didn't want her husband bonded to another woman, even if it was someone as nice as Alana. The wood elf was one of the nicest people Beth had ever met. Though, if he had to be bonded to someone else, she couldn't think of anyone better.

Not that she was thrilled with the idea.

* * *

Ethan shook his head. When did life get so complicated? Still, he knew Alana would be fine and he would try to honor her wishes.

"We should go." He stood up and Beth followed suit.

They headed for the door but he stopped for a moment to glance back at the wood elf. Despite her pale skin and shallow breath, she looked serene and peaceful lying there. She was arguably the most beautiful sight he had ever seen.

He was at a complete loss to explain how deeply he cared for her, and even more so to explain how she felt about him. His heart swelled as he looked at her face, then returned to his chest when he realized this might be the last time he'd see her.

Something in him refused to accept that though. Despite all the evidence to the contrary, somewhere deep down he felt certain they would be drawn together again soon. He opened his mouth to say 'goodbye', but that's not what came out.

"I'll see you later Alana." He whispered so Beth couldn't hear him, and then they went outside.

It was a beautiful morning.

The weather was perfect.

The sky was cloudless blue, the air still had a touch of early morning briskness, and there was a light breeze wafting through the city from the mountain. In that direction, he again saw sails poking up from near Lord Borden's estate.

"You said you could show me your father's airship this morning. Can we go now?" It seemed like as good a distraction as any.

"Absolutely, and Alana's going to be okay. You know that right?"

"I know." He nodded and they set off. They talked as they walked and he was again reminded that Beth was very pleasant company. Ahead of them, he could see the mast that stuck up from the wealthiest section of town.

"So how do they work?" he asked pointing at the airship mast.

"The wood is enchanted to be almost weightless." She replied. "Then in the center of the ship, there is a stack of logs which have an enchantment you can activate -- like your disguise necklace -- to make them lighter than air. The pilot turns the logs' enchantment on and off to control the rise and fall."

"Wow, that's pretty cool." Ethan replied. "What about the wind? I mean, wouldn't the wind blow that thing all over the place?"

"Normally yes." Beth said. "I don't really understand it very well, but there's some kind of enchantment on the wood that makes the air harder to move."

"Come again?"

"It makes the air on the ship's sides behave more like water so you can't just push the ship through the air sideways. It's like turning the entire side of the ship into a keel from what I understand."

"Okay, that makes sense." Ethan said. "Except -- you know -- the magic part. How does it do that?"

"I have no idea." Beth replied. "I've spent a little time learning the basics of magic but nothing more."

"You studied magic?" Ethan asked.

"A little." She replied. "I never got much beyond manipulating my own mana."

A few minutes later, they arrived at the airship dock. It looked as if it had been built for two ships, but there was only one currently docked. The airship was floating high enough over a long, deep trench that he could see the underside.

The airship looked exactly like the sailing ships of old except there was a second mast pointing downwards out of the bottom of the hull. It was a hundred feet long from stem to stern and sixteen feet wide. Judging from the height, there was only one deck below the weather deck. It didn't look large for a sailing ship. However, it did look sleek, fast, and just plain beautiful.

Currently, all of the sails were rolled up against the yards. Ethan also noticed it didn't have any cannons. Instead, it had half a dozen small ballistae split between port and starboard.

"Wow."

"Indeed." Beth replied. "Would you like to go aboard?"

"Absolutely." He smiled in spite of himself. If she wanted to distract him from what was going on with Alana, she was doing a good job. Despite himself, he felt a small smile creep onto his face. She really was good company, and not too hard on the eyes either.

She led him over to the ship and past the guards, who nodded to her as they walked across the gangplank to arrive on the main weather deck.

It looked exactly like all the pictures of a sailing vessel he had ever seen. At the airship's stern was a raised quarterdeck with a typical ship's spoked wheel. Below the quarterdeck, there was a door that looked like it led to a small cabin. Sitting on the quarterdeck behind the wheel was a woman quietly playing an instrument similar to a violin.

Judging from her pointy ears, she was an elf. However, unlike Alana, she was tall; very tall. She was seated, so he couldn't be sure, but he reckoned that upright she would be at least six feet. Her hair was silver, her skin was incredibly fair, and her features delicate and extremely feminine.

She wore a long yellow and red dress that looked like autumn leaves as they turned colors. The dress came to around mid-calf, but it was fitted enough on top and loose enough below that Ethan didn't think it would hinder her movement at all. Under the dress was a pair of tight breeches that clashed magnificently with her dress.

There was something about her that oozed innocence, wisdom, and confidence all at the same time. The moment they stepped onto the deck, the elf woman put down her violin and shot a look their way.

"What the hell are you doing on my ship?" she demanded, rising to her feet.

"Anthiel, it's me. Beth."

"I was talking to your new betrothed." Anthiel glared at Ethan. "I assume that's him."

"Yes."

"Take him somewhere else." Anthiel spat. "I've got no room for heart-breakers on my ship."

Ethan opened his mouth to respond, but Anthiel produced a sword seemingly out of nowhere and glided smoothly down the stairs with it pointed at him.

"Get the hell off my ship before I part your soul from your body." Anthiel said.

Ethan took a step back, but Beth stepped in between them. "Anthiel come on. It's me."

"I won't touch one hair on your head, because you aren't to blame." Anthiel said, and then pointed her sword at Ethan. "However, get that beast off my."

'Why?" Ethan stood his ground.

Anthiel had almost reached him at her sword was less than a foot from him. "Why don't you ask that little wood elf you've got torn up in knots. I've never seen anyone cry that much in my life. Get. Off. My. Ship."

"I'm going." Ethan said before hastily retreating down the long ramp back to the safety of the ground. Anthiel stood at the top of the ramp glaring at him.

"She talks a big game, but really wouldn't hurt a fly." Beth said dismissively as she came down the gangplank. "I'm sorry you met her like that."

"She seems like a delightful person." He rolled his eyes. "She's not remotely psychotic at all."

"It's not that. She's just..." Beth thought for a second. "She's always had this 'mama bear' personality. Evidently she met Alana, got the story and now thinks of her like one of her cubs. You hurt one of her cubs, so..."

"I didn't mean to; I certainly didn't want to."

"I know." Beth replied. "She'll come around. She's always protective, but give her some time to see that Alana's okay and she'll be fine."

"Okay." He sighed and reminded himself that -- despite the wound -- she would be fine.

One thing was sure; he didn't like not knowing what to do when someone came at him with a sword. After his fight with Wurven, his lack of fighting skills was painfully obvious. And if Lord Delmar was still after him...

"I assume your father trains the guards right?" he asked.

"Not personally, Heinrich oversees the training. Why?"

"Because I need to know how to fight if I'm going to be of any use to anyone."

Beth grimaced. "After what happened in the vault this morning..." she pursed her lips, thinking. "Maybe they would let you be an outer guard?"

"You think so?"

"It's worth a try. I can usually convince Heinrich to see things my way. If not, I can always go to my father."

"Please lead on."

Beth turned and started walking. Not long after, they arrived at what looked like a large training room in one of the buildings close to The Bank. The walls of the room were covered with both training weapons and real weapons. There were also several types of padded armor for training. Outside a nearby door, he could see a courtyard with a large training circle in it.

She asked Ethan to wait a moment and then she went and talked to Heinrich. After a minute or two, he glanced in Ethan's direction with a surly look on his face. Beth talked to him for another minute, and then the guard captain grabbed two training spears and a training sword and walked over to Ethan.

"You understand you're never going near the vault again." Heinrich said. It wasn't a question.

He nodded glumly.

"Beth convinced me you'd make a reasonable outer guard." He continued, though his tone made it clear he seriously doubted it. "It's my job to bring your fighting abilities up to snuff."

He tossed a training spear to Ethan. It was a seven-foot-long shaft with a bundle of cloth tied to one end for padding.

"Listen up." Heinrich said. "The spear has three main advantages. They are reach, speed, and leverage."

"Reach, speed, and leverage." Ethan repeated.

Heinrich took his spear and demonstrated a forward thrust. With a single step combined with the thrust, his spear point moved forward almost ten feet. Without the step, he could still move the tip at least five feet with a thrust.

"The second advantage is leverage." He said, then tossed Ethan a training sword.

"I will attack slowly; try to block the spear tip without moving your feet or body." He said, and then slowly thrust the blunt training spear toward Ethan. He tried to block it with the blade of the sword, but Heinrich had more leverage due to the longer spear. Ethan couldn't prevent the thrust from touching his chest even though he applied all his strength to the sword; the spear just had too much of a leverage advantage.