A Dragon's Tale Ch. 11

*Then what?*

*It's... um, it's a sort of complicated topic involving my parents."

*I thought they died,*

*They did, but um...* She trailed off, then said aloud. "What's going on with those two?" She nodded her head toward Anthiel and Raklan on the main weatherdeck, who appeared to be having an argument.

As if on cue -- possibly even like she had been waiting for a break in conversation -- Rachel climbed onto the weather deck looking concerned.

"Hailey's not back yet," she said running her hands through her flame colored hair.

Ethan glanced at the sky, which was fast abandoning twilight and becoming night. "Do we know where she is?"

"She said she had an errand to run and that she'd be back after dark," Alana replied.

Rachel grimaced. "Something's not right. I should never have let her out of my sight."

"Oh?" Ethan and Alana said at exactly the same time. They exchanged a glance, then an amused smile.

"I swear you two were made for each other," Rachel smiled and rolled her eyes at their synchronous response. Then a more serious expression covered her face and she turned toward Ethan. "You weren't around most of the time she was on the Argo. She was certainly happy to escape being a slave, but she was hiding something."

"I agree," Alana added. "I ran into her in the hold just before we left for the market and she kept telling me..." her cheeks grew slightly pink, "that's not important, but she was evasive."

"She was in the hold?" Rachel asked. "Let me guess, she wanted a weapon?"

"A knife," Alana nodded.

Rachel frowned, folded her arms, cocked her head to one side and stared off into space.

"You're thinking something Rachel, and you're usually spot on," Ethan said. "Spit it out."

"When she left, what direction did she head?" Rachel asked Alana.

"Toward the Arena, why?"

Rachel nodded. "Did she say why she wanted a knife?"

"Something about the city being dangerous, why?"

Rachel took a deep breath then let it out slowly. "Arcanum does have some seedy areas. But except for petty theft, the market and docks are mostly crime free. They're actually quite famous for that."

"Uh-oh," Ethan growled under his breath.

Rachel nodded. "Did you notice how she would throw murderous glances toward The Arena when she thought no one was looking?"

"Revenge?" he asked.

"I think so."

He growled. "It never goes smooth; why does it never go smooth?"

"It gets worse," Rachel added. "Her former owner is the son of the magistrate and she's still legally your slave. If she kills him, you'll be held partially responsible for not keeping better control of your 'property'."

He let out a frustrated growl. "Please tell me that's all the bad news for today."

He caught a flicker of emotion over his bond with Alana, then she exchanged glances with Rachel. Neither of them said anything.

"For heaven's sake, just tell me."

"Elder Goman told me that Lord Delmar is trying to turn humans into dragons to use as soldiers. By all accounts, he's making some headway."

Ethan let loose a stream of expletives that would've made a sailor blush. "It would be easier to assault Mordor head-on and throw the One Ring into Mount Doom than deal with all this shit."

Alana and Rachel looked confused.

"It's from-- nevermind." Ethan sighed. "We can't let her kill him. The magistrate would flay her alive."

"Not to mention us." Anthiel said as she joined them on the quarterdeck.

"Does anyone know where the champion lives?" Ethan asked. "Does anyone even know his name?"

"I don't remember the name, but he lives on a large estate just off the Arena," Rachel answered. "My father took me to meet a previous champion years ago and he told me champions are given the mansion near The Arena to live in."

"We'll never make it in time," Ethan looked over toward The Arena and recalled their first trip to Arcanum. It took a long walk to get close.

"We can't, you can." Rachel said.

Alana poked his folded wings.

"Climb to the top of the crow's nest and take off from there," Anthiel suggested looking at the sky. It was now quite dark as twilight had faded into night. "It's dark enough now that you shouldn't cause a panic."

"How will I know what building?"

"It's the only large building near The Arena," Rachel replied. "Look for the largest, most ornate room with the best view. That'll probably be where he sleeps."

"May Illuminar speed you on your way... and be careful," Alana said.

Ethan nodded and turned to Rachel. "Can you hold onto this for safekeeping?" He held out the engagement braid, which she took and tucked into a pouch on her belt.

Ethan sighed and made for the ratlines. Not long after he was perched on top of the crow's nest. He stretched out his hand and his war hammer landed in it. It didn't seem prudent to confront an armed woman hell-bent on revenge without a weapon of some kind, and his spear would be unwieldy indoors

He glanced down at Alana. She was still on the quarter deck and was looking back at him with a mixture of worry and pride.

*What?* he asked telepathically.

*You rush headlong into danger for people you barely know. You're the best man I've ever met and I love you for it. Just make sure it doesn't get you killed, okay?*

He smiled. *I'll be fine. Hailey only has a knife and no one will be looking for me.*

Alana nodded, then he spread his wings and took off into the night.

* * *

It was already twilight by the time Kendra left Illuminar's Grand Cathedral. Her talk with luminar Kossel had given her plenty to think about. In her entire life, she had only had a single friend. Just one, and a dragon had taken him from her years ago.

The idea of really trusting another person...

She sighed wistfully; that would be heaven.

She would love to know even a single person whose motives she wasn't constantly second guessing. To be able to let her guard down, to be able to sleep deeply and peacefully instead of keeping one eye open... As she glanced around the entrance, the scores of happy couples with their families jumped out at her. To be able to trust someone like that... to be able to have that...

It sounded like heaven on earth.

Unfortunately, she didn't live in heaven; she lived in the real world were--

"Lady Arant," someone called.

Kendra turned fast enough to react but slow enough not to attract suspicion. Falkaan only used her real last name when he needed to send an urgent message to her. A youth, probably not yet out of his teens, ran up struggling with a long box that was nearly as tall as he was, and about eight inches square. He was wearing the uniform of a city currier.

"Lady Arant, I have a package and a letter for you," the currier said, offering both. Kendra took them and tipped the currier for his services, then he ran off.

The letter said:

"Our bird returned to the roost earlier today. He also acquired a seed from the Arena Champion, who apparently has an excellent taste in feed. Perhaps you should inquire where we could find such excellent feed from him. I have sent a gift for you to present to the Champion in exchange for such information. --Falkaan"

Kendra smiled as she read the coded message. So the Dragon was back in Arcanum, and he had won a slave from The Arena's champion. Falkaan was right; a closer inspection of the Arena champion's estate could prove useful.

She checked the corner of the box. Her jaw dropped as she saw the small image of a stylized bow burned into the wood.

She blinked

A Dragon Slayer.

He had sent her his Dragon Slayer.

If Falkaan had sent it by currier, he must suspect the dragon would show up tonight. Give how rare and powerful they were, most people could save gold their entire lives and never be able to afford half of one.

To trust it to a currier...

Falkaan almost had a sixth sense about his quarry. It's what made him the best tracker on the entire Praetorian Guard, not to mention other organizations that weren't spoken of in polite company. She was never able to figure how he did it, but he was unerringly accurate in his predictions about his quarry's movements.

She suspected he knew some enchantment or spell he used to get this information, but was never certain and he deflected every question she'd ever asked about it.

If he thought the dragon might show up at the Arena Champion's estate, it probably would. Plus, now she was armed with a weapon equal to fighting a dragon.

She smiled.

* * *

Ethan spent as much time gliding silently and as little time flapping as he could. But even so it only took a few minutes for him to reach The Arena. He flew quite high the entire time, hoping to stay out of sight of the people below. The view from up there was just as breathtaking as from the Argo, possibly more so.

One sight stood out among the rest. The massive building shaped like a seven pointed star with a dome in the center. Torches and bonfires adorned the outline of the structure, making it look like a blazing sun in a sea of blackness. Something about it looked vaguely religious and he wondered if it was a temple or cathedral.

Thanks to his incredible dragon night vision, finding the mansion was easy. It was the only large building close to The Arena and almost looked like a castle. He circled it several times looking for a likely window or balcony. Eventually, he settled on a corner balcony on the third floor that looked larger and more impressively decorated than the rest.

He circled a few more times, waiting until none of the guards were looking before swooping in and landing on the balcony. He landed as quietly as possible, and waited for the shout of the guards.

Thankfully, none came.

He crept toward the windows. One of them was already open, so he peered in.

Hailey had tied the champion spread-eagle to the bed with what looked like expensive scarves. He was gagged and struggling with all his might, but she had done an excellent job and he couldn't move much. Hailey herself was tracing the tip of a large knife over his chest, leaving a faint line of blood behind.

"Hailey." Ethan called as loudly as he dared while he climbed in through the window.

Both the champion and Hailey snapped their eyes toward him. The Champion instantly started trying to shout through the gag, probably pleading for Ethan to release him. He was so thoroughly gagged, it came out as muffled grunts. Hailey had a look on her face that Ethan had never seen before.

It was pure, unadulterated rage.

Not the 'I'm-going-to-lose-control-and-break-something' kind of rage though. It was a quiet, deadly, and calculating rage that simmered and bubbled like the lava of a volcano before erupting. It was hot in its intensity and powerful in its strength.

"Hailey, what are you doing?"

"Correcting a karmic oversight." She hissed.

"That's not your job Hailey, leave that to the law."

"There is no law for bastards like this," she poked the champion with the tip of her knife, drawing a few drops of blood. "His father is the Supreme Magistrate and he's rich as creases." she put the tip of her knife by his throat. "He can ignore the law, but he can't ignore me,"

There was feral intensity to her voice; a passionate undertone that belied the apparent calm in her words. It was the ultimate 'silent but deadly' tone of voice, at a level he'd never seen before.

He took a step forward.

In response, she applied a little pressure to the man's neck with her knife-point.

"I'd stay there if I were you."

"Okay," he stopped mid-stride. "But you don't want to do this."

"No, I really think I do," she growled.

"Then why haven't you?"

Hailey faltered for but a moment, then her resolved returned.

"Think about it Hailey, how long were you here before I showed up?"

"Ten or fifteen minutes," she replied.

"That's ten or fifteen minutes in which you could've killed him, but didn't."

"I wanted him to suffer first."

Ethan sniffed the air. There was the stench of urine and shit in the air, and a quick glance at the champion's groin revealed the source. "He has suffered; he's literally scared shitless."

"Not enough, it'll never be enough."

"What did he do? What's so horrible that he deserves this?"

Hailey worked her mouth, but no sounds came out. It seemed like she had so much to say that she didn't know where to begin. "He's... He... I..."

Hailey's face was still a mask of rage, but tears were beginning to form at the corners of her eyes. There was a massive well of pain behind the rage.

Ethan relaxed his body language and took a deep breath, hoping to calm her down. "What did he do?"

Hailey trembled and her hands started shaking. She removed the knife from the champion's throat, and it was also shaking like a leaf in the wind. Though, whether it was from rage or some other emotion he couldn't tell.

"He..." Hailey took a deep breath, then lifted her shirt enough that Ethan could see a long, slightly jagged scar running across her stomach.

It was right over her womb.

"I was five months before he found out," she spat, pointing the knife at the champion threateningly. "Apparently, pregnant slaves don't work hard enough, so he had..."

Tears were streaming down her cheeks and she sniffled. Her whole body was shaking with rage and sorrow.

"Are you happy now asshole?" she touched the point of her knife to his chest, and he scrambled to get as far away as he could, which wasn't very far. "That baby was all I had left of... of... and you..." the venom in her voice rose with her anger. "You murdered my baby because it was inconvenient for you. How. Dare. You."

"What he did was unforgiveable, but you can't just kill him," Ethan said.

"Oh, I wish that's all he did," Hailey's voice suddenly became quiet and deadly again. She put the knife to the champion's throat. "I'm going to take the gag off. If you cry for help, if you utter a single sound without my permission I'll stain the sheet red without a second thought. Understand?"

The champion nodded and Hailey pulled the gag down.

"Now, tell him what else you did," she hissed.

"I, I don't know what you--" he stopped abruptly as she pressed the knife a little harder against his neck.

"Oh yes you do."

"Hailey, maybe you could..." Ethan started to say, but stopped when Hailey moved the knife a fraction of an inch, making a tiny bead of blood appear on the champion's neck.

"Tell him what you did the last time you lost in The Arena. Now," Hailey hissed again.

"I... I was upset and... and... I took a few of the servants to bed. That's all I did, I swe--"

"Liar," Hailey snapped.

Quick as a flash, Hailey pulled the knife away from his throat, stuffed the gag back into his mouth and stabbed the knife into his leg. It only went in a couple inches, but the champion howled in pain -- or that's what he tried to do, judging by the muffled sounds coming through the gag.

Ethan took a step forward to stop her, but Hailey wrenched the knife out of the leg and returned it to the champion's neck. He stopped squirming almost instantly and Ethan froze.

"Tell him how you raped half the maids," Hailey hissed, the vitriol in her voice dripping with venom. "Tell him how you tortured those poor girls; tell him."

Hailey pulled the gag back out of his mouth, grabbed his hair, and twisted his face to look at Ethan.

"I might've been a little rough, but I--" the champion whimpered, but Hailey twisted his hair tighter and pressed the knife harder into his throat.

"You arrogant, self-righteous bastard," she said slowly and clearly with a voice that was still shaking. "Do you even remember the one ones you killed? Do you remember Ketera? How about Silvette? Torana? She was the kindest, sweetest girl I've ever met and you... you..."

In his entire life, Ethan had never seen someone possessed of such rage, such fury, and such raw, unfiltered wrath. He had heard stories of the avenging furies from mythology that would strike vengeance upon wicked men. Somehow, he doubted even his own dragon-powered rage way back in Lord Borden's vault could compete.

And he wasn't sure she was wrong.

Given what the champion had done, he had half a mind to encourage her, but still... cold-blooded murder? There was no doubt he deserved to die -- none whatsoever -- but if Hailey killed him right now, in this frame of mind...

"Hailey, you don't want to do this," he said.

"Give me one good reason."

"You'll never forgive yourself."

Hailey laughed. "There's no need to forgive myself taking out the trash."

"What about your baby, is this what it would've wanted?"

"I guess we'll never know."

"What about the father?" Ethan asked. "What would he want?"

"I..." Hailey trembled slightly and bit her lip.

"What was his name?"

"Jason. His name was Jason," she said. "He uh..."

"What was he like?" Ethan prompted.

"He, he was a yoga instructor and the best man I ever met," a slight smile crept onto her face. "He could turn anything into a joke and he was the worst tease, but in the best way."

"Oh?" Ethan said, trying to keep her talking.

"Yeah. He called me Slick and I hated that nickname; but the way he said it was so endearing, you know?"

"Sure," he nodded. "How did you meet?"

Hailey looked down and didn't quite meet his eye. "I um, he caught me picking his pocket. He said I could keep the wallet if I used it to buy him a drink."

"I thought he was joking, but that was the best date I ever had. I slipped out when I thought he wasn't looking. That's when I realized he'd lifted my wallet. He left a note on the back of his card saying I could get it back on our second date."

"Wow, that's quite a story," he smiled in spite of the situation.

She seemed to be calming down; her hands weren't shaking so much and her body language was more relaxed. The champion had a look of disgust mingled with fear, but at least he was smart enough to stay silent.

"Yeah, he was... he was something else." Hailey smiled; while the smile was genuine, it was also filled with pain.

"Hailey, what would Jason want you to do here?"

She looked down at the champion, who was still bound. Her rage had fizzled out, but she was still angry. She looked at the knife, then at the champion, then back at the knife. She reluctantly removed it from his neck and let it hang loosely at her side.

"He wouldn't want me to bloody my hands for scum like him," she admitted. "He always said I had artists' hands, and they should be used to bring beauty to the world."

Ethan weighed carefully. Hailey was clearly feeling much saner, but was also still teetering on the edge of rage. He took a cautious step toward her and she didn't react badly.

"Can you get out of here the way you came in?" he asked.

She nodded.

"Why don't you go back to the Argo, I want to have a few words with this asshole."

Hailey nodded again, then slowly walked towards the balcony and out of sight. Once she was gone, Ethan turned back to the champion. With Hailey gone, his demeanor changed entirely. Even while tied to the bed, he sneered at Ethan like he was pond scum beneath his noticed.

Ethan decided it was time to wipe that smug smile off his face. He leaned over the bed until his face was mere inches away from the champion, and then deactivated the disguise gem.

The Champion blanched.

"Listen to me," Ethan hissed, allowing a slight sibilance into his speech. "You are the worst kind of scum imaginable. I have half a mind to finish what Hailey started. But you won't get away with it. I'll notify the law and you will pay for your crimes."

The Champion recovered his composure slightly, sized Ethan up, then scoffed. "Dragon shit. That bitch didn't have the balls to kill me and you don't either. Just wait until my father learns about this. He'll have your ship and crew hauled before the court and you'll be forced to watch everyone you love die, except Hailey; I have special plans for her."