Bastileborn - Dragon Fire Pt. 03

"High elves are no friends of ours," he hissed as he raised his sword to Astrum's throat.

Astrum closed his eyes and gulped, knowing he was about to lose his head.

"No! Please, they're our friends!" Gavin cried, startling the toddler awake.

She yawned and smiled when she saw her kinsmen surrounding them.

"Hiiieeee!" she announced loudly, happily, and in the most adorable manner a baby her size could muster.

The delphians collectively chuckled at her animated greeting.

"Minno, why did you run away from the river party?" demanded the young delphian as he stepped away from Astrum and approached Gavin. "We have been looking for you for two days! What do you have to say for yourself?" he demanded as she cringed against Gavin's chest with her lower lip trembling.

"Sowy, Leto," she whimpered.

The blanket had fallen off of them by that point, and Leto gasped at the damage on Minno's leg.

"What happened to her?" he demanded furiously.

"She stepped in a fox trap," Gavin explained. "We found her and tended her wound. I think she'll be all right," he said as he looked down and met her eyes. She was peeking at him and smiling.

"Well... that's different. Thank you for taking care of her instead of killing her," Leto said in disbelief. "Come to me, Minno. We must go home now," he ordered as he reached his arms out to her.

"No! My sumly! MY SUMLY!" she declared as she anchored her nails into Gavin's shirt and buried her face against his chest again.

"What's a sumly?" Gavin asked as he looked at Leto in confusion.

"It's an informal way of saying friend. You're her new friend," he grumbled as he shook his head at Minno.

"SUMLY!" she giggled as she looked up at Gavin.

"Yeah, sumly," he mumbled as he patted her on the back and looked at Plinkon for help.

"Um, Mister Leto," he began in a respectful tone, "my name is Plinkon. I'm a craftsman from Icebard City. I have been friends with yer folk for many decades. I would not have brought my close friends here if I had known we would be met with hostility," he explained in disappointment.

"I am General Leto, and I have heard of you, Plinkon. My uncle was killed by high elves while trading with you on the west road five years ago. I have to admit, that doesn't speak well for you," he said as he pointed his sword at his throat.

"NOOO LETO!" Minno shrieked as she pointed her tiny finger at him.

Leto cringed and twirled around to glare at her again.

"WHAT now, Minno?" he demanded.

"SUMLY!" she yelled as she pointed at Plinkon.

"Seriously? The dwarf too? What about the high elves? Are they sumly?" Leto demanded in irritation.

Minno scrunched up her face and grumbled as she looked between Thistle and Astrum. Gavin's heart was pounding in fear when he realized the tiny creature might decide the death of his friends.

"Minno," he whispered as sweetly as he could manage, pulling her large eyes to him. "They are MY sumly. Please save them."

Her eyes widened in understanding, and she quickly looked at Leto again.

"ALL MY SUMLY!" she declared with her arms stretched wide. She used excellent authority with her declarations. Gavin figured it was something she did often.

"Fuck," Leto groaned as he looked between Thistle and Astrum in disgust. "Your mother is NOT going to be happy about this, Minno," he grumbled as he motioned his men over. "Bind their hands and bring them along. We'll let the queen decide what she wants to do with Minno's new sumly," he grumbled as he rolled his eyes.

When one of the dark elf men approached Gavin to take Minno, she shrieked, "NOOO!" again at the top of her lungs and latched onto Gavin's shirt like a cat on a curtain. Leto shook his head at her and sighed in defeat.

"Fine. Human, you get to carry the princess. If anything else bad happens to her, it's on your head. Take her to the front of the company. I don't want her anywhere near the high elves," Leto growled. Gavin quickly nodded before the young general stomped out of the campsite.

"You're a princess?" Gavin whispered as he looked at Minno in disbelief. She smiled at him proudly and nodded her head vigorously. "That explains everything. You and I have a lot in common. Thank you for saving my sumly."

"Let's get moving," Leto ordered. "It's a day and a half hike back to the city, and that armored convoy is heading towards us. Leave no trace of life behind us," he called as his troops collected their prisoners, the wagon, and the horses, and began hiding all the evidence of the fire and their footsteps.

Plinkon, Thistle, and Astrum had their hands bound in front of them with black ropes made from forest vines. They were each assigned a personal guard that would escort them to the city. Since Gavin was carrying Minno, he was left unbound and assigned two personal guards that escorted him to the front of the company. Gavin hated being separated from Thistle, but he trusted Plinkon and Astrum to watch out for her.

Thistle's guard was a beautiful female delphian. She had long black hair down her back, pale white skin, and large dark eyes. She had vampire-like fangs that were visible when she spoke. Her name was Neam. Astrum's guard, Kythe, was as tall as Astrum and had the most brilliant inky-green hair down his back. His gray arms were sculpted and lean, but he was still slightly smaller than Astrum. Thistle couldn't help admiring the elven men as they walked side by side in front of her. Kythe reminded her of the moon against a black night sky, while Astrum reminded her of a warm sunset. His golden hair and tanned skin made him stand out among the delphians.

Plinkon's guard, Jarem, surprised Thistle when she finally noticed him. His skin was black as night, and his hair was inky-green like Kythe's. He was incredibly hard to see in the shadows of the forest, even when he was moving. When Jarem noticed Thistle looking at him, he flashed a brilliant fanged smile, making her quickly look away. Thistle gulped when she realized how easily she missed him. She looked around the group's outer edge and quickly realized there were far more people around them than she first thought.

"So, Jarem, what's the deal with the convoy Leto mentioned?" Plinkon asked.

"It's the strangest thing," Jarem began. "We sent our fastest scouts to observe them. They reported seeing high elves wearing the colors of Daylith. It is a very good disguise, but they cannot deceive us. We know our mortal enemies. There are also rumors of a Daylith army marching on Carus."

"Elves dressed in Daylith colors? That is very strange," Plinkon noted. "We are aware of the army marching north, but that convoy troubles me."

"Why is that, Plinkon?" Thistle asked.

"It makes no sense for the elf king to send a disguised convoy north... unless he's hoping to attack something in disguise. Like someone he doesn't want the world to know about," he said as he looked hard at Thistle.

She gasped softly when she realized what he was implying.

"It's after me," she whispered with a gulp.

"Why would it be after you?" Neam asked as she raised a dark eyebrow at Thistle.

"Don't tell her, Thistle," Astrum warned, right before Kythe grabbed his hair and gave it a vicious yank. Astrum gasped in pain, but he didn't cry out. Kythe smirked as he continued to pull his head back by his hair.

"You have no authority here, shiny boy," Kythe hissed as he got right in Astrum's face.

"Kythe, don't hurt our prisoners!" Leto snapped. "The queen will be furious if you hurt Minno's sumly," he grumbled as he marched over to him and knocked his hand out of Astrum's hair so he could straighten up again. "You can hurt him all you want once we get home," he whispered to his subordinate.

"Thanks, commander. I just wanted to touch his pretty golden hair," Kythe said with a grin.

"I want to touch more than his hair," Neam said with a wicked smile as she admired Astrum.

"So do I," Kythe whispered as he glanced at Neam and winked.

Thistle didn't like what they were insinuating as they began walking again.

"Girl, you never answered my question," Neam pressed as she nudged Thistle with her spear.

"Oh, um... I'm half-elf and half-human. The king hates me and wants to kill me because of that, so I thought maybe he sent the convoy to find me," she said nervously.

"I see, that explains your ears. They are cute, aren't they, Kythe?" Neam asked as she reached up and ran her fingertips down Thistle's left ear, sending a shudder up her spine. Kythe burst out laughing when he saw it.

"That was very cute," he admitted with a grin.

"Maybe when we arrive in Sheth, we can exchange prisoners and have some well-deserved fun," Neam suggested.

"I like my prisoner. I don't want to trade him. How about we have a foursome and share the goods?" Kythe suggested.

Astrum looked at Kythe with wide eyes after that comment. Kythe winked at him before he smacked Astrum hard on the ass, causing Thistle's mouth to drop open in surprise.

"Uh, Neam, does Kythe like men?" Thistle whispered with blush burning on her face.

"Obviously. Well, he likes women too. Why do you ask?" she pressed as if it were a stupid question.

"I uh, just find that a bit shocking," she admitted in embarrassment.

"You must have been raised by humans. You don't know much about elves, do you?"

"No, actually. I was raised by an elderly dwarf in the slave quarters of Carus Palace. Her name is Nora. I miss her so much it hurts. I hope she'll be safe during the attack."

"I pity Daylith," Kythe added. "Dark elves and high elves are the best archers in the world. Daylith doesn't stand a chance."

"I hope so," Thistle whispered.

Destiny Shot

Their journey into the heart of the forest was long and tiring. Thistle was thankful they weren't traveling under the hot sun, but she was also missing its warmth as another gray morning dawned. The mood among the delphians was cheerful as they anticipated arriving home by midday.

Minno was still constantly clinging to Gavin. Thistle often heard him laughing when Minno would whisper something silly in his ear, and her ability to command her fellow dark elves was something to be admired. Minno was quiet that particular morning. She had developed a fever and was low on energy. Her injury wasn't improving, and it worried everyone.

Gavin was getting extra worried as he lifted her onto his shoulders so she could prop herself up on his head. They were about three hours away from Sheth when Minno fell limp.

"Shit, Minno, what's wrong?" Gavin asked as he pulled her off his shoulders into his arms so he could see her face. "Everyone, stop! She's barely breathing!" he yelled as he gently laid her in the grass.

"Let me see her leg!" Plinkon demanded as he ran over and knelt next to Gavin.

Gavin picked up her tiny leg and cringed when he saw red streaks around the wound.

"What's happening? She only had a mild fever this morning. Now she's burning up and barely breathing!" Gavin said in a panic as he put his ear against her chest to listen for a heartbeat.

Leto hurried over with a look of terror on his face. He knelt next to Plinkon to look at Minno's leg and gasped.

"River snake poison!" Leto and Plinkon exclaimed at the same time.

"A hunter must have laced the trap with it," Plinkon grumbled. "That's why she wasn't in pain for the past two days. The poison numbs the wound."

"How did she survive?" Leto demanded. "She should have died in a few hours from river snake poison! How did you keep her alive this long?" he asked as he looked between Gavin and Plinkon.

"My dragon cradle," Gavin said as he showed Leto the gems in his hand. "I accidentally healed her with it when we freed her from the trap. It must have stunned the poison."

"What is that?" Leto asked in amazement as he admired the beautiful circle of blue gems.

"Ya can explain later, Gavin. She's fading fast," Plinkon interrupted.

"Shit! I'd rather lose a hand than let her die," he said as he quickly placed the dragon cradle over the wound again.

Thistle, Astrum, Kythe, and Neam gathered over them and watched in amazement as the wound on Minno's leg began to heal. She stirred a few seconds later and took a deep breath. Her big dark eyes fluttered open, and she smiled up at Gavin.

"MY SUMLY!" she announced as she jumped to her feet and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Thank the gods," Gavin breathed in relief as he returned her hug.

The crowd gasped in amazement as Minno excitedly climbed onto Gavin's shoulders, ready to continue their journey.

"Gavin, is it still working?" Plinkon asked worriedly.

"My hand is burning more, but it's working enough," he whispered as he looked at the black spot on his palm. It was slowly expanding again.

"How did a human get magic like that?" Leto demanded.

"It's in the gems. A dragon infused them with healing magic to keep a rotting curse contained. It was supposed to last three weeks, but now I'll probably lose my hand in a day or so."

"By the gods. Thank you, Gavin, for saving my baby cousin," Leto said as he touched his shoulder. "Perhaps Queen Sayda can help you. She is a shaman. Her daughter, Minno, is our spoiled little princess, and you sacrificed your hand to save her. You are a friend among us, A true delphian sumly!" he declared, causing a burst of giggling and clapping from Minno.

"Thank you, General Leto. Does that friendship extend to my companions, by chance?"

"No, I'm afraid not. The queen will have to decide their fate. Let's get moving," Leto called, prompting everyone forward again.

Thistle, Plinkon, and Astrum watched anxiously as Gavin walked slower and slower. He was panting and sweating as the pain in his hand grew unbearable. Twenty minutes out from the city of Sheth, he fell to his knees, clutching his wrist.

"Sumly?" Minno mumbled in concern as she climbed off his shoulders and stood in front of him.

"It's just my hand, Minno. I'll be alright," he whispered with a smile. He didn't want to frighten her.

"Damn it, Gavin," Plinkon grumbled as he hurried over to him.

Leto rushed over and looked at Gavin's hand. The black streaks had moved outside of the dragon cradle.

"Do you need help moving, Gavin?" Leto asked. "We're almost home. That black convoy is bearing down on us. We're putting men in position to fight them," he said as he waved a man over to help Gavin.

"Please, General Leto, may I carry him?" Astrum asked as he stepped over. The general frowned at the high elf. "General, please. I'm the largest person here, and I've carried him before. He is a dear friend of mine. Let me protect him. You should know, he's the prince of Talfane. If anything happens to him, let it be on me. Not the delphians," he whispered.

Leto's eyes widened at that revelation.

"Uh... yes. Astrum will carry Gavin to Sheth. Any extra guards can watch Astrum now. Follow me as fast as you can. I'll take you both to the queen," Leto instructed as he pulled a dagger from his belt and sliced the ropes off Astrum's wrists.

"Thank you," Astrum said as he quickly knelt down and gathered Gavin into his arms. Gavin was tense with pain at that point.

"Thanks, beanpole," he whispered when he realized who had him.

"Sumly hurt?" Minno whimpered as she gazed up at Astrum.

"Yes, little one, your sumly needs help now," he said as he stepped around her and hurried after Leto.

Plinkon stepped over to Minno, knelt down, and offered her his shoulder. She gave him a bashful smile before she quickly scurried onto his back.

Thistle hurried along after Astrum at a jog, trying to keep Gavin in view. His dark hair was soaked with sweat. Suddenly, the forest's thick air was pierced by shrieks of terror from behind the main group. Everyone spun around in alarm to see the rear guards surging forward, screaming and waving for everyone to run. Thistle's heart sputtered in her chest when she looked over their heads at the billowing black smoke and red glowing fire that was engulfing the canopy of the ancient trees. It was bizarre and terrifying to see. The fire was being forced down into the trees from the sky instead of up from the ground.

"What the fuck?" Plinkon bellowed in horror as he watched the massive fireball moving closer.

"Neam!" Leto screamed as he ran over to her and gave her his knife. "Cut the prisoners free and run. Everyone, make for the city!" he cried as he grabbed Minno off of Plinkon's shoulders and darted away with her screaming for her sumly.

"What evil is this?" Neam asked in a panic as she quickly sliced the ropes off of Plinkon and Thistle's hands.

"I'm not sticking about to find out!" Plinkon bellowed as he ran after the fleeing delphians.

"My arrow!" Thistle gasped as she spotted their wagon abandoned on the right.

"Forget it, Thistle! Run!" Plinkon yelled.

"I can't!" she shrieked and ran for the wagon. She dived in to retrieve her bow and quiver.

As she threw her quiver over her shoulder, a deafening BOOM exploded to the west. Thistle screamed and covered her ears as the wagon shuddered violently. She gathered her nerves and jumped out of the wagon to rejoin the fleeing delphians. She glanced over her shoulder and shrieked to see a three hundred-foot curtain of fire. It was moving towards them like a wall of death. She could feel the incredible heat of the furnace as it engulfed the trees.

Suddenly, two more earth-shattering BOOMS echoed back to back. Thistle screamed as she was thrown across the ground by the blast wave. She lay on her back for a moment, watching in horror as the fiery blast tore open the canopy of the forest, revealing the blue sky beyond. Then she saw something she was not expecting. A spectacular red dragon appeared in the sky over the forest. It was Ragos. She had seen his war form before, flying over Mauve Pearl village a week earlier. He was spewing bright red fire from his mouth, burning up more of the forest canopy.

"Oh god, Ragos! Why is he attacking?" she shrieked as she scrambled to her feet and ran as fast as she could away from the inferno.

Ragos had discovered the black convoy as it stalked the delphians. He was still in a drunken stupor when he decided to burn Fumarus's guards alive. So, he began burning up the forest canopy to get to them in his war form. As a result, the wagons caught fire and exploded, creating way more fire than Ragos had intended. He was working feverishly to contain the excess. He needed to destroy more of the forest close to Sheth to contain the wildfire.

The fire was nipping at the delphians' heels as they scrambled into the hidden city. The beautiful city of Sheth was mostly built of wood and rose high into the canopy of the forest. Swirling wooden walkways connected the massive structures together across the acres of trees. The dark elves frantically began fighting the fire with water and dirt, but their efforts were futile. Ragos flew over the city and burned up more of the forest canopy, sending fire and embers raining down on their heads.

"Dragon! Dragon! Evacuate!" Neam shrieked when she finally spotted Ragos.

The delphians abandoned their efforts in favor of a full city evacuation.

"Wait! I can stop him!" Thistle cried as she yanked her gold arrow out of her quiver.

The delphians watched in disbelief and terror as Thistle ran towards the fire with her bow and arrow in hand. She jumped onto a tree stump and aimed the golden arrow at the red dragon's heart. She released the string, and it shot through the air like a glowing rocket.

Everyone watched the streak of gold as it tore through the sky and pierced the red dragon's chest. The beast let out a terrible roar as it began to fall from the sky. A bright flash of ethereal light spewed from Ragos's chest and swept across the forest. The light was accompanied by a burst of wind that quickly doused the inferno. Ragos was the only thing left burning as he shrank in size and tumbled from the sky. He disappeared into the dense canopy of the forest somewhere north of the city.