Day 134 (112th)

Day 134 (112th):
The bells startled us awake. We had forgotten about them. Not long after, we heard a timid knock on the door. We bid them to enter. It was Mara, Marrissa, and Tess. We shrieked like children. The morning was spent catching up and listening to Mara's and Marrissa's reunion. The three of them told us they had to keep reminding themselves of their new stations and not act like servants.
Around mid-day, a hearty knock sounded on the door. Kendar, Droland, Vangar, Mamar, and Mattis all entered. The question of why we had not left our room become obvious. More chairs were brought in so we could talk. Tess left to get a message she remembered Lord Carmon had sent with them.
While the chairs were arriving, a valet told Droland a "war prize" was waiting for him. Droland told him to bring it to our room. We sat and pondered what it was. The valet returned and handed it through the door as both he and it would not fit together. The box was plain and look slapped together. We assured them that no evil surrounded this box. Pulling it apart, a wonderful sight was revealed. Cushioned in straw, a multicolored stone, bigger than a human head, reflected the light in a spray of colors. Turning it revealed deep scratches on its surface. We knew it was the dragon egg we had watched being ground by Maalicus' man. As we examined it, Tess entered. It shook! Seeing it, Tess seemed mesmerized. She did not ask what it was or where it had come from or why it was here. The closer she got, the harder it shook. When she reached it, it was rocking hard. She placed her hand upon it and a piece flew off. Taking it in both hands, she sat down with it in her lap. More pieced flew and fell. Abruptly, half of it dropped off and a baby dragon rolled into Tess' lap. It was beautiful. A silvery-white from nose to tail. The web of its wings was sky blue. Blinking in the light, wondrous pink eyes looked at Tess. The light of love engulfed the pair in an instant.
"Kayla! Kayla! Do you hear me?"
"Leo, yes, I hear you. Why are you shouting?"
"I felt a dragon hatch near you. Did one?"
"Yes, Leo. We received a war trophy from the Baalocs. It was the egg they were grinding in our vision. A beautiful silver-white dragon is in Tess' lap. They love each other."
"Silver-white? What color is the wing skin?"
"The web of its wing is sky blue."
"Kayla! You have a queen! Only one egg per clutch is a queen. Out of sixty-three eggs, you seven somehow receive the only queen and a servant you befriended just happens to be her rider."
"I told you I believe in Fate."
"Tell them, let them know. Falcon and I are coming and will get there soon."
"Everyone," I interrupted their conversation, "Leo has just informed me that Tess is holding a queen dragon, the only queen of the lost clutch. Tess, she hatched because you are her dragon rider, the Queen's Rider."
Dead silence. Everyone just stared at me, even my sisters. I started to ask, but the little queen made a strange growling noise. All attention went back to her.
"She is hungry," Tess informed us, "and she says she wants 'snoggles". Does anyone know what that is?"
"Leo, what is 'snoggles'?"
I heard him laugh in my head, "'Snoggles' is a baby dragon word. It means snuggled, held close, you know, hugged."
"Tess, 'snoggles' is snuggles, hugs, that sort of thing."
"Oh, how cute," Tess replied as she scooped up the little queen and held her tight. She made a deep purring-like noise and rubbed her head on Tess' shoulder. Servants had brought food with the chairs and Tess found some meat and began feeding the queen.
"What's her name?" Callie asked.
Tess looked at the queen for a moment, then smiled, "She says her name is Summer Snow. She says it is her baby name. The old queen will give her an adult name when we take her to..."
"Demagram," Leo said from the balcony, "It is the home of the dragon riders. That is where you two must go, Tess."
"Leo, let us discuss this in the garden," Droland suggested.
Leo agreed and took off. Gathering dragon, food, and ourselves, we went out to the garden. We made ourselves comfortable and Tess continued to feed Summer Snow.
"Leo, what am I to do? I've only heard tales of dragon riders. Never have I dreamed of being one, let alone the Queen's Rider," Tess said nervously.
"Fear not, Tess. Falcon is an excellent teacher. Now that two heirs of Selvis have been found, he will welcome a student rider. You two will have many years together."
Lisa interrupted, " Will Snow have to live without Tess? Dragons live almost infinite lives. Tess is not immortal. Plus, Snow is a baby, Tess is a young woman. By the time she is big enough to ride, Tess will be ancient."
Leo laughed, "Riding dragons grow faster than we so-called wild dragons. Snow will be big enough to ride in five years. Tess, being bonded with her, will find herself aging much slower than other humans. Most human riders who die of old age are three hundred or more. Of course, elves, dwarfs, and other long-lived races can achieve near immortality being bonded. But, there is always the chance of injury. Riderless dragons rarely live a decade after the death of their rider. Dragonless riders have been known to kill themselves when their dragon dies. Do not think of that yet, you are both young and healthy. Focus on learning about each other. Don't let her overeat, Tess, or she will get sick."
Tess stopped and examined Summer Snow. Her sides had just begun to expand. Giving her one more piece, Tess then set aside the food and just held her new partner in life. Snow settled on Tess' lap and quickly fell asleep. Sarah let us know that the grinding on her shell had not damaged her in any way. Soon, Falcon arrived to both meet Mara and check over Snow and Tess. His glow was nearly blinding.
"The elder queen has been told. She was beginning to worry. She might clutch one more time before she passes. Her previous daughters died from injuries to either themselves or their riders. We hope to recover the rest of this clutch and find their riders very soon, which is also why I am here. Is there a plan yet to go into Baaloc Prime?"
"Not yet, but we have been studying maps and wondering the best way to get there," Droland informed him.
"Good, good to hear. Now, Tess and Summer Snow, how soon can you be ready to travel to Demagram?"
"Umm, soon, I guess. I don't have a lot so there's not much to take. She has nothing," Tess replied shyly.
"Get what you have, Tess, the rest will be provided," Falcon gently ordered.
Tess handed the sleeping Snow to Falcon as went inside to get her stuff. Falcon tore his eyes form the white bundle in his large claws.
"The elder queen believes that Kayla's dragon is also in that clutch and has provided this for you as well."
He handed me a large sling-like pouch. He produced a second and eased Snow into it gently. He continued to cradle her.
"Take this with you into Baaloc Prime. It will keep your little one close and safe. The queen had joked that, with the luck all of you have, you might find a King, a very rare, once in a dragon's lifetime event. The queen had an older sibling from a previous clutch who was a King. A full-grown King would stand as tall above me as I do above Leo. But, it is only in jest. Still, she wants them all recovered and to see Kayla and her dragon as soon as possible."
"I understand, but my time may be short. The Faerie Queen needs me to go to the Faerie Realm to be her heir," I quietly told him.
"Worry not, Kayla. We have had several heirs as riders. Your duties will not conflict, trust me."
Tess returned with a small bag slung over her shoulder. She was nervous and excited at once. Falcon handed Snow in her sling to Tess, who quickly put it on and hugged Snow close. A muffled noise indicated Snow was where she wanted to be. Falcon produced a ring and bracelet set like mine.
"First lesson, Rider Tess. Time to saddle up."
Tess looked at the set, puzzled. Falcon looked at me and jerked his head towards Tess.
"Let me show you," I said as I stood and went to her.
Sliding it on and positioning it was simple. Tess looked at it. "Now what?" she mouthed without sound. I took her hand and stretched it out. Falcon lowered his massive head. I pressed her palm to Falcon's flat forehead. Her set did the same on him and mine had on Leo. When it was finished, she smiled broadly.
"Time is wasting, Rider, let's go!" Falcon ordered.
Scrambling up, she settled herself and Snow and took hold of the chain reins.
"I knew being a friend of the Seven Sisters was to be special, but not this special. Thank you, my friends. Visit soon," she called as Falcon took off.
When he was out of sight, Leo faced us, "Is her shell still in your room?"
Nodding, we called the pieces to us. They soared around the palace to land in our hands. Leo gently took them and was able to reassemble it, magically sticking the still hard but fragile shell together. We had to help him with the smallest bits as his claws could not hold them. Completely assembled, he passed his hand over it and all the cracks and the grinding marks vanished.
"Droland, I place this in you keeping until Mara has been crowned as Queen of Selvis. At that time, it is property of the Royal Family of Selvis."
Standing, Droland accepted it, "I agree to those terms and will place this among the treasures of Raval until Selvis and Mara are restored."
"Here, here!" went a shout from us all. Mara was in tears, but from joy, not sadness. Marrissa was also crying. Her tears were from a mixture of emotions. She could not voice all of that turmoil. I went over and hugged her.
"You are scared, confused, nervous, and a thousand other things. Just know we are your friends. Speak freely," I gently told her as I held her.
"I don't know anything about being a Lady. Most of my life has been as a slave. I don't want to embarrass Mara, you seven, the King, or anyone else," she said so softly that I was amazed anyone else could hear her.
"Do not concern yourself with protocol, Marrissa," Vangar assured her, "Our allies understand what Selvis had endured as a kingdom and they will understand what you have endured as a person. If they can't, then I will educate them," he said, cracking his knuckles to make his point.
Marrissa actually paled and blushed at the same time. Paling at the thought of Vangar hurting someone. Blushing at the thought a prince would stand up for her. Fatherly, Droland "tsked" at Vangar through smiling lips. Vangar just shrugged.
"Now then, as we told Falcon, we have been pondering the route into Baaloc Prime. Flying in on dragon back is out of the question. Since they know about the riders, they will be expecting it. We have three options. First, cut across country, avoiding the roads, and ride nearly due east. In about three weeks, we could then go south and find Baaloc Prime. Second, go to the coast, board a ship, circle around Baalocs Prime, sail upstream as far as we can, then ride into Baaloc Prime from the east, which could take a month or more. Third, go hidden in a caravan and try to sneak into Baaloc Prime undetected."
Kendar laid out a map and pointed as he spoke. I noticed all of their routes avoided a large area of forest that spanned from Raval, across Selvis, and nearly smacked into Baaloc Prime. My sisters noticed it, too. Coming to an agreement, I asked, "Why can't we just cut through the forest? It is the most direct route."
Silent stares. The men just looked at us. Leo seemed to agree with us and also pointed out that going through the forest would be straighter than the other three ways. They stared at him as well. Lisa finally lost the temper she had been holding so tightly.
"Would you all quit staring at us like fools and tell us why we can't go through the forest? This is not our land. We don't know all of the legends and lore. Anna has to go there to get the history for us to know it. So, bloody spit it out already!" she rose and shouted at the men.
"Well, Lisa, ladies, Leo, " Droland began in an emotionless tone, "the forest is home to many creatures who find humans very tasty. We have a treaty with many of them. The others will not deal peacefully with us. That is why we avoid it."
Lisa sat down.
Leo puffed, then said, "I can go talk with them. Even if some won't deal with you, we surely could find escorts to ensure safe passage."
Hope lit upon the men's faces. They pressed him to go as soon as possible and he took off. The men excused themselves to "plan for the trip". Before we left the garden, a valet formally handed Mara and Marrissa a stack of parchment each. When asked, the valet informed them that they had missed High Summer, but men were still interested. He bowed and left. We smiled at them. They looked confused.
"Mara, Marrissa, those are marriage proposals. All of those papers represent men who want to marry you two," Alice told them.
They both nearly fainted. They began stammering. Mostly asking why, who, when, and how. As we went back to our room, we talked with them about it. We even helped cull through them. I felt which writers were sincere and who offered just to gain power and position. One offer for Mara was very interesting. He honestly said he did not want to marry her, but the Kingdom of Selvis, to return it to its former glory. We separated his offer as one to pursue. One we selected for Marrissa was from an officer she had actually spoken with and who had defended her at the supply cart. He was definitely a keeper. By dark, we had a keep pile and a return pile. They handed the return pile to the valet to be given back to those who had offered. Mara and Marrissa left to go to bed. We kind of felt relieved that we did not have to make these choices for ourselves.