Dragonia: Revenge of the Dragons

PROLOGUE Year 428 D.A. A cold winter breeze blew through the window. Galedar shivered. He sat at a desk lit by the candlelight. A parchment lay in front of him, and a quill was in his hand. He needed help. People were after him. The Meldakar king knew he’d abandoned the army. Assassins were coming after him. Galedar stood, rubbed his hands against his bare arms, and strode over to the window to close it. The red winter was rough this year. Normally, Galedar enjoyed the cold much more than the orange summers. However, he wanted warmth. It did not help that he was in hiding. He dared not make a fire, nor use the wood stove. At his desk, he rubbed his hands together over the candlelight. It warmed his fingers a little, but it still wasn’t enough. He looked down at his message. It wasn’t perfect, but it would have to do. He needed help, and he didn’t know who else to turn to. Brom was dead. A dragon had eaten him. Galedar didn’t have many friends, or anyone he could trust. A knock at the door startled him. He turned to look at his bed. The red dragon lay on his pillow, outstretched, on its back, its belly exposed for all to see. And to top it all off, the creature was snoring. Another knock startled the small dragon. The creature was growing fast. It had been only six weeks since the dragon hatched on the large island for him. He’d immediately begun repairing his ship to leave the island before a dragon ate him too. The baby dragon, however, refused to leave his side. Now, the little beast was as large as a sheepdog, and getting harder to hide. “Noranda, hide,” Galedar whispered. The dragon huffed, smoke coming out of her nose. But she complied, crawling under the bed. Galedar took a deep breath as he shuffled over to the door. He closed his eyes for a second, and then opened the door. “Galedar, I knew I would find you here,” an older man with a white mustache said. Galedar froze. He gripped the door tight and tried to slam it on the man. This was his general in the war. The same general that he’d abandoned. “Not so fast,” the general snarled. He pushed the door in, tossing Galedar to the ground. “I can explain, Ilandor—” Ilandor smacked Galedar across the face. “You are despicable. A coward. It gets too hard for you, and you run crying. What would your mother think?” Galedar rubbed his face. “I don’t want to be a part of any war.” “You are a traitor. I’m sure you know the king has placed your wanted posters all over the kingdom. I’m surprised you’re still so close. What’s wrong, Galedar? You didn’t have enough coin to make it further than Laeraed?” Galedar hung his head in shame. “Get up,” Ilandor yelled. Galedar complied. “I have a noose waiting on you outside. We’re going to show all of Kaeldroga what Meldakar does to traitors.” Ilandor spat on Galedar’s face. Galedar clenched his fists. Ilandor laughed. “Don’t even think about it. I have six guards posted outside. You won’t make it far. I will give you some credit though, Galedar. At least you were smart enough to take the river south. I searched all the northern cities before thinking to come down here.” Galedar smiled. “I’m full of surprises.” Noranda growled. Ilandor looked to his feet, where he saw the small dragon. It bit his leg, its teeth tearing into his flesh. Ilandor yelled. Galedar stepped forward, grabbing the sword from Ilandor’s scabbard. Ilandor fell to his knees, fighting the dragon with his hands. Galedar slammed the general’s weapon into the side of his neck. The general collapsed forward. Six guards entered the room, weapons raised. Noranda snarled. “What in the blazes is that?” one of the guards shouted. “Attack, Noranda!” The dragon leapt forward, claws slashing the face of the first guard. Galedar used the shock of seeing the dragon to his advantage as he stabbed his weapon through the chest of another. Noranda bit the throat of a third. A few more blows of his sword, and vicious attacks of his dragon, and all six guards lay dead on the floor. Galedar piled them all together. He picked their pockets for coin and weapons before gathering everything into his bag and fleeing out the door. Before he left, though, he went back and grabbed the parchment he’d been working on. He really needed to find an ally. Galedar laid the candle on the desk, laying blank parchments on top of it. When Galedar stepped outside, the flames began. People shouted in the streets. Ilandor had been right. People were outside, hoping for a hanging. He hated to disappoint them. They yelled and screamed at him, furious that he’d escaped the hanging. When Noranda rushed to his side, the shouts stopped. Everyone stared in horror at the dragon. Galedar couldn’t trust anyone, and Noranda was too big to hide anymore. He no longer tried. Everyone would know of her soon anyway. Now the rumors would spread.