The Dragon Glaive: Breadth of the Wilds

With a harsh scream, the dragon turned in the air, its long, leathery wings raising a tempest of wind which almost drowned its own voice. The distant sun touched with harsh and unflattering light the dead-orange scales of the beast--and the two dark shadows which danced around its head.

“Look out, Aiden. It's going to attack.” There was a grim urgency in the voice of V'kaya of the Two Blades as she swept away from the dragon, the bird-like wings of her flight gear holding her aloft.

Prince Aiden II was hovering above the dragon, his fingers moving rapidly over the screen of his codex, but as the dragon reared its head, he sheathed it and, folding the wings of his flight gear, dove downward, sweeping passed V'kaya. “Did you see the size of its horn?”

V'kaya glanced back at the dragon briefly, as she concentrated on staying out of range as it spewed a rain of solid fire. In all her time as a warrior, she had never seen a dragon of this size. Its horn had to be at least three feet long. “Gaius wasn't exaggerating.” She came to a stop beside Aiden, some distance from the beast. “That dragon has to be well over a century old. Even my swords are going to make no impression on him.”

Aiden nodded and then began rising swiftly. “I'm going to try an attack with my glaive. Stay back--just in case.”

She rose along with him. “That seems like a foolish move--”

“I'll be careful. We have to find out just how strong it really is.”

V'kaya frowned and then dropped back, hovering at a safe distance away from the dragon. Even if Aiden was technically her sovereign, she still disliked taking orders from him. And she wasn't at all sure that attacking the beast with the Dragon Glaive was a good idea. Generally, she felt that glaives were too weak as weapons--a more technical, precise weapon as compared to the brute strength of her broadswords. But in the case of Aiden's glaive, her concern was the opposite.

Aiden had reached a spot high above the dragon and now pulled his glaive from its holder. The basic pattern was the same as any glaive--a short blade fixed to the end of a long poll--but this was clearly something special. As Aiden drew the glaive, the curved blade seemed to vanish in intensity, glowing with an almost invisible red brilliance. Holding the handle with both hands, Aiden dove towards the dragon, aiming at its broad forehead. The dragon seemed to sense more than see the attack and reared backward, but not quickly enough to avoid the blow.

The glaive connected and the next instant there was a crash like thunder and a mushroom-shaped cloud of smoke rose from the head of the dragon, throwing Aiden upward like a leaf in an Autumn tempest.

And the dragon shook itself and with a scream wheeled in the sky and flew off southward as if tired of the encounter.

V'kaya didn't have time to think of the dragon just then, though. Aiden had been thrown clear and was now free-falling, clearly stunned. As she shot towards him, she noted that the slight glow around him was gone, meaning the impact had knocked out his shield generator. She glanced downward at the broad, grassy plain far beneath them. If Aiden didn't pull out of his dive, he was going to end up there. Not the worst possible death, but a rather dishonorable one for a warrior.

But just as she reached him, he shook the wings of flight gear, slowing himself down and finally coming to a halt.

“Are you all right?” she asked, hovering beside him.

Rather gingerly, he returned his glaive (which he had held tightly through everything) to its holder and pulled out his codex. “Yes. But I was back from the point of impact and my shield took most of the brunt of the explosion. The dragon took the full force--and he didn't even seem stunned.” He made several quick notations. “Of course, that was only a fraction of the glaive's power, but still...”

V'kaya shook her head as she watched him. “And still you are playing at being a scholar at a time like this?”

Aiden continued making notes on his codex. “If we are going to destroy the dragons, it is going to take the work of a scholar as well as a soldier.” He glanced over at her. “That dragon, for instance--do you think we could beat it with brute force even with the entire royal army?”

“Not in the air, but maybe if it were grounded...” But she knew that he was probably right. The warriors that comprised the army were skilled and hardened by the war with the dragons, but they would probably be nothing but a swarm of gnats to that creature.

“Anyway, I've got the information I wanted.” He sheathed his codex and wheeled in the air. “Let's go back to the fortress.”

She nodded. There was nothing more to be accomplished here. And she was worried that Aiden might have been slightly injured by the explosion. It wouldn't hurt to have it checked out, anyway.

It only took them a few minutes to reach their destination--the Fortress of the Wilds. This was the last military outpost of the kingdom, lying at the extreme southern terminus of the railway from the capital. There was nothing much of interest in the empty grasslands and barren mountains which lay between this point and the wall (many miles southward) which technically marked the border of the kingdom. The fortress was a short, round building, made of stone with a dome of glass on top which made it look like a rather squat mushroom.

They had landed and had just finished stowing their flight gear in the atrium when an old man appeared from an inner room. “So how was your excursion?”

“Eventful,” said Aiden, absently. “Is there any news on my father?”

The old man shook his head and smiled a little wanly. “I told you, Aiden, that I believe there is hope. But Anados's disease was not forged overnight and his healing will not be, either. Few diseases can be cured that quickly and diseases of the mind never can be. Time is the best tonic in a case like this.”

“Of course.” But Aiden's face showed his disappointment, making him for a moment look younger and less confident than usual.

V'kaya knew how weighed down he was by his father's mental breakdown--the breakdown which had placed the responsibilities of the kingdom on his shoulders. It was a heavy responsibility to carry--and even if Aiden had grown up a lot over the last several weeks, he was still only seventeen.

The old man placed a hand on Aiden shoulder. “I can make no promises, of course, but I have every reason to believe that with rest and the change in climate, Anados has a good chance for recovering his sanity. But we must wait and see.”

Aiden nodded. “This fortress was the perfect choice, at least. Quiet and out-of-the-way, with a warm, dry climate and plenty of sunlight.”

“And few dragons around. I think that is the most important thing--it was brooding over them which drove Anados mad. The farther away from all that he can get, the better.”

Aiden smiled finally. “Yes, there are fewer dragons here, but the one that is here makes up for that.”

“So you encountered the Elder? You believe now that I was being honest in my description?”

“I never questioned you, Gaius--but--it's hard to believe until you see it.”

V'kaya nodded. “With all my battles, I have never seen a dragon like that.”

“It's been nearly fifty years since I saw it, and even then it was a veteran beast, the king of the wilds.”

“Assumably that's why there aren't many other dragons in this region--it actually drives them away. Even the Dragon Glaive had no impact on it.”

V'kaya cut in then. “There was an explosion, though, and Aiden was caught in it. I think you should examine him.”

“Of course.” By this time, they had entered one of the inner chambers of the fortress. “Sit down, Aiden.”

“There is no need for this, Gaius,” Aiden responded. But he sat down anyway.

Gaius nodded and produced (from the pouch at his side) a metal cuff like a shackle which he snapped around Aiden's wrist. Then he pulled out a codex and made a few notes on the screen. “There appears to be no serious damage, but there a few injuries which I can fix now.”

Gaius of the North had an outstanding record as both a soldier and a scientist for the kingdom, but now his main work was that of a healer. His knowledge of and skill with the art and tech of healing had proved very useful and there were many soldiers throughout the royal army who were alive only because of Gaius's work. His skill and knowledge extended beyond the healing of the body to the healing of the mind, which was why Aiden had called him in following the king's breakdown. Gaius was a short man, with a sturdy but not bulky build. He wore a simple brown robe--the common dress of his tribe. At his side he carried a pouch with a variety of medical tools--and beside it hung a long saber in its sheath. His hair was pure white and he had a short white beard (but no mustache). He was an old man (V'kaya didn't know exactly how old) but still moved swiftly and with precision. The northern tribe from which he came was known for their longevity. The man who had trained V'kaya and her brother in the art of war had been a man of the same tribe--and he had been the strongest and hardiest man in the army at the age of ninety.

“So do you plan to return to the capital now?” asked Gaius, as he continued tapping the screen of his codex.

“No.” Aiden spoke quietly and thoughtfully. “No, I'm not going back. Not yet. It's not as if they need me--Prime Minister Glosslav is perfectly capable of handling the general affairs of state without me, and I would probably have to leave them to him even if I were there. The army may miss us more, but I think they can hold their own against the dragons now--at least for a little while.”

Gaius looked worried. “I understand your concern for your father, but what can be gained by your staying here? There is nothing you can do for him.”

“No, there is something I can do. I can win this war for him. I can fulfill his dream, even if not in the way he intended. The dragons are what drove him mad--and so the only thing I can do for him is to destroy the dragons.”

“So you are going to try to defeat that dragon--the Elder, you called it?” V'kaya glanced at Gaius who nodded.

Aiden shook his head. “One thing has become clear to me. We can't win this war by killing the dragons one by one. There are too many of them and they reproduce too quickly for that to be a real possibility--even with the Dragon Glaive. If we are going to destroy the dragons, we have to go back to the beginning. Aiden I--my ancestor--created the dragons, and I think he holds the key for defeating them.”

“That seems logical,” Gaius agreed.

“And that's the other reason why I wanted to come here to the southern wilds--besides this being the best place for my father's recovery.” He looked up at them. “Now that I have full access to my father's library, I have been doing a good deal of research about the beginning of this kingdom. When Aiden I began his war, consolidating this kingdom, there were many small, barbarian tribes scattered across it. And most of these he either assimilated, enslaved, or destroyed. But the people that live here in the southern wilds--not only did he not attack them, but he actually entered into an alliance with them, granting them protection and freedom, making them almost an independent state within the kingdom--a status they hold to this day. Why? There had to be something--something he got from them.”

V'kaya made a scornful sound in the back of her throat. “What could such savages give to a king?”

“I could make a guess, but I'm sure of this at least--it had something to do with the Draco Project. And it can't be a coincidence that in this same area we have a dragon which has lived longer and become more powerful than any other dragon we've seen before. There is a secret here, and I'm going to find it out. And to do that, I'll have to track that dragon to its home.”

Gaius shook his head. “Do you realize how broad and vast these wilds are? They say the Elder lives in the mountains to the west, not far from the wall. That is a long distance--too long for you to traverse with your flight gear.”

“I realize that. And tracking it to its home while airborne would be too dangerous anyway. That's why we'll go on foot. Or on horseback, rather. V'kaya and I will take horses from the fort and travel southwest, towards the mountains. I hope we can learn information about the Elder--maybe even the location of his den--from the people of the wilds as we travel. We'll go incognito, of course.”

V'kaya was both amused and a little annoyed that Aiden had fallen so naturally into the role of leader and was now casually giving her commands. But this one seemed rather foolhardy, even for Aiden. “Do you really think you and I could pass as anyone but who we are? Are you planning on wearing a false mustache?”

“We couldn't do it in the capital, but this is different. These wilds are almost another world from our kingdom, V'kaya. The people here probably don't even know the king's name, let alone mine--they certainly wouldn't know what I look like.”

“You are likely correct in that,” Gaius agreed. “It may be a hard and risky plan, but if you truly believe that tracking down the Elder will help to win the war, it may be worth it.” He unclasped the band from around Aiden's wrist and placed it back in his side pouch. “Your Highness, allow me to accompany you on this journey.” Immediately noting Aiden's expression, he added, “There is nothing I can do for your father for the moment--nothing the fort's resident medic would not be able to do as well. And I may be of use to you. Neither you nor V'kaya has ever traveled these lands and you know little about them or their inhabitants. I at least have some experience, even if it has been many years since I was last here. Besides, these wilds are dangerous, and even if I am an old man, I can still wield a sword in defense of my sovereign. And--” he added, with a sober smile, “if you intend to fight the Elder, having a healer within easy distance might be of use.”

Aiden actually laughed at that. “You're right, Gaius. I was hoping the fort could give us a guide, but if you wish to go, I won't refuse your help.”

And so it was that early the next morning, the three of them rode out from the fortress on three large horses. Gaius was dressed as always but he also wore a flat, large-brimmed hat. Aiden had discarded his armor and wore a rather rough tunic, though he still carried his glaive in its holder on his back. In a pinch, he could pass for an adventurer or some kind of hunter. V'kaya could never be mistaken for anything but a soldier no matter how she dressed, and so she had kept her armor, but she had removed her wristbands (which marked her as a member of the elite royal guards) and had generally scuffed up her armor so that she looked more like a mercenary than a member of the army. They certainly weren't an inconspicuous group, but they didn't look like a royal one, either, which was all Aiden was trying to accomplish. However, both Aiden and V'kaya still wore their shield projectors, hidden on their belts, and carried their flight gear compressed into its case.

The southern wilds were comprised almost entirely of rolling grasslands dotted with only the occasional trees. The trees mostly grew along the waterways which crossed and crisscrossed the land, seemingly flowing in every direction without rhyme or reason. Every once and a while, the land would be broken by a solitary butte or a mound of crumbled stones. The mounds were relics of another kingdom, one which had lain in ruin long before their kingdom had begun its rise. Under other circumstances, Aiden would have wanted to stop and examine them, but now he his mind was solely focused on his quest. They encountered many wild animals, some of which they hunted for food. Most of the hunting was done by Gaius. Aiden and V'kaya had both trained as warriors and knew a good deal about fighting other soldiers and (especially) dragons--but neither knew the first thing about hunting ordinary wild animals. They saw a few natives from a distance, but never within hailing distance.

"But they are watching us," Gaius observed.

The second day out proved just how right he was.


Gaius had been leading the way since he had the best sense of direction. They had been riding slowly but steadily all day, and V'kaya and Aiden--who were not used to horseback riding--were getting tired and were, for that reason, not quite as alert as they would have been in their own element. Still, even so, nothing about the situation seemed suspicious.

One moment, they were riding along by the side of a slight rise in the land. The next moment, they were under attack. Seemingly from nowhere, a group of about fifteen horsemen appeared around them. They were tall men, dark-haired with fair skin turned bronze by the sun. They wore only loincloths and their bodies were painted with strange designs of red and yellow paint. They were armed mostly with spears and some bows.

The attack had caught the three completely by surprise. That gave the attackers a few seconds of advantage. But only a few seconds.

With a quiet exclamation of warning and a grim smile, V'kaya vaulted off her horse, drawing both her swords as she did. Cutting two downward slices with both hands, she managed to fell one of the warrior's mount with her right hand, while with her left she crippled another, causing it to throw its rider.

At the same time, Aiden pulled the Dragon Glaive from its holder on his back and with a sideways thrust, knocked the spear from the hands of one of the attackers. The warrior hadn't expected the attack and, besides, his spear would have been no match for the Dragon Glaive.

"Try not to hurt them," called out Gaius, as he turned his horse and drew his saber. "We'll need their help later." Pressing a button on the handle of his saber, he slashed at the nearest attacker. As he swung, the blade glowed white and sparkled like frost. It struck the warrior's spear hand, making him drop the spear and also freezing his hand in a sheath of ice.

V'kaya had managed to fell another horse and cut a gash in the arm of its rider. "I can patch that up after the battle," Gaius called out.

"Why are you attacking us?" asked Aiden, as he disarmed one of the archers with his glaive. The long reach of his glaive made it the ideal weapon for this battle.

"You have trespassed on our land," answered one of the attackers. "The chief will be pleased if we capture you."

"And what is your chief going to say if we capture you, instead?" asked V'kaya, grimly.

"The numbers aren't in our favor," commented Gaius. Touching another button on his saber, he swung at one of the archers. As he swung, the blade glowed red. It struck the archer's quiver, causing it to burst into flames. (Most elemental weapons could only be infused with the energy of single element, but this was a special weapon Gaius had developed which could change freely between ice and fire.)

"I know. I've going to try something else. Watch out, I'm going to attack." Aiden spurred his horse around and rode straight at the enemy. Reaching out with his glaive, he struck the ground and then galloped away. But as he struck, there was a small explosion, throwing the attackers in every direction.

Aiden reigned in his horse and glanced at the warriors who were still standing. "I would suggest the rest of you surrender. Now."

One of them, who seemed to be something like a leader, looked doubtfully at him and his glaive and then around at the rest of the group, over half which had already been knocked out of the battle. Obviously, they had never seen a weapon like the Dragon Glaive before. "That was a powerful attack--but the chief--" He took a step back nervously, standing against a large tree-- "Surrendering--

"We meant no harm. We are searching for something quite unrelated to you and would not have fought you if you hadn't attacked."

"Still, the chief--" the man began.

And then from nowhere, something flew through the air towards the speaker. It was a flat, metal object with four pointed blades, rather like a +. Two of the blades struck the tree on both sides of the man's neck, virtually shackling him there.

"Really? That is the poorest excuse for an ambush I've ever seen. This a bad location, to begin with. You were uncoordinated and sloppy. And worst of all, you attacked without understanding who your enemy was or what they were capable of. You boys really are hopeless without me, aren't you?"

V'kaya, Gaius, and Aiden all turned to see the new speaker. What they saw was a short woman riding a small grey horse. She was dressed entirely in animal hides decorated and enforced with pieces of metal. Her long, black hair fell down her back, braided together with what appeared to be bones, cleaned until they almost gleamed. In one hand she held another large projectile like the one she had just thrown and in the other hand a crossbow.

"Sorry--chief--" the man said, as well as he could, being pinned to the tree. The other warriors began backing nervously away in various directions.

"You are sorry. Well, that's the first half-way intelligent thing you've said in your life." She turned to face Aiden. "I take it you are the leader here? These boys may not be very competent, but that still doesn't give you the right to knock them around this way."

"If they hadn't attacked us, maybe we wouldn't have," said Aiden, still holding his glaive. "You are their chief?"

"Something like that. Really, just trying to keep them out of trouble. A full-time job, of course." She jumped off her horse and turned to face them. "I am Kendra Malkaseo. My friends call me Kendra the Hunter."

"What do your enemies call you?" asked V'kaya grimly.

Kendra twirled her weapon and then threw it over her shoulder. It whizzed past one of the warriors, neatly slicing off the end of his ponytail. "My enemies don't usually live long enough to call me anything."

Gaius sheathed his saber. "Kendra the Hunter. You must be the daughter of Kayne the Hunter." She nodded, looking at him curiously. "I am Gaius of the North. I knew your father rather well, many years ago."

"Gaius of the North, hm?" Kendra switched her crossbow to her other hand. "Yes, my father spoke of you often."

"And he said?"

"That you were an insufferable bore, had a horrible singing voice, but were halfway decent in a fight."

"A horrible singing voice?" repeated Aiden, looking questioningly at Gaius.

"Singing is a very important thing for the people of these lands," Gaius explained. "There are some of them whose voices are almost magical in their ability to capture the soul with a beauty from beyond this world." He sighed and shrugged. "Kayne was not one of those. My tones sounded almost good compared to his. Their only value was in battle, in which they could make the enemy lose their will to live."

Kendra laughed and threw her crossbow into the air and caught it again. "This morning, I saw a wolf with five legs. Now, I meet a northerner with a sense of humor. The portents are clear--the end of the world is at hand. But I still don't know why you're here. What business do you and your companions have here in the wilds?"

Aiden took a step forward. "In my own way, I am a hunter as well. I am hunting a dragon--a dragon some call the Elder."

All of Kendra's warrior stepped back at this and showed, in various ways, their shock. But Kendra herself just rubbed her hand affectionately on the stock of her crossbow. "You are hunting the Elder? Are you trying to use humor, too? Leave it to the old man. Boys being humorous are annoying even when they succeed, which you aren't."

"And if I'm being serious?"

"Then you're never going to live long enough to be an old man." She leaped back unto her horse. "Still, with that kind of resolve, it would be a pity if you died before facing the Elder. Come with me to the village and you can prepare for the trek. I believe we can give you information about the general area of the Elder's lair." She snapped her fingers. "Mach, see to the wounded and the horses. I'll meet you there."

"But, chief, I'm--uhm--stuck--" said the man, still pinned to the tree by her weapon.

Kendra sighed. “You boys are always looking for excuses, aren't you?”


The village that Kendra led them to was really nothing but a collection of tents pitched on a level patch of ground. However, it was bustling with life and activity. Two things especially stuck out to V'kaya. One was the primitiveness of the place. She had lived all her life with the privations of a soldier amid the bleak, cheerless walls of the capital, dark under the shadows of the dragons. There had been few luxuries in her life. But these people seemed to live little better than animals--living in bare tents, dressed in scraps of animal hides, cooking their food over open fires, armed mostly with weapons of wood and stone. Kendra was the only one she had seen with anything like a modern weapon. And that was the second thing that stuck out to her--the way everyone in the village treated Kendra. Every man, woman, and child in the place seemed to treat Kendra was a respect and awe that almost, but not quite, amounted to fear. Kendra walked among them, casually accepting their respect, firing off orders, directing actions, and occasionally settling disputes. Her position reminded V'kaya not so much of a king with his subjects or an officer with his soldiers, but a rather impatient mother with a large family of children.

“I ended up in charge of these people with the passing of my father,” she explained to V'kaya and Aiden, while Gaius assisted the village's healer in tending to the wounded men and horses from the earlier battle. “My father may have been second to me as a hunter, but he enjoyed the role of ruler more than I ever will. Still, they aren't bad--just a little on the dull side. The women have some sense, but all the warriors are men and all of them are helpless on their own.”

“I see,” said Aiden in an expressionless voice. He still hadn't figured out how to talk to Kendra.

The hunter twirled her crossbow in her hand. “You know, of course, that the Elder makes his nest somewhere in the mountains to the west. With some of our horses, you could reach there by tomorrow night--if you can stand the ride. But what about finding his exact location?"

“I was hoping we could find more definite information.” Aiden pulled his codex from its sheath. “However, my codex can detect energy signatures--points of unusual heat or coldness. We may be able to pinpoint the dragon's location with that if we can get in the general area.”

"So what reason do have for trying to go after the Elder? You are a little young to have despaired of life already. And if you are trying to impress the world, there are better ways to do it."

Aiden smiled just slightly. "Let us say I have a personal reason for hunting the Elder."

Kendra laughed. "Honor is such a silly thing and nearly always gets you killed. But without it, we should be no different from the beasts we hunt." She returned her crossbow to its holder on her back. "You're not especially bright, but I like you. So it's settled, then. I'll personally guide you to the mountains and help you find the Elder. But from there, it's up to you."

V'kaya and Aiden stared at her.

She threw her hair back. "Well, I'll see about fitting our expedition. And make sure the boys are keeping out of trouble."

As she walked away, Aiden and V'kaya stared at each other. "We shouldn't trust her," said V'kaya with a frown.

Aiden shrugged. "Gaius seemed to trust her. Anyway, we need her help if we want to find the Elder."

"I am going keep my eyes on her," said V'kaya, tightening her grip on the handles of her swords.

"V'kaya--are you jealous?"

V'kaya shot him a dangerous look which would have made most people cower in fear. And then she looked away.


Early the next morning, Gaius, V'kaya, Aiden, and Kendra, along with two of Kendra's warriors, rode out from the village in the direction of the mountains. They had taken horses from the village, which were swifter and hardier than the horses Aiden and his companions had been using before.

Having Kendra along definitely proved a benefit. She seemed to know the entire breadth of the wilds by heart and was able to lead them down paths they would never have known existed otherwise. A few times, wild animals almost attacked them, but a shot or two from her crossbow quickly ended that.

For the most part, she and Gaius rode together at the front of the group, with Aiden and V'kaya behind (V'kaya glaring suspiciously at the back of Kendra's head), and the other two warriors riding at the back. Gaius was the only one who seemed to be able to understand Kendra's odd sense of humor.

The day passed swiftly and without incident, though it left both Aiden and V'kaya thinking about how much they preferred other means of transportation to riding horses. When they reached the mountains, their base was already in shadow with the sun half-sunk behind their towering peaks. V'kaya had seen mountains like these before but Aiden, who had lived his entire life in the flat land of the capital, never had. He kept glancing up at them in amazement.

Until something else appeared out of the shadows which took up his attention.

With the lengthening shadows, he didn't see the thing until it was almost on top of him. And when he saw it, his mind was taken up for just a second in awe and confusion, trying to figure out what it was. Its looked more-or-less like a wolf with jet-black fur, but it walked on its hind legs, in a strange, crouching walk that was still very fast. Its forelegs were too short in comparison to the rest of its body but were also much thicker and had a single large claw coming out of the side just before the paw itself.

“Look out!” Kendra called out in a voice that didn't seem especially more excited than her normal voice. “That thing will most likely kill you.” With a flick of her wrist, she threw one of her metal weapons at it. (Her two signature weapons were her crossbow and her throwing stars which she called Shurikens, though they were much larger and more dangerous than any shuriken used in the north.) The shuriken struck the creature in its hind-leg, causing it to rear back, letting out a roar of pain that sounded more like the scream of a bird than the sound of a beast. It didn't do that much damage, but it did give Aiden time to draw his glaive and attack.

As Aiden attacked, the beast stumbled backward but remained upright, despite its awkward stance. But as the blade of the glaive cut through its shoulder, it screamed again and darted forward with its foreleg to attack. Aiden parried the attack with the handle of the glaive. He had made what should have been a serious wound, but the beast seemed almost unaffected. Aiden frowned for a moment and then pushed forward again, this time the glaive beginning to glow red. The beast, moving almost intelligently, nearly parried the blow with its foreleg, but Aiden twisted the glaive out of the way and struck the beast square in the chest. For just a second, nothing happened. And then without a sound, the beast tumbled over backward and lay dead on the ground.

Kendra clapped. “Well done. I guess we get to live another day.”

“What was that thing?” asked Aiden, cleaning off the end of his glaive with a cloth.

“They don't have a name,” explained Kendra with a shrug, “though you'll see a lot of them in this part of the country. Only at night, though. You see, they're actually people--men and women like you and me--who turn into that form once the sun sets.”

Aiden stopped cleaning and looked at her. “Really?”

“And they say if you examine their pelt carefully, you'll find the word 'gullible' printed somewhere. Your innocence is rather cute, but it's going to get you killed sooner or later. It's a good thing you have a weapon that powerful.” She cast a sidelong glance at it. “It's an elemental glaive, isn't it? It glows red, but it isn't a fire glaive. And it sparks, yet it isn't electric.”

“This is a very special glaive,” Aiden answered carefully, returning it to its holder. “There is only one like it in the whole world.”

“It killed that beast with only a couple strokes. And I saw how you scattered my boys with it at that battle yesterday. It caused an explosion then, didn't it?”

Aiden seemed to be a little unsure about how to answer. “As I said, this is an unusual weapon. It has the power to create an explosive force. That was how I killed that beast--I caused a small explosion inside its body.”

“It must be a powerful weapon. I wonder how powerful.”

“Some believe at its full power it would be enough to destroy this entire kingdom in a single stroke.” A shadow had fallen over Aiden's face and V'kaya knew he wasn't thinking about Kendra now, but about his father's mad dream of destruction which was responsible for his possession of the Dragon Glaive.

“The whole kingdom. I have only ever seen these wilds and they are vast enough. The whole kingdom must be vast indeed. Could a single weapon really unleash such a force?”

Aiden shrugged. He was back in the present again. “I have no intention of trying to find out. Now--we have reached the mountains--”

“No dragon hunting tonight.” Kendra snapped her fingers and shot off an order to her two warriors: “Mach, Damon, search for a secure site to camp.” She glanced back at Aiden after the two had ridden off in the growing shadows. “These wilds are--well--wild. They are filled with dangerous animals, many that have no fear of people for they have never seen people. But here along the mountains is especially dangerous because it is the Elder's home. Even dragons aren't all bad, you know. The Elder kills or drives off most large animals, but for that reason, many small animals thrive under his shadow. There are even animals here that have never been heard of in the history of man--many believe that the Elder creates them. You saw one of them tonight.”

“I see.” Aiden nodded noncommittally.

“At any rate, you would have to be mad to travel here after dark. We will begin the search for him in the morning.”

“Chief, we found a small cave near here,” reported one of the warriors, as the two rode back and saluted Kendra.

“Perfect. There is nothing like a nice damp cave on a cold, wild night. I suppose you checked to make sure it was unoccupied?”

“Of course, chief.”

“With you, I wouldn't take that as a matter of course. Well, let's go see it.”

The cave proved to be an ideal campsite. It was deep, running some distance back into the mountains, but with a narrow opening. It was dry inside, though also very cold. But when Kendra had built a large fire at the opening, it warmed up considerably.

Still, nobody slept all that well. Except perhaps Kendra. The rest were too on edge, being this deep in the wilds and so near to the dragon's den.

“At least we should have action today,” said V'kaya in a low voice, as she, Gaius, and Aiden met early the next morning. They were at the back of the cave, some distance from the entrance. Kendra and one of her warriors had left to do some scouting and hunt some game for breakfast, but the other was still waiting by the fire. “All last night, I kept thinking of that dragon. Do you really believe you can destroy it, Aiden?”

Gaius nodded. “I have been worried about the same thing. No doubt your glaive holds enough power to destroy it, but that much force will kill you as well, even if you use your shield-projector.”

“I believe there is a way to defeat that dragon without battling it--and if I'm right, there is a way to defeat all the dragons.”

“What do you mean?” V'kaya pressed.

Aiden smiled. “Do you really want to know? It is more the method of a scholar than a soldier.”

V'kaya stood up and placed her hands on her blades, glaring at him darkly. “You may be my sovereign, Prince Aiden, but I will not let even a king mock V'kaya of the Two Blades.”

“Peace, V'kaya,” said Gaius quietly. “We are all friends here. And Aiden meant no offense--as you well know.”

“Just do not forget,” she answered, grimly, and sat down again.

Aiden pulled out his codex and tapped the screen a few times, bringing up some notes he had made earlier. “The dragons derive their power from atomic energy. You've seen the nuclear reactor that Aiden I used in his laboratory to create the dragons. How he wove that power into their genetic code still remains a mystery. But in order to create that kind of energy in the first place, he needed a source of fissionable material. I believe he got it from these wilds. Somewhere in these lands is an element which he used to create the dragons. If I'm right, then I believe that the Elder has gained such stature and longevity by being near that material. And the freakish creatures of these lands--such as the thing that attacked us last night--may also be a result of the radioactive power of such a material.”

Gaius nodded. “That seems logical. But how does that aid you to defeat the Elder?”

“The dragons derive their power from the atom and give that power out again in the form of dragonsfire. The Dragon Glaive has that same power, being formed of dragonsfire. That is one half of the equation. The other half is the element which Aiden I used to create the dragon. By putting the two together in the right way, we should be able to create a chain reaction which will destroy even a dragon such as Elder. And if so--”

He broke off suddenly and held up one hand. “Did you hear something?”

In the sudden quiet, they did hear something, like the scrape of metal against rock.

Gaius was on his feet in a second. “Keep talking,” he ordered in a low voice. And then, moving swiftly and quietly, he vanished into the shadows of the cave.

Gaius was sure of one thing--that sound had come from quite close, closer than the front of the cave. And that most likely meant that somebody or something had been listening to their conversation. He moved stealthily through the darkness, his eyes searching every crevice of the cave. But he saw nothing until he was almost at the entrance. The fire had put out but there was a brighter light pouring through the entrance from the morning sun. The brightness meant that he could get fairly close without being seen in the deeper darkness of the cave.

Kendra was standing just inside the entrance to the cave. “Mach, are you there?”

“Of course, chief,” answered the voice of the warrior, who apparently stood just outside the cave.

“It seems my fears were right. I just overheard enough to confirm what I thought--that adventurer is really Prince Aiden.” She laughed quietly but hardily. “He must think because we're barbarians that we're also ignorant.”

“But--chief--why would the prince be out here?”

“Mischief, of course. I've heard that King Anados hasn't been seen for days, and people are saying there is something wrong. More likely than not, Prince Aiden knows more about that than he'd admit. And now trying to track down the Elder--why would he be doing that? I think he's staging a revolution and trying to use the Elder to do his dirty work.”

“Um, chief, I don't think--”

“I don't remember giving you permission to think, Mach. Now, listen to me carefully. I've already sent Damon to get a message to the capitol so that people will know the prince is here and what he's doing. I need you to go to the Broken Mountain. You know the one I mean, don't you? Almost due north of here, a mountain peak that seems broken in half.”

“Of course--”

“Good. Go there. We can't risk Prince Aiden getting near the Elder, no matter what his intentions are. I'll stay and try to distract them, but if they get away, I'll need you to stay there near the Elder's lair to stop them if they come. You can do that, can't you?”

“Yeah, chief, but--”

“Stop talking, Mach. It's not your strong point. Now--go--”

Gaius could hear the sound of a horse's hoofs outside. He melted back into the shadows and moved quickly back to the point where Aiden and V'kaya waited. They had tried to keep up a semblance of conversation, but neither one was much for idle chatter and it had not been very successful.

“I fear we have been betrayed,” he announced in a low voice. And then he quickly but fully repeated what he had overheard at the cave entrance.

V'kaya shook her head and glared at Aiden. “I told you Kendra could not be trusted.”

Aiden looked troubled, but he shrugged. “I suppose we should have realized this could happen. But it is not as bad as it seems. Perhaps it is even for the best.”

Gaius frowned. “Since you tried to keep your father's breakdown a secret, we should not be surprised that rumors like this would occur. But if a report like Kendra's reaches the capitol--”

“Her warrior cannot reach there in less than a week unless he goes by train, and there will not be another train until tomorrow.” He stood up and looked at his two companions. “And Kendra has given us the information we need--the location of the Elder's lair.”

“So you are still going to try to track down that dragon?”

“Yes. I didn't come this far to turn back. I noted that mountain with a broken peak last night. It is close to here and if we use our flight gear, we can reach it within a short period of time. I don't much fear Kendra's warrior, especially as we know to watch out for him. But Kendra herself would be a more difficult enemy to fight, I think. And she knows too much about these lands--she might be able to reach the Elder's lair before us and somehow drive him out. Which is why I want you to try to distract her, Gaius.”

Gaius bowed his head. “I understand. I will hold her attention while you and V'kaya go on your way.” He moved back towards the entrance. “I see you have you returned, Kendra,” he greeted as he came up to her.

“Ah, yes, good morning, Gaius,” she said, turning from the cave's entrance to return his greeting. “It was bad hunting this morning, I'm afraid. We will have to wait til later for our breakfast. Still, it is a grand morning.” She ducked out of the cave and Gaius followed her.

“You know these lands well, do you not?” Gaius remarked as he glanced around.

“I have lived every moment of my life within them.” Kendra seemed in a thoughtful mood. “I've seen these wilds in the day and in the night, by the light of the sun and the light of the moon, through storms and droughts. Come with me. There is a spot where you can get a really good view of them.”

Gaius followed as Kendra led him a short distance away from the cave. Fortunately, they would now be out of sight of the cave and out of earshot as long as the others didn't make too much noise. “Now, take a look at that,” Kendra commented.

The spot where they stood was a short distance up the side of the mountain, just enough to give them a good view of the rolling lands of the wilds--out before them spread miles of emerald-green grass, glowing in the first strands of the morning sun.

“You knew my father,” Kendra remarked, staring out over the scene, “knew him when he was still young. So I suppose you know the truth about him--the fact that he was not a native to these lands.”

Gaius nodded. “He told me his story, once. I think I would have guessed it, though. There was something about Kayne the Hunter which would speak to anyone who knew the world that he had been born to a different walk of life.”

“He might have been one of the richest and most powerful nobles of the kingdom if he had remained in his father's house--and he had some skill as a scientist as well. But instead, he chose to live out his life in these lands. Of course, it was partly because he fell in love with my mother. And the life of a barbarian suited his disposition perfectly. But the truth was that he loved these wilds--loved them like a man love his wife or a woman her child. I can never look across these lands without thinking of him.”

“He was an extraordinary man,” Gaius agreed.

“Yes.” Kendra paused and then went on in an unaltered voice: “And by now your friends should be out of earshot so there's no point in calling for them.” She casually drew her crossbow and pointed it at him. “You are an old man and you were a friend of my father, so I don't want to hurt you if I don't have to. If you just cooperate, everything will be much easier for both of us.” With her left hand, she produced one of her large shurikens and twirled it between her fingers.

Gaius felt a moment of shock but he forced himself to remain calm. He only said in an even voice: “So, the hunter is also a trapper.”

“That's what I've been trying to teach my boys, but I think they're hopeless in that way--you have to begin the hunt long before your prey knows they're being hunted. One of the grooms at the Fortress is one of my people and from him, I found out about Prince Aiden setting out on this excursion. That ambush yesterday was just my people being a little overly anxious, but I planned out all the rest of this from the beginning--meeting you, bringing you to this cave, eavesdropping on you and letting you think you were eavesdropping on me--I planned it all so I could learn exactly what Aiden was after. And now that I know and now that he's flying off for the Broken Mountain, we need to make tracks. Unless you would prefer to fight?”

Gaius shook his head. “I am a healer and a warrior. I decline to be an animal for you to hunt.”

“I knew you were a sensible man, even if you are a northerner.” Kendra returned her crossbow to its holder, but she kept the shuriken in her hand as she led Gaius back to the place where they had left their horses. “We have to hurry. If we can get to our destination before Prince Aiden realizes his mistake, that will make everything much simpler.”

“Our destination?” repeated Gaius as he mounted. “And where is that?”

“The Elder's lair, of course,” answered Kendra, jumping onto the back of her horse and setting off at an even canter. “The prince wasn't wrong, really. I didn't hear all of your conversation this morning, but I heard enough to tell me what he's looking for. Our people tell legends of it--the rock-that-burns-like-fire. They say it gives dragons their power and I guess there's more truth to that than I thought.”

Gaius rode meekly alongside her, realizing that resistance would be pointless and also curious about her motivation. “I can understand why you would be suspicious of us--a hunter must always be wary--but why do you seek to stop Prince Aiden? Now that you know why he is here.”

“Because I cannot allow it. I can't let him kill the Elder. That dragon is our savior.”

She spoke the words in a cold, serious voice. Otherwise, Gaius would have thought she was joking. “I never would have dreamed that the daughter of Kayne the Hunter might be mad,” he remarked in a low voice. “Your father was incurably sane if nothing else.”

“I am not mad.” Kendra didn't slow up the pace of her horse but she glanced around, her eyes taking in all the wilderness around her. “You work for the king and the royal army, so I shouldn't have to tell you any of this. Your soldiers have the finest crafted weapons which skill can produce--my warriors have weapons of wood and stone. You have tech of every description; my people still tell time by the sun. Your soldiers have sturdy forged armor; my people have barely gotten as far as wearing clothes. If King Anados wanted to break his treaty with my people and depose us, there is nothing we could do. If any of the kingdoms beyond our walls wanted to cross the walls and conquer us, we would be helpless. I've tried to do what I can for these people, but even now they would be slaughtered in any war with civilized people. But the truth is, nobody wants to invade our lands--nobody dares try to possess these wilds. And the reason is the Elder. Nobody troubles us so long as that dragon flies above this land.”

“Nobody troubles you because you have trouble enough.” Gaius spoke quickly and with something like levity, but there was deep gravitas in his eyes. “No one will curse you because you are already cursed. Do you really think our army or the army of any enemy nation would be as great a danger as that dragon is?”

“We have learned to live with him.”

“So he has never slain any of your people? Never ruined any of your villages? Never--”

A shadow had fallen over Kendra's face. “Not as many as would be slain in any war, Gaius. The dragon is an enemy, but he is also the enemy of our enemies and therefore something like a friend.”

“A dragon is never a friend. Dragons are death and destruction incarnate.”

“That could be said of the sun as well, of the winds and the rains, of fire and ice--and yet we could not live without those things. Nature is sometimes kind and sometimes cruel.”

“Nature is. But dragons are not natural. Pride and cruelty are woven into the very code of their DNA. They are absolute power--and absolute corruption.”

Kendra's face was set. “There is no other way. I know the Elder will slay our enemies and that fact must remain.” For a moment she paused and then added, without looking at him, “Several years ago, my father set out on a hunting trip along the southern wall--and he never returned. I am certain enemy warriors from beyond the walls killed him. Along the wall is never safe--but without the Elder, none of these lands would be safe.”

“And with the Elder, they are not safe either.”

“Do not take me for a fool. Of course I see that. And as every year the dragon grows more powerful, so does the danger he poses to us. Which is why I am bringing you along. I saw the power of Prince Aiden's glaive and heard something of his scholarship. I believe he has the power to injure the Elder, to discipline him, to bring him into a manageable state.”

Gaius actually laughed, a cold, mirthless laugh. “And tie a ribbon around his neck? That plan is mad and Aiden will never cooperate with it.”

“Oh, he will. He will do it to save your life. He has all the ideals of a schoolboy--he would never sacrifice the life of a friend for the sake of his own goals.”

Gaius knew she was probably right, though in this case, it was hard to say. Aiden was almost as single-minded and passionate about destroying the dragons as his father had been, if not to the point of insanity like Anados. “And if he does not?”

“You are a warrior and I am a hunter. You can be in either profession if you have a regard for life but not if you have too great a regard for death--for being either its victim or its agent.”

“I see.”


They rode the rest of the distance in silence. Gaius's horse fell a few steps behind Kendra's, but never so much that she couldn't still keep an eye on him. She didn't blame him for being a little cold towards her, but she knew what she had to do and had no intention of wavering from her path. As they rode, she noticed that he had drawn his saber and kept slashing at rocks as they rode by them. She kept one eye on him in case this was a cover for an attack, but she wasn't especially worried. She guessed that he had some vain idea of leaving a trail for the others to follow. But Kendra knew very well just how vast and broad the wilds were and that no one not versed in them would be able to follow them even if he had left them a trail of painted arrows.

The mountain where the Elder made his lair was a short peak, standing out from the mountain range behind. It lay many miles due south of the cave where they had camped that morning. It was just high noon when they reached it.

“At this time of day, the Elder will be out of his lair,” remarked Kendra as she drew up her horse.

“You seem well acquainted with the ways of dragons,” returned Gaius, rather dryly, as he stopped beside her.

“He is the largest thing in this wilderness. Of course I keep an eye on him.” She dismounted, still casually keeping one eye on Gaius. “By now your friends should have discovered their mistake but it will be some time before they find us. Aiden's a bright boy, so I'm sure he'll figure it out eventually, but I want to be ready before then.”

Gaius also dismounted. “What do you intend to do?”

“Your prince was right of one thing. There is little we can do against the Elder with brute strength, even with his weapon. If we are to wound him, weaken him--it must be through his weakness if that weakness does in fact exist. The-rock-that-burns-like-fire--if the traditions of my people and the theory of Prince Aiden are both right, then it lies within this cave and holds the secret of the Elder's power and our only hope to bring him down a peg or two.” She drew her crossbow and started walking up the side of the mountain. “So we're going to look.”

Gaius bowed and then followed her. “There is nothing I should more like to do than venture into the cave of a mighty dragon accompanied by a hunter who has already threatened my life.”

Kendra laughed. “I am so glad that at least you can see the humor in this situation, Gaius. This would be so tedious otherwise. A good sense of humor is invaluable in life.”

The side of the mountain was steep, but not too steep and it was relatively simple for them to reach the large opening. As they reached it, Gaius saw that opening was not natural nor had it been made by a dragon. This doorway had been carefully made by man. The air seemed very still and almost unnaturally quiet. It was as if all animals, all insects, and even the wind itself were afraid to come near here. The still air was filled with a sharp scent. Part of it was the acrid, burning smell which always accompanied a dragon--but there was something else as well, something so subtle and indescribable that Gaius couldn't say for sure if he smelled it or felt it or heard it. But it was there.

Such a large cave should have been dark, but it wasn't. It was almost as bright as the day outside and as Kendra and Gaius stepped in, it became clear why. The back half of the cave glowed with light. It reminded him of dragonsfire, but it was something very different from that. The color was golden, almost yellow, rather than orange, and it pulsated rather like the flames of a living fire.

“This is it,” said Kendra, glancing around.

“Yes,” answered Gaius quietly. “And there is probably enough radioactivity here to kill us both.” He pulled his codex from his pouch and checked it. It wasn't registering nearly as much radiation as he would have expected, but still more than he thought was healthy.

“We have found out what we needed to know,” agreed Kendra, turning away. “And there is nothing else of interest. Nothing but bones which we should let rest in peace.”

Gaius had been a warrior and a healer long enough to grow accustomed to the macabre side of life. And so the bones on the floor of the cave had not attracted his attention at first--it fit in with the mood of the place. But after Kendra mentioned them, it struck him how odd it was. Dragons were killers--it was what they were designed to do. But they didn't bring their prey back to their den. For there to be bones here almost had to mean that something or someone had actually been killed there. He looked closer at the bones and then he glanced up at his eyes met Kendra's for a moment.

And then something else happened which completely captured their attention. Somewhere outside there was a harsh scream, all too familiar to all those who lived within the shadows of that kingdom.

With a single leap, Kendra was out of the cave, pulling Gaius behind her. The orange body of the Elder could already be seen plunging through the empty sky towards the mountain. “He never comes back to his nest at this time of day.” Kendra's voice was breathless but not especially more passionate than usual.

“Dragons are not creatures you can predict,” answered Gaius, as well as he could with Kendra practically dragging him down the side of the mountain and away from the cave. “Besides, I suspect the radiation from that material may have formed some sort of resonance with the Elder's body, meaning he may have been able to sense our presence from wherever he was.”

They had almost reached the ground when the Elder landed. The force of his landing sent up a cloud of dust and sent the two horses scattering. Gaius's horse was dead an instant later as the Elder lashed out a single powerful forearm, but Kendra's horse was faster and was out of range before he could attack again.

There was no cover on the mountainside and the dragon turned its gaze towards them--its eyes nothing more than two soulless spheres of acidic yellow. “It is probably going to try to kill us,” remarked Kendra, conversationally.

Gaius placed his hand on his saber. “And most likely succeed.”

“Pessimism never got anyone anywhere in life.” She twirled one of her shurikens and threw it straight into the dragon's right eye. It skittered across the surface of the eye and fell to the ground. Unlike most animals, a dragon's eye was its least vulnerable point.

Kendra hadn't hurt the dragon, but she had achieved her goal of catching its attention. It rose slowly one its forelegs and stretched its wings back, pushing its neck forward to them. And while it stood in that position, Kendra pulled out her crossbow and fired an arrow, which struck the Elder exactly at the point where its wing connected to its body. This was a dragon's weakest point and with another dragon would at least have made a wound of some kind. But the Elder's scales were so tough that the arrow simply broke and fell to the ground.

“Well, that could have gone better. Look out!”

The Elder had clearly had enough of this battle (if it could be called that). It reared back and from its mouth shot out a barrage of dragonsfire. Kendra and Gaius were both poised to dodge, but even so, it probably would have killed them both.

Except that at the same moment the dragon fired, two figures dropped out of the sky in front of it. Both were surrounded by a slight glow and as the dragonsfire struck it, it scattered and ricocheted away in every direction.

The dragon seemed puzzled by this sudden intrusion and for a moment stood motionless.

And in that moment, Aiden and V'kaya had reached Kendra and Gaius where they stood on the mountainside. “Is it here?” asked Aiden, simply, glancing at Gaius.

“Yes.” Gaius motioned towards the cave behind them. “Just as you calculated.”

“Good.” With a swift motion, Aiden tore off his belt and his flight gear and tossed both to Gaius. “I know you and V'kaya can't hurt that creature, but if you can just distract him for a few minutes, that should buy me some time.”

Gaius nodded and quickly buckled on Aiden's belt, activating the shield-projector, and then strapping on the flight-gear.

V'kaya had thrown one angry look at Kendra when they landed, but otherwise, they had ignored her. As Gaius and V'kaya turned back towards the dragon, who was once more rising up for an attack, she stood immovable for a moment--then she whistled for her horse, which came running up. Vaulting onto its back, she was off in an instant.

“Of course she runs when she can,” remarked V'kaya, in a dark voice.

“Perhaps; perhaps not,” answered Gaius. But they didn't have much space for conversation. Not while battling the Elder.

They had one thing in the favor--the fact that the dragon remained grounded. Perhaps it was because of the fact that dragons had originally been land-dwelling animals, but whatever the reason, full-grown dragons preferred to fight on the ground, even though they were actually more powerful in the air. With the dragon on the ground, and Gaius and V'kaya flying around it, they at least had some chance.

Really, the battle was more like a dance. Neither V'kaya's blades nor Gaius's saber could actually injure the Elder. The best they could do was annoy him. And so they fell into a simple pattern--they would dart in and attack and then retreat as the dragon attempted to counterattack. It was a good plan, but for a dragon so large, the Elder was very agile and more than once nearly caught them with its dragonsfire. They wouldn't have survived at all without their shield-projectors and as it was before the battle had gone on for five minutes both V'kaya and Gaius had used up their projector's internal battery and had had to switch to an auxiliary battery pack.

“Aiden had better do something soon if he's going to do it at all,” observed V'kaya grimly.

Gaius drew up and hovered in the air a moment. “Do you hear something?”

Both paused for just a second. Somewhere, far away, they heard something like a rumble of a thunder. But unlike thunder, it didn't die away. Instead, it grew louder and louder until it even drowned out the Elder's scream.

But by that time they were able to see the cause of the sound. Running directly towards them was a large herd of wild animals. Most of them were buffalo, but mixed in with the buffalo were several animals that neither could identify. The animals seemed driven by terror and drove on, unseeing, straight towards the grounded from the Elder. And leading the herd was Kendra, riding hunched down on the back of her horse which was barely able to keep ahead of the other animals.

Gaius wheeled in the sky and flew down behind Kendra, catching her off the back of her horse and carrying her upward at the same moment the stampede overtook and trampled her horse. The next instant, the wave had crashed over the dragon.

The Elder easily killed every beast that came within range, but there were so many that it couldn't kill all of them and they rushed into him, around him, over him, without even seeming to realize his existence. It wasn't enough to hurt him exactly, but it definitely stunned him.

There was a moment of silence after the last of the animals had passed by and the Elder remained motionless on the ground.

“Sorry. That was the biggest stampede I could round up on such short notice,” Kendra explained.

“You would need all the beasts in the world to stampede in order to hurt that dragon,” said V'kaya with a grim smile.

“Wait! Look at it--”

The Elder still stood motionless, as if frozen. And its yellow eyes had turned clear like glass. As they watched, a strange change came over the whole dragon. Its scales slowly faded from orange to yellow, and from yellow to a translucent, smoky white like quartz. And then, without a sound, it collapsed onto the ground, a shapeless mass of dust and ashes.

V'kaya and Gaius (still carrying Kendra) dropped to the ground and stared at the sight.

Kendra bowed her head in something almost like respect. “So falls the sovereign of the wilds.”

An instant later, Aiden had appeared from the cave. And an instant after that, he was kneeling down beside the remains of the dragon, making notations on his codex.

“Some things never change,” said Gaius, with a wan smile.

“To think that all his time playing at the scholar would finally pay off,” returned V'kaya.

Aiden sheathed his codex and turned to face the other three. “Thank-you for leaving such a clear trail, Gaius. Otherwise, we might never have found you.”

“You left a trail?” Kendra glanced at him, raising one eyebrow. “I saw you cutting at things with your saber, but there's no way that could have left a trail which anyone could follow.”

Gaius smiled. “You forget that my saber is an elemental weapon. With it, I was able to leave a trail of points of unusual heat or coldness, which Prince Aiden could detect with his codex. I am only glad you thought to follow me in that way.”

Aiden had a faraway look in his eyes. “That could have ended badly. But all that matters is that now, I have found a way to destroy a dragon. This war has finally turned.”

Kendra still seemed just slightly awed. “But how did you do it? You did not even strike it.”

“That radioactive rock in the cave--my glaive--and the dragons--they are all pieces of the same puzzle. Dragons are not natural creatures; they were created and therefore they can be destroyed by attacking them at the source of their life.” He frowned and tapped the screen of his codex a few times. “I haven't fully even worked it all out yet, but essentially I was able to cause the radioactive elements of the Elder's body to decay, turning into inert and powerless minerals.” He glanced up and looked at all of them. “And if it can be done to a single dragon, then it can be done to all of them. If we can mine that mineral and put it together in the right way and then harness the power of the Dragon Glaive, then we can wipe out all the dragons in this entire kingdom in one glorious blast of absolution.” He sheathed his codex again and looked directly at Kendra. “But your stunning the Elder first definitely helped. And it kept Gaius and V'kaya safe from the dragon for a few minutes. You have helped us.”

“And you also betrayed us and committed high treason. As acting ruler, Prince Aiden has every right to wipe out you and all your people as punishment.” V'kaya held her hands on the handles of her swords, as if ready to begin executing the sentence in a moment.

Kendra ignored her, though, and turned to face Aiden. “Prince Aiden: I am not in the habit of apologizing or begging for mercy. I have lived by my decisions and I am willing to die by them. But don't hold my actions against my people. I acted alone in all of this. Trust me, none of my boys are bright enough to understand this kind of intrigue anyway.”

Aiden shook his head. “I'm not interested in killing anyone. This kingdom has already seen enough death. But I would like to know why you did what you did. When we first discovered your treachery, I had a mad thought that for some reason, you were trying to save the Elder. But clearly, that was wrong, since you helped us to defeat it when you could have easily run away.”

“No, you were not wrong. My plan was to force you to injury the Elder but not kill it. But I realized how foolish that was.” She glanced at Gaius. “You know why, of course?”

He frowned thoughtfully. Clearly, he had been thinking about that himself. “That body we found in the cave--” he said slowly-- “that was Kayne the Hunter, was it not? I thought I saw one of his ornaments--”

“Yes.”

Aiden nodded. “So your father was killed by the Elder.”

“I suppose I always knew that the dragon might cause as much harm as it did help, but I never thought--but even that, really, wasn't the main thing.” She put her hands on her hips and glanced from Aiden to Gaius and back again. “It wasn't just that the Elder killed him--it's that the Elder killed him here. Meaning, my father deliberately went to the Elder's lair. And knowing my father, I know why he came--he had the same mad plan I had, a plan to injure the Elder, to control him.”

Gaius smiled sadly. “Yes, I can see Kayne coming up with such a plan. You are very much your father's daughter.”

“But that kind of plan is always doomed to failure,” said Aiden, soberly. “You cannot control a dragon. There are things in this world you can make no alliance with; thing that you must kill or be killed by.”

“I see that now.” For a moment, Kendra was silent. And then she threw her head back and turned to Aiden again. “I betrayed you. And you saved my life. So I am in debt to you. And Kendra the Hunter always pays her debts. Besides that, I see now that the dragons must be destroyed and that you are this kingdom's one hope to destroy them. And so--” she drew her crossbow and placed it Aiden's hands-- “and so I pledge my service to you, your highness. I will serve at your side until this war is over.”

“I hardly think Prince Aiden desires the assistance of a traitor,” V'kaya began.

Aiden glanced at her and shook his head. “I accept your allegiance, Kendra. In this war, a hunter may be of use. And we cannot turn our back on any ally at this point.”

Kendra nodded. “And this could even be fun.”

“Humph,” said V'kaya.