Test of the Dragon Read online

  "Yeah, if we can talk to someone who will understand a word we're saying," Halldor pointed out. We'd stopped by a food cart for breakfast, and the man who'd helped us had spoken no Elantian at all. "We might need to find an interpreter."

  We walked the length of the docks, searching for someone who spoke a language we knew. Most of the merchants who owned shops here only spoke basic Elantian, and hardly any spoke Warosian or Zallabarian, but as we ducked into a small shop—really a shack—that specialized in net-mending, I was relieved to see an Elantian behind the counter.

  "It's so nice to see someone from my home country," the man, who was called Aelor, said effusively once we'd stepped up to the counter and explained what we were looking for. "Do you have any news for me? I've heard some strange rumors."

  "That our country has been taken by Zallabar?" I said. "Unfortunately, those rumors are true."

  “Almost all the dragon riders have either fled or been executed, and the enemy now rules from Zuar City," Halldor added as the blood from the man's face drained.

  "I... I thought..." He shook his head vigorously, as if trying to snap himself out of a great shock. "This is terrible news. I have family in southern Elantia. My sister and her family run a farm there. Do you think she's all right?"

  "Unless she's got dragon rider blood or is a sympathizer, she's probably fine," I assured him, feeling guilty for making the man worry. After all, he was just a simple net-mender. What could he do about it? "I'm guessing you're a former sailor who left home to see the big, wide world?"

  He gave me a half-smile. "I was. Sailed the seas for thirty years before I met my wife here in Roccar. We have two children now, so she's forced me to settle down, but every once in a while, I do feel the sea's call still." He glanced wistfully at the bay, visible through the small window at the front of the shop, but his eyes sharpened as he turned back to us. "Now, what can I help you with? I'm guessing you're refugees here to start a new life. Are you planning to take up fishing? I do sell nets as well as mend them," he said, gesturing to the netting displayed on the wall to our right. "But the industry is very competitive here, as I'm sure you know."

  "We're actually looking to hire a ship," I told him. "There's a large island to the south of here that our group is trying to reach, and we have a lot of cargo." I explained what we needed in more detail, leaving out all mention of dragons and relics. "Do you think we could hire you as an interpreter?"

  The man hesitated. "I don't know," he said. "My wife's not well today, and I can't afford to leave the shop—"

  I placed a stack of coins on the counter. "Would this be enough?"

  Aelor’s eyes nearly fell out of his head, and I had to hide a smirk. I doubted he'd ever seen that much money pass over his counter in a single day, judging by the quality of his clothes and the size of his shop. "Umm, yes," he managed, hastily shoving the gold into his hands. "I think that should be more than sufficient. Let me lock up."

  Aelor closed up shop, then led us away from the docks. "It's too much work to go to each of the ships individually," he explained as we passed a row of shops and restaurants. "If you want to hire a ship, you go to the Fat Mermaid. That's where all the captains go to arrange their cargo."

  The man took us into a large tavern, which, aptly, did have a large, overweight mermaid poised above the double-door entrance. We went up to the bar, surprisingly crowded considering it was barely mid-morning. Halldor and I ordered the local drink, which was similar to mead but smelled spicy. I took a swallow and nearly choked when it raced down my throat, burning like wildfire.

  "Dra—" Halldor started to swear, and then hastily changed the phrase. "Hell's fire," he sputtered, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "That's too strong to drink before lunch."

  Aelor laughed, clapping him on the back. "It'll put some hair on your chest." He winked, and then led us over to the hearth, where a group of men were sitting.

  "Captain Nemas," he said, addressing a handsome, broad-shouldered man in a captain's uniform. "These two are looking to hire a ship." He explained the size of our cargo and our price range.

  "Pleasure to meet you." The captain shook my hand, the gleam in his eyes telling me that the amount offered definitely enticed him. "Can you tell me more about where you're headed?"

  I hesitated, then lowered my voice. "The place doesn't have a name that I'm aware of," I said, "but it is a large, volcanic island, about two weeks’ journey south of here. Do you know where I speak of?"

  "The Hellmouth?" The captain reared back as if I'd struck him, his face turning ruddy. "I'm sorry, Miss, but you're out of your mind! Nobody travels to that cursed place."

  "The Hellmouth?" Halldor asked eagerly, jumping into the conversation. "Is that its official name? What do you know about the place, Sir?"

  "Any place that wretched must be the gateway to hell," the captain growled, “so that’s what the locals call it. Nobody who sets out for that voyage ever returns alive. There is no amount of money you could offer to put my ship and crew at risk like that. I'm sorry, but you're just going to have to find someone else."

  "You really want to go to the Hellmouth?" Aelor asked incredulously as the captain beat a hasty retreat. "Anyone who has a lick of sense will tell you to stay far away from that place. Why would you want to go there?"

  "It's a matter of life and death," I said tightly. "Now will you please find us someone else to ask?"

  Aelor gave me a dubious look, then introduced us to another captain. We talked to ten more, all friendly, capable-looking men who at first seemed extremely interested, but abruptly said no the moment they learned where we were going. I even increased the price several times, and still couldn't get anyone to bite.

  "There's got to be more than ten captains," I said, desperation coloring my voice as the last man rejoined his friends, his back turned pointedly in our direction. "Who else can we talk to? Money is truly no object. We'll pay whatever we need, but we have to get to that island."

  Aelor sighed. "All the captains I've introduced you to are honest, sensible men with good reputations. There are less...honorable men who will do anything for a price, but perhaps you should heed these men who've all told you the same thing."

  "I wish we could," Halldor said, "but we have to get to that island." He palmed a few more coins and discreetly showed them to the man. "These are yours, but only if you can help us secure a ship."

  Aelor looked torn, and part of me sympathized with him. He was a good man, and his honor told him he should refuse, that he wanted no part in helping us with what he saw was a doomed endeavor. But this was also more money than he made in several months, and with two children to feed, he couldn't afford to turn it down.

  "This way," he finally said.

  The man led us to another tavern a few blocks away from the port. This place was much smaller than the last, with dirty, sticky floors, beat-up furniture that had seen quite a few bar fights, and beneath the smell of booze and unwashed bodies were traces of piss and vomit.

  Halldor tensed as eyes turned toward us. The men here were less friendly, their eyes sharp and assessing as we walked to the bar, and more than a few eyed the pouch tied to my belt.

  But I'd been in places like this plenty of times, and I knew how to behave. Casually, I let my hand drift to the dagger strapped to my thigh, letting them know that I wasn't an easy mark. Then I slid onto a ratty bar stool, leaned over the counter, and ordered a drink.

  When the barkeep—a rough man with a shaved head whose arms and neck were covered in tattoos—brought me my tankard, I slugged the drink back in one go, ignoring the fact that it stripped off a layer of skin as it slid down my throat. Slowly, I lowered the tankard to the counter as I met the man's eyes, giving myself time to recover my voice. Then I leaned in and asked, very politely, which man in here owned the largest ship.

  As Aelor translated my question, the barkeep's eyes flickered to the room behind me. "That one," he said in heavily accented Elantian, and I turned in t
he direction he nodded.

  A man with long, dirty blond hair wearing a tri-corner hat and a long, oiled coat sipped slowly from his tankard as he watched us from the far corner of the room. He wore several hoops in each ear, and a tattoo of a sea serpent crept up the side of his neck. He was handsome in a rakish sort of way, and his cruel lips curved into a half smile as he studied me with seafoam green eyes that were too sharp for my liking.

  "Absolutely not." Aelor grabbed my arm. "That's Captain Drakis!"

  "And what's wrong with Captain Drakis?" I asked mildly, not taking my eyes away from the man.

  "Officially he's a privateer, but everybody knows he and his crew illegally seize ships and cargo all the time." Aelor’s fingers dug into my upper arm hard enough to bruise. "Please, Miss, let me find you someone else, anyone else."

  I arched my eyebrow at him. "Can you find anyone else?" I asked, turning back to him.

  "I—"

  "Excuse me," Drakis said pleasantly. Somehow, he'd already managed to cross the room and stood solicitously at my side. "Is this man bothering you?" His seafoam eyes dropped to the hand clenched around my arm.

  Aelor immediately dropped my arm as if he'd been burned. "We were just leaving," he said stiffly, making to move off the bar stool.

  "Actually, my friend was just telling me that you're a captain who owns a very large ship." I gave Drakis a flirtatious smile, allowing my eyes to travel up and down his lean frame in a slow, deliberate once-over. "Do you think you could tell me exactly how large, Captain?"

  "Large enough for your needs, I should think," Drakis said with a smirk as both Halldor and Aelor sputtered behind me. He eased his hip onto the stool next to me, his eyes never leaving mine. "What is it you're looking for, exactly?"

  "My friend and I are looking for someone to take us someplace very special," I said sweetly. "Have you heard of a place called the Hellmouth?"

  Those green eyes flickered, the only sign that Drakis was shocked. "Not exactly the best place for a holiday," he drawled, his gaze briefly switching to Halldor's. The two men seemed to size each other up for a minute before he turned back to me. "Why me, sweetheart? The Borcas is large, but you need speed more than size if you want to reach the Hellmouth before the winds change."

  "We've got some large cargo," I said with a shrug, not missing the glint that entered Drakis's eyes. "I had the impression you aren't a man who asks a lot of questions," I added pointedly.

  "You'd be right about that." Drakis gave me a cheerful grin. "The only question I need to know the answer to is if you're stingy. I charge twenty pieces of gold to get you there, and twenty-five to get you back. Unless you're not coming back?"

  "Oh, we'll need a return journey for sure." I kept my tone light, not wanting to betray the very real fear that we might not come back from this at all.

  "Forty-five pieces is robbery," Aelor growled. "But then again, you specialize in that, don't you, Drakis?"

  Drakis narrowed his gaze on Aelor. "The voyage to the Hellmouth is fraught with dangers. The unpredictable winds and stormy weather, not to mention the sea monsters, are likely the reason everyone else has turned you down, haven't they?" He gave me a sly grin. "Otherwise, this stickler would have never brought you to me."

  "Forty-five pieces sounds more than fair," I said before Aelor could piss off the privateer and ruin the only chance we had. "But we need to leave tomorrow morning. Oh, and just so you know," I added with a smile, "we'll be bringing four more companions aboard. I hope that's all right with you?"

  Drakis shrugged. "Makes no difference to me as long as you pay." He held his hand out. "I'll need ten coins now, so my men and I can gather supplies and prep for the voyage. My ship is the one with the sea serpents," he added. "You can't miss it."

  "Done." I dropped the coins into his outstretched hand. "Pleasure doing business with you, Captain."

  There was a long silence as Drakis walked out of the tavern, whistling cheerfully.

  "You are out of your mind," Aelor grumbled from behind me. "You do realize you've just signed your death warrant, don’t you?"

  I turned around and dropped the remaining coinage Halldor had promised Aelor into his front pocket. "Thank you for your help today, sir," I said, ignoring the thunderous look on his face. "I'm sure you'll be wanting to get home to your family now."

  The former sailor stomped out of the tavern in a huff, muttering something in another language that I had a feeling was very uncomplimentary.

  "You know," Halldor said as we left the tavern, "the man does have a point. That Drakis guy might have a pretty face, but he's no good. I wouldn't be surprised if we showed up at his ship tomorrow and he told us that he had no recollection of ever meeting us."

  "I doubt that'll happen," I said as we turned a corner, heading back to the inn. "I saw the look in his eyes when we mentioned we had a large cargo. He's going to want to get it—and us—aboard his ship before he tries to rob us.”

  Halldor was silent for a split second before he let out a raucous laugh. "So that's the game you're playing, eh?" he chortled. "Well, they're going to get a very big surprise indeed when they find out exactly what their large cargo is."

  In much better spirits, the two of us returned to the inn to tell Rhia and Tibo what had happened. The two of them were in the small dining room downstairs, eating a hearty breakfast, and seemed extremely annoyed when we sat next to them.

  "You should have woken me up," Rhia accused as I snatched up her glass of juice and took a long draught. "We didn't have any way to contact you!"

  "We did leave a note," I said mildly as I put the empty glass of juice down. A serving girl came by and Halldor and I ordered eggs and toast.

  "Besides," Halldor said with a smile, "I think your body is really appreciating that sleep. Not that you weren't determined before, but now you look like you're ready to take on the world."

  Rhia snorted. "That's the nicest way I've ever heard a man describe an angry woman." She lifted her refilled glass to her lips. I had the distinct feeling she was trying to hide a smile.

  "So, you're leaving tomorrow?" Tibo said apprehensively. He chased the remaining bits of food on his plate with a fork, and I could tell from the hunched set of his shoulders that he was afraid we were going to abandon him. "Am I coming with you?"

  "No," I said gently. "But I think I've finally found a place for you to go."

  We finished breakfast, and the four of us went down to the docks.

  "I don't want anything more to do with you," Aelor barked as we walked into his shop. He was sitting on the stool behind the counter, his rough hands flying as he busily mended a net. But his eyes widened as he caught sight of Rhia and Tibo. "Skies," he swore as he jumped to his feet. "You're taking a child to the Hellmouth?"

  "Not if I can help it," I retorted. "Believe it or not, I'm not an idiot. The three of us can deal with whatever Drakis decides to pull. But Tibo..." I trailed off as I looked down at the little boy, who was staring apprehensively at Aelor. "We rescued him from pirate slavers a week ago, and we've been trying to find someone to take him in. As much as I know he'd like to come," I added, ruffling his hair fondly, "the Hellmouth is no place for a twelve-year-old."

  "You want me to take him?" Aelor asked. He was silent for a moment, and then, slowly, he walked around the counter and crouched to meet Tibo at eye level. "What's your full name, boy?"

  "Tibo Buoni," he said, bravely meeting Aelor's gaze. The boy gave the older man a frank assessment, taking in his well-made but old shirt and trousers, his close-shaven salt-and-pepper hair, and his skin weathered by salt and sea. "Are you a sailor?" he asked.

  "Once," Aelor said. "Now I run my shop here, so I can be close to my wife and children." He sat back on his heels, his gaze thoughtful. "My kids are still too young to be away from their mother, but you look old enough to help me out in the shop. Is that something you would be interested in?"

  Tibo hesitated. "Would you pay me?"

  "I'd give you a roof over yo
ur head, clean clothes, and food in your belly. And my wife will smother you with hugs and kisses until you can't stand them, and stuff you so full of food at night I'll have to roll you out of bed every morning."

  Tibo giggled. "That sounds nice," he said, but he turned to me, a question in his eyes.

  I nodded. "Aelor's a good man.” To Aelor, I added, "Tibo hopes to become a ship's captain someday."

  "Ah." Aelor's eyes lit with understanding as he rose. "Well, I can care for the boy until he's old enough to begin an apprenticeship. There are many fine captains here in Roccar. We'll find you a good crew to sail with if that's what you're after, boy. Does he have any belongings?" he asked me.

  "Just the clothes on his back," I said, but I handed him a purse. "And this."

  Aelor's eyes widened as he opened the drawstring pouch, and he let out a low whistle. "That's enough to feed and clothe him until he's an adult."

  "And some for you and your family, too, as thanks for taking him in." I lowered my voice. "I'm trusting you to spend it wisely."

  Aelor gave me a long look. "I don't know what your business is on that island," he finally said, "but it's clear you're not as stupid as I thought you were." He tucked the money behind the counter. "I'll take good care of him."

  "Are...are you leaving me now?" Tibo asked in a small voice. He looked up at me, tears glimmering in his eyes.

  "Yes." I dropped to my knees, blinking back tears of my own as he rushed into my open arms. "I wish I could say that we'll meet again, but we probably won't."

  "I know," he said quietly, pitching his voice low so the others couldn’t hear. "I just wish I could have said goodbye to the dragons."

  "Tell Tibo I'm sorry I couldn't hug him, but I'm glad he's going to a good family," Lessie said. I could feel her sadness in the bond. As the one who'd rescued Tibo, she would miss him the most.

  I relayed the message, and Tibo smiled. "I'm glad I got the chance to see dragons at least once in my life," he said, pulling away. "You're going to be careful, right?"