There were looks shared between the knights as they waited with baited breath for the Commander to say sothing more decisive than a curse word under his breath.
Irene and Felix, in particular, shared looks of disbelief.
"Commander..." Irene was the first to urge the man to say sothing else.
Surprisingly, there was less urgency than they were expecting as he finished off his tall mug of ale and pushed away from the table.
"Might as well see what the hell she’s decided to do now," he decided.
It was then that Irene realized that this could possibly be Sylaron. She wouldn’t do anything purposefully destructive, but after witnessing the way that she destroyed Idona without aning to, anything was possible. It would likely beco her father’s problem if anything too badly happened.
Sure enough, as the knights rushed out the door behind their Commander, they were t with the sight of a dragon sinking in the snow as it lted around her feet. When she saw the very person she had been seeking, her long neck reached towards the ground at the knight’s feet, and more snow lted where she touched, causing Commander Henry to stand in a small puddle of water that was certainly soon to freeze and create a hazard.
Irene’s head turned from the amazing sight when she saw movent out of the corner of her eyes.
Sure enough, there were many others alard at the earth shaking, and people were peeling back the heavy curtains to see what on earth had destroyed their otherwise uneventful winter. It was hard to hide a dragon, after all.
"Does that an the Knights of Hydrogia are safe?" Henry asked her.
Irene couldn’t help but faintly smirk at that. He talked to his horse, and it seed he also talked to his dragon. She found it endearing, but wouldn’t say it out loud.
"Ho?" the Commander asked, his voice getting even quieter, but Irene, only a few feet from him, could hear every word. "Did you make sure the knights made it all the way ho? It’s no wonder you took such a long ti. It’s been nearly a month."
Irene had thought that the massive creature might have hibernated for the winter. She was unaware that the dragon was taking her duties of watching over the Knights of Hydrogia so seriously. It was like she really could understand the words the Commander said. This was not sothing the books in the library covered, or anything in Felix’s presentation during knight school when they were apprentices discussed.
To the patrons of the inn and the village people’s surprise, the knights no longer braced their weapons, and they held them in a more relaxed manner, if not putting them away altogether. Irene imagined they must be thinking about how useless the knights were for not protecting them.
When the dragon lifted her head, there were quite a few gasps from those watching, but the knights were unfazed by the dragon’s movents. There was not even a hint that the magical beast wanted to attack any of them, and they all knew it with certainty.
Irene observed as Henry saw sothing and stepped even closer to the dragon, further putting him in her muddy puddle of snowlt.
Strangely enough, there was a small scroll inside of a leather pouch as if she were so sort of ssenger hawk. How interesting would it be if she took over for Blade as the one to deliver letters for the Commander. Many complained that Blade was so intimidating, but what if a dragon showed up instead?
Irene had to not smirk at the thought; there were plenty of terrified common people around who needed the knights to be taking the situation as seriously as possible. While the knights were an iota more used to the dragon, these people had never even witnessed one in their lives.
Irene walked backwards a bit and to the main door of the inn where maids stood nervously, as if guarding the closed door. They had closed it to preserve the heat, but it wasn’t keeping the few patrons and innkeeper from peering out of any opening they could.
In turn, Irene decided she should guard the maids. They were fearless in front of a dragon despite their lack of ability in combat and she found it respectful enough.
After the Commander had taken out the letter and read over it, he shook his head.
"I wonder what sort of trouble you got in by going all the way to Callum’s fief."
He then turned toward his second in command who had taken up a different place, in front of the stables and near a few apprentices who were determined not to seem afraid in the eyes of the townspeople eavesdropping to the best of their abilities.
"What am I supposed to do?" Henry asked after gesturing for Felix to move closer to him. "Am I ant to bring her wtih to Auden Estate? I don’t know what sort of trouble she’ll cause."
Felix glanced at Irene who guarded the maids and then around the village where people were waiting with baited breath for an answer to this disturbance and the knights’ lack of action .
"Will she cause problems?" Felix asked honestly. "At the sa ti, I wonder if it’s ti the people got used to her. She’s been a valuable tool for us. The average person in Tenetium will soon know that she protects these lands because you do."
"I suppose you’re right about that," Henry relented readily. "If the Earl is ant to accept , I suppose he has to accept her as well. She isn’t an easy secret to hide especially if sothing happens during the banquet that cuases to react. Sylaron will be at the Earl’s doorstep."
The Commander’s words caused a light laugh to escape him, but he seed to be the only person able to laugh at such a situation.
"I think it’s good you present yourself as soone a dragon chose regardless of the implications of that," Felix continued, determined. "It isn’t enough that you have dragon orbs. You have the first living, breathing dragon in a century taking orders from you, Commander."
"I suppose you’re right about that," Henry admitted, crossing his arms over his broad chest as he leaned towards Felix, but kept his attention on their new company. "I’ll have to talk to her about boundaries."
Felix shot a look at the Commander, silently telling him he was lost. Since the Commander wasn’t looking at him, Felix gave the sa look to Irene who was as perplexed as him. Could the dragon actually be reasoned with?
"I’ll assure the people in the inn that they’re safe," Felix decided.
When the second in command departed from the Commander’s side, he passed Irene before going into the inn.
"Co," he ordered Irene as they stepped back into the warm building. And once they were finally in the dining hall together with more knights and plenty more apprentices gathered, Felix continued, "We need to alert the townspeople of what has happened here today. You heard the conversation. They best know that the dragon will be around more often. She is a sign of the Commander’s protection. Apprentices, go and tell the townsfolk. Irene, we will alert everyone we can in here."
"Yes, sir," they all said in varying degrees of the sa answer.
It seed it wasn’t ti yet to relax, Irene realized. Her duties were just beginning as she rushed towards the stairs and to the upper levels where she had seen a few people peeking out of the windows, their eyes full of horror.
User Comments
0 comments from readers