“You know that for the last three years, I have been continually bringing up the
overpopulation issue with Rainer and the Bostoff. (They were a part of the council of the
elders which was made up of members of each race. Rainer was the leader of the Golds,
the race to which these four belonged.) What I have been preaching to the elders has
finally come true. We’ve overpopulated our world, Voss, and we are all doomed to
starvation. We’ve eaten all the hoofers, and now they cannot even breed. There are too
few of them left and too widely scattered. I searched one hundred square miles to find
that miserable antelope.”
“So what do we do now? Just lie down and starve to death?” Emil said angrily.
“Not at all son, not at all. I know a place that is rich in hoofers — so many that you
could feast for years and not diminish them,” Aldrick stated, knowing that he now had
their fullest attention.
“We must move from here, taking everything with us. However, there is another
thing to consider. What do we Golds treasure nearly as much as gems, my twins?”
He saw the light in their eyes once more. “Magic, dad! Magic!” Renata hollered
before Emil could do the same.
“You both are now eighteen, and it is high time that you learned all the magic
spells you can fit into your heads! I know that I’ve managed to teach you five spells, but I
am not a very good teacher; neither is your mother. What you kids really need right now
is to study under an Archmage! Yes, a real master of spells, whose knowledge vastly
exceeds that of any of our species.”
“You mean those frail humans, dad?” asked Renata, somewhat disgustedly.
“Yes, for all their frailties, Renata, some of them command vastly more magical
powers than any of us, their Archmages. Plus, some of them are superb teachers, kids. In
fact, I know that my old teacher is still living, though she is getting very old in human
years. I propose that we pack up everything and move to her world, where the food is
also plentiful. It is nearly springtime there, which is when she accepts new students. I
believe that she will accept both of you. I have a little inducement for her, which, if I
know Archmage Oldrich, she’ll jump to get it.”
“Cool, dad!” Renata came out of her hostilities, beginning to imagine first a full
belly and then learning arcane magical spells.
“Yeh dad, brilliant. How come we didn’t move sooner?” Emil added, still a bit
hostile.
“Because you two were not quite old enough. Now you are ready, so what say
you? Shall we abandon Voss for another world?”
“Dear, one small matter,” Sofie interrupted. “In a few years, Renata will get her
first heat. Where will she find other Golds with which to mate?”
“Why worry about that now, love? Let’s worry about that when she is.” Renata
snorted; she wasn’t the least bit interested in boys, not yet anyway. They were just too
rowdy for her likes.
“Okay, that’s settled. Now this is very important, kids. Humans are terrified of
our kind, well most of them are. If they see our true shapes, they will likely drop
everything and attempt to hunt us down and try to kill us. Humans kill what they fear,
instead of trying to understand it. There are exceptions as always. So while we are on
their world, we must be very, very careful not to let humans see our true forms. We can
live in that same cavern where I stayed when I was getting my magic training from
Archmage Oldrich. I think it is still here. Your mother and I will stay there while you are
in school. Of course, if she accepts you, she will want you to live in her tower. However,
she will allow you time to feed once a week. Just make sure that no one sees you change
or sees you flying about; we don’t want packs of humans trying to hunt us down. I know
that they are puny and easily defeated, but that will surely force Archmage Oldrich to
cancel your magic training. Now then, let’s practice your morphing skills, kids.”
The two grumbled, having done this minor spell many times before. It was one
that their father taught them first. Now they understood why; it would allow them to
mingle with the denizens of other worlds than their own. “When do we move, dad?”
Renata wanted to know.
“Just as soon as I am convinced both of you know what to do and how to get
along on her world. Sofie, will you start packing our pile of gems, please?” Aldrick asked.
The next day, satisfied that his kids knew what they had to do, Aldrick cast shrink
spells onto their many sacks. Sofie then tied them securely to her legs. “How do we get
there, dad?” asked Renata.
“We use our skills to move between worlds, though you must know your
destination. I don’t want you kids to go trying this on your own now. You might get lost
and never find your way back! Once we are airborne, take my claw in yours and Sofie
will take yours. When you are all attached to me, I will move us between Voss and her
world.”
“What’s it called, dad?” Emil asked.
“Adapazan, son.”
“Weird name,” he replied.
“Whatever you do, don’t let go until we arrive. Okay, up and away from Voss we
go!” Aldrick took a running leap into the air, extending his magnificent wings to the
fullest extent, some hundred plus feet across. He soared high into the air then hovered,
waiting for Sofie and the kids to join him. One by one, they locked claws, and at last he
began to move between worlds, as any good dragon could.
A black swirling mist hid everything from view. Both teens felt terribly uneasy,
though they didn’t panic. However, both realized that it would be very easy to panic and
become trapped here in the nowhere, lost, disorientated, and confused. Everything
looked the same — unrecognizable swirling masses of blackness. Suddenly, ahead of
them, a blue light appeared, first as a small round object. Steadily it grew in size, larger
and larger, until Aldrick pulled them into its sky, soaring high above the towering
mountains, forests, and streams. Spring melt had come at last. Even from this height,
Renata spied numerous hoofers grazing on the first shoots of spring. Food! Her dad was
not kidding them. Her stomach growled once more.
Four golden dragon circled high above the deserted mountain tops, descending at
last to a large cavern near one nearly inaccessible peak. “Ah, just as I left it some forty
years ago,” Aldrick announced and entered to check it out. Presently, he sounded the all
clear bellow and the other three joined him. “I know it is rather small for the four of us,
but soon the kids will be staying in the tower. Think we can manage Sofie?” he asked
playfully. She gave him a swipe of her long tail.
Ah hour later, stomachs finally full for the first time in several years, the four
dragons dozed for several days. When they awoke, Aldrick once more grilled the twins
on how they were to conduct themselves. Satisfied that they knew how to avoid drawing
attention to themselves, all four morphed into human forms. He handed Emil the giant
emerald and Renata the small money pouch containing a number of gold coins, which he
had left here in the cavern some forty years ago. Aldrick had no interest at all in gold,
but he explained that humans highly valued it and that the twins should first purchase
some more fitting clothing in the town.
Cocky, Emil bragged, “Dad, stop worrying. We can handle this. No problem at all.
We’ll see you in a few days when we need to feed again. You are right; this place is food
heaven.” Sofie smiled and hugged her twins. Then, the two morphed back into their
golden forms and flew down until they were within walking distance. They landed and
morphed back into their human forms and began the long walk into the town of Brn.
This remote town of some ten thousand people lay cradled between three tall
peaks. One heavily traveled road led down into the dense forests and to other towns and
villages of the Wild Lands of Adapazan. The twins stared at the tall granite outer walls;
they’d seen nothing like this in their lives. Once they passed through the gates, the city
streets were swarming with humans of all sizes and sexes. Soon they realized some were
men, some women, and some children. Shops upon shops lined either side of the street.
Emil asked for directions to the Stodgy Inn, where the candidates would cluster
in the spring in hopes of being chosen by Archmage Oldrich for their magic
apprenticeship. Around noon the two entered the inn and acquired a room. So far so
good, Emil thought.
Chapter 3 Many Meetings
Shouts and steel clanking upon steel roused Zoran from his sleep. He guessed the road
and headed towards the noise, swords drawn. As the trees thinned and the rutted
roadway appeared, he spied four wagons loaded with goods being attacked by twelve
men. Each wagon had a driver and a guardsman, both of which had gotten off to repel
the attacking bandits. However, three of them had quarrels sticking out of their sides or
chests and were now mostly trying to protect the wagons as a last line of defense.
Three of the rough looking men were down, arrows protruding from their
foreheads. Twang! Make that four bandits down; his eyes caught the flash of some
bowman far to his right. Without thinking about it, Zoran launched himself into the fray,
his pair of short shorts flashing rapidly. Taking the nearest by surprise, his blades sliced
deep into the man’s gut and his neck, dropping this bandit instantly. Twang! A fifth went
down, as Zoran engaged the next bandit.
The double teaming bandits, realizing that their simple heist was going all wrong,
turned tail to run back into the woods. However, the one he was facing had no choice but
to attempt a fighting retreat. His broadsword swung defensively against the incredibly
fast slicing motions of the twin blades. Fear crept into the man’s face; he stopped
making any attempt to swing his blade, merely trying to use it to block those razor sharp
blades, moving so fast that if he focused on the path of one, the other became a blur.
Pain. Pain again. Darkness. The bandit dropped as the sound of snarling, barking dogs
came from the direction of the fleeing bandits.
Zoran looked over at the teamsters. Two waved a greeting, but began attending to
their companions’ many wounds. The archer stepped out of the woods. Zoran blinked
twice. A woman wearing a leather top and pants similar to his, tall and with long blonde
hair tied back, and sky blue eyes came walking towards him. She had a long bow and an
arrow notched, though it was pointing downward at the moment. She took graceful, well
placed steps as she approached, her eyes darting from fallen bandit to bandit. The dog
growling and barking grew louder.
Suddenly the remaining five bandits came running as fast as they could from the
trees, followed by a pack of large brown and black dogs. A man with a drawn sword was
right behind them. “That’ll be Bernard, most likely,” the woman’s alto voice called out to
Zoran. “Don’t attack the dogs.”
The bandits, seeing Zoran and the archer before them and the wild man and dogs
behind them, dropped their crossbows and swords. “We give up! Call them off!” one
yelled frantically as a dog, teeth snarling, saliva dripping, slowly approached his leg.
“Heel, Amos. Heel,” the man in the cloak called out. “Heel. Here to me. Here to
me. Good dogs. Guard. Guard.” Zoran was impressed with the behavior of the six dogs.
The one that was threatening to take a bite out of the man’s leg backed off. All six
scampered like playful pups to the man’s sides and sat down. When they heard the word
“guard,” they sat at attention, like scouts, watching the five men closely.
“I wouldn’t try nothing,” Bernard called out to the bandits. “Amos will take your
leg off.” Zoran rather doubted this, but the bandit obviously didn’t. He shook with fear
and stared at the dogs constantly. “Hail and well met again, Zdenka. Our paths cross
once more.”
“Aye, and to you too,” the alto voice called over the battlefield to Bernard. To the
five bandits, she called out, “Tend to your wounded men!” To Zoran, she said cautiously,
“Hail stranger. Best be tending to the guards and drivers.” Zoran nodded, already
moving toward the victims of the attack, who were assisting their wounded men.