Dragonmage of Mystara

CHAPTER SIX

Marthaen opened one eye reluctantly, then closed it again and turned his head away. It was still the middle of the night, and he was in no mood to drag himself out of his warm bed. But Daresha, his mate, pushed at him again, and he opened his eyes to see her narrow face peering down at him.

"Dragons are landing on your ledge," she explained.

"Tell them to come back in the morning," he complained sleepily.

"Tell them yourself," Daresha insisted, pushing at him even more insistently. "Get up, you lazy lizard. The world is about to go to war again. Would someone come knocking at your door at such a time if it weren't urgent?"

Indeed, there came an impatient knocking at the door at almost that same moment. Marthaen lifted his head and yawned hugely, then climbed out of his bed and ambled into the main chamber of his lair. He opened the back door just enough to peer out onto the ledge, and he was rather startled to see Sir George Kirbey staring back at him.

"Oh, honestly," the dragon muttered, sighing. "You're the

last person I expected to find loitering on my ledge. I suppose your companions must be just behind you."

Marthaen stepped back so Sir George could hurry inside with his travel bags, followed closely by Kharendaen and Thelvyn. In spite of his outwardly inhospitable mood, Marthaen recognized it was important to get the Dragonking inside before he was seen. Kharendaen paused a moment to rub her cheek against her brother's, as if trying to put him in a better humor before she stepped quickly aside. Thelvyn entered last, bearing himself with the pride and dignity befitting the king of the dragons. Marthaen was so startled to see Thelvyn wearing the Collar of the Dragons that he could only stare.

"Dragonking," Daresha breathed softly from the doorway leading into the bedroom. She lowered her head in a gesture of respect.

"So you found the collar," Marthaen said, then hurried to close the door. "I know it's the middle of the night, but did you have to come here to Windreach unannounced and wearing the thing like some kind of conqueror?"

"I don't seem to have a pocket large enough to carry it," Thelvyn remarked.

"Still, the dragons are going to have to become accustomed to the idea that there really is a Dragonking before they can easily accept your being here," Marthaen said. "I realize Jherdar already knows you have been seeking the collar, but I would have preferred some time after you found it for him to get used to the idea and to try to gain his support before you came here."

"I agree with what you say," Thelvyn said. "But things have changed, and matters are far more desperate than you know."

"I'm aware of the attacks that appear to have been by dragons," the First Speaker answered impatiently. "That makes our situation here all the more uncertain. The dragons are ready to explode into war as it is, and your sudden appearance is only going to upset things all the more."

"I no longer have the luxury of time," Thelvyn said firmly, speaking with a calm authority that put an end to the disagreement. "I'm not here for the sake of power or fame. I have always been a protector, and that is all I remain."

Marthaen paused as he suddenly understood. He bowed his own head as a sign of respect. Thelvyn was no longer the awkward outcast under Marthaen's guidance as he had been since first becoming a dragon the previous year. He was now the Dragonking, wise and confident, and he meant to claim the authority that was his right. He might trust Marthaen as his advisor and friend, but he was now the master.

"There is much that you do not yet know," Thelvyn told him. "The warning that we received from the Great One has proven true. Our world faces a war that only the dragons can tight, and we must move quickly. Kharendaen and I fought and slew four dragons to claim the collar."

"Dragons?" Marthaen looked up sharply, alarmed. "Renegades?"

"We found the Collar of the Dragons in another world, one where the Flaem dwelt for a time before coming here," he explained. "We found it in the possession of dragons who were not of our own race."

Thelvyn and Kharendaen quickly related the events of their brief journey into the world of the Masters, telling Marthaen all that they knew, all that they could surmise or even only suspected about the gemstone dragons. The older dragon listened in silence, staring at the ground with his ears laid back.

"I understand your concern," he admitted when they were done. "And I agree that these strange dragons must have had some contact with our own people at some time in the distant past. But if the clerics remember nothing of such a thing, then I do not know what to say."

"I will speak with Saerna about it as soon as I can," Kharendaen said. "She is the oldest living dragon in the world. Perhaps there are some things she might recall that are not recorded in any book, some legend out of the days of her own childhood about strange dragons. Anything might help."

"It would help more if the Great One would speak with me plainly on this matter," Thelvyn said. "He obviously knows much more than we do."

"Of course, we can't count on his being willing or able to do that," Marthaen said, then looked up at the Dragonking. "I share your need for haste, but I still recommend some caution.

Many of the leaders among the dragons may still be reluctant to give you their support if you declare yourself Dragonking in one breath and call upon them to follow you into war with the next. Especially since you ask them to go to war in defense of a world that fears and rejects them. I will call them to parliament in the morning to give them a brief time to consider what has happened."

Thelvyn had to agree that Marthaen's plan made sense, partly because he no longer had the strength to argue the matter any further. The time that he and his companions had spent in the world of the Masters had been quite brief, actually little more than an hour, yet both Kharendaen and he were very tired from their battles with the alien dragons. They had rested only a brief time before making the desperate flight all the way from the Highlands to Windreach in distant Norwald, beginning that long journey just after noon and arriving a couple of hours after midnight.

Unfortunately, Marthaen was at something of a loss to know where he could keep them in hiding for the remainder of the night. Kharendaen hadn't kept a lair of her own in Windreach for more than a hundred years. As it turned out, Daresha was honored to have the Dragonking and his mate spend the night in her lair, which was only a short walk through the deep inner passages of the ring wall of the city. Sir George had to be content with a cushion thrown on the floor of the main chamber of the lair, but a dragon-sized cushion was easily large enough to serve him for a bed.

The two dragons were awakened by a knock at the inner door the next morning, fortunately not too early. They were both a bit surprised to find that Sir George had gone out somewhere; he had caught some sleep in the saddle during their journey, and had arrived not much the worse for wear. Since he was gone already, they could only hope that he would be able to keep himself out of trouble. It seemed best for Thelvyn to remain discreet about his own presence in the city, so it was Kharendaen who went to open the door.

Their visitors were not dragons but elves, of a race that Thelvyn had once believed to be his own. They were both males and quite tall for elves, or even humans, with powerful builds, black hair, large, dark eyes, and slightly pointed ears. He realized immediately that they must be Eldar, the most ancient race of elves in the world. He had worn their form until the time when he had first taken his true form as a dragon. The younger of the two was pushing a large cart that bore trays of roasted meat, bread, cheese, and drink.

"Your brother Marthaen sent us," the older one explained simply. "We know of your secrets and will respect them."

Kharendaen stepped aside, and the two Eldar entered, bringing in the cart. They paused a moment and bowed in deep respect when they saw Thelvyn farther back in the room, recognizing him even though he no longer wore the Collar of the Dragons. The younger elf bowed once more, this time to them all, then departed in silence.

"I am the wizard Alendhae, a longtime friend of Marthaen's," the remaining Eldar explained. "I am also honored to serve from time to time as his advisor, so he thought it best to send me to attend to your needs while he is occupied with the parliament."

"Yes, I remember you," Kharendaen said. "I was very young when I last saw you. It must have been nearly a hundred and fifty years ago."

"Gold lady, you are still very young," Alendhae told her with the gentle amusement of the old. He turned to Thelvyn. "Dragonking, I am of the Eldar, the ancestors of the elves. Perhaps you have heard of us."

"I had not heard of the Eldar until recently," he said. "But in a way, I know your people well, since I wore the body of your people until recently. You are all but forgotten in the outside world."

"Yes, even the elves remember us only as a vague legend of their forgotten past," Alendhae said sadly. "We are all that is left of a dying race. There are very few of us remaining, but it has been thus for a very long time. All that remains of our people have lived here in Windreach since the founding of the city three thousand years ago."

"But why do you choose to live with the dragons?" Thelvyn asked.

"Don't you know?" Alendhae asked. "It is said that there is

a very ancient tie between the Eldar and the dragons."

Alendhae insisted upon serving the two dragons before he related the legend of the Eldar and the origin of the dragons, setting their trays before them. While they sat and ate, he poured them large cups of fruit wine as he began the tale.

"It is a very ancient legend and may or may not be true," he began. "The Eldar lived many thousands of years ago. We built great kingdoms of our own at a time when we were alone in the world, long before the coming of men or dwarves. Ours was a race of powerful wizards, far stronger in our magic than the modern elves. In time we became beings partly of magic and partly mortal, like the dragons themselves.

"Then, at the very height of our civilization, our race became so strong in magic, our wizards so infused with power, that we could no longer contain the magic within ourselves. A time of great turmoil came upon us, and our entire race was ripped asunder by our own magic. Many of our more powerful magic-users evolved into the race of dragons, that being the reason why the higher dragon forms retain the ability to assume the Eldar form, just as many Eldar can take the form of a small gray dragon. This would also seem to explain the origin of the drakes, an intermediate form.

"But while a part of our people became dragons, the magic was ripped away from other members of our race, and those became the modern elves, diminished in power, in stature, and in their span of years, for modern elves live only a few hundred years, while the Eldar, like the dragons, live for thousands. A small core of our race remained unchanged from what we were before, and that core still survives here in Wind-reach. I cannot say if this legend has any truth, although there is much evidence to support it. Both the draconic and elven inhabitants of Windreach are very fond of this tale, and most prefer to believe it, since it binds the civilized dragons and the Eldar in almost brotherly ties."

"The Great One himself acknowledges the strong possibility of that tie, although it happened long before he became an Immortal," Kharendaen added. "But the ties between the dragons and the elves remain until this day. That is why many elves recognize the patronage of the Great One and some even serve as his clerics. It is also why the dragons stay out of the lands and the affairs of the elves. Even the renegades usually leave them alone."

Once the two dragons had eaten, Alendhae led them to the bathing pools deeper within the mountain. Each of the pools was more than large enough to hold three or four dragons, so there was plenty of room for the two of them to recline in ease. Kharendaen immediately submerged herself up to her nose, but Thelvyn lowered himself gingerly into the steaming water. The gentle warmth of the water needed several minutes before it began to penetrate his tough armor, soothing muscles that still felt the strain of his recent battles and long flights.

Thelvyn had never before had a warm bath, at least not as a dragon. He could never have imagined heating enough water, so he had resigned himself to cold dips in icy mountain lakes. While life encased in armor had been less bothersome than he had feared, having a hide that could turn arrows was still uncomfortable, and the warm bath was very soothing. After some time, he retreated to a corner of the pool where the water was deep enough for him to sit up on his haunches with his head just above the water. Kharendaen drifted over and pressed herself close against him. He gathered her in his arms and held her tightly.

"Do you still have any complaints about being a dragon?" she asked.

"Did I ever complain?" he asked in turn. "It meant being with you. I always thought you were the most beautiful, graceful lady I had ever seen. Of course, such feelings were a matter of some confusion to me for the five years we were together before I knew that I was a dragon."

Kharendaen smiled teasingly. "Even if I don't have long legs like Solveig?"

"Well, she doesn't have your long neck."

Thelvyn suddenly raised his head and lifted his ears, turning his head as if listening to some distant voice. Kharendaen fell silent, and she lifted her own ears as if she, too, could catch the sound of that voice, even if she did not understand the words.

"We are called," Thelvyn said at last, turning to face his mate. "There is much that the Great One wants me to know before I face the Parliament of Dragons. Sir George is requested to come as well. I wonder where he has gone off to."

"He went out early to bathe," Alendhae answered, approaching from where he had been standing near the door. "He is with my own people presently, but he can be summoned at once."

The dragons pulled themselves out of the pool and dried themselves quickly before they hurried back to Daresha's lair. Kharendaen hastened to slip back into her saddle, while Thelvyn thought it best to put on the Collar of the Dragons. By the time they were ready to leave, Sir George was escorted in by a couple of Eldar who had been assigned to serve him.

"Where are we going?" he asked as he collected his hat and climbed into the saddle.

"We are on our way to meet with the Great One," Thelvyn said, then paused and looked perplexed. "But where? I just realized that I have no idea where we should go."

"The Great One's sacred place here in Windreach is at the top of his own hall," Kharendaen explained, glancing over her shoulder at Sir George. "You might not be very happy about going there, but we will try to keep you safe."

"Try?" Sir George asked, but the dragons were already on their way out to the ledge before he could question her further.

They paused for a moment on the ledge, taking a moment to look about. This was Thelvyn's first chance to have a good look at the hidden city of Windreach, since they had arrived late the previous night. Most of the lairs of the dragons who lived or regularly visited the city were located along the steep inner wall of the dead volcano, and he could see at least a couple of thousand ledges like the one where they now stood. The lairs themselves seemed draconic enough, but the great city, with its many tall buildings in the floor of the volcano, was far different from anything he had expected.

Later, when he had the time for a tour of Windreach, he would learn the names and functions of many of the buildings he saw. In one part of the city stood perhaps the largest university in all the world, in size if not in actual attendance, which was also a school of magic, where wizards of other races would have given all they had to study under dragon mages who knew disciplines of magic far in advance of their own, if they had only known that such a place even existed. There was a great library with books that had been gathered for thousands of years, many from the time before the Rain of Fire, ancient texts from a hundred or more nations that had risen and fallen again throughout history, some already forgotten to the outside world.

Perhaps what surprised Thelvyn most, at least at first, was that Windreach, like all cities, had large areas devoted to shops and markets. The elves of Wendar in the wild, forested mountains surrounding Windreach were under the protection of the dragons and traded with them freely, not only food but also wood, metals, and gems for a variety of uses. Dragon craftsmen kept workrooms throughout many parts of the city, where they made such things as furnishings for their lairs, weapons and leather harnesses, and other goods that dragons needed or fancied. One of the most common professions practiced here was the making of jewelry, since dragons throughout the world often brought parts of their treasures here to be reworked from human, elvish, or dwarvish forms into jewelry of their own styles and proportions. The jewelers of Windreach were among the most skilled in the world, many having practiced their art for hundreds of years.

Several hundred dragons were in residence at Windreach at all times. Due to the wishes of the Great One, even the shape-changing dragons remained in draconic form at all times while they were here. Windreach was a place of rare honor and trust among the dragons. Many of the permanent residents kept their hoards here under only a minimum of security, without fear of theft, and fights or duels between dragons were strictly forbidden. Only rare battles of supreme political dominance were tolerated, and those fights had to be ta" ken outside the city.

Drakes and other dragon-kin were permitted as long as they were of intelligent breeds, but the dragon-kin typically found the company of true dragons intimidating. Renegade dragons were not trusted and were never permitted; they would almost certainly be slain if they tried to enter, especially after the theft of the Collar of the Dragons, for dragons who did not conform to draconic law were not tolerated. No other races were permitted. Humans, elves, dwarves, gnomes, and halflings approaching under innocent circumstances would be turned away, while thieves and mercenary adventurers and any evil humanoids would be slain. The only exception was the Eldar. The wild elves of Wendar were left to themselves.

The most outstanding and remarkable feature in all of Wind-reach was the Hall of the Great One. Standing more than twelve hundred feet above the floor of the extinct volcano, that towering edifice of smooth white stone was the tallest in all the world. The two dragons leapt out from the ledge, passing over the roofs of the city as they gathered speed before they began to climb steeply in a wide circle around the Hall of the Great One. The lowest floors comprised the Treasury of the Dragons, where the most important and valuable artifacts and treasures of their race had been gathered through the years. The Collar of the Dragons, the greatest of all their heirlooms, had been kept there through the centuries since the time of the founding of Windreach. Several floors above the treasury were occupied by the Parliament of the Dragons, including the private chambers of the members of the parliament.

The entire top half of the Hall of the Great One had been reserved as the stronghold of his clerics, with their own lairs and their places of training and research. Kharendaen led the way, climbing higher and higher until they were far above the outer wall of the city. The winds here were almost always strong, so that the two dragons had to fight increasingly fierce crosswinds. They took special care not to be thrown against the wall of the great building. Level after level, the Hall of the Great One became steadily narrower as they continued to climb, their circle becoming tighter and tighter.

Soon they neared the top, flying swiftly in and out between the highest of the great spires and towers of the Hall of the Great One. As she moved nearer to a group of the highest towers, Kharendaen suddenly darted toward a wide ledge of white stone set in the outer wall just beneath the steep, cone-shaped roof of the highest tower. She turned sharply to land on the ledge, which was barely large enough for Thelvyn to land as well. He made a desperate leap at the other end. The ledge was nothing more than a simple shelf of smooth stone, without rail or parapet. There was a small recessed area in the back of the ledge that offered slight protection from the treacherous winds, with a large door leading into the tower, Hanked by large glass windows.

Sir George dropped down from his saddle and retreated into the minimal safety of the recess, as far from the edge as he could get. The bulk of the two dragons offered him some protection from the cold wind, which threatened to pull them from the ledge. Even the dragons had to fold their wings quickly and crouch low.

Moving cautiously, Kharendaen approached the door. There was no handle or latch visible on the outside, not even a keyhole, although the door began to open by itself as she stood before it. They passed through the door into a chamber of vast size, large enough that it filled that entire level of the tower, although its exact proportions were difficult to gauge. Most of the hall was filled with deep shadows, as dark as night, broken by shafts of light that poured in from a few widely spaced windows. Great columns of smooth, white stone stood like ghostly sentries at the edge of the darkness. The dragons slowly descended the wide steps into a large recessed portion in the center, the only area that was well lighted.

"Come along, Sir George," a voice said. "There is nothing to fear."

They turned abruptly to see that the Great One awaited them patiently on a small area like a simple stage above the recessed area where they now stood. He appeared not in his more authoritative guise of the great three-headed dragon, but in his less threatening form of an older dragon of some small, dull goldish gray breed that had long since disappeared from the world. This form was probably close to what his appearance had been in life. Sir George made a helpless gesture and descended the steps to join his companions.

"You have found the collar and unmasked your true enemies," the Great One began. "Indeed, you could not have done better. Unfortunately, the gemstone dragons will have learned from this that they do not dare take the Dragonking lightly. Nor are they likely to underestimate the dragons of this world, whom they have looked upon as far beneath themselves. I fear that you must expect them to be better prepared in the future."

"You seem to know a great deal," Thelvyn observed.

"Do not expect that I have special knowledge of such things," the Great One explained. "I know only what you know, what I have heard you say between yourselves and to Marthaen, for I am often with you even if you cannot see me. I know these gemstone dragons, for I fought them long ago. But my awareness cannot extend into their world."

"But there was obviously much that you knew or expected," Thelvyn said, with a note of impatience. "You could have spoken a bit more plainly when we talked with you in Silvermist."

"Yes, I could have," he agreed. "Indeed, I would have preferred to have given you better warning of what to expect. But I have not been acting alone in preparing the champion who will defend our world. Many Immortals are allied to my cause, but it has always been necessary for us to act circumspectly, remaining cautious of the limitations that we must respect to maintain the balances of good and evil."

"It has always been best for us to proceed cautiously in dealing with mortals," a woman's deep, resonant voice spoke from out of the darkness. The voice was that of the Immortal Terra, although the dragons could see only an indistinct form standing in the deepest shadows. "Thelvyn, you must not forget that you are still young, especially for one of your race. I still believe that it was better to be safe with you."

"Safe?" Thelvyn asked incredulously, although his two companions were obviously apprehensive that he was being so direct with the Immortals. "You allowed us to be sent completely unprepared into a stronghold of the gemstone dragons."

"The time has come when I can speak plainly to you on this matter," the Great One said. "All that you know and have concluded about the gemstone dragons is correct, although the situation is far more complex than you may think. For one thing, although they are called the Masters, they are not the true masters behind these events."

"One of them said the gemstone dragons serve someone called the Overlord," Thelvyn replied. "Unfortunately, I do not know anything more."

"Nor do I. They do indeed control Alessa Vyledaar, and as you suspected, they achieved that control only recently. Nor is she the only one in this world whose will they control. But you must be aware that they can control the will of any dragon just as they controlled Murodhir and his henchmen, although it was the traitor, Byen Kalestraan, who helped the Masters entrap them. You must also be aware that they have controlled the Flaemish people in the past, and it is within their power to seize control of the Flaem once again. Fortunately, they are not yet that strong in this world."

"But who are the gemstone dragons?" Thelvyn asked. "They know an ancient version of the language of the dragons, so we suspect they must have had some contact with this world long ago. Is it possible this isn't the first time that they have tried to conquer Mystara?"

"Indeed it is not the first time," the Great One answered. "Have you been told of the Eldar and the origin of the dragons? That will help you to better understand the gemstone dragons."

The Great One paused a moment to recline along the length of the stage, still facing them. "The time has come that you should learn the true history of the first Dragonlord, which even the dragons do not know. For in the time of ancient Blackmoor, there was no dragon Immortal to guide and protect the dragons. The dragons had been gaining in power and in knowledge, and their breeds continued to evolve, becoming larger and wiser. Magic became even more a part of their very being.

"In this time, there was a fellowship of powerful dragon sorcerers who had observed the slow advancement of their race and wished to gather and direct the magic they would need to accelerate that natural process. They wished to evolve into higher forms rather than be content to wait for their descendants to inherit the power and wisdom that would be their birthright."

The Great One paused a moment, turning his head to look away. "I must confess that I was a part of their band at first, for I was a cleric in the service of the Immortal Terra, and I supported anything that might benefit the dragons. At first their desires were pure and noble. But in time they came to believe that they could become Immortals, and that became their ultimate goal. I argued with them, warning them that they expected too much, but they would not listen. And so I withdrew from their company.

"In time, these dragon sorcerers worked great magic upon themselves, but their experiment failed. They did not become true Immortals but were instead transformed into the gemstone dragons, far more powerful than any dragon that lived at that time, even more powerful that most modern golds and reds. Believing that they had the right as the most powerful beings in the world to rule the world, they began to force lesser nations to their will. Eventually they made war upon Blackmoor.

"That was when the first misunderstanding began, since the men of Blackmoor believed that all dragons were at war with them, not understanding that it was only the gemstone dragons. And Blackmoor was slowly being defeated, so that in desperation they sought to create a weapon the dragons could not hope to fight. Eventually the wizards of Blackmoor created the first Dragonlord, who mistakenly made war upon all dragons and nearly destroyed them, while the gemstone dragons withdrew and continued their own war in secret."

The Great One rose, sitting up on his haunches as if the memory of that time still filled him with concern. "At that time, the Immortals, especially Terra, became convinced they must intervene to save the dragons and stop the war. I had withdrawn to the ancient forests as a cleric of Terra. Terra conceived a plan that seemed to her the only hope to put an end to the conflict. Terra sponsored me, and in a relatively short time, she succeeded in making me the first dragon Immortal. To make a long story short, I eventually defeated the first Dragonlord, that being the only way to force him to listen, and then we joined forces together with the wizards of Blackmoor against the gemstone dragons. Subsequently the gemstone dragons were defeated and escaped through a world gate.

"We were aware from the first that the gemstone dragons had only retreated, and we suspected that they would withdraw for a time to gather new strength, then return. We had to be certain that the dragons would always be ready to face them. The wizards of Blackmoor had created the Collar of the Dragons, and I created a prophecy so that, if the gemstone dragons did indeed return, my chosen hero could use the collar to claim the unquestioned support of all dragons."

"I would not yet call their support unquestioned," Thelvyn remarked.

"No, I fear not," the Great One agreed regretfully. "We had always anticipated that when the time came, both a Dragonking and the new Dragonlord would be chosen, but unforeseen problems necessitated that you should be both Dragonking and Dragonlord. I had been suspicious of the Flaem since they first came to Mystara. When I became certain that they were secret agents of the gemstone dragons, and after enlisting the aide of Terra and other sympathetic Immortals, I made the arrangements to bring my chosen hero into the world. You possess nearly Immortal powers: those that you have inherited from me, the most powerful enchantments of ancient Blackmoor, and the authority of the Dragonking.

"Ever since the gemstone dragons left our world, they have been regaining their strength, gathering new powers, and collecting slaves from many worlds. They must have captured the Flaem during their wanderings from world to world, and they hoped to use the rivalry between the Flaem and the Alphatians as the means to prepare for their invasion of Mystara and to secure the power of the Radiance. They had known of the Radiance for some time, and were disappointed to find that its power is quite limited in range."

The Great One paused and rose to his hind legs so that he stood above them. "Sir George Kirbey, I summon you to stand before me."

For a moment, Sir George looked like a child who had been caught doing something wrong. The two dragons stepped aside so that he could approach the Great One, but he did so with obvious reluctance and considerable apprehension.

"Do not fear," the Great One said. "You have served very well indeed, but you represent a problem as you are. You cannot accompany Thelvyn among the dragons in human form, nor are you of much use as a flightless drake. Therefore I have a gift for you, which you may consider payment for services above and beyond what was expected."

Suddenly Sir George became aware of a strange sensation in his left arm, at the end of his wrist, where his hand had been severed long ago. The feeling was not one of actual pain but rather an intense tingling, a nagging sensation such as had often driven him to distraction in the first months after he had lost his hand. Fearful that something was wrong, he struggled to release the buckles and pull loose the straps that held the leather cuff and its attached hook to his wrist. Then, as he watched in amazement, the end of his arm began to grow longer, eventually forming a new hand. Once the moment of discomfort had passed, he watched his hand with wonder and delight as it slowly began to respond to his will.

"Now you must go," the Great One said to Thelvyn. "The parliament is expecting you. Now is the time to declare yourself as the rightful Dragonking. Be resolute in your claim, for

the time of compromise is past."

*****

Marthaen stood at the front of his ledge before the assembled parliament, watching the dragons as they argued fiercely among themselves. As First Speaker, he knew he should do something to maintain order, but the parliament was almost beyond his control, and he thought it best to allow the members to vent their fury before he called them back to order. He was aware of his sister Kharendaen standing behind him; he had tried his best to ignore her for as long as he could.

But he knew that he would be forced to relent eventually. At last he turned and followed Kharendaen down the short passage from his ledge to the main corridor beyond. Thelvyn waited there, boldly wearing the Collar of the Dragons within the Hall of the Great One itself. Sir George Kirbey stood nearby, looking both startled and very pleased with himself at the same time.

"I don't know if this is the proper time," Marthaen said before any of the others could speak. "As I expected, the dragons are hesitant. They still fear the Dragonking, who is still also the Dragonlord and to them their most dangerous enemy. And they are reluctant to go to war in the defense of others. Since the Masters appear to be dragon-kin, that also causes them some concern. I'm afraid I will need more time to convince them to accept you as Dragonking."

"I'm not sure you could ever convince them," Thelvyn replied. "If they are ever going to accept my leadership, it will have to be me who convinces them."

"Perhaps so," Marthaen agreed with great reluctance. "Go down the stairs and follow the passage almost directly below where we stand. That will lead you out onto the floor of the Hall of Parliament and directly to the speaker's dais. You can address the parliament from there."

He turned and strode back out onto his ledge, leaving Thelvyn to find his way to the parliament floor. The dragons were still arguing furiously, and Marthaen despaired of ever getting them to set aside their fear and suspicion long enough to listen. But time had become too critical for such nonsense. If the Immortals had invested so much effort in making Thelvyn Fox-Eyes the Dragonking, he was not about to argue.

"Silence!" he declared, startling the dragons. They turned to stare at him. "Silence, I say! I demand that you stop chattering and screaming like frightened wyverns and maintain the dignity and wisdom that befits this assembly."

The dragons muttered among themselves but finally fell silent, staring in astonishment when they saw Thelvyn step out onto the floor below them and advance toward the speaker's dais. He was wearing the Collar of the Dragons, and that by itself was enough to leave them shaken and uncertain. One of the oldest and most important legends of their people had indeed come to life, for the Dragonking stood before them. Thelvyn carried himself with the supreme dignity and confidence that dragons instinctively respected, as if to prove that he had earned the right to wear the collar.

Marthaen sat back on his haunches, smiling to himself with grim satisfaction. Now that they could actually see Thelvyn standing before them, the dragons could see that the legend of the Dragonking was no longer a matter of debate but a reality. They could no longer find it easy to deny his existence. Marthaen watched the red dragons carefully, certain that Jherdar would never allow the issue to be resolved easily. The red dragon would undoubtedly think that the hated Dragonlord was trying

to usurp the place of the beloved Dragonking.

Thelvyn advanced to the speaker's dais and seated himself in a pose of great dignity, sitting upright with his long tail curled around his legs. His neck was drawn back in a proud, graceful curve. He paused for a long moment, then began to speak. "Marthaen has spoken to you of the gemstone dragons, who were once of our own kind. The Great One has told me about how he and the first Dragonlord fought the gemstone dragons long ago and drove them from our world. He has told me how the gemstone dragons have prepared their invasion for centuries, and how the Immortals have planned to counter it by having me serve as both Dragonlord and Dragonking and lead the dragons in the defense of our world."

"You know that I fought with you against the renegade Murodhir," Jherdar said, growing impatient. "I told you then that I would rather see you wearing the Collar of the Dragons than have it remain missing. But I cannot lightly accept that you seem so eager to lead us into war when we do not yet know even the strength or the intentions of our enemy."

"I have not yet summoned the dragons to war," Thelvyn replied. "But we must prepare for its likelihood."

"These gemstone dragons may have attacked our world, but they have not yet done us any harm," the red dragon responded.

"Haven't they?" Thelvyn demanded. "The Masters have tried to implicate us for their attacks on other lands, with the intent of forcing us into war with those who are not our true enemies. The Masters were behind the theft of the Collar of the Dragons. There was a time when you were very eager to punish those who stole the collar, but you do not seem so eager now. Are you in sympathy with our enemies now that you know who they are, or is it that you fear them?"

There was a loud muttering among the dragons when they heard Thelvyn's bold accusations. Marthaen watched apprehensively. Thelvyn wasn't about to compromise himself to placate the red dragon. He couldn't afford to. He had to earn the loyalty of the dragons even if he must fight Jherdar for it.

"I am not in sympathy with our enemies," Jherdar answered coldly. "Nor do I fear them. You are young and hardly even know

what it means to be a dragon. You are too eager to go to war."

"I am not eager for war," Thelvyn insisted. "And I am not proposing that we carry the battle into their world. We would be at a distinct disadvantage if we tried to fight them on their own ground. But at the same time, we can put them at a disadvantage when they invade our world. We must be prepared to defend not only ourselves but our world, wherever the Masters attack. If we wait until our enemy brings the war directly to us, we will have already lost."

"Never!" Jherdar shouted, crouching in fury at the front of his ledge. "If the enemy comes to us, then we will fight in our own defense, but never for a world that hates and despises us."

Marthaen tensed, moving closer to the front of his ledge. He could see that Jherdar, caught between his anger at the other races of the world and his fear of the Dragonking, was desperate enough to challenge Thelvyn for the leadership of the dragons. Dragons were forbidden to fight within the city of Windreach and were required to take their challenges into the wild, but Jherdar looked furious enough to forget the law. It had happened before in the past, and Marthaen's duty as First Speaker was to insure that there were no fights on the floor of parliament.

"Yes, we will fight to defend the other nations of the world," Thelvyn said patiently but firmly. "We have no choice. What hope do we have if we allow the Masters to turn people who should be our allies into their slaves? Are we to wait until they besiege Windreach? What would you have us do?"

"We are fools to fight in the defense of those who hate us," Jherdar insisted stubbornly.

"And do you believe that I am eager to do so?" Thelvyn demanded. "I was their champion for five years before they chased me away in contempt, and now they beg for my protection. If anyone has cause to be angry with our world, surely it is I. But I will defend them just the same, because in so doing, it is my best chance to defend the dragons as well."

"Then defend them alone," Jherdar said coldly. "That is your appointed task. The Immortals supposedly gave you all the power you need as both Dragonlord and Dragonking."

"If I must fight alone, I will," Thelvyn answered in a voice that was as cold and hard as ice. "Do you think that I have forgotten the injuries I received from the dragons when I was forced to oppose you for your own good? I will defend you if I can, but if you prefer to act like a coward, then you deserve to be enslaved."

Jherdar was obviously stung. The dragons tended to forget the price that Thelvyn had been required to pay for the sake of his duty, especially the grief and pain they had caused him. But Jherdar could not allow Thelvyn's attack on his pride to pass unchallenged. He drew himself up in cold fury. "Even you may not talk to me that way."

"Then stop wasting my time with your foolish talk," Thelvyn answered him boldly. "You have said nothing but words of cowardice and irresponsibility. Challenge me now, or follow me as your rightful king. I will accept no other choice from any of you."

The silence that followed was absolute as the dragons waited tensely. All arguments were at an end, for Jherdar could do nothing now but accept the Dragonking or challenge him. Thelvyn had seen that this debate could lead nowhere but to compromise on his own part or a challenge of his authority, and so he had issued the challenge first, a bold move that surprised the dragons and impressed them tremendously. Thelvyn had fought and defeated gemstone dragons, and he knew that he could defeat Jherdar.

He waited calmly for his answer. In the end, it was his obvious confidence in himself that convinced Jherdar. The red dragon laid back his ears and sat back. "I am not a coward, and I will not be disloyal when the Great One calls me to serve his chosen one. If you will lead well and wisely, I will follow you. Tell us what we must do."

Jherdar's capitulation startled the other dragons, and they lifted their heads and moved out to the edge of their ledges to stare in astonishment. But their fear and anger had passed, and they waited in curiosity to hear what the Dragonking had to say.

"You have said that I do not know the strength of our enemy," Thelvyn began. "But I can infer at least this much: The Masters tried to conquer this world once before, and only the combined power of the Dragonlord and the Immortals succeeded in driving them into exile. They've had thousands of years to gather their strength, and they've returned at a time of their own choosing. Our only advantage is that they have to bring the battle to us, coming into a world where they have no strongholds of their own. We don't dare allow them a single victory."

The dragons once again muttered anxiously among themselves, but Marthaen thought Thelvyn had finally gotten them to face the full implications of the danger they faced. The Immortals had chosen them to defend their world because they alone had any hope of defeating this enemy. Their only choices were to do their best to fight an enemy that might yet prove too powerful for them, or to be defeated by their own stubbornness.

"With any luck, we can still be ready for them," Thelvyn continued. "To be prepared for the worst, I propose an alliance between the dragons and the other nations of our world against the invaders."

Jherdar opened his mouth to protest, then laid back his ears as he reconsidered and sat back on his haunches. He glanced over at Marthaen.

The gold dragon nodded slowly. "He is the Dragonking. I will follow him."

Jherdar considered Marthaen's words and nodded. The crisis of confidence was over, and the dragons would follow the Dragonking's leadership. They had doubted that he knew how to be a dragon, and he had proven himself by facing down Jherdar's challenge as one dragon to another. Marthaen realized now that the very confrontation he had been trying to avoid had been the only way that Thelvyn could have convinced the dragons that he was capable of leading them.

He decided that he would never tell Thelvyn that Jherdar had been under pressure from the representatives of the red, green, and black dragons to challenge him in combat. Then again, Marthaen wouldn't be surprised if Thelvyn had known after all. The new Dragonking seemed to know more about being a dragon than even Marthaen had expected.