Oryk, the deluded fool. My best friend and the best king Eloterra ever had. I pray Elom has been merciful to you in your exile. If you still live dear friend, may you have realized your wrongs, may Elom accept you once again. You betrayed me, your people, your God. Now I'm left to clean up your mess. Yet I still miss you...
The rum burned familiar and slow at the thought of his friend, the once beloved king Oryk. His thoughts returned to the present with another sip. A marriage proposal was coming, the Queen was getting desperate, as her forces dwindled.
Yet mine do no better. Desperate is the state of our land, of our people. This war must end.
Cadoc knew it, just as the queen did that continued war meant their extinction. So too would they die out at their own hand as the dragons had mere years before. He shook his head at the thought that his once friend, the heretic Oryk's words haunting, echoed in his memory:
"The Dragon's fate and ours are one, their destruction is ours and so their survival is ours. We must reconcile our war with them. We must find peace."
Cadoc's expression soured as his reaction to the blasphemy remained the same today as it'd been ten years ago.
Peace with beasts, the mere concept is madness. How could you my friend...
Yes the war must end, and so too the bloodline that's been tainted by such thoughts. Cadoc grieved what this reality meant, but grieved the end of the people, of his people even more. He would bring them back to the light, a new age of prosperity. Absent dragons, absent darkness, an age that would bask and thrive in the glory of Elom, in the world as He meant it to be.
***
Elom we praise you for the breath you woke us with, for the day we are to steward, and for the meal we are about to eat. May none of it be in vain, and all of it be in your honor. Glory be to You.
Glory be to You
Roak and Severyn echoed.
Severyn observed his father, wondering how such a large man, still well larger than he, a ten year old drake, could eat so little. His small, cooked portion of their kill would not have sustained even a hatchling dragon. While Severyn guessed Oryk in his seemingly endless generosity and selflessness wished for Roak and himself to enjoy their kill and gain the most from it, Severyn still wondered how he survived on so little.
Of course never one to keep his thoughts to himself much to the annoyance of Roak, Severyn had asked Oryk only to receive a smile in answer along with the claim,
Elom sustains me.
Severyn was not sure of this Elom, or if he even believed in the concept of a being in control of all existence as Roak had so readily taken too but he believed in Oryk, and like Roak, loved him as if he were his Da' Gron, his dragon sire.
A clinking sound brought his attention back to their meal as Oryk placed a small arrangement of shield bolts and chain mail fragments in various conditions next to his portion of the deer. He placed an equivalent pile next to Roak's meal.
Young ones this is the last of our stores from the battlefield. May it nourish your bodies and strengthen your scales.
His expression turned somber,
Though I doubt much longer we'll be without a battle field to raid, for as long as the hearts of men prevail in the absence of Elom's will there will be battle.
Severyn's heart beat quickened at the thought of another battle raid. They were his favorite of their adventures and training, not only for the metal they collected, but for the sights and smells, the thrill that still hung over the battle field though the fighting was long over, and always the potential for it not to be.
They scoured the remains of battles between the Queen's forces and those of the warlord Cadoc for the metals that were left over and that were so precious to Dragon-Kind. They hardened and strengthened the scales in a way nothing else did, and added a vibrant color and texture to their hide. With all dragons killed off except for Roak and himself, they would never know to what extent, and so they clung to the small well of dragon lore that Oryk was able to glean from his libraries and sages before his exile.
Their father informed them that their raids were also reconnaissance missions to learn the state of the land and the people, and the process of the war. It was apparent that both sides were suffering losses neither of which could sustain meaning a turning point, whether truce, annihilation or surrender was coming. Beyond that, Severyn had learned that battle was simple, messy, and dangerous. He would like battle.
His thoughts led him to daydreams of his future heroics, conquests and triumphs until a concerned wave of emotion washed over his mind. Severyn turned to face the direction of the emotional force and was greeted by Oryk's stare, his faced lined in sorrow, as if he knew the young drake's thoughts and it pained him.
Father, Severyn started, I'm sorry, I know what yo- Oryk stopped him with a slight raise of his hand.
Bless you young one for your concern of my peace of mind. You must forgive an old man's grievance, the cost of war weighs heavy on me.
He shook his head slightly banishing his sorrow in the gesture, and looked up at the drake with clear eyes.
Battle is for the young, an adventure for the youth who are able
He chuckled,
I remember the first time my mettle and hammer were tested on the field of battle. The fear, the rage. The joy. It is a mystery to me why such a joy lives in the hearts of Elom's stewards. Perhaps He will share that knowledge with me one day
Oryk finished with a thoughtful smile.
Now eat up young ones, you'll need your strength. The Queen's forces ride out to meet Cadoc's for battle tomorrow, and we will be there.
