Draygon Inferno | Book 2 | ✔️

Chapter Ten

He'd seen windmills before; the power of the wind often helped Draygon move water through the canals, but he'd never seen them in such quantity. From what he saw prior to descending into the canyon and what he saw now, there were hundreds of them. It still seemed very unorthodox for the Ardornian's to blight the land in such a way. Much of Ardorn didn't fit in the nice package he thought he knew.

"The rain forests of Ardorn are north of here, correct?" Elias asked.

"Correct. Though it's forbidden to go to there. There's a peace between the forest inhabitants and the desert dwellers. That peace is dependent on us leaving them alone and they us."

"So relations between Ardorn and the Krell haven't improved?" Elias asked.

The Silent smiled. "They've improved in the sense they're no longer at active war."

"Who are the Krell?" Ross asked.

"Cannibals who live on the northern coast of this island." Elias took a drink of water. "They paint their bodies to camouflage themselves in the forest, but they go against everything the Ardornian stand for. No God or Goddess rule the Krell, they're as primal as they come."

"Pray that your journey does not take you to meet them," the Silent signed.

"Considering Draygon and The Krell have never once met, I see no reason I'd ever have need to go there. I'd sooner trade with the pirates." Elias shook his head.

He always tried to respect all of the beliefs of the world's inhabitants, but stories of the Krell's bloodlust made even him shiver. They'd slaughtered many Ardornian villages near the border of the forest all for their meat. There was a time Ardorn once sent word to Draygon for aid in the fight, aid Elias wasn't sure if Draygon sent. Ardorn asking for help was a rarity; their warriors were considered the finest in every realm and kingdom. That alone worried Elias. How bad are the Krell that Ardorn couldn't stop them alone?

Elias shuddered and turned his gaze forward. The parade of white clad Silent marched through the sparsely filled Terra Gale. Every building was an identical circle of wood draped in sand colored cloth. Sand coated the roofs to blend them in with the canyon floor, from above the structures would be invisible to the naked eyes. They marched toward more circular buildings attached together by rectangular shafts. Unlike the other buildings, this one had three tiers rising up from the largest of the buildings. It too blended in with the canyon floor, grass rested on top of the sand coated roof.

"How do the roofs stay intact with so much sand on it?" Ross asked.

"Much of it is fake." The Silent woman smiled. "So it's not as heavy as you might think."

Their parade stopped at the entry to the palace where two women stood guard. Both hands were tucked behind their backs, their thin layer of armor matching the curves of their bodies. Light glinted off their freshly shined chakram's hanging from their belt. Elias never understood the display armor the warriors of Ardorn wore. Both men and women dressed in the thinnest material that clearly wasn't suited for battle, yet that's all Elias had ever seen the protectors wear. Though he was there for aid for Siobhan, Elias hoped he never had to see their fighting armor.

Lady Yaseen motioned for them to come to the front of the line where she talked with the women standing guard. Elias took one last drink of his water and passed the bladder off to their escort before walking through the narrow line of The Silent.

"This is Elias and Ross, the future King is expecting them," Lady Yaseen signed.

"His royal highness is currently overseeing court," the woman to the right said. "Please do not disrupt the proceedings. If the future King wishes to speak with you, he will do so once he finishes with the people."

Elias bowed. "Understood."

Lady Yaseen pulled aside the cloth covering the entrance, allowing Elias and Ross to enter first. Ribbons swooped down from the center post holding up the roof. They shifted with the breeze swooping in from the open cloth, stilling when Lady Yaseen let it drop to a close.

"This is bigger than I expected," Elias said.

"It was built to hold every citizen of Terra Gale during a sandstorm. The storms can still reach the canyon floor, so all entrances are sealed and the people ride them out here." Lady Yaseen motioned for them to step to the right hand side. "Wait here."

She disappeared into the crowd, many standing to catch a glimpse of the future king on his ivory throne, others sitting patiently on their pillows. A line formed to the left, curving toward the back, of people waiting for their moment to speak with Eloy, the future king of Ardorn.

"I've never met a king before," Ross muttered. His hands rubbed together, legs shifting back and forth with his weight.

"Eloy isn't king yet."

"Close enough." Ross pushed on the tips of his feet, trying to look over the crowd. "I can't see him. I can't see anything."

"It was the same when the Draygon king would see the people. People came just to get a glimpse of him even if they had no grievances to air."

The audience applauded as the line moved forward two steps. Elias tucked his hands in his sleeves, smiling as Ross continued to bounce in an effort to see over the audiences heads. It reminded him of Wren and his reaction to magic the first time. Their enthusiasm warmed Elias' heart. Far too often he took things for granted, his knowledge of the world far too vast for the wide-eyed reaction of one discovering it for the first time. That was the only true downside he discovered to his burying his nose in books in effort to aid in Siobhan's education as a child.

Lady Yaseen emerged from the crowd. She nodded her head and walked past them, heading to the entrance.

Ross frowned, turning and pointing to her. "Are we supposed to follow her?"

"No. You're supposed to follow me."

Elias looked to his right. Naylin stood at the edge of the crowd, smiling, both hands rested against her stomach. A golden gown curved with her body, the thin straps rested loosely on her dark shoulders.

"Naylin! Dawlin', you're okay." Ross tilted his head. "Is that a crown on your head? And what happened to your accent, it's different? You have that Ardornian drawl."

Naylin waived a hand, motioning to her right. "We have a lot to discuss, Mistress Rosie."

"Indeed we do." Ross glanced to Elias, his lip quivering.

"You want that dress too, don't you?"

"More than anything! It's so sparkly."

Elias shook his head, pushing on Ross' shoulder for him to follow Naylin toward an off shooting room. He rubbed a hand against his chin, his eyes drifted to the woven wood crown resting on Naylin's head, her hair neatly braided into a crown made it appear as though it was part of her. Beads of berries speckled the light colored wood. Ross was in for a shock if Elias' assumption was correct.

Naylin, one of Ross' former entertainers, was Ardornian royalty.