In The Lair of the Draca (Book 2)

In The Lair of the Draca (Book 2) Chapter 71: The Disc of Secrets

Dijaq's cow, a stalwart, three-horned beauty with five-inch tendrils of butternut curls, plodded steadfastly on through the Opposite Plain. She stood seven hands tall and did not seem to mind the weights on her back: a stiff, burnished pole with sacs of water and dried fish on either end; three precious bags of bartering shells-- just in case they would need an effective bribe to remain at their destination-- and Dijaq himself, who found the seemingly endless hours on top of Bora's back increasingly uncomfortable.

"She is strong, yes?" One of the mountain-men whom Dijaq had paid to take him on this jaunt slowed his own bull until the two animals travelled side-by-side.

Dijaq looked down and stroked Bora's head gently, taking care to avoid the horns that were twice as thick around as his fore-arm. "She's very strong," he agreed, "but I'll have to admit, this is taking a lot longer than I thought it would. Evening folk cattle can travel much quicker, even with loads on their backs."

"Bora is not Evening cow," said the mountain main, obviously nettled and with a thick accent. "Bora is mountain cow. She is sisters with mountain goats who must step carefully, very carefully, to keep from sliding, falling down cliff. You want to get there quick, or you want to get there safe?"

Dijaq opened his mouth to respond, then shut it quickly. There were five mountain men on the journey with him toward the patch of distant copse where the Disc of Secrets was said to be half-buried, and he'd found that it was best not to find himself on any of their bad sides. The mountain men (for they went by no name that Dijaq knew of) were a hardy breed that rarely allowed themselves to be seen and kept to their sparse homes, which were often built into caves in the lower half of the Ice-Capped mountains where the chill was less biting. They were secretive, resourceful, and something of a mystery; the Evening folk avoided them, and the Mountain Folk in turn eluded their cousins on plain ground.

"Dee-jak!" The mountain man waved a hand in front of his face. "So now you are deaf, as well as ignorant?"

"I'm so sorry!" Dijaq said hurriedly. "I must have been lost in my own-- I mean day-dreaming, that's all."

"'Day-dream'?" The other man cocked an eye-brow suspiciously.

"It was nothing," Dee mumbled. "Now what were you saying?"

"In the mountains, men listen closely. Do not repeat themselves, just in case dragons are listening."

"Then there is nothing I can pay you for your services," Dijaq sniped, a bit too severely than he'd intended.

"Ha!" the other man brought his cow to an abrupt halt. "You don't pay, you go alone. A better plan for you, yes?" he asked snidely, jerking his head toward the horizon. Dijaq followed the man's eyes and froze: in the distance, he could see the beginnings of a smattering of dark forestry (the Twin Moons were not visible, having taken their places behind them), and poking out from the leafy tips of the groves was a colossal, disc-shaped form that must have easily exceeded thirty feet-- and that was only the part of it he could see.

Pacing back and forth in front of the woodland, Dijaq could see the timber-wolves and ice-cats (each species carefully avoiding the other) as they lifted their snouts to the wind, drank in the scents of the newcomers, and howled ravenously.

"No, of course I wouldn't go alone!" Dijaq drew up Bora's reigns until the animal snorted and paused, pawing the ground in front of her with worn, cracked hooves. "I was just uncertain for a moment...nothing more. Each of you will receive your just payment, exactly as I promised, but I will never reach the copse or the Disc without your help. You have weapons, don't you?"

The man shrugged with nonchalance and swiftly withdrew a handsome crossbow from beneath the cloak that surrounded him, lovingly stroking the polished wood that had gone worn from use. "Weapons, yes. One well-aimed bolt can take down even an angry mother ice-cat. Takes two bolts to bring down the big wolves. ...I trust you can pay us for the depletion of our weapons?"