Chapter 3

Cadmus

Daniel felt warm and comfortable.

'I'm in my bed,' he realized. He didn't bother opening his eyes.

'I dreamed it all,' he told himself. 'I dreamed that the dragon came, took my heart, and that a boy appeared out of thin air. When I wake up, I'll back in my bed and everything will be normal.'

Something was sticking into his back, which confused him. He didn't remember any lumps in his bed. He stirred and became aware of a cold breeze. Had they left the window open?

Blearily, he opened one eye. A blurry figure was peering down at him.

'Mother...' he thought to himself, closing his eye.

There was something wrong with that, Daniel knew, but right now he couldn't think what it was.

For a few moments, he drifted in happy blackness. Then it suddenly came rushing back. The fire, the screams, his mother's body lying in the street.

His eyes flew open, and he sat up with a jolt. Wildly, he looked around. They were still on the seeing stone ridge. He couldn't have been unconscious for more than a few seconds.

Now that he could see clearly, he saw that the figure standing over him was not his mother, but the strange boy.

'Are you all right, Arisen?' he asked concernedly, reaching out a hand to him.

Ignoring it, Daniel scrambled to his feet.

'Wh- who are you?' he asked shakily.

The boy bowed slightly.

'My name is Cadmus,' he said calmly. 'I am your servant.'

'Where did you come from?'

Cadmus tilted his head slightly, as if confused at the question.

'From the Rift,' he replied.

'The what?'

'Look,' Cadmus said, pointing at the seeing stone, which now looked perfectly normal. 'You called me forth from a riftstone, and I answered your call.'

He spoke as if this was as ordinary as talking to someone through an open window.

'...What do you mean you're my servant?' Daniel eventually asked.

Cadmus smiled.

'I am a pawn,' he replied. 'It is my duty to serve the Arisen until their dying breath.'

'A pawn?' Daniel was finding himself more and more confused with each answer. But before he could ask more, there was movement by the stone.

Slowly, Lily crawled out from around it, looking like she had just been through several wars.

'What happened?' she asked in a dazed voice. 'Who's-'

Before she could finish, there was a crashing of branches and Emma stumbled into the clearing. She was carrying a pile of mushrooms in her tunic held out in front of her. Her face looked wild.

'What happened?' she asked, copying Lily. 'I heard all this rumbling, then there was a flash of light, and suddenly all these wolves were running past me, scared out of their lives, and- who's he?' She caught sight of Cadmus.

'He... drove the wolves away,' said Daniel quickly, before Cadmus could say anything. The last thing he needed was for him to start talking about Arisen and pawns while Emma and Lily were around.

'The wolves attacked us, he appeared to help, and there was a sudden storm which scared them off,' Daniel continued wildly.

'Who are you?' Emma asked.

'My name is Cadmus,' Cadmus repeated.

'Are you a hunter?'

'I am-'

'Yes, he is,' Daniel quickly interrupted. He had just noticed the bow and quiver of arrows slung over Cadmus's back, and the pair of hunting knives on his belt.

'Do you live around here?' asked Emma.

Cadmus didn't answer, once again seeming confused. Emma glanced at Daniel.

'I think he's a bit confused,' Daniel said. 'Got hit on the head.'

'Well, we can't leave him out here, can we?' Emma replied. 'We don't have much in the way of comforts right now,' she said to Cadmus, 'but if you come with us to the village, we can give you a roof over your head.'

This wasn't quite what Daniel had in mind. He wanted desperately to leave this strange boy in the woods. But as soon as Emma said it, he realized with a sinking feeling that it just wouldn't do.

He glanced around for Lily. She was still sitting by the stone. He walked over to her.

'Are you all right?' he asked.

'I... I think so,' she said quietly. She tried standing up, but her legs shook and she collapsed.

'Here,' Daniel said, squatting down and turning away from her.

Lily put her hands around his neck and he hooked his arms under her knees. They hadn't done this since Lily was little, but as Daniel stood up with her on his back, he was relieved to find he could still lift her.

Turning back, he jumped to see that Cadmus had followed him and was standing only a couple of feet away.

'Are... you coming back to the village with us?' Daniel asked, hoping he would refuse.

'Yes, Master,' Cadmus replied.

'Master?' mumbled Lily. Daniel winced. He hoped Emma hadn't heard.

'We should go before the wolves come back,' he called out to her. She was busy picking up fallen mushrooms. Straightening up, she nodded.

Hoisting Lily more securely on his back, Daniel set off back down the track. Emma walked in front, holding branches aside for him. Cadmus trailed behind them silently.

'So, he just appeared from the woods?' Emma murmured to Daniel.

'Er, yes,' Daniel replied. He couldn't help the occasional glance back at their new companion.

He looked to be about Daniel's age and seemed to have an almost identical build. But his skin was much paler, and his short, cropped hair was the colour of sand.

There didn't seem to anything odd about his dress. He was wearing a plain tunic and leggings with leather shoes. The only unusual things he carried was the bow and the set of knives hanging from his belt.

The strangest thing about him was his expressions as he gazed about. It was as though he had never seen a forest before. Every branch, every rock, every root seemed to draw his attention. He gazed at them with a mild curiosity before moving on. Sometimes, he would look at Daniel and smile.

Daniel sighed. This was the last thing he needed right now.

'What on earth?' Emma said in surprise as they arrived at the village.

The whole place was in an uproar. People were standing in a large group in the centre, shouting and arguing.

'It's the end of days!' one man wailed, standing on a crate. 'The dragon's coming, and the earth tremor are signs! Signs that our doom is approaching!'

Some jeered at him, but many others looked at each other worriedly.

'The dragon is the divine messenger!' the man continued. 'It heralds the end, and now lightning strikes our land and the earth itself shudders! The end is nigh!'

'Calm yourselves,' came a firm voice.

Another man stepped forward. Although he couldn't see his face, Daniel recognized the blue and gold robes of the Faith and realized it must be Auster, the priest of the village chapel.

'The Maker does not allow His children to be destroyed,' he said to the crowd. 'The wyrm is nothing but a foul creature of dark magick. Its purpose, if indeed it has one, is to bring death. Our purpose is trust in the Maker's plan and act as He would to help one another. Then will we see the end of this trial.'

'No!' shrieked the man. 'If He existed, the Maker would not permit this to happen! That it has, proves He does not! This land will burn in dragonfire!'

Not wanting Lily to listen, Daniel quickly made for the Hog & Horseshoe, Emma close behind him.

As they walked through the doors, Hanna came out of the kitchen.

'Oh, thank goodness,' she sighed.

'What's going on?' asked Daniel, letting Lily slide off his back into a chair.

'Didn't you hear it?' asked Hanna in surprise. 'Out of nowhere, dark clouds gathered over the entire valley and the earth shook. People panicked, thinking the dragon was returning. Then this enormous bolt of lightning struck the forest and everything turned to chaos. People were running everywhere and screaming. All I could think about was how you were up there, and if you got hurt.'

'It missed us,' replied Daniel. 'We're all right.'

'Oh good, and... who's this?' Hanna asked as the doors swung open and Cadmus walked in.

'He's Cadmus,' said Daniel quickly. 'He saved us.'

Briefly, he told Hanna the same thing he told Emma.

'I see,' said Hanna, eyeing Cadmus up and down curiously. 'Well, if you saved my daughter's life, then the least we can do is give you a place to stay. But you'll have to make do with the stables, I fear. We're completely full upstairs.'

Cadmus nodded vaguely. It seemed he didn't have much interest in speaking.

Outside, they could hear voices rising.

'They been at it since the attack,' sighed Hanna, picking up a cloth. 'Some folks have got it into their heads that we should 'submit to the dragon' and such. All nonsense, as far as I can tell.'

'Where's Father?' asked Emma.

'Upstairs,' replied Hanna. 'Sisters from the Faith arrived to help treat the injured.'

'I'll go help,' said Emma, heading for the stairs.

Hanna pursed her lips but said nothing as she watched her go.

'Here,' she said eventually, handing the cloth to Daniel. 'Wipe down the tables. I'll show our guest the stables.'

She walked to the door.

'They're around the back,' she said, beckoning to Cadmus.

But Cadmus didn't move. He glanced at Hanna, then look questioningly at Daniel. Hanna raised her eyebrows slightly.

'Go on,' said Daniel.

Cadmus nodded, before turning and following her outside. Shaking his head, Daniel picked up the cloth, wondering what bizarre direction his life had taken.

Daniel was run ragged that day. Not because of the inn work. He was well used to that. And not because of Lily, either. Having decided her ordeal at the seeing stone was at least partly a bad dream, she had busied herself at the fire with trying to mend old sheets.

What ran him ragged was Cadmus. The boy just wouldn't stay still.

For whatever reason, he insisted on following Daniel around everywhere, moving silently about. Many times, Daniel jumped in fright upon turning to find Cadmus standing less than a foot away. Cadmus didn't seem to find anything odd about it. Indeed, he looked slightly surprised at Daniel's reactions.

Worse, though, was when Cadmus was left alone with other villagers. The moment they asked who he was, his lips began to form the word 'Arisen,' forcing Daniel to sprint over and interrupt.

Fed up, he took Cadmus out to the stables that evening.

'Now just stay here, all right?' he said, pointing at the straw. 'Stay put until morning, and I can work out what to do with you.'

'Yes Arisen,' answered Cadmus, sitting down in the straw at once.

'And stop calling me that,' said Daniel, shutting the door.

Walking back inside the inn, he sat down at one of the tables with a thump. The place was packed again. At first glance, it looked like a normal night at the inn. You could almost believe that the people trickling in had come from a long day in the fields and that someone might burst into song or into a fight at any moment, and that they would eventually stumble happily out the door, heading for home.

But people didn't stagger in with ash and soot covering their faces on a normal night. And there was no singing, only dull murmuring, while others stared wordlessly into their tankards. How many of them still had homes to go to?

An effort had been made to do a count of villagers still living, and houses still standing. The numbers made for a depressing read.

There was one thing Daniel couldn't deny. People had certainly stopped talking about him now. It was of little comfort to him, though. The question still had to be answered; what happens now? Try as he might, Daniel couldn't think of an answer.

The only thing he could think of, as much as it pained him to do so, was to leave Lily behind in the care of Josef and Hanna while he went to the capital for work. He hated the thought of leaving Lily, but perhaps one day he could send for her after he found his fortune. There was also his debt to the innkeepers to consider. He couldn't just very well leave them with the burden of raising Lily.

As far as Daniel knew, he had nothing more than the clothes on his back. He hadn't visited their house since the attack. But maybe now was the time. He had to see what he could salvage.

He glanced around the room, looking for Lily, but she was nowhere to be seen. No doubt she was up in Emma's room. If he was going to go, now would be best. He rose from his seat, but then he saw outside the window. The light was failing fast. Even now it was almost dark. Too dark to see anything, let alone gather anything. He would have to wait until morning.

Daniel woke in his pile of blankets on Emma's floor. Looking out the window, he saw the pale grey light that came before dawn. Quietly, as not to wake Lily, he kicked off the blankets and dressed. Slipping out of the room, he padded downstairs. The inn was silent. Even the kitchen was empty. Hanna had yet to begin cooking. Carefully, he pulled the door open and walked out into the square.

It was even earlier than he had imagined. The sky was still largely dark, with light only beginning to emerge over the hills. This didn't concern Daniel, though. He could find his way back with his eyes shut.

There was still a faint smell of smoke in the air as Daniel made his way past the charred remains of buildings. He knew the grocer's, along with the grocer himself, had been reduced to ash. The grocer's wife had been wailing about it last night. The blacksmith's forge still stood, although his house didn't. So much else had gone. The bakery, the tanners, the physicians, now twisted and burnt wood. Even the inn hadn't escaped unscathed. Josef had discovered yesterday that they were missing a good deal of their chimney as well as several panes of glass on the top floor.

Indeed, it seemed that the only building to remain untouched was the butchery. Garret had not been seen since the attack, but he had supposedly survived, according to some of the villagers who had seen him fleeing.

Daniel trudged along the street, his head bowed. When he turned the corner for his house, he didn't raise his head. He was afraid of what he would see.

For how long he stood there, head bowed and hands in his pockets, he didn't know.

'It is best to know,' a voice in his head finally said.

Slowly he raised his head. A cry caught in his throat.

Their house was completely destroyed.

Blasted apart by the dragon's fire, it was now a pile of burnt wood and stones. Blackened frames still stood, like a skeleton. It must have burned for a long time. Barely anything was recognizable.

Daniel stumbled forward into the wreckage. Clouds of ash rose around his boots with every step. Splintered wood, twisted lumps of molten metal, this was all that remained of the house Daniel and Lily had grown up in. A pile of broken stone was what was left of the fireplace. Daniel slowly walked over. His head overflowed with the memories of sitting by that fire as a family, small and fragile as it was.

Suddenly, it all seemed to hit him at once like never before. Their house was gone, Reaville was gone. So many people were gone. His mother was gone.

Daniel sunk to his knees. There were no more tears. Instead, he let out a great scream of anger and despair. It echoed off the ruins and over the village, but Daniel didn't care. He slumped forward, head bowed. So absorbed he was, he almost didn't hear the soft footsteps behind him.

He looked up. It was Cadmus, standing in what remained of their doorway. He watched Daniel silently.

Daniel stared at him for a few seconds, before finding his voice.

'The dragon,' he croaked, 'it did this.'

'Yes,' replied Cadmus.

'It will…' Daniel said slowly, 'it will keep doing it, won't it?'

'Yes,' said Cadmus again, after a silence.

Daniel closed his eyes. Memories of his mother filled his head.

'Very well then,' he said quietly.

He opened his eyes.

'I'll kill it,' he said.

Cadmus blinked.

'You said that I was the Arisen. Is the Arisen the only one who can kill the dragon?'

'Yes,' nodded Cadmus. 'It is your duty to face the dragon and reclaim your heart.'

'I don't care about duty,' said Daniel, standing up. 'The dragon killed my mother. I will kill it, no matter how long it takes.'

He looked at Cadmus.

'Will you help me?'

Cadmus dropped to one knee and bowed his head.

'It is the duty of a pawn to aid the Arisen in their quest to slay the dragon,' he said. 'I shall be your unswerving companion. My fate is tied to you. From this day, I live and die by your command.'

Daniel looked around the ruins. His eye caught something small hiding under the remains of what was once the kitchen pot. Lifting the pot aside, Daniel saw it was the small wooden figure of a weaver woman that Roland had given him. He remembered Jill placing it on the kitchen table. It must have been knocked to the floor during the attack.

Daniel held it to his chest. It had survived, just like him, when so much else had been destroyed.

Slipping it into his pocket, he stood up.

'We need to see what we can salvage,' he said to Cadmus. 'Look for anything we can use.'

'Yes Master,' nodded Cadmus.

The two began picking their way through the ruins. It was heart-breaking work. All around were the charred remains of Daniel's life. Their beds were gone, now just blackened frames. Most of their clothes were now ash. Old toys were gone, their mother's loom was destroyed.

However, things had survived here and there. A pan from the kitchen, more or less intact. A pair of old boots that were lying outside at the time and just fit Daniel. A length of rope, caked in ash but still strong.

They gathered these in a small pile.

Daniel went into what remained of his mother's room and felt around under the broken bedframe. He quickly found what he was looking for and pulled it out. It was his mother's strongbox. The key was nowhere to be found, but after much effort, Daniel was able to break the lock with a rock.

Lifting the lid, inside was a small pile of gold coins that his mother had been able to save over the years. It was his now, he supposed, and Lily's. After a moment, he tipped half into a small pouch.

Tying the pouch to his belt, he stood up and walked back over to where Cadmus was peering under what was left of the kitchen table.

'I'm afraid little is left, Arisen,' he said.

Daniel nodded slowly.

'I suppose it was foolish to hope otherwise,' he said, walking into the ruins of the sitting room. 'The dragon- ʼ

He broke off as he stepped on something strangely hard under the rubble. Bending down, he saw the outline of something vaguely familiar coated in ash.

Brushing the ash aside, Daniel saw it was his father's sword. Pulling it out, he saw it seemed to be intact. Straightening up, he grasped the hilt. It felt strange in his hand.

Slowly, he drew the blade from its sheath. The dull iron seemed to gleam amongst the ruined house.

His father's sword. Long had Daniel stared at it and wondered what sort of man his father was. His mother had told him stories, but they often only created more questions. Now she was dead, and all he had was this. He became aware of Cadmus watching him.

'My father,' he said without turning, 'used this sword to protect our family. I will use it to avenge it. I swear that the dragon will die by this blade. I will peel its scaly hide from bone, ere I rest.'

'Yes, Arisen,' came the answer from Cadmus.

Daniel looked around at the sad remains of his house.

'Let's go,' he said. 'There's nothing more for us here.'

Sheathing the sword, they gathered everything into a pile and walked out of the ruins.

'One day it may be rebuilt,' Cadmus said as Daniel turned back to look one last time.

'Perhaps,' Daniel said, but he suddenly knew that he would never return here. That he would never see their house rebuilt. The instinct was so strong, he knew it was true.

Silently, he turned away.

'When do we depart, Arisen?' asked Cadmus as they walked away. 'We no doubt face a long journey and should prepare.'

'We leave today,' Daniel replied.

'Arisen?'

'As soon as possible,' he continued. 'We need to get supplies from the inn and I… need to write a letter.'

The streets were still deserted, and little wonder. It was still far too early for anyone else to be about. The light was still dim when they made it back to the Hog & Horseshoe.

Quietly making their way inside, Daniel whispered to Cadmus 'Go to the kitchen and get enough food for both of us.'

'Yes, Arisen,' came the reply. As Cadmus slipped through the kitchen door, Daniel searched behind the counter. He quickly found the great ledger Josef and Hanna used to write the guests staying the night. Next to it was a quill and bottle of ink.

Opening the ledger, he turned to a blank page. Dipping the quill in the ink, he began to write.

To Josef and Hanna of the Hog & Horseshoe

I have left the village on a journey to the capital, where I plan to seek my fortune. I cannot remain here and be a burden upon you all. With me is Cadmus, who has agreed to guide me. I will be gone for a long while.

I leave Lily in your care. I hope that you will be able to give her a good home. With my mother's death, all that she owned now belongs to Lily and me. I have taken what I need from my half, so I leave the rest to you in order to ease the burden I have left. Please keep Lily's half safe for her. If I do not return, please give whatever remains of my half to Lily when she comes of age.

Thank you for all you have done for my mother and me.

Daniel

That should do, thought Daniel. It was a short letter, but it had taken a surprisingly long time to write. He wondered if he should have written the truth, but he didn't even know where to start. Who would believe him, anyway?

His eyes lingered on the words 'If I do not return' for a moment before Cadmus came out of the kitchen with a bulging sack.

'Ready, master?' he asked.

'One moment,' said Daniel. 'Wait here.'

Silently, he made his way back upstairs to Emma's room. Quietly, he opened the door and went in.

Lily was still asleep in the bed, her thumb in her mouth. Daniel padded over to her and shook her gently.

'Mmm,' stirred Lily sleepily, opening one eye. 'What?'

'Lily,' Daniel whispered. 'I have to go away for a while. There's something that I need to do.'

'What do you…?' mumbled Lily drowsily.

'I need you to be a good girl, all right?' Daniel continued. 'For Josef and Hanna and Emma.'

'When will you be back?' the girl mumbled sleepily.

'I don't know,' Daniel said. 'I have to do something for Mother.'

'All right…' said Lily, her eyes already closing. In seconds, she was asleep again.

Daniel looked down at her for another minute. She did look rather like their mother.

Then he silently left the room and went downstairs. Cadmus was still standing where he left him.

'Ready,' Daniel said.

Cadmus nodded. He hoisted the sack over his shoulder and joined Daniel.

Daniel took one last look around the familiar inn before taking a deep breath and walking to the doors. As he reached them, he glanced at Cadmus and his sack, before he suddenly remembered.

'Wait!' he said, hurrying back to the counter where the ledger lay open to his letter. Reaching into the pouch on his belt, he pulled out a gold coin. Picking up the quill again, he wrote.

P.S. We took some food from the kitchen. Here's some money to pay for it.

Leaving the coin beneath the letter, he re-joined Cadmus. Pushing open the doors, the two stepped outside.

That morning, a lonely crow at perched atop the ruins of a chimney. Gazing down at the once proud village of Reaville, the crow saw blackened ruins of houses, smashed walls, lumps of wood that were once a great platform in the square, and the sad remains of a once thriving village.

But it also saw two shadows slipping through the rubble. Two shadows, soft and silent, making their way to the edge of the village. That morning, before dawn broke over the mountains, two shadows disappeared from Reaville, beginning their long journey into an unknown world.

Author notes:

Hi everyone, this is RedCrow97. Thank you for reading my story. This is part of a larger piece that I've been working on for the past year or so. I've uploaded the first three chapters to as a preview for you to check out, for me to gauge public reaction, and to get it out there while the game is still popular. I plan to continue uploading the chapters. Don't worry, I'm going to keep it regular and aim to get the next lot out by early November. Once everything is out, I'll take everything down and re-upload in a single piece.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it, and look forward to the next piece.