Chapter Seven

Alone No More

Dawn had begun to pale the horizon by the time Ravana and Silarae descended once more, and even then it was only at Taranis' insistence. If they had had their way, the two dragons would probably have stayed up much longer. They flew down to the city, landing in the wide place in front of the king's palace. From there Silarae led the way around to the back of the palace, where a very large building stood. It was very simple and unadorned, and had a huge gateway. Taranis climbed down from his seat, and walked rather stiffly over to the heavy iron gate. When he pulled a small lever set into the stone frame, the gate lifted with a rattling of chains. Silarae entered the dark space beyond. Ravana followed. Inside it was cool and dark, just what a dragon preferred. A large trough lay against one wall, full of water, and there were some bones scattered on the floor. Silarae went to one corner, and lay down with a contented sigh. Ravana rather shyly settled himself next to her. He half expected her to move away, but to his surprise she leaned over a little so that their flanks touched. No dragon had ever chosen to come this close to him, let alone touch him in such an accepting way. It thrilled him. He rested his head on his foreclaws, and Silarae did likewise, so that their heads were side-by-side. Ravana heard a loud thump, and looked up quickly. The gate had closed, trapping them inside. He got up and rushed over to it, bumping his snout against the cold metal. Taranis was on the other side.

'Why did you close it?' Ravana demanded nervously.

'It's necessary,' said Taranis. 'For your protection. There could be traitors in the city who want you and Silarae dead. This will keep them away.'

'I'm not afraid of them,' Ravana declared.

'Even so,' said Taranis. 'I must insist.'

He spoke some word, aloud, and the gate shimmered for a few seconds. Now it was locked in place. Taranis nodded courteously and was gone.

Ravana went back to Silarae's side, feeling somewhat disturbed. He didn't like the idea of being trapped inside this place, unable to leave at will.

'He always does that,' said Silarae's voice. She hadn't spoken much since their first meeting, but now she did there was a note of unhappiness that hadn't been there before.

'But it keeps us safe,' Ravana said uncertainly.

'I suppose so,' said Silarae. She sighed again. 'Come, rest by me again,' she said. 'We can talk.'

Ravana went back to her side without complaint. 'I don't know why he thinks he needs to lock us in here,' he said. 'I can fight.'

Silarae spoke aloud. Ravana's brows wrinkled. 'What did you say?' he asked, still using the silent speech.

'I said I know you can,' said Silarae, in the same way. 'Can't you understand it?'

'No,' said Ravana. 'I never learned the spoken language. My parents died.'

'I was speaking the language of men,' said Silarae. 'I never learnt the dragon language either. But I can teach you human language, if you want me to.'

'I would,' said Ravana.

'Then I will,' said Silarae. 'But not today. Later.'

'All right,' said Ravana.

They were silent for a time, and then Silarae blurted; 'Why did you really come here?'

Ravana was puzzled. 'I came here for the reasons I gave,' he said.

'Are you sure?' said Silarae.

'Yes. What's wrong?'

Silarae had raised her head, but now she lowered it resignedly. 'It's just that… I hoped…'

'Yes?' said Ravana.

'I thought maybe you came here to save me,' said Silarae.

'Save you?' said Ravana, totally confused. 'From what?'

'Never mind. It's nothing,' said Silarae.

Ravana didn't know what to make of this. He tried to get her to say more, but she wouldn't. In the end he gave up and said; 'Tell me about this place. I want to know about it. And this man… Taranis. What is it like to be bonded with a man?'

'It's strange,' said Silarae. 'I feel everything he feels, and he feels what I feel. If either of us is hurt, we both feel the pain.'

'Does that make it easier?' said Ravana.

'I don't know. Perhaps it makes it worse,' said Silarae.

'I could feel some of his emotions before, when we were flying,' said Ravana.

'I think he chose to share them with you,' said Silarae. 'To me they are much stronger, and he can't hide them from me. I feel him, all the time. Right now I know that he is feeling tired but pleased.'

'Why would people and dragons bond this way?' Ravana wondered. 'Is it magic?'

'Perhaps,' said Silarae. 'We don't know. No-one knows.'

'I met an elf who was joined with a dragon,' said Ravana. 'His name was Eragon. His dragon was female like you. Maybe a rider must be a male bonded with a female. Maybe that's why it was you who was chosen and not me.' He was unable to keep the bitterness out of his voice.

'Tell me about your life,' said Silarae. 'Who were your parents?'

Ravana was surprised that she should be curious about him, but he obliged her all the same. He told her what he could remember of his birth, and emotionlessly recounted the deaths of his parents. When she showed shock and sympathy for this, he was surprised once again. It had never really occurred to him that he deserved sympathy for his loss. He made no comment when she attempted to comfort him, and went on to talk of his solitary infancy, his discovery of flight, his searching for dragon company. When he told of his first, brutal encounter with other dragons, Silarae muttered sadly and nuzzled his shoulder. He showed her the scars on his face, and she touched them gently with her claws, caressing them as if wanting to soothe a pain that was no longer there. The feeling disturbed him, but he made no move to stop her. He spoke on, telling of his fight with the elves and his killing of the blue female. She listened silently to all this, and he could feel her withdrawing a little when she learnt of the killings he had committed. For the first time he wondered if perhaps she wasn't a fighter like himself.

'They were my enemies,' he repeated, uncertain of who he was trying to reassure. 'I owed them some revenge for trying to kill me.'

There was a long silence, and Ravana became uncomfortable. Was she angry with him? He hoped not. Silarae was the only dragon who had ever spoken to him except Sunlight, and was the only one who had listened to him with such complete acceptance. She lacked the slight fear and reserve that Sunlight had had, for all the yellow dragon's youthful naïveté.

'I understand,' she said at length. 'I have enemies of my own, and I have fought and killed them too. I did not want to, but Taranis made me do it.'

'Why?'

'They were his enemies… he said I had to help him fight them because I was his steed.'

'If you didn't want to do it, you should have told him so,' said Ravana. 'I would never fight just because I was ordered to.'

'I didn't want to make him angry,' said Silarae. 'When he gets angry, it… hurts.'

Ravana snorted, sending a little jet of flame toward the floor, where it evaporated a pool of water spilt from the tough. 'We can bear pain,' he said. 'We're dragons.'

'Not that pain,' said Silarae, and refused to elaborate. Once again he felt her withdrawing, not physically but mentally. It irritated him, but intrigued him as well. Why would she not want to tell him things? He was tempted to threaten her into telling him, but he didn't want to upset her. Besides, he could feel her fear. For the first time, he found himself feeling protective toward someone else. It was very odd.

After that they moved on to other things, and talked for hours, not noticing their tiredness. It was midday when they finally slept, with Ravana's neck lying over Silarae's and their tails intertwined.

In the throne room of the palace, King Paelis, known as the Lord of the North to his subjects, sat on his throne and argued with Taranis.

'I tell you, I will not accept the presence of two dragons in my city!' he shouted. 'Who gave you the authority to let this creature in here? I certainly don't remember giving it! Explain yourself.'

Taranis refused to flare up in response. 'My lord,' he said, 'Calm down and listen to me. I brought the other dragon here for a very good reason, and if you look at it carefully you'll see.'

'Oh?' said Paelis. 'And what might that be?'

'This is an investment,' said Taranis, smoothing down his hair. He wasn't kneeling, but stood and looked the king boldly in the eye. 'The other dragon is male.'

'And riderless,' Paelis cut in. 'How do you expect to keep it under control without a rider? Well? What if it takes it into its head to try and escape? It could destroy half the city if it wanted to.'

'I can deal with that,' said Taranis, waving a dismissive hand. 'Listen to me. I have spoken with this dragon. He is naïve and lonely, and wants company. If dragons are anything like us, I think I know exactly what he's after. And if I'm right, then we've just found the means to win the war.'

'What means?' said Paelis, looking very skeptical. 'I don't see how having another dragon around will help us.'

'Simple,' said Taranis. 'This new dragon wants a mate. If he breeds with Silarae, we'll have eggs. Dragon eggs. And if we can get those to hatch for some of our warriors… imagine it, my lord. Not just one dragon rider, but several. If dragons lay as many eggs as chickens and lizards do, we could have hundreds within a few years. I could lead them into battle… think of the power we'd have!'

Paelis' frown disappeared. 'By the gods, Taranis, you're a genius!' he exclaimed.

'Thankyou, my lord,' said Taranis, hiding a smirk. 'May I have your permission to let the dragon stay?'

'If you can find a way to feed him,' said Paelis.

'Not a problem,' Taranis said airily. 'Dragons can hunt. This one has lived wild his whole life… I've no doubt he can manage.'

'And what if he decides to fly away?' said Paelis.

'He won't,' said Taranis. 'Not while we have his mate. In fact, if you like, we can feed him condemned criminals. It will probably give him a taste for worthless blood.'

Paelis was wearing a very wolfish grin now. 'An excellent idea,' he said. 'Have you informed the dragon of all this?'

'His name is Ravana,' said Taranis. 'I offered him a home and company, and suggested he might fight with us. It seems he's already fought a lot… he has a lot of scars.'

'Battle-hardened, easily fooled… this sounds better every moment,' said Paelis. 'I'm pleased with you, Taranis. Forgive me for doubting you earlier.'

'No need to apologise,' Taranis said, bowing low, although not too low. 'May I have permission to leave, my lord? I need to rest.'

'Certainly,' said Paelis. He paused, then asked in a rush; 'Do you think a dragon hatchling might choose to take me as its rider?'

Taranis shrugged. 'Who knows?' he said.

'But do you think I'm worthy?' the king looked a little embarrassed at having asked, but didn't retract his question.

'Undoubtedly, my lord,' said Taranis. He bowed again, and left.

Once he'd gone, Paelis muttered and struck himself on the forehead. '"Do you think I'm worthy?",' he repeated mockingly. 'Fool.' Nevertheless, his heart was pounding. To be a dragon rider. He could think of nothing more glorious.

Months passed, and they were the happiest of Ravana's life. Every day he would fly and train with Silarae and Taranis. They taught him the true arts of fighting from the air and on the ground. Swoops and dives were both practised endlessly, but they also taught him how to spray the ground with flame from above and thus take out a large number of troops at once. Other, more mundane tasks like lifting and pushing heavy objects were to build up strength. He learnt how to take enemies by surprise, even during the day, how to bowl people over with his tail without losing speed, and how to look for signs of people or animals in an area. Silarae also taught him the human language, and he taught her the few words of dragon that he knew. He also taught her about life in the wild, about hunting and finding shelter and flying in the rain.

He was introduced to the human leader, King Paelis, who looked nervous but didn't flinch at the sight of him. Ravana was instructed to bow his head to the king, but instead he just blinked uncomprehendingly and didn't move. Taranis didn't force the issue, and Paelis departed after saying a few brief words which Taranis said were a welcome to the city. That pleased Ravana, though the king himself disturbed him. There had been a strange look in his eyes, almost a hungry look.

His relationship with Silarae was a good one. The two dragons had bonded during their first night in the roost, and they talked every night, lying companionably side-by-side, their manner natural and trusting. Their behaviour together was watched with increasing impatience by Taranis, who was hoping for something rather more than mere friendship. But he was out of luck if he hoped to see them display some sort of courtship signals. Perhaps he might have been more obviously tense about it, but the truth was that he had no idea what dragon courtships looked like. So he held his silence and encouraged them to spend time alone together, hoping that the king wouldn't run out of patience. If the dragons failed to produce young, he, Taranis, would lose a lot of credebility. The commoners were already unhappy about having a second dragon living among them, especially one that had no rider and was 'untamed'. Taranis was tempted to point out to them that Silarae was technically untamed as well, but that would have only made things worse. Instead, acting on the king's orders to try and calm people down, he spread the word that he was training this new dragon to fight for them against their enemies. That settled some people down, though, as always, there were skeptics. It had been hard enough getting them to accept his station as a rider in the first place, after all, and this was something even more controversial. As yet he and the king were keeping their plan of creating more riders a secret, fearing mass hysteria if the public found out there could be dragon eggs up for grabs some time in the future.

The only humans which Ravana and Silarae met apart from Taranis were the few wretched criminals who were thrown into their home to serve as both food and an example to the crowds who gathered to watch. Silarae was reluctant, but Ravana readily dispatched and devoured the victims, encouraging her to do the same. Before long she joined in, and the unwilling audiences were treated to the spectacle of the pair tearing up screaming executees and eating the pieces, even in some cases playing with them as a cat would with a mouse. To humans it was cruel, but, as Ravana insisted to his friend, dragons were predators, and killing for food was part of life.

The tactic turned out to be a good one for Taranis and Paelis to have come up with; it cowed the people and provided entertainment for the more bloodthirsty of them, and at the same time it was easy to hint that perhaps the dragons could do the same to the enemy some day. Which they did, in the end. About six months after Ravana's arrival, Taranis suddenly announced that it was time for them to go into battle with the rival human army he had told them of. Ravana was confused and said; 'But there are no armies near the city.'

'They're some way away from here,' Taranis explained. 'We got word that they're pillaging villages to the east. The king is sending an army of our own to fight them, Silarae and I will lead them. You must come with us.'

Ravana didn't argue; the man had long since explained that he was expected to help them fight in return for their providing him with a home. In any case, he was bored with the settled life and hungry for some action. He enjoyed fighting, and if he could do it alongside Silarae, so much the better.

'I will come, and gladly,' he said. 'Any enemy of yours is my enemy as well.'

But Silarae said; 'Please, I don't wish to fight any more. The other humans only want food and shelter. Can't we just let them live?'

Taranis did not move, and nor did his expression change. Suddenly Silarae reeled backward, screeching and clutching at her head. Ravana felt something of her pain rebounding back into his own mind, and he flinched. He realised that, from its taste, it had come from Taranis but only caused suffering to the female dragon. Before he could properly register the thought, Silarae was on the ground, writhing and moaning. But even worse than the sight of her torment was Taranis' cold, calm expression. He stood over her, bending his mind to drive its psychic needles into hers, full of power and callous cruelty. Ravana, seeing this, lashed out at the man with his foreclaws, catching him full in the chest and sending him hurtling across the room. It would have been fatal to most, but Taranis was wearing a heavy breastplate. He lay stunned, and before he could get up Ravana pinned him down.

'If you attack Silarae in this way again, I will kill you,' the black dragon promised.

Taranis shouted a word, and immediately Ravana found himself unable to move. He was wild with rage. Trapped, once again, by the paralysis spell. Now, yet again, he was at the mercy of someone a fraction of his size. Taranis stepped onto Ravana's neck, and rested the tip of his sword on the vulnerable spot at the base of his skull.

'If you strike me again, it is you who will die,' his voice rasped in the dragon's head. 'I have power, dragon. Don't force me to show you just how much.'

'Let me go, human,' Ravana snarled back. 'I make no deals with cowards.'

Taranis lifted his sword and struck one of Ravana's skull-spikes, breaking it off. The shock reverberated through the dragon's head, and it was a pain unlike any other. He howled silently, though it was tinged with black fury. Red lights flashed in front of his eyes, and he heard Taranis say; 'You will be punished for your insolence, dragon, and even more so if this happens again.'

At that, Silarae charged. Taranis cast the paralyse spell on her, and the female dragon collapsed. She lay helpless, watching as Taranis methodically cut off every one of Ravana's six spikes. She could hear him crying out with both anger and pain, and felt the same things in her turn. For Ravana, the pain didn't matter as much as the humiliation. Without his spines he would look less of a dragon. And worse still would be the knowledge that this had been done to him by Taranis, a mere human.

When it was over, Taranis jumped back onto the floor. He was breathing heavily from his exertions, and for once his demeanour betrayed him. His eyes glittered with triumph, and his voice said; 'I hope for your sake that you take that as a warning, slave. Otherwise… remember that that was merciful.'

He left the roost without bothering to lift the paralyse spells. Those wore off after a time, and when Ravana could move again he stumped over to a corner and lay down. His head looked smaller without the spines, and softer, too, but his eyes did not look even slightly soft. The corner he chose was the furthest away from Silarae he could get, and he lay there and glared venemously at her. When she recovered a few minutes later, she approached him, frightened but concerned for him and desperate for comfort.

'Ravana…'

Ravana ignored her. She came closer, fearing he would lash out at her, but he gave no response and let her come near, so near that their muzzles were almost touching. 'Ravana, I'm sorry,' she said. 'I wanted to tell you, but… I was afraid.'

'Then you are a coward,' said Ravana.

'Ravana, I-,' Silarae felt her eyes fill with tears. She tried to fight them off, but they were too strong for her. They trickled over her scales and splashed onto the floor, where Ravana saw them. He snorted contemptuously and turned away. It was a gesture of such utter dismissal that Silarae felt it put ice into her heart. 'Ravana, you are the only true friend I have ever had,' she managed to say. 'Without you, I am alone.'

Alone. The word sounded very loud, echoing between their minds like a dancer in a dream. But Ravana did not respond.

'That's why I hoped you were going to take me away,' Silarae went on, the words tumbling out of her in her desperation. 'I want to go away, somewhere were he can't find me. I want to be free, like you.'

'If you wanted freedom, you should have rebelled long ago,' said Ravana.

'I tried,' said Silarae, some of her misery giving way to anger. 'Do you think I didn't try? I did. Many times. But he punished me for it.' She reared up, baring her chest and stomach. Ravana saw dozens of scars, all deep and painful-looking. Silarae held her position long enough for him to see, then dropped heavily back onto her forelegs. 'In the end, I gave up,' she said simply. 'I'm not brave like you, Ravana. Taranis broke my courage a long time ago.'

Ravana said nothing. Silarae touched him tentatively on the face. He didn't resist, and she wrapped her forelegs around his neck, hugging him protectively. Ravana rose in response, and the two dragons embraced, their hearts pounding. They spread their wings around each other, creating a webbed shield against the world. Perhaps they felt the first stirrings of a greater power then, perhaps not. No-one, not even they, could have been certain. But they did know that, in spite of their situation and whatever the next day would bring, they had each other. Both had known loneliness and despair, but now that time was ending. All of that, and a future, was in their touch.