Author's Note – The drinking song in this chapter is adapted from a 'miracleofsound' Youtube video about Skyrim.
Lessons Learned
Valka strolled into the 'Sloshed Sailor', the main mead hall on the island. It was apparently a very popular establishment, given how many people were inside.
Dozens of bearded, unkempt men occupied the majority of the tables, with a few families and spouses scattered amongst them. The conversations ranged from animal-husbandry, to uncouth topics, to drunken rambling, to the weather, and that was all at one table.
She took a seat on her own and waved over an attendant, "What do you have to drink?
The man shrugged and gestured all around, "Whadya think we have here? Nord mead!"
A stewed man at the table next to her must have heard that since he got up on the table and started singing. Everyone else dropped everything they were doing and joined in on the drinking song.
"After the long hard days of hunting and of war, our throats are tired and thirsty and our bodies drenched in gore!"
"We won't spend our evenings feeling tired and feeling spent. We perk right up when we breathe in that wholesome honey scent!"
"So sturdy and so stout, when the day is done, when it's time for fun, we'll drink and sing and shout!"
"Cause when we raise our flagon to another dead dragon, there is just one drink we need. NORD MEAD!"
"Chug a mug of mead and another mug of mead. Chug another mug of mead till you fall down!"
"Chug a mug of mead and another mug of mead. Chug another mug of mead, warrior!"
"NORD MEAD!"
A round of cheering went up from almost everyone else. The drunkard dancing on the table bowed so deeply that he pitched forward and fell off the table, to the laughter of many people watching. The laugher and jeering gradually faded away into regular conversation and noise.
She faced the attendant, "One mead please."
He brought her a mug of mead which she paid for and started on while inspecting the map by dim candlelight. Haven was marked on the map as a cursed location. Fearsome dragons and skulls were drawn all around that coastline where her tribe and the dragons had tried to settle down in peace. Further north were islands she recognized from prior years of flight with Cloudjumper, though none of them were marked with a name.
Her finger traced the unmarked place where she knew her dragon sanctuary had been years ago. The place was also surrounded by skulls and flaming dragons. That glorious refuge had to have melted away entirely without the King to sustain it.
Most important of all was that the map included their island which hid the only known path into the hidden world. The island was unnamed, but it was on the map, making it a location which adventurers or refugees might eventually sail to with the intent to live on or explore. That was news Shadowwing needed to hear for certain.
"We're on the map, sort of," she whispered.
Another drunk and ragged man at the table next to her raised his voice, getting her attention, "Oye, whachoo doin?"
"Drinking my mead," she answered without facing him.
"Whats yer rate?"
"What?"
"You and me head out an' have some fun? I'll pay you good!"
"Leave me alone."
He braced himself against the table, "Oh, come on! I jus' wanna-"
He went silent when she brought out her dagger, holding it and showing it off without doing anything else.
Fortunately, the attendant on duty must have been watching since he came over, "Rolph, that's the second time today! You know not to talk about that in my hall. No disturbin' my guests. Head to Burly Berthas if you've the coin for it. Leave her alone or piss off."
Rolph muttered at him, made a rude gesture, and went back to his drinks.
The attendant faced her while wiping clean a mug, "Sorry about that. He's a regular. Lost his wife in a dragon attack years ago. Can't let her memory rest or move on from it."
She shrugged, "No problem. Why is he so upset about it? Shouldn't he be proud of her dying such a death?"
He frowned, "If she had died in battle, sure, but no. Burned alive when the house collapsed on her and their babe. No honor and glory in that. No chance of ever seeing her in Valhalla if he gets there. What's your name?"
"Helga. Yours?"
"Sven."
She idly nodded and flipped Sven another coin, "I've been away from here and most of these waters for over ten winters. What's happened since then? I heard something happened with the dragons."
He took a seat across the table, "Ya really don't know? Fine. Big news is there were some tribes that were trying to tame or control dragons. I know, impossible, but it happened. They were on the mainland before they were driven off to only the gods know where. They and the blasted dragons are gone, hopefully for good. Though, their being gone became a problem a couple years ago."
"What happened?"
He leaned closer, "War. All the trappers lost their jobs when the dragons disappeared. Entire tribes collapsed and turned on each other since they had nothing to trade. Slavery, theft, pillaging, rape, and starvation everywhere. It was terrible. Everything has settled down some since then with the warlords that came to power, but it wasn't easy for anyone."
"Good to hear. Who are the warlords?"
"Let's see, there's Griselda, Ragnar, and something something Khan. Only the first two are proper Nords. I don't know much about the three, only that they're jostling for power and they all distrust the others."
He paused and snapped his fingers, "Oh, how'd I forget? Have you heard about Drago Bludvist, now Drago the Fallen?"
The shadowy figure lurking behind the movement of armies and the activities of countless trappers through the years. She spent decades of work foiling his plans. If it weren't for him, hundreds or thousands of dragons wouldn't have been trapped or killed. Chief Astrid would still be alive if she hadn't fallen while killing him in single combat.
She shrugged, "Who hasn't heard of him? What happened?"
"He died a glorious death in battle against the accursed dragon-riders. It was because of him that the dragon menace was held back as long as it was. Folk say he died single-handedly killing a witch that was controlling dragons, ploughing them, or something as foul."
She took a long drink to calm herself and avoid an outburst at how wrong that was. Everyone thought that Drago Bludvist was a hero who died well, and that Astrid was a witch? Astrid was the hero who had died a death worthy of song and legend, though the world may never know that.
"Sounds like a true hero," she whispered.
He continued, "Some folk said they heard about a dragon coming through here recently. Found somewhere on the mainland, so they said. But they were drunk, so who knows if that happened at all. Been so long since any trappers had business here. And there's Grimmel the Grisly, executioner of the dragons of the night. He and his men helped cleanse the cursed place where the traitors who controlled dragons were living."
"So I heard. Any more… reliable rumors?"
"Sure is. Heard about the Grimbornes?"
"I have."
"They're shaping up to be the next strong warlords, though there are the three others jostling for power at the same time."
That was unsurprising. The Grimbornes had survived that battle off Haven's coast, which would put them in a good position to take over, just as Viggo said he planned.
"What are the Grimbornes up to? Any idea what they are doing?"
"Not sure. They're working in the shadows, but word is they're planning something big. Nothing much to say about the other three. What about you? I haven't seen you here before. What's your story?" he asked, idly wiping dirt mugs.
She sighed and took another sip, "Nothing much to say about me. I lost a... son and my husband to dragons long ago. Nothing special about that. Been in other regions for years. I'm glad to hear the dragons are gone from these parts."
He solemnly nodded and gestured all around where people were grumbling for more drink, "Aren't we all? Did ya see any whereever you were?"
"No, it was peaceful enough."
"Ah, then you found a good place, wherever that is. If there's nothing else…" he asked, gesturing toward other tables.
"That's enough. Thanks."
He left her and returned to his work.
Of course the rest of the world would see Drago and Grimmel as heroes of a sort. They were probably the two people who did the most to ensure that dragons vanished from the world, though they had different aims. Drago wanted to control and dominate, whereas Grimmel wanted to exterminate Night Furies. What Grimmel thought about other dragons was uncertain, though he at least saw usefulness in Deathgrippers.
Regardless of what they had actually intended, what mattered was the stories the entire world would tell about those terrible men. They would be remembered as heroes who fought for the greater good against the enemy, against dragons and anyone who allied with dragons.
She felt numb and sick to the stomach at how wrong that was. Dragons being physically gone from the world left behind ample physical remains and stories of what they were. Such stories wouldn't fade in a handful of years or even generations. Further, those stories, from what she could tell, were not good ones and would shape the future.
An elderly woman was sitting in a chair beside a fireplace. A handful of children were sitting before her as she spoke to them while animatedly waving her hands. The old woman was surely a storyteller delighting the youngsters with a grand tale of heroism and drama.
What could possibly change the stories this world told about dragons? Was that even a question she ought to consider? Probably not. Her duty was to the hidden world, to her tribe in hiding, and to the dragons. Ard Skellig, this city, and all the humans on it, were not her responsibility, but it still felt as though something had to be done about this injustice. Everyone here probably thought the worst about dragons because they didn't know better or suffered from old wounds or losses.
At least the mead was nice. Gobber's wine gets old after a while.
The sweet and foamy mead was a pleasant change from the drink available in New Haven. With enough time, they could probably acquire enough bee hives that they could brew their own mead down there. Fermenting potato peels or berries for wine was not the same as classic mead.
Dawn-Singer groaned, holding a paw on Hidden-Hope's tail to keep her from wandering off. Of course, she spun around and hissed at him, but that would not help her. Neither would her annoying braying. Kin-liver had asked him to keep her here, so she was staying right here with him no matter what.
"You cannot go anywhere," he hissed at her.
"But it is so boring just sitting here!" she whined, making her eyes go very wide and round.
"And that is good. You are staying here with us where you are safe."
"I have been sitting here all day! Let me go!"
"Only if you promise on your wings to not fly away! Promise!"
"Okay, fine. Whatever. Promise..."
She silently fumed after he let go of her tail. At least she did not try to fly off, though she did not look happy. He could easily catch and pin her if she tried to fly away.
He softly growled, "I have been sitting here too. Did you stop to think about your sire-father and dam-mother?"
"What about them?" she huffed.
"You flew from the home-range without letting them know. They do not know what happened to you! They must be scared and liver-chilled!"
Amazingly and chillingly, she did not react except to shrug, "So? They do not care about me."
He barked in confusion, "What? You think your sire-father and dam-mother do not care? Why not?"
What she said had no lift at all. Nothing about Shadowwing and Luna suggested that they did not care about their children. Luna was a very warm dam-mother, and Shadowwing, despite having different duties to the shared-range, always found or made time to be with his children as a sire-father. Shadowwing would not neglect her at all.
She flicked her tail and started pacing, growling at the grass underpaw, "Because they keep me trapped in the shared-range! They do not want me to fly anywhere, see anything, or do anything! I am just a hatchling to them!"
"They do that because they care. The ranges beyond that one are dangerous. Even I and my nestmates always fly beyond in a pack for safety."
"You would not understand..."
She fell on her belly and sighed without saying anything else. He was not sure if she understood or was just uninterested in arguing. Moon-Pinner could sometimes have an attitude like this.
Regardless, this was a problem he was going to talk to Shadowwing and Luna about as soon as they returned to the New-Haven-Range. Shadowwing and Luna needed to know that their daughter did not trust them or had problems with them.
Flies-With-Sun returned with a fish for her, and Hidden-Hope gladly ate it. Maybe the fledgling was frustrating and annoying because she was hungry. Moon-Pinner could get upset when she was hungry. However, that reason could only explain why Hidden-Hope was frustrated now, not more generally in her life.
Kin-liver eventually returned after midday and explained that everything went well in the two-leg nest. She was going to take the bag of scales, teeth, and bones to trade for other things the ground-kin needed. The plan was to have a two-leg or several two-legs bring bags of things outside the nest, leave the bags there, and then he and Flies-With-Sun could grab the bags after the two-legs went away. That would all happen just after sunfall.
With time before she had to go back into the two-leg nest, Kin-liver rested nearby with her back against a tree. Hidden-Hope sat with her and kept eagerly asking questions about two-legs and their nest.
With Hidden-Hope occupied, he settled down beside Flies-With-Sun and lay a wing over her back, "My dear mate, I had an idea."
"Yes? What is it?" she purred.
He lowered his voice to a whisper so Hidden-Hope could not hear, "The next time I am watcher for the island, you and Moon-Pinner should come with me. We should let her see this above without needing to sneak away like Hidden-Hope has. Yes, our daughter is not very life-fighting or disobedient yet, but I still think it is a good idea. What do you think?"
She huffed, "I approve. Hidden-Hope will get a strong tail-slapping from her parents when we get back."
"Probably."
Kin-liver finished answering Hidden-Hope's questions, and the Dawn Fury curled up for a nap under the sun. That let Kin-liver come over to him and lean against his side after heavily sighing.
"What iss it?" he purred.
"I don't know what I expected, being down there with those people. I'm not one of them. They're so like people were back on... somewhere I used to live. I didn't feel at home there either."
"Why nnot? Becausse they do nnot like drragonnss?"
She shrugged, "That, and their whole way of life. Everything was about glory, war, and combat. Unsurprising, really, with where they live and how tough they must be. Maybe I'm just getting old and don't care for those as much, though I never really did."
He was not sure, but her almost five tens of season-cycles meant she was probably over half of the way flown through her life-flight. He did not like to think about her growing old or flying on to whatever was after life. Of all two-legs, she was probably the one he knew best, even more than Erevan, since she had been the one who helped teach him ground-kin words over a full season-cycle.
"Anyway, we should all rest this afternoon so we can fly at night. We pick up the supplies this evening and head for home."
He agreed entirely. The sooner they got home, the sooner Shadowwing and Luna would have their daughter safely returned. Having a daughter himself, he understood what they must be feeling.
Valka returned to Moira's establishment before sundown, carrying a large bag of all the goods for sale: bones, teeth, and scales. That Moira knew the truth of what she was, a dragonrider, made this a more precarious mission, though nothing was yet too dangerous about it. Moira's own interest in making profit and procuring a regular supply of dragon parts would prevent any treachery from her.
This was also not her first time on a mission to a trading post to obtain necessary items from the human world.
The guards outside Moira's building noticed her and approached, probably having been told to watch for her.
"Oye, you there! The boss is expectin' you!" one of the guards shouted.
She adjusted the bag over her shoulder, and the contents rattled as they shifted, "I said I'd be back. I've got everything for her right here."
"Follow me. I'll take you inside. Shop's closed right now."
The guard opened a side door and led her into Moira's. They passed another guard who appeared very bored and indifferent before arriving at the main shop room where Moira did her business.
"She'll be right with you. Wait here," he said before going into another room.
She set the bag by a table and sat down. The room was very shrouded, as the fireplace had burned low and the candles weren't lit.
To pass the time, she observed everything visible on the shelves. There were non-dragon items on the shelves, such as containers of powder. The dragon skulls and beauty products most sparked her ire. Perhaps it was slightly hypocritical to disapprove of someone trading in dragon parts when she was doing the same thing. However, no one was harmed by trading in shed scales, teeth, or old bones. If there was anything morally heinous about it, there was far more benefit to her tribe. She had no nightmares or pangs of conscience at all on this entire mission.
"Welcome back Supplier, my shop has seen better days," Moira spoke up all of a sudden from a hallway.
The young woman was, as before, clad in dark robes and had a piercing gaze with more force than someone of her years ought to have.
She stood to greet Moira with a slight nod.
"How so?" she asked.
Moira approached, her steps creaking the wooden floor, tossed another log on the fire, and began lighting more of the candles.
"You can easily answer your own question. The disappearance of dragons harmed trade in these waters and on the mainland. My goods became far more expensive for a time, but then they became so rare that few people had the coin to buy. Theft became more of a problem too, and I have had to expand into other products and… services."
"What other products, if you do not mind the question?"
Moira chuckled and sat down across the table, "So you can ask questions of me but not the reverse? That is hardly fair. How about a trade? I answer your question if you answer one of mine. I will not ask where you are from."
She considered the proposal. Lying was always an option if the question was too dangerous.
"Agreed."
Moira gestured at the shelf with containers of powder, "Would you believe that rock can become explosive flame when heated? Add the correct kinds of powdered rock and the flame can be whatever color is desired. It's a neat trick I learned years ago in trade with the eastern peoples. The applications of such power are limited only by imagination."
She had no idea how rock could become fire. That sounded like a magical power only the gods had.
Moira slightly leaned forward, "And for my question: what kind is your dragon? We've already established that you are a dragonrider."
She stiffened without looking away. Was Moira going to betray her after all? Were there guards ready to rush into the room to torture information from her?
The question was also slightly painful, in that it reminded her that months had passed since she had last seen Cloudjumper. He had been away for extended periods before, and there was no reason to fear for his safety. But the separation still hurt after decades around him almost every day and all the work they had done together.
"A Stormcutter."
"Stormcutter? I'm not familiar with that kind, but the names Nords use for dragons are terribly unimaginative and vague. What are Stormcutters like?"
"As large as boats. Four-winged. Heard of those?"
Moira frowned, "No, I haven't. No worries. I would pay very well for any live dragons you could… obtain for me. Keep that in mind. Down to business?"
She retrieved the bag and poured the contents on the table while Moira retrieved several candles. Teeth, scales, and bones were divided, measured, and inspected. She and Moira haggled, eventually settling on a price sufficient to cover the cost of everything she was buying from Skjall. Moira counted out the agreed silver pieces and handed them over in a small satchel.
"A pleasure doing business with you. When can I expect to see you again with more goods?" Moira asked.
She shrugged, "I can't say for sure. Maybe early in the spring."
"I look forward to it. Maybe you could let me meet your Stormcutter next time you are here."
"He's not fond of strangers."
"But it must be a well-trained beast if you are able to use it," Moira said.
She stood up and started for the door, "You have no idea. Until next time."
"Yes, until next time, Supplier."
She closed the door behind her, stepped out into the street, and took a deep breath, glad to be finished with Moira for a long time. Something about that woman's presence was unsettling, though the remaining dragon skulls within her shop certainly contributed to it being a disturbing place.
The purchase of supplies went smoothly with Skjall being able to provide the majority of the items on the list. She paid for everything and arranged transportation with the remaining coin. Three of Skjall's laborers carried the heavy bags of new tools, parchment, clothing, and other items outside the city limits while she led the procession, torch in hand. Dawn-Singer was sure to be circling high above while Flies-With-Sun was invisible somewhere nearby, just in case anything went wrong. Nothing abnormal had happened, and it didn't appear that anyone was following from the city, but she was nervous regardless.
"Why all the way out here?" one of the men grumbled.
"Yeah, there's nothin' up here," another man added.
She spun on them and scowled, "Am I paying you to ask questions?"
"Whatever. Coin is coin," the first man shrugged.
Neither of them said anything else to her, though they kept grumbling among themselves. After about ten minutes of walking along the road, she came to an intersection, which was the agreed destination.
"Drop them here."
The men dutifully dropped the bags, muttered to themselves, and departed without further word to her. She watched as the men left. Satisfied that they were gone, she extinguished the torch. Not even a minute elapsed before she heard the rush of wings and a pair of dull thuds.
Dawn-Singer, mainly visible from the shine of his eyes, bounded to her, "Rready?"
Flies-With-Sun dropped in beside him.
"Yes. Everything went well. Let's get back to camp and get out of here."
She climbed on his bare back, and he and Flies-With-Sun each picked up two of the four bags. They flew back to camp and landed. She began with the preparation by starting a small fire for light, saddling Dawn-Singer, and packing away all the goods in the saddlebags both he and Flies-With-Sun would carry.
Why did it feel like she had forgotten something? She had all her supplies, her staff, and...
"Where's Hope? Did she need a moment to herself?"
The Furies grumbled at each other before Dawn-Singer slowly faced her, looking worried, "We told herr to sstay herre. Sshe sshould be herre."
Great! Where did you go?
"Hidden-Hope!" she shouted.
The Dawn Fury didn't come bounding or sulking out of the forest. There was no answer.
"Great. Can you find her?"
"Follow uss," he hissed.
She grabbed her staff and followed the Furies as they swiftly advanced through the darkness, sniffing deeply to follow Hidden-Hope's trail. She hoped that they would find her pouting or needing a moment to herself. However, the trail led down the slope, along another minor road, and toward-
The trail led toward the city. Hidden-Hope had been asking so many questions about what the city was like, what the humans were like, how they lived, and the such. The rebellious, ignorant, naive Dawn Fury had probably wanted to go check out the city for herself. Did she at least have the sense to be invisible? Hopefully.
"She went to the city! Flies-With-Sun, can you follow her and find her in there?"
Even in the little light, she could see that Flies-With-Sun was startled and probably a little scared by the suggestion, but Dawn-Singer nuzzled her while speaking to her.
This was a lot to ask of the Light Fury, since she had never been in one of these human villages before and did not know what to expect. Flies-With-Sun took a deep breath, faced her, and nodded once before taking flight. She flew almost straight up, gained a considerable height, and vanished in a flash of fire.
Dawn-Singer crouched down with a nod to his back, so she got on. He took flight and began calmly gliding high above the forest.
Ard Skellig looked much as it did before. People were out and about at night on their various errands or guard duties. There was no obvious sign that anything had happened. There weren't dozens of torches lit by people out to hunt a dragon. People were still coming and going, visiting the mead houses, and working in the docks.
There was nothing to do now but wait and hope that nothing terrible had happened. If anything did happen, if her granddaughter was wounded, slain, or lost...
Granddaughter, what did you do this time?
Flies-With-Sun easily found Hidden-Hope's scent-trail on the ground outside the two-leg nest. Up close, the nest shared some similarities with the shared-nest in the New-Haven-Range. The obvious difference was that nothing about this nest was made for sky-kin.
The trail continued between a pair of wooden home-dens and out into a walking-path. Cautiously, one paw in front of the other, she crept forward, watching for any two-leg guards. They probably could not see her now through her fade, but there was no need to risk being found.
A male and female two-leg walked past, holding paws. Another male followed, though he struggled to walk, probably because he had too much happy-water. None of them were important.
Where did you go?
She followed the scent trail along the walking-path, occasionally hiding between home-dens to let two-legs pass by. This nest was much bigger than the shared-nest. There were so many different scents.
Then something twisted happened.
Hidden-Hope's scent trail was joined by several two-legs, all of which started going the same direction.
What? Did she meet the two-legs?
Curious, she warily followed the new, mixed-trail toward the ocean and the place with the water-walker-boats. A pawful of two-legs were working on one of the water-walker-boats, carrying bags onto it.
She could not get closer without them possibly seeing her eyes, but she had a liver-chilling suspicion. It was unlikely that Hidden-Hope would have trotted off with warm-livered two-legs.
She bounded away, took flight, and winged toward the water-walker-boat. A single liver-chilling glance was all she needed to see.
Hidden-Hope was on the ground of the water-walker-boat, completely trapped and restrained by ropes while two-legs stood near her with weapons in their paws.
Hidden-Hope was so amazed by the two-leg nest even in the dark. Two-legs looked the same as ground-kin, other than how ground-kin wore more hides with shed scales! Big males walked all around while carrying things and doing work. Four-leg barkers wandered on their own or followed the two-legs. Wooden dens lined the streets, and the dens were much bigger than the ones in the shared-range.
Wow. I knew this world was amazing!
It was amusing and liver-warming to walk right past two-legs without them seeing her! Her fade was just that good!
Take that, sire-father!
This world is what he was hiding from her, all because he thought she was just a hatchling! And a female too! Even Dawn-Singer, Flies-With-Sun, and Kin-liver did not understand.
Why did no one else understand? Was the whole world against her? Did she even need to go back?
Maybe. Hunting was not so easy on her own. And her brothers would probably miss her eventually. Rock-Climber would also miss playing with her. If only they were here to see this world too.
If only she were around her kin.
More of the two-legs passed by as she wandered, exploring everything there was to see in the two-leg nest. Their home-dens and other building-dens were so strange and different.
It was annoying that the four-leg barkers kept barking and getting louder. She growled at them and sent them running away in fear. Good! What to explore next?
She had seen from high above the floating water-walker boats in the water. The shared-range did not have any of those things, so she turned toward the water, curious about how two-legs could make things that walked or swam in the water. A pawful of two-legs stopped walking and stared in surprise as she calmly trotted toward the water-walkers. Maybe two-legs had not seen sky-kin before. That was probably true, since more two-legs came toward her, probably to get a better look at how amazing she was!
How had they seen her?
She glanced at herself and only then saw that her fade had chilled away, leaving her entirely visible. What a silly mistake to forget to flame herself again! Let the two-legs look at her. She was, after all, a Dawn Fury, and Dawn Furies, as her sire-father said, were liver-warming and amazing and...
The two-legs shouted and ran toward her. There were weapon-sticks and ropes in their paws... and...
Their eyes were narrowed, and their shouting was so loud and confusing.
What was happening? Were the two-legs attacking? This did not look like play-fighting!
Fear. Danger. Threat! This was very wrong!
She crouched to jump, but a two-leg jumped onto her tail. Another hopped on her back.
Fight fight flee!
She bucked, tossing off the two-leg on her back, but another was holding her neck and another on her head and-
"Get it!" "Hold it down!" "Get the ropes!" "Get the jaws!" "Bring tha boss!"
Too much, too much, no! Struggling, growling, trying to roll, but nothing was helping! There were too many of them!
Trapped!
"It's still fightin! Knock it out!"
Would they let her go if she asked nicely and stopped fighting?
Her head flared with pain as all faded to darkness.
Valka stood down on the shore, far away from the city. Flies-With-Sun and Dawn-Singer stood beside her, both softly growling at the distant port.
Her Dawn Fury granddaughter was trapped, completely bound, muzzled, and restrained on a boat. Fortunately, Flies-With-Sun was sure that Hidden-Hope wasn't hurt and that the humans... the trappers were not trying to hurt her. They just took her captive. All that mattered was rescuing her granddaughter. The details of how this happened were a discussion for later.
She stuck her weapon-staff in the sand and carefully felt along the blade's tip. It was not sharp enough to easily cut her finger, but it could easily kill or knock someone out with the right strike. The coming battle would be much better if she had her scale-armor, but that was unavailable.
"We wait for the ship to leave. They're taking supplies onboard right now. Too dangerous to try a rescue while the ship is in port," she said.
"Thenn what? We nneed a plann!" Dawn-Singer growled.
"They have her out on deck, right?" she asked Flies-With-Sun.
Dawn-Singer explained that to her.
Flies-With-Sun hissed, "Yessss."
There were so many unknowns. Did Hidden-Hope say anything about them, or did the trappers think she was alone? How many trappers would be on the boat? What did the trappers have planned for her, and how desperate were they?
"What iss the plann?" Dawn-Singer asked.
"First we have to find out how many trappers are onboard. Flies-With-Sun, you can safely count them. I'll be with Dawn-Singer. After we learn how many are onboard, we have to strike together."
"Sstrrike how?" Dawn-Singer sadly warbled.
She knew what he was worried about. He had never needed to kill before. She had always avoided killing trappers whenever she could, but that wasn't always possible. Killing in self-defense was necessary on occasion. At the same time, the world had seen enough violent incidents involving dragons, and especially Furies.
She again twirled her staff. She was perhaps slightly out of practice with it, through not needing to use it as much as she had in the past.
"Knock them overboard if you can, but don't hesitate to kill if you must. Try to stay out of sight so no one knows about you. It would be best if no one knows you were here. Here is what we do-"
Dawn-Singer circled high above the boat. They were far enough away from the island that it was unlikely any two-legs there would see anything out here.
He counted seven two-legs on the boat, the same as Flies-With-Sun had counted, though there could be more inside the boat. Fire filled his liver when he saw Hidden-Hope vainly struggle against the ropes, only to be kicked by a two-leg.
Sire-father had told him stories of when he was trapped by two-legs and taken on a boat. Those trapper two-legs had kept sire-father hungry, thirsty, and in his own waste.
He would not let the same happen to her.
Flies-With-Sun flew faded next to him.
"Ready?" he purred to her.
"No, but I can do this."
"Yes, you can. Remember to stay in the dark. Your eyes will show in the fire-light."
She growled softly and dove.
What if something bad happened to her too, to his own life-mate? She was not truly a fighter, not like sire-father and Shadowwing. But she was faded and would keep her distance once the fighting started. She would be safe.
The boat was bigger than most two-leg boats he remembered from the Haven-range. It had large, black sail-wings, though that might be because everything else was very dark.
He watched closely until he saw a two-leg go flying out into the water, causing chaos and shouting onboard. The trappers began running back and forth, waving torches while several of the trappers grabbed a rope to help the one in the water. Some of the others started laughing, pointing their paws at their fallen kin.
Ha! One down!
Another two-leg, one of the ones guarding Hidden-Hope, went flying off the other side. Flies-With-Sun knocked one more off into the water before the trappers must have realized something was attacking. The remaining four were holding up their weapons and shields, which made it more difficult for her to push them off into the water.
"Nnow uss!" he growled.
Kin-liver patted his shoulder, "Let's get'em."
He took a deep breath and silently dove for the boat. Approaching behind the boat's tail, if it had one, would probably help him not be seen.
The trappers were very scared, shouting at each other and pointing at each other. Two of them were even fighting each other.
Maybe they think one of them pushed the others! That would help us if they keep fighting.
He landed as quietly as he could on the boat's rear and behind a pile of boxes, but that still made the boat shake heavily.
Kin-liver jumped from his back and landed in a roll on the boat. She swung her weapon-staff to hold at the ready.
"What the plowin..." "Whozzere?" "Loki's armpits!"
Amused, he crouched low to hopefully not be seen. The plan was for Kin-liver to do all the fighting so that no one saw him. But he would be ready to act if needed to help her. Both he and Flies-With-Sun would be ready.
She took several calm steps, her staff in hand, before the trappers noticed her. They looked like typical sailors or guards: stupid, unkempt, and decently strong men.
They were taken aback when they saw her, probably because her hood and weaponized staff made her an imposing figure in the dark.
"Well, boys, we've got us a stowaway. Was you tossin' the lads overboard?"
She gave no answer as the guards approached, holding torches and swords. Instead, she removed her hood to free up her vision. She also kicked at the low railing to see how strong it was. While strong enough to hold weight, it was set very low, which was helpful for her.
"Oye, that's no man! It's a bitch!"
They started laughing and whistling at her, which was good. They would be less ready to respond. She tightened her two-handed grip on her staff while slightly shifting her weight.
"Looks like we gonna have some fun after all! Whoever gets the staff can have the first go with her!" one of them said.
The largest of the men laughed and haughtily approached, leering at her. His lustful cruelty wasn't surprising or truly threatening, compared to all she had done in her life. He clearly didn't respect her at all or think she could defend herself.
He tried to shove his torch in her face while reaching for her staff, but she stepped back and swung her staff overhead in the blink of an eye, bringing it down on his arm with a resounding crack.
In the moment of surprise at his broken arm, a kick to his shin and a shove sent him tumbling overboard.
The next man charged, shouting a battle-cry and wielding a sword. She easily sidestepped his strike and knocked him out with a blow to the head. He crumpled and fell in place.
The last two, shouting various curse-words, were far more wary, but they also had shields. Shields would let them get in close range in which her staff would be ineffective. They spread out to approach from two sides at once.
A shadow lurked behind the one to her right.
Satisfied that trapper was no threat, she turned her back on him and started for the other one, her staff held high. He hopped back to dodge her strike at his legs, and he went on the counterattack. His sword struck her staff, carving notches in it with each blow. He was stronger than her by far.
I'm getting too old for this.
A block and dodge left her with an opportunity as he was imbalanced. A kick to the groin left him clutching himself in agony. A kick to his backside sent him tumbling overboard.
She spun around and saw Dawn-Singer sitting on his haunches and looking very smug, his green eyes wide in amusement.
"What happened?"
Dawn-Singer stuck out his tongue, "He looked like he wannted to go swimminng, sso I helped him. But nnow I cann tasste hiss furrss. Grr. Good fightinng!"
She smirked, "You too. Let's go get her."
Together, they strolled around the main cabin while remaining alert for anyone else onboard. He remained behind her in case there was anyone else still onboard.
Her heart skipped a beat when she saw the main deck. Someone else in a dark hood was standing beside Hidden-Hope and had a knife held to her neck. Hidden-Hope was muzzled, blindfolded, and trembling in fear.
The unknown person spoke, revealing that she was a woman, "Supplier, I know you didn't stowaway. Where is your dragon?"
She recognized the voice. This was Moira, the merchant and collector of dragon parts, with whom she had struck an agreement and received a considerable sum of coin from just this very day. That meant Moira probably didn't truly want to harm her captive, but was rather doing this for leverage.
She held out an empty palm and gestured Dawn-Singer to come closer. He stepped out of the shadows alongside her, though she had to restrain him from lunging. He stood beside her and growled without moving a paw.
Moira stared at Dawn-Singer, as if she was merely surprised, "That's no Stormcutter. A Night Fury? What an irony. Maybe Loki is toying with me. No matter. You must be here about this prize."
Moira pressed Hidden-Hope's neck with the knife. Hidden-Hope thrashed and whined but was immobile and very terrified.
One wrong move and this would end terribly.
"Give... it to us, and we will leave you in peace."
Moira scowled, "If only you knew how much this prize is worth."
Maybe there was still a trade in dragons.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"You haven't heard about Viggo Grimborne's bounty on any living dragons, especially anything like a Night Fury? It's more than a king's ransom."
Viggo Grimborne had set a bounty on living dragons? She didn't want to know why. It also seemed pointless, since there were no other dragons in this world, other than Viggo's own Deathgripper.
Were there any others? It was possible there could be other dragons in cages in someone's private collection or wounded and unable to fly. Those dragons couldn't have obeyed Mimir's call to return to hiding.
"Which is why you can't afford to kill it. It's no good to you dead. Give it to me, and our arrangement still stands. I'll only trade with you."
Moira shrugged, "A tempting offer, but I'll pass. You wouldn't keep your end of the bargain. Too much risk in that option. Viggo's bounty is too good to pass up. I won't miss my opportunity this time."
"No bounty is worth your life. Just untie the dragon, let it go, and we'll leave you alone. I swear it on the gods. We didn't kill any of your men, though we could have."
Moira pressed the knife tighter, making Hidden-Hope whine, "Or how about you leave now, and this beast doesn't die!"
"Kill it and you die too. We don't want that."
"We arre nnot beasstss!" Dawn-Singer hissed, his tail knocking into the main cabin.
Moira was taken aback and stared at him in shock, but she didn't release Hidden-Hope or step away from her.
"They... talk? Impossible," Moira gasped.
"Arre you deaf annd sstupid? Let herr go! I will nnot hurrt you. Prromisse."
Moira recovered herself and scowled, "You will leave now if you care about this dragon! I can make it hurt without killing it! Men, get up here!"
The splashes grew louder as her men began recovering themselves and climbing aboard.
Maybe there was no option. Moira was probably desperate and stubborn enough that she might kill Hidden-Hope. Greed and desperation could make people thoroughly unreasonable.
A flash of fire appeared in the distance out to sea behind Moira, and that could only be one thing.
Time was all that was needed. A few more moments and it would be over. There was no way to prevent the inevitable.
She shrugged and stepped back while gently tugging on one of Dawn-Singer's ears.
"We should go," she said for Moira to hear.
"But-' he hissed.
"Trust me."
He grumbled while slowly walking backwards with her, which seemed to slightly relieve Moira. "Just don't hurt her. She's... family."
A glow appeared in an open maw in the sky.
Moira shrugged as she stood up, still holding the knifepoint to Hidden-Hope's neck, "I don't care what buyers do with their goods, but I'll treat it well. Leave now!"
"Alright. Goodbye."
She dove at Dawn-Singer's side as he covered her with a wing. There was a blast, an explosion of flame which rushed over the main deck, a heavy thud, splashes, and silence except for the waves and cries of alarm from the men overboard, several of whom had been knocked off the ship again.
She slipped out from under his wing and looked around the deck, though she almost retched at the blood coating part of the deck and the smoking, charred remains against the railing.
Flies-With-Sun, now partially visible only from a spattering of red across her front, was perched on the railing beside Hidden-Hope, whispering to her and nuzzling her. Hidden-Hope was also covered in blood, thankfully none of which was hers.
She and Dawn-Singer ran to her, and she pulled out her hunting knife to start cutting her granddaughter free after pulling off the muzzle and blindfold. Hidden-Hope wildly looked around and started whining again while Flies-With-Sun nuzzled her, even licking the small cut where Moira had held a knife to her neck.
"Sssorrrrrry, I... I... I..." Hidden-Hope mumbled.
"Hush now, we can talk later," she whispered.
Hidden-Hope just nodded and sniffled, waiting as she worked to get her free.
Some of the men tossed overboard had started climbing back onboard, though, wisely, none of them approached, instead staying near the rear of the ship while Dawn-Singer glared at them.
With the final rope untied, Hidden-Hope wearily got to her paws.
"We should go. Fly."
Hidden-Hope and Flies-With-Sun jumped and flew into the night while she got on Dawn-Singer. He jumped without wasting any time, swiftly catching up to the other two Furies.
She took one last glance at the grisly ruin on deck.
It hadn't needed to come to this. Just one more terrible interaction between dragons and humans. The sailors or guards, whichever they were, had certainly noticed Dawn-Singer at the very least. Word about what happened would likely spread, not that it would change much. The world already thought of Night Furies as unholy Loki-spawn.
Moira was probably just an honest merchant who saw an opportunity to make coin by selling a captive dragon. She saw an opportunity too good to pass up and wouldn't let it go, even after she heard Dawn-Singer speak. As though not being a beast was any objection to slavers, which it was not. Plenty of tribes took and used slaves for many reasons.
What had Moira mentioned in passing? Something about it being ironic when she saw Dawn-Singer? Had Moira been a dragon trapper who once transported Night Furies? Had she heard about that anywhere before? Maybe, but it didn't matter anymore.
Further, Moira had figured out the truth that she was a dragonrider and had flown there on dragonback. Moira living with that knowledge would have made her a minor risk in any future meetings, so it wasn't terrible that she hadn't survived with that information.
Care would be needed in the future to prevent repeating the mistakes she had made on this mission.
Dawn-Singer led the group back to the island, though they stopped at a remote corner of the shore to clean the life-water off. Having two-leg life-water on the scales and hide was very bad, especially on Light Furies and white Dawn Furies where the life-water showed clearly.
Hidden-Hope was very mellow and calm on the flight back. She slightly complained about the small hurt on her neck stinging after she cleaned herself in the ocean, so he licked her hurt some more.
Clean once again, everyone flew together back to where the bags of things were left at camp. He and Flies-With-Sun wordlessly let Kin-liver saddle them and put the carrying-things and bags on them. Everyone was quiet as she worked.
Finished, Kin-liver faced Hidden-Hope, who was calmly laying down with her head on her paws.
"We should talk before we leave," Kin-liver said, her paws on her hips.
Hidden-Hope groaned and got to her paws, "I am verry ssorrrry. It was sstupid annd twissted of me. Ssorry..."
"What happened? How did they catch you?"
"My fade wennt cold. They ssaw me annd jumped onn me beforre I could talk. Therre were rropess arrounnd my mouth annd... annd... ssorrrry. I... knnow I'm bad."
Kin-liver immediately went to Hidden-Hope and hugged her head without saying anything else. He and Flies-With-Sun similarly hopped to her and nuzzled her neck while purring in comfort.
Kin-liver finally let go and knelt before Hidden-Hope, gently holding her muzzle.
"No dear one, you are not bad. You are young and made a mistake. That doesn't mean you are bad. It means you learned. What did you learn?"
"Do nnot runn off whenn otherrss ssay nnot to?"
"Listen to your family and those who love you. Why did you go down there, really?"
Hidden-Hope looked elsewhere, "I jusst wannted to have ssome funn annd ssee nnew thinngss. I wannted to be... brrave."
"There is a time for that, my dear. But to be brave you have to know what you're doing. If you know the danger and fly into it anyway for the right reasons, that is being brave. Going down into that city was not brave."
Hidden-Hope sniffled, "I knnow."
"Good. Let's go home to our family. Your parents must be worried about you."
"I missss them too. Do you... nneed to tell them I wass bad?"
Kin-liver smiled, "They need to know what happened, but not that you were bad. Did you learn your lesson?"
"Yesss, I wonn't rrunn away againn. Prromisse."
He purred softly, glad that she understood. Having a young and playful fledgling of his own, he thought he had some sense for when they were being honest. She had learned her lesson very well. Getting herself captured, almost dying, and having to see a two-leg get killed, or what was left after the killing, would certainly get through her rock-head problems which were very like her sire-father.
I still need to tell him about her problem. That sounds like a sire-father and daughter talk.
Kin-liver stood up, stretched, and climbed on his back after checking on the bags he and Flies-With-Sun were carrying.
"Let's get out of here. I've seen enough of this world for a long time."
"Agrreed!" he growled.
Leaving behind the island, he glanced over his tail one last time at the two-leg nest. That fight on the water-walker boat was the first time he ever truly needed to be in a fight with two-legs, though he had not needed to kill any of them. This was one more reminder of how different two-legs and ground-kin were, and of why the hidden world had to be kept safe.
Far out over the big water and after the island was completely gone, Hidden-Hope took a very deep breath while gliding between Flies-With-Sun and Dawn-Singer. Flying between them was safest. That was probably twisted, but it felt safer right now.
Kin-liver was correct in everything she said. Looking back over her tail, going down into that two-leg nest was completely unnecessary and very twisted. She did not know the danger she had been flying into. It was a mistake that she let her fade die away, but her being there was the bigger mistake.
Why had she even wanted to do this? Leaving the hidden ranges and fleeing from her kin was not so fun after all. There was too much danger up here.
Was that what sire-father had been saying about the rest of the hidden ranges too? Was he just keeping her away from, not having fun and exploring, but rather from dangers, hunters, and hurts she did not know about?
He was right.
All along, he was right.
He did care.
Maybe he was not the best at showing it, but he did love her.
Sire-father, I am so sorry. You would have never done anything this stupid.