30: The Dragon's Reach

The Grove was a blaze of magical lights on an evening a week or so later, crowds of Sylvari and others gathered to see the world leaders come through the Asura gate from Lion's Arch. Caoilfhionn saw many people he knew, though one of them was Canach… Oh well! He would not let the grouchy Sylvari interfere with his enjoyment of the evening. Besides, Trahearne showed up before the delegates, with Laranthir and less fanfare.

Caoilfhionn ran to greet him; Trahearne did not change his own pace, but he smiled warmly at him. "Caoilfhionn! How are you, beloved? You look stunning, as always."

Caoilfhionn took his hands and leaned up to kiss him. "I am well! And you do too-"

"Not like you, you know that."

He was wearing his very best outfit again, and laughed bashfully. He still thought Trahearne unbearably handsome. "Anyway, Annhilda and I are representing Hope's Legacy at the summit. They talked me into being the one to speak of our discoveries. I hope you are well too?"

"Yes, very well. Very curious. I'm looking forward to hearing what news you bring."

"I'm glad you're here. You of all people should be here." Caoilfhionn linked an arm with Trahearne's as they continued on to blend into the crowd, Laranthir and the other Pact escort trailing behind.

Trahearne shook his head. "I'm not planning to say much. I'm only here to give you moral support and to answer any questions about the Pact's current plans. It's bothersome, you know, when we were drawing up plans to go after Kralkatorrik, and then Mordremoth decides now is a spendid time to awaken."

He spoke lightly, and Caoilfhionn answered in kind. "If only they'd line up politely and let us smack them before anyone got hurt… By the way, are we ready to take on Mordremoth?"

"Not yet," Trahearne said, sobering. "But we will be soon. No matter the outcome of this meeting, I'm directing a forward camp to be set up in the Silverwastes. I already have scouts looking for a suitable location. I'm hoping I'll see you there?"

"I'm sure the others can spare me for a while," Caoilfhionn said happily. "Will you need the others?"

"Perhaps not until everything is in place. You must tell me what you have been up to, besides herding politicians!"

"I should love to," Caoilfhionn said, but at that moment Caithe slipped by.

"Hello, Trahearne, Caoilfhionn. You look good. Healthy. Mostly. I hope you let them all know how dangerous Mordremoth is."

"Of course," Caoilfhionn said, and then she was gone into the crowd, and the Herald was beginning to speak.

When the world leaders had gone by, Trahearne kissed Caoilfhionn's hand and stepped away. "I should go now, as Marshal. I'll see you up there." Caoilfhionn fondly watched him make his way to the lift, so tall and noble with Caladbolg at his back.

Then those of Hope's Legacy followed, which was nigh-everyone except for Taimi, for her golem was too heavy to take the lift, and Wegaff and Rhyoll, who were less interested. There was the Pale Tree's avatar, as beautiful as always, and Caoilfhionn smiled to see her with Caithe at her right hand and Trahearne at her left. She waited until Hope's Legacy had taken places respectfully to the side, then spoke. "Esteemed leaders, welcome to the Grove. Your attendance at this critical summit is appreciated. We are here at the behest of the honoured group you see before you. I would like to invite their representative, Caoilfhionn, give us a summary." She gestured to him to stand forward. "Please begin."

Caoilfhionn smiled brightly, stepped forth, bowed, and took a deep breath. "Greetings. My name is Caoilfhionn. Thank you for coming. We are grateful to you all and your leadership in this time." His words, much-rehearsed, flowed from his lips easily. "We've all been hearing about Mordremoth's awakening and the damage the Elder Dragon has already wrought. In the time that this dragon has been awake, it has been sending out vines as far as the Iron Marches. Soon Tyria will be nothing more than a giant briar patch."

He grew more solemn and more intense. He could not be comforting about this threat. "These vines are malicious. Fort Salma has been destroyed. Fort Concordia as well. Their defenses could not keep out an enemy that rises from beneath, shaking the very foundation of their walls and towers. We can't know where it will attack until it does. No one is safe. Our families, our people, our trade routes, and most recently, our waypoints were threatened. They may be again someday soon. This is why I stand before you and ask that you, the most powerful leaders of Tyria, link arms and armies and work together to keep one and all safe and secure. It's up to us. There is no one else. We must unite. We are all Tyrians."

He caught a glimpse of a proud smile on Trahearne's face before his lover schooled his expression back to impassiveness.

There was some discussion then, a surprisingly civilized and orderly discussion. Smodur the Unflinching was wary of committing much, if at all, but Knut and Annhilda agreed that many Norn would find a dragon a worthy hunt, even if it wasn't Jormag. Phlunt grudgingly acknowledged, after some firm words from Trahearne, that the Asura could not stand alone, and Queen Jennah pledged an entire task force to fighting Mordremoth – which seemed to twig Smodur and Phlunt a little.

"You have all given me hope for Tyria," said the Pale Tree at last. "It seems we-"

There was a rumble from below that shook the whole tree, and everyone looked around. Then the Pale Tree screamed out in pain and reeled, sinking to her knees, as her body creaked about them.

"Weapons out!" roared Smodur, drawing his sword and shield. "We're under attack!"

And Mordrem burst from the Pale Tree's flesh, wolves and husks and thrashers, charging towards them. "Defend yourselves!" Trahearne cried, stepping forward to stand with him.

For a while, all about him was chaos, teeth and weapons and spells, warcries and monstrous screeches. He could hear Phlunt whimpering again, but it was nigh-drowned out by Knut laughing boisterously and Smodur snarling furiously. And below was not much better; he could hear the sounds of battle with Mordrem echoing up from the Upper Commons. But almost everyone in the Omphalos Chamber could defend themselves, if not fight back, and Kasmeer had created a portal in the centre with Marjory defending her. One by one, the monsters fell and gave them some breathing room, and one by one, each of the leaders and their escorts stepped through the portal to join the city below, where they would not be isolated and easy to target.

"That's all of them!" Kasmeer cried at last. "Come on through! I'll keep the portal open as long as I can!" She stepped through and vanished with Marjory; Annhilda was after her.

"Wait," the Pale Tree called, faintly, from where she huddled in her favoured alcove. "Caoilfhionn, I must speak with you alone. Come closer…"

He hurried to her side. "Mother? Mother, are you all right?" Her avatar was shivering, looking about, frightened.

She caught his arm, her gaze focusing on him. "Here you are… I can sense you clearly now. I am… weakened."

"What happened? How can I help?"

She clutched at him in a way that wrung his heart with worry. "I… I can't take much more. These Mordrem tore at my roots and battered my branches. And… be warned. There is another…"

"Another Mordrem?"

"Yes. One of the most dangerous… it comes directly from Mordremoth. You know it from your Dream. Before it comes, I must tell you-" She broke off with a wince and a shudder. "It draws nearer! If I die…"

"You will not die today, Mother!" Caoilfhionn cried, daring to put a hand on her shoulder. She was warm, though somehow both solid and insubstantial simultaneously. Of course, for her true body was the Tree beneath and above and around him. "Where is it? Tell me!"

"Shh… Listen." She was wilting quickly. "You will hear it approach."

He stood, daggers in both hands ready, and stood before her, small and fierce. "I will stand in its way. Forgive me if I scratch you a little?"

Trahearne stared up at the Omphalos Chamber from below; Mordrem were rampaging about him, and his people were fighting back valiantly alongside the representatives from the other races, but he could not concentrate on them. What was taking Caoilfhionn so long…?

The screech and shadow of a dragon stilled the breath in his lungs, and Kasmeer's portal vanished. Caoilfhionn was alone up there! "Warmaster!"

"Marshal!" Laranthir cried, at his side, ready to follow him.

There were hidden paths up to the Omphalos Chamber and beyond, if one was a good climber. He might not have spent as much time in the Grove as his siblings, but he still knew them all, and he climbed now, fretting at how long and difficult it was while the dragon swooped about the Pale Tree, occasionally diving in to land heavily on her side and cram its head into the Chamber, breathing poisonous vapours within. As long as it kept focusing on the Chamber, he could be certain that Caoilfhionn was still inside, defending their Mother.

He clambered over the edge of the Chamber and dropped to its floor, taking Caladbolg in his hands and running forward. Caoilfhionn was darting through the centre of the space, dodging the flailing dragon's claw, torching the vines that tried to ensnare him. "Caoilfhionn!"

"Trahearne!" Caoilfhionn did not even look up, concentrating on the dragon as it pulled back and swooped around to another corner. "I'm glad you're here. I don't think I could slay this beast alone."

Trahearne rolled away from a blast of poison and slashed a charging Mordrem wolf in half. "No, it's a bit on the large side, isn't it?"

"Last time I fought it, Caithe was there to help…" Last time? He'd never mentioned this before?

"Here I am," Caithe said coolly, dashing up the wall to take a slice at the dragon itself. "Yes, I had to dive into your Dream, I remember."

"Yes, exactly."

"If you can kill it in the Dream, you can kill it in real life," Laranthir joked. Just at that moment, the dragon thrust its head even farther into the chamber, snapping at Caoilfhionn's leaves. Trahearne lunged forward to protect him, but the dragon had reached its limit and begun to pull back – and caught, wedged between two large branches.

This was their chance, as it thrashed and choked! "Forward!"

Caoilfhionn needed no further encouragement, crashing forward with lightning and then striking it with flame, channeling his fury and determination into it. Before he had been born, he had been afraid of this dragon, but still charged into battle boldly as a knight ought. Now he was older, and more experienced, and he knew why he ought to be afraid, but he was not. Caithe was there with him on its other side, her venomed daggers dancing along the bark of its branches, and further back, Laranthir loosed arrow after arrow, aiming for its eyes. And Trahearne was beside him, the light of Caladbolg gleaming in the darkness of the Omphalos Chamber, stabbing forwards with all his might.

The dragon screeched as Caladbolg struck it on the nose, yanking itself from the Tree and shaking its head rapidly, and then flying off quickly. He heard its cries dying into the distance, and turned to run to where the Pale Tree's avatar lay crumpled on the ground. "Mother! Mother, it's gone, the threat has been quelled – for now, at least." He struggled to catch his breath.

"Then come," she whispered. "Come closer. I must share something with you…"

He knelt beside her and – his eyes no longer saw the waking world, but another vision. "I'm fading…" said his Mother's voice, distantly, echoing, and he saw golden boughs in the Caledon shed their leaves, gathering the snows of winter. The land drew past him, to a landscape of golden clouds; the Shadow of the Dragon flew past it, and golden lights shone out of it – and then it fractured into a vision of crystals, shining sharp-edged crystals, that shattered, revealing for a single moment an egg – then vines choked it, choked off everything, smothering everything in writhing spikey blackness.

He woke with a gasp, finding Trahearne's hand on his shoulder. "I-I don't understand…"

"I've summoned the menders," Trahearne said, kneeling beside him. "Come, we must leave her to them and discuss what to do next."

Caoilfhionn followed him in a daze, through the new mesmer portal and to the Upper Commons, where the others of Hope's Legacy clustered around him. "Are you all right?" "You got to fight a dragon, I'm rather jealous." "I'm lost for words. That was a real dragon!" "I wasn't able to take any readings, but if that thing was just a sample of its master's power…" "Twig! Why didn't you come down with the rest of us!?" He could hardly tell one voice from another and covered his eyes and ears.

Trahearne put an arm around him, grounding him. "Give him some space. He's been burdened with yet another vision."

"Another?" asked… Braham. "What kind of vision?"

"I don't know," he murmured. "There was a golden light and crystals everywhere."

"You sure that dragon didn't just give you a bump on the head?" Wegaff inquired.

"I'm sure," he said, taking a deep breath and recovering himself, standing up straight and looking at them full on. "The Pale Tree showed me. It felt like a call to action."

"What action?" Kasmeer asked. "What was she talking about?"

"I'm afraid I don't know." He looked away. Not much help, that was.

"It's okay," Rox said. "We'll figure it out."

"Yeah, and the first thing is to learn all we can about dragons," Annhilda said. "Kas, Jory, Wegaff, I want you three to go to the Durmand Priory. I'll be by as soon as I can, but I think I'll be busy here a while longer."

"Research is right up my alley," Marjory said. "We'll go straight there. One of us will mail you when we have enough information to share."

"Thanks! Taimi, you need to continue your own research."

"But keep it quiet," Damara said.

"Yeah, we don't want any more nosy councillors butting in and derailing my work," Taimi said. "I'll be discreet, boss. Everyone will think I'm just doing schoolwork."

"And I am leaving now," Trahearne said, giving Caoilfhionn another squeeze about the shoulders. "I am eager to return to Fort Trinity and continue our preparations against Mordremoth."

"This reminded me of the dragon at Claw Island," Rhyoll said. "Similar size, similar strength."

"Poor Lion's Arch," Trahearne said. "It has had more than its fair share of bad luck these last few years. But there is an intelligence to this attack that does not fit what I know about Elder Dragons."

"Agreed," Phiadi said. "It was too well timed."

"Who knew about the summit?" Annhilda asked.

Damara looked around. "Only those present and anyone they told…"

"And anyone helping to set up for it here," Phiadi said.

"Too many," Trahearne said, frowning. "Information like that leaks like water through cotton. Not helpful. Someone sent the Shadow of the Dragon after us." He turned to Caoilfhionn. "You said that creature was from your Dream, did you not?"

"It was indeed." Caoilfhionn said. "I'll never forget it."

"Wait, you saw this thing in a dream? You foresaw it happening?" Braham exclaimed. "Why didn't you do anything?"

"It wasn't a premonition," Caoilfhionn tried to explain. "I fought it there. It had no connection to this attack today." Had Mordremoth been so strong that its champion attacked him before it even awoke? Had it known of his Wyld Hunt in the womb?

"I don't understand, but it doesn't matter," Braham said. "All that matters is that it's still out there. It could come back at any time or attack someplace else."

"It could, which is why I will be establishing a forward camp tomorrow," Trahearne said. "Caoilfhionn, a moment?" He steered Caoilfhionn away from the guild and took him by the shoulders, looking down at him with concern. "The things we see in our Dream have a way of coming around. Your Wyld Hunt… Do you feel the call yet?"

Caoilfhionn searched himself, then raised his eyes to Trahearne's. "I hadn't for some time, but I feel it now. Is it a new one?"

"I don't know," Trahearne said. "Is it?"

He felt again. "No. It is the same." Perhaps his Wyld Hunt had not been to fight Zhaitan at all? Perhaps it had been to fight Mordremoth from the start? Oh, but then he would not have felt relieved in such a way when they had killed Zhaitan.

"You helped to destroy Zhaitan, but that must not have completed your Wyld Hunt," Trahearned summarized without knowing his thoughts.

"Wonderful," Caoilfhionn said wearily. "Of all Sylvari, my Wyld Hunt is to slay every dragon in existence."

Trahearne drew him into a close embrace. "I'm sorry, beloved. I thought mine was impossible until it was not, but yours… That does seem a tall order. Not impossible, perhaps, but… very difficult. Long. Wearying. But I am here beside you to see it through."

Caoilfhionn embraced him back. "Thank you, beloved. You give me such strength and comfort."

Trahearne kissed him sweetly. "Then I will see you soon in the Silverwastes?"

"Yes, of course." Caoilfhionn managed to smile at him. "We'll sort ourselves out. You'd best get to Fort Trinity. I'll see you soon."

"I love you."

"I love you too."