I left the dwarven kitchen after bidding farewell to Warren and his cooks. I promised to return as soon as I could so I could teach them how to make chicken wings. Then I headed back to the dining room.
A shadow detached itself from a wall and Kara materialized before me.
"Good afternoon, Lord Commander," she said with a quick head bob toward my badge. "I've been tracking your progress through the palace. Thought I'd check in."
"Great timing, Kara. And thanks for stalking me. Can you help with something? I need to return to Everspring," I said. "Got an important errand to run. Frostfire offered to fly me back."
The blue dragon perked up at the mention of her name. She stuffed another pastry into her mouth. "Hello!" she mumbled through a mouthful of sweet dough as crumbs spilled down her chin.
"It depends on where you'd like to depart from. The roof should accommodate the dragon." Kara offered with a slight smile. I think she was amused by Frostfire's wrangling of sweets. "We can also take a swift train that will deposit us near one of the front gates."
"What do you think, Frostfire?"
"The roof works for me," Frostfire said as she picked up another pastry.
"I will escort you both. Are you departing now?"
"Yes. Now is good." Frostfire mumbled through another mouthful of food. "Before I eat everything in this dining area."
"Good. Follow me."
Frostfire grabbed a few more pastries and joined me. Together, we followed Kara out of the dining hall to a door hidden in the wall that opened to her touch and up a winding staircase. Then another. And another. Frostfire bounded ahead with enthusiasm. My legs burned after the third flight.
"How much farther?" I wheezed, pausing to catch my breath.
Kara turned back. Not a drop of sweat was visible on her brow. "Just a few more flights."
I groaned.
We trudged upward. My thighs screamed in protest. My new Boots of Fast Travel helped speed me along, but my body still had to make the movements.
Finally, we reached a heavy iron door. Kara produced a peculiar key from her pocket—twisted metal with glowing runes etched along its length.
The lock clicked open. Bright sunlight poured in as the door swung wide. I squinted against the sudden glare, raising a hand to shield my eyes. Before us stretched an expansive rooftop garden – not what I'd expected from a dwarven palace. Stone paths wound between raised beds teeming with flowers and herbs.
The entire perimeter was enclosed by a waist-high railing of polished granite, beyond which the mountain kingdom sprawled below us.
"Thank you for escorting us up here," I said to Kara.
"It's no problem, Lord Commander."
"About that." I crossed my arms, leaned against the wall, and tried not to look like I was about to pass out as I quietly huffed air. "I didn't ask for it. I don't even know what to do as a lord commander."
"You'll figure it out. If not, do you have a steward in your village?"
"I do. His name is Roland Hightown. He's a good man."
"Talk to him. He'll get you sorted. Hightown will understand what it means and he will be able to explain your new duties to you."
"Duties?" I blanched.
Kara nodded and brushed past me.
I stepped away from the wall. "Thanks, Kara."
She regarded me impassively. I wanted to say something reassuring to her about the king's wedding, but I couldn't think of the words, and what would they matter anyway? The king himself had told me this was a marriage rooted purely in politics, and there was little he could do about it. I felt for him and Kara. He deeply loved her, and the look of adoration in her eyes when she was in his presence was always prominent.
"You should travel with a bodyguard." Kara interrupted my thoughts. "I can summon one, if you wish."
I shook my head. "I have a dragon to watch over me."
"I'll keep him safe," Frostfire shot at us. She paced a few times as if judging the size of the space between planters, and leaped into the open air with a joyful cry. Her form shimmered and expanded. Where the human had been seconds ago, a massive blue dragon now hovered. Her wings powerfully beat against the air and created enough wind to push Kara and I back toward the wall.
"What about a saddle?" I yelled to Frostfire, suddenly nervous about the prospect of riding bareback.
"You'll be secure," the dragon assured me. She floated down and made a perfect landing between a pair of herb gardens. "Climb on and hold tight to my neck."
I approached cautiously and pulled myself onto her back. Her scales were smooth and cool beneath me. I reached around her neck but my arms fell short of encircling it.
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"I don't know if I can hold on, Frostfire."
"I have something that will work." Kara reached into her jacket and pulled out a length of slim rope. She tossed it to me.
"Stick the ends to the dragon's neck," she instructed. "It's enchanted and will hold firm until you release the binding words." Kara spoke a phrase I had trouble remembering, but Frostfire assured me she understood and would remember the words.
I pressed the rope ends against either side of her neck. They adhered instantly, as if glued. I tugged hard. They didn't budge. I jerked them harder, but they stayed in place."
"This is impressive. What is this stuff called?"
"Sticky rope."
"Of course it is." I laughed.
"You just carry it around with you?"
"Assassin's tool. It is an old habit."
"Okay, then." I told the durethian.
Before I could properly settle myself, Frostfire extended her enormous wings and leaped skyward. My stomach dropped. A yell tore from my throat—half terror, half exhilaration.
The palace shrank beneath us. Kara, already appearing ant-like in size, raised her hand in a single wave before turning back toward the door.
Higher and higher we soared. The wind whipped my hair. Frostfire banked smoothly before orienting herself toward Everspring.
My initial terror faded into a strange calm. The air rushed past my face. It was at first cold but invigorating, then it just got colder.
"You can relax now," Frostfire rumbled beneath me. "We have hours of flight ahead."
My death grip on the sticky rope loosened slightly. I shifted to a more comfortable position and peered down at the world below.
"I'm freezing." My teeth chattered.
"Wrap your arms around me and hold on tight. I'll send warmth."
I don't know how she shifted heat to her neck and upper body, but she did and I was happy about it. Soon she was like a furnace, a little too warm, but I wasn’t going to complain.
The landscape rushed by like a gorgeous tapestry. Forests stretched in dark green patches. Rivers cut paths through valleys. Fields formed golden squares where farmers had planted their crops. Small villages dotted the countryside with their clusters of thatched roofs and thin trails of smoke from cooking fires.
Frostfire followed the main road that connected the towns and villages. The ribbon wound through the countryside. Travelers appeared as specks from our height. Merchant caravans crawled along like lines of ants.
"Where I'm from we have these contraptions that take you high in the air and traverse great distances with engines. But all you can see below are clouds. This is so much more intimate and beautiful. I can't thank you enough, Frostfire, for once again flying me over the countryside."
"It is my great pleasure, Varix. It's also the least I can do, considering how we met."
"Like I said, it was nothing."
"It was not nothing. It meant a great deal to me. I will always be in your debt, my friend."
I smiled even though Frostfire couldn't see it and hugged her extra tight.
We soared over a stretch of beach that butted up against a craggy and dangerously sharp shale cliff before we reached Tidewater Harbor. I still had not visited, and hoped to soon with Seraphina.
"There's Everspring," Frostfire announced a few minutes later. "I hope the bard will sing tonight."
"I hope he's not passed out in a gutter," I muttered. I leaned forward. The town spread out below us. The Shadow's Respite looked small from up here.
"Where does this baron live?" Frostfire asked.
"Swiftwood has a mansion outside the city," I replied, tightening my grip on the rope again. "I've never been there but I've seen it from a distance. Head north past the orc fort."
Frostfire banked and swooped toward the partially completed wooden palisade walls that rose from cleared ground. The large double doors stood wide open. Orcs and humans worked side by side on scaffolding.
Several workers looked up as our shadow passed over them. Most waved cheerfully, but a few dropped their tools and backed away in evident shock.
Frostfire blasted a puff of frozen mist that turned into snowflakes that fell gently around them before she banked to the north.
I leaned over—my hand wrapped around the sticky rope in a death grip—and waved, but I doubted anyone could see me from up here. Urzan wasn't among them. He was probably at my tavern "standing guard" or snoring in the fort barracks.
Frostfire flew north until a large house came into view.
The mansion sprawled across manicured grounds. White columns supported a grand portico. Tall windows reflected the afternoon sun. The gardens featured trimmed hedges and stone fountains.
Frostfire swooped low and circled the house. That's when I noticed signs of neglect. Paint had peeled from the window frames. Weeds poked through the gravel paths. A hastily patched hole in the roof stood out with wooden planks slapped over what appeared to be significant damage.
Guards stationed at the front door shouted in alarm. Two more guards rushed out through the main doors with halberds in hand.
"Aren't they cute in their thin metal clothing?" Frostfire laughed. "Okay, let's give them a show."
She bellowed, and the sound thundered across the grounds. Several guards stumbled backward, and others dropped their weapons and ran back inside. I wanted to tell Frostfire not to scare them but couldn't help laughing as the guards tripped over each other in their haste to retreat.
My stomach lurched as Frostfire descended rapidly. She landed with her wings spread wide. Her claws tore furrows in the manicured lawn. I clung to the rope as she skidded to a stop.
Frostfire spoke the release words and the sticky rope fell loose in my hands. I quickly gathered it, formed a loop, and tucked it into my jacket pocket. Assassin tool be damned, this would come in handy for every day use.
I slid down from her back and removed my Lord Commander badge. I didn't want to get into a shouting match with Baron Swiftwood. I wanted to talk to him like two humans should. If the conversation went south, I could always flaunt my new rank. The metal felt heavy in my hand. I tucked it into an inner pocket of my jacket.
"What the devil?" a voice shouted from the mansion.
Baron Swiftwood appeared in the doorway. He looked disheveled in a thick white velvet robe. The letters SW repeated in a pattern along the edges. A gold rope with tassels cinched it at his waist.
"What is the meaning of this?" the baron demanded.
Frostfire lifted her massive head and roared. The ground shook. Windows rattled. The baron stumbled backward and nearly fell.
I strode from behind the dragon, straightened my leather jacket, and approached the baron with a confident swagger.
"Hey, baron," I called to him cheerfully. "How ya doing, pal? You and I need to have a little talk."
There have been many moments during my time on Mythralon when I wished I’d had a camera. This was one of them.
Baron Swiftwood's face twisted into the perfect blend of someone busted in the act of stealing candy while grappling with the silent aftermath of some poorly timed flatulence.
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