A Dragon’s Tale

Beth turned to Gabriella as Elder Goman and Alana started out the open window.

"You have to tell me how to get that thing off of him!"

Sadness was etched on Gabriella's heart-shaped face as she replied. "I wish I could, but I can't. You will figure it out yourself -- and before the week is out -- but you must figure it out yourself. "

Beth scowled at her.

Just before Ethan had jumped out of the window, the shadowy halo had surged in strength. The clinging tendrils had spread to envelope nearly his entire torso and the pulses of darkness aimed at his head had greatly intensified. She didn't need to be an arch mage to know it was getting worse.

"Well, how am I supposed to help him if he's run away?"

"I know exactly where he's going." Gabriella replied. "But it will be a very long walk."

"Walk!?" Beth threw her hands in the air. "My husband is being attacked by Saidow's minions. We don't have time to walk!"

"An enchantment created by Saidow's minions." Gabriella corrected. "If he were being attacked by Saidow's armies there is nothing you could do little one."

"There must be a faster way than walking."

"Not really, and what would you do if you were near him now? Do you have a plan to help?"

"Well, no." She admitted.

"Then a nice long walk will give you time to think won't it?"

Beth didn't answer because she was trying not to explode in anger. How could Gabriella be so calm?! Ethan's very life was in danger she wanted to go for a walk! Of course, she didn't actually know how to help yet, and that was another thing.

"Why won't you just tell me how to destroy the enchantment?"

Gabriella smiled. It was one of the infuriatingly disarming smiles that made it almost impossible to be mad at her. "When you first discovered you loved learning, what did you do?"

"I asked everyone to read to me."

"But that wasn't enough was it?"

Beth shook her head. "Everyone was busy and they couldn't spend the time, or didn't want to read the books I was interested in."

"So what did you do?"

"I convinced Daddy to hire a tutor to teach me to read so I could learn whenever I wanted to."

"And were you better off for it?"

"Of course, once I learned how to read I was-- oh!" Beth said as it hit her. "We're not talking about reading are we?"

Gabriella put a comforting hand on Beth's shoulder. "If I give you the answer now, I will rob you of the struggle. Working on the problem will make you better at all manner of things; problem solving, patience, and persistence to name a few."

"Rob me of the struggle?"

She nodded. "Just like muscles get stronger when you work them, people only get more capable when you stretch them. If I rob you of these challenges, I will have solved a problem in the short term, but ultimately weakened you in the long term."

Gabriella gestured to the window through which Ethan had just flown. "Consider your husband. He has faced trial after trial since arriving in this world. But it was through these trials and obstacles that he grew stronger. Without them, he would've been slain in the ambush as you left Gralden, during the alley attack, or in The Arena."

"So, you're saying that you won't help me because you want to make me stronger?"

"Beth, you have great things ahead of you, but you aren't yet the person you must be to accomplish them. This trial, though small, is the first step toward those goals. Instead of fighting the challenge, embrace it. Learn from it. "

"I hate it when you make sense." She acquiesced

"My Lord is even worse; He knows everything. But there's still more to this conversation that you need to hear, then we have a long walk ahead of us."

* * *

"Ethan!" Alana yelled after him for the umpteenth time. But by now, his powerful wings had already carried him too far away to hear... Or he was ignoring her.

*ETHAN!* she shouted telepathically as loud as she possibly could over their bond.

Nothing.

He kept flying.

Drousin was right: dragons could learn magic mostly by instinct if they wanted to badly enough. That meant Ethan really didn't want her in his thoughts.

"That was unexpected." Elder Goman mused.

"He blames himself for Beth's death, and for the Arena." She finally turned away from the window when even her Elvin eyes couldn't see Ethan anymore.

"No, not that. I was referring to..."

"To what?"

Elder Goman looked pensive as he started after Ethan. He moved his hand through the air where Ethan had been sitting, as if feeling for something that she couldn't see. She thought she heard him say something about a 'clever enchantment'. Then his eyes went wide and he rushed to his desk and pulled out paper and quill. He was poised to write something down when he hesitated.

"What was I...?" He looked around the room, seeming confused for several moments. Then he turned his attention back to her. "What happened with the young woman who died? I believe her name was 'Beth' from your conversations with Ethan?"

"We were doing okay until he lost control to his dragon impulses." She said and then explained what happened.

"Is it his fault then?" Elder Goman asked. There was no blame in his voice; he merely wanted to know the facts.

Alana considered for a moment before nodding her head. "If he would've kept his cool, I think Beth would still be alive. I don't think it's really his fault; he certainly didn't mean to, but..."

She couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence.

"What others do can hurt us, but what we do ourselves truly breaks us." Elder Goman said with a sigh.

"What do I do?" Alana asked. "He's such a good man and I don't want this to ruin him."

Elder Goman leaned back in his chair and put his fingertips together. "It's easier to mend a broken egg than a broken heart. You didn't cause the damage, so you can't repair it."

"I thought if I told him how I felt it might..." Alana blinked trying to hold the moisture at the corner of her eyes at bay. "I thought he might see that at least some of us know that he's a good guy."

Elder Goman smiled kindly. "Believe it or not, I think it did help. I think him leaving proves that he is a good man. Misguided perhaps, but a good man."

"Misguided?"

"I think he left because you told him you loved him."

"What?" Alana felt like someone had punched her in the gut. Why would he leave because of that?

"The last thing he said was that you were better off without him." Elder Goman explained. "If he truly believes he caused Beth's death, then perhaps he's worried he will cause your death as well."

"Oh Ethan." Alana shook her head and then rested it on her hands. "You wonderful, amazing, stupid fool."

Elder Goman smiled. "That's a near-perfect description of our young dragon friend."

"What should I do?" She asked.

Elder Goman got up, sat down next to her, and put an arm around her in a comforting, almost fatherly manner. "I don't know. I have never seen a man -- or dragon -- so thoroughly besotted with a woman before."

At that, Alana looked away to hide the tears that began to trickle down her cheek.

Elder Goman continued. "He believes he's doing the right thing for you. He believes he's keeping you safe. As long as he believes that, he will move heaven and earth to stay away from you; to protect you. You need to convince him otherwise."

"But it's really not true." She replied quietly. "Look, I'm not stupid. I know that traveling with Ethan is dangerous. Not only is he a dragon, but Lord Delmar is after him. I knew I might be signing my death warrant by traveling with him. I wish that wasn't the case, but it really is."

"If it's so dangerous, then why are you traveling with him?" Elder Goman asked.

"Some things are worth dying for."

"Oh?"

"The world is a better place with Ethan in it, and I love his stupid heart to pieces." She shook her head. "If my bow or enchantments can keep him safe a little longer, then it's his."

"You just confessed your love to a man who responded by literally jumping out a window." Elder Goman said. "Yet your only thoughts are for his well-being and safety."

She nodded.

Elder Goman locked eyes with Alana, "You are a rare woman Alana Dragon-Bride." Elder Goman said. "Very few people in the Ten Kingdoms are so selfless and caring. Fewer still have the strength of character and willpower to be a dragon's match. You are perhaps the only woman in these kingdoms worthy of the title Dragon-Bride."

Alana didn't try to hide her tears. She let herself slump against Elder Goman's shoulder and just let the tears fall.

It was too much.

In the back of her mind, she realized it was strange to be crying on the shoulder of a virtual stranger. But honestly, she didn't care. She had missed her adoptive father terribly since he died. Elder Goman wasn't him, but he possessed the same fatherly air.

It did her heart good.

The last six weeks had been absolute hell, except for the parts that felt like heaven. First meeting Ethan, then falling in love, him marrying Beth, their wedding night, the attack on the Argo, Beth's death, The Arena, and now this? Alana felt like a wet rag that someone had wrung out until it was dryer than a desert.

"Perhaps it's good that Ethan isn't interested in power." Elder Goman said after a minute or two. "Dragons tend to grow more savage as they grow in power and I would hate to see that happen to him. Look at what happened to Ithlan in the end"

She sat up and wiped her tears away. "Yeah, that's true. Silver lining right?"

"Perhaps. You need a dragon to fight a dragon, especially this black dragon. Ethan may be the only one in the Ten Kingdoms who could defeat Lord Delmar and his dragon ally. In doing so, he might change though."

"Damned if you do; damned if you don't." Alana commented. "When did life become a series of no-win choices?"

"That is the very essence and nature of war. And make no mistake, this is war. You may not wish it, but as long as one side wishes for a war, there will be a war. Or a massacre."

"If Ethan was going to fight Lord Delmar, what would you suggest?"

He was silent for a moment. "Perhaps that discussion is better left for another time."

"Why?"

"This day has been trying enough." He replied.

"I can handle it."

"I know you can, but you may not wish to. I have one idea, but you might find it distasteful."

"If you have something that can help Ethan against Lord Delmar, I'm all ears." She said when he didn't elaborate. "Please tell me? I don't care if it's difficult; it's worth it if it'll help Ethan."

"I didn't say it was difficult; I said it was distasteful."

She took a deep breath. "I want to hear it anyway."

"Ethan could bond with as many willing women as possible to increase his mana. That would give him the power he needs to stand up to Lord Delmar and the Black Dragon."

"You can't be serious."

"You asked."

"I can't believe you're suggesting that." Alana felt like she'd need a levitation spell to pick her jaw up off the floor. One part of her was utterly revolted at the idea. It was disgusting and yet... Somewhere in the back of her mind the idea didn't sound too bad. If she was completely honest with herself, a part of her almost liked it.

She shut that thought down instantly.

"It's the quickest way to make him more powerful." he continued. "If Ethan gets a lot of gold, he'll only want to guard it. This way, he'll have something to fight for and something to protect: the women who give him his power."

"I thought you said dragons grow more savage as they get more powerful." She countered. "You can't want that to happen to Ethan."

"Of course I don't want that." Elder Goman replied. "But as we already agreed, war is a series of no-win choices by nature."

"So you'd pimp him out to win a war? That's revolting." She made a show of disgust, but the emotion behind her words wasn't quite genuine.

"My dear, I find the idea quite distasteful." His eyes narrowed and something about his piercing gaze made her feel like he could see right through her.

She blushed slightly.

"But I am a realist." He continued. "I do not see another way for Ethan to survive against Lord Delmar, let alone the Black Dragon. And that's merely surviving; it says nothing of his ability to defeat them. Can you think of another way to get Ethan's powers up to snuff?"

Alana opened her mouth, but couldn't think of anything to say. The worst part was a small part of her actually liked the idea. The idea of Ethan playing stallion to a small herd of broodmares actually turned her on slightly if she thought about it.

She tried not to think about it.

Why had she recently found the idea of Ethan bedding another woman arousing, and almost appealing? She didn't like the side of her that was coming out. She pushed those thoughts as far to the back of her head as she could.

"We need to find another way." She said after taking a few deep breaths.

"I have been working on this problem for many years. Not to toot my own horn, but I'm one of the most accomplished and powerful arch mages in the world. There might be another solution, but I haven't been able to find it."

Alana swore.

"In the interest of full disclosure, there is another way to save Ethan." Elder Goman said.

"What?"

"He could go home. I know others from his world have found their way here, mostly as kidnapped slaves. Find a slaver's camp with an active portal, use it, and leave this world forever."

She thought about leaving with him. She had very little tying her to this world, birth parents notwithstanding. She could just leave with him. They could start a new life together. She doubted Lord Delmar would pursue them that far, but if they remained in this world...

Then she thought about Ethan. His desire to help people and genuine goodness. "He'll never leave while people here need help. It's part of the reason I love him, but I sometimes hate him for it."

"If I may offer a suggestion?"

"What?"

"Focus on finding him for now." Elder Goman said. "Don't borrow problems from the future; today has enough troubles to worry about."

"That's from the Book of Light isn't it?" Alana said referencing Illuminar's Holy Book. "My father said that a lot before he died."

"I assume you're referring to your adoptive father and not your birth father?" Elder Goman asked.

Her jaw dropped. "How did you know?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Someone of your birth parents' stature can't keep things like this a complete secret, no matter how hard they tried."

"You won't tell anyone will you?" Alana pleaded.

"Your secret is safe with me." Elder Goman assured her.

She let out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. "Thank you."

"You are welcome, but you should tell Ethan. Secrets like this have a way of souring relationships if kept for too long."

"I know, it's just..." she sighed. "People have a way of treating me differently when they find out."

"I'm not surprised given your parentage." Elder Goman said. "But you can either choose to continue living a lie with Ethan or you can tell him the truth."

"I know."

"You've lived your entire life as Alana Tarihowen, daughter of simple staff growers." He locked eyes with Alana, "But your birth family's name isn't a curse... Alana Kalon."

She smiled weakly. "They told me it would be Alana Nalfigar."

He shook his head. "No, you have more of your mother in you. It's Alana Kalon."

"Thank you." Her smile was genuine this time.

"You're welcome." He said, then his face turned more serious. "There's one more thing."

"Oh?"

He nodded. "You should know that Lord Delmar has a powerful mage working with him, possibly even an arch mage. This mage has been running experiments designed to turn humans into dragons."

"Holy mother of Ithlan." Alana said. "Is that even possible? I know you can transfigure objects sometimes, but people? Does that kind of magic even exist?

Elder Goman nodded. "I think it might. I've encountered a few of their early experiments. They clearly haven't perfected it yet, but based on what I've seen, it's certainly possible."

Alana hung her head. "Will it never end? Do you have any more bad news?"

"I forgot to put pepper on my eggs this morning." Elder Goman replied. "Other than that, no."

Alana shook her head but smiled weakly. "Good."

"Now, before you start searching for your beloved, I have one thing to teach you." Elder Goman said.

"What?" Alana asked.

"How to shield your mind from everyone except Ethan." Elder Goman replied. "Though, you could block him out too if you wish."

"Thank you." Alana said.

"You're welcome my dear." Elder Goman replied. "Now, let's get started."

Alana nodded as she glanced out the window.

Where had he gone?