"Had possibly Siate' and the other Dragons chosen another Herald to replace me since I did not leave with them on their exodus?" Aralt thought. "I need to listen to more of what they are saying," he decided before exposing himself to them.
Apparently the Ambrosia was the key, but in the time that he tried to overhear their conversation, he could not figure out how it worked. When finally the Herald thought he had learned what he could, he quietly snuck back to the entrance of the cave and then turned around and started making as much noise as he could by calling out loudly if there was anyone home. That brought the two bakers outside and to him where he figured he had the advantage and could watch both of them easier. "Can I assist you?" asked the short heavy baker. "I am Allspice and this is my friend, Nutmegg." "I am looking for a young Dragon with the name of Dree. Have you seen him or maybe know where he is?" asked Aralt. Allspice and Nutmegg just stood and stared at Aralt saying nothing until the Herald realized that he had not introduced himself. "I am Aralt," was all he said as he did not want them to know about his relationship with the Dragons. What Aralt did not know was that Allspice had already seen him with Siate' and had already told Nutmegg.
When Aralt was out of site, Nutmegg turned to Allspice. "Now we know where this 'Dree' lives. I think I need to go check it out," Nutmegg said with a twinkle in his eyes. "Are you good here to continue without me for a while?" Allspice nodded and laughed. He could always tell when "the detective bug" had hit Nutmegg. "Go. I will be fine," Allspice answered as he laughed again and headed back into the cave to start another batch of Ambrosia.
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Finally, as his feet were sore from all of the walking (which he was still not used to doing as he was used to being carted around in a carriage and treated with honor... What Had This World Come To!!), the Herald decided to take a seat on a large, flat rock in front of a cave. As he massaged his tired feet, he thought he heard some distant music. "I wonder what the occasion is," he pondered as he turned his head in different directions to see if he could figure out where the music was coming from. It didn't take long before he realized that the music was coming from the cave and it sounded like there might be more than one player. "If it isn't the young Dragon, then maybe they will know where to find him," Aralt decided as he entered the cave. Upon entering the dark entrance, the Herald waved his hand and a magical glowing light appeared. "This should work," Aralt murmured as he followed the sound to the source of the music using the light to show his way. As he approached and the music became louder he thought that he could see the path without stumbling. Not wanting the players to see him he banished the light and slowly proceeded down the cave. Hoping for answers and not wanting to scare away the musicians, Aralt slowly peered around a large rock to see who was there.
"This is just getting stranger and stranger," muttered Aralt quietly so the others would not hear him. As the Herald hid behind the rock and watched them, soon the music stopped playing and the one cooking clapped his hands and shouted "Ambrosia!" Startled, Aralt jumped back from the rock, but luckily the others did not see him as their attention was on the green glowing liquid.
"I have been thinking about what you told me, Allspice, and though the Ambrosia doesn't stop the Dragon's wishing power, do we really want to take away a Wish Dragon's ability to grant wishes?" asked Nutmegg. Hearing that made Aralt freeze. "What's this?" he thought. He then tried to block out all the other sounds in the cave so he would not miss this revealing conversation. Nutmegg continued. "If their ability to grant wishes was taken away from them, then would we be able to restore those Fae lost due to mis-enchantments? Also, I don't think there is a way to take away their power especially since they are immune to any magical spells and devices that we know of." "That is what I thought at first, but if Siate' is worried about that young Dragon who said he is no longer a Wish Dragon, then there must be something behind it," answered Allspice. "I agree, there is something of a mystery here," replied Nutmegg, "and you know that I love a good mystery who-dun-it."
As Arnie and the others followed the Gooblin King to his treasure room, others in the Realms were busy following their own plans…
Meanwhile, The Baron waited for his mother, the Dowager Griselda, to finish listening to the Flutterby’s message from Queen Ffion before asking her if she wanted more tea. Before he could speak, she picked up her empty teacup and told her son as he filled her cup and that she had a message for him.
“That means that not only Siate’ has arrived, but the other Dragons must be hiding somewhere in the realm. Why don’t they show themselves?” This was the same question Griselda was pondering… And deep within the cave, Aralt knew not to say anything when Siate’ was in a snit as she was now.
"Well your kingship, it is because of trolls that the word "trolling" began. Trolls would rather just look at the cover of a book and not really open it to the pages within," Drat replied. "Though, with the old king before you, there was such a competition between him and the Gooblin King that resulted in them both going after powerful books," Drat continued. "After all, wizards aren't just powerful on their own magic but from all the knowledge they collect. Both the old Troll King and the Gooblin King knew this," Drat said as he caught up to Dulbbe before he opened the door to the Shadows' Queen library. "Hmmm," thought Dulbbe as they stood in front of the closed door. "What if there are some old scrolls or books that could give us more information on this Wish Dragon, Siate'? I mean, Drat, just think of her power," Dulbbe pondered. "If she was so all powerful back when, why did the Dragons leave the realm? If the Dragons were so mad at the villagers enough to leave, why not wipe out the villagers instead? Or did history get rewritten with the Dragons leaving? Interesting questions that I think we need to know the answers, Drat," said Dulbbe as he opened the door to the library while Drat wondered about his new King. "A troll who believes reading is a virtue and doesn't wait for a servant to open doors for him," he mused to himself. As Dulbbe entered the Shadows' Queen huge library, they quickly headed to room 101 where the one source that might be able to answer a few of his questions was located. As he took the cover off the crystal ball it began to glow a pale green. "Oh Wise One, is there a book or scroll that tells us of the time of Siate' the Wish Dragon when she was in power?" The Dragon orb flashed a couple of times and then began to glow a brighter green as it answered Dulbbe's question. "Yes."
"The Gooblin King has it, though he knows it not," answered the orb. "It will be difficult to find for the scroll has it's own spell on it to keep it hidden from those that look to harm Dragons. For the scroll knows that knowledge is power and it hides from those that seeks it's power." In frustration Dulbbe's threw up his hands and growled, "How can we find a scroll that cloaks itself, let alone has hidden itself among the gooblins?" The Orb answered, "With the help of a Dragon."
"I can't have Dragons moving too close to our brewing spot," thought Allspice. "Otherwise I would never be able to have any of the brew stored here in the barrels. After all, part of the appeal of the brew to Dragons is that they find it irresistible." Allspice put his hand up next to the cave wall and started twisting it from left to right. Part of his ability was to feel the vibrations of sound since he used music to add his magical touch to the brew. This time when he heard the sound he felt his way along the walls of the tunnel to find where it was coming from. The closer he came to the sound, the more he could make out that it sounded like conversation going on between two creatures. "One of them is upset," he decided.
"That was a fool's errand, Aralt!" the She Dragon roared. "There wasn't a Dragon anywhere, let alone anyone that even knew about Dragons until we showed up from the direction we were sent." Aralt knew that when the Siate' was in a temper it was very wise indeed to keep one's head down if one wished to keep said head on one's shoulder. Allspice also had learned long ago about a Dragon's temper and decided it might be better to stay hidden behind the boulder for a bit longer. "That silly word game those villagers and that stupid little Dragon played on me has made me dangerous indeed!" continued the irate Dragon. "How can a Wish Dragon even not be a Wish Dragon any longer?" Aralt was pondering some of those same thoughts himself as he just stood there as Siate' continued to stomp around the cave while circling him as she ranted. "Now that was an interesting thought," Allspice said to himself. "Is there a way to take away a Wish Dragon's wishing ability... and would one want to do it?"
Even Griselda had not thought out this possibility of being known. "I don't think I even showed my tattoo yet either", thought Griselda as she brought her hand to her lips in surprise. “Greetings oh mighty one. Yes, it has been a long time and your presence greatly enhances our Realm,” Griselda replied receiving a smile from the Wish Dragon. It was then that Siate’ decided to address the young Dragon standing with the villagers. “And who are you and from which clan are you from?” she asked Dree. After a pause while he thought about his answer, Dree replied. “I am Drai’ochtluan and was of the Wish Dragon clan.” Siate’ waited for further explanation but when Dree did not continue, she thought that maybe Aralt was correct and this young Dragon was a little stupid. “What do you mean ‘was’ of the Wish Dragon clan?” she asked him. “As I was the only Wish Dragon before your arrival, I did not see myself as part of a clan,” he answered. With this answer Aralt smirked. He noticed the look that had appeared on Siate’s face. "Yes. I had already warned her that this Dragon was not the brightest," as he let his lips slightly curl up into a small smile.
“That is true,” Dree solemnly answered with a slight bow. When he did not explain himself further, it was Aralt who asked “Where?” After appearing to be thinking about his answer, finally Dree replied. “I am pretty sure that I said Where could be in the caves south of here.” After another pause he continued, “Yup. Possibly in the caves south of here. You might want to talk to Who as well.” “Who do I talk to?” Aralt asked. “Yes,” answered Dree. “I talk to Who?” again Aralt asked. “That’s right,” agreed Dree. It was then that Drat realized the game the young Dragon was playing. “That’s right,” said Drat as he smirked a smile to Aralt. “You should talk to Who. If you can’t find Who, then I suggest you go to the second cave and ask to see What. If you don’t get an answer from them then you then try the third cave. I Don’t Know Who is at the third cave." At this point Aralt, shaking his head, replied, " If you don't know who is at the third cave why are you sending me there? "No, no," replied Drat. "Why isn't sending you anywhere. I realize that this is all probably very confusing to you as an elder, so I will take you there if you need me to,” smiled Drat to the Herald. Again, feeling his intelligence insulted, Aralt puffed up his head and told the rat to mind his manners and that he would be just fine without his unneeded assistance. “Indeed,” the Herald replied as he marched up to Siate’ and offered to lead her to the other Dragons that must be in the southern caves. As they prepared to begin their quest, something still nagged at the mighty She-Dragon. “I don’t think this young Dragon is quite as stupid as Aralt thinks he is…” she murmured to herself as she turned to leave.
As everyone was listening to Griselda (aka the Dowager), it was Snoop who was writing down everything and recording those he saw at this eventful gathering. “Darn quill. Good thing I brought along some charcoal. Don’t want to miss a thing. This will be the biggest scoop in the history of the Bellwether,” he told himself. Taking out the charcoal and a piece of parchment, he began to write down those he recognized for sure. There was the Tree mother, Efem, with her sister Cornelia and Cornelia’s husband Nemmer. Standing near them was Parsley, the herbalist, and her son, Sprout. "Of course," Snoop thought to himself as he observed Granny Flare handing out dragon berry cookies with the three Goodie sisters serving tea. "Glad one can always rely on the Sisters and Granny for making sure we all stay alert and remain calm by feeding us," Snoop thankfully sighed rubbing his tummy. The Baron was seen helping his mother, the Dowager, while Awena of the Sleeping Sisters and the new King of the Trolls, Dulbbe, were quietly whispering to each other. Meanwhile, as the Shadows’ Queen Ffion was seen nodding her head in acknowledgement to the Gooblin King, Hir’aeth, as she entered, Hewy, the troll, was keeping an eye on the Borrower, Arnie. Even the minions were present Snoop noticed. “I saw Scarlet taking care of one of the Nytemares just before I entered. That must have been how Queen Ffion arrived and I see her chief minion Meen is by her side too. Even Drat is here,” he realized. As most everyone was still listening to Griselda speak, Snoop noticed one individual that seemed to be only interested in the portal. Standing near it, Dree was looking at the portal entrance as if something dreadful was going to be stepping out of it. Deciding this would be the perfect time to get to talk to the Dragon (personal interviews always were well received by the Bellwether readers), Snoop stealthily moved over to stand next to the distracted Dragon.
Before Snoop could reply Dree continued, "That is one of my problems as is how does one respect their elders if they have not earned the respect? If the Dragons come through this portal, I am wondering how I will react. I have never met another Dragon. You are all my friends. Even though the Dragons may be part of my heritage, they are still strangers to me. You are my family now…” Snoop was surprised on how much Dree had matured since he had first found out that Granny Flare was caring for a Dragon baby. Now that baby was making the decision of who was is his relatives or his friends. “Dree, you may never have to make that choice. As you said, you have not met any other Dragons before. Give it a chance. You might be surprised and find out that they are more like you than you may think. The Dowager is from the Dragon Clan of old and she doesn’t act anything like Aralt does. Dragons are probably as different from each other as people are.” Dree turned his head to look at Snoop and finally smiled. “You are right. Everything should have it’s chance. Thanks Snoop… oops… Augustus,” blushed the Dragon. Snoop smiled at Dree and then started to laugh. Soon both of them were laughing and it did not take long for everyone else to notice. As Dree was wiping away a tear, it was then he realized that everyone had quit talking and they were all watching him and Snoop. In less than a couple of minutes the Dragon blushed again. “Sorry everyone. I was getting some good advice on what to do if Dragons come through the portal.” Griselda smiled at the two and then asked, “Should we all know what the advice is?” Again, Dree paused before answering. “Yes. I was told that everyone should be given a chance to be trusted. I will stay here until the Dragons come through the portal to ask my questions and see how we are treated because I believe in my friends already, now I will learn if I can I trust my relatives?” That made some of the more nervous in the group a little more confident having a Dragon on their side. Soon everyone was sitting around the Dragon and watching the portal.
Before he thought about it he casually answered “It hasn’t changed much,” he started to tell her – then he stopped.
Surprised that he even had found one since the She Dragon thought all of the Dragons had stayed together with her. She just looked at the Herald and said, “Continue. Why was a Dragon there and where was it from?” Not realizing this information had surprised the mighty Dragon, Aralt continued on about his meeting with Dree. “He isn’t very bright and I felt no real magical power when I met him. He didn’t even know that I was a Dragon Herald. The locals call him Dree and apparently he spends a lot of times with a rat. He said that there were some adult Dragons to the south of the where the portal opens into the Realm of Wymsy.” “Yes, they were my scouts." Siate' remarked to Aralt.
They would use the portal to regain their old land. “Lead the way Herald for you will be the best one to introduce us to our new neighbors,” she told Aralt as she motioned for him towards the portal entrance.
When Aralt found the Emerald Dragon Stone and learned that it allowed him to listen to the mind-speaking of Dragons, she was the first to realize he could hear them. “Aralt, the Dragon Herald,” she named him one day. The title amused Aralt at first, for he soon found that the stone made it even easier for the Dragons to agree with him. Afterall, he was their speaker to the other fae and ‘outies’. Shortly afterwards he and Siate' formed a lose bond to help her establish her reign over the others. She needed a tool and he thought he was manipulating the powerful Wish Dragon to his plans. Now, Dragons normally are independent and don’t believe in royalty or governments for themselves, but they do respect power and ability.
She remembered the day she gifted it to Aralt as a special reward for his help in convincing the other Dragons to have her as the leader of the Wish Dragon clan. “If only I knew of it’s true power, I would never have given it to him.” The ‘true power’ of the golden corolla was that by itself it was merely a slightly magical crown as it was part of the Wish Dragon’s golden horde. Gold is like a sponge in water. It absorbs and stores loose magic just waiting for anything/or person that knows how to use the magic to release it. Siate’ was not worried about the Herald being able to use the slight magic the corolla held as it would never be powerful enough to endanger her. What the Dragon still did not understand how the Emerald Heart Stone would change of all that! “Him and that damnable crown,” grumbled Siate’ under her breathe as Aralt kept talking about his adventures. He did not even notice that she was not really paying attention to him and his tales… she was thinking back to a long time ago when her plans started to unravel once the Herald placed her ‘gift’ onto his head. She had given him the corolla just before they were to meet the Old One in open council. The Old One was the oldest Dragon who the others naturally deferred to as their elder. Respected and venerated she was. If Siate’ could get her blessings, she would have no challengers to be the Old One's replacement when she faded away. Siate’ could remember clearly as if it was only yesterday. Aralt, wanting to display his new gift from her, had placed the corolla on his brow as they walked in to the open council area with his green stone that looked like an heart hanging around his waist. The plan was for Aralt to announce Siate’ as if she was a queen so that the other Dragons would believe she had the right of rulership. If things went well and the Old One did not deny this entrance, then she would win. If not, then the Herald could be chastised for his error.
His method of entrancing the other Dragons only improved with time and still today she did not know how he did it. “New plan,” she decided. “This time I will find out his method so I use him and his ability for me!"
Aralt, already forgetting about the Wysp, continued down the tunnel leaving the barrier and the Wysp behind. Far up ahead he could see a familiar glow… it was the glow of a Dragon breathing fire! “I’m finally in the right place,” he told himself as he continued towards the light.
“Aralt walked through, so either he was invited or he has his own stone,” thought Nemmer. “Either way, it can’t be good.” The archer watched the blue Wysp for a little while making sure that it could not get through. When he was sure the Wysp was not going to get in, Nemmer decided his next stop would be the Baron’s Mansion. He needed to tell the Dowager Griselda what was happening. “She will be able to tell the others faster than I can. I hate running but for this I think speed is needed right now,” he mumbled to himself as he took off in a hunter’s run. As Aralt turned the corner, the first thing he saw was a Dragon’s head. It was ‘Her’… how could he have been so lucky to find her first? Her eyes were closed and it looked like ‘She’ was sound asleep, but Aralt knew better. She was a tricky Dragon… that is how she had managed to be the ‘unofficial’ leader of the Dragons for many, many, many years. Without even thinking about it, Aralt touched first the golden corolla on his brow and then the locket holding the emerald Dragon heart stone making sure they were both still there. That is when the Dragon smiled. A very large toothy smile… a smile with a lot of very large and sharp teeth. Opening her eyes, she just looked at the Herald and waited for him to speak first. Aralt knew what ‘She’ wanted. It was the recognition of an underling. “She is waiting for me to address her first as her inferior,” he remembered. Rankled at the thought that he was subservient to her but realizing that she would not speak until he started, Aralt spoke. “Greetings your Most Worthy. It has been a long time.”
“How dare she mind-speak to me!” he thought as he realized she was still smiling her toothy smile but her lips were not moving. “I am not one of your underlings” he wanted to reply, but he knew that would not get him what he wanted. In the long run it only would start another of those many arguments they had before he and the Dragons had parted ways. One thing Aralt had learned over the many years of being with Dragons though was the technique of manipulation. Smiling, the Herald replied, “Oh, I am sorry. You must be weak from your travels as you are only able to mind speak. You are old after all and not in your prime anymore. I will depart and return when you are feeling better,” and he turned as if to leave the cave. “Where do you think you are going?” demanded the Dragon. This time she did not mind-speak but spoke it aloud causing the stalactites in the cave to sway slightly and a few of the loose stones on the floor to tremble. With his back to the Dragon, Aralt took a second to remove his smile, and then turned around to face the mighty Dragon. “Ah, I was mistaken. Now you sound like your old self. My pardon. How are things in your domain and will you still need the services of a herald?” he asked.
Aralt did not disappoint her. Soon he was telling her of his many journeys after the Dragons had left this Realm. As she listened, she also started to consider ways to include him in her plans, or maybe not... that was for her to ponder.
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