Dragon Wolf Hero
Chapter 1
Vor sat alone in his castle in the northern mountains of the one continent. The days were long and the memories of youth fueled his desire to return to the land of the humans. “The human populations in the north are moving to warmer climates great king. The increasingly long winter seasons are natural weather patterns, nothing more.”
He was the dragon in a pack of wolves.
Eohnin, the ambassador from the southern elf kingdom nodded without a comment.”
“Are you getting all of this respected ambassador?”
The tall man with long silver hair continued to write, a guest of the king, but not by choice. “I am the chronicler of events in the north. I must stay close to you, on orders of the island empire of Illam.”
Vor said, “Seems important. In the world of my birth, a parallel reality, the stories about humans with great magic were a form of entertainment. In this world, the humans appear to have zero magical ability, and not much imagination. I became a king in the northern lands, with the simple promise of building a safe place to live away from the wars among nobles in the populated regions.”
Eohnin recorded his response in a journal with a long thin feather quill. “My sister traveled north to protect me and will not set foot in the same room as the king. The high elf council needs answers regarding the abandoned dwarven kingdoms in the northern lands.” He noted a description of the human with a dragon spirit, a tall man in a tall chair.
“The elves and humans were in conflict for hundreds of years, and she is a warrior.”
“She is a fool.”
Vor changed the subject. “The loss of the dwarves is a concern for both of our nations. I found no trace of them in the north and the adventure parties who dared to search underground refused to share their finding.”
Eohnin said, “Refused or were pressured to keep their discoveries a secret? The words at the gate of the well ‘Beware of the Dragons Den’ sound like the same warning the last ambassador of the dwarven nation shared with the elves. Ah, but the warning is not about the king of the humans in the north, since you are not a true dragon, just a man with grand ideas.”
Vor studied the elf and held back a strong desire to thrown him out of the castle. “The magic circle once protected the kingdom of the dwarves and I intend to the do the same in the human world. So who ordered you here? The elves from the island empire or the missing dwarves?”
Eohnin dropped his tablet and writing tools into a leather sack. He paused to consider. “The gate, I think. The use of the transformation magic opened a door to the high council of elves, a place usually out of reach of the human world.”
The top advisors in the kingdom were humans before discovering the magic circle. The dungeon in the mountain under the castle was a mine until the race of dwarves vanished without a trace. The rumor in the kingdom was the dwarves took took stone heart from the mountains, so the mountains took the dwarves.
The adventurers who traveled north in search of the dwarves closed the mine when clans of monsters filled the landscape, and reliable sources confirmed the monsters were born in a dungeon below the mine, deep in the mountain.
In time, the small village founded by adventurers outside the mine became a small kingdom. The village became a city, and then a kingdom, and fortress was build to close the mine. The fortress became a castle, using the wealth of the minerals found in more remote mines, but the first known mine in the north revealed no secrets.
“The ruins of a castle was here long before humans arrived in the north lands, but our clans restored the fortress.”
The top advisers were the first to evolve, turning from human to animal. The ancient writing in the circle hinted at a permanent transformation, but the king was relieved when his advisors confirmed the evolution could be reversed temporarily, for those with the desire to return to human form.
The long-tail wolf transformation chosen by most of the advisors was immune to the seasonal cold of the north lands.
The king transformed into a dragon and soon learned the species cannot survive in the north, because of the cold blooded nature. The first winter season was very nearly his last, which resulted in his decision to search for warmer climates.
Vor continued sharing the story with the ambassador, the first outsider to claim his dragon transformation might be reversable if the events leading up to the changes were studied. The wolf at his side was clearly a human, but the elf did not request a transformation into her true form.
The official history was the one told by the locals. The elf wanted the true story from cause of the latest natural disaster.
The king of the northern lands was often seen as the one human in the entire world without a sense of humor. So when he laughed as a long-tail wolf entered the room and transformed into a human with a bald head, the elf ambassador took notice.
“The last group willing the travel south is ready for the ceremony,” said Grald. “I recommend sending the caravan immediately, before the snow storms close the road.”
Vor watched the grey skies above his kingdom. The flames in a large marble fireplace were reduced to charcoals. The chill reached him as the first snow started to fall. “Agreed.”
Grald continued. “I was at the gate when a party of adventures entered the city.”
The wolf at Vor’s side transformed into a human form. The woman standing beside her king smiled at Grald and he became visibly nervous.
Vor said, “Honored ambassador Eohnin, this is my top advisor Ree-Nin. She is the women in my heart, not your sister. The elves and the humans cannot dream of being one, not anymore.”
Ree-Nin flushed red and looked furious. “Do you admit to feeling a bond with the elf warrior!” She turned to the ambassador and bowed to show respect. “The king wants to flatter you and your sister to gain favor with the elves, please disregard his ideas about romance.”
Eohnin nodded and remained silent as Ree-Nin shared her frustration.
Ree-Nin turned to the king. “The ambassador is not interested in your personal life. The fighters are here at the request the kingdom, with the adventurer guilds sending generous help. The caravans will be protected from monster attacks. Yyin, my sister, will go first and clear the path.”
Vor nodded his approval of the situation. “Grald and Ree-Nin. I will start the ceremony when the sun hides the second star. Please let the caravan know.” Ree-Nin returned to her wolf form and proceeded to gather advisors in the halls of the castle as the pack gathered in the courtyard.
The winter season started with a light snow in the castle courtyard. The last group of human residents in the city left to travel south before the safe roads to the north were blocked with the glaciers edge.
Eohnin stood and looked outside. “The glaciers are a natural event. The weather patterns in this world are unpredictable. I remember the pathways in the dwarven kingdom, at least those leading to the reception halls near the entrance, and the weather observation tunnels leading to the surface.”
Grald said, “Rumors of the dungeon forming and the monsters?”
Vor said, “Rumors!” He walked with Grald to the castle courtyard and watched the ceremony.
The hero arrived the same day and remained anonymous while the king prepared to abandon the northern kingdom. “The dwarves left me with an impossible and frustrating request. The magic circle should have been closed before their kingdom was overwhelmed with monsters.”
© J. Bateman
Concentrikey © 2024