Dragon Bait Chapter 18 part A
Chapter Eighteen .
It took a half a day of flighting to get back to the mountain pass with the ogre boundry marker, enve with flying straight there and managing to grab a quick breakfast on the way.
The storm had left a dusting of snow on the higher peaks but left the pass realitvly clear. Not that Kieran was going to use it but it would be much easier to see from above if it wasn’t bared under snow. After a quick for any new scents, Kieran followed the path through the mountains.
By foot it would likely have taken two or three days to travers the mountains. The passages hugged the mountains sides at time before dropping down into narrow woody valleys and then climbing up again. Despite having no aid from theramals, it only took him three marks or so reach the others side.
The pass dumped out into a massive valley, Kieran could vaguely make out the mountain range encircling it all directions. The Floor of the valley was filled with a dense forest, any trail that might have come to the foot of the pass was lost with in dense conifers.
He figured his best bet was to just ride thermals west, straight across the valley in hopes that he might fly over a village. Unfortunately Kieran reached the side without a single sign of a village , ogre or otherwise. He did caught sight of a large lake to the south. ‘If this is really an ogre territory then they might us the lake for water or even fishing. Worse case i might be able to find a river or two that i can follow. People build villages near water sources right?’
The lake was crystal green and Kieran could easily see the very depths of it. Even from above he could see that the lake was teaming with life. There were no boats on the lake so he flew lower and started the search the shore line closer.
Hidden in a small cove, were a small little fleet of ships.
Kieran was elated with this find. There wasn’t any people around, so he couldn’t tell for sure the race of their owners. Based on their sizes the people who used these boats had to have been either rather extremely large humans or ogres. There were to crude for anything any elves would use, those pointy ears... folks were all about beauty and grace.
The ever present forest opened up to reveal a well used path that wound through the forest towards the foot hills of the south western edge of the enormous valley. Pushing forward, Kieran’s hope rose as he pass over each hill top.
And suddenly there it was below him.
An ogre village.
The houses were constructed of hides of different animals sewn together. They were places in several rows circles with a large grey stone in the center. The villages were surrounded by what to have been vegetables gardens and wheat fields. Over all the size of the village was larger then any of the human habits he around his cave.
His appearance had not gone unnoticed. Cries of fear could be heard from the inhabitants as they tried to run and hid. Most dove into huts while some ran for a path leading over the next hill top.
It took Kieran a moment to notice that most of the creatures he saw were humans. Their clothes were more thread barren than even the clothes Skif insisted on wearing. Each of them had a thick metal collar around thier necks. And they were all male. Each and every single one of them was buff and strong and very clearly male. They reminded him very much of those annoying knights.
The only Ogre he saw where the once running over the Hill. They were ogresses and small ogrlings who had not quite reached puberty yet, and younger.
‘Where is the rest of the tribe?’ Kieran knew from the size of the village that these few women and children could not have been the whole of the village. There were enough huts to easily house a hundred or so full-grown ogres. Hopeful to find the rest of the tribe particularly the male members of this tribe, he followed the runners.
Apparently he didn’t have far to go over the next Rise came a swarm of very angry ogre warriors, weapons drawn and ready to defend their families. They were coming from some stone circle on the other side of the hill. It was clearly that he had interrupted some kind of ritual.
Gathering the fearful members of the tribe into their fold, the ogrian warriors yelled up furies battle cries. Some even started to fire arrows at him.
The arrows bounced easily off his scales. Stone tip arrows were like annoying flies. Kieran didn’t think he had anything to fear from them.
That was till someone landed an incredible shot; an arrow flew right into the soft tissue just inside his nose.
The unexpected pain got him completely by surprise, cause in him to shoot fire into the sky as he roared in pain. Kieran quickly backed up out of their range, doing the best he could to remove the offending arrow. ‘Fuck that hurt! What I do to deserve that? Little Bastards!..’
‘How about terrify the defenceless members of their clan, while all the warriors were way. On top of that, you have disrupted their sacred ritual of manhood. I think you fully deserved my arrow up that sensitive nose of yours.’ A crystal clear voice replied.
Kieran near fell out of the sky with shock; It had been far too long since he had communicated with another mind to mind. Telephatic communication between mated dragon and their carriers was common. But between two dragons, it was a rare gift among dragons, and few bloodlines carried the gift. Kieran could talk to his brothers and family but he had never once spoken to another soul.
Few creatures outside Dragons carried the gift.. He had never heard of ogres having any psyhic gifts or magic beyond shamanic magic. He had heard rumours that some humans had the talent. The only races that he knew that it ran true in were: The naga, half-snake half man of the great desert of Burning sand in the south, the shape-shifters clans that controlled all the lands across the ocean to the east of Dragons lands, and the Elf people that ruled the vast forest of this content and freezing mountains near the top of the world.... ‘WAIT! ELVES!’
‘Yes dragon!’ The crystal voice answered again directly into his mind. The voice sound light and bubbley but Kieran could feel the mocking in the tone.
Turning his eyes to the swarm of angry ogres bellow him, He could see a lone figure of silver blond and pale white skin standing in the center of the sea of large green bodies with black or grey hair. It was amazing that he missed the elf the first time.
The elf was easily as tall as any of the ogre warriors but he had a much slender build. His clothes were obvious well made, white doe leather, cut to fit his perfect body like a second skin. The ogresses wore roughly spun cloth while the males wore dirty leather loincloths, some were even stalk naked but for body paint.
Another major difference was the elf’s weaponry. The Ogres wield stone mallets or bulky metal swords. Few were archers with the stone tips that he had felt earlier. But the elf carried mythrial double stilettos at his waist and in his hands was his long while bow with another steel tip arrow already notched ready to fire.
‘Hey I came here in peace. I won’t hurt anyone. I need theirs and your help.’ Kieran called down at the elf.
‘Whether or not you bring the peace you claim remains to be seen, Dragon. But if you are a in need of help as you say then I’m afraid that you must wait. My hosts are not in any mood to listen you at the moment. I would recommend that you leave at once if you have hope of getting the aid you seek.’ As the elf spoke, he lowered his bow, but none of the ogres around made the same move.
‘Then what do you suggest I do gain their help, Elf?’ Kieran didn’t like having to ask for advice nor help but this was the only solution to the damn Knights.
‘My name is Velekandir Shaésil of the house of Runthanmae, emissary of the White Queen Gelireldë to the Black Wolf clan. You may call me Kandir, not “Elf.” And I have already suggested leaving. I will try to talk to the tribe Leaders on you behalf. If I am able to convince them I would recommend meet us in the clearing five leagues to the east of the village when the sun has reached its zenith. I would also recommend being on the ground and have eaten first.’ Kandir voice this time sound intrigued.
‘My name is Kieran, Second Son of Lord Teithi, King of the Lands Of Fire Mountains. I have no other option than. I pray to the Gods of Fire, they grant you good luck with your silver tongue in convincing them.’ With a nod Kieran flew off, leaving the ogres to their rituals.
With nothing to do but wait, Kieran spent the last few candle marks before night fall searching the mountains nearby for suitable place to spend the night. The Sky was clear but this far into the mountain the weather could easily change in a moment.
He managed to find a little cave near the base of a mountain. It was not as intricate as his cave, it only had one chamber but it was larger than his nesting chamber. The Village and the clearing where not too far away, just enough that Kieran didn’t have to worry about the elf sneaking over here during the night and harming him with his mythrail weapons.
The Ground inside wasn’t as soft as the nest he had made. There wasn’t any Posrothaina veins or water flowing. There was no hint of Skif delicious spicy carrier scent.
A wave of Loneliness and longing overwhelmed him. The Mind link had thinned with the distance. It took much more effort to get open and then all he could get was that the little one was exhausted and asleep peacefully.
His little mate-to-be had likely spent the day carring for his horse before going off to check his snares and search for more wild vegetables. He was probably was restocking for when Kieran came back so he could feed the knights again. Before he left Kieran had read Skif worried mind, he wasn’t convinced the Knights would listen to his advice to ration the food.
Even after Flying all day, Sleep eluded him His mind keep thing about Skif. When he finally could get to sleep, His dreams where horrible nightmares of things happening to Skif while he was away.