Arimore

Rowan entered the room as Mason exited. “My lady, what will you do?”

“Arimore spoke to me in my chamber two nights ago. I will try to reach him with my thoughts. If I am successful I will ask him to remain hidden. I need you to lead a squadron of soldiers into Mardocian territory. Circle Mount Crystos and have your soldiers search the sky for any anomalies. Pray that I am successful in reaching Arimore and they find none. In the meantime I will be searching for our charge in the hopes that I will find some clue as to its location. Be safe and swift.”

Rowan bowed and went quickly to gather his men. He gave them the order to be ready to move out at first light.

Prince Mason and his men headed back toward the Valley of Min and made camp near the clearing at the base of Mount Crystos. “We will remain here and await the arrival of the Calithornians. Keep a watchful eye on the sky, we don’t want any surprises.” They set watch at the tree line keeping vigilant while their Prince rested. Prince Mason fell into a fitful sleep riddled with dreams of fire from the sky and flashes of Elara’s alluring presence.

He awoke before dawn drenched in sweat and walked to the tree line to meet with the guard, “Any signs?” he asked.

“None sire,” the watchman replied, “not even a hint of the beast.”

A swift breeze rose from behind them rustling the treetops above. Mason’s eyes widened as he signaled for silence among his troops. “If I did not want you to know I was here,” Arimore spoke to Mason’s mind, “you would not.”

Mason nervously scanned the sky. He saw nothing, not even a hint of movement except the short breeze that disappeared as quickly as it had come. “What is it that you want?” he yelled, “Why have you returned? We have lived peacefully for a hundred years. Why come now? Do you want war?”

The men stepped back and stared at Mason. He snapped, “What is wrong with you? Did you not hear him?”

“We heard nothing sire.”

“Only those I choose can hear my voice Mason,” Arimore smiled, “Know this young Prince, Calithorne is mine. Elara belongs to me.”

“Elara? What interest do you have in her?” This time he thought, instead of speaking out loud.

“The role you play is yet to be determined. You may prove to be worthy of salvation or destruction, the choice is yours. Choose your path wisely young Prince for the life or death that comes will not be just your own.”

The dragon raised his head listening to the night sky. He lifted his wings creating a dust cloud on the meadow and returned to his cavern atop Mount Crystos. “I hear you Elara. Have you found what I seek?”

“Not yet,” she replied relieved that she was able to reach him, “Prince Mason came seeking audience. He is convinced you have returned.”

“I know.”

“I have sent my guard to disprove him but in order for you to remain a secret you must remain hidden until they leave the valley.”

“Your guard will come,” his voice was calm and soothing, “and they will not see me but as for the young Prince, he will not be convinced. Leave him to me and concentrate on your task. Listen carefully child, Mason has yet to prove himself. I see a hint of good in him and because of that I have warned him to be careful which path he chooses to walk. He knows I am here.”

“As you wish, Arimore.”

Elara began recalling the stories she had heard as a child in the hope of revealing some hidden clue. As she sat she began to recall a time she asked her father to tell her about her mother. A sadness had come over his face as it always did when he spoke of his lost love. “What happened to her father?” she had asked him as she had so many times.

“Your mother was a brave but impetuous woman,” he smiled, “just like you. There was word that the Mardocians had captured the great Arimore. I didn’t believe it, after all no living person had ever seen him,”

“Except you father,” she interrupted.

“Yes, except me. She insisted that we send men to rescue Arimore. When I objected she reminded me that if it weren’t for him, I would probably have been killed. I knew there would be no appeasing her but I refused anyway telling her that I couldn’t risk starting a war over a rumor.” He paused and glanced at her portrait on the wall, “She was so beautiful, you mother but she didn’t listen and gathered a small group of men and went herself to investigate these stories. That was the last time I ever saw her. The whole company vanished. No one knows if they even made it to the border.” He rose and walked to the portrait, stroking the image as a small tear fell from his eye. He wiped away the tear and whisked her up into his arms. He carried her to bed, tucked her in, kissed her forehead and said, “It’s time for sleep sweet Princess. Know that your mother is watching over you always.”

Elara jumped up, “The portrait!” She ran into her father’s chambers and locked the door behind her. She pulled the cloth off the portrait that still hung in the same place it had when she was a child. “Mother,” she thought, “you have a secret, don’t you?” She rubbed her hand across the canvas as her father had so many years ago, “I do wish I had gotten to know you. Father always spoke so fondly of you. What secret are you hiding?” As she stared at the painting she noticed something she’d never seen before. “What’s this?” she thought as she ran her fingers over the carefully placed brush strokes. In the bottom right corner she noticed a smooth spot. Upon closer examination it looked as if additional paint had been added to the corner. She peeled it back with a small knife she found on the table and revealed an odd shaped spot. It was oval shaped. “An egg?” she wondered as she began more carefully studying the background image. “It’s a map. It’s the dungeons. I know this place,” she looked at her mother’s eyes, “you used to take me there when I was little. I never understood why we went to the dungeons, but now I understand. You were put in charge of watching over it, but why? Did you know Arimore? Did you find him on that journey? Did he kill you mother?”

Elara left her father’s chamber and headed straight for the dungeon, “We used to play hide and seek there,” she began to remember. As she walked down the darkened staircase that lead to the long forgotten dungeons she began to remember more about her mother. Elara favored her with her long dark hair and lean muscular frame. She reached to the wall and removed a torch that was hanging there. As she continued down the winding stair she came to a tall wooden door. She took the key that hung on the wall and unlocked the door. As she pulled it open the stiff rusty hinges screeched. Light slipped in through the door where no light had shone in years. Dust flecks danced in the warm light of the torch. Elara stepped through the door and felt as if she had stepped back in time. A smile crossed her face as she remembered playing here as a child.

“Elara,” a small voice took her by surprise, “Elara, is that you?”

“Who’s there?”

An apparition appeared before her. It was her mother with long glowing robes and the face of an angel, “Do you not know me child?”

“Mother?”

“You do remember,” Julianna smiled, “I have waited a long time for you to come.”

“I don’t understand.”

“You need to finish the task I was unable to complete. You need to understand that this task is very dangerous, my child. It cost me everything and may end up costing you the same. Come, sit and we can talk.” Julianna led Elara to a small room in the back of the dungeon, it served as the weapons room for the guards, “I have been waiting for you, to warn you child. There is great danger in the task you have accepted. Arimore will do whatever it takes to protect the eggs. He can be devious, do not be fooled. He will remind you of the fact that he saved your father all those years ago in order to make you feel obligated to serve him. It is true, he did save your father but he has been repaid many times over.”

“What do you mean?”

“Many years ago he came to me with the same task. He asked me to find and care for the egg. Knowing the egg was safe in my care he became careless and aggressive. He attacked the city of Mardock repeatedly and unprovoked. He was filled with the lust for power and without the responsibility of caring for the egg he sought to satisfy his bloodlust. The problem was that he became careless and was captured by the Mardocian guard. For time sake I won’t go into detail but what he hasn’t told you is that I rescued him and lost my life in the process.”

“Father told me you went and never returned.”

“That is right. It is my hope that history will not repeat itself and he will remain in his docile state.”

“Do you have the eggs mother?”

“They are here,” she stood and walked to the back wall, “Third stone from the floor, five from the left corner.” Elara rose and walked to the wall, “Wait, there’s something I must give you first.” Julianna reached into her robe, pulled forth a metallic disc and handed it to Elara, “This is one of Arimore’s scales. Do not let him know you possess it for it holds great power and he will not rest until he has regained it.”

“Wouldn’t it be to my advantage to let him know I have it then?”

“No. Listen carefully, only use its power as a last resort for whenever it is used you will lose a part of yourself.”

“What do you mean?”

“Trust me child, the power within this scale will call to you, it will change you and once you give in to it there is no turning back. You will hunger for the taste of its power and once you do, he will own you. To protect yourself you must follow my instructions. When the baby hatches the first thing you must do is remove a piece of the shell and couple it with his scale. When you do, the two dragons will be bound to each other. Control one and you control both until the babe becomes mature. You must become stronger to control two mature dragons but if you are not careful the power will consume you.”

“And I will become like a mother to the baby,” Elara understood.

“Exactly,” Julianna replied, “Leave the egg undisturbed and tell Arimore you have located it but do not reveal its location.”

“He reads my thoughts mother.”

“You must strengthen your mind and keep him out.”

“How?”

“When you speak with him, focus on his words and they will be reflected back to him. It will mask your thoughts. He will know you’re hiding something but he won’t be able to see what.” Sadness overcame Julianna, “My task is done and yours is about to begin. Be careful my child, Arimore can be a great ally but also a formidable enemy. He hides his magic but do not be fooled, he holds great power. It is time for me to go,” she reached out and stroked her daughters face, “You will not see me again but I will always be watching over you. I love you my child.” With that, Julianna faded from sight.