Dragonslayer, Inc.

What happens after you accomplish a goal you had been pursuing for so long it takes you a second to recall when you started pursuing it?

Do you throw a party? Go on a long vacation? Relax and take a deep breath? What if accomplishing that goal came at a great cost? Are you supposed to be happy? Sad? Apathetic? Resigned? Contemplative?

And how long do you wait to get yourself a new goal? Days? Weeks? Moths? Years? Do you wait until you know this new goal is what you want, or do you jump into it with reckless abandon? Either way, is it best to take with you the experience gained from working toward the old goal, or is it better to start anew?

These were questions we would ponder in the days after Icithan’s demise. It took us a while to get to pondering them though. Most of Natura’s population had been killed, but those who hadn’t been rushed to see Icithan once they learned it had been killed. They took pictures and made astonished remarks and called their friends in other cities. Soon the entire Southwest knew of Icithan’s demise, and we were once again treated like heroes. Truly, there is nothing more fickle than the mind of the public. The hero worship wasn’t as satisfying as it was before the journey, but it was better than being treated like villains. A plan was proposed to burn the rotting carcass of Icithan. It was the most popular idea. We had veto power, but although it wasn’t the best plan we could think of, we decided to approve it. It was feasible and simple. There was an idea the three of us had that we felt would give the chaotic, awe-inspiring beast a proper sendoff, but it wasn’t realistic.

Being burnt is an ironic fate for an ice dragon. We conducted the ceremony at dusk. It had been partly cloudy since sunrise, but the clouds were clearing away, and the stars were beginning to come out. Deka was high in the sky, and its silver luster was as bright as it had ever been. We had not seen such a large gathering of people since Arge’s inauguration, and tens of thousands of them had torches. This could have gone very wrong, but if it had, little would’ve been lost. Both Andes and Natura suffered widespread Icithan-caused damage, but Andes was brought to its knees whereas Natura practically ceased to exist.

Steph gave a speech about Icithan, and after it was over, the burning started. Four hundred and fifty feet of dragon corpse was no match for a torch-armed mob. The smoke rose high into the coming night as the fire flickered about like a living organism. In no time, the dragon we had spent what seemed like most of our lives defeating was nothing more than cinders. The celebration continued into the early hours of the morning, by which time Machen and I had gone. Steph stayed until dawn. The burning was one of her first steps toward becoming a major public figure in this country. When everyone finally accepted that Arge was dead, a special election was held. Steph campaigned on behalf of one candidate, and that candidate won. Her star continued to rise, culminating with her becoming the youngest President in this country’s history at the age of thirty-two.

After the burning, those who did not live in Natura went home. As this was the vast majority of those in attendance, the city was left barren, and barren it would stay. Rather than rebuild my hometown from nothing, I spearheaded a plan that later got approved: a plan to build a new city twenty miles to the northeast.

This new city was in construction for more than a decade, but the wait was worth it. Acadia- named by me for my sister- became one of the most prosperous cities in the world. The old city was abandoned for the most part, but during her presidency, Steph declared it a National Heritage Site, and what was left of it has received both protection and waves upon waves of tourism. My old house now looks much as it did before Icithan, and there is a sign in front of it reading “This was the childhood home of Coran Greens, famous Dragonslayer. Along with Stephanie Milantro and Machen Grenads, he killed the great dragon Icithan and brought peace to the land.”

When Steph left Natura, she traveled to the town where I met Machen. The two of us were already waiting there. It was in tatters. Icithan had paid a visit. The dragon didn’t destroy much, but it didn’t need to. This town was not in good shape to begin with. Strangely, the hotel I had stayed at was no worse for wear, so we stayed there. The Dragonslayers’ Hostel had been obliterated. We had a good night’s sleep, and I once more had the chance to relive old memories. This time, it wasn’t painful, though the memories themselves were.

“Remember when we fought each other? I had a broken sword from home. You had your rapier. I’m surprised I did so well.”

“What were we thinking?”

“We were pretty cruel. You used to call me a vagrant.”

“I have to admit, you kinda looked like one. You were in bad shape.”

“You had something to do with that.”

“No. You looked terrible before our fight. You hadn’t eaten in days.”

“That’s right. …I forgot. If it hadn’t been for you, I might have died.”

“Don’t be overdramatic. I’m sure you would’ve survived somehow. It’s what you do.”

“I probably wouldn’t have become a Dragonslayer without you. I certainly wouldn’t have become famous or gone on that journey. There’s so much I owe you.”

“We’ve saved each other’s lives. Can we leave it at that and call it even?”

“Sure.” I clutched Ironwall’s dagger. “Say… do you want a rematch?”

“Huh?”

“Of our fight.”

“Are you insane?”

“Maybe a little. What do you say?”

“I can’t. I won’t.”

“It doesn’t have to be intense. We could just spar.”

“I gave you my answer.”

“If you ever change your mind, tell me.”

“Okay.”

“It feels like forever since we were here, walking the streets of… of… what’s the name of this town?”

“I think it’s… I don’t know either. I used to know, but I forgot somewhere down the line.”

“This is embarrassing.”

“Should we find out what the name is?”

“We could. You can if you want. If you do, tell me.”

It was morning twilight then. When the sun rose, we traveled to Andes for the last time in this tale. We stayed for a season and watched the world around us settle into a normal routine. Icithan became a memory, and the rebuilding hummed along. There were a few Dragonslayer missions run, but we weren’t part of them. They were miniscule things: kill this one mutant wolf, kill these two overaggressive birds. Steph’s candidate won the election, and there was a parade. There were so many happy faces. I envied them. The city was changed after that day. It had little to do with the candidate herself and more to do with the optimism she brought. The new era this city- this country really, and maybe the entire continent- had wanted was allowed to begin in full.

Six days after the election, we announced the dissolution of Dragonslayer, Inc. and the transfer of creature-slaying duties to the government. We each gave speeches. None were bad, but Steph’s was the best. This transfer was easier said than done. The government had given its approval for the creation of this new department, and funding was secured shortly, but there was the matter of actually creating it. Machen took up the burden. Out of nothing, he created an efficient and well-trained sector. Most of the original members were former Dragonslayers, but not all. It took time for this new department to thrive, and I think it would have folded altogether save for Machen’s leadership.

My friends were busy, but I wasn’t. I could have left Andes, but I couldn’t think of anywhere to go. Those were the least eventful months of my life, but I had the time to chew on my adventure. I jotted down a few thoughts on it here and there, and I got the idea to write this book. That idea, of course, sat dormant for decades. I don’t know why. Twice times before- the first three years after the journey and the second three years ago- I tried to write my story, but I never got past the first page. I guess the experience was too raw in my mind.

When I wasn’t thinking, I was sleeping or walking. I slept a lot. For the first time in my life, I slept for an entire day, beginning to end. I was never happy when I woke, but I was never sad either. I felt cleansed, and that was good enough. That’s why I slept whenever I felt overwhelmed by my journey. If I had been Acady, I would have hid in my cave. On a normal day, I would take a walk at sunrise and another at sunset. I never knew where I’d end up. Most days, I’d find a restaurant and order five plates of appetizers. The rare waiter who didn’t recognize me would look at me weird before taking my order, while the others would nod obsequiously and say, “That’s a very fine choice.”

On my better days, I would make my way to a museum or play. The theater distinct in this rebuilding Andes was prominent, and the performers carried themselves with vigorous passion. I got the feeling they’d collapse if they let up. They reminded me of Machen, who saw a play or two with me. I went to a lot of museums, but the only one that held my interest was the one Machen and I had been to on my first trip to Andes. The average museumgoer would spend an hour or two there, but I spent upwards of four every time I came. It captivates me. There’s no building I know better. If you added up the time I’ve spent there through the years, it’d probably be more than the time I’ve spent writing this book.

Machen stabilized his department around the time there was a lull in Steph’s activities, so we left Andes on foot and went southeast. I was glad to leave. If I had stayed a month longer, I would have gone insane. Our destination was Claci Basin.

Before the beginning of our journey, Machen proposed that Icithan was from Claci Basin. We got to thinking he was right. When it finished destroying Natura, it could have gone west, above the ocean and past the Gebers Whirlpools. It could have landed in the Nicos Islands and continued its reign of terror, or it could have flown over the Nicos and landed in a whole other continent. But it didn’t. At first, we presumed it wanted a rematch with us, but that idea made less sense the more we thought about it. Machen and Steph said Icithan had made repeated attempts to fly east. At the time, they thought it was trying to maneuver, but as we talked, we realized that was nonsense. It was trying to fly to Claci Basin. It was trying to fly home.

The summer heat was stifling, so we traveled at night and bathed in the serene moonlight. There is no easy path from Andes to Claci without going through Natura, but we made our own way. We had to dispatch a few creatures, but we were strong, and the fights were easy. I felt my inner demon rise up whenever I killed, but it never took control of me. I was surprised it didn’t take control of me when I killed Icithan, but I’m not surprised anymore.

My inner demon is an uncontrollable mass of my basic instincts. These instincts are uncontrollable because they have been sent into overdrive. When I killed Icithan, I gained control of them. They didn’t need to be sent into overdrive anymore. They were always with me, ready to be used at my command. I had the power. My instincts didn’t. I had gained the power, and I didn’t know it until long afterward. My inner demon hasn’t gone away, but it’s much weaker. It has never taken control of me since I killed Icithan. There are disadvantages to not having a superpowered side- I was never as good of a fighter as I was during my journey- but the pros outweigh the cons. I like having control of myself.

We arrived at Claci on a warm night. I had been before, but I never been to this part. It’s called Teardrop Slope. Twenty feet ahead of us, there was a steep slope dropping down to the basin floor. From the bottom, its general shape resembles a teardrop. Without proper gear, we couldn’t descend it, so we trekked around and eventually found navigable footholds. It was a hundred feet down, but the climbing was easy, and we finished faster than we thought we would.

This was one of the shallowest spots in the basin. As we meandered south, we lost hundred of feet in elevation. The basin walls were intimidating now, looking more like the sides of mountains, but we stuck close to them. Before dawn, after passing by dozens of slimy caves, we saw an immense cavern, and we knew without thinking that we had found what we were searching for.

The basin wall was eight hundred feet high. This cavern was four hundred feet tall. “It’s hard to believe this exists,” Steph said.

“It’d be harder to believe it didn’t,” said Machen, taking a whiff off the air. I took a whiff too. It was a most familiar scent.

When the cavern turned into a system of tunnels, we took the paths that had the tallest ceilings, and we were led under Claci Basin, into a chamber I suspect no human being before us had seen. There was a foot of frigid water on the floor. It was the last water in Claci Basin. Pungent, putrid smells assaulted us from every angle, but they were overwhelmed by the scent of the chamber’s former inhabitant. The air was languid and stale. We could hardly breathe, and we had to gasp for air.

There was no doubt: this was it. This was Icithan’s home for thousands of years. Once, it had been magnificent, a perfect home for a four-hundred-and-fifty-foot ice dragon, but it had been reduced to a dying echo of its former self. The water levels in Claci dropped, and Icithan stayed. Claci ceased to be a lake, and Icithan stayed. It suffered under deteriorating conditions until it was driven insane. In the middle of the night, it crawled its way through the tunnels, emerged onto the floor of the basin, spread its wings for the first time in decades, and took flight. It laid waste to grass and dirt and small villages before reaching Andes and changing millions of lives forever. It wanted revenge, but it also wanted a place to be free, so it flew north and perched atop Curam.

The missing pieces of the puzzle clicked into place. I felt like I knew everything now, like the world was as clear as glass. Standing in that water, we could almost hear the grunts and growls of a younger Icithan growing discontent. We were sent into a silent reverie that ended when a single droplet of water plunged from the ceiling and landed with a plop. Machen finally took off his golden chain. He had carried that chain with him to Curam and back, but he showed no hesitance in leaving it in the chamber.

I don’t feel sorry for Icithan- it was a raging monster that killed an unfathomable amount of people- but that doesn’t make the situation any less tragic. None of this should have happened. Icithan was the degradation and squalor of this continent made manifest. I can’t help but feel that if humanity had acted more diligently through the years, things would have played out differently. Andes would never have been obliterated. My sister and mother never would have died. Chaos wouldn’t have reigned. Ironwall wouldn’t have died. Our way of life wouldn’t have been brought to the brink.

That’s not to say life would have been perfect. Arge would have been allowed to continue his terrifying tenure as President. In fact, he probably would have proclaimed himself dictator, given himself unchecked and unlimited governmental power, run my country into the ground, and be ruling it with an iron fist to this day. We would have never gone on our life-changing journey. We would have changed as people, as people always change, but the changes would have been slower and more gradual, and they wouldn’t have been the same changes. The person I am now is tied to our journey, as are the bonds we share with one another. Were it not for the trip, Machen and I would have drifted apart, and Steph and I wouldn’t have become more than acquaintances.

Nevertheless, I would rather live in a world where Icithan was never an issue, but that world does not exist. We’re left to try to understand this world in all its innumerable imperfections, and entering that chamber was a huge step forward for us in that regard.

“I wish we could have seen it then,” I said. “It wouldn’t have changed much, but… I’d like to see what it was like.”

Machen said, “It’d have been easier to kill, that’s for sure. There’s not much fighting it could have done in this cramped space.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“I know.”

“Machen, do you like dragons?”

“What a weird question.”

“I do. I always have. I told myself they were the bad guys when I was a kid, but I liked them anyway. While I liked the Slayers more, the dragons were so cool, and when I grew up, I realized they weren’t evil. They were just… creatures. They were just these majestic creatures that needed to be stopped.”

“To tell you the truth, I always wanted to ride one, at least once. I’m glad I got to.”

“Enjoy these few fleeting moments,” said Steph, stretching. “This is the end of the Icithan trail.”

“I suppose it is,” Machen responded.

She said, “Once we step out of here, that dragon’s solely in our past. And in the future… who knows. I’m glad I got to be a Dragonslayer. It was a lot of things, but it was everything I wanted it to be.”

There was no avoiding our past as we trekked up and out. The water beneath our feet disappeared, and we were left with the dingy, cheerless air, which was somehow more of a bother to us than it had been on our descent. The wind was whipping, and as we got closer to the exit, we heard it, and we felt it, and we thought of the challenges we faced on our journey and the losses we had endured, losses that had struck us like lightning and losses that had snuck up on us like a prowling hyena, and we shuddered in anticipation at the future, at its uncertainty, at its alien nature.

I’ve already said what happened to Steph. Machen served on a handful of boards and committees over the years, but he’s been removed from the public eye for the past decade. He visits me often. There are things he can’t talk about with anyone else. As for me, I spent a couple years slaying for the government. It was good work, but it wasn’t satisfying. I stuck around a lot longer than I should have. The best part of it was teaching the rest of the department the little tips and tricks I had picked up. My input was always appreciated. After that, I left my continent and traveled the rest of the world. I was rarely disappointed. My favorite spot was a volcano that spewed green lava. Later on, I became the first mayor of Acadia, and I served on Steph’s cabinet, and overall I’ve been keeping busy.

The future didn’t turn out to be tyrannical, but as we approached the edge of the cavern, we were afraid it would turn out lifeless or revolting, or that we would be forgotten, or that the world would have no place for us. It had been months since the defeat of Icithan in Natura, but in the darkness of the cavern, as we moved away from the last vestiges of our epic quest, as Machen stretched his neck, not quite used to not having his chain, our fears and doubts sparked to life.

During our journey, we talked about making the return trip and coming home and writing the next chapter of our lives, but those things were fantasies then. We didn’t think they’d come true. The journey was everything. Morning, noon, and night, it was our reality. Now it wasn’t. Now our fantasies had stopped being fantasies, and we had to walk into the future, and we were being driven mad.

Our losses in hand, we stepped out of the cavern. It was daybreak. The sky was red, and it was turning cerulean blue, and the sun was shining.

Gusts of wind tousled our hair, and the birds on top of the outer rim of the basin began chirping.

We breathed out.