Chapter 13

Day 9/Later that day:

“Hal made it, too?” John asked them, pointing at the bubble of ice.

“Seems so.” Syg agreed. “We didn’t see him. He must have come in after we started.”

Though John couldn’t see through the ice, it appeared that the audience could. Gasps and cheers erupted occasionally, responding to whatever Hal was doing.

John clenched his fist. “C’mon Hal, you can do it!”

Syg scoffed. “He ran away.”

“Because I told him to.” John argued. “You can’t blame him for that.”

She frowned. “He left Treb! Alone!”

“Treb made his own decision.” John said, looking at the lad. “It wasn’t what I commanded, but I understand why he couldn’t leave. Hal is a lot of things, but a warrior isn’t one of them. He looks at things differently than you and your son do.”

“Coward.” Syg spat.

“He’s a survivor.” John shook his head. “It’s not the same. Let it go, please. All right?”

“I will say nothing.” Syg bowed. “Though I will watch.”

“Fair enough.” John accepted.

“Challengers!” The dragon boomed from her spot in the center. “Attend me.”

“Show time!” John led the way, with the others flanking him.

“What are we going to show it?” Treb asked.

John laughed. “Never mind.”

“Challengers,” the dragon said to them, when they stopped, “You have all completed the third level Task. Therefore, you are each due the reward for that Task. It is time to receive it. Who will accept it first?”

The three exchanged surprised looks. John gave each a chance, but they looked at him negatively.

“I’m first, I guess.” John stepped forward.

“Which do you choose, the ability to use my power, or my protection?”

“I’ll take the protection.” John decided.

What? Aw man, you could’ve done magic! Melvin groused.

Welcome back.

Yeah, well, it’s not all sunshine and roses here either!

Melvin! Leave him alone. The General ordered.

Yes, ma’am.

General? What are you doing here? John asked.

Just enjoying the show! Her jocularity was noticeably forced.

Enjoy away! He retorted.

Who are you talking to? The Tooth asked.

Who’s that? The General inquired.

I’ll explain later. John said.

They so distracted him, he almost didn’t notice the incredible cold that sank into his bones. His skin turned deep blue, and he thought he’d never be warm again. A few seconds later, all the cold faded way and his skin returned to normal.

Surprised, he unfastened and opened his armor and jacket. The air felt like a balmy spring day, not the frigid, biting ice he breathed just a minute earlier. With a smile, he bowed.

“Thank you.”

“It is nothing more or less than you have earned.” The dragon responded. “Do not depart, we must speak of your weapon, after I bestow your companions.”

John retreated, and Syg stepped forward.

“I, I, I wish to accept your power.” She stuttered.

“You all right, Syg?” John hissed.

“I did not expect this!” She replied.

“You wish to gain the ability to use my power?” The dragon confirmed.

“I ... yes, I do.” She told the beast. “I am already protected against cold.”

“Not as much as you might be, but the difference is less than what others find.” The dragon mused. “Very well, you have a choice, I shall open you to three small powers, or one large. With this path now built between us, you might learn how to do more than what you receive today, but you must decide how to start.”

Syg looked at John, but he just shrugged. “Up to you.”

“I’ll take the three small.” Syg announced.

“Very well.” The dragon opened her mouth, and three tongues of blue-white flame lanced out, one after the other. They hit Syg in the chest and disappeared. Her eyes glowed with the same light, and she smiled.

“Wow!” Syg breathed.

“You understand the power?” The dragon asked her.

“I do!” Syg’s voice rose. “I can—f”

The dragon’s claw came up. “I know what you can do.” A talon pointed at Treb. “Now the youngest.”

“Treb!” John whispered in Treb’s ear for a minute. The boy nodded with a smile.

“What do you choose, youngling?” The dragon asked.

“I have a question,” Treb told her. “If I decide to use your power, will the three small abilities be the same as my mother?”

The dragon might have smiled, just a little. “This is a wise question, from a son. Your answer is yes, they will be the same three that your mother wields.”

“Then I’ll take the big power, please!” He chirped.

The dragon’s snout moved to point at John for a moment.

“Very well.” The dragon returned her attention to Treb. A column of flame, as wide as Treb’s waist, flashed out and disappeared into the youth’s chest. His eyes glowed like Syg’s had, then returned to normal.

“Whoa!” Treb looked around. He held a hand up.

“Should you initiate an attack on myself, or one of my servants, absent our initiating hostilities, your Safe Passage shall be forfeit.” The dragon warned the boy.

Sheepishly, he made a fist and dropped it to his side.

“Your actions indicate that you understand, is this so?”

“Uh, yeah, yes, I do. Thank you.” Treb stammered.

The dragon’s snout took them all in. “Your reward comes with a price. Undergoing the Challenge places a Geas on you. From this day forward, you are forbidden to reveal any of the Tasks, Conditions or Terms, or any of the actions which occurred during the accomplishment of your Task. I urge you not to test this, the punishment is ... severe.”

“We understand.” John said as they all nodded emphatically.

“Now, I will tell you of the weapon you bear.” The dragon began. “Hold her up.”

John gripped the Tooth’s haft, just below the blade. He raised it up to chest height.

“Mighty warrior, do you accept this Challenger for your bearer? Did you bond with him in combat? Will you follow his lead, support his strategies, destroy his enemies?” The dragon’s voice pierced his mind and vibrated his body.

Yes, Master of the North, Queen of Frozen Fire, I give him my bond. He is worthy of my spirit. The Tooth replied.

He recognized the ‘bond feeling’ as it descended on him. He kissed the head before returning it to his belt. The Tooth giggled. Giggled!

“She deems you worthy, Challenger.” The dragon sounded proud. “Here is her story:

“There was once a daughter of the North. A frost giant, who marched with Our army against the Weak. She is strong, as We are Strong. None in their forces could stand against her, routing in battle after battle. She rose to become our Champion, and was bestowed with the gift of power from each of the Strong dragons. Called the Dragon’s-Tooth Warrior, she wielded fire and ice with equal skill, death was her ally and she assumed so many forms none remembered her real face. When We allied with the Weak against the Betrayer, she was appointed to lead the van against our enemy. That battle raged for ten full days, and the Betrayer’s Champion fought her to a stand-still each evening. On the last day, the Weak finally combined their Will to Ours without restraint and only through that harmony did We succeed in banishing our last sister from the Walled World.”

“She was Our Agent, after our mother laid the Great Geas upon us all. We could no longer contend as we once had, but Our hatred for the Betrayer never abated.” The dragon spat ‘Betrayer’ with venom each time she said the title. “She searched for a way out of the Walled Garden her entire life, for she hungers still to strike one blow, one last strike against the Betrayer. Her failure rankled, it was the only task she never succeeded at. On her deathbed, she requested a boon. She asked that we take her soul to our Armory, where she might await another that We judged to have the potential to take her outside the Wall.”

“Warrior, you lead the first Challengers to ever stand before me. You lead them to place their own lives back into jeopardy, just to aid you in your Challenge, after they completed their own. You are a Visitor.” The dragon’s head sank down to his level, her nose right in front of his chest. “And We know precisely what that requires. You are the first Visitor to complete a Challenge, and you did so after less than a ten-day from when you first set foot in First World. You come bearing enchanted weapons, earned through your own martial prowess. I consulted my sisters, and they agree, Visitors are of the Weak. They flee, they beg, but they never fight. You are not. You sought me out, the most feared of all the Strong. And even when faced with two of my strongest servants, you looked for a way to defeat them.”

“I judge your odds to be poor.” She concluded. “But not any poorer than our original Champion.” Her nose tapped his chest, and another cold wave swept over his body. “I give you True Immunity, may it speed your quest. And name you Tooth Bearer. If you do finally stand in the Betrayer’s presence, let her loose.”

“Ahem. May I ask why you call your sister the Betrayer?” John coughed.

“It was her idea to come to this world, from our own. Her idea to remake it in our image. And when we would permit her excesses no longer, she fled to our mother for succor. She is the true reason We are chained,” the dragon held her foreleg up, and a manacle appeared. It was a void, like staring into space. A true absence of light or matter. A chain of the same make stretched from the cuff to an anchor beyond the floor. “And though she is imprisoned with us, we still long for vengeance against her.”

John bowed again. “I will be worthy of her spirit, this I promise you.”

You better. The Tooth sent him an image of a blue-lipped smile. One measly draugyr is far too few.

If you fought in the dragon’s army, didn’t you lead draugyr?

Her voice was a whisper now. Doesn’t mean I liked it. My father was the only giant to ever strike a blow on the dragon. It was his mightiest ever, and she was unscathed by it. I wasn’t stupid enough to fight an unwinnable fight. I believe the dragons when they say that the Betrayer is the reason they came. I want nothing more than to pay her back for what she’s done to my home.

John snorted. “You gotta be shitting me!”

The dragon’s head tilted. “You wish me to eat you and pass you into my waste?”

“No,” John sighed, “I just wish people talked. You ever talk to the guy who made this place?”

“I made this place!” The dragon roared.

“You didn’t, and you know it.” John argued back. “You conquered it. You own it now. You’ve redecorated the place, uh ... with your own unique style. But you did not build this.”

Her voice dropped to what she probably thought was a whisper. “You know the Old Ghost?”

“I met him.” John jerked a thumb at his empty eye-socket. “He did this to me. You should have a chat with him about your Betrayer.”

“He does not come to the upper levels. I cannot fit down below. He fears none of my servants, and I cannot eliminate the source of his power without also reducing my own.” The dragon complained.

“Can’t you just do that ... uh, that thing you ... um, you know...” John pointed at Hal’s ice dome.

The dragon turned her head from him to the half-sphere and back. “I do not know.”

“Do you ... have a way to ... send an image of yourself, somewhere else?” John tried using a question instead.

“No, that is an artifact of the Challenge rules. I would not have been able to do that if you were alone.” The dragon answered.

“Well,” John waved at the cheering audience, “I’m guessing one of them might be willing to relay a message. Mister Old Ghost, as you call him said coming up here hurts too much; but if you’d extend a temporary safe passage, I think you two might share an enemy. Would you rather keep the ghosts imprisoned, or...” John pulled one of the draugyr commander’s diamond eyes from his pack. “Try to make them your ally?”

“My allies? Why would I want to do that?” The dragon sounded genuinely confused.

John pointed around the crowd. “Because every single one of them carries a wealth of combat knowledge and skill. You yourself understand the worth in pairing their experience with your draugyr. The one with this in his eye was the only reason my third task was at all difficult. The others were just fodder. And I’m not going to tell you how terrible they are at guarding.” He pointed at the remaining ice dome. “That guy walked right past countless trolls and draugyr downstairs. And I mean walked, not sneaked.”

“They power my draugyr.” The dragon argued, though it sounded halfhearted. “What am I to do when I need more?”

“Uh, well, it seems to me,” John pointed up at the lit jewel hanging above the dragon, “that would be a more reliable source of power anyway. But hey, what do I know about it?”