The Elder's Curse by Andrew Walbrown (ereader for textbooks TXT) 📕

promised, now that the Elder is healed you may leave,” the Matriarch began, “Ushokku, Chulzi, and Zhalmi will fly you to where you were found, if you so desire.”

“Can we go further?” Amantius asked. “Is there any way we could fly closer to Yawan?”

The Matriarch shook her head. “No. Our survival rests solely on secrecy. If one person sees a dragon and they return home, no one will believe them. Maybe a few, but not enough to warrant a search. If hundreds or thousands see dragons flying near their homes and their children, then we will be hunted until either we reduce their city to smoking rubble or they slay us all. We dragons want neither of these things; all we want is peace and enough sky to spread our wings.”

“So all the tales and legends,” Amantius began, “of dragons being vicious flying serpents hell-bent on setting the world on fire were lies?”

The Matriarch sighed. “For the most part, yes, and Kuruk’s enslavement of many of our kin did us no favors. Even in times of peace we have still waged war on an enemy I feel we cannot defeat: perception. No matter how hard we try, I fear the masses will always view us as monsters coming to feast on their charred flesh.”

Ulam grunted softly, the noise capturing Amantius’ attention. They made eye contact only for a second, but it was long enough for him to see into his foster-brother’s thoughts. He has been fighting the same battle his whole life.

“Are you afraid we will tell people you live in these mountains?” Nilawen asked.

The Matriarch turned to her and smiled, a truly terrifying sight.

“If we thought you would cross us, you would already be dead.”

Chapter 23

Ulam

Ulam shielded his eyes from swirling flakes of ash as he watched the three dragonesses disappear into the cloudless sky. He and the rest of the party were near the site of their earlier abduction, although they were closer to the Ummdani Mountains than before. They were so close that Ulam could see black dragonroot swaying in the desert wind, their red and orange leaves barely poking out of the top of the nearest thicket of grass. It looks like the whole field is aflame.

“Tie this around your waist,” Kona said as she passed a rope to Ulam, “be our anchor. Like I said before, it’s easy to get lost in there. As long as you stay here and hold onto our rope, we will be able to find our way out.”

Ulam grunted as he looped the rope around his body, pleased with his assigned role. After plunging into the utter darkness of a dragon’s lair, he had no interest in navigating an ash-covered labyrinth of tall grass. Not only that, but his body was still fatigued from hacking at the cursed stone that had covered Durkan. Ulam fell to the ground like a boulder, knowing that if he did not get enough rest he would only slow down the party on their trek back to Yawan.

After Kona finished explaining the plan to everyone, one-by-one they disappeared into the grass with her at their head. Amantius was the last to go inside, reappearing every few minutes to toss a cut stalk of black dragonroot near Ulam. From time to time, the rope would tug at his waist, but it never genuinely threatened to dislodge him from his spot. Occasionally a shout or two would reach his ears, but the thicket was too dense for him to hear clearly. After some time his attention shifted to the back of his eyelids, which had become heavier than lead.

Though he was well on his way to complete relaxation, Ulam was jolted awake when an errant throw of black dragonroot hit him in the face. He was so startled he jumped to his feet, the rope around his waist providing almost no resistance as Amantius, Mazargo, and Nilawen tumbled out of the brush and onto the ground before him. Kona appeared last, still on her feet, the smile on her face quickly turning to a frown as she looked at the pile of dragonroot stalks.

“I thought we pulled more,” she said to Ulam, who simply shrugged in response.

“Don’t forget we have two fewer camels than before,” Nilawen said, “though we have Mazargo now.”

“And you consider that an even trade?” Amantius said with a laugh.

Mazargo scowled at him. “One day Mazargo breaks a centuries-old curse and is a hero, the next day he is the butt of jokes. Why?”

Ulam looked at Mazargo as the others giggled, but said nothing. You did not know what you were doing; you were just lucky.

“What are we going to tell Bati and Buri?” Amantius asked, his tone more serious. “After all, we got their camels killed. And we can’t tell them they were eaten by dragons.”

“We will have to compensate them,” Ulam responded. “That is the only way. We still have coins, yes? We should either pay them for the camels or buy new ones.”

Everyone agreed to Ulam’s proposal, even Mazargo, who had never met Bati and Buri. They then refueled their bodies with water from their canteens and gathered the black dragonroot on the ground, with Ulam carrying around half of the entire supply. It is my lot in life, I suppose.

By nightfall, they found themselves at an oasis, the same one where they had camped on their trip to the mountains. With the ash winds at their back and the lack of stubborn camels impeding their momentum, Ulam was surprised by how much progress they had made so far. Had he been alone he would have pushed further, hoping to reach the closest oasis to Yawan before camping for the night. But the addition of Mazargo to the group had hindered their speed a little because the mage was not accustomed to the Alakuum’s harsh environment.

As they settled in for the night they discovered they only had one tent for the whole group, the others most likely