Dragon Bound

--

Chapter Fifteen

--

Lune followed along behind the party of humans. Damon was permitted to come too but Vulkan was ordered to remain behind in the field. At first the male looked annoyed by this, but the warm sun and soft grass seemed to be alluring enough to quieten the grumbling. The large dragon curled up and rested his head on his front claws, red eyes fixed avidly on Lune as the young dragon followed Jason through the gates.

‘Did you know anything about a message?’ Lune heard Jason utter in an undertone. The other knight shook his head.

‘Nay, if one was sent, it didn’t make it to the keep. This situation is getting stranger by the day,’ Fredrick grunted. Lune could smell the fear in the sweat of the other men. Faces peered at them from behind curtains and shutters as they walked into the town.

‘Sir, our village relies heavily on our sheep for our wool trade as well as the meat. The loss-’

‘We understand the financial implications. What we need from you is a list to the best of your ability of how many sheep were taken, ewes, rams, and such. The king will issue reimbursement to you,’ Jason explained calmly. His low deep voice and calm temperament seemed to sooth the flushed mayor. The red blotches receded a little from the man’s patchy cheeks and he bowed low.

‘Thank you, sirs, thank you very kindly,’ he stuttered. Lune wasn’t sure what to make of this. As he looked about the town, he did notice how well kept it seemed. The cobblestone streets were neat. Half wine barrels full of plants sat outside little shops, flowers spilling out in colourful blooms. The cottage houses looked old but well cared for. He sniffed appreciatively at the scent of fresh breads and pastries coming from a bakery near the town square. In the centre of the town was a small garden featuring a towering flagpole in its centre, the Sun King’s crest flapping merrily in the light wind.

‘We appreciate the king taking our situation so seriously to send two of his best knights,’ the mayor went on, mopping at his face with a piece of lacy cloth drawn from inside his coat.

‘We need to see the fields that were affected. Were there any witnesses? Blood in the field?’ Fredrick asked, making the mayor pause.

‘No one saw the dragons as such, but we heard an awful screaming. There were lights in the sky above the field. The young boys were dead before we could reach them, their bodies burned almost beyond recognition. The boys’ mothers are quite inconsolable,’ the man said solemnly. The two knights nodded sympathetically.

‘You go with the man to the field with your beasts. I’ll go through the town and try to find out if anyone new has come to stay recently,’ Fredrick murmured. Jason nodded. For such a large man, Fredrick moved stealthily. As they turned a corner, he slid off from the group and disappeared up a side street. It was a while before the mayor noticed the other knight was gone.

‘He needed to return to his dragon. He will join us again shortly,’ Jason said smoothly. The man looked nervous and rather unhappy about this, but as Sir Fredrick had already disappeared there wasn’t much he could do about it. Lune wondered why Jason hadn’t just told the truth.

At the moment, the townsfolk think a wild dragon did this. To tell them a rider from another region was involved would cause a panic. Remember, there hasn’t been a war between the kingdoms in over a hundred years, Damon said quietly over their mental link.

But isn’t it dangerous not to tell them? Lune asked back curiously. The mayor was talking to Jason, one of the older townsmen joining in the conversation.

Arguably not. These people are not soldiers. There are no dragon riders living here to defend the town at all hours. Their best course of action would be to continue with everyday life and not draw attention to themselves... Damon had to be careful as they walked. He kept his wings tucked in tight and his tail still so that he didn’t accidently knock into any of the buildings. Lune glanced back at him a few times. The short, measured steps looked very uncomfortable. He gave a rumbling sympathetic chur.

‘I don’t mean to be rude Sir, but this dragon you have with you is certainly unusual. I’ve never seen such a beast.’ Lune looked back around and froze, seeing many sets of eyes on him. The little group of humans had doubled in size.

‘He is a Kagame Dragon, and he will be helping track the rogue,’ Jason explained. The men eyed Lune with equal parts astonishment and distrust.

‘I suppose you have the animal well trained with the years at the stronghold...’ the mayor drawled. Damon gave a low growl.

‘Are you questioning my abilities to keep my dragons under control Mr. Mayor?’ Jason’s voice had suddenly become very cold. The mayor took an instinctive step backwards.

‘Of course, not sir! Forgive me, I meant no offense,’ he sputtered.

‘Perhaps it would be best to show me the field,’ Jason said in a clipped tone. The older man nodded hurriedly.

‘Y..yes. It is just down this road, a little way out of town.’ The swift walk did not take long. Lune could tell from the set of Jason’s shoulders that the knight was worried by just how close the towns people were to the field in question.

‘Stay here,’ Jason commanded the small group. A taller beefy man with a moustache raised his eyebrows. He looked as though he was about to protest so Damon let out a loud snort. The man’s eyes flicked to Damon’s yellow eyes and long teeth and wisely snapped his mouth shut, face red with anger.

The two dragons followed Jason into the field. Even at a distance, Lune could smell the charred remains of the humans over the pungent smell of sheep and manure. As they climbed a small hill, the soft lush grass gave way to blackened earth and clawed up soil. Jason face had become deadly serious. He walked around the site of the carnage, studying the ground.

‘The dragons never touched the ground. They had to be a decent size to carry so many sheep.’ Jason announced. Damon stood on his hindlegs, his massive frame towering over them as he peered at the surrounding landscape.

There is very little cover. The dragons would have had to come during the night. Fire breathers, obviously. Probably dark in colour, Damon rumbled across the link they shared.

How did they take a whole herd of sheep in one go? Lune asked in some alarm.

Jason shook his head. ‘I doubt very much that they did. The herd was in quite a panic, you can tell by the tracks. I’d say they came back multiple times, and the sound of the sheep’s panic is what alerted the boys. Dragon fire at such close range, they would have died instantly. The fire was hot enough to burn through soil and expose some of the granite underneath.’ Jason squatted down at the edge of one of the blackened depressions.

There was a heap of charred bones, so burnt that they had partly crumbled away with the wind. Lune watched, fascinated, and disturbed. He had seen fights between dragons before, but they mostly used teeth and claws. The fights he had witnessed were for mating rights, not vindictive pleasure.

This was... brutal.

‘Lune, is there anything you can tell us? Anything you can smell?’ Jason asked. Lune rocked on his feet. He didn’t want to come any closer to the bodies, but he came forward at Jason’s request. His feathers were fluffed out and the tip of his tail twitched, quills clattering together.

The smell of scorched meat, sheep waste and burnt earth was everywhere. At first, he wasn’t sure there was anything he could separate. As he padded about, breathing slowly, the wind changed and for the briefest moment, he was caught by a scent he almost recognised.

‘What is it?’ Jason stood up sharply. Lune shook his elegant head, the sunlight catching off the white scales. He wasn’t sure. He wasn’t sure what he smelt and yet the scent of it made him feel cold and small. Instinctively, he looked for Damon. The larger dragon came over to him and he pressed himself into the male’s side.

They took a slow lap around the large paddock then over the charred remains of the two bodies, but there were no other signs of attack. Both rider and dragon had to have a lot of skill to take the sheep without dropping any. Live animals moved around. As they were coming back towards the bodies, they could see Fredrick stomping towards them.

‘Anything?’ Jason asked. Fredrick’s scowl deepened.

‘Nothing. A ridiculous amount of nothing! Must have spoken to about two dozen people from kids right up to the elderly folk and no one heard or saw anything except the flash of dragon fire and the bleating from the sheep. Do you have any idea how much noise the wings of a dragon that large would make?! It’s insane that anyone could fly in an animal that big with no one being the wiser. Either they’re lying or something very weird is going on here!’ Fredrick barked, crossing heavy arms over his broad chest.

‘We were thinking something similar. Lune picked up something, but the scent is too little go off.’ Jason sighed.

‘Unfortunately, this town is a good stopping point for folk coming up from the coastal towns, on their way to the capital so it’s not uncommon for new faces to be seen,’ Fredrick grumbled.

‘Anyone new in the last few days?’ Jason asked without much enthusiasm.

‘A small family. Wife’s heavily pregnant, husband’s not much to look at. The innkeeper I spoke to mentioned a young man a few weeks back. He stood out to her cause of how young and quiet he was. Didn’t stick around though,’ Fredrick concluded.

Jason shook his head. ‘This is so much nothing,’ he growled.

The other knight nodded. ‘Best I can think of is to take to the skies and fly some loops to see if we can make out anything unusual.’

‘That seems a bad idea. That’s exactly what the squad were doing when they were taken,’ reminded Jason.

Fredrick snorted. ‘They were kids on fresh dragons. They never would have been here had the king thought they were in danger. We aren’t youngins to be taken by surprise. Where’s your backbone?’ Fredrick barked. Jason glanced at Lune and the other man followed his gaze.

‘Leave him here if you’re so worried about em,’ the knight suggested.

Jason’s expression turned sour. ‘I like that idea even less. Don’t like the way the villagers were looking at him,’ Jason growled.

Fredrick snorted. ‘Well, your instincts are good then. Not sure you want to know what these good folks do to earn their extra coin when sheep aren’t enough.’

‘The hells does that mean?’ Jason snapped.

‘They’re harvesters. This may be a pretty town, but they keep it that way with harvester coin,’ Fredrick said. Jason swore. Lune looked from one man to the other, baffled. Harvesting had to do with crops, didn’t it?

They farm too? Lune asked curiously across the bond link. Beside him, Damon snorted loudly. Jason winced and looked up at his white dragon.

‘No love. Not farming. Harvesting is the acting of butchering the bodies of dragons. It is illegal to hunt wild dragons but it’s not illegal to bring back the bodies of ones that have already died either by natural causes or fights during breeding seasons,’ Jason explained. Lune felt his stomach flip.

He suddenly had absolutely no wish to go back into the town.

‘Alright, let’s head back to Vulkan and start scouting,’ Fredrick announced. The party took one last look at the burned bodies and left. Lune was grateful to put the smell of death and fear behind him. He lifted his head to sniff but whatever scent had caught his attention was long gone.

--

‘Here is the list of those animals missing sir,’ the mayor said, handing a scroll of tightly rolled parchment to Fredrick.

‘Good. You may take care of the remains and pass on the king’s condolences to the families. We have finished our investigation here and intend to begin tracking the animal. Please tell your people to be more watchful and not to go anywhere out of the village alone for a while,’ Fredrick advised. Lune stayed behind Damon. Now that he learnt that these people cut up the bodies of dead dragons, Lune wanted absolutely nothing to do with them. Their eyes on him made him want to shrink to the size of an acorn and disappear.

‘It so strange sirs, we have never had troubles with wild dragons like this before,’ the mayor said anxiously.

‘It may be a food shortage in the forests that could be pushing the wild dragons further from their territories,’ Jason added. He sounded so sure and calm, Lune wouldn’t have known the man was lying. The man nodded, his double chin wobbling.

‘Yes, could be,’ he stuttered.

‘We must be going.’ Jason and Fredrick climbed back into the saddles of their dragons. Vulkan and Damon mantled their wings, ready to take off. The groups of townspeople waved. The three dragons took off, leaving the neat little buildings below them in a few powerful wing beats.

Back in the air, the creeping feeling of being watched and the dread of that place with its dead things and cheerful flowers faded into the background of Lune’s mind. He was glad to be leaving, even if they really hadn’t learnt much. They flew higher and higher in slow looping circles.

‘We’ll make camp by the mountain side tonight like last time and head back at first light with whatever we can find,’ Fredrick shouted. Jason gave the man a nod and wave before he; Damon and Lune went one way and Vulkan, and his rider went the other.

Damon snaked lazily back and forth in the sky, his head low so he could peer down at the landscape below. Thankfully it was a pleasant day. The sun was hot and there were no low clouds to hinder their view. Lune wasn’t really sure what they were supposed to be looking for but imitated Damon anyway. They flew over several herds of sheep in various pastures, a small herd of wild deer and several farms. The world below seemed very sleepy and picturesque.

There was an incredible kind of euphoria that came with flying. The air currents tugged on his wings and ruffled his feathers. The sun blazed down hot on his back and the wind was cold on his underbelly. He felt utterly free up in the sky. He could have almost forgotten the collar around his throat if not for the ever-present link he now shared with the man and dragon beside him. Once again, he wondered if some day, he could convince them both to leave with him, catch a wind and disappear into the wild landscape.

After about three hours of continuous flying, Lune was starting to get tired and a little hungry. They hadn’t eaten since they’d left the king’s stronghold. Whilst he had thoroughly enjoyed playing in the clouds and flying beside Damon, Lune was starting to lag behind. Before he could think to request a break, Damon began to dip lower at a silent command from his rider.

They landed in a small clearing, protected by craggy cliffs and tall trees. It provided a good lookout into the coastal valley below but would protect them from the wind. As they touched down, Lune stretched out his wings and bowed forward like a cat, arching his spine, and shaking the stiffness from his shoulders and joints. It wasn’t until he straightened up that he caught Damon watching him. The black dragon was holding dutifully still as Jason dismounted and took down the packs and saddle. It took some time to work free of the buckles and catches. When Damon was finally free of the tack he shook himself violently, looking like an oversized black dog.

‘I’m going to have the two of you shift. We don’t want to be seen and Lune, your colouring makes you look like an ethereal cloud,’ Jason said affectionately, reaching a hand up to his muzzle. Lune bent down for the pat. He could feel the warm affection coming from the link. He marvelled at it. His choice to fly with Damon and Jason today had left the human rider in a state of gratitude and awe that Lune had not expected. He snuffled Jason, smelling the scent of leather, iron, and cloves.

Beside them Damon huffed. The black dragon had scraped together a haphazard pile of dried bracken and timber. With a slight flash from Damon’s collar, he was able to expel his dragon fire. The campfire was rather larger than necessary and a lot hotter than a mundane fire. Jason groaned.

‘You couldn’t have waited a minute?’ he barked, leaving Lune to try and contain the small inferno. Lune felt the transformation and tried to brace himself for the unpleasant sensation of his entire being shrunk and condensed. He shivered violently; his human skin exposed to the elements. Damon was already digging around in one of the rucksacks and pulled out some clothing. Lune took it gratefully and got dressed, his fingers fumbling clumsily with the trouser ties. Damon took pity on him and tied them, stepping into Lune’s space.

‘How’re you feeling?’ Damon murmured. Lune blinked up at him with those gorgeous doe-like lavender eyes.

‘Fine,’ Lune said honestly. Damon smiled. He reached up a large hand but hesitated. When Lune stepped in, giving permission, Damon cupped his cheek. They shared a quiet moment whilst Jason bustled about setting up a proper camp. Jason set a quart pot over the fire and emptied one of the water skins into it. Whilst he waited for it to boil, he started to unpack the bedrolls and cooking supplies.

‘Nothing fancy tonight boys,’ Jason muttered as he poked some dried meat, stock powder and dehydrated beans into the softly bubbling water.

‘Never is when you’re cooking,’ Damon sniggered. Jason flipped him off and went back to his lacklustre cooking. Lune was rather looking forward to it. He had never had campfire cooking before. He was still feeling quite tired and stiff, so he sat down by the fire, leaning his back against the cool rock.

‘So, what did you think of your first mission?’ Damon jested as he came to join him.

Lune shrugged. ‘I liked the village until I found out they cut up our bodies,’ Lune said with a shudder. To his surprise, Damon shrugged one massive shoulder.

‘People have to eat,’ he grunted.

‘Doesn’t it bother you?’ Lune asked.

Damon shook his head. ‘Not really. Those bodies would be taken apart by scavengers regardless. The humans are just a bigger group of scavengers.’ Lune considered this but it still made him uncomfortable, so he changed the topic.

‘Do you like Vulkan?’ Lune asked. Damon’s head came up and Lune noticed a curl to Jason’s lips where he sat by his cooking pot.

‘He’s fine,’ Damon grunted, his tone definitely cooler than before.

‘Really? You don’t seem to like him over much,’ Lune pressed.

‘I don’t like him when he’s staring at your ass with an obvious desire to mount it,’ Damon ground out.

Lune snorted. ‘He was not. Besides, it’s up to me who I decide to mate with,’ Lune said primly. To his surprise Jason nodded.

‘You aren’t wrong. I may be many things but I’m not going to force you to mate any dragon you don’t wish to.’ The man said. The admission caused several feelings for Lune. The first was shock, the second was affection for the man and thirdly was an odd sought of guilt at the pain on Damon’s face.

‘Well then, Damon will just have to try harder to woo me,’ Lune said, only half joking. Damon raised an eyebrow.

‘Are you going to give me the chance? Perhaps you would like some lessons in the art of mating before you make your decision,’ Damon sniggered.

Lune’s cheeks reddened but his eyes flashed. ‘I’m not that young! I know how that works,’ he said waspishly.

Jason smirked. ’How that works?’ Jason teased.

Lune huffed. ‘Sex. Mating. I’m not stupid.’ Lune crossed his arms across his chest.

Jason’s smirk softened. He held out his hand and tugged Lune crosser. ‘No one is saying you’re stupid Lune,’ he chuckled darkly. ‘So then surely you have realised that different kinds of dragons would have different kinds of… equipment,’ Jason said.

Lune’s mouth slackened slightly. He looked from Jason to Damon. Damon’s grin was wide and toothy. ‘Well, I know they can be different sizes and-’ Lune’s voice had become squeaky.

‘I’m barbed love,’ Damon purred. The embarrassed flush on Lune’s face was steadily spreading down his neck and shoulders.

‘Barbed?’ Lune nearly choked on the word. Damon crawled towards him on all fours, making Lune flatten himself against the rock face until he ran out of room, and they were nose to nose.

’Yes, barbed. Don’t worry. I’ve never had any complaints so long as I’m careful and I will be very careful with you.’ Damon licked Lune’s jawline, feeling the smaller male shiver. Lune stared wide eyed as he tried to imagine what that might feel like…

Damon could scent Lune’s arousal, but he knew now wasn’t the time. Even if he really wanted to wrestle the little male onto his belly and mount him. Jason gave a low growl from deep in his chest. Glancing at his rider, Damon could see the outline of Jason’s erection pressing against the front of his trousers.

‘We need to eat and stay watchful for Fredrick and Vulkan,’ Jason grunted. He looked rather unhappy about his own decision. Damon sighed and reluctantly moved away.

‘If you insist.’

--

The sun was completely gone by the time the shape of a dragon appeared in the sky above them. Lune tensed but Damon only glanced once in its direction before announcing that it was Vulkan. The dragon landed and folded his wings in, Fredrick sliding from his back.

‘Anything?’ Jason asked. The older man’s face was a grim mask in the fire light.

‘You could say that. Found a few dead sheep right down by the water’s edge on the beach. Seems they carried out the kills over the ocean. There might be some merit to the attack coming from the Kingdom of Storms. There are quite a few islands out this way before the open sea with plenty of good spots to hide. It would take weeks to properly search them all.’

‘That just seems so ridiculous though,’ Jason growled.

‘Is it any more ridiculous than the attack coming from the Kingdom of Glass, our closest trading partner and ally? We have one lot of evidence saying it was em and now this, leading back to the ocean.’

‘The sheep were taken before we received a message for help,’ Jason pointed out.

‘Unless it was already known we were coming.’ Lune’s soft voice spoke up from beside the fire. ‘We already know an outsider was in the king’s stronghold,’ he added. Both knights seemed to consider this.

‘I don’t like this,’ Fredrick growled.

‘Someone is playing with us,’ Jason agreed.

‘So, you have been given very dubious evidence from two of the three kingdoms, why not suspect the third kingdom?’ Lune asked. Jason sighed.

‘I showed you the map. The Kingdom of Wind is on the other side of the mountain range. The peaks are so tall and the winds so violent that next to nothing makes it over and certainly not an army.’ Jason explained.

‘But it doesn’t take an army to kill a king,’ Lune pointed out.

Fredrick spat into the sand. ‘By the gods, pup, anything else you want to add?’ he snarked but Jason could see the older knight was impressed. Vulkan was apparently impressed as well as he wouldn’t stop staring. He had been allowed to remain as a dragon in order to provide them cover if they were attacked in the middle of the night.

‘We should get some sleep. It will be a long flight back tomorrow,’ Jason sighed.

‘Aye. We’ll take first watch,’ Fredrick said.

--

END

--