The Journey 42.

Autumn. The Kingdom Of Terrindim. The Province Of Wilshaw.

"It's definitely coming our way" says Helbe the elven thief.
"Great" sourly says Mira Reinholt the mage as he looks off into the distance to the northwest.
Then they along with Jarjin Littlefoot the hobbit, turn and look at lord Farque.
The undead warlord mutters something in a language they don't understand.
Then in the common language he starts issuing orders to the captain of the Quick Gull.
As away to the northwest, a dragon is flying to the southeast. Heading straight for them.
The small, sleek looking airship originally from the Sultanate of Dreese, which lies on the east coast of the continent.
Rises in altitude as it's been flying close to the ground as they continue westwards across the province of Wilshaw this morning.
Once the Quick Gull is near a thousand feet up, and slowly continues to rise.
Most of the crew head below deck, as the lord and ruler of the lands Farque wants the deck clear, just incase he has to take some kind of action against the approaching dragon, and it's rider.
As Beldane the cleric, Tovis the war engineer, and Dalinvardél Tanith the elven spy, man the lines and sheets. As only the captain and helmsman, are the only crew members up on deck.
The once powerful mage, the elven magic user, and the halfling former air sailor move back to the aft rail, where the lord of the death realm is now standing.
"No use hiding who we are" quietly says lord Farque in the elven language, who continues with "That fucking dragon will read all your minds with ease".
The heavily armoured deathlord who is also known by the name of Draugadrottin to the people of his lands, then dryly adds "It just did".
As the dragon, the same large, burnt orange coloured one, they've seen previously in battle for the Balford faction, against the Golmard faction, is only a couple miles away, and is approaching at a fairly easy speed for such a naturally magical creature.
"I'll do all the talking" says the undead warlord, who continues with "I don't think they'll attack us" he then adds in a dry tone "But you can never be too sure when it comes to dragons".
The heavily armoured deathlord, who has the elven name of Des'tier, which means, The Destroyer.
Briefly reaches up and touches the hilt of his massive sword that sticks up over his right shoulder.
The others all know, that it's only the lord and ruler of the lands Farque who can deal to the dragon if it decides to attack them.
The Vexilian mage in exile, the young elven noble from the island principality of Laerel, and the halfling from the Sultanate of Dreese, who isn't what he seems to be.
Move out of the way, as the lord of the death realm walks over to the starboard side of the Quick Gull, as that's the side the dragon is approaching from.
Lord Farque leans upon the starboard rail, while the others up here on deck. Those from the Southlands, along with the captain and the helmsman from the Sultanate of Dreese.
Watch the approaching dragon, which with just few quick strokes of it's wings, comes alongside the small, sleek looking airship from the far east coast of the kingdom.
The rider in the saddle upon the large, burnt orange coloured dragon. A young woman, blonde, attractive, and taller than most Terrindiam women.
Looks at them, then gestures down to the ground, and obvious signal for them to land.
After a moment's thought as he contemplates if he should leap off the Quick Gull, and onto the dragon, and kill it and it's rider.
But since it didn't attack them, Lord Farque looks over at the captain and says "Head down, and land".
The captain of the small, sleek looking, single masted vessel that was previously in the fleet of the Sultan of Dreese.
Gives a few quiet orders to the helmsman, and the trio of Southlanders who are his acting crew.
The Quick Gull starts to drop down in altitude, while the dragon when it sees them heading downwards.
Starts to drop in altitude too, heading down in lazy circles, as it makes it's way to land near a dirt road that goes along the edge of some farmland.
The large burnt orange coloured dragon lands in a fallow field near the dirt road, and waits for the small, sleek looking airship originally from the Sultanate of Dreese to land.
"I don't think they're going to attack us" quietly says Jarjin Littlefoot in the elven language as the Quick Gull gets closer and closer to the ground.
"Probably not" is what the mage Reinholt quietly says "Most likely want to know where we're going, and what we're carrying" adds the spellcaster from the city-state of Vexil, who is also a highly skilled swordmaster.
Both the halfling who isn't what he appears to be, and the elven masterthief, nod in agreement with the once powerful mage, who like the two of them, are members of lord Farque's personal council.
The Quick Gull sets down upon the ground, about a forty yards from the large dragon in the Balford faction. Which has stretched out, as the morning which started off as cold, is gradually warming up.
The lord and ruler of the lands Farque looks at the others, and tells them "Stay here".
Then Draugadrottin jumps overboard, and walks to where the dragon and it's rider are waiting.
As he walks towards them, the heavily armoured deathlord sees that the dragon rider is younger than he realised. Still a teenager by the looks of it.
And even by the looks of it, the dragon even though it's fairly large for a dragon here in the kingdom of Terrindim.
It too is young. Well, young for a dragon that is. As the undead warlord, who can see life, as well as death. Can see that the large, burnt orange coloured dragon isn't even a hundred years out of the egg. Still exceptionally young for one of it's kind.
The rider has got off her dragon, and stands beside it. And waits as the large, heavily armoured deathlord walks towards them.
Behind the faceplate of his full helm, the lord of the death realm faintly smiles as he senses the dragon and it's rider are silently communicating by way of a spell.
And that the dragon feels confused, as no doubt it's unable to read the mind of the lord and ruler of the lands Farque. Who does not smell like any other human being to the dragon's sense of smell.
Draugadrottin stops just five yards from them, not afraid in the least, as the dragon raises it's neck and head so that it's looms above it's rider, as it carefully watches the heavily armoured deathlord.
Des'tier doesn't say a word, and waits for the dragon rider to eventually speak.
"Good morning" says Daeliss Komav the dragon rider, who doesn't know what to make of the large figure in the heavy steel armour, standing less than twenty feet from her and Sunbeam the dragon.
Who has told the commonborn dragon rider, that he's unable to read the man's mind. Unlike the others onboard the small, sleek looking airship that's nearby.
"Morning" is the reply of lord Farque with a slight nod of his full helmed head in greeting.
The undead warlord who is more interested in the dragon, than he is of it's rider. Waits for what she has to say. He has a fair idea what it will be. Nevertheless, he still waits for her to truly start the conversation.
"I understand you're foreigners passing through the kingdom" states the dragon rider in the Balford faction, who then adds "Heading westwards to your homeland?".
As Sunbeam has informed his rider, what those onboard the small, foreign made vessel are up to.
"That we are" says the lord and ruler of the lands Farque, who continues on with "Trying to keep clear of all the, shall we say troubles".
As he gestures away to the northwest, the direction the second fleet of the Balford faction have gone, as they pursue any of the enemy Golmard fleet that could be in this area of the province of Wilshaw.
The rider Daeliss, who figured as much, after all, that's what Sunbeam told her, after reading the minds of the others on the deck of the small, sleek looking airship, that her dragon tells her comes from the coastal nation of Dreese.
"Mind if we check your cargo?" asks Daeliss Komav, who as a dragon rider of Terrindim, has the right to stop and search any foreign vessel.
Shrugging his broad, heavily armoured shoulders, the lord of the death realm says "Sure go ahead" followed by "It's just supplies we've got below deck for our journey west".
The commonborn dragon rider from the western province of Halvarc nods her head, then starts walking towards the small, single masted foreign vessel.
Lord Farque looks at the others on the deck of the Quick Gull. And nods his full helmed head that it's alright to let the local dragon rider onboard.
Draugadrottin is just about to follow the young woman who is a dragon rider, but he decides to stay put near the dragon instead.
She glances back at him, to see if he follows. And seeing that he isn't, the commonborn dragon rider from the western province of Halvarc continues to the Quick Gull.
Where Mira Reinholt the mage, Helbe the elven thief, and Dalinvardél Tanith the elven spy. Have draped a cargo net over the starboard side, for the young woman, who is a dragon rider, to climb aboard.
After the rider Daeliss does so, and she's surprised at first by the appearance of the two elves. She's led below deck by the mage Reinholt, to inspect what the Quick Gull has in it's hold.
As the dragon rider is onboard the small, sleek looking, single masted vessel from the far east coast of the kingdom.
Lord Farque glances at the large, burnt orange coloured dragon who he knows is in constant contact with it's dragon rider.
"So beast" quietly says the lord of the death realm in the language of dragons "Is there a reason you've got such a ridiculous sounding name given to you by humans?" adds Des'tier.
Sunbeam the dragon looks sharply at the large, heavily armoured figure who has remained nearby.
The largest of the Balford faction's dragons is absolutely stunned that he spoke in dragon. A language that the dragons of Terrindim only speak to themselves with. And very rarely outloud, as they usually use it when they communicate by way of mindspeech.
Knowing that he's stunned the dragon, Draugadrottin continues in it's language with "Sunbeam or whatever they call you" followed by "What's your true name, your dragon name?" as he looks directly at the large, burnt orange coloured dragon.
At a loss for words for a few moments, Sunbeam the dragon eventually says in the language of his race "Who are you human?".
"It doesn't matter who i am beast" says the undead warlord, who continues on with "What matters is why you lot in this kingdom allow humans to ride upon your backs, and to give you such stupid names".
Taking a step towards the large dragon, whose attention he's well and truly got, lord Farque quietly says "Your real name, your dragon name, is three letters long, as all dragons are named so".
The heavily armoured deathlord, whose nation is in the western half of the continent, continues with "Search deep inside yourself, and find your name beast" the lord and ruler of the lands Farque then adds "Until then, you'll never truly be who you are".
"I've seen you before" quietly says Sunbeam the dragon, who crouches down low, like a cat about to pounce.
Remembering the battle further to the east and north in the kingdom, where Sunbeam and his rider, Daeliss Komav.
Was attributed the death of the enemy dragon Sunblaze, and the rider Cyril of the Golmard faction.
Even though they didn't exactly have anything to do with it. Just that they were the closest of the Balford faction dragons to it when it was killed.
Sunbeam blinks in surprise, which takes a lot of effort on his part. Since his eyelids are so large on him.
"You" murmurs the large dragon in the Balford faction as he's pretty sure he caught sight of the man standing near him today.
As he fell out of the sky during that battle. To land upon the back of the enemy dragon Sunblaze, and kill him.
"So you remember eh" quietly says the undead being who also has the name of Draugadrottin, which the people of his lands also know him by.
"Know that i can kill you, just as easily as i killed that red dragon by the name of Sunblaze or whatever it was called" says the undead being.
The lord of the death realm, steps even closer to the large Balford faction dragon, which looks sharply at the small airship that his rider Daeliss Komav is on at the moment.
"What do you want?" quietly asks Sunbeam.
"For you to remember who you really are" quietly says the heavily armoured deathlord, followed by "To remember you are a dragon, and not an overgrown pet wyvern".
"I'm no pet" hisses the dragon Sunbeam.
"Oh?" says lord Farque, who looks at the saddle at the base of the neck of the large, burnt orange coloured dragon, then looks at the Quick Gull that the dragon rider is on.
"You could of fooled me" adds the undead warlord.
With a thump of his tail, Sunbeam the dragon falls silent as he contemplates the strange human who can speak his language. And contemplates what he's told him.
Sunbeam like all the dragons of Terrindim, either ones like himself, whose egg was found in the wild. Or those whose egg was from a coupling pair, already in a faction.
Knows that their given name isn't their real dragon name. It's just that they can't remember what their true name is. A name they would normally know from the moment they hatch.
Lord Farque watches the large, tame dragon think about things. Then he looks to the Quick Gull, and sees the young dragon rider is back up on deck, talking with Mira Reinholt the mage.
No doubt, she like her dragon, remembers seeing the small, sleek looking airship previously in the battle near the town of Mormass further east and north in the kingdom, on the eastern border of the province of Smalsare.
The lord of the death realm looks back at the dragon, then as the young dragon rider who looks to be satisfied with things, makes her way off the Quick Gull.
Lord Farque changes languages again as he steps even closer to the dragon Sunbeam.
And though he took the large dragon by surprise when he spoke it's language, this time Sunbeam is totally transfixed, and mesmerized by the heavily armoured deathlord.
"Remember who you truly are beast" quietly says Draugadrottin in the language of the Greater Dragons.
He then steps back and out of the way, and the large dragon after a pause, shakes it's head, like dog waking up from a dream.
The lord and ruler of the lands Farque stands to one side as the young dragon rider makes her way back to her dragon.
"Everything to your satisfaction?" asks Des'tier in the common language when the Terrindiam dragon rider stops beside him.
Looking up at the tall figure, in the strange suit of full steel plate armour, something not seen here in the kingdom of Terrindim.
Daeliss Komav the dragon rider says "It is" then she gestures away to the northwest and adds "Try to keep clear of things in that direction, there's a war going on there".
"We will" says the lord of the death realm, who with a nod of his full helmed head, adds "And a good day to you".
In reply to the rider Daeliss saying "Good day" before she walks to her waiting dragon.
The undead warlord watches her mount the large dragon, and get up into the saddle, and strap herself in.
Then the dragon Sunbeam, who lord Farque sees, clearly has a thoughtful look upon his face, launches off the ground, and into the air.
It circles around the small, sleek looking airship on the ground, looking at the figure of the large, heavily armoured deathlord more than the grounded vessel, before flying away to the west.
Draugadrottin watches it for a few moments, wondering if it will remember who and what it truly is, before he walks back to the Quick Gull, and signals those onboard to get ready to depart, as they continue their journey westwards, back to the Southlands . . . . . .