Chapter 364: Gone But Not Forgotten

Chapter 364: Gone But Not Forgotten

Dragons are meant to be majestic beasts. Savage and cruel, but noble and full of elemental fury. Who doesnt love a painting of a dragon in flight or battling some lone knight? Even those Chinese dragons that look a bit shit (I know, cultural differences and all that, but long worm with tiny limbs just doesnt quite do it for me) have a certain level of magnificence you dont really see in the real world.

Wild animals have an innate ability to impress us, even if you look at a tiger in a cage you can feel how easily it could rip you to pieces, but we still like to add an extra layer of ridiculous to our fantasy beasts. A tiger with wings and a snake for a tail? Now were talking.

Which made these dragons all the more disappointing.

Not that they were without a kind of astonishing presence. When you saw them glide around the sky, they did have a kind of I hope it doesnt fall on me quality to them, but it wasnt the sort of glamorous, gold scales and red fire you get from your CGI dragons.

You expect fake reality to be better than the regular reality you get at home, but youd hope real fantasy would still top Hollywoods special effects. Sadly not.

As I got to the beach with my small party in tow, and a group of islanders straggling along behind, the scene out in the bay became more apparent.

The dragons were circling the Council ship. There were half a dozen of them, big and heavy-looking. They werent really attacking the ship, they were just making sure it couldnt sail away. The deck was covered in sailors running around, but I couldnt tell what they were trying to do other than shit themselves in as many places as possible.

There was one dragon who had managed to perch itself on top of the main mast, which prevented the sails from being unfurled.

You might think a dragon wrapping its lithe body around the tallest mast would be quite a sight, but youre probably imagining a slinky creature with sinewy limbs ending in elongated talons, its tail winding around the lower part of the mast all the way to the deck, the tip swishing from side to side.

That would look cool, certainly.

What I was seeing was a rather fat winged dinosaur with its flat hoof-like feet embracing the mast in a big hug. It looked like it might fall off if it didnt hold on as tight as possible. I couldnt be sure, but it also appeared to have its eyes tightly shut.

The other ship, the Eternal Infinite, was anchored next to the Council ship, but was more or less ignored. There were no dragons trying to stop it from sailing off. If I could reach it, we could probably be on our merry way without any fuss at all.

The only slight problem was that the boats that had brought us ashore were no longer waiting on the beach.

The arrival of the dragons had probably sent them scurrying back to the ship. I could understand their desire to not be left behind on the island if the ship had to leave, but now I had to find another way to get on board.

What now? said Laney. She threw Richina down onto the sand where she lay bound and struggling. Do you wish me to summon a dragon to take us to the ship?

To be honest, I had rather hoped not to bother the dragons or anyone who might be riding them. If I could slip away like a coward, Id happily do so. The thing about being called a chicken was that it didnt hurt nearly as much as being stabbed in the face by an angry girl whose boyfriend youd killed (twice).

But there wasnt really any obvious way to get out to the ship. We could swim, but Richina was deadweight and had a high chance of drowning, and Biadet was still looking the worse for wear. It would be a struggle, to say the least.

Okay, I said. How are you going to call one over?

I was interested to see what device she would use this time. It turned out the method was rather more basic.

Hey, dragons! Over here! Laney screamed at the top of her lungs. The dragons, unsurprisingly, ignored her. I command you to obey me.

She waved her arms about and stamped her feet. After all this time, her ability to assume she was just more special than everyone around her had not dimmed in the slightest. She was the kind of girl who never changes she doesnt improve at all, not one little bit.

What are you doing? I asked her. Dont you have a magic instrument or something?

Why would I need one? I am a princess of Fengarad. All creatures of this land are under my dominion. Ahoy, dragon! Attend me!

A dragon that had circled a little wider than the rest, approaching the beach before turning back, gave us a cursory glance. If it had actually come down to pick us up I wasnt sure Id be able to stand the smug look on Laneys face Id have to endure, but the dragon ignored her command and flew back towards the ship.

You will be sorry, dragon, she shrieked in a rage. I will not forget your face.

There was nothing else to see. I did a quick tour below decks (of both ships), but I didnt find anyone else of note. Nobody in the middle of planting a bomb or stealing the secret papers that explained everything.

No Flossie. No Jenny.

I made my way back to the beach and returned to my body. Time continued like nothing had happened, like my actions had no effect or meaning. Same as usual.

I think she wants to say something, said Laney, indicating Richina on the floor.

I propped her up and removed her gag. Release me. I began to put the gag back. No, no, wait. I wont try to escape. I promise.

I guess a persons word used to be worth something. Now, it was just a way to trick people into doing what you wanted. What happens when someone breaks their promise? Is their reputation ruined? Nope. More than likely theyre seen as a savvy operator.

Your promise isnt worth anything to me, I said. Youre a liar, and youre a failure. If you cant offer me anything better than a promise, theres no reason to give you anything.

There was nothing badass about the way I said it. I wasnt trying to dominate or bully her. Whether she meant it or not, there was just no point to loosening her bonds, other than common human decency. So no point at all.

Wait, she screamed as I tried to get the gag back in her mouth. Theres a boat. I stopped, waiting to hear the rest. Over there. She motioned with her head down the beach. Show him, she said to the islanders.

The islanders who had come with us didnt look very keen to show me anything. I was the least popular person on the island, by quite some way. The dragons were showing no signs of stopping their feast and nothing had gone well for them since Id arrived. I could see why it might look like I was to blame for their woes.

This way, said one of the islanders, deciding it would be better all round to just get rid of me.

The gag went back in her mouth. Ill wait to see if theres an actual boat first, I said in response to the look she gave me.

There was indeed a boat, hidden in between some rocks. More like a canoe, actually. I shoved Richina in and the islanders pushed us off. The relief in their faces caused by my departure was both obvious and insulting, but I couldnt blame them.

There were two paddles. I had one, Laney had the other. She was a maniac when it came to any sort of competition, so we kept veering to the right as she insisted on out-paddling me.

We reached the Eternal Infinite without much trouble. No one was too worried about our little vessel with the dragons tearing through the heavens. We clambered aboard, Richina now untied. Not because I trusted her, or even to pay her back for the boat, but because its bloody impossible carrying someone up the side of a ship.

I went to stand next to Captain Somya and had the horrible feeling someone was clawing through my brain with dirty fingernails. When I looked over at the other ship, Claire was standing in the bow looking right at me.

He isnt dead, she shouted across at me. He knew this would happen. He told me what to do. Ill bring him back.

I didnt know what she expected of me. I hadnt just killed Maurice, Id eviscerated his body. Perhaps there was a way to bring him back, this was a fantasy world after all, but I wouldnt even know where to start. I just nodded.

She glared at me. There was no accusation in her eyes, no blame, just fire.

There are supposed to be five stages of grief, but I think they can easily be condensed into one. Denial (fuck no), anger (fuck you), bargaining (for fucks sake), depression (fuck me) and acceptance (fuck it). All of those can be reduced to the old favourite: Fuck everybody.

As someone who has experienced loss, I can confirm its a valid replacement for all the emotional ups and downs death of a loved one brings. I saw it in Claire then, consuming her.

Claire stepped off the ship. Before she even fell below the rail, a dragon swooped down and she landed on its back. And she was gone.

No explanation, no exchange of information. Whatever shed come to do, it apparently had nothing to do with me. And she didnt feel the need to fill me in. The dragons rose up to leave, including those on the island.

I was once again left to my own devices, which was fine by me.

The ship I was standing on creaked, shivered, and then collapsed. The masts fell, the timbers parted, the vessel returned to the wreck it had been only recently. Whatever magic Cowdrey had used to put it back together was no longer working, and the water engulfed us.