Requiem's Hope (Dawn of Dragons) by Daniel Arenson Read Free Book Online

the
dragon spoke, the same high, soft voice emerged from her jaws.
    "You see now why I fled Eteer. Why he hunts me and Laira. Why he
hunts Sena." Suddenly Issari blinked, looked around, and tilted
her head. "Where is Sena? Laira . . . where is our brother?"
    Jeid fell silent. Laira—the young woman stood nearby among her
fellow Goldtusk hunters—lowered her head, and tears streamed down
her cheeks.
    The white dragon stared from side to side,. Tears welled in her own
eyes and flowed down her scaly cheeks.
    "Is Sena . . ." Issari trembled, scales clattering, and
lost her magic. She knelt as a human, raised her head, and cried out
hoarsely. "Sena!"
    Laira rushed toward her sister and embraced her. They whispered soft
words to each other, weeping together.
    Jeid was about to approach them, to try to speak comforts, when a
hand grabbed his arm. He turned to see Alina, the young druid. She
stared at him from the shadows of her lavender hood. Her eyes, the
same color as her raiment, seemed to shine with inner light.
    "My king, I have prayed to the stars, and their light has shone
before me, illuminating a secret in the west. More hide there."
Alina pulled back her hood, revealing long auburn hair that cascaded
around her pale, oval face. Strings of beads hung from her staff,
chinking in the wind. "Rumors of dragons in the west travel
across the land, not only in the whispers of stars but also the talk
of men. We must seek their aid if we are to fight."
    Laira approached slowly, still holding her sister. She stared at
Jeid, her eyes now dry, and spoke in a voice both hard and brittle
like a sliver of granite. "In the north too there is aid for
Requiem. The Leatherwing tribe rules there upon Two Skull Mountain.
They ride creatures they call pteros—flying beasts with no feathers,
their bodies smooth and their snouts long, creatures as large as
rocs. For many years, the chieftain of Leatherwing tried to marry his
daughter to Chieftain Zerra, to forge an alliance between the two
tribes." Laira raised her crooked chin. "I slew Zerra. I am
now Chieftain of Goldtusk. I will forge an alliance with Leatherwing
and we will fight the southern menace together."
    Jeid stared at them all, one by one. His children, Maev and Tanin,
who approached with drawn blades. Laira and Issari, grieving sisters.
Dorvin and Alina, two newcomers to their kingdom, already as dear to
him as the others. A score of others, wanderers come home. They all
gathered around, staring, awaiting his words.
    I lead them all, Jeid thought. And I must protect them all.
I will not let Requiem perish.
    He addressed the crowd.
    "We've tamed the rocs of Goldtusk, but now a new enemy rises, an
enemy more powerful than any we've faced, an enemy that threatens to
crush Requiem. And we must leave this place." Murmurs rose from
his people, and Jeid spoke louder. "We will not abandon King's
Column nor our dream of Requiem, but this is not our battlefield. We
must seek aid, and we must strike back against this cruel king who
sends forth his evil. Three paths now lie before us. We must split
into three groups." He paused for a deep breath. "We must
seek more Vir Requis in the west. We must forge an alliance with the
Leatherwing tribe in the north. And finally . . ." He turned to
stare into Issari's eyes. "We must travel south, place Issari
upon Eteer's throne, and command the demons back into the Abyss."

 
 
MAEV

    She
crossed her arms and spat. "No. I refuse. It's not going to
happen."
    Her father grumbled and his beard bristled, making him seem even more
like a grizzly bear. "You will do this, Maev. I'm not asking
you. I'm commanding you. As your king and father."
    Maev snorted and turned away from him, thrusting out her bottom lip
in defiance. "I obey nobody. And I refuse." She drew her
sword. "I fly north with you. I fly to find the Leatherwing
tribe, to fight in a great battle, to—"
    Jeid grabbed her and spun her back toward him. Rage twisted his face.
"Maev, listen to