A Rose Amongst the Dragons, page 4
part #1 of A Rose Amongst the Dragons Series
As Emma was lost in her fantasy of rest, she didn’t observe the small figures that had crept out of the forest. They quickly and silently made their way toward her. With her back to them, she stood smiling in the sun. She dreamed of the Baby Catcher attending her birth. She knew it would never happen; they couldn’t afford the Baby Catcher. It would be John with his dirty rough hands pulling the baby out of her body. She shivered at the thought. She returned to her daydream. The Baby Catcher would so carefully remove the baby, and then gently wrap the bundle in a silk sheet. She would carry the baby over to Emma and rest it at her breast. After the baby was safe she would bring in hot water and give Emma a bath in her bed. There would be lavender peddles in the water. The smell would be so relaxing that Emma would…
Suddenly Emma’s lungs began to burn, what was happening? She snapped out of her euphoria. Something was wrong, she could not breathe. Her lungs began tightening while she coughed and gasped for air. She dropped to her knees while her hands griped her chest. What was that smell? She had never smelt anything so revolting in her life. The deep coughing began again. With haste her head jerked up. She remembered the tales she had heard about the trolls. They had a smell so powerful it could kill. Emma jerked her head around and looked behind her shoulder. Her whole body stiffened. Fear cursed through her. About a kilometer behind her was a group of trolls. Emma’s breathing became labored. She began shaking. She didn’t know what to do, she felt almost paralyzed. In the back of her mind something screamed, “Run!”
Chapter 3
Almost a year had passed since Thelton had skinned the black horned cat. Thelton pulled his maroon bilaud over his chest and down the mid length of his trousers. He wrapped the fur surcoat over his tunic and clasped it with a golden broach, the broach had the kingdom’s coat of arms engraved upon it. As he put on the complicated attire, he thought, “What have I gotten myself into. Stuffy functions are not my thing.” He went to great lengths to avoid socializing with people. “Now I am going to be in the center of everything.” His head felt dizzy.
When he was fully dressed, he stood in front of the full length mirror.
“Yes indeed, I do look handsome,” he said admiringly. He ran his fingers through his shoulder length hair, flipping his head around while the sandy blond waves bounced with each movement he made. Thelton picked up the cream colored silk hat and placed it on his head while a few locks of hair slipped out the side. He couldn’t figure out if he should hide the hair or let it hang out. He had never worn a hat before. He decided not to put too much time into the decision, since everyone already adored him.
…
He marveled at the reflection of the scar across his face. No one else in the kingdom could say they had an encounter with the trolls and lived to tell about it. The scar added depth to his character. As he did another turn around in front of the mirror, a heavy knock ricocheted off of the thick wooden door.
“Master, it is time,” a stately voice announced.
“Go enthrall them, you hero!” Thelton said to his reflection. He picked up his favorite swords and secured them around his waist. He was then escorted to the balcony of the castle, the king stood there proudly smiling at Thelton.
“It is all for you, my fine boy.” The king said grandly. Thelton smiled and bowed. Princess Alashia and her younger sister Princess Stephanie stood to the left side of the king. Stephanie stood wide eyed as she looked down to the courtyard. She couldn’t remember ever seeing so many people at the castle before. She knew the people below were powerful people, but she didn’t care. Her thoughts shifted to wondering when the fireworks would start. Meanwhile, Alashia stepped forward effulgent and full of life. She watched every move that Thelton made, her heart felt like it would explode. He was so handsome, a very select man.
The king looked out over his people. He wore a red velvet robe, one that had been passed on for three generations. His heart swelled with pride, pride for his very own dragon slayer, pride for his tribute, and pride for his kingdom. He planned to unleash the biggest party that the tri-kingdoms had ever seen. The party was to honor Thelton on his twentieth birthday, the age a boy becomes a man.
Opening with a massive display of fireworks, the show continued for a full hour. Fireworks were a new thing to the kingdoms. Five years ago they had been developed by a wizard overseas. Since then, every time a kingdom wanted to celebrate, they paid good money to obtain fireworks. King Wolfgang proudly purchased the largest amount that had ever been sold in order to honor Thelton. The aerial show lighted the sky with a variety of colors, the display almost felt magical to many, bringing joy and fascination into their dull lives.
King Wolfgang leaned over to his daughter and said, “I remember when the King of Clotes had a firework display the previous year, his show had only lasted twenty minutes. Can you imagine the embarrassment on his face as he watches Andleburg’s full hour display? Everyone here will know I am the better king!”
After the brilliant fire show, the duke of Arlisaine announced the entrance of the very special birthday guest.
“Nobel families, influential friends, we welcome you here today to celebrate as a very special boy becomes a man, to celebrate in his twentieth birthday. Of course this boy has been more a man for years than the lot of us. Where would anyone be if it weren't for this rock of our kingdoms? He has protected our lives and our very freedom. He is the reason that we can walk the streets and feel safe. He is the reason that we have our homes and fields. He is our very lifeline. Let us all give a warm welcome and joyful greeting for The Dragon Slayer, Thelton of Andleburg!”
Although Thelton didn’t typically like being the center of attention, he decided to relish the opportunity. So he arrogantly walked to the edge of the balcony, his robust frame demanding attention, while six thousands guest gave out a boisterous welcome, he was their hero, his name known amongst every citizen within the tri-kingdom. For some, this was the first time they laid eyes on Thelton. He stood there with a fixed stance and looked over his birthday party, his conceit swelling within his chest.
He knew that every person was there to honor him. He raised his hand in the air and the crowd cheered louder. The noise fueled his vanity. He slipped his hands to his sides and withdrew his two swords. He thrust the emerald and golden sword into the air at the same time. The guest went wild. They shouted his name, they cried, they screamed, they loved him. Thelton did a little dance with his swords. He mimed a fight, causing the guests to scream louder in delight. He stood there for a few moments looking into the crowd, for his mind had drawn a blank, for he was out of ideas of what to do next. Embarrassed by his sudden awkwardness, he slipped the swords back to his side and then sent three kisses into the air and turned his back to the guest. Hastily he ducked into the castle. They loved him!
Later, the king personally escorted Thelton into the throngs of eager guests, many of them impatiently awaiting their turn to touch him, smell him, observe him, and talk to him. Men wanted to talk about their exploits with him, women just wanted to babble and gawk at him. The mindless chatter people used held no value to Thelton.
Thelton was so uncomfortable. “I need to leave,” he said to himself all night long. The party was his first large social affair, not counting his dinners with the king, and Thelton felt annoyance grow while he mingled with others. The more they sought after him, the more anxious he became.
“Will this night ever end?” he thought. He hated socializing with lots of people. He thought he could do it, but he was wrong.
As Thelton’s discomfort heightened, the king proudly took him over to the gift tables. There were four- three and a half meter long tables piled high with birthday presents; all for Thelton, while next to one of the tables stood; a stone statue of Demietha, the Goddess of Fertility. The statue reached twice the height of Thelton and each curve of her voluminous body had been carved in perfection. Thankfully the sculptor had carefully wrapped grapevines around some of Demietha’s more precious body parts. Sitting at the goddess’ breast were two baby cherubim.
“That, my fine boy,” the king said, slapping Thelton on the back. “That is a personal gift from my very own artisan.” The king gazed at the statue for some time. A chuckle roared up from the bottom of his belly. “If I am not mistaken, the artisan has a daughter your age. This very well may be an offer of marriage.”
The king’s comments made Thelton squeamish. He shifted his eyes away from the statue. “I need to leave,” he thought again. He glanced back at the statue. Whatever was he to do with it?
“Look over there, now that is a lovely gift.” The king pointed to a round table next to the four long tables. Elegantly displayed on top was a sterling silver tea set. There were 240 pieces in the shiny collection. “That is a gift from the King of Clotes. Yes, that is a mighty nice gift indeed.”
“Indeed,” Thelton said. However, he didn’t mean it. 240 pieces sterling silver tea set! “Imagine me with that!” He thought in disgust. He hated tea, and besides, he had no friends. Who would he use the tea set with? Or better yet, he wanted to know why he would use it? What was the King of Clotes thinking? What was anyone thinking? He lived a simple life. He was a hunter. He didn’t need all those gift. What would he do with them?
Overwhelmed, he wandered away from the birthday gifts. He started to feel his skin crawl, everything itched on him, the kind of itch that gets under your skin and there is nothing you can do for relief. Although he had loved the attention when the party started, he was beyond weary of the social gathering. Leaving the king and the gift tables, he found his way inside. The change of setting didn’t help, just more people, but now in a stifling room. He rubbed his tight jaw. Even though the party was planned to run through the weekend, he was done. He had to leave before his head exploded. As he went looking for his escape, the king came up to him and placed his arm around him yet again.
“There you are. I still haven’t given you my gift.” The king paused to let Thelton’s curiosity spike. “My gift to you this night, my fine Thelton, is to dance with my fair daughter. You will not find a beauty more divine than hers.”
Thelton’s stomach dropped. He hated women.
The reason he hated women was because whenever he went to taverns to get a bite of hot cooked food, he always heard the men tell stories about how their wives had changed their lives. Every man he met talked negatively about marriage and about being tied down to their wife. Even Gremell had warned Thelton to stay away from women. He had told him that if he always wanted to be free, then he would stay a lone man, a man that didn’t succumb to women. Thelton held to the words of those men strongly, for he loved his freedom and he feared that a woman would take it away from him. He especially tried to avoid Princess Alashia, for there wasn’t a visit he made at the castle where she’s wasn’t snooping around him. She always had to be near him. He hated her touch because it made him feel funny and it scared him. He also couldn’t stand how she was always whining about one thing or another. She wore layers of clothes and too much makeup. She disgusted him like all women did, but even more so because of how persistent she was with him. Since she was so appealing, he feared she would break him.
Away from the castle, he had made sure to stay clear of the feminine creatures, at times it was hard to do. He was the most sought out single man in the kingdom. Every mother fantasized about making Thelton her son in law. They all believed that their daughter would be the one that would capture The Dragon Slayer’s heart. He was a legend, and he was rich. Since the king offered 10,000 Tretos for every dragon that he slew, he had more money than any commoner in the kingdom. Every mother dreamed that her daughter would be the one that Thelton would spend his money on.
Because of the desperate women trying their tricks and games on him, he had to move his house often. As soon as a mother found where he lived, she would not let him alone, daily gifts would be left at his door. Suddenly his house would be the mother and daughter’s very walking trail. They would take walks three to four times a day in front of his house. Many a times a mother would appear at his door in distress, claiming her daughter had twisted an ankle, and would he be kind enough to aid them? When their visits became unbearable, Thelton moved.
The thieves never tried to find Thelton’s riches; he was way too respected for that. He commanded the respect of almost everyone around, everyone that was except for a handful of want-to- be dragon slayers. They despised his greatness, and up to that point, they never tried to cross his path. They knew they were no match for his skill. If he could bring down trolls and dragons, he could bring them down.
The little girls and young women dreamed of Thelton at night. Not only was he their hero, he was devilishly handsome at that. His arms were thick with bulging muscle, and he had a jaw that was square and tight. His almost black eyes lured people in, locking them in a trance. His features were perfectly aligned. There wasn’t a woman around that could resist being pulled into his charm and looks. He was aware of his affect on people and would use it for the small occasions it advantaged him, but then Thelton would quickly move on his way, because he had no interest in being stuck with friends, or a woman, ever!
Back in the ballroom, as the king presented the princess to Thelton, his temperature rose. He noticed her dress was baby blue and puffed up three times her size; however, her shapely figure wore the dress well. He noticed her globed on makeup and thought, “She thinks that stuff makes her look pretty, but I think she looks more like a court jester.” Her adornment of gold jewelry was enough to buy a small country. Thelton could feel his head cloud by her overpowering floral perfume.
He had to get out of there. Her perfume was killing him. He tried not to breathe through his nose. His gaze moved to the exit. He really didn’t want to dance with the princess. He could feel his heart pound, and his hands became clammy and cold, anxiety spiked under his skin. He never should have accepted the king’s invitation to a party. He glanced at the king who eagerly awaited him to dance with his daughter.
Thelton swallowed hard and placed his right hand on the princess’ shoulder and his left hand around her mid back. He escorted the princess to the middle of the dance floor and together they danced the Pharle’, the princess’ favorite dance. She tried to enclose the space between them, but he always kept as much distance as he could. The guests gathered around to watch. The men yawned in boredom, and all the women imagined it was them in Thelton’s fantastic arms.
Toward the last three rotations of the Pharle’, the king was detained in a security detail, which took him out of the ballroom for several hours. When he returned, he saw his daughter sitting with a smile of ecstasy on her face, her eyes full of lust. He looked around for Thelton, but couldn’t see him; thinking he was probably back at the table of gifts inventorying his loot. The king was proud of his tribute. With a smile on his face, he began to make his way outside. Without making it to the door, he became trapped in a conversation with the Duke of Travail. Soon Thelton was forgotten about, while the king made his social and security rounds. It wasn’t until later that night when they would discover Thelton’s absence.
Chapter 4
Trevor sat in the king’s throne as the next peasant family entered. There he granted audience to the people of the kingdom, meeting with them once a week. Usually first appearance was the Eleventh Advisor’s job, but Trevor had taken full responsibility for it. It was an all day affair as the lines outside the castle swelled with people bringing their grievances to him. By the end of the day, many were turned away who had not even had a chance to be heard.
Trevor loved the feeling of sitting in the throne. When he played advocate to the people, he felt all powerful and important. It was almost like a dependency in his system, for he craved that role almost night and day, not being able to think about much else.
“Sir Trevor of Andleburg, First Position Advisor; my name is Peter of Andleburg, and I come to you with the utmost humility. I am from the Whells section of the kingdom, and I come as a spokesman representing all the people there. We are struggling, sir. Five years ago when the tax was raised to 50%, we almost crumbled at such a burden, but we never complained and we always paid our taxes in a timely manner. We support the crown and we do not wish to complain, but when the taxes were raised to 60% of our increase, well sir, it is just more than we can handle. Many of my people have had to sell their land. We are poor and we have nothing to eat.”
“I am well aware of the unreasonable tax burden you carry. What is the purpose of your visit?” Trevor asked.
“Well,” Peter said looking away. “I just don’t think we can meet such a payment. Why must….why must the taxes be so high?”
Unexpectedly, Trevor climbed off the throne and walked down to Peter’s side, where he put his arms around the peasant’s shoulders. “My heart bleeds for you and your people. It really does. I agree that your tax burden it way too high. I have tried multiple times to talk to King Wolfgang about it. I have pleaded for my people, but the king is greedy. I must apologize for the new increase. It really is my fault, for when I last approached the king about lowering the taxes back to 25%, he decided to punish the kingdom by raising it another 10%. I am sorry. I wouldn’t dare speak badly about our king, but he is greedy, and he hurts his people for his own pride. I am sorry.”
Peter felt uncomfortable to have Trevor’s arm around him. It also made him nervous to hear Trevor slander the king’s name right there in the king’s throne. He had heard that the First Advisor loved and looked out for the people. He had really hoped that something could be done by him to help his people. Maybe his unexpected affection would lead to something good.
“Listen, I hurt for you. I want the best for my people. I will try every chance I can to get the king to lift your tax burdens, but I must be careful, for I don’t want him to raise it on you again. But, while we wait for that time to happen, let me lift your burden slightly. How many people are in the district of Whells?”
