Hello Fellow Readers
I hope your week has been as productive as mine has been. One project done, one nearing the end stages, and another waiting in line. Things are going well, though I haven't had much time to do my own writing. Luckily I scheduled some time to work on my stuff next week. Looking forward to it!
Anyway, today the Saith royalty get to meet the Human royalty. It's a bit of a tense read, as Myla and Doran have to come face to face with their first Dekai since their run-in with Edzeeker years earlier. We are ramping up to the end of Book 3 and it's going to be a doozy! However, Book 4 is in the making, and the Fell Dragon is awake, making it a lot of fun writing from their view. Plus more on Bolx's history, which I'm slogging through.
But until we reach that stage, you all have to read through today's update! Have fun!
The festivities were starting a week earlier than what Saasha would have wanted but she allowed the populace the chance to be happy. They had been at war and suffered, they needed the time to rejoice and feel at peace. These Games were going to be outstanding. Both Royal Guard generals as well as the Commander were competing which was sure to bring in extra onlookers to the Games. The Saith borders were open for the first time in three years and finally, trade was able to commence with nothing getting in their way. Shipping and trade, Saasha hated dealing with that paperwork, but she also knew that trade was the lifeblood of any planet, and she was glad it was finally flowing smoothly once more.
Slowly the dignitaries of the nine other non-Saith competitors had arrived and now she was waiting for the humans to join. She had been somewhat concerned when vandalised posters of Saita had been distributed, calling her the bringing of destruction and the beast of Karesh yet instead of an actual threat it had been a bunch of children trying to stir trouble before the Games. The soldiers had given them firm warnings as well and informed their parents of the behaviour. It was clear that the crown was not going to tolerate anything going wrong with the Games.
Yet, she was still concerned as she waited for the humans to arrive. She had promised them protection, but she was not sure how far she could actually go to protect them. She had heard back from Siar, Larden, and Mertz about the feelings of the Guard about having the human brought onboard and the results were unanimous. No one was going to stand having someone, anyone, just placed on the Guard. She had suspected this would be the answer. She could not think of that now as Larden signalled that the humans had arrived.
Saita would have to prove herself in another way before those of the Guard would accept her as one of them. Then there was Jethron, who had arrived a few days ago, bringing news of Shannon being too ill to travel so it would be just him and Brucel joining from the other planet with a handful of the other Guard. She had wanted to see Shannon and her new grandchild but when Jethron explained that the wasting disease was starting to emerge she had gone cold in terror. Things were moving too fast, and she did not want to be the ruler that all this happened to.
“What I wouldn’t give to have you here now Pakaz, Bahn. You two would have known what we could do to stop this.” She muttered as she got to her feet.
She stepped forward to greet Lord Pura with a handshake before bowing to Queen Myla and the soldier Doran.
“Welcome to my planet.” She said in her best-rehearsed human that she could.
If the humans were surprised, they didn’t show it. They were somewhat shorter in stature than most Saith and Saasha was concerned that they would be intimidated but Pura showed none of that as he said. “Thank you for welcoming us so warmly.”
“You speak Saith?” she was momentarily shocked.
“I had to learn, fast. Allow me to introduce Myla Karesh and Doran Meedus.”
“You will need to excuse my curiosity but what are the second names for?” Saasha was still unsure how the second names in humans worked.
“Family names, Your Majesty, usually the father or husband’s name,” said Doran with a bow.
“Ah yes, that’s right. Our second names are usually given to us by royalty and then it is usually of some importance. Rarely are family names inherited, though there are exceptions to this rule. Come, we have a lot to talk about. I will have the servants take your belongings to your rooms. Did you bring any soldiers that I need to be aware of?”
“I decided against it.” Said Pura. “Just us.”
“Very well.”
She then led them through to the council room where Jethron, Brucel and Siar were all waiting. Doran and Myla stiffened when they saw Jethron and went deathly pale.
“We are aware that you may have had a run-in with one of Jethron’s kind.” Said Saasha as she sat down. “He is not the one you are thinking of so please relax.”
Pura sat down with a sigh, but it took Myla and Doran longer to relax as they continued to stare at Jethron with distrust. Larden closed the doors behind them and whispered in his mother’s ear before she nodded her head and said to the rest of the group. “Mertz has declined to join us. He says he is seeing his mother and father who are not well. I will inform him of what we spoke about after this.”
Myla removed an envelope from a bag she was carrying and looked at Pura hopefully. He sighed heavily and said, “I am going to allow it, but I have not overturned my ruling yet. Understand?”
She nodded and slid the envelope to Saasha. The Queen took it up but didn’t recognise the language that was written on the cover. She held it up and asked. “What is this?”
“A letter from Karesh to Saita.” Whispered Myla. “I may not speak to her yet, but King Pura has allowed for the letter to be given to her as Karesh no longer speaks.”
“I was unaware that Karesh was suffering from this.” She held the letter towards her son. “Will you give that to Saita tonight?”
“I can but I do not know if she will read it.” He said.
Myla’s already sad face dropped even more.
“No doubt about that.” Said Pura. “You knew this was a possibility Myla.”
“Alright then. Introductions.” Saasha pointed to her red- and black-haired son. “This is Larden Royal Guard, my eldest son, the Dekai is my adopted son Jethron, the dark-haired young man is my youngest Brucel Royal Guard and the lovely lady on the end is my sister Siar and you already know who I am.”
“Is there a reason for this song and dance?” asked Doran before Pura could fix him with a dirty look.
“I have not been known for song and dances.” Saasha put a cube on the table. “I am having this meeting for a purpose, and it is behind closed doors because I do not want what I have to say to leave this room.”
She tapped it and the black image with the white holes started appearing. Pura paled and looked at her in shock. “It is this bad already?”
“This was it a month ago.” Said Saasha as she tapped the cube.
The white was considerably smaller.
Jethron frowned deeply and looked at his mother. “I was unaware it had grown so much.”
“What are we looking at?” asked Myla.
“We are looking at areas where planets are dying, dead or have disappeared.” Said Siar. “And the numbers are growing daily.”
“The Fell Dragon.” Said Pura.
“Yes.” Larden nodded his head. “And it is coming for Saita.”
The humans looked at him as he tapped the letter on his shoulder.
“What?” Doran was pale.
“Jethron, can you explain?” asked Saasha.
Jethron got to his feet and explained about the weapon inside Saita and its purpose. The more he spoke the whiter the humans got until Doran pushed his seat away from the table and turned to Pura in a rage.
“I warned you!”
“Calm.” Said Saasha softly. “There is no need for yelling. I am old but I am not deaf.”
“How can any of you be so calm about this?” Doran pointed to Jethron. “That is a Dekai. A Dekai did this to Saita!”
“A Dekai.” Said Jethron holding up a finger. “One, not the race. This was not planned by my people.”
“Before you plan to yell at him let me just inform you that he is the ruling king of the Dekai.” Said Saasha softly.
“Does she even know you are here?” Continued Doran.
“No,” said Larden. “I am yet to take my brother to my home to see our family.”
“What’s that got to do with the price of apples?” Demanded Doran.
Siar snorted then with a smile translated. “He means to say what does that have to do with anything.”
Larden’s upper lip curled into a grin, and he chuckled. “That’s funny. You’re funny. I like you. I see why Saita likes you too. She is a guest in my home, and I have been looking out for her since she stepped foot on this planet.”
Myla let out an audible sigh before saying. “Thank you!”
Larden nodded his head. “We were concerned about how she would react if she saw another Dekai. She knows he is here, but she will not approach him, and I respect her enough not to take Jethron home until she is ready.”
Jethron tapped the cube twice and brought up the image of Saita. “Your daughter has a weapon inside of her that was placed there by Edzeeker. Why her is something only he knows. We need to get him here and explain why?”
“You think I haven’t tried hunting him?” growled Doran. “I cannot find him.”
“We know of someone who can.” Said Brucel. “The problem comes in that we need to bait the trap.”
“You want to use Saita.” Said Myla in shock.
“It is her or her son.” Said Doran as he nodded his head. “I assume you haven’t told the girl any of this yet?”
“If she knows that she is the bait I don’t think Edzeeker will come.” Said Jethron. “He is far smarter than that. If he wasn’t he would have gone for her son a long time ago, but you humans have been clever. The boy continually moves from family member to family member. He can’t track him, and you do not keep a pattern that he can decern. This is good.”
“You seem to know quite a lot.” Doran looked at him with distrust. “How can we trust you?”
“How can we trust you?” demanded Siar. “I lost a brother due to your mad king.”
Doran clamped his mouth shut and crossed his arms. “Done talking now.”
Pura sighed and said, “Things have been turbulent the last two years, forgive my people. I should have done better.”
Siar tapped her head and then said to Doran. “Most of us in this room are what you would call mind readers. We know what your surface thoughts are Doran. I know you are worried about Saita, but she is well and being taken care of. She has been shown the love and respect that she has missed being apart from her family. But you must understand that the world we live in is in peril and the only link we have to find out anything is through Saita. It is that simple.”
“I have failed her so many times.” He muttered. “I had to serve in the past but now I refuse to. All I want is to see the girl.”
“You will not be able to talk to her.” Said Saasha softly. “And she will not be able to talk to you. Is that what you want? To stare at her while she is forced to walk away?”
“Your Majesty,” started Pura. “I have spoken to my advisers, and they agree that the girl was punished far too harshly by me. If she can get our two races to agree to peaceful terms, then I will be allowed to bring her home. But I fear that the time spent away from us may have hardened her heart and if I agree to this and she is hurt, I could never forgive myself.”
“I will do everything in my power to make sure nothing happens to your cousin, your daughter, and your charge.” Said Jethron. “Once I sense Edzeeker I will be able to trap him. Saita is in good hands.”
“I wish I could believe you.” Mumbled Doran.
One of my favourite parts of this piece was Doran saying “What’s that got to do with the price of apples?”
I have no idea where I heard or read it, but it's a phrase I often use myself, and tends to confuse people for a second. I thought I'd add it for a good giggle to anyone else who may know where it came from.
Next week Jethron is to introduce himself to Saita. Any bets on whether sh'ell try to kill him?
Book 3
For those of you just joining us, please note that this the third book in the Fell Dragon series. Follow this link to read the two earlier books:
Fell Dragon Book 1
Fell Dragon Book 2
Start of Book 3 here
As the series continues, it will combine with another book series I wrote. To avoid confusion about what is happening, introductory chapters will be introduced separately so that you don't have to be lost. However, these chapters will contain spoilers. You can find these chapters here:
Races Explained
Banishment
Royal Guard
Saasha’s Direct Family
If you want to join the Reader's list, just ask or follow me for updates on this and my other stories.
Reader's List
Haven't read the other parts yet? Follow these handy links:
Part 29>>You are Here>>Part 31