“This is a private conversation for now,” he said as he locked the door.
Miranda glanced at Eamon again before they sat down in the chairs facing the desk.
“It’s time for you to take on more responsibility,” Kennard said. “Tonight at supper I’ll officially pass leadership of Dracona on to you.”
“I don’t know what to say, Father. Why now?”
“Because you are ready and I am ready to turn things over to you,” Kennard said.
“We are so very proud of both of you,” Magda said.
“I want to show you some things about this office that no one else knows or remembers,” Kennard said as he walked over to the wooden dragon head that was mounted to the wall behind the desk.
Unlike the other decorations in the castle, this dragon was fierce with an open mouth and sharp teeth exposed.
“Come around here and put your arm down the dragon’s throat,” Kennard said and Eamon obeyed. “There are two levers. Each one opens a door hidden behind a bookcase.”
Soon the bookcase to the west opened exposing a second bookcase.
“This is where I have stored my personal journals. Many of these belong to your grandfather,” Kennard said as he opened it wider.
He shut the bookcase and Eamon pulled the second lever which opened the bookcase to the east.
“This one conceals an entire room,” he said as he opened it wider. “Your grandfather made all of this jewelry. Many might see this as wealth but to me its true value is in the memories it brings. There is a pin I want to give to you.”
He found the small round pin. It was a circle with a dragon in the middle of it. He handed it to Eamon.
“What’s this say on the back?” Eamon asked. “It looks like three words, but I can’t read it.”
“I’m not certain,” Kennard admitted. “I was told that it is a reminder of our duty as Lord Dracona to serve the people with honor. He said he had forgotten the language long ago. There is more.”
He picked up the rough stone box and piece of paper that sat on the end of one shelf.
“What is this?” Eamon asked as he set it on the table in the center of the room. “It’s just a square rock.”
“No, it’s a box. I don’t know what is in it, just that it must be guarded until it is needed to keep Dracona safe. Written on the paper is the key which must be memorized and passed to your son.”
He then carefully lifted the long wooden box from the shelf.
“These words don’t make any sense,” Eamon commented.
“It’s written in the language my father spoke before founding Dracona. He never would teach me more than a couple of words. Now this box is also to be kept safe until the day it is needed. All Father would tell me is that I should never touch anything inside the box because it will choose the man capable of wielding it.”
Eamon looked puzzled but gasped as Kennard opened the box to reveal the exquisite sword nestled in the fabric lining.
“Never attempt to touch it. It was forged in dragon fire the night before Malvin committed himself to the volcano.”
“How will we know who will be its bearer?” Miranda asked. “Certainly no one can claim it hidden in here.”
“I feel that the time approaches that it will be needed,” Kennard said. “What you do is up to you. I’ll help you with the proper pronunciation of the key for the box, but not anywhere near the box.”
Chapter Twenty Four: A Time of Change
Eamon looked up from his journal and rubbed his eyes. He was worried about his brother Rolfe. In spite of Eamon’s warnings, Rolfe had married a woman from the townspeople fifty years ago. Even Eamon’s son Bryant had told Rolfe it was a bad idea to marry someone so short lived, but Rolfe was determined. A knock at the door interrupted his thoughts.
“Come,” he said and Bryant opened the door.
“Are we going Father? Everything is packed and waiting on the horses,” Bryant said.
“Yes. I’ll be out soon,” Eamon said.
Bryant shut the door behind him as Eamon shut his journal. He soon had put it away in the secret bookcase. He was looking forward to this camping trip with Bryant. It would give him a break from his worries. He found Miranda waiting out in the courtyard with Bryant.
“Go and relax,” Miranda said after he kissed her. “I’ll take care of things while you are gone. Haskell can tell you if we need you back sooner.”
“Keep an eye on Rolfe and Emalyn,” Eamon said. “I noticed she has trouble staying awake and walking lately.”
“She’s nearly seventy,” Miranda said. “That’s older than most of her people live.”
“As much as I love Aunt Emalyn, I still think it was a mistake for Uncle Rolfe to marry her,” Bryant said.
They mounted up and rode out the portcullis into the town. Some of the people waved to them as they passed. The town had grown over the years and occasionally there were merchants that passed through. They reached the edge of town and took the path uphill into the mountains. At the top Eamon heard Bryant laugh just before he passed at a gallop. Eamon urged his mount to follow and they raced across the rolling field scattering the cattle. Being alone with Bryant always brightened his spirits.
‘Bryant enjoys it too,’ Haskell told him.
They slowed down as they reached the edge of the field. At the top of the hill they went around the rock outcropping to where they had camped before. Soon they had the horses unpacked and turned loose to graze.
“I love being alone up here with you,” Bryant said.
“I do too Son. It lets me forget about my duties as leader for a while.”
“Every time I do something with people my age everyone looks to me to decide what to do or to stop a fight,” Bryant said as he sat down. “It makes me uncomfortable.”
“You need to get used to it, Bryant. Someday Lord Dracona will be more than your title it will be your duty.”
“I’d be happy to be just one of the crowd for once. I don’t want to have to worry about taking care of anyone except myself and my family.”
“We don’t always get what we want. The people of Dracona need us to lead them,” Eamon said as he decided to change the subject. “I see you brought the practice blades. Want to have a duel?”
“Of course,” Bryant said as he quickly got to his feet.
As they dueled Eamon was having a hard time keeping up with Bryant. They tested each other’s skills for a while before Eamon disarmed Bryant. They drank some water and sat down to rest. They spent the rest of the day talking about trivial things and young women. He could tell that Bryant would soon be ready to choose a wife.
When Eamon lay down to sleep he watched the stars become brighter against the night sky. He remembered the times he had camped with his father and Rolfe. He wished Father was still alive to counsel Rolfe. When he slept his dreams were of the times he spent with his father and brother.
Eamon woke to find Bryant putting more wood on the fire. It was well past dawn.
“It’s about time you woke Father,” Bryant said. “You’ve been working too hard lately.”
“I know,” he replied.
“Do you think Haskell and Evelina will ever produce eggs? Other than Mackin they are the only dragons left.”
“They will produce eggs when the time is right is what Haskell told me,” Eamon said. “They need to keep the dragon population so the land can support them. When the queen dragon lays eggs it means they are ready to die. Evelina is not yet ready to die.”
Bryant nodded and began fixing breakfast. They spent another day camping before Haskell told him they should come home right away. It felt good to sleep in a soft bed with his wife again, but Emalyn was not doing well and Rolfe was distraught. Eamon fell asleep wondering what would happen when she died.
‘Wake up!’ Haskell’s voice had a panicked tone to it. ‘Emalyn has died and Rolfe is insane from grief! I can’t even get Mackin to respond to me!’
Eamon quickly dressed an
d grabbed his sword. He left the apartment and ran towards Bryant’s room. He saw Mackin with Rolfe mounted fly past the hall windows overlooking the mountain. Eamon pounded on Bryant’s door.
“What?” Bryant asked as he opened the door.
He seemed half asleep.
“Emalyn has died and Rolfe has gone insane! Get dressed and bring your sword!” Eamon commanded before running down the hall.
‘If we can’t stop Rolfe and Mackin people will die!’
He ran down the stairs to the open door of the caverns and mounted Haskell. As they rose into the sky they saw Mackin blowing flames as he dove towards the town surrounding the castle. Eamon realized that everything he knew was about to change forever.
Find out what happens next by reading Dracona’s Rebirth.
About the Author
Writing under the pen name V.J.O. Gardner, Valerie is an award winning author of full length fractured fairy tale fantasy novels. She has self published Blood of Ancient Kings which won an award in the very first contest she had ever entered. Her second book, Dracona’s Rebirth, is published by Ink Smith Publishing.
Always fascinated by both medieval times and sci-fi she was an avid reader and enjoyed a wide variety of literature and authors. She began writing in in the late 1980’s after graduating from Dixie State University in St. George, Utah, where she studied Fantasy Lit and Writing. Valerie is a member of the League of Utah Writers. Although she thought she was writing a short story when she began Dracona’s Rebirth it blossomed into the full novel it is today.
The good values Valerie was brought up with she instilled both in her children and in her writing. One of her first professional reviews commented that the story reminded him of the Boy Scout Law. While Valerie has been both a Boy Scout leader and a Girl Scout leader the story was written before then. You can visit her at https://www.vjogardner.com.
The Tales of Asculum and Map
A group of refugees stranded in the hostile snow covered north divide up hoping to find shelter on this world they call Asculum. All of the dragons and some of the people fly south in search of warmer climates while the rest of the people face a journey they are ill prepared for. They are lost and freezing as their leader urges them forward through the blizzard into the mountains for as a seer she knows that they will find temporary shelter there. They manage to stumble out of the snows into a paradise created by a ring of active volcanoes. Their magical talents become vital in building a city they name Glynis.
As they begin to settle into their new home their leader sends out small scouting parties to discover who inhabits this world. They find that while the people of Asculum look very much like them, they are a short lived primitive people. The people of Glynis learn what they can from these people without revealing that their past and magical abilities. They begin to make wagons and carriages for cargo and people. They even learn to make and use swords along with bows and arrows they’ve seen the people of Asculum using. As the people of Glynis search for a new home away from the volcanoes that could destroy their valley their past is forgotten.
It is in this environment that the Tales of Asculum are set. Each book is meant to be a standalone book involving a particular region of the planet and the characters that inhabit that region.
You would think the life of a prince would be great, but for the crown prince of Brinley that’s far from the truth. The only others near his age in the palace are children of the servants who all tease him for having no name. When he goes into the military he must conceal his identity but finally gains some friends. When he is sent to deliver a message to the overthrown tyrant King Burkhart he falls in love with the one woman he knows he can’t have.
Aurita knows everyone hates her and her father but everyone is forbidden to tell her why. What she does know is that for her and her father the village is their prison and to leave seals their deaths. King Langward controls their lives including who she will marry when she is of age but he is kind to her. When King Langward’s son sends her a gift her father teaches her to read and write so she can send him a note to thank him. They begin to exchange letters. As the years pass she looks forward to the letters she gets from the prince but doesn’t dare admit she has fallen in love with him. When she meets the handsome corporal sent to deliver a message to her father her heart is torn between him and the prince.
The last Lord of Dracona is a lonely man with a dark past who is thrust into unexpected responsibilities. He lives alone in an empty castle in the center of the deserted town of Dracona. He faces tasks that he has no hope of accomplishing on his own and no one to turn to for help. Lord Dracona’s story includes a nation in search of the answer to an ancient riddle and another nation in the grip of a tyrant king. When he falls in love with a mysterious woman he goes from desperate for companionship and purpose to overwhelmed by new responsibilities as new citizens begin to arrive.
The new King of Burton is in search of a wife but is dissatisfied with the spoiled princesses sent by neighboring kingdoms to court him. At a dear friend’s funeral he falls in love with a beautiful servant girl that had a life of slavery and abuse. Through their love and perseverance they are able to unite several kingdoms in peace.
In the dying kingdom of Mannton women are not treated as people. They work for scraps of food and sleep on woven mats that will become their burial wrappings. This all changes after Li is purchased by the king to provide him an heir. He soon finds that she is no ordinary woman.
For more information and social links see https://www.vjogardner.com/
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