Davie the Mage (Generations of Eredwynn Book 2) (26 page)

              The guard fell in twenty yards behind us and I signaled them to stay put. Niruth moved to a hundred yards away and said,
“When I get close, say thirty yards or so away, raise your hand as if ordering me to stop.”
He laughed in our heads, enjoying whatever game he had in mind. He blew a blast of fire into the air, roared and charged toward us. It was a very intimidating sight and I was tempted to shield us, in case our friend had lost his mind! When only thirty yards separated us, I raised my hand as he’d instructed. Niruth slid to a stop, reared back on his tail and bowed low. He then settled himself back on all fours and rested on his belly.

              I could hear the awed whispers from the guard behind us, and Niruth spoke again,
“How about a kiss from my Queen. I’m sure the guards behind you will love that!”
Mira grinned and walked toward Niruth, and he lowered his head for his kiss. There were gasps and whispers from the guards, and I knew that the story would be all over the city by nightfall.

             
“Now, Mage, here is why I’ve come and made all this commotion. You are well aware of the overcrowding problem I’m having with the orcs. It would be easy enough for my fellow dragons and me to thin them out, but I do have a heart, and even orcs have a right to live. There is a huge landmass south of the pixie forest, and I would like to relocate several thousand orcs down there. The problem is that they would have to move through Elven, Pixie, and Centaur land. All three of those groups have a well-deserved animosity toward the orcs. I’d like for you to try to talk to them and see if they can be convinced to let them cross.”

              Mira said, “While we were down there on our honeymoon, I made friends with the pixies. I’m sure they would listen to me if I made a request on your behalf. Davie spent days with the centaurs in his mind, and he could probably get through to them, but neither one of us know the elves. If there was a way I could get to the pixies, then Davie could go to the centaurs. We could meet back at the pixies’ and decide what to do from there.”

              I nodded and the dragon lisped, “My Lady, I’d be honored to carry you to the pixies’ forest. Your husband could get the camping gear you humans need and go to the centaurs. That is, if your husband will entrust your care to me.”

              I laughed, “Niruth, there is no one under the stars that I would trust her safety with more than you. I know that you care for her and will take good care of her. Mira, I’ll meet you before nightfall so we can set up a tent at the pixie clearing.”

              Mira was excited and nervous. I kissed her and she said, “So, how exactly are you going to carry me? Those claws look a bit dangerous to be picking up fragile, little me.”

              Niruth laughed and the guards all jumped, “Just climb up on my front leg and I’ll lift you to my back. You can sit where my neck meets my body and grab my neck scales there. I’ll do my best to fly smoothly, but get a good grip on takeoff and landing. They tend to be bumpy, regardless of how I try to be smooth and gentle.”             

              I was a bit concerned. “You have done this before with humans, haven’t you Niruth?”

              “It’s been a few hundred years, maybe a thousand, but I have a good memory. I’ll be careful with our young lady, my friend Mage.”

              Niruth lowered his leg to the ground and Mira climbed on, holding on as best as she could. He raised his leg up slowly beside his neck and Mira pulled herself over by his scales. She found a good seat where she could get a grip and grinned. She thought, so she wouldn’t have to yell,
“I’ll be fine. Go grab a pack, bedding and a tent and I’ll see you soon. I love you, husband.”

              I nodded and said, “Please be careful, Niruth. I know you will, but I just have to say it again.”

              He nodded. “See you soon, my Mage friend.”

              I backed up next to the guard, while he walked the other way to get some distance between us. He slowly spread his enormous wings and thrust down, while pushing himself up with his hind legs. He was airborne and circling to gain some altitude, and then he headed south.

              The captain of the guard approached me. “My Lord, did we just see you talk to a dragon, the Lady Mira kiss a dragon and then just fly away with it?”

              “Yes, you did see all those things; your eyes didn’t deceive you. The dragon wanted Lady Mira and me to negotiate a temporary peace between the Orcs, the Elves, Pixies and Centaurs. He wants the orcs to move south, and they will have to cross their lands.”

              “Had you seen that dragon before?”

              “He is King Niruth and is the ruler of No Man’s Land, to the south. Yes, I’ve met him before.”

              “When he charged and belched fire, I almost passed out and started preparing to die. Then you raised your hand and stopped him. We all knew that you were a powerful Mage, but we had no idea that a dragon would listen to you!” The captain and the rest of the guard bowed low and looked at me with a new found awe and respect. I figured it wouldn’t hurt, and let it go. I told the men they could return to their posts and I ported inside to locate someone to put together the camping gear I needed.

              I made my request to a passing maid and headed upstairs to let Baissel and the other girls know that I was going out of the country for a few days. Baissel agreed to handle any court matters that came up that needed attention. She had taken charge before and knew how things were handled even better than I did. I was hugging my consorts goodbye when there was a knock on the door. A couple maids delivered the pack that I’d requested with bedding and a tent. They’d also included food and water that would last several days, just in case I’d need it. I thanked the ladies; they smiled and curtsied before heading back downstairs.

              I went in my closet and changed into a hooded robe that I’d worn until it was perfectly white. In my imagination, it was how I thought a Mage should look on formal occasions. I turned up my magical glow and smiled as the cloth picked up the magic and caused the light to radiate softly all over. I turned the light down and walked back into my room.

              Baissel grinned, “Big brother, if you’re going somewhere that you have to make an impression, you sure picked the right clothes. No one would doubt you are what you say you are, wearing that. That robe definitely makes you seem very magical and powerful for some reason.”

              I chuckled. “That’s the look that I was going for. I have to convince some centaurs and elves to do something they may not want to do. I’ve had little experience with elves, and what I have had usually gets me punched in the arm! I’ll just try not to call them gnomes when we’re talking.”

              Baissel shook her head and punched me in the arm. “That might be a good idea. Just remember that they are an old race and don’t like change. My mother broke the rules and was banished, but I’m glad she did. It gave me a wonderful family, even if I’ll never get the chance to learn much about my Elven heritage.”

              I picked up the pack and slung it across my shoulders, wondering how long it would take to turn white. I told everyone goodbye one last time and focused on the area that the centaurs had set up as their research camp. They’d been there for years, so there was no reason to think that they wouldn’t still be there. I ported myself a mile away so I could walk into their camp. Just showing up would be rude and I didn’t want to get off on the wrong foot.

              As I entered the clearing, I knew that they had sensed me coming. They were lined up facing the spot that I entered, and they all bowed in recognition. I walked forward and they came to meet me. The females were looking behind me, in the hope that I’d brought Mira with me, and were disappointed not to find her. Glonall the leader came to me and left the others twenty yards behind.

              “Good day to you, sir Mage. To what do we owe the honor of your visit this time? Is it time to continue with your education or is there something else that we can do for you?”

              “Glonall, I was wondering if you could speak for your people, or if I would have to be shown another place to go. I have a request from King Niruth and it would involve all the Centaurs, the Pixies and the Elves as well. I hoped that you would be able to give advice on how to approach the elves, since I have no experience with them.”

              Glonall looked concerned. “The king has a request that he sent you to deliver? I just wonder why he didn’t come himself. He has in the past, and would be welcomed.”

              I shrugged. “Perhaps he wants this request honored without your people feeling intimidated. Even his presence seems to intimidate most people, except my wife, of course.”

              Glonall laughed, “Sending a Mage to be less intimidating? The King knows as well as we do that a Mage could be even more intimidating than the dragon! We know your power, young sir, and would bow to any order you gave.”

              “I suppose he knew that, but he also knows that I’d make it a request and not an order. So, do I speak of this with you or will you tell me who I should be speaking to?”

              He sighed, “I can speak for my people. I am, however, already concerned about this request. What is it that the dragon king asks of us?”

              “The barrens are becoming overcrowded. The King told me that he has discovered a land south of your land and the Elven lands that are uninhabited. He wants to relocate a large number of orcs to this new area and would have to have them travel through your land. He would like your permission and the permission of the elves, of course.”

              “How many of those filthy creatures did he plan on moving though our lands?” asked Glonall, already on the defensive. “And how long would we have to tolerate them? Would there be guards in place to make sure they were on the paths that were assigned to them?”

              “All the details of Niruth’s plan weren’t given to me, but since Mira and I received the mark, we’ve had no trouble with the orcs. They seem to obey the King and I have every reason to think that they would do as he instructs them.”

              Glonall sighed, “Since it is the King’s will, we will submit. We will have our own guards along the route that the orcs will be taking, but just to report. Even a centaur doesn’t like the idea of a fight with an orc. They are ferocious in combat and can take and recover from incredible damage.”

              I bowed. “Thank you, Glonall. I’ll pass what you’ve said on to Niruth, with your permission and your concerns. I have to meet Mira at the pixie clearing and see how her negotiations are going, and then on to the elves in the morning.”

              Glonall chuckled, “It was good to see you again, Mage. Good luck with the elves; I fear you’ll need it.”

              I didn’t like the sound of that, but nodded my thanks and ported near the pixie clearing.

Chapter Nineteen

            
 
I
ported back to the pixie clearing full of misgivings. The centaurs had been hospitable enough, but the comments about the elves bothered me. I wondered if they would really be as difficult as the centaurs had made them sound. I’d known the centaurs for a while now and knew they were very intelligent and they’d never given me bad information.

              Mira was happy to see me. “So did things go well with our half-horse friends?”

              I laughed. “It went really well and that might have been because I didn’t call them our ‘half-horse friends’! They did warn me that the elves would be more difficult to convince. I wonder what Niruth will do if we can’t convince them to let us through.”

              Mira shrugged. “I guess he’ll figure out another way. He doesn’t seem the type to give up once he has an idea in that giant head of his. The pixies weren’t thrilled about this either, but agreed with the condition that they could have guards watching along the path. Those magic bows they have would convince any strays to get back on the right path.”

              “Yeah, the centaurs are going to do the same. With all the hostility that we have from everyone, it’s going to be a stressful move. It will take about ten days to get everyone through to the open land that Niruth has picked out. I suggest we get some sleep and then locate the elves in the morning.”

              Mira nodded her agreement and we set up the tent. While she was laying out the bed rolls, I went to chat with Translucia for a while.

              She grinned when she saw me walking toward her. “Well, hello, my giant firefly! You’d better come over and say ‘hi’ to me before starting your nighttime activities.”

              “I’m afraid that with all the stress involved in the project Niruth has us working on, we won’t be in the mood for scaring the bears tonight,” I confessed.

              “Young man, hasn’t anyone ever told you that the best stress relief is to sweat it out? What better way can you think of than taking your beautiful wife into that tent?” asked my pixie.