Three Quest Deal (Tales of Former Dragons Book 1) (11 page)

Drakor awoke to the crow of roosters outside Damon’s house. The early sunlight beamed through the window. Everyone else was asleep, sprawled out on brightly colored pillows and other bedding purchased from the market.

“All right everyone,” Drakor said. “It’s time to get up.”

The group stirred and woke, with the exception of Aesus, who lay face up, snoring.

Drakor knelt next to Aesus. “Aesus, it’s time to get up.”

“I think he overdid it yesterday,” Tess said. “He did the tricks over and over again, until he was satisfied with them. He was barely able to make it inside to lie down.”

“Can you do anything for him?” Drakor asked Xan.

Xan whispered a few words. “Try now.”

Drakor leaned over. “Aesus,” he said in a loud voice.

“Let him sleep,” Tess said. “He’ll get up when he’s ready.”

“We can’t see the ringmaster without him,” Toshen said. “You might as well just leave him be.”

Drakor sighed and shook his head. “All right.”

Aesus awoke a few hours later, tired and grumpy. He sat up on the bedding and covered his face with his hands. “My head really hurts, and I’m so thirsty.”

“I can take care of the headache,” Xan said. She whispered a few words and waved a hand in the air.

“That’s much better,” Aesus said. He stood and walked to the table, where a simple breakfast of bread, water, and dried fish had been left for him.

“Do you think you’re ready for the ringmaster?” Drakor asked.

Aesus nodded, eyes half-closed.

“Are you all right?”

Aesus turned to look at Drakor and attempted to fully open his eyes, but couldn’t. “I need to go back to sleep.”

“Don’t. You need to see the ringmaster.”

Aesus nodded, stood, and went outside. He sat on a bench next to the house, leaned back against the wall, closed his eyes, and fell asleep.

Drakor stepped outside and saw Aesus sleeping on the bench. He nudged him until he woke. “Go inside and lie down. You’re in no condition to see the ringmaster. We’ll do it when you’re awake.”

Aesus dragged himself back inside, lay down, and was out cold within seconds.

“It’s not his fault,” Xan told Drakor.

“I know,” Drakor said. “I hope he’ll be back to his normal self tomorrow.”

When Aesus awoke the next morning, it was still dark inside the house. He stood, stretched, and carefully stepped over everyone to go outside. The air was slightly chilly. When he looked into the sky, he saw the setting seven-eighths moon. Drakor joined him.

“It’ll soon be the first full moon,” Aesus said.

Drakor nodded. “How you feeling?”

“It was careless of me to practice to the point of exhaustion. I didn’t realize how draining spellcasting can be.”

“Are you up to seeing the ringmaster today?”

“I’m ready.”

“Damon said he’s probably busy in the morning preparing for the mid-morning show, so you should see him after the show is done.”

“What if he doesn’t like my performance?”

“Don’t worry. Tess and Toshen say you’re amazing. Tess said she’s never seen or read about anyone who can control fire like you can. It must be because you were a dragon.”

“I wonder if there are more things we can do because we were dragons that we don’t yet realize.”

“Most likely. For now, just focus on getting into the show.”

Drakor woke the others, and they ate a simple breakfast of bread and fruit.

Xan glanced at Drakor while they were eating and noticed the top portion of the gemstone he wore around his neck was clear instead of black. She looked closely at it to make sure she wasn’t seeing things.

Toshen, sitting next to Drakor, noticed Xan’s interest and checked Drakor’s gemstone too.

Drakor leaned back, looked down at his tunic, saw nothing, and said to Xan and Toshen, “What’s wrong?”

Toshen looked at Xan’s gemstone. “Yours is clear on top too.”

Xan examined Toshen’s gemstone. “As is yours.”

“What’s going on?” Drakor asked.

“I never noticed it before,” Xan said, “but the top portion of our gemstones is now clear.”

Toshen called out to Aesus, who was sitting on pillows and eating with Tess. “Let me see your gemstone.”

Aesus stood and walked over to Toshen.

“His too,” Toshen said.

“What?” Aesus asked.

“The top of our gemstones is clear,” Xan said.

Tess strained to hear what the others were talking about. She got up and moved to stand next to Aesus.

Aesus frowned and looked at everyone’s gemstone. “Do you think it has something to do with the moon? If you divide the stone into three, it looks like the top third is clear. It will be a full moon in two or three days.”

“What about the gemstone and the moon?” Tess asked.

Drakor raised an eyebrow and glanced at the other former dragons. “It’s nothing.”

Tess rolled her eyes, shifted her weight, and put her hands on her hips. “You can tell me.”

“It’s best you don’t know,” Drakor said. “Let’s get going.”

The group arrived outside the entrance to the tent before the mid-morning show ended. They sat on benches lining the walkway into the tent, from which they could hear the crowd inside applauding, cheering, and yelling. When the show finished, they waited patiently as the crowd left the tent and dispersed.

“Are you sure we should wait here while the two of you speak to the ringmaster?” Drakor asked Tess.

“I’m sure,” Tess replied. “If you came in, it would look odd. Aesus is the only one performing.”

Tess grabbed Aesus’s arm and they both disappeared into the tent.

The ringmaster was talking to one of the female performers as Tess and Aesus walked toward him. He eyed them, and then dismissed the performer as they approached.

“Can I help you?” the ringmaster asked.

“Greetings. My name is Tess, and this is Aesus,” Tess said.

The ringmaster bowed. “I am Ringmaster Kai Laurent, at your service.”

“Aesus is a performer, and he would like to join your show.”

“I see.” Kai turned to Aesus. “Can you speak for yourself, Aesus?”

“I can speak for myself,” Aesus replied.

“Good, because I have no need for performers who need an interpreter. Straight to the point. What exactly is it you do?”

“I control fire with my mind.”

Kai raised his eyebrows and pouted. “Interesting. Very interesting. And how is it you have control of fire?”

“I don’t know, I just do.”

“Hmmm… I don’t have anyone doing fire at the moment. If you can impress me, I might consider adding you to the show. Step into the ring and show me what you can do.”

He sat in the third row of the bleachers closest to him and crossed his arms.

Aesus walked into the center of the ring and turned to face Kai. He looked at Tess and nodded.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” Tess said in a loud voice. “Introducing Aesus the Great, master of fire. His control of fire is greater than that of anyone in the land of men and orcs.”

“We’ll see about that,” Kai said under his breath.

Aesus placed his hand in front of him and created a small, rotating sphere of fire in his palm. He raised his hand, and the sphere enlarged to five times its size. He quickly lowered and raised his hand, throwing the sphere twenty feet in the air, where it remained suspended. While in the air, the sphere grew another two times in size.

He took three steps backward and the rotating sphere fell to the ground in front of him. As the fire continued to burn, Aesus raised his arms with his palms face down. The fire rotated like an inverted tornado and slowly grew in height. When the fire was twice his height, the fire slowly stopped rotating, and then rotated in the opposite direction. It reduced in height until it disappeared.

Aesus extended his arms at his sides, quickly moved them down to waist level, and created two small fireballs on the ground. As he slowly raised his hands, two fountains of fire rose to his palms and lifted him slightly off the ground. With the fire fountains moving with him, he flew once along the inside edge of the center ring, and returned to his starting point. The fire fountains died down, he settled back on the ground, and the fires flamed out. Aesus raised his hands in the air, signifying the end of his performance.

Kai sat frozen in his seat, wide-eyed and silent. After a moment, a big grin appeared on his face and he stood and clapped furiously. “Bravo, bravo!” he shouted. “I’ve never seen anything like that in my entire life. That was spectacular.” He stepped off the bleachers and approached Aesus. “You’re hired. You’re hired,” he said. “Can you start this afternoon? We have another performance then.”

Tess approached Kai from behind. “As you saw, that was no simple performance. It takes many hours of rest to recover. Aesus can perform again tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?” Kai echoed, disappointed. “Only once a day?” His shoulders and head slumped forward. “Fine.” He stood up straight and smiled. “Once a day it is. Be here for the afternoon show tomorrow. The orcs are going to love you. I—I mean we, are going to make a fortune.”

Kai Laurent sat at the small table in his wooden trailer and counted the intake from the previous day’s afternoon show. It was two weeks ago to the day since Aesus had started performing, and attendance had doubled. The ticket booth even turned orcs away.

“I’m going to be rich,” he said with a laugh. “Aesus will make me richer than I ever imaged.”

A knock at the door startled him. “Just a minute,” he said. He hastily swept all the coins from his desk into his gold chest and locked it. “Who is it?”

“There’s someone here to see you,” a female voice said. “I would hurry if I were you.”

Kai placed the gold chest in a larger chest and locked it. He looked at himself in the full-length mirror to make sure he looked presentable and then cracked opened the trailer door.

“An assistant to Grand Master Shaman Raah is here to see you,” the woman whispered.

Kai’s jaw dropped and his eyes darted back and forth. “Why does he want to see me?” he whispered back.

“I don’t know. You’ll have to ask him yourself.” The woman winked and scampered away.

Kai closed the door. “What would Raah want with me?” he said to himself. A firmer knock startled him, and he took two steps away from the door. “Who is it?”

“Is Ezra, assist to Gran Masta Shaman Raah to see yo,” said a loud, deep voice.

Kai rubbed his sweaty hands on his pants and took a deep breath. “Relax, Kai. Just relax. Everything’s all right.” Once he had composed himself, he slowly opened the door and stepped out of the trailer. “Greetings, friend. How can I help you?”

“Gran Masta Shaman Raah wants ta know bout da new fi-ya performa,” said the orc Ezra, who wore a hooded brown robe and a large circular gold medallion engraved with the image of the sun. “Where he come from? Why he here at Litta Kazzix?”

“I don’t know where he came from or why he’s here. He asked to join the show, I watched him perform, and I added him to the afternoon program. Is there a problem?”

“Masta not happy bout yo sayin’ Aesus is da best fi-ya controla in da land. Masta say you a li-ya.”

“Please tell him I mean him no offense. No offense at all. I’m just a merchant trying to earn a living. We only say these things to attract people to the show. Surely he must understand that.”

“So whatcha sayin’ is dat whatcha sayin’ not true.”

“Yes, that’s exactly right. Not true.”

“And dat dis Aesus is not da greatest fi-ya performa?”

“No, no. Not at all. Not at all. He’s just doing tricks.”

“Den why all da orcs talkin’ bout him, sayin’ he da greatest, wven betta den da masta himself?”

Kai raised his eyebrows. “Are they really saying that?”

Ezra nodded. “Masta wants ta know if it be true.”

“I have an idea. I’ll give you a free ticket so he can come to the show and see Aesus for himself.”

“Masta come see da Aesus. Make up his own mind. But you give me five tickets. Masta never go anyplace alone.”

“I’ll be right back,” Kai said, and disappeared into his trailer. He came out of the trailer shortly with five large blue tickets. “Here you go. And remember, Aesus only performs during the afternoon show, all right?”

“Ya, I got it. Masta goin come to da afta-noon show.”

Ezra bowed, and departed.

Kai sat down on a chair next to the trailer and let out a sigh of relief. He took off his hat, pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket, and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

“Things were going so well. And now this happens. So much for getting rich.”

Drakor and Damon stood within viewing distance of the pathway that led into the big tent, on the lookout for Raah. Two weeks had passed since Aesus had started performing, and while the crowd had significantly increased, there was no sign of Raah.

As the last orc made his way into the tent, Drakor leaned into Damon. “Maybe this was a bad idea.”

Damon shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know how else—Wait, there he is. You see that orc with the animal skull and feathered headdress? That’s him.”

Drakor saw a group of five orcs walking toward the big tent. The orc who wore the animal skull was surrounded by four orcs wearing dark-green cloaks with the hoods drawn over their heads. Raah wore a dark-green full-length feathered cape and carried a wooden staff. Atop the staff was a crystal.

“That’s no animal skull,” Drakor said as he clenched his fist. “That’s the skull of a Yassur flying dragon. They died out many years ago. The dark elves rode them into combat against the forces of man. Who are the four orcs walking with him? Are they also shaman?”

“I don’t know,” Damon said. “I’ve only seen Raah once before, when he walked through the market. He’s the only shaman I’ve seen who wears that headdress. The other shamans wear bear, wolf, or lion headdresses.”

“Then there’s a good chance that those with him are not shaman.”

“That’s a possibility, I suppose, but I wouldn’t count on it.”

Drakor looked at Xan and Toshen, who were standing on the opposite side of the pathway, doing their best to look inconspicuous. Drakor nodded to acknowledge the orc they had spotted was Raah. Toshen and Xan snuck into the tent through a flap on the side.

Drakor turned to Damon. “Let Aesus know Raah is in the audience. Then come back and meet me by the flap in the tent.”

“All right,” Damon said.

Damon returned after a few minutes, and he and Drakor snuck into the tent. Drakor sought Toshen and Xan, and found them hiding in the shadows. He and Damon also remained in the shadows, and from their vantage point they could see the audience and performers.

Raah and his entourage were sitting in a special section draped in red cloth and arranged in two rows outside the center ring. Raah was seated in a plush high-back chair with armrests in the front row between two orcs, and the other two orcs were sitting behind him.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” Kai shouted, “welcome to the greatest show in the land.”

The orc crowd cheered and hooted, and chanted Aesus’s name.

“I know all of you are anxious to see Aesus the Great, but we have other exciting acts that will amaze and astonish you. We also have a special guest today. Please welcome Grand Master Shaman Raah.” Kai extended his arm and gestured at Raah.

The orc crowd cheered and hooted, and chanted Raah’s name. Raah stood, extended his arms in the air with staff in hand, and slowly turned to face each audience section. His feathered cape parted when he raised his arms to reveal a large gold medallion engraved with an image of the sun hanging from a heavy gold chain.

When the pipe-organ parade music started, the chanting died down and Raah took his seat. The big tent performers, minus Aesus, entered the tent and paraded along the inner edge of the center ring.

After all the regular acts performed, it was time for the final act. When Aesus stepped into the ring, the crowd cheered and hooted, and chanted his name. When he raised his arms in the air to acknowledge their chanting, the crowd cheered and hooted even louder.

Drakor looked at Raah and noticed he wasn’t looking at Aesus; he was staring at the crystal atop his staff. It was glowing and emitting a faint white light. He saw Raah grimace, pound his staff on the ground, and stare intently at Aesus.

“That can’t be good,” Drakor said under his breath.

“What’s no good?” Damon asked.

Drakor looked at Damon. “It’s nothing.”

Drakor took note of Raah’s facial expressions during Aesus’s performance and saw awe, disbelief, and amazement. Raah’s jaw dropped when Aesus flew along the inside edge of the center ring.

When Aesus finished performing, he raised his arms and walked around the center ring. The crowd cheered wildly and chanted his name. He left the center ring, and the crystal atop Raah’s staff stopped glowing.

The final parade ended the show. The crowd left the tent, but Raah and his entourage remained. Drakor, Damon, Toshen, and Xan stayed hidden in the shadows.

Kai approached Raah and bowed. “Grand Master Shaman Raah, I hope you enjoyed today’s show.”

Raah cleared his throat and spoke in a deep voice. “Amazing show. Aesus is very powerful.”

“You speak our language very well.”

“I’ve had many years of practice. I want to speak to Aesus.”

“Aesus? You want to speak to Aesus? May I ask why?”

“Nothing to concern yourself with, Ringmaster,” Raah said. He grimaced, tightened his grip on the end of the armrest, and pounded his staff on the ground. “Where is he?” he demanded. “I want to see him now.”

Kai flinched and then groveled: “I’m sorry, Grand Master Shaman, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to anger you. Aesus is across the fairground, in the tent city beyond the banners, in a tent with a fire symbol above the entrance.”

Raah pointed his staff at Kai. “Do not forget you are a guest in these lands.”

Kai bowed his head. “Yes, Grand Master Shaman. Please excuse me. I have other duties to attend to.”

Raah grunted. “Be gone.”

When Raah and his entourage stood to leave, Drakor, Damon, Toshen, and Xan carefully exited their respective side tent flaps. Damon returned to his house and the others dashed toward Aesus’s tent.