The next few days were miserable.

It rained regularly, and they trudged through the mud. It wasn't long before they were soaking wet and filthy. Estela insisted they move, and droplets of water soaked their cloaks. At the same time, they had several more near misses with the undead. Here, Ajax's wolves proved invaluable in driving them off, bouncing their howls around.

But a choice between neverending tides of undead and howling wolves did not help Relma sleep. Food soon ran short, so they had to ration it. Relma, of course, was the one who did the rationing since she'd learned the trick from Ronald. Said food was largely dried things given by Escor and anything but tasty. Rainwater was all they had to drink, and it had a foul taste.

Of course, soon enough, they were missing it. The rain stopped suddenly, and they walked through parched and dying woods. Soon, their mouths were dry from the heat, and everyone felt bleary.

"So what now?" muttered Estela as they journeyed.

"There are some villages near here," said Ajax. "If we make for them, we should be able to get some help and supplies there. But it's a few day's journey out there, so we'd better make our supplies count."

"Relma, can you pass me your water skin," said Estela, voice parched.

"Yes," said Relma, offering it to her.

Estela took it and drank a mouthful. "We'll each take a mouthful and move on.

"You next, Relma."

Relma drank it, then passed it to Ajax, who shrugged. "I've already got a water skin, and I'm not sharing it with any of you."

"Right, sorry," said Relma.

Estela looked annoyed at this. Meanwhile, Relma opted to pass the water skin to Jomas and then Wrynncurth, who refused it.

"Oh, no need to worry, I don't need to drink," said Wrynncurth. "Not for a very long time.

"Jomas, you have the rest," said Estela.

Jomas drank it, nodding. Then Estela looked to Ajax. "Now, Ajax, we need to get to somewhere with water."

One of Ajax's wolves spoke to him, and Ajax glanced at him. "He says there is a stream near here. Come on, we'll find it."

On they went until they came to the stream. It was mostly dried up, but there was still a bit of water flower. They had a hard time filling up their canteens as they did and ended up sticking around there for a while.

"This place has been getting steadily worse," said Ajax. "All the undead wandering around is sapping the life from this place. Where they walk, life weakens."

"Wonderful," said Estela. "And there's no end to them, either. How is anyone still alive in this place?"

"My kin are actually very impressed," said Ajax. "We've killed a lot of undead. As far as I can tell when they die, the life energy they sap is restored to the land. We've probably done a lot of good for the environment."

"Isn't that what happened to the Dusk Lands?" asked Relma. "All the undead that were raised there sapped away the lifeforce of the land."

"More or less," said Estela. "That and Adrianeth's invasion."

"Finish up," said Ajax, filling his canteen. "I've been scouting out this whole place. These ones came out of the ground in several critical areas. I've set my wolves watching; they'll give me a howl if anything comes out of there-"

And then there was a howl.

"That sounds like a howl to me," said Wrynncurth.

"Ah, so they're retreating," said Ajax, smiling.

"Retreating?" asked Relma. "Undead do that?"

"Yes, fleeing back through a passage east of here, into the Road of Ancient Stone," said Ajax. "We must have done enough damage that their handlers don't want to risk losing anymore.

"Even the hordes of hell have limited numbers."

"Perhaps Father could use those passages to invade the enemy stronghold," mused Estela.

"Don't you remember the last time we had a showdown in the Road of Ancient Stone?" asked Ajax. "Relma led Lucius' army straight to us."

"Yes," said Estela. "And we won. As a result, we are now far stronger."

Ajax sighed. "Fine, have it your way. I'll send Arengeth the details in my next report.

"What is your goal anyway? Conquest?"

"We're on a quest to find the Dragonfire Shield," said Relma. "It's held by the Conquista of Anoa, which is set on an island."

"Oh sure, great, that's great," scoffed Ajax. "More Harlenorians."

"What do you have against us?" asked Relma.

"Nothing at all," said Ajax. "I'd just hoped that if I was going into a realm no one had been in centuries, it wouldn't be more of the same. Isn't there anywhere Anoa hasn't invaded?"

"Probably not, no," said Relma. "I haven't heard of anywhere he isn't well known.

"He was the greatest King who ever lived."

"Well, I'm not sure about that," mused Wrynncurth. "He was great, but I haven't met every King."

"I guess not," said Estela.

They walked on, and things began to improve. There was more green beneath their feet, and Ajax was able to find some animals to hunt. The leaves on the trees became far greener as well.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"The woods are changing; the land is becoming less tainted," mused Estela.

At last, however, they got out of the forest and saw before them the village.

The village before them was not like those in Escor. The buildings were made of white stone and had slanted roofs with red tiles. The fields around them were prosperous and green, a marked contrast to the woods from before. People were working in the fields.

However, there were also men standing by with spears and shields. They bore silver wooden necklaces around their necks that showed a dragon claw. But some spell of Wrynncurth let them evade their watch.

"Here we are," said Ajax. "For what little value human civilization is. Honestly, can't you just warp the trees into natural buildings like normal people?"

"No," said Estela. "Nature sided with the elves. Our civilization was founded by setting fire to nature. They'd have starved us to death if we hadn't ruled by terror.

"And we're still not fond of them."

"I am," said Relma.

"Yes, but I make the decisions," said Estela. "In any case, I haven't seen that kind of roof design before. How do they afford the shingles?"

"They don't usually build new structures," said Ajax. "My kin tell me that most villages use the same buildings through multiple families. Dragon Lords own the houses themselves, or so I think. Sometimes, families are evicted and replaced with new ones.

"Most wolves don't understand how civilization works. We don't particularly care either."

"Then why do they obey you?" asked Relma.

"Because I'm superior," said Ajax. "Their master by nature. I bring order to their universe and tell them how best to survive."

"Isn't that civilization?" asked Jomas.

And then Relma saw something. It was a huge circle of stones, and within it were several circles of people. At the center were a number of beautiful women clad in red silk dresses. They were chained to the ground but not struggling. Around them was a circle of men standing where they were, older and very fit. Then there were a series of less impressive-looking people, all of them injured, old, or sick. Among them were deformed children.

Wearing only a loincloth, a priest stood on the outskirts, flanked by guards. He spoke harshly, and Relma tried to make out the words.

"What is that?" asked Relma. "Some sort of ceremony?"

"I can understand them..." said Estela.

Little by little, Relma began to make out the priest's words. "Great one, take these maimed, bold, and maidens! Release their souls from their broken forms through cleansing fire! Let them be found worthy of your form!"

"Oh, that's the sacrificial pit where those fed to dragons are born," said Ajax.

A cry could be heard, and Relma's throat went dry. "Is that a baby? They're sacrificing."

"Oh, yes, I guess they're planning to eat the child," said Ajax. "Probably deformed at birth or something. Better than starving to death, I guess. It's just nature taking its course."

Suddenly, there was a roar. From the air came a huge dragon. Relma had seen Red Dragons distantly during the siege of the Pass of Dragon Bones. But up close, they were like what she'd expected Wrynncurth to be—only far larger and far more terrifying.

"We can't just stand here," said Estela.

"I shouldn't do that, Estela, old girl," said Wrynncurth, smoking his pipe. Where had he got the tobacco? "Not unless you mean to alienate their society and raise the children yourself."

"I know, but-" began Estela.

A gust of wind swept through their hair as the red-scaled beasts descended, flapping their wings. As it landed on the ground, the ground beneath their feet shook. The beast breathed flames downward, and Relma could feel the heat. There was a scream, and in an instant, the entire ring of stones was ringed by infernos.

Red energy surged from the ring and into the beast who roared skyward. As it did, the flames dissipated, and no trace of those who had been within was there. The dragon gave Wrynncurth a scornful glance, then turned and flew away.

"Well, Evren's certainly grown up since last we met. Let's not tarry," said Wrynncurth. "We've introductions to make!"

And he began to make his way toward the circle. As they did, one of the guards saw them and drew his sword. "Halenorians! Ring the alarm and kill them quickly! They must not interrupt the ritual!"

"No need for that, we're here on behalf of Queen Vanessa?" said Wrynncurth.

The guards looked at one another. "...They speak our language. How?"

"Queen Vanessa can allow men to speak with outsiders and the reverse. It may be that they are those we were told to look for," said the priest. "What were you doing in the Woods of the Dead?"

"Fighting undead," said Estela flatly.

"But why were you doing that?" asked the priest.

"They attacked us," said Estela,

"But what were you doing in the Woods of the Dead in the first place?" asked the priest.

"We're Running from the undead that attacked us," said Estela. Now, she was deliberately infuriating the man.

"...You aren't making this easy at all," noted the priest.

"We are here on a quest for Queen Vanessa," said Estela flatly. "To retrieve the Dragonfire Shield. In exchange, we hope to gain peace between our peoples."

"How did you get in here in the first place? And what is that monstrosity behind you?" asked the priest.

"My name is Adrian Wrynncurth, truth be told, an old friend of Queen Vanessa," said Wrynncurth. "Jolly good to meet you, old chap. May I ask the occasion of this ritual, and your name?"

"I am Brandus," said the priest, donning a robe. As he did, he glanced back to where several other people were being led out into the circle. "Behind me are those who will be sacrificed to Lord Bryag when he arrives."

"Ah, so Bryag has come to rule this place," said Wrynncurth. "Jolly, it's good to know he managed to take control of himself."

"Well, in truth, Lord Bryag has no domain or hoard of his own," said the priest, looking away.

"No hoard?" asked Wrynncurth. "There must be some mistake; he was entitled to nearly half of what was passed to Vrengar when I was last here."

"Yes, well, things have changed since then," said Brandus. "It isn't my place to discuss the matter. Lord Bryag is now given a tribute of captives in exchange for guarding the river leading into the land of Durag. He'll come to the aid of these lands and others in exchange for this tribute."

"And who does rule this land?" asked Estela.

"This is the domain of Lord Evren," said the priest. "I'm not supposed to oversee this sacrifice. Priests only oversee their own Dragon Lord's sacrifices. To do otherwise is disrespectful."

"Who are all these people you're sacrificing?" asked Estela.

"Criminals are in the outer regions," said Brandus. "The maidens are tied within the second circle, and in the third are people of no use. Evren doesn't want any humans who cannot pull their weight remaining in his villages-"

All of a sudden, darkness fell over the sun. The wind died down, but a noise like thunder echoed through the air. Relma gazed upward and thought momentarily that she was looking at a flying continent. But it was a living creature.

"It's Lord Bryag!" said Brandus. "Get back! Get back!"

They ran backward, and Bryag descended from the clouds. As his feet were planted upon the ground, Relma staggered to keep her feet. As he rose, his eyes like fire, the clouds parted from his wings' beat. A whirlwind seemed to be rising from them, and her hair was flying behind her.

Then he unleashed his flames.

The blast was contained within the circle. And yet as it struck downward, Relma recoiled at the heat. They must have been sixty yards away, and yet she felt like she was inches from a roaring hearth. The light of his fire was blinding.

And then he roared.

The echo was deafening, and Relma finally lost her feet. She could hear nothing for a few moments later but a hollow ringing.

And when she looked up, Bryag was gone.

Wrynncurth blew some smoke rings from where he was sitting on a rock, undisturbed. "...Well, Bryag has certainly grown a great deal.

"So, who's hungry?"

Relma was sure people might have some commentary for that. But everyone was too busy trying to stand up.