He waved to some of the workers who all had their dragons close by helping them out, whether by carting loads of fruit or lumber or chopping through branches with their thick claws or delicately rooting out flowers and roots.
“You ready buddy?” Kern asked Mostyn. Mostyn snorted an affirmative and powered himself out of the water and into the air. They lazily flew through the wide gaps between the trunks of trees and hanging vines. The Lariah didn’t have branches below the canopy so there were only wide open spaces between the canopy far above and the undergrowth below. Here and there, there would be a young Lariah trying desperately to grow upwards or a powerful torrent of water breaking through the trees. Under the torrents were often young Lariah that broke the torrent’s fall and scattered its waters.
It wasn’t long before they came to a city walled in by tall wooden timbers and sprawling amongst the trunks of the Lariah trees. He landed at the center of the town and let Mostyn go to frolic and play with the other dragons that were there as he himself went towards an all-stone building. “Don’t wreck anything” Kern felt towards Mostyn.
“Nor you!” Mostyn replied gleefully.
Kern stepped into the building still dripping and was greeted by an older man at a desk.
“Kern, what news do you bring from Caskiri?” the man said only glancing up before returning his eyes to the papers out in front of him. The desk was lit by a bonsai Lariah and there were other men and women working at desks and talking amongst each other. This was the place where most of the produce from the falls found itself. Caskiri was currently the capital of Ago-Vlora, the Kingdom of Thunder and also the first city to be created by the falls.
“Well Kezun, I am afraid to report that Ara-Era is pushing its demand for more produce this year and they aren’t letting up like last year. They will have their share or things could possibly get ugly.” Kern said solemnly.
“But they won’t pay as much as Tacamo, Gwyan or the other countries! We are already doing them a favor by selling them our goods at the prices we are!” Kezun exploded banging his desk. “Do they think we make all our produce out of thin air!” Kezun covered his face with his hands. “I can’t take another cut like this. The king is already demanding that he see some growth from last year. I won’t make it if we take the cut just so Ara-Era doesn’t torch us.”
Kern fiddled awkwardly, “I could, uh, I could, um, ah,” he cleared his throat, “take a shipment through the Blue…”
Kezun slid his hands off his face and looked at Kern with no hint of amusement on his face. Without responding he set himself back to his paperwork. After a few awkward moments Kern dropped his package of dispatches on the corner of Kezun’s desk and walked out.
Everyone was afraid of Ara-Era. Course, they had a right to be. But his country couldn’t survive if Ara-Era continued to bully most of Ago-Vlora’s luxury resources for themselves. The only reason Ago-Vlora was able to survive was its secret deals to the side to other nearby countries. Ara-Era bought their wares at immensely low prices then sold them to other countries for much higher ones. Ago-Vlora had built an air-ship dock at Caskiri and many ships had come to trade at first but that was before the Ara-Erian’s caught wind and began exorbitant taxing of the ships as they passed by the top of the falls. Now only those ships willing to take the risk of trying to sneak past Ara-Era’s constant watch on the updraft came by to trade. Ago-Vlora had attempted sneaking shipments past at night using their own dragons but Ara-Era had torched all who had attempted escape. Shipments trying to travel down the Arnaw were overtaken by Ara-Erian dragon sentries and either forced to pay taxes or burnt to a crisp. It didn’t help that Ara-Era was still sore that Ago-Vlora had broken off from them and declared its independence. In the mind of Ara-Era’s king, Ago-Vlora was still a part of Ara-Era.
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Kern sighed, and continued his walk towards the marketplace. Mostyn would be hungry after the day’s travel and he had earned a snack for keeping Kern alive through The Boil once more. The other way to this city required at least an entire days journey through the caves that winded their way under the roots of the Lariah to the face of the cliff. His own stomach grumbled and he decided he had earned some steak for his own self.
“Mostyn, smell the steak.” Kern said. He waited a few more moments before he felt Mostyn’s presence soar overhead then watched as Mostyn smelled the air, then beelined towards the marketplace and started circling over something. Kern smiled, Mostyn always knew how to find the best steak in the city.
“Come quick!” Mostyn felt hungrily.
Kern started jogging and soon had to dodge his way through the hustle and bustle of the marketplace before reaching the place Mostyn was circling over. Once he had arrived Mostyn landed on the roof to wait with the other dragons for his food to come up. Meanwhile he hung himself over the edge in his own particular way with his tail wagging watching as Kern walked in. Even then Mostyn hung upside down and looked in the window to watch him.
“Sparky dragon you have there,” the butcher at the counter said raising an eyebrow.
“He’s a lot of fun,” Kern admitted smiling. “I had better get him a big chunk of meat too or he’ll not be too much fun to deal with later!”
That elicited a smile from the butcher and he ordered his apprentice to fetch some flying eel meat up to the roof. “So, what brings a man like you to our humble city?”
Kern shrugged, “I’m just a speed courier for his majesty’s business.”
The butcher nodded, “What would like for yourself? I hear rumors that Ara-Era might try a move to take us back under its wing.”
“Just a steak please, I’ve heard of that rumor too, for years now. What’s come of it? Nothing. Its just nothing is all. People have been saying it just to scare each other.”
The butcher nodded again and puckered out his bottom lip. “Yes, that is so. Even if it is all smoke our country can’t take our trade being ruled like this for much longer. We’ll collapse and Ara-Era will be right there to pick up all of the pieces. Oh, your total will be 132 pekas.”’
Kern laid down the money, then an idea came to him. “You know what will make Ara-Era stick their hand in their mouth where it belongs and keep it there?”
The butcher smiled amusedly and leaned on his forearms. “And what sir would that golden plan be?”
Kern looked the man in the eyes, “Why, a trade agreement with Deneloro of course!”