Stripped of their ranks, with hands tied in front by a rope, the three prisoners walked the long way from the back of the Oval Place towards the steps leading to the Royal Palace. At the top of the stairs, on a wide platform, the firing squad has been waiting for them, next to the throne. King Tharhes was sitting in his most official attire, with a golden cape and a crown on his head.

The sun was nearing the zenith behind the eastern wing of the palace blinding the traitors and forcing them to lower their heads against their will. The route had been chosen wisely. Ten metres from the Place's entry a new monument has been raised: a female figure in a representative uniform with her long hair waving in the invisible wind. She was standing in a victorious pose, one leg stepping forward, left hand on her chest, eyes looking beyond the distant rooftops. Instead of a spear, her right hand was holding a sword with two blades - the symbol of Honour and Glory reserved only for the greatest figures in Solummger's history. The sculpture was put on top of a pentagonal pedestal with a silver plaque marking a cavern where a casket had been placed, containing an embalmed human heart. The round base of the monument was covered with wreaths and bunches of blue flowers, the fresh ones regularly put on top of the faded ones.

The prisoners were passing Kyeta Asdraghom's memorial from the left side. The crowd lowered its angry voice curious about how they would react. Ottaine and Verlar lift their eyes and kept them focused on the monument: his on Kyeta's face, hers on the silver plaque. 'I'll see you soon and you will finally reproach me,' Ottaine thought and that perspective made her calm.

'Fuck you traitors!' somebody screamed from the front line of the crowd behind a barrier and spit on the ground. More furious voices joined, a few stones tried to reach the targets, vulgarisms merged in one angry scream. The armed guards had to shield the traitors although they would probably happily let the mob tear them apart. Yr and Ota saw that one of the guards was Greghom. Ottaine felt sorry for him. The look in his eyes was saying it all: my own, my ward - a traitor. 'Naturally - Ottaine realised - there had to be a Special Forces officer in case the two prisoners tried any tricks. Don't worry my master, we will not try to escape death.'

The defiled soldiers were close to the steps when Verlar heard his name among the shouts. He saw Magalla in the second row of people. She looked despairing and resigned. He smiled at her, tried to extend the smile to his eyes but failed. She will shortly be the last chance for the Nogo inhabitants.

A lonely cloud moved in front of the merciless sun, nobody was interested in looking at it. The show was reaching its high moment. The prisoners were now moving up, step by step, with pride that couldn't be overlooked. Maybe if they were showing regret, a little shame, they would not evoke such disdain.

The crowd went silent. The king stepped down from the throne and approached them. He will pass the judgement and the sentence.

'Soldier Ottaine Lileghom', he turned to the first person. 'How do you answer to the charges of cooperation with Skey-Er, your country's enemy, and trying to convince your superiors to break the alliance with Landhapis?'

'I confess,' she said, lowering her head in front of her king and then she looked into his eyes with confidence.

'Soldier Yrzlaruki Varsheghom', he turned to the next prisoner. He repeated the question and Yr answered:

'I confess, your grace'.

Then the king turned to Verlar Vorgeghom with the same question.

'I confess and I would do it again, my king.'

The king lingered a bit longer on his face.

Then he turned to the crowd and said with force:

'I find soldiers Lileghom, Varsheghom and Vorgeghom guilty of treason and sentence them to die. Captain, prepare the firing squad.'

A lonely cloud returned to the sun but nobody was watching the sky. The three condemned stepped in front of the wooden wall, all refusing to be blindfolded. Three shooters stepped in front of them.

So this is it. I hope to see you soon my friend.

I did everything I had to do. I don't regret a thing.

Goodbye Gally, goodbye father, goodbye brothers. I'll see my mum's famous green and brown eyes soon.

In the intense silence the guns were loaded.

The shadow that tried to cover the sunlight was fed up with being ignored. It overtook the view above the palace's roof and caught the first looks. Someone screamed, then another scream joined and another. The guards put their rifles up toward the sun and moved closer to the king.

An alien-looking massive shape, a sailing vessel floating in the air, was preparing to land on the platform, next to the palace’s entrance. Now everybody was looking up, the captain of the firing squad forgot to wave his hand, the squad forgot to aim. Fear and amazement took over every face. The ship softly touched the ground, a slim figure opened a small gate and stepped outside. To the people further away than a few yards it was a man in strange clothes, wearing a mask. Magalla from below the steps recognised the visitor and her heart stopped hit by a sudden hope. Yaphara said it was too late, but… if he contacted them neverthless...

The people gathered on the top of the stairs trembled, only Ottaine, Yrzlaruki and Verlar smiled seeing the leader of the tribe from the Nogo Forest, the one people nicknamed Primus. What a beautiful day to die, the king will now know, it was not all in vain.

Primus looked at the three bound people and greeted them with a nod the way he had seen people nodding. Then he looked at the others and his eyes rested on the king. He was holding a parchment, a notebook and a pen. Ottaine recognised Yaphara's office gadgets. The dragon kneeled on one knee, one hand at the back, head down. It was a Skey-Er custom liege bow.

'What are you?' the king whispered. The dragon slowly stood up, showing the pen and notebook. He quickly scribbled the answer and showed the king. One of the guards came back to his senses, stepped forward and took the paper for the ruler.

'Nogo?' the king said with surprise.

'You... are a chief of the Forest tribe? I don't understand... dragons?'

Primus handed the parchment. The king ignored his bodyguard's protest and took it himself.

The king was reading in silence, after a few moments he put his hand to his mouth and started shaking his head. The dragon stood there, waiting patiently. His eyes were scanning the scene, the crowds, buildings, weapons. He already knows everything Yrzlaruki realised and the blood drained from her face.

The king finished reading and laid his eyes on the convicts with an inscrutable, long look.

'Soldiers, don't touch the vessel', he spoke suddenly to his guards. 'Follow me' he finished pointing at the dragon and the prisoners.

'Untie them' the king said to the guard in his office. 'They wouldn't dare trying anything stupid' he said looking into their eyes.

'And leave us. I said leave. Close the door from the other side.'

He sat at his desk, pointed at a chair nearby and looked at the dragon. Primus took it and sat by the corner.

'So you understand us but you can't speak in our language?'

Primus nodded and then produced this strange, low but bird-like sound the four friends were already familiar with.

Then he moved his hands and looked at the three people standing opposite the king.

'Your highness, they can communicate by sign language,' Verlar said, bowing his head. 'Skey-Er scientists use this way of communication with the tribe. It's based on our, I mean human sign language. I could translate, I have learnt a fair amount of words and expressions.'

'Alright. And you were taught how to write too, I see? Now please forgive me, I will interrogate, this time properly, my prisoners.'

So they told the king everything, from Ottaine's mission to the enemy's territory to the visit in the middle of the Forest. They told the king why they made the decision they made and became turncoats. The only thing they refrained from saying was the dragons’ intelligence that surpassed the human mind by far.

The king was looking at the floor for a long time.

Finally, he lifted his head and he looked very tired.

'Landhapis is an enigma, they try to be just and wise and they let themselves be carried by the lowest instincts. They must fear something. Do you have weapons in this forest of yours? No? Do you have another unknown species of dragons, more dangerous than a krool and more swift than a snake? That's what I thought. You are a primitive folk that sleeps under the sky and cooks food in the open fire. So what are the ministers, generals, their king and all counsellors afraid of? Where is the threat?'

'My king...' Verlar wanted to say something but was silenced.

'You.' said the king, still looking at the dragon sitting on the chair. 'You must be the threat.'

'I think I started understanding now... Tell me, do you know a game called chess?' he suddenly asked.

Primus wrote in his book 'I don't understand. Game yes. The other word?'

This time the king looked at the soldiers asking:

'Could they know the game?'

'I have never seen them play. Never heard Yaphara or any of his men mention it.'

'So I gather you don't. I'll show you.' The king opened a cabinet on his desk and took out a chessboard. He started explaining the rules while placing the figures on the squares. Ottaine stared at the white and black figurines of the queen. It must have been a new design...

'You play a battle. Here you have the king, queen, bishop...' the king Tharhes explained the rules without pausing. The board was set with the whites on the Primus' side.

'Do you understand the rules?'

The dragon nodded.

'Whites always move first. Let's begin.'

King Tharhes was an excellent player. Yrzlaruki, who used to be champion of the school and later on of the Domicile in the earlier years, could recognise his wise moves and choice of strategy. He played a top-class game. But the dragon... the dragon didn't ponder, didn't think. Or it seemed he didn't. He knew all the possible moves ahead, moved his pawns and figures without hesitation forcing his opponent to longer and longer breaks.

In the end, the result was easy to predict: the dragon was about to win. King Tharhes had no choice, his last move wouldn't matter. In the next turn, the dragon will checkmate.

The ruler congratulated Primus and waited for his final move which was a mere formality. The dragon was about to move his queen in a position where the king can't escape and the game will be over.

But Primus, looking Tharhes in the eye, moved his queen in a different direction, back to the whites' lines and moved the whole chessboard aside.

The message couldn't be clearer.

The king stood up.

'You have seen enough of our world. Am I right? What are you planning to do now?' he asked the dragon with a slightly, very slightly shaking voice.

Primus signed and Verlar was translating: 'I will go back home now. If I may say, you are making a few mistakes with this world. We could help you solve them in the future.'

The king sighed and said:

'You will soon have everything you need to conquer us. That's what Landhapis is trying to avoid.'

'They never talked to us. Never tried to,' the dragon answered.

'Are you saying you would not use your advantage? Ever?'

'We know exactly who you are,' he replied. 'You are our creators. We would not live if it were not for you, the Elder Ones.'

Verlar explained that 'the Elder Ones' is the name the dragons from the Nogo Forest gave to humans.

'I thank you, my wiser brother,' said the king bowing, which was not something the king would do in front of anyone.

'I'll order my soldiers to supply you for the way back and I hope to stay in touch with your kind. It seems I need to go for a diplomatic visit to my allies in Landhapis. They acted out of fear, the worst reason for taking any action. And as for you three' he paused for a moment, 'whatever your motives were - you committed the treason. You denied the orders and plotted in favour of the state's enemy. So the Solummger law is clear...' the soldiers lowered their heads awaiting the final words. 'It's up to the king and only the king to pardon the criminals. I will write the document later, now we need to do it properly in front of the audience. It must be a...' the king paused searching for the proper word. 'A show.'

The agitated crowd roared when the gates opened and the king reappeared with the captives following him. Their hands had been tied again for the upcoming performance.

King Tharhes slowly lifted his arms to silence the crowd.

'After obtaining new facts, I declare the officers Lileghom, Varsheghom and Vorgeghom cleared of all charges! I hereby pardon them with the royal decree and restore them to their ranks!'

The crowd didn't answer instantly. A second later a murmur of 'what?'s and 'what happened?'s rolled over the Place and across the streets. One onlooker had tears of joy in her eyes watching the king himself untying the three people and inviting them back inside the palace.

Then the talks started. Some shouted angrily for being stripped of the bloody show, some laughed nervously, some simply gathered their families and looked around how to quickly leave the Place that was turning into a chaotic human mass.

When the crowd finally dispersed Magalla strolled around the quarter looking out for Verlar. She didn't feel the hot sun burning her skin, she didn't feel thirst or pain from long hours of standing in the crowd since early morning. One and only one thought rang in her head: he's alive, they’re all alive.

The events of the noon passed through her head, she laughed loudly ignoring the looks people were giving her. The show was over, people stayed to talk about the events and watched the guards hustle and bustle about the flying machine, a couple of hours later the ‘green man’ as people called him boarded the thing and soared in the air.

Now it was hours after the shocking events and Magalla decided there is only one place they all recognise in the vast capital. She sat there looking at a mass of blue flowers, awaiting.

Meantime, Verlar, Ottaine and Yrzlaruki bid farewell to Primus who wanted to fly back as soon as possible. Before they left they thanked him for everything he just did for them.

'We will never be able to repay you,' Ottaine said to him.

Primus signed and Verlar translated: 'Rescue for rescue. Help for help. I did for you what you did for me.'

'But we didn't manage to do anything,' Ota and Verlar protested.

Primus signed 'You did, you just don't see it yet.' They looked puzzled but Yr said with fake sorrow: 'Don't quarrel with a genius.'

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Primus stayed with the king supervising the ship's stocking and the soldiers were taken straight to the Ministry of Defence where they were officially given back their ranks and distinctions. The king made sure all the highest rank officers were briefed about the events but ordered them to keep it quiet. The three ex-traitors were given two weeks leave and after this time Verlar were to report back to the port in the north where krools were being transported from. Yrzlaruki, who was not given back her post in the battalion, and Ottaine were to go to the Domicile where the Special Forces would decide what to do with them.

King Tharhes wanted them to be brought back to the Royal Palace as soon as possible. Here, he met them in his cabinet where they kept answering more questions. When they finished talking the king looked furious.

'Those Landhapis cowards! I let my people die and he didn't tell me the truth!' he uttered through clenched teeth. 'This is of international interest! Whatever happens in Nogo must be discussed by everyone! How dare he... Why didn't Skey-Er turn to us? Ah, we've agreed with Landhapis for too long. If they didn't run those strives over and over... how stupid. I see there's no way the human race could avoid idiocy, all of us have been there. Alright. Let's repair the damage. You three, you will sign with me the vow of silence. I know only my guards and the squad saw Primus properly, the crowd talks about a foreign messanger in disguise. They will be fed a few fake news to keep everybody away from the facts. So it leaves only a handful of people that know the truth. Does anybody else know about it? Have you told anyone?' They told him about Magalla.

'As my subject, I command her to be silent too. It falls on your responsibility, soldiers. Don't betray me and my trust. Now, I have already sent appropriate letters about you to the headquarters. You will act as if nothing happened, answer no question about why I pardoned you until I give you my consent. You are dismissed.'

They left the palace through a kitchen door unnoticed by any passer-by. On the street, Yrzlaruki's characteristic look did draw some attention but nobody would dare to approach the persons who within a few moments turned from despised traitors to mysterious heroes. People who recognised them watched them and turned their eyes realising a few hours ago they were spitting at them and shouting insults.

They walked towards Oval Place looking for Magalla. There was only one place they all had something in common with: Kyeta's heart resting place.

Magalla was sitting at the base of the pedestal with her head down, listening to people chatting about today's events. She heard the familiar footsteps and stood up to rush to her man, one she had already buried in her mind.

They were holding each other for very long moments without saying a word. The emotions of the day were too much for the toughest person. Finally, Magalla swallowed the tears and said:

'I don't know if I could bear losing you again. I couldn't stand another day like today.'

Verlar looked at the monument in front of them, at the silhouette in the conquering pose looking at the far distance, face carved with striking accuracy and so familiar, and he replied:

'The truth is, we could lose each other any day no matter what we do.'

'So, let's make every single day meaningful,' she said and kissed him.

'And if we don't find any meaning?' he asked after a long moment.

'Then make it epic, that's my other choice.'

Ottaine and Yrzlaruki, who had been waiting a short distance, came closer. They told Magalla about the events in the palace and the king's definite orders.

'We have two weeks. What do we do, where do we go? Seaside? Mountains?' Yrzlaruki asked a question. Ottaine and Verlar looked at each other with mutual understanding.

'I want to go to Sjaell' she said and they all agreed.

At the railway station, they were told that the next train towards the southeast is leaving the following morning. There was an inn for travellers nearby and there they headed.

The owner seemed not to have the slightest idea who her customers were. They booked two rooms, ate a small supper and went upstairs.

When he closed the door Verlar took Magalla clung to his chest listening to his heartbeat.

'I am not the only hope anymore. You are still here, this story is not over,' she said with a voice shaking from emotions.

'I was ready to die today. It's the strangest feeling to realise every few moments that you get to live. It's almost unrealistic but being able to touch you again is telling me this is not a dream.’

'Today made me even stronger. I know, whatever happens in the future I must go on, have a clear purpose in life. As long as there's life there's a celebration regardless of hardships.'

'That's the spirit' he said and smiled this kind of smile Magalla adored so much.

They undressed and went to bed. They just started caressing each other when a sound of unmistaken meaning reached them through the wall from the next-door room.

They stopped and laughed quietly.

'The walls are thin. That's not very convenient,’ Verlar said. 'Should we hurry up? They are ahead of us,' he added with a wink.

'Let's not stop, I don't care about the walls,' she said.

'Verlar, I wonder, you know... how do they do it? How, the hell, they do it? This is something nobody talks about neither in the books nor in the taverns.’

'I have an idea,' he said moving his hand across her stomach then kissing her lower and lower.

After a short pause Magalla said:

'I see. But they still miss the best part' and this time she moved her hand.

'Oh, I disagree,' Verlar answered cheerfully. 'They do have the best part, the same as we have.'

'Which is what?' she asked.

'Love'.

Verlar was standing shirtless in front of the mirror, shaving his overgrown beard. Magalla stretched and watched him enjoying the moment. He caught her reflection in the mirror.

'Time to look reputable.'

Magalla got up and embraced him.

'I'm sorry about last night. I was exhausted, you know...' he started.

'What do you apologise for? You did everything I needed. I'm sorry you had no fun.'

'Oh, I had fun, Gally. Well, some other kind of fun. Looking at you is always fun, listening to you is fun…' he said with a giggle.

'And after what you said, don't I have the best part anyway?'

Verlar turned towards her and touched her cheek.

'You do. I love you, Gally.'

'Hmmm I love you more' she said mischievously.

'Hey, wake up you two! Chop chop!' a voice joined the bang on the door.

Magalla and Verlar told her to come in. Ottaine was wearing her proper Special Forces uniform, she looked fresh and happy.

'Oh, you are up. Good. We are ordering breakfast for four. The train leaves in forty minutes. Just reminding. Magalla, one question, out of curiosity: do women, I mean standard women, really like chests like that?' she pointed at Verlar.

'Get out!' was the answer that tried very, very, very hard to sound angry.

The passengers walking by their compartment were giving them curious looks. Two Special Forces women, one with a very dark complexion and a navy officer - they looked like those traitors... or the ex-traitors? The gossip was already spreading that the Landhapis duke saved them last minute by flying right at the execution and saying the three soldiers were trying to save a princess who fell in love with the male officer and the two women were bodyguarding the lovers.

'I am drained', Yrzlaruki complained. 'I need to make a Demand.'

'So do I. This will be a very awkward Demand. Everybody's looking at us, they recognise us,' Ottaine joined her.

‘Couldn’t you just sleep?’ Verlar asked a bit confused.

‘No, we need to restore. It works more like addiction than a physical need.’

‘It’s more like alcohol than water?’

‘Yes, something like that. When you need to Demand you can’t just rest or sleep.’

'I see… Hey, I'm right here and I'm not planning to go anywhere for the next few hours. You can suck me.'

'Oh, thank you Verlar. If you don't mind...'

'So, Yr, you take me', Magalla waved at her.

After a short time, Magalla was resting on Verlar's lap, who was leaning against the window. The compartment's blinds were down and Ottaine and Yr were kissing in the corner quietly ('come on ladies, you don't have to hide in front of us. Not like we would stare at you of course...'). The train was rocking them rhythmically across the mountains.

'But how did he know when to arrive?' Magalla remarked out of the blue.

It took the rest of them some time to catch up with what she's talking about.

'We must have been incredibly lucky. It took him... how much time? To fly from the middle of the Forest? Yaphara must have helped him, share the news about our arrest...’ Ottaine was thinking aloud. 'Then, Primus could have some coordinates to the capital, to the palace, but they couldn't be very precise.'

'Of course, whatever he was told he would use to the limits and above,' Magalla said. 'Still... such a miraculous apo mekhanes theos event?'

'Applewhat?' they asked.

'An expression I found years ago. It means an unexpected occurrence that solves a problem. ‘God from the machine’ or something like that.’

'Weeks of preparation, building the skyship, flying above the sea, then above land without causing panic, finding the capital and the exact spot chosen for our execution just a couple of days before, at the exact time to make the biggest impact... that was a chance one in million,' Yrzlaruki said slowly.

Verlar exchanged looks with her, they must have been thinking the same.

'Such things don't happen in real life. They might in badly written stories. In the real world - such coincidence is impossible', he agreed.

They just looked at one other perplexed.

'So it couldn't be a coincidence,' Magalla was the first to say it aloud.

'He planned it. To the second. How?’

‘That’s what I’m asking myself, Ota.’

‘Gally. You said you did reach Yaphara after we were captured and he said it was too late...’

‘When I saw that ship and recognised Primus I was sure Yaphara sent him. Yaphara said it’s too late for him to be able to change anything. But then he turned to the tribe for help. He was still not far from Nogo so after I left Yaphara took a chance. That’s what must had happen. Primus could predict we will be sent to Rekeeren and Yaphara gave him instructions how to get there. But as was said, all the details, date and time, things that were decided the las moment?’

‘On the other hand, we know how smart they are, how they can predict all the scenarios and don’t forget, a stupid person will not comprehend how someone intelligent thinks. The same we will never be able to comprehend how did he know.' Yr said and they all knew there’s no point pondering about it (which didn’t stop them from coming up with possible explanations for the rest of the journey, and discussing them in details). He saved them. And saved his kind the same time. That’s what mattered.

The small train station in Sjaell was already selling tacky souvenirs with Kyeta's face: keychains, coffee plates, mugs, toy spears and swords. Business is business, somebody needs to feed the family using their basic manual skills. An opportunity arose for some, gods bless them.

The way from the station to the necropolis was marked with signs that remained there after the funeral. Now covered with stains and mud, crooked and cracked stayed to guide the living to the dead along the streets and gardens.

The four friends were not recognised here as yesterday’s traitors, just another sisters and brother in arms who arrived to pay respect to the faded flower of Sjaell. They walked in silence, all of them deep in their thoughts. At the cemetery's gates, a flower shop displayed a message of whose grave is visited the most often: from the pale sky to deepest dark blue flowers and wreaths in the front row occupied the view.

'We didn't bring flowers' Yzrlaruki realised.

They stepped inside, their uniforms and sorrowful faces stated the purpose of their visit leaving no doubt. The shopkeeper started showing them his best flower compositions of painted roses, gentians and asters. Ottaine was looking around trying to find something she was sure Kyeta would like, her eyes wandered at the back of the shop where cut flowers from a greenhouse waited in buckets of water, and suddenly she remembered the one misty spring morning more than five years ago when she and Kyeta walked the grounds behind the krools stable, where the first wild narcissus opened their buds. They stood on the wet grass and Kyeta said: 'If I ever grow old and live in some godforsaken village, I will have them planted in my garden in thousands, every spring. I don't care about flowers but these are an exception. They have been my favourite since I remember.'

'We will take yellow daffodils' Ottaine said to the shopkeeper.

The grave was not far from the entrance, in the main alley. It was recognisable by the overwhelming amount of wreaths and bouquets, of course blue. Verlar took Ottaine's arm and pointed at a lonely silhouette of an old man sitting on a bench by the grave. He looked at yet another group of mourners and his face brightened.

'Mr Asdraghom,' Ottaine and Verlar greeted Kyeta's dad.

'I remember you two. You are Ota, my girl's bestie, right? And you? You visited that summer after your sixth year. I can't remember your name.'

'I'm Verlar.'

'Oh yes, I remember now. The dragon master. You were singing those sailor songs in the evening and played football with my sons.'

'That was me alright.'

Kyeta's father saw the flowers Ottaine was carrying and tears ran down his face.

'You knew! I thought nobody knew apart from myself and my wife. You truly were her friend. She loved you dearly, my baby girl.'

Ottaine couldn't summon her voice. All the remorse fell on her like a hail of knives. The vision of dying Kyeta on the blood-soaked field run before her eyes. The severed hand, the spear nailing her to the ground. She was waiting for someone to end her misery and it wasn't her best friend to do it. 'No' she heard her voice ringing again and again in her head killing slowly all the happy memories.

Suddenly she knew what she must do. She put the daffodils on her friend's grave and came to face the father.

'Mr Asdraghom, I must tell you something. I was there, in the Firewheel field after the battle...' and she told him everything.

When she finished, Kyeta's father was sitting motionless, staring absent-mindedly at the air, his face showing no trace of emotion. After a very long minute, he looked Ottaine in the eye and said:

'She's dead, nothing will bring her back and nothing will change the past. In time, you will meet her in the afterlife and then you can talk about it. For now... I can't speak in my daughter's name. In my name, however, I forgive you. If you knew it was her, you would stay with her. She knows that, wherever she is. And you - you have learnt an important lesson: never to walk past those who need you. So I forgive you and wish you the best life you can have.'

The thorn that had been stuck in Ottaine's chest and has been slowly dissolving in the pain that cleanses the wounds we inflict on ourselves - now disappeared without a trace. The universe that collapsed months ago was restored to its proper form and beauty with one of the most powerful tools any creature possesses - forgiveness.

'Will you come for dinner? You would stay the night at our house. Will you be my guests?' Mr Asdraghom turned to the four friends.

They briefly talked and agreed to the proposal.

'We would be honoured' said Verlar in the name of everybody.

'Good. My wife will be happy to see Kyeta's friends. You knew her too?' he asked Yrzlaruki and Magalla.

'I met her at the beginning of the war, we sailed together to Landhapis... that's all,' Magalla answered first.

'I met her once... just before her final battle. I was commanding some joined sections, including the Fourth What's Worth... She was admired by all, she was a turning point in every battle she fought. Including that one.' Yr abruptly stopped with a squeezed throat.

'Yes, that's my girl. She did something remarkable. I wish I could see her marry one day, have children... My younger son, Shari, is getting married next month. His fiancée is just a quarter-elf... but she's a good person. I've always wanted to keep the blood running, to preserve this ancient and slowly declining white look to the future. My Kyeta was so perfect, simply ideal. Anyway,' he said looking at the daffodils, 'I think now, it doesn't matter. Kyeta's dead, my son is happy with this wonderful woman, maybe all this pure bloodline is foolishness. Maybe it doesn't matter...'

'It doesn't matter.' Verlar said pensively. 'But... it doesn't mean it's not good to have a variety of beauty in the world'.

They all stood for a few minutes in silence and then walked away. The old man would come back here every day for the years to come, the other four would return from time to time, usually on military feast and anniversary occasions. An island of blue colour was being created each of those times, with a drop of yellow daffodils from those who knew not only a heroine but also a person, crazy and joyful, passionate and caring for those she loved, not a big fan of cider and red wine, swearing a lot when angry and scared of snakes.

The Southern Military Academy female dormitory was occupied by third-year students who had a two-hour break between the combat training and engineering lectures. It was a sunny autumn day, the few elves used the sun-protector probably for the last time this year even though the sun was already gently touching this part of the Earth from a wider angle. The girls rested in their beds talking about the newbies, a new shower room and the recently ended war far across the sea. The alliance with Landhapis was sustained after long negotiations and some essential changes. It remained a military union that still required Solummger participation in the case of Landhapis' call in the time of war. However, Solummger started a new chapter in the relations with Skey-Er. New embassies were opening in both capital cities, Solummger promised to fund some economical plans in that part of the continent and the scientists from all three countries joined a new League for Science and Research.

The students didn't know about what happened the day the three traitors were pardoned, nor anything about the Nogo Forest and its secret. It all was still a concealed knowledge shared only with the very few. That gave even more mystery to the new Special Forces Officers who were to fill the position Greghom left when he moved permanently to the Domicile (to teach alongside a very talented coach - Eluik - whose wife and a baby daughter Kyeta moved to the nearby village). The teachers made no comments but their names were the same as the two ex-traitors. One was an experienced soldier and commander who would cover Art of War and was the Representative which meant she would sit in the board during final exams. The other, much younger one, was martial arts assistant.

Suddenly somebody entered the dormitory. A Special Forces female officer in her late twenties, looking around the room with nostalgia.

'Don't stand up. I only wanted to take a look at my old room,' the essudus said and smiled scanning the interior. She took a few steps towards one of the simple wooden beds.

'This was my bed for six amazing years,' she said. Then she turned left, to another one on which a long-haired student was sitting.

'And this one...' she stopped touching the many carvings all wooden frames had. Every student, every year was leaving a mark, a writing, a more or less artistic drawing. She put her fingers on small carvings at the edge of the headboard.

'This one was my best friend's. Kyeta Asdraghom.'

Ottaine left the students in almost religious awe the name evoked. Yr was sorting the documents in her new office, tomorrow Ottaine would co-lead her first training. She walked across the field, towards the krools' stables. She sat on one of the benches overlooking the paddock where two adult animals were resting by a pond. She smiled at the beasts and reflected on what had happened since she was here the last time:

So it all started with you, dragons. The legend merged with history, childhood dreams met with advanced science. And nothing would happen without the most important factor, our eternal constant: human error.

THE END