Still distracted by the black dragon’s corpse, the group had yet to notice the enormous red dragon laying behind them, observing them in silence. They hadn’t the slightest hint, not until Drak spoke up and spooking them.
“Howlena… She was quite a beauty before this mess…” he said weakly, his eyes fixed on the black dragon.
The 3 kobolds quite literally jumped out of their scales as they whipped around to stare at the bloody maw of yet another dragon, one that was much more ‘lively’. A scene that normally would be terrifying was instead replaced by an air of pity and loss. The kobolds couldn’t bring themselves to accept Drak’s fate… Drak… He would never recover from his wounds… It was a miracle that he still alive, let alone that he could afford to talk to them.
Raouk was the first to shake off his stunned expression, quickly taking a knee before talking to the dragon. “Lord of the mountain, Drak! It is an honour to be in your presence!” the old man greeted him with determination.
“Enough druid… There is no lord of the mountain here… There’s nothing but a dying lizard on his heap of gold… Sigh… Surrounded by his dead family.” Drak responded dejectedly.
“How is the village? Did they aim for you all first or last?” the dragon asked, changing the subject.
Raouk still kneeling responded with, “I do not know, sir. My son and I were out that night collecting herbs in the northern forest. We came back when we noticed the light coming from the village. When we approached, we discovered that you were spewing flames at the top of the mountain.” he explained.
“I see…” the dragon responded disheartened as it closed its eyes.
“How many managed to survive?” he asked in an even weaker tone.
“There were only 10 of us that survived the attack…” the druid confessed with a frown.
“Only 10 huh… By the elders… They managed to kill 9 cubs, 2 dragons and over a hundred residents in but one night…” the dragon mumbled to itself.
The kobolds looked at one another in shock when they realized how strong the attacking force was. They had finally realized the severity of the situation, it wasn’t just another simple raid this time, but more like a trained army that attacked them.
“My lord… May I ask what the group was composed of?” Ralk asked hesitantly.
“See for yourself, young kobold…” the dragon said as he looked over to the sea of maimed bodies.
“They were a joint effort from the elves and humans. They might have had a few half-lings and orc slaves, but it was without a doubt one of the few joint projects of the Holy Valtran Empire and of The Great Woods of Eldran.” he said jeeringly.
Learning of this, the 3 kobolds felt a shiver go down their spines as they imagined whatever could’ve happened for the 2 empires to join forces like this. Over a kobold settlement of all things, these 2 factions had been butting heads for the last 2, almost 3 centuries, but a kobold settlement and a handful of dragons seemed to break the camel's back. Paving a path to the 2 antagonistic species to work together hand in hand.
It was absolutely incredulous to believe it, frankly a single kobold beating a dragon in an honourable 1 versus 1 combat seemed more likely than whatever they just learned. This revelation was utterly terrifying, and the thought of their neighbours walking off on their own paths to near certain death was a grim line of thought indeed.
Raouk’s expression was haunting and the morale of the group dropped drastically when they noticed, the journey they had planned suddenly turned from risky to perilous and none of them were looking forward to it.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Then Nogh approached Drak, controlling the flames from the torch, he slowly created a line of fire over the dragon illuminating his entire body. The poor dragon had dozens of weapons stuck inside his hide, his wings were also ripped and would be incapable of flight. The deep cuts, missing claws and finger digits were drenched in dried blood, his lip was ripped open showing off a couple broken teeth and displaying the inflamed throat of his.
As Nogh just observed him, the other two were locked in their thoughts as they were rummaging through their mind for ideas and solutions. Drak for his part just observed the boy’s curious eyes. It didn’t take long for him to notice the creepy lantern hanging off his waist.
He immediately recognized the lantern as an artifact, as he could feel old magic emanating from it. Magic that seemed older than the Elder Dragons themselves. This picked his curiosity greatly, and so he beckoned the young kobold to approach.
“Child.” he said, grabbing Nogh’s attention.
“Come closer.” he asked.
The young kobold approached the old dragon slowly, getting within a few feet from him. At this distance, the difference in size between the 2 of them was quite apparent, frankly Nogh could stand on his tiptoes on Drak’s eye socket, and he’d need a second kobold of his size to stand on his head to even dream about reaching the top of the eyelid. Shying away from the dragon's gaze, Nogh stared at the floor instead of his previous fascinated gaze upon the majestic but battered dragon.
“Child.” Drak spoke up with his booming voice.
“May I see your lantern?” he asked gently, trying his best to not frighten the poor orphan.
Nogh was greatly surprised at the request and promptly unlatched it from his belt, presenting it with both hands to Drak. Drak then proceeded to study it for a few seconds before huffing out a puff of smoke.
“It seems you’ll have a difficult life, child.” he announced, his words contained nothing but pity.
“What do you mean?” Nogh asked innocently.
“That lantern.” Drak said as he pointed at it with a single claw.
“It is enchanted with magic so old that it seems to precede the very birth of our species.” he explained.
Raouk was swiftly shaken out of his thoughts once he heard those words and looked incredulously at the lantern.
“Wha… What do you mean, your greatness?” he stammered out, inwardly panicking at the notion.
“That lantern… It seems to contain a portion of the power of Death itself… how did the legends go…” he mumbled the last bit.
Drak then fell into deep thoughts, after a few moments, Drak spoke up once again, “Ah yes. I remember a portion of it. The lantern belongs to the guide, in ancient legends the guide led the dead and dying to their eternal rest. His green lantern would light the way, regardless of which realm they were within. In some ancient texts, I remember it being mentioned to be a key to travelling between the realms, sometimes the guide led people to their death and others to their salvation. The ones who were saved eventually became heroes after they prevented certain calamities.” he said, trying to remember the old stories.
“These stories aren’t necessarily true and are the stuff of legends, but the magic contained within the lantern is unmistakable, its eerie cold flame contains the power of the dead. Whether you were chosen to lead the dying to their eternal rest or to guide them to their salvation is up to you to find out.” he finished, looking back down at the child.
“Incredible…” Raouk mumbled.
“You will master the power within this lantern and achieve feats that I could only dream of, child. Be proud of your fate, but beware of its consequences. The path you walk will be treacherous at best and if you manage to maintain your sanity through it all then… Heh, you will have all my respect.” Drak explained, chuckling at the last bit.
Nogh was deeply pondering on the dragon's words and was trying his best to wade through it, digesting it. He then looked at the feeble green flame within, it danced gently in front of the dragon. As he kept observing the lantern, Nogh felt the need to try something, he wanted to try to manipulate its flames to see what would happen. He closed his eyes and focused on the mana in the air, then on the mana surrounding the lantern. As soon as he felt the eerie cold wave emanating from it, he changed his focus to the inside of the lantern. The feeling of cold transitioned to a warmer and gentler heat that seemed to be caressing him, comforting him.
He then attempted to command its mana, the flame flickered a bit inside the lantern, it grew stronger, then weaker and stronger again, before the latch opened and the flame slowly crept out of its prison. The flame circled around the boy, the mystical power within the flame gave the area a feeling of comfort and relaxation, but also made it area feel both heavy and cold at the same time. As the dragon and the other 2 kobolds observed, the bodies littered in the cave started lighting up. The soft green light emanating from the bodies slowly seeped out, forming shapes in the air.
The ghostly apparition seemed confused but also at ease as they looked down at the boy, whose eyes were still closed as he was fully immersed in his concentration. The humans and elves looked spitefully at the kobold, but when they noticed the lantern, they instantly relaxed. Some began crying silently as they realized their fate, regretting the way they had lived theirs lives.
The dragons for their part looked at Drak with pity and longing, Drak had now stood up using the last of his strength to look at his cubs and mate, tears streaming down his scales. None of the ghosts showed the scars that were left on their bodies. They looked as healthy as ever if it weren’t for the green colouring of their bodies.
“Howlena…” Drak muttered with longing, receiving a draconic smile in response.
The 9 cubs were huddled around their mother as they watched their father cry tears of pain.
“I… I’ll be joining you all soon enough… Wait for me… Please…” he begged, his tears pooling on the ground beneath.
Howlena answered him by gently touching the dragon’s chin and lifting it into a nuzzle, wiping off some of the tears from his scales. She then pointed at one of the broken eggs that were still glowing green in her nest.
Drak looked over and noticed the oddity, the young dragon that was within it, although dead hadn’t manifested its soul, then he noticed the lantern’s flame floating towards the eggshell.