“You’ve actually met the Dragon Lord? In person?”

  “Is there any other way to meet him?” Steve asked, injecting a healthy dose of sarcasm into his question.

  “None of you have met him before?” Sarah asked as she looked at both the king and the captain. “He’s really not that bad. He can be a touch irritable at times but overall he’s just a dragon that wants to protect those under his care.”

  “All the more reason to meet him,” Kri’Calin sighed. “If only I could broker such a treaty with the wyverians. That’s why I want to go.”

  Steve automatically glanced around the Antechamber, looking for a window. There weren’t any. He looked at his wife.

  “What time is it?”

  “It’s not quite sunset, if that’s what you’re asking.”

  Steve returned his attention to the king. “If you’re that set on going then what are you waiting for? Unless…” He smiled. “You know you won’t make it in time, don’t you? You need a certain someone to give you a lift, is that it?”

  Kri’Calin smiled sheepishly. “I have my portal key for Verdayn but it would still be too long of a journey to reach Lake Raehón by sunset, which I would estimate to be in about an hour. So I am asking your wife if she’d be willing to teleport me there so that I can be a witness to this historic event. Sarah, would you do me the honor?”

  Steve frowned and automatically shook his head.

  “I don’t think that’d be a good idea for us, your majesty.”

  “Why not?” Kri’Calin inquired.

  “We’re already walking a fine line with our own future,” Sarah answered. “As we mentioned before we have already met the Dragon Lord. Trust me when I say that we know full well how irritable Rinbok can be. With that being said, could Rinbok’s behavior be altered during our first meeting with him years from now?”

  “I’m getting a headache,” Steve glumly reported.

  “The dwarves are also involved,” Sarah continued. “The Kla Guur are involved. We know many of them. If we head up there then we run the same risk with them. Anything that can jeopardize our future, or alter it in some unknown fashion, I’m against.”

  “Hear, hear,” Steve agreed.

  Captain Sauer was rubbing his temples, too. “I don’t see how meeting a dwarf you already know could possibly affect your future.”

  “Here’s a hypothetical situation for you,” Steve began. “Let’s just say, for the sake of argument, Maelnar will be up there. We aren’t supposed to meet him until we search him out many years from now when we first visit Lentari. That was the whole problem. We were stranded here without any way to get home. We didn’t realize you were supposed to take your portal key with you when stepping through an active portal. So we needed to find Maelnar to help us make it home.”

  “And you convinced him to make you another key?” Kri’Calin guessed.

  Steve nodded. “That’s right. So continuing on with this hypothetical situation, let’s assume Maelnar will be there. Let’s also say he’s in a lousy mood. What if just meeting the two of us puts him in a fowler mood and now he doesn’t want anything to do with humans? Then when Sarah and I eventually find him in the future he remembers us or else steadfastly refuses to do us humans a favor.”

  “That’s a mighty big ‘what if’,” Sarah observed.

  “True,” Steve admitted, “but it’s possible.”

  “How do you know this isn’t the way it’s supposed to happen?” Sauer interjected. “You have no way of knowing if this was supposed to happen this way.”

  Steve shook his head. “Unfortunately, in this case, I do.”

  Sarah looked at him. “Do tell.”

  “I remember hearing, back on our first trip here, that the dragon dwarf alliance happened not long before the hu-” Steve trailed off as he realized he was about to let slip the humans would eventually become allies with the dragons, too. “Ummm, that is to say, before the, uh, hurricane, er, really big storm hit.”

  “Brilliant save, Sherlock,” Sarah quipped.

  Thankfully the king was so distraught he didn’t notice Steve’s slip. Sauer gave him a speculative look but didn’t say anything.

  “The point I was trying to make,” Steve lamely continued, “was that we’ve already proven that the future has been changed. This alliance wasn’t supposed to happen for a number of years.”

  “But it was supposed to happen,” Sarah pointed out. “Does it really make that much of a difference when it happened?”

  Captain Sauer nodded. “I think I see where you’re going with this. A wyverian dwarf alliance was inevitable. Whether it happens in your time or ours is irrelevant. It was fated to happen, so it did.”

  “I guess we really won’t know what’s been changed until we make it back home,” Steve said, looking glum. “I just hope we haven’t screwed too many things up.”

  “With regards to the wyverian dwarf alliance that happened in the future,” Kri’Calin suddenly said, “was the human king of your time present for the proceedings?”

  Steve thought for a moment. “I don’t know. I don’t remember hearing anything about it. Hon, do you know?”

  Sarah shook her head. “I don’t know, either. I’m sorry.”

  “How did you learn of it, anyway?” Steve asked the king. “I don’t know how you get your news but clearly it works very well.”

  “Verdayn’s constable,” the king answered. “He reported in that he had noticed heightened activity in the area. Several of his patrols had encountered several groups of dwarves traveling north. As you may know, most dwarves prefer to spend their time underground, so seeing large numbers of them above ground will generate a question or two.”

  Steve nodded. “That’s right. I forget the term for it, but it’s the exact opposite of claustrophobia. Acrophobia, I think.”

  “Agoraphobia,” Sarah corrected. “It’s the fear of open spaces. Acrophobia is the fear of heights.”

  “As I was saying,” Kri’Calin continued, “the soldiers responsible for patrolling the northern district thought there might be a battle brewing between the dwarves and the wyverians again, so when the constable became aware of the activities he personally visited the valley to see for himself the increasing number of dwarves massing in the area. He finally found a dwarf willing to talk to him and the dwarf assured him they were there for peaceful purposes only.”

  Steve didn’t think a response was necessary so he elected to do what he usually did: smile and grunt politely.

  “Once the constable was convinced of their peaceful intentions he inquired further and learned that the Dragon Lord himself would be visiting the valley soon. The dwarves were there to negotiate peace between their two species. The constable deemed this information important enough to forward to me.”

  Steve gave the king another smile.

  “What you might not realize is how rare the Dragon Lord is seen in public. I have been trying for years to get him to grant me an audience but I have been rebuffed more times than I care to admit. Don’t you see? This is my chance! I have an opportunity to speak with the Dragon Lord. I cannot pass it up. Please, you must help me!”

  Sarah finally turned to Steve and pulled out one of her most effective weapons: a pouting look.

  “Oh, for heaven’s sake. You’re telling me you want to go up there, are you?”

  “Why not? We’ve waited this long, what’s another few hours? Besides, we have a chance to witness Lentarian history as its happening. I don’t think we should pass that up. Besides, we really don’t have to worry about Rinbok. I mean, he doesn’t know our scent, right?”

  “That’s no excuse to go, dear.”

  “I know that. I would still recommend avoiding him at all costs. However, if he does happen to pick up our scent then he’s just going to chalk it up as another unknown human.”

  “And the dwarves?” Steve countered. “What about them? You and I both know Maelnar will be up there.”

  “What about him? He wouldn’t know us if we bumped into him, either. He’ll just see us as an insignificant couple of humans, too.”

  “Do you know the dwarf keymaker that well?” Kri’Calin asked.

  “He’s a very good friend of ours,” Sarah answered. She took Steve’s hand. “It seems like every time we come to Lentari then we inadvertently end up seeing him as something happens that Maelnar is directly, or indirectly, involved in.”

  “He’s the Lentarian version of R2-D2,” Steve chuckled.

  The two Lentarians stared at him with blank expressions on their faces.

  “Umm, it means that Maelnar always seems to be involved with whatever is going on,” Steve translated.

  “Didn’t she just say that?” Sauer asked as he looked pointedly at Sarah.

  Sarah smiled at her husband and patted his arm. She looked back at Captain Sauer.

  “On our world it’s called being a ‘nerd’. It’s a label you’re assigned when other people realize you enjoy certain things wayyyy too much.”

  Steve gave her a two finger salute. “We nerds have way more fun. Besides, you’re the one that said ‘I do’, remember?”

  “You weren’t this crazy when I married you,” Sarah automatically responded.

  Uncertain what was happening, Kri’Calin and Sauer eyed each other.

  “Does this mean you’ll take me up there?” the king hopefully asked.

  Husband and wife looked at each other before they turned to the king. Sarah curtsied.

  “Why, I’d be delighted, good sir.”

  The king smiled. “Thank you. Thank you very much.”

  “How many people are you planning on taking with you?” Sarah asked.

  “Just myself,” the king told her as he hurriedly snatched a few things off his desk. “I wouldn’t want to overtax your jhorun by making unnecessary trips.”

  Sarah was silent for a few moments as she studied him.

  “The most I’ve ever teleported at one time was about 20 people, your majesty.”

  “At the same time??”

  Sarah smiled. “Yes.”

  “Incredible. The queen will be overjoyed. When I told her of my plans to try and persuade you to take me I could see that she would like to accompany me. Now you’re telling me that she can?”

  “That’s right,” Steve confirmed. “May I also recommend you take a few others with you? Guards, assistants, and so on? That way Sarah and I can blend in with them.”

  Sarah nodded. “That’s a good idea. Gather together whoever is going,” she told the king, giving the monarch the first set of instructions that he was willing to obey in many years. “Be in the portal room in half an hour. Will that work?”

  “We’ll be ready,” the king assured her as he hurried off.

  Standing in the middle of the Great Hall, Sarah took Steve’s hand and pulled him over to a nearby table to sit down.

  “I’ll bet that’s what Melvyn was trying to get to,” Steve said as he pulled a bench out for Sarah to sit down. “Although how he found out about it is beyond me.”

  Sarah stretched her back and let out a yawn.

  “As long as we’re wondering, what about the king? How did he know? We only found out about it a few days ago.”

  “What do you think would have happened had Melvyn been able to get his hands on Maelnar?”

  Sarah shuddered. “I don’t even want to know. Maelnar plays such an integral role in so many parts of our history that the slightest alteration could severely affect us.”

  “Do you think he would have forced Maelnar to make him a key to get back or do you think he’d just kill him?”

  Sarah shrugged. “Probably both. Who knows? Either way you look at it, I’m very glad he’s out of the picture.”

  “Me, too,” Steve agreed.

  ****

  “How long do you want to give him?” Steve whispered as he pulled Sarah aside. “I’m telling you, he doesn’t look good. Looks rather green around the gills, if you catch my meaning.”

  Sarah looked over at the king, who was hunched over clutching his stomach. The queen, the captain, several personal aides, a scribe, and close to a dozen guards hovered nearby in case Kri’Calin called for assistance. No one else had felt the ill effects of Sarah’s jhorun as she teleported them to the southern tip of Lake Raehón’s valley. The king, however, had grasped his stomach and staggered to his knees within moments of arriving. Sarah felt terrible. The last thing she wanted to do was to make anyone sick, let alone the actual king! Sarah hurried over to Ny’Alena’s side, who was crouching by her husband.

  “It’ll pass, your majesty. I’m so sorry. I tried to warn you.” She looked at the queen’s twinkling eyes and stifled a smile. It looked as though the queen was trying to keep from laughing. What was going on?

  In answer to Sarah’s unspoken question, the queen faced her and smiled.

  “Please forgive Calin. It’s very easy for His Majesty to grow queasy. That’s why we do not travel on ships, or on horseback for that matter.”

  “Then how do you travel from village to village?” Steve wanted to know as he joined Sarah.

  “We have a special carriage that was built for this reason. It delivers a very smooth ride, smooth enough for Calin to use without becoming nauseated.”

  They politely waited in silence for the king to regain his composure. He smiled fleetingly at each of them as he hurriedly walked to the front of the procession. The group of guards spread out, with three taking the lead, two walking on either side of the royal couple, and three bringing up the rear. Together they emerged from the trees and started out across the valley.

  “Are you sure this is a smart move?” Steve asked as he nervously looked around. “Dragons can disguise themselves as anything. We could be walking into an ambush.”

  “With the Dragon Lord nearby? Fear not. We are safe.”

  “What if Rinbok has his own set of guards? What if they see us coming and move to intercept us before we can get to where we’re going? I held off one dragon, but only barely.”

  Surprised, both the king and queen briefly looked back at him.

  “You held off a dragon?” Kri’Calin asked, amazed. “The longer I know you the more impressed I become.”

  “Don’t be. It was only for a minute or two. If we hadn’t found the dwarf door then we would have become French fries.”

  “French fries?” the queen repeated, curious. “What is that?”

  “Umm, a type of fried food. Deep fried, if you get my meaning.”

  Ny’Alena smiled complacently. Whether she understood or not, Steve didn’t know.

  “Besides,” the king continued, “we have you! If we meet a dragon, and he or she isn’t friendly, then you will be able to protect us.”

  “I wouldn’t bet on it,” Steve murmured quietly to himself. He turned to Sarah. “Do you see anything?”

  Sarah shaded her eyes as she stared across the valley. There weren’t any traces of dragons or dwarves anywhere. Sarah shook her head no.

  “This valley is fairly decent in size,” Steve observed. “Are you sure we’re at the right place?”

  “My informant said the south. I assumed the southern tip of the valley.”

  “What about the southern tip of the lake?” Sarah asked as she looked at the large body of water visible as a long blue line directly ahead of them. “Could your informant have been referring to the lake instead of the valley?”

  Kri’Calin hesitated a few seconds before he shrugged. “It’s possible, I suppose.”

  “Can your stomach handle another jump?” Sarah asked, already knowing that not only would the king not be up for another jump but that he would never admit it.

  “Of course,” the king quickly answered. His face had drained of what little color he had managed to get back as he realized he’d have to suffer through another of Sarah’s teleportation jumps. “I’m ready whenever you are.”

  Sarah motioned for everyone to huddle close. “Right. Here we go! Everyone take a deep breath.”

  The vast open grassland of the valley was immediately replaced by the gently lapping waves of Lake Raehón. The lake’s shore stretched off farther than the eye could see to the west while on the east the shore of the huge lake curved abruptly to the left and angled north. Several flocks of tiny red kytes were flying overhead while a much larger white species of kyte were lazily floating on the lake’s surface about a hundred feet from the shore.

  There were still no signs of any dragon or dwarf in the area.

  Steve glanced at the setting sun. It was less than fifteen minutes away. If the king was going to witness the creation of a new dwarf/dragon alliance then they needed to find out where to go. Quickly.

  You could just ask, you know.

  Pryllan?

  Have you been in telepathic contact with any other dragons while you’ve been here?

  Hah! As a matter of fact, I have.

  Who?

  Kahvel.

  Oh. He doesn’t count.

  Pryllan, we have the human king here. He wants to watch the dwarves and dragons become allies. Is that even allowed?

  “What’s going on?” Sarah asked. “Why have you gone quiet and why are you smiling?”

  Steve winked at her. Sarah’s eyebrows shot up.

  “Oh. Um, carry on.”

  Were you talking to your mate?

  Yes. Apparently I had some goofy look on my face just now and she was asking me what was going on.

  I see. To answer your question, I don’t see any objections to the human king’s presence. There are already four different dwarf clans represented right now. I don’t think he would mind any other bystanders.

  Has this event started yet?

  Not yet. Rinbok Intherer has yet to arrive.

  Perfect. Where are you, anyway? We are at the southern tip of the lake and can’t see anyone around here.

  We are northeast of your present location. Follow the valley east and then north. We are at the northern most tip of the valley before it returns to the forest.

  Wait a minute. Is there a long line of purple flowers nearby?

 

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