The Order of Dragonfire

Chapter 3

Alex's face felt as though it could fall off as she staggered up the icy path. The hood did little to protect her and, despite growing up in the snow covered city, she had never experienced anything as cold as the summit. She tried to ignore it as she made her way up the steep slope. The path across the mountainous Edge was a hazardous trek up the sheer outcrops. The mountains had formed a natural and mostly uncrossed boundary for the ancient empire, as traversing it was no simple feat. Dragons and other beasts had once roamed the wilderness she was soon to enter but the Order of Dragonfire had long since repelled them. However, the land was a threatening place all the same. There were still many dangerous creatures in the dragons' place, and she had heard countless tales of ruthless marauders roaming the region.

A sense of foreboding washed over the young woman as the passing point grew ever nearer and she realised a whole new world was about to unfold before her. She only had a small idea of what to expect. Merchants sometimes travelled between Serpensbane and various tribes inhabiting the region, though they were notoriously unreliable, and troops would sometimes go on scouting missions. There were vague maps, her own being one of them, of major landmarks and dangers but it was mostly unknown territory. Things changed too dramatically too quickly to record much detail and few dared venture into the lawless land.

Several hours into her trip from the city, she found that the snow had gone from a light dusting to a serious obstacle impeding her progress. Fortunately she had nearly reached the peak to pass between the two tall mountains either side of her, so at least it couldn't get too much worse. She could see the fort already, the point from which the soldiers of ancient times would watch for dragons to alert the city. Now they just watched for bandits and harassed passing merchants. As she got closer she noticed that there were a small group of soldiers gathered outside. She could faintly hear them speaking about some sort of upcoming mission. Whatever it was, their chattering would surely soon be replaced with yet more jibes at her expense. She sighed under her breath and prepared herself for it. She didn't care about what they had to say anyway.

"We'll be fine. Aster won't like it, but..." The soldier stuttered to a halt as she noticed Alex's approach. "Alex, is that really... Alex!"

Alex easily recognised the voice despite hardly being able to see the figure's face through her helmet.

"Ava!" She shouted back, her cautiousness swiftly turning to a happy relief, but suddenly realised the soldier might not consider them friends anymore. Everyone else had turned against her, after all. Why would Ava be any exception?

"Did... did you hear? About why I'm here?" Alex asked.

"Oh. Well, yes. Everyone did." Ava answered awkwardly. "Is it true?"

Alex nodded solemnly.

"Wow..." Ava mumbled under her breath. Great, Alex thought bitterly, it looked like she had no one left after all.

"Wow!" She repeated, this time laughing. "I never would have thought you had it in you. How did they ever catch you whilst you had it?"

"It's not funny!" She scolded Ava for not taking the ordeal seriously. "I turned myself in. I had to, they weren't backing down. It was that or kill them."

"Oh? You're lecturing me?" Ava asked, a hint of a smirk and raised eyebrow evident beneath the helmet. "Relax. I don't know why you stole it and it's clear you're not planning on telling anyone, but I'm sure you'll have had your reasons. Besides... wow! I wish I could have been there."

Alex was both bemused and relieved that Ava found the whole thing so funny, even impressive. It was a nice change to not be judged, even if only by the soldier who had sworn to remain disconnected and light hearted for the sake of her sanity. Her fellow troops seemed more wary of Alex but were at least satisfied that a friend of Ava's wouldn't give them any trouble.