A Dragon Slayer: and the Sea Dragon of Delphi

Prologue: A Tale of Smoke and Fire

Far above the vibrant green fields and the tall trees of the forest, a light breeze flew freely through the land. It flew over the tops of the snowy mountains and the glistening crystal lakes, and through the dewy clouds that sat high upon their throne in the starry sky, and then it swept up the salt of the sea.. It turned and followed the flowing rivers, passing the creatures of the air as it went; eagles, air dragons, and ice birds among many others. Eventually it came to a quiet town called Celosia. There it lowered upon the pastors, and twirled and rustled up some golden leaves in its wake, before it settled and became still. For the sun had barely risen and the wind felt out of place running circles in a town that was still sleeping. It, too, decided to sleep for a time.

The early morning sun beamed in through the open window of the bakery in Celosia, and the fresh smells of fruit bread wafted out into the quiet town square. The bell chimed as the door opened and a large man with a full-grown beard walked in. The baker didn't even look up.

"The usual, Julius?" he was the only customer who ever frequented the bakery at such an early hour.

Julius scratched his chin trying to feign an air of indecision; but in the end he just nodded and replied. "Yes. The usual."

Bariah turned and pointed to a brown package on the far end of the counter. Julius' order had already been prepared and wrapped. Julius took the package and placed five bronze coins down for the baker to take. Bariah looked up at Julius, and grinning, he took two coins, and slid the other three back.

"No need for such generosity, my friend," Bariah began, "after all, who is it that crafts my new bread cutters when I need them."

"I only craft them for you because we'd not be dining on such fine bread otherwise. Best bakery in Celosia."

"The only bakery in Celosia," Bariah corrected, "tell me Julius, how goes the forge; have you come by much gossip from your customers lately?"

"Business is as usual. The farmers need swords to fend off wild lynx, and hoes for their fields. A traveller ordered three new horseshoes to be finished before The Waxing. But I've not heard much gossip, for my customers come, place orders and leave. But I suspect you've heard much more talk of the affairs of the land than I have?"

"Ahh, Julius. You know how it is. Either my customers converse with each other or converse with me. Either way I hear it all. Speaking of orders, I'll need a new handle for my bucket, mine tore straight from the pale under a full load of water; and bent right in half."

"Come see me at the forge later this week and I'll make sure you're looked after."

Bariah nodded his head in thanks.

"I had a visit from two travellers yesterday; came in just as I was about to shut. They spoke of bandit raids on the highways of Alesia, and fauns dancing on the edges of the forests close to Celosia late at night under the full moon. They were careful to travel away from the northern parts of our region of Floriana, for they say that the cyclops have been wandering further and further south as of late."

Julius nodded and smiled, but hardly believed the gossip. Julius had never known a time when there weren't rumours about bandit raids floating around. The fae could hardly be accounted for either. Fauns lived deep in the larger forests, far from here. Neither did the cyclops venture into these regions of Alesia, for the dryads were sure to keep them at bay. And...

"A dragon?"

Julius rose an eyebrow. "Pardon me?"

"Somewhere near here. They say a dragon is prowling about. Could it be true?" Bariah gave him a look of genuine concern.