Dragon Blossom

Soaring Above the Sea

Freydelhart watched his daughter play on the deck with her little friend and her filly. It was Eri's first time on a ship.

The little dragon girl was fascinated by the enormous caravel that was carrying them through the Druhunn Strait to the capital city of the kingdom of Pellegrin. True to her custom, on the day of the embarking, she had helped the dockers and had finally boarded on the back of Peony. Now that she could more or less fly, Eri's new obsession was riding her little mare. There was something strange about it, though; usually, a horse grows fully in a few months, but this one seemed to have stopped growing so that its owner could always ride it. Frey, an equine enthusiast, was proud that his daughter took such good care of Peony. She brushed her in the mornings, made sure she got exercise, and watched what she ate. If only his squire and pupil were half as diligent.

Bestenar had brought his own horse from Meyrin and rode it on every journey. The animal was a palfrey. Beautiful, proud, but not at all fast or strong, though it did its job. A bit like the boy himself. He was no longer at all incompetent; if ordered, he did things promptly and efficiently. What he lacked was initiative.

"Frey!" Valderant was shouting at him from behind. "Get your butt off the bow, we need to adjust the foresail." As she spoke, she was pushing him out of the way, her attention focused on the ropes holding the sail and the two sailors who were handling it.

In the old days, when Jim, Runa, Val, and he himself had traveled with the dragon-slaying order, he had always been the highest-ranking officer. Runa had renounced the privileges of her title to join the order, but on that ship, she had experienced the amazing command of her former companion. Even the ambassadors of Pellegrin did what she said without arguing, especially Oregdor, the youngest. Only old Genwill resisted her, who opined that no one under a thousand years old could give him advice, much less orders.

"Alright, no pushing," he said, moving aside only to bump shoulder to shoulder with another sailor.

"I told you to get your butt out of here," she said without looking at him. "Go on, the old, immature woman is looking for you on the poop deck."

The ship was much larger than they needed. It was a merchant caravel about thirty meters long and ten meters wide. It had three masts with square sails adorned with the coat of arms of Artemia. A unicorn on its quarters, white on a blue field. Still, Frey felt like he was in the way wherever he went. The best thing would be to listen and go where Val had told him.

Runa was leaning on the railing, looking at the sea. She liked to look for signs of sea creatures, but ships weren't her thing. She usually stayed at the stern where the movement was less sudden or she would get seasick in a few hours. Today was a good day. She looked calm, and even a little smiling. In the first days of the voyage, she had been bad-tempered, although it seemed that since their fight, the two women could be near each other without insulting each other too much. Frey had been very upset about that fight, but apparently, for whatever reason, it had been necessary.

"Have you seen any krakens today, my love?" Frey tried to be especially affectionate with her. Runa looked at him with a smile.

"No, just a big, adorable goof," she gestured for him to come closer, offered her back for him to hug her from behind. They stayed like that for a moment, watching their little one run around the deck chasing her friend. Runa seemed to be looking a little further.

"We could arrive by nightfall if the winds are favorable."

"If the sea witch wasn't so stubborn, I could conjure those favorable winds," Frey thought at least they weren't hitting each other anymore, Runa's ribs and Val's face had taken a while to heal, "and we'd already be in Axandor."