The Three Kingdoms [under edit]

Part Two-the Story Begins

It was in the woods a few hours later that they made their encampment. The early hours of the night fell quietly past, It was around midnight when the soft crunch of the forest floor caught his attention. The dragon peered into the darkness, taken aback when several sets of eyes began to peer back at him through the darkness....wolves.

"Hello Dragon," said the largest stepping forward.

"Hello" he replied cautiously.

"What brings you to such a war torn land?" he asked as he slowly began circling the frightened dragon, like a predator would encircle his prey. His eyes, accustomed to the darkness, darted around the camp.

"Would you extend me the courtesy of informing me of who you are so that I can better judge the decision of whether or not to trust you?

"Very well..." the wolf stated after a moment's thought. "I am Caper. Son of Nareth. We are the last of the Great Wolves. The war has taken it's toll on us all." he said as he gestured to the others behind him.

"What cause do you fight for?"

"We cannot fight. We are struggling to survive the tyranny that pollutes the air. We cannot fight without first surviving." He stopped pacing and cast his gaze on the dragon. "And you?"

"I'm the rightful heir to the throne. I will reclaim the kingdom and come to Darien's aid, if he is still on the throne."

"That is a tall task. He is indeed still on the throne. He is holding strong." He paused. "We have been looking long for someone to fight for out cause.  We will be back here tomorrow.  Don't disappoint me.  We have endured for centuries, I will not have a stupid mistake put an end to my race."

He turned and padded off into the forest with the others falling behind him. The dragon sat silently in thought until the hours passed by and the Phoenixes came to relieve him of his night duty.

     The sun had risen high by the time the dragon arose from his slumber. He cursed himself silently for sleeping so late, then stepped into the broadly light center of the encampment nori in immediately that the wolves were back...and vigorously discussing plans with the phoenixes as well.

"Have a nice sleep dragon?" Caper asked wryly. He turned down the comment with a death glare, yet it soon dissipated.  The rest of the afternoon was set in preparation of an almost simple task, and the wolves soon left to hunt for the group. After having eaten, and discussed, the group headed out under cover of darkness.

     The night was cold and silent as they glided under the stars, while the wolves romped quietly through the forest below. They had a few close encounters, but none proved too dangerous. Shortly after midnight, they arrived at the edge of the forest, on the outskirts of the village. Thhe Dragon gazed silently at the place where he grew up, a towering fortress built into the cliffs, with high walls and towers that dusted the stars, a marvel of engineering. From where they were situated, the group could see a large number of armed guards stationed at every inlet and corner completely surrounding the premises. The Phoenix captain, Narden, stood beside him and looked out at the guards.

"How many of them do you reckon are still loyal to the old ways?" he asked.

"I-I don't know....but I believe I see commander Willcott.....he used to sneak me second dinners in the middle of the night, some distant cousin."

"Well...that's not very uplifting." Narden stated. He made his move and began to creep up towards the gatehouse.

"I strongly advise against this dragon," Caper warned.