Rise of the Last Dragon Rider - 009 - The enemy you don't see (Patreon)

“My gosh, son, which of you is eating more?” Hess whispered as Kaen let go of the embrace.

“Pammon, definitely Pammon,” he answered as he moved to hug Sulenda, who was waiting her turn.  “Is she really asleep?”

Nodding, Sulenda gripped him tight, and he knew she was trying to show off a little bit.

“She has been worked up all morning when we told her you and Pammon were back.  She could not stop babbling.  I’m still a little upset that Pammon was her second word.”

Chuckling, Kaen shrugged as she let go, and he looked around her at the little girl, fast asleep on the bench in the office.

It had changed a lot.  Now there were padded chairs, lots of lightglobes, the dust and the paperwork were mostly gone, and a large padded bench that served as her sleeping area had a wooden rail all the way around it.  He was amazed that the side facing him could be lowered, and anyone could sit on it then.

They both parted, and he walked over and gazed down at his little sister.  She was sleeping soundly, and though she was only a little over a year old, she was massive.  Her red hair was in curls, and he knew some blue eyes were behind those shut lids.  She was bigger than many three-year-olds, and Kaen had been on the receiving end of her playfulness before.  She had a temper, one Hess said came from her momma.  At this moment, she looked peaceful, but he knew the truth.  Once she woke up, she would be like a ferret, moving everywhere, in everything, and never slowing down.

“You sure Hess is the father?” he teased as he moved to the chairs they were sitting in.

“Every time you are here, you ask that.  When will you give this crippled man a little joy?”

His voice was filled sounded like he was hurt as it squeaked, but they all knew he expected that question.

“How long does she have left before she wakes up?”

“Maybe thirty minutes,” Sulenda answered as leaned back in her chair.  “You going to steal Hess from me?”

“Just for thirty minutes!”

She snorted and nodded.

“That’s fine, but make sure you don’t go anywhere, or I’ll make you wipe off the tears she sheds when she finds out you left her.”

Nodding, Kaen stood up and pushed Hess toward the door.

“We both know she only likes me because of Pammon.”

“Hairy Dwarf Balls,” muttered Hess as he looked across the table at Kaen.  “You look more like your father than you know.  The only difference is he was attractive, and you aren’t.”

Chuckling, Kaen just grinned as Hess spun his glass on the table.  His one hand rotated it around at the base, and his stump was lazily hanging on the back of the booth.

“Stop staring at it.  I have learned to live with it and will gladly trade it, knowing I am still here because of you and Pammon.”

His voice was a little rough, and Kaen knew he was frustrated with the attention his stump brought.  Pity was not something he wanted.

“Besides, I managed to do fine training those students at your academy.  Even Bren would tell you I’m a match for most of them still.”

“You just look old,” Kaen finally blurted out.  “You have gray in your hair!”

“Almost dying does that to ya!” he exclaimed before lifting his drink to his lips and sucking down all of it.  “You saw what happened to Selmah.  Her hair is completely white because she was willing to burn her entire life force in order to stop that Magus.  She managed to stop before it did kill her, and your smart thinking with that potion is the only thing that kept her from dying.”

Sighing, Kaen nodded as he stared at the man who had raised him.  He had aged a lot in the last six months.  Maybe it had been in the last year.  He seemed… smaller.  More… vulnerable.

“I’m glad the two of you, as well as the others, are managing.  It still hurts a little bit knowing how many have died and that we have yet to fight.  Pammon and I scouted the swamps' outer edges a few days ago, and we couldn’t see a single orc or goblin.  It was as if they had moved completely.”

Grunting, Hess cleared his throat, went to spit on the ground, and stopped.  He swallowed it and took another drink.

“She would have hurt me for that,” he stated as he chuckled.  “We have heard rumors, but Herb will not tell me much.  I understand why, but it hurts knowing the man acts like he can’t trust me.”

“I haven’t spoken to him in a while either.  Someone else took me the last time I went to the vault.”

Tapping all his fingers against the table in a rhythm, Kaen recognized the act as one Hess had done whenever he was perplexed.  His face scowled at no one, but it was obvious Hess was struggling to figure out what had changed.

“I’ll pay him a visit.  I know he can’t deny me as a dragon rider.”

“You would do that for me?” he asked as he cleared his throat once more.

“I would do a lot of things for you, even drag your gimpy, old, smelly arse back to town, missing half an arm.”

Both grinned and started chuckling.  Kaen always took the opportunity to bring up the fact he had saved Hess. Glad to be able to rib him about it.

“Tell me about Ava,” Hess said as he wasted no time digging right back at Kaen’s weak spot. “How have things been between you?”

His voice became gruff as Kaen crossed his arms and leaned against the back of the booth.

“It hasn’t.  She got upset the last time I was here because I was always gone.  Like she wanted or expected me to take her with me or something.  What was worse was the fit she threw because I only had two days, and all I could offer was a few hours before Aldric and Elies needed me.”

Groaning, Kaen watched as Hess flashed a grin.

“Women aren’t easy to understand, are they?”

“Son, you have no idea,” Hess whispered as he looked around the room to make sure no one was close.  “There are days I think we are from different places.  Men think one way, and women believe we are wrong.  Beyond that, I often just do the opposite of what I think I should do, and Sulenda seems happier that way.”

“Pammon!” Callie cried as she tapped Kaen’s chest.  “Pammon!”

Sighing, Kaen let out a laugh as he playfully tickled his sister’s neck and heard her giggle and squirm.

“We will go find Pammon, you silly troll, but first, I need some love!”

Laughing, Callie gave him a huge hug and squeezed him tight.

“Pammon?”

“For the love of all, can we go see him?” Sulenda pleaded, her voice cracking as she shook her head.  “Ever since she has woken up, it is all she has asked for.”

Hess laughed and stood up from his chair.

“He is close and said we can come now. Apparently, he was eating.”

Jumping up and down, Callie laughed, her red hair bobbed as he moved around the room.

“Well, let's not keep Pammon waiting then, shall we?”

All his concerns and worries seemed to be gone as Kaen watched Callie rubbing her hands and face against Pammon’s scales.  They were rough and tough, yet somehow she never seemed to care as each time she did it, Pammon trilled, sending her into a fit of laughter.

She would run and hide under a wing, listening to Hess stomp around outside, trying to find her.  When Pammon lifted his wing, and her dad found her, chasing after her, Pammon would then use his head to block him.

“She is in heaven,” Sulenda declared.  She was holding Kaen’s arm in hers and smiling.  “You know, if you keep growing, you might one day be as tall as Hess.”

Snorting, he shook his head.

“You and I both know that will never happen.  I am glad to see both of them enjoying each other.  I know she needs this just as much as you two do.”

He felt her shaking, and he turned, seeing a few wet spots on her cheek, but a smile never left her face.

“I owe you and Pammon so much, and I cannot ever repay you for that,” she stated, a tremor in her voice as she stared at her family.  “I will always treat you like a son if you want it.”

Pausing, she turned and winked at him, sending a tear down her face.

“A pain in the arse for a son, but one I would gladly call my own.”

Nodding, he stood there, grateful for what family life should be like.  This was what Pammon and he were fighting for.  So families could laugh and play and live together.  Without thought, his heart burned a little as he watched the three of them play in Bren’s school training area.  It had become the primary landing place for Pammon anytime they were there.

The four of them played for a good thirty minutes before one of the men brought out a tray with some drinks.

Laughing, Kaen left the three of them with Pammon as he met the servant to collect the tray.  As he took the tray, he saw a flash of metal and reacted without thought.

The man attacked with a dagger, sliding it toward his ribs and chest as he gripped the tray.

All those moments of practice caused him to react and not think, his lifestone igniting before his heart could beat.  The man’s attack was pushed up as he pressed against Kaen, the tray sliding his arm upwards and away from his chest.

The dagger barely sliced through his sleeve, nicking his arm as Kaen brought his other hand and tray along the man’s jaw, knocking him so hard it snapped his head around, facing his backside.

Dropping to the ground, the body fell, the dagger landing in the dirt.

Pammon roared, causing Callie to start crying as Hess and Sulenda grabbed her, wondering what was causing him to act like this.

You’re hurt!

Wincing, Kaen nodded and tore his shirt the rest of the way.  He saw a cut on his arm, no longer than an inch and barely deep at all, yet it burned like someone was putting a lump of coal against his skin.

“Kaen!” Hess shouted as he handed Callie to Sulenda and sprinted towards him.

Holding his head, Kaen felt dizzy.

“Poison,” he muttered as his voice felt like it slurred.  The cut was close to his artery, meaning it was flowing fast through his body.

I got you! Shouted Pammon in his head, pouring his life force into him.

Blinking his eyes rapidly, Kaen felt the strength of Pammon flowing into him.  The courtyard stopped spinning, and he saw people rushing out into the training area to see what had happened.

“The blade, it’s poisoned!” Kaen said as he pointed at the dagger.

Sliding to a stop in the dirt, Hess grabbed the torn sleeve that was hanging on Kaen’s arm and took it the rest of the way off.

“Let me see!” he demanded as he held up Kaen’s arm, ignoring him wincing.

Small lines of black had formed quickly, but it was not spreading at the moment.

“We need to get you a healer!”

“Pammon, can you fly him to the Guildhall?  They will have someone there first!”

You know I can help him get on.  I am giving him my strength, but it is taking more than I had originally expected.  We will need to hurry.

“I can hear both of you,” Kaen said as he groaned. His arm felt worse than anything he had felt in a long time.  “Get me on Pammon, I can do the rest.”

Glancing across the courtyard, Kaen saw Callie crying, face hidden in Sulenda’s chest.

We must go before I draw any more danger to those I love.

This isn’t your fault, Pammon informed him as Hess helped him climb onto the saddle.  You and I both remember what Hess said when you left Minoosh.  People will try to strike at you and people near you to weaken you.  This isn’t a fight you can win alone, though.  We need them, and they need you.

Straining, Kaen just focused on getting clipped in.

“I’ll race that way!” Hess shouted before Pammon took off.  “A HORSE! I need a horse!”

Men in the courtyard started running and scrambling.  A dead man lay in the dirt. An injured dragon rider was being flown out on his dragon, causing chaos and fear in everyone in the courtyard.

Worst was the one-armed man they knew could kill them all shouting for a horse.

Not the way they had expected their day to go.