[H'riol]

He watched the Cleft dragons take their positions, the image of Shakar
firmly in his mind, waiting to hear S'fan's orders.

<Bykor says we are to stay and fight.  As soon as the battle is over,
everyone is to teleport to Shakar.  If we are too wounded to teleport, we
are forbidden to return by flight, lest we be followed,> his brick-brown
dragon, Garoth, reported.

<Very well.  We fight, then.>

And so they fought for the next hour, replenishing their coal once, since
they had no time to get coal before the battle, at Cleft Warren.  The
coalmen there were none too happy to see the rogues.

H'riol wished he had time to make them understand, to tell them that he
had been banished from Falagand purely because Roland had made him a
flightleader.  He'd deserved the flightleader position, and had never
played Roland's politics, but he had been banished in the witchhunts that
had followed Roland's banishment anyway.

What choice had he had but to join Roland?  At least he and Garoth weren't
alone, and they were still doing what they had wanted to do-- protect and
serve by fighting wraiths and wild dragons.

No, the life of the wandering warrenless wasn't for him.  He had wanted to
make a difference.

He had hoped that with the death of Roland, the men of Shakar would shake
off some of the depravity of rape and plunder upon the Nomads.  There had
been some small improvement under S'fan, but not enough.

Simply put, Roland's rogues were bitter men, for the most part, and they
were taking their anger out on the easiest targets.

<My rider, you need to pay attention.>

<I am.>

<Only with half your mind.>

H'riol returned his focus to the battle.

******

Somehow, he got separated from his partner, N'dain.  Ordinarily, it would
have taken little to return to him, but just then a clump of wraiths
decended on him, and he was fighting for his life.

******

<We must get back to Shakar.  Please, my rider.  I need the image.>

The pain was too much.  The images of Falagand, the first Shakar,
abandoned now to the plague that had hit them, and the new Shakar blended
in his mind.  <I can't.  You'll have to get us there.>

But Garoth was too distracted by the pain and the images in his rider's
mind.  He turned and began winging away from the battle.

The aqua of N'dain's Charash flashed before him.  <You cannot fly to
Shakar!  Those are S'fan's orders.>

<My rider is hurt.  I cannot teleport.>  He turned and continued flying.

He screamed as Charash's claws sank into his flank.  <Land!>

<My rider is-->

<Land!  Please, Garoth, I do not want to hurt you.>

Garoth landed.  Charash settled nearby and N'dain slid from his saddle and
dashed to his partner's side.  H'riol moaned in pain as N'dain pulled him
down from the saddle.

<Will you take him back to Shakar?  I will wait and follow later, when it
is clear,> Garoth begged.

Charash's voice was subdued.  <I am sorry, my friend, but N'dain says
H'riol's wounds are too much for the pitiful healers we have at Shakar.>

Garoth moaned at the words he had feared to hear.  Then an idea came to
him.  <I will take him to Cleft, then.>

There was a moment of silence.  <N'dain says it is too much of a risk that
they might force you to tell them where Shakar is.>

Garoth roared in anger as he saw N'dain pull the knife from his belt.  The
rider hesitated.

The dragon could hear the man making the noises he recognised as swearing.
He sheathed the knife suddenly, and turned back to Charash.

<N'dain says to take your rider to Cleft.  He is going back to Shakar to
start them moving to a new location.>

******

If dragons could cry tears, Garoth would be crying them.  Every time he
went to pick up his rider, H'riol would nearly scream in pain.  Why hadn't
N'dain put him back in the saddle?

The battle had ended while Charash and his rider were with them.  All of
the other Shakar dragons had teleported away.

Garoth saw some of the Cleft dragons sweeping over the mountain.
Clean-up, he knew.

<Please,> he mindcalled to them, <please, help me.  My rider is hurt.>

He watched as one turned and cautiously approached.  They landed some
distance away.

<My rider says to move away from your rider.>

<He is hurt.>

<My rider will look at him once you are out of flaming range.>

They thought this was a trap?  Garoth backed up and watched as the tall
human slid from the shoulders of his dragon and cautiously approached.  It
took little time for the man to determine that this was no trap.

<My rider has sent word.  Healers from the warren will come and get your
rider.  We will stay with you and wait for them.>

<Thank you,> Garoth breathed.  <I am Garoth.  My rider is H'riol.>

<Shinner,> the other dragon answered.  <My rider is Dan'yar.>

Respectfully submitted,
 Lynette R. F. Cowper
  H'riol and Garoth
   of Shakar Warren

NRPG: Just a quick one while I had it in mind.

 # Lynette R. F. Cowper        o       INWO Line Editor & Goddess      #
 # lcowper@indy.net             <><     Circle of Janus Secretary      #
 # lcowper@io.com                  o       Captain, USS CALYPSO        #
 # http://www.io.com/~lcowper/  ><>     Warrenlady, Telnor Warren      #