Greetings Fellow Readers
I'm so glad you have all been with me on their journey for almost a year! This will be the last update of Fell dragon for the year, but there will be a new one in the new year! I appreciate your dedication to reading Fell Dragon this long, and I hope you will keep reading until the story ends!
Saita had not slept that night. Instead, she had found her way to the roof of the large house and lay there looking at the unfamiliar stars and red sky. Larden’s family had been so welcoming to her, despite knowing who she was, and it made her a little uncomfortable. If she had been in their shoes, she doubted that she would have shown the same kindness. Then again, she still held onto so much rage she wasn’t surprised that she felt that way.
The weather was mild, even at night, which seemed to drag on forever. The red of the sky made her think of the sunsets on the planet that she had been raised on and a mixture of sadness and anger descended on her. More than anything she wanted to go home and see those that had once been her family, but she was terrified of the repercussions that would occur because of that. She longed to hold her son in her arms again. She missed his blue eyes and flame hair. Staying with this family reminded her so much of him.
“Saita?” came a soft call.
“Hmm.” she came to stand on the edge of the roof and looked down.
Staring up at her from a window was Danna. She looked a little concerned when she noticed the young woman on the roof. “How did you get up there?”
“Easy enough to jump from that window and then I pulled myself up.”
Danna chuckled and said. “Did you give it any thought on how to get down?”
Saita thought for a moment, looked around then sheepishly said. “No, I didn’t.”
“Round the other side of the house, there is a climbing wall. You should be able to navigate back towards the ground. I’ll come to get you.”
Before Saita could say anything, Danna had retreated into the house. Shrugging her shoulders, the young woman went to the other side of the house to find the climbing wall and indeed managed to make her way down to the waiting Danna who beamed a large smile at her.
“I hope I didn’t wake you,” she said with a blush on her cheeks.
“I tend to wake early so I thought to check on you. I became somewhat concerned when I didn’t see you in your room or that the bed hadn’t been slept in.”
“I don’t sleep, not really. Usually, I wake others when I do sleep.”
“Come in and help me with breakfast. I have a feeling we are to have a guest arriving rather soon.”
“Sure!” Saita jumped at the opportunity to help.
With truly little guidance she was able to make use of the kitchen appliances, which weren’t that much different from the ones she knew from her planet, and the foods that were going to be cooked. The next to wake was Sash who looked like she was in a huge rush. She grabbed at a pot, filled what looked like a travel mug, and then rushed out of the door while juggling several files. The sky hadn’t even started to lighten yet.
“That girl. If she keeps rushing around like that, she is going to forget something very important one day.”
“You mentioned yesterday that she can open her own practice. Is she a doctor in training?”
“She has been a doctor for three years already. I am immensely proud of her.”
“She can’t be too much younger than me. She must be very gifted to be a doctor already.”
“Our schooling is a little different from humans.” laughed Danna. “By the time we leave school we can immediately enter our professions. Each school teaches a specific career so when we start at eight years old, we spend 10 years learning what we have to do for that career.”
“That sounds like a lot less time wasted if I am to be truthful.”
“What about you Dear? What is your occupation?”
“I don’t really have one. I am a brawler, not more than that. Typical education for a human but never specialised or anything.” then Saita laughed. “I didn’t even learn to talk properly till I was about 14 years old but that’s due to other circumstances.”
“Could you pass me the pot that Sash just emptied so that I can brew another one?”
“Is this coffee?” Saita took a sniff. “I thought that coffee could only be grown on human planets. Well, that and chocolate.”
“And you would be right. For the last year, your King Pura has been sending shipments to us as a peace offering after the war with your father.”
“Oh.” Saita gave her the pot. “Seems so little for what happened.”
“War is war, and we are a warring nation. Doesn’t stop me from praying every night when Larden goes to the battle fronts.”
Saita sat down and watched Danna work for a while before she said. “I’m sorry for what happened.”
“On the roof? Oh, don’t bother. I have had two sons and a daughter get stuck up there before. It is why I installed the climbing wall much to Saasha and Larden’s dismay. The house is old, it needed some sprucing up and the kids loved it.”
“That isn’t what I meant.”
“I know Dear, don’t strain yourself for making an apology for something you had nothing to do with.”
“But…”
“Many wars are fought in the names of others that were never involved. Many people know this but not all care. I do not have an ulterior motive for having you here. I miss having youngsters under my roof, so it is good to have another mouth to feed.”
Saita smiled a little and said. “Thank you.”
“As for what Saasha will want from you, I cannot say.”
“Larden’s mother?”
“And Queen of the Saith.”
Then Saita remembered everything Bolx had said. General Larden was the firstborn of Queen Saasha. She went cold but said nothing.
“Are you a coffee drinker or would you prefer water with breakfast?”
“A coffee alone will suffice thank you.” she managed to choke out.
She scratched at the back of her head in irritation. There was an itch there that would not let up. She wondered if it was because of what she had just heard and she grew nervous. Chaka had warned her that there may have been ulterior motives for her coming here, but she had been so excited that she hadn’t even thought of it further. Bolx was back but he had still been killed here and it was Karesh’s fault and in turn, made her feel like it was her fault. She continued to scratch at the back of her head.
“Where are my manners? You would probably love to take a bath, wouldn’t you?” Danna wiped her hands and lifted Saita effortlessly from the chair by one arm. “Let me show you where your bathroom is.”
“That is very kind, but I really don’t need a bathroom for myself.”
“Bolx told us of your aversion to mirrors and Sash does so like her makeup. We had the mirrors removed from your bathroom so that you can be more comfortable.”
“That wasn’t necessary.” Saita blushed.
“No one can ever accuse me of being rude to my guests. Come on. A shower would do you a world of good. By the time you are done breakfast will be served and likely our guest will be here. I need to wake Truhan and Larden anyway. That husband of mine likes to sleep in during the festivities when he doesn’t have to work. Well, go on. Two doors past yours and it is on the left. The hot water is controlled by the tap on the left and cold by the right.”
“But I…”
“Just use what was placed in the room for you. Whatever suits your taste.”
Saita could only chuckle and resign her fate to taking a bath that morning. She grabbed the clothing that was necessary and made her way to the room that had been pointed out to her. She locked the door before starting the usual check of any mirrors. Afterwards, she got the water in the shower to the temperature she preferred and then got undressed. Yet even as she showered the itch was still at the back of her head and she was getting to the point of scratching herself raw. Sighing she used Myla’s technique to ignore it and it helped for a time but then it came back.
“Mind over matter it is then,” she muttered.
Once she was clean, she dressed and fixed the room to be in the condition it had been in before she had used it. She spied a clothes basket in the corner of the room and before she could query it, she heard Danna from the other side of the door. “Dirty clothes in the bin and they’ll be washed at the end of the week.”
“Uhm...thanks,” said Saita as she dumped the clothes.
She returned to the kitchen to see Truhan, with messy bedhead, animatedly talking to a blonde- and grey-haired woman that was sitting at the table in the kitchen. He was grinning broadly as if telling a fantastic story. Saita didn’t want to interfere and tried to sneak into her room but then Truhan said. “Here she is!”
The older woman turned and grinned. It was a rather unique smile that Saita had not seen in the family before, and she wondered who the woman was at first but then she saw the blue eyes. The same blue eyes that were mimicked by Larden and his gaggle of offspring. At first, Saita thought that this was Saasha, but the woman looked considerably older than what Saita would have guessed the Queen to be. She was also dressed in a manner that suggested she was not of any royal line but rather like a soldier. The shirt she wore was ill-fitting though and seemed to creep up her midriff which showed many tattoos that looked similar to Saita’s marks.
Realising she was now staring; Saita nodded her head in greeting and said, “Morning.”
The woman rattled off what at first sounded like Saith, but Saita was unable to follow a single word. She looked to Truhan for some help.
“She won’t understand you if you talk that fast. Try the trading language or speak significantly slower. She understands the Saith language at about a grade five.” said Truhan.
“Grade five?” Saita was now confused.
“Beginner but advanced enough to hold a conversation.” said the strange woman as she turned to look over the chair at the human. “You are Saita Karesh, no?”
“Just Saita. I do not have a family name.”
The woman nodded her head. “Banishment means removing oneself from those that love you.”
“Not the words I would have used.”
The woman seemed to nod her head a few times then said. “Low on the grade five scale great-son. Perhaps conversing will best be in the trade language.”
“Great-son?” Saita was unfamiliar with this word and looked to Truhan to see if the meaning had been lost in translation.
“Silens has a habit of making up words to suit what she wants to say,” said Danna. “She is Truhan’s great-grandmother, but she prefers the title of great-mother and calls all her great-grandchild great-sons or great-daughters.”
“Has the itching stopped?” asked the woman as she mimicked scratching.
Saita realised that while she was speaking to the woman the itching had indeed stopped. It didn’t take long for her to realise why. “You are a Truth Seeker.”
“A Mind Dweller is what we were called amongst my people. Shamans with the power to enter thoughts but I never wanted that life, so I kept it hidden. It carries well with the daughters but not so with the sons.”
“Sash doesn’t have the ability.” reminded Danna.
“The girl lies. She just didn’t want to be whisked away to other training. She knew where she needed to be as a child. Like I did. If it wasn’t for her red hair, she would be like me.” Silens grinned. “That brew stinks Danna. Why make it?”
“We have a guest that likes it. Sash and Larden are quite partial to it too. Be nice. This is my house.”
The older woman laughed then stopped when she realised that Saita was still to take her eyes from her skin. “You like inked skin?”
She lifted the shirt to show Saita more of the marks that littered her ageing skin. Saita was hardly listening as the woman proudly explained what each meant. She wished that she could be proud of her own marks.
“You have marks too but not made of ink,” added Silens.
“You too?” Truhan looked disappointed. “I want some tattoos too.”
“Not while you live in this house you won’t. Heaven knows that I get enough of the begging from your niece wanting her own pair thanks to Silens.”
“Ah, great-great mother.” Silens sighed in contentment. “Never thought it possible. Now if only the other seeds would bloom into trees too.”
Truhan looked to Saita with a look of pity “She has a unique way of speaking. You will get used to her after some time.”
“Sit. Breakfast will be served soon. I’m going to get Larden out of bed.” instructed Danna as she pushed passed Saita. “And you will be eating. You have to complete your medical fitness today and then acclimatise for the next four weeks.”
“Wait, what?”
“Standard rule for the competition.” Silens kicked a chair out for Saita to sit in. “Sit.”
“Acclimatising for four weeks while not practising…”
“You can practise, you just can’t fight.” Silens pointed to the chair. “Sit.”
Uncomfortable but not having a reason to ignore what the woman had asked of her she sat down and sighed. Silens suddenly grabbed her hands and turned them palms up. She muttered something. For a moment and only a moment, Saita’s hands became marked like the rest of her before the marks faded from view.
Silens nodded her head once and released her hands before saying. “You are completely riddled with marks but only the dense ones can be seen with the naked eye.”
Saita snatched her hands away, feeling violated but said nothing as Silens continued to look at her. However, the grin was gone now. Now there was a look of concern on her face. She seemed to be deep in thought before she turned her attention to Truhan. “Go wake your father.”
Truhan didn’t even hesitate as he left the table. This woman commanded respect with words alone and it made Saita wonder what other strengths she had.
This is a half scene, as it's a particularly long one. In the new year, I'll be writing more about Silens, so you can all get to know her a little better. Yes, she does make up her own words because although she looks like a Saith, she isn't. Therefore she doesn't know the language so well.
Anyway, I hope you all enjoy! I will see you all in the next year!
For those of you just joining us, please note that this the third book in the Fell Dragon series. Follow this link to read the two earlier books:
Fell Dragon Book 1
Fell Dragon Book 2
As the series continues, it will combine with another book series I wrote. To avoid confusion about what is happening, introductory chapters will be introduced separately so that you don't have to be lost. However, these chapters will contain spoilers. You can find these chapters here:
Races Explained
Banishment
Royal Guard
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Haven't read the other parts yet? Follow these handy links:
Part 15>>You are Here>>Part 17