The Death of Addor 2 (complete)

    “I hate that you had to come here under such conditions,” Dhaval replied as Chi and I walked with him through the palace halls. “But it is always good to have family visit.”

    “We appreciate you letting us come here,” Chiyo replies. “I know you’ve been busy as of late. We’ve just been worried about Maeve.”

    Ever since Addor left, things have been exceptionally hard on me. I’ve not been able to let go of my guilt and grief, and it has slowly eaten away at me. In their concern for me, Chiyo and Chi took me to the Rakshasa Court, hoping a change of scenery and pace would help me. Chi was also wanting to use the resources in Dhaval’s study to learn about the Grattertock Mountains.

    “Darius is here as well,” Dhaval then says. “If you would like to see him.”

    “Is that so?” Chiyo asks as she pours water. “I thought he had another kid?”

    Dhaval nods. “He did. But Demir had urgent business for him.”

    “What could be so urgent?” Chiyo asks.

    Dhaval furrows his brow towards her. “I thought you knew,” he says. “I suppose you probably missed his letters then,” he murmurs. He then looks up at her. “He doesn’t know about Addor.”

    I perk up, looking over at Dhaval. “Why would we want Addor?” I ask.

    Dhaval glances towards me with a look of sympathy. “For years Demir has been trying to figure out why dragons have been disappearing from the empire,” he replies. “He’s been trying to find a way into the dragons’ lands to study.”

    “Has there been any luck?” I gasp, rising from the bed.

    Dhaval furrows his brow. “That is why Darius is here. He’s using our maps to-”

    I step towards him quickly. “Where is he?”

    Chi reaches out, grabbing my shoulders. “You need to rest first.”

    “I don’t have time for that!” I snap at him. “I have to-” I stop myself and look back to Dhaval. “I need to reach Addor, Darius and Demir may be my only hope for this.”

    Dhaval sighs. “He’s in the library,” he replies. “But Maeve,” he says cooly, “you don’t need to get your hopes up. Garrtertock is notoriously inhospitable. If you aren’t suffocated by the gases or burnt alive by the everfires, then the dragons there will do everything in their power to keep you out. The dragons that remain there are notoriously territorial. Even ships that simply pass by the Grattertock are victim to their attacks. I’m afraid that without Addor, getting close would be impossible.”

    “But there must be a way or else Demir wouldn’t be trying so hard,” I insist. “I need to talk to Darius, I just need to know!”

    Chi sighs and takes my hand. “We’ll talk to him, but then you have to promise me that you’ll rest. You’ve barely slept or eaten at all.”

    “Don’t like my mother know that,” Dhaval murmurs.

    Chi and I go to the library where we find Darius sitting amongst piles of books and with maps hanging from the shelves. He standing before one and tracking down things in a journal before him.

    “This is a surprise,” Darius says as we come in. “I wasn’t expecting you so soon.” 

    “We weren’t expecting you,” Chiyo replies. “Dhaval tells us Demir was wanting to use Addor to bypass the Grattertock.”

    Darius smiles. “Yes. It would be a major help if we even could-”

    Chiyo holds up her hand. “Addor is gone.”

    Darius’s expression sinks and his jaw drops. “What?” He chuckles, forcing a smile that quickly dissolves. “What do you mean...gone?”

    “He’s dying,” Chi’s voice is serious and quiet. “The control he suffered from Bithus took too much from him. He’s already gone to Grattertock to die.”

    Darius sinks into a chair. “Oh no.”

    I approach Darius. “Please,” I whisper. “I have to go to him. I have to find him. You must know of a way! What about the Path?”

    “The Path is a legend,” Darius insists. “It is a fairy tale. Iorgos was not taken from Grattertock by man. It is impossible. Even more so back then when dragons flew in packs like birds,” he shakes his head. “I have been studying these maps and journals by people who have tried to navigate Grattertock before.” He stands and goes to one of the maps hanging from the bookcases. 

    “The only way to Grattertock is by dragons or pure insanity!” He scoffs and waves his arms out. “If we had Addor-” he then stops and turns to me. “I’m sorry,” he whispers.

    My shoulders sink. “So that’s it then?” I ask as tears come back to my eyes. “I’m just supposed to give up?”

    “Unless we can find something,” Darius’ voice is quiet and defeated. “I’m sorry, but Grattertock is impossible.”

    Chi puts his arm around me. “Come on,” he tells me gently. “Let’s go back and rest.” He starts to lead me away from the room.

    “What if the path is underwater?” Chiyo says suddenly.

    I stop and turn, looking at Chiyo as she studies the maps. “What if it appears when the tide is out?” She points along the map. “Water must get in and out of Grattertock somehow. So, what if the path isn’t so much a road but a river? There has to be a fresh water source. There are many things dragons can do but drink salt water isn’t one of them.”

    Darius returns to the map. “How do you know that?”

    “Addor was my best friend,” she replies. “It isn’t science,” she scoffs. “There must be a freshwater source the dragons and creatures there rely on. If not, they would have to come to the mainland in order to find it. But since dragons are vanishing-”

    “There must be water there,” Darius whispers in alarm.

    “That’s why the dragons attack ships nearing too close,” Chiyo says with a wide smile. “Because they’ve gotten too close to ‘the path.’” She turns to Darius. “All the ships that were attacked, can you-”

    Darius rushes to his journal. “I’m already on it.” he runs back to the map where he starts marking the locations from his journal directly onto the old map.

    Chi and I come closer, seeing that all the ships have gone near the same location. Just off the coast where there is a path just before the Garden of Whirlpools in the southern sea. Darius connects the dots of the ship attack, and from it, he’s able to select an area of the coast where ‘the path’ could be.

    “You’d have to be a raving lunatic to go there to see if it were true,” Darius whispers.

    “I’ll do it,” I say, stepping forward.

    Darius turns and looks at me. “Did you not just hear me?”

    “Addor taught me his magic. I’m a dragon mage,” I say with urgency. “They would mistake me as one of their own!”

    Darius looks me up and down. “You look nothing like a dragon.”

    “But they would sense one,” I throw at him. “If they sensed one coming then maybe they wouldn’t attack the coast until we were sure!”

    Chi takes my hand and squeezes it. “We can’t risk you like that.”

    “I can risk it!” I snap at him. “What have I got to lose? If I die there, then I die on the same ground as Addor!”

    Chi stares down at me with pain in his eyes. “But there are people who don’t want you to die,” he urges. “Addor included! He wouldn’t want you risk your life for a goodbye.”

    “What would you do if it was your mother? Your father?” I snap at him. “Wouldn’t you do anything to be there with them?”

    Chi goes silent for a moment. 

    “I wouldn’t want Maitri or Chi to sacrifice themselves that way,” Chiyo replies. “I know you’re grieving Maeve and you aren’t think clearly. You’re letting this get the best of you.”

    “I can do it!” I snap at them. “Let me do this!”

    Everyone is quiet and somber then. Darius then steps towards me and clears his throat. “It will take time and planning, Maeve,” he says. “I need to reach out to Demir to let him know what has changed.”

    “I don’t have time! That’s the whole point!” I cry.

    Darius takes hold of my hands. “I will try to make this as quick as possible,” he says. “But you need to calm yourself. If you’re this unbalanced, then the dragons will know who you are.”

    Chi takes me back to the room to rest. I am visited by all of the royal family. Mythri comes by often, making sure I eat and drink, much like Dhaval warned. Even with age, Mythri is still one of the most radiant people I have ever come across. Even if she and Chiyo are sisters, they have aged completely differently. Chiyo has aged with fire inside her while Mythri has aged with light around her. Both are beautiful, but they are different beauties.

    Demir and Darius eventually make their agreements and arrange a way to get to Grattertock. Darius and Dhaval have worked together to hire a team that will work with you to getting there. The team is led by a tiefling who goes by Blink. He’s mercenary who has been working for the royal family for ages now. Dhaval promised the utmost trust in him. Blink has also hired his brother as his right-hand man, a fellow tiefling by the name of Odd.

    “Dragon mage, eh?” Odd asks me one day. “What makes you a dragon?” He says with a smirk.

    I scowl at him, and he winks. “I see it now.”

    “Odd,” Blink growls warningly at him. “Enough of your cavalier attitude.”

    “Just curious,” Odd says. “She’s supposed to keep us alive, I just wanted to know how. I mean, I trust women with my life more than I trust any man.” He says, waving his hands up and down at his brother.

    “You should trust yourself first,” Blink growls at him. “Listen to your instinct and follow it first.” 

    Odd turns and looks at me. “I trust her,” he says with a nod. “I find that women usually know more than I do.” He walks over to me and looks out over the crowd who has been hired to join on this voyage.

    “Now tell me,” he says, “you’ve been watching this crew like a hawk. Have you seen anything?”

    I glare up at him. “What do you mean?”

    “Dragons see things,” he murmurs. “Now I know you aren’t a dragon, but being raised by one is close enough. Not to mention you’ve got its magic.” He kneels down a bit to get on my level. “Now tell me, what do you see?”

    “I don’t see much these days,” I tell him. “All I want is to get into Grattertock and find my father.”

    “I get it,” Odd says as he stands up. “I mean, I don’t. I never had any sort of love or affection for my father. But I understand grief.” He pats my back. “I’ll keep my eye on your little dragon.”

I scowl after Odd, seeing that his tail was barely a stump at the top of his ass. I turn back, watching as the crew files onto the ship, loading it with supplies. 

The plan was to take this ship and get it close enough so that Blink and I could take a rowboat to the shore. If we were attacked, it would just be the two of us and not the entire crew. If we got to shore without a dragon appearing, we would head back and bring more people along. If we still weren’t sensed, we would go back and then go forward again with a few more crew members. Once that succeeded we would then take to shore to search for ‘the path.’

A few days before we’re to set out, we hold a big meeting to discuss plans and finalize everything. In the room is Dhaval, Darius, Chiyo, Chi, Odd, Blink, and a man called Heinrik whom was donating us his ship to take.

As I was entering the room, I heard Blink whispering to his brother. “That man, Heinrik,” he replies, “I’m not sure how but I know him.”

“Usually when I say that it’s a bad thing,” Odd whispers to him.

I approach Chi who is talking to Dhavel. “What are you doing here?” I ask.

“I’m going too,” he says.

“No,” I shake my head. “Why would you go?”

Chi furrows his brow. “Why wouldn’t I?”

“You’re not needed,” I argue. “What could you possibly offer to this journey?”

Chi glares down at me. “To be there for you,” he snarls low. “I told you that I would always be by your side.”

“Well, I don’t need you,” I growl at him and walk off to the opposite end of the table where Heinrik was sitting.

“Lover’s quarrel?” Heinrik smirks down at me.

“None of your business,” I grumble.

Heinrik is an older man. His face bears multiple scars, and one of his arms is missing from the elbow up. There’s something about him too that, like Blink said, seems familiar. And like Odd said, he was familiar in a way I didn’t like.

“I suppose not,” Heinrik chuckles. He glances down at me with his dark eyes. “You’re the dragon mage they keep talking about. I’ve seen you around, but I never put it together until now.”

I glare over at him and then look back across the table as everyone takes their seats. “No one does,” I murmur. “Not until it’s too late.”

“Dragon mages are rare, especially in this day an age. You must be only one of a few. I bet you could count them all off on one hand.”

I look at his amputated arm. “I hope it isn’t that one” I reply.

Heinrik laughs. “Certainly not. Nothing to count on with this arm.” He leans towards me a bit. “I heard about a blood wizard in the mountains up north,” he says, and the hair on the back of my neck stands on end. “You might not want word of your powers getting out. Who knows who would want to use it for their own ways.”

I remember what Addor told me all those years ago and my heart hurts even more.

“How can men not know that what they are doing is evil?” I asked Addor. “Can’t they see that what they do hurts people?”

“Even men with the purest of hearts can be harmful to someone else,” Addor replied. “Same could be said of good actions.” He then motioned me over to sit between his arms. “Here, let me show you.” He places his hands apart, and the heat that moved between then became like vapors. The air moved and vibrated until images started to appear.

“Wars have been fought for the good of mankind,” he replies. I see Rakshasa fighting against Gnolls on a battlefield. Suddenly, a dragon flies overhead, startling even me as I watched. The dragon landed on the castle behind the battle.

“Good intentions can have negative outcomes,” Addor told me. “Such is the tale of Empress Bethsabe.” The image between his hands shifted to a Gnoll woman. “She so wanted to protect her kingdom, that she would do anything to do it. In her heart, her desire to grow it and make it strong was the right thing to do. But, she caused much suffering and harm in her wake. Her desire for power reached far and wide until finally, one day, her outstretched hand was smashed between the stones of her own folly.”

I looked up at Addor, seeing pain in his eyes.

“She took too much, and she paid for it,” he whispered. “The Rakshasa War proved that her ideas, no matter how pure in the beginning, had become tainted and evil. In the end, she had hurt more than she planned to save.”

I reached out, touching Addor’s arm.

“Eyes are broken from birth,” Addor said as he nuzzled the top of my head. “They see what they want to see. They don’t see the things they need. They may see something as beautiful while another set of eyes will see it as hideous.”

“Eyes are broken,” I repeated.

Addor moves his hand, so the images fade away. “I want you to know this, Maeve,” he whispered to me. “I want you to be able to understand that it is important to take a step back and try to understand how others see the world. Because everyone will see it differently than you do. And you will see it differently too.” He smiled at me. “I have come to understand, in my long time alive on this world, that people need to understand this. They have to share their visions, or nobody will see anything. Do you understand me, little Maeve?”

“I think so,” I answered him. Although at the time, I really had no inkling to what he meant. I just wanted to take in whatever he said.

Addor chuckled and kisses my cheek. “And even if you don’t, I believe you will know my words one day and take them to heart. It’s important you remember my lessons one day, Maeve. Because there could came a day when I am not in it.”

“That’s crazy!” I had laughed then, but I should have taken my father much more seriously. Even back then, he knew the damage done to him by Bithus was beyond repair. 

“I know it is,” Addor pet the top of my head. “But as your father, I worry about the world you’ll be living in. And in case I am not there to see it, I want my words to be deep in your heart, my little Maeve.”

“Dragon mage,” Heinrik says with a smile.

He snaps me from my thoughts. “I’m sorry,” I sit erect in my seat. “What did you say?”

Heinrik offers me his handkerchief. “You were crying,” he says. “I wasn’t sure you were aware.”

I take his offering and wipe my face. “I’m aware these days,” I grumble. 

Heinrik chuckles and watches me. “I have an offer for you, dragon mage,” he says.

I look up at him, unaware the unease I was feeling was because of his smile and not my own broken emotions.

“Let’s be friends alright?” He offers me his hand. “I need someone I can trust on this journey.” He looks out over everyone else. “I feel like you’re the only one I can rely on.”

I look him over and sigh. “Fine,” I shake his hand. “Friends it is then.”

“Good,” he smiles. “I feel much better knowing I have you on my side. Not everyday one befriends a dragon mage. Doubt it happens at all.”

I smile at him then turn my attention back to the meeting at hand. I listen to Dhaval go over the course we are to take while Darius fills everyone in on what we can expect. I look at the map, knowing that soon I’ll be with Addor again. I could see him, and I could tell him everything that has been weighing for heavy on my heart. I could hold him, so he’s not alone in his final moments.

“Soon,” I say in prayer, “I promise I’ll be there soon.”