Greywolf - Black Dragons

"No one is coming."

We were standing on the hill where the body of the brave little girl had been burned, Titan and Avitohol in armor while I was wearing white trousers and nothing else except the cloak keeping the cold wind off me. Below us, the encampment was darker than normal, because a lot of the people living there had gathered to watch this betrothal happen.

At least a thousand torches showed the route it was going to take, making a passage from the bridge and running at an angle away from the river, until becoming a wide circle where I had to 'steal' Wysper away from her temporary family, as per tradition. Kula, and a hundred of the Chosen, were waiting to 'defend' her, while a hundred warriors of the People were supposed to be helping me.

Except no one had decided to come. "This isn't fair," Avitohol said as he paced back and forth like a caged wolf. “Father told me other warriors would join us to show defiance to those whose hearts belong to Timur and not to me. He told me they'd come."

There was a ragged edge of hurt in his voice, and I shared a look with Titan before the Ogri sighed. "I was afraid this might happen. The other khans are unhappy with the Great Khan's decision to banish Timur, and while they would never dare question him, withholding their warriors is a risk-free way to show their displeasure."

"Risk-free to them, maybe," Avitohol snapped. "Even though it's Kula and his picked warriors, they'll be honor bound to beat Greywolf into a pulp or risk being ridiculed as cowards."

"Then they'll beat me to a pulp," I snarled. Normally I could’ve just evaded them by using the Grey, but not only had I vowed to the Great Khan not to do that, but a Night Hag had tried to rip my face off when I poked my nose into the Shadowlands to see if it was safe. "They're honor bound not to kill me, so if I have to, I'll crawl-"

I stopped speaking and sniffed the air as the wind shifted, blowing in from the west and bringing with it a musky odor. "Shite, I’m smelling Warghorses riding up from the direction of Bukhara."

As per tradition, all of us were unarmed. "Both of you get behind me now," Titan rumbled as he turned to face the west.

"Who do you think it is?" I asked. "Timur?"

"Raiders from another clan, more likely," Avitohol answered. "Just hope it's not bandits, or we're in horse shite up to our ears."

The pounding of hard paws riding up the hill reached our ears, and Titan bellowed like a war drum, "Whoever approaches, name yourself friend or foe."

The Warghorse riders crested the hill, grey shadows in the moonlight as a growling voice called out, "Friend."

Hope surged within me. "Castor, is that you?"

A wolfish figure in armor slid off from behind a rider and loped towards me as I went around Titan, who returned to a relaxed, yet wary stance. Castor stopped and embraced me. "You didn't think I was going to abandon you, did you?"

We pounded each other on the back before letting go. "I thought you were trapped in Bukhara."

"I was, but Fox needed someone to go to the encampment with her, someone who wasn't beholden to Timur. So off we went through the Shadowlands, across the bridge until we reached the other side, where we found someone else who wanted to get here fast."

Titan rumbled, "That Daemo is frightened of her own shadow."

"Not when I've got a hundred Black Dragon warriors around me." Fox slid down from behind a tall rider at the front and walked towards us, wearing the armor Prince Varsena had crafted for her. "Raid-leader Hypam placed me under her protection and-"

"Hypam?" Avitohol raced around Titan towards the tall rider swinging down from the Warghorse. "What are you doing here?"

"Hunting for you," the tall figure responded. Hypam was wearing an open faced helm and black leather armor fully covered in Artifact, with a sheathed sword strapped to her belt. As Avitohol reached her, she picked him up and swung him around, both of them laughing. "Blood and stones," she said as she put him down, "when did you get so heavy?"

"That's kind of a long story. Greywolf, this is my cousin, Hypam, a Fire-mage for the Black Dragon clan." Avitohol motioned back at us. "These are my friends-"

"Greywolf, son of the Wolf-mother, and Titan, last of the Ancient Ones, as the Ogri of Haven call you. Our clan has heard all about you both." She bowed towards him. "I am honored to finally meet you."

Titan inclined his head. "Well met. You surprise me, though, knowing what I am."

Hypam has the face of a Tartaros warrior, but with burn marks on her skin instead of scars. "Black Dragon hunts all through the wastes of Khitia and even to the Xian borders, so we know the Ogri well." She looked at Avitohol. "Old Bone Woman had a dream about you, several weeks ago, that made Khan Huldin send us towards the encampment. But instead of riding the trails, we were told to take the caravan roads and reach Bukhara today after nightfall, which we did, and once we got there to 'Take the grey road'." She placed her hand on Fox's shoulder for a moment. "I had no idea what that meant until we came upon this little one and Castor."

Fox smiled at her as Hypam let go. "She agreed to place us under her protection, in exchange for passage to an old ruin with a grey tree near the troll cave."

Hypam shrugged. "It's faster than traveling half the night to get here. Now," her hands going to her hips, "why in Rostaxa's name are the three of you standing out here in the cold?"

"It's a long story as well, but it's like this..." Avitohol began explaining what had happened over the last few days, with Titan occasionally making comments, and after a bit I pulled Castor aside. "How's everything back in Bukhara?"

Castor snorted. "If Bukhara was a dog, it would be on its back exposing its belly and whining. Timur's settling into the satrap's palace while the priestesses are sorting out which buildings in the Temple District become theirs, and which ones get torn down."

Before he could go on, Hypam barked out a laugh. "Now this makes sense. Greywolf, for Avitohol's sake, my warriors and I will defend you so you can symbolically steal away your woman, and Khan Khingla can get rid of Timur for good."

Titan rumbled, "The Great Khan may lose most of his warriors this way."

"Good. When Avitohol can claim the name of 'Little Father', and become Khan of khans, Black Dragon clan will help Attila lead the tribes away from this dangerous idea of becoming a kingdom."

"That is not what the Great Khan desires."

Hypam snorted. "Since the Great Khan will be dead, there isn't much he can say." She waved her hand towards the encampment. "The People are getting too settled, while Black Dragon grows too wild. We don't keep sheep or goats but plunder everything we need, selling off the rest to the lords of Khor, or else fight as mercenaries, as we've done for the Ogri of Haven."

Hypam glanced back at her warriors, then looked at us as she shook her head. "Yet even the wildest among us are beginning to realize we can't keep going down this road forever."

"That would be you," Avitohol quipped.

Hypam reached out and mussed his hair. "Then you realize how serious things are getting. When Old Bone Woman consulted the spirit of the clan, Rostaxa the dragon told her this was going to be a Warg winter that's going to bite us hard, sending the old ones into Tengri's arms. We need to find a place to ride it out... and the Great Khan will need warriors."

I traded a look with the others as Hypam went on. "But for now, let's focus on the battle ahead of us. Greywolf, are you prepared?" In response, I opened my cloak showing my bare chest with painted symbols of the wolf on my skin. Hypam strode up to me, ran a calloused finger over my healing bite marks but made no comment. "Cousin, did the warriors at least leave you the traditional instruments?"

Avitohol's eyes narrowed. "Oh, yeah. They tossed them at my feet, then laughed as they turned around and left."

Hypam smiled. "We shall see who's laughing at the end." She turned towards her warriors and must have begun explaining what was going on, for they dismounted and strapped their weapons and helms onto their Warghorses. Then they turned them over to a half-dozen boys not much older than Avitohol, with five of them taking charge of the beasts.

The sixth removed a long, curved bow and a single arrow off her Warghorse. He brought them to her as she removed her own helm and handed it to him.

He sets the helm on the ground and nocked the arrow as Hypam took a mana stone in a silver spiral earring and threaded it into her earlobe. Titan rumbled, "I thought the Great Khan said no weapons."

Hypam gave him a wicked grin. "I'd hate to show up unannounced." Her hair began glowing a reddish-orange color as the mana stone glowed blue, and all of us stepped back as she cupped her hands. A small spinning ball of fire formed, and a moment later, white lines in the shape of a tiny dragon formed around the flaming ball. Hypam motioned with her head at the dark haired boy, and he positioned the arrowhead so it was just inside the white lines, but not touching the fireball. Then she spoke a word. The lines vanished, leaving behind the illusion of a tiny black dragon attached to the arrow.

The boy handed her the bow and stepped back, collecting the helm and returning it to her Warghorse as Hypam pulled back on the bowstring. She aimed where she wanted it to go and let fly.

The arrow hissed as it left the bow, carrying the tiny illusion with it as it rose into the night sky towards the encampment. Black Dragon warriors were walking past us and picking up the discarded instruments as Hypam wiped the sweat from her brow and spoke another word.

The illusion expanded as it roared fire. It climbed upward until the attached arrow peaked, then began falling as if the dragon was descending towards the encampment. Screaming and panicked shouts erupted from below as the warriors and Avitohol laughed, but I was transfixed by the sight of a fire roaring black dragon hurtling itself straight down towards the river. As it plummeted, the warriors used the attached leather straps to hold the drums against their hips as others readied their metal horns. The black dragon roared one last time, hit the water, and fizzled out.

One of the warriors let loose a great blast on his horn. I took off the cloak and let it fall, shivering a bit in the cold wind as the horn blast echoed across the hills before fading. Then the war drums began. Hypam motioned for me to lead, and as I started down the hill towards the bridge, the drums and horns thundered out a strange, savage music from a darker time, music I found oddly compelling as all the others fell in behind me.

With our feet matching the pace the war drums set, we marched together towards the encampment.