Every week, I’ll be posting a chapter from my book series: Solen Masters. This is a Paid Exclusive for a month in certain places until it’s posted here, before I release it to a Selection of Fiction Sharing sites, such as Scribblehub and Royal Road. Most Chapters for each book will at some point be mostly removed from almost all places.
If you spot a typo, please let me know, so I can correct it before the final release.
“Us Drow are nocturnal in nature. It means I can see more than most people can at night. The Vedrans rely on the smell and sound. Acacia and I have done quite a few night raids in the past. I really have troubles in working out some shades of colour, that Acacia and most others can see with ease,” Sammy explained, “Then my mother was part of the local Hunters Guild, that operated in this area. I’d often come and helped my mother with my sister. My family was probably one of the best group of trackers they had. I think I often caught my own meals for a few months.”
Sammy was briskly walking through a path though the trees. Trey could barely see the trees more than a few meters ahead. To keep up with Sammy’s speed, Trey would have walked in a tree or two, if it wasn’t for Sammy holding Trey’s left hand. Acacia was holding on to Trey’s right hand. Trey looked back, Acacia didn’t appear to be worried, it would seem that this type of arrangement was not uncommon.
The Train lead by Sammy soon had arrived in to another clearing. This one lacked any sign that someone was camping there, or any one else was there. There was a Flag with a Silver doe on it. The flag pole was driven on the sodden earth.
Acacia had also noticed the flag, and had grabbed Sammy’s hand.
Sammy sighed, “Yeah, I know. It’s your mother’s standard. She had passed away 21 years ago, so I know it shouldn’t be flying, but Lana had insisted on it. But this is the place we need to be. We’re suppose to wait here for the rest of them to arrive.”
Trey looked around. This clearing wasn’t huge, but it had seen use in the past years. There was a hollow in the ground where a Fire pit was made some time ago. Trey asked, “You used to be a member of the Hunters Guild? Was this spot used by them?”
Sammy sighed, “Yeah. This clearing is now named after my mother. They named it after her death. My sister and I had left around the same time, we both were not able to keep hunting like we did. Yesterday, I bumped in to the leader of the guild. He told me that I could rejoin them in the next season in when I wanted. He said that given my sister is with child, she’d be in hold until at least next year if she wanted to rejoin.”
Trey signed, “For a so called Huntress, you seem pretty loud out here.”
“So, you noticed,” Sammy smiled, “I am not really being quiet. Sometimes the idea is that one of us is a distraction and be loud and get their attention. The other half is be quick, silent and to do the work without anyone else noticing.”
Sammy pulled a pink chunk of rock out of her pocket, “I’m sorry, Your highness, I had to break the promise about no more secrets, and no more lies. But I do this so that so I can protect you from harm.”
Sammy threw the stone on the floor. Trey’s legs suddenly gave way, he tried to move his arms, but he no control over them, as they followed his body to the ground. Trey ended up lying on his side facing Sammy.
Sammy had hold of Acacia’s chest. Her arms and legs were dangling like ragdoll. If Sammy wasn’t holding her up Acacia would be lying on the floor with Trey.
“I am sorry, but this is in the best interest for you.” Sammy said, as she gently lay Acacia over Trey’s legs.
Sammy noticed someone in the bushes.
“Sammy?” the voice gasped out. The voice was one of a young woman.
Sammy waved her over, “Deja, right?”
“Yeah, How did you know?” She gasped, “we don’t have time to answer that now,” The panting woman looked to Trey’s face, “but I think he told you or your friends.”
“Why the Full Body Paralysis technique? Lana said that it was risky, but necessary,” Sammy asked.
“Oh yeah. That is to prevent them from moving. It’s really hard to get someone though time normally. Sending the right day several hundred years away and place to a few feet is doable. Movement can result in them appearing where they shouldn’t. I’d rather not have them appearing miles in the air, in the ocean or even underground. Trying to get someone to a date in where they can meet with themselves is really hard, they’re more likely to bounce, and end up anywhere. I’ve done it before, but I was travelling with them, and stear us to the right place. This time I’m more or less throwing them, so any help I can get to make sure they land where I want is needed.”
Acacia groaned, the breathless girl jumped.
“Woah. She’s going to break out of it soon,” the girl leaned over Acacia, “Hey, Acacia. I’m going to send you to Tower 11 in the Lanta region. I believe you know that place well. My boyfriend Trey got the brunt of the Paralysis technique. Make sure that you don’t leave him until that thing wears off you both.”
Sammy stammered, “Why Tower 11? we don’t have it manned on a regular basis. We only just finished repairing the roof. I’ve only known it to be used during a storm.”
“I know it’s a mess, but I’ve only explored Tower 11. Besides I heard that it gets very warm at night that you’d need to strip off,” The girls voice turned a little playful.
“Wait? How did you know what we did when we spend the night there?” Sammy stammered.
“I’d like to explain.. but I’d rather get these two gone before Acacia starts moving.” The girl pulled out what appeared to a pistol magazine out of her pocket and places it Trey’s Breast pocket, she whispered, “best to keep these for life and death situations,” Soon, an envelope was soon transferred from her pocket to Trey’s own pocket, “and this to remember me by, just don’t let Acacia read it.”
Trey felt a weight land on his feet. Sammy said, “I packed a few things for you, return to me, Cassey, my love. “
“Ready?” The girl asked.
“She will be back?” Sammy asked.
“For you Sammy, soon. She is slowed down by another member of her group. You will see why then. Good?”
“Do it,” Sammy sighed.
The ground under Trey seemed to fall away. Soon the ground had slammed back up in to his back. Acacia had been lying on Trey’s legs and had fallen hard back on to his legs. Finally, rain then came down hard, leaving Trey lying in a stream unable to move.
Acacia had splitting headache.. This time, it was side effect of the Full Body Paralysis technique, it left her with the symptoms of getting hung over. Despite training against Solen users, as most of the training to not get hit by the technique in first place. As expected for a trainee, she didn’t avoid every hit and ended up lying on the floor for a few minutes, even after learning how to break out of the technique. Breaking out of the Technique often left Acacia worn out, more so than if she left it to wear off on it’s own.
The river running up her pants leg had her wanting to move, but her arms and legs felt like they had weights tied to them. She pushed herself up, to look around at her surroundings.
It certainly was not the clearing that she was in. It looked like Tower 11, but that was several days ride away. From Acacia’s limited knowledge, moving Acacia and Trey Kazuki in a blink of an eye was never stated that Solen could do.
There was something off about Tower 11: A sleeping Dragon in the stables, or more accurately the lack of one.
It was only just over a week since the last time Acacia visited Tower 11. Her last trip was to fix a broken wing, and legs of Draylith, a young dragon female. She had been shot at as she flew to carry a message for Acacia. Draylith was not able to walk or fly away, and was forced to prepare for winter hibernation in the towers stables.
The other work they had done to the tower to make liveable had been undone. Even the wall that Draylith crashed in to as she fell out of the sky was rebuilt. The wall was like she had never crashed in to it.
The question of what happened to the area could wait, getting ill from staying overnight in the rain mattered more. The Keep looked relatively dry.
Acacia arms and legs protested in pain as she slowly stood up. She was standing, but the lake that was building in her pants leg flooded her boots. She looked down over Trey and found good place to grab on his coat to move him. She dragged him with her legs protesting all the way. Her legs and her grip gave out a few feet inside the keep, leaving Acacia falling on her back.
Acacia sat back up and looked around, the relative dryness of the keep was good sign. But it looked like that no one had been there for a few years. There was dry firewood sitting in the corner, as if someone was planning to return one day, but never did.
With firewood sorted, Acacia stood up and unfastened the belt buckles on her gamberson armor, and her belt holding her sword. There was no point keeping her wet clothes on. Acacia’s eyes looked around the room for something to be used as kindling. She would need the warmth from the fire soon, to dry off. Her search for kindling was somewhat successful: there was some, but just enough to start one fire. Unfortunately, there was no way to start a fire with the tools that was left by the previous occupants.
Acacia remembered that Sammy often packed some means to light a fire in her bag. Could have Sammy left someway to light a fire in her bag?
Acacia dug though the bag.. A medicine box, the Solen Blade, A bottle with Orkish handwritten label, and some clothing along with some other things. But no flint box or spark box.
The Orkish lettering didn’t look right, it had a crudely drawn Elvish “th” in the middle. Orkish letters were often described as being sharp and angular, where Elfish was more curved and flowing with “th” being very curved. The bottle’s label was written in Elfish by someone used to writing in Orkish, it read “Draylith’s Breath.”
Acacia opened the bottle. A small flame sparked up from the neck. Acacia quickly lit some of her kindling. before fastened the lid of the bottle. The kindling was placed in the fireplace’s logs.
As the fire started to grow, Acacia attention returned to the bottle. Draylith’s Breath. It made some sense, Draylith herself was a “fire-breathing” dragon. Acacia herself was almost singed when Draylith was ill and sneezed. Given the sloshing sound as Acacia shook the bottle, Acacia assumed that this was the same liquid that Draylith spat out when ever she “breathed” fire.
The only way to get a bottle of this liquid had someone sticking their arm in the mouth of a dragon. A wide awake dragon, whose jaw could sever limbs. There could only one person who would be brave enough and Draylith trusted enough to allow anyone to do such a thing: Shelur.
Shelur was a Ork-Elf hybrid. She was member of the Guard in a nearby town. She also happened to be working for Lana, and she would help Acacia the best way she could. On a wet night like tonight, Acacia guessed that Shelur would be in town entertaining a few close friends, which would include Draylith.
Draylith wasn’t just a Fire breathing Dragon, but experienced Solen user. One of her techniques changed her appearance from a 10 metre dragon in to one and half metre elf-like creature. This technique let her pass relativity unhindered around towns and cities. Her broken Leg and wing made prevent to use it. But where was Draylith?