The King's Treasure Read online

  Totems:

  The King’s Treasure

  Carol M. Vaughn

  Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction, meant to entertain. Any resemblance to real people, places or situations is coincidental.

  Text Copyright © 2015 Carol M. Vaughn

  All Rights Reserved

  Make your dreams come true, one story at a time. ~Carol

  Table of Contents

  Flight

  1-Bonding

  2-Bernie

  3-Voices

  4-Work

  5-Secrets

  6-Brides

  7-Appearances

  8-Orders

  9-The Trial

  10-Changes

  11-Rags

  12-The Nobility

  13-Power

  14-Petitions

  15-Fight or Flight

  16-Protection

  17-Politics

  18-Riding Lessons

  19-Meetings

  20-The Book of Dragons

  21-A Messenger

  22-The Soulless

  23-Tales

  24-Searching

  25-Clues

  26-Fire, Spirit, Air

  27-Poisons

  28-Unanswered Questions

  29-Secrets Revealed

  30-Confessions

  31-Confrontations

  32-Thanes

  33-Totems

  34-Pledges

  Sneak Peek of Totems: The Sword and the Shield

  Flight

  Arianwyn scrabbled behind her, the fist around her throat closing the air off. She found the knife she had been using to cut vegetables. Desperately, she swung. The sudden cursing told her she had hit her mark. Gasping for breath, she ducked under his arm and ran for the door. No one would ever believe the urchin had been attacked. But they would believe she had attacked.

  Arianwyn did not stop to look around the town she had known all her life. To stay would be death. She ran out the door and towards the nearest edge of town. A few people stared at her in surprise. She entered the trees and dodged deeper into the forest. She fell gasping against a tree, her side aching. Wildly, she looked around. She didn’t know where she was. She had never been this deep into the forest before.

  Arianwyn took a deep breath. If she kept running blindly, she would be dead. She forced herself straight, glancing back to see in what direction she had come. She walked the opposite way. Could she find a stream of some sort to follow? She closed her eyes briefly, pressing her hand into her side to relieve the stitch. Water flowed downhill, she reasoned. So she headed downhill also.

  Behind her, she heard voices beginning to call out to one another. “She went this way! Here’s her trail!” Gulping, she picked up the pace, still pressing her hand into her side. Her other hand gripped the knife tightly. She looked at the ground, seeking out patches of solid rock to hide her passage.

  The gurgling of water nearby alerted her. She followed it eagerly, fearing the voices that were closing in on her. She arrived at the stream and was disappointed. Hardly a trickle. Still, small trickles flowed into bigger ones. She started jogging, following the water. “There she is!” She glanced over her shoulder, seeing the band of men following her…led by the man who had attacked her. His shirt sleeve was stained with blood, but he was otherwise unharmed. She ran.

  She could feel the men gaining on her. She shuddered as her mind conjured the stink of their bodies and breath. She glanced back again and caught her toe on a root. Stumbling, she almost fell over the cliff that was before her, heart pounding in her ears. She stared, downhearted at the trickle flowing over the edge. Her eyes followed the edge until she found a waterfall roaring to her left. Her heart pounding in her ears had deafened her to the sound. She licked her lips and looked down. There was a pool below her. She took a deep breath and backed up. “Grab her! Don’t let her get away!” She took off running for the edge and leapt. And hoped.

  The wind rushed past her ears. She gripped the knife tighter, her vision swimming and blacking out. And then her feet hit the water. She felt like she had just landed on a stone ledge that only grudgingly gave way beneath her feet. The air whooshed from her lungs and the water closed icily over her head, tiny bubbles tickling her skin and bursting in her ears.

  She flailed frantically for a moment in the water, unable to tell up from down. Her lungs burned from losing all her air upon entry. Slowly, she stopped struggling, her body taking over her mind. The only control she maintained was to grip the knife. As she relaxed, her body floated slowly. She felt the water break over her back and threw up her head, gasping the air into her starving lungs. She was alive. Incredibly alive and free!

  Arianwyn swam to the edge of the lake, crawling onto shore. She flopped onto her back and stared up the cliff at the men milling about and shouting. It would be at least a day before they found a way down. She had a moment to rest and then she had to move. She closed her eyes, tightening her grip on the knife again. She could do it. She could survive.

  1-Bonding

  Arianwyn had been living in the forest for weeks. She had lost track of how many days and relied on the slowly changing season to tell time. Without any definite plan, she wandered, foraged and occasionally managed to trap a small animal to eat. She knew that she had to make plans. Summer was fading into fall. Possibly, she would survive through fall. But the weather would turn foul soon. Then she would need shelter and food storage to survive the winter.

  She wandered through the underbrush, thinking on her options and looking for a place to spend the night. She paused at a small patch of white flowers. Digging into the dirt, she found the small bulbs that tasted like potatoes. They were only the size of her thumb. She made a basket out of her shirt and filled it, still trying to decide what to do. The best plan would be to look for a town and possibly work. She did not have the tools to winter in the forest. She swallowed, hating the idea of living among other humans again.

  A loud rustle sounded nearby. She froze and listened. Whatever it was, it was big. She slowly tied a knot in her shirt, holding her precious food in place. She moved her eyes around, then turned her head. There did not seem to be anything nearby that she could see. She bent down and picked up her knife, the handle bringing her small comfort. The sound came to her ears again. She swallowed, prepared to flee. When it sounded a third time, she frowned, listening more intently. It was not moving away or closer. It seemed to be in one spot. She turned and worked her way toward the noise, her curiosity getting the better of her.

  The rustling turned to thrashing. It was growing louder the closer she crept. A deep growl accompanied the noise. Her heart pounded in her chest. Why was she doing this? She should be fleeing from loud noises. Her curiosity drove her on until she felt she was almost on top of the sound. She dropped to her belly and wiggled forward, inch by inch. She parted the branches in front of her and gasped, silence forgotten.

  A silver dragon lay on the ground, wings tangled in a web. The web glimmered in the combined light of the setting sun and rising moon. Arianwyn was sure that it was magic. Nothing else could hold a dragon down like that. She peered around for signs of any other person. There were none immediately visible. As she crawled into the clearing, the dragon’s head swiveled to look at her. She froze, staring at the slitted silver eyes. Jagged ridges lined the top of the dragon’s eyes, sweeping back into a crest on its head. The crest grew into a bony mane down the back of its neck. They ended in front of the wings and picked up again behind the wing joint to the tip of the dragon’s tail.

  “It’s okay,” she muttered. “I’m going to try to help you.” She cautiously rose to her feet and stepped closer. The dragon hissed and lunged at her, jaws snapping. Arianwyn jumped back, eyeing the razor sharp teeth,
the smallest the size of her knife. “Look, I can’t help if you don’t let me! I’m a follower of the Dragon Totem. And I know what it’s like to be trapped.” She tried getting closer and the dragon lunged again.

  She took a deep breath, ready to try again when she heard voices in the distance. Apparently, the dragon heard them, too. Arianwyn froze, head turning in time with the dragon’s to look in the direction of the voices. Men’s voices. Her stomach tightened. “Last chance!” she hissed at the dragon. She darted in, hoping that the dragon would be smart enough to leave her alone. The dragon growled as she neared, but did not do anything else, still peering towards the voices. Arianwyn looked around for any sign of binding that she could undo. It was definitely magic. “I can’t undo this. I think it’s magic!”

  The dragon growled and looked at her, eyes glaring. Slowly, the dragon lowered its head. Arianwyn stared at it. Impatiently, the dragon glanced at her hand, then back up at her, hissing. Hesitantly, Arianwyn reached out and touched the dragon’s nose, staring back at its eyes. She gasped as she made physical contact. Something reached deeper than her fingertips, binding her heart and mind like wood consumed in a flame. She stared wide-eyed at the dragon. :You can undo the magic and you will! I will not fall victim to these predators!:

  She stared numbly at the dragon—a female, she realized now. She blinked, feeling something move closer to her mind. When she opened her eyes again, she thought she was seeing double. She looked at the net and could see the overlay of magic, like a web. Where the net touched the ground, the magic web was anchored, preventing the dragon from flying away. She moved to each point, pulling the anchors out of the ground and throwing them away. As she removed each anchor, a portion of the web around the dragon shimmered and disappeared. “Hey! What’s going on? Stop her!” The men had arrived.

  Desperately, she dove for the last anchor, ripping it out of the ground. As she did, a furious roar sounded above her and the dragon lunged at the men. They scattered, cursing. :Grab my rear claw!: The dragon ordered. Arianwyn jumped onto the dragon’s back foot, sitting on top and wrapping arms and legs around the back leg. She had no sooner secured her grip than the dragon lifted into the air.

  Arianwyn could feel the cold air rushing past her and was glad it was getting dark. She was not sure she could handle seeing the ground disappearing beneath her. She had no interest knowing how high up they were. As the flight continued, Arianwyn’s heart slowed and she began to take in more details about the dragon. Although the dragon’s skin glimmered like silver, it was soft and pliable, reminding Arianwyn of the little lizards she used to chase as a child. The skin was very warm—almost hot—and dry.

  Arianwyn could see nothing behind the back leg of the dragon and she was not about to peer at the ground. Her hair whipped into her face, flying into her eyes and mouth. She closed her eyes and leaned her head on the dragon’s leg. She could feel the heat radiating from the dragon. With her eyes closed, her mind focused on the pounding in the center of her head. She had a feeling her life had just become more complicated.

  They flew for hours, the first moon high in the sky and the second beginning to rise, when the dragon finally landed. Arianwyn jumped off and scrambled backwards, watching the dragon warily. The dragon circled Arianwyn just as warily, crouched low, eyes glimmering in the moonlight. “Thanks for taking me with you,” Arianwyn finally whispered.

  :I didn’t have a choice. I wasn’t about to let them capture you.:

  “How did they capture you? It doesn’t seem possible…”

  :They attacked when I was busy eating. There was a mage with them, but she left after my trap was secure.:

  “Well, thank you again. I suppose I’d better be on my way.”

  :Don’t be ridiculous. We are Bonded now. I’m not about to let you out of my sight so some silly animal can kill you. We must stay together now. Our fates are intertwined.:

  “Oh. Well, I had just planned on looking for work in whatever mountain village I can find. With winter coming, I won’t be able to stay outside.”

  :You do not need to speak out loud.: The dragon lay down, still studying Arianwyn. :We will find a village far from here, one with good mountains nearby. One that I will be able to burn down quickly if I need to get to you.:

  “Burn down? We’re not going to burn down people’s homes!”

  :I will if I must. I hold no fondness for humans and their barbaric ways.:

  Arianwyn sighed, sitting with her back against a tree. She withdrew some of the bulbs she had found. Using a bit of spit and her skirt, she cleaned the dirt off of them and ate. “How about we discuss this in the morning? I’m exhausted.” The dragon closed her eyes and Arianwyn assumed she agreed. Arianwyn lay on the hard ground, eyes drifting shut of their own volition.

  Morning came quickly, the sun burning through Arianwyn's lids and forcing her to squint them open. She found the dragon studying her with one eye. Arianwyn and the dragon watched each other warily, each attending to their morning routine without talking. “Well, Dragon, did you have a village in mind?”

  :I do. It is far from here, so we should be safe from detection.: The dragon crouched down, watching Arianwyn intently. :Are you going to climb on or not? I’m not moving at your slow pace.:

  Arianwyn swallowed and approached the dragon. The dragon held her foreleg out, making a sort of ramp for Arianwyn to climb up. She settled just behind the last neck spike, but still in front of the wings. The spike was a solid piece of bone. Arianwyn gripped the spike, trying to avoid the point. “Warn me if you’re going to make any sudden movements,” she muttered. The dragon rumbled. Arianwyn decided it must be a chuckle.

  :Try laying flat on my neck. That way, you shouldn’t impale yourself.: Arianwyn lay forward, the spike to her side. She slid her arm between two spikes, reaching forward to grip another spike.

  “This isn’t very secure.”

  :I will fly smoothly. Hang on.: Dragon leapt into the air, wings pushing down and propelling them upwards. She continued moving upwards until they were a few feet above the tops of the trees, circling and gaining gliding speed. Lying flat, Arianwyn was forced to watch the ground beneath her. She swallowed and closed her eyes against the rush of the ground below them.

  They flew for hours again. Arianwyn’s arm was numb and her fingers stiff from gripping the spike so tightly. Occasionally, she braved sitting up and switching sides, flexing her fingers. They dropped in elevation, leaving the pine behind and entering the level of quaking aspens. :Here we are. Maybe you can find work here.: Arianwyn looked up. Another village was perched on the edge of a large lake. A wooden palisade surrounded the building. Smoke rose thickly from the buildings and a few boats were out fishing. Dragon landed in the trees, away from the lake. :Good luck…and call for me if you need help.:

  Arianwyn slid off the dragon, legs wobbly. “Thanks.” After a few steps, the stiffness left her and she was able to navigate through the trees and to the edge of the lake. She washed up the best she could in the lakeside waters.

  It was not until she washed her hands that she noticed the change. She held her hands up, eyes wide. :That’s normal,: Dragon said. Arianwyn followed the mark on the back of her hands and watched it twisting around her forearms until it disappeared under her sleeves.

  She sighed. It might be normal, but it would stand out. She tore the bottom off her tattered skirt and wrapped her hands and arms. She stood and brushed her skirts. She still had a long walk around the lake. As she walked, her stomach rumbled. She hoped she found something to eat soon.

  She studied the town as she approached. The wooden palisade surrounded the town with two openings, one on either end of the town. There were no gates, only two guards stationed near the entryways. The guards were dressed as normal villagers except for the leather helm they each wore and a long wooden spear.

  One guard straightened off his spear as she approached, shooting a long stream of spittle to the side of the road. He smiled toothily at her, revealing a few
rotting teeth. “Don’ know you, do I? Whatcher name? I’m Bernie.”

  Arianwyn paused, looking at Bernie and his companion warily. :Lie,: Dragon muttered.

  “Jenny,” she decided.

  “What kin I do fer you, Jinny?”

  “It’s Jenny.”

  “Tha’s what I said, ‘Jinny.’”

  Arianwyn gave him an uncertain look, frowning slightly. “Aw, Bern! You bin drinkin’ again?” The other guard stepped forward, scowling at Bernie. He was a bit older looking than Bernie, though not much cleaner. “What’re you doin’ here, gurl?”

  “Looking for work.” At least a name was all she needed to falsify.

  The second guard scratched under his helm, frowning. Bernie spit to the side again and hitched his pants a bit higher and laughed at the second guard. “You tryin’ to see if she’s a bandit, Rob?” He turned to Arianwyn, flashing his rotting teeth again. “Try the Inn.”

  “Does it have a name?”

  Bernie laughed. “Only inn in town, innit? It’s over there,” he said, hitching his thumb over his shoulder.

  “Thank you,” she murmured, hurrying past the two. A look over her shoulder showed Bernie still watching her. He winked when he saw her looking and she turned forward again, blushing. She could feel his eyes on her the entire way to the village center. She stopped in the village center, noticing a few stalls around the town well. She assumed the Inn was the largest building in town. She took a deep breath and pushed the door open.

  The Innkeeper kicked a cat out of the way, eyeballing her. “I'm looking for work,” Arianwyn whispered. “Bernie said you might have something for me to do.” She stood still, waiting for his inspection to finish. A second woman stood near the side, wiping down tables. Her stomach was distended and she paused to rub it, panting. She waddled to another table, continuing the ritual.

  “I suppose I can use you. Elyse had to go get herself knocked up, didn't ya girl?” He glared across the room at Elyse. She flushed and bent closer to her work. “Elyse'll teach you what you need to know. Elyse, you'll be finished at the end of the week.” He smiled evilly at the woman. She blanched and bit her lip. “Get going!” he snapped, shoving Arianwyn in the direction of Elyse.