Before I continue on into a story full of adventure and fantasy, let me take a minute to give you, the reader, some needed inside information. I wrote this mini-novel specifically with one goal in mind: to convey a dazzling story. This story, however, has its own roots. This was written specifically to give a fellow story writer some information on a character I helped to create. This story, Last of the Dragon Masters, written by David Demers, had all my friends and I writing parts to help out. In return, he used our real names, making us feel like a part of the story. My character is about as close to my real personality as I am, and once in a great while, I even find myself wishing (ever so wishing!) that this story was real, and that I am the character gallivanting around, and being the heroic. I wouldn’t mind becoming the character that dashed around with big dreams, and even bigger ambitions. I would love to break the drudgery of my life by becoming an adventurer who gets to see sights he never dreamed exhisted. Then there’s all the camaraderie being exhibited by the main characters. What I would give to be able to sit in the Dragon Tavern with a mug of ale, and swapping stories with my friends. It can be said that, in certain ways, my life shadows that of my character in different ways. That is for my life to decide. I’m certain that your life could be just that much more exciting. The feeling of a strange land as a horse gallops in rhythm with the others’. The land’s sights are absorbed into your memory bank, as you race along.

Some of the ideas (and the future of my character(s)) are in David’s story, but for now, I proudly present the story of Shawn and his past and close to present era.

"Hey Shawn!" yelled the raven-haired man dashing down the lane. "Are you coming with me or not?"

"Will you give me a minute?!?" I yelled at him, with a look of disgust in my eyes. It had been awhile since I’ve been anywhere, ever since stopping my training. It had taken me long enough to make sure I was well dressed, and feeding myself was just as interesting. I had to hurry, and I managed to eat some eggs and smoked ham without getting them on myself. But, David was in a hurry...

"If you don’t hurry, we’ll be late!" yelled David again. He started to run back to my house. "We all know what happens if we make Vicky and Cassie wait on us!"

"Yeah, yeah," I grumbled at him, tying my other boot. It had been awhile since I had to don my armor for training, and the red tunic felt so good on. "You haven’t even told me why we’re meeting anyway," I reminded him, while intently lacing up the boot.

"Geez, how can you forget?" he asked impatiently. "Would you hurry up with that boot? If you don’t..."

"I might get it stuck down my throat... yeah, yeah." I grumbled, as I finished lacing up the boot. "Now, why are we meeting?"

David’s response was a shake of his head. "You are soooo slow, Shawn. Now hurry up!" I looked up at him and managed a grin, something that I haven’t done in a while. I finished lacing and stood up. Even with the boots on, my height still didn’t reach David’s tall frame.

"Are you happy now?" I asked, the grin still on my face. David just rolled his eyes as we started to walk down the well-beaten path to the tavern. The fresh air in this town always makes a man feel good, I thought to myself. Tansmith was always a great place to walk. It wasn’t a hustle and bustle type of town, but was a quieter one, with the most noise being the wind through the pine trees that littered the town. The bright greens of the grass clashed so perfectly the teal blue sky, which was spotted with clouds. A squirrel darted onto the path, looked up at us, then returned to the duty of scampering around aimlessly. Once in a while, a person would walk by and wave at us. They had good reason to. We saved the town from an advancing army and made it one of our get-away spots. When David decided to stay here for some time, I decided to call it my home town. Tansmith’s heroes, we were. I decided to break the silent walk with a question.

"David, what is this meeting for? I wasn’t informed until I saw you at my door, gasping for air."

"I wasn’t gasping." David said, in a statemental tone. "Vicky decided to start making plans for stoping the army from attacking again from the northern plains. They seem to have set camp there."

"Ahhh, so they want our quaint little town again?" I asked chuckling. "Do the generals know about this?"

"Not yet, but that’s why the meeting’s been called to Dragon Tavern." David replied as he started to make our pace quicker.

"Does Solan know about this?" Solan is David’s dragon. They are linked together, body, mind, and spirit. Those two were the reason we were even fighting at all. They were the first team and the ones to start the group the Dragon Masters. The dragon also granted magic to him. The others also had dragons, earning them in different ways, save one person, me.

"How do you think I found out about the intrusion threat? Solan told me as he was out for a relaxing flight. The smoke got to him."

"He wasn’t seen, was he?" I asked. "That would ruin the element of surprise."

It was a thoughtful comment. David, however just flashed me an annoyed look. "My dragon is smarter then that. He made himself invisible." He then turned his head and looked forward, and continued to walk. That ended the conversation abruptly.

We continued on the trek to the tavern. I glanced over at David. As usual, he was wearing his armor. It seemed like he slept in it sometimes. The gleaming armor, inscribed with a falcon on the front, matched his broadsword, which also had a falcon engraved on the hilt. The sword was strapped to his back, in case of "emergencies" like drunkards, who were spoiling for a fight, and thieves who couldn’t keep their hands to themselves. It was a funny contrast to myself, my middle sized frame in a tunic. There was no armor to glisten in the afternoon’s last rays of light. There was no sword on me; it was at my house hanging over the fireplace. I didn’t even carry a weapon on me at all, except for a hidden dagger in my right boot. The training that I did complete taught me that. Always keep yourself guarded my trainer told me. You never know when something unexpected will happen. I almost frowned at David. How could this man keep honor in knighthood? I personally couldn’t understand it. But I had my preferences, and he had his. David seemed to pick up my glance and looked at me. He had a stern face, which went with the armor. I looked forward again fast enough to see the tavern. We approached the doors, which were cut in old fashion and looked to be wearing.

"After you," David said, his courteousness showing. Or was it the fact that he was still disgusted that I reverted to a civilian after quitting my training, I thought to myself. Knights were taught to always be courteous to any civilian.

"Thanks," I said and continued to walk by him into the tavern. The smell of familiarity hit my nostrils as I scanned around for the others. The actual bar was straight across at the back wall, and tables were to the left and right walls. The others were sitting at a table close to the bar. No one else was there. Jarin, the barkeep was sitting on a stool, polishing mugs. He had a smile on his face. What a barkeep he was, staying even during the first Tansmith war, and not deserting the town. He managed to keep the troops in good morale. That’s what to expect from an ex-soldier.

"What took you?" yelled a female elf across the room. She was dressed in a green tunic, and was surrounded by five other people. She had a bow strapped across her back and a beautifully carved wooden shield leaning against one of the table legs. She had long, wonderfully wound blond hair, stretching down to the middle of her back, giving a contrast close to a rainbow against the green tunic. She had an air of confidence, and wore a very dazzling smile.

"Slow poke, here, was still in his nightgear eating breakfast, Vicky." David replied as we headed to our usual table. "Apparently, he has never heard of such a thing as a clock."

"Are you sure it wasn’t because you were lumbering along, slower than ice freezing in 80 degree weather?" asked a grinning man, in a robe, with his arms around Vicky. Sticking out of the hood of the robe were tufts of brown hair. His eyes shone silver. The others, including myself laughed at his comment, obviously aimed at the heart of David.

"Very funny, Josh. I see you’ve been trying to come on to Vicky again." Vicky merely scowled at David, and turned her attention to Josh. David and I sat down at the two vacant chairs, with me sitting next to Elizabeth and David next to Erin.

"Hey Shawn, David." Elizabeth said, her voice cheerful. Her white robe was draped around her chair. "Nice to see you this morning."

"Yeah, but how nice?" asked Erin, grinning at David. The other man at the table, Jordan, just glanced at David and offered a shrug. Cassie, the last one at the table was staring at Vicky and Josh, who were playing with each other. David decided to talk to someone.

"Jordan, is there a reason why Vicky decided to call us here or are we going to sit here and watch her have fun with Josh?" Jordan laughed at the comment, his broad shoulders heaving, and tapped Josh on the shoulder.

"What?" asked Josh, turning. Jordan merely pointed at the bartender. Josh got the hint and started to walk to Jarin’s bar, to get drinks. Vicky merely got a look of pouting on her face, and Erin started to giggle.

"Everyone’s here now, so whatever you’ve got for us, Vicky, lay it on us." I said. Vicky’s face changed form, this one to cunning as she grabbed some parchments out of her belt and unfurled them onto the table. Since she was the most artistic one in the group, the drawings were naturally flawless.

"Beautiful work, Vicky," commented Elizabeth.

"Thanks, Liz. OK, here’s the scoop everyone." Vicky then turned her attention to Josh. "Hurry up Josh! I’m ready to talk!"

"Coming, coming!" yelled Josh, as he headed back to the table. "Everyone owes me money now. I just paid for everyone’s drinks."

"And we’ll all be thankful later, as well," Jordan said. "Go ahead, Vicky."

Vicky got a serious look on her face as she began to tell the plans.

"The forces are right to the north, right here," Vicky said pointing at the drawing of the map. "If we can manage to put troops to the north, and have us riding our dragons herding them that way, we should be able to smother them." The mention of dragons drew a scornful look from me. This would be another mission that I had to watch from the side. "Sorry, Shawn." Vicky offered.

"No problem," I said, lying through my teeth. That’s another thing I’m good at.

"David, do the generals know?" asked Cassie. "If not, I can have Titan fly over to main headquarters to alert them."

"Thanks, Cassie. Go do that." David replied, smiling at the tall young woman. Cassie got up from the table and stepped outside.

"I do know something that you can do, Shawn." Vicky said. "The generals aren’t going to know the plans. It will be your job to lead them. You won’t be able to get into the fight, but at least you’ll be involved."

"Thanks, Vicky." I said, trying to mask the feelings I felt. Strategic command was what I did in the first battle for Tansmith. It had been the others who were the real heroes. At the time, I wore my silver armor into battle, with a simple sword at my side. I was just the strategic commander, while the others wiped out the forces. It wasn’t a hard victory. But just the thought of having to stand at the back like a coward was bad enough, worse than the feeling of defeat. "I’ll help out as good as I can." I added, to give reassurance to the ruse I was showing. It seemed to have worked, because Elizabeth smiled, and Jordan and David nodded at me.

"Jordan, David. You will lead the dragon fleet. I’m going to contact Cloud and tell him that the plans that will transpire will happen." With that, she rolled up the parchments, stuck them in her belt, and left. She joined Cassie at the door, who was talking to her dragon.

"I get dibbs on her drink!" David exclaimed, beating Jordan by just a second’s worth of time. When Lenna, the beautiful red-haired waitress arrived, she arrived to David and Jordan arm wrestling for the honor of Vicky’s drink. Josh was refereeing.

"Lenna," I replied to her. "Just set them down in front of me and I’ll hand them out. Those two will be awhile." Lenna flashed a smile at me and set the tray full of drinks down. I handed Elizabeth’s drink, a fine blueberry wine, to her, and set my ale in front of me. I handed Erin her drink, who was giggling at the sight of the two arm-wrestling. Josh was handed his wine, while he was making sure either man’s arm hit the table. When I counted the number of drinks left on the tray, I laughed.

"What’s so funny?" asked Erin.

"You’re not going to believe this," I said with a smile, "but there are TWO extra drinks!"

When we all finished our drinks, we all headed back to our dwellings. David came with me over to my house, my permanent residency, outside of the castle we lived at. The walk to my house wasn’t too eventful, except the fact that I was laughing about the fact that David and Jordan couldn’t end their competition until Erin reminded them that there were two extra drinks, not one. Though I was laughing, nothing could stop the feeling that I was getting inside of me. Another battle at the rear for me. How embarrassing. I can’t even believe that I’m the only one without a dragon. Maybe I’m not even destined to have one. Maybe... that’s the question that’s plagued my life. My past had that word plastered all over it: maybe. My life is defined as a maybe. I held it in me as we walked into my door into my main room. David sat down on a chair, while I sat in my favorite rocking chair. "This battle will be interesting, Shawn. Can you feel it?" David looked at me thoughtfully for a moment. "How hard is it for you to come into a battle like this?"

I just looked at him blankly. He didn’t have to know everything. I was just as enthusiastic about battle as he was. I wanted to swoop gallantly across the sky, the dragon weaving in and out as I slashed and made life miserable for the enemy. But here’s Shawn, stuck on the ground, not even able to fight. "I’ll be fine." I said, frowning at him. I’m lying again. I need to stop it. I thought inside myself. None of this would even be happening if Christian was still around. He would look at me, smile, and say ‘Shawn, I know you too well. You shouldn’t complain, but look at it as an honor. Lighten up will ya?’ He’d then laugh and leads me out of the door, ready to fight. Christian. He’s the one I let down the most. I stopped thinking and looked up at David. He was staring at me, and I didn’t even realize it.

"I know you’re lying to me, Shawn." David said knowingly. "I’m here. You can talk to me."

"What’s to talk about?" I asked him. "We’ve got a war to prepare for!" David sadly shook his head.

"It’s the dragon thing again, isn’t it. Shawn, I’ve told you. I know you’re ordained to be a dragon master. You wouldn’t know me if it wasn’t true. So don’t worry about it, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah," I muttered. "You should go get some rest. We’ll probably fight when the moon is just setting before dawn." David easily saw this excuse as a way out of the conversation but obliged anyway. He stood up, gave me one last glance, and walked out the door, shutting it softly. I stood up from my chair and walked over to the mantle above the fireplace. I stared at the lance that sat on it. It gleamed, as if to mock my sad thoughts and me. This lance was a present from my best friend, Christian. It’s also the only thing that I have to remember him by. Why did it have to be him? Why couldn’t it have been me? I sat down at my chair, pulling it up to the fireplace, and lit a fire.

"Mom!" I cried out. I was dressed in a medium sized blue tunic, my favorite color. "I’m going outside with Christian! We’re going to the woods."

"Be back before dark, honey!" she called out of the kitchen. I rushed out the door and headed to Christian’s house, my next door neighbor. Castel was a medium sized town, and I didn’t live in a bad neighborhood. It was a nice one, with a forest behind my house. The trees seemed alive with birds upon birds, each giving their own call, and expecting a new answer. Around each house, a man could usually be seen working on their house, to attempt to make it better than their next door neighbor’s. As I walked down the path, a few cats ran up to me, meowing, begging to be scratched between the ears. I merely smiled at them, and continued walking, leaving them to fight over which got to tackle the butterfly that landed next to them. Amid a few calls of "hello, Shawn!", "How are you doing, Shawn?" and "Nice day! Seeing Christian, I finally managed to get over to Christian’s house. I knocked, knowing full well who would answer. The door opened and the visage of Christian’s face peered out. We had known each other for years, ever since Christian and I were small kids with huge dreams. We were now 17, and scaring the grown-ups. "Hi, Shawn. Come in. My dad’s out on an errand." I stepped inside. The house had the appearance of a mage’s workshop. Spell components were everywhere. Scrolls and parchments were rolled up neatly, and placed on a bookshelf. I had to move several book before I found a chair to sit on, while Christian was putting a couple scrolls away.

"Ready to go?" I asked him, impatiently.

"Almost, almost. Give me a minute!" he said. "I had to practice scroll reading today. Master Gornagan was in a foul mood today. He said I didn’t practice at all this week and threatened to tell dad that I was screwing around with ‘fight on the brain’ warriors like you."

"Tell him that a ‘fight on the brain’ warrior said hi," I said with a grin. "I haven’t had it as hard. Dragoon Knight Leader Yantin said I had quite the skill. Couldn’t believe the height I could jump. I hit the bulls-eye from twenty lances up!" Christian’s eyes shot up.

"Isn’t that high enough?" he asked. "I mean, Dragoons are known for breaking their necks for going too high. I can’t believe you’re even trying to become one of those dragon knights. They’re worse than the knights whose ambition is to become a Paladin. Why do you even want to be one?"

I smiled at him. We’ve been over this before. "That’s like having me ask you why you want to become a mage. It’s my life’s dream. I love how they soar in the air, then land on their enemies with their lances..." I could practically see myself jumping in the air and landing on some hapless general who was careless enough to keep himself open to a legion of Dragoons. I looked over at Christian to gauge his reaction. He just shook his head, and turned back to filing the scrolls. I got up and looked over his shoulder.

"Fun with fireballs. Beginners scroll, right?" I asked, with a mischievous grin on my face.
"Don’t even think about it, Shawn." said Christian. "You’re not going to try to read my scrolls, mister high flyer. I will NOT be putting out fires today because some warrior thought he could be a mage for a day." I pretended to be hurt by the comment, and Christian laughed.

"I heard the woods are filling with ogres lately," I said, changing the subject. "Apparently, they’re starting to harass the perimeter guards. A dragoon who was on guard duty had to fight one off, and told us about it."
"You’re kidding me..." Christian trailed off. "Then why are we going into the woods?"

"I want to see it for myself." I said. Christian put the last scroll away and then turned to look at me. He was in his learner’s robe, the robe of gray. He was about as tall as me, with blond hair and sparkling blue eyes. He had the start of a beard around his chin, and had the build of a knight. I constantly joked about the fact that he looked like a knight trying to pass off as a mage, and he’d constantly say that it was true, then laughed. But right now, a more serious look crossed his face.

"You realize that this dragon knighthood is going to get you killed someday," Christian said, gazing at my grin.

"Yeah, well, we live once. Besides, if we run into trouble, we can always hurry back."

"OK," Christian managed. "We’ll go."

I woke up from my dream, worried. I was dreaming. I can’t believe it. But what woke me up? I wondered. Then I heard the pounding on my door. "Is anyone in there?" yelled a female voice. Elizabeth’s, I recognized. I ran to the door and opened it. There she stood, in the twilight, heading to nightfall. The reds in the sky shone off her white robe.

"What’s up?" I asked her, sleepily. I rubbed my eyes to get the blurring out of them.

"I came to talk to you. David stopped by my inn room, and he said you were upset about something." That woke me up faster than a pot of Vicky’s coffee.

"There’s nothing to discuss." I said discompasionatly. I was ready to close the door.

"Wait!" she cried. "Don’t try this on me!" I stopped where I was. "Please, just let me in. I just want to talk to you." I couldn’t say "no" to that voice. She is the only one who could fight her way through my mental barriers.

"Come in, Liz." I said sighing. I made a mental note to figure out how she did it, and held the door open for the fair-haired mage. Of all the members in the group, she was the one I admired most. She was the only one who could hold up a nice-girl image. She was strikingly beautiful, with the auburn hair falling down to her waist, and sparkling eyes that always twinkled when she talked. Her figure was delicate and small, and she had a manner of control whenever she walked. A part of me seemed to have a crush on her. Maybe that’s why I release my barriers...

"Shawn, I know that something’s wrong. You know how everything is safe with me. After all, I’m the only one who knows about Christian." I cringed at the mention of my former best friend’s name.

"Please, Liz, sit down." I said, gesturing to a chair that was next to the rocking chair. I took my seat after making sure Elizabeth sat down first. "You do deserve the truth. The truth is..." I stopped for a moment. A bird swooped by my window and landed on the sill of the next one.

"Go ahead," Elizabeth said gently.

"The truth is that I feel bad about not being out there with you guys. What happens if I never get a dragon? What happens then? I stay forever the man always assigned as strategic commander? Or do I just become a weight, weighing down the group? I know you got your dragon late, but mine seems to never want to come, if I even have one at all!"

"You had that dream again, haven’t you?" she asked. "I can tell by your reluctance to FULLY tell me." I moved closer to her.

"Yes," I said softly. "I’ve been dreaming about my past, yet again. It’s as if the nightmare doesn’t want to end." I looked up at the window again in time to see the bird fly off, high into the sky.

"It’s okay," she said, standing up and kneeling next to me. "I think I understand." I grabbed her hand tenderly. Her skin felt like powder. This was the first time I ever touched her before, I thought to myself. How ironic that it happens at my weakest time.

"Listen, Shawn. If you don’t want to do the strategic command, you don’t have to. David said not to worry about it, because you’ve been depressed lately. If you are going to do it, however, be at the tavern battle ready in 8 hours. It should be enough time for sleep."

I looked at Liz and forced myself to smile. "I wouldn’t let any of you guys down." Not like my past. Liz smiled at me, then got up and left leaving me with my thoughts. I had to curse Elizabeth, she always managed to get information out of me. What a weakness to have! Not even David with a knife to my throat can get information like that. I went into my kitchen and sighed. The sunset was starting to fade, but the reds, purples, and golds were still in the sky. I fixed up a quick dinner of beef and potatoes, then ate it half-heartened. Were the others that afraid of me becoming a loose cannon? I wondered as I ate. When I finally finished eating, I laid back down on my bed and thought for a while. What’s happening to my life? Another bird, followed closely by a mate landed on my sill. I closed my eyes and listened to their bright chirping.

We were running, both of us out of breath out of the woods. Christian had a look of concern on his face. I had terror written on mine. We ran into a troop of ogres who managed to get past perimeter patrols and were heading straight for Castel. We finally managed to get past the forest to my house.

"No way!" I said when we finally stopped for rest. "How could the ogres have gotten through our knights?"

"I don’t know..." huffed Christian. "But we have major problems. We have to alert King Juolin about this. He’d know what to do."

"We don’t have much time. Let’s go!" We both ran at full tilt to Castle Castel.

When we arrived, the guards took one look at us and knew something was wrong. I was thankful for one thing. The Dragoons were patrolling castle today. The one I knew, Gerald, escorted us to the king. When the king saw us, he knew something was up.

"Gerald," King Juolin spoke. "What is the matter?"

"These two boys have an urgent message from the town. They must be heard immediately!"

"Sire," I spoke up. "The ogres... they’ve broken through perimeter!"

"Is this a joke?" Juolin asked. "I have some of the best trained men out there protecting the land!"

"This is NOT a joke, sir," spoke Christian. "On my honor of my father, wise wizard Tarentin, the land of Castel has been invaded!"

"You’re Tarentin’s son?" spoke Juolin. "Then it must be true! Sound the alarm! Everyone, to arms! The ogres have invaded!" Gongs started ringing in the castle. Troops started marching out of the castle to the city below. "I’m sorry for doubting you. Gerald, get to your troops. We have a war. Christian, you and your friend must also fight. We need all the help we can get!" With a crisp salute of the Dragoons, I pledged to King Juolin that I would fight for him, no matter what the cost. We then ran down to the arsenal. The man in charge recognized me and handed me my turquoise armor, and my lance, which I quickly put on, with Christian’s help. We both ran out of the castle to the fray at the forest border.

The battle was already started as we arrived. Ogres, by the dozens, started spilling out of the forest, running headfirst into the knights that awaited them. Dragoons started jumping and landing on the bewildered ogres, who were not accustomed to battling such nimble knights. One dragoon’s lance went right through an ogre’s skull. Another knight knocked an ogre down, and was attempting to disembowel it. Christian and I went to work. I jumped into the air, with as much care as I put into my training and held out my lance. As I soared, I got a bird’s eye view of the fight. A whole army of ogres was making their way through the forest, ready to kill anything they saw living. A couple houses were lit on fire. Concentrate on a target my instinct started to tell me. I saw an ogre just standing around and put my lance at a fall-to-kill position. My aim was flawless. I landed on top of the ogre, driving the lance down through his skull. His eyes flew wide open, and then he toppled. I looked over and saw Christian swing at an ogre with his staff, while trying to recite a spell. Suddenly, a fireball appeared, searing the flesh off of two ogres unlucky enough to have been around the mage. "All right Christian!" I cried out. I was suddenly hit on the helmet by some club. I turned to see an ogre swinging at me. His swing got me in the helmet again, disorienting me. Christian cried out and cast a lightning bolt at the ogre. It connected, dropping the ogre at his spot. But three ogres replaced him.

"You okay?!" I yelled as an ogre parried my blow with his club.

"I’ve been worse!" yelled Christian as he swung at an ogre. He hit him in the chest driving him back. I jumped at the chance and plunged the lance into his back. It went straight through. Another ogre came up to my side and swung, hitting me right in the shoulder. Groaning, I fell to my knees and pulled my lance out. The ogre swung again, but then, in the middle of the swing, he fell. A dragoon had landed on him! I gave my thanks and returned to join with Christian, who held two ogres at bay with blowing ice. A knight’s scream came from in front of me, as an ogre wielding an ax ran and sliced his arm off. More and more, we found ourselves falling back as more ogres with axes started coming from the forest.

"There’s too many! Retreat to a box formation!" yelled a general. All of us, including Christian, ran into a box position. All Dragoons stayed on the ground, and slashed at the ogres with their pikes and lances. Christian and I were side-by-side, fending off attacks. An ogre swung at Christian. He ducked and I slashed him with my lance. It opened a wound on its chest, though it continued to swing at us. Another swung at the knight to my right. It connected, and he fell, blood flowing freely out of his armor.

"Go away, you stupid ogres!" I yelled and swung at the offending ogre. It connecting, lopping his head right off. "Christian! How are things?"

Over the din of the battle, the screams of ogres and knights, I heard Christian reply, "Fine! Just another 1000 more ogres, and we’ll win!" I laughed, almost nervously, at the comment and continued to swing at ogres who were filling in at the spaces I dropped them. I swung wildly at an ogre who was approaching me with his ax out. He fell, but an ogre behind him picked up his ax and continued at us. He swung both at me. I ducked the first, but his ax hit me in the side. I groaned as blood started to trickle from inside the armor. Christian cast a quick fire spell and managed to repel the ogre from doing more. Getting up, I saw two ogres rush in, eager to get rid of a cursed knight. They were both met with spears from knights beside me. The first fell to his knees when his stomach was pierced. The other managed to hit a knight. More and more ogres were spilling out of the forest, making the battle even worse. Suddenly, a shrill call of the trumpet brought my mind back to my senses. The general had yelled, "RETREAT!" The box was breaking off into a mob, retreating to the castle. I suddenly was lost in a blur of knights and ogres, trying to find Christian. A couple knights were cut down by sudden blurs of ogres. A dragoon tried to run with his lance held out, but couldn’t get past the ogre who stood there grinning. The dragoon was sliced right at the waist, blood spilling all over the ground.

"Christian? Christian?!" I called for him. I ran frantically in the direction of the fleeing knights, chased by bloodthirsty ogres. I didn’t notice the ogre who managed to get behind me, swinging his club and knocking me out cold.

I awoke in a nervous sweat and looked at the clock in the dim light. The two birds had flown off, leaving for a shelter from an incoming storm. The clock’s hands pointed at the X and the II. Two AM? I wondered aloud. I’m awake at two AM? I glanced out the window groggily. The night’s skylight was brightened sporadically by torches lit. A deer, with a lot of courage, wandered close to my window and looked inside. It gave me a glance of defiance, then decided to start munching on the grass underneath the window sill. I decided to let it be. After all, it would probably become dinner on someone’s table. With a grimace, I turned away from the dinner scene and laid back down in my bed.

When I came to, the devastation I saw around me was horrifying. Houses were burnt to the ground. There were still trees on fire, and bodies of ogres and knights littered the ground. The earth became a rusty crimson, with the mix of soil and blood. My first thoughts were of panic. Where was Christian? Then, I saw something gutwrenching. My house was no longer where it should be. Nothing but a base with some articles of clothing strewn about was left. I quickly ran over there and searched for my parent’s bodies. They weren’t to be found.

"Damn all ogres!" I cried out in exasperation. as I continued to search the area. I must have been lucky, because the ogres thought I was dead. Otherwise, they would have beaten me until I was. I ran over to Christian’s house. Amazingly, minus a roof, it was still intact. The components were still there. A lance was as well, with a note attached. It read, ‘Happy Birthday, Shawn’. I picked up the lance, which was beautifully hand-crafted. A carving of a dragon lined the shaft of the lance, while the tip was lightning shaped, and deadly sharp. Its silver shaft matched my armor, except for the line of crimson running down the back. I had forgotten all about it. My birthday was in four days. I guess I’ll take it with me, since my birthday is soon! I picked up the lance and handled it. He even remembered to attach a scabbard so I could latch it on to the armor. I continued to search around. That’s when I saw the worst sight ever. A virtual path of bodies led up to the castle. I ran along, following it, up to where the castle was to be. It was nothing but a fire pit. Bodies of knights and unsuccessful ogres were littering the ground, with the same rust color on the dirt. But one body stood out from the rest. It was wearing a gray robe.

"Christian!!!!!!!!"

I woke up from the dream to the sound of thunder outside. Looking groggily at the water clock on my bedside table, it read three o’ clock. Trying to repress shivers from the dream, I got up and started getting ready for the big fight this morning.

With the dream fully haunting me, I got dressed in my battle gear. It wasn’t much, anymore. Just some silver armor I picked up from the head castle, with a sword strapped to the side. I didn’t bother with eating this time, adrenaline is enough sustenance for any fighter ready to go out and do battle. The final piece, a silver helmet, completed the ensemble. As I was putting it on, a knock resounded on my door.

"Come in! It’s unlocked!" I yelled from the main room. In stepped Elizabeth, with Cassie. Cassie looked splendid in her sparkling diamond armor, with the battle ax strapped to her back. Elizabeth had her white robe on, with spell components hanging from her belt.

"How are you holding up?" asked Elizabeth.

"What’s your definition?" I asked, fastening the straps at the back of my helmet.

"Ahh, you’ll be fine," Cassie said. "I came simply because Liz told me you were worrying her, and I wanted to be here to chew you out." A smile crossed Cassie’s face. "I just love watching you cringe, sometimes." I just looked at her, and her smile grew bigger. "Are you going to go and help out, or are you going to fiddle with those straps all morning?"

"I’ve got them, let’s go," I said, trying to sound more confident. It wasn’t the fact that I was nervous about the battle, it was just the fact that I’d be in the back again. "Is everyone here?"

"We managed to alert two generals, both of which have about 500 troops," Cassie replied, matter of factly. "Both have been notified that they are under strict orders to follow your commands."

"As to be expected," I said. "How about our air support?"

"All dragons are accounted for," Cassie stopped and looked at me funny. "What’s with the sudden worries?"

"Nothing, really." I drew a sharp look from Elizabeth. "I just want this to be quick and painless. Let’s go." Cassie and Elizabeth headed out the door, while I followed behind them, shutting the door. It would be a while before I came back.

We hurried along the path to the tavern, where Jordan and David were standing by their dragons. Each were decked out in their armor, with their weapons, the usual sword on David’s back, and a spear on Jordan’s dragon, gleaming in the moonlight. They saluted us when they saw us approach.

"Where’s the generals and the armies?" I asked David.

"So you did come," he replied. "They are set up, right at the north end of Tansmith plains. The enemy is still camped, most sleeping."

"Good," I replied, "this will be a simple battle." I turned my attention to Josh and Elizabeth, who were discussing plans for how to most effectively use magic in the battle. Vicky seemed absorbed in the conversation, while polishing the ends of her bow.

"This is going to be easier, this time around," Jordan said to David.

"It all depends on if the army takes the bait," David replied. "If it succeeds, it’s all in the hands of Shawn to lead them in."

"Can we even trust him?" Jordan asked. "He’s been acting weird lately." David looked at him, a line of concern over his forehead.

"Would I put him out in strategic command if I couldn’t?" he asked. Jordan just shook his head. Meanwhile, Josh and Elizabeth noticed that Shawn came and joined them.

"Hey, Shawn," Josh said. "Ready to take some of our friendly neighborhood imperial soldiers out?"

"Sure," I replied, with a smile. "If phase one works, the plains should be secured for good."

"I hope so," Elizabeth said. "I need a vacation from these little skirmishes." We stopped talking when David spoke up.

"All right, guys. We’re about fifteen minutes from starting. I want all of you to make sure you have your dragons good and ready. They must know that this battle is important to the survival of this town. Have your dragons stay as stealthy as possible. When we reach the camp, have them blow their breath weapons onto the camp to get their attention. Slowly herd them to the northern plains. Shawn will have the troops ready to clean up the rest of the army. Shawn, I’m going to have Jordan fly you over to the spot where the generals are waiting. Dismissed."

I headed over to Jordan where he was saddling up his dragon, Ember. Jordan waved at me to come over and sit down. I obliged, ready to get over to my area. Jordan started whispering words at the dragon, who gave off some resemblance of a laugh. The next thing I knew, we were one hundred feet off the ground. The town slowly disappeared from view as Ember sped off toward the plains. I didn’t dare look down at the land speeding by; it was dizzying enough to be this high up off the ground. Jordan looked like he was having a grand time. Decked out in sterling silver armor, which he obviously recently polished, he looked like a regal knight who came from the Paladin ranks. He was laughing, and communicating with Ember. Ember, a red dragon who defected to our side, was trying to make the flight as hard as possible for his unlikely passenger.

"Having fun?!" yelled Jordan over the wind to me.

"I’ve got to remember to get you back after this," I managed to choke out. I didn’t know if he heard me over the howling wind until I heard the laughter.

When I finally got off the dragon at the north plains, I was thankful for the ground. Looking around, I saw the troops in two perfect block rotations, with their commanders in front. The two generals were having a meeting. When I approached them, they stopped talking and saluted me.

"At ease, gentlemen," I said, trying to conceal my surprise at the honor usually reserved for kings. They dropped their salutes and stood at a perfect parade-rest. "Before I can do anything, I have to know names."

The general at the left spoke first. "General Lancaster, head of the forces of Bringam County. To my right is General Sentigal, head of the royal army of Draco Wyren Castle." Sentigal nodded at the mention of his name and then continued his parade-rest stance. "The troops are at your disposal, Strategic Commander."

"OK, sirs," I started, and proceeded to tell them about the plans.

Back at the town, everyone else was boarding their dragons. David was mind talking to Solan.

"This is the last battle, Solan." David said telepathically to him. "If we can just take these guys out, there won’t be another attempt on Tansmith."

"And exactly why are they attacking an out in the middle of nowhere town like this?" he asked, a gleam in his opaque dragon eyes.

"Who knows," was all David could supply. "I won’t take chances on them taking over Bringam County. It’s too close to Draco Wyren."

"After this," Solan continued, "we should take some time and head somewhere for vacation. You know, where you can find someone for yourself..."

"HEY!" David screamed telepathically. "Are you sure it’s not because you have ambitions of your own?" The dragon’s laugh was his only reply.

"Josh!" David yelled across from him. "Hey, quit giving last minute good luck hugs to Vicky and LET’S GO!" Josh looked up and gave David his warning glare. Vicky merely stuck her tongue out at him and returned her attention to Josh.

"We’ll continue this after the victory," Josh said to Vicky. Vicky nodded and went to her dragon, making sure her bow was fastened well to the dragon. Cassie was patting her dragon’s head, talking to it soothingly. Jordan seemed lost in thought. This will be a great battle, David thought. It’ll be too easy... he stopped to think for a minute. He never liked an easy battle. Something seemed amiss. I shouldn’t be doubting this! I should be ready to go in and destroy them. What could possibly keep me doubting? Still going over the options, he whistled shrilly to catch everyone’s attention. It was time to saddle up and head out. The sky suddenly took form of six dragons flying to their destination. The flock of birds that were flying overhead scattered as the six rocketed past.

The fire crackled from the center of the camp. Five knights were all standing, attempting to keep watch. The other two thousand soldiers were all asleep. Their tents were illuminated by the dancing light, flickering as if it was afraid to die. The five knights on the graveyard shift watch were standing, barely. The knights stood, trying to look as watchful as they could. One was actually asleep on his feet. The other four were still awake.

"Some night," said one of the knights.

"You’re telling me," said the taller knight, who looked exhausted from the strain of staying awake. "Man, James, why did we draw the nightshift?" The second knight glared over to his comrade, a leaner knight who managed to stay awake. He stared at the sparkling stars as they were starting to blink out.

"It’s because we’ll get a few days off. This is all worth it. General Galnar said this ploy would flush out the rebels, allowing us to defeat them. Once we get them out, we won’t need to take the puny little city." James’ face had a glow from the remaining moonlight. "See why I’m a head lieutenant under him?"

"Ahh," the other knight said. "I think there’s some sense for me to grasp." James just laughed. It was a rough week for him. Galnar was constantly thinking of attacking Tansmith. It took all of James’s will to talk him out of it. James always thought Galnar was a weak general. Soon, very soon James hoped, he would become general. Then all the warfare would finally have some actual technique. Why send two thousand men to slaughter in a town, when you can have the enemy waltz up to you, right into a trap, James reasoned. He looked over the other knights and noticed one still standing, asleep at his post. Someone had to wake up Canton, or he’ll be easy prey for the other bored knights. James laughed. He’d rather let Canton become a target. It would serve him right. James’s watchful eyes didn’t notice a shadow overhead, observing them. Overhead, the dragon rider smiled. What fools! This will be easier than lunging a spear at a tree from two feet away! The rider snickered as he rode off toward the town to intercept the other riders.

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