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Writing > Users > Estrella LeMar > 2009

Writing Resources from Fifteen Minutes of Fiction

A Draken Rising

by Estrella LeMar

IMPORTANT NOTE: This is a piece of a longer writing project. You can view the entire project here: A Draken Rising

The following is a piece of writing submitted by Estrella LeMar on January 28, 2009

A Draken Rising; 27

Once Rafael had fallen asleep, Horatio finished the song he was playing, before setting his violin to the side. Reaching out, he laid a hand on Rafael’s forehead.

Rafael’s temperature was still high, but not as high as it had been.

“He is sleeping?” Ellius looked in the doorway.

Horatio nodded, “He is.”

Ellius motioned to the living room, “We should talk.”

Horatio nodded. Going into the living room, they sat down.

“He goes, and is beaten every year on his birthday.”

“But still he goes.” Horatio shook his head.

“He goes so that others will be spared.”

“He had never learned about the words honor, and mercy. Yet he has demonstrated those things so clearly.” Horatio sighed, “If ever I have met a potential Draken, it is him.”

“But would the council accept him?” Ellius frowned, “You know the Draken’s history as well as I; over the years dozens of Drakens have become corrupted, and joined the Wyriens ranks.”

Horatio leaned back in his chair, “And not once has a Wyrien become a Draken. But this boy is different; while he carries the name of Cimmerii, the name does not fit him.”

The room was silent for a moment.

“Horatio, if both of us were to die tomorrow, what would happen to our family name? Neither of us have children. What would happen to Levis?”
Horatio shrugged, “The LeMar name would cease to exist. No one would carry the name. Emily Kaio is the closest relative. She would become countess, and take responsibility for Levis.”

“Horatio, you are 38 years old, haven’t you ever thought about having a family?”
Horatio paused, “Yes, I have thought about it, many times.”

“You could adopt.”

Horatio stared at Ellius.

Ellius continued quickly, before Horatio could say anything. “You are 38, he is 19. You need a son; he needs a real father. We need someone to carry on our family name; he needs a different name.”

“Ellius, adoption is not a thing to do on whim, it’s a very serious matter.” Horatio looked over at the doorway to Rafael’s room. “I will think on it.”

“You would make a good father for him.” Ellius spoke softly.

Horatio changed the subject, “How is the training going? What have you done so far?”

Ellius smiled slightly, he knew what Horatio was doing, but he would let it go for now. “We have started with archery, and the shield.”

“There is a tournament planned the last week in August. It would take some preparation, and work with the spear, axe, and dagger, but it would be good for him.”

“I’ll speak to him about it.” Ellius nodded, “From what he told us, I get the feeling that he does not understand his own power.”

“The things he described could only be done with advanced magic. From his description, he does not even know how it happened.” Horatio looked out the window, “I am going to review some basic schooling with him, and train him in magic so that he can work towards full potential.”

“It will take him time to recover.”

“He will recover. He is strong.” Horatio stood, “I have been here four days, and I have still not had a chance to look around. Do you mind keeping an eye on him while I take a walk?”

“I’ll go sit in his room and read.”

“All right. I’ll be back in a while.” Horatio walked outside, and slowly began walking down a dirt pathway.

“My Lord, I have not seen you outside since you have arrived. How are things going? How is the captain?” Mr. Petrosky walked over to where Horatio had stopped.

“The captain is conscious.” Horatio nodded. ‘He is still in much pain, but that is to be expected. We spoke for some time, but he soon became weary and fell asleep. He is resting quietly, now.”

“Did you find out how he received his wounds?”

Horatio paused, “He told Ellius and myself.”

Mr. Petrosky sighed, “He is always so silent. He never answers questions about himself. Any time someone asks, he simply looks away in silence.”

“Why don’t you come over a little after supper, to see how he’s doing?”

Mr. Petrosky nodded, “I think I will.”

The two of them shook hands, before going on their ways.

Horatio walked a short distance, before coming to a spring. As he knelt next to the spring,

He heard footsteps coming towards him.

Reaching out, he put his hands in the cold, clear water.

“This is the captain’s favorite spring. He spends more time here than anywhere else.” Markus leaned against a nearby tree.

“Back from your ride already?”

“Yeah. Estrella wanted to get back and fix the captain a good supper.”

Horatio stood and faced Markus. “You have a good life here.”

Markus looked at the ground, “Yeah, I like it here.” He frowned, “It’s a lot more than I deserve.”

“Indeed. Do you know how much you’ve cost me? Or did you ever bother keeping track of how much you stole and swindled?”

Markus went slightly pale, “You recognize me? That was more than five years ago!”

“And I have just finished appeasing all the people you cheated. In the end, it totaled over 150,000 gold pieces and 6,000 silver pieces.”

Markus winced, “I’m not like that anymore; I’ve changed a lot.”

“I’ve always been curious, how did you escape? My men just missed you at your house. We searched the local forest for days.”

“You didn’t miss us sir, we were hiding in a secret room. We waited until midnight, then left through the Barren Waste. We circled around to the east, and entered the woods there. We had nothing, no clothes or food. That’s when the Captain showed up, an’ brought us to the oasis. He gave us so much more then we deserved.”

“Was anyone else here?”

“Not then. Plenty of buildings, but they needed fixing, I was asked to help. At first I did, then I just started goofing off.”

“What did the Captain do?”

“Nothing. He just looked at me; looked at me with such disappointment in his eyes. Eventually I shaped up, and got my act together.”

“When did you decide to stay?”

“After the Captain showed us Osadious.”

“Ellius mentioned that place. So it really exists.”

“Yeah, it does. Estrella and I filled bags full of jewels, and gold before we realized that those things don’t matter. We had everything we needed. We told the Captain that we would stay. That was the first time that we saw him smile.”

Horatio smiled, “You have changed a lot.”

“What are you going to do now that you’ve found me? Arrest me? Take me back to Levis?” Markus shuddered.

“No. I will issue you a full pardon. You have a lot of responsibility here to take care of. I will not take you away from here.”

“Thank you.” Markus sighed with relief. “You’ve done a lot for us, Sir. Helping the captain out an’ all.”

“I would be perfectly willing to stay simply for your wife’s cooking.” Horatio’s eyes twinkled.

Markus laughed, “I hear that a lot.” Everything was silent for a moment.

“Sir, once the captain is well enough, we could all ride to Osadious. The captain could show you around.’ Markus looked over at Horatio, “The captain spends a lot of time there. We’ve done a lot of organizing. We gathered up all the loose jewels and gems that were just lying ‘round and put them in the treasury. We , also, gathered up any ‘n’ all written material we could find. The captain’s put it all in chronological order.”

“Oh? Sounds intriguing. I’ve always enjoyed history.”

“Yes, well, “ Markus paused, “none of the gold, silver, or jewels belong to anyone. They’re just sitting there. I’m sure the captain would let you take as much as you want.”

“We can talk to the captain about it, once he has recovered some.”

“Ah, ‘course.” Markus tilted his head to the side. “So, how did the captain get so badly beaten?”

Horatio hesitated, “He….was beaten.”

“ He doesn’t want to say, does he?”

“Perhaps you should try asking.”

“Hmmm.” Markus looked towards a nearby building, “People are going for supper; we should go check on the captain and see if our meal is ready.”

The two of them returned to Ellius’ cabin.

“There you are. Supper’s all ready. Ellius has already eaten and is in with the captain.” Estrella ushered them inside.

Horatio, Markus, and Estrella ate in silence, before going into Rafael’s room. Rafael was just finishing his supper, when they walked in.

“Horatio, Markus,” Rafael greeted them, “How has your day gone?”

“Estrella and I had a nice ride.” Markus cheerfully responded.

“What about you, Horatio?”

“I’ve had several, interesting conversations, “ Horatio smiled.

“It is good to see you awake Captain.” Mr. Petrosky slowly entered the room.

Rafael nodded in greeting, “Mr. Petrosky.”

Ellius nodded softly. “Captain, Mr. Petrosky has some medical knowledge; he is the one who took care of you, until Horatio arrived.”

“Oh?” Rafael looked up at Mr. Petrosky and replied, “Thank you.”

“Captain, “ Mr. Petrosky looked Rafael straight in the eyes, “I would like to know how you were hurt.”

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