VENNY

   "I really think you should go home, Hark."
   "I'm fine." He insisted though he'd only just stood from where he had crumbled to the floor in pain. While I seemed to be growing taller and larger with each passing day of hearty eating and physical labour, my friend seemed to be shrinking in on himself. He was becoming pale and sickly looking as well.
   "You need to see your da."
   "No. I don't." He said firmly. "I wont go back there like this. He'd want me to keep fighting." His eyes met mine. "I'll die just as quickly on the ship as I does with you, only difference is m'da has ta watch it happen if I goes home. At least with you I can be useful."
   I could have argued further, but I already have so many times in the past week that I could literally play out the argument in my head and I knew that in the end, I would once again loose.
   Besides, right then, Ritch and the others came in so the argument was put on a hold anyway. I sat on the log next to Hark, Alie and Geac took the log to our left, while Ritch and Loryn to my right.
   Ritch let out a sigh, beginning the conversation. "From rumors around town, it's heard Averton has the council voting on a new king. Florn is doing the same but it's being less accepted by the people so I'm not sure how that will go. Tark is in a complete disarray, overrun by Rangers near completely except the cities further east whose closed the gates and are allowing no one to enter or to leave except by boat---"
   "Do they have a council?" I interrupted, worry for the kingdom that is rightfully mine now with my brothers dead, seeped into my voice.
   "I'm not sure. I've heard nothing about what's going on behind the gates." He looked to Alie. "Nascia is a complete mystery. The few who had attempted to go there claim a wall of ice and snow has been built between the two mountains."
   Alie nodded. "So someone at least is ruling there." She said but sounded concerned. "What of Dargolyn?"
   "Complete chaos." It was Geacob that answered. "And not by the Rangers. I spoke to some Rangers passing down the mountain road and they tell me the city is basically a zone of war, fires, and murders." He glanced at his hands. "The Rangers are being blamed for the dragons attack because of it."
   "But how could the Rangers have anything to do with it?" Alie questioned.
   "They can't, but the people see us as benefiting the most since the attacks and so they blame us."
   "The outer reaches of Dargolyn," Ritch continued, "are near abandoned. Most going inward or crossing over the boarders to other kingdoms." He glanced briefly at Geacob. "Too much Ranger activity to be claimed as safe, much like western Tark. Some are beginning to call Dargolyn the Wildlands."
   Then there was nothing more to be said, so I asked the question that was on everyone's mind. "So where do we go next?"
   Silence.
   Then, Loryn spoke --- something she's done very little of since she returned to us. Barely even a complaint has come out of her mouth and though her bruises were fading, hurt was still in her eyes, causing her to look more mature. I had a feeling that it would forever be there.
   "What if the vision was nothing? Meant nothing?"
   "Impossible." Alie said firmly. "It had to mean something. We're together for a reason."
   "Maybe... maybe we're not though." Ritch sighed. "Maybe we weren't supposed to meet up at all."
   "Or maybe your gods didn't send the visions." Loryn said. "Perhaps the dragons did."
   Geac looked up at her sharply. "Say that again."
   Loryn seemed startled at his sudden attention but answered. "Perhaps the dragons only want chaos and they destroyed the castles of their own free will. But... perhaps they sent a vision out, or... or their actions caused a vision by mistake."
   "The dragons don't send visions by mistake."Geacob said firmly. "It was done on purpose. I'm sure of it, but you may be right, Loryn. Chaos." He glances at Ritch. "Wildlands you say?"
   "What is it, Geac?" Alie asked. "What is it that crosses your mind?"
   He squinted, trying to remember something. "There was this story my uncle used to tell me about. Some... prophecy gifted by the dragons. It was one of many stories and it's been a long time since I've heard it, but I'm fairly sure it was something about the wildlands and chaos being born and buried." He shook his head, looking frustrated. "I can't remember, but I'm sure it said something about it." He remained in his frustrated state for quite some time then sat up and snapped his fingers as it came to him. He quoted. "Amidst the Wildlands where dragons emerge from ancient shells of stone, cayos be born among the ashes. Cayos to be buried only with the settling dust under the ritious soles of darkend kings."
   His voice trailed off and the silence that followed seemed to be heavy, like a physical weight attempting to smother us.
   "Deep words." Alie finally said, breaking the silence, though that weight was still there, lingering in the background as if waiting to pounce on us all.
   "It's only a child's tale, is it not?" Loryn asked, grimacing. "One that makes little sense."
   "It was about war, I believe. A prophecy of war. There was much more to that, I'm sure of it but the memory leaves me." He sighed. "If my uncle would only find us, I'd ask him to tell it. Perhaps it's nothing but... I don't think it's nothing."
   "You believe there is truth in the tale?" I asked.
   "I believe there is truth and a connection to us." He agreed. "In fact, the more I think on it, the more I'm sure of it. It feel's right. It feels... heavy."
   So he felt it too.
   But Hark could not feel the weight. "Are you sure you ain't juss desperate f'r an answer, Geac?" He asked this not with cruelty, but of honest curiosity.
    "It's possible." Geac answered. "But I don't think so." He looked around at each of us. "There's only one way we can find out."
   "You uncle?" Alie guessed.
   "I will never be able to find my uncle. He would have to find us. No. There's another way as well."
   "The dragons." I realized. "You want to speak to the dragons."
   Loryn made a squeaking noise and even Alie gasped quietly. "Bloody sea witches." Hark cursed, his mouth agape but there was an obvious excitement in his eyes as well which didn't surprise me; Hark loved adventure.
   But after the initial shock, I could see Alie considering it seriously and after a moment she spoke. "We would need to gather some aide in order to reach the Lair. More information on what to expect inside the city may very well save our lives." She looked at Geac, tilting her head slightly to the side as she tended to do when thinking. "Do you believe the Rangers may give us aide?"
   "I'd have to word things very carefully, but some of them will trust and follow blindly because of who my uncle is." Geacob tapped his fingers across his leg. "Darci's group would help, except they can't see Loryns face or they'll suspect..." He trailed off with a grimace and continued separately, making me wonder what he had done. "Niko's group will follow as well. That would bring the numbers up to a full dozen besides us."
   "Will they aide us though you are with us?"
   At that he grimaced. "To a point." He looked at her and I saw his eyes glint with an idea that seemed to amuse him. "How would you like to be a Ranger?"
   She perked up as if he had asked her to pick out his best horse and take it home --- or in Alie's case, the best crossbow. "Really?"
   He nodded. "It would be easier to explain that these guys are your friends, not mine, but that you've had to join the Rangers and I've taken you under my wing, so-to-speak."
   "Which would make them considered my property, so they would be safe. Also, with myself as one of your own, you would be obligated to protect my back when I follow them, and the Rangers would be obligated to protect yours because of your uncle. "She understood immediately, though I had no idea what she was talking about. "It's perfect!"
   "It wont be easy, getting into the Lair, never mind the actual dragon lair beneath the city."
   Alie looked around, finally including the rest of us. Her eyes were brighter than ever in excitement. "What do you say?" She asked us all.
   "I trust you." I said immediately and Hark nodded next to me.
   Ritch snorted. "Is it terrible that my only thoughts on this plan is that it will at least het us moving? Yes, I'm in." He looked to Loryn, so did we all.
   She looked around in surprise. "You're asking what I think?"
   "We know what you think." Geac said dryly. "That we're all gone mad and we are going to get ourselves eaten by dragons. What we're asking is if you're with us, despite what you think."
   She remained surprised another moment, then grimace. "Just get me away from this town." She said. "I'll complain about our direction later."
   "We don't doubt that." I said with a snort, earning a glare from Ritch who has taken it upon himself to act similar to a big brother to Loryn.
   "So that's it. It's decided?" Geacob looked around, waiting for an objection.
   There were no objections.
   Ritch nodded and stood. "I'll be fetching the map."

***

A/N: Super short (for me) but we're about to move onto the next part. I'm so excited! Rangers and Dragons comin up. Whoo hoo! I've been waiting to reach this part since I started writing this book. LOL. 

I've been getting a lot of pm's asking me WHY the dragon burned everything, WHY only these five got the visions, WHY everything else... Guys, it's part of the book. If you want to learn, you're going to have to learn right along with the characters in the book. I will not answer you. Lol.

In the meantime, happy reading everyone!

Oh! And thank you all for the comments and votes! Especially to a few of you who have given me some honest thoughts and criticism. If for some reason I haven't acknowledged you, I'm doing so here and now, though I try to message everyone back when I see it; thank you very much and I'm definitely taking your comments into consideration. I love knowing what I'm doing right, but I also love knowing where I'm messing up too! So thank you thank you thank you all!