Chapter 3
Once Draig had been missing for several months, the dragon council handed down his seat to his younger brother Ironclaw. Ironclaw wasted no time forming alliances with the elders who were in favor of war, and discrediting those who were not. Stirring up trouble was his specialty, and his friends Talon and Razorwing were eager to help since they considered him the leader of the clan. In reality there was never supposed to be a leader because all dragons were equals, but Ironclaw used the current crisis to his advantage. He manipulated the truth and broke the rules as he saw fit. In times of peace his actions would have inflamed the elders, but with war looming in the distance, Ironclaw found support in the shadows. His clandestine attacks on the humans turned him into a rebel leader.
“Where are you going today?” Talon asked when he saw Razorwing sharpening his claws on a piece of slate.
“Ironclaw wants to head southwest and firebomb a castle that is under construction in Cardiff.”
“Will there be women and children in this castle?” Talon asked.
“Aren’t there always,” Razorwing replied with a devilish grin.
“Oh come on, you never actually attack the unarmed peasants. I only see you going after the soldiers as if that is the honorable thing to do,” Talon remarked.
“I have innocent blood on my claws,” Razorwing insisted.
“Of the three of us, you’re the only one who is soft,” Talon claimed.
“I am not!” Razorwing snarled.
“What are you two buffoons squabbling over?” Ironclaw said as he flew over to them after the council meeting adjourned.
“Nothing,” Razorwing replied as he glared at Talon for a moment.
“Then let’s go castle crashing,” Ironclaw said with a menacing laugh as he took to the air.
“Any news from your meeting with the elders?” Razorwing asked as they flew along.
“Sapphire and Paragon are still opposing the war vote, but Paragon said that if the humans move north of the Cambrian Mountains, he will change his vote.” Ironclaw revealed.
“Then why are we going all the way to Cardiff? I don’t see how that will that help our cause,” Razorwing remarked.
“Cardiff is the humans’ largest and most protected port, an attack on it will make them feel vulnerable and they will bring in more troops to shore up not just that port, but all of their outlying towns as well. With more soldiers coming in, the peasants will feel safe and start to push north once more,” Ironclaw surmised.
“So we’re not going to help our brethren in the Cambrian Mountains push the humans back?” Razorwing asked.
“No, we need Cambria to fall, so we can get the one vote we’re missing for war to be declared. Once we have that, then we’ll be able to attack the humans with all of our forces instead of just the three of us doing all the work,” Ironclaw revealed.
“It sounds like you have it all planned out,” Talon added as he flew up next to Ironclaw to show his support.
“I can’t help it if I’m a genius,” Ironclaw smirked as they continued south.
Once they reached the lowlands, Ironclaw spotted a small logging camp near the base of the Cambrian Mountains and dropped down to take a closer look.
“What’s going on?” Razorwing asked as he trailed a few yards behind him.
“That camp doesn’t have any soldiers protecting it,” Ironclaw replied.
“I thought you wanted to encourage the humans to move further north?” Razorwing remarked.
“I do, and attacking their camp will bring in reinforcements,” Ironclaw said as he swooped down. Several of the humans fired their arrows at him, but the weak metal shattered against his thick black scales as he lit part of their camp on fire.
“They are no match for you,” Razorwing remarked after Ironclaw returned.
“I know, and that’s why their castle will be so much fun to attack in broad daylight. I want them to see us making fools of them,” Ironclaw boasted as he looked back at the logging camp before heading on.
“Cardiff is even further south than Cothi, we’re not going to pass by Cothi are we?” Razorwing asked as he thought about Draig.
“No, Cardiff is southeast of Cothi, but if anyone asks, that’s where we went on patrol today,” Ironclaw remarked.
“Why would we patrol Cothi?” Razorwing questioned.
“If by some miracle my brother survived his fall, I don’t want any other dragons going there and finding him, so the elders will think that we are patrolling it,” Ironclaw winked.
“You really are the worse brother ever,” Razorwing said half joking.
“I know,” Ironclaw snickered.
When they reached the castle at Cardiff, Ironclaw led the attack by grabbing a mason off of the castle wall and throwing him into the moat.
“Bulls eye,” he called out proudly as the man splashed into the water. Not to be outdone, Talon swooped down and set fire to the wooden scaffolding being used to construct one of the castle walls. Right behind him was Razorwing who flew in low so he could scare the soldiers who were trying to rescue the mason out of the moat. When one of the soldiers saw him coming, he aimed his crossbow at Razorwing and fired. Razorwing didn’t even try to dodge the arrow because he knew they couldn’t defeat his thick scales. As the arrow struck his underside he felt a sudden sharp pain and before he could pull up, another soldier fired upon him. Much to his surprise, both arrows easily pierced his underside, and he lost the feeling in his left wing.
“Ironclaw,” he cried out in vain before crashing into a group of small trees just beyond the moat. When he came to, a soldier was running towards him with his sword drawn.
“Die you winged devil!” the man yelled as he readied his blade. Razorwing took a deep breath, but before he could unleash his fiery wrath upon the soldier, his blade found its mark, killing Razorwing in one quick thrust.
“Have you seen Razorwing?” Talon asked after circling the castle a couple of times without seeing him.
“No, last I saw he was preparing to attack the south wall near the moat,” Ironclaw remarked as he circled back to look for him.
A moment later Ironclaw spotted Razorwing’s body near the trees, and when he saw what the soldier had done to him, he gasped in disbelief.
“Pull up!” Ironclaw shouted as he raced past Talon in order to get out of the human’s range as quickly as possible.
“What’s wrong?” Talon asked as he flapped his wings as hard as he could to keep up.
“They killed Razorwing!”
“How?” Talon cried out in anger, but before Ironclaw could even answer his question, an arrow grazed Talon’s leg, cutting a deep gash through one of his scales.
“That’s how, and unless you want to join him in the underworld, we have to get out of here!” Ironclaw said with a look of fear in his eyes.
“The arrow cut right through my scale!” Talon cried as he looked down to make sure he wasn’t bleeding from the wound.
“I know, they have perfected their steel making and we have lost our advantage over them,” Ironclaw snorted.
“What are we going tell the others about Razorwing when we get back?” Talon asked.
“We’ll say we were patrolling near Cothi and the humans ambushed us using advanced weapons made with hardened steel. You can show them your leg and I’ll say you were trying to rescue Razorwing after they shot him down. The council will not question the story after they examine your wound and see how vulnerable we are. Then I’ll press them to vote for war by pointing out that any delay will only help the humans arm more of their troops with this new weapon,” Ironclaw remarked.
“And you think this story will be enough to get Sapphire or Paragon to change their vote?” Talon asked.
“Yes, and then we can rid our homeland of this infestation,” Ironclaw snarled.
“Sapphire was a close friend to Draig, so I doubt she will change her mind,” Talon questioned.
“Are you trying to upset me by bringing
his name up at a time like this?” Ironclaw snarled as he snapped at Talon with his teeth.
“No, I was just thinking out loud,” Talon replied in a submissive tone.
“Maybe you should shut up until we get home!” Ironclaw suggested in an angry tone. Talon lowered his head and then dropped back behind Ironclaw as they continued northward. He knew that Ironclaw was not the kind of friend you wanted to turn into an enemy. If he was willing to kill his own brother, then Talon figured that no one was safe from his claws if they crossed him.
When they arrived back in Snowdon, Ironclaw called for an emergency council meeting so he could explain what had happened to Razorwing. The elders never questioned the fictional parts of his story because he wove them in seamlessly with the truth. Even Talon believed his embellished version of the truth by the time he was finished telling it.
“As head of the council, I think it’s time to vote for war,” Ironclaw suggested.
“I think we should relocate to the Emerald Isle,” Sapphire countered.
“Tucking our tails and running only works if the humans plan to leave after a short period of time. I can tell you that they are claiming our land and building their forts and castles with stone. This is not a temporary occupation like when the Romans came, these new invaders are here to stay and their fortifications prove it. If we leave now, there is no coming back. We must stay and fight for what is ours, or admit defeat,” Ironclaw insisted. Sapphire knew she was beat the moment Ironclaw threw out the word defeat, it was the one thing no Fire Dragon would ever accept. Defeat was synonymous with losing one’s honor, and honor was the backbone of their society.
When Sapphire failed to argue with him any further, Ironclaw raised his claw and called for a vote. Every dragon except Sapphire raised their claw in support of his proposal, and the declaration of war passed.
“I hope you are happy!” she exclaimed before storming off in a huff. Paragon followed her out and when he saw her stomping around the overlook he went over to see her.
“I’m sorry if I upset you,” Paragon apologized.
“It’s alright, I’m not angry with you. I just hate how Ironclaw manipulates the truth to get what he wants,” Sapphire admitted.
“I know you wanted to relocate to Ireland, but there was no chance we would get enough votes for that. The truth is, it was either vote for war, or argue endlessly with one another until the humans had taken over because of our failure to act,” Paragon insisted.
“I know, I just wish Draig was here, he might have been able to persuade the elders to relocate rather than fight,” Sapphire replied.
“I know you really admired him, but most of the elders thought he was too soft. I’m not saying this to upset you, but he had lost more support than you might have realized,” Paragon revealed before heading back to his den.
“There you are,” Ironclaw said in a smug tone as he slowly walked by the overlook to gloat over his victory.
“Leave me alone,” Sapphire replied in a sharp tone.
“Can’t we kiss and make up,” Ironclaw said as he flicked his forked tongue at her.
“You’re disgusting, why don’t you take your skinny, short tongue and shove it back in your lie-filled mouth,” Sapphire suggested.
“You’re just mad because I won,” Ironclaw replied.
“Your brother would have never voted for war,” Sapphire snorted in anger.
“Well, then it’s a good thing I was next in line to take his place as the head of the council. Otherwise, we would be tucking our tails between our legs and hiding on the Emerald Isle while the humans take over our realm,” Ironclaw sneered.
“You are short-sighted and petty. Your brother always put the clan first and kept innocent blood from being spilt,” Sapphire snapped.
“He was a weak leader at best, and he got what he deserved!” Ironclaw said with a slip of the tongue.
“What did you just say? Do you know what happened to him?” Sapphire asked in a demanding voice.
“No,” Ironclaw replied as he started to slowly slink away.
“I think you do!” Sapphire snarled.
“No I don’t,” Ironclaw replied, but before he could turn and fly off, Sapphire grabbed him and pinned him on the ground.
“Tell me what you know, or I’ll rip that forked tongue right out of your mouth!” Ironclaw knew she was serious by the look in her angry blue eyes and he quickly conjured up a believable lie.
“He was shot down near the Cothi River while we were out on patrol together. I think he was killed, but I’m not positive,” Ironclaw said in his most convincing tone.
“What do you mean you’re not positive?” Sapphire asked as she pressed down on his neck with her claws, causing a few of his scales to loosen.
“It was too dangerous to go down after him,” Ironclaw sputtered.
“You’re a coward,” Sapphire said as she tightened her grip on his neck.
“I’m not, there really was no way to save him. Even if he survived the fall, they surrounded him within minutes,” Ironclaw insisted.
“Why am I only hearing about this attack on him now?” Sapphire yelled.
“Because the humans would have used their swords and arrows to kill any dragon that went down there looking for him. You and I both know that Draig would have never wanted innocent dragon blood to be spilt in his name,” Ironclaw sniveled.
“You had no right to make a decision like that on his behalf,” Sapphire scolded.
“I have every right, for I am his only living relative,” Ironclaw reminded her.
“That may be so, but your decision to hide the truth may have very well cost him his life. At the very least I could have gone down there under the cover of darkness and either rescued him, or laid his body to rest,” Sapphire said as she released her claws from Ironclaw’s scrawny neck.
“I know, and I will never forgive myself if my omission of the truth led to his death,” Ironclaw replied as he forced out a couple of fake tears.
“Save your act for the elders, you and I both know that the only scales you care about are the ones on your pathetic hide. If I ever find out that your story is untrue, or if you had anything to do with his death, I’ll bleed you out on the stone of punishment myself,” Sapphire threatened.
“I’m telling you the truth, I swear it,” Ironclaw said in a submissive tone as he got back up on his feet.
“I doubt that you even know what the truth is after telling so many lies,” Sapphire said before flying off.
“This isn’t over,” Ironclaw muttered under his breath as he rubbed his neck with the back of his claw.
“What was that all about?” Talon asked when he saw Ironclaw returning from the overlook.
“Sapphire thinks that you and I had something to do with Draig’s disappearance, and she has threatened to kill us both if she finds any proof of it.”
“Was she serious?” Talon asked with a nervous whimper.
“Yes, we need to make sure she never uncovers the truth,” Ironclaw insisted.
“How are we going to ensure that?”
“We need to steal a bow and some arrows from the humans in the south. Then when she goes out on patrol, I’ll kill her and everyone will think the savages did it,” Ironclaw replied.
“Is it wise to attack her after she just threatened you? It might seem suspicious to the others,” Talon questioned.
“It will take some time to get what we need and put my plan in motion. I’ll need to trail her when she goes out on patrol so I can learn her routes, and you will need to sneak out at night and steal the bow and arrows from the humans,” Ironclaw instructed.
“Do you know how to use the warm-blood’s weapon?” Talon asked.
“No, but I’ll practice until my claws bleed if it rids us of that blue devil,” Ironclaw chuckled.