Chapter 14: Chief
The Chief’s eyes smoldered with barely contained fury as he glared at Vi.
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The story so far in Chapters 1-13 Draven encounters mysterious Dawn Bringers who walk unharmed in sunlight and learns that bonding with dragons (crawlers) is the key to unlocking ancient portals between distant regions of his world, Solnoc. Driven by grief and curiosity, he secretly works with his friend Kael to translate forbidden texts for lost knowledge while faction tensions rise. Draven risks his life to steal a dragon egg. The mother crawler is furious and stalks their hold. He hatches and bonds the baby dragon, but she is growing too quickly. And then the Head Warden finds out about her, and Draven must present her to the Chief and Council.
Draven stood before Chief Nyxan and the Hold Council beneath the ice dome of the Great Hall. Vi was wrapped around his shoulders, looking at everyone with her usual curious head tilt.
Blue light filtered down through layers of frost and ancient ice overhead, fracturing into pale beams that slid across gray stone pillars and the granite throne at the far end of the chamber. Moon lanterns burned low along the walls, their flames carefully hooded so they would not shine too brightly.
The hall was full of Gloamers who had come to the emergency meeting of the Chief and Council regarding the shadow crawler attacking their main doors.
But in that moment, everyone stood in stunned silence, staring at Draven and the baby shadow crawler perched on his shoulders.
The only sound was the slow drip of water.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
After the stunned moment passed, there came shuffling feet and the occasional low whisper.
“He has a pet monster?”
“That’s why the adult is plaguing us.”
“The loss of Myra made him sunsick.”
Chief Nyxan was a burly man known for his vicious sword fighting against both beasts and Gloamers who questioned his authority, power, or commitment to the hold’s safety. He was broad chested and muscular, with lighter ashen hair and skin marked by dark spots across his arms and neck. He had protected their hold since rising to power after the death of his father, who had unfortunately been killed by a shadow crawler.
And that fact was blasted bad luck.
Once upon a time, that knowledge would have bonded Draven to the Chief.
But not anymore.
Not with Vi in his life.
His views had changed dramatically, and he hardly felt like the same person he had been only weeks ago.
Draven was certain those memories of a murdered father were replaying in the Chief’s mind because, unlike the stunned, open jawed astonishment of everyone else, the Chief’s eyes smoldered with barely contained fury as he glared at Vi.
Wardens lined the outer rim of the hall, hands resting on their weapons, probably expecting more trouble.
Members of the Faithful had gathered to one side, faces lifted toward Draven with awe and trembling anticipation. They still believed he had met the famed Dawn Bringers.
Which, in fact, he had.
But the Faithful would be very displeased to learn they were not Goddesses of Light at all, but merely another race from a different part of their world.
Across from the Faithful stood the Veil Keepers, cloaked in darkness, their eyes fixed on both Draven and the Faithful.
Umbrist Sidero stood at the head of the group, his black eyes burning with passionate intensity and a hint of smug satisfaction, probably confident the Chief would make Draven pay for the audacity of bringing a baby shadow crawler here.
Tynan and Kael stood together nearby. Kael gave Draven an apologetic look, his eyes darting around the room as he fidgeted.
Draven had to be careful what he said today, or he might pull his friend into this mess as well.
Chief Nyxan finally cleared his throat.
Every whisper and movement died.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
His glare burned into Draven. “Yev brought troublesome rumors and unrest into my hold, and now...” He spat on the ground, his nose curling as though he had smelled something rotten. “Ye bring this, this, monster into my hall? Are ye raving sunsick?”
Draven lifted his chin. “I’m bonded to this shadow crawler now.” He removed his glove and raised his tattooed hand for all to see. The bioluminescent swirl of purple glowed brightly in the hall’s dim blue light. “We were magically and mentally bonded when I touched her. She speaks to me telepathically.”
The chamber exploded.
“Magic isn’t real!”
“Neither is telepathy!”
“That’s impossible!”
“They’re murderers!”
Vi whimpered against his neck, and he felt her confusion through their bond.
I will defend you. I will protect you.
Faithful Honor clamored, “He will save us from the dark!”
Umbrist Sidero waved at them. “Shut up, woman! This is heresy, and he should be cleansed!”
The Faithful pressed forward, hands clasped and eyes shining. “He is the Truth upon us,” they breathed. “The Lady of Light walks with him.”
Draven leaned away from them. He was as uncomfortable with their idolatry as he was frustrated by the blind hatred of the Veil Keepers.
And they thought he was the sunsick one?
The Veil Keepers surged back just as fiercely.
“He’s corrupted,” one said.
“This traitor will doom us all.”
The six council members sat at their U shaped stone table to the right of the chief’s throne. Lead Councilor Jaren stood and began banging a large round stone against a pedestal, their customary method of gathering attention and closing discussions.
Slowly, the clamor subsided.
Jaren said, “Ye will all hold yer tongues, or the Wardens will remove ye from the hall. This is a matter for Chief Nyxan and the Hold Council to deal with.”
Grumbling swept through the crowd like a wave, but even the Veil Keepers clamped their lips shut.
If looks could kill, Draven would have been dead a hundred times beneath the glares of both Umbrist Sidero and Chief Nyxan.
What had he gotten himself into?
He stroked Vi gently.
She hummed, and the vibration against his throat soothed him.
He could trust this bond.
Jaren rubbed his neck, fatigue and frustration evident. He was a spindly man with dark hair and charcoal eyes. His skin was the darkest shade any Gloamer possessed, ranging from deep purple to nearly black. Pale natural striations crossed his face, giving him the striped appearance of one of the wild prowlers from the forest, creatures nearly as deadly as the murkwilers.
He continued. “We were here today to address the question of Faithful Honor, and also the issue of the shadow crawler attacking our main doors.”
He leaned forward, hands on the stone table, gazing at Draven and Vi with open wonder. “But I see...” He gestured toward them. “We now know why the crawler at our door has remained so long.”
Another council member, a portly man named Prenar, spoke in a wheezing voice. “They always left in the past when the egg was cooked. This lockdown is yer fault, Draven.”
Draven sighed. How could he make them understand? “I didn’t realize the mother would stay if I hatched an egg. It was an unwitting mistake.”
Whispers immediately returned.
Then, from somewhere far in the back, a voice shouted, “Give the baby back!”
And Vi replied in his mind: No.
Draven spread his hands. “She would never hurt any of ye. Look at me. Can’t ye see she’s perfectly friendly?”
Murmurs rippled through the crowd.
Chief Nyxan eyed Vi with undisguised hatred. “But when she grows, she’ll kill us all.”
Draven shook his head. “I tell ye true. That won’t happen. I found an ancient book, and it says Gloamers used to be bonded to shadow crawlers. We lived together, and the bond allowed us to open ancient portals to other lands in this world and use magic. And I met the Dawn Bringers, and they are people from another land.”
The chamber exploded once more.
The Faithful began to wail. “Heresy! Heresy! The Lady of Light is a Goddess who will bring us salvation!”
Wonderful.
Now both the Veil Keepers and the Faithful were calling him a heretic.
Draven ran a hand down his face.
Could this possibly get any worse?
The Wardens began dragging screaming people out. Jaren pounded his stone repeatedly with little effect as the Faithful and Veil Keepers argued back and forth.
But Umbrist Sidero remained still and silent, assessing Draven with his inky eyes.
And that disturbed Draven far more than any fanatic rant or the chaos around them.
Unlike everyone else in the room, Sidero did not appear surprised.
Something cold crawled across Draven’s skin.
Had Umbrist Sidero known all of this already and deliberately hidden it? The Veil Keepers claimed to burn all books by the ancients. But maybe they kept them and kept the knowledge to themselves to maintain control. It would make perfect sense.
The Chief suddenly stood and bellowed with such force that his voice echoed from wall to wall. “Ye will all stop this madness now, or I’ll put the lot of ye in the Tower!”
Everyone froze mid fight, and eyes turned to the Chief. The threat of cleansing in the Tower was no small matter.
Silence fell.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
One of Umbrist Sidero’s eyes remained fixed on Draven as he strode forward. “I call for the Right of Address as Head of the Veil Keepers.”
Murmurs once more spread around the room.
It was an ancient ritual, one he could invoke only twice each season.
One of Draven’s eyes snapped toward Jaren while the other stared at the Veil Keeper.
Please, not him.
Chief Nyxan looked to the council.
Jaren and Prenar whispered together. Then Prenar opened a large purple leather bound council book.
Draven’s hands began to sweat as he realized the book was bound in the skin of a dead shadow crawler.
Before he could guard the thought, Vi gleaned the same realization from his mind.
Her head snapped toward the book.
Then she wailed, a mournful, haunting cry. No!
She snorted, and purple hazy tendrils of smoke swirled around Draven.
A Gloamer woman shrieked and jerked back from the purple smoke. “The crawler is trying to poison us!”
Many in the crowd recoiled, pressing farther away from him.
That suited him just fine.
Prenar flipped through the book and announced, “Umbrist Sidero does have one remaining Right of Address this season.”
An oily smile spread across the Veil Keeper’s face. “Thank you. I would like to address the shadow crawler at our doors.”
He walked forward and, with feigned concern, said, “It has placed the entire hold in danger. How will our women and children eat if the men cannot hunt? If we kill the baby shadow crawler, the mother will leave. Then ye can deal with the Warden afterward.”
Vi said, No.
Kael winced, twisting his fingers in his robe.
Draven’s mouth fell open. His gaze darted from Chief Nyxan to Jaren.
The council members leaned together, whispering and gesturing. They spoke for a while under the scrutiny of the Chief and the attention of everyone in the room whispering and pointing.
Draven’s palms began to sweat. What could take them so long to decide?
Finally, Jaren returned to the head of the table.
He looked at Draven, sympathy plain on his face. “We understand that yev bonded to this beast, Draven. But no beast should come before the safety of our hold. Therefore, we must support Umbrist Sidero’s proposal under the Right of Address.”
Sidero’s wicked smile widened and his inky glare bore into Draven.
Draven’s blood went cold and still in shock. How could they turn on him like this, after all he’d done for the hold, after all the years he’d protected them at the boundary; How would this be their decision now?
Murmurs of agreement spread through the crowd.
Draven took a step forward, pushing back his hood. “Ye cannot be serious. In that case, just banish me, and we’ll leave the hold.”
Gasps swept through the room.
“His eyes! Look at his eyes!”
Draven froze.
He’d forgotten that his eyes were turning purple.
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Author’s Notes
This is the penultimate chapter of this novella. Things ramp up in this chapter, into an explosive end in the next. I hope you’ve enjoyed the story so far.
I am kicking around the idea of next writing a novella about the Radiance Striders… let me know if that would interest you (to see Draven visit their land).
I’ve written some posts about the world building in my other sub-Substack, called The Bone Architect.
Yes, please