The Dragons Egg : Epilogue : Heidan : Draft

Heidan

The highborn city of Caci was quiet, the men, women and children standing still upon the hard ground, their large eyes upon the great spectacle in the sky. Heidan stood silently on the steps of the great palace, flanked by his council, quiet and obtuse. She had finally arrived and so the war was about to begin and his wrath and ruin would not stretch beyond the realm of Calnuthe and reach the Kingdoms of Taer and Meer, for he would not rest until she was found and his plan for her complete. Death was too easy, too simple, his plan for his sister would be dark and disgusting, so disgusting that even his most loyal of servants would feel nauseated. As he watched on, his eyes, one black and the other gold erupted into light, it was his time to prove himself not only to his father but to the universe and his Heiden. He would crash his clenched fist to the ground so hard that the four corners of the universe would quake, so hard that the very throne in which Heiden sat would crack. He was coming, with an army so large that the guardians of Aurelius would tremble.

A smile upon his thin lips, Heidan watched as the red comet broke through the night sky and flew over his head. As he watched he noticed a creature slithering up the steps, a snake. He stood still, undisturbed as the snake slithered about his feet until with a gentle noise, the form of a tall man stood to his side.

“Father,” Heidan uttered, keeping his eyes upon the sky. Lagar stood a foot taller than his son, robed in a deep red gown.

“Now it begins,” Lagar hissed with pleasure. “She has not come alone.”

“What do you mean?” Heidan asked with urgency, turning his eyes up to his father’s pale face, so perfectly structured that he looked like a statue.

“You remember the prophecy?” Lagar replied darkly, his deep black eyes causing Heidan to shake a little within.

“No.”

“Cael returned with her,” Lagar said with a smile. Heidan tried to hide his dismay at his father’s words. “Find him and you shall have the greatest weapon of all, loose him and you will fail.”

“And what of Celestine?”

“Once you have Cael, she will soon follow, mark me,” Lagar said with contempt in his eyes. Heidan allowed himself the pleasure of a smile.

“I see.”

“Imagine what we can do with a weapon so precious…”

“He will lead us straight to Galean,” Heidan pondered aloud.

“No son,” Lagar stepped an inch closer to Heidan. “The King will follow his heart and soon they will both be standing at the foot of these steps and when they do…the throne is yours.”

Heidan looked up at his father, his eyes sparkling with ambition. With a snap of his fingers, Lord Cenric, the spy master came to him, bowing low before Heidan and Lagar.

“Have Frithred send a group of your best spies to the island of Summe, Celestine will be in the clutches of Lord Anvin and with her will be her husband, Cael,” Heidan said with dark eyes. “You are to obtain Cael and bring him here, alive. Do you understand?”

“Yes my Lord,” Lord Cenric replied with excitement his green eyes. With a wave of his hand, Heidan dismissed Lord Cenric and returned to his father.

“Soon father the throne of Calnuthe will be mine, and when Celestine is in my grasp, the throne of Aurelius will fall,” he said with a firmness that even the dark Lagar looked on with surprise. “I shall not fail you.”

“Keep your eyes on Islaer, he has bigger ambitions other than ruining Ruarr,” Lagar said, his head tilted slightly. “His gaze is now on Meer. He cannot take the throne of Meer.”

“I have my use for him and his ambitions,” Heidan replied coldly. “His diverted attention is to my advantage.”

“Don’t underestimate Islaer, he is clever and feeds off the shadows,” Lagar warned his son. “He has many servants and spies and will not likely let Ruarr fall into your hands.”

“Of that I am sure,” Heidan smiled. Lagar looked at his son for a moment.

“What of the heir?”

“He currently hides behind the walls of Ethe in the north,” Heidan said with a frown. “When the winter rains have ceased, I will send an army north and have him killed.”

“He and Celestine both have the right to enter the garden of Calhuni, you may think him young and weak, but he can easily slip under your gaze and claim the throne,” Lagar said with frustration. “You need to get rid of him soon, a rebellion is breaking out in Taer, rumours of Cathlen’s daughter are circulating and those loyal to the dead Queen are taking up arms and fighting back.”

“Elion will not last the winter, my men have his city under siege, soon they will be without supplies and will turn to the flesh of man to fill their rotting stomachs,” Heidan said with disgust. “When my army reaches Ethe, Elion will fall and the threat that he poses will diminish into dust.”

“You are very sure of yourself,” Lagar teased darkly as he walked about his son, his eyes intense and deep.

“Should I be anything less that sure?” Heidan asked arrogantly. “I took this kingdom with my own hands!”

“You may have killed your mother and Elieor, but remember it was you that let Celestine go,” Lagar hissed. Heidan held his father’s gaze for as long as possible before letting it fall to the ground. “Yes son, do not think yourself my equal, you grow too arrogant and arrogance leads to blindness. Killing men, women and children as sport will not win you the throne of Calnuthe or Aurelius’, remember that when you believe yourself to be sure. Now…” Lagar stepped away from Heidan. “I have to return to planet earth, for it is weak and vulnerable and I have a match to strike…it’s time to burn has come.”

“Father,” Heidan said simply as he bowed before Lagar.

“Do not let me down,” Lagar said with cold eyes. “You don’t want to feel my wrath.” Heidan watched as Lagar disappeared from sight, leaving him alone upon the steps once more. Turning he made his way back up the steps, refusing to meet the eyes of the men who stood with their eyes on him. He would prove his father wrong, he would succeed and he would prove his greatness.