Page 26 of The Dragon Maiden

“Yes. You may ask me any question you wish and I will give you the answer. My knowledge spans far and wide, so ask your question.”

The question burst out of me without a thought. “What do you call yourself?”

“What?” They pulled back in surprise, then leaned closer to peer into my face.

“What do you call yourself?” I repeated.

“You could ask me any question and that’s the question you pick?” they asked. “You could ask me about your brother and I would give you the answer.”

“I’m sure,” I said. “If I’m going to be killed by you, I might as well know your name.”

“No one has ever asked that before,” they said. I could not quite tell in the light, but it almost looked like the figure frowned. “I just wasn’t expecting the question.” They took a few steps away from me.

After a few moments, when they did not seem like they would respond, I asked, “Are you going to answer my question?”

“Oh, sorry,” they said, still seeming distracted. “My name is Kessland.”

“It is nice to meet you, Kessland,” I said, bowing my head in greeting.

Wind blew through the cavern, and I shivered at the cold. The fire Kessland had created last night had disappeared sometime in the afternoon.

They looked my way before shifting towards me with wooden movements, still disoriented by my question, and held up a flame once more. “Here you go.”

“Is it really that surprising?” I asked after a couple minutes of silence.

Kessland looked at me. “I guess so, yes,” they said. “I don’t think anyone throughout the ages I’ve been here has ever asked or known my name.”

“That sounds lonely,” I said, feeling sympathy for them. I knew a little of what that loneliness felt like. Sometimes it was so strong I thought I would be swallowed whole by the emotion.

“It isn’t all bad,” Kessland said. “There are fish and other creatures in the waters I inhabit. I spend time with them, though they aren’t much for talking.”

“How often do the Lords send people to you to judge?” I asked. “Is that the only time you get interaction?”

“It’s about every decade or so,” they sighed. “But most times, it is a cut and dry case and they just want me to dole out the punishment. Rarely do I get opportunities like these.” They flashed me a smile, but I could sense a sadness underneath the expression.

“Have you always been like this?” I asked. Kessland seemed somewhat starved for companionship, no matter how much they had tried to convey a façade of malicious delight at determining my fate. “I’ve never encountered anyone like you before.”

Kessland puffed up at the compliment. “Of course, you haven’t,” they scoffed. “I don’t think there’s another like me in the entire world. I was born long before the dragons, before your kind even existed. I swam through the deepest depths of the oceans to the corner of every creek. I have been part of the water since water existed.”

“How did you end up here?” I breathed the question.

They drooped now, deflating in front of my eyes. “Due to the cause of their creation, the dragons have powerful magic,” they said. “Especially the power of the High Dragon Lord that is passed down to each successor. Ages ago, they discovered me, what I could do, and captured me, locking me here to do their bidding. So now I have no more adventures, no more exploring.”

A flash of anger shot through me at the story. How dare the dragons lock up another innocent being? It was bad enough they took humans and threatened them into submission, but it sounded like they had been doing this for generations.

“That’s horrible,” I said in a choked voice, trying to keep a lid on my temper.

Kessland’s eyes shot to me and they grinned wickedly. “Yes, it is,” they said. “But you have gotten more than enough information out of me for one night. Why don’t we turn to you?”

“What do you want to know?” This was my last night. I was willing to do anything I could to help my case, to survive.

“How have you liked your time here with the Dragon Lords?” they asked. “With Lord Dracul?”

My heart thumped at the question, unsure of why Kessland asked such a thing. “There have been good and bad things,” I said slowly, trying to organize my thoughts. Kessland nodded in encouragement, and I continued to talk. “The other Dragon Maidens—mostly Vimery—have been very standoffish since I joined, but that’s slowly been getting better. Although after this, I don’t know what will happen.”

“And what about Lord Dracul?” Kessland’s voice was a whisper, thousands of voices asking me what I thought of the High Dragon Lord. “How have things been with him?”

“He’s hard to read,” I said softly, beginning to look away.

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