An Archaic Memory (7)

Chapter 7

Manifest

The entrance to the Dragon was majestic. It was sunset. Liraz had arrived with Klare, Ruce and Druin to find most of Unit Seven gathered at the rendezvous point. The Deepcross armory was their mandated stop before heading further East. 

The structure was as high as the eye could see, almost like it merged with the red skies above. Liraz had marveled at the vast dragon before, but up close, he really felt how small Deepcross seemed against it. Red banners with a twisted golden dragon symbol in the middle lined the large opening. The open structure had no doors, just a large opening. 

Holard walked up to where Liraz was standing.

“Worth all that walk, eh?”

Liraz snorted. Klare raised an eyebrow at him.

“The Chealen Armory,” Liraz said. “Hard finding a member of the Fell Guard who isn’t in awe of this place.”

Holard put his large arm around Liraz, leaning on him. “A good armory is the home any soldier needs. A lonely port in the ocean of battles.”

The large Roulen man spoke with a boisterous voice. Liraz was used to hearing Holard make comparisons that no one understood. It had been surprising at first, but he had grown used to them with time. He understood the look of confusion Klare gave the man. Liraz had once quoted Holard to other captains during the Captains’ council a few days ago, earning blank stares.

In a quick sweep, Liraz gathered that two of the thirty were missing. He signaled that the crew move inside the structure, and informed Klare to wait for Tyra and Aloisius.

Despite the openness, the temperature inside the dragon rose significantly as soon as the group walked in. Liraz audibly heard the relieved sighs of his crew as they entered behind him. The cold weather had lingered after the storm, and had lasted through their journey to Deepcross.  

The entrance hall was enormous. At least fifty Chealen soldiers lined the hall walls inside, their bright red uniforms almost blending into the walls. The Armory staff clad in crimson robes huddled in groups of three or four, negotiating leasing terms with weapon scouts of various houses. The Chealen Armory originally belonged to House Chaelena – a house that presided over House Fell and many others on Lethos. Grimm Helion had been the original king of Chaelena over five hundred years ago. He had given the name Chealena to the region honoring the Dragon Chaelen. The original settlers had believed that the Dragon had created the perfect vegetation on Lethos. A worthy forest for a majestic dragon. Grimm had chosen to build the palace around the fabled slumber caverns, claiming that the rulers of his house would only sleep where the Dragon had once slept. Now, his descendants ruled over Chaelena. 

Fell Guard scouts lingered in places, discussing weapon leases with the staff. Liraz recognized Geb, Dell and Fiona at one of the registers. Fiona was waving her fist at the massive staff member, while Geb pushed himself between them, trying to keep the peace. Liraz smiled. Fiona could be intense sometimes. He had, on more than one occasion, had been in a heated discussion with her They seemed unsurprised to see Unit Seven at Deepcross – at this point, everyone in Fell Guard were aware of the excursion.

The Hunting section was several levels below the main entrance. Liraz had sent a letter in advance to the Grand Master of Arms informing him of their visit. An Armory guide greeted them at the fright trains just beside the entrance. There were hundreds of small trains that were used to transport weapons, and people to other levels. The human trains were smaller in size, open-wagon like and could carry about eight people. 

The group responsible for collecting the hunting equipment and cages was led by Holard. There were eight of them, including Holard and they were led to the trains that went below. Liraz and the others then boarded the trains heading to the upper levels.

Liraz climed aboard a wagon, Ruce and Drui joining him. Klare climbed aboard with them. She had been keeping a suspiciously close eye on him since they had left the bar. Liraz had assumed that she would be off meeting the Cartographer’s guild once they entered the Dragon but she had stuck with them. He had completely ignored what she had explained about the Resurgicle. She had informed him that her bizarre device had picked up an irregular beat coming from him. He had played it off as a joke at first, but she had insisted that she sit for a few minutes and detect the beat together. At the apparent time, however, Liraz had held the device in his arm but had failed to detect any beats. The device had been as still as ever. Klare had perked up at that, burying herself in a book about the device. He had not failed to notice that she had followed him closely since then.

He led Unit Seven to the museum on level four. The newer members like Kalen had not seen it. He led them to the heart of the Dragon first. The heart of housed at the center of the seven story museum and level four offered the best view. 

As they neared the center, he heard gasps from his fellow crew members. Although the heart stood still, the sheer size of it had a liveliness it. A ramp ran around the organ and everyone quickly spread to gather at the edge of it. Deep down, Liraz saw the soldiers on the ground floor walking about ant-like.