The bickering swarm of drake, wyvern sky warm, broke down into formed lines as Salem arrived. His eyes still pronounced his waning lighter side, and how his soul was all but pure. The ominousness of his purple eyeliner was difficult to miss in the perdition of the drowsy night.
“Salutations, dragons, I appreciate your punctuality.”
Ignatius landed quietly on the field before the once king and gingerly invited he come closer.
“I have done as you asked sire.”
“That does have a nice ring to it. Sire, it just fits me so well. Who here disagrees? I’m sure you’re probably wondering why I have asked you to come here today. It’s a good question. Perhaps another question your forked tongues should be tipped with is; when will my hatchlings and fledgling offspring be eviscerated? You see the banners that pockmark my kingdom? You see the face of the Plutarch that watches from every street corner? He will be the undoing of everything we have toiled for! He will bring about the Armageddon of dragon kind! He has manipulated our friends, our countrymen, our lovers, to believe his fakery! Cosset not his dogma of mechanisation and industrial power! His sadism will know no end. When Alicorn magic is wielded in anger, it becomes unstoppable.”
Only now that the rush of his speech had passed did the consults notice the aristocratic livery of the king. He wore a new cape, black with oil from the factory. His armour was chinked, and chipped, damaged, in homage to the disorder of the realm. Down his coaly neck grew a vein of pulsing lilac. His mane was enshrined in a helmet of broken steel. His visor was furbished with the feathers of the Pegasus dead.
Ignatius and Artemis were by the far the most talkative of the accruement. They settled at the flanks of the redoubtable messiah. Ignatius relit a brazier as they passed it and crouched down to the king’s level.
“Do you think we can overtake? We are so few.”
“Yes, this is true. But if Elijah is allowed to carry out his future evils, you will be only fewer. We light the depths of the mine with your fire, that’s our edge. They’ll want to keep their unintelligent menial slave labour nice and safe. What happens when the lights go out?”
“They would use their lanterns, wouldn’t they?”
“Once the torchbearers have plunged the pit into total darkness, they will maul a few unsuspecting scabs, and then the rest will be held hostage. Soon my rather flaky old roomie will send negotiators to make a deal. Our terms are simple. Succumb to my higher worth and submit the rule of this place to me, or watch your so-called state burnt to cinders.”
“You want us to harm the very subjects you wish to rule? I don’t know if I can…”
Ignatius said. His voice trailed off towards the end as he had seen the king’s short temper before.
Artemis placed the flat of his palm against Ignatius’s jaw and shoved him aside.
“Is this the only way we can surmount the state? I am assuredly your tool to use, sire. I am an old and creaky dragon but I will do everything in my ability to see the rightful stallion returned to his former glory. I was one of Baldhart’s last born, the runt of her sizeable litter. We owe our very existence to the generosity and hospitality of this remarkable king. Who is with me?”
The meeting place used to be untouched meadow used to grow heather in the hottest reaches of summer. It was developed upon when demand for housing outstripped the room available. Refugees from former nations and provinces begged for acceptance and shelter in the kingdom. Salem granted them this as it was their right, not their need.
Turrets of clay brickwork and slate ornate roofs stood out from the hasty constructions of the early unicorns. Wyverns and dragons dug in and garrisoned these structures for they had long been derelict and abandoned. Work was to start on their usage as crèches and nurseries for yearlings and hatchlings alike. There was no discrimination. Of course, back in the opening decades of the Kingdom, the fair treatment of all creatures was commonplace. It took centuries of hostile forced occupation and invasion before the current status quo was thoroughly embroiled into the collective’s mind.
After a lengthy pause the forum cheered in exultation. Dragons dived from the rooftops and wyverns performed aerobatics above in a phosphorous fuelled orgy of presupposition.
It was in favour of revolution and its cologne was irresistible.
Dragon fire spouted into the night sky like shooting stars. Their wings flapped in eagerness to start the operation, but it would have to wait for the mine to open. Come morning, the king would retake his thrown, with or without the nod from the powers that be.
Salem stood on his hind legs and tried to hush the enlivened crowd. They were tireless. Eventually the dramatics ceased and the legends of brimstone and might flew effortlessly into the night. Salem snapped his foreleg against his lips with enough velocity to cause injury.
“Shush my beautiful kites, time is now for rest. Sleep well. Tell your young stories yet to happen, the awe-inspiring fiction of what tomorrow shall bring. Act normal. Be patient. Make sure that you are well rested. Our mettle will be tested. You all know what Elijah will bring if his authority goes uncontested. When the sun rises our wardens will be bested!”