The Dragon's Legacy Read online

  Contents

  Cover

  The Dragon’s Legacy Saga by Deborah A. Wolf

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Dedication

  The People

  The Lands of the People

  Terms and Phrases of Interest

  A Lonely Road

  A False Hope

  One

  Two

  Three

  Four

  Five

  Six

  Seven

  Eight

  Nine

  Ten

  Eleven

  Twelve

  Thirteen

  Fourteen

  Fifteen

  Sixteen

  Seventeen

  Eighteen

  Nineteen

  Twenty

  Twenty - One

  Twenty - Two

  Twenty - Three

  Twenty - Four

  Twenty - Five

  Twenty - Six

  Twenty - Seven

  Twenty - Eight

  Twenty - Nine

  Thirty

  Thirty - One

  Thirty - Two

  Thirty - Three

  Thirty - Four

  Thirty - Five

  Thirty - Six

  Thirty - Seven

  Thirty - Eight

  Thirty - Nine

  Forty

  Forty - One

  Forty - Two

  Forty - Three

  Mist and Shadow

  Acknowledgements

  THE DRAGON’S LEGACY SAGA

  BY DEBORAH A. WOLF

  The Dragon’s Legacy

  The Forbidden City (forthcoming)

  The Seared Lands (forthcoming)

  Split Feather (September 2017)

  TITAN BOOKS

  THE DRAGON’S LEGACY

  Print edition ISBN: 9781785651076

  Electronic edition ISBN: 9781785651090

  Published by Titan Books

  A division of Titan Publishing Group Ltd

  144 Southwark St, London SE1 0UP

  First edition: April 2017

  2 4 6 8 10 9 7 5 3 1

  This is a work of fiction. Names, places and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead (except for satirical purposes), is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2017 by Deborah A. Wolf. All Rights Reserved.

  Map illustration by Julia Lloyd.

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

  A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.

  This book is dedicated, with great love, to my children—

  PETE, ROWAN, ELISSA, AND KEIRA

  —who made me a better person.

  THE PEOPLE

  From the Notes of Loremaster Rathfaust

  Aadl (Istaz Aadl): Zeerani youthmaster

  Aaraf (Loreman Aaraf): Zeerani storyteller and bard

  Aasah (Aasah sud Layl): priest of Illindra, shadowmancer and advisor to Ka Atu

  Adalia: Warrior of the Mah’zula

  Ani (Istaza Ani): Youthmistress of the Zeerai prides; also the last known Dzirani

  Annila (Annila Ja’Akari): young Zeerani warrior, peer to Sulema and Hannei

  Annubasta (see Hafsa Azeina)

  Ashta: journeyman mantist studying under Loremaster Rothfaust

  Askander (Askander Ja’Akarinu’i): First Warden of the Zeeranim

  Bardu: Daechen prince

  Bashaba: former concubine of Ka Atu; mother to Pythos (deceased), Mattu, and Matteira

  Basta (cat): kima’a to Hafsa Azeina

  Bellanca (Matreon Bellanca): Matreon of Atualon

  Belzaleel the Liar: an ancient, wicked spirit, currently trapped in a dragonglass blade

  Boraz (Boraz Ja’Sajani): Zeerani warder

  Bretan Mer (Bretan Mer ne Ninianne il Mer): salt merchant and liaison from Salar Merraj to Atualon; son of Ninianne il Mer

  Brygus: member of the Draiksguard

  Char (Charon): Guardian of Eid Kalmut

  Daeshen Baichen Pao: the first Daemon Emperor, ruler of Sindan

  Daeshen Tiachu: the current Daemon Emperor, ruler of Sindan

  Daru (Cub-in-Shadows): a young Zeerani orphan; apprenticed to Hafsa Azeina

  Davidian: Imperator General of Atualon

  Davvus: a legendary king of Men

  Dennet: a daughter of Nurati

  Devranae: legendary daughter of Zula Din; abducted by Davvus, king of Men

  Deyenna: a young woman who seeks to escape Atualon

  Douwa: bathhouse attendant in Atualon

  Duadl (Duadl Ja’Sajani): Zeerani warden and churra-master

  Eleni: attendant at the Grinning Mymyc in Bayyid Eidtein

  Ezio: Atualonian Master of Coin

  Fairussa (Fairussa Ja’Akari): warrior of the Zeeranim

  Gai Khan: Daechen prince

  Gavria (Gavria Ja’Akari): Zeerani warrior

  Ginna: Atualonian maidservant

  Hadid (Mastersmith Hadid): Zeerani mastersmith

  Hafsa Azeina: foremost dreamshifter of Zeeranim; mother of Sulema, and the queen consort of Atualon. Rarely: Annubasta.

  Hannei: a young Ja’Akari warrior; best friend to Sulema

  Hapuata (Istaza Hapuata): Zeerani mentor to Theotara Ja’Akari

  Hekates: Draiksguard of Atualon

  Hyang: village boy from Bizhan

  Ippos: Stablemaster of Atualon

  Isara (Isara Ja’Akari): Zeerani warrior

  Ishtaset: Mah’zula warrior

  Ismai: younger son of Nurati, First Mother among the Zeeranim

  Istaza Ani (see Ani)

  Jamandae: (deceased) youngest concubine of Serpentus, deposed Dragon King of Atualon

  Jasin (Ja’Atanili’I Jasin): Zeerani youth and would-be warden

  Jian (Daechen Jian, Tsun-ju Jian): young Daechen prince; a Sindanese daeborn youth

  Jinchua (fennec): kima’a to Sulema

  Jorah: Zeerani craftsman

  Kabila (Kabila Ja’Akari): Zeerani warrior

  Kalani: Zeerani maiden

  Karkash Dhwani: powerful Daechen prince, advisor to the emperor

  Lavanya: Zeerani warrior and peer of Sulema

  Leviathus: son of Ka Atu, the Dragon King; born surdus, deaf to the magic of Atualon

  Makil: Zeerani warden

  Mardoni: Daechen prince

  Marisa: maidservant in Atualon

  Mariza: Renegade Ja’Akari. Once banished and declared Kha’Akari, she now rides with the Mah’zula.

  Matteira: daughter of Bashaba, a former concubine of Ka Atu. Twin sister to Mattu, and sister to Pythos (deceased).

  Mattu (Mattu Halfmask): son of Bashaba, a former concubine of Ka Atu. Twin brother to Matteira, and brother to Pythos.

  Naruteo (Daechen Naruteo): Sindanese youth. Daeborn and yearmate to Jian.

  Neptara (Umm Neptara): daughter of Nurati

  Ninianne il Mer: Lady of the Lake, matriarch of the clans of Salar Merraj, city of the salt merchants; mother of Bretan Mer, Soutan Mer.

  Nurati (Umm Nurati): First Mother of the Zeeranim; mother of Tammas, Neptara, Ismai, Dennet, Rudya, and an as-yet unnamed infant daughter

  Perri: Sindanese youth; daeborn and yearmate to Jian

  Pythos: (deceased) son of Serpentus, deposed Dragon King of Atualon

  Rama (Rama Ja’Sajani): Zeerani warden and horsemaster from Ais
h Arak

  Rheodus: young Atualonian man, member of Leviathus’s Draiksguard

  Rothfaust (Loremaster Rothfaust): loremaster of Atualon, keeper of tomes and tales

  Rudya: daughter of Nurati

  Sammai: Zeerani child

  Santorus (Master Healer Santorus): Atualonian patreon and master healer

  Sareta (Sareta Ja’Akarinu’i): ranking warrior of the Zeeranim

  Saskia (Saskia Ja’Akari): Zeerani warrior and peer of Sulema

  Soutan Mer (Soutan Mer ne Ninianne il Mer): son of Ninianne il Mer

  Sulema (Sulema Ja’Akari, Sulema Firehair): Zeerani warrior, daughter of the dreamshifter Hafsa Azeina and Wyvernus

  Sunzi: Daechen prince

  Tadeah: (deceased) daughter of Bashaba and Ka Atu

  Talilla (Ja’Akari): Zeerani warrior

  Talleh: young Zeerani boy

  Tammas (Tammas Ja’Sajani): Zeerani warden, eldest son of Nurati

  Teppei: Daechen prince

  Theotara (Theotara Ja’Akari): honored Ja’Akari

  Tiungpei (Tsun-ju Tiungpei): a Sindanese pearl diver who took a lover from among the Issuq; mother of Jian

  Tsa-len: yendaeshi to Naruteo

  Umm Nurati (see Nurati)

  Valri: warrior of the Mah’zula

  Wyvernus: Ka Atu, the Dragon King of Atualon

  Xienpei: yendaeshi to Jian

  Yaela: apprentice to Aasah

  Yeshu: Atualonian weaver

  Zula Din: trickster/warrior of legend, daughter of the First People

  THE LANDS OF THE PEOPLE

  From the Notes of Loremaster Rathfaust

  ATUALON

  The mightiest kingdom in the Near West, Atualon is the seat of Ka Atu, the Dragon King. Fabled to be built on the back of a sleeping dragon, Atualon is the wellspring of a deep and ancient magic.

  This magic is known as atulfah, and is comprised of sa and ka, female and male, heart and spirit, the Song of Life. Only those born echovete—able to hear the magical song of creation—have the potential to manipulate this magic, and only an echovete child born and raised to the throne may be trained to wield it.

  SINDAN

  The Sindanese empire stretches from the pearl-choked waters of Nar Kabdaan in the Middle East, over the ice-tombed peaks of Mutai Gon-yu, to Nar Intihaan in the Far East: End of the Bitter Lands, End of the Great Salt Road, End of the Known World. The story of Sindan stretches far beyond written memory and into the misted memories of the First Men, before the thickening of the Veil. The Daemon Emperor of Sindan rules absolutely from his throne in Khanbul, the Forbidden City, though his thoughts turn ever westward. He is covetous of atulfah, for its power is the only thing greater than his own.

  QUARABALA

  Once a place of beauty and art, high learning and gentle culture, the Quarabala was scorched clean of life and hope during the Sundering. Few now survive in the dead lands west of the Dibris. Occasionally a story will turn up in the slave-trading town of Min Yaarif, rumors of wicked beasts and wickeder men driven to desperate acts as they struggle to survive on the Edge of the Quarabala. Even more rarely an Illindrist, a shadowshifting sorcerer, will emerge from the smoking ruins, night-skinned and demon-eyed, leading a trader or three with packs full of the precious red salt and eyes full of waking nightmares.

  THE ZEERA

  A land of silk and honey, great warriors and greater predators, the Zeera is a vast golden desert and home to the desert prides. Once a proud and prosperous nation, the Zeeranim are now a remnant of their former glory. The Mothers live in mostly empty cities along the banks of the Dibris, the Ja’Sajani take census and record the final days of a dying people, and the Ja’Akari guard the people against enemies within and without the prides. Too few are born, too few survive, and too few are chosen to become Zeeravashani, bonded to the great saber-tusked cats with whom they are allied. The wardens write, the warriors fight, and the Mothers sing lullabies against the coming darkness, but their struggles are like the notes of a flute, lost and forgotten in the coming storm.

  TERMS AND PHRASES OF INTEREST

  From the Notes of Loremaster Rathfaust

  Aish Kalumm (the City of Mothers): Zeerani river fortress

  Akari (Akari Sun Dragon): according to legend, Akari is a draik (a male dragon) who flies across the sky bringing life and light to the world as he seeks to rouse his sleeping mate, Sajani the Earth Dragon

  aklashi: a game played while on horseback; it involves a sheep’s head and quite a lot of noise

  Arachnist: a human mage, who worships and does the bidding of the Araids

  Araid: massive, intelligent spiders that live deep in the abandoned cities of Quarabala

  Atualon: a western kingdom founded upon the shores of Nar Bedayyan; home to the Dragon Kings

  Atukos (City of Dreams, City of the Sleeping Dragon): dragonglass fortress of the Dragon King, named for the living mountain into which it is built

  atulfah: sa and ka combined to create the song of creation

  Ayyam Binat: a period of time in the spring during which young Zeerani women vie with one another for the sexual favors of men

  Baidun Daiel (also known as the Sleepless, or Voiceless): warrior mages who serve Ka Atu

  Baizhu: a religious order of Sindanese monks

  Bayyid Eidtein: trading town near the mouth of the Dibris, a known den of miscreants and rogues; the southernmost trading post along Atualonian-maintained roads

  Beit Usqut: the Youths’ Quarter in Aish Kalumm

  bintshi: an intelligent flying animal with some natural affinity for psionic manipulation; carnivorous; considered kith

  Bohica: patroness divine of soldiers

  Bonelord: one of the greater predators, bonelords are massive carnivorous creatures that rely on camouflage, speed, and mind-magic to capture prey

  bonesinger: Dzirani medicine man

  Bones of Eth: an ill-reputed ruin or monument in the Zeera, formed of a rough circle of tall, twisted pillars of red and black stone

  churra (pl. churrim): a hardy desert omnivore prized by the Zeerani as a pack animal, and seen as a suitable mount for outlanders

  craftmistress/master: Zeerani women and men who have been trained in and work at their particular craft—blacksmithing, painting, building, weaving, etc.

  Dae: a race of magically gifted people who reside in the Twilight Lands

  daeborn: of dae descent

  daemon: commonly used to describe any wicked thing (also daespawn)

  Daechen: half-Dae, half-human Sindanese warrior caste (male)

  Daeshen: half-Dae, half-human, member of the Sindanese imperial family

  Daezhu: half-Dae, half-human Sindanese ruling class (female)

  Delpha (Big Sister): one of two moons; has a twenty-eight-day cycle

  Dibris: a river that runs through the Zeera, supporting a wide range of life

  Didi (Little Sister): one of two moons; has a fourteen-day cycle

  Dragon King: Ka Atu, the monarch of Atualon (currently Wyvernus)

  Draiksguard: elite military unit assigned to guard members of the Atualonian royal family

  Dreaming Lands: see Shehannam

  dreamshifter: Zeerani shaman who can move through and manipulate Shehannam

  Dzirani: wandering storytellers, healers, and merchants

  Dziranim: a member of the Dzirani clan

  echovete: one who can hear atulfah

  ehuani: Zeerani word meaning “beauty in truth”

  Eid Kalish: trading town, a stop on the Great Salt Road, known for its thriving black market and slave trade

  Eth: Quarabalese destruction deity, he whose breath creates the darkness between stars

  Great Salt Road: trade route that stretches from the Edge of the Quarabala in the west to the easternmost cities of Sindan

  Hajra-Khai: Zeerani spring festival

  hayatani: a Zeerani girl’s first consort

  hayyanah: Zeerani couples who are pledged to one another and remain more
or less monogamous

  herdmistress/master: responsible for the health and well-being of a pride’s horses and churrim

  Illindra: Quarabalese creation deity, an enormous female spider who hangs the stars in her web of life

  Issuq: Twilight Lords and Ladies who have a clan affinity for the sea and can shapeshift into sea-bears

  istaza/istaz: youthmistress/master of the Zeerani prides

  Ja’Akari: Zeerani warrior, responsible for keeping all the pridelands safe from outside threats

  Ja Akari: Zeerani phrase meaning “under the sun”; loosely translates to being completely open and honest, hiding nothing

  Ja’Sajani: Zeerani warden, responsible for maintaining order and security within his local territory

  Ja Sajani: Zeerani phrase meaning “upon the earth”; loosely translates to being present in the moment

  Jehannim: a mythical hellish place of fire and brimstone; also the name of a mountain range west of the river Dibris and east of Quarabala

  jiinberry: a water-loving berry that grows along the banks of the Dibris during the flooding season

  ka: the male half of atulfah, known as the breath of spirit; it manifests to most as an expanded awareness of one’s surroundings

  Ka Atu: the Dragon King of Atualon (currently Wyvernus)

  Kaapua: a river in Sindan

  Kha’Akari: Zeerani warrior who has been exiled from the sight of Akari

  Khanbul (the Forbidden City): home of the Sindanese emperor

  khutlani: Zeerani word meaning “forbidden”

  kima’a: avatar spirit-beast in Shehannam

  kin: intelligent creatures descended from the first races and considered relatives of dragons—vash’ai, wyverns, and mymyc are numbered among the kin

  kith: term used to describe creatures that are more intelligent than beasts, but lack the awareness of kin or humans

  kithren: Zeerani person bound to a vash’ai, and vice versa

  Ladies/Lords of Twilight: Dae lords

  lashai: modified half-human servants that wait upon the Daechen and yendaeshi

  lionsnake: an enormous, venomous, two-legged plumed serpent that lives in the Zeera

  the Lonely Road: in Zeerani mythology, the road traveled by the dead

  Madraj: an arena and gathering place of the Zeeranim

  Mah’zula: a society of Zeeranim who live a purely nomadic life and abide by the ancient ways of the desert

  Min Yaarif: trading and slavers’ port on the western bank of the Dibris