John Lucas

Because you, the reader, demanded it, here’s the rest of the story.

PART 5

The next morning Derf did just that. The man from the tavern let Derf in. 

“Last night you said something about knowing of the dragon?” Derf didn’t waste any time in asking.

“Yes, ride with me today and I’ll show him to you.” He reached out a hand to Derf, who took it, though he wasn’t in the habit of shaking hands with strangers. “My name is Randall, I am a mercenary. Right now I am working as a guide. There hasn’t been a war worthy of note in over two years, so I don’t have much more to do.”

“My name is Derf. I am on a mission for the Ring Council of Ballarnick. I am to slay the dragon and obtain the Sword of Nagrad.”

Randall led Derf through the town. It was a small town, with most buildings made of wood from the surrounding forest. It was an hour’s ride to where they were going, Randall had said.

Derf was surprised when his guide stopped, apparently in the middle of nowhere.

“We’re here,” Randall said, dismounting. 

“We’re where? I don’t see anything.”

“Through there.” Randall pointed through the trees into a clearing. There was a small stone bunker. Guarding it was a large, well-muscled man wearing nothing but a loincloth. He had long dark hair and warpaint of many colours covered his face. He held a warhammer and a sword was sheathed at his waist. 

“A barbarian,” Derf observed. “Don’t tell me the dragon’s contained in that stone hut he’s in front of.”

“No, that is the Dragon.”

“Huh?’”

“Dragon, that’s his name.”

“Ha ha ha ha, I don’t believe it! I’m a Master Bowman! I can take him out easy!”

Randall wasn’t laughing. “I don’t think so.”

“Hey, I’m not such a bad shot! Well…so I’m not so good either—but he’s such a big target, how could I miss?”

“You don’t understand…” Randall tried to explain, but Derf wasn’t paying attention. He already had his bow and an arrow ready to fire.

Randall gave up. “Go ahead—but be ready to defend yourself when it doesn’t work.”

He doesn’t know about my special arrows, Derf thought smugly. He let the arrow fly, and it hit its mark. It flew straight at Dragon’s chest and exploded. Derf grinned, but his glee soon ended when the smoke cleared and Dragon was still standing. Blood leaked from a small gash on the right side of his chest. He was fuming, his head turning from side to side as he frantically searched for his attacker. 

Derf panicked as the barbarian’s eyes fell upon him. “Aah! He’s seen us! We’re doomed!” He rummaged quickly through his saddlebags, searching for a weapon that might be useful.

“Uh, Ring of Truth, no good, Djinni, maybe—no, probably won’t help, takes too long…”

Randall drew his sword. The Dragon caught this movement and hurled his warhammer. Randall tried to dive out of the way but wasn’t fast enough. The hammer smacked him in the head and he fell back against a tree. 

By this time, Derf had found what he was looking for: the dagger. 

He ran forward with it and made a stab at Dragon, who blocked the dagger with his forearm. It should have stuck in his arm, but it didn’t even pierce his flesh. Which meant, Derf realized, that his skin was tougher than any armour.

With the same arm that had blocked the dagger, Dragon swung out and backfisted Derf with enough power to knock the young archer to the ground. 

Derf quickly scrambled to his feet and backed up to gather his wits. Dragon put one hand on the hilt of his sword and, holding the scabbard in the other, drew out his weapon. There was a strange, greenish glow about the blade. It seemed not to stay in place, but rather slither about, like a snake. 

Derf backed off to where Randall was. Randall was sprawled out on the ground. He was not moving. Derf picked up his sword and assumed the sword­fighting position Jarn had taught him. Dragon advanced and made a downward slash, which Derf blocked. As their swords connected, Derf felt a surge of pain and shock rush through his body.

He remained conscious as he hit the ground. Dragon was above him rearing back for the finishing blow. He realized he was still holding the sword, which had become quite hot.

Dragon swung his sword back over his head, revealing the spot where the explosive golden arrow had breached his skin. 

Derf saw his only chance. Utilizing what little energy he had, he thrust his blade into the barbarian’s chest with a violent burst of motion. Dragon slumped over the blade, dropping his own strange sword as he fell.

PART 6

When Derf came to, he felt weak, and his hand was burnt from his sword. Randall had also regained consciousness but had a bleeding head and had lost enough blood to be seriously weakened. He was also very.dazed and confused. 

After Randall’s head had been bandaged, Derf decided to take a look around. Dragon’s sword still lay where he had dropped it. Derf picked it up by the hilt, careful not to touch the blade.

“This must be it,”  he remarked, “the Sword of Nagrad.” 

“Not from what I heard,” called Randall from behind him.

“Oh no?”

“No. Keep looking. Try the bunker.”

Derf sheathed the sword and put it down. He walked through the open door of the bunker. There was only one small room; its single feature was a pedestal in the centre. On the pedestal was an amulet on a golden chain. The amulet was also golden, and in the shape of a sword. 

“Now I know this is it.” He picked it up, and put it around his neck.

“Randall! I’ve found it! It’s not a real sword at all!” He walked out of the little hut and over to where Randall sat.

“I feel stronger…it’s strange. Here, I think you need it more than I do right now.” He handed the Sword to Randall.

“Now I have something to do.” He got the shovel from one of his saddlebags and dug a grave for the Dragon.

PART 7

When they had reached Mepinto City again, the Sword of Nagrad had healed Randall to the point that the bandage could be removed. It was here that the two parted ways. 

Two days later Derf arrived back in Ballarnick to a hero’s welcome. After the fanfare of his return had subsided, Gennan called him into his chambers for a private meeting. 

“I know you probably have many questions. Let me answer them all for you now. Long ago, a man named Nagrad was exploring caves in the easternmost part of Ballarnick. He found some unusual things in one cave, with no explanation of how they got there. The things he found were, of course, the three Rings and the Sword of Nagrad. These items were found to be of great power, so a council was set up to govern their use. But a certain faction decided that they wanted power for themselves, so they stole the Sword and fled. They became nomadic, travelling, and destroyed everywhere they went. We couldn’t stop them because we couldn’t locate them. Until a few months ago. Dragon was one of the last, and he was guarding the Sword.”

“Forgive me for interrupting, but Dragon? One of us? He was a barbarian!”

“You must remember, generations have passed since the Nomads broke off from us, and Dragon was of the new generation. The last generation. Anyway, I believe we have a celebration to get to…?”

EPILOGUE

Derf became the most celebrated hero in the history of Ballarnick. He served in the renamed Council of Power for 8 years. When Gennan passed away, Derf was unanimously voted leader of Ballarnick. 

Well! That was quite a journey. My 15-year-old self had quite an imagination. However, I do have a few questions I would ask him if I could:

• Why couldn’t the Council just tell Derf exactly what he was looking for instead of sending him to blindly fumble around?
• If this was such an important quest, why leave it to an unproven young archer? And why send him by himself?
• How and when did Derf get the dagger back from the demi-goblin? And why did it suddenly become a sword during his fight with Dragon?
• If Randall was a mercenary working as a guide to eke out a living between wars, why didn’t he charge Derf a fee for taking him to his destination?
• How did Randall know so much about the Sword of Nagrad, including its exact location and who was guarding it? Why didn’t he simply use this knowledge to take it for himself?

Have I missed any inconsistencies or plot holes? Tell me in the comments!