Crows circled in a cloudless blue sky. The summer sun shone bright and clear. A gentle breeze blew. The sounds of battle were over, but the stench remained.
The captain stared over the battlefield with exhausted eyes. He had lost many companions. But they had won.
"A glorious victory, Captain," said a female voice behind him.
He turned in the saddle, sun illuminating his bronze skin. He saw a middle-aged woman in a green hooded cape. She removed her hood to reveal long black hair and olive skin. Her eyes were brown and soft. He stared at her for a moment, softly stroking his short beard. "It doesn’t feel glorious."
"Nevertheless," she said, "It was your flank attack that turned the tide when the chariots were bogged down in the mud. You will be rewarded with gold, perhaps even land and title. Men of influence will seek you out. Young women will throw themselves in your path."
He turned to look back at the carnage. "I want no reward."
"They will suspect you if you refuse it. That could be dangerous for you."
He turned to look at her again. "Who are you?"
"My name is Sarah. I live in that forest." She gestured at the dark woods far behind her.
The captain’s eyes narrowed. "Zebulun Koh," he said, nodding to her. "No one lives in those woods. The locals say they’re full of elves, goblins, and spirits. They say those who enter never return."
"Folk superstition," she said, "but they are not entirely wrong."
"You are alone there?" he asked.
"No," she said. "There are others."
He regarded her for a moment. "What do you want of me?"
"I hope you will help us."
"How?"
"I had an arrangement with the dragon Rahabadaz, whose army you just defeated. Once I showed that I could make trouble for him, he agreed to keep his subjects out of our forest. We agreed to stay within."
"But Rahabadaz is lazy and cowardly. He was unwilling to risk himself to come root us out, so he left us alone. Aurelius Antipater is different. I doubt he will make any deals with us. I hope you will use your new influence in the capital to aid us."
"Dragons are the servants of the fair folk, not their rulers," said Zebulun.
"That is what they lead everyone to believe," said Sarah, "but it is false. Dragons rule the kingdoms, and always have. The legends of the fair folk defeating the dragons and ending their reign of terror were spread by the dragons and the fair themselves. It is all theater and sorcery."
He looked at her for a moment, unsure of how to respond.
"Don’t take my word for it," she continued. "Ask the learned men of the capital. Ask the criminals of the underworld."
He regarded her for a moment. "I will."
"Good journey, Captain," she said, as she raised her hood and turned to leave. "Come see us in the forest some time, if you wish. You are welcome."
Zebulun nodded. He watched her walk away and disappear into the trees.