Nahash slithered into the throne room. Aurelius Antipater sat coiled behind the throne.
You’ve returned, whispered Aurelius. I hope you have good news for me.
I have good news and bad news, said Nahash. The good news is that we manged to fell some trees and secure some timber.
Excellent, said the dragon king. The bad news?
The bad news is that I had to use most of that timber for Sirajuddin’s funeral pyre.
The king gave Nahash a blank stare. Your lieutenant is dead?
He is, said Nahash. He was killed by a whole host of fairies and the arrival of unexpected reinforcements: cyclopes.
Aurelius gave Nahash a hard look. Cyclopes?
I saw them myself, said Nahash. At least a dozen. I killed two of them before we had to retreat.
Aurelius turned his head and stared off to the east. How did they get to you? Can they fly too?
Nahash ignored the king’s sarcasm. Not that I’ve seen; but fairies can, and Sirajuddin couldn’t handle their numbers alone. He came to ground, where I sat protecting the soldiers and workmen. That’s when the giants showed up. They hit him with massive arrows. One disemboweled him right before I escaped with him.
The king turned back to the soldier and gave him a hard look. How are you going to solve this problem?
There are more of the light-things than we thought, said Nahash, and we have no idea how many cyclopes there are, or if more are coming. At least one of them knew magery.
Nahash looked up at the king. A partner won’t be enough. If I’m to fix this, I’m going to need an entire wing of military dragons. Experienced combat veterans.
Aurelius stared at Nahash for a long time before speaking. Fine. Choose your team. Take whoever you like, so long as you don’t leave a hole in our defenses.
Thank you, sir, said Nahash.
Dismissed.
Nahash turned to leave. As he reached the door, the king whispered one last command into his mind. If you can’t complete the objective with an entire wing of dragons, don’t bother to return.
Nahash paused, nodded, and slithered out the door.