Read Mistress of Dragons for Free Online Page B

hearing
the tale of a storm long past. Thus the dragons, living solitary lives, can
communicate with their brethren if need arises.
    A
human mind is not made to communicate in this manner. When he had first
undertaken this task, the images and colors and emotions had seemed to explode
in his brain, splintering into many colored, sharp fragments, like a
stained-glass window struck by lightning. He had very nearly gone mad until he
had learned to distill the thoughts into simple words and pictures and shapes.
    The
dragons, for their part, took care to keep their thoughts gray-tinged, with
rounded edges, so as not to overwhelm him.
    He
had not communicated with any dragon for a long time, and it took some moments
for him to transition himself from human speech and thought patterns to those
of dragons. He saw himself in the Minister’s mind, saw himself walking to the
center of the Hall, saw his image surrounded by bright sunlight.
    “Approach,
Draconas,” said the Minster, adding, politely, “It is good to see you again.
Thank you for coming.”
    Draconas
walked forward to stand across from the Minister at the southern compass point.
He made his bow. The members of Parliament bowed their heads.
    “I
am honored to be called,” Draconas answered in the same silent language.
Distilled through his human mind, his thoughts would appear to them like the
scrawlings of a child. “I look forward to serving this august body in any way
that I can.”
    The
fact that he could not have ignored the summons if he’d tried made this
pointless, but dragons are invariably polite and aware of the importance of
formality and ceremony, particularly within their own society. Dragons are not
given to interaction with other living beings, including their own kind. A
mated pair may love each other dearly and yet not live within several hundred
miles of each other. They may communicate on a daily basis, but see each other
only once every few centuries. Hatchlings are sent into the world as soon as
they are able to hunt on their own and they are generally as glad to leave the
nest as the parent is glad to have them depart. If forced to come together,
dragons grate on each other’s nerves. Tempers flare and things are said that
were never intended. The icy waters of polite speech and observance of the
formalities keeps the fire in the belly under control.
    Such
formality also means that dragons come straight to the point. They do not
blather on about nonentities as do humans, for which Draconas was grateful.
    The
Parliament of Dragons was an ancient institution, dating back to the fourth and
final horrific Dragon War, at the end of which the exhausted dragons realized
that unless they developed some means for keeping peace among the noble
families, dragons as a race would vanish from the world that they had ruled for
centuries, a world that bore their name.
    Few
humans know of the Dragon Wars, for they were fought when humans were still
primitive beings, wandering the primordial forests with clubs in their hands,
living in caves, and dancing around their campfires. In those caves, however,
can be seen primitive paintings, depicting enormous monsters battling in the
skies, with blood raining down upon the land and fire lighting the heavens.
    The
Dragon Wars had ended by the time the humans moved out of their caves and into
villages. The Dragon Parliament established laws by which the dragons governed
themselves and, later, laws that were used to govern the fledgling race of
wingless creatures known as humans, who had developed an intelligence which,
while not approaching that of the dragons, made them a species worthy of some
notice.
    The
Parliament elected one of themselves to serve as Prime Minister. The dragon
elected held the office for life. Anora was the current Prime Minister. An
elder dragon, she was matriarch of a powerful family—Draconas’s family, she
being his great-aunt. Anora had been Minister for many centuries. She was old
by the