The castle falls part 2

Dear Jason,

By the order of Godric Beautelle, all sorceres, seers, alchemists and necromancers all over the realm, are forced to sign their names in his army list and pledge their allegiance to him by the rise of the next full moon. If you ask me, he is looking for a specific threat to his uprising. I have talked to so many high lords of Sparrownest Island, including Lord Aigle Archer od Odeyan. And we have all concluded that whomever Godric is looking for, must probably live in the vicinity of Greenyard cemetery.

Some confidential news from around the realm has confirmed that the creature Godric is looking for is some sort of a humanoid, reptilian shapeshifter. Most of the stories about the creature confirm that it's humanoid, green-colored and has enormous bat-like wings. This creature won't be easy to find, but the hunt is worth it. Whatever Godric wants from this creature must be of great value.

I do not have the slightest idea about the temperaments of this creature, but it is said to have incredible speed. Find it, if you can and take it to the castle. It maybe our only defence against Godric at this time. I wish for us to communicate with the creature, if at all possible, before Godric can. That is of course, if it knows human tongue.

Sincerely,

Commander in Chief,

Konrad Blacksmith of Selenia.

After a moment of silence, George asked, " Carlos, how long do you think it will take for the Cranewood army to get here? Do you think there's still time to look for the creature?"

Carlos, whose face was now as pale as chalk, firmly answered, " I don't think so. Well, we can't just sit here and do nothing either. Send a few rangers to scout around the eastern borders. If Gerard Miller's intention is a night raid, the path through the Eastern Meadows is his only option. "

He was still pressing on the pasty letter with his fingers, brooding. His silence was beginning to annoy George more than before.

" You know, the thought of leaving the castle unattended bothers me. But my father has been gone for more than a week and there's been no news of his whereabouts so far either. This trip was supposed to be a three-day getaway with Iris to the Golden Valley. But here we are about to be attacked by a vicious, hot-headed, dragon riding warrior king who has probably mastered the battle arts before even learning how to speak. It's a mess. Without the king,this castle is basically, another watchtower for Gerard to conquer. "

George paced the room until his breathing slowed down. Then he added, " We know that my father and Iris we're headed for the Golden Valley. If this horrible weather has caused them both to stay put, they might be easier to track down."

Carlos, now sitting on the edge of George's bed, looked up at him and said, " We can't expect any horse to last a trip in this thunderstorm. We can go looking for them on foot either."

"Unless...we came up with a better solution! We could..."

George's eyes widened with a promise of a new idea. Carlos smirked and said, " I really want to know how you'll be finishing that sentence. An army is about to attack our city and you're figuring out ways to waterproof your horse?"

" No. Not waterproof, but wings would definitely do the trick."

Carlos's eyes strangely sparkled in the dark of the room as he heard that last thought. With a mysterious gaze and hashed tone, he leaned in and said, " Barricade all the entrances of the city and order the civilians to evacuate immediately. I'll see you in exactly one hour in the Kings Garden."

He had obviously come up with a great idea. But he was never a person to elaborate a lot on most of his brilliant ideas. George had learnt to accept that about him over the years, therefore he kept his questions to himself to save time. He called the royal advisors, commanders and high officials of the army and read to them both messages of Commander Blacksmith. Everyone united in a nightly endeavour to evacuate the castle, the city and all its suburbs as fast as possible.

The only entrance to the King's Garden was located in Jason's room: a giant glass door that opened into a lush garden of tall cherry and willow trees. This beautiful piece of land was surrounded by such enormous walls that no creature, unless winged, could cross. Wide, stone-paved streets winded throughout a maze of dense branches and flowers.

The rain was falling harshly On the leaves, separating them from their branches. Every water canal in the garden, was now beginning to overflow. George took refuge below the crowns of cherry trees and ran to the main street of the garden.

Right in the middle of the leafy maze, was the most interesting part of the garden: a small square with a beautiful pool built in the middle, nesting a large and magnificant stone dragon that was crawling out of the water.

George reached, the square took a look back and found no one around except for the strangely life-like stone dragon. Cold and damp was slowly reaching for his bones when he heard the sound of someone's boots , splashing against the stones and puddles of the main street. He noticed a shadow gaining on him from the northern path.

"Who's there?", his voice cracked.

George was almost certain his words were lost in the rush of the storm.

The shadow was getting closer and closer