\n It wasn't Asara but his guards who finally released him the next morning, though by the time Juneas was set free he barely had the strength to move.  He just groaned and shifted to a more comfortable position as soon as he could, throat widening to yawn even if the bridle wouldn't let him part his jaws, only dimly aware of the humans around him as he waited for his breakfast to be brought...  His head ached horribly after having to crane his neck back for so long, his shoulders were stiff and sore from being rotated almost out of their sockets, his hind paws felt strange--though he was still able to move them, at least--and his back felt as if it was lying in a bed of coals from putting so much of his strength into trying to find a way to get the pain of his predicament to go away.

\n He realized dimly after a little while that his guards wanted to put on his usual chains, but didn't offer his paws to them, shaking his head back and forth at them and growling for a moment.  Hopefully they wouldn't interpret the growl as a sign of defiance, he thought as he struggled to stand...  He wasn't refusing the chains, he just had to stretch first.  Arching his back catlike, he extended his forepaws as far as he could and kneaded at the stone with his claws, groaning as the tight muscles finally loosened up, then pulled himself forward and extended his hind paws behind him, shaking them a little and lashing his tail about.  His wings twitched against their bindings and his jaws pressed out against the straps of the bridle, but he couldn't properly stretch either in his current condition, so he sighed and offered his paws to the guards holding his shackles.

\n "There you go," the guard in charge said once he was bound again.  "Time for your breakfast now, come on..."  The man held up the reins, but didn't have to tug on them; Juneas walked eagerly, though a little stiffly, over to the two cooks who'd brought his morning meal, then put his head down so the bridle could be taken off.

\n He yawned wide and tossed his head back and forth before digging in, working his way swiftly through the carcasses, then finished and started to wash himself.  "Where is Asara?" he asked, glancing around before returning his attention to his paw.

\n "Hunting, I believe...  Or she flew off this morning, anyway, and didn't tell us she'd be gone as long as she was these past few months."  He paused, then continued, "what happened last night?  What did you say that made her so angry?"

\n "Ask her about it," he growled.  "I can still feel the effects of what happened the first time I said it, and I'm not eager to suffer them again."

\n "I did ask her; she refused to tell me."

\n He snorted.  "Then I must follow my captor's wish not to speak of it."  And really, he added to himself, if she didn't want to tell anyone, then he couldn't either, whether he wanted to or not.  She'd been angry enough to hear him admit how he felt about her in private; if she heard others talking about it, it would only enrage her more.

\n "Very well," he signaled forward the guards with his bridle.  "Asara wanted to put you right back to work, but the position she had us put you in last night seemed stressful enough that we decided to give you the morning off.  You can rest until noon, and we'll come back to lead you to today's tasks when it's time."

\n He tilted his head, then let them strap his bridle back on and watched them leave his cell; he was exhausted after last night, really, and could really use the time off...  Moaning softly, he stretched again, only to realize that they'd left him in his walking chains instead of the shorter ones he usually slept in.  Not that it meant he could--or would--try to escape; he was just glad to be able to sprawl out on his side and let his legs and back loosen up properly, so relieved to be out of such a painful position that he couldn't help but let out a satisfied purr.  After taking a moment to stretch his legs one more time--as much as the chains would let him, anyway--he put his head down to rest.

\n While Asara did return later that day, Juneas only saw her from afar, while he was busy with the day's work.  She only looked in his direction long enough to glare and bare her teeth at him before storming away, tail lashing behind her, and he whined softly to himself, head and tail drooping, before returning to his work.  It seemed she wouldn't be letting him forget how upset she was with him anytime soon.

\n That evening he again only saw her for a few moments, but at least she let him sleep in the more comfortable curled-up position he was used to being chained into at night.  Much of the next week passed in the same way: she was rarely there for him to see, and when he did see her she would glare and get away from him as quickly as she could.  On the rare occasion she had to spend time with him she refused to ever take off his bridle, or to speak to him unless absolutely necessary, no matter how much he whined and growled and tried to encourage her to say something, anything, or to explain why she hated what he'd said so much to choose to treat him this way...  But she would either ignore him or strike him with her tail, and eventually he gave up.

\n But more than to hear what she had to say, he wished for a chance to be able to speak to her.  Even though she seemed to hate the idea, even though she'd punished him for it, he wanted to be able to tell her why he'd said it, and more importantly why he felt that way about her in the first place.  They'd already spent so much time together, there were so many qualities of hers to admire, and he cared enough about her that it wasn't just about having a chance to sire eggs, or to mate; it was about making her happy again.

\n He just wanted her to be happy.

\n Asara's anger and reluctance to see him gradually softened, though, and while she still refused to take off his shackles or bridle she began to spend time with him again.  She remained gloomy and did not speak to him much, but at least she was there, and by nosing at the chains pinioning his wings he eventually managed to coax her into flying with him.

\n She didn't take off all his restraints as she usually did, but flying was flying, and even if the chains hanging from his limbs slowed him down, even if he was gagged and couldn't talk with her, even if she forced him to follow her closely with sharp tugs at his reins...  Being allowed to stretch out his wings was more than worth the discomfort.  She led Juneas in a lazy circle around the castle walls, then set out over the forest west of the city, his reins clenched in her tail to make sure he followed her path.  He watched the forest as they flew, scanning and sniffing for prey even if he couldn't hunt...  Oh, how he missed being able to hunt for himself.  The tense, careful tracking, then the thrill of the chase, the excitement of making the final killing strike towards his prey, and finally the ultimate satisfaction of filling his belly with the prey he'd caught...  There was nothing else like it.

\n "Help!"

\n Asara slowed and began to circle, yanking his thoughts back to the present as the change of direction caught him unawares and pulled the bit hard against his gums until he noticed and changed course to fall in behind her again, moaning softly at the pain.

\n "Can anyone hear me?" the voice, a human female's voice, called again.  "Help!"

\n She sniffed the air, head cocked to one side, then turned to the south.  "It's coming from this direction.  Come on, let's see what the problem is, and if we can help.  There aren't many humans out here who might hear her."

\n The voice rang out again as they flew towards its source, and after a little while a large clearing came into view in the forest ahead of them.  There were two humans there, with horses, but both humans had dismounted, one lying back against a stump while the other dabbed at a large patch of red on the leg of its pants.  The uninjured one stood and turned as the dragons' shadows fell over the clearing, and the horses snorted and stepped nervously back and forth but did not try to bolt from the tree their reins had been tied to.

\n "My husband is hurt," the human said as Juneas and Asara set down before her.  "His horse threw him, and he was knocked out.  I think his leg is broken, there's a lot of blood..."  She knelt next to the man again and examined his leg, then shook her head and began to cry.

\n "It's all right," Asara said softly.  "Relax...  We can help.  I don't know much about healing, especially your kind, but if you wish, Juneas can carry the two of you back to your home so you can find a healer.  I'm not sure what to do about the horses, though..."

\n The woman looked a little nervously towards Juneas--even wearing the manacles and bridle, a dragon looked intimidating, and clearly she was hesitant about riding on his back.  At a gesture from Asara he laid down on his belly put his head on the ground, hoping it would help him look less threatening, but as he did he sniffed the air: he smelled horse and human, as expected, but...  He could smell many more humans than the two in the clearing, and the scents were too fresh to be from much earlier in the day.  Growling softly, he picked his head up again to scan the tree line; he saw nothing, but the smells were so strong, there had to be more humans nearby, he was sure...  And hiding humans were dangerous humans.  Asara had to be warned.

\n He growled again, more loudly, and tugged against his reins to get Asara's attention--if only he wasn't bridled, then he could just tell her!  She snarled and glared at him, pulling back hard on his reins, and he lowered his head briefly before pointing his snout towards the tree line, taking a sharp breath through his nostrils and hoping she would understand what he meant.  "Hmmnnnss," he managed, and she cocked her head to one side, confused--

\n The first arrow struck her in the shoulder.

\n Asara bellowed, more from shock than pain, and finally looked towards the tree line, but it was too late: that arrow was followed by a full volley, then another, and though she crouched and turned her head aside to protect it and many of them bounced off her scales, far too many of them pierced her around the base of her neck.  The woman and the previously unconscious man had already begun to flee--towards the arrows!--and Juneas mantled his wings to shelter himself, but none of the unseen archers aimed in his direction.  Asara roared and began to step towards the trees, only for her forelegs to crumple beneath her, and she bellowed again before slowly, weakly turning her head towards him.

\n "Arrows drugged..." she mumbled, and with the last of her strength managed to get his reins off her tail.  "Fly back... Get help..."

\n Juneas growled and took a step back--he couldn't leave her!  Who could tell what these humans wanted, the kind of danger she might be in...  He had to stay, had to protect her, even if his restraints would make it hard to fight.

\n "Fly!" she hissed, glaring, "that's an order!"  Then she collapsed and went still, eyes still scanning slowly but the rest of her body motionless.  Humans poured out of the trees, and Juneas hesitated a moment longer, wings half-opening, before he bared his teeth behind the straps of the bridle and moved to put himself between them and her.  Whatever these humans wanted with her, he wasn't going to let them do it.

\n All of the attackers wore unfamiliar uniforms, and one with a green sash moved at their front, stopping before him and holding up both hands.  "Relax, dragon.  We mean you no harm."

\n But you just attacked her! he protested in his head, growling, not moving as the rest of the party began to form a circle around the two dragons, some of them retrieving nets and spears from their hiding place in the forest.

\n "I said, calm down," the man said, more firmly.  "We aren't going to hurt you...  In fact, we intend to free you."

\n He cocked his head to one side.  Free him?  But he didn't want--well, didn't deserve--to be freed, not for another twenty years.  Why had they come for him?  He hadn't asked for help...

\n "Whatever injustice has allowed this kingdom to imprison you, we wish to correct.  'King' William has done many things that he should not have done, and now we have come to set things right.  Our first step is to free you... and to get this dragoness out of the way so she cannot interfere.  Take off his bridle and put it on her; the drugs should have weakened her enough by now for you to be in no danger."

\n Juneas growled, tail lashing; the human could have meant any number of things by 'get her out of the way,' and he wasn't going to stand by and let them do whatever they intended to do to her, no matter what it was.  But at the same time...  If they took off his bridle, it would make it much easier for him to keep them away from her.  He lowered his head as a few of the soldiers stepped forward.

\n The human who seemed to be in charge smiled.  "That's right...  I'm afraid we won't be able to get you out of those chains here, but if you follow us, our smith should be able to remove them.  And I'm sure you have a lot of anger towards this kingdom because of how they enslaved you; we could use your help, if you want to fight back against William and his army.  I fear taking his prized dragoness hostage may not be very much help against a man as evil as him."

\n The men removed his bridle and began to walk towards Asara, but he snarled at them, backing up to stand protectively over her.  "You will not touch her."

\n The soldiers still holding bows raised them, but at a signal from their leader pointed them at the ground--for now.  "What's the matter?  Surely you want revenge after what she has done to you...  Why protect her?"

\n He glanced briefly at her: she was awake, but only just enough to be aware of what was happening--not enough to fight.  "I will not let you hurt her," he growled.

\n "Oh my poor dragon...  Have you been around your captor for so long that you've fallen for her, despite the way she treats you?  I'm sorry if you may not want this to happen, but we have a dragon of our own already, and he is prepared to do all sorts of unfortunate things to her to see if we can use her to threaten William--and to keep her from helping him fight us.  I'm sorry to say she may be hurt, but if it happens then it will be William who is to blame...  Stand down, and let us secure her."

\n "No!" he roared, digging his claws into the earth, tail lashing behind him.

\n "Dragon, please," he said.  "Don't force us to capture both of you."

\n He just snarled again, even when the soldiers raised their weapons, the archers aiming their bows at him and those with nets and spears slowly closing in.  He knew the poison they'd used to sedate her, as he'd had his own soldiers employ it in their search for a dragoness; it worked very quickly and was strong enough that just a few arrowheads' worth was enough to severely weaken a fully grown dragon, but it wasn't ideal: it was flammable, and if it burned, it was useless.  He could stop them, as long as he was quick.

\n "Then you leave me no choice--"

\n Juneas wasted no time.  He struck with his tail first, swatting away the few humans who'd circled behind them, then unfurled his wings, spreading them out wide and sweeping the humans at his sides towards those in front of him.  They had already raised their bows and were about to loose them, so he set his jaws and breathed a jet of fire into the group, waving his neck back and forth to get as many of them as possible into the flames.  A few of them managed to launch their arrows, but they passed through his screen of fire and could do no more than prick at his chest by the time they made it through.

\n A few humans had managed to escape his attack on the main body, and a couple of the drugged arrows passed through his left wing.  He could feel the limb begin to numb, but it wasn't enough to bring him down and he pounced awkwardly towards them, extending his paws as far as his shackles would let him and having to take one painfully slow step before finally he crushed them beneath his claws, just before they could shoot him again.

\n He snarled and spun around, scanning the clearing for survivors, and while a few of the men he'd flamed were still stirring and those he'd struck with his tail were probably just unconscious, none of them were in any condition to fight back.  He growled and looked around one more time, examining each human to make sure it was no longer a threat, and while the man in the green sash seemed to have disappeared--along with the people who'd originally drawn the two dragons there--the rest definitely wouldn't be fighting again any time soon, and most of them never would again.

\n Once he was certain it was safe, he returned to Asara, who was still awake but didn't seem to have the strength to talk.  "You just try to recover your strength," he said softly, and put a paw on her shoulder for a moment.  "I'll keep watch until you're ready to fly again."

\n She mumbled something unintelligible and glared at him, but he ignored it; even if she didn't want his protection, she definitely needed it, and he wouldn't be going anywhere until she could go with him.  If his knowledge of the drug was accurate, she should be able to stand within ten minutes, and ready to fly after about half an hour, so he set about pulling the arrows out of her neck, chest and back and licking the wounds clean.  He tasted a bit of the drug on his tongue, but most of it was already in her bloodstream and it wasn't enough to weaken him, and as he finished cleaning her wounds and his own she was finally able to raise her head.

\n "I ordered you to fly away and get help," she growled.

\n He lowered his head.  "I couldn't leave you...  Not when I didn't know what they wanted to do to you."

\n "You were lucky.  If they'd decided to shoot you instead of trying to bargain for your help, both of us would now be their prisoners."

\n "I...  I thought it would be better to protect you.  The man said they had a dragon who would torture you, and I couldn't bear the thought of you being tortured, especially if I could have done something to stop it."

\n "You spent twelve years torturing me," she snarled.

\n "I said this before!  I've changed, Asara, I really have, and I...  I care about you.  Why can't you understand that?  I didn't want you to be captured, or hurt, or killed, so I stayed, and did my best to keep you safe."

\n She snorted and got her legs beneath her, struggling to stand, but it was still beyond her and she collapsed against the ground again with a groan.  "It wasn't what you should have done...  But I still thank you for it," she finally said.  "Even if I don't like why you did it."

\n Juneas put one of his forepaws on her own.  "After this long together, how could I not care about you?  I know you better than anyone else in the world, and there is so much I know about you that I like.  I know you may not like it...  But it's true, and punishing me like you have this past week isn't going to make it change."  He paused for a moment, thinking, then continued, "Asara, I--"

\n "I should not have been so mean, I know," she cut him off.  "And it almost cost me dearly.  You were trying to warn me, weren't you, just before they fired on me?  If I hadn't thought I had to punish you for so long because of what you said, you would have been able to just tell me instead of having to struggle to point it out.  And you would have had a much easier time defeating them all without the chains on your legs..."

\n He growled softly.  "You should not have punished me at all for telling you how I feel about you."

\n "That is my decision to make," she drew her head up above his, and after a little effort managed to stand up this time.  "I think I can see now that you weren't just trying to get under my tail when you first said that to me...  But I still do not like it, and you telling me about it any more isn't going to help.  It seems we're about to start fighting a war, and now is not the time to have to deal with it."

\n He whined, but tilted his head after a moment.  "What was the man talking about, anyway?  He went on about King William not being just, but it always seemed to me that justice is what the King cares most about.  What did he mean by that?"

\n "I have no idea," she shuffled her wings, and started to pace after a moment.  "The peasants are always unhappy with the ruling class about something or other, so it could be any number of perceived wrongs that have stirred up whatever rebellion these humans represent.  Taxes, the imprisonment or execution of some criminal they think might have been innocent, the simple fact that they aren't as well off as they'd like to be...  Who knows?  These things happen when you base a society on something that the common man cannot fully control."

\n "But they're too selfish to be able to survive any other way...  Who knows.  Perhaps they are just delusional, but I have to wonder how they got a dragon to help them."

\n Asara snorted.  "They most likely made that up, hoping to convince you not to stop them...  Wait, are any of these humans still alive?  We could use one for questioning: how many fighters they have, where they're from, why they're doing this, whether or not they really have a dragon, and so on.  Help me check them."

\n He tilted his head and went right over to the ones he'd hit with his tail, sniffing at them carefully.  The first was dead...  "But these men are wearing uniforms, and armor," he said.  "That makes them more than just peasants, and their leader seemed confident he could defeat the King and his army if we were out of the way, which means they may have a pretty large force.  I don't recognize the armor's style, but it's quality stuff--  This one is alive."  He growled and pressed down on the man with a paw to make sure it didn't try to crawl away, though it was still unconscious for now.

\n "Good.  One should be enough, I think...  Most of the questions we need to ask are general enough for any common soldier to know the answer."  Asara spread her wings and flapped them a couple of times, but she wasn't ready for flight yet and folded them again after a moment.  "Why didn't this drug of theirs affect you?  They put a few arrows in you, and you didn't even slow down."

\n "I guessed it was a compound I was familiar with, and that compound is flammable.  It seems I was right, because the arrows, which had to pass through my fire to hit me, were mostly harmless by the time they reached me."

\n She growled and dug her claws into the soil.  "And I assume you are familiar with this drug because you wanted your soldiers to use it to help them capture some poor innocent dragoness?"

\n "Yes, I did," he lowered his head.  "I thought it would be safer for my soldiers to capture a dragoness if they were able to knock her out, or at least weaken her, from long range before moving in to bind her."

\n She bared her teeth at him.

\n "Asara, I know the way I treated you was unforgivable, but you have to stop getting angry whenever you have me explain something I did back then, and you have to let go of the thought that I did everything I did because I was 'evil.'  While I ruled over my lands, I did everything in my power to protect the humans who lived with me, keep them happy, keep them fed...  I even grew to be kinder to you, once you stopped fighting me.  I helped my scientists discover that drug--and I even helped them test it--so my soldiers could have a better chance of capturing you without suffering any casualties.  I made sure we couldn't conceive because I knew if we did it would hurt you more than everything else I did to you put together--and that I would have been a horrible father back then.  Could you imagine how you would have felt if the dragon who'd raped you every day for years forced you to bear an egg he'd sired through you?  You never would have been able to recover from it."

\n "I have not been able to recover anyway," she looked away, tail tucking against her rump.  "Having you as my slave these past ten years has helped a little, but it cannot erase the memories of the time I spent in your dungeon.  Far too much happened there for me to be able to forget."

\n Juneas put his head on the ground.  "I cannot be more sorry than I am about how much my actions hurt you.  If there is anything more I can do..."

\n "Stop talking about it.  Please," she said softly.

\n He tilted his head silently, then glanced at the man beneath his paw: still unconscious.

\n Asara tested her wings again and seemed happier with the result this time, reaching to pick up his discarded bridle in a paw--it would take human hands to put it back on him.  "Let's get that human back to King William.  We need some answers."
\n  

\n
\n King William had the unfortunate soldier taken to his dungeons for questioning, where the two dragons could not fit, so he suggested that they rest and get some food while his men questioned him for as much information as they could get, and he'd summon them in the morning to discuss what his men had found.  Asara ate with Juneas in his cell, seeming less reluctant to spend time close to him than she had for the past week--though she had him bridled again once he was done eating so he couldn't speak to her--and even curled up to sleep next to him after he'd been put in his chains for the night.

\n "I know it's probably much too soon for these humans to make another attempt to capture me," she explained, "but I don't want to risk going to sleep in my cave up on the mountainside and being ambushed while I'm alone."

\n He growled softly past the bit in his mouth and reached over to nuzzle the base of her neck, only for her to stiffen and push him away after a moment; he whined and lowered his head, but when he saw her expression he realized what she'd just said and what it must have reminded her of.  Whining again, he put his head on the ground and did his best to look apologetic, and to his relief she was able to calm herself.  She stood back up, walked a small circle and curled up again facing away from him, putting her head down wordlessly to sleep, and he moaned quietly to himself before closing his eyes.

\n It was nice to be able to share his cell with Asara, even if he couldn't snuggle up against her to share their warmth as he so badly wanted to, even if he couldn't nuzzle her, or purr, or curl his tail around hers...  But he knew if he tried any of those things either his chains would stop him or she would, and if he angered her she might decide to sleep somewhere else.  So he settled for sleeping next to her, watching her sides shift as she breathed, taking in her scent, and listening to her slow, even breaths until the pleasant combination was enough to lull him to sleep.

\n King William's summons came early the next morning, just as the two dragons were finishing their morning meal, and Asara would have left immediately if the messenger hadn't specifically asked for them both.  So she waited a moment longer for Juneas to finish washing, then had him bridled again and led him to the main audience chamber.

\n "Good morning to you both," King William said, rising from his throne.  "Hopefully you were able to sleep well despite that ambush yesterday?"

\n Asara tilted her head.  "Yes, I slept well enough.  Were you able to learn anything important from that soldier we captured?"

\n "Yes, I did."  He sat down again and beckoned for the two of them to sit before him, then paused and gestured to one of the royal guards behind his throne.  "Please remove Juneas' bridle, for I would like him to take part in this discussion."

\n She growled, but didn't move to stop the guard.  "Even if it would help him to hear this from you instead of me, he doesn't have anything useful to say...  And doesn't deserve the privilege, either."

\n "He has some military experience, and more of it than you.  Regardless of your station here, Juneas, I do hope you can assist us in our planning once I explain what I have learned."

\n Juneas yawned as soon as his bridle was off, then stretched his neck a little before putting his head on the ground, under Asara's watchful eye.  "I will help however I can," he said quietly.

\n "Good."  King William picked up a scroll from beside his throne and glanced at it briefly before proceeding.  "The group of soldiers who attacked you yesterday were part of a larger force of about one thousand men currently scattered about the lands west of the city, hiding in smaller groups so they don't attract any attention.  They are led by a man named Elric, who intends to displace or kill me and all those most loyal to me, which most likely includes the two of you."

\n "Was Elric among those who attacked us?" asked Asara.

\n "Yes, apparently, but you said you two didn't make sure all of those you attacked were dead.  Do either of you remember a man wearing a green sash?"

\n Juneas tilted his head.  "Yes, he was the one who spoke to me after they shot Asara...  But I didn't see him among the men I'd killed.  It would be best to assume he is still alive."

\n Asara bared her teeth at him before returning her attention to the King.  "What about what he said about a dragon?  Was that true?"

\n "I'm afraid so," he nodded.  "Didn't get a name, but apparently he's a big tough brown-scaled one who only answers to Elric.  The soldier described him vividly enough that I do not doubt his existence."

\n "Do we know anything about this dragon's motives?" Juneas said after a moment.

\n "The soldier was under the impression that Elric raised him from a hatchling, but doesn't know any more than that and apparently the dragon only speaks to Elric.  It may be simple loyalty that compels the dragon to fight for him, but if Elric really did raise him then they might have some shared goal.  Hard to say, really..."

\n He growled softly.  "I'd hoped there might be a way to get the dragon not to fight against us...  I doubt Elric's forces would stand much of a chance without his help."

\n "Maybe, maybe not," the king frowned.  "Both of you were just almost captured without that dragon's help, and if they made demands at the threat of your life," he looked towards Asara, "I would have a very hard time not giving in."

\n She tilted her head.  "Then we will have to be more careful.  We were caught off guard, but now that we know we're being hunted...  We'll be better prepared in the future."

\n "Do we know what they plan to do next?" Juneas said.

\n "Had the two of you been captured or converted to their side, their army would now sneak as close to the city as possible before revealing itself and their dragon, revealing what had happened to you two, and making demands at the threat of either attacking the city, hurting Asara, or both.  But since you got away...  The soldier did not know what Elric planned to do in this case."

\n "They'll most likely try to draw us out, then, I think.  Quick strikes with smaller divisions of their force on the outskirts of your lands, long enough for Asara or me to try to get there but too quickly for your soldiers to catch up, and maybe with more of them lying in wait for an ambush in case we do show up.  They'll keep doing it until the peasants grow afraid and angry and we're too frustrated not to try to stop them."

\n He nodded.  "Guerrilla tactics.  I could try to muster the army and send the legions to different areas to try and protect everyone, but it would make the whole city more vulnerable and even then they would either peck at my troops and disappear or attack somewhere that's not being guarded.  But maybe...  If you two would fight, you could help direct and even transport soldiers wherever they're needed, much more quickly than they'd be able to move on their own.  Would you two be willing to help me fight, or do you have your own concerns?"

\n Juneas lowered his head to the floor again.  "I will do whatever I am ordered to do."

\n "I owe it to you to try to help protect your lands, William, but...  Do you really think it is wise to let him fight?" she glanced at her slave, growling.  "He would have to be set free from his chains in order to fight, eventually something would happen that would keep me from supervising him...  He might flee at the first chance he got."

\n "If I wanted to leave this place, I would have done it long ago," he said quietly.  "I will not leave your service until you release me."

\n Asara growled again and bared her teeth at him.  "You might say that, but..."

\n William added, "If he had wanted to leave he could have easily let Elric free him yesterday.  Not only has he shown his intention to repay his debt to you, but I think we need him.  This city and its outskirts take up a lot of land, and the more help we have covering that land the better."

\n "But I do not think trying just to defend is the best strategy," he said.  "At best we will always be reacting to their movements, always a couple of steps behind, always being hurt more than we're able to hurt them.  If we try to defend against their quick ambushes it will leave us spread thin and exhausted; we should try to attack them, if we can."

\n The man sighed.  "I would like to agree with you, but we don't know where they are, and they could easily slip past our army to attack the city while we march out to find them."

\n "Not their army, their dragon.  There are few places on your lands a dragon can hide, and Asara and I could quickly search them to find him.  He, Asara and myself are the keys to the war Elric is trying to start, and if the two of us can defeat him then Elric will be much less of a threat."

\n "If he stays with his army then you won't be able to get to him.  It's a good idea, but..."

\n "We can at least try.  It will take you at least a few days to prepare your soldiers anyway, and who knows, maybe we'll find him while he's out hunting and he'll be alone.  The benefit is too great not to at least try it."

\n He frowned, then stood.  "I will consider it.  But for now, I need to meet with my generals and start preparing the city for what's to come; you two may leave.  Asara, all of Juneas' work is suspended until this threat has passed, and I must ask that you not keep him bound, either.  Both of you may be called upon at a moment's notice to help defend the city, and if that happens we can't afford to waste time waiting for him to be unchained.  All right?"

\n She growled, but tilted her head after a moment.  "I understand."

\n "Good.  I also hope you'll continue to sleep here, as you did last night; I fear they may try to ambush you again if you return to your cave at night, especially if you're alone."

\n "Of course," she said quickly, tail lashing, though she didn't look towards Juneas.

\n "Thank you.  I will come find you once I know what our plans are."

\n "Very well."  Asara picked up his bridle in a paw, then turned to leave.  "Come with me, Juneas."

\n He followed her automatically, head low.  Hopefully King William's generals would agree with him, he thought; the enemy dragon could be a serious threat to the city if he wasn't hunted down, and if they managed to capture him just as Elric had attempted to do to them, he could be a very valuable prisoner.  They'd just have to be careful not to confront him if he had any human support, and that wouldn't be too hard to avoid...  And surely he and Asara together would be able to defeat him.  They just had to be given a chance to try.