Astra smiled, but not in an unkind way. Fred managed to get some self-
control,
and they were soon talking animatedly. Looking over his shoulder to check
that they
could not be overheard, Fred asked Astra how she came to be serving the
dragon. She
frowned, clearly deeply unhappy. "The wyrm captured my younger sisters,
Belinda, aged
eighteen, and Carola, aged just fourteen, several months ago. Then he sent
a message to
our palace that unless I would come and lead his army, he would do
terrible things to
them. He didn't specify what those things would be; he didn't have to.
He's a powerful mage, and if he wished
he could turn them into anything that took his fancy. When the king of a
neighbouring
country wouldn't co-operate with him, the wyrm turned his only daughter
into a snake-woman
and then sent her back to him. So here I am. The only assurance I have is
that I
will not be required to lead his forces against my own land. I fear that
the next target
may be the Kingdom, though."
"That's terrible," said Fred. "Can you be sure that your sisters are still alive, though? Have you seen them? Perhaps the dragon is playing a cruel trick on you, and they are already dead?" Astra looked more miserable than ever, as she replied:
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10/3/1999 11:53:55 AM
Extending Enabled
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