On their way down from the Minoton mountains, warrior Pandor and his Brother-by-Word Amandor stopped on the edge of a small plateau that had first green hints of spring sprouting from the rocky soil.

"In the middle of nowhere," said the human. "It must be at least a week's journey from here to Faltanar's Apiary."

Dragon Amandor rotated his left shoulder carefully, spread his left wing and made a couple of soft flaps. 

"I can try flying you there, but I can't promise I'll make it as far as the Apiary."

"No," the warrior shook his head. "Your stitches are still fresh. The wing needs some time to heal. We're in no hurry anyway."

They stood for a few more minutes looking into the canyon below and then continued their descent down the mountain path.

* * *

"Smells like lamb," said the Dragon. "Live lamb."

"You mean sheep?" grinned Pandor.

"I also smell chickens and geese."

Day gave way slowly to evening. The grassy foothill turned into a rugged plain with gullies and rivers whose banks were generously covered with thick bushes.

"Are you telling me there's a settlement nearby?"

"I don't know. But I do smell cattle."

They went on in silence. After a few hundred steps, the path they followed lead them to an odd  construction. On a glade which was surrounded on all sides by shrubbery stood a wooden platform, supported by four large posts. The platform was twice as high as Pandor and on it were a sheep, half a dozen geese and ten or so chickens, all tied by ropes to metal clamps attached to the scaffold.

"I've never seen such a strange animal shelter," the dragon extended his neck to take a closer look at the animals who were standing in terror on the other end of the platform, confined by the length of their ropes.

Amandor closed his eyes and sucked in the air.

"Now I definitely smell roasted lamb. It's coming from over there!"

The clawed finger was pointing at a barely visible trail in the bushes.

"So, there is a settlement here after all, or at least a camp. Let's pay them a visit," driven by hunger, the warrior quickly disappeared in the bushes. The Dragon shot another sad look at the animals and followed.   

* * *

"Thank you for your hospitality," the warrior pushed aside a large pot, as large as his helmet. "I don't usually give a lot of compliments, but I have to admit this is the best roast I've had in my life."

Pandor looked out the window and saw his Brother-by-Word eating a ram the host barbecued; the dragon's face was shining with delight. The girl who was cleaning dirty dishes off the table – stepdaughter of elder Martan – responded  to Pandor's praise with a shy smile.

"It warms my heart to hear compliments from such an honorable guest, but we're not done yet, my lord" Martan turned to his stepdaughter. "Bring our guest some tea and honey bread."

The girl's face went serious as she nodded silently and left the room.

The dragon's senses didn't fail him. Pandor and Amandor put only so many steps between them and the platform when they discovered a village consisting of squat inconspicuous buildings. The villagers were scared at first, but their elder Martan, a silver-headed yet surprisingly agile man, quickly saw that the strangers had no bad intentions, and invited them to his house.

"Tell me, Martan, what is that strange scaffold we saw on our way here?" asked Pandor, sipping hot tea from his cup.

The elder froze for a moment, then looked at the warrior with suspicion, biting his lips.

"This is our tribute."

"Tribute?" one of Pandor's eyebrows went up. "Tribute to whom?"

"I was still a boy when a beast appeared in the abandoned mines near the lake. Ever since then, we sacrifice animals every week to appease the monster and keep our village safe."

Pandor almost dropped his cup when he heard this confession.

"Why didn't you turn to Protectors?"

"Look around, good sir, we're a long way from civilization. We live on our own. We don't pay taxes and we don't ask for the Empire's help. As for the tribute… It's better to be poor than dead."

"I won't have this, Martan. Come tomorrow, I will rid you of this plight."

"Please don't take this as an insult, my lord, but you're not the first knight who promised that. Many a brave warrior came here before you and all failed. Not a single one of them returned from those mines."

The elder stared at the fireplace.

"They say that that monster is a skinchanger who can turn into anything. There's only one faith that awaits those who dare to face it – death!"

"This makes me want to meet that monster of yours even more!" cried Pandor. "When the sun goes up tomorrow, have one of your villagers escort me to the cave."

The girl who was cleaning the table stood for a moment and looked at the warrior in astonishment. Martan was surprised, too, scrutinizing Pandor with squinted eyes.

"As you wish, my lord," said the host finally. "Aerish will take you to the cave in the morning. But I'm afraid this is bound to be our last meeting."

The warrior smirked and looked into the corner of the room where his big hammer incrusted with a shining crystal was standing.

* * *

"Here," the thin boy wiped his nose with the back of his hand. "No way I'm getting a step closer to that place. Value my life, I do."

"Thank you," the warrior tossed a silver coin into the air which the boy caught nimbly. He then bowed clumsily and paced quickly back to the village, turning around every now and then to look at the mad strangers.

The human and the dragon examined the mine entrance and stepped inside.

"What do you smell?" asked Pandor when they entered the mine.

Amandor's nostrils trembled as he inhaled the stale air.

- Mold, ash, rusted metal.. death.

The mines turned out to be vaster than they'd expected. For three hours, the pair wandered through a dark maze of tunnels, expecting to be attacked any moment. The Elder didn't lie, though: several times, they stumbled upon human bones and rusty armor. Every now and then they would see web-covered swords, maces and axes on the floor. When the endless network of passages finally exhausted them and the two were looking for a place to rest, the tunnel they were walking through abruptly ended, revealing a large cavern. Sun was shining through cracks in the cavern's ceiling. Column fragments and broken bas-reliefs suggested that this place was once inhabited, but the time didn't spare neither its inhabitants nor their creation. The first column fragment they passed concealed a dead body. The corpse looked rather fresh. Clad in good armor, the cadaver had his hands raised as if he were protecting his neck from someone – or something. The dead man's face was a mask of terror.

"I wonder how he died," said Pandor. "I can't see any physical wounds."

Amandor didn't respond. He inhaled the air and sneezed, roaring like thunder. Pandor felt a tingling sensation in his nose, too. He saw specks of dust dancing in one of the sunbeams. Not just dust, but... pollen! But what plants could grow here?

The dragon curved his back and roared again, but this time Pandor couldn't help but notice hints of fear in his brother's roar. The warrior raised his hand, whispering a protective spell, but words stuck in his mouth as he saw movement in the corner of the cavern. A dreadful creature was approaching them from the darkness, a creature unlike anything anyone on Tartu had ever heard or seen.

* * *

"What's that noise?" asked elder Martan angrily. He hated it when someone interrupted his afternoon nap he liked to take in his rocking chair by the fire. "Aerish, go take a look."

The boy didn't need to be asked twice: he threw aside the boot he was polishing and disappeared behind the door. Not a minute later he returned.

"They're coming! They're coming back!"

"Who's coming back?" the elder sounded surprised.

"The heroes. Warrior and his dragon!"

The elder was struck by the news.

"What are you saying, boy? This is impo..."

Martan darted out of his chair, crossed the room in a couple of big leaps, opened the door – and found himself face to face with Pandor.

"A good day to you, honorable Martan!" said the warrior, forcing the elder inside. Martan shook off the surprise and moved away, letting Pandor in.

"But... Is it really you?"

"Why of course it's me, my dear Martan! I promised you that the monster won't trouble your village no more. And it won't! Let's raise our cups to celebrate!" the warrior looked at Aerish commandingly and the boy rushed into the cellar even though Martan gave him no such order.

Pandor threw a bunch of latten amulets on the tablet. He then moved them around like a puzzle and assembled an image of a grinning monster. One piece of the puzzle was missing. Aerish returned with two large glasses of wine. Pandor thanked the boy with a nod, took one of the glasses and handed the other to the elder. Martan's lips were shaking, as if he wanted to ask a question but couldn't muster enough spirit. 

"There is one problem, though," said Pandor when his glass was empty. "The monster's head is still alive."

In a lightning-fast thrust, he tore the clothes on the elder's chest and produced a latten amulet. Pandor threw it on the table next to the others. The missing piece of the puzzle.

* * *

They left the village after the trial, fours hours before sunset. The dragon's belly was full from yesterday's feast and it would be long before he'd need to eat again. Pandor was carrying a bag behind his back with provisions gathered by the villagers. This bag would last him at least a week.

"When you saw the monster, how did you know it wasn't real?" the dragon broke the silence.

"I didn't realize it wasn't real until it was all over," smiled Pandor. "I acted on my instincts. Saw the head, jumped, hit it with my hammer. Only then did I see the monster fall apart into a carnival costume and a bunch of wallowing bandits."

"Why did none of those who came before us succeed?"

"I don't know, Brother, I don't know. Magical dust affects everyone in a different way. It must be that deep in their minds our predecessors created monsters so terrible that they couldn't survive a meeting with them in real life.  In the end, our fears are our worst enemies."

Contemplating this thought, they moved south.