Realms of the Elves/Traitors

"Traitors" is a short story by Richard Lee Byers first published in the 2006 anthology Realms of the Elves.

Summary
This story begins in -25,090 DR, a time when dragons are bringing the entire continent of Faerûn under their rule. The main character is an elf mage named Rhespen Ash, Royal Councilor and Magician, who serves the colossal gold dragon King Orchtrien. The capital of Orchtrien's kingdom is a beautiful city called Dawnfire, the Bright City, and the majority of the king's subjects are humans and elves. The different realms ruled by dragons are often in conflict with one another, and Orchtrien is at war with the neighboring green dragons and has plans for the red dragons.

Three noble elf houses — Vilirith, Starfall, and Duskmere — take part in a rebellion against Orchtrien's rule. As a result, Orchtrien commands hostages from the rebel houses be brought to Dawnfire and treated as guests so as to win their fealty. Lady Winterflower Duskmere, daughter of the Count of Duskmere, is one such hostage sent to the royal city of Dawnfire. Rhespen and Winterflower soon fall in love, but the lady catches the eye of Orchtrien. Unbeknownst to either Rhespen or the king, Winterflower is in fact working as a spy for the rebels. She eventually serves as mistress to Orchtrien.

Winterflower convinces Rhespen to join the rebel cause, so Rhespen magically copies several of Orchtrien's spell books, grimoires, and other books of lore, and Winterflower takes the copies to the rebel stronghold hidden in the forest. When Orchtrien learns of this, he sends his royal army and lays siege to the rebel stronghold. Rhespen and Orchtrien then have an aerial spell battle, and Rhespen is killed by the massive gold wyrm. A month later, the siege still underway, Winterflower discovers that the copied tome in her possession is not a spell book but in fact an abstract metaphysical treatise on the fundamental nature of dragons and their links to the forces of creation, the elements of nature, and the stars.

Eighty-nine years later in the late spring, Orchtrien and his court are gathered outside to watch the spectacle of a red comet on the horizon. The sight of it drives Orchtrien mad, and he ransacks his own palace and has his first taste of human flesh. He is killed after he smashes his way into the fortress where much of his army is quartered. Right before he dies, Orchtrien whispers, “The red star murdered me.” In the days that follow, all the dragons in Faerûn go insane at once, slaughtering those closest to them, and the red comet comes to be called the King-Killer.

Index

 * Characters
 * Prince Bexendral • Rhespen Ash • King Orchtrien • Lady Winterflower


 * Creatures
 * Elves • Ghargatula • Gold dragons • Green dragons • Half-dragons • Horses • Humans • Ravens


 * Red dragons • Trolls
 * Red dragons • Trolls


 * Miscellaneous
 * King-Killer Star