Prince Lander & the Dragon War: Tales of Old Natalia 3

*You are right here in your story. Don't skip ahead.*
Massie Burnson, *The Wreck and Rise of Whitson Mariner*, p. 32
**WARNING: SPOILERS FOR *PRINCE LANDER & THE DRAGON WAR* ARE AHEAD; CAUTION IS ADVISED.**

## Attribution information

### Title

Prince Lander & the Dragon War: Tales of Old Natalia 3

## Publication information

### Series

Tales of Old Natalia

***P******rince Lander & the Dragon War: Tales of Old Natalia 3*** is the third installment in the Tales of Old Natalia series. It was written by S. D. Smith and illustrated by Zach Franzen. It was published by Story Warren, LLC, on April 19, 2022.

## Publisher's summary

"*Old Natalia, during the declining years of*

*Whitson Mariner and the rise of tyrannical*

*dragons and their master, Namoz Dragonking.*

Rabbitkind faces extinction, and Prince Lander must follow his aging father to the last desperate edge of hope. A possible future is glimpsed dimly through a veil of darkness and death. This will not be a safe ending.

***Blood calls.***

***Oathbreakers attack.***

***Allies fracture.***

***Legends end.***

“The tenth Green Ember book is fantastic from beginning to end. It has heart, humor, and plenty of heroics. With new breakout characters, dynamic pacing, and a thrilling conclusion, it’s a must-read.” —Brian Jones, Animation Executive"

## Synopsis

Years have passed since the Betrayal of *Vanguard* and the beginning of the Dragon War. Lander Whitson has reached maturity and been joined by two younger brothers, Lemual and Grant. Sadly, his grandfather Grant and another brother, Davis, have been lost in the battles against Lord Grimble and his master, Namoz Dragonking. Worse, King Whitson Mariner has been diagnosed with a degenerative condition that is destroying both his body and his mind.

In what appears to be a foolish act brought on by his declining condition, Whitson agrees to a peace summit with Grimble. He then leads the majority of his lords and officers away from their camp at Lener's Crossroads, all the while asking for a long absent Captain Massie. Prince Grant, opposed to this action, confronts his father and is reproved by both him and Lander. However, Whitson then reveals that this excursion was meant to expose Grimble's spies in their midst.

Lord Arben and Captain Danker are arrested for treason, shortly before a messenger arrives with dire news. The Grimble faction is preparing to renew their alliance with the dragons by sacrificing half of their younglings to the vile monsters. Acting on this intelligence, Lander makes his way onto Grimble Island. He is unexpectedly joined by a band led by twins Nickel and Winnie Drekker, whose initially unwanted presence proves invaluable in reaching the younglings.

Lander is stunned to find Hollie Grimble, Lord Grimble's oldest daughter, among the rabbits meant to be offered up to the dragons. He and the twins convince her to help them lead the younglings to safety. They are pursued by Grimble's forces, but reinforcements from Whitson's army enable them to escape safely. Back at Lener's Crossroads, Lander discusses their dire circumstances with his father and Queen Lillie, including the apparent necessity of bringing Grimble's oathbreakers back to their side.

When Lander proposes making use of Flint Firstkings starsword, Whitson and Lillie reveal that the king has been afflicted with a recurring dream every night since he held the weapon. In the vision, Whitson defeats their enemies, but goes on to destroy everyone and everything he loves. Unable to relinquish the sword or stop using it, he ultimately becomes a dragon himself. Lander then learns that Flint's heirs kept the starsword as a precaution and hoped that they would one day find the means to destroy it. However, much of the lore surrounding the weapon was ignored or forgotten during the peace on Golden Coast.

Some hours after this exchange, Grant arrives with news that several dragons have been spotted west of the camp. Whitson orders several teams to be assembled but leads the majority of them to the east while Grant's force goes west. Lander and Lemual take charge of the camp defenses, and Lander discusses the situation with Captain Brindle Cove. A messenger reports no sign of dragons in the east, but Lander has him arrested after hearing him disparaging Whitson in the company of several other soldiers.

It soon becomes evident that a faction within the camp believes the king to no longer be capable of ruling and seeks to have Lander or one his brothers take the throne. In the midst of this turmoil, several of Grant's bucks return carrying the young prince, badly injured after engaging the dragons. He is soon under the care of Doctor Grimes, but Lander is called away from his worried family to deal with the party calling for Whitson's removal. In an exchange with Filmun Derkson, one of the more moderate voices in this group, Lander is alarmed to learn that the malcontents, many of whom love Grant, are willing to go to war in order to effect the change in leadership that they desire.

When a cry of distress from Queen Lillie seems to herald Grant’s death, battle nearly breaks out between the dissatisfied soldiers and the royal guard. However, this clash is halted by the arrival of King Whitson and a weak but very much alive Grant. Addressing the crowd, Grant reveals that his father acted not on the whim of his deteriorating mental faculties but based on long agreed upon tactical wisdom. He further adds that he defied the very same wisdom by attacking the dragons, resulting in death and injury among his own forces.

Grant slips into a coma after making these pronouncements, and Whitson issues a pardon for the discontented soldiers. Several days pass with Grant barely clinging to life. In desperation, Lander questions whether a powerful memory tonic prescribed by Doctor Grimes for Whitson’s illness might be able to help his brother. However, Grimes informs him that the tonic is highly poisonous, and that Whitson also takes an antidote against its worst effects in order to avoid suffering an agonizing death within a matter of days.

On a walk with Lemual, Lander informs his younger brother that he may soon be called upon to leave the camp. Despite his own objections, Lemual has been appointed as leader of the Third Scouts, a group of young bucks and foes formed as a means of preserving some remnant of rabbitkind in the event that their camp falls. The pair then visit Mother Saramack and discover that she has taken on Hollie Grimble as a student.

After a somewhat awkward encounter with the princes, Hollie leaves on an errand, and the princes counsel with Mother Saramack. Fully aware of the division in the camp, Saramack surprises the pair by suggesting that they attempt to win over the Drekkers. Descendants of rabbits who became separated from the other Trekkers during the journey from Blue Moss Hills to Golden Coast, these uneasy members of Whitson's camp have formed a culture of their own. While past royals have long struggled with their presence, Saramack convinces Lander that gaining their support is critical.

To this end, Lander and Lemual visit the Drekker stronghold, and are brought to meet Chief Heckle during a lull in a sporting event. Lander and Heckle speak in private regarding their current difficulties and the long, troubled history between their forebears. Heckle refuses to commit to supporting Whitson, but the two are interrupted by a commotion. They soon learn that Lemual has accepted a challenge to a game of fling-a-ding from a powerful competitor named Haldorn the Hulk, after the larger rabbit insulted King Whitson.

Lander attempts to break up the confrontation but learns from Nickel and Winnie that leaving will disgrace them in the eyes of the Drekkers and end their hopes of winning the curious band over. Fortunately, Lemual is able to exploit a loophole in the rules of the somewhat hazardous sport to achieve victory. This impresses the Drekkers as a whole and Chief Heckle in particular, prompting him to assure Lander of the Drekkers' continued allegiance.

Returning home, Lander and Lemual learn that Lord Grimble has called for another peace summit. He wishes to meet on the isolated Barren Point and insists that Whitson bring one of his sons with him. Suspecting further treachery, Lander decides to try and beat Grimble at his own game. He thus invites Chief Heckle and Nickel Drekker to the king’s council the following morning.

During the somewhat tense meeting, in which old prejudices against the Drekkers continue to cause issues, Nickel offers his advice as a strategist. He guesses-and is soon proven correct-that Grimble will try to pressure Whitson into attending the summit by attacking the camp. Lander is sent to the front lines, while Lemual is ordered to depart with the Third Scouts. On the way to the battle, Lander collects a band of young soldiers whom-with the addition of a late-arriving Nickel-he dubs "the Tricky Reds."

Lander and his bucks join the battle against a force of fighters led by Captain Forne. Unfortunately, the enemy numbers prove temporarily superior, and Lander is limited by a leg injury sustained previously. Left swordless and unable to escape, he is confronted by the murderous enemy captain. However, King Whitson arrives with reinforcements, saving his son’s life and carrying the battle.

After attending to post-battle work, Lander returns to camp to find that the Third Scouts have departed, and that Hollie is missing. King Whitson is also absent, but Queen Lillie helps Lander realize where he’s gone. Traveling alone, Lander makes his way to a hidden clearing where his father kneels at the site of the starsword's burial. Though desperate for the victory the starsword might bring, Whitson feels that the time is not right for either Lander or himself to take it up.

Returning to camp, father and son find the council back in session and arguing once again. Nickel then proposes that Whitson attend the summit, but with an ally hidden away in a secret compartment built into Whitson's boat by his sister Winnie. Lander convinces his father to bring him along, and the two travel to Barren Point. They discover that Grimble has brought along Hollie, having arranged for her capture during the attack on Lener’s Crossroads.

Following a tense exchange between the two rabbit leaders, Namoz Dragonking emerges from the nearby River Fay in company with a dragon sorcerer and priestess. The dragons perform a ritual in which they add Hollie's blood to a mixture of mossdraft and a tincture prepared by the sorcerer, which they believe will grant eternal life. Lander, having been detected by the dragon king, emerges from hiding and looks on as Grimble is seemingly killed by the mixture. However, he looks on in horror as Grimble is reborn as a monstrous fusion of rabbit and dragon.

Seeking to complete Grimble's transformation, Namoz orders Hollie's death, and more dragons emerge from the river to attack. Receiving a crossbow from one, the newly renamed Grimble Halfdragon fires a bolt at Hollie. Whitson intercepts the bolt and is mortally wounded. The rabbits escape by means of a pulley system rigged up to the boat by Winnie, and Whitson passes the Ruling Stone to Lander before dying.

Arriving on their side of the river, Lander's party is joined by a group of soldiers. Lander takes command as Whitson's body is carried to safety, and his band is assailed by a wave of dragons. Lander manages to kill one in a preemptive strike and another with help, but the dragons easily outmatch his small force. Worse, just before quitting the field in apparent victory with Grimble, Namoz sends the oathbreaker army in to help finish the job.

Miraculously, the enemy boats are hit by blastpowder explosions, and *Steadfast* appears on the river after years of being moored in a secret cove. Aboard the ship are Prince Lemual, the returning Captain Massie, and the one Massie had been sent to find: Lord Fleck Blackstar. Soldiers of the Blackstar Company surge from the ship, saving Lander’s force from slaughter and driving the enemy forces back. Lander enjoys a happy reunion with his brother and friends but must also break the news of King Whitson’s death.

Lander soon convenes his war council at Lener's Crossroads and calls for the input of his lords and officers. Another argument breaks out, but Mother Saramack silences it. She then urges Lander to trust in his knowledge of their forces and in his warrior instincts, bringing to mind his bold first strike in the recent battle. Realizing what he must now do, Lander dispatches his officers to recall the army, which is in the midst of abandoning the camp.

After a brief exchange with Hollie, whom he urges to honor Whitson’s sacrifice in spite of not feeling worthy of it, Lander addresses the camp. He releases every soldier from service before inviting them to join a "new" army, one that will only accept volunteers. To their astonishment, he declares his intent to attack the dragons, rather than waiting for them to attack Lener's Crossroads. The rabbits, including the Drekkers and the newly arrived Blackstar Company, eagerly proclaim their support.

Joined by Lemual, Lord Blackstar, and Captains Massie and Gavin, Lander goes to the clearing where the starsword is hidden. After laying Whitson's body to rest there and seeing off Queen Mother Lillie and the officers who accompany her, the five of them dig up the starsword as Lander explains its history. After Lemual and the others vow not to give him a bottle that he has entrusted to them unless he willingly buried the starsword again, Lander drinks another given to him by Doctor Grimes. He explains that he has taken Whitson's memory tonic, and that Lemual is in possession of the antidote.

Having determined to wield the starsword in the desperate attack on Dragon Mountain, Lander has orchestrated this plan to ensure that he will not become the monster his own father feared becoming. If Lander cannot give up the sword, he will die. Fleck suggests hiding the bottle to prevent him from taking it back from Lemual and accompanies Lander back to camp while the others see to it. Having been tempted to follow them and dig the bottle up, Lander confesses as much to Fleck.

Lander assembles his army, and they form a plan for their assault. After proclaiming Lemual as his heir until or unless he should have a son worthy of the role, Lander leads his force to Dragon Mountain. Having learned from their scouts that the dragons are preparing to march upon the following nightfall, Lander decides to attack at dawn. His elite unit, known as the scalebreakers, charges the mountain in an attack likely to see all of its soldiers killed by their enemies.

The starsword makes Lander virtually unstoppable in battle, but his vanguard is soon badly reduced. Fortunately, the rest of the army arrived from the left and right flanks to join the fight. Working together, the three forces manage to get above the dragons and push them towards the confluence of the River Fay and the River Flint. *Steadfast* arrives to join the battle, as does a hoped for but unexpected force of rabbits led by Galt.

Lander's army is able to annihilate the dragon army, but their own losses are grievous. *Steadfast* is destroyed by a blastpowder explosion, apparently taking Lord Blackstar with it. Worse, a doorway in Dragon Mountain opens to disgorge an elite army of fighters led by King Namoz and Grimble Halfdragon. Badly injured and with no real hope of victory, Lander limps out to face Namoz.

After a brief exchange, the two kings clash, with Lander surprising Namoz by attacking. The starsword cleaves through the Destroyer's blades before taking off his head. His dismayed army is soon cut down by Lander’s jubilant one. However, Lander is aggrieved to see that, despite Namoz's fall, the starsword remains unbroken.

Massie awakens Lander from a bout of unconsciousness and informs him that Grimble has escaped. Lander briefly worries that the traitor has stolen the starsword, but finds it safely sheathed at his side. Resolving to bury it, Lander has his wounds seem to before entering Dragon Mountain. Hearing his council debate what to do about the dragon seeds within, he leaves and is followed by Massie to the top of the peak.

Seeing beyond what his friend and mentor can see, Lander envisions a future in which his rabbits thrive in the midst of the Great Wood surrounding the dragon mountains. Though many call for the destruction of the dragon eggs, enough to replenish the destroyed army a thousand times over, Lander decides upon another course. He calls for the building of a dam at the confluence, which will create a lake that will turn the mountains into islands. The starsword will also be contained in this newly made tomb, to be safely hidden until such a time as an heir of Lander's should step forward to wield it in the most desperate need.

In gratitude for Massie's long service, and in anticipation of future labors, Lander appoints him as the first Lord Captain. He is informed that was aboard Steadfast before it exploded, fighting alongside his old friend Fleck before seemingly dying with him. In spite of these and other losses, Lander resolves that his rabbits will build a new home and a new way of life together. The army then pledges themselves anew to their visionary young king with Blackstar's oath. Unbeknownst to them, they are joined in this rite by Fleck and Galt, who escaped the destruction of Steadfast.

## Appearances

Characters

* Arben
* Biggting Pusher
* Brindle Cove
* Dane Blackstar
* Danker
* Dawson
* Derk
* Filmun Derkson
* Fleck Blackstar
* Forne
* Galt
* Galvet
* Gavin
* Grant Whitson
* Grimble Halfdragon
* Grimes
* Haldorn
* Heckle
* Hollie Grimble
* Jon Blackstar II
* Lander Whitson
* Lemual Whitson
* Lillie
* Massie Burnson
* Namoz Dragonking
* Nickel Drekker
* Riley Nocks
* Rin
* Saramack
* Walters
* Whitson Mariner
* Winnie Drekker

Mentioned characters

* Davis Whitson
* Fay
* Firstfoe
* Flint Firstking
* Forsythe
* Gerrard
* Grant
* Grimble
* Lener Spry
* Puck
* Salno
* Smalden Joveson (not named)
* Tommie Dunn
* Whit

Locations

* Blue Moss Hills
* Golden Coast (mentioned)
* Immovable Mountain (mentioned)
* Mistenlands (mentioned)
* Natalia
	+ Barren Point
	+ Great Wood
		- Dragon Mountain
		- Grimble Island
		- First Warren (referenced)
	+ Kingston (mentioned)
	+ Lener's Crossroads
	+ Terralain (not named)

Objects

* Green Ember
* *Lillie* (mentioned)
* *Steadfast*
* Stone Book of Fay (mentioned)
* Stone Sword of Flint
* *Vanguard* (mentioned)
* Whitson Stone

Organizations and titles

* Black Star Company
* Blackstar family
* Captain
* Chelms (mentioned)
* Drekkers
* Frustrated Band of Hot Youngbloods
* Goldites (mentioned)
* Gates Hale Raiders
* Grimble faction
* Grimble family
* Halvers (mentioned)
* Helmer
* Leapers (mentioned)
* Lieutenant
* Lord Captain
* Royal family of the Thirty Warrens
* Scalebreakers
* Tane-side Chippers
* Terralain army
* Third Scouts
* Trekkers
	+ Natalia royal guard
* Tricky Reds

Species

* Bees
* Birds of prey (mentioned)
* Dragons
* Rabbits

Events

* Battle of Ayman Lake (mentioned)
* Battle of Barren Point
* Battle of Dragon Mountain
* Battle of Steadfast (mentioned)
* Betrayal of Vanguard (mentioned)
* The Crossing
* Division of Lener's Crossroads
* Dragon War
* Hesterfest
* Invasion of Golden Coast (mentioned)
* The Leaping
* The Mending (mentioned)
* The Trek

Culture

* Blastpowder
* Deathbrew
* Fling-a-ding
* Memory tonic
* Mossdraft
* Prester
* Priestess
* Sorcerer
* Votary

## Trivia

* The book is dedicated to S.D. Smith's father, H. Don Smith, and to his sons, Josiah and Micah. Unlike in previous books, there is no dedication verse written in Latin. Instead, there are two poems written in English: "For Dad" and "For My Sons."

## Media

How to Prepare for The Green Ember Book TEN in 5 Easy StepsA promotional video for *Prince Lander & the Dragon War*.The TENTH Green Ember Book is Here! Order Yours Today!A promotional video for *Prince Lander & the Dragon War*.Prince Lander Lands - From Our Hands to YoursA promotional video for *Prince Lander & the Dragon War*.
## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 [1]

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