The Darkness of Old; The Ancient Crown; The Winged One

by Hans Bezdek

  "I understand Reimar being hurt," he said. "But what happened to you, Laurinaitis? Fall out of bed and hurt yourself?"

  I snickered as Laurinaitis looked away. When it was clear he wasn't going to defend himself, I gave it a go. "He helped me kill Varinia. Things were a bit trickier than I would've liked, but we got the job done."

  Antonius gave Laurinaitis a stunned look. "You... You fought her?"

  Laurinaitis nodded. "She betrayed The Republic. I couldn't let her get away unpunished."

  "I see." The older dragon patted Laurinaitis on his shoulder. "You did good, Commander."

  Laurinaitis' smiled back at him. "Thanks, Antonius."

  "Reimar!"

  Cassandra and the others ran around one of the wrecked buildings. The elf jumped up and hugged me.

  "Ow!" I said, wincing at the added weight.

  "Sorry!" she said, letting go and looking at my right arm. "Looks like you didn't make it out of this one without a few scrapes and bruises. It's starting to become a theme."

  "Unfortunately," I agreed. "How was the rest of the battle?"

  "T'was a blast!" laughed Braun. The dwarf hopped around as he reenacted all the exciting and possibly foolish things he had done. It sounded like the three of them had really done a number on the exhausted black and reds. "And the goblin's new weapon proved real useful, to boot!"

  "Helga working up to your standards?" I smiled at Dhot.

  "Definitely!" beamed the goblin, waving it around. "I haven't had this much fun since... well, our last fight!"

  Cassandra pushed the barrel of Helga away from our faces. "We couldn't have done all of that in the sky without Beatrix, of course."

  The gnome blushed and smiled up at us. "It's really no problem. I was happy to help out, really."

  "She's a summoner," I explained to Laurinaitis and Antonius. "She made griffins for the others to ride."

  "How interesting!" said Laurinaitis, bending his head lower to get a better look at her. "And you've agreed to fight alongside us?"

  "For money," she replied. She glanced at me. "Speaking of which...?"

  "Since Varinia is dead, I guess you'll have to take that up with Laurinaitis," I said, smiling at the gold dragon.

  "Er, uh... Yes," said the gold dragon, taken aback at the administrative duties suddenly thrust upon him. "It will take some time to sort everything out, of course. Did Varinia agree upon a wage for her?"

  "A thousand quat!" said Dhot quickly.

  "W-What?!" exclaimed Laurinaitis.

  "A day," I added to the lie. It's not like he was ever going to hear from Varinia again, and the summoner had proven herself to be invaluable.

  "T-That's astounding!" gasped the gold dragon. He took a deep breath then nodded. "Very well. I'll talk to the necessary people and get you your money."

  "No rush," smiled Beatrix, happy with the new arrangement.

  I filled the others in on what happened in the fight against Varinia while we waited to get healed. It was a shame we couldn't turn Braun back to his light side for another day, but it sounded as if he contributed more than enough in the fight. After about an hour of waiting, the tired healers did the best they could with me. I was still pretty sore, but they said that'd go away in a few days. I thanked them, turned back into my human form.

  Nicole joined us, along with a few of her men. They all seemed to be in good spirits, their armor and weapons well worn now.

  "I was wondering where the dragons of The Republic were hiding out," smiled Nicole. "I wanted to come thank you all for the sacrifice your people made today. The tale of your generosity will spread all across Truska, I'm sure."

  "It was our privilege to assist," said Laurinaitis as he transformed back into his human form. "Those that fell yesterday and today will be remembered for a long time in Ravendale, and their families will be well taken care of."

  "I'm sorry we weren't able to protect the city," said Antonius. "How were the casualties on your end?"

  "We lost close to half of our fighters," said Nicole, shaking her head sadly. "I've heard The Republic lost about the same."

  "That's what I've heard as well," nodded Antonius. "How long do you think it'll take to rebuild Vorova?"

  "It'll take years to rebuild," sighed Nicole. "At least we have something to rebuild, though."

  "This won't take years," said Beatrix, scratching the side of her head as she turned and looked around the city. "Six months at the maximum, I'd say."

  "You're joking," laughed Nicole. "We only have so many people that are skilled enough to complete the projects we need done. There's also the issue of people needing to sleep."

  "Nonsense," said the gnome. "I can summon a dozen small earth elementals to work on rebuilding. They don't need to sleep, and I can add to their number every day."

  "That... that would be wonderful!" beamed Nicole, clasping her hands together. "The whole city will love you!"

  "But I'm a summoner," said Beatrix, rubbing her arm self-consciously and looking away.

  "A summoner that saved and rebuilt Vorova," corrected the orc. "I guarantee you'll always be welcomed here."

  The gnome's eyes watered a bit and I felt a little uncomfortable. Too many emotions for one day.

  "When do you think you'll begin?" I asked.

  "Not until the war is over," said Nicole, turning back to me. "There's too much of a risk of the Dar'Ka striking at us while we're not prepared."

  "What will you do while you wait?" asked Cassandra.

  "Well... I was thinking my people and I would join up with you in this fight," said Nicole, looking at each of us in turn to see how we took the request.

  "The Collective would be happy to have you and the Blue Boas join us," I smiled.

  "Gray Adders," everyone replied.

  "We're joining you, too," said Laurinaitis, taking a step closer. "It's clear to me that the Dar'Ka won't rest until all of Yaerna is destroyed. It's in The Republic's best interest to work with you all."

  "I think that's a wise decision," agreed Antonius. "Reimar and the others have more than proved themselves."

  We thanked them, and the four of us walked away to get some privacy.

  The destruction of the city was certainly sobering. Many of the people that had been fighting just a couple of hours earlier were now focused on collecting all of the bodies. Those on our side were treated with care, while the Dar'Ka's were thrown together on a cart to later be burned. It was not a job a envied.

  "Another success for the Collective!" said Dhot, shoving Helga mysteriously into his never-ending bag.

  "Another one with many casualties," said Cassandra, watching as several people struggled to lift a dead silver dragon.

  "Aye," nodded Braun. "Ya'd think the blasted Dar'Ka would see how senseless this all is."

  "They don't," I said, shaking my head. "It's quite the opposite. They still think they can win this war, and they're going to do whatever it takes to take over Yaerna."

  "Did Varinia say something about it before she died?" asked Cassandra.

  I nodded. "And our not-so-dead friend told me."

  "You've got to start telling us when he talks to you!" said Dhot.

  "I know, but we didn't have time," I explained. "The Greeners were already at our front door by the time we woke up."

  "What did he tell you?" asked Cassandra.

  "He said that Ulrich has gone back to Ra'Chok," I said.

  "Fer good?" asked Braun.

  "No," I shook my head. "He's going back there to recruit more of the black and reds."

  "I thought he had them all already," said Dhot, tilting his head.

  "Apparently that isn't the case," I said. "He's got some followers simply because he has the crown, but not all of the black and reds are on board with him. Yet, anyway."

  "So our friend said he'll be successful over there?" asked Cassandra.

  I nodded.

  "Guess we're gonna see a lot more fightin, then," shrugged Braun.

  "If U
lrich is able to get all of the red and black dragons with him, we won't stand a chance," I said, shaking my head. "They will end up taking over all of Yaerna."

  "So... we're doomed?" clarified Dhot.

  "Not quite," I said slowly.

  "What do you propose?" asked Cassandra.

  "We’ve fought in two large battles and won both of them," I said. "This isn’t going like the First Dragon War at all, and the black and reds’ confidence in Ulrich must be shaken. We know where Ulrich is and we know we can beat him if we get there before he's too powerful."

  Cassandra's eyes widened. "You're saying you want to go to Ra'Chok?"

  I nodded. "I'm tired of fighting the Dar'Ka on their terms. It's time for us to bring the fight to them."

  The others were quiet for a minute. They shared a few looks, then looked at the ground as they each thought about it. I knew this was a big decision, but hoped they would come to see it the same way.

  "Maha!" laughed Dhot. "Sounds like I built Helga just in time! Let's do it!"

  "Aye," nodded Braun. He held up a finger. "But don't let me light side get any of the fun, ya hear? I want to be the one in control when it comes to bashin dragon skulls in."

  "I think he won't put up a huge fight with you on that one," I nodded.

  "I've never been to Ra'Chok," smiled Cassandra. "I'm looking forward to it."

  I smiled back at them all. This was going to be our most dangerous adventure yet, but it had to be done. I just hoped I wasn't about to lead everyone to their deaths.

  "You've got some calls to make, Dhot," I said. "Talk to everyone that has one of your boxes. The blues, King Julfr, the Queen, everyone. Tell them that the time has come to end the Dar'Ka threat once and for all. We're going to the home of the black and reds. We're going to Ra'Chok."

  The End.

  The Winged One

  Book 9

  Chapter 1

  "I'm gunna be sick!" cried Braun, running over to the left side of the ship as quickly as he could.

  "Again?" asked Dhot. "Maha!"

  "I don't think throwing up suddenly cures you of sea sickness," said Cassandra.

  "Even after seven times?" I asked. The sounds the dwarf made immediately after my question answered it for me.

  Admittedly, our ship was rocking horribly. That was to be expected so close to Ra'Chok, though. The volcanic island seemed to have a constant thunderstorm raging above it, and now that we were just a couple of miles out we were really feeling it. There wasn't any rain yet, but the winds were out of control.

  It had been nearly two weeks since the battle for Vorova. We spent several days making calls to all of our allies across Yaerna and coming up with a plan. Once we were rested up enough, the four of us left The Republic to finish their preparations on their own and went south to Aelric. Even with horses, it took us a few days to make it down there. Part of that was all the extra supplies we loaded up on our mounts. The other was the bizarre and inconvenient path we took down there in order to make sure we weren't spotted. There was no telling where the Dar'Ka had eyes. Especially after what happened with Varinia.

  We met up with the elven military just south of the Swamp of Aiden. Trekking back through that place brought up fond memories of Cassandra getting stuck in there when we first met. Dhot and Braun got a taste of it when Cassandra's horse somehow got stuck three times. The elf didn't enjoy the trip as much as we did.

  The elves had their boats loaded and ready when we arrived, and we sailed for the southern point of Ra'Chok. I was a little worried about crossing the sea in wooden boats considering we were chasing dragons, but we had nearly made it to the island now without being spotted. I was confident that was about to change.

  "How much is this gunna be?" groaned Braun, his head and arms dangling over the side.

  "Shouldn't be much longer now," I shrugged. "We can at least see the place now."

  "It's very... dark," said Cassandra, looking over the island with disappointment.

  I don't know what she had been expecting. There was a reason the black and red dragons were exiled to this island after the First Dragon War. In addition to the aforementioned permanent thunderstorms, there were active volcanoes across Ra'Chok, little to no vegetation, and enough black and gray rocks to bore even the most enthusiastic of geologists.

  "Not the loveliest of places," agreed a voice behind me.

  I let out a sigh and closed my eyes. Of all the boats we could've gone on, it just had to be this one.

  "Have you ever been out here, Emerich?" smiled Cassandra.

  "I've done some scouting before for Queen Dedra," shrugged Emerich. "I've not actually been on the island, however. There's too much of a chance to get into trouble there, and that was something we hoped to avoid."

  "Were you scared?" she asked.

  "Of course not," he chuckled, puffing his chest out slightly.

  "Uh huh," I said, rolling my eyes. "Anyway, how much longer till we reach the island?"

  "Just a few minutes," he replied. "Getting impatient, Reimar?"

  "Is he ever not?" asked Dhot.

  I swatted at the goblin but he jumped out of the way, cackling as he did.

  "The sooner we get to land the sooner we can begin hunting down Ulrich," I said, turning back to Emerich. "We are supposed to be the first of the Collective to make landfall, so it's important we make good time."

  "And we have," nodded Emerich.

  "Are your people ready?" I asked, glancing around at the elves on our boat. Aside from a few that were working on the ship, the elves held their weapons at the ready as they stared at Ra'Chok. They all looked rather serious.

  "Yes," said the elf. "Our archers are well stocked with the Zorikium arrows you brought down with you and have them at the ready. We elves know not to devolve into small talk as we approach a battlefield, which is why it's so quiet right now. Well, aside from the waves and the dwarf's sickness."

  "I guess you didn't get the 'no small talk' training that the others got, then?" I asked him.

  "Maha!"

  Emerich didn't find it as funny. "I came over here to check and see if the four of you needed anything."

  "I think we're good," I said.

  "Do ya got some crackers?" called back Braun.

  "Like I said," I repeated. "We're good."

  “Oi!” barked the dwarf. “Don’t treat me like a pushover just ‘cause I’m ill. Do it again and I’ll bash yer head in!”

  “Sorry,” I called back. I forgot Braun was in his darker form. Apparently his sea sickness didn’t care which one was in control.

  "I'll see what I can find for you, Braun," said Emerich. The elf gave a soft smile to Cassandra, who returned it, and then went to the back of the ship to get downstairs.

  "That's nice of him," said Cassandra, still smiling as the other elf left.

  "Pssh," I scoffed. "Anyone can go down to the kitchen and find crackers. If anything, he's probably just telling someone else to go find them."

  "I wish you two would learn to like one another," sighed Cassandra. "I don't know why you feel everything is an ego test with him."

  "Please, that's not true at all!" I lied. "Besides, if there really was some battle of the egos between us, I can assure you that I'd win without any effort."

  "I don't know," said Dhot skeptically. "Emerich seems like he could probably hold his own against you. I mean, your ego is huge, but he's no slouch in that department."

  "Thanks, Dhot," I smiled. After a beat I realized what he was saying. "Wait a minute..."

  "Why are we heading for a town, by the way?" asked Cassandra. "What makes you so sure Ulrich will be there? Did our special friend give you a message about it?"

  "No, I haven't heard from him since before the Vorova battle," I said, shaking my head. "This town, Khu'Mul, is made up of non-dragons. They're typically opportunists that are trying to make money by selling goods to the Dar'Ka on the island, and most of them aren't actually aligned with them. I've heard rumors of self-mad
e armies going over to Ra'Chok and trying to capture the land in order to impose taxes. The towns would welcome them with open arms, then immediately welcome back the black and reds when they inevitably came and killed off the invaders."

  "People have actually tried to take over parts of Ra'Chok?" asked Cassandra, surprised.

  "Bunch o' morons," said Braun, before losing whatever was left of his breakfast.

  "He's got that right!" laughed Dhot. "Although I don't know what that makes us..."

  "Oh, we're also morons," I nodded. "We're just a little better armed than the others have been. I think even The Guild tried to take over the northern part of the island back in the day. As with most things The Guild tries, it ended very badly for them."

  "Don't ya think we shoulda asked them to come, too?" asked Braun, wiping his beard with the back of his fist as he got back to the rest of us. Cassandra tried to offer him a piece of cloth but the dwarf waved her off.

  "You're joking, right?" I asked.

  "I think that's a reasonable question," shrugged Cassandra.

  "Me too," nodded Dhot.

  "The Guild has been nothing but a pain in our side!" I shouted. How could they have forgotten so quickly everything The Guild put us through? "Cassandra, didn't they almost try to kill us in the Ruins of Le'Mar?"

  "Yes," conceded the elf. "But-"

  "They worked against us in Brumark," I continued, giving Braun a knowing look. "They wanted to further turn King Julfr against the blue dragons, remember?"

  "Aye," nodded the dwarf. "I suppose they did."

  "And we almost got into a fight with them down in Greenville before we entered Aelric!" I finished, turning to Dhot.

  "Oh yeah..." said the goblin. "Nevermind, then. We don't need them causing us any more problems."

  "I still think we could've used them," said Cassandra, somehow still not fully convinced. "They could've worked with The Republic, for example."

  "The Vorovan's are helping them already," I pointed out. "Just because the Green Garden Snakes decided to be helpful doesn't mean The Guild would have."

  "Gray Adders," said Cassandra.

  Suddenly, the elves around us rushed to the front of the boat, pulling out regular arrows as they went. When they reached it, they nocked their arrows and pulled back, aiming up and in the direction of Ra'Chok.