Carefully she placed the amulet in one of her shirt pockets. She would have it if needed. Turning, she walked to the stairs and vanished from sight as she rapidly ascended the steps.
“Be careful, Lynol,” Kalvin called after her, feeling worried with a deep feeling of loss.
“She has been like a daughter to me,” Malcon spoke softly as Lynol’s footsteps faded away. “She will come back, Kalvin. She is the most powerful sorceress since the Golden Age. I don’t think even she realizes just how powerful she actually is.”
“I hope you’re right,” Kalvin said as he sat back down. He knew he was in for a long and worrisome wait.
Above ground, Lynol Mounted WhiteStorm. Nudging the horse forward, they galloped down the road toward Galvin in the late afternoon sunlight. Twilight would soon be upon them, and Lynol would make her entrance into the village under the protection of darkness. The moon wasn’t due to rise until well into the night.
The last Sylvar sorceress astride WhiteStorm rode with a vengeance toward a confrontation, which had long since been foretold in ancient prophecy. Ahead of her the temple guards, Jalene, and Gilmreth awaited, and perhaps a power from the Golden age itself; Adam Grayson!
Chapter Seventeen
Damon and Aldin were being held in the dimly lit village tavern with their hands tied snugly behind their backs. They were sitting at a small table near the front, next to the wooden bar that extended the entire length of one wall. Damon looked grimly around the packed room, which was filled to capacity with many of the villagers who had been brought in by brute force. Some of the men had vicious looking bruises and scrapes from fracases with the temple guards.
Several women sat next to their husbands in tears, some in shock from either being brutally raped or having their daughters dragged off. Many didn’t know the fate of their younger children. Damon wondered just how many villagers or local farmers had been killed in the last few hours. The sheer brutality of these men deeply troubled him. It made him fear for Dresdia’s safety.
“These men are despicable,” Aldin muttered under his breath, careful not to draw the guards’ attention to them. “If these are the type of people in power in Draydon, I shudder to think at the atrocities the people in the town must be enduring.”
“These are the type of men that are easily controlled,” Damon replied quietly, keeping his eyes warily on the leader who was still at the bar drinking.
He just hoped that Kalvin had made it to Lynol. If so, then these men were in for a rude awakening. Should something terrible happen to Dresdia, Damon shuddered to think what Lynol’s anger would be like.
“I wonder what these bastards have done with Dresdia?” Aldin said, his eyes wide with worry and concern as he glanced around the room. He was very worried about his daughter and what might be happening to her.
“I don’t think they’ll harm her,” replied Damon, glancing at Aldin. “Not as long as they think she’s Lynol. For some reason, they want Lynol kept safe.”
“You think they want to take her back to Draydon?” Aldin asked as he saw several other villagers being brought in through the tavern’s large front door and shoved brutally into a couple of empty chairs. The man and woman both looked to be in shock. The man had a severe cut above his lip and a dark bruise over his right eye and the woman was crying.
“That’s what the guards have been saying,” Damon answered. He’d been trying to listen to the guards’ conversations whenever possible. “Evidently some of the other captives are to be taken back to Draydon.”
“Back to the sorceress,” Aldin responded with worry. “Probably to be sacrificed to Gilmreth! Damn; this just gets worse every moment. What’s next?”
“It will never come to that, Aldin,” promised Damon, knowing his friend was very worried about Dresdia.
“I hope you’re right,” spoke Aldin, looking around the room at the shattered expressions on the villager’s faces. Everywhere there were looks of despair and fear.
“I hope Lynol makes it soon,” spoke Damon, looking back at the bar.
-
Anton Par stood at the bar, a satisfied look upon his face and a warm glow from several bottles of liquor filling his belly. The day had gone quite well. The village had turned out to have enough nubile young women to satisfy his men, and while the looting had been poorer than expected, it was still enough to add to the temple booty. Several heavily laden freight wagons would be sent back to the Lady Jalene.
The sorceress would be very satisfied with their accomplishments, especially finding the Sylvar woman. That alone ensured the success of this raid. Jalene would be quite pleased, perhaps pleased enough to advance him even higher in the hierarchy. Yes, Par thought, things were certainly looking up. He swirled his glass slowly, watching the captivating amber liquid. The benefits of being Daes’ right hand man were definitely paying off handsomely.
Besides the Sylvar woman, four young women had been found to be virgins and prime sacrificial candidates. He had already dispatched Dalden Sikes and several dependable men back to Draydon with the captives. Tomorrow, he would complete the subjugation of the outlying areas around Galvin, begin setting up a small garrison force to maintain control, and settle in the temple priest who had made the trip.
Eventually, the priest would return to Draydon to report on the progress of the village’s indoctrination. Due to the high productivity of the farmland around the village, Par felt sure that Galvin would continue to function as an agricultural community, shipping all of its farm products back across the mountains. It would serve Lady Jalene and the dragon by feeding the myriads of people in Draydon.
Taking another long drink from the half-full glass, Par thought enthusiastically about the two young women he’d held back for his own use later. They weren’t virgins and as such weren’t banned from his personal use. They were waiting in his room at the small village inn. Yes, this job certainly had its fringe benefits. Turning, he placed his back against the bar, looking over the room, holding his glass in his right hand.
Temple guards stood alertly around the inside of the tavern keeping a sharp eye on the disgruntled village people. More were still being rounded up so the priest could begin their indoctrination. Once their initial instructions were complete, Par would explain the rules very plainly; obey or die! Once he was satisfied that everyone understood, the villagers would be allowed to return to their homes. All except for the few that Par felt might be troublemakers. Those would be kept under guard until he decided just how big a problem they might be. Several would probably end up being taken back to Draydon to be sacrificed to the dragon.
Par knew Jalene wanted new inductees to her rule to begin hearing the priests immediately. The helpless villagers would soon learn what it meant to serve the Temple of the Dragon and the Lady that controlled that deadly, monstrous creature. Jalene’s rule would soon extend to all of the villages on this side of the towering mountains. Galvin was just the first!
Par had noticed when riding into Galvin that the land around the small village seemed unusually lush. The fields were clean with no deformed plants or trees dotting the landscape like those closer to the mountains. The pastures had been a pleasant, healthy green dotted with numerous grazing animals. Everything seemed so peaceful. Yes, this might not be too bad a place to settle down.
He wouldn’t mind finagling the job as commandant of the garrison that would be stationed here permanently. Since he’d found the Sylvar girl, there was no doubt in his mind that such a request would be granted. With the two women he’d chosen, he could live quite comfortably, and being this far away from the temple and the dragon could have its own benefits.
Par sensed there was a power struggle growing between Storn Daes and the Lady Jalene. He would prefer to be a considerable distance from Draydon when that conflict eventually exploded out into the open. He was sure that Daes would see the wisdom of keeping Par in Galvin. Since he was totally obedient to Daes surely the High Priest would see the benefit of havin
g his own man in control of things on this side of the mountains.
The front door of the tavern suddenly swung open, interrupting Par from his thoughts. A stunning young woman dressed in a white blouse trimmed in blue with a flowing blue cape on her shoulders walked unhesitantly into the tavern, immediately commanding attention. Her blue eyes seemed to glow with a barely contained anger.
Par stood up straighter, wondering where this beauty had come from. How had his men missed her? She easily put all the rest of the girls in the village to shame. She exuded power and confidence in her manner as her gaze swept over the captives in the tavern. An eerie surprised silence held the room as all eyes became focused on her. It was as if royalty had suddenly appeared in the midst of commoners. This girl’s father must be a captive here in the tavern, Par thought. This girl was a fool to walk into the tavern dressed like that. Her gaze finally came to a rest on Par, meeting his eyes unflinchingly.
“Well, well; what do we have here?” asked Par, breaking the silence, setting his glass down on the bar and taking a step forward.
He would have his guards take this beauty to the quarters he’d appropriated. Three women at his disposal would make for quite an entertaining night. Very seldom did one stumble across a young woman this beautiful. Yes, the benefits of working for Daes were certainly paying off!
“That’s Lynol Sylvar,” Addison spoke hoarsely from the table he had been sitting at trying to think of a way to ingratiate himself with these men. Seeing Lynol come into the tavern seemed like the perfect opportunity. They would seize her and perhaps release him. He would get his revenge on the Sylvars yet!
“Lynol Sylvar?” stammered Par, feeling confused and turning to face Addison with a look of growing anger on his face. “Then who was the girl we caught earlier? She said she was Lynol Sylvar. I even had her sent to Draydon under escort to be delivered to the Lady Jalene. What is this trickery?”
“It was probably Lynol’s friend, Dresdia,” Addison responded quickly, rising to stand next to Par, seeing an opportunity to improve his deplorable situation. “If she had long blond hair and emerald green eyes it was Dresdia Gor. She was probably trying to protect this one. But this girl is Lynol Sylvar!”
“Damn!” Par swore aloud, getting worried. They’d screwed up!
If Sikes got to Draydon and passed this pretentious Dresdia woman off as Lynol Sylvar, he could be in for all sorts of unthinkable trouble. The Lady Jalene wouldn’t take kindly to being sent the wrong sacrifice; she would be furious.
Par could picture himself ending up on top of the temple platform in shackles waiting for Gilmreth. He would be sacrificed as an example, the ultimate price for failure. His plans for ruling this side of the mountain for Daes had just crumbled.
He knew he had only one possibility of saving himself. He had to grab this girl and rush her to Draydon. With a little luck, he might be able to catch the other group. He could switch the girls and return to Galvin.
-
Damon and Aldin stared at Lynol with rising anticipation. The entire room had grown quiet upon seeing her entrance. The air seemed charged with a mysterious power waiting for a spark to ignite a conflagration. A slight murmuring began as the battered villagers saw how Lynol was dressed. No one could understand what she was up to. They’d all heard the legends of Malcon Sylvar, and on a few haggard faces dawning hope began to appear.
It was as if a bright light had suddenly lit. A few people suddenly realized who had been behind Galvin’s growing fortune the last several years. Suddenly it made sense why the crops had improved and the animals had been breeding more often. Others looked even more confused, wondering why Lynol would come here and put her life in jeopardy. What could one defenseless girl do against these ruffians?
Damon saw instantly that Lynol was wearing the sorceress outfit she’d made. It had been designed to impress people, to make them hesitate and wonder. The simulacrum in the crypt had been quite pleased with it. It’s about to begin, he thought, watching his daughter closely.
The people were about to learn that there was indeed a powerful Sylvar sorceress. Very soon, the whole world would know! These unruly temple guards were about to receive a rude awakening. There was no doubt in Damon’s mind that Lynol could handle this situation. After her encounter with Gilmreth the other night, Damon had realized that Lynol was indeed a very powerful sorceress, perhaps the most powerful ever!
“I don’t believe we’ve met,” Lynol’s clear voice rang out challengingly across the room, her gaze focused unwaveringly on Par. “Why have you come to our village and harmed the people of Galvin?”
“I am Anton Par, and I represent the Lady Jalene of Draydon who controls the great dragon Gilmreth!” Par answered in a powerful voice, trying to figure out what this girl was doing.
Lynol had already seen her father and Aldin tied to chairs at one of the tables. Of Dresdia, she saw no sign. She hoped no harm had come to her friend or these men would pay dearly for it; very dearly! She held her concern and anger in check, her gaze resting upon the man at the bar. In the back of her mind, she thought of the spells she might need. She felt her fingers tingling as they tapped into the power necessary to create the energy patterns. She gazed at Anton Par, measuring him for his reaction to her appearance and her words. She was also highly aware of the other guards standing around the room. All eyes were on her.
Par hesitated a moment. This girl seemed so confident, so unconcerned that she had walked into a room full of hostile, armed men. What was she, some kind of village idiot? Perhaps so with that strange clothing she was wearing. Par could sense the sudden tension in the room. Something didn’t seem right. He needed to nip this in the bud quickly before the captive villagers began to cause trouble.
“You’re my prisoner now, young woman,” Par said loudly, aware that everyone was watching and listening to the exchange. “You shouldn’t have come to this tavern! You will be taken to Draydon and the Lady Jalene!”
“No! It’s you and your men who shouldn’t have come into our community. Did your mistress not inform you that not even her mighty dragon could harm our village?” Lynol stated calmly, her clear light blue eyes sweeping across the room.
“What do you mean?” stammered Par, remembering what Daes had told him. The dragon was supposed to have flown over this village, scaring the people. He realized with an icy feeling running down his back that none of the villagers had mentioned Gilmreth. What had gone wrong? “No one can resist the dragon!” he replied firmly. “The dragon is all powerful, and only the Lady Jalene can control Gilmreth!”
A loud, nervous murmuring came from the people seated in the tavern at the mention of the dragon. The guards around the perimeter of the room shifted about uneasily on their feet, looking at one another questioningly. No one was sure what Lynol was talking about.
However, many of the villagers remembered the mysterious thunderstorm from a few nights back, the harrowing, blue-white lightning blasts in the sky out toward the Sylvar and Gor farms. Many had been roused from their sleep, rushing out to see what the mysterious disturbance was. The noise from the tumultuous lightning blasts had been deafening. Most had shrugged it off as a freak thunderstorm, now they wondered if this young woman was responsible. Had she been fighting the dragon? Was that what the lightning blasts had meant?
Damon and Aldin merely looked at one another knowingly. They knew the truth and Par was about to discover it also. They waited tensely for Lynol’s next move.
“I can!” Lynol replied clearly, letting her hand drop to her side from where it had been shielding her glowing blue crystal amulet. “I defeated Gilmreth and drove him away!”
A gasp of surprised amazement swept across the room as Lynol slowly walked forward several steps, coming nearer to Par, the enigmatic glowing amulet holding everybody’s astonished attention.
“Did you really think sorcery no longer existed in the Sylvar family?” Lynol’s voice rang out as clearly and commanding as before. “Did you think w
e wouldn’t resist this effort to enslave our community?”
Lynol’s hands begin to weave a quick pattern in the air, a special spell she had created for just such an occasion. Luminous lines of spectral blue energy appeared at her fingertips. “You should have never come to Galvin. Gilmreth learned that lesson, and now so will you!”
Seeing the glowing amulet, Par felt a sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach. What had this girl done to the dragon? He’d been assured by Daes that Jalene was the only sorceress alive, but seeing this girl so confident and with a glowing amulet lying between the swell of her breasts made him wonder. Was this why Daes and Jalene had wanted the Sylvars so badly? Had they known or suspected, but failed to warn him of this danger?
Par saw the vague blue energy lines beginning to form around the woman’s fingertips, and all doubt as to what she was instantly vanished. He’d watched Jalene do her sorcery often enough to recognize what he was seeing. This girl was a damn sorceress! What have I gotten myself into? His mind suddenly filled with fear and worry for his own safety.
“Seize her!” he yelled desperately, pointing to several guards standing nearby. “Seize her or we’re lost! She can’t be allowed to complete her spell! She’s a sorceress!”
“I don’t think so,” Lynol replied again with a grim smile of confidence on her lips as she cast her now completed spell. She could see her father and Aldin watching her closely.
Instantly the room was full of screams and crashing chairs as everyone dove to the floor. Above their heads appeared a floating dragon. The apparition hung in the air motionless; its yellowish red eyes were focused on Par.
Par stood petrified, staring at the nightmarish creature before him. The woman definitely was a sorceress! She even controlled a small dragon! Daes and Jalene had allowed him to enter a trap, to confront an unknown sorceress. He wondered what they had been thinking when they sent him to Galvin. Surely, they must have known what awaited him here. With a despondent feeling he suspected that he had been sacrificed, used as a pawn to flush out this girl. Obviously he wasn’t as valuable to Daes as he’d thought. He knew he was about to die; no one could survive a dragon. He awaited his death.
Gilmreth the Awakening Page 44