Blood Mage 3

by Logan Jacobs

  Even though I trusted Kajul, seeing Danira like this put me on full red-alert.

  When we got down to the dragon’s cell, he was waiting. Kajul sat on the rocky plateau of his prison, and his fiery red eyes landed on us the moment we came into his view. Danira took in another shaky breath, squared her shoulders, and marched straight up to the bars of the cage.

  “Ahhh, Milton Bailey,” the dragon called out, his tone sickeningly sweet. “I have been waiting.”

  “Ya know, that would have more impact if you hadn’t known we were coming,” I pointed out jokingly to try and ease Danira’s tension.

  “Of course I did,” he responded slyly, and one incisor glinted in the torchlight. “But just because I can see the future does not mean I am any less a victim to time.”

  I turned to the commander and gave her a slight nudge. “See?” I joked. “Kal would love this guy, always speaking in riddles.

  The commander was in no mood for humor. “Well, let’s get on with it, then,” Danira growled and pulled a huge ring of keys from her pocket.

  I had never seen this ring before, and it was filled with huge keys of all shapes and sizes. Some were giant, almost the size of my hand, while others were extremely small. There were shiny keys and dull keys, keys with lots of teeth and keys that looked like they had been word down to the shaft. It looked like she had a key to everything in the world on that ring. Or at least, everything in the guild.

  “Master key ring,” she said with a shrug when she caught my wide-eyed expression. “There’s one on here for everything in this building. Including this cage.” She finished as she found a large, rusted old key with five teeth.

  The commander inserted it into the lock and turned it easily, and the cell door responded with a loud creak. She tried to open the door, but it refused to budge.

  “Damn thing’s rusted in place,” she growled.

  “I have been down here for a long time,” Kajul shot back. “Your snot-nosed interns usually just toss food through the bars.”

  “Here,” I offered as I stepped up beside the commander. “Let me help.”

  The two of us both placed our hands on the bars, and flecks of irony dust shot up into the air around us. I looked over at the commander.

  “Ready?” I asked. “One, two, three!”

  We pulled on the bars in unison, and the door creaked open with a loud whine that reverberated through the tunnel. We looked around cautiously to make sure we hadn’t just blown our cover, and then let out a sigh of relief when we heard nothing.

  “How many people have those key rings, exactly?” I asked. “That could make it pretty clear who freed the dragon if they know we just waltzed in here.”

  “About twenty,” the commander explained. “And they’re all extremely trusted guild members like myself. But I’m not planning on leaving any evidence of an easy entrance.”

  With that, the commander snatched up my axe, raised it above her head, and brought the steel handle down over the lock ten times. The banging sound was loud in my ears as it echoed through the tunnel, and I turned my head every which way nervously.

  “There,” she chuckled as she handed the axe back to me. “Now it looks like we forced our way in.”

  “Why didn’t we just do that from the beginning?” I asked rhetorically.

  “Because there was no guarantee it would work,” Danira replied roughly. “Now, you ready for this?”

  I nodded slowly, and then we stepped through the doorway and into the dragon’s cell.

  The air in the prison felt even more dank and cold than the rest of the tunnel. I told myself that it was just my imagination, but I couldn’t get the goosebumps that had appeared on my arms to lay flat, and I shivered reflexively in the cold.

  The dragon waited patiently with his fiery red eyes fixated on Danira and I as we climbed over moist rocks and made our way carefully to the plateau on which he sat. As we moved, Danira glanced between her pathway and the dragon more times than I could count. I watched as the expression of nervous anticipation faded from the hard commander’s face, replaced with a look of complete awe as she got closer to the massive beast. I imagined my expression was nearly the same the first time I saw Kajul, with his glittering green scales, blood red eyes, and monstrous claws.

  “You know the way out of this maze,” Kajul rumbled when we came to stand beneath him.

  I felt like a piece in a board game compared to the massive beast. As I stood under him, with my neck craned back so I could see his snout, I realized he had to be nearly a hundred feet tall. The air that blew from his nostrils washed us in moist heat every time he breathed, and I could just see a hint of dark green skin as it peeked out from between his scales.

  “I do,” Danira affirmed, her tone once again the commanding leader. “I have been assured you won’t harm us, nor will you help the Unseelie.”

  The dragon simply dipped his massive head in a regal bow, but Danira shook her head, her black eye hard.

  “You want to hear me say it?” Kajul chuckled. “I will not harm you, nor will I help the Unseelie. However, I should be inclined to help the mighty Racmoth, if the opportunity presents itself.”

  His blood red eyes flashed to me, and I watched his giant black pupils dilate as he watched me carefully.

  “I would be honored, Kajul,” I responded graciously.

  “Let’s get on with it, then,” Danira muttered as she shifted her gaze to the doorway. “Don’t want to take any more time than what’s necessary.”

  I nodded, and then I hauled the diamond studded axe over my shoulder as I maneuvered around the beast’s massive form. I walked until I was right next to his muscular hind leg, where I noticed the chain was locked around his ankle. His muscles rippled in anticipation, and I could feel both his and Danira’s eyes on me as I raised the axe.

  I took a deep inhale, and for a split second I wondered if this was the right decision. The air buzzed in my ears, and I could hear the dragon’s hot breath flow in and out of his lungs. If I wanted to turn back now, this was my only chance. Once the iron was cut, the beast would be able to get away, regardless of how I felt. I checked in with myself, but I knew in my gut this was the right choice. A promise was a promise. And besides, he had just said he’d come to our aid. A dragon that fought for the Seelie would be a massively invaluable asset.

  I exhaled, and then I brought the axe over my head and swung down with everything I had. There was an enormously loud clang that reverberated back against my eardrums as the axe made contact with the iron. Bright red sparks flew from the metal, and my ears screamed with the echoing sound. The iron chain hadn’t been fully severed, and I took another deep breath as I shifted my grip on the heavy axe.

  I hauled the axe back over my shoulder again and brought it down forcefully a second time. Another loud clang bounced through the chamber, but this time it was followed by a grinding sound as the axe bit through the solid iron and hit the rock below it. The tiny piece of chain still attached to the dragon’s ankle bounced free, and he immediately stretched his powerful wings over my head as he shook out his muscular leg and felt out his newfound freedom.

  He rose into the air with a huge, powerful swoosh of his wings that brought me to my knees. The beast let out a deep, roarous laugh that was almost maniacal as it reverberated off the stone walls and echoed through the deep pit below us. His back leg rattled the chain as he shook it out and felt his pure, unadulterated freedom.

  Danira stumbled backward a step as she stared in awe at the great creature before us. Somehow, he seemed to swell and glow as he hovered in the sky. It may have just been a small iron chain, but perhaps it affected him more than I knew.

  “Thank you, Milton Bailey,” he boomed as he peered down at me over the top of his snout. “I owe you a great debt. Now, how am I supposed to leave this place? Unless, of course, you wish me to tear through the walls and climb out myself.”

  “No!” Danira hollered quickly. “Follow me, dragon. I know the way
out of these tunnels.”

  The commanding elf put her hands up and clambered over the rocks as she made her way toward the back of the chamber. I could see, now that I was inside, that the rock twisted up to create a treacherous tunnel, like a canyon in the center of a mountain. Danira grabbed ahold of one of the sharp outcroppings and hauled herself up to climb on top of the rock.

  “Oh man, not more rock climbing,” I groaned as I went to follow her.

  Just then, the dragon landed behind me, and I turned to see his massive head bowed toward the ground.

  “Perhaps it would be easier if the two of you sat on my back,” he offered carefully. “I can move much faster than either of you, and it would put much less strain on your bodies. Not to mention, I would like to be free of this place as soon as possible.”

  Danira looked at me, her coal black eye wide and her lips drawn into a thin line as she debated. To me, however, it was a no-brainer.

  I shrugged and stepped toward Kajul. After all, how many times was I going to get the opportunity to ride a freaking dragon? I was not about to pass up my chance.

  “Oh boy,” Danira grunted as she leapt down from the rock and stomped over to look straight into one of Kajul’s fiery red eyes. “Don’t you drop me.”

  “I give you my word, Danira Terrun,” the dragon replied graciously.

  Danira quirked an eyebrow before she grabbed onto one of the large scales on the dragon’s neck and used it to haul herself up onto his neck. The commander straddled the creature’s neck like a horse, and then she motioned for me to do the same.

  I slipped my fingers under one of the glimmering green scales and found enough of a grip to hold my weight. I used my upper body to throw a leg over Kajul’s neck and then scrambled up until I was just in front of Danira. I bent forward to stabilize my body weight as the dragon stretched his powerful wings and took to the air once again.

  I almost felt like I had an out of body experience when I was on the dragon. I could feel the muscles in Kajul’s neck roll and tense with every stroke of his wings, and I could feel the heat that radiated out from his fiery mouth. It was a red-hot sort of heat that was unlike any other creature I had ever encountered. It was completely unique and, more importantly, it was very dragon.

  Wind whistled through my hair as we flew through the tunnels. Kajul’s wings flapped lazily through the air, and I was sure this was not even close to how fast he could fly. But he needed to be slow enough for Danira to act as his Fae GPS.

  The commander had been absolutely right when she told us the tunnels were a maze full of confusing twists, turns, and forks. I wondered multiple times during our flight just how these giant, chasm-like tunnels had been built under the guild, and why. What was the point of creating such a maze? If the tunnels had been built solely for Hasen to bring the dragon in and chain him up, it would have been so much easier to create one smooth, straight shot from ground level down to the depths.

  “Hey, Danira,” I said as she instructed Kajul to go left at a fork in the tunnel, “why are these tunnels so maze-like? And why are there so many of them?”

  “This used to be the Seelie king’s castle, back in our land,” she muttered, her voice low in my ear. “He created this tunnel system. It just so happened this was one of the Seelie places that survived the collision of the worlds. The rumour is he built it in order to create a hiding place from the Unseelie during the wars.”

  “Interesting,” I responded in an equally low voice. “But it’s just a rumour?”

  “My theory is the guy was kind of nuts,” she said. “These tunnels are pointless, really, unless you plan to bring a massive dragon in through them. Take a right here!”

  Kajul leaned his muscular body to the right, and I tilted with the change in momentum. The moment we entered the new part of the tunnel, I could see it dipped upwards to a massive opening, and I could see the twinkle of bright white stars off in the distance. I felt the muscles in Kajul’s neck ripple in anticipation, and his wings began to flap twice as fast. The moment they did, we shot forward at an impossibly quick speed. I rocked backward as Danira and I both scrambled to grab onto a scale and keep ourselves from falling.

  And then, nearly instantaneously, we were outside of those tunnels. The fresh air or the night surrounded us, and Kajul took in a deep, slow breath to take it all in. I looked over and saw the guild was off in the distance, probably a mile or two away from our current position.

  Then, Kajul slammed to the ground. The earth rattled thunderously underneath him, and he lowered his head for us to make our dismount. I slid down onto the moist grass, helped Danira hop off, and then turned back to the dragon.

  The hardness faded slowly from his eyes as he stared up at the night sky, frozen in shock and awe at its beauty. His fiery red eyes were, for once, devoid of the strong anger I had grown used to. The black, ovular pupils were dilated, and I could see sadness, gratitude, and relief in their depths.

  I looked up at the twinkle of stars in the night sky as the dragon took a tentative step forward and wiggled his great claw along the soft, dewy grass. A sheen of liquid formed over his red eyes, and he closed them gently as he swept his claw over the soft earth and turned his face up to the light of the moon. One lone, single tear dripped over his brilliant green scales before it splashed to the ground. His nostrils flared as he breathed in the fresh, clean air, and a soft calm spread across his giant features.

  After a moment, he seemed to come back to the present, and opened his eyes to gaze over my face with a gentle, almost grandfatherly expression. Kajul bowed his massive head to the ground in a gesture of thanks.

  “I am forever in your debt, Milton Bailey,” he said before he turned and readied himself to leap into the air.

  “Wait!” I yelled back at him, my voice loud in the quiet night. “How do we get in touch with you if we need you?”

  “I’ll know when you need me,” he answered wisely. “I do see the future, after all.”

  “Right,” I replied. “You probably already know, don’t you?”

  The dragon just smiled down at me coyly, and then he turned back to the open field in front of him. Kajul took a running start, the Earth quaking beneath him as he dashed with the speed of a cheetah. The dragon beat his powerful wings down as he ran, and he rose into the night sky. His scales glimmered against the twinkling backdrop of stars, and his figure was backlit by the full, bright moon. The massive shadow made a turn in the air as he came to hover directly above Danira and I.

  “I was wrong,” he rumbled slowly, “we are not always responsible for the choices of others.”

  With that, he dipped down as he turned around and flew off into the night. Danira and I watched in awed silence as the massive green beast grew smaller and smaller, until he disappeared over the peak of Kaul Mountain.

  “Wow,” Danira finally breathed out in a much smaller voice than I was accustomed to. “I cannot believe we just did that.”

  “For all the right reasons,” I reminded her gently. Then I tapped the comms unit in my ear and heard it crackle to life.

  “Hey, guys, we got him out. Now get up here so we can pay an old wizard a visit.”

  Chapter Nine

  “Everybody, look alive!” Kalista hollered through her communicator as she swerved her van to a screeching halt in the field in front of us.

  Maaren threw open the side door, and Danira and I climbed inside. I took one look at Kal, perched in the driver’s seat, and burst into laughter.

  The dwarf had donned a strange combination of clothes. Her legs were clad in tight jeans, which she had tucked into thick, clunky combat boots that looked like they would be nearly impossible to move in. But on top, she had zipped up a thick, puffy winter coat that bulked around the waist and suggested there were many more layers underneath. Her small form could barely move with the constricting layers, and she had to inch her hands along the leather steering wheel to get it to turn even a centimeter. She glanced up in the rearview mirror with
a comical frown on her face.

  “What’d I miss?” she asked frantically. “What’s so funny?”

  “Why are you wearing five million layers of clothing, exactly?” I asked through bouts and spasms of laughter.

  The rest of the team joined in, tickled by Kalista’s outfit. The dwarf, on the other hand, looked extremely confused at the joke.

  “Oh,” she shrugged in response, “I just thought it was best to be prepared.”

  “We’re not off to the North Pole, Kal,” I chuckled at the dwarf’s serious expression.

  “You don’t know that,” she responded with wide violet eyes. “Have you ever been to the nether realm, Milton?”

  “Uh, no--”

  “Then it could very well be the north pole! It could have freezing temperatures, and snow, and ice, and hail, or it could be a veritable sauna!” she insisted. “Don’t come crying to me when you’re freezing your ass off.”

  “I make no promises,” I said with a wink as I met her eyes in the mirror.

  The dwarf couldn’t help the snicker that burst out of her, but she shook her head and threw the van into drive. “Brace yourselves, kids!” she cried out as we lurched forward and bounced across the uneven field. “Next stop, Herm’s house!”

  We continued across the grassy field for a few minutes before we finally hit the paved road.

  “Remind me to fix the shocks on this thing,” Maaren muttered as we careened onto smooth pavement.

  “Nobody touches the baby unless the baby says it’s okay!” Kalista exclaimed in response. “I’m very sensitive to her needs.”

  “But the baby can’t speak, Kal,” Maaren complained. “I just want to make it better.”

  “Don’t listen to her,” Kal whispered to the van’s dashboard as she patted it gently, like a wounded child. “You are perfect the way you are.”

  “Man, I wished someone talked to me the way she talks to this van,” Danira grunted in amusement.