Age of Valor: Dragon Song

by D. E. Morris

  There was no time to think of a plan to save the dragon. All Cavalon knew was that it had to be stopped, and if that meant killing it, he would do what he had to. He opened his maw in a warning cry, hoping his sudden appearance would be enough to shock the dragon, but it persisted. Knowing it was the only thing he could do, Cavalon flew directly into it, his mouth wrapping around the earth dragon's neck and squeezing. The dragon's cries were abruptly cut off, and she rolled in the sky, pulling Cavalon along with her so that they were belly to belly while the dracklings hurled themselves at Cavalon, tearing and biting with fury. The earth dragon lashed out with her back legs, kicking and scraping along Cavalon's body in search of a vulnerable spot.

  Doing the same, Cavalon released his hold on the dragon's throat to fly back, shaking the irritating dracklings off like water droplets, then going at her again, swiping at her face and snapping at her wings. The impact and determination to take the other one over was so great that they fell toward the earth, limbs, wings, and tails wound around one another, seemingly unaware of their decent. They crashed into trees, crushing someone who only had a chance to scream before the dragons smashed into the ground. They parted only to slash at each other, backing up like wild animals sizing each other up before pouncing. The dam lowered her head and snorted sparks, the dracklings landing beside her. As soon as she charged at Cavalon, he leaped into the air to fly as high as he could. Recovering quickly, the younger dragon was soon on his tail and their battle resumed in the sky. Colorful bodies shot skyward as every drackling followed but one. The little navy and lavender dragon who had been injured lay on her side, panting as blood oozed from her open wound.

  “Stop!” Gianara cried, still pinning Hideo down. Not knowing what else to do, she sprang away from her prisoner and shifted as well, shooting upward. The dam flew at Cavalon, swinging her tail at the white dragon and tearing the thin membrane between the bones that kept him airborne. He cried out and teetered as the dracklings took advantage of his weakness to further injure his wing, still able to keep aloft with the rest of his wing in tact, but clumsy and imbalanced until he could shake them off once more. Gianara flew at the earth dragon, snarling and baring her teeth in warning to try to stop to fight. She didn't want to take the life of the dam, but would if it became her only option.

  Despite the chaos around them, Connor rushed through the fighting, dodging weapons and flailing bodies as one on one attacks persisted. He pulled his night shirt from his trousers and slid it over his head, skidding to a stop before the injured drackling. It looked up at him with a pitiful wail, the gash in its side already attracting insects. “Easy,” Connor whispered, reaching a hand out toward the drackling's head. “Easy, little one. I'm not going to hurt you.” The drackling hissed and flapped its wings to try to fly away, but the pain must have been too great for the effort, and her head dropped to the ground with a meek cry. It was risky, but Connor took advantage of the moment of weakness and ran a hand over her scaled head, whispering soothing words to her. She closed her eyes and Connor felt his throat closing. “Please don't die.” Tears prickled behind his eyes, but as he watched her, he could see her sides rising and falling in a steady, albeit shallow breath.

  Taking his shirt, he draped it over the drackling as gently as possible, stroking her head when she whined in protest. “You're all right,” he promised, crawling around to the front of her. She opened a cloudy golden eye to look at him, drawing a smile to Connor's dirty face. “Hello there.” A forked tongue flicked out against his palm, and the haze in her eyes cleared some. “Do you remember me?” As if in answer, she slid her head across the ground toward his, resting her chin in his open hand. “Good girl. You know I won't hurt you.” He glanced up, watching the madness around him for a moment. In doing so, he spotted an opening to what looked like some sort of hiding spot, possibly for an archer in an attack just like this one. Too bad there hadn't been a greater warning for the elves or they could have made better use of it. At least it could still provide some cover.

  “I'm going to pick you up now,” Connor warned, his attention returning to the dragon. He blew out a stream of air between his lips and muttered, “Giver, please don't let her bite my face off.” Summoning every ounce of courage he could, he slid his arms under the drackling's body and lifted her, surprised at how light she was. She made small little trumpets of protest, especially as Connor began to half walk, half run back the way he'd come. When he deposited her inside the small hideaway, however, she looked up at him with sweet eyes and flicked her tongue against his cheek. He smiled and ran a hand over her head as she began to thrum. “Stay here, okay? I'll come back for you.” He stood and started to run, then doubled back and peeled moss from a nearby tree. “Sorry about this.” With a grimace, he wadded up the moss and stuck it into the holes in her ears. She snapped at his hand as he pulled away and reached up with a hind leg to try and scratch it out, but the tunic was still wrapped around her and made it all but impossible. “I know it's uncomfortable and that you can't even hear me right now, but trust me.” A dragon came crashing down from above and landed nearby, shaking the earth and tearing up trees and roots. “Stay here!” Getting back to his feet, Connor ran back into the fray to see where he could help.

  Misuzu watched the fighting going on around her in horror, looking away only when she heard her father's cruel laugh. “You have to stop this!” she begged. “Call the dragons off. Father! Call them off!”

  He was unaffected by her pleas, looking at her with the same indifference he'd looked upon the others in her company. “It is too late. I must finish what I began.” Once more he pulled the small pan flute from where he hid it in the folds of his robes and played a new tune.

  Dragons dropped down like colorful missiles, landing in trees, perching on branches, some on bodies like vultures anxious for a meal. Cailin spotted Connor hurrying toward her and pulled him close as soon as she could reach for him, Misuzu, Luella, and Jaryn ready for whatever would come next with weapons held tightly in their grip. “Look,” Luella whispered, only her eyes indicating direction. They could see the tops of several of the tall black structures from where they were, one of them in the clearing with them. On each one, a dragon landed and sat like a proud king upon his throne.

  “There's the one who was fighting with us,” Misuzu muttered, inclining her head to the speckled green earth dragon that sat beside one of the tall structures, eyes glazed.

  Hideo walked around the clearing, chest out and chin high. He waited until all eyes were on him before he broke his pipe apart and let each small tube fall to the forest floor, all but one. This one he put to his lips and blew as loudly as he could. In unison, each dragon atop the odd towers rose. They inhaled a great breath, then spewed out hot streams of fire into the very tops. Something in them caught and set them ablaze, giant torches that cast forth an overwhelming heat. They began to rumble and shake, making the island feel as though it were caught in the middle of an earthquake.

  “We're going to die,” Connor muttered. “They're going to blow up the island!”

  “Put the fires out,” Jaryn cried, whipping his head toward Luella and Misuzu. “You're Elementals and all fire obeys you. Extinguish them!”

  “Cavalon!” Luella shouted. “We need you!” The white dragon, however, could neither hear her nor break away as his attackers came at him again and again, relentless. The two women began working on the giant torches, putting the flames out with a thought, only to have them reignited by another dragon. For every fire they put out, there were two or three dragons ready to light the fires again. The shaking of the island grew more intense by the minute, spurring the others into action, hoping to scare the dragons out of their daze in order to get them to fly away. If they didn't snap at Connor, Jaryn, or Cailin, they only looked at them indifferently. Even the riders that were still alive were under whatever hold Hideo had over them. Seeing the trio's efforts, the remaining elves joined in, working at spells to attempt dousing the flames in the torc
hes permanently or to wake the unresponsive dragons.

  The blazes were working their way farther down, but still Luella and Misuzu tried to fight against them. Their attempts only made Hideo laugh, his eyes wide and wild. “It is too late,” he crowed. “You have already lost.”

  Luella paused in her tireless efforts, looking helplessly at him. “What if...what if he dies?”

  Misuzu glanced at her but didn't stop trying to put the fires out. “What?”

  “The hold he has on these dragons and their riders, it may end with his death.”

  “I am not going to kill my father!”

  Luella looked at her with sympathy. “Misuzu...he has no hesitation about killing you.”

  “Help me!” Jaryn cried. He and Connor had taken swords and set to hacking at one of the torches like woodsmen. Misuzu used this distraction as an escape from what Luella was proposing and hurried over to help, finding a sword that had been discarded on her way. “This one's almost all the way through,” he panted, calling some of the elves over to finish the job. “We'll get started on another one. Let's go!” The three of them bolted for another, only a few hundred feet away. As they chopped at the wood and metal, they heard the giant crack of what had to be the other torch falling, then there was a great explosion. Trees, grass, dirt and rocks went flying, as well as several bodies. Had there not been a couple of dragons blocking them from the blast, it was likely Misuzu, Jaryn, and Connor would have been burned to death.

  “What if we try to pull them free?” Jaryn suggested, panicking.

  “Something tells me it will only make them explode as well,” argued Misuzu.

  Cailin appeared behind them, getting close enough to Jaryn to whisper, “Keep her distracted,” before blending in with her surroundings.

  Determined, Jaryn met Misuzu's frightened gaze and nodded. “We have to try.” He crouched and wrapped his arms as far around the structure as they would go, grunting as he tried to straighten his legs and pull the cylinder from the ground. Connor did the same, hoping to help, but nothing moved except the fire atop of it that sank lower and lower with each passing second. At a loss for other options, Misuzu finally cast her sword aside and joined them as well, lending her strength to what was sure to be a fruitless attempt.

  Cailin moved quickly through the forest, picking up a bow and pulling a quiver full of arrows from a dead dragon rider. She slung the quiver over her shoulder and skirted the open area where Hideo watched everything that was happening. She may not have been able to hear what Luella had suggested before, but she could read her lips well enough to understand the question that has been posed. The older man was completely alone and unarmed, glee on his face as he stared at the destruction that had come from the blast. Cailin glanced at the flaming torch across the clearing, knowing they were quickly running out of time. She understood that there was a definite possibility that Hideo's death would end the trance of those under his control, and give all of them a chance at getting away before the island exploded. Nocking an arrow, she took careful aim, pulling back on the bowstring until her thumb brushed her ear. Someone crashed into her, her arrow flying wildly through the clearing and whizzing past Hideo.

  Tumbling, Cailin struck out at her attacker, a fist coming across her jaw in retaliation. They rolled together out into the clearing, striking out where and when they could, before Cailin was pinned. It was a great shock to realize it was Misuzu on top of her. “You will not kill my father.”

  Cailin struggled, trying to get her legs up under Misuzu as Hideo watched them. Both women were strong and well skilled, which made for a hard fought match. Sensing as much, Hideo looked around and found a curved dagger. He called Misuzu's name, making her look up. Cailin hit her hard in the stomach, taking advantage of the moment of distraction and clambering to her feet. Recovering quickly, Misuzu looked to her father in time to see him throw the dagger to her. She caught it deftly and whipped around to see Cailin running back to where she'd lost her bow. The younger woman pulled her arm back, then tossed the dagger right into Cailin's left calf. With a cry of pain, Cailin went tumbling forward, knocking her head on a rock and lying prone.

  Misuzu pulled out her fan blades, ready to fight and defend her father the moment Cailin rose, but there was no movement. Her pulse pounded in her ears. “Cailin?” There was no response of any kind. Misuzu swallowed a fear that rose in her throat and took a few assessing steps forward. “Cailin, are you all right?”

  The sound of a feral yell behind her made Misuzu jump. She jerked around to find Jaryn charging at her father with a sword. “No!” She bolted forward to defend him once more, but before she got close, giant, rough talons wrapped around her and lifted her from the the ground. Screaming her anger, she looked up at the dragon she recognized to be Luella and pounded helplessly on her leg. “Let me go!” It took only a moment for her to think of an escape. Fyre sprang up all around her and she disappeared, leaving a surprised Luella in the sky.

  Jaryn swung at Hideo, but the older man was quick on his feet and dodged to the side. He rolled away from Jaryn and sprang up, pulling two daggers from his belt. There was no mercy in him as he ran at Jaryn, slicing through the air with a heated wrath and speed that was slowly driving Jaryn back toward the pond.

  Misuzu appeared in fyre just on the other side of the clearing and looked around, trying to get her bearings. She saw the way Hideo was driving Jaryn back and panicked. “Father, stop!”

  Just as her name had been a distraction before, Hideo's concentration broke at the sound of his daughter's voice. He glanced in her direction, giving Jaryn only a split second to act. With both of his hands gripping his sword, he pulled the weapon back low at his waist, then leaped toward the older man and forced the sword through his stomach. Hideo froze on impact, his eyes widening. He coughed and bent forward, his daggers falling to the forest floor as he wrapped his hands around the blade. Misuzu screamed and ran across the clearing, but Jaryn had no time to worry about her. He twisted the blade as blood pooled in Hideo's mouth and drooled down his face, then gave a savage pull and let the man fall to the ground.

  An explosion on the eastern side of the island shook the ground so greatly that Misuzu stumbled as she ran and fell. At once, the dragons began to stir. They blinked and shook their heads, ruffling their wings as though affronted that control of their own bodies had been taken from them. Gianara dropped from above, already shifted, and looked around wildly. “It has begun. We must get the dragons away from here.” She turned to Misuzu. “You are an Elemental. Shift and order the dragons away!” Yet Misuzu gave her no answer. She knelt on the ground in tears, unable to tear her eyes away from the slumped figure of her father across the clearing. Gianara had no mercy. She gripped the younger woman by the shoulders and gave her a violent shake. “Help your kindred or many more will die!” When Misuzu still did not seem willing to help, Gianara let go of her and ran into the forest, finding dragon riders coming to as well and shouting commands at them.

  The island rocked again as another explosion went off, sending riders scurrying to dragons and pulling out flutes for commands. It looked as though someone had disrupted a flock of birds for the way they all took to the sky, some of them calling out their confusion in short cries that were answered by other dragons. Water dragons leaped into the sea, feeling the call of Rowan, who swam farther and farther away from the island in the hope that they would all follow her and be safe.

  The explosions were coming faster now, some in tandem with others. Gianara looked around in panic, trying to get as many dragons away from the island as possible, while working to convince the elves to fly with them. “Gia!” Connor's frantic cry pulled her from her current task, making her run back through the woods in search of him. One of the explosions had knocked several trees down and he was pinned under one of them, a bundle of clothing protected under his arm. There was little time to think. She shifted and pumped her wings enough to give her just a bit of elevation. With both feet, she picked up the
tree and tossed it aside. As soon as Connor was free, he scrambled to his feet, his right arm hanging uselessly at his side but the bundle slung over his shoulder. Gianara landed, eyeing what she now realized was an injured drackling, and was about to shift, but Connor ran up her tail, then plopped himself down behind her head and set the drackling before him. Holding fast to Gianara with his good arm and leaning over the drackling, he shouted, “Go!” She hardly needed to be told twice and took to the sky just as another explosion came.

  Misuzu had crawled her way across the clearing and held her father in her arms, weeping. Though she had never really known him before, he was her father. Despite everything she'd learned about him in the past few weeks alone, he was the only family she had left. Now she was truly alone.

  “Misuzu.” Cavalon and Luella appeared in a burst of fyre, and the Badarian crouched before her. “I'm sorry. It hurts. But unless you want to die with him and take the Element of Air with you, we have to go. Now.”

  She choked on a sob and looked down at her father. She couldn't save him, but that didn't mean she had to follow him in death. Letting him go, she nodded at Cavalon and took his extended hand. They were about to run, but she remembered something and stopped. “Cailin.”

  “Where is she?” Luella asked.

  The younger woman started in the direction she'd left her, but was brought to a halt again rather quickly. Mairead was wrapping Cailin in her talons as gently as she could. When she realized she was being watched, she gave the three Elementals a cry of recognition, then rose high above with Cailin safely in her grasp.