Crystal tightened her fingers around its shaft and her eyes filled with happy tears. “I accept.”
At that moment, Markus’ hand slid through the wand and it solely became hers to hold and control. He watched her eyes sparkle with awe at the wand she now held. “I know you will do beautiful things with this wand.”
She whispered, “Thank you.”
Treb and Kiin came over to them. Kiin had a big motherly grin on her face while Treb looked like he was about to break into tears.
Markus couldn’t pass up the opportunity to tease him. “You know, you seem to get misty eyed often around Crystal. Are you sure you're a warrior.”
Treb quickly dabbed his eyes with the back of his wrist. “Oh, shut up.”
Markus chuckled and then turned back to the Dragon statues. “What now? Where is the Dragonwand?”
“Step forward young heir so that we may bestow it upon you,” the first dragon announced. Markus walked away from the others and into the middle of the dragon statues. They all stared at him; their gazes fixed.
The first female dragon voice spoke. “Young Markus, grandson of Tolen the Wise and chosen heir of his power, we, the Dragon council, bestow upon you the title, rank, power, and wand of his seat. Use it wisely.” Suddenly the floor beneath him began to shake and a few of the panels moved. More than one panel sunk down out of sight, while others lifted up and moved around to make room. Once there was a large hole near his feet, the shaking stopped. Up from the floor rose a staff as tall as Markus and with extraordinarily beautiful carvings up and down the shaft. The top of the wand was carved like a dragons head, with its mouth open. The whole wand was a golden color. Once it stopped rising with the floor it simply floated in the air in front of him, waiting for him.
Markus reached out and gently took hold of the staff and felt it in his hand. The weight was light, the surface smooth, and the power surging throughout it immense. He was about to ask them a question when it started to overtake him; the power and authority of the Dragonwand asserting itself in him and granting him its use. There was a moment of pure clarity and he realized what was happening to him. His entire body glowed and a wind shifted around the Citadel, centering on where he stood. Dust and small pebbles swirled around him as he looked back at the others; a smile crowding his now blazing eyes.
Then, with a burst of wind and golden light, he transformed into a huge dragon that resembled those around them. Unlike before, this time he was not partly transparent, this time he was whole. Extending his wings to the sky, he released a massive roar and laughed. He was about three stories tall with a rounded body, long neck and lizard like dragon head. His arms were the most human-like feature – displaying taut muscles underneath scaly skin –with five digit claws that functioned just as well as human hands.
Large wings meant for flight extended from his back and cut the air as he flapped them. Behind him was a long, thick tail much like a Shlan, only twice as long as body. His body was glistening in golden light and his eyes burned twice as much.
He was so thrilled with the feeling of power and control that he had not heard Crystal scream when he transformed. But, now that he had settled down enough, he did hear a whimper. Turning around he looked down to the very small people behind him. At the sight of Treb and Kiin protecting their little girl from him, his heart skipped. With a thought, he transformed back into his former self; the staff again in his hand.
He came over to them with a smile and an outstretched hand pleading, “Please, doesn’t be afraid.”
Crystal stepped out and took his hand. “You're human again?”
The first dragon spoke up for him. “We dragons can take either form when we choose. When dealing with non-dragons it is often wise to assume the human shaped form.”
Treb leaned over and stared at Markus, his eyes and nose examining him closely. “Did it...hurt?”
Markus laughed. “No. Of course not.” He then looked directly into Crystals eyes, “I didn't change in my heart or mind, just my body. I'm still Markus, in either form. I still love you.”
Crystal flashed Markus a comforting smile, as if her fear had finally fled. She touched his face and then his arm. “You still feel the same.”
“I'm the same,” Markus said reassuringly. “Just more powerful than ever.”
Crystal ran her hand down his back and squeezed his backside. Markus jumped.
“Excuse me,” Treb cried out.
Crystal smirked, “At least you finally have a tail.”
Markus felt his cheeks burning, embarrassed by Crystal’s groping; especially in the presence of the other dragons. “So, what now?” he asked, turning his attention them. “Tolen told me to bring this to the statue outside of Gallenor castle. Why?”
The dragons replied as one. “The statue is the key to the seal that keeps the dark ones from returning. If the seal breaks and there is no one there to fight against the darkness, then evil will prevail. For centuries, the betrayer has been trying to destroy the statue through any means, for he knows its destruction means the end of his banishment. He also knows that without a champion to stand against him, he will win. Know this, young heir, the betrayer awaits you there. He has awaited you there for centuries. To complete this mission will mean facing him in battle. The only hope is to reach the statue and find the betrayer before the spell breaks. He is strong, but not while the statue stands. Take the battle to him, before he succeeds. That battle will decide the fate of all that lives in Gallenor and even the world. “
Markus swallowed. “No pressure.” Taking up a confident stance he asked, “Will you come with me? Will you help me finish this?”
The older female dragon responded. “No, child, we are but memories of the fallen. We have little power inside this Citadel and none outside of it. Tolen was truly the last Dragon left of our order that held any power outside of these walls. Once you complete your mission and the evil is vanquished from these lands, we will no longer be here. Only statues will you find in this place. A memorial to seven fools that died because of their own failure to see what was happening.”
“For now,” the first dragon said, “stay here and regain your strength. You do not have much time, but take this night to rest and read some of Tolen’s final lessons so that you can understand his wisdom. In these walls you will be safe tonight. Rest well, young dragon.” With that, all the dragon statues dropped their heads and the eyes dimmed.
Chapter 12: Changing the plans
A beautiful young courtier walked through the palace in Gallenor, carrying a stack of contracts for review by the King. She was one of the merchant courtiers; a group of people assigned to dealing with the trade and commerce of the kingdom. She prayed that the process of reading them over and signing off would go much more speedily than the last time; an exercise of futility that drained her entire day. It was a mundane task for sure, but someone had to do it.
Alana was accustomed to having to wait, but a week had passed and she was elated to hear that the King had finally summoned her. When she worked with the merchants and leaders of Gallenor, she often received a fair amount of attention due to her good looks and charming personality. But, the King was not someone she could simply charm into doing what she said. Knowing how important it was to get the supplies moving through Gallenor before winter came, she decided to get a little more aggressive on the matter. Stepping up to the King’s personal quarters, she knocked loudly on the door.
“Ma’am, you cannot do that,” the Chief of the Castle guard warned, holding out his hand to her.
She gave him a stern glance. “I have issues needing to be brought to the King’s personal attention. Now, either you knock or I will again.”
The Chief shook his head. “No, it is not that you aren’t allowed, you simply cannot. He isn’t here.”
“He isn’t here! Where is he?” She was beside herself now. The King may be powerful but even he has duties.
The Chief of the guar
d pointed in the direction of a tall stone window. “See for yourself. He has spent many hours there in the past few days.”
Alana walked with the Chief over to the window and looked out. This window was designed to watch the dragon statue much as the window in Hallond’s tower oversaw it, only from a different angle. From here they could see the King standing in front of the statue, watching it carefully. With him, though at a distance, stood two of his personal guards.
“They’re a vigilant bunch aren’t they?” Alana asked.
“As expected,” the Chief guard replied.
Alana was curious. “What is he doing?”
“I don’t know,” the Chief guard said, sounding a bit annoyed. “It seems he has become fixated on that statue. And by the way, you can all me Alex.”
“Fine, Alex,” she said with a blush. “I heard about Hallond. The statue’s influence must be terrible on wizards if it drove the head wizard mad enough to attempt to kill the king.”
Alex nodded. “Yes. And in the last few years Hallond and the King had become very close. They spent a lot of time together in private discussion and friendship. I can only imagine how dreadful it must have been to see that madness in Hallond’s eyes and then be forced to order Hallond killed.”
Alana sighed. “I suppose I can wait a little longer. His mind won’t be on menial contracts anyway.” She looked down at the papers in her hands, “I guess I can just…sit here and see if the king has time for me when he comes back from…observing that statue.”
***
Hallond placed his hand on the statue. The cool surface felt oddly foreign underneath his fingertips. It was an odd thing for him. This was the first body he had assumed a form other than a wizard. Even as King, he still had some tricks up his sleeve – able to wield authority and power through his soldiers and subordinates – but without true wizardry power in his blood his magic was terribly limited.
At first, he delighted in the fact that this body came with the perks of being King of Gallenor; a position that Hallond so desired. But, it also came with one flaw: he was mortal. A flaw he could not live with. When given the opportunity, he would assume the body of the most powerful wizard in the Labyrinth and rule all that lived. With the final spell he would make that body immortal and thus grant himself godhood.
Unfortunately all of his plans hinged on the ending of this dragon statue's seal, and the location of the last Dragonwand; without the wand his plans were mere concepts. No amount of dark magic or any other sort of wand could conjure the spell he needed to pass the souls into the bodies of the wizards. That wand was the answer to all of his plans. Oh, when he was a full dragon himself he had the power, but that was stolen from him. “When Tolen sealed his power into this statue to stop me, my Dragonwand was destroyed,” he whispered. “But that will all change very soon.”
He could still picture the moment in his mind. He and Tolen fought at this location before any castle had been constructed. It was an epic battle that shook the skies. Two dragons locked in a fight with neither able to best the other. Hallond did not know what Tolen had planned. That old man was so damned wise and cunning. Right in the middle of the battle Tolen began to slow down and turn to stone.
At first Hallond was sure that he had won, that Tolen was not the wizard everyone thought he was. But, there was that glint in his eye and that arrogant smile on his lips. Hallond knew that there was more to this old man’s plans that just a battle, but he realized it too late. Suddenly, he lost the ability to retain his dragon form and transformed back into a wizard with only his own Dragonwand staff by his side. Just as he scrambled to get to his feet and fight again, Tolen turned into stone. The old comedian even posed with a carnivorous growl as he solidified, paying homage to the dragons; his place rightfully taken in the middle of Gallenor for all to see.
When Hallond touched his staff it burned his hand and caught fire, burning out of existence. Hallond, in his first body, vanished into thin air with his power sealed and his plans put on hold. If it were not for that one last resort spell he had waiting to resurrect him, and unfortunately Tolen as well, that old wizard would have won the day.
“Damnit, Tolen! You old fool,” Holland said, slamming his fist into the statue base. “Why did you side with these pathetic humans?”
One of his guards turned to him, startled. “Sir, are you okay?”
“I am fine!” Hallond replied. “When I need you to worry, I will let you know.” He enjoyed power, but he was getting a little tired of the way these guards stuck around him. Once he became an immortal god, he would not need protection, especially from the likes of these non-magic fools.
Ignoring the guard again, he ran his hand along the surface of the statue. To his surprise the statue was growing colder by the minute. The magic within was waning beyond sensing and would soon break. He wasn’t ready for this, not just yet. Hallond needed that damned Dragonwand before the statue lost cohesion. He wanted the statue destroyed long ago, but he wasn’t sure what would happen if the Dragonwand wasn’t in his possession. Tolen might have one last trick waiting.
Hallond shivered and looked up, realizing that the sun was setting and the cold night air would soon be upon him. He had forgotten how easily old non-magic users were affected by the temperature, getting cold, even in the warmer days. Oh, how he loathed living in his weak body. Finally admitting it was time to leave the statue; he turned to his guards and walked with them back into the palace.
***
Inside, Alana waited for the King as she spent time with the rather flirty Chief guard. He was cute and overly charming; a well-trained student of Captain Morris for sure. Though, unlike Morris, this man was not cold-hearted.
When the King arrived, Alana stood and quietly waited on him. She was heavy with sorrow for the King and his recent loss. It was common knowledge that King Anthony had no heirs and his wife died years ago. Sometimes he was referred to as the Lonely King, though not to his face. To lose a good friend like that must’ve been a terrible experience, so she would respect him if he just wanted to go into his quarters for the night. To her great surprise he approached her.
“Young lady,” the King started, “what are you doing here? Court has been canceled for now.”
She swallowed, sporting a nervous smile. She approached him as diplomatically as possible. “Your Majesty, I have some papers I need you to sign. They are simple trade agreements between Thendor and the Port cities.”
Hallond snarled. With a wave of his hand he dismissed her. “Not now! Not now! I hate paperwork. He looked beyond her. “Chief Alex!”
Alex came running and then bowed to the King, “Yes, sir?”
“Have you any word from Morris yet?”
“Uh…no…sir. We have sent out scouts and couriers daily to search for him and bring back any news. I'm sure he's still vigilantly working on completing his mission, sir.”
Hallond despised loyalty to anyone but him. The way these guards kept making excuses for Morris made him sick. “Fine, fine. Double the scouts and couriers until you find fresh news. I cannot sit around and wait.”
“At once, sir.” Alex bowed again.
“And, I want… ” Hallond paused, stumbled and then fell to his knees. He was on his palms, gasping for air, a look of terrified shock plastered on his face. “No… it cannot be!”
Everyone came to the King’s side to attend to his needs. Chief Alex took his arm, but surprisingly the King pulled away, denying his assistance. Alana dared not touch the King. “Sire, are you okay?” she asked from a distance.
“I… I cannot believe it,” the King said, forcing the words through his raspy breaths. “An active Dragonwand,” he whispered. “Somebody has found it.”
“Sire, what did you say?” Alana asked.
Slamming his fist into the hard ground he cursed aloud, “Damn you, Morris! You failed me!”
“Sir? Captain Morris isn’t here,” one of his guards said.
&nb
sp; “DON’T YOU THINK I KNOW THAT!” Hallond yelled. He shook his head. “Help me up, now!”
All of the guards rushed to help him to his feet. Once up, he shoved them aside and made his way into his quarters. He slammed the door shut behind him.
***
Hallond paced his quarters. Filled with fear, he began to panic. “What do I do? How do I stop this child from interfering?” He walked over to the vanity near the water closet. Hours after assuming this body, he had ordered a large bronze mirror brought to his room from the tower. It was the only connection he had between the hidden grave site of the other cultists and the outside world. He spoke in a dark tongue and a light flashed across the surface. Through the portal, all he could see was the dark cave and some of the coffins of the fallen wizards. But, he knew they were there. “The Dragonwand is activated. Someone has it in their possession and I doubt it is Captain Morris.”
“You old fool!” an old woman’s voice boomed in the cave. “You left such an important task up to an idiot human like Morris!”
Hallond practically growled. “Morris is ruthless, loyal, and never have I known him to fail.”
“We too sensed the Dragonwand’s activation. It is in the hands of the same person who controls the wand of Tolen.”
Hallond was enraged. “The boy!”
“That is what we sensed. Have you no senses in this? Surly you know this to be true?”
Hallond looked away, angry at the failings of his pathetic body. “No, I do not have the same senses as before.”
An old woman’s voice shrieked. “KILL THE CHILD!”
“I don’t know where he is!” Hallond was on the verge of yelling back, but controlled his tone, certain that others were listening outside his quarters.
Legacy of Dragonwand: Book 2 (Legacy of Dragonwand Trilogy) Page 11