Tales from the New Earth: Volume Two

by J. J. Thompson

  With a heavy sigh, the wizard nodded.

  “Thank you. I'm sorry for throwing that into your face. I know it wasn't your fault. Good bye, Argentium.”

  “Farewell, my friend.”

  Without waiting for orders, Aethos began to descend. He wasn't dropping Simon as quickly as he'd elevated him, but it still felt close to falling as far as the wizard was concerned.

  “Try not to flatten me when we hit the ground,” he said as he gritted his teeth.

  “No promises,” Aethos replied merrily. “Hang on!”

  Like I have a choice, Simon thought as he watched the ground rushing toward him.

  They were still about a hundred feet up when he suddenly had an idea.

  “Wait. Stop!” he cried out.

  They stopped descending immediately and Simon's head snapped forward and then back.

  “Ouch!”

  “Oops, sorry about that. But you did say to stop.”

  “Yeah, stop. Not give me whiplash.”

  “I am sure that you are fine, sir wizard. So why have we stopped?”

  Simon was watching the queen as she mindlessly continued to fight with Aethos' people. Even from the height they were floating at, she still looked huge.

  “I just thought of something. Kassus and two of his people were planning on surrounding the queen with rock, to immobilize her for a few moments. She's obviously too strong to hold for long, but we were going to lure her closer to the castle, surround her body with thick stone, all except for her head, and then have you and your people, the dwarves, the archers, me, the other magic-users and, hell, even the warriors, attack her all at once. She's already blind in one eye and I thought that if we could take out the other one, or even strike deeply enough to land a fatal blow, the battle would be over.”

  “Risky,” Aethos said soberly. “Very risky. If we fail, I'm guessing that she would head straight for the castle and level it. And kill as many of your people as she could at the same time.”

  “I know that. It's a desperate move, but we are running out of options.”

  “Thank you for telling me. My brethren and I will join in the attack, of course. Is that why we stopped, so that you could explain the plan to me?”

  “Not exactly, no. I have a question, actually. If you took me back up, say to a height of about a thousand feet, flipped me over and then headed straight toward the ground as fast as you could, how much of an impact would I make? I mean, obviously you would need to let me go before you smacked into the ground as well.”

  Aethos seemed to be speechless for a moment, as it took him a few seconds to answer the question.

  “Are you serious?” he asked faintly. “You would be pulverized, turned into mush. You must know that.”

  “Would I leave a hole?”

  “A hole? Of course you would leave a hole! Do you have any idea just how fast an air elemental can move? If I just dropped you from that height, it would leave a dent in the Earth. But to slam you into the ground at top speed? Sir wizard, what exactly are you thinking of doing?”

  “I'm going to kill the dragon queen, any way that I can. And now I know how to do it. Probably. Hmm, I need to talk to Kassus. Can I get my staff off of my back while you're supporting me?”

  “Be my guest.”

  Simon slipped the staff from his shoulder and held it tightly with both hands. He closed his eyes and pictured the earth elemental's face in as much detail as he could. When he was sure that he was locked on to it, he began speaking.

  “Kassus, can you hear me?”

  “Sir wizard? Is that you?”

  The large earthen's voice was so clear that he could have been standing a few feet away.

  “It is. I'm glad to see that this trick still works. I've only used it a few times. Now, tell me, are you and the others ready to implement our plan?”

  “Yes, of course. We are underneath the field and we can hear the queen engaged above us. We can go at any time.”

  “Good. Wait until there is a lull in the battle, which we know won't last for very long, and then go for it.”

  “You have readied the others?” Kassus asked.

  “No, I'm going to try something else. Good luck and be careful.”

  “And you as well, sir wizard.”

  Simon broke the connection.

  “Okay, take me up, Aethos.”

  They didn't move.

  “I can't remember the last time that I disobeyed a wizard. The last of your kind that I served, millennia ago, was an easy-going woman who liked to chat and owned several cats. She rarely asked for anything except my company. However, I was summoned over the years by a few wizards who ordered me to commit deeds that I simply would not do. You are not a tyrant, like they were, and you do not treat my kind as slaves. For that alone, you have won the loyalty of all who serve you, including me. And because of that loyalty, and the affection that I feel for you personally, I will not allow you to kill yourself needlessly, Simon O'Toole.”

  Simon had to smile at the elemental's reasoning, even as he knew that the clock was ticking and that Kassus could strike at any time.

  “Aethos, I don't have a death wish, believe me. I love life far too much to want to throw it away senselessly. Please ascend and, once we reach the proper height, I will explain what I mean to do. You don't have to let me go at that point if you still disagree with me.”

  The elemental hesitated and then they began to rise again.

  “Very well, there can be no harm in that, I suppose.”

  “Thank you.”

  At a certain height, a person loses their perspective and it is impossible to tell how high they actually are. So when the two of them stopped again and floated lightly on the wind, Simon had to take Aethos' word that they were a thousand feet above the ground.

  “Okay, I'm going to change my structure somewhat,” the wizard told him. “Be ready.”

  “You're going to what?”

  Simon held up his staff.

  “Diamond Skin,” he said.

  His skin crackled and chimed as it altered from flesh to glittering diamond. He suddenly bore a striking resemble to the earthen, Forrse. He also became several hundred pounds heavier and Aethos grunted in surprise as they dropped a dozen feet.

  “Whoops!” he exclaimed. “That was unexpected. Well, well, well. I haven't seen that spell in ages.”

  He laughed in relief.

  “Now I understand. You are practically invulnerable while enchanted with Diamond Skin. Wonderful. You have become a rather deadly projectile, sir wizard.”

  “That's what I'm hoping,” Simon agreed.

  He looked at Mortis de Draconis and gripped the staff tightly.

  “Time to live up to your name, Slayer of Dragons,” he whispered to it.

  “Aethos,” he continued. “I know how powerful your eyesight is. Will you be able to tell when the queen is immobilized?”

  “Yes, of course. She continues to fight at the moment though.”

  “Okay. Now the big question. Can you accurately strike at her head from this height if it is locked into place? We will only get one shot at this.”

  “I can, yes. With your weight now, I can line you up perfectly as I descend. You are assuming that a significant blow to the head can actually kill her, you know.”

  “She may look like a worm from up here, Aethos, but she isn't. Like all dragons, her brain is located in her head, not somewhere else in her body. If we damage it enough, she will die. I guarantee it.”

  And I'm not even going to think about the headache I'll have afterwards, Simon thought to himself.

  Diamond Skin might make him invulnerable, but he was quite certain that he'd have a concussion as a reward for this crazy stunt.

  “Something's happening,” Aethos said, interrupting his thoughts.

  The wizard looked down at the snake-like form of the queen and saw that she had stopped twisting and thrashing completely. But he couldn't make out any details.

  “Is i
t Kassus?” he asked anxiously.

  “I think so. Yes. Yes, it is. Well now, that's ingenious. She is literally encased in stone. And she is not happy about it. Oh my, she's spewing poison everywhere! Fortunately no one is close enough to be harmed by it. All right, sir wizard. This is your moment. Are you ready?”

  “I'm ready to end this madness, yes. I'm also scared to death, but let's get on with it.”

  “Very well. Best of luck. Here we go.”

  Simon was suddenly flipped upside down until he was facing the ground like a diver. Then with no hesitation, Aethos shot straight down at breath-taking speed.

  The wizard spared a thought for the watching dragons.

  What were they thinking, he wondered. Were they amused? Appalled? Or did they feel nothing at all?

  He cleared his mind and pointed his staff at the rapidly growing figure of the queen, holding it tightly as the wind buffeted him furiously.

  The air around him was literally screaming as his velocity increased and his crystal-like skin reddened with heat from air friction.

  Aurumallia grew and grew until she filled his sight and blocked out anything else. And then Aethos gave him a final fierce push and he slammed into the dragon's head, right into her rage-filled green eye.

  To Simon it was almost like diving into murky water. He felt some resistance and then slammed into the ground and continued descending into the Earth.

  Uh-oh, he thought fearfully. I'm not stopping. How the hell fast was I moving?

  Very fast, was the answer. He kept moving for at least ten seconds before finally coming to a reluctant halt. Around him, the embrace of the soil and rocks held him immobile.

  Crap, I can't breathe!

  He frantically focused on the first location that came to mind, the battlements of the castle.

  “Gate,” he managed to gasp around a mouthful of dirt.

  And then he lost consciousness.

  When he came to, the first thing that the wizard saw were the concerned faces of Tamara and Sebastian, and the reassuring smile of the cleric, Elaine.

  “Back in the land of the living, are we?” she asked cheerfully. “You're making a habit of this, Simon. You can start calling my infirmary your second home.”

  He smiled and almost immediately regretted it. His head felt like it was about to explode.

  “What happened?” he managed to say, barely above a whisper.

  “Well, according to that elemental, Aethos, you decided to use your own body as a bullet,” Tamara told him with a scowl. “Are you quite certain that the dragon queen's madness wasn't contagious? That is the stupidest thing that I have ever heard of, and I grew up with Sebastian!”

  “Hold on there, sis,” her brother protested. “You've done your fair share of strange things too, you know. Would you like a list?”

  “Hush. Not now, you two,” Elaine interrupted. “The last thing my patient needs is any loud noises.”

  The siblings glowered at each other but remained silent.

  “Good. Now Simon, I believe that you have a concussion; a rather severe one actually. And from my examination, two of your vertebrae were compressed by the force of the impact.”

  The wizard felt a moment of panic and Elaine must have read it on his face, because she hastened to reassure him.

  “Now now, don't look like that. You aren't facing any permanent damage and all of your motor skills are intact. But while the healing worked, you may be facing a long recovery anyway, to regain some of your old mobility. And I think that you are looking at some lingering discomfort as well.”

  “So I'm not paralyzed?” he asked nervously.

  “Certainly not. You will be a bit uncoordinated at first, and I wouldn't suggest that you do a lot of lifting, but you will be fine in time. After you go home, I suggest a lot of rest. Eat well, stay hydrated, all of that. All right?”

  “Thanks Elaine. You are a lifesaver, again.”

  “That's why I get the big bucks,” she said with a grin. “Now, I have rounds to do, but you are free to leave when you feel up to it; just take it slow at first.”

  She patted his hand and bustled off.

  “I love that woman,” Sebastian said fondly after she'd left the room.

  “That's because she mothers you,” Tamara scoffed. “Simon, I do apologize for berating you like that. You saved us all, again, and if your method was unorthodox, well, so be it.”

  “What happened? I passed out after I hit the ground.”

  “I'm not surprised, my dear wizard.”

  Simon rolled his head to the left and saw Aeris standing on the side table next to Kronk. Both looked concerned.

  “Aethos told us that you were moving at the highest speed that one of my people can achieve, and that is saying something.”

  “Somehow you managed to Gate back to the castle, master,” Kronk added. “Your Diamond Skin spell faded after you returned and we got you to the cleric as quickly as we could.”

  “And the queen?”

  “Dead,” Tamara said with great satisfaction. “You hit the ground so hard that it looked and sounded like a bomb had gone off. The crater you made is quite impressive.”

  “I left a crater? How am I still alive?”

  “An angel on your shoulder maybe?” Sebastian said whimsically. “All we know is that you vaporized the queen's head and most of the forward portion of her body. The rest ended up being blasted into the forest. I don't know how we're going to dispose of it. Burning won't work. Bury it, I suppose. It'll take months.”

  “I have to see it,” Simon said.

  He sat up slowly, trying not to move his head, and slipped his legs over the edge of the bed. He was relieved to see that Elaine had dressed him in a new robe; the old one had probably been ruined.

  “I don't know if that's a good idea right now,” Tamara warned him. “You're concussed and still recovering. And the battlements are a long walk from here.”

  “Then I would appreciate a lift from one of you mages, if you please.”

  Before he could push himself to his feet, Kronk jumped off of the table, picked something up off of the floor nearby and offered it to him.

  “Take this, master,” he urged. “For support.”

  It was Mortis de Draconis. The staff looked a little dull and some of the metal casing was scratched, but other than that it seemed intact.

  “Thanks Kronk,” Simon said with relief. “I think I'll need that.”

  With his staff and a helpful hand from Sebastian, the wizard managed to stand up and remain upright, with only a hint of a wobble.

  “Shall we?”

  Tamara shook her head in exasperation and took his free hand.

  “Why are all the men around me so stubborn?” she lamented.

  “Because you bring out the worst in us,” her brother teased.

  She ignored him and intoned the Gate spell.

  “Aeris, Kronk, grab hold,” Simon told the elementals.

  Tamara waited until they were touching the wizard's robe and invoked the spell.

  A moment later they were standing on the heights. A cool evening breeze was blowing from the direction of the forest and Simon breathed deeply, feeling happy to be alive.

  “How long was I out?” he asked as he looked up at the darkening sky. There was no sign of the dragons.

  “About three or four hours, I'd say,” the mage replied. “Your elemental friends departed after confirming that the queen was dead and that you were going to be fine.”

  She walked slowly beside Simon as he limped toward the front of the battlements.

  “Oh and our draconian observers left as soon as the queen fell. It was quite odd too; one minute they were there and the next they were gone.”

  “According to Argentium, they wanted to see who won. Well, now they know.”

  He stopped at the edge of the wall and stared across the field. Despite the falling darkness, it was still easy to see all the way to the forest.

  “Whoa. Did I d
o that?”

  “You most certainly did. Scared the crap out of all of us when it happened.

  Simon was staring at a crater. It was about twenty feet deep and fifty feet across. Tamara had been right; it looked like someone had dropped a bomb out there.

  He peered around, looking for the queen's remains, and felt a bit sick as he confirmed that she had indeed been torn apart.

  Most of her huge body had been blasted out of the field entirely and was lying on top of crushed trees to the east. Her head was gone completely. The ground was painted with thick blood and bubbling green poison, and smoke and steam were wafting out of the crater.

  “Looks like old pictures I saw as a child of the Blitz,” Sebastian commented. He had Gated in right behind them. “Without the blood, of course.”

  “Simon, you saved us,” Tamara said. “You saved us all, again.”

  She squeezed his hand and the wizard did his best to squeeze back, weak though he was.

  “We all did it together,” he corrected her as he let go. “The people we lost here, those creatures of Chao's that fell, my elementals, all of us contributed, not just me.”

  “But you did the lion's share, master,” Kronk averred.

  Simon smiled down at the little guy who had hurried over to watch out for him.

  “As usual. But he never takes credit where credit is due, does he?” Aeris chimed in.

  The wizard rolled his eyes.

  “That's because it was a group effort. And speaking of groups, I wonder what the dragons are going to do now?”

  “That remains to be seen.”

  That voice, echoing with power, was very familiar to Simon and when he looked slowly to his right, he wasn't surprised by what he saw.

  Argentium stood there, towering over everyone, in his gleaming silver armor. Behind him stood the five young dragons in human form, all as expressionless as the last time that he had seen them.

  The argent dragon stepped forward a few paces until he was looking down at Simon, his silver hair swirling around his face in the brisk wind.

  “So you succeeded, young one,” he said calmly. “You defeated Aurumallia, just as I suspected you would.”

  “Did you? That wasn't the impression that I got earlier,” Simon replied evenly.