Wrath of the Dragon Czar: Aegis of Merlin Book 5
Page 18
Actually he hadn’t thought about it all that much. Probably just as well. “Sorry. On the bright side Anya’s mom is safe and the people that wanted her captured are out of power so she’s safe as well. All in all a good outcome.”
“So where is Anya now, resting in her room?” Maria sat back down and he settled in beside her, throwing a wink at Kelsie who grinned back.
“She’s still back there. Now that no one’s after her, Anya’s not sure if she wants to come back to the academy or stay with her mother. They’re going to discuss it tonight.”
“So you have to go back?” She sounded more weary than upset.
“For sure. There’s still a lot of work to do. I’d offer to bring you along, but until I figure out how to travel through a realm other than Hell, it’s too risky.” He turned to Kelsie. “Do you want to come, meet some friendly vampires?”
She held up both hands. “I’ll pass, thanks.”
He grinned. “Okay. If nothing else it looks like you’ll get your couch back for winter break.”
She brightened. “That’ll be nice. Your mom makes the best breakfasts.”
“Got that right.”
They talked for a while about inconsequential things. Maria had discovered she had a knack for combining water magic and light magic for healing which impressed her teachers. Kelsie was managing with earth magic, but she worried she wouldn’t master her spells fast enough to pass the midterm.
For an hour he forgot about vampires, dragon-blood warriors, unconscious witches, and secret societies. Then the pixies came to fetch everyone for their next class and it was time to head back.
11
Epilogue
When Conryu emerged from the Hell portal back in the vampire’s country it was still light out. A group of maybe a dozen people had gathered around the food tent and Anya was talking to them. He walked closer.
“So what we need to do is break down all but the tents we’ll need for the refugees. There are a hundred and thirty of them so count beds and mark the tents you’re going to keep. When Lord Talon wakes up, he’ll have more information for you.” She spotted Conryu and waved. “That’s all, thanks.”
“What was that about?” Conryu asked.
“I don’t know. They showed up an hour ago and said Lord Talon summoned them. I wasn’t sure what to do, so I put them to work. We need to get this camp cleaned up sooner or later.”
“Sooner. St. Seraphim taught me a spell that should wake them all up in one go. Speaking of awake, how’s Nosorova settling in?”
“Good, but she doesn’t have much stamina yet. She’s zonked out in one of the tents.”
Conryu cracked his knuckles. “Let’s see if we can get her some company.”
They walked over to where the unconscious witches – maybe he should think of them as former witches – lay unmoving on the ground.
He took a deep breath to settle himself. The words of the spell were simple enough, it was the intricate motions that really took his focus. When he’d run through the spell in his mind a couple times he cast, “Alarms rattle and rave. Thoughts race like lightning. Mass Alert!”
Like someone had sounded a giant bell, women started sitting up and staring around. Their gazes bounced around, failing to land for more than a second on anything. He caught Anya’s eye and nodded left. She went that way and he went right.
One by one they spoke to each woman, explaining what had happened. To a person they all imagined they were eighteen again, even one old enough to be his grandmother. For the newer witches it should be simple enough to wrap their minds around what happened, but how did a sixty-year-old make peace with losing more than half her life?
He didn’t know, but Conryu hoped Talon could use his powers to help them. Conryu’s part of the job had been easy compared to that.
Gradually, everyone made their way to the food tent. None of them had eaten in over a day so they had to be hungry. By the time the sun had set everyone had eaten their fill and the workers were finished taking down all but the necessary tents. A black mist appeared and Talon and Sasha solidified out of it.
“I see you got everyone up,” Talon said.
“Yeah, I had to learn a new spell to do it in one go, but the easy part is done now.”
“If that was the easy part, what’s the hard part?” Sasha asked.
“Finding everyone’s family and getting them reunited. I’m hoping I can work on it Sundays and maybe a few evenings since I really can’t skip any more classes.”
Talon smiled. “You don’t do anything halfway, do you?”
“My father says if you’re going to do something, do it with everything you’ve got.”
“A wise philosophy,” Talon said. “I’d like to meet your father someday. I suspect we’d get along.”
“How about Christmas dinner? You, Sasha, and Anya would all be welcome.”
Talon laughed. “A human inviting a vampire to a Christian celebration. That may be a first in my long life. We shall see. And thank you.”
“I almost forgot, I brought a magic tester from home.” Conryu dug the little device out of his robe and handed it to Talon. “If any of them are interested in resuming a life of magic, they can check themselves out with that.”
“I’ll let them know.”
Anya emerged from the food tent and trotted over. It was time for her to make a decision.
“I’m heading back,” Conryu said. “Are you coming or staying?”
Sasha raised an eyebrow. “What’s this about staying? You need to learn to use your magic and there’s no one to teach you here.”
“Now that we’re both safe, I don’t want to leave you again,” Anya said.
“I understand, kiska, but learning to use your magic is important. When you finish your studies, we can be together again. I have all the time in the world now.”
Anya looked away from her mother and chewed her lip, clearly with no idea what she should do.
“I’ll be coming back every Sunday to help the former witches find their families,” Conryu said. “You could come with me and spend some time with your mother.”
Anya brightened. “Would that be okay?”
“Of course,” Talon said. “Didn’t I tell you before that you’d be welcome anytime? I’m happy to extend that welcome to Conryu as well. He’s certainly proven himself a friend to us all.”
Conryu bowed. “Thank you, sir.”
Anya hugged her mother. “Until Sunday then. I love you, Mom.”
“I love you too, kiska. Study hard.”
“I will.”
Conryu covered her with a Cloak of Darkness and opened a portal. It was going to be a long autumn, but somehow he’d get those women back to their families.
Lady Wolf was resting and recovering from the Ritual of Severing when the house wards indicated a portal opening nearby. She slipped her replacement mask over her face and left her room. Lady Wolf reached the stairs in time to see Lady Tiger step through the door. She wore crimson robes in the eastern style that hung past her hands and hid every bit of skin from chin to toes. Lady Dragon joined her a moment later.
“What news?” Lady Dragon asked.
Lady Tiger shook her head. “I can’t reach the fragment. It’s currently being held in the most secure facility in the Kingdom. I doubt all of us together could break through their defenses.”
“That is not what I wanted to hear,” Lady Dragon said in the tone that usually meant trouble for the person she used it with.
“I know,” Lady Tiger said. “But I’ve worked out a strategy to claim it if we’re patient.”
“I’m listening.” She’d bought herself a momentary reprieve.
“This summer the London Museum of Magic is putting on a display of elf artifacts. The fools imagine they’re only displaying the least dangerous ones, as if there was such a thing as a safe piece of elf magic. Anyway, I learned the fragment will be a part of the display. It seems they’re hoping to take advantage of the influx
of tourists.”
“Why?” Lady Wolf asked. “What’s happening this summer?”
“It’s the Kingdom’s turn to host the Four Nations Tournament. Magic fans by the thousands will be pouring into the city. With the proper planning it will be the perfect time to snatch the artifact.”
“You’ve done well, Lady Tiger. And while any delay rankles, we will succeed in the end. I leave this matter in your hands. Complete your mission and I will tell Morgana of your part in her rescue myself. Fail, and I will have you replaced.”
“I will not fail. This summer the fragment will be ours.”
Author Notes
Nothing like a war between vampires and dragon monsters to get the blood pumping. This story was a lot of fun for me to write and I hope you enjoyed it as well. In our next story Conryu gets roped into joining the Academy Team for The Four Nations Tournament. It seems rating aren’t what they used to be and he’s been chosen as the star attraction. The lethal Lady Tiger is also in London on a quest to obtain the other half of the broken elf artifact. It should be an exciting story and I hope you’ll join me. Until next time.
Thanks for reading,
James E. Wisher
Also by James E Wisher
The Aegis of Merlin:
The Impossible Wizard
The Awakening
The Chimera Jar
The Raven’s Shadow
Escape From the Dragon Czar
Wrath of the Dragon Czar
The Four Nations Tournament
Soul Force Saga
Disciples of the Horned One Trilogy:
Darkness Rising
Raging Sea and Trembling Earth
Harvest of Souls
Other Fantasy Novels:
Death and Honor Omnibus
The Squire
About the Author
James E. Wisher is a writer of science fiction and Fantasy novels. He’s been writing since high school and reading everything he could get his hands on for as long as he can remember. This is his sixteenth novel.
To learn more:
www.jamesewisher.com
james@jamesewisher.com