They began walking slowly across the courtyard, with the elementals following quietly behind them.
“I think that my problems are minor compared to the attacks you guys faced here. I'm fine. So you haven't seen any sign of the necromancer since that last attack?”
“None. And it's making me nervous.”
Simon raised an eyebrow.
“You? Nervous? I didn't even know that was possible.”
Liliana chuckled, walked on a few paces and stopped. She turned toward him with a serious look on her face.
“There's something going on, Simon. I can't put my finger on it but there is a tension in the air and it is building. We are all in danger; those of us here at Nottinghill, you, the people on the Defiant. Everyone. I'm sure that there are pockets of humanity still out there that we aren't even aware of who are threatened as well.”
“By what? What do you know, Liliana?”
The paladin made an exasperated gesture as she looked up at the walls that loomed over the central courtyard.
“I don't know anything. I believe that the gods are giving me a warning, but are being limited by the Chaos lords. They cannot reach me in my dreams to give me more details, so they are doing what they can.”
“By making you nervous? That's not very reliable.”
Liliana began walking again, heading toward a set of stairs that led upward.
“Yes, I know. And that makes it worse somehow. Now I know you will probably say no to this, but how would you like to move to the castle for a week or two? I tell you, my friend, we are all in greater danger than we realize.”
Simon waited until they had climbed the narrow staircase and reached the wide parapet that followed the walls of the castle. He took a moment to catch his breath as he looked out over the surrounding countryside.
The rich forests around the castle were still obscured by a thin morning fog but the scent of new leaves and fresh grass was invigorating.
“Liliana, I respect you and your powers,” he finally replied. “And I know the reality of the gods of Justice. But a vague feeling of unease isn't enough to convince me to abandon my home and retreat to this castle. No offense.”
She shook her head and gave him an understanding smile.
“None taken. I don't really blame you. But I'm not asking this just for your protection, but for the protection of the people of Nottinghill. We have three mages here as well as myself and a cleric. And Virginia and the others, of course. Add a wizard of your abilities and I don't know that there is anything the dark gods can throw at us that we can't counter.”
“There is something to what the lady paladin is saying,” Aeris said. He was floating a few feet away and rippling in the brisk wind.
Simon looked at Kronk, who had jumped up on top of the low wall and was listening quietly.
“What do you think?” he asked the earthen.
“Me, master? My opinion is not necessary. You must make this decision. I will follow you wherever you go.”
“I will as well,” Aeris added stoutly.
“Thanks guys. I know you will.”
All of them turned as someone began shouting down in the courtyard.
A group of guardsmen, wearing chain mail armor and carrying spears, were lining up. In front of them was the unmistakable figure of Malcolm, his plate armor gleaming in the sun.
“What going on?” Simon asked as he watched.
“Just the changing of the guard. They are on four hour shifts. It must be high noon.”
“Ah. Gotcha.”
They watched as the group separated, half heading indoors while the other half climbed the stairs to man the walls.
“Well organized,” Simon commented.
“They are. We can thank Malcolm and Aiden for that. They arrange the schedules, train anyone who wants to learn and set a very good example with their work ethic. Admirable men, both of them.”
“They are that.”
Several of the guards, men and women both, walked by Simon and Liliana. They saluted respectfully and tried not to stare at the elementals as they passed.
“So what do you say, my friend?” the paladin asked after several minutes had passed. “I am not going to hound you about this, but it is only for a week or two.”
Simon looked at her quizzically. He slipped his staff off of his shoulder and leaned back against the low wall.
“You think it will only be a week or two,” he replied. “But like you've said yourself, you are asking based on a feeling. What if I moved here temporarily and after that time had passed, the feeling was still strong. Would you want me to stay for another week? And then another?”
“I...”
The paladin seemed to be at a loss for words. She looked down and frowned, tapping her fingers on the sword hilt on her hip.
“That's a valid point,” she admitted somewhat grudgingly. “And the truth is, I don't know. Probably yes. If the threat still exists and is as pervasive as it is now, I would probably ask you to stay longer.”
“Then my answer has to be no, Liliana,” Simon told her regretfully. “As you noted earlier, a castle is not a comfortable place for me to be. Living with others is difficult for me and it always has been. Maybe it's because of what I am now, or maybe it's part of my old self. I don't know. What I do know is that being here for more than a day or two would drive me crazy. And it's not you or the people here. It's me. Call me odd or whatever; that is how I feel.”
Liliana shook her head.
“I would hardly call you odd, Simon. I lived outside of the castle for months, remember. I am only here now because of the threats to the people. If we ever reach a point in the future where things are safer, or at least less dire, I shall probably move out again.”
“I'm glad you understand. Now, both you and Tamara have lodestones and either of you can contact me immediately if there's an attack on the castle. I don't know if the last attacks were intentionally coordinated or not, but at a guess I'd say the odds of that happening again are slim. So if you need my help, just call on me, day or night. The castle's wards are attuned to me so Gating through them is no problem and I can be here in minutes. Surely the time saved by my living here won't be all that significant, will it?”
The paladin laughed and shook a finger at him.
“You are entirely too logical, do you know that? But you're right. Perhaps I was just being overly concerned for the castle and its people when I asked you to stay for a while.”
Simon pushed off the wall and slung Mortis de Draconis over his shoulder again.
“No you weren't, Liliana. You can never care too much for these Changlings. Don't you ever believe that. I feel the same way about them. You and I, we were created to be their protectors. I'm convinced of that now. Any of us who can use magic or prayer to defend our people have been gifted with those powers for that specific purpose. And we must never forget that. Call me if you need me and I will be here, I promise you.”
The paladin extended her gloved hand and Simon shook it firmly.
“You've eased my mind, my friend, and I thank you for that. I'm going to remain up here. Why not head down and seek out the seneschal? She will probably have your supplies ready by now.”
“I'll do that. I hope to see you again soon, Liliana.”
“I'm sure you will. Take care.”
The rest of the day passed quickly. The wizard spent about an hour speaking with Malcolm and Aiden. They swapped war stories about their battles with the undead. He also dropped in to see the quartet of friends, Virginia, Anna, Eric and Gerard. The four of them were busily involved in castle life. When Simon remembered the first time they had met and how traumatized they had been, he felt very proud of them.
Although they were busy with their various duties, everyone took some time to catch up. They had all grown as people but Anna was the most changed; she was more mature and outgoing than she had once been.
When Simon mentioned that, Anna gave him a mischievous grin.
“I was always like this,” she said lightly. “It just took me a bit longer to come out of my shell.”
Later, when he was taking his leave, Virginia took him aside for a quick word.
“Do you think this mess with the necromancers will be concluded quickly?” she asked him after a quick look over her shoulder to make sure that they were out of earshot of her friends.
“I have no idea. Why?”
Simon had forgotten just how beautiful Virginia was. It was a bit distracting, even though he wasn't really attracted to her.
“Because the four of us hope to get out and explore the world one day. Yes, I know,” she added as she saw his confusion. “We fit in here and love the place. But we're all getting restless as well. Our combined powers are growing and we want to find out what we can do away from the protection of the castle and its people. Does that sound strange?”
“Not at all. I think one reason I live alone is because I have the freedom to try new spells, new ways of manipulating magic. I'm not constantly worrying about the effects on others.”
He looked at the waiting elementals.
“My friends here are a lot more resilient than humans are and any accidents I might have do very little damage to them. If I lived here, I wouldn't have that kind of freedom.”
“I knew you'd understand,” Virginia said warmly.
“Just don't do anything hastily,” Simon warned her. “This insane situation with the undead may last for quite some time. And when you do leave, do me a favor and let me know, okay? Don't just disappear.”
She chuckled and gave him a quick hug.
“We wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you,” she told him. “And you two as well,” she added, looking at the elementals.
Both Aeris and Kronk smiled gratefully and bowed as one.
“So we won't just vanish, Simon. Now off you go. The world won't save itself, you know.”
He snorted a laugh, said his goodbyes and headed out.
It was late evening by the time Simon and the elementals returned home. He'd brought back a dozen bags of supplies including clothes, several bottles of wine and bundles of dried meat. He had decided on the preserved beef because it would last a lot longer.
“Well, that was productive,” he told Kronk and Aeris as they began putting things away.
The earthen had stoked the fire while Aeris filled the kettle and Simon lit the candles with a wave of his hand.
“It was indeed. Did you pick up any new information while we were there?” the air elemental asked as he hung the full kettle over the fire.
“Hints. People are uneasy. Well, you heard Liliana. If someone so brave is worried, it makes me nervous. We need some intelligence about what our enemies are up to. I hate flying blind.”
“What sort of intelligence, master?” Kronk asked over his shoulder as he carried several packages of dried meat toward the stairs.
“Well, for starters, where the hell are those necromancers? They've all disappeared; all of them. That's not good. How can we fight something if we don't even know where it is?”
Kronk nodded thoughtfully and headed down to the storage area with the packages.
“Can we help?” Aeris asked. “I mean myself and my people?”
Simon leaned his staff against the wall and picked up a couple of bags of clothing. He nodded slowly, thinking through the idea.
“Maybe. Let's talk about it after I put this stuff away.”
“Go ahead. Your tea should be ready when you come back.”
“Sounds good.”
A short time later, Simon was back downstairs curled into his comfy chair in front of the fireplace. He had changed into a fresh robe and new woolen socks and was sipping a hot cup of tea.
Everything had been put away and the elementals were each sitting on opposite arms of the chair. No one spoke for a while. Simon was tired after the trip and he enjoyed the warmth of the fire, thinking about nothing in particular.
“Have you given it some thought?” Aeris asked eventually.
“What?”
Simon blinked at him sleepily, feeling a bit muddled.
“Oh, right. The help you offered?”
Aeris nodded.
“What help is that?” Kronk asked him.
“Oh, our dear wizard is nervous about the disappearance of the necromancers. I am too, to be fair. So I thought that if we summoned more of my people and sent them out to scout, we might get lucky.”
“Get lucky?” the earthen said dubiously. “That is a bit vague, isn't it? Just tell them to head out into the world and poke around?”
Simon smiled at the little guy, while Aeris looked a little uncomfortable.
“Well yes, I suppose it is. But we do need to know where the necromancers are, don't we? Do you have a better idea?”
“I think I do, yes.”
There was a moment of silence while Kronk's answer filtered into Simon's sleepy brain. He sat up a bit and stared at the earthen.
“What? You think you have a way to track them down?”
“No master, I do not. But you do.”
“And what, pray tell, is that?” Aeris scoffed.
“Argentium. The argent dragon told you that if you should ever need his aid, all you had to do was call on him, master. I would wager that if anyone could find those necromancers, it is he.”
“Do you really think that calling on that creature, after what Esmiralla did to our wizard, is a good idea? You can't trust them!”
“Well now, someone's changed his tune,” Simon said with a little grin.
Aeris glowered at him.
“Yes, I have. I lost my reverence for the silver dragon when she betrayed you for her own benefit.”
“I do not trust her either,” Kronk assured him. “But I am speaking of the argent dragon. Even we earthen know that he sacrificed himself for the greater good. And the three of us saw how he reacted when he learned of Esmiralla's treachery. I think that we can trust him, at least somewhat.”
Simon forced himself to consider asking the great dragon for help. He still did not trust the silver dragon and probably never would. But Kronk was right; Argentium was another matter entirely. For the first time since he'd had contact with the dragon, he wondered what he and Esmiralla had been up to since they had disappeared that fateful night.
Had they taken the fight to the red dragons? Or had they been biding their time, planning, scheming. He simply didn't know enough about how such creatures thought to even hazard a guess.
“I'll think about it, Kronk,” he said carefully. “It's a big decision. Letting those two into our lives again might not be for the best.”
“As you wish, master. It was just a thought, after all.”
“I know. Let me sleep on it.”
Chapter 26
That night Simon had a dream. He dreamt that he was floating high above the world. He could see far, to every corner of the globe. And from every direction, a darkness advanced; creeping forward into every valley and over every hill. Horrific shapes moved within the darkness, choking fumes rose up around it and the world withered as it came.
“No, I have to stop it,” the wizard moaned in his sleep.
He tossed and turned, flinging his blankets to the floor. His body began to glow with a silver aura as he started sweating and panting in the grip of his nightmare.
Simon suddenly gasped and flung up his hands, trying to protect himself from something that only he could see. The entire tower seemed to convulse in response to his fear and the walls cracked and groaned; dust trickling down from the ceiling.
“What is happening?” someone yelled from outside.
Aeris and Kronk burst into the tower and stopped, looking around frantically. A shout from above them was followed by another shudder of the tower. Pieces of calking popped out of the joints in the walls and the building seemed to rise up several inches and then settle into the earth again with a loud groan.
“Master!” Kronk bello
wed and raced for the stairs.
Aeris shot by him, flew up the steps and into the bedroom. He stopped and gaped at the wizard.
Simon was floating several feet above his bed. His naked body was engulfed in crackling energy, like lightning running up and down his limbs. He was pulsing with silvery light.
“What is happening?” Kronk asked as he ran into the room. “Master?”
A sobbing groan came from the levitating wizard and he covered his face with his hands.
“He can't hear you. He's dreaming,” Aeris told the earthen. “And whatever he's dreaming about, it's obviously horrible.”
“Then we must wake him!” Kronk said and moved forward.
“Wait! Are you insane? If you touch him, he could lash out in his sleep and kill you.”
“Master would never hurt me,” the little guy said stoutly.
Simon jerked and twitched and dropped a few inches. The tower creaked alarmingly.
“Not awake he wouldn't. But he's asleep, Kronk. He's not in his right mind.”
The earthen stared at Simon and reached out toward him.
“Then what can we do? This nightmare could harm him. And it may bring the tower down around us.”
“Hang on! I have an idea.”
Aeris shot out of the room and Kronk was left alone, helplessly watching Simon's suffering.
“Hold on, master. Hold on!” he cried.
Another shout from the wizard drew Kronk forward. He wanted to ease his master's pain but he didn't know how. Aeris was right though. Asleep, Simon's power could destroy even an earth elemental and he would never even know he'd done it.
Less than a minute passed and Aeris zoomed back in the bedroom carrying a large pot by its handle.
“What are you doing with that?” Kronk asked, puzzled.
“Waking him up. Stand back and wish me luck.”
“But...”
Aeris flew upward until he was floating over Simon. He lifted the pot and poured out its contents.
Several gallons of ice cold water splashed down on to the floating wizard and a burst of silver light flung the elemental backwards violently. Aeris slammed into the ceiling. The empty pot flew from his hands and banged and rolled through the doorway and out of the room.
The Dragons of Argent and Silver (Tales from the New Earth #6) Page 32