by N. Saraven
“But we do not know anything about how he actually … came back to life. He couldn’t say anything sensible.” The black mage shrugged. He seemed calmer now, as he slowly returned to his usual self. Only his pale skin and his glaring blue eyes showed the truth. No further firmness or roughness remained in his motions which could give away the turmoil inside. Although he did drink a great deal of that nomad wine …
“Because I don’t know anything specific about that either.” Talek shrugged. “Maybe you should ask somebody else. I think you guessed that I didn’t make it back on my own.”
The paragon seemed off when he talked about this matter. His gaze became far off, his thoughts obviously somewhere else. Then he inhaled deeply and shrugged again. This motion seemed to agree with him a lot.
“So better not ask me about this. I only have a job to do, and what comes after that …” He raised both brows in uncertainty. “Maybe I can stay, maybe I have to go back, at best I can choose. Anyway, if you find something, do tell.”
Silence. Astonished silence.
“That’s it …?” gasped Neila, shaking her head. She wiped off Halgor’s hand from her shoulder, jumped up, and started to pace around the room. It was an old habit of hers, and even with her shaky motions, she seemed fine enough now.
Talek watched her with mirth in his eyes. A wave of nostalgia came over him. He was not allowed to tell anything more, nor could he really do so, even if he wanted to. But when he saw the golden eyes catch the empty wall, his smile grew wider.
“Yes, you’re on the right track.” The paragon broke the momentary silence. All eyes were on him again.
“But … well … this has gone too far! What happened to the we-mustn’t-interfere rule?” snapped Neila as she folded her arms.
“So He has brought you back?” asked Halgor. Talek gave him a side look.
“One of them, but not Setal, no.”
“Then who?”
“I can see now that you haven’t checked out the medallion that I had with me. Who do you think would help me get into Varomor? Well, He wouldn’t …” Talek shook his head, mimicking the elven’s tone of the God of Good.
Neila glanced at Halgor questioningly. The elven’s eyes became foggy for a moment as he sent out an impulse, maybe to an apprentice—most probably to Eryn, who always answered almost immediately. Anyhow, the wraith came by a few moments later. He put down the silver medallion next to the wine bottle. Then he bowed and left to continue from where he was interrupted.
Neila examined the jewellery with caution. She did not overlook the fact that Halgor had not touched it at all. Normally he himself would go to get such an important thing, or at least take it from the wraith.
The medal seemed to be very simple; only a carved sign occupied its middle. However, when Neila held out her hand to pick it up, it started to shine with such a glare it hurt the Master’s mind. She jerked back her hand, and the light disappeared. She became astonished by the happenings, as she watched the medallion from afar. The sign seemed familiar.
Talek broke her thoughts.
“Yes, it got me all the way here, and would’ve gotten me through the Mist, if that wretched shadow dragon and its minions hadn’t chased me until I collapsed. I don’t understand, however, why it’s reacting to you like that.”
“Shadow dragon …?” asked Halgor dubiously.
“Whose sign is this?” said Neila at the same time.
“Yes, shadow dragon, but not Indrek. Who, by the way, is also a black reptile, a cursed one at that, if you hadn’t known it yet. Anyhow, he’d sent out one of his cracked drakes … I mean, minions, to get me. Your little Pet-guard probably liked it as a bite. And, no, you didn’t slay all shadow dragons.” Talek answered the question in advance, when he saw the elven open his mouth. “So, that is that. And for the other question: you should remember, so do so.”
He finished for now. He got himself a little bowl of fruit salad which stood on the table beside him. He munched contently as he watched his friends think.
“Yes, I remember now,” muttered Neila. “I saw it in Setal’s temple when I visited it with Veilon.”
“With Veilon …?” cut in Halgor with a disapproving stare. Neila immediately regretted her blabber. The two dark mages were enemies almost from the beginning, so it was not wise to mention the paragon out loud. Neila just gave an apologetic smile and shrugged, saying it happened a long time ago. But Halgor could not be dismissed so easily, so before a fight broke out between them, Talek intervened.
“Perfect memory,” he said with his mouth full. “And …”—he swallowed—“to be precise, you saw all four signs of Them. So …” He took another bite, but just before he said a word. As a result, four runes appeared in mid-air in the middle of the room. Each shone in a different colour.
“So, the first is Yverion’s rune,” continued Talek, waving his fork absently.
“Blue suits it,” Neila cut in, which earned her the paragon’s frown. She gave a faint smile and shrugged, meaning that everything was starting to get back to normal. Talek understood and also smiled as he spoke.
“The next green one belongs to Arisha, the red to Setal, and I think you can guess the black one.”
“So Arisha’s brought you back. But why?” mused Halgor.
As they discussed this further, he also got himself a little salad. It seemed appropriate to eliminate the effects of the wine. Then he made himself comfortable in the last armchair.
Regardless, when Neila finished staring at the floating signs, she sat on the elven’s lap. Then, paying no attention whatever to his complaining, she took the two-tine fork out of his hand and started eating his salad.
Talek could not do anything but smile seeing them like this. This was the only time so far that the mages actually showed their relationship in front of somebody. They had been very careful before, even amidst their friends. Now, on the other hand, they behaved almost … lively.
Halgor put his left arm around Neila’s waist, while he argued with her. However, she did not pay any attention to him. At one point she even jerked his pointy ears to show her disagreement in the subject. She did this with a charming smile, nonetheless, as she fed him almost every other bite. The elven complained further, even though he got more than enough from the salad. They obviously adored each other and did not mean anything seriously.
Talek thought the little scene was terribly cute.
The peace was disturbed by a knock on the door. The Masters sensed the impulse in their minds, which urged them to answer. Something must have happened, otherwise Eryn would not dare to intervene like this.
Halgor opened the door with his mind. The apprentice entered, then bowed even to Talek. If he was surprised by his Masters’ behaviour, he did not show it.
“Masters,” the wraith started. His whisper was hardly audible; however, his gaze showed uncertainty. “Something … turned up …”
“What happened?” asked Neila firmly, although her sincerity was completely ruined by a piece of fruit which slowly slid down on the fork. It landed with a small splash in the bowl.
“A spy came in, saying that one of Indrek’s messengers is spreading the news that if anybody has anything to do with a bright dragon who has been captured they should step up now, or else the dragon will be executed at first light tomorrow. If somebody gave sanctuary to the dragon’s companions, they will be severely punished.”
“Bright dragon …?” Halgor glanced at Neila. He looked astonished. She blushed.
“Cameron was captured. We … got separated in the city. He didn’t know whom we visited, and he probably couldn’t alert me without being discovered. So …” She gulped. Her golden eyes showed concern. As much as she feared for her best friend, she felt more ashamed of forgetting him so ‘easily’.
“So it would be almost impossible to save him …” Halgor finished the thought.
15. The escape
The dragon lay quietly in his prison.
Pictures fl
ew by his eyes, remnants of a lost life—his younghood, his first fight with another male to impress a female, his decisions to leave his original land …
He could feel the beloved scents of his Homeland, which now meant nothing. One by one, all the memories faded, as the dragon slowly gave in to Death. He could feel Him, standing above, watching, waiting. He whispered with such a soothing voice; it was difficult to resist anymore.
He had lost hope ages ago; he did not even know how long he had been here. It had lost its importance. He knew that his suffering would end soon. So he just waited in the dark, could not even think anymore. Not that he was in the mood.
The dragon decided it was time for him to go. He had lived his life without any regrets, which was more than anybody else he knew. He did not even feel sorry for the coming ages that he could not live through. It felt good to rest. He earned it.
Abruptly, a great rumble trembled the cave and his body, albeit it felt too distant for him to actually feel it. He concentrated on the setting Sun in his mind. He knew that it was not real, still it seemed beautiful. The most gorgeous Sunset he had ever seen—the very last one. The golden rays of light caressed him like cool water on a warm summer night.
He closed his eyes, letting himself merge with the shining.
The dragon’s mind awakened slowly. He only sensed at first that he was lying on the hard ground. But now it hurt. It felt uncomfortably rigid, even for him. Maybe because he lay in a very uncomfortable position—one of his wing-joints ached, and he felt a rock under his belly. Albeit the most unusual thing was that he smelt fresh air. Also, he heard voices. Real voices, not ghost-whispers like before. This cannot be. How could anybody find me …? the dragon asked himself.
His prison was as solid as the mountain itself, strengthened by great magic. He himself could not tear down the walls, so it seemed unlikely that somebody else had managed to do so.
This was more than peculiar, so the dragon decided to look into the matter. He tried to open his eyes, but they only managed halfway, and his vision seemed blurry. He gave his best, given the situation, to actually see something, yet a bright light almost blinded him. Maybe he got into the realm of the Gods, he thought. Then he dismissed the idea. Even if it were true, why would there be such light?
The dragon tried to focus more. Slowly, he could manage to separate some lines and shapes. He soon realised that the cave actually was gloomy. Regardless, he had lived so much time in total darkness that his eyes could not work even in the faintest light. For a few moments, fear got a hold of him. Would that light blind him? Could he heal himself afterwards?
It had never happened before, and the dragon really did not want to try it out.
On the other hand, he wanted to see, wanted information about the happenings. Thus he forced himself to find more energy to function. Even more focusing finally gave results—he could identify the wall in front of him: bare, hard, and grey, just as he saw it in his mind by magic. He also spotted one of his paws, which he now tried to move. He managed a small jerk.
Yet it drew some attention …
“It seems like he’s trying to recover. But he’s very weak.” The dragon heard a male voice. From the accent, it should be a kobold. He then saw somebody crouching in front of him. A knee with a lower arm on it—those were the only things the dragon could spot of the man.
“What do you expect? If he’s been in here for half the time we suspect, that would be more than enough for him to be exhausted.” It was a woman, a human maybe. As a result, the knee and the hand disappeared from his sight.
“Anyhow, we need to hurry. We haven’t got much time.” It was a third, also male voice, perhaps an elven.
The dragon became amazed. Somehow three people had found him and apparently wanted to free him. It was impressive.
The dragon closed his eyes, inhaled a deep breath, then fell asleep.
“Bah! It’s useless …” snapped Talek when he saw the dragon dozing off again. He swayed his head, mumbling about ‘not a good sign’. He wiped away a strand of short hair, which somehow got out from under his silver headband.
“No need to worry, he only needs a little help,” said Neila, then she stepped to the reptile. She put her hand on his forehead, closed her eyes, and concentrated. Sometimes she murmured something, while the kobold gave an irritated sigh behind her.
“We might be too late. I cannot see how he’ll survive,” added Talek. “But we shouldn’t stay here for long either. There’s very strong magic in these walls.”
“He prevailed over it, remember?” mocked Halgor, but somehow it sounded more like pity.
Neila interrupted them.
“We don’t have to wait for long.” She started to stand up, but she suddenly wobbled. The elven stepped by her to help her sit down a little farther away. “He is truly exhausted, but I think he’ll wake up soon.”
The men exchanged doubtful looks.
At first, the two Masters did not want to come here at all. When they returned to the problem of Cameron’s imprisonment, they started to discuss what they could do. At one point, however, Talek interrupted them by telling a story about a dragon in a cave, somewhere far, far away. It was such an incredibly ridiculous tale, which made the mages believe that the kobold had lost his mind during his return from death.
Halgor and Neila just shook their heads hearing about this. Nobody would ever imprison a dragon, but even if one did, how could anybody maintain its life? So after the second round, the Masters tried to ignore the paragon altogether, although he could not be dismissed so easily. Talek knew what he ought to do, and how.
Talek could be known as a very unfriendly person, even in the eyes of his fellow paragons. Nobody really thought that he would ever become friends with anybody, or could look at somebody as a part of some kind of family. Yet he had such persons in his life, more than he would have ever hoped.
He did not choose either Neila or Halgor for this purpose; rather, he had lived through too much alongside them. As a result, the kobold soldier came to really know the mages, more than they probably thought he did. So now, when he needed, he could bring up such reasons, which would change their minds eventually.
As he spoke about the imprisoned dragon, at one time, Talek saw a newborn interest in Halgor’s eyes. After this, he knew he had won. With the elven at his side, it was only a matter of time before Neila was convinced too. Yet he must not let himself get cocky or carried away. Neila proved to be as stubborn as ever, being against his plan.
Especially when she realised that the elven had changed sides.
At this, the mage became even more difficult, which made Talek grim. It did not feel right to see them on opposite sides. She did things, terrible things even for the sake of the elven before, some of which she probably regretted after. The kobold became almost stunned seeing the mages ‘against’ each other like that, especially after their little ‘love scene’. This whole argument just seemed wrong.
As Halgor tried to change her mind, Talek mused on the situation. Despite what she said in anger, the paragon did understand the situation and why Neila did not want to let Cameron die. The bright dragon had become part of her family, whom she wanted to save more than anything. Yet they asked her to abandon him ‘just because’, as she put it. Because of some tale of a shadow dragon, who might or might not be alive, and could or could not lead them to victory in the long run. And all this came from a dead friend, who magically reappeared in her life …
Talek had to admit, if the situation was reversed, he too would dismiss this whole ridiculousness. On the other hand, he could not let Neila ‘wander off’ on her own, saving Cameron alone or die trying. They had to go to the cave as three; Arisha made that part very clear. Sadly, the latter was the only reason the kobold could not use against Neila. As soon as he would mention the Goddess’ name, even Halgor would leave the whole thing behind. Not that it was not obvious that the Gods controlled these happenings. However, after they would establish this o
ut loud, the mages would stand against the mission for ‘just because’ reasons.
Overall, Talek had a very difficult job to do.
In the end, a typical warrior reason did the trick. After Halgor gave up trying to convince Neila, Talek started to muse out loud about some ‘what ifs’. What would Cameron do if the situation was reversed? Would he risk everything for a life, which Indrek most probably used for bait anyway?
Talek saw the pain in Neila’s eyes, yet he could not stop. At the moment, they had two choices, as the kobold said—try to rescue Cameron from an obvious trap, or find an advantage against Indrek which would cross his plans for sure. Although the paragon could not say what this advantage would mean, nor how it could happen.
Finally, after a hard bargain, Neila accepted the mission. The warrior side of her did not let her start a war between Varomor and Indrek just because she was missing a friend. Even if the friend was who he was. The Tower was not ready; they would certainly lose a war now. She could not risk her caste for solely one life …
So the friends started moving, although with the condition that they would be back as soon as possible—namely, before Cameron’s execution. She wanted to infiltrate to Nar. Maybe she could manage something …
As if this whole mysterious mission would not be enough, according to Talek, the companions had to travel way out of the ‘known world’. To the mages’ “How?” question, he said, with Arisha’s medallion. Although the kobold did not have any further information or details on the subject. The Goddess only told him that the ornament would lead them to the cave. They just had to use it during the teleportation.
Neila and Halgor exchanged worried, uncertain looks. They obviously did not like a thing about the mission. Especially not about a medal, which not only could get anybody through the Mist, it also led to unknown places which held imprisoned shadow dragons …
Nonetheless, they could do nothing about it now, so after a few words the companions stood on a narrow ledge in front of a seemingly solid wall of rock. In theory, that massive wall was the entrance to the cave-cell. Halgor almost blew them into little pieces too when he broke into the prison. Only after they entered could they know for sure that the dragon was indeed still alive. Although his life hung by a thread.