Trial of the Dragon (The Chronicles of Dragon, Series 2, Book 6 of 10) (Tail of the Dragon 7)

by Craig Halloran

  “That strongbox is evil,” the leader said. He walked over to the edge of the well. “So is this cursed thing.” He tossed the Elderwood Staff in the well.

  Bayzog dropped to his knees.

  Ben’s pounding head felt like it was about to explode. This was madness.

  The leader waved his hand at all of them. “You are all evil. You are going in the deep well to feed the belly of the world.” He pointed at Sasha. “Start with that one.”

  CHAPTER 17

  The seer’s eyes were pitch-black orbs that gave her a haunting appearance. At one time her appearance might have been lovely, but her once-lustrous skin was now weathered and gray. Her high cheekbones were pointed knots on her face. She smoothed her hair back behind one ear, revealing the smallest point on the top.

  She’s part elven.

  In an elderly voice, she said, “You are very observant, Rerry.”

  “How… how do you know my name? And you read my thoughts!”

  She waved in a relaxed motion with her hand. “I’m a seer. It’s what I do. Be at ease, men. You’ve had a long journey. Now is the time to settle yourselves and listen.”

  Rerry and Samaz looked at each other.

  Samaz shrugged and took a seat, crossed his legs, and gave the seer his undivided attention.

  Before Rerry sat, he asked, “What—”

  “—is my name?” she replied. “I’m so old it no longer matters. But they used to call me Saree. Saree the seer. Yes, that is what they would call me after I discovered my gift.” A smoke-colored cat slipped onto her lap, and she petted it. “This is Cat. I’ve had too many pets to bother naming them anymore, and this is far from the first one I’ve called Cat.” The fireplace continued to warble behind her with a strange life. “Please, men, take a seat. Then I’ll be more comfortable answering your question.”

  Taking his place beside his brother, Rerry said, “We only get one question? It’s one question each, I hope.”

  “You are a feisty one. Every bit the problem I foresaw.” She placed her hands on her knees. “Well then, first things first. A warning. Nalzambor reels after the death of Balzurth.”

  In unison, Rerry and Samaz sat up and said, “The death of Balzurth!”

  “Yes, the Dragon King is dead, at the hands of Eckubahn and his brother Isobahn. The Dragon King was killed by the very Spear of Barnabus that he forged himself.” She hugged herself. “Oh, it broke my heart. I felt it the moment it happened. It was as if glass was shattering. Now the world quakes. Evil builds its forces and strikes from all directions. Honestly, I’m surprised you made it this far. All that matters is that you did. The west is the safest place to be right now. And no one comes to visit my creepy place.” She leaned over and touched Scar on the knee. “But you remembered. Never will you forget that last adventure, will you, One Eye. Tee-hee!”

  Rerry felt like he was floating at sea without a rudder. Hearing that Balzurth was dead had hit home. If the titans could kill the Dragon King, then they could kill anybody. His concern for his parents grew. He needed to get to them, and fast. “Can you help us find our parents?”

  “That’s why you were brought here, isn’t it?”

  Looking around the dreary room, he said, “I can’t imagine any other reason why I would enter this place.”

  “That might change after you try my stew,” she said.

  Rerry gave a sniff and replied, “I doubt it. So, can you tell us where they are?”

  “The answer will be revealed in the fires if they are willing.” She lifted the cat off her lap and shooed it away. With a little shake, she loosened up her hands and arms then offered them to Samaz and Rerry. Beckoning for them, she said, “I need something that is close to them. There is nothing closer than you. Come, come and sit by my side.”

  With hesitation, they took spots on either side of her, facing the fire. It didn’t crackle or pop, and it was more warm than hot.

  Saree closed her eyes. “Just let your guard down and trust me. Think of your parents. Reflect on your strongest memories. That will strengthen the spell.” She began to speak strange words in a rhythmic pace that would speed up and slow down.

  Rerry felt strength flow into him from her warm, leathery hand, and he leaned forward. He found Samaz looking at him for a moment. Samaz gave his broad shoulders a shrug, closed his eyes, and leaned back. Rerry gave in and did the same. He thought about walking in the gardens of Quintuklen with his mother. They had a favorite spot on a granite bench surrounded by purple tiger lilies.

  I miss those days. Wherever did they go?

  Saree the sage’s grip fastened like a vise on his hand. It was like a tree branch had grabbed ahold of him. Wincing, he lost his train of thought.

  How’d she get so strong?

  The seer wailed and moaned. The fire roared with new bright light that swirled in their midst. She started to speak out loud. “Oh, so strong! They are so strong! It is delightful! You’ve done well, Scar. Oh so well. I didn’t think you would ever repay me.”

  Unable to pull free of her iron grip, Rerry turned toward Scar and said, “What have you done? You owe me a life debt, and now you betray me.”

  Without a shred of concern, Scar replied, “I owed her a life debt first.” He saluted. “So long, Samaz and Rerry. I’ll sleep well knowing I can’t repay the dead.” He and the others vanished.

  Rerry screamed after him, “You’ll never sleep at all!” He tugged with all of his might. Each passing second drained him from top to bottom. His eyes fell on his arms and hands. Saree’s skin now had a youthful luster, and his own skin clung to his bones like a venerable old man’s. On the other side, his formerly meaty brother’s eyes and cheeks had sunken into his bones. He’d never seen Samaz so thin before, and his brother’s coal-black hair had turned white. “Let us go,” he managed to say.

  Saree sat in full form. Her body and hair had been restored to their youthful appearance—that of a wild and comely woman. She showed a smile of pearly-white teeth. “I would, but you’re both too delicious.”

  The last thing Rerry heard was his head bouncing off the stone hearth of the fireplace.

  CHAPTER 18

  “No! No! Stop!” Bayzog surged in front of Sasha, blocking the staagans’ path to the well. “Spare her and throw me in.”

  Ben tore out of the clutches of one of the monsters and bustled over. “And take me next, or first, it doesn’t matter! What kind of horned savages are you, throwing the woman in? It’s despicable.”

  “It makes no difference.” The leader snorted and stamped his hoof. “You are all a meal, nothing more and nothing less.”

  “And you are nothing more than the orcs and ogres, I’ll tell you that much!” Ben yelled.

  The staagan seized his arms and picked him up by the legs. They took him to the edge of the well. Wriggling against his restraints, Ben took a glance in the well. It was pitch black. “I swear if I survive this, I’m going to start hunting again and mount your heads on my wall. We are innocent!”

  As Ben fought with everything he had in him, Bayzog’s fingers kept working at the cords that bound his hands. If he could only get them free, he could cause some sort of distraction to get them out of there. He felt terrible guilt about his gamble. He had bet on the more reasonable nature of the staagan, had thought they’d free them, but with all the world falling apart around them, the staagan had chosen to rid themselves of any potential enemies. Sasha and Ben were right. I should have blasted them when I had the chance. He found his wife’s eyes. She blinked at him several times.

  “Hold on a moment!” Ben yelled just as the enemy were about to throw him in the well. He glanced all over the forest. “Do you hear that? I can smell it! Sniff! Sniff! Orcs are coming!”

  The staagan froze. With a wave of his hand, the leader sent several of his men. All but one let go of Ben and ran out of sight.

  Ben was buying time. Bayzog acted. Seeing Sasha’s signals, he understood her idea. He said to the leader, “Can I at l
east have one last moment with my wife?”

  With a nod, the staagan said, “No.”

  “That looked like a yes to me!” Ben shouted.

  Bayzog made his way to Sasha. The staagan cut him off. “Please,” he begged.

  The leader shook his head this time. “No. I smell trickery.”

  Bayzog’s shoulders sagged. “As you wish.”

  The staagan search party returned from the woodland. They shook the racks on their heads.

  “See, there are no orcs.” The leader pointed at Ben. “You prove my point by trying to deceive.”

  Once all of their attention was focused on the leader, Bayzog took action. He squirted between two staagan on quick feet. He kept going until he ran into Sasha and her captor. In the tussle, the husband and wife found themselves back to back and locked fingers. Together they summoned energy they couldn’t get on their own. Tingling raced up his arms. Energy filled his body. The cords that bound them started to release.

  Almost free!

  The sharp blow of a fist hit Bayzog in the side of the head. His fingers slipped from Sasha’s. He dropped to the ground with bright spots in his eyes.

  The leader stood over him, nostrils flaring and snorting. “Deceiver! Throw this one in now! Throw them all in now!” The staagan clacked his teeth. “I’m tired of this.”

  The staagan carried him to the edge of the well. Bayzog strained against them, but it was futile. The staagan were every bit as strong as they appeared. He found Sasha’s eyes and said, “I’m sorry, dear.”

  “Don’t blame yourself,” she said. “We all failed.”

  “I can’t believe I’m going to die for such a stupid reason!” Ben said, kicking at his captors. “We didn’t even do anything!”

  The staagan leader stood where they could all see him. With his fists on his hips, he said, “No one is innocent.”

  “If that’s the case, then throw yourself in!” Ben said.

  “That would be foolish.”

  The staagan raised Bayzog, Ben, and Sasha over their heads. Bayzog felt his stomach empty. With all of his study and intelligence, he couldn’t overcome blind stupidity fueled by fear.

  The leader raised his arms.

  The wind tore through the trees. Except it wasn’t the wind. It was dragons. Silver dragons with scales that shone like the stars in the sky. The five dragons surrounded the well with wings spread and a dangerous look in their eyes.

  The staagan leader let out a bellow.

  A powerful figure with flame-red hair lifted the leader overhead.

  Ben let out a shout. “Dragon!”

  CHAPTER 19

  “Just when I thought I’d seen everything, I see this?” Nath said. Looking up at the staagan leader, he said, “If my friends go in this well, then you’re going in too.”

  “You dare!” the staagan huffed.

  Nath edged closer to the rim. “I dare!”

  The staagan swallowed. He gave a nod to his guards. They backed away from the well and set Nath’s friends free.

  “I’m going to set you down,” Nath said to the staagan, who was every bit as big as him. “But you had better not try anything else stupid, or I’ll rip those antlers from your head. Agreed?”

  The staagan eyed the silver dragons. His lips smacked together. “Agreed.”

  Nath set the staagan down.

  For the first time, the staagan got a look at Nath dragon. His eyes blinked repeatedly. With a snort, he backed away, made a bellow, and said with his chin high, “This time, we go.” Together, the staagan all vanished into the woodland.

  Ben let out all of his glee. “You did it, Dragon! What a sight for my aging eyes. I thought we were finished!” He hopped around wincing, wriggling his bound hands. “Do you mind?’

  Nath slit the cord with his fingernail. “You’re wounded.”

  Ben gave him a strong embrace. “I’ll live.”

  Brenwar teetered over to Ben and looked at the bloody gash in the old soldier’s leg. “It’s barely a scratch.”

  “You would know.”

  Nath made his rounds to Sasha and Bayzog. “It’s so good to see you both.”

  Sasha gave Nath a hug. “Your timing couldn’t have been more remarkable. I have to admit, my hope was fleeing.” She looked up into his eyes. “Nath, I’m sorry about your father.”

  Nath’s throat tightened. “Thank you.”

  Bayzog put a hand on Nath’s arm. “Me too, Nath. We’ll find a way to make this right. I swear it.”

  “I know we will. Words can’t explain how thankful I am to be among such great friends. I had my doubts that I would fix my eyes on you again.”

  “How did you find us?”

  Nath took a moment to explain the journey from Dragon Home through the Chamber of Murals. He called for the seeker who had aided them.

  He landed on Nath’s shoulder. Sitting like a bird, the black and yellow dragon cocked his head from side to side.

  Nath stroked the beard of skin under the seeker’s neck. “He found you, and others like him are searching for Rerry and Samaz. Oh, and there’s someone I want you to meet.”

  “Really, who?” Sasha asked.

  “My brother, Slivver.”

  “You have a brother?” she said.

  “I have many, but Slivver is the one most like me, or I’m like him.” He waved Slivver over. “Here he comes.”

  Unlike the other silvers, who stood on all fours, Sliver walked over with a wide, leggy gait, dragging his tail behind him. With an air of nobility, he nodded at Bayzog and Sasha. “It is grand to meet you.” He took Sasha’s hand and kissed it. “Your beauty is exceptional, and I’ve heard so much about the both of you.”

  Blushing, Sasha said, “Nath, you never told me you had a brother. And he’s all dragon? And so exceptional?”

  “Yes, my much older brother is quite exceptional for his age,” Nath joked.

  “Ha-ha,” Slivver said.

  “So I take it the search for Rerry and Samaz is not going well?” Nath said.

  “We sense they are west of us.” Bayzog frowned. “I don’t have much more to go on than that.”

  “Keep your chin up. We found you, and we’ll find them.” Nath continued to pet the seeker. “It’s a shame that it’s taken so long for these little guys to warm up to me. They would have come in handy back in the day, but they are pretty elusive. We were fortunate that when he alerted us, we weren’t that far away. Not even a league. Anyway—”

  “What do you mean you lost my chest?” Brenwar blurted out.

  Everyone turned. Ben and Brenwar were arguing.

  “It’s not your chest as I understand it, and it’s not my fault. Those stag men did it!” Ben replied.

  “What’s going on?” Nath said.

  “Ben lost my chest down into this hole!” Brenwar started fishing out some rope. “And I’m sending him down after it.”

  “I’m not climbing down there! I almost met my doom in that pit of blackness. It’s your chest, you go.”

  “Oh, so now it’s my chest.” Brenwar rolled his eyes.

  Slivver stepped forward. “I’ll go get the chest. I can fly, after all.”

  But Nath stopped his brother with a hand on his arm. He stuck his other hand down inside the hole. The air was icy, and his fingertips disappeared. “This is not an ordinary hole. Certainly you can tell that much. There is magic here. Dark magic. Things are not as we perceive them. The chest is down there?”

  “They tossed down the Elderwood Staff as well.” Bayzog was unable to hide his long look.

  Nath shook his head. “The staagan are so stupid. If they only had brains as big as their horns. So how deep is it? How long did it take before you heard the chest hit the bottom?”

  Bayzog, Ben, and Sasha all looked at one another at the same time. Ben said, “I didn’t hear anything hit.”

  “Me neither,” Sasha added.

  Bayzog sighed. “The staagan said we were to feed the belly of Nalzambor.”


  Brenwar picked up a rock and tossed it in the well. Cupping his ear, he leaned over the rim on his tiptoes. Seconds passed. Then a minute. He clawed at his beard. “That’s deeper than a dwarven diamond shaft. I suppose we’ll just have to do without.” He started pulling the rope up, eyeing Bayzog. “It’s just a stick. I’ll whittle you up another one.”

  “And you’re just going to leave your chest behind?” Ben said.

  “Aw, it’s like you said, it’s not my chest anyway. I’ve got Mortuun. I’ll be fine. The rest of you will have to adapt.”

  Nath slid Fang out of his sheath and stuck the sword blade first into the well. The blue light lit up the edges, but that was it. Nath felt a chill on his arm like a cold breeze. “This is odd. It’s a hole, but it doesn’t feel like a hole.”

  “I sense something odd too.” Bayzog waved his hands over the rim and closed his eyes. One brow perched. He started to mumble something.

  Sasha reached for Bayzog. “Don’t you—”

  Bayzog jumped into the hole.

  “—dare!”

  CHAPTER 20

  Saree the seer hopped and skipped about her home, singing and laughing. Rerry and Samaz both lay in front of the fire where she had drained them. Rerry could barely manage to lift his arms. With effort, he held them up, looking at his bony hands.

  Samaz rolled over on his side, facing Rerry. He started laughing in a raspy chuckle. “You look dreadful.”

  “No more dreadful than you.” Rerry gave Samaz a feeble punch in the shoulder.

  Saree hopped over between them. Her dark-green eyes were filled with restless energy. Excitement was in her voice. “I see my little old men are getting feisty. I can’t have that now. You might hurt yourselves.” Hands on her hips, she said, “I had better tie you up.”

  “Tie us up? We can barely move. I don’t even want to move. Everything hurts. What did you do to us?”

  “I took all of your youth and made it mine. I should last a couple hundred more years now.” She rummaged through her cupboard until she produced a ball of twine. “Ah, this should do.”