by Vic Broquard
“You think it will come to that?” asked Zdenka.
“Don’t you?” Karel answered in a non-commitment manner, though slightly accusatively.
“Well, you should tell Zoran about it. I am sure he will want to discuss such things with you, Karel. Well done, by the way,” Zdenka complimented him.
Karel’s Arrow of Red Dragon Slaying became the talk of the dinner table that night. Many began seeing some hope of self-defense against the dragons. “Hey, I need more dragon blood. I need samples from all of the different kinds that we may have to fight,” Karel explained. Chan and Wen wished that they had had the foresight to have stowed away some Green Dragon blood. Now they had a vital use for it! However, both knew that Zoran would not allow them to return to Jing just to slay another green and bring back its blood for Karel.
The next day, Zoran relayed what the reds had done, that is, their latest extortion plot and his solution — magically fabricate nearly worthless gems to the other allied barons. He suggested that they also try this if other dragons made similar extortion attempts on their worlds. After that, he went to the fifth floor of his wife’s tower and read up on Arrows of Slaying. Zdenka had left the book marked for him. After that, he visited Karel in his lab.
“Well, that was an incredible bit of magic that you created there, Karel.”
“Thank you, Baron. I have not been idle. I know that I ought to have gotten your permission before slaying that vile creature, but honestly, those poor victims needed some justice done!” Karel justified.
Zoran didn’t accept his justifications, however. “Isn’t it more like you needed to field test your arrow?” Karel flushed and gave a slight nod.
“Well, this time, you got away with it. I was in the Shadows watching the reds make the pickup. I saw Ambrogino die there just inside the Shadows. More importantly, the other reds flew right past him and did not even see his body. So the reds will be completely mystified about the whole thing. How is it that even I didn’t see you?”
“Ah, this little invention of mine,” Karel smiled, showing him his Invisibility Cloak.
“We could use more of those too,” Zoran grinned.
“I know. One day we will be battling these beasts, sir. I can feel it in my bones! I aim to be ready when that day comes. Only can you get me more dragon blood? I need samples from all those that we are likely going to have to fight.”
“I will keep that in mind. Meantime, I am trying to find ways to keep us from having to fight them. Next time, keep that in mind too, Karel.”
Karel nodded, accepting the slight chastisement. If only Zoran would bring him more blood. He thought about asking if there was any chance of retrieving some from the one in the Shadows, but decided not to press his luck. Maybe he could get his son, Milan, to help him out. Milan and his wife, Kate, were both Duskas and were working with Chika, making many off-world transfers of commerce.
The next day, Milan was back from making a run to Gonda for Chika, and Karel dropped by their room. “How was the latest trip?” Karel asked trying to make polite conversation, something that he was not known for doing well at all.
Milan yawned, “Boring mostly, dad. Brought in a load of swords this time for one of the warlords up north. Say, I just heard about the Red Dragons and the ransom. Did you really make an Arrow Red Dragon Slaying?”
“Yes, I did, I guessed right. I make it especially to kill the leader who ordered the murder of that entire village, son. I just could not let him get away with it.”
“Fantastic, pop! So you just shoot the arrows and they kill the dragons?”
Karel chuckled, his son, while he knew some magic, was not an Archmage, far from it. “The usual Arrow of Slaying must be shot and actually strike the victim, drawing blood. In the case of dragons, the steel arrowhead must be enchanted or it will not even penetrate a dragon’s hide. Once it draws blood, if it is the same species, Red Dragon in this case, then there is some chance that that single shot will kill him. If not, at least it wounds the dragon and the archer can shoot again. Now in this particular case, son, I knew the name of that dragon, thanks to Baroness Archmage Verushka. I added additional and very specific enchantments to that single arrow, which turned it into an Arrow of Slaying for that single beast. I shot it in the general direction of the dragon and the enchantments did the rest. If that specific dragon wasn’t present, my arrow would have fallen harmlessly back to the ground. Instead, my magic won and that evil, wicked beast lives no more.”
“I say good riddance. I don’t think I could have kept my cool, pop, if I’d have been there and seen that woman who was burned alive — the one that Jarka tried to save,” Milan admitted.
“I know, son. It was most terrible, but son, mark my words, in the not too distant future, I see us all fighting these evil dragons. Not the golds, mind you, but the really evil ones, the reds and blacks.”
“Wow, you think that is a real possibility, dad?” Milan said very surprised and dismayed.
“I certainly do, son. Why do you think that I have spent nearly every day in my lab making enchanted weapons?”
“Holy molely! I had no idea. Can I help?” Milan asked.
Karel smiled; he had just heard the magic words that he had hoped to hear from his son. “Actually, Milan, there is something that you can do to help in a very big way. Zoran said that the dead dragon is just floating there in the Shadows. Do you suppose that you could take me there, into the Shadows, so that I could get more of its blood? If we can get more, I can make powerful Red Dragon swords and more arrows attuned to these vile beasts. Then, when the war comes, we will be able to arm those who can fight with weapons that can actually affect these vicious beasts!”
“You got it pop! Come on. I don’t have to report for duty until after lunch,” Milan said eager to lend his father a hand. For once, Milan saw himself contributing something of importance. His birthright was that of a Duska from his mother, Chika, who was the bastard daughter of some baron. Zoran had given him his birthright, the Ceremony of Ascension, when he turned fourteen. He could Shadow Walk. His father, though an Archmage, could not. Here was something that he really could contribute, something of value. It did not cross his mind to ask why his dad had not just asked Zoran to do this.
A half hour later, holding his father’s hand, Milan pulled Karel into the Shadows, arriving just above the burned out village. Apparently, the dragon’s body had shifted or floated off into the Shadows from where Zoran had reported seeing it. Milan spent an hour locating it, now quite far from its entrance point. Together, the two men began extracting Red Dragon’s blood from the huge carcass. When they returned, Karel was most pleased. He now possessed nearly two gallons of the blood and some additional body parts, including claw nails, for which he now had some additional ideas for their use as well.
Once back in his lab, Karel thanked his son once more. “Say, Milan. You go off-world quite a lot. If you ever come across a dead dragon of some other color, extract a bunch of its blood for me. That will enable me to make swords and arrows for our valiant fighters against those kinds of dragons.”
“You got it, pop! I will keep my eyes open and ears too. I bet that I can find ways to get you samples,” Milan replied. He had a new and devious purpose, something to do while handling the mundane off-world transportation of the multitudinous trading goods. Besides, he now had numerous off-world contacts. He resolved to spread the word that he was in the market for dragon’s blood. Sooner or later, he was certain that he could bring some back for his dad.
A week later, he got the chance. He had to make a trip to Isi. After checking in and discovering the load would not be ready for several more hours, he headed to his favorite Isi pub. Luck was with him, for his acquaintance was there. “Honani! Hail and well met once again,” Milan called out, shaking the tall, dark man’s hand.
Honani was something of a rogue, though some called him a mere thief. He had a small band and executed various actions for hire. “Got a little job for you,
” Milan whispered over a pint.
After hearing what Milan desired, Honani whispered back very animated, “You’ve come to the right man! Not all of us enjoy having those foul beasts on Isi. What you want can be very dangerous.”
“Money is no object, Honani,” Milan hinted. Honani grinned.
“In that case, I’ll let you know when we have something!” Honani’s hand received the gem that Milan secretively passed him. They chatted a bit longer before Milan left to play oxen and transport the wagon load of goods back to Adapazan. He didn’t know it then, but he had initiated an interesting chain of events which would result in the obtaining of quite a lot of dragon blood.
Chapter 7 Problems
“Welcome Baron Leo, good of you to drop by,” Zoran shook his friend’s hand. Leo had requested a private meeting with him only this morning. It was late July now and so far, the reds’ problem seemed handled for the moment. At least Zoran had not received any more ransom scrolls. He opened a Mystical Door to his private study and the two stepped through.
“Anti-scrying?” asked Leo. Zoran noted a bit of paranoia in Leo’s voice.
“Absolutely. Okay, what’s up?”
“I’ll get right to it. Thanks to you and Jarka, we’ve discovered the same phenomenon on Gladno. Only it is mostly the Black Dragons who are behind the many raids. You were right, they are most frequently going after gold and gem shipments. We have spies on Gladno!” Zoran groaned, but he had expected that he was not alone.
Leo continued, “Strom must have been working on this plot of his for years, slowly but surely inserting his spies where they could do the most damage. So we’ve got two problems, really. One, how the devil do we stop these raids and two, how do we flush out the spies? Okay, three, how the blazes do we kill dragons? I heard that you and your forces have now eliminated two reds. Rumor has it that you are harboring two Duska heirs from Jing who have killed a large number of greens. Is this true? Any tips you care to share? We are getting desperate,” Baron Leo laid his cards on the table, so to speak. He and his advisors were unable to work out effective answers to these three pressing problems, and he had come to Zoran to ask — beg if necessary — for some suggestions.
“Well, honestly, Leo, I have no idea how to weed out the spies. Here on Adapazan, we’ve more or less nullified their importance by making secure all shipments of things dragons find valuable. That is, gems and gold shipments are now done by teleport and Shadow Walks, from point of origin to point of destination. Thus, we are giving them no point of attack. So far, that is working for us.”
“Makes sense. Viktor suggested that very thing. I ought to have listened to him.”
“Well, that’s understandable, Leo. He is a Pavel not a Matous,” Zoran grinned, knowing he was right. Viktor Jr. had married Leo’s sister Katrina to gain one of the three thrones and Circles of Gladno.
“Has that worked out? Raids stopped?” Leo inquired further. This seemed an awfully simple solution.
“Yes, and no. Yes, in that our shipments are no longer being intercepted. No, in that the reds then burned down an entire village, murdering over one thousand men, women, and children. Then, they asked for a hundred thousand in gems or they would burn down another until we gave them the gems.”
“My god! Then that rumor is true. How horrible! Extortion. What will they think of next?”
“Well, my Archmages used Create Object spells on quartz, making low quality gems out of that. We gave the reds those, not real gems. So far that has appeased them,” Zoran replied frankly. “However, time will tell.”
“Okay, we will follow your lead on this one. How about killing them?” Leo asked.
Zoran sighed, he knew in his heart that killing the dragons was not the answer. “Well, we cannot take credit for both. The golds killed the red that was attacking Baron Archmage Verushka. However, Archmage Karel has been making weapons that are effective against dragons, reds in particular. It seems that only enchanted blades can pierce their hides. Thanks to Verushka, we knew the name of the leader of the band who destroyed the village. Archmage Karel made an Arrow of Red Dragon Slaying, enchanted to only slay that particular red, as I understand it. Mind you, I am not well versed on such enchantments. He tested it out and was successful in slaying the leader who led that murderous attack.”
He went on, “Yes, I have granted sanctuary to the two sisters of the Jing barons. Chan and Wen Meerong. They used to lead a band who killed the Green Dragons that killed local villagers on Jing. I suspect everyone will be hearing about this at the High Council meeting.”
“Why?”
“Baron Gang has demanded that I return them to Jing so he can try and sentence them to death for killing the greens of Jing.”
“You won’t let him get his hands on them, will you?” Leo asked suddenly very worried about their safety. Jing was one of their archenemies.
“Of course not. Would you like to meet them and discuss this with our dragon slayers?”
A few minutes later, Chan, Wen, and Karel joined the two barons. After introductions and Zoran’s explanation of what Leo was anxious to learn, he turned the meeting over to Karel.
“Okay, Baron Leo. In order to make swords of dragon slaying, I must have fresh blood from the color of the dragon to which the blade is attuned. Here, I was able to acquire Red Dragon blood and have been enchanting a batch of Red Dragon Slayer swords. Mind you, not every time the sword draws blood will a red be slain. Rather, it is a chance. Each time such a sword draws the blood of that type of dragon, there is a chance that the sword will cause that dragon’s instant death. Now with my arrow, I also knew the name of the dragon that I wished slain and I added even more specific enchantments to that single arrow. It did work as I intended.”
Karel continued, “Now if you could get me a few buckets of Black Dragon blood, I could make you some highly effective Black Dragon Slayer swords.”
Leo grinned broadly. “Archmage, if I can possibly slay one, you can count on buckets full of Black Dragon blood!” Karel smiled equally broadly.
Chan now took over the discussion. “We’ve killed nineteen greens. I wish we knew that Karel needed their blood! We could have given him tons of it. Ah well.”
“But how were you able to slay these hideous beasts?” asked an incredulous Leo. He’d seen the blacks and thought they were impossible to slay.
“Greens are more like snakes than the reds and golds. We’ve never seen a black,” Wen answered.
“They look a lot like the reds. Both are about the same size, fifty feet, not counting their long necks and tails,” Leo replied.
“Okay. The greens are about seventy feet long and move much like a snake, although they do have wings and can fly,” Chan took up the explanation. “When we close for an attack, we fire off a couple of spells, usually Balls of Fire or Lightning Bolts. Once in a while, our spells actually affect the greens, wounding them severely. Wen and I usually take the frontal position, because as Duskas we can get out of the way of their slime. Well, mostly we did. I lost this to the last green that I killed.” She waved what remained of her left arm in the air for effect. It was not lost on Leo, who cringed.
“Our fellow members, who died in the last attack — it was a trap set by our brothers to have the greens kill us for them — anyway, they used to use their enchanted blades to chop at its sides while Wen and I kept its forward attention focused on us. Frequently, Wen or I would use our skills to jump onto its head and stab it with our magical daggers. I killed the last one that way, stabbing it in each eye until my dagger broke.”
Karel spoke up. “Each type of dragon will need to be attacked differently. What works with snake-like dragons will not work necessarily with the reds and blacks. I believe that we will need to work out different attacking methods for each race of dragons.”
He added, “Baron Leo, you should see if your Archmages are up to the task of making the needed enchanted weapons.”
Leo sighed and ran his hands through his hair
before answering. This was a sore point with him, Zoran noted. “Alas, we only have two Archmages on Gladno. One is in his seventies. He trained me, but he has retired and is not in good health. The other is in his fifties and is totally occupied training other mages. Somehow Adapazan has more Archmages than any other planet in the Federation. I wonder why that is?” This was a tease. Everyone knew now just how terrific a teacher Baroness Archmage Zdenka actually was. She was perhaps the most famous teacher in the Federation of Planets at this time.
“Well, bring me Black Dragon blood, Baron, and I’ll see what I can enchant for you,” Archmage Karel declared. He and Leo shook hands on that point. After that, Baron Leo took leave and returned to Gladno to see about ways and means of somehow killing one Black Dragon.
“So how many Archmages do you have on Jing?” Zoran, now quite curious, asked Chan.
“Only one. He is in the service of Baron Gang, but he too is old. He trains all the Duska,” she replied.
After they left, Zoran visited Zdenka interrupting her class. “Can you do me a favor, love?” She nodded. “Check Chan and Wen. See if they are acceptable students for you. There is only one old Archmage on Jing. It would be nice if one or both of these women could learn more magic and perhaps be able to replace him.” Zdenka smiled and agreed, wondering why all of this sudden, new interest in Chan and Wen.
After supper that night, Zdenka cleverly tested both women. Chan failed her test, suggesting that she would cast spells to learn who had slain the man. Wen passed, suggesting that she go to the bleeding man at once, though keeping her guard up in case there was an invisible assassin still lurking about the shadows of the room. Thus, she accepted Wen as a student, much to Wen’s complete surprise.
“You go ahead and see if you can learn more magic, sis. We need all that we can muster. I will keep on with my fighter training with Dana. If and when we can go back to Jing and attack the greens again, I will protect you so you can fire off killer spells, sis.” Wen grinned; she liked that idea. Somehow, she just didn’t like jumping onto the beast’s neck and stabbing it from there. After all, Chan had very nearly gotten herself killed doing it.