Wrath of the Dragon: (The Chronicles of Dragon, Series 2, Book 8) (Tail of the Dragon)

by Craig Halloran

  “I know how to dress for a funeral. Go on, then. I’ll catch up with you.”

  CHAPTER 10

  Down in The Deep, Nath and Selene spent countless hours trying to combine their powers so that they could leave the buried prison. Selene’s sorceress powers were strong, but it didn’t come so easily to Nath. At the moment, they stood inside the main chamber.

  Concentrating, he tried to lift her up from the ground the way she’d done to him. She made it several feet off the ground before he dropped her again. She landed softly on her feet.

  “I just don’t have the knack for it,” he said. “Can’t you just lift yourself out of the pit?”

  “No, I’ve tried. I guess since dragons have wings, that wouldn’t be a power I needed. Even lifting you was a different practice than what I’m used to. I’m more comfortable blasting things apart.”

  “Wings. Maybe in a few decades, at the rate we’re going. If only I hadn’t lost so much power.”

  “Having regrets, are you? I told you I wasn’t worth it, but you didn’t listen.”

  “No, now don’t start that again. I don’t have any regrets saving you at all.” He put his hands on her waist and lifted her off her feet. “You’ve made it all worthwhile.”

  “Put me down, you oaf,” she said, smiling. “Mind you, I’m every bit as strong as you are. How would you like to be plucked from the ground like a daisy?”

  “I’d like to see you try it.” He felt Selene’s tail snake around his ankle. “Oh no, you don’t.” He let go of her, quickly took a knee, and started to peel her tail from his ankle.

  Selene slipped behind him.

  Before he knew what hit him, he was up off his feet with Selene grappling him from behind the waist.

  “I told you I could do it.”

  “I let you do it. I like the feeling of being in your arms.”

  “Oh, please.” She set him down. “You know what your problem is? You still use your body too much more than your brains.”

  “I suppose, but that’s what I have you for. After all, you are much, much older. I lean on your wisdom.”

  Easing up to him, she put her hand over his heart. “I don’t know everything about you that makes you tick, Nath. You’re the Dragon King. You have powers and command that I’ll never have. You need to dig deep and find them.”

  “It’s not as if I’m not trying.” He looked at the scales on his hands. “I’m trying to transform into something else.”

  “That’s the problem. You’re trying to change, but maybe that isn’t the answer. Perhaps you need to try another angle.” She bit her lip. “Tell me about the powers you commanded.”

  “Well, I’ve had smoke and fire come from my breath. I flew when I had wings. There’s the Dragon Call—or Roar, rather. I can make a lot of noise with that.”

  Selene’s eyes lit up. “Maybe that’s it. Perhaps you should summon dragons?”

  “From down here? I don’t think so. Besides, the giants will hear the roar. Anything that comes, they’ll kill. I can’t have that. I don’t want any more dying on my account. I won’t summon them. It would be their deaths.”

  “I see your point.” Selene started pacing the floor. The pair of them had worn a path in the grimy floor. The path circled the exterior of the huge audience chamber. “But you know, more will die so long as the titans have the upper hand. Many are probably dying now.”

  “Don’t say that,” he said so loud that his voice echoed. “You won’t guilt me into it.”

  “They are your subjects. They are yours to command,” she said with clear irritation in her voice. “Take command of them!”

  Nath took a seat on the floor facing the opening that led toward the main entry corridor. He crossed his legs and closed his eyes. He started humming.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Sh, sh, sh,” he said. “I’m doing as you suggested. I’m summoning dragons.”

  “By humming?”

  “It’s my gift, not yours. It’s just been some time since I used it. When I was a boy, I used to sing with my brethren, didn’t you?”

  “Sing? Me? No, never,” Selene said. A frown formed on her face. “Another thing I missed out on.”

  “Why don’t you be quiet so you don’t have to miss out on it again.”

  ***

  Selene fell silent as soon as Nath’s lips started to move. There was something about the way he talked that had a hypnotizing effect on her. His voice was quiet like a morning wind that caresses the dew-speckled leaves of dawn. The words were Dragonese. His words penetrated her body, through the scales and into her pounding heart. She’d never seen Nath like this before. Peaceful, radiant, and handsome. It melted her from the outside in. She swooned.

  Lathered up in his music, tears began to run down her face.

  How can he make sounds that are so beautiful? How can they come from lips that are so difficult?

  The dragon song went on for minutes that became an hour. The rich sound of his voice lifted the dreariness from the walls. The glowing alsium pulsated in rhythm with his words. It made for a fascinating spectacle that went on for another hour and ended. He opened his eyes to find hers. She wiped her face.

  “You liked that, didn’t you?”

  “It was wonderful, Nath.” Selene felt elated, like a new person inside and out. “I didn’t realize you could do that. Do you think it will work?”

  “I felt something when I sang. I know another heard my call, but I don’t think it was a dragon.”

  Selene stood up. Her jaw dropped.

  “What is it?” Nath turned his head.

  Lying on the ground in a scabbard a few feet behind him was a magnificent sword with dragon heads on the cross guard. “Fang!”

  CHAPTER 11

  “I can’t believe it!” Nath exclaimed.

  “Believe it!” Selene rushed by his side. Her eyes were as wide as moons. “The sword heard your call. How intriguing.”

  Nath reached out for the handle but stopped inches short of the grip. “You’re certain that you see it too? Sometimes I get a little addled after singing.”

  “No, I see Fang.”

  Nath grabbed the sword by the fine leather wrapped around the grip and slid it from the sheath. The warm energy of Fang coursed through his body. Nath let out a delighted gasp and hugged the great blade. “Ah, my dearest friend, you came for me.” He stepped away from Selene and began cutting the blade through the air in artistic stabs and blurring motions. “He’s like a third arm. A sharp one. You know, Fang has many powers, some of which I feel haven’t even been discovered yet.”

  Selene stood with her hands on her hips, watching Nath cut the weapon in the air. “I’m not certain I’m familiar with them all.”

  “There is the sonic ring that comes from a tap of his tip.” He rested Fang on his shoulder with both hands on the grip. “He’s turned giants to ice before. That and, ah!” His face brightened. “Teleportation. Perhaps that’s our way out of here. He teleported here, right?”

  “He has a mind of his own.” Selene came closer with her eyes studying the blade. She traced her finger through the groove in the flat of the blade called the fuller. “I wonder how he got it.”

  “That’s a question for Father, who forged Fang. I can’t imagine the secret behind it, but one would think that I’d know something about it.”

  “You father is old, Nath. His knowledge was tempered over centuries. I’m sure what you need to know and learn lies within Dragon Home. Be patient.”

  “Haven’t we been patient enough? It’s time to get us out of here. I’ve got a strong feeling that Fang is here to do just that.”

  “Remember how that turned out the last time,” she warned. “He took us forward in time and gave us a bellyful of trouble. Do you recall hanging by the neck?”

  “You don’t need to remind me about that trial. I’m just glad it’s over. As for moving through time, that makes me wonder.” He held Fang before him. “If he took us forwa
rd in time, perhaps he can take us backward in time as well.”

  Selene tensed. “I don’t think that’s a very good idea, Nath.”

  “No? But I could save Father. I’d be a step ahead of everything. I’d already know what the titans were doing and what to expect. I could end them once and for all.”

  Shaking her head, she said, “Don’t focus on the past, Nath. Focus on what we can do today to be victorious for tomorrow. Besides, there’s no guarantee that the outcome would be any different.”

  “I suppose. So, where should I ask him to take us outside of Narmum, Dragon Home? Perhaps he should land me right behind Eckubahn. I’ll take his head from his shoulders with one long hard swipe.”

  “I like the way you think, but let’s weigh all the options. We know there are more nests that we need to destroy to stop the wurmers. Your father is trapped in the Dark Realm. Tylabahn possesses Gorlee. Dragon Home is surrounded by the armies of the wicked, preparing for a mass invasion. My, my, my,” she said. “There are many burdens for us and Fang to bear.”

  “True enough. Let’s just hope I can control Fang.”

  “Don’t you think it’s high time you did? He’s another one of your subjects, isn’t he? He should do as you command.”

  Nath spun the sword through the air. “We haven’t gotten to that point yet. Perhaps I haven’t proven myself worthy of that command. When I’m ready, he’ll probably be more willing.”

  “So now what?”

  “Well, last time this happened, I wasn’t asking for it. He decided where we went. He took us to the Elven Field of Dreams. It’s quite possible we will wind up there again. I don’t know.” He reached for Selene. “Take my hand.”

  Selene complied.

  Nath held the sword high and said, “Fang, without taking us forward in time, or backward, we need to get out of this well. If our friends are in danger, take us so that we can aid them. If not, then somewhere else we are needed.” He brought the sword tip toward the ground. It hit the stone and made a ringing ting.

  The walls swirled and spun. Nath’s body raced through space and time. The fabric of his being stretched and screamed. He came to a stop with just his stomach spinning. He and Selene held one another upright.

  On wobbling knees, she said, “Sultans of Sulfur, I hate that.”

  As the spinning in his mind came to a stop, he gazed at his new surroundings. They stood inside another cavern filled with stalagmites and stalactites. Shallow pools of water made echoing plop plop sounds around their feet as they were filled with drips from above. “It appears we are still subterranean. Thanks, Fang, I think.”

  Selene’s nostrils flared. “Something seems familiar about this place.”

  It was dark, but Fang radiated a faint blue glow. A strange hum surrounded them as if the caves were filled with living and breathing things. On cat’s feet they moved toward the sound, with water from above dripping down on them. They stopped at the edge of a large chamber filled with knee-high eggs planted in the ground. There were thousands of them.

  “What are those?” Nath said.

  Selene clamped her hand over his mouth. Her eyes flitted toward the ledges above.

  Nath followed her intense stare. Wurmers, small ones, were nestled in the nooks and ledges, by the hundreds.

  Way to go, Fang!

  CHAPTER 12

  Nath felt invisible spiders crawling down his spine. He’d never seen so many tiny wurmers crawling around like a sea of giant ants before. It mortified him, thinking about the danger they posed if they became bigger. He looked at Fang.

  Why in the world did you deliver us here of all places?

  There was a rumble deep in the cavern. The wurmers’ wings fluttered for a moment, but they quickly nestled back into their spots in the stone.

  Taking Nath by the arm, Selene led him back toward the cave where they had arrived. With her voice low, she said, “This is a lair. I’m certain of it. It’s much like the ones I’ve encountered before. I think Fang brought us here to destroy the life gem.”

  “Life gem?”

  “Yes, that’s what Sansla and I were doing. I brought orbs of destruction into chambers such as this, and once I found the life gem, we destroyed it. That’s where we discovered Tylabahn. She was living inside a wurmer queen. Certainly another one lurks inside here.” She smiled. “I think Fang bringing us here was a good thing.”

  “I’m not going to complain, but how are we going to get past those wurmers? There looks to be a thousand of them out there.”

  “They aren’t trained to hunt the likes of us just yet. That doesn’t happen until they get a taste of our hides. If we’re careful, we can walk right through them.”

  “Certainly they’ll alert the guardian.”

  “Maybe, maybe not. I’m not sure we have much of a choice at this point.” She again started back toward the main cavern.

  Nath caught her shoulder. “Hold on.” He slid Dragon Claw out of Fang’s pommel. “I’d feel better if you’d hang on to this. More than likely you’re going to need it.”

  “Thanks, and keep your thoughts to yourself as best as you can. If a titan spirit resides in a wurmer, it’s very possible it might hear us. Be mindful.”

  He shrugged. “Lead the way.”

  Selene crept back into the fullness of the cavern, minding every step she took. Eggs were scattered all over the cave floor by the hundreds. Here and there, baby wurmers were slowly clawing their way out of them, coated in a sticky goo. It turned Nath’s stomach. The unnatural movement of the insect-like dragons put his senses on high alert. Seeing a wurmer pop out of one of the egg-like pods soured the taste in his mouth. That’s so alien.

  Following a narrow channel between the eggs, Selene climbed onto a ledge along the outer wall that made for a clearer path. Her eyes darted all around. Like bats in a cave, the wurmer spawn didn’t pay any mind to their presence. She moved from one chamber to another, each not very different than the one before. Only Fang’s and Dragon Claw’s faint blue light gave them a glimpse of all that was around them.

  Nath would rather not know. He fully expected the wurmers to drop on him at any moment, but they didn’t. A wurmer did crawl over his toes. I’ll never get used to that. For some reason, they’re a lot creepier when they’re smaller.

  A new light source glowed ahead. Nath and Selene headed right for it. She came to a stop and pointed. There was a natural stone well that glowed with a mystic yellow-green light that throbbed and pulsated within. Fog and mist spilled from its mouth.

  Whispering, Selene said, “That’s where the life gem lies.”

  “How do we destroy it?”

  “I don’t know. Perhaps with a blade.”

  “Perhaps.” Nath’s golden eyes searched over the new surroundings. It was nothing but eggs and wurmers. A separate tunnel on the other side of the cavern appeared to slope up. “There’s no sign of a guardian. It can’t be that easy, can it?”

  “Maybe Fang knows something we don’t.” She crept toward the throbbing light of the well.

  “I’m certain of that, I just wish I knew more about what it was.”

  They made it to the rim of the well and peered within. A bright stone twice the size of Nath’s fist pulsed with life within. Its power had a hypnotizing effect. The well was filled with a translucent goo that wobbled a bit on the surface. “So you blew up the last one?”

  “I planted the orb with it. It takes a lot of power to wipe it out.” She wielded Dragon Claw over the jellylike goo. “It’s like a heart. Perhaps I can pierce it.”

  “Let me try with Fang. I have a bad feeling that you don’t want to touch that goo. It just looks a little too sticky to me.” He held Fang out over the rim. “Old friend, you brought us here, so I hope you’re up to this.” Tip first, he pressed the blade into the goo. The entire cavern rumbled and shook. Nath fought for balance. The wurmers came to life.

  Ree-rah! Ree-rah! Ree-rah!

  “Quick, Nath! Stab it quick!”

/>   “I’m trying.” Fang’s blade was held fast in the goo. The life gem within sank deeper into the well. “That’s a problem.”

  “It’s only one of two.” Looking behind him, she gasped. “Look!”

  Still holding Fang, Nath turned his head.

  The small wurmers were gathering together into one mass of bodies. As a single unit, they began to take form, growing into a towering figure whose head, arms, and legs began to take shape.

  With its head high in the stalactites, the humanoid made from wurmers spoke in a loud and wicked voice. “Welcome, strange guests. Time to die.”

  CHAPTER 13

  “Just when you think you’ve seen it all,” Nath said, standing on the rim of the well, straining to yank Fang free. “I hope you can handle him.”

  With a body consisting of wurmers, the monster spoke again. “I am Many, the all-powerful guardian of the life gem. All intruders shall perish. All mortals shall die.”

  Selene spoke up. “We are here under the authority of Eckubahn and Tylabahn. We are testing you, Many. You let us in. You have failed.”

  “What?” His great slithering and grinding form of the dragon-insect bodies paused from advance. “I don’t believe you.”

  “How do you think we got in here? We are not some wanderers of the enemy. No, we wield great power and easily slipped through your defenses. You are lazy, Many. You are a failure. I am to be your replacement.”

  “But you are not a spirit? You are flesh. You cannot control—”

  “Silence, or I will sever your spirit with my dagger, Spirit Render!” She held Dragon Claw high. The blade shone with radiant purple.

  Under his breath, Nath said, “Keep it up, but I’m not getting anywhere. This goo holds Fang fast. I didn’t think that possible. Don’t stop talking.” Nath tugged harder. The jelly would not give.

  Selene pressed her conversation. “Back off, Many. You are inches away from your own death. I will not hesitate to use my authority given by Eckubahn. Seek a host elsewhere. This cave is no longer under your care.”