Cloak & Dagger: Book II of The Dragon Mage Trilogy

by Carey Scheppner

  Vera gasped. Kazin had not spoken a word of magic. “How did you do that?” she whispered.

  Kazin did not answer her question. “Follow me,” he ordered. He stepped into the portal and disappeared from sight. The others quickly followed.

  They took a few effortless steps and arrived in a small cavern with three branching tunnels. Kazin turned and the portal disappeared, displaying an ordinary stone wall. His staff continued to glow orange. The mage made a slight mark on the wall to reference their passing. A short gust of wind materialized out of nowhere and echoed down the right tunnel. “Follow me,” said the mage again. He led the others down the right tunnel. His staff returned to its original green glow. The trio exited the cavern and walked for nearly an hour, the wind guiding them whenever they were faced with a choice of direction. Several light tremors raged through the mountain as they went.

  “The wind gusts seem to be a little stronger in the lizardmen’s realm,” commented Kazin. “We must be getting closer.”

  The cleric and cyclops remained silent, content to let the mage lead the way. They were glad the mage had bumped into them. They were in over their heads, but the mage’s presence was comforting.

  At one point, the companions passed another spot where Kazin’s orb changed colour.

  “Another portal?” asked Vera.

  “Yes,” answered the mage. “I suspect it leads back out of the lizardmen’s realm.” A slight breeze urged them to continue the way they were going. Kazin made a mark in the opposite wall. “Perhaps we can come back to it.” He turned to continue their original course.

  The path began to drop steeply and curve to the left. Not much further, Kazin’s staff changed colour again. This time, however, it turned pink.

  “A portal?” asked Cyril.

  Kazin looked perplexed. “Yes. But there’s something different about it.” He concentrated. The concentration became strained and beads of sweat appeared on the mage’s forehead, but he persisted.

  Vera was worried that Kazin was overdoing it, and was about to break his concentration despite the risk of retribution, when the portal finally opened.

  Kazin breathed a big sigh of relief. “It was magically locked. Now that I know what I’m dealing with, it should be easier next time.” He looked at the others. “Be prepared for trouble,” he cautioned.

  Vera and Cyril nodded silently.

  As one, they stepped through the portal.

  The companions ended up in a winding passageway that went left and right like a never-ending snake. After moving along the passageway swiftly but cautiously, they could hear running water. Shortly after, light could be seen ahead of them. Kazin chanted a quick spell. “We are temporarily invisible,” he explained to the others when they didn’t see anything obvious happen.

  “I can still see you,” murmured Cyril, his low voice barely audible above the sound of running water.

  “With this particular spell, invisible people can see one another,” answered Kazin.

  Cyril nodded in understanding.

  The trio crept silently forward and reached the area that emitted the light. The sound of splashing water was much louder here. Before they knew it, the companions wound up in a circular chamber lit by torches with several passageways leading away from it. In the center of the chamber was a spectacular fountain of water. The fountain shot a good twenty feet straight up to the ceiling. At its zenith, the edges of the water returned to the floor in perfect symmetrical formation. The water on the floor ran in deep grooves around the fountain and drained into a large hole in a never-ending spiral to disappear from sight.

  Vera quickly chanted a spell and grinned. “It’s clean water!” she exclaimed. She grabbed her nearly empty wineskin and stepped forward.

  Kazin stopped her and did a spell of his own. Satisfied, he turned to the cleric. “It’s safe to proceed. There are no magical wards protecting the fountain.”

  Everyone filled their wineskins, drinking deeply and refilling their wineskins repeatedly.

  Suddenly, a lizardman came upon them from one of the passageways. Vera was about to cry out when she remembered they were still invisible.

  Cyril snuck up behind the unsuspecting lizardman and grabbed his head. With a quick motion, he snapped the creature’s neck. The creature sagged to the floor, never knowing what had just killed him.

  Vera looked away from the brutal scene. She was never comfortable with grizzly brutality like that, but she also knew she had to get used to it in the days ahead.

  “We’d better dispose of the body,” said Kazin.

  The cyclops nodded and threw the dead creature over his shoulder.

  Unfortunately, another lizardman happened upon the scene right then and saw his companion hanging in mid-air.

  Kazin muttered and cast a fireball into the surprised lizardman just as more appeared in the chamber rolling a couple of barrels.

  “Retreat!” shouted Kazin to the others. He waited for Vera to run past him back the way they had come. Cyril dropped his useless baggage and sprinted after the cleric. Then Kazin followed, hot on his heels.

  Fortunately, Kazin’s voice was sufficiently muffled by the fountain that the lizardmen scurried down the wrong passageways in pursuit. This gave Kazin the time to cancel the invisibility spell and unlock the portal they had entered by. They passed through it only to hear someone coming toward them here as well. That forced them to backtrack further.

  When they reached the portal they had bypassed earlier, Kazin stopped and looked at the others. “What do you think?”

  Light suddenly appeared ahead of them, answering Kazin’s question for them. They were surrounded. The mage concentrated, opened the portal, and they were through.

  The passageway that materialized before them curved sharply to the right. It also went down at a significant angle. The three companions paused when they heard a large number of voices some distance away.

  Kazin looked back at the others, who nodded. They knew forward was the only way to go.

  They traveled a few more minutes, the voices getting louder. An occasional roar could also be heard. At last, flickering light could be seen ahead of them. Creeping cautiously, the companions arrived at a platform jutting out from a rock face overlooking a vast chamber below. Keeping back so as not to be seen, Kazin, Vera, and Cyril looked below them.

  Vera gasped. “Are those all ogres?” she whispered incredulously.

  Kazin eyed the spectacle below in awe. “Incredible! There must be thousands of ogres gathered here! I’ve never seen so many all at once!”

  Cyril pointed. “Look over there!”

  The others looked where Cyril pointed. On an upper ledge at the far end of the chamber they could see a massive ogre, along with two much smaller robed figures.

  “That must be the ogre chieftain,” said Kazin.

  “Who are the mages?” asked Vera. Her question was answered when one of the cloaked figures threw back its hood. The cleric gasped again. “A lizardmage!”

  “Yes,” said Kazin somberly. “I wonder what they’re up to.”

  “Look!” exclaimed Cyril. Behind the lizardmages a portal opened. A small contingent of lizardmen appeared, hauling a cart laden with barrels. The portal closed and one of the lizardmages beckoned the ogre chieftain. The chieftain turned to his followers and shouted out an order. A few moments later another ogre came up to the platform. He lifted the lid off one of the barrels and grabbed a mug that hung on the side of the cart. He dipped the mug into the barrel, brought the mug to his lips, and paused uncertainly. The crowd below became silent. The ogre chieftain gave a nod and the other ogre drank. A moment of silence passed, followed by another. At last the ogre who drank put the cup down and nodded to his chieftain. The chieftain said something, but his voice was drowned out by the cheering of the crowd below. The chieftain shook hands with one of the lizardmages and turned to the crowd to speak. The crowd fell silent once again. This time the ogre chieftain’s words could be heard across t
he entire chamber. Kazin assumed the lizardmage had amplified the ogre’s voice to carry farther.

  “In exchange for good water,” bellowed the chieftain, “we will cease our hostilities toward the lizardmen. We will then join them in their war against the humans - the true cause of our suffering!”

  Vera gasped again while the crowd murmured loudly.

  “Also,” continued the chieftain, “I have been informed that the human magic users have been disabled! With the lizardmen and their magic, we will encounter minimal resistance!” The crowd roared while the chieftain spoke on. “The spoils of war are ours to do with as we please!”

  At this, the crowd went berserk. “Let us prepare for war!” screamed the ogre chieftain.

  The ogres filed out of the chamber’s many exits, excitedly yelling and cheering. The lizardmen left via the portal, leaving the cart and barrels for the ogres to take with them. In a matter of minutes, the chamber was empty.

  Kazin and Vera looked at each other. They had to stop the ogres from launching their attack! With black mages dying and clerics overloaded with patients, the humans didn’t stand a chance!

  “Someone has to alert the Tower of Sorcery and the Tower of Hope!” said Vera anxiously.

  “Don’t look at me,” said Cyril. “Who’s going to listen to a cyclops?”

  “We’re too far into the mountain,” said Vera. “If I go, how will I open all the portals we went through? Besides, even if I could get back to the first portal entrance, I still couldn’t get out the way we came in, remember? I’d be lost.”

  “Relax,” said Kazin. “There are outposts along the base of the mountain that can alert General Larsen of an impending attack. The troops there are also equipped with homing pigeons, so word is bound to get through. An advance warning from us would make little difference. We have a better chance of stopping things at the source. If we can find and free the trapped elementals, we might be able to persuade them to purify the water and undo some of the damage they’ve caused since being controlled by the lizardmages.”

  “I agree,” said Cyril. “The elementals need our help. If we don’t save them, no one will be safe from the consequences.”

  Vera nodded. “O.K. What are waiting for? Let’s get those lizardmen before it’s too late!”

  Chapter 20

  All clear,” said Alric, removing his invisibility cloak. He came back to the scene of a recent, but short-lived battle.

  “Great,” grunted Rebecca, dragging the last of the orcs to the side to join with the others.

  “Clear this way,” reported Tyris from another tunnel. He turned his attention to the wall where the lizardmens’ portal had been. “Now we have to find a way to activate this portal.”

  “I’ll try some of my magic,” offered Alric.

  “By all means,” said Tyris. He stepped aside so the elf could have access to the wall. “In the meantime, I think I’ll dispose of the bodies.” He turned to the dwarf. “That’s good enough, Rebecca. I’ll take it from here. Stand back.”

  Rebecca backed away from the elemental and the pile of dead orcs. The elemental strode into the pile of bodies and raised his arms. Instantly, the mass of dead orcs lit ablaze in an intense inferno. There was a momentary stench, but it was ventilated from the chamber by a convenient gust of wind originating from one of the tunnels.

  Alric, busy casting a spell, glanced only briefly at the inferno before turning his attention to the wall. Rebecca averted her gaze as well, her eyes stinging from the brightness.

  A few moments later the bodies were turned to ash, as were the orcs’ clothing and weapons. All that was left was a pile of dust.

  “There!” said Tyris, satisfied with his handiwork.

  Alric was still trying various door opening spells, all without success. “It’s no use!” he said at last. “The magic the lizardmen used must be different somehow.” He turned to the elemental. “Can’t you help somehow?”

  Tyris shrugged. “I’m afraid not. I can’t cast spells.”

  “Can’t you burn your way through the door?” asked Rebecca.

  “I could eventually burn my way through that rock,” said Tyris, “but it won’t do much good. You see, portals like that are designed to transport the individual or individuals to another place entirely. The other end of the portal may lie halfway across the mountain.”

  “Oh,” said Rebecca dejectedly. “So, now what?”

  “Now we wait,” said Tyris. “The lizardmage said he would be back in two hours. Time is almost up.”

  “There are bound to be orcs showing up to meet the lizardmen,” said Alric. “We should hide.”

  “I agree,” said Rebecca. “We need the element of surprise.”

  “Yes,” agreed Tyris. “The orcs are bound to show up before the allotted time, so we’ll have to deal with them quickly before the lizardmen show up. We’ll use the same strategy we used to take out the guards.”

  “Sounds good to me,” said Alric. He donned his cloak. At that same instant, the portal in the wall began to materialize.

  “The portal is opening!” whispered Rebecca. There was no time to hide. All three of them braced themselves. “Lizardmen!” she growled menacingly, charging toward the portal to join Alric. The elf cast a spell on his dagger to make it into a sword.

  When something other than a lizardman stepped out of the portal, the dwarf was caught off guard. In fact, she became frozen in her tracks.

  The elf did not take the time to identify the intruder. He sank his blade into the intruder’s shoulder and pulled back to take another swing. A short scream was followed by a chant and as Alric swung his sword again, it clanged off an invisible barrier that protected the intruder. Seeing another smaller figure nearby, the one, he surmised, who had cast the spell, Alric instinctively lunged at her with his sword outstretched. The spell caster, dressed in white, stepped back while chanting another spell. She pointed a staff in Alric’s direction.

  Suddenly, Alric was no longer able to proceed as a sleep spell struck him with full intensity. The elf crashed headlong to the ground and lay still. Meanwhile, two of Tyris’ fireballs whizzed past him toward the intruders.

  Another spell caster, dressed in black, held his staff in front of the white-robed intruder, the orb of his staff absorbing the fireballs that flew his way.

  Tyris already had another volley of fireballs flying in the opponents’ direction.

  “Stop!” cried the black-robed mage, his attention on the flaming figure in the background. One fireball got past his staff and struck the white-robed spell caster. With a cry she went down, the amulet around her neck flaring brilliantly.

  “Vera!” cried the cyclops, who had suffered at the hands of the invisible sword wielder. Released from the shield spell when Vera had cast the sleep spell on Alric, he bent over the cleric and cradled the unconscious figure in his massive arms.

  “Stop!” cried the black-robed man again. “We don’t want to harm you!”

  “Release my friends!” ordered Tyris, “or suffer the consequences!”

  “O.K.!” cried the mage. “Tell them to stop attacking!”

  The cyclops looked up at the fire elemental, angrier than he had been since leaving the Tower of Hope. It only frustrated him further that the flaming man was immune to his paralyzing ability. He growled at the flaming man, but looked down when Vera came to with a moan. She opened her eyes and Cyril quickly looked away, but not before the cleric smiled at him while looking directly into his eye for a split second.

  The cyclops helped the cleric to her feet while the elemental repeated his order. “Release my friends!”

  “Be patient!” snapped Kazin suddenly. “You injured the one who can release your friends.”

  Tyris was taken aback by the sharpness of Kazin’s tone. “You dare to talk to an elemental that way?” intoned Tyris angrily.

  “I meant no disrespect,” said Kazin, a little more calmly. “You injured my friends. I’m as upset as you are.”

&
nbsp; Vera was standing on her own now, and Tyris was amazed that she was alive at all. She looked at the elemental. “I will release your friends now. You must promise us that they will not harm us.”

  Tyris nodded, still amazed that the cleric was unharmed.

  Vera freed the dwarf first. Rebecca resumed her charge and skidded to a stop when she heard Tyris shout, “Stop!” Waving her axe threateningly, and without taking her eyes off the cleric, she said, “What? Who?”

  “Do not harm them,” said Tyris.

  The dwarf looked around, disoriented.

  Vera then went to deal with the invisible sword-wielder. “Hmm. This one should be interesting.” She felt around until she could feel the body. Grabbing hold of what she thought was an arm, she chanted a wake spell on the individual.

  “Relax, Alric!” called Tyris. “They mean you no harm.”

  “Huh? What?” said the elf. He rose groggily to his feet.

  “Show yourself!” ordered Kazin.

  “Why should I?” snapped Alric, looking in the direction of the speaker. He almost gasped when he recognized Kazin as the human mage who resided in Greenwood. He couldn’t allow Kazin to see that he had possession of the cloak!

  “I like to see who I’m dealing with,” responded Kazin.

  A cry from the cleric gave Alric the reprieve he needed. Everyone looked at Vera, who had just now remembered Cyril’s stabbed shoulder and looked to see his arm covered in blood. “Cyril! Your wound!”

  “It’s nothing,” said Cyril stoically.

  “Nonsense!” said Vera sternly. She began to administer her healing magic to the wound.

  Kazin turned back to the elf, who was busily jamming something into his pack. When the elf rose, he locked eyes with the mage.

  “There, uh, now you can see me,” stammered the elf. “Satisfied?”

  Kazin knew the elf was hiding something. He decided to keep a close eye on him. He turned back to the fire elemental. “I’ve been looking for you.”

  “Don’t even think of trying to summon me,” growled Tyris.