by Jeff Sabean
Fion looked down and nodded his approval as he saw the woodland elves raining arrows on the lines of high elf warriors stalking forward toward their position as giants hurled boulders at both the soldiers and at the walls of the city. He could not appreciate the view for long, as Dracorex flew erratically, dodging attacks from every direction as the Harmonui archers began firing arrows at them.
“We did not think this through very well,” Fion shouted from his back as he sent gusts of wind to blast projectiles away from them as quickly as he could.
“This was your idea elf: I wanted to kill everyone,” the dragon shouted back, his voice rumbling like thunder.
Behind them, Fion could hear Oldrino laugh and he turned his head just in time to throw up another shield to deflect a blast from Ai’nzo. “Just do something fast,” he replied.
Right then, an explosion from the front of the city walls shook the ground and sent a shockwave rippling through the air. Dracorex continued to focus on reaching the ocean as the attacks from below temporarily ceased, and Fion shifted to look over his shoulder once more.
“The northern wall is on fire, and it would appear the defenses are down,” he called down to the dragon as they bolted for the coast. “The orcs should breach the wall any time now, but we must dispose of this dragon before we can assist!”
“Maybe you would like to take over the flying and I can sit on your back and complain!” Dracorex roared at his passenger. “Just keep Ai’nzo occupied long enough for me to kill that wench he rides!”
As he finished, they burst out over the harbor, the sailors on the ships below howling in terror at the sight of the dragon, shadows blurring his body and bolts of acid flashing all around as he dodged and angled to rejoin the battle now that they were clear of the city defenses. He tucked his left wing in tight to his body as he thrust his right wide, and whipped around to face Oldrino, letting loose a blast of shadows from his mouth. The green did not have time to dodge the attack, and was instantly entangled in the tangible shadow, stopping her wings from catching air and causing her to plummet toward the ocean below.
Ai’nzo Hiju’u jumped from his saddle as the shadows closed around her body, running down her back to stand on her tail and let loose a massive ball of acid. Caught off guard by the attack, Dracorex could do nothing but close his eyes and mouth and let the blast hit him dead on. Immediately he began to smoke as his older scales melted under the assault, leaving patches of inky skin showing. He screamed in pain and dove toward the water below, never giving a second thought to his passenger.
Fion was in a world of pain as the acid melted his cloak and armor. He stripped it off as he could, tossing it far away from himself as he writhed in agony. The pain was so great that he had fallen several hundred feet before he even realized that the straps holding the saddle to Dracorex had been melted by the blast and that he was free falling toward the ocean below. A feral scream escaped the shadow elf’s lips as he crashed into the water and slipped beneath the waves.
Dracorex dove into the water headfirst a moment later, instantly feeling relief from the burning caused by the acid blast. He opened his eyes and looked around for a few seconds, and when he did not see the elf anywhere, he headed back to the surface, refreshed and ready to destroy Oldrino.
The green dragon had recovered from his breath weapon and was shaking the last bits of shadow from her wings as he burst from the ocean, heading straight for her exposed belly. The two locked in battle, wings beating furiously to keep in the air, with talons slashing back and forth as they spun out of control through the air.
From above, a golden streak appeared, and Dracorex allowed himself to be spun to his back and dropped helplessly toward the sea. He let the green dragon feel as if she were winning just long enough to see the white-hot fireball thrown by Ja’ade burst on her back, incinerating Ai’nzo Hiju’u immediately and melting the flesh from her left wing.
The green dragon spun out of control and released Dracorex, trying to recover with only a single functional wing, but that was all he needed to take control of the fight. Reaching out with his front legs, he gripped her head tightly, keeping her head turned away from himself as he opened his maw and bit down fiercely on her throat. Her emerald colored eyes opened wide in confusion as she realized that she had just been killed, then the light went out of them as the shadow dragon kicked her loose and watched her corpse drop into the ocean.
Shadows whipped around his body as he hung in place above the harbor, watching the green dragon sink, then heard cheers lifting from the ships in the harbor. He looked down and saw the ship that had carried the other-worlders, the Slip Away, at the dock with all her crew on deck cheering for the victorious dragon.
“Where is Fion?” Mialin asked as she floated down beside him, taking in the view.
“He fell and I could not recover him,” Dracorex replied, devoid of emotion.
“And you?” she asked, staring at him, her golden eyes narrow.
“And me what?”
“Will you live long enough to finish this fight so I can kill you myself?”
He snorted derisively as he started toward the city to find more death and destruction. “You can try,” was all he said over his shoulder as he picked up speed to the cheers of those below.
“All hail the self-proclaimed ‘Dragon King,'” Ja’ade muttered sarcastically, then began to laugh to herself as Mialin followed him toward the city where they could already see the guards abandoning their posts as the dragons closed on their positions.
Chapter 21 – Long Live the Queen
At the gate of the castle, Gabrielle left her team back as she approached the guards. They snapped to attention as they recognized her, but then stopped and stared at her strangely, confused as to why she was back in the city.
“You were arrested, were you not, lady?” the first guard asked, pointing his spear toward her.
“I was, but as you can clearly see, I am no longer locked in the dungeon,” she replied sweetly, looking him in the eye.
“We were told you were an enemy of the queen,” the second chimed in, the tip of his spear wavering a bit as he tried to decide if he should have it pointed toward the queen’s sister or not.
“Have I ever been my sister’s enemy?” she asked, honey dripping from the words as she spoke them. “I need to get inside immediately,” she continued as their expressions showed their confusion. “The shadow elves and orcs are attacking, and I need to be with my sister, the queen.”
The first turned and unlocked door to the side of the main gate and held it open for her to enter.
“I almost forgot,” she added as he stood staring blankly at her, “my friends need to come inside with me too.”
As she finished speaking, she waived over her shoulder to the rest of the team, who hurried toward her.
“That’s an orc and a shadow elf!” cried the second guard, turning his head toward Gabrielle in confusion.
She held out a hand toward each guard, palms facing them, and smiled as she let loose a blast of ice, freezing them in place with the shocked expressions on their faces.
“Yes, and I truly am sorry, but I cannot have you warning her before I can get to her,” she stated as the rest of the team slipped through the open door. “If you can hear me, the good news is that by the time you thaw out I will be the queen and will forgive you for attempting to stop me.”
With that she smiled and followed Di’eslo through the door, beginning to close it until a hand slipped through and stopped her. She stepped back a pace, preparing to freeze whoever was following the team in until the door pushed open and Tiane stuck his smiling face through the crack.
“The northern wall defenses are down and the army is breaching as we speak,” he reported happily.
Relieved, she closed the door and led the group across the deserted courtyard and up the stairs into the castle itself. They jogged lightly through the empty halls and were optimistic about the lack of guards until they turned
the final corner.
Between the companions and the door to the queen’s chambers was a score of her elite guard, their polished silver armor gleaming in the light streaming through the open windows of the hall. As they noticed the intruders, they formed into two offset ranks, those in the front dropping to one knee and bringing their shields to the front to create a wall as the back rank pointed their spears toward the companions over top of the shield wall.
“Well, we had to know it wouldn’t be easy,” Heishi stated, shaking his head as he whipped his katana from its saya, its green electricity crackling from the blade as it ignited.
To his left, Aki slid out his tonfa, the shadows curling around the shafts and blurring the motion as he spun them back and forth a few times to loosen up his arms. On his right, Tiane slid the handles for his kamas out of the sheaths on his leg, the blades popping from the handles and igniting into green flames as he smiled threateningly at the guards.
“There is no need for this,” Gabrielle stated as she stepped in front of the humans, the sapphire gem at the end of her staff glowing with her anger. “Stand aside and allow me access to my sister. Whoever emerges will be the queen, and none of you will need to die.”
“We cannot do that, Lady Gabrielle,” the captain of the guard called back to her. “You have betrayed your people by siding with that abomination,” he continued, pointing his sword toward Di’eslo.
The shadow elf stepped around the humans to stand beside Gabrielle, the purple web on his shield and the spikes on his flail glowing brightly as his eyes narrowed in anger. The shadows from his skin curled around his body as he stared hard at the high elf captain.
“Then you must die,” he answered coldly, following the simple statement with an indifferent smile.
That was all Shenroc needed to hear, and he rushed forward toward the guards, a guttural cry escaping his lips as he ripped his massive two-handed sword from his back and swung it across the front of the shield wall, severing the spears that were pointed at him.
“Down” came the call from behind, and the half-orc dropped to his belly as Di’eslo launched a web of pure energy from his shield, entangling the shields of the guards in the center with the shafts of the spears above them. As the guards attempted to yank their weapons free of each other, the rest of the group besides Gabrielle and Zatus rushed in.
“Watch this, lady,” Zatus stated, giggling to himself as his silver eyes began to shine with all the colors of the rainbow and a flash of color enveloped the guard captain. Before any of the defenders knew what was happening, the captain was replaced with a confused looking shadow elf. Confusion reigned in their ranks as they turned and began stabbing the enemy in their midst, and the gnome continued to laugh.
“That is not funny, Master Zatus,” Gabrielle stated, attempting to keep the smile from her face as she shot a freezing bolt from the end of her staff to stop the guards from killing their own captain.
“It’s a little funny,” he replied, gasping for breath as he looked for a new way to add confusion to the fight.
Shenroc leaped to his feet the moment the web passed over his head, and now that he was in close quarters with his enemies, he dropped his sword and ripped out his daggers. He shoved the shield wall in front of him, which was not strong now as the elves attempted to dislodge their spears from the shields, and the defenders finally dropped the shields and he stepped across and into the middle of his enemies. His yellow eyes flashed with fury as he spun and dodged blades thrust at him and countered with short jabs with his deadly daggers, scattering the tight formation and opening it up for his team to follow.
Heishi was the first to reach the guards as the shield wall disintegrated, and he led with a brutal slash of his katana that cut through the plate armor of the first guard, sending a spray of blood across the floor. The second guard slipped as he moved in, which gave Heishi the opportunity to block the guard’s sword with the hardened back side of his katana, sending it harmlessly wide and leaving the guard’s rib cage exposed. That was all the opening seasoned veteran needed, and he slid his blade across, slicing through the armor and bone as if it were not even there.
To his left, Aki swatted aside a spear tip with his left tonfa as he followed up with an upper-cut with his right, the spike at the end of his weapon protruding at the last second and catching his opponent under the jaw and sticking straight through his mouth and into his skull. He retracted the spike and ducked as a sword whistled harmlessly over his head, then kicked that guard in the kneecap and smiled at the crunch that indicated he had shattered the bone.
“Please do not kill them if possible!” Gabrielle called from behind as she froze another guard in place, his sword over his head as he was going to strike at Tiane’s exposed back.
“Taking all the fun out of it,” Shenroc grunted as he slipped a dagger into the arm pit of the next guard in line, causing the guard to drop his sword as Di’eslo smashed the guard in the side of the head with his flail, sending him flying away from the two.
The door burst open then, causing all in the hall to pause for a moment, and a curious looking pair walked calmly through. Both the attackers and defenders stopped and stared at the halfling and dwarf who halted in front of the door to stare back at them.
“Well, have you never seen a bard out for a stroll in a castle before?” Hankish asked, a huge grin plastered to his face. To the disbelief of all watching, he slid his lute from his back and began to play a jaunty tune, relieving the aches and pains of the combatants.
“What are you doing here?” Aki finally asked as he found his voice.
“Oh, we are simply assisting in the coronation efforts,” the bard replied, humming along with the tune he was playing.
“Coronation efforts?” both attackers and defenders all asked simultaneously.
“Oh, yes, the coronation of Queen Gabrielle, of course,” the halfling replied, looking at his brother and smiling. “Queen Linnie has tragically passed away in her sleep. Long live Queen Gabrielle.”
“Passed away in her sleep?” Gabrielle asked, unable to hide the look of skepticism on her face.
“Aye, in her sleep. Of natural causes. Just as me brother said,” Abugraic replied gravely, the look on his face daring anyone to question the fact.
“As I said,” Hankish interjected merrily, “long live Queen Gabrielle!”
◆◆◆
Once the guards verified that Queen Linnie was, in fact, dead in her bed and that there was no trace of foul play, they immediately laid down their weapons and pledged their allegiance to Queen Gabrielle, the rightful ruler of Harmonui. They escorted her to the balcony of the castle where she was announced to the city, and the remaining guards began pulling back into defensive positions immediately.
Heishi sent the call out to the commanders of the attacking forces to halt the attack and discovered in the process that Krait had been defeated and Fion’s body had yet to be recovered. With an uneasy peace in place, the city sat and waited to see what would happen next.
From the balcony of the castle, the newly crowned Queen Gabrielle addressed the city.
“My people, for too long there has been a divide in this city. For most of us, it was simply an attitude of superiority when it came to most of the other races. We feel as if we are better than the rest simply due to our heritage. I felt the same way until very recently when I was rescued by a group of humans, an orc, a dwarf, and,” she paused for dramatic effect, “a shadow elf.”
She turned her head and waved her friends out onto the balcony with her.
“We must forget our old prejudices and understand that it is not one’s race that defines who they are, but rather their actions. This shadow elf beside me left his family in order to scout our city so they could destroy us. Then he saved my life, and as our friendship grew, he came to realize that all our people are not responsible for the attacks on his city any more than all his people are responsible for the attacks on ours.
“My sister refu
sed to listen, which is why this attack of our city was necessary. She died in her sleep, leaving me the crown, and I vow to every one of you today that all will be welcome in this great city from this day forward. We claim to be a city founded on desiring harmony in every aspect of our lives, and now it is time to prove it.”
As she finished speaking, cheers rose from every corner of the city. She looked out over her people and smiled, knowing that the future looked bright for them all.
Epilogue
That night the new queen hosted the greatest feast in the history of the city. A massive table was set in front of the castle in the courtyard, and at it sat Queen Gabrielle flanked by Di’eslo and all her companions that had made this possible, and tables were set on the streets of the city and piled high with food for all. The companions collectively mourned the loss of Fion and Krait, although Shenroc scoffed at the notion of mourning her.
Elves, orcs, goblins, giants and shadow elves all wandered the streets eating the delicacies put out for them to share. There was plenty of food for all, but the guards were kept busy breaking up scuffles here and there between the natives and their new “friends.”
Dracorex had disappeared immediately when the fighting had concluded. He had been promised treasure for his part in the destruction of the city and had not taken it well when he learned that the city would remain. Mialin warned the young queen that he was a dangerous enemy to have and to remain vigilant.
Hankish and Abugraic were invited to stay for as long as they liked, which appealed to the two until Aki reminded them that they were not allowed to steal from the queen. They promptly decided that they would be moving along in the morning, much to the enjoyment of all at the table.
“So, what will you do now?” Heishi asked Di’eslo as they ate and reminisced about everything that happened in the past few weeks.
“The Queen has graciously invited me to remain here with her,” he began, then blushed a little as he quickly added, “as the ambassador for my people, of course.”