“Y-yes, Master Zaleus. Reports are of another dragon, a bit smaller than your own, making passes at the shoreline to the west. It breathes fire as well. It’s red or brownish in color.”
“Where is it now? Speak, peasant!”
“Reports tell of it heading to the southeast towards the Black Heart Mountains.”
“Gather an army and go after it. I want to know who is responsible for it, and where it is hiding. Kill it if you have the opportunity. We can’t let it grow to full size.”
“Yes, Master Zaleus,” the captain said, backing towards the door.
“And send in that idiot Dhell. Word has it my guests have decided to leave.”
“Yes, Master Za…”
His words were cut short by the closing of the door. The sorcerer huffed and turned towards the single window of his chambers. He looked out over the Gulf of Edenkeep. Several of King Banderon’s ships were at anchor away from the rocks that might rip them to splinters. The clouds overhead grew dark, a storm likely.
With the Wizard of Whitshire dead, the sorcerer pondered, who would be powerful enough to conjure up another dragon?
It was several minutes before there was a knock on the chamber door.
“Enter, fool.” Zaleus knew who it had to be.
Dhell slowly opened the door and peeked in.
“I said enter! Damn your pea-sized barbarian brain. Get in here before I lose my temper.”
Dhell walked cautiously into the chamber, purposely not shutting the door behind him - a move that would allow a quick retreat.
“Where are my guests?”
“They seem to have… escaped.”
“I know they escaped! How do three misfits of nature escape the great dungeon of Edenkeep? Tell me, how does that happen?”
“There had to be someone from the outside, that—”
“That managed to sneak in, kill all the guards, and just slip out with them? How could they possibly do that with the great warrior, Dhell on the job?”
“I wasn’t told I needed to guard them once they were in the dungeon, great Master Zaleus.”
“Don’t snow me with your flourishes to my name. Tell me why I shouldn’t fry you with a lightning bolt right here as we speak?”
“It would be messy? Without me, who would clean it up?”
The sorcerer laughed a bit, forgetting the anger he had over the situation. For a moment.
“I will find them. I will find them for you, and you will see. I will find them and kill them!”
“I don’t want you to kill them. I want to kill them myself. Do you understand?”
“Yes, great and powerful, Master Zaleus.”
“Dammit, stop with the butt kissing? Master Zaleus is enough. Now go! Go and round up that incompetent army of orc clowns and find them!”
“Yes, great… yes, Master Zaleus!”
Dhell left the chamber so quickly the sorcerer almost wondered if he’d accidentally cast a disappearing spell. Dust swirled across the floor from the door shutting with such haste. The sorcerer laughed. He really had no use for the party of misfits, but he enjoyed the game, and it was a fun distraction from the weight of an injured dragon and a world yet to conquer.
Chapter 39
“Certainly, they know of your existence by now, and will be sending an army to greet us,” the Spellcrafter said. “You are growing at a rapid rate, but I fear your abilities have not yet caught up to you. Certainly, an army would be little challenge for you, but your father, that will be another story. You will need help, and I don’t think I have the power within me, not yet anyway, to assist you in any way.”
Naamagal looked down at the conjurer, snorted a puff of smoke and dipped her enormous head down to eye level to the wizard.
“I know, you’re worried. But we must try. We cannot allow Zaleus to conquer even one more kingdom. We need to at Edenkeep and eliminate Diatsieg.”
Naamagal reared up and flapped her enormous wings once, creating a cloud of dust and leaves, forming little twisters under each of the massive appendages. A roar filled the sky as the red dragon released her anxiety into the air, echoes returning an answer that she was one to be feared. In the vast distance, two armies, and a small band of misfit travelers stopped in their tracks to take heed.
“Did you hear that?” Nyssa asked, cocking her head to one side, much like a hound does when they think there is something rustling in the bushes.
“Dragon,” Gnath said.
We had been walking most of the day, and thankfully the big guy slowed down so that us smaller legged creatures could keep pace.
“I think you’re right, Gnath,” Nyssa said, beginning to move forward again. We best be ready. You don’t know when it might swoop down upon us and toast our inattentive butts.”
“You paint a pretty picture, Nyssa,” I said, quickening my pace again to match that of the now moving party.
We marched east for the remainder of the day, stopping only briefly to indulge on some leftover partially cooked beef that Gnath had managed to pack into his sack. Aside from the random hair and other small debris, it was still good, and very welcome.
As the sun was dipping below the horizon, we crested a large hill less than a few hours’ hike from the Black Heart Mountains.
“The dragon is up there, somewhere,” Nyssa said. “It has to be.”
“How do you know,” I had to ask.
“If you were a dragon, where would you hide?”
“Good point.”
“We’ll rest here tonight,” Nyssa said, who had seemed to take control of the group. “No fires, I will keep the first watch. The full moon should give us enough light to see anyone coming from this vantage point. The grass is tall enough to hide us from anyone spying from a distance.”
I had no issues with Nyssa taking charge. She seemed to have a keen, strategic mind, and she was a damn good shot with a bow and arrow.
We bedded down in the grass without argument, and I suddenly realized just how tired I was. I was asleep in no time, and before I knew it, the bright morning sun cresting the mountains to the east brought me back to reality. I sat up, only to find Nyssa asleep, along with everyone else.
“Nyssa. Nyssa, wake up.”
She stirred, rubbed her eyes and tried to focus them on me.”
“What is it?”
“Who’s supposed to be on watch?”
“Oh, damn. I fell asleep.”
“Yes, you did. Fortunately, we’re all still alive.”
“What is it?” Rika asked, pushing herself into the upright seated position.
I looked at Nyssa, who was obviously shaken by letting me down.
“I was just coming off watch,” I said, seeing no need to cause any distrust or animosity in the group. “I was just going to ask Nyssa… when…”
I stood up, a hint of smoke rising to the north catching my eye. “What is this?”
I looked down into the valley only to see an encampment of an entire army. Everyone else stood up to see the same thing, jaws agape.
“This is bad, Nyssa said.”
“You didn’t see them coming, Wellington?” Rika asked.
“I um… no. I guess I wasn’t tall enough to see that far in the dark.”
“Really? Their fires would have been a dead give-away. Did you fall asleep? I bet you fell asleep!”
“It was me,” Nyssa said. “Wellington was just covering for me. I fell asleep. I’m sorry.”
“No problem,” Rika said. “It happens to all of us.”
“No problem?” I challenged. “Sounded like you were about to send me to the wolves. With Nyssa, it’s no problem?”
“She wouldn’t fall asleep unless she knew it was safe.”
“Safe? There’s an army down there!”
“Okay,” Nyssa interrupted. “Wellington’s right. I should have stayed awake. But right now, we have a bigger problem. There’s an army down there, probably from Edenkeep, either looking for us or looking for the dragon.�
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“Why would they be looking for the dragon? Wouldn’t they know where it is?”
“Not if it isn’t theirs. I can’t imagine them sending an army that size to come looking for us.”
“That would be crazy.”
“If you think that’s crazy,” came a voice from behind, “turn around.”
Slowly we turned, and there stood Dhell, along with a whole platoon of orc warriors.
“How did they sneak up on us?” I asked.
“Orcs are naturally sneaky, Wellington.”
“Seize them!” Dhell yelled, and a large group lunged at us, weapons ready to slice us to bits before we could even draw our own. Rika didn’t even have a chance to disappear before we were disarmed and bound once again.
“This scenario is getting old,” I said as they gathered us up and began pushing us towards the Edenkeep army.
“It will become very old when Zaleus gets ahold of you. Move along now, we need to turn you over to Captain Dandridge.”
We proceeded down the hill faster than my small legs could comfortably keep up towards the Edenkeep camp. Whenever I fell back a large, clammy orc hand would shove me forward, almost pushing me off my feet.
“Stop there!” called out one of the ranking soldiers of the Edenkeep rank. “State your business!”
“I am Dhell, leader of the Orc Army. I have captured the escapees for the great Zaleus and are ready to turn them over to you as prisoners.”
“We have no time for such things. You captured them; you take them back to the mad sorcerer.”
“I don’t think he’ll like you calling him mad. Take them off my hands and I will forget you said that.”
The warrior strode forward with a purpose, pushed his way between Nyssa and me and stopped inches from Dhell’s face.
“Let me make myself clear. I have no concern about this sorcerer of yours. I am here to take down a dragon and that is exactly what I expect to do.”
“Well then, we will just see what the sorcerer has to say when you return. If you return.”
Dhell’s minions grabbed our arms and began to pull us towards the ranks of the Edenkeep army, but they quickly closed ranks and we stopped abruptly.
“Orcs go around,” the captain said with a scowl.
Dhell looked at Dandridge with disdain. I could see that he didn’t take kindly to the disrespect.
“I am a barbarian.”
“You smell like the orcs you sleep with. Now go around.”
“So much for being on the same side,” Dhell hissed, directing his platoon to the side to go around the ranks.
It was then, amidst the hate and animosity, that I noticed that many of the Edenkeep warriors were beginning to look to the direction of the rising sun, squinting, some pointing, and murmuring began to make its way through the ranks.
We turned, and I too had to squint at the bright morning sun. There was something there, but before I could form the exact words in my head to quantify what I was seeing, many in the Edenkeep and orc ranks spelled it out clearly for me;
Dragon!
Chapter 40
“Get down!” someone yelled. Everyone fell face-first onto the damp morning ground. Without hesitation we fell to the ground as the massive beast swooshed overhead, the compression of the air under its wings making my ears pop. I turned my head to the side and could see the red dragon, not as big as the blue one from Edenkeep, but still not a beast to toy with. It soared in a large arc towards the mountains, soldiers poking their heads up to watch the dragon as it turned our way again to make another run.
“On your feet! Shields at the ready!” one of the sergeants in the ranks barked. In a panic, the Edenkeep ranks hopped to their feet and raised their shields to the sky as the dragon prepared for its next run. I quickly realized that the orcs had already retreated, leaving us lying there, still bound and open to any attack by the dragon. I wished I had a shield to hide behind.
Almost as soon as the shields were in the air the dragon made another pass, an ear-splitting roar coming from its tooth-filled mouth. I had considered getting up and running, but I felt no use in prolonging the inevitable. The dragon could catch me on the run as easily as it would here on the ground.
Again, the dragon arched through the sky towards the mountains, and many of the men began to break ranks and turned to run for their lives. This time, the dragon followed its own plume of fire that erupted from its mouth – bright orange and yellow flame. I closed my eyes and tucked my face into the ground waiting for the burning death that awaited me. Screams could be heard as the telltale compression of air now hot with the dragon flame told me the dragon had passed overhead. The blast furnace heat from the dragon seemed to singe my skin.
I felt the heat from nearby fires but was certain it was not coming from me. I looked up to see a wide swath of burned flesh and armor where a good portion of the Edenkeep army once stood. The rest of the army was no longer there. I poked my head as high as I could, and I could see the scattered remnants of the ranks running north for their lives. I laughed for a moment, only to realize that I was a sitting duck for the dragon.
“Somebody, untie my hands!” I said in a panic. Nyssa sat up and turned her back towards mine and began working on the knots that held my hand. Before she could finish with the bindings, the dragon made another pass, low and fast. I closed my eyes, fearing the end, but when I felt the wind of the giant beast passing overhead and felt no searing heat, I opened them again to see it making another attack run on the fleeing Edenkeep army.
With a swing of its neck and head, the dragon threw flames across the field of running soldiers. They fell to the ground within a step and a half, most killed within an instant of catching fire. Shields and armor melted under the intense heat as the dragon continued onward.
Nyssa finished untying my hands and I turned to do the same for the others as the dragon put distance between us. Farther to the north I could see another group running for their lives – the orcs!
The dragon climbed high into the air before diving to make a low, flaming pass over the fleeing orcs. With one hot breath, almost the entire orc platoon dropped to the ground engulfed in the inferno. The dragon flew a wide arc and disappeared into the mountains.
A few of the remaining Edenkeep soldiers, somehow spared from the flames, turned and ran north over the charred and smoldering ground, hoping the dragon wouldn’t make another pass. Nyssa ran to where the ranks of the Edenkeep army once stood and found herself a sword, still warm but not melted from the heat. She found another and offered it to Gnath.
“I think we should go back the way we came,” I said. “Going north would be foolish.”
“Agreed,” Nyssa said. We took no more than five steps to the south and west when the massive red dragon landed before us, wings spread, teeth showing. Rearing its head to the sky, it let out a roar; a signal of triumph, maybe. We all cowered, waiting for the fiery death. It didn’t come.
I looked at the beast as it lowered its head to our level. It sniffed, as though trying to guess our flavor by our smell. Then it snorted a brief but hot puff of smoke our way, the smell of burning oil or tar filled our nostrils. Gnath and Nyssa raised their swords at the dragon, a futile but commendable act of defiance. Most certainly, the act would not slow our death even a second.
“You will not need your weapons,” an old and familiar voice came from behind.
We quickly turned to see a face we’d thought we would never see again.
“Spellcrafter!” Rika squealed.
“Do not be afraid of Naamagal. She is here to help us all.”
I turned back to see the dragon, her head down to our level once again. Slowly, she lowered her head to the ground and rested there, as peaceful as a kitten next to a fire.
“How did you get here…? To our world?”
“Details you do not need to concern yourself with.”
“And the dragon?”
“I was fortunate to find a poor lad in dire strait
s with a dragon’s talon. I purchased it from him and with it, brought Naamagal into our world. She will help us defeat the dragon that is terrorizing Neverwind.”
“Then what happens to the red dragon?”
“I will send her back to her own world from which she came. But for now, I think it is time to make our way to the castle. We have a dragon to expel.”
“We are no match for the dragon. Why would you need us?”
Quint the Spellcrafter, closed his eyes and quietly muttered a few incoherent words when suddenly I felt a weight on my belt. To my disbelief, my sword had returned. I looked at my friends, and theirs had returned as well. Gnath drew his sword and held it in the air. It immediately glowed with a bright, bluish aura.
“I’ve seen that glow before,” I said in awe.
“Dragon Venom,” Gnath said with a smile.
Naamagal started backward, feeling strength from the blade that none of the rest of us felt.
“Yes, my friend,” Quint said. “Dragon Venom. The Wizard of Whitshire bestowed that gift upon you. Arick knew that he would not survive his attack on the dragon, but he knew that he could help you in the long run. With the help of Naamagal, Dragon Venom can show the evil dragon of Edenkeep to its defeat.”
Chapter 41
As the dragon flew off towards the mountains again, we began our journey north to Edenkeep with the Spellcrafter in our ranks. It was good to have a wizard among us once again.
Rolling in from the coast, clouds were beginning to fill the sky, dark and threatening to rain. Flashes of lightning in the distance followed by claps of thunder only helped to darken our spirits. I couldn’t shake the feeling of impending doom.
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