The Dragons of Bone and Dust (Tales from the New Earth Book 7)

by J. J. Thompson

  A towel and a pair of shorts lay on the shore when Simon reached it. He grabbed the thick towel and began to dry off.

  “I suppose that's true,” he admitted. “It's just that I haven't heard anything from them for ages; it feels like an eternity since they headed off to scout for me. Are they all okay?”

  “As far as I can tell. I didn't get a lot of news; I wanted you to have that pleasure, but they all seem eager to report on what they found.”

  Simon slipped on his shorts, the only thing that he could stand to wear in the intense heat, and headed up the gentle slope toward the tower. He was careful to watch where he walked; stepping barefoot in a pile of horse manure wasn't really all that pleasant.

  “Did Kronk do a clean up recently?”

  “No horse poop to worry about?” Aeris asked with a quick glance around. “Then I'd say yes; I don't keep track of such things. Honestly, he really is a neat freak, isn't he?”

  They entered the open rear gate and Simon stopped to stare at the elemental.

  “Neat freak? Where did you pick up that term?”

  “No idea,” Aeris said indifferently. “One of your old books, I suppose. I've read them all, many of them twice. Passes the time.”

  “Huh. Well, it isn't just neatness. Kronk uses the manure in the garden, so it keeps the path between the lake and the wall clean and is useful as well.”

  “If you say so. He must love rolling in it then, considering that he's still in there now, pulling up weeds and singing to the plants.”

  “Singing to the plants? He does that?”

  “You never noticed?”

  Aeris chuckled as he stared at the mass of well-organized crops on the far side of the tower.

  “It sounds more like grunting if you ask me, but Kronk says it's how he encourages the plants to grow. Seems to work, so who am I to criticize?”

  They began walking again.

  “They're waiting in the study, by the way,” Aeris told him. “My fellow air elementals. If you want to go ahead up, I'll bring you some juice that Kronk has chilling in the cellar.”

  “Why so generous all of a sudden?” Simon asked as he walked up the front steps.

  “Because I want you to focus on the reports, my dear wizard. I've observed that when you are comfortable, you think more clearly. My people have spent a lot of time scouting the planet for you; you can reward them by paying close attention to their summations.”

  “And here I was thinking that you were just being kind,” Simon told him with a grin.

  “My, my, whatever gave you that idea?”

  Both of them laughed as they entered the tower. Simon vigorously toweled down his hair again and then hung the towel over the back of a kitchen chair. He climbed the stairs while Aeris flew in the opposite direction to get his juice.

  When he entered his study, the first thing that Simon noticed were the nine air elementals floating above his desk. Several of them were writing madly on sheets of paper while the others were chatting in their own tongue, which sounded like the softly moaning wind. It was almost eerie. The sunlight from the windows hit them and gave them a dazzling array of colors as they bobbed and weaved. It was quite the display.

  “Good afternoon, everyone,” he greeted them with a broad smile. “I'm very happy to see you all again.”

  Those who were writing dropped their pencils and all nine elementals bowed in unison.

  “Good day, sir wizard,” one of them said as she moved apart from the rest. It was Brethia.

  Those who had been writing went back to their notes and Simon looked at them curiously.

  “My brethren are drawing some maps, sir wizard,” Brethia told him. “Along with pictures, descriptions and additional annotations. It will be easier for you to keep all of the facts straight if we write them down.”

  Simon walked around the desk and sat down. He smiled in appreciation.

  “Good thought. I like to keep records when I can. I admit that I'm terrible at it, but I am getting better. Now, whoever is ready to start and wants to go first, feel free.”

  Each elemental took their turn reporting on what they had found. Hours went by and page after page of facts and figures were handed to Simon as he slowly got an amazingly clear picture of what the new world actually looked like.

  “The apes are how big?” he asked one of the scouts who had scoured most of what was once Africa.

  “At least twenty feet tall, my lord,” the elemental replied.

  She drew a quick sketch and handed it to him.

  “Good grief, look at those teeth!” he exclaimed. “Are those spikes along its spine?”

  “Yes, my lord. It is unfortunate that I cannot add color to the picture; the adult males actually have bright red fur. Very pretty but obviously used as a warning to their enemies.”

  “Obviously.”

  The reports continued. Aeris refilled Simon's pitcher of juice several times and, as it got dark, he brought up some sandwiches.

  “Thanks Aeris,” the wizard said absently. “I'm starved. What's in them?”

  “Blueberry jam, from the last batch. You said it turned out particularly well.”

  “It really did. Thanks again. Guys,” he looked at the group of elementals watching him solemnly. “let's take a break, okay? I'm going to eat and walk around a bit; my butt's gone numb. We'll start again in fifteen minutes or so.”

  “As you wish, sir wizard,” Brethia said. “We will assemble on the roof while you recover your strength.”

  “Thank you.”

  As the group left, Simon held back a laugh when one of them asked Brethia how a person's butt could actually go numb.

  “So what do you think?” Aeris asked with a nod at the pile of papers on the desk.

  Simon stood up and stretched, groaning loudly as his muscles loosened and his spine crackled. He picked up a sandwich and chewed thoughtfully.

  “Think? I think that your people are amazingly thorough. I also think that my old world is almost unrecognizable now. Did you hear the part about the western forests of North America? Trees five hundred feet tall? Wyverns and eagles with thirty foot wing spans? Good God.”

  “I heard most of it. I was popping in and out all afternoon, attending to my regular chores. And I will read the notes when they are all finished.”

  Simon walked around the study to ease his muscles a bit and stopped to peer out of a window. The sun was setting, turning the western sky into an kaleidoscope of pinks and purples.

  Aeris landed on the desk and looked at the scattered papers. He gathered them fussily into a neater pile.

  “So what's been the biggest surprise for you so far?” he asked.

  “The biggest?”

  Simon lit all of the candles in the room with a wave of his hand and then opened both windows. The heat of the day would dissipate quickly and he wanted to catch the evening breeze. The tower was always cool, but it got stuffy after a very hot day.

  “Hmm. So far the biggest surprise has been from Orriss.”

  “Why? Because of what he saw or the fact that he lived to return and tell his tale?”

  Simon chuckled at Aeris' dry tone. He'd already come to the conclusion that, while he had a big heart, Orriss was a bit of a klutz. He tended to stumble into trouble seemingly at random and then somehow stumble out of it again. The wizard couldn't quite decide if the air elemental was blessed or cursed.

  “Both, I suppose. I'm going to start a separate list on all of the new monster species that are popping up in the world. It's getting out of hand.”

  “Old species,” Aeris corrected him. “All of the monsters that my brethren reported seeing during their travels are creatures that existed in the ancient world, before the magic was drained away. Perhaps the old gods are bringing them back to achieve balance or maybe they are appearing spontaneously as the magic levels increase in intensity.”

  “The reasons really aren't important if the result is the same,” Simon told him. “The monsters are he
re, they exist, and we'd better keep that firmly in mind going forward. I have to admit though, the encounter that Orriss had with the manticore was both terrifying and hilarious in equal measure.”

  “He does have a gift,” Aeris said, rolling his eyes. “How he's lived this long is beyond me.”

  Simon stretched again and then sat down at the desk, adjusted his weight to try and get comfortable.

  “Sore ass?”

  “Aeris! Butt is the more polite term. And yes, I have a sore ass.”

  The air elemental snorted with laughter.

  “So sorry to hear that,” he said, his voice dripping with insincerity. “But those are the limitations of the flesh. And being skinny. Now, if you could float like I do, you would never have an ache or pain again.”

  “Oh, I'd still have a pain,” Simon told him. “As long as you stayed around.”

  “Funny wizard. Anyway, I'm sure that the others will be back soon. How about some tea? It's cooled off enough in here that it should refresh you. And the corn is waiting to be cooked later if you still want it.”

  “That would be awesome, Aeris. Thanks. As for the corn, I might save it for tomorrow. These sandwiches are filling enough. Anyway, we'll be wrapping this up soon.”

  “Hopefully.”

  Aeris picked up Simon's empty glass and flew out of the room just as the other air elementals floated back in.

  The wizard grabbed another sandwich and started eating.

  “Oh, I apologize, my lord,” Brethia said when she saw him chewing. “Did we return too soon?”

  “It's fine, don't worry about it. I'm feeling better now. It's been a long afternoon. So Brethia, I do believe that yours is the last report?”

  “It is, yes. As you have heard from my friends, much to our disappointment, they discovered no new human groups or settlements.”

  Simon rubbed his eyes and nodded slowly.

  “That's true. I was really hoping that we'd find a few people at least. I mean, I know you all are thorough but it's a big planet. You may have missed someone.”

  “Anything is possible, my lord,” Brethia replied. “Doubtful, if you will pardon my impertinence, but possible. However, unlike the others, I had more luck.”

  It took Simon a moment to process what the elemental had said.

  “Wait, what? You had more luck, meaning you found some people?”

  “I did. And it was only by either happy chance or divine will that I discovered them at all.”

  Simon leaned forward and listened intently.

  “Tell me all about it, please.”

  “Yes, my lord. Well, I was sweeping the western side of the...Rocky Mountains I believe they were called?”

  “They were, yes. Still are, in my mind.”

  “Ah, good. I was traveling in a southerly direction, close to the west coast of this continent, when I saw several undead dragons in the distance, circling. They were diving down at something and then pulling back up into the air again.”

  “You saw dracoliches?”

  “I did, sir wizard. As we have learned, these monsters rarely cooperate when they hunt, so to see three of them attacking the same target was extraordinary. I decided to check it out, just in case it was significant.”

  “And what did you see?”

  Brethia retrieved a fresh sheet of paper from the pile on the desk and began sketching as she spoke.

  “I went invisible and rose up above them to get a better view. It was quite a surprise, actually. Those stupid creatures were attacking the entrance of a cave.”

  “A cave? Why would they be attacking a cave?”

  The elemental's hand was a blur as she drew a picture. As always, Simon was amazed at the skill of her kind. The drawings they created were almost photographic in their quality.

  “It wasn't the cave they were interested in, my lord; it was what was living inside of it.”

  She finished her sketch and handed it to him.

  Simon stared at it in amazement.

  He saw a half dozen figures, obviously people, looking upwards. A few were firing arrows that trailed flames while another was shooting what looked like a dozen smoking projectiles. Even without seeing their faces, the wizard felt a kinship toward them and their situation.

  “What is happening here, precisely?” he asked Brethia as he held up the picture.

  “Some of the defenders were launching fire arrows at the undead dragons,” she replied. “I do not know what substance they were using, but when it hit a dracolich, the fire would splatter against their bodies and burn for several minutes. It did quite a bit of damage to their bones and the monsters were not pleased.”

  “Good. And this one?” he said, tapping on the person launching the glowing spheres.

  “A magic missile spell, my lord. And a powerful one at that. That person is quite a decent mage, if I am any judge. A dozen missiles per cast is master-level skill.”

  “Is it? I didn't know that. I rarely use that spell.”

  Simon grinned at the memory of his early days as a wizard.

  “As I recall, I was only able to summon six bolts at a time.”

  “Still impressive, my lord,” Brethia reassured him. “Considering that the spell is more of a mage specialty.”

  “Thanks. So what happened with the battle? What was the outcome?”

  The elemental appeared thoughtful as she retrieved the drawing from Simon and added it to the pile on the table.

  “It was interesting. One of the undead dragons fell, shattered by the magic missiles and burning in a dozen spots, and the other two retreated. I hadn't realized that they were intelligent enough to do that, considering the fact that they are just animated skeletons.”

  “Hmm. Me neither. And the humans? Were any of them injured?”

  “Minimal injuries, my lord. As you may or may not know, the dracolich uses a rather nasty breath attack that's been described as a miasma of death. Poisonous. It can be quite devastating.”

  “No, I didn't know. Can you describe it?”

  Several of the waiting elementals behind Brethia said something in their windy language. She listened and then nodded.

  “A few of my friends are more knowledgeable about this than I am,” she told Simon. “They say that it is like a black fog or thick smoke. Very heavy. It shoots from the maw of the dracolich and then rolls through the air and along the ground, often for several dozen yards. Anyone who breathes it is poisoned, usually fatally.”

  She looked back at the others and asked a question. One answered and she turned around to look at Simon.

  “If a cleric is nearby, the victim may live long enough for a healing, but only if one is attempted within five minutes of exposure. Otherwise death is inevitable.”

  “Oh my God,” the wizard said, appalled. “I had no idea that they were that deadly. But no one died during the attack at the cave?”

  “No, my lord. No one died because the monsters never got close enough to use the breath attack effectively. Its one weakness is that it dissipates over long distances. The attacking undead dragons were held off far enough away to make their magic useless.”

  “Ah, now that's a useful tidbit of knowledge. Thanks, Brethia. So what about the humans? Can you tell me anything else?”

  She picked up another piece of paper and spoke as she wrote.

  “I did not approach them, sir wizard. After the battle, I reasoned that they might be a bit skittish and would attack a strange being like myself. Since you are the only one that we know of on this world who can summon my kind, I doubt that they have seen an elemental before.”

  “Good point.”

  “Thank you. But I did watch them invisibly for several hours. Living in a cave, it was hard for me to tell how many of them there were. I'm sure that I only saw a few of the inhabitants while I was there. But two hunting parties set out and returned and a few people came outside and sat in the sun for a while. I counted a dozen different individuals, mostly men, all of whom looked fairly
healthy. They wore handmade clothing and three wore decent leather armor, reinforced with metal studs. The mage was easily spotted; a young man with long auburn hair, very attractive for a human.”

  Simon grinned at that comment and Brethia laughed gently.

  “Forgive me, my lord. I only meant that I cannot judge beauty in humans, but I believe he would be considered good looking by your people.”

  “No apologies necessary. I understand.”

  She handed him the paper and he saw a series of coordinates written there.

  “You can safely Gate to this location or use it to direct your Magic Mirror spell, sir wizard. It is roughly the same spot I was in when I observed the group.”

  “Thanks Brethia; that was great news. Anything else?”

  “I made a list of the creatures I saw on my journey and I drew several maps of their locations while the others gave you their reports, my lord. It is on the pile with the rest. I would like to say that this world of yours is now teeming with life unknown before the old gods returned. It is remarkable, beautiful and incredibly dangerous at the same time.”

  She stared at Simon intently.

  “And if you manage to defeat the evil servants of the lords of Chaos, you will never lack for adventures in the future.”

  Simon smiled at her.

  “I have had enough adventures to last a lifetime already, Brethia. I really don't need any more.”

  She returned his grin.

  “Ah but your lifetime will extend far beyond others of your kind. Who knows what the distant future holds?”

  Simon stood up stiffly and slipped the paper with the cave coordinates into a desk drawer.

  “Thanks, everyone. You have all done an amazing job and I am forever grateful. Brethia, Orriss, if you both want to head home for a while, see friends or take a break, you are free to do so.”

  The two elementals exchanged a look and both shook their heads.

  “No, my lord,” Brethia told him. “We are eager to begin watching over your tower once again, if you would allow us to do so.”

  “Well, if you're sure...”

  “We are, sir wizard,” Orriss stated firmly.