by Randi Darren
“Julia and Steve?”
“Held, but they did lose a Warden somehow. I think it got mobbed and thrown into the field of explosive stones.
“Pilot lived, armor is a wreck.”
“Great,” Vince muttered, then closed his eyes and just let Taylor carry him.
“Don’t sleep. You’ll need to talk to your people when we get there.
“If you sleep now, you might not wake up.”
“Just resting. And why do you think I won’t wake up?”
“You were fighting in there for hours. I’m surprised you’re not unconscious. I checked on you often, but you were… you were fine.”
Vince didn’t bother to rise to the strange tone she used.
She wasn’t exactly wrong, though. He felt drop-dead tired.
Weary in his very bones.
“Fine, just… yeah, I’m fine. Ok,” Vince said.
Lifting his head up, Vince forced himself to keep his eyes open.
Taylor leapt into the air and cleared the Centaur front line.
“I bet it’d be fun to fly on your back,” Vince said. “Gryphons are fun, but I bet you’re faster. More maneuverable.”
“You’ve ridden a gryphon?” she asked after they’d landed.
“Have my own mount. Just couldn’t use it for this mission. Wouldn’t have worked without a lot more of them.
“They’re so few and far between that they’re reserved for my heavy troops to dispatch as needed.
“It’s how they get around from battle to battle to provide the best assistance.
“They’re normally garrisoned in Yosemite though.”
Taylor’s head turned this way and that, as if she was looking for something.
“Ah, there they are,” she said.
Shifting around, she started off toward a group of people standing around together.
Vince recognized Caroline, Eva, Blue, Steve, and Julia. They were all clearly deep in a debate.
“I have him here,” Taylor said, holding Vince out like some sort of bizarre prize. “He has numerous wounds, but none of them are actively bleeding. They seem to have clotted for now.”
Blue came over and laid her hands to the sides of Vince’s face.
“He’s very spent. Let’s just put him to sleep for now; we can talk to him in the morning,” the Dryad said.
“Are you sure?” Caroline asked.
“Yes. He needs to recover,” Blue said. Her eyes focused in on him, and Vince quietly slipped away into a dreamless sleep.
Slumping over into Taylor’s hand, Vince knew nothing more.
Chapter 25
Vince opened his eyes. He was staring up at a faint orange sky.
“You wake.”
Turning his head, Vince found Taylor sitting next to him, dressed in his coat.
“I… vaguely remember Blue standing in front of me. Did she put me to sleep?” Vince asked.
Sitting upright, he pressed a hand to his temple.
“Yes. She did. You were wounded, exhausted, and not worth anything.
“Fear not, nest-mate. I watched over you. All is well,” Taylor said.
“And you’re not tired?”
“No. I’m a black Dragon. I can go many days without sleep and not have a concern.”
Closing his eyes, Vince twisted his neck one way and then the other, getting solid pops out of his joints.
“Then I thank you for watching over me.”
“Of course, nest-mate. Do you wish to know what’s going on?”
“I would, please, yes.”
Vince slowly got to his feet and twisted his back around, stretching.
“Everyone has fled. The gold was packed up, the wounded carted, and the magical artifacts taken.
“They’re all on their way to Yosemite,” Taylor said.
She stood and began to unbutton the coat.
“You, I, and the Elf are all that remains as a rear guard,” she continued. “We’re meant to slow the enemy down and keep them from simply rushing ahead.”
Pulling the jacket free, Taylor stood naked to the brisk morning air.
“I see. Where’s Caroline?” Vince asked. Pushing his hips forward he shoved his hands into his back and leaned backward.
“Getting ready not far away. She managed to get a set of very heavy armor made, and a saddle for me,” Taylor said.
She put her hands on her hips, standing for all the world to see, unperturbed.
Unable to help himself, Vince gave her a quick once-over.
The way her scales lined and moved with the contours of her body was the same as Ramona. Though the scales were pitch black and seemingly more in number.
“You look at me with desire and curiosity,” Taylor said, her unflinching gaze on him. “Fear or disgust does not seem to be any part of your treatment of me.”
“Fear and disgust? Never. You’re a beautiful woman, Taylor. You’re not a bad-looking Dragon either.
“I take it humans in general don’t respond well to you?”
“Not generally. They seem perturbed that I eat them.”
“To be fair, that is rather strange, but… I’ve dined on more or less every race out there. Elves were the most exotic. Really great flavor, too.
“Orcs were the worst. A lot like eating gristle or a worn leather boot,” Vince said with a shrug of his shoulders.
“It’s their skin,” Taylor said, wrinkling her nose. “It’s too tough and makes it a chore. If you can peel the skin off, it’s better, but not by much.”
“Huh. Mom never tried it that way. She ended up smoking it more often than not, and loading it with spices,” Vince said. “No chance to try that anymore, though.
“I’m afraid my tablefare has become much more mundane.”
“That just means we’ll have to go hunting by ourselves outside of your realm sometime.
“There’s quite a bit of free-range Waster to enjoy,” Taylor said with a decisive nod of her head.
“Hah, a hunting trip, huh? Red wouldn’t mind so long as we gave her the hearts, I guess,” Vince said. “Alright. So they’re just expecting us to delay and stall. We can do that.”
“Yes. They also left you a Warden suit to wear. Apparently you suffered a number of wounds in your one-man war.
“They’d prefer you didn’t repeat it.”
“A Warden? For me to use? That’s different. And kind of exciting,” Vince said. “Where is it?”
“Over there with the Elf,” Taylor said, pointing with one hand.
Following the line of her arm, he saw Caroline shimmying into a large and flat breastplate.
Next to her was an empty Warden suit, its rifle holstered and locked into its shoulder.
As if sensing eyes on her, Caroline looked up.
She gave him a warm smile and waved a hand at him.
“Noble husband, could you come over here and give me a hand? I can’t quite seem to fit.”
Smirking, Vince started walking over to her.
“I’d be delighted to lay my hands on you, Caroline.”
Caroline gave him a strange look, then smiled back at him.
“Then by all means, come on over and do so.”
***
Flexing his hands, Vince looked from one to the other.
He couldn’t quite get over the fact that everything felt like it should, except that he was wearing the Warden suit.
Small blue symbols and other bits of information were cluttered on the inside of the helmet.
Vince ignored all of it. He was sure it meant something to the other pilots, but to him it was just nonsense.
Reaching to the shoulder, Vince pulled the rifle free from its locked position with a soft click.
Dropping the barrel into his other hand, he lifted it up to his shoulder.
A small reticule popped up in the center of his vision.
Moving the rifle a bit to the left and then to the right, he watched as the indicator moved.
How do they switc
h from one weapon type to the other?
Flipping the rifle over to look at the side, he inspected the trigger guard.
There, right where his thumb could reach it, was a small switch.
Flicking it, Vince was surprised when a chipper voice announced, “Plasma selected!”
Moving the switch back to the original position, he heard the voice again.
“Flechette rounds selected!”
Ok. They said the flechette rounds were limited and I’d have to stuff material into the cannister to get more.
Which means I can refill it, but I’ll need a few minutes to myself.
The plasma recharges on its own, but it requires time.
Plasma then, unless we have no choice.
“I feel strange,” Caroline said from his side.
Looking up, he saw the extremely heavily armored Caroline sitting astride Taylor’s broad back.
“You did just mate, and now you’re going into battle,” Taylor said. “You did it backward.
“Fight, then fuck.”
“No, not that. I mean… sitting here in plate mail on top of a Dragon, waiting for an army to show up.
“To kill as many as I can.”
Vince couldn’t help but nod. It did sound a bit strange.
“I’m no warrior, noble husband. I was a queen. Then I became a wife and consort.
“And now a Dragon-riding combat magician,” Caroline said, her voice taking a strange edge to it. “And I’m pregnant all the while. This is insane.”
Enemy troops began filling the roadway in front of them at the bend.
“Time for panicking is over,” Taylor said. “Now is the time to fight and kill.”
Coiling up under herself like a giant cat, Taylor got low to the ground.
“Hang on, Elf,” she said.
Then she pounced, flying down the road at incredible speed.
Caroline’s shriek trailed along behind them as the two rode off toward the enemy.
Trying to nestle the rifle more securely in his shoulder, Vince started forward.
He regretted never having been formally trained in firearms. His father had offered several times, but Vince had never truly enjoyed the feeling of a gun.
His first and only love was a sword.
Taylor plowed through the enemy ranks as Caroline dropped massive chunks of ice and fire down on the enemy as they went.
Vince pulled the trigger once. The bright-blue ball of plasma screeched across the distance and exploded into the front ranks of the Tri-lliance.
He hadn’t expected it to go so far. He’d only wanted to get a feel for the weapon.
Which he was glad to have done, since there had been no recoil at all to compensate for.
Either it simply had none or the Warden had absorbed it all.
Shrugging his shoulders, Vince lined up the rifle and began to slowly pull the trigger as he worked the sight down the front line.
Realizing the Dragon wasn’t coming back their way, the Tri-lliance soldiers turned back toward Vince.
It was mostly humans, but there was no shortage of Lizardmen either.
A red X appeared in the bottom left of his view.
“Plasma depleted! Charging. Another round will be ready in twenty-three seconds,” said the chipper voice.
Is that the voice of that Beastkin? Andrea?
Standing upright, Vince started to backpedal away.
Even in a Warden, he didn’t want to repeat what he’d done the other day. He’d had Taylor to rely on getting him out if he got cornered or trapped.
This time, he didn’t. Taylor was aiming for the back line and the support column for this group.
As was always the case, an army marched on its stomach.
No food, no march.
The red X in the corner vanished.
Vince sighted the weapon on a clump of enemies and pulled the trigger.
Blood, body parts, and scorching heat exploded outward from the point of impact.
And still, the Tri-lliance soldiers marched on.
“Plasma depleted! Charging. Another round will be ready in fifty-three seconds,” said the chipper voice.
Shit. Guess this is a slow roll backward. Not much else we can do.
Not even bothering with the pretense, he turned his back on the soldiers and started jogging down the road.
Ten minutes later, the annoying bright and chipper voice sounded again.
“Plasma has reached maximum capacity! Yay!”
“Holy shit, it really is her, isn’t it? Why the hell would they make her the audio alerts?” Vince asked no one.
Turning around, he surveyed the road he’d come down.
Distantly, he could see the dirt cloud hanging above where the army was probably coming on.
We’re lucky and unlucky at the same time.
Lucky we can send the gold in carts on a road.
Unlucky because the enemy can probably move faster than carts full of gold.
Especially on a road.
Sighing, Vince made himself as comfortable as he could and waited.
At least running in the Warden feels like nothing. It does most of the work for me.
A black blur of violence started toward him down the road.
Seconds later, Vince realized it was Taylor heading his way.
Caroline was still perched on her back, but she no longer looked like a doll strapped to a dog.
She was leaning forward, bracing herself against the movements of the Dragon but also moving with her.
Rather than against her.
In a rather frighteningly small amount of time, Taylor was in front of him.
“They have three reds. I’ll peel two off and take them. I need you to take the third,” Taylor said.
“Got it,” Vince said. Reaching behind himself with the rifle, he blindly hunted for the hard attach point he’d seen Julia use.
With a thump, the rifle locked into place.
Reaching down to his side, he pulled out a shield and unsheathed his sword.
Taylor’s large eyes went to the blade. She backed up a single step, and Vince wondered if it was an unconscious fear on her part.
Given how much damage he’d done to her with it, he wouldn’t be surprised if it really was at this point.
“I take it your wings aren’t fully healed yet?” Vince asked.
“What? Oh, no. They’re not. Dragons don’t fight in the air, though, unless we can’t avoid it.
“Since fire doesn’t work, it comes down to diving at one another. The victor can die just as easily as the loser in that kind of fight.
“Foolish,” Taylor said with a shake of her head. “If we don’t meet after this, assume I’ll make my way to back to Yosemite.”
“Understood,” Vince said.
Three red Dragons came into view, racing headlong towards them.
Lifting his sword above himself, Vince walked to one side, away from Taylor.
“I challenge the strongest of you three to a fight to the death. The weaker two can battle the black,” Vince said, pointing at Taylor. “Come and meet my blade if you’re brave enough!”
The Dragon in the middle trumpeted some type of roar and peeled away from the other two, heading straight for Vince.
“Oh good. You’re not a coward! I’ll thank you for the gift of your heart now, since when I’m eating it, you’ll no longer be in this world!” Vince shouted, getting into a defensive stance.
Taylor chuckled grimly and then loped off toward the east. Away from everything.
The Dragon heading Vince’s way seemed to be underestimating him.
There was no slowing down, no deep inhalation for a breath of fire, nor even an ounce of caution.
To Vince, it seemed the big red idiot wanted to try and run him over.
Flashing back to a similar tactic by Taylor in his mind, Vince readied himself.
Closer and closer came the Dragon
Red scales and flashing claws mirrored a m
ove of Taylor’s, and Vince was ready.
Diving forward, he angled his blade upward this time.
Clattering scales pinged and bounced off his Warden armor. Then bright red blood splattered all over him, coating his view in a screen of dark crimson.
Behind him, wet splatters and the thud of what sounded like meat hitting the ground came through the external microphones.
Coming up out of his crouching dive, Vince spun to face the dragon.
Only to find it completely eviscerated. From sternum to asshole, the thing was gutted.
Squirming around on the ground, the Dragon looked like a landed fish.
Its claws feebly scooped at its guts, trying to somehow push them back into its body.
“Don’t worry, I have no intention of making you suffer unduly,” Vince said.
Walking quickly over to the downed Dragon, Vince lifted the blade over his head.
“Your heart will be a meal I’ll savor,” he said, then brought his blade down.
With a wet thunk, the Dragon’s head separated from its neck.
Moving closer to the Dragon, Vince carved open its chest. With two slashes, he pulled out a massive chunk of its still-pumping heart.
Moving back to the road, Vince stabbed his blade into the dirt. With his free hand, he unclasped the very advanced Warden helmet and slung it over the hilt of his blade.
Both hands now free, he set about devouring the heart.
Risky. Risky to be doing this knowing an army is coming.
But in the same breath, I don’t have to engage them. I can just keep hitting and running away.
In a little under five minutes, he’d eaten all he could of the heart and tossed the remains of his lunch to one side.
Glancing down at his arms, he saw that he was covered up to his elbows in blood.
I’m sure my face doesn’t look any prettier. I’m probably a right mess.
Taking the helmet from his sword, he fixed it into a position made for it on the rear of his belt.
Kinda sucks to not wear the helmet, but better that than get the interior smeared with Dragon blood.
Plucking his blade out of the earth, Vince gave it a flick and sheathed it with a smooth motion. Grateful again for the blade, and that he didn’t have to clean it at all, he reminded himself to thank his brother again.
Distantly, he could see the Tri-lliance army marching his way.