Order Of The Dragon (Omnibus 1-4)

by Jason Halstead

  Alto nodded. "Where's Carson?"

  "Over here," Carson said as he walked up to the dead ape. He stared at her for a long moment before he started to extract the unbroken arrows he could reach. "Can't believe you did it."

  "We did it," Patrina reminded him.

  Carson scoffed. "My arrows were bee stings, nothing more."

  "It doesn't matter," Alto said. "She's dead but there are four other apes out there. I need help getting Namitus down, then we need to get away from here. I need my sword if I'm going to be worth anything."

  Patrina slipped the belt off her chest, drawing Alto's attention to her armor. He frowned and opened his mouth but Patrina held out the belt to him and beat him to it. "I already found it."

  Alto took the bundle and felt better immediately. The weight on his shoulders fell away and his breath came easier. He removed the leather wrapping around the scabbard and put his hand on the hilt. He felt the warmth flood through him and push his fatigue away. Alto drew the blade with his renewed strength and grinned.

  "Namitus?" Patrina reminded him.

  "Oh, yes, Namitus. Let's go!" Alto slid the sword back home in his scabbard and turned around. He led the way to the tower, light on his feet and feeling better with each passing step. "New armor?" he asked Patrina on their way over.

  "You're not going to believe who I ran into."

  Alto glanced at the axe she carried and the sparkling armor that looked both beautiful and indecent. "Thork's here, isn't he?"

  Patrina gasped and stopped. "How did you know?"

  The warrior grinned. "Where else would you find armor that looked like that but fit perfectly and actually offered protection?"

  She nodded. "Good point. I wish I knew how he does it."

  "Does what?"

  "All of it!" Patrina said. "His supplies, his magic, his travel, everything."

  "What better place to feel fear than an island that sailors are terrified of coming near?"

  Patrina frowned and then glanced up at the top of the tower where she could see Namitus peering between crenellations. The rogue stuck his arm up to catch the last of the sunlight that wasn't blocked by the castle walls and waved at her.

  "Nimble fellow like him shouldn't have any problems getting down," Carson said.

  "His leg is broken; he can't walk or climb," Alto explained.

  "Oh! All right, half a minute, I'll go to him," Carson said. He moved to where the broken wall was and scaled up the side of the tower with ease. Once inside, he tossed one of the ropes over and then helped move Namitus into position.

  "Catch me if I fall," Namitus said before he lowered him on the rope, one hand at time. Alto sturdied him when he was low enough and then slipped his shoulder under the man's arm once he was down.

  Carson retrieved his rope and then dropped from the wall with little more than a grunt. He looked at Namitus and frowned. "We need to set that bone and get a brace on it or it won't heal right."

  "I know," Namitus snapped. "We've done it a few times around but without some sticks and rope it just doesn't stay.

  "I have both."

  "Later," Patrina snapped.

  "Yes," Alto agreed. "Those apes will be back soon. There's nothing on this island that can kill them so we need to get away from here."

  "I killed one," Patrina reminded him.

  Alto grinned. "You did. Ready to take on the other four?"

  "I need a few days to rest first, I think. Or maybe a lifetime."

  Alto chuckled and pulled her in with his free arm to hug her again. Patrina smiled and returned the gesture.

  "Come, I have a few places nearby we can hide out in," Carson promised. He led them towards the main gate but between half-carrying Namitus and Patrina's limp, they made poor time. Carson turned and scowled, and then he hurried over to them. "I'll help Namitus; you help Patrina," he said.

  "I'd take the girl if I were you," Namitus said.

  Carson shook his head. "She scares me."

  Namitus burst out in a laugh that ended when he jostled his leg. They traded partners and started toward the gate again when they heard the heavy footsteps of their captors coming up the mountain road.

  "Too late!" Carson cried in dismay.

  "The tunnel," Patrina snapped. "Quick, to the manor—there's a tunnel that will take us through the island to Thork's lagoon."

  "Who's Thork?" Carson asked.

  "You'll see," Namitus told him.

  Patrina and Alto led the way. She steered them towards the broken wall where the ape had pulled her out of the estate. They stood at the wall when Carson spoke up behind them. "Might want to hurry!"

  Alto spun, twisting Patrina with him, in time to see Bucky crawl through the gate and rise to his massive height. He stared at the dead ape and then turned his eyes to them. He roared and hammered his hands against his chest, and then pounded the ground before rushing towards them.

  Alto helped Patrina scramble into the building by pushing up on her with his good hand. She tumbled over the broken wall with a yelp and a crash, followed by cursing that was drowned out by the furious ape's grunting. Behind Bucky, two other apes were crawling through the barbican.

  Alto and Carson hoisted Namitus over the wall next, throwing him as much as lifting him. He fell on the other side with a howl of pain. Alto turned to Carson, ready to offer to help the man in.

  Carson locked his fingers together in front of him, offering Alto a foothold. "Bucky and I have chased each other for years. I expect it's time we caught each other."

  Alto reached for his sword at his side. "I'll stand with you."

  "Just go, damn it!" Carson swore at him. "You're here because of me—have the decency to leave because of me, too!"

  Alto frowned and opened his mouth when Patrina called for him from the other side of the wall. Bucky roared and hurled a broken piece of stone from one of the buildings at them. It shattered against the wall of the manor a few feet from the men, showering them with broken stone.

  "Go!" Carson urged again.

  Alto nodded and put his foot in the man's hand. He thrust up, earning a grunt as Carson tried to compensate for the armored warrior's weight. Carson staggered but Alto had gotten both arms over the wall and held on. Carson pushed while Alto heaved himself up. Sweat broke out on his brow from the gut-wrenching agony his broken hand endured while he used it to hold himself up. His fingers wouldn't grip the stone but he used his palm to pivot on and tilt forward.

  Alto's center of balance shifted and he tumbled forward. He flipped just enough to land on his back and not his head. His armor cushioned the blow of falling on broken stone but the crash left him dazed and staring at the midnight blue sky that was twinkling with stars.

  "Alto, come on!" Patrina shouted through the fog. She pulled at his hand, helping him remember he was supposed to be on his feet and not his back. He rose up, his left hand throbbing and feeling like it was on fire. But he was still alive, which was something considering he had no right to be.

  "Carson," Alto muttered.

  "He can take care of himself," Patrina snapped. "Help me with Namitus."

  Alto glanced at the rogue and saw that the man had passed out. Alto scooped him up and slung him over his left shoulder, wrapping his forearm over the man's legs to keep him stable. Alto's hand had a tingling warmth in it that made it feel distant.

  Something crashed into the house, making it shudder and knocking stone and wood down around them. Dust rose and fell and it brought with it a host of massive spiders fleeing for their lives. They darted into the shadows and along halls, seeking refuge from the forces around them.

  Patrina sucked in her breath and then forced herself forward. She was limping badly now, barely able to put any pressure on her leg. "This way," she said as she used her axe as a cane to help her move forward.

  Alto drew his sword and followed her through the doorway and down a hallway. The building shuddered again and they heard more of the apes roaring outside. Carson was lasting long
er than he had any right to. Long enough to let them escape.

  "Saint's blood, stairs!" Patrina swore.

  Alto looked around her and saw the stairs. "Those weren't there before?"

  "They were—I forgot."

  Alto nodded and sheathed his sword. "I'll carry you."

  "You can't carry both of us!" she hissed.

  "I think I can—"

  "The hall isn't tall or wide enough," Patrina said. "Take my hand and go first to steady me."

  "Steady you?" Alto asked after she walked down a couple of steps and reached up to her.

  Patrina hopped down the first step, keeping her bad leg raised out of the way. She hopped again a moment later, biting her lip all the while. "I can do this. Let's go."

  Alto helped her hop down the remaining stairs and then through a passage. He frowned as he stared down the dark hallway. "Do you know where to go? I can't see anything."

  They heard another roar drift down to them but this one sounded more distant. Whether it was because they were farther away or not, Alto didn't know. Patrina moved in front of him in the hallway. "Yes, I can see."

  "How?"

  "I don't know," she admitted. "I think maybe the armor Thork gave me? Or this circlet. It lets me see shades of gray in the darkness. The darker shades are the walls, ceiling, and floor. Anything, I guess, at least anything that's not alive."

  "Isn't the hallway ahead of us dark then? There's nothing in it that I can see," Alto reasoned.

  Patrina was silent a moment before she responded. "That hallway in front of me is lighter. Not much, but a little."

  "This is foolish," Alto muttered. "I need to put Namitus down for a moment. Can you hold him?"

  "Why?"

  "I need my shield," he answered.

  "Turn around," she asked him. When he did, she worked his shield free of the straps and presented it to him.

  "Help me put it on my arm."

  Patrina slipped the upside-down shield onto his right arm, an awkward feeling for the man who was used to wielding his sword in that hand. He managed to maneuver his arms and the shield so he could brush his hand against the symbol on the front of it, drawing a burst of light that erupted out of the shield and caused Patrina to cry out as it blinded her.

  "Sorry," Alto murmured. "Should have warned you."

  "It's all right. You lead," Patrina said while rubbing her eyes to help them adjust.

  "How do I get out of here?"

  "I'll tell you," she said. "It's an easy route, but a long one."

  "What about Carson?" Alto asked.

  "He knows where this comes out," she said before adding, "I told him. If he managed to get away, he knows where we'll be."

  Alto grunted. "Then let's go."

  "Alto?"

  He stopped after his first step and turned his head to look at her. "Yeah?"

  He saw her blush in the light reflecting from the walls. "I was scared."

  Alto nodded. "I don't blame you. We weren't doing too good, either."

  "No, let me finish," she said. "I thought I was scared for you but Thork helped me realize that I was more scared for me."

  The warrior tilted his head. "What do you mean?"

  "I was scared about what I would do if you were gone. How would I go on without you?"

  Alto nodded. "You'd find a way—you're strong. You just killed an ape the size of a giant!"

  "This isn't a problem for you to solve," Patrina said. "This is me telling you how much you mean. And no, I don't know if I could go on. Strength comes in many forms. My mother once told me the strength of the arm was nothing next to the strength of the heart. I never understood her until now."

  "Your mother's a wise woman," Alto offered. "And if it helps, I could do little more than think about you while I was imprisoned."

  Patrina smiled. "Good. Now let's go. We've a long walk ahead of us."

  Chapter 24

  "Deal's over, Bucky," Carson called out to the great ape. He considered unslinging his bow and then changed his mind. Bucky would be on him too soon. For that matter, drawing his swords would be just as foolish.

  Carson ran.

  He made it around the corner of the manor and ducked between it and the wall. Bucky bounced off the corner of the house and would have fallen if it hadn't been for the castle wall. Mortar and chips of stone broke free from the stress of supporting the ape's massive weight but it held. Bucky launched himself off it and slammed into the other corner of the manor house that Carson had run around.

  With less than twenty feet between the estate and the western castle wall, Bucky had a harder time pursuing the ranger. The ape would drag against the wall or the estate, twisting and tripping himself. It helped Carson keep ahead of him until he saw one of the females come around the other end of the estate, blocking his escape. Carson slowed and saw the servant's entrance in the ruined manor house.

  A smile spread across his face. He could follow Patrina and the others into the tunnel she'd talked about! He just had to find it in the building. He had a rough idea of where it was based on where they'd climbed in from the other side.

  He was about to turn for the door when the other female climbed on top of the long building. The roof bowed and broke as she moved on it, getting herself into position to attack him. His smile faded. His only escape had just been snatched from him.

  Carson slowed and then stopped. He turned to face Bucky and saw the great ape was slowing down to a walk. The ape lifted his left arm and punched the roof of the manor, caving in a section and sharing without words just how unhappy he was. Carson reached up and drew his twin swords, both blades long enough a sane warrior would never even consider dual wielding. With nothing but animals to fight, Carson found having two blades a benefit, not a curse.

  Against Bucky and his two lady-apes, Carson's swords felt like toothpicks.

  As he turned, he saw the tower set in the middle of the castle's western wall. It was square, like the others, and had a door at the base. Bucky could break the tower apart, given time, but it might be time that gave Carson another option. Or better yet, another way out. Without warning, the castaway leapt to the side and ran the five steps he needed to reach the tower door.

  He burst through the aging wood shoulder first and then had to pick himself up from the floor. The inside of the tower was simple: a wooden bench and stone steps that went up around the wall. There was a landing halfway up next to a narrow window with bars in it. The last rays of the setting sun shone through it, adding a reddish tint to the tower.

  Bucky's roar preceded the ape's fists into the ground just outside the tower. Large black fingers curled around the door frame and yanked on it, tearing the wood and causing the aged mortar holding the stones together to crack and give way. The entrance was being enlarged faster than Carson had imagined.

  He looked at his swords and considered hacking at Bucky's fingers. That would buy him a little time and drive the ape into an even greater rage. He sheathed his blades and ran up the staircase instead. By the time he was at the top, Bucky had made a hole big enough to reach in and feel around. The bench was crushed right away but Bucky didn't know to reach up, nor were his arms long enough.

  Carson sat on the metal ladder bolted to the stone that led to the trapdoor in the ceiling. He took his rope off and tied it around the bottom rung, and then twisted it around his hand several times before he climbed the ladder until he was crouched beneath the trap door. This close to it, he could see how the wood had been rotted and worn down by weather and age. All he had to do was throw it open and jump over the edge. The rope would keep him from falling over the cliff and he could make his way along the ledge to safety.

  What could go wrong?

  Bucky grunted, drawing Carson's attention. The ape had removed his arm and had squatted down so he could press his face against the opening. He stared into the tower, his eye glancing back and forth in search of Carson. Bucky's dark pupil dilated as it focused on Carson. He snarled and Bucky felt
the tower tremble as the ape punched it.

  He had to act now!

  Carson rounded his back and thrust his shoulders up into the trap door. It broke and blew apart, nearly causing him to lose his balance and his grip. He recovered and climbed onto the roof just as Bucky straightened and rose up to look at him. Bucky reach for him with a dark hand but Carson had already fallen back.

  The hunter's legs pumped in the air as he fell. He grabbed the rope with both hands and kept falling. He saw the cliff pass before him, alerting him that he'd jumped too far back, and then the rope snapped taut and burned through the skin on his hand. It yanked at his arm and stopped his fall, but it felt like he'd crushed his hand and dislocated his shoulder. Then the cliff rushed at him and smacked him in the face, stunning him.

  A tug on the rope roused Carson from his stupor. A second tug moved him to the side. He shook his head and blinked the blood out of his eyes, and then tried to look up. Bucky was on top of the tower. He'd tried to get down to reach him but he couldn't. Now the ape was playing with the rope and seeing how it was attached to Carson.

  Carson reached for the cliff and found cracks and uneven rocks he could wedge his feet into. His hand was bleeding from the burnt and torn flesh on his palm but that didn't matter. He reached over his shoulder and drew one of his swords and then hacked at the rope. It took three tries but he finally cut through the rope so his arm could fall at his side.

  Carson almost fell from the sudden loss of support and the explosion of pain from his shoulder that radiated through his body. He grabbed on to the cliff with his fingers around his sword hilt and focused on breathing until the pain faded to a constant agony. Then he risked sheathing his blade and wondered how he was going to get down.

  Bucky roared again and pounded the wall and the tower. Flakes of mortar and broken stone fell around him and on him, but aside from a wince of pain when a rock hit him, he ignored it. Carson focused instead on trying to find a way to climb down the cliff wall with only one hand and two feet. He managed a few feet of movement and decided that yes, he could do it, but it was going to take a really long time.

  Carson looked up and saw one of the females had taken Bucky's position. She glared at him, her black fur ablaze with the setting sun. He frowned and turned his head in search of Bucky. He found the ape with the other female, running down the road to the castle.