With all our screaming, the guys and Princess Mira took notice of us. I put the journal on the ground with its pages open and stood again with my hands above it. I closed my eyes, relying on the lump in my chest, and I instantly felt my magic racing through my veins. My locket began to glow, and then the book on the ground did so as well. A bright light shone in between the pages, and before I knew it, something shot out of the book at high speed, so fast that it went right past my hand. I looked up in time to see the dark blur falling back toward me, and I lunged to catch it with both hands.
When I turned the object toward me, I recognized the strange angular shape with the hollow circle in the middle. I smiled, tears threatening to stream down my cheeks, I was so relieved. I held it up in my hand, and smiles broke forth on all of my friends’ faces. Frederick and Mira both seemed proud of me while Rachel and her brothers looked so happy they might faint. Sam’s eyes shone, and I knew that he was proud of me, too. I had the arrowhead! We actually stood a chance.
When the wind picked up eerily, I knew that I had spoken too soon. It was like when a spring storm would come through the prairie, the wind picked up in an instant, and the temperature dropped twenty degrees in only seconds, making the cold of Late Winter absolutely frigid. A figurative jacket of magic was laid on my shoulders, and I recognized its signature instantly. Rhydin was coming. My nostrils filled with the stench of sulfur and ash, and the ground began to tremor. I met Sam’s eyes in an instant. I knew that this was it. Duunzer was taking Lunaka. Right now.
“We need to get to the castle. It’s our only chance!” Frederick shouted over the wind, and that was when the ground truly started to quake with force. I stuffed all of my pilfered things back into my pockets as the shaking became so severe that I stumbled to the ground.
People began running out of buildings left and right, yelling and screaming, their mouths agape and their eyes wide. Every soul was sprinting the other direction toward the center of the canyon even as the tremors threw them relentlessly to the ground. Buildings began to buckle, falling over like people fainting and crumbling to pieces. Not a single brick was left on top of another. The mine began to choke out ink black smoke and spit fire, making horrific noises as it collapsed underneath us.
Ice slid down my spine as a mile away I began to hear the castle bells ring louder than ever before. It was like thunder rolling down into the depths of the canyon, as if the great, heavy bronze bells themselves were about to be smashed in two, they were ringing so ferociously. It reminded me of my dream, and it was happening right now.
The Owenses immediately sprouted their wings, none of the civilians nearby paying any attention in their chaotic running. Rachel grabbed me firmly and jumped into the air as Luke scooped up Frederick and Mira in each arm, and James took Sam. Before I knew it, we were all in the sky!
If it hadn’t been for the fact that Duunzer would be arriving any minute, I would have taken more time to marvel at the beauty of Soläna from a bird’s eye view. However, this was not the time, regardless of how pretty the snow-white world was.
As Rachel flew rapidly towards the castle, I turned my head to watch the hundreds of people, now little black dots, gunning it for the pulleys like tiny ants trying desperately to reach their hill in a rainstorm. The castle bells continued harshly calling everyone to safety like a shepherd to his sheep. To my dismay, some of the people began climbing over others, holding on to the pulley only to be hoisted up while hanging from their fingers. Still others were being pulled off as everyone fought for their own self interests. The old rusty wheels on the pulleys were moaning so loud I could hear them even from the sky as they were hauling far more than their usual weight limit. Then, I heard the terrible screech and clang as both of them broke and plummeted to the canyon floor, trapping most of the people at the bottom of Soläna.
Unable to watch any longer, I gazed back towards the Darkness. It was advancing rapidly, its smoke overtaking the edge of the canyon by now. Even in the daylight, it was the blackest of blacks. As the ocean of shadow got closer, I noticed Rachel’s flight pattern was becoming more uneven, as were her brothers’. We were out of the canyon and within a mile of the castle, flying over top of the people of Soläna who made it up the pulleys before they crashed when I shouted up at her. “Rachel! What’s wrong? You can do it, we’re nearly there!”
Rachel gasped and made a choking sound. “Rhydin… Rhydin is here! We can’t fly when his magic is around to poison us!”
She made one more solid stride upward, the very last of her strength, but then her wings began to dissolve, the smaller shards furthest away going first. That was all we needed though, as we sailed right over the castle wall and down into the courtyard. As we fluttered down to the ground, I heard the boom of the iron gate clanging shut, sealing the castle. Luke and James made it over the wall too as they dropped their wings so nobody would see them. Their passengers hit the ground hard.
Frederick and Mira immediately rushed away from us to the other side of the courtyard where their family was standing outside the great, wooden doors. All five members of the Royal family held their hands upward, and from them shot waves of wind that blew to the tallest tower, initiating a magical star of light that separated and rounded downwards to create a magic barrier around the entirety of the castle. King Adam was even there, with Queen Gloria and Princess Cornflower, all of their eyes closed in concentration, which surprised me. I guessed he still needed to keep up his image.
No sooner than the barrier hit the ground like smooth, shining glass, then the smoky, ash smelling Darkness swept over it in a wave. It was so enormous that it made me feel like an insect under a child’s cup. All the light was instantly gone, except for what little shone out from the open door to the castle, as well as what barely emanated from the barrier. The hundred or so people who had made it from Soläna were sprinting past us, hightailing it inside to hide from the danger.
This was it. This was what Frederick and the Owenses had been training me all year for. This was what I’d become an Allyen for. Duunzer was here. Rhydin was here.
It was then that I heard it. An indescribable sound. It was like nails on a chalkboard, a hundred of them. It was such a scream that it crumbled one of the older castle towers to dust and I had to cover my ears, lest I’d go deaf. Sam rushed toward me, but it was then that I saw what had scared me the most in that dream I’d had a season ago.
Two bright red stars, gleaming in the Darkness.
Eyes.
Chapter Twenty-Two
S creams of the people huddling inside the castle reached my ears. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Queen Gloria usher the young Princess Cornflower inside now that the barrier was set. There was no mistaking the fear that overtook her sweet face. The shining, fierce eyes came closer and closer until they were the size of the guards up on the parapet. My breath quickened.
Rachel ripped the arrowhead out of my hand and snatched one of my regular arrows out of my quiver. I watched her speechlessly as she broke the old arrowhead off of the shaft and shoved the Allyen one on in its place. Panic raced through me as large crashes boomed above us. I looked up to see Duunzer banging its sharp claws against the barrier, hit after hit. What would happen when it broke? I had been training for this all year, and now I felt nowhere near ready.
“Lina! Give me your locket!” Rachel bellowed in my ear, causing me to jump.
I reached around my neck and undid the clasp of the chain Sam had given me, threading my locket off of it in only a second. Rachel took it and fixed it into the small, circular hollow in the arrowhead. It fit perfectly, and it was then that it hit me – I only had the one arrow.
Rachel handed me it, and when I grabbed hold, she looked me deep in the eyes. “You’ve only got one shot. Make sure you are in the perfect spot!”
I nodded at her, still unable to find any words in my fear. Rachel’s eyes were gentle, and she pulled me in for a quick, tight, one-armed hug. Behind her, out of the shadows, I saw cl
oaked people advancing on us. When they lowered their hoods, I recognized nearly half of them as Rhydin’s Followers. Eli, the Auklian nobleman who’d tricked me at the Spring Festival. Kino, the woman at the Winter Ball. Even Terran, whom Sam nearly killed that same night.
Frederick and Mira came running toward us as King Adam joined his cohorts, the Lunakan people no longer in the audience. I noticed that Mira had tucked her emerald skirt up into her sash, revealing trousers underneath. Even she was planning on fighting.
The prince’s voice was strong and authoritative. “Sam, stay with Lina. Rachel, you and your brothers need to be in the air to distract the dragon as long as possible. Mira and I will be on the ground to take care of the Followers. Keep the dragon busy as long as possible to give Lina a good target! Lina-…”
“I know. One arrow. Got it.” I gritted my teeth, the fierce cold of the Darkness beginning to work its way into my body.
Frederick was unable to respond because, at that moment, a huge flash of purple dominated our attention. All of us turned our heads to see the flash of magic coming from slightly above the bright red eyes. To our horror, one clawed hand pushed through the barrier without breaking it. The shining shield above us morphed, matching the contours of the dragon’s arm, allowing the creature inside but not the Darkness. It was soon followed by the other, the scaly skin barely tangible, only consisting of swirling smoke.
“Good luck, Lina!” The three Owenses sped off from us, their wings coming to life as they drew their swords, the shining shards reflecting some of the light spilling forth from the castle. I wondered how long they would have in the air after only a couple minutes of break. From the looks on their faces, I knew they were ready to go into full Ranguvariian war mode.
Duunzer entered its big, ugly head into the barrier and let out another ferocious roar, shaking every stone of the castle. Frederick turned on his heel and threw a blast of wind toward Rhydin’s Followers, who were continuing their advance on us. Before Mira joined him, she threw one more comment over her shoulder. “Try the bell tower, Lina! It’s the tallest!”
With that, I felt pretty much abandoned. Evan should have been here to help me! I turned to Sam, my last companion, about to tell him something dramatic. Before I could even look at him, he had my arm in his grasp, sprinting the other way.
“Save it for later!” He yelled as he dragged me, the first of Duunzer’s ebony legs busting through the great stone wall of Lunaka Castle. Gigantic bricks flew everywhere, smashing into the ancient trees in the courtyard. Up above, I saw the flying Owenses doing their best to goad the dragon away from me.
As we ran, I untied my sash and scrunched it into my hand, using magic to pull out my sword as the sash wrapped around the handle. Eli tried to get between us and the bell tower, his big, bulky glasses flashing in the firelight. In seconds, he was lifted and thrown with Rounan magic back toward where Mira could deal with him.
As we were reaching the door to enter the tower, another man in black tried to tackle me out of the blue. I sensed him at the last second and dodged it. The figure quickly rebounded, flexing in an abnormal way. This one wasn’t a human. It was an Einanhi. I was beginning to think that Rhydin had so many Followers simply because they were made up of nonhumans he’d created.
Sam drew his sword, and a loud clash resounded as he met the Einanhi’s blade. I was about to jump in and help, but Sam yelled at me as he blocked another blow. “Go up the tower! The Owenses won’t last long. I’ll catch up!”
I swallowed hard before spinning and flinging the bell tower door open. To my dismay, hundreds of stairs awaited me on the other side, but I knew time was against me. I took two or three steps at a time, out of breath before I was even halfway up. Trying to draw on my magic, I kept going as quickly as I could.
When a tiny window passed me by, I couldn’t help but stop and look out of it. Mira and Frederick were holding their own against the Followers, and it drove me nuts to not see Sam. Duunzer was fully in the courtyard now, and even though the Owenses were doing their best to draw it away from the bell tower, there was no mistaking where the dragon was headed. I didn’t have my feather. Rhydin knew exactly where I was.
With renewed fright, my magic took control, and I hopped up the stairs as if I were weightless. In only a few more minutes, I found myself at the top, emerging amongst at least fifty different sized bronze bells. They were covered with frost the temperature had dropped so drastically, and a couple of them were cracked into two or more pieces. I weaved my way through the giant bowls to eventually find myself on the edge of the tower, high above the courtyard. Duunzer was within a few hundred feet of me as it swiped one of its enormous claws through the air at Luke. The three Owenses were buzzing around its head now, like annoying little flies.
I tried to still my breathing and sheathed my sword into the sash, pulling out my bow and the Allyen arrow. This was it. I could not miss. I. Could. Not. Miss.
I nocked the arrow on the string with my frozen fingers and heaved it back with the last of my strength, the bow refusing to bend in the cold. As I stared at Duunzer, I realized with terror that I didn’t know what to aim for! Its head? Its eye? Its heart? The whole thing was a big mass of intangible, swirling smoke!
My fingers were turning numb quickly in the frigid cold and my arms began to burn from holding the bow. As I analyzed the body of the Einanhi dragon before me, my eyes caught sight of one of the Owenses falling out of the sky. I couldn’t see who it was, but there was no mistaking the dissolving of their wings. They had been around Rhydin’s magic too long. I was running out of time!
Out of desperation, I did what I thought was best. I aimed for one of the shining red eyes, as I used to do with my target practice. Light began to pull out of nowhere around the point of my arrow, the locket beginning to glow strongly from inside. Pulling the arrow back to my anchor, I breathed in, and then as my breath released, so did my fingers.
I hit the eye. Perfect shot. Frederick would have been proud. But the arrow passed right through it, as if it wasn’t even there.
“No!” I shouted, waving my bow around like a crazy person, nearly pitching it against a giant bell. I missed, and there was no telling where in the entire courtyard the arrow had landed. My only shot was gone. And with it, the locket, my magic amplifier.
“Good attempt, Linaria.”
I froze at the sound of that voice. It was low, sneering, and slightly nasal. It was the voice of my nightmares. I looked up from the tower to see Rhydin perched upon Duunzer’s massive head, his billowing black cloak floating to the side. He looked exactly the same as he had last summer, even down to his clothing. His thin, pale lips were curled. Anger built up inside of me so that it rivaled my fear. I barely recognized my own voice as I screeched his name. “Rhydin!”
He chuckled darkly, the evil joy evident in his amethyst eyes. “I perceive you are in quite the predicament. I vow not to harm you if you come quietly. We will retrieve the locket, and you may assist me as I establish my reign.”
“Do you really think I’ll agree to that? After you murdered my family?” I shouted at him, my hatred brimming over. I charged a magical blast of light into my hand and thrust it toward him.
He caught it easily in his left hand. One of my most powerful spells had been caught like a child catches a ball. Rhydin looked at it, as if he were studying it. It was so easy for him. I’d never seen someone block magic that simply before. I realized with chilling dread that I wasn’t remotely strong enough without my locket.
“I see you require more convincing.” Rhydin muttered, his smirk disappearing from his face as he crushed my magic in one hand, like it was nothing but a wad of paper. Then, he swept the hand outward like a signal.
Duunzer responded to the order and began to put one gigantic foot in front of the other, gaining on the tower. A few hundred feet turned into one hundred, and then into fifty as I desperately looked around me for something. Anything that could help me at this point. Magic was obvi
ously not a choice at the moment.
My eyes landed on the bells, and I knew it was worth a shot. It was the only thing that could buy me time. I sprinted back into the labyrinth of bronze until I found the rope, which was as thick as my leg. I clambered up it the best I could with my numb hands and used my entire body to pull it down, initiating the bells.
My ears began to ring with their banging noise, the sounds bouncing around my head until my ears began to go deaf. Duunzer roared with pain, its claws flying upward toward its head as it stumbled, the bells messing with its ears and head as I had hoped. Then with a swipe of its smoky paw, the entire roof of the tower came crashing down on top of me.
I dove off of the rope and threw my hands up above me, stopping most of the debris with magic. A few rocks still pelted me. Choking on the dust, I threw the floating chunks of tower off of me only to come face to face with Duunzer’s snout.
Sulfur filled my nose and I couldn’t help but hold my breath at this proximity as I backed away as slowly as possible. The dragon’s nostrils were big enough for an entire wagon wheel to fit inside, and two long whiskers curled down from either side of them. Its scaly skin continued to roll with smoke and ash, and fixed in its two giant, searing, scarlet eyes was only me.
Rhydin glared at me quizzically as he ran a pale hand through his midnight hair. “Have you reconsidered?”
I gulped. Hard. My breaths became short. I shook my head quickly, continuing to back up until I felt the hard, stone wall behind me.
“Pity.” Rhydin spat. His expression fell slightly. He kneeled on the dragon’s head once again, and death was in his eyes.
With a roar, Duunzer threw its head up and let out a giant, stream of fire into the night sky. It clashed against the barrier that still stood above, causing the flames to stream out, reflecting in a million directions down the curved magical dome.
I drew my sword once again, trying to get into some sort of defensive stance against this monstrous creature. Before I knew it, Duunzer’s claws lashed out again. I swung my sword yet hit nothing. Duunzer’s mighty foot slammed against my body, crushing me against the tower wall.
The Allyen (The Story of the First Archimage Book 1) Page 27