Damion had listened patiently as the one eared man laid out his argument, then smiled when they looked to him for a decision. "We'll linger here a day or so longer to allow the horses to rest, then we'll move on." He told them firmly, causing Veren's face to fall.
Raven waved to one of the serving girls, then ordered them another round of drinks. "As long as we're going to linger, we may as well enjoy it!" She explained defensively when Veren's face began to grow outraged. "Besides, we need to gather our strength for the journey ahead!"
They spent the rest of the night in the common room, eating and drinking far more than they probably should have, then spent another restful day catching up on their sleep.
They once again gathered in the hall the following evening, and was enjoying their meal with several tankards of the house beer, when their dwarven host came bustling down the stairs, a panicked look on his face.
"I'm sorry to bother you, my friends," He told them in a hushed voice. "but you may want to gather your belongings as quickly as you can!"
"What is it?" Damion asked, surprised by the dwarf's demeanor. "Have the dragonspawn returned?"
"Nay, but this is just as serious. Apparently word has gotten around that you may have had something to do with the attack on the lower village. The tribesmen believe the dragons and dragonspawn are here because of you." He glanced up the stairway leading to the surface nervously. "I would advise you to gather your belongings so I can take you to your horses! I have my men getting them ready as we speak."
"Why are you helping us? Veren asked suspiciously.
Muddy cast Damion a shrewd look. "I hear rumors." He answered with a shrug. "In the last few years, I've been hearing stories about a man who is unlike any other. His footsteps have shaken the entire world, and he has brought something that was once lost, back into this world." He looked at Damion pointedly. "You're also going to pay me well for my help." He added as an after thought. "My friendship may be free, but my help will cost you." He gave them an impatient look. "Now move it! Those tribesmen could be here any minute now!"
They quickly gathered their belongings, then met the dwarf at the stairway. They began to make their way up, when they heard a commotion several floors above.
"Damn!" The dwarf swore angrily. "They're already here!" He led them back down the stairs. "Luckily, there is a back way to the stable through the kitchen. Let's hurry though! My people can only stall them for so long!"
They followed him through the large double doors at the far end of the hall, then through another smaller doorway and down a long corridor to another staircase.
"There doesn't happen be a back way out of the stables as well, does there?" Raven asked as they hurried up the staircase. "If they're trying to catch us, then they probably have someone watching the stables."
The dwarf laughed. "Of course there is, my lovely young lass! It leads to a gulley a few miles outside of town. You can follow it to back towards the road. You should be safe enough then."
They reached the top of the stairs and rounded a corner to find themselves in the stables. They found their horses saddled and ready, and their pack horses laden down with fresh supplies.
"I took the liberty of adding some necessities." The dwarf told them, gesturing to the packhorses. "I'm sure that you'll find they'll come in handy. It's three weeks until you reach the border of Arleia, and there are only a few water sources along the way."
They followed the dwarf to a large stall at the back of the stable, then paused while the dwarf moved several empty crates aside. "Slide that horseshoe to left." He grunted to Veren.
The one eared man slid the the horseshoe to the left, and they heard a loud click. The entire wall suddenly swung free, revealing a large corridor that had obviously been carved centuries before.
"My family is nothing if not prepared." Muddy smiled proudly. "It took my grandfather and great grandfather twelve years to carve this passage." His face grew momentarily troubled. "I think this is actually the first time it's ever actually been used, other then when my father took me down the passage to admire his father and grandfather's handiwork." He turned to look up at Damion. "This is as far as I go. I have an establishment to look after. I wish you the best on whatever it is that you are doing, Dragon Lord."
Damion smiled, then tossed the dwarf a heavy pouch of coins. "Thank you for everything that you have done, my friend. I'll be sure to return someday."
Muddy caught the heavy pouch with a smile. "Anytime, milord! Anytime at all!"
They quickly led the horses into the hidden tunnel, then paused as the dwarf closed and latched the hidden doorway behind them, enclosing them in total darkness.
"A little help?" Veren murmured in a quiet voice.
A pinpoint of light suddenly appeared a few feet away, slowly growing larger in size and intensity as Damion focused his magic on the small floating orb.
"Very impressive!" Raven complimented him, staring a the orb in wonder.
Damion shrugged. "I've used it before. It does a fair job of lighting the way. I like to break it out every now and then and use it so it doesn't get dusty." He gave her an impish grin.
"Let's get moving." Veren grunted, starting down the corridor.
They followed the corridor for a couple of hours until they reached a dead end, then they paused to search for the exit leading out.
"Muddy failed to tell us the way out was blocked!" Veren said sourly.
Damion quickly scanned the area, and noticed a horseshoe attached to the stone wall. "There." He pointed it out to the one eared man, who quickly examined it, then grasped it and slid it over to the left.
There was a loud click, and the sound of stone grinding on stone, then a large section of the stone wall suddenly swung free, revealing the gulley that Muddy had told them about.
"I guess the dwarf was true to his word after all!" Veren conceded with a grunt.
They led the horses out of the tunnel, then paused to manipulate the outer latch to close the hidden entrance.
"Let's get as many miles from here as we can before the sun comes up." Damion said, climbing atop Storm. "I'd rather not have any of those tribesmen breathing down our necks for the rest of the trip."
***********
"Finally!" Veren sighed in relief, urging his horse towards the shade of the oasis ahead. They had been on the road for two days since escaping the tribesmen, and been unable to find any suitable shelter as dawn broke, so they had chose to push on towards the small natural spring marked on their map several miles away. "I don't think I could have lasted much longer!"
They led the horses into the welcome shade of some trees that grew near the edge of the crystal clear pond, then unloaded them and led them to drink.
Veren and Raven both waded out into the water and immersed themselves while Damion watched in amusement.
"What are you laughing about?" Veren asked in a surly tone. "Not all of us are immune to the heat, you know?"
They set up their camp for the day and settled in to try to get some rest, completely exhausted from their trek. They awoke late that evening, just as the sun began to set.
"I'm fairly certain that we're not being followed any longer." Damion told them confidently. "I think we'll remain here for another day or two to allow the horses to rest. Storm was sweating pretty hard the last mile or so on the road. It might be a good idea to give the horses time to recover."
"That may be a good idea." Raven agreed. "We've been pushing them pretty hard."
"In that case," Veren grunted, rising to his feet. "I'll start gathering firewood, while you two feed the horses and get ready to prepare breakfast."
They were soon gathered around the fire enjoying thick ham steaks smothered in onions, cut from an entire butchered pig that the dwarf Muddy had provided, along with a number of other staples when he had stocked their provisions.
"We'll have to remember to thank Muddy, if we ever see him again." Damion commented, taking another bite of his steak. "His
timely intervention helped us avoid what could have been an ugly situation!"
"He was a rare sort, was he not?" Raven agreed. "It isn't often you'll run across a dwarf willing to lift his finger to help most humans, even for coin!"
"Dwarves really aren't so bad." He disagreed, shoveling down another bite. "Once you get to know them, you'll realize they are not much different from us, and they also make fiercely loyal and trustworthy friends!"
"Well, he's alright in my book!" Veren declared, sipping on some ale that Muddy had thoughtfully included with their supplies. "I've always thought that a fight avoided is usually the wisest course."
"Well, thanks to him, we were able to outdistance anyone that may have been following us." Damion finished off his steak, and rose to his feet. "We were moving pretty quickly, and had a fair head start, so I'm pretty sure we have outdistanced any that may have tried to pursue us. But they didn't seem eager to venture away from their village anyway, so I doubt we'll have to worry about any visitors." His face grew cautious. "But just to be on to safe side, we'll take turns standing watch."
It was nearly midnight, and Damion had led Storm down to the spring to drink while he patiently brushed out the great warhorse's shaggy coat, when Snowfeather ghosted out of the darkness on silent wings.
"Something wrong?" Damion asked as the large owl landed on a nearby stone.
"There's something moving around out there. It's heading thing way."
"How many?" Damion asked, his hand on the hilt of the Dragon Sword.
"As far as I can tell, there's only one."
A moment later, the creature Snowfeather had seen heading towards their camp materialized from the darkness. "Massster!" The one armed beast immediately dropped to its knees.
"Wha..." Veren started, jumping up from his seat and drawing his sword.
"Shadowspawn!" Raven cried, scrambling for her bow.
"It's okay." Damion assured them. "This the messenger I sent to the brood mother." He turned to look at the creature that was still trembling at his feet. "Rise and report." He told it in a firm tone. "Did you take my message?"
"Yesss, Massster." The shadowspawn answered, rising to its feet. "The Mother heard your messsage. Mother wasss angry. Mother refusssed." It swayed unsteadily on its feet.
Damion looked at the beast a bit closer and noticed that it appeared to be much thinner, almost emaciated. "Are you ill?" He asked, more in surprise than concern.
"No food." It hissed, its voice on the edge of exhaustion. "No water." It glanced over at the clear pond longingly, but made no move to quench its thirst.
"How long has it been since you last had something to eat or drink?"
The shadowspawn sighed heavily. "Before you became my Massster."
"Go drink." Damion ordered, slightly alarmed.
The creature slowly made its way over to the spring, and dropped to its knees and began to drink.
"What are you thinking?" Veren asked, his face worried. "That thing is dangerous! You should have killed it!"
Damion shook his head. "It pledged its life to me when I spared it." He gave the one eared man a pointed look.
The Jaghern's face fell. "Well," He conceded suddenly. "Maybe it would be wise to keep it around for a while."
Raven giggled suddenly. "I'm guessing there is a story behind that?"
Veren grimaced. "When I first met Damion, I...." He glanced at Damion, who was grinning in amusement, clearly enjoying watching him squirm. "I kind of tried to kill him."
The young woman burst out laughing. "You tried to kill him? Are you mad?" She stared at the one eared man in disbelief.
"I wasn't in my right mind." He muttered defensively.
Damion glanced over at the shadowspawn, which had continued to drink throughout their discussion. He looked over to Raven, who was still laughing at Veren. "Could you grab several cuts of meat from our supplies?"
She smiled, then went over to rummage through their packs.
The shadowspawn submerged its body in the cool water for a long moment, then rose to its feet, seeming to have regained some of its strength. It slowly made its way back to Damion and stood awaiting his command.
"Why haven't you tried to find food or water since we last met?" Damion asked curiously. "Surely you could have fed yourself?"
The creature stared at him for a long moment. "Massster gave me a tasssk." It answered simply.
"Now that is devotion to a task!" Veren whistled in amazement.
Raven approached Damion with several thick cuts of pork that they had prepared earlier that evening, her eyes still wary as she watched the beast for any sign of aggression.
The shadowspawn watched her calmly, its black eyes following her with only curious interest.
"Next time you do something for me," Damion said, handing the beast the pork. "Make sure you take the time to eat and drink. You are no good to me dead."
The one armed creature took the meat, a grateful look on his reptilian face. It quickly devoured the food, starved from its time since their last encounter.
They watched patiently as it ate its fill, then once it had finished, it sighed in relief and contentment.
"Feeling better?" Damion asked. "Have you had enough?"
"Yesss, Massster." The shadowspawn growled, a grateful note in its voice.
"Why did you return to me?" He asked, still slightly suspicious of the beast.
"To warn you, Massster." It told him in a quiet hiss. "The Mother plansss to confront you when you enter the landsss of the ssserpentsss."
"And you returned to warn me of her plans?"
"Yesss, Massster." It looked at him, its black eyes unreadable.
"Why?"
"My life isss yoursss." It replied simply.
"And you wish to continue to serve me?"
"My life isss yoursss." It repeated.
Damion exchanged glances with the others. "And what can you do for me?" He asked after they each gave a dubious nod.
"Anything, Massster." It said confidently. "I have much information."
"Such as?"
"The Mother hasss ordered the ssspawn to lay wassste to the place in which you dwell."
"Sevria?" He asked in surprise. "They are planning to attack the town?"
"Yesss, Massster."
He grew quiet for several moments.
"Are you worried?" Veren asked, his voice tense.
Damion shook his head. "Tempest mentioned that Sly and the others were taking precautions against an attack. If I know Sly, he, Dar, and Damarius probably have a few surprises waiting for anything that may attack." He looked back to the shadowspawn. "Do you have a name? What are you called?"
"I am ssspawn." It told him with a hiss. "SSSpawn have no need of namesss, Massster."
Damion stared at the beast thoughtfully for a moment. "Very well," He said finally. "but if you wish to serve me, you must have a name."
"How about Slither?" Raven asked. "Is seems rather fitting for a serpent."
"What do you think?" He asked the creature, which seemed surprised that it was asked for its opinion.
"SSSlither." It said thoughtfully. "Yesss, Massster. SSSlither." It said its name again, seeming to almost savor the sound. It suddenly dropped to one knee. "What would have me do, Massster?"
He thought about it for a long moment. "Return to the place I dwell." He ordered, an idea suddenly leaping to mind. "Gather as many spawn along the way that will follow you, and destroy any that threaten my home. Be careful not to harm any humans along the way."
"Asss you wisssh, Massster." Slither rose, then turned to leave.
"And make sure you take time to feed along the way!"
"Yess, Massster." It paused hesitantly. "Beware the Mother." It cautioned in a quiet hiss. "Beware the land of the ssserpentsss. All will not be asss it appearsss." It turned and vanished into the darkness as silently as it appeared.
"Well now," Veren commented, scratching his head absently. "At least we know that we are on t
he right track!"
"What do you mean?" Raven asked in confusion.
"It said that the Mother was waiting for us in the land of the serpents. That's Arleia."
Damion stood staring out into the darkness, his eyes lost in thought.
"Are you sure we can trust that thing to return to defend Sevria?" Veren asked several minutes later, his face worried.
Damion nodded confidently. "Slither will follow orders. I could see that much. It will gather a few dragonspawn along the way, then return to Sevria."
"Do you think it will make much difference?"
He shrugged. "It couldn't hurt."
"Then I guess we should begin taking special care as we procede. Slither seemed quite serious when he warned us that everything would not be as it seems."
Damion nodded. "I was pondering that myself."
"Do you have any idea want it meant by that?"
He shook his head. "But I fear we will find out in time."
************
"Another one of the brood has fallen, Mother." Tar whimpered, making sure she was well out of striking distance as she delivered this news. "The dragon man called upon one of the scarlet dragons, which killed Shade and drove off the spawn. It was last seen heading east towards the fiery islands."
The crippled dragon snarled in fury, lashing out with her tail and shattering a stone column. She had abandoned her lair in the fiery islands weeks before, and now made her lair in one of the hundreds of ruined temples dedicated to serpents that dotted the overgrown jungles of Arleia, but was she still not happy with having one the scarlet dragons so close to discovering her location.
"The dragon man seems to be heading in this direction." The smaller dragon continued. "Once he has drawn closer, we'll strike again."
The Mother was quiet for several long moments, then her eyes suddenly narrowed. "I have a better plan." She whipped around to look at the smaller dragon. "Follow him, but don't attack him any further. Inform me when he nears the border."
Omensent: Rise of the Shadow Dragons Page 22