Omensent: Rise of the Shadow Dragons

by Barry Gibbons

  "I don't think that a foul smelling shower will dissuade them from attempting to enter." Sly told him, stumbling into the guard house looking a little singed.

  Damarius laughed. "That liquid is a mixture of naphtha, pitch, and a special ingredient that I created to give it a little kick!" He gave the little man an evil smile. "I think its going to get hot out there in a few moments!"

  The dark liquid continued to spray out in long arcs over the crowd of dragonspawn for several minutes, then finally slowed to a trickle and stopped.

  "That's it!" The old wizard had a tight grin on his face. "Let's light them up!"

  Sly laughed a harsh laugh, then handed him a torch. "I think you should do the honors! It was your design, after all!"

  Damarius casually tossed the torch down onto the hoard of dragonspawn, but was clearly unprepared for the results. Flames suddenly exploded towards the sky, and the entire wall shook, throwing many of the men still holding their position to the hard stone walkway. Large chunks of flaming dragonspawn began to shower down over the area, while the inferno continued to boil up into the sky in an enormous mushroom cloud. Dozens of dragonspawn somehow survived the initial explosion, but couldn't avoid being set aflame by the burning liquid. They stumbled blindly through the crowd, setting a number of others alight, until they finally collapsed into smoldering masses.

  Sly dragged himself up from the stone floor, then stumbled over and helped Damarius back to his feet. "Was that supposed to happen?"

  The old wizard nodded. "I knew my special ingredient would give the liquid some kick," He pounded on the side of his head in an effort to quiet the ringing in his ears. "but I never expected it to be quite so spectacular!" He held out one hand to shield his face from the heat, then glanced over the edge. "Nothing's going to get near the gates now, at least not until that finally burns out!"

  "That means we can focus on those shadow dragons then!" The little man quickly left the guardhouse and hurried to the closest siege machine.

  Damarius took one last glance at the raging inferno, then followed the little man outside, where he found him hurrying the men assigned to reload the machine.

  There was a ear splitting roar as the shadow dragon raging through town suddenly whirled around, leveling several burning buildings with its long powerful tail, then charged towards the wall, still belching flames, obviously attracted by the explosion.

  "Get this thing loaded!" Sly roared, yanking the man out from behind the machine's controls, and climbing up into its seat.

  The men finished cocking the machine, then one of the men quickly set a projectile in place and jumped clear, allowing the little man to take aim on the charging dragon.

  The beast was less than twenty yards from the wall when it suddenly reared back, preparing to breathe death upon the wall's helpless defenders. There was a heavy twang as Sly leveled the sights and triggered the machine, firing the projectile at the rearing dragon with only a second's aim. There was a sudden meaty thunk as the projectile buried itself deep into the shadow dragon's chest, stopping the beast mid motion. It stared down at the steel tipped wooden shaft in incomprehension, then grasped the shaft and wrenched it free. It suddenly vomited an enormous amount of blood, and its wings flapped weakly several times as it swayed ponderously, its enormous eyes glazed.

  The crash as the huge serpent's body collapsed to the ground shook the entire town, and for several long moments, there was complete silence as everyone stared at disbelief at the dead shadow dragon. Then, a huge cheer erupted from the men still protecting the wall.

  "Nice shot!" Damarius complimented the little man.

  Twin roars of fury echoed through the mountains as the other two shadow dragons, who had been busy swooping down to breath fire upon town and castle, spotted their brood member lying dead among the wreckage of the town.

  "I think that just made them angry!" Sly yelled, watching the two great serpents rise high into the air, obviously preparing to renew their attacks. "Get this machine loaded! They're going to attack again!"

  The men hurried to reset the machine as one of the shadow dragons suddenly tucked its wings and plummeted towards the siege machine, its razor sharp talons extended for the kill.

  *************

  Dar and Lady Skie quickly made their way through the panicked crowd, pausing only once to avoid a crumbling house that had been bathed in dragon fire, and after several minutes of nervous running, they finally reached the main gates leading to the castle.

  Lady Skie stopped at the gates, then turned to look back at the terrified crowd. "To the castle!" She shouted at the top of her lungs. "You'll find refuge in the castle!"

  At first, only a few people turned to hurry toward the gates, but soon, more followed, until the majority of the crowd was moving towards the castle and away from the terror that had descended on their town.

  Lady Skie turned and led the way up the steps to the imposing castle, then kicked the two huge main doors open wide to allow the crowd through. "Lead everyone towards the Vaults!" She shouted to several frightened looking servants. "There should be plenty of room for everyone there!" She looked to Azel, who had come bursting into the hall with a panicked look on his face. "Azel! Make sure all of the servants make their way down to the Vaults where they will be safe!"

  The boy hesitated only a moment before sprinting off towards the grandiose staircase leading towards the upper levels of the keep.

  She and Dar remained at the entrance of the castle to guide the people to safety, all the while they watched as the city that they had worked so hard to rebuild be destroyed once again.

  Tears flowed openly down the childlike Alena's face as he watched the devastation helplessly. He had seen such destruction before, when the scarlet dragons were still under the control of the madman, Kaviel, and had fervently prayed that he would never be forced to see it again.

  Lady Skie tried hard to ignored the carnage before her, concentrating instead on guiding the frightened villagers towards the safety of the Vaults below the castle.

  Once everyone had finally made their way into the imposing keep, and it was apparent that there were few other survivors other than the men still defending the wall, both she and Dar quickly followed the others followed down to the Vaults below.

  The Vaults, which had been built deep under the mountain the keep had been carved from, was an enormous hall with great vaulted ceilings, which earned the chamber its name. There were a number of chambers lining the hall, used mostly for storage by the castle servants. At the far end of the hall stood a pair of heavy steel doors that led towards the treasury.

  The hall was filled with frightened people who were huddling together with their families and friends, their expressions terrified as they listened to the rampaging dragons that could clearly be heard as they destroyed the town.

  "Everyone should be safe down here." Lady Skie said, glancing over the frightened people worriedly.

  "Unless the shadow dragons decide to try to bring the entire mountain down on us." Dar muttered sourly.

  Several castle servants came running down the stairway, looking pale and frightened. "I think that's everyone in the castle, milady," One of the servant girls reported. "except for Azel. He said he was going to double check the upper levels of the keep to be sure that no one was left behind. We haven't seen him since!"

  The entire castle suddenly shook violently, and an ear piercing shriek suddenly resounded through the castle, drowning of the screams of terror from the townspeople.

  "Damn!" Dar exclaimed once the shriek faded. "I hope the scarlet dragons that built this keep built it to withstand a dragon's attack!"

  The castle shook again, sending a shower of dust falling upon those in the hall.

  The servant girl tried to stifle her screams, but still had tears flowing from her eyes.

  Lady Skie looked at the girl sympathetically. "Go wait with the others. You'll be safe down here."

  "What about Azel?"

  Lad
y Skie's face grew determined, even as the castle shook around her once again. "Don't worry about Azel." She assured the girl with a smile. "I'll go and find him, then bring him back with me." She turned and started up the stairs, but was stopped by Dar, who ran up to grab her by her arm.

  "Are you mad?" The Alena asked in alarm. "Do you not hear that dragon out there?" As if to emphasize his words, another piercing scream echoed through the keep.

  "Is that what that is?" Lady Skie asked in feigned astonishment. "I thought it was just the wind." She him an exasperated look. "We can't leave Azel up there to be killed! He's up there on my orders, and I'll not have his death on my conscience!"

  Dar swore violently. "Then I guess I'm going with you! I can't let you go running off on your own, or your father will have my hide!"

  Lady Skie quickly led the way back up the stairway leading to the main floor. Once there, they ran down the castle's main corridor to the grand staircase that led towards the upper levels.

  "What floor do you think he's on?" Dar asked, puffing slightly as he tried to keep up.

  Lady Skie shook her head. "It's hard to say, but my first guess would be the upper chambers."

  They reached the upper chambers just as the castle shook again, this time so violently that they were thrown to the floor. An ear splittingly loud shriek assaulted their senses, followed by the softer cries of a boy and a girl.

  "There's someone in Damion's bedchambers!" Lady Skie cried, scrambling back to her feet.

  There was another shriek, then the door leading into Damion's chambers suddenly exploded out into the hall, followed by a blast of flames and a wave of intense heat. The cries of terror continued from the bedchamber as another wave of fire erupted from the room, followed by the castle violently shaking once more.

  "It sounds like a shadow dragon is in the room with them!" Dar exclaimed, shielding his face from the heat.

  They carefully inched their way towards the doorway leading into the large chambers, then poked their heads around the charred door frame. The room was a complete ruin. The enormous bed that had been constructed to accommodate Damion's huge frame was now nothing but ash, as was most of the furniture that had decorated the room.

  Outside the large window that looked out over Sevria was an enormous shadow dragon, peering into the room with one huge black eye. It slammed its head into the castle with tremendous force in an effort to make an opening in the durable granite.

  Another cry of terror drew their attention to Azel and a small female child, who were cowering in the far corner of a side room that Damion commonly used to house his armor. Although they appeared to be unharmed, the intense heat was incredible, and they would soon be cooked alive.

  The shadow dragon clearly heard the cries of terror, and drew a deep breath. Lady Skie and Dar only had a instant to dive for cover as the monstrous beast filled the room with flames, which spilled out into the hallway, singeing their hair and clothing.

  "We have to get them out of there!" Lady Skie cried desperately. "They'll be roasted alive if they stay in there much longer!"

  "Do you have any suggestions?" The childlike sprite was sweating profusely.

  She looked around the hall desperately, then her eyes fell upon a decorative suit of armor holding a long spear. "I have any idea!" She ran over and tore the spear free from the armor's hand, then hurried back to the doorway. "I hope this works!" She glanced around the doorframe just as the shadow dragon slammed its head into the castle, causing it to shake to its foundation. She drew a deep breath, knowing this could be her only chance, then charged into the room and hurled the spear with all of her might.

  The spear flew gracefully across the devastated room and lodged deep in the shadow dragon's eye as it attempted to peer once again into the room. The sudden roar of agony that shattered the air was shocking. The shadow dragon clawed at its injured eye, snapping off the end of the spear while lodging the rest of the weapon even deeper. It released its grip on the castle, and launched itself into the air, still clawing at its face desperately.

  "Come on!" Lady Skie yelled to Azel and the child, who quickly dashed from the room and followed her and Dar back down to the Vaults.

  They were all quite shaken and out of breath by the time they reached the safety of the lower chambers. They collapsed on the cool stone stairway in exhaustion, still not quite sure whether they should believe what they had just witnessed.

  Finally, Dar took a deep shuddering breath and exhaled heavily. "That is something I never want to do again!"

  "We managed to save them, didn't we?" Lady Skie said defensively, an arm draped around both the child and Axel.

  "Aye. We saved them, but we were still nearly roasted alive!" He suddenly laughed. "I never knew that you were so skilled with a spear!"

  Lady Skie laughed. "I'm not! I've never so much as held a spear before today!"

  *************

  The monstrous beast dropped from the sky above Sly and Damarius, its razor sharp talons extended. Just moments before the beast was close enough to strike, a scarlet blur appeared from nowhere and slammed into the shadowy serpent with tremendous crash. The shadow dragon and the scarlet dragon crashed to the ground near the edge of town, ripping and biting at one another in savage battle. They rolled into a two story stone structure, instantly reducing it to rubble, still ripping and slashing at one another with lethal intent. The shadow dragon somehow managed to tear itself free from its attacker's deadly grip, then scrambled to launch itself into the air so it could escape, but the scarlet dragon was faster by far. It pounced on the smaller dragon before it could escape, and pinned it firmly to the ground.

  It was over as quickly as it started. The much larger scarlet dragon seized the shadow beast by its throat and ripped it loose with a powerful wrench. Blood sprayed from the dreadful wound, and the shadow dragon convulsed several times, then finally fell still.

  The scarlet dragon spit out the throat of the dead beast, then launched itself into the air with a powerful thrust of its great wings, setting off in pursuit of the last shadow dragon, which had fled the instant the scarlet serpent appeared.

  Another roar went up from the men as they watched the dragons disappear into the distance, and though their town lay half in ruins, many danced along the wall and through the streets joyfully as a crowd began to gather around the carcasses of the shadow dragons.

  "Get these men into order and back to their posts!" Sly roared to several guard captains. "This fight isn't over! We still have the hoard to deal with!"

  The men were quickly brought into order, and they returned to their places along the wall.

  The inferno that had blocked passage to the gates had finally begun to burn itself out, and the dragonspawn that had survived produced another makeshift battering ram, clearly intending on trying to breach the gates that were already warped and partially melted from the extreme heat produced by the fire.

  "It looks as though we only have a few minutes before they make their next attempt on the gates!" Sly warned the old wizard with a frown. "Is there any of that naphtha and pitch mixture left?"

  Damarius shook his head. "We used what little we had on their first attack on the gate." He scratched his head thoughtfully. "Given how powerful it was once mixed with my special ingredient, we could have only used half." He sighed, then shrugged. "I guess we'll know better next time."

  The little man stared at him in disbelief. "Next time? How about we focus on getting through this battle before we start planning the next?"

  "Of course! Of course!" The old wizard glanced over the edge of the wall at the ground around the gates, which was still smoldered in places. "It'll still be a while before they'll be able to cross it without searing the scales right off of their feet and legs. That should give the gates some time to cool."

  "And after that? They don't look like they're up to withstanding another assault!"

  "They still have to get passed the inner gate." The old wizard shrugged unconcerned. "I
t's much heavier than the outer gate."

  "Don't you have any other traps prepared for them?"

  "Of course I do!" Damarius laughed. "But if I tell you about all of them, you won't be suitably impressed when I trigger them, now will you?"

  Sly dropped his head into his hands wearily. "Do you have to act like your enjoying yourself?"

  "But I am!" Damarius laughed, sounding very much like a child playing with his favorite toy. "I haven't had this much fun in years!"

  "Lord Quickhand!" One of the guards suddenly cried fearfully, pointing towards the edge of the forest.

  "By the gods!" Sly cursed, his face bleak. "I think the reinforcements they were waiting on just arrived!"

  Thousands of dragonspawn were pouring out of the forest and gathering in the empty clearing a few hundred yards from where their brethren were gathered. They continued to emerge from the forest for several minutes until the new hoard outnumbered the old by three to one.

  A silence suddenly fell over the men still defending the wall as they stared wordlessly at the mass of creatures that slowly began to make their way towards the city.

  Chapter 17

  "See?" Shirk murmured to Damion as they peered out from the bush at the side of the road leading into Daconia. "The ruins are less than a half mile to the south. The walls that once surrounded the temples have long since fallen apart, so you shouldn't have any problems finding a way in."

  "Do you have any idea how many cultists are in the ruins?" Veren asked, his voice tense.

  Shirk shook his head. "I've never been foolish enough to hang around long enough to try to take a count. But from what I've seen and heard, there are forty or fifty of them, at least."

  They drew back away from the road to avoid being detected, then gathered together to decide their next move.

  "Do you have any ideas on how we're going to find Susa?" Raven asked. "It's sounds as though the ruins are fairly extensive. She could be anywhere!"