The Dragons of Decay

by J. J. Thompson

  “They must have decided on their destination last night,” Aeris observed as he watched.

  Simon nodded silently, looking away from the people to the walls of the town itself.

  “So much time and effort put into this place,” he said quietly, the frigid air biting uncomfortably into his lungs as he spoke.

  “These people put everything they had into making a new home for themselves, starting over practically with nothing. And now...”

  He shifted his backpack and felt a deep sadness welling up inside of him. To move away must feel like giving up to a lot of the people here. And he could understand that feeling totally.

  “Master, surely it is better to live than to hopelessly cling to the past?” Kronk asked, practical as always.

  The wizard looked down at him and smiled.

  “Aren't you a little upset that the walls and fortifications that you and your people built are going to be abandoned?”

  Kronk shifted his feet and the snow squeaked beneath him.

  “No, master, not really. We are going to help them build a new home, are we not? It pleases me to think of that. After all,” he added with a wave at the perimeter wall, “stone is just stone. It can always be reshaped and replaced. I hold no sentiment for it, really.”

  “I wish I had your healthy perspective, my friend.”

  Simon turned and nodded at the blocky barracks building.

  “Let's go. Clara will be in there, I suppose. We might as well get this show on the road.”

  When the three of them walked into the building, the scene was one of controlled pandemonium. A stack of goods was piled ceiling-high in the center of the room, constantly being added to as people shuffled in and out. Simon ducked out of the way as he was nudged from behind by a young woman carrying a bundle of neatly folded clothes.

  She grinned at him as she passed and rolled her eyes. Simon smiled in return and then looked around for Clara.

  “There she is,” Aeris said. He was hovering next to the wizard at shoulder height and pointed at the far end of the room.

  The cleric was listening intently to a group of people who surrounded her, a deep frown on her face. Simon recognized Malcolm and Aiden because they towered over the others in the group and he made his way toward them, weaving in and around the turmoil.

  “Because we all agreed, that's why,” Simon heard Clara say as he came within earshot.

  The cleric was looking at a sheaf of papers that the wizard recognized as the notes the air elementals had made of their scouting trips.

  “The coast is a viable area, there's plenty of fertile ground for crops and the notes make it clear that oranges and other fruit trees are growing wild there, ripe for the picking. And besides,” she looked up at Malcolm as she spoke, “a view of the ocean and the warm waters will lift everyone's spirits immensely. Right now we need that.”

  “Fine, fine,” the big man said in his heavy bass voice. “I'm not disagreeing, Clara. I'm just pointing out options.”

  She sighed and seemed to sag a bit.

  “I know that. But we were all up half the night going around and around this whole discussion. We voted and the majority ruled. Now, let's just get on with it. We need to get down there and look around in person first before we start the actual move.”

  “Ready when you are, boss,” Simon said loudly with a grin.

  The entire group turned to look at him in surprise and the cleric chuckled.

  “Right on time, as usual. Good morning, Simon. Are you all set to start this crazy adventure of ours?”

  “Ready, willing and able,” he said as he greeted everyone. Malcolm gave him a hearty clout on the shoulder and Aiden grabbed him to stop the wizard from toppling over.

  “And hello to you too,” Simon said, rubbing his arm.

  “Oops. Sorry about that,” the big man said and he reached down and gently patted the wizard on the back.

  “Malcolm, try not to knock out our only means of transportation, would you?” Aiden asked in exasperation.

  Simon winced as he moved his shoulder but had to laugh at Malcolm's look of dismay.

  “Relax, guys. I'm not quite as delicate as I look.”

  He slipped off his backpack and pulled out the piece of paper with his list of coordinates on it.

  “Clara, it sounded like you guys decided that settling along the east coast was the best choice?”

  She nodded wearily.

  “It was a long night of loud discussions, but...”

  “Arguments,” Malcolm said with a broad grin.

  “Loud discussions,” the cleric continued. “But in the end, we agreed that it would be the best place to start over.”

  “Okay.”

  Simon went through his list and tapped a set of numbers.

  “I picked a location off of my map of Florida on the coast, fairly central, that might suit. Now, who wants to come along and take a look?”

  “Aiden and I will be coming with you,” Malcolm said firmly. “Just in case. As will Clara, obviously. Mark, you wanted to join us?”

  A man with short, sandy-colored hair that Simon vaguely recognized nodded.

  “Mark was an engineer back in the old days,” Clara told the wizard. “He asked to join us as an extra set of eyes.”

  “Fine by me,” he said with a smile at the man. Mark was fairly short, with a thin beard and large brown eyes.

  He looks more like a choirboy than an engineer, Simon thought for a moment. But then none of us looks like what we used to be anymore.

  “Okay then. If you're all ready, let's go down and take a look. Clara, would you take hold of my arm please? Everyone else, make a chain, each touching the next.”

  Clara and the others got themselves in position while Aeris held on to Simon's shoulder and Kronk moved to touch the hem of his robe.

  Simon chanted the incantation of the Gate spell, looked around to make sure that everyone was set and then focused on the written coordinates. When he felt that he had them firmly set in his mind, he invoked the spell.

  “Invectis!” he said and felt the familiar pull of the void as they were sucked out of reality and into nothingness.

  A blast of warm air hit the group as they reappeared again. Simon had chosen a flat, slightly elevated spot, according to his map, and it turned out to be the perfect choice.

  They were standing in knee-high grass looking down a gentle slope at the ocean, which was pounding on the beach about a mile away. The air was sweet and gentle and the distant cries of gulls seemed like something out of a fairy tale.

  “Oh my,” Clara exclaimed, a look of sheer joy on her face. “It's like being pulled out of a bad dream and into paradise.”

  Mark, the practical type obviously, gave the beach a quick glance and then began to walk around the area slowly, reaching down to pull at the grass and look at the soil beneath it as he went.

  Simon watched him for a moment and then looked at Kronk.

  “Why don't you join our friend?” he suggested with a wave at the engineer. “Tell him about the ground, available water, whatever else he needs to know.”

  “Ah, good thinking, master,” Kronk said with a knowing look. “I will do that.”

  And he scurried off through the long grass toward Mark.

  Simon took a moment to just breathe deeply, trying to work the remnants of the wintry air out of his body. He checked out the country around them and tried to imagine a town being built here.

  The low hill extended for at least a half a mile in all directions from where they were standing. It was high enough that any approaching danger could be seen a long way off. In the distance was a stand of trees. Simon squinted as he tried to make them out and thought, although he was no expert, that it could be an orange grove.

  He took a moment to imagine the taste of a fresh orange and then pushed that idea away. There was no time for self-indulgence. Later though...

  “Simon, this is wonderful,” Aiden said as he looked around with wide
eyes. “Just being here is so, I don't know, uplifting. It's hard to believe that a few minutes ago we were in the middle of winter. I don't suppose you could teach me to cast that Gate spell, could you?” he added wistfully.

  The wizard chuckled and shook his head as he pulled off his jacket. He was beginning to sweat. The others had been dressed for indoors and looked quite comfortable. He smiled as he watched Malcolm and Aiden begin to walk the perimeter of the hill, talking excitedly and pointing out different features of the landscape to each other.

  Clara simply stood still and Simon was shocked to see a tear roll down her cheek.

  “Are you okay?” he asked as he stepped closer and looked at her worriedly. Aeris hovered just behind him.

  She looked up at him, her twisted expression a mixture of grief and hope, something the wizard had never seen before.

  “I'm fine, I suppose. It's just that, this is like a dream, isn't it? Some sort of wish fulfillment. After the attack by the wights, I have to admit that I gave in to despair. I was sure that our little group was doomed.”

  She shrugged and irritably wiped her tears away.

  “But now here we are. You, Simon, are giving us a second chance. A second chance to survive and, the gods willing, thrive. How many people get that?”

  He looked away in embarrassment and focused on the distant waves.

  “I'm not giving you anything, Clara,” he said softly. “What powers I have came from the same gods that you now serve. Maybe, I don't know. Maybe they foresaw this somehow and made sure that I was in the right place at the right time. Who knows?”

  He looked back at her and tried to smile.

  “Besides, I'm doing this for my own selfish reasons. I don't want to be left alone in this crazy new world of ours. I may like living alone, but I need to know that there are friends out there. Friends who will welcome me when I need company, the sounds of laughter and conversation. So you can thank my self-interest more than anything else, I suppose.”

  She laughed and poked him lightly on the chest.

  “Play the selfish card all you want, but I know better. We need you more than you need us, my friend. And that is the plain truth.”

  “Perhaps we can argue each other's merits another time,” Aeris said abruptly and they both turned to look at him in surprise.

  “Time is ticking, lady and gentleman,” he said solemnly. “The storm may be a distant memory down here, but it is racing toward Nottinghill as we speak. So why not decide if this is where you want to set up the new community and start moving it along?”

  “He's right,” Clara said. “The main point now is to confirm that this is a viable location.”

  She turned and looked around for Mark. He was far across the hill now, looking around and talking to Kronk, who couldn't be seen in the tall grass.

  “Come on, Simon. Let's see what our resident engineer thinks.”

  They hurried toward the odd couple, lifting their legs high to avoid being tripped up by the grass. As they approached, the man spotted them and waved.

  “So what's the verdict?” Clara asked a little breathlessly as they reached him.

  Mark crouched down and patted the ground under the grass. Kronk appeared near his hand and smiled up at Simon.

  “Well, my new friend here tells me that the soil extends down a long way and is quite rich in nutrients. Also,” he stood up again and pointed toward the trees that Simon had spotted earlier.

  “If the soil can support a mature growth like that, it should be able to sustain other crops as well.”

  Mark looked down at Kronk.

  “How deep do we have to go to hit drinking water?”

  “There is an artesian flow no more than fifty feet below us,” the earthen told them. “We can have a well dug out in short order and my brethren and I will shore up the walls to ensure that it does not cave in.” He looked at Simon. “That will be our first order of business, master, if this is the location chosen for the move.”

  “Good. So Clara, what do you think?” Simon asked.

  She glanced at Mark, who nodded once in confirmation. Then she turned and a broad smile lit up her face. Simon followed her gaze and laughed out loud. Malcolm and Aiden were running through the grass like a couple of school boys, pushing and shoving each other and giggling loudly. It was even funnier to watch considering that both were wearing full armor and had a sword banging off of their legs.

  “I think that this is exactly where we need to be,” Clara said firmly. “Let's head back and tell the others, shall we?”

  Simon waved at Malcolm and gestured for him and Aiden to return to the group. Once they had, panting and grinning like loons, he cast the Gate spell and took them all back to Nottinghill.

  Things began to move rapidly once they returned and Clara told her people what they'd found.

  The entire population of Nottinghill, all twenty souls, began buzzing with excitement and the packing increased to a fever pitch. Simon and Kronk popped back to the tower to gather up the five earthen who were patrolling the wall and Gated directly back to the site of the new town so that they could begin digging the well.

  The little guy ordered his people to get started and then took Simon aside.

  “Master,” he said quietly. “This will not take too long. Should we begin the construction of the perimeter wall when we are done?”

  Simon looked at him thoughtfully and then spun in a slow circle, checking out the size of the flat hill.

  “Can you build the wall just inside the edge of the hill?” he asked. “That way, when you're done, the view from on top of it will enable the guards to see anyone or anything coming from miles away.”

  “Easily, master. I was going to suggest that very thing.”

  Kronk jumped up for a moment to see over the top of the tall grass and then nodded to himself.

  “I would also suggest that when the wall is complete, we can dig a trench similar to the one that is around Nottinghill now. The drop-off will be significant and an assault against the town will be very difficult indeed.”

  “With a drawbridge to span the trench?” Simon asked.

  “Of course, master. And a smaller gate opposite, just in case of emergencies.”

  “Okay, do it. I'll tell Clara when I get back and see if she agrees, but I can't imagine her not wanting to make the place as secure as possible.”

  “Very well, master. I will join my fellow earthen now.”

  He turned away, hesitated and looked back at the wizard.

  “Do not overexert yourself, master,” he said firmly, shaking his finger at Simon. “You know what happens if you use too much power; you will collapse. It would not do to leave the people of Nottinghill exposed to the oncoming storm because you overdid it.”

  “I know, Kronk. I know. Go on now. I'll see you soon.”

  “Yes master. Good luck.”

  He walked off, disappearing into the grass and Simon smiled to himself.

  Kronk wouldn't be Kronk if he didn't worry, he thought as he began to cast the Gate spell again.

  Clara was more than happy at the news that the earthen would begin work on the perimeter wall as soon as they were done digging the well, as were the rest of the townspeople. While everyone gathered up their essentials, the wizard decided that it was time to talk to the cleric about Liliana and her small group.

  He took her aside and explained the situation as quickly and concisely as he could and then waited for her reaction.

  The cleric had listened calmly and, when Simon was finished, patted his hand gently.

  “Of course they can join us if they want to,” she said with a glance at the people excitedly coming in and out of the barracks.

  “We are so few now. So few. New members would be welcome, and Liliana is a formidable fighter, a fine addition to the town. Malcolm and Aiden both speak very highly of her, as of course do you.”

  “Thank you, Clara,” Simon said gratefully. “I don't know that an additional handful of peop
le are going to make that much of an impact, but I'm sure they will work hard to help build the new town. As to whether they will stay with you long-term, well, I suppose it depends on how well they fit in.”

  “I'll do what I can to make them feel welcome, my friend. And the paladin's healing powers will help to lift the burden off of me a bit, hopefully.”

  “Speaking of powers,” Simon said and looked back at the people arranging the pile of supplies, “I haven't seen Virginia or the other members of her group lately. Where are they?”

  “In and out. They've volunteered to be the clean-up crew, meaning that they are combing the village to make sure that we haven't missed any essentials.”

  “Now that's a good idea. Are they well?”

  Clara frowned at him.

  “They're fine. Why do you ask?”

  “No reason. I may want to speak to them down the road about something though, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

  Simon decided that now was not the right time to tell the cleric that he might be asking four of her people to join him in the elven realm to fight dragons.

  “Hmm, okay then,” she said with a shrug. “Anyway, the day is passing as we sit here chatting. Shouldn't we get started?”

  “Yup. Ready when you are.”

  He stood up and took off his coat, tossing it in a corner along with his backpack.

  “Won't be needing those down south. So who's coming along on the first Gate? Six max including me.”

  Aeris had been hovering in the background and now flew forward. Before he could speak, the wizard grinned at him.

  “Yes, and you too,” he said.

  The elemental smiled in obvious relief.

  Clara walked quickly over to the group of townspeople who were standing near the belongings across the room. Almost everyone seemed to be gathered now except for Virginia and her three friends and it was obvious that they were as ready as they were going to be.

  Simon remembered the guy named Henry who hadn't wanted to leave and had acted violently toward his girlfriend when she'd said she wanted to move south.