by Damon Alan
The half-horses were panicking. Routed, they were fleeing the battle in every direction. Harry estimated that five hundred had arrived, and less than a hundred were fleeing. Mostly thanks to the Hotchkiss and rifles, but Cylethe and the Undek were formidable foes as well.
The drakon landed near Harry, then Cylethe dismounted. The Undek warriors who still lived and were conscious cheered.
“Your doing?” Harry asked, gesturing at Miller, who was chasing down the enemy in seventy-foot strides.
“I asked him first,” she protested. “He was eager.”
“Fair enough,” Harry said, wondering what absurdity this world would bring him next. “It looks like we’ve won this round.”
Cylethe looked around. “No small thanks to you humans. I am grateful.”
“As Grandmother said,” Harry smiled. “Our people have been allies for a long time.”
She grinned. “I believe that now.”
“So do I,” Harry said.
Chapter 8 – Treaty
Elianna and Ernst were in the back seat of the wheeled transport Ernst called an auto. Whatever the name, it was convenient. It was faster than a horse, but it smelled a lot worse. A chemical scent assaulted her nose whenever she was near one.
“This treaty, you need to take it to your monarch?” Ernst asked her.
“My lover, Hagirr,” she informed him. “If your people and my people are to be friends, he will decide. I haven’t been as welcomed here as I’d like.”
“You are terrifying to those you’ve met,” Ernst said, being frank as she’d asked him to do. “Poor Frau von Krosigk may never be the same.”
“Nothing will ever be the same,” she told him. “Why should it? Before we arrived, you humans were about to kill each other in huge numbers with your machines. Is this not better?” She didn’t wait for him to answer. “You did your people a favor opening that gate, Ernst.”
Which was a lie. All humans would be brought through the gate eventually, but if these Germans felt they’d benefit from the process and helped get it done, so much the better.
Ernst looked uncertain. “I can’t shake the feeling that Germany isn’t exactly in the position of power here.”
“Once we’re in agreement the dragons will be told to stay out of German territory. The troops that are controlling some of your people right now will retreat to enemy lands and concentrate on the real fight, Ernst. Forcing those without our vision to see it as we do. My world follows the singular vision of Hagirr. Your world will do so as well, and as Germany already does, you will prosper for it.”
“You mean my lands and yours are both fascist. Germany will be a puppet of your master?” he asked.
“Hagirr is my lover,” she corrected again. “Puppet is a harsh word. The capital of Earth will be in Berlin. Your capital, yes?”
He nodded.
“Germany will make all the decisions except those that Hagirr needs to make,” Elianna offered.
“Why should we not fight to retain our independence?”
“Have you not seen enough of my demonstrations to know the answer to that question?”
The look on his face confirmed he had.
“You and Herta are my friends. I will see to it that you are both safe, but I’ll need your cooperation if that’s going to happen.”
“What sort of cooperation?”
“Many humans will have to go through the gate to Aerth and be reeducated there regarding the new order of our worlds.”
“This reeducation, it will be with your magic?” he asked.
“If need be.” She tilted her head and smiled. “Ernst, you’re my lover too. Have you not seen me gentle? Caressing you even?”
He looked uncomfortable. “You can be very attentive.”
“And that is how my people think of humanity. A firm but gentle hand is needed. Have I told you that Hagirr is human, as you are?”
“No,” Ernst replied. “I thought there were no humans on your world?”
“He has been the only one for ten thousand years, since our worlds were last joined.”
“He’s not human, then. We rarely live to one hundred.”
Elianna laughed, something that seemed to surprise grim and serious Ernst. “I assure you, he’s human. As I said, I’m his lover and have been for a long time.”
“How’s that possible?”
“He’s the greatest wizard to ever exist,” Elianna replied. “And if you, Ernst, cooperate with our agenda, you and Herta could live thousands of years as well.”
That got his attention. Who wouldn’t want to live a length of time that seemed to be immortality to a person as short lived as a human?
“Through magic?” he asked.
“Of course. I could speak to Hagirr about a reward for service to the greater cause.”
He nodded, then looked forward out the front window of the car. She could tell the thought of centuries of life, or maybe even millennia, pleased him. Such an offer would tug at any being’s loyalties.
“We’re almost there,” Ernst said.
Elianna nodded. Somewhere, high above them, a creature waited to greet Ernst and help her convince the German that cooperation was the path to his success.
The auto pulled onto a dirt path, one which led through a small strip of trees to the edge of a large wheat field.
The driver stopped.
“Let’s walk,” Elianna said. “It’s a sunny day, we can discuss our friendship.”
Ernst smiled weakly as he got out. She held all the power, so the German probably wasn’t entirely certain it was friendship they shared. He was right, of course, but she had grown fond of him since she’d met him not long ago. He was intelligent, devoid of most senseless morality, and eager to achieve greatness for himself.
All traits she could respect, as she shared them.
They walked for a while in silence, then she took his hand in hers.
“Do you trust me at all, Ernst?” she asked.
“I don’t think you’ll lie to me unless it’s to your advantage to do so,” Ernst replied. “I simply need to discern when it’s to your advantage to do so.”
She laughed. “Clever, and that’s why I’ve grown so fond of you. Intelligence seems to be one of the strong suits of you humans. Hagirr is also brilliant.”
“I’m flattered.”
“I brought you here to meet someone. You will be afraid. It’s normal.”
“What?” Ernst asked. “To an empty field?”
A sound caught their attention, they both looked up. One of the mechanical flying machines the humans used was spiraling in a loose circle, almost directly in line with the sun. Because of the glare, it was hard to see. The… aircraft Ernst called them… aircraft plunged to the ground a five-minute walk away.
Ernst broke into a run toward it. She followed.
“An American P-40,” Ernst said. “Outdated, slow, not very agile. How could it be here?”
The P-40 was mangled. It had a fanged mouth on the front that gave it the appearance of a cat or dog.
“Is the paint a tribal marking?” Elianna asked.
“No… well, in a sense I suppose. This aircraft would have belonged to a squadron which is sort of a tribe.”
Another sound greeted their ears, a whistling then a snap so loud it hurt Elianna’s ears. Ernst winced and covered the sides of his head with his hands. She knew what was happening, but Ernst had no idea. Confusion danced on his face.
An immense creature held up a leather wing from the landing spot it occupied just the other side of the crashed aircraft. The wing shaded the sun, prompting Ernst to look up.
He dropped to the ground, crying pitifully. His pants grew darker as wetness spread from his bladder, and he covered his face with his arms.
“I am Rodimikari,” the dragon said. “If you had reason to fear me now, your fear would already be extinguished by your death.”
Chapter 9 - Iron Mountain Hold
Irsu looked at the gatewa
y that held passage back to Iron Mountain Hold. Each time he saw a gate, it gave him cold shivers down his spine.
A circle of stone, with the blackest of blacks filling the circle. Not a ripple, not a sign there was anything there. Just empty blackness that defied the viewer to see into it. The stone circle, four hands wide on the side, held the magical blackness in place two hands from the edge, directly in the center. From the other side the view would simply be through the ring into the room that held it. The gate was functional on one side, and once a person stuck the first bit of them in, they were committed to the journey.
Without knowing the first thing about what was on the other side if the gate was unfamiliar to them.
A lot of talk was made about how Hagirr’s giant gate was the only connection to Earth from Aerth, but it simply wasn’t true. It was true, however, that if Hagirr’s gate closed, they all closed, and whatever side a person was on was the side they would stay on.
“You cannot go first,” Coragg was saying. “I’ll go. What if Iron Mountain has fallen?”
Irsu looked at his friend. “And if it has? How would you going first make a difference? I will still not know what has happened on the other side.”
“I’d take it back single handedly,” Coragg said, a smug look on his face.
“Maybe I should go first,” Numo suggested. “I might be the only one fast enough to dive back through the gate.”
“No, I go,” Irsu ordered. “Coragg, you follow.” He turned to face the other warriors going with them. Twelve of King Scorriss’s Royal Guards bedecked in ornate plate armor, tinted copper. Their armor was functional, however, despite appearances. Some of the finest made. Carrying axes, short swords, and crossbows, they were a powerful unit. “You will follow Coragg, in rank order. You will not delay.”
“So, I’m last?” Numo asked.
“Don’t worry, you’ll be first often enough on the other side.”
Numo seemed to relax. “At least I’ll be able to see where I’m placing my feet.”
Irsu grinned. That wasn’t far off from his own concern. But there was no cure for it. He turned to face the gate, then charged.
He plunged into a dimly lit abyss with no defined surface to stand on, but an invisible hand guided him toward one of a thousand circular glyphs that surrounded him. A wind blew from the side, and if it was possible for a wind to bear ill intent, this one did. He approached the circle and realized that it was one of the thousands that provided what little light existed in this place between worlds. The glyph was comprised of an uncountable myriad of symbols that danced along the edge of what Irsu assumed was the exit of the gate.
The irresistible hand pushed him through.
Reality once more changed in an instant. He was in a room much like the one he’d just left. Stone, large, ancient. He stood once more on solid ground, his axe at the ready, his feet spread wide in a battle stance. A few dozen dwarves stared at him with their mouths open.
Then they started laughing. “The Amblu-gane has arrived!” one bellowed.
“We had no way of knowing what was on this side,” Coragg said from behind Irsu. “You lot of fools shut your beards.” Irsu heard the noise of Coragg sheathing his short sword.
More laughter.
The Royal Guards filed through, followed at last by Numo.
“Who’s in charge at the hold?” Irsu asked the closest gate guardian.
“Hevreg,” the dwarf responded. “She’s in the royal chambers, probably got them barred for extra security. The lass is afraid we’ll be overrun by the diseased dwarves at any moment.”
“What’s the threat level?” Coragg asked.
“The dwarves came to the gate for the East Underway, made a small thrust to get through into the hold, and a lot of them died. Three of ours, shot by bolts through our own murder holes.”
“What did they look like?” Irsu asked the dwarf. “Like dwarves? For certain?”
“They were dwarves, alright. But they have gray skin, eyes almost white, and probably a good two hands shorter than a normal dwarf. Stockier, however.”
“Take me to the bodies,” Irsu ordered.
“Can’t. Hevreg ordered us not to open the gate for two days. By the time we did, the bodies were gone. Despite constant watch from the side towers, nobody saw them go. They were there, then they weren’t.”
A chill went down Irsu’s spine for the second time in minutes. What the guard reported would require magic. Dwarves willingly using magic of that type? He couldn’t help but wonder if their sickness wasn’t punishment from the gods for that.
“Then take me to Hevreg,” Irsu added.
“Aye, Amblu-gane. If she’ll let us into the inner corridors.”
“Great, just what we need. A royal with a touch of madness locking herself up and away,” Coragg muttered.
“We’ll hold our judgment,” Irsu said. “But if you’re right we’ll have to change matters here. And right or not, we’ll have to solve the mystery of these dwarves.”
Coragg nodded.
“Guards, I’m changing your name. You’re now the Iron team, in celebration of the company I led to Nollen,” Irsu bellowed. “Iron team, guard this gate until I return. I’m off to see Hevreg, and then we’ll take a few days to rest, eat, and make a plan. Once we go into the East Underway, we’ll be in constant danger. Food will be what we carry with us or find. But we’ll need to find the dwarves that attacked Iron Mountain Hold even if it takes a century.”
The soldiers started moving to positions they felt would provide the best coverage.
“Also, if I come running back into this room yelling, then get through the gate and defend the other side.”
Multiple heads nodded as elite warriors took up positions in the room. They would gladly die to protect the thousands on the other side of the stone circle. Irsu trusted them implicitly.
“I’m ready,” he said to the guard he’d been speaking to. “To Hevreg.”
Together with Coragg and Numo, he followed the guard into the long corridor that separated the gate from the rest of Iron Mountain Hold. Forever suspicious, the dwarves kept such powerful magic at a distance, with plenty of positions along the corridor from which to defend should the gate be turned against them.
“Ever vigilant we are,” Coragg said.
“It’s not enough,” Irsu replied, his voice sad. “We’re still dwindling in numbers.”
“Earth will change that,” Coragg countered. “I feel it.”
“I hope you’re right.”
Chapter 10 - The Amusement of Dragons
July 15, 1940
Ernst’s bladder let go.
Death stood over him. Several stories tall with wings that stretched forever.
The dragon stared at him.
Then something changed. The dragon seemed less threatening and Ernst thought he saw amusement twinkling in the creature’s eyes. “This one is particularly fertile with the excretions,” the beast said with his deep rumbling voice.
Ernst slowly recovered some of his senses, at least enough to wonder why he wasn’t dead yet.
“Elianna, you’ve made your point,” he said, his voice quivering and reduced to a near whisper. “Get me out of this predicament. Please.”
“Have I made my point?” she asked, clearly not expecting an answer. “It’s important for you to know a few things. This creature that has you laying in a newly formed puddle of your own piss is a servant of Hagirr. Does Germany have anything like this, Ernst?”
“We are a proud nation. You have seen little of it yet.” He amazed himself with his own defiance. “And we have fought the dragons and occasionally won.”
Elianna laughed, but it was Rodimikari’s growl that drove Ernst back into temporary insanity.
“JUST EAT ME AND GET IT OVER WITH!” he screamed.
A few minutes later he realized he was still alive, blind and cowering behind his own arms.
Elianna smiled down at Ernst as she stood over him. “Wh
at you’re experiencing is called dragon fear. Nobody is going to eat you, at least not today.”
“I do not like the taste of human, to be honest,” the rumbling voice said in agreement.
When he’d seen the dragons from the reconnaissance plane before, they’d made his stomach quiver even from thousands of feet away. He appreciated even more the bravery of the Luftwaffe and Royal Air Force pilots that were engaging these beasts. There was something primal about the fear the beasts caused, almost as if it was a trait handed down through humanity’s past.
“I can’t function on the ground like this. If you could hand me something to use as a blindfold I will get up,” Ernst told the sorceress.
“Even better,” Elianna told him. A second later she was obviously speaking away from his direction. “Rodi, release him from your awe-inspiring fear.”
“Done,” the deep voice said.
“You can look now,” Elianna told him.
He didn’t really know if she was trustworthy. Sometimes her sadism was almost childlike, and she’d erupt in laughter over the simplest cruelties. This would fit that situation.
But he had to break the standoff somehow. Slowly he slid his arms apart and away from his eyes. Despite a head the size of a Panzer III and a brilliant blue eye looking down at him, he didn’t feel the insane fear he felt before. Just the normal fear anyone might feel in a similar situation. The same he’d felt before when ordered to commit suicide for the Reich.
He lowered his arms to his side and stood up, trying to remove himself from the wet ground where he’d laid a moment before. Elianna’s laughter irritated him, but it wasn’t as if he could do a thing about that despite fantasies to the contrary.
“Very funny,” Ernst complained.
“This one is somewhat brave,” the dragon observed. “Most of the humans, other than their warriors, flee even if I do not have dragon fear raised.”
“This one is a warrior,” Elianna told her despicable pet. “He’s far braver than you’d think a human could be from what the history scrolls told us.”
“That’s not a hard cloud to top,” the dragon replied to her.