The Dragon Empress: The Dragonspire Chronicles Book 6

by James E. Wisher

  He went for the alchemist and she went after Rondo who had drawn a plain arming sword which he held like it was a snake that might turn and bite him.

  Moz cross slashed at Domina’s throat, hoping to end the battle with his first strike.

  She scrambled back, hissing in pain. “You’ll pay for that.”

  He didn’t give her a chance to pull any more of her nasty concoctions. Instead he attacked in a nonstop barrage that forced her constantly back. There was only about twenty feet to each side of the building. Soon enough she’d have nowhere else to run.

  She seemed to know it too. With a scream of inarticulate rage, she leapt at Moz.

  He thrust with both blades, running her through the chest. Before he could free his weapons, she dipped into her satchel and snarled a bloody snarl.

  “We die together.” In her hand she held a vial filled with crimson liquid.

  An instant later Helena slapped it away to shatter against the far wall. The vial exploded on impact, blowing the wall out and sending bits of glass and gravel everywhere.

  Helena and Domina glared at each other until the latter let out a long breath and died.

  Moz hurled the corpse aside and turned to find Brigid standing over Rondo. Blood ran down his face, but he was still breathing.

  All eyes turned to the wizard inside the magic circle. Moz drew a throwing dagger and hurled it at the man. The blade hit an invisible barrier and clattered to the floor.

  “That would have been too easy,” he muttered. “Silas?”

  The wizard sat facing his counterpart. “He’s strong. I won’t be able to open a gap for more than a few seconds.”

  “That’s all I need,” Moz said.

  “Guys?” Brigid had left the unconscious Rondo and moved to the doorway. “We’ve got company coming.”

  Silas turned to look but Moz waved him back. “We’ll deal with whatever’s on its way. You just focus on getting that barrier down.”

  He nodded and pulled out his black amulet.

  Moz ran to the doorway and looked out. A horde of wights was heading their way. All he could make out were their glowing red eyes, but there were a lot of them.

  “Can we hold the entrance?” Brigid asked.

  “Wights can pass right through the walls,” Helena said. “We need to form a triangle around Silas.”

  “My thinking exactly.” Moz took up position right next to the barrier.

  Helena and Brigid formed the other two points of the triangle. Hopefully it wouldn’t take Silas long to bring down the barrier.

  That was Moz’s last thought before the first wight slid through the wall. He slashed it to nothingness.

  From that moment he had no time to do anything but hack apart anything black that got close. His arms felt like lead. His swords like crowbars.

  At least the ladies seemed to be holding up. Their staves spun and thrust, destroying wights by the dozen.

  Moz’s hair stood on end.

  Powerful magic was gathering.

  “Now!” Silas shouted.

  Moz spun and thrust straight through a wight and into the enemy wizard’s chest. He collapsed and the magic circle vanished.

  The wights, unfortunately, kept coming.

  “What went wrong?” Moz asked as he scrambled to recover and resume the attack.

  Silas lay unconscious on the ground.

  Helena answered for him. “The portal may have closed, but plenty of wights had already made it through. We just need to hold on for a little longer.”

  Moz hurried to take his place guarding Silas. He dearly hoped Helena knew what she was talking about and wasn’t just guessing.

  After a few seconds, Yaz figured out exactly how much power he needed to maintain his shield. Through the raging magic, he could barely see Leonidas, both hands raised, a snarl twisting his features. He was clearly giving it everything he had, including every drop of focus.

  Perfect. This was the moment Yaz had been waiting for. He conjured a thin tendril of dark energy and sent it like a snake slithering along the floor toward the throne. It climbed a leg and worked its way across the arm.

  So far so good.

  “Argh!” Leonidas roared and sent an even greater assault at Yaz.

  His shield cracked.

  He couldn’t strengthen it without using the magic he’d summoned to free Ariel.

  He’d have to gamble.

  Yaz let his shield crumble and dove out of the way of the incoming energy.

  “You’re beaten!” Leonidas shouted.

  Yaz twitched his finger and yanked the crown off Ariel’s head.

  She blinked and slowly turned to face Leonidas. “You! You made me kill people! Destroy cities! I hate you!”

  Leonidas sent a crimson blast at her.

  Yaz conjured a barrier, turning it aside.

  The side of the throne room exploded as the black dragon smashed her way in.

  “Eat him! Tear the tower down!” Ariel screamed.

  Leonidas appeared to have totally forgotten about Yaz as he conjured a shield to keep teeth as long as swords from turning him into ground meat.

  The dragon snapped him up, but the shield held.

  Her head shook like a terrier with a rat as she tried to break his shield.

  If there was anyone that deserved to be eaten whole it was Leonidas. Yaz sent a blast of dark energy at him.

  All his power was focused toward the dragon. Yaz’s attack smashed through the rear of his shield, wrapped around his right hand, and ripped the Black Ring off, finger and all.

  The instant it cleared his hand, the dragon snapped her jaw shut and swallowed him. Ariel stared in fury. Clearly just killing her captor wasn’t enough.

  Protect the empress.

  Yaz frowned. That wasn’t the presence’s voice. He turned to find the black dragon staring right at him.

  I must obey her and tear down the tower, but I would not see her harmed.

  “Okay.”

  He ran over to the little girl, wrapped them both in a dark bubble, and flew straight up and out the roof. Once they were clear he opened a gap so they could watch the dragon smashing the dragonspire to rubble. Yaz shifted his gaze.

  The bards and rangers were gathered a safe distance away. He did a quick count and found everyone present. Thank the gods. If they’d lost someone to falling debris after winning the war, it would have been too horrible to think about.

  “You should have left me,” Ariel said.

  Yaz looked down at her. “Why? You would have gotten smashed.”

  “I wanted to die. I’m a monster. I heard that bad man talking with his friends. I’m not even human. I hurt people. Everyone would be better off if I was dead.”

  “I’m not totally human either,” Yaz said. “I was made as a weapon to kill Leonidas. But that’s not all I am. And it’s not all you are. We can be whatever we want. Leonidas won’t be able to control you now. The crown is nothing but a twisted piece of metal under all that rock. You’re free.”

  “For now. How long until someone else decides to use me to hurt people?”

  “You know, we monsters need to stick together. How would you like to live with me? I’ll keep anyone from bothering you. Plus, I know some really nice dragons I’m sure would like to meet you. Moz and Callie and my friends are waiting for us. Shall we go see how they’re doing?”

  “Moz is here?” She sounded so excited he smiled.

  “Yup. Everyone came to save you. If anything had happened to you, they all would have been sad. So no more talk about dying, okay?”

  “Okay. I want to see Moz.”

  “Sure.” Yaz began to descend.

  Thank you for saving her. I knew what she wanted but was powerless to refuse her command. She will be safe with you. Take care of her. I will be nearby if there’s trouble, but my end draws near. I entrust her to you.

  There was a rush of wind as the dragon flew away. Yaz swallowed a sigh. Taking care of the most powerful and dangerous
little girl on the planet. How hard could that be?

  As they landed, he pocketed the Black Ring. He’d have to find someplace safe to keep it.

  “Yaz!” Brigid ran up and leapt into his arms.

  It was an awkward dance as she was taller than him, but he managed to swing her around once before setting her down again.

  “Are you okay?” they both asked at the same time.

  They laughed. He spotted his mother watching from a few feet away, a contented little smile on her face.

  Ariel had run over to Moz and the ranger swung her up on his shoulder. The white hummingbird dragon settled beside her.

  Yaz nearly collapsed with relief.

  It was over at last.

  Epilogue

  The cold air blew through Yaz’s hair as the black dragon soared towards Dragonspire Village. Riding a dragon turned out to be every bit as exhilarating as he’d ever hoped. The power of her muscles as her wings beat the air, the smoothness of her scales, it was an amazing feeling, even for someone who could already fly on his own.

  There was a hint of spring in the still, brisk morning air. Maybe they’d have an early thaw this year. The gods knew it would be welcome. Ariel was seated ahead of him. Together they’d traveled to the other towers and set the dragons guarding them free of their duty. All that remained was to release Soto and the others.

  Brigid, his mother, and Silas were approaching by wagon and should arrive a few minutes after them. Yaz wanted to make sure Soto and her companions were calm before anyone else showed up.

  “This is nice.” Ariel looked back at him with a big smile.

  He gave her a pat on the head. She was a sweet kid. Happily, she seemed to have gotten over wanting to hurt herself fairly quick. Maybe something resembling a normal life would help her settle down completely.

  Dragonspire Village appeared ahead of them. All six dragons rose to meet them. As soon as they sensed Ariel they should back off. The deference the giant creatures showed a tiny little girl was amazing. Yaz doubted he’d ever get used to it.

  As soon as the dragons got close Ariel said, “It’s okay. You don’t have to protect the tower anymore. You all did a good job.”

  The red dragons banked around their larger cousin, made a loop, and fell in beside her as they came in for a landing. For such a huge creature, she settled to the earth so smoothly Yaz barely had to put a hand on Ariel’s shoulder to steady her. When they were fully still, Yaz hopped down then reached up to lift Ariel down beside him.

  She stretched and looked up at him. “What now?”

  “Now we wait for Brigid and Silas to get here. After that, we’ll have to clean out the house and see if we have any food. You can pick out a room for you and your little friend.”

  The hummingbird dragon buzzed around Yaz’s head once before landing on Ariel’s shoulder.

  “We’re going to go play,” she said.

  “Okay, but not too far away.”

  She ran off giggling. Yaz smiled as he watched her.

  You are very kind.

  Yaz looked up at the black dragon. “After everything she’s been through, she deserves all the kindness she can get. I meant to ask you earlier, did you lay an egg before you went into hibernation? I found one that matches your scales perfectly. I thought it was because it was in stasis, but now I wonder.”

  I have lain many in my life. You may have found one. It is not our way to keep track of our young. In the old times, there were many of my kind. It could be one of theirs as well.

  Yaz nodded. The only way to know for sure was to hatch it. That should be fun.

  A soft scraping drew his attention. Soto approached, head hanging.

  This young one is ashamed that she attacked you.

  Yaz went over and scratched Soto on the spot behind her ear that she liked so much. “It wasn’t your fault, you lazy dragon. Once Mom and the others get here, what do you say we try and find a couple sheep?”

  Soto’s head snapped up and her tongue lolled, slobber dripping off it.

  “That’s what I thought.” He gave Soto a final pat on the neck and went to check on Ariel.

  He found her throwing a stick high into the air for the little dragon to catch and bring back to her. Playing fetch with a dragon, it wasn’t the strangest thing he’d seen this year. He watched them for a few minutes then checked the road. He spotted the wagon, barely visible in the distance.

  “Are you going to be my new daddy?” Ariel asked.

  The question took Yaz so off guard he didn’t know how to respond at once. Finally, he said, “Maybe your big brother would be more like it.”

  She stared at him. “I’ve never had a brother before.”

  He grinned, picked her up, and swung her on his shoulders. “Well you do now. What do you say we go say hi to my mom and the others?”

  “Okay.”

  Brigid guided the wagon up to the hitching post at the inn. His mother sat beside her on the bench while Silas lay in the back. He still wasn’t fully recovered from whatever magic he’d had to perform to close the portal. Hopefully a few more days’ rest would have him back in top form.

  He set Ariel down and reached up to offer Brigid a hand. “How was the trip?”

  “Rough.” She hugged him and gave him a kiss. “Do you remember how badly I wanted to travel? Well, I equally badly want to stay home and rest for a month at least.”

  “I like the sound of that.” Yaz looked down at Ariel. “How about you?”

  She just shrugged. “Can I pick out my room now?”

  His mother looked at him and raised an eyebrow.

  “I told Ariel she could stay with us. You did such a good job raising one monster, why not a second?”

  “Yaz!” Brigid slugged him in the shoulder.

  Ariel just giggled. After their conversations during the dragon flight, she thought the idea of the two of them being monsters was the funniest thing in the world.

  “Your father deserves most of the credit for that,” his mother said.

  Yaz blew out a long sigh. He’d try to do as well by Ariel as his father had by him, but those were some big shoes to fill.

  “Do we have anything to eat?” Silas asked. “I’m starving.”

  “I’ll make a supply run after we get settled. Come on, let’s go home.”

  The group started toward the chief’s house. It really was good to be home.

  Ariel looked up at him. “When’s Moz going to get here?”

  “He had one last errand to run then he said he’d stop by on his way back to the swamp.”

  Moz liked being on the road alone. Him and his horse, enjoying the fresh air and quiet. A hawk soaring high overhead gave a loud cry. The lack of assassins, demons, magic, and dragons was nice as well. He did miss Ariel a little, but she was in good hands with Yaz and his friends. They’d look after her better than an old ranger like him ever could.

  On the horse beside him a bound and gagged Rondo struggled and groaned. Yes, Moz enjoyed the quiet of the road. Pity he had this idiot screwing it up. It was only another mile to the turnoff that led to the Tegan mine. He’d deliver Rondo to his father and be done with the man.

  Much as he despised Rondo, he couldn’t deny his resilience. All the genuinely skilled people working for the Dark Sages had been killed, but lucky Rondo had survived it all. Though the way he’d complained when Moz told him where they were going suggested that he would have preferred to join his companions in the ground. Or devoured by a dragon in the case of Leonidas. He wasn’t getting off that easily. If he hated his home that much, that was where he deserved to spend the rest of his days.

  He turned off the main road and onto the narrow side path. Someone had plowed all the snow off so the horses had good footing. Just as well since Rondo’s thrashing got worse the closer they got to his home.

  “Would you give it a rest? I tied those knots right. You’re not getting loose until I cut you free. Now shut up.”

  Rondo shot him a sullen g
lare but subsided. It wouldn’t last. Moz had told him to shut up every half hour since they got up that morning. Maybe he should have taken Yaz up on his offer to deliver Rondo by dragon.

  He smiled to himself. That would have been a sight.

  Moz ignored the rundown tavern and headed straight for the main house. No one tried to stop him. Most of the guards were probably watching the miners at this time of day.

  Aside from a little snow on the roof, the big house looked exactly like he remembered, a sprawling mansion built in the middle of nowhere. Moz dismounted and tied both horses to the rail in front of the door.

  When he knocked the surly maid Balinda opened the door and glared at him. “What?”

  “I brought Rondo back as agreed.”

  She looked from him to the bound and gagged young man. “I’ll tell the master. Wait here.”

  “No, I’m happy to turn him over to you. The sooner I’m rid of the man the better.” Moz dragged Rondo off his horse and set him in front of the door. “There you are. May he bring you much joy.”

  That done, Moz mounted up and rode off. Never had he been so glad to be rid of someone. Now to see if he could find Dragonspire Village. He wanted to see Ariel once more before he returned to the swamp. Hunting season opened in a few weeks and Moz didn’t want to miss it. After that, maybe he’d take Callie up on that teaching job.

  Whatever he did, he would be glad to do it in peace.

  Author Note

  Dear Readers,

  And so we come to the end of The Dragonspire Chronicles. I hope you’ve enjoyed Yaz’s journey. If you’re looking for another excellent read, you can find a complete list of all my books along with purchase links on my website. www.jamesewisher.com

  As always I thank you very much for reading. Until next time.

  James E Wisher

  Also by James E Wisher

  The Dragonspire Chronicles

  The Black Egg

  The Mysterious Coin

  The Dragons’ Graveyard

  The Slave War