The Dragonspire Chronicles Omnibus 2

by James E. Wisher

  And he didn’t dare weaken it. He could feel the power in the blasts directed against him. If his shield lost even a fraction of its strength, one of those attacks would break through and kill him instantly.

  Where the hell did this person, assuming it was a person and not some demon conjured from the blackest pits of hell, come from? With his network of informants, Leonidas should have heard something about an individual this strong.

  Another blast, this one missing by inches, forced him to focus. It didn’t matter where he came from, all that mattered was escaping. The tower’s defenses were clearly enough to keep him out. Leonidas needed to grab Shade and get back there. Eventually a dragon would catch up to him and finish the job.

  Yes, that was the way. Let the dragons deal with this dark wizard. But first he needed a distraction so he could escape. As he flew a random course, he spotted the rest of the Rend team gathered in a defensive circle. That was perfect.

  Leonidas conjured a ball of crimson energy. “You can stop me or save them. Chose!”

  He hurled the sphere at the group and flew to collect Shade. No more dark bolts pursued him. Leonidas spotted his assassin in a standoff with a dark-skinned ranger. Much as he’d have liked to blast the man, his ring was nearly out of magic. Getting them both back to the tower would be a near thing. He didn’t dare waste even a drop of precious magic.

  An effort of will snatched Shade up and they flew together toward the tower.

  “What’s going on, Boss?”

  “Something I wouldn’t have dreamed possible. I’ve met my match, Shade, a wizard whose magic I can’t absorb. I didn’t think there was anything the Black Ring couldn’t overcome, but I was wrong. Is he coming?”

  Leonidas hated what he heard in his own voice. It was that subtle quaver he’d heard in so many others’ but never his, at least not in a long time. It was fear.

  “It’s all clear behind us, Boss.”

  Leonidas blew out a sigh. Maybe his opponent had used up his strength as well.

  He could always hope.

  Moz found the body of his ranger and growled deep in the back of his throat. He’d lost enough people gods damn it. He didn’t intend to lose any more. The burning remains of the tents provided just enough light to see a faint set of tracks. Whoever left them was good. A tracker with less experience than Moz probably wouldn’t have noticed them. He glanced up but there was no sign of the dragon. Probably didn’t want to accidentally hit whoever was hunting his people.

  He drew his swords and set out after the killer. At least it wasn’t a wizard. Moz hated dealing with magic. It cheated against the laws of nature. He preferred a straight-up fight, steel against steel and may the better warrior win.

  His night vision had always been good and about twenty yards from the body Moz spotted a figure moving in the dark. Whoever it was didn’t make a sound. His target shifted a fraction and light glinted off the edge of a dagger.

  Moz doubted he could win a battle of stealth, so he charged, one sword low and the other high.

  His opponent spun away from a high slash, blocked a low thrust, and countered with a right hook to Moz’s temple.

  Moz leaned back then sprang forward.

  The killer cartwheeled right and raised both daggers, their hilts held in reverse grips. The light was too dim to get a good look, but whoever he was, he knew his way around a blade.

  They circled warily, each clearly aware of the other’s skill. It was a battle of patience now. Whoever made the first mistake would die. At least if the killer was here, the rest of Moz’s team was safe. Unless he had friends.

  “You’re good,” the killer said. “I see why Rondo’s so afraid of you. Of course, Rondo’s afraid of his own shadow so I had my doubts about whether he was exaggerating or not.”

  Moz just stared back, grim and silent.

  “We saw you prowling around in the Rend border fort. I’m glad you went for the boss’s distraction. If I’d have had to fight you for the girl, our escape might have been more difficult.”

  Moz tightened his grip on his swords then relaxed again. The assassin was trying to goad him into making that crucial mistake. No way was Moz going to fall for such a simple trick. He could wait as long as he had to.

  “Are you just waiting for me to die of old age?” the assassin asked. “I’m afraid that’s a tactic liable to work in my favor. You’re not getting any younger you know. I’m surprised an old man like you would come out on a mission this dangerous. Doesn’t Rend allow its rangers to retire?”

  “You talk a lot for a fighter.”

  “So I’ve been told.” The assassin shifted but when he tried to lift his foot it didn’t move. “What the…?”

  Moz lunged in, making a quick pair of thrusts that were met by equally quick counters. His opponent appeared to be stuck to the ground. Albert must have spotted the fight and come to help. While Moz might prefer a fair fight, he also wasn’t arrogant enough to turn down help against such a skilled foe.

  His opponent twisted to keep an eye on him but couldn’t do much more. Just as Moz thought that, the assassin whipped his hand back and hurled a dagger at him.

  Moz deflected the blade easily. Time to end this.

  Moz readied his swords for a final strike.

  A crimson aura appeared around the assassin. Before Moz could move, he flew up into the sky and was gone. Muttering curses under his breath, Moz sheathed his sword. The battle was over for now, but he didn’t believe for a moment the war was won.

  It was a near thing, but Yaz managed to shield the gathered bards and rangers from Leonidas Black’s energy blast. No one was hurt, but when he turned back, his opponent had fled the field. Happy as he was to save a dozen innocent people, deep inside he wondered if it wouldn’t have been better to let them die and take out the leader of the Dark Sages. Did he save twelve people only to doom thousands? He couldn’t say but hoped not.

  With the immediate threat eliminated, Yaz flew back to the dark dome and banished it. Inside, everyone was gathered around Silas who was reading the journal.

  He looked up when Yaz landed. “I know how to shut down the towers.”

  Yaz grinned. “How?”

  “Basically, you draw the enchanted sigil in reverse. You’ll see it glowing on the floor when you enter, just focus your will and trace it backwards.”

  “Okay, but how do I know which end to start at?” Yaz asked.

  Silas frowned. “It doesn’t say. I guess you just pick one end and if it doesn’t work, try the other.”

  “Seriously? If one end doesn’t work, try the other?”

  Silas shrugged. “What can I tell you? Between all the ego-driven ranting, there wasn’t a ton of practical information.”

  “Hopefully it’ll be enough.”

  “Yaz.”

  He turned to find Moz and Callie approaching.

  “Thanks for saving us,” Callie said. “When I saw the crimson blast coming, I feared we were all dead.”

  “I’m glad I could help,” Yaz said, making sure to give no indication that he’d considered letting them all die. “Silas figured out how to deactivate the outer towers. For what it’s worth, the dragon doesn’t seem capable of attacking someone it can’t see. If you want to rebuild your camp, that’s something to keep in mind.”

  “I don’t think we’ll bother,” Moz said. “One way or the other, this is going to be finished soon.”

  “Agreed.” Yaz yawned so wide his jaw cracked. “But not tonight. If I don’t get some sleep, I’m going to collapse.”

  Chapter 17

  Rondo stood beside Polymus outside the dragonspire. Lord Black and the others had flown out a few minutes ago to deal with the groups threatening their work. On the one hand, he was glad not to have to go out and fight, but on the other he was stuck keeping an eye on an immortal of dubious loyalty.

  So far, nothing had happened. The glow from the energy flowing into the spire provided plenty of light to see the immediate area and the
wards protecting the safe zone kept any of the serpents guarding the ruins from approaching. He had nothing to complain about which was an unusual thing for him.

  Rondo flicked a glance at his fellow guard. Polymus stared southwest as if he could see Shade and Lord Black where they hunted bards and rangers. Maybe he could, Rondo had no idea what the man had done to alter his abilities over his many years of life.

  As if sensing Rondo’s gaze, Polymus turned to look at him. “You look nervous.”

  “You’re not the first to say so.”

  Polymus smiled. He had a handsome face despite the chunk Lord Black had gouged out of it. “This situation doesn’t seem to suit you. I’ve also noticed that your comrades think little of your abilities. That’s a shame. You’re clearly clever and intelligent. Even-tempered too, unlike that shrew, Domina. Since we’ve been forced to work together, I’ve been tempted to kill her at least seven times.”

  “I’ll be sure to tell her when she and Umbra return.”

  Polymus chuckled. “No you won’t. You’re too afraid of her to strike up a conversation. As I said, you’re smart. If I were in charge, I’m sure I could find better uses for a man of your gifts than standing in the cold outside a virtually empty tower.”

  And here it comes. Just as Lord Black predicted. Rondo casually laid a hand on his belt pouch. The vial of green liquid he’d gotten from Domina was supposed to paralyze Polymus despite his immortality. Not that she could test it, so he was stuck with a potentially useless weapon if he had to use it.

  “I’ll bet,” Rondo said. “Unfortunately, I have no desire to get blasted to ash, tortured to death, have my throat cut, or get whatever horrible thing Umbra might think of done to me. I swore my loyalty to Lord Black and I mean to honor my promise. I suggest you do the same.”

  “He’s failing.” Polymus took a step toward Rondo who backed up an equal distance. “You must see it. The power and the pressure to use it are breaking him. He’s failed at every step since activating the central tower.”

  “I suppose you could do better?”

  “Of course I could do better! I was raised to be emperor. This is my destiny and some overly ambitious clerk is stealing it. At best your precious leader should be my personal scribe.”

  Rondo shifted his body to hide the fact that he’d dipped his hand into his pouch and wrapped it around the cool glass of the vial. “You should mention that as well when they return. No doubt Lord Black will be delighted to hear your thoughts.”

  Rondo shifted his gaze to the divot Lord Black had removed from Polymus’s face.

  The would-be emperor winced. “I’m no fool. Even as an immortal I recognize I have no hope of defeating him in a direct confrontation.”

  “Then why are we having this conversation?” Rondo asked.

  “Because there are other ways to defeat him. With the girl’s power I could send the black dragon against him. Ring or not, there’s no way he could defeat the mightiest dragon in the world.”

  “You can’t even talk to Ariel,” Rondo pointed out.

  “Not now, but for every potion, there’s an antidote. If we lock ourselves in the tower, I can whip up a counter to the tongue twister potion in a couple days. Then I’ll be free to take my place as the true emperor with you as my second. I can even share the secret of immortality with you.”

  Rondo shook his head. “Lord Black knows the tower combination. You couldn’t lock him out if you wanted to.”

  “He may know the current combination, but I know how to change it. My family built these towers. You think there are any secrets I don’t know?”

  “Probably not, but as I said, there’s no way I’m going to betray Lord Black. I am willing to pretend this conversation never happened. That seems fair, right? You don’t want to die and I don’t want trouble. Let’s just keep watch like we’re supposed to.”

  “You disappoint me, Rondo, you truly do.”

  Polymus pulled a dagger from a hidden sheath in his cloak.

  Rondo brought his hand around to throw the vial.

  It shattered against Polymus’s chest and splattered green liquid all over him. Even as his body stiffened, Polymus lunged with the last of his strength.

  Rondo stumbled back, evading the blade.

  Polymus collapsed on top of Rondo’s left leg, knocking him flat and pinning him to the ground. Something wet soaked into Rondo’s thigh. As his body went rigid it became clear that the paralytic had gotten through his pants.

  As he lay there, stiff as a board, all Rondo could think was that Shade was going to have a field day making fun of him.

  Leonidas flew back toward the tower, his mind racing. How would he defeat someone whose magic he couldn’t absorb? There had to be a way. There was always a way. The dragons were the obvious answer, but his previous attempt to use them for something like that proved a disaster. If the girl could control more than one, that would be another matter, but as things stood now, a dragon was out of the question.

  “You really saved my neck back there, Boss. Thanks.” Shade’s voice snapped him back to reality.

  “What happened? One old man shouldn’t have given you any trouble.”

  “That old man knew his way around a sword, but you’re right, if I’d had time, I could have worn him down. One of the bards showed up and lent him a hand. The ground grabbed my ankle and I was stuck.”

  “The bards have proven more formidable than I expected,” Leonidas said. There were so many things that had proven more difficult than he’d expected. There were stray moments when he wished he’d never learned of the towers and their abilities.

  “How many did you kill?” Shade asked.

  “None. I ran into the wizard that used dark energy to attack the tower. I couldn’t absorb his magic.”

  “That isn’t good.”

  Leonidas barked a laugh. “No, it certainly isn’t good. I believed bringing Rend and Carttoom under my control would be the most difficult part of this enterprise, but now I’m certain that we have no hope of victory unless I can figure out how to best that dark magic user.”

  “You’ll come up with something, Boss, you always do.”

  Leonidas smiled at Shade’s awkward attempt at reassurance. He had a point though. Leonidas always came up with a solution and today would be no different. A non-wizard couldn’t lead the Dark Sages, so he found the one weapon every wizard feared. That was only one of many trials he had overcome to get where he was now.

  Ahead of them the white light streaming into the central tower was like a beacon in the night. The moment he saw it, Leonidas knew what he had to do. The risk was incredible, but he saw no other path. He’d lost the fight because he ran out of magical power. But if he fought in the tower, he’d have all the magic he could ever want to draw on. Somehow, he needed to lure the dark magic user to the tower and fight him there. Who was he kidding? Getting into the tower had been his enemies’ plan from the start. All he had to do was wait for them to show up.

  “Looks like Rondo ran into some trouble,” Shade said.

  Leonidas started to land. As they got closer, he saw what Shade had already noticed. Rondo was lying on the ground with Polymus sprawled on top of him. Looked like he had to use the paralyzing potion. Disappointing but hardly a surprise. Leonidas knew Polymus still harbored ambitions. Leaving him behind had been a test of loyalty and he failed miserably.

  They landed and Shade walked over to the pair shaking his head. “What the hell happened to you?”

  Neither was capable of speech and wouldn’t be until the effects of the potion ran out or Domina administered the antidote. Leonidas drew magic from the tower until his ring was fully charged.

  “I’ll take them inside.” Leonidas conjured a disk under the pair and lifted them. “Wait out here for Domina and Jax.”

  Shade nodded and Leonidas left him alone. In the tower, he dumped Rondo and Polymus on the floor and went up to the throne room. Ariel remained seated on the throne where he left her, staring strai
ght ahead but seeming to see nothing. The crown was slightly askew on her head so he adjusted it.

  “You were supposed to be the ultimate weapon. And you did a fine job burning two cities to the ground, but your skill at individual combat is lacking. I guess it’s too much to hope for a child with no experience in battle to be a master at controlling dragons in an airborne brawl.”

  It was strange talking to her but getting no response, not even an eyebrow twitch. Unless he gave her a command, she just sat there staring, like a doll.

  “What am I going to do with your creator? He seems determined to betray me at every opportunity. He still holds valuable knowledge, but I’m starting to think getting it might be more trouble than it’s worth.”

  The good thing about talking to Ariel was at least she didn’t offer any stupid advice. Or intelligent advice for that matter.

  In the lower chamber the door slammed shut. Jax and Domina must have returned. Hopefully they had better luck than he and Shade. Leonidas glided down to the bottom floor and found the rest of his cadre gathered around the frozen forms of Rondo and Polymus.

  “I see the paralytic worked,” Domina said.

  “Indeed. Do you have a reversing agent for Rondo?” Leonidas asked. “I’d like to find out what happened before Polymus gets free.”

  “Of course, though it seems a waste to use it on a fool too stupid to avoid the backsplash of his own attack.” Domina dug a vial out of her satchel and poured three drops of a thick, dark liquid on Rondo’s head. He immediately shuddered and groaned.

  “Looks like he might need a few minutes,” Leonidas said. “How did you two make out on your raid?”

  “We slaughtered them,” Domina said with obvious delight.

  Leonidas glanced at Jax. “All of them?”

  “I believe so, though in the chaos of the attack, it is possible one or two might have escaped. At the very least they are no longer a threat.”