by Tamsin Baker
The barbarians ducked beneath their shields, some of them going down, falling to the ground in a burned mess. But too many survived, more than she expected.
They were prepared for her. Damn!
Tattiena leaned forward and turned Nargoya back around to face the men shooting at them.
Her companion ducked and weaved through their shots, rolling away from the fire she had created. One of the arrows clipped her Dragon’s wings and she roared, turning back around and blowing a huge stream of fire at the men.
They turned to black dust before Tattiena’s eyes, and a great sense of triumph filled her.
“Great job. Let’s go around the city and check that they’re not getting in anywhere else.”
Hand to hand combat was going on within the castle walls, but she needed to do a perimeter search of remaining men first.
Nargoya soared around to the south wall where a stream of arrows flew in their direction. They struck on both sides, her Dragon’s wings enduring most of the attack.
“No!” Tattiena tried to pull her beloved Dragon away from the men, but Nargoya dove lower, blowing red and yellow flames at them.
The men’s screams could be heard above the roaring of anger in her ears, and yet those shields they held seemed to protect a lot of them from her Dragon’s fire.
How is that possible?
They circled back around and went up to the safety of the sky, but blood was now dripping from her Dragon’s neck and the flapping of her majestic wings sounded slower.
The remaining barbarians lifted a ladder up onto the south wall and began scaling the structure.
“No! Quick. Let’s go.”
Nargoya roared as she descended and the arrows started flying, ripping into her precious wings. She blew fire over the men ascending the ladder, burning them, and it to cinders.
Nargoya lurched to the side and began to wobble. They had to keep fighting, but how long could her Dragon stay in the air like this?
“Let’s go around the city once, Nargoya.”
Her Dragon swung back around the front of the city, blowing fire along the wall and taking out another few of the men who had survived her initial attacks.
“Let’s go to the north wall.”
They flew around the side of the city, and there was nobody there.
Thank the Goddess.
Nargoya was beginning to fade. Her head drooped and Tattiena’s heart screamed at her to get Nargoya to safety, and get into the fighting that was happening on the ground. She could hear the cries of the men, the clang of the metal blades beneath her, and she desperately wanted to be down there with them.
She wanted her Dragon away from it all, and she wanted to be in the middle of it.
“Back to the barn, Nargoya,” she yelled over the wind that had picked up.
The sky was darkening, blocking out the sun and signaling a day of despair.
She half expected Nargoya to fight her when she turned her Dragon to go back over the castle and into the safety of the barn, nestled beneath the mountain. But she didn’t fight, and that worried Tattiena even more.
They landed safely, though awkwardly in the barn and she slid from the saddle, tears choking her vision as the stable master and his men ran forward.
Her beautiful Nargoya had arrows stuck in her chest plate, two of them cutting into her legs and one in her neck. Her wings had sustained even more damage. There was gaping holes, the strong skin torn in every corner
Her massive head dropped, blood pooling in the hay beneath her.
Tattiena ran around to Nargoya’s face as the men began to remove her chest plate.
“Oh, my beautiful girl. I am so sorry.”
Her Dragon nudged her with her huge head, her forgiveness clear.
A deep groan sounded from Nargoya’s throat as the metal plates were pulled from her chest, and the men set to work on her other injuries. Her heart was breaking but she pushed her feelings deep down. There was more work to do, and after it was all done, then she could cry.
“I must go. The castle is still under attack. They got over the wall!”
The stable master lay a gentle hand on Nargoya’s face, a move that the Dragon did not allow anyone else to do.
Nargoya was safe with them which meant she was able to return to the fight.
“Go then, Dragon rider. Go save our city.”
With tears still streaming down her face, Tattiena grabbed her sword and began to run into the cold air that was tinged with the coming rain.
Good. Come wash away the ash that now soaks our walls. I will make sure the streets run red with their blood.
She ran straight back into the city, carefully locking the gates to the barn behind her. Even if they took the city, she hoped Nargoya would fly far away. They could not use her for their own devices.
They won’t!!
She ran down the streets and held up her sword, the noise of battle growing louder as she ran.
People were locked in their homes. She could see their scared faces at the windows.
And there they were.
Leo!
She could see him fighting off the furthest advance. He sliced and fought with his long sword, a warrior and a man that would be king.
She ran up beside him and thrust forward, sliding her sword deep in the chest of the man Leo held by the throat.
He turned to her and grunted in appreciation, his hair matted with blood.
There wasn’t time for words. The barbarians kept coming.
They fought them off as they attempted to get through to the city, the king’s guard falling around them. She swung her sword and cut the men up, the stink of their dirty bodies clogging up her senses.
She ignored it all. The pain in her muscles, the fear in her heart. She kept swinging, crying out with each slice of her blade through their flesh. Then she saw Kalvis, the captain, fighting on the wall. Keeping the barbarians who had survived the fire attacks from entering the city.
She scanned the crowd. My king. There he was, blood covered sword swinging as his purple robe rippled around him. Pride sung in her heart as she recognized the man who had sired her.
Nellid was nowhere in sight.
“Look out!” Leo dove in front of her, an arrow lodging itself deep in his chest as he saved her from the blow that had been aiming for her.
“No!” she screamed, charging forward at the barbarian drawing his bow back once again.
He fired and she dived to the muddy earth, rolling and twisting through the bloodied bodies and coming up to a stand. She sliced through his neck in one massive blow. Taking his head clean off.
There was only a dozen or so still fighting, and despite her need to go back to Leo, she had to finish this.
Now.
She heard her king yell out to her and she looked to where he was pointing. Kalvis was being overrun by barbarians. He was obviously hurt. Hardly able to stay on his feet, barely able to swing away the attacks coming at him. He would be killed soon. That was certain. It was four on one and their fearsome shrieks could be heard by all.
She ran to the wall, threw her sword into its sheath on her back, and climbed the ladder.
Kalvis was down on his knees now and a hugely fat barbarian lifted his sword to strike.
Tattiena grabbed her own heavy sword from its sheath and threw it like a knife as she ran. It hit the man dead center in the chest and he froze. She got to Kalvis, pulled the sword from the barbarian’s chest and shoved him off the wall. The other three came at her and she fought them off while standing over Kalvis. She took a step back and he pressed a knife’s handle to her side.
She grinned as she took it in her free hand, driving it into a barbarian’s neck and throwing him off the wall.
The narrow wall was making this a hard fight to win, but also a hard fight to lose. The inability to stand more than one person across the breadth made it impossible to fight more than one barbarian at a time, but it kept them from swamping her and killing h
er too.
Arrows flew at their heads and pain carved through her leg.
Her gaze darted to the ground to see Leo still swinging in the fray, his sword taking down one barbarian, as his men took down the other archer.
She pressed forward, slicing first one invader in half and then the other, throwing them off the wall and into the ash on the other side of the city boundary.
Her gaze darted over the men outside the wall. None living.
She swung around to face the men on her side of the city, and there was her beloved Gregorick. Streets running with blood. The king’s guard’s bodies littered the street with the barbarians beneath them. She wanted to open the doors and throw them out into the cold, but she didn’t dare suggest they open the gates in case more invaders followed.
Her gaze skittered around the men. Leo remained still standing, though one of his men propped him up. Her king—her father—although blood splattered and having an arrow in his arm, had a grim smile from ear to ear.
Kalvis was beside her and she bent to check him. His eyes were closed, but he was still breathing. She yelled down to some of the men that were still able, “Help me with the Captain!”
They nodded and scaled the ladder.
She put her arm around him. “Let’s get you to the healer, Kalvis.”
He nodded and tried to help her, though he was tremendously heavy. Getting him to a stand so the men could carry him back to the ground floor was a huge task for her tired body. But they managed and she ran down the ladder after them, going first to her father, who was still smiling, and then to Leo, whose color reminded her of rancid milk.
“You need Mia,” she said and grabbed a hold of his arm.
When his eyes showed no recognition, she put an arm around his middle. “Our healer.”
Two of his men looked worried so she gave them a task. “Make sure all the barbarians are dead, pile them up and set fire to the bodies. Do not open the gates.”
She turned to one of the king’s guards. “Bring Kalvis and any other injured to the hospital. I’m taking the prince to Mia.”
The men set off to do her bidding and she dragged the half-conscious Prince Leo up the hill.
“Come on, Leo! Help me a bit.”
He stood straighter, his eyes rolling around in his head.
She clenched her teeth against the roll of pain that was caused at seeing him in such a way. She knew he should be dead. He was sliced and bleeding, an arrow still sticking out of his chest.
They reached the castle walls and she pressed the button.
Saray opened the door, dagger drawn. “It’s alright, Saray. The battle is over. But you should be with the king.”
She was surprised the king’s body guard had not been in the battle.
The woman nodded. “I was asked to stay and protect Nellid.”
“He didn’t fight?” she asked the other warrior woman, anger rippling through her veins. “That fucking coward.”
Saray gave her a look that said I agree. But she didn’t speak, simply ran towards her master.
“My half-brother will be disappointed to know we all survived,” Tattiena spat out as she dragged Leo along to Mia, then banged on the healer’s door.
Mia opened instantly, grabbing hold of Leo and drawing him in to her room.
“Is everyone okay? What’s happened?” she asked as she ripped at Leo’s clothes and studied his wounds.
Gaping openings in his chest and arms caught Tattiena’s eye, and she tried not to vomit as acid curled in her throat.
Oh my…don’t die. Please don’t die.
She focused on Mia and her questions rather than the tears threatening to choke her. “Ah. The barbarians are all dead. I think. King Taneel is still alive, although we’ve lost a lot of men too.”
“We need to get this out first,” Mia said, pointing to the arrow.
“He’ll be alright, Mia. Yes?”
Mia looked up at her, worry present in her gaze. “I’m going to try my best, Tattiena. Although, it might be better if we knock him out for this.”
Leo grabbed her hand suddenly, squeezing tight. She looked down at him, where his eyes were wide and staring. “We need to find out if they’ve attacked Davuno. Send anyone still standing. Please. They may need help.”
She nodded. “I will. Don’t worry. Just get better.”
He relaxed a little, lifting his hand to stroke her cheek. “You were magnificent, Dragon rider.”
Tears clogged up her throat, and she swallowed them down as Mia came back and slid a needle into Leo’s arm.
“As were you, my prince.”
Leo’s eye lids fell and his hand went limp.
Mia nodded once. “Let’s get to work.”
She sewed up Leo’s wounds, gave him shots of medicine, and removed the arrow. By some stroke of good luck, it hadn’t hit anything vital, and Mia was confident of a good recovery.
The king came into the room not long after that to get his own wounds healed.
Tattiena waited for him outside the healer rooms and when he came out, she grabbed him.
“Sire…”
“Tattiena. You’re alive.”
Taneel took her in his arms like the father she had always wished for. Strong arms clasping at her, holding her tight. Kissing her hair.
Her heart swelled inside her chest, both broken and content for this one moment in time. She pulled back and stepped away, unsure of how to take this sudden show of affection.
“And you are too, Sire. Why did you not stay in the castle with your son?”
Her father grimaced and turned his nose up in a sneer. “I am a warrior first, a defender of this city. I will never sit inside and hide when there is evil at the gate.”
She couldn’t stop the smile that tugged up her lips. “That is good to know, though I’m hoping we will not need to fight again soon.”
“Yes.” He nodded. “Their forces have taken a massive hit, I hope. There is no telling how many numbers they are in total.”
“That’s true.” She said, remembering her promise to Leo. “We have to send a troop to Davuno. Prince Leo is very worried that they divided their forces and send half to us, and the other half to his city.”
The king nodded, shifting his weight to indicate he was injured and uncomfortable. “I will. I’ll speak to the men as soon as I’m done with Mia. Kalvis… or whoever’s still standing.” He shook his head. “We lost a lot of our men today.”
Sadness gripped her, but she pushed it away. “But we saved the city.”
“Yes.” His gaze softened. “We did.” He reached out and touched her cheek for only a moment. “You are a child worthy of the Gregorick throne.”
She flinched away, unable to take such a compliment. “Thank you, Sire, but you know that cannot be.”
His eyes shone suspiciously as he blinked rapidly, several times. “Yes. I know. And I will forever regret the decisions I have made in my life in regards to you and your mother.” He dropped his gaze and bowed deeply, a sign of deep respect she had never seen her father show anyone.
When he lifted his head, tears wet his face. “Thank you for saving our city, Dragon rider. Your mother would be very proud of you.”
Then he turned and walked away, leaving Tattiena feeling like he’d ripped out her heart and destroyed every form of defense she had built up over the past twenty years.
She joined Nargoya in the stables and cried until she couldn’t cry anymore.
Her father had finally acknowledged her, and yet all she could hear in his words was regret and a lack of power. She couldn’t turn back time, and neither could he.
But what to do about the prince in her life? Just as her mother had fallen for a prince, so had she. And both of them had allowed their heat to rule them, much to her mother’s demise.
However, after today she was even more determined to be the Dragon rider that Gregorick needed. Not just for her father’s love, but for her love of her life as it was.
&nbs
p; Gregorick needed her, and when the time was right and Leo was once again fit to travel, he must return to Davuno and they both needed to get on with their lives.
5
It took weeks to set the city to rights. The King’s guard burned every one of the barbarian’s bodies, and even opened the gates to sift through the ash to make sure there would be none coming back from the dead.
They’d heard from the messenger this morning, and they’d brought great news. The team of ten soldiers they’d sent to Davuno had come across no barbarians, and had indeed reported that there had been no attack on Davuno thus far.
Hopefully that meant that the barbarians had put all their fighting men into the attack on Gregorick, and therefore, they should be completely impotent now.
But only time would tell.
King Taneel’s minor injuries were healing, Nargoya was doing well, and Leo had bounced back better than even Mia had expected.
It was time for the victor’s feast and the air bubbled with promise and intensity.
The king stood and greeted his guests. “I would like to thank everyone here tonight for their bravery in defeating our enemy. But I must add special thanks to our Dragon Master Tattiena and Prince Leonide of Davuno, for their efforts in our victory. I owe a debt of gratitude to you both.”
They lifted their glasses and all around the table toasted the victory.
Tattiena brought the glass to her lips and took a small sip. Her appetite was not right and her stomach churned at the smell of the rich food before her.
“Please. Eat.”
The king sat and Leo’s hand slid over her thigh beneath the table.
She bit her lip in an effort not to groan outwardly as pleasure spiked inside her and rippled with promise.
“Don’t,” she said, trying to shove his hand off her leg.
“Why not?” he asked, grinning down at her. “We’re both alive. We should celebrate.”
“Because you will be leaving soon and there is no future for us…Prince Leonide.”
She swallowed hard as the bile rose. She was not looking forward to saying goodbye to him again. After everything they had shared, she was afraid they were inextricably linked.
