by Simon Archer
“Yes, the anthophilans,” Karkaros rumbled. “Our clan’s strength is yours to wield, William Tyler of Upland. Now…” He gestured to Tharnox’s nostrils. “If you could please free my friend from the clever trap you’ve ensnared him in, we can be off.”
I smiled in return. “It would be my pleasure.”
It had been a long journey since reaching the Marches, but we were finally ready to face the Baroness. If we made it back in time, that is.
30
“I’m so glad that worked.” I stood over the bubbling pool of lava I had melted to release Tharnox from his rocky prison. Libritas cooled her glow as she returned to her normal color, having just melted the volcanic rocks that held Tharnox in place.
Karkaros kept a hand on Tharnox’s snout, assuring him that everything would be alright. The huge dragon rose from the glowing sludge, his snout still touching Karkaros. It purred as it gently rubbed against the giant, expressing just how much it loved him. Underneath all of the stone and scales, it was just a giant puppy.
“I’m glad to see you’re safe.” Karkaros put his arms against Tharnox’s nose, his own gigantic size dwarfed by the dragon. “Thank you, William, for not harming him.”
“Eh, it was no big,” I said, lying through my teeth. It was like fighting and subduing a living, lava-breathing 747 jet that I wasn’t allowed to damage it. The hassle was definitely worth it, though. “All in a day’s work, I suppose.”
“It would seem so.” Karkaros scratched Tharnox’s scales. “I’ve known Tharnox my whole life. He was my father’s dragon and his father’s before that. He’s been a part of this clan since long past living memory. You respected that, even if you did not know it. You are an honorable man, William Tyler.”
“Just trying to get on your good side, Great Dragon,” I said to him. “It would have completely cut ties between us if I harmed any member of your family. At the risk of sounding cold, it was purely tactical.”
“Your shrewd observations and cunning tactics have saved both his life and mine.” He placed his hand to his heart. “It will be my joy to fight alongside you in the days to come.”
“Speaking of which, is Tharnox ready to fly?” I said, looking upon the dragon. His eyes had returned to their normal orange glow, which I figured was a good sign.
“He will need a bit of time to find his inner flame again, but it will come shortly,” Karkaros explained. “While he is unharmed, he has been cooled far below what he is comfortable with. The stones in his stomach must return to liquid within him.”
“I think I can help with that,” I said, bringing Libritas to bear. “Libritas is great for cooling and cooking if you’re willing to bring him closer.” I looked down at her. “Can I ask one more outrageous and strange thing from you?”
“I’m going into the dragon’s mouth, aren’t I?” Libritas said, already glowing again. “The things I do for you, William. You will owe me for this.”
“Whatever you want that I can do, it’s yours,” I assured her.
“Oh, I’ll remember that.” She glowed brighter and brighter as I brought her towards Tharnox.
Karkaros kept his hand on the beast, keeping it calm as I approached. Slowly and carefully, I held Libritas closer to Tharnox. Karkaros tapped Tharnox twice, and its maw opened just enough for Libritas to fit through. Another double-tap and Tharnox closed his jaws, leaving nothing but the handle I gripped visible and my hands practically touching the dragon’s massive fangs.
I closed my eyes. By thinking of this hot volcano, a dry desert, a sizzling meal at a Mexican restaurant, that time I burnt my hand on the stove when I was three, I summoned the greatest heat I’d ever needed from Libritas. I imagined the heat charging through Tharnox’s innards like a bull, crashing into every organ on its way to the tail.
Tharnox shifted in place, shaking from side to side. The teeth opened, unlatching Libritas from its mouth as her glow burned in my pupils for a second. The Brand cooled herself as soon as she realized she was outside and returned to her normal color. Tharnox lifted his head up, blinking as steam escaped his reptilian lips. It pointed its snout upward and roared to the heavens, thundering through the whole volcano like it had done before. Its massive wings spread out to the side, almost canopying the entire volcano.
If that wasn’t a prepared dragon, I don’t know what was. Not that I had a real frame of reference.
“He seems ready to me,” I said, turning to Karkaros. “I’ll round up my people, and we’ll be off. We’re based in Hillrock, north of the Solspire, and that’s where we will regroup and plan the assault. You know where that is?”
“The place should be easy enough to spot from atop Tharnox. I will gather the finest of my Magma Guard as well.” Karkaros nodded before turning to his stone throne room. “This will be a war for the ages.” He walked off as he spoke to his red draconian guardsmen, the group dispersing at his command towards Tharnox.
I found Amalthea and Reggie helping to gather supplies in the form of various fruits and meats in sacks, while Shikun was strapping on a set of black draconian armor. She kept her club and was looking like a proper draconian warrior.
“You look great, Shikun,” I said as I walked up to her. “It’s like it was made for you.”
“Yes, it’s special, apparently,” Shikun said softly as she finished up the ties to one of her greaves. “Karkaros told me about it before he set me down. It was the only set recovered from the missing hunting party… my family’s party.” Her hands stopped for a moment as her voice grew thick with emotion. “My parents would have worn something just like this.” With that, she pulled on the last knot to make it secure.
I sat down next to her as she leaned into me. She didn’t cry, though. I think every tear she had was shed already. We just basked in this moment for a bit before Shikun spoke again.
“We’re going to get him, right?” Shikun looked up to me. “Khem? We’re going to stop him?”
“If it’s the last thing I do,” I said, standing up. “Now, come on. We’ve got a barony to save.”
“Would you look at that?” Reggie teased with a grin, holding a sack of food larger than him in both hands. “Lazing about like a slumbering dragon while the rest of us prepare for war. Have you no shame, William?”
“I’m sorry, Reggie.” I chuckled as I walked up to him. “I’ll be more considerate of others next time I decide to rest up a bit after fighting a dragon.”
“You best, Master William,” Reggie said with a chuckle of his own, shuffling off with his food sack. “Now, pick up a sack and bring it to the loading area.”
“Right away, Sir Reginald.” I saluted to him before finding one of the food sacks, picking it up, and following him to where he was taking the other one. Shikun followed behind me, carrying two. The heap of sacks was piled next to Tharnox while red draconians loaded chains around him. Curious, I turned my gaze to follow the chains until I saw a new adornment atop the dragon. On the square of Tharnox’s back was a giant black metal dome, almost like an armadillo shell, held down by the chains. It looked to be a special carriage for people to ride on the dragon without the wild and terrible fear of falling to one’s doom at all times. A nifty invention.
Petra stood by the sacks, stretching out her vines to lift them up to the dome where draconians stood to load them inside through a hatch in the side. Shikun and Amalthea flew up to delivered their loads directly. I set down the sack I was holding, content to let the more mobile ones in our party do the heavy lifting.
Karkaros approached us just as I went to go grab another sack. One of his light blue draconian attendants was finishing adjusting and strapping the last piece of Karkaros’s new set of armor on. Good to know he had a spare.
“Shall we begin?” Karkaros said, gesturing to the dome on Tharnox’s back.
“Only if you’re ready,” I said, stretching my arms. I hoped I’d be spending most of the ride stretching and relaxing since I hadn’t had any real rest since climbing the mountain.
Without so much as time to brace myself, Karkaros grabbed me by the shoulders and flew both of us up to the dome carriage. As I regained my footing, I found Amalthea, Shikun, and Petra making their way to the dome as well, carrying the last few bags of food. Reggie was carried by a red draconian as he worked to keep his terrified screaming to a minimum. After being placed back on his feet, Reggie crawled along the dragon’s hide in his panic, slinking into the dome’s hatch as soon as he could. The rest disappeared through the hatch too, ready to lift off.
Now that we had the food, the draconians, the dragon, and all of my people, we were practically set to…
“Oh, shit!” I said as I came to the horrible realization. “Where’s Silver?” I frantically looked down on the village, searching for any signs of my personal miniature dragon. The last time I remembered having him was back on the mountain, and I’d completely lost track of him since then. I felt like the worst pet owner ever. What if I left him there?
“Relax, dear William.” Karkaros put his hand up to calm me. “Your rock wyrm is completely safe. In the time that you were unwelcome, we saw it fit to release him from your care. All forms of drakes are sacred amongst us, even those who are born without wings. It is not their fault that Ghorama was so reckless.”
“Who’s Ghorama?” I asked him.
“He was a dragon that defied the gods long ago and was stripped of his wings for it,” Karkaros answered. “It is said that his ancestors have spent their days repenting ever since, chewing upon the stone of the sun to be close to the sky again.”
“Well, I need to thank him,” I said. “It would have been a lot harder to fight the bigger rock wyrm if it could also fly.”
“So you’re experienced in fighting dragons, I see!” Karkaros let out a hearty laugh. “How could I ever have hoped to defeat you?”
“Maybe if you have as much dumb luck as me, you’ll stand a chance.” I smirked. “Now, about my rock wyrm…?”
As if to answer my question, crashing and banging rang out from inside the dome and out popped Silver, tackling me in the stomach. As I fell on my back, Silver licked my face over and over, just as happy as ever to see me.
“I love you, too, you big iguana,” I said, pushing myself out from under the excited little dragon.
Two draconians came out from the dome’s hatch, breathing heavily as they turned their heads in search of something. When they spotted Silver on top of me, one of the two almost dropped to the floor in exhaustion, saving himself by grabbing onto the side of the hatch. The other walked up to us, rubbing the sides of his head.
“I’m so sorry about this, sirs.” The red draconian, taller and thinner than most of them, dragged his fingers down his face. “When the nurses handed the rock wyrm into our care, we didn’t anticipate all of this…”
“How do you control that thing?” The other one called from the door. He was clearly stouter than the other draconians. “Oh, uhm, sir. Not that it’s a burden to control or anything.” He picked himself up to a standing position as he applied his manners. “He’s a great little… animal. Sir.”
“Relax, I know he’s very energetic,” I said between Silver’s licks of my face. “I’m just glad he’s safe.”
“Have we left yet?” Reggie said from inside the dome. “The sooner we leave, the better, please.”
“Not the calmest flyer, is he?” the stout draconian said, rolling his eyes.
“One horribly traumatic flying experience, and he falls to pieces,” I said, making my way to the hatch. “Terrible shame.”
The red draconians, Silver, and I went in as Karkaros flew to Tharnox’s head. The thinner draconian closed the hatch behind us as we found our seats inside the dome’s main chamber. While it was probably the size of a two-story house overall, it was only one spacious, dimly lit room with a Sola crystal hanging from a pole in the ceiling to illuminate it. The floor of the dome was just Tharnox’s hide, in all its scaled glory. Lined along the walls were handles and benches welded to it, and a couple dozen of the Magma Guard sitting along with them, packed together like sardines.
My people were crowded together in a little corner as they tried to get comfortable. Reggie found himself between Shikun and a broad-shouldered Magma Guard. Petra sat on the end next to a previously empty space now filled with Amalthea, strapped down by vines Petra must have made that attached themselves to the walls and floor of the dome by way of special sticky white puffballs. Reggie himself had six or so of the same strap-vines over himself, probably at his own request. The group lit up as they saw me.
“Will!” Petra started first. “You can take my seat. We’re a little short on room, so you’ll have to squeeze.”
“Don’t get up, I’m fine,” I said, laying down by Amalthea on the dragon scales. “I need to just not move my muscles for a bit.” As soon as I let myself relax, I remembered every aching pain in my body at once, and a pained groan escaped my lips. “Does Etria have any spas?”
“Is that a way for Uplanders to relax?” Amalthea purred.
“Are you telling me there are no spas down here?” I said, overtly aghast at the thought.
“We’ve managed to live this long without them, Will.” Petra seeded her puffballs around me as vines grew out from them. They wrapped me up tight, securing me snuggly to the floor of the dome.
“I think we’ve got a million-dollar idea, then.” I I closed my eyes. “After we’re done saving the world, we’re inventing the Etrian spa. I’ll settle for a hot bath in the meantime.”
I felt the familiar rumble of Tharnox’s flight as it pushed upon me. Now that I wasn’t clawing for survival upon it, I was going to enjoy riding on a dragon as I let myself fall into a slumber, finally crashing from hours of work. I had to get the rest now before we got back to Hillrock.
Even with the dragon fight behind us, it wouldn’t get any easier from here on.
31
The sky was white. Beyond white, as if every white I’d seen before was just a light shade of brown or yellow before this. The clouds floated gracefully in it like fluffy marshmallow bubbles.
And I was falling.
Deeper and deeper, I dove into a darker abyss of black. The sun that filtered through the clouds darkened as well, draining away to stretching shadows. I looked down to see the darkness. There was nothing in it. Just emptiness.
But not for long.
A decrepit hand reached out from the black void, wrapped in bandages. The exposed flesh was grey and thin as if it was drained of anything resembling life. As I fell, the hand opened up, and I landed in its palm as if I were a little pebble inside of it.
From deep in the gloom, a face flooded into view. It too was covered in bandages, every aspect of it, from the hollowed look in the eyes to the gaunt cheekbones, exposed teeth, and ashy grey skin, all of it seemed to reject the very concept of life. If there were any muscles inside it, you’d never know. I knew exactly who it was.
“Your luck has run out, mortal,” Khem said as he closed his fingers upon me. “You had a good run, but in the end,” his hand almost completely covered me now, “you’re only human.”
Khaba Va’Khem’s fingers blocked out any light that I could see, and I was in the crushing darkness of his hand.
At that moment, a silver light seared my eyes as it burst through the fingers, forcing them open. Khaba cried out in pain as I saw the source of the silver flames: Libritas, in her Avatar form, right on time. Her silver skin glistened as she stood there.
“Thank you, Libritas,” I said to her. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“You would do great things, William Tyler,” Libritas said, walking up to me. “That is why you have to let me go.”
“What are you talking about?” I asked, completely lost. Were we having two different conversations right now?
“You are still holding back,” she answered. “William, you are more powerful than you realize. While I will always help you, you must find the strength within yours
elf to move forward.”
“Yeah, sure,” I said, still not understanding her. “But you’re my strength, Libritas. I wouldn’t be able to do even a quarter of the things we’ve done without you. I’d be dead right now.”
“That’s not what I’m saying, William.” Lib held my hands in hers. “There is unrealized potential in both of us. It stays dormant because of how you see us.”
“I see us as partners,” I told her. “We’re equals.”
“No.” Her tone was absolute and brooked no question. “Despite our time together in these visions, I am still a weapon, a source of power to you. My abilities are those of a physical tool or implement, and you as merely an arm to wield it. But we are so much more than that.” She stood back, releasing my hands. With her arms spread out, she lit herself with silver flame, the flickering energy snaking around her like a feather boa. “I am Libritas, the Bane of Shackles. And it is time to break ours.”
“I didn’t mean any offense,” I said, kneeling before her. It felt appropriate, given her status as the Brand of Freedom. “If you think I’ve disrespected you in any way, you can tell me.”
“Rise, William,” she said, her hand on my cheek. “You have treated me with such kindness. I am merely showing you that I have more to give you in return.” She kept her hand on my cheek as I rose to my feet. “And I can only give it to you, dear William. Even in all of their years, none of my previous wielders were capable of receiving this gift.”
“Sounds expensive.” I joked, maybe inappropriately for the atmosphere.
“If it were anyone else, it would be,” she said, bringing my lips down to hers. “But you are special, William. It is you who are the source of my power.”
That’s the moment the giant Khaba picked to regain his composure, shaking his head loose. It roared, tensing his fingers around us.
“Looks like Khaba wants to tussle,” I said, stepping in front of her to face the towering mummy. “You ready to fight?”
