Kronyx laughed. “Yndra doesn’t care about your well-being. She wants what we all want—power. She has control over Ashwood and no doubt has her sights set on taking head position of the World Council. Just like Elsbareth, her vision is far too narrow. They set their greedy eyes on ruling the Earth but…”
“AH HA!” I burst. “I knew it!”
“Did you really need confirmation?” he asked with a grin. “Convincing you that we are not evil is just as difficult as convincing the rest of your race that we are.”
“But you are evil.”
“Evil is a point of view. I’m doing this for your own good,” he argued calmly.
“And what is it you plan to do with the information you’ve gotten from me?”
Vines quickly whipped around my face, covering my mouth to keep me quiet, and I found myself slowly being pulled into the ground!
“Whatever her plan may be, we cannot allow Yndra to get her conniving claws on you now, can we?” he asked, but I could only mumble while I struggled against the vines that held me. “I will protect you and the rest of the world by burying you.”
Behind him, I saw Jinxie come down the stairs. She saw that I was in trouble and looked afraid for me.
“Ah, Jinxie, I’m so glad you could join us.” Kronyx said before turning to face her.
The tip of a black sword suddenly protruded from his back! Jinxie had brought my swords with her, fearing I may truly be in danger. She pulled the sword from his chest, but he released his fiery breath, incinerating her instantly!
I screamed behind my mask of vines as I fought to break free.
Kronyx fell to his knees. The wound I saw on his back burned with the black fire from Devour as it spread throughout his body, crystallizing organs and turning blood into ash. His fingers dug into the mossy floor to pull himself around to no doubt burn me, too. His mouth opened but only his dying breath came forth.
The power he held over the vines released its grip, and I was able to pull myself free. I leaped over Kronyx’s body as it began reverting to its original form. There was nothing left of my beloved Jinxie. She had been reduced to ash.
“Argh, this makes bringing you back difficult.”
I folded the hem of my tunic over to make a pocket. The material magically fused, and I pulled it away to create a pouch. I pushed some of Jinxie’s hot ashes into the pouch, and pinched the opening shut. I then pulled a string from thin air and tied the bag of ashes to my belt.
Kronyx had taken the form of an elf, but now that he was dead, his shriveling corpse was changing back into a Yellow Dragon, a very large Yellow Dragon. I heard the glass walls and furniture shattering around me as his body quickly filled his burrow. Tears fell from my eyes as I quickly grabbed up my two obsidian swords that Jinxie had taken from under our bed, and I ran for the stairs. I reached the surface just as the ground caved in behind me.
All the elves came running out of their homes to see what had happened and found me standing outside the city guardian’s collapsed home.
“What happened here, Ambros? Is everyone all right? Where is Kronyx?” I was asked by many of the surrounding elves.
Glancing back at the cave in, I mumbled, “This won’t turn out well.”
Nazir, one of the Light Elf elders, stepped from the growing crowd to question me. Placing a hand on my shoulder, he asked, “Are you all right, son?”
“I lost Jinxie,” I answered sadly.
“What about Kronyx? Is he still in there?” he asked worriedly.
“Forget Kronyx! We’re all in danger!”
“What are you talking about?”
“The dragons have us in the dark about their true motives,” I began. “They keep us feeling safe and happy while they secretly gain power enough to conquer us and the rest of the world!”
“Did you hit your head?” I heard someone else ask.
“The World Council assigns, who you are led to believe, a dragon guardian to each of the elf cities and to different regions of the world, but not to protect them, to make sure no one race becomes too powerful while the dragons gather an army in the east!”
“I’m going to ask you again,” Nazir said in a sterner tone. “What happened here, cousin?”
Taking a deep breath, I answered, “Kronyx summoned me because the guardian of Ashwood is hunting for me. By looking into my past, he reached the conclusion that she may have found Arethil’s remains, and…”
Laughter rang out around me.
“The legendary phoenix?” the elder asked. He, too, chuckled at my claims.
“He did hit his head,” I heard someone from the crowd say just as I felt blood trickle down my face from the scalp of my hair.
Elyon pointed. “No, that’s dragon blood!”
Gasps were heard from all around me.
“Ambros, we’re going to have to ask that you hand over your swords and come with us,” Nazir ordered.
“For what? Kronyx was going to kill me!”
“That’s not for us to determine,” the elder said calmly.
Two elves snuck up behind me and grabbed my wrists. “Drop your weapons, cousin,” they demanded.
“Unhand me! I don’t want any trouble!”
“We don’t either,” one of the elves said as he struggled to hold me.
“We must restrain you until a council representative arrives and digs up Kronyx’s remains, so we can see the body for ourselves,” Nazir explained.
While still held by the two elves, I began to laugh. “So you want to see Kronyx’s remains? You want to see him? Let me call him for you.”
With that, I sent a thought out to the dragon’s dead mind. I felt his body shudder beneath the earth. Everyone held their balance and suddenly looked frightened for what was happening.
“Did Kronyx survive?” someone asked.
I laughed. “I’m unafraid not.”
Behind me, the collapsed burrow of our city guardian heaved, knocking everyone down. The fearsome dragon burst out from the collapsed earth and released a bone-chilling roar! The flesh had dissolved beneath his dull and dirty yellow scales, making his thick hide sag and appear as if it were melting away.
No longer being held by the two elves, I slung my sheathed swords over my shoulder and ran toward Kronyx. The dragon bowed his head for me to climb on. I sat between the horns on his head as he took flight.
CHAPTER III
THE FALL OF THE GIANTS
Beyond Lylandria’s border, the winter winds chilled me to the bone. I summoned warmer clothing and steered my zombie dragon east toward the World Council Palace. I remembered visiting the Dragon Cavern as a child with Pop, so I knew about where it was located. And with the serpent’s mind I now controlled, I was sure I would have no trouble finding my way.
After well more than a century of dealing with the dead, I had developed a special connection with them. I was capable of seeing their entire life even if they were completely brainless. It was a very narrow view similar to how Kronyx used me to see into the distant past. All Pop had to do was meditate to see through time. He didn’t need anything to direct his vision. Perhaps, someday, I’ll be just as powerful.
“Jinxie,” I exhaled as the weight of reality came back to me. My dear Jinxie was burned to ash. Even if I could reach into her past and gather her consciousness, she has no body to come back to. I wiped frozen tears from my eyes and tried to busy my mind from thoughts of her.
Even though the clouds beneath me were thin, the light of the crescent moon wasn’t enough to illuminate the forest far below. Surrounded by nothing but cold darkness, I laid my head on the dragon’s scales. My eyes begged for sleep, but my thoughts would not rest. The hours passed slowly while the pain swelled, but the sun finally broke over the distant mountains, and nestled among them was an immense tower.
“The dragons’ claws have been busy.”
I gave a mental command for Kronyx to land, so he lowered us through the morning fog to a dew-covered flower garden surrounding
a marble palace. Now that he was an undead dragon, Kronyx could no longer use magic to change his form, so he plopped down on a large area of flowers, mashing them into the dirt. Lowering his head, I slid off and told him to lay quietly until I called for him.
Taking a deep breath, I needed to clear my mind of Jinxie’s death, so I could focus on my next task. I took another deep breath of the fresh, morning air and skipped along a stone path that wound around groups of flowers and trees to the palace. With both fists, I knocked out a rhythm on the large double doors until someone opened them.
“A pleasant morning to you, cousin,” a Wood Elf greeted me with a smile. “Welcome to the World Council Palace. My name is Tully. I will lead you to Assam the Yellow for registration. Please, follow…”
“Snap!” I interrupted, grabbing his head and breaking his neck! I quickly dragged his body outside and took a dagger from the elf’s belt to cut my finger. “I’m sorry, Tully, but I’d like to go about my business unnoticed. I could use your help, though,” I told him as I dropped a bit of blood in each of his eyes and woke him from the dead.
With his mouth hanging open and his head still twisted at an unnatural angle, the elf slowly picked himself up from the ground.
“Oh, this won’t do. Hold your head up and close that mouth,” I commanded, adjusting his head and slapping his mouth shut.
He stared at me blankly, his mouth dropping back open.
“I guess this is as good as it’s going to get. Would you be so kind to give me a tour?”
The zombie elf gave me an agreeing moan, and I followed him inside.
The World Council Palace was like nothing I had ever seen before. Through tall windows, I could see the morning sun rising over the surrounding mountains to reflect off beautiful marble walls. There was no one else besides us on the ground level of the tower, but I could see a few elves high above us on a spiraling walkway.
“I’m hungry,” I said aloud after my stomach reminded me that it was time for breakfast. “Where can I get some food around here?”
The zombie made his way to a door and pushed it open. I followed him outside and across a covered walkway that led to a single story building with smoke puffing out of the chimney. I gave a command for the zombie to stay where he was while I went inside; I didn’t want to draw any attention if I could help it.
It was surprisingly cool inside considering the large fire burning in the center of the room. The fire burned in a long fire pit where animals roasted on spits and stews simmered in pots. Herbs and cured meats hung from the ceiling, and preparation tables covered in various fruits and vegetables lined the walls. A dozen elves were busy cooking and preparing food.
“A glorious morning to you, dear cousin,” I was greeted by one of the cooks as he pulled a pot from the fire.
“Thank you. And a glorious morning to you.”
The elf dipped a small wooden spoon into the stew and handed it to me. I lifted the spoon to my nose. It smelled delicious, so I tasted it. “Mmm. This is amazing. What is it?”
The elf took a loaf of bread that had been hollowed out and filled it with the delicious stew. Handing it to me, he called it, “Griffin corn chowder.”
“I’ve never heard of corn before.” I took another bite of the hearty soup and bowed graciously before leaving.
Outside, my tour guide waited right where I had left him. I followed the dead elf across the walkway back to the palace tower while eating my stew. The zombie reached the door and pushed against it like he did before, but it did not open.
“Pull, mush brain. It’s pull in, push out,” I explained.
Rubbing his hand on the door, he clearly couldn’t open it, so I opened it for him and followed him inside. Looking up the center of the tower, I said, “Now I need to find out what devilish tricks the dragons have up their scales.”
I caught a vision from Tully’s mind of a library in an upper level of the tower. “That’s a start. Lead the way.”
While I ate my stew and followed Tully up the spiraling walkway, I began singing an old song that I remembered elflings singing in Ashwood. “Animal clavicles in my soup. Maggots and zombies loop the loop.”
The elves we met along the way noticed that their palace doorman seemed sick that morning and wished him a speedy recovery. I told them he would be fine. He just needed to sleep it off.
Tully led me to a large room with shelves holding many books. Looking over the books, I finished my soup and ate the bread bowl. I decided I should ask Tully for help. “I’m looking for something written within the past century or so that tells a bit about what the Dragon Council have been doing.”
Tully shuffled over to a section and dragged his fingers weakly over the spine of a book that looked new in comparison to the others on the shelves.
“The Fall of the Giants by Assim the Yellow,” I read aloud before taking it to one of the chairs. I unstrapped the swords from my back, so I could sit comfortably. I didn’t have to read much into the story to find the names of Magnus and Dirk who I remembered from years past. There was also mention of a Dark Elf named Byron. Pictures drawn of the three instantly grabbed my attention. “That’s Pop!” Even without the eye patch, the pictures drawn of Byron were unmistakably Ambrosius.
While I read, Tully wandered around the room aimlessly, paying no attention to the gorgeous mountain vista seen from the large windows.
The story told of Grimlash, the five heads of the World Council, ordering his council members to aid the dragon guardians in protecting the elf cities from approaching armies. The Sea Giants mobilized to attack the Light Elves of Lylandria, the Fire Giants planned an attack on the Dark Elves of Ashwood, and the Storm Giants marched against the Woodland Elves of Snowcrest.
“Rubbish!” I blurted out. “It’s the same lies they’ve fed us for ages. Oh, we’re protecting the elves,” I mocked. “The dragons are only protecting us until they’re ready to eat us,” I added with a chomp and smack of my lips.
After defeating the giants, Magnus the Red Dragon Lord sought to kill his fellow council members and take the thrown as head of the World Council. He succeeded in killing Valik the Black Dragon Lord and Grimlash the Hydra before being defeated by Elsbareth the White Dragon Lord. For his crimes against the World Council, he was cast into the Abyss of the Dead. Elsbareth became the new head of the council and appointed the task of record keeping and electing new members to Assim. No longer needing to safeguard the northern road, the elves of Snowcrest moved south to a more temperate climate, and with the help of dragons, they began construction of a magnificent city for dragons and elves alike. They named the city Magestice.
My eyes were growing heavy. “I’m so tired,” I mumbled to myself. “But I want to read all that . . . .
My eyes opened, and I stretched. I had fallen asleep while reading. The sun had already set and starlight shined through the windows to partially illuminate the library.
Standing from my chair, I stretched again. “I slept like the dead. Speaking of which…. Tully?”
I strapped my swords to my back and picked the book up I had been reading from the floor where it had fallen from my lap. I then began searching the library for the undead elf. I closed my eyes a moment to see through Tully’s eyes, so perhaps I could find him. I saw elves screaming! I saw torn flesh! I saw blood!
I rushed to the library door and pushed it open to find the palace in chaos! Tully had left the library and infected others, turning them into starving zombies. Most of the elves that lived within the palace frantically ran for the exits while others tried to fight off their undead friends and loved ones.
“Well, this place sure livened up nicely,” I commented to myself. While carrying the book under my arm, I casually made my way through the carnage to the ground floor. The ravenous zombies paid no mind to me but scrambled toward everyone else in sight.
I was caught up in the rush of elves as they pushed to get out, but outside, they faced another monster—my undead Yellow Dragon. Leaving Kr
onyx to be dealt with by the dragons, the elves made for the surrounding forests.
Beneath dim moonlight, three mighty serpents fought viciously, trampling a large area of the palace gardens. Kronyx fought a Blue and a White Dragon on the ground while others circled the dark skies above. His body was riddled with deep slashes and bites, but he had no blood to pour from them.
I needed Kronyx to fly me away from there before I was discovered as the cause of the madness, so I sent a mental command to the infected elves within the palace. Dozens came outside to attack the dragons. The zombie attacks provided just enough of a distraction for Kronyx to sink his teeth into the White Dragon’s exposed neck. I then sent a command for us to escape, so he pushed past the dragons and galloped to me. He grabbed me loosely in his massive jaws and leaped into the air. The Blue Dragon sent a bolt of lightning through the zombies that attacked him, disintegrating many of them before he followed us.
Several of the dragons that were circling overhead landed to destroy what zombies remained while another Yellow Dragon joined the Blue that chased me into the night. I steered Kronyx as if controlling my own body, but I didn’t know where I was heading. I knew only that I had overstayed my welcome at the Council Palace.
I flew for a long while. I reached a large body of water, but, seeing land ahead, I continued west.
Using Kronyx’s keen dragon eyesight, I could see that we were still being followed. A terrible storm was called to darken the skies and hinder my vision. It became difficult to fly through the torrential rain and heavy winds, so I pushed Kronyx to climb above the storm. I kept his jaws clenched shut to keep the rain from blowing in on me while I concentrated on using his eyes to see. Thunder boomed and bolts of lightning flashed all around us.
When we finally broke through the storm clouds, I found the two dragons were waiting for me. Fire came from the Yellow Dragon’s gapping maw, searing Kronyx’s withered flesh and burning his leathery wings. Without them, I couldn’t stay aloft, so Kronyx fell with me locked inside.
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