Sigrid drew a knife from her belt and threw. The strike hit home — her knife buried itself to the hilt in one of the bug’s bulbous red eyes. If anything, it only made the monster madder. A flick of its leg sent Sigrid flying before it bore down on Eva.
Eva braced for the attack just as a flash of red feathers struck the insect. Fury latched onto its back and sunk his talons into the base of its neck. The bug spun on its spindly legs, and Fury went flying as well until he crashed into the cluster of rocks in the center of the arena.
Belarus struck next diving straight at the bug’s head. Almost faster than Eva could follow, the monster rose up on its hind legs and met Belarus mid-strike. The black gryphon had no time to dodge.
The bug skewered Belarus on its remaining pincer and drove him into the sand.
“NO!”
Eva screamed and stumbled forward. The insect pulled its barbed leg from Belarus, who flapped and jerked his wings in sickening death throes. Eva drew back her sword, to hurl it at the thing’s head in a last desperate gamble. And then Sven struck.
A crack like a whip split the air and the insect’s head and neck jerked to the side at an impossible angle as Sven bore it to the ground. It made no move as the grey gryphon tore its neck open with his talons and beak.
The crowd fell silent. Sigrid limped forward, clutching her side. Eva let out a sob and knelt down next to Belarus’ still form, stroking the old gryphon’s midnight fur. In the bright sunlight, it glistened with drops of blood. Fury and Sven landed beside them and Fury let out a long, mournful keening as he nudged Belarus’ beak. A breeze kicked up, stirring the gryphon’s feathers but Eva knew Belarus would never feel the wind beneath his wings again.
She looked up to where Anarchos sat in the shade on his dais. Beside him, Ivan fought like one possessed against his chains to no avail. For a moment, the priest only stared at them, a smile apparent on his face even from the distance. Eva would have given anything for a bow — even at the distance, she knew she couldn’t miss, the hatred flowing through her strong enough to overpower her wounded leg and the grief of Belarus’ death.
At last, Anarchos stood and raised his hands. The stands remained silent. Eva glanced at the blank faces of the spectators in disgust
“What a tribute to the Ancestors!” the high priest said, clapping long and slow. “Little did we know of the might of the gryphon riders from the west!”
He raised his hands again and the stadium erupted into a tumult of applause and heathen screams.
“I get the feeling he expected a different outcome,” Sigrid said, leaning over so Eva could hear her above the din.
As if he’d heard her, the priest smiled again and lowered his hands. “We are indeed blessed by the Ancestors this day. But there is one last test! Let them face the might of Draecanae!”
The crowd cheered themselves into a frenzy at their priest’s words.
“Hey, you son of a whore!” Sigrid shouted. “We’re done! We won! Let us go!”
But Anarchos had already returned to his seat, fanning himself with a large leaf from the spear-shaped trees, Ivan continued to strain against his bindings until the guards cuffed him and tied a gag into his mouth.
“You know what the tempest a Draca-whatever is?” Sigrid asked as they swiveled around, waiting to see which gate would birth the latest nightmare. The chaotic crowd dropped into a steady cadence, chanting the word over and over.
“DRAE-CAN-AE! DRAE-CAN-AE!”
“I don’t think I want to,” Eva replied.
“We could try to fly out?” Sigrid suggested, nodding toward Fury and Sven.
Eva’s despair deepened. If Sigrid was ready to run, things were dire indeed. “They’d fill us full of arrows before we could go anywhere. And we can’t leave Ivan.”
“Ivan seems to be a damn sight better off than we are,” Sigrid muttered, glancing back up at the shaded pavilion. She sighed. “Let’s give it to them, one last time, I guess.”
Eva gritted her teeth, trying to ignore her throbbing leg. At long last, a gate to their right rose. The familiar, dreaded sound of metal screaming against rock set Eva’s remaining, frazzled nerves on edge. The crowd fell silent again, every last person staring into the dark abyss beyond. Time stretched by, impossibly slow.
A long white snout, fanged and scaled, appeared out of the shadow. It reminded Eva of the paintings she’d seen of the crocodiles from the far north of Maizoro
Thick, bowlegged limbs as big around as trees thumped out into the sand, following a long, winding torso.
“Can’t be,” Sigrid said. “There’s no such thing as —”
Eva finished her sentence, although it was the last thing she wanted to admit.
“Dragons.”
Chapter Sixteen
The pale reptile slithered the rest of the way out of the tunnel, surprisingly smooth and agile on its short limbs. It had no wings, but its body and tail more than compensated. It raised its snout in the air, sniffing, tail waving back and forth as if it had a mind of its own.
“That thing can’t really breathe fire, right?” Sigrid said. “I mean that’s…those are just stories. Aren’t they?”
The Draecanae jerked its head toward them upon hearing her voice and stared. Its eyes were red pupils, narrowing as it tried to discern who and what these new intruders in its territory were and if they could be eaten. Eva took a step backward.
“I think we should —”
“Get on the gryphons, I agree,” Sigrid said. In a flash, she swung onto Sven.
Eva did likewise, as fast as she could on her bad leg. With much less grace than Sigrid, she latched onto Fury’s saddle and pulled herself up into place. The gryphon pawed at the ground with his talons and spread his wings, waiting for her command to take to the air.
Even now, the previously manic crowd remained silent. Eva wasn’t sure if they revered the beast, or feared any noise would incite the drake to climb out of the pit and attack the audience. In the emptiness, Eva heard as much as felt her heart pounding in her chest.
“The Draecanae is the mightiest of hunters in the deserts of the deep north,” Anarchos’ voice carried down to them from where he stood at the edge of his balcony. “It is written in the long ago that the Ancestors carved runes upon the Draecanae, imbuing them with the ability to breathe fire, ice or water. Alas, that lore has long since been forgotten. But the great lizards are still formidable foes nonetheless, with scales like armor, and claws like scimitars. Should you survive your encounter, we will indeed know the Ancestors smile upon you and you will be freed. Try to escape on your beasts, and you will be shot to death.”
“Listen, snake!” Sigrid shouted up. “We don’t have to —”
Alerted by the sound of her shouts, the Draecanae let out a grating roar and coursed toward them. The gryphons shot into the air just in time to miss the beast’s snapping jaws as it stretched out for Fury’s legs. Hovering just above the height of the wall, Sigrid and Eva drew their gryphons close together.
“Got any ideas?” Eva asked. She glanced down at the drake, who spun around below them, frustrated by his elusive prey above.
“Other than killing it?” Sigrid asked. “Not a storming one.”
“Ladies!” Anarchos cupped his hands together and shouted to draw their attention. Eva saw several guards draw arrows from their quivers. “The trial of the Ancestors will not be sullied by your cheating! I am afraid if you do not return to the ground, I will have to take drastic measures.”
Down below the Draecanae roared again and lashed its tail out at one of the columns. The cracked stone burst apart in a cascading pile of rubble and dust.
“We could rush him?” Sigrid suggested.
Eva shook her head. “Too many archers, we’d never make it out alive.”
“What do you think’s gonna happen if we go down there?” Sigrid yelled. “Would you rather cooperate like nice little sacrificial lambs and get eaten by a storming dragon?”
“Hey! I do
n’t —” Eva stopped, her attention stolen by a robed figured crawling across the top the wooden pavilion above Anarchos.
“Chel!” Eva said before she could think. Sigrid must have seen her too.
“Well, I’ll be…”
“Time is up, my brave friends!” The high priest shouted, oblivious to the approaching danger overhead. He leaned over the balcony. “Will you face the Draecanae or be shot down like cowards?”
Eva glanced at Chel, who edged toward the end of the pavilion and gathered her feet beneath her like a cat getting ready to pounce
“We’ll go!” Eva shouted, hoping to buy some time and keep the priest distracted. “Don’t shoot, we’ll give you a fight!”
Anarchos smiled like a toddler given his own way. “Good! I would have been disappointed if —”
Chel leaped from the roof and struck the priest between the shoulder blade with both of her feet. Anarchos screamed and pinwheeled his arms, but before any of his guards could grab him, he toppled over the balcony and landed with a thud on the arena sand.
Fury and Sven shot toward the pavilion as chaos erupted. Guards ran back and forth like a flock of scattered birds, unsure how many attackers were on the pavilion. Ivan lashed out with his chained hands at anyone who came within reach while Chel danced away from curved swords and spears. Down below, Anarchos shrieked for help.
Horrified, Eva spotted a couple of the soldiers with enough sense to draw their bows just as they reached the balcony. Both women leaped from the sides of their gryphons. Sigrid landed in a crouch but as soon as Eva’s wounded leg made contact with the stone, it buckled and she fell flat on her face. As Eva struggled to her feet, Sigrid charged the guards. Upright, they fought toward Chel and Ivan on the other side of the terrace.
Without room to land, the gryphons circled above, dodging arrows before diving in to knock the guards into the pit. Eva did her best to stick to Sigrid but her wounded leg forced her focus completely on defending herself.
All of a sudden, Ivan’s voice rose over the din of the fight and a gust of wind blasted past Sigrid and Eva, knocking three more men into the arena. Relief flooded through Eva at the sight of the Scrawl’s glowing runes as he began another kenning. By now the remaining guards pushed their way through the crowd to get away from the gryphons and Ivan.
“I told you this was a bad place!” Chel said when they reached her and Ivan.
“I’m just glad to see you!” Eva said, laughing.
Like a raging fire, the mayhem of the pavilion spread into the crowd. Stoked by the fleeing guards, the people fought to get out of the arena. Eva saw guards overpowered and tossed into the pit, while some threw down their weapons, tore off their scarlet cloaks and joined in.
Screams below drew their attention. Anarchos clung to the side of the wall, supporting an obviously broken leg as he urged the scattered guards in the arena to gather in front of him. The Draecanae wound forward, taking its time to study the scattered collection of armed men and women before it. It bobbed its head up and down as if trying to decide which it would prefer to annihilate first.
“Kill it!” Anarchos screamed, hopping on his good leg. “Kill it, you fools!”
An overly ambitious guard, perhaps hoping to garner favor with the governor, lunged forward and jabbed his spear at the drake’s face. The Draecanae gave an angry snort and, almost faster than Eva could follow, spun around and batted the man aside with its tail. Eva winced as his screams died in a crunch against the arena wall.
The rest of the guards hesitated until the high priest yelled again. This time, they fanned out as a group, forming a semi-circle in front of the giant lizard.
The dragon bulled forward and brushed three guards aside like they were flies. Another charged it straight on. The Draecanae caught him with its snout, flipping the man straight up in the air and catching it between its jaws on the way down. Sensing an opportunity, a woman jumped forward and struck the Dracanae’s scaled neck with her sword. The blade rebounded against the scales and the dragon sent the woman flying with a jerk of its bony head.
Seeing their comrades mowed down, the last two guards ran, ignoring the high priest’s screams. Not fast enough to avoid the Draecanae. The drake caught one with its tail and smashed the other against the sand with a massive front foot.
Alone, Anarchos looked small and pitiful pressed against the arena wall. He looked up and spotted them.
“Have mercy! I would not have killed you — it was only a spectacle. Please, throw me a rope!”
The Draecanae’s massive fangs crunched through an injured guard trying to crawl away then turned its attention toward the priest. It snorted and lumbered forward, attention focused on Anarchos.
“I will give you anything!” The priest screamed. “Gold, jewels, slaves — the city itself! Please, help me!”
“You will give Eva-lyn back her stone,” Chel shouted down to Anarchos. “Now!”
“And then you will throw me a rope?”
“We’ll consider it,” Sigrid said. “But you’d better hurry!”
Sobbing, the priest reached around his neck and removed Eva’s necklace with fumbling hands. He threw it up in the air and Sigrid leaned over to snag it. She handed it to Eva who felt immediate relief when she placed it around her neck.
“Now throw me the rope!” Anarchos shrieked. “Throw the rope!”
“The Draecanae is beloved of the Ancestors,” Chel said, repeating the priest’s speech back to him. “If they truly favor you, then you will be spared.”
An ugly, twisted look of terror spasmed across the man’s face. “Please, inscribed!” he pleaded with Ivan. “You are all powerful. Please, spare me and I will serve you!”
Ivan looked from the priest to the still form of Belarus lying across the arena. Tears glistened in his eyes and he shook his head.
The Draecanae took another step forward, head bobbing and weaving. By now, the pale monster was only feet away from Anarchos. The priest froze, bare chest heaving.
Like the sabercat, Eva saw numerous scars crossing the drake’s body and wondered what sort of torture could inflict such marks on the Draecanae’s armored hide. She saw now how old it was — spots of discoloration freckled its eyes above worn and yellowed teeth. Who knew how many years of its life had been in the cruel captivity within the Mother of Cities.
“Back!” Anarchos managed to stutter out as he cowered on the ground before the dragon. “I, the governor and priest of the Mother of Cities, beloved by the —”
The Draecanae opened his maw and Anarchos’ screams cut through the surrounding chaos. Eva looked away, but the shrieks ended almost as soon as they’d began.
Glancing beyond the arena, Eva saw plumes of smoke rising throughout the city. The crowd attacked the guards without mercy and turned on one another. Eva felt sick just watching the madness set in.
“We must leave,” Chel said, looking as if the gruesome death hadn’t affected her at all. “These people have lost their minds.”
Sigrid nodded. “The Mother of Cities has turned into a mad bitch.”
“What about… Belarus?” Ivan asked.
Eva glanced at Sigrid, throat tight. When a gryphon died, they were always put to flame. Eva didn’t know how they’d get Belarus’ body out of the arena without the Draecanae attacking them, or where they could safely find fuel to build a funeral pyre large enough to consume an adult gryphon. But the thought of leaving the body for the drake to feed on seemed even worse.
“We will honor him when we return to the Gyr,” Sigrid said. Eva felt a wave of relief at someone else making the call but it was followed immediately by guilt.
Ivan nodded, shoulders shaking. Without a word between them, Eva, Sigrid, and Chel gathered together and wrapped their arms around him.
After a long moment, Eva stepped back and wiped the tears from her eyes. Smoke choked the sky above them and the sounds of rioting came from all around. Eva shuddered.
“Let’s get out of here.”
They flew until nightfall, Chel behind Eva on Fury, Ivan with Sigrid on Sven. No one spoke, each wrapped in their own thoughts as the Mother of Cities faded into the landscape behind them and the lush oasis gave way to broken, empty land. They went almost straight south, ready to be out of the hill country even though the Endless Plains offered little to look forward to.
Just before sunset, Eva worked up the energy to ask Chel how she’d escaped capture.
“I was walking in the gardens. I could tell someone followed me, so I hid and waited. When the two men showed themselves, I watched as they looked for me. They said something about you and See-grid and Ivan. I knew I could not get back to you in time, so I climbed the wall and hid in the city. It did not take long to hear what was happening the next day.”
“Thank you,” Eva said. “We owe you our lives.”
Chel gave a short nod and then opened her mouth as if to say something else before closing it again.
"What is it?” Eva asked, twisting in the saddle to get a better look at the girl.
“I…” Chel began. “I am eager to return to my people and find your father, that is all.”
Eva nodded, feeling the same anxious pull. She’d wasted too many days in Anarchos’ snare. Even worse, Belarus was dead because of her. She looked at Ivan riding behind Sigrid. The Scrawl stared off into the distance with a blank expression on his face. The consequences of her choices hung over them all.
Four days passed before the group began to shed the dark mantle. With nothing but the weapons on their back and a few hasty supplies gathered as they fled from the city, they were forced to stop often to hunt and search for water. As they continued south, however, the land became more plentiful with game, even as it grew colder. The nights had a chill to them that bespoke the coming winter. Each night found them huddled around a meager fire, close together to stay warm.
Windswept Page 13
