by Garry Spoor
“Can you understand them?” he asked.
“Little.” Taugh replied. “Speech same as ours.”
The Ogre didn’t seem very pleased in admitting that. It created a connection between the Ogre and the Uhyre, something the Ogre was not very happy with.
“Do you think you can tell them we mean them no harm?” Daniel asked.
Taugh relayed what Daniel hoped was the right message. The language was a series of guttural tones that made it impossible for any normal tongue to wrap themselves around. There was a quick, verbal exchange between the two before Taugh broke off the conversation. He turned to Daniel, his eyes never leaving the valrik.
“They return home. Fight not theirs.”
“What of our friends, are they here?” Sandson asked.
“We can have vir, do not try to stop them from going home.”
“Like we could if we wanted to.” Sandson remarked. “Tell them we will not try to stop them. Tell them they can leave, but they must leave their weapons here.”
Taugh repeated Sandson’s words, and although they sounded a lot more aggressive in the guttural language, the valrik seemed to understand. Without hesitation, they dropped their weapons and began to file out of the cave.
“Well, that was easier than I thought.” Sandson said as he watched the last valrik join the group. They were heading back toward the stone city.
“Let’s just hope they aren’t going back for reinforcements.” Browne added.
“I don’t think so, not this time.” Sandson replied. He never thought he’d see the day where the Uhyre would just walk away from a battle. From the stories he was told as a youth, they always came off as a bloodthirsty lot, bent on chaos and destruction. Now it appears they aren’t much different from any other citizen of the realm. “Daniel, Anurr, you’re with me. Brown, stay with Taugh and Ertgoth and keep watch. That group may have lost their leader and gone home, but they’re not the only ones out here.”
Daniel climbed up after Anurr and they followed Sandson into the mines. It wasn’t difficult to navigate, as there weren’t too many directions to wander off in. Fortunately, the tunnels were well lit, touches had been wedged into the wall every ten feet or so, leading them down a single path to a larger cavern. From here there were several smaller tunnels leading in different directions, but none of them were lit. The room, itself, was empty, save for the tell-tail signs of valrik habitation. There were a few crude beds along the wall and a foul smelling something was cooking over a small fire.
“They’re not here.” Sandson said, looking around the room.
“You think they tricked us?” Anurr asked.
Daniel grabbed a torch from the wall and looked down one of the dark tunnels. “Maybe they’re down one of these.” He said, holding the torch higher, it did little to chase away the shadows.
“There’s no telling how far these things go back.” Anurr said coming up behind him. “It could take days to search them all.”
“Carter! Tullner! Marcus!” Daniel yelled into the darkness. “Is anyone there?”
“Danny, is that you?”
Daniel spun around, searching for the source of the voice.
“Carter? Where are you?”
“Up here.”
They looked up to see a large metal cage suspended from the ceiling of the cavern by a thick chain.
“Are you guys all right?” Sandson asked.
“We will be as soon as you get us down.” Tullner shouted back.
“Look for a winch or something.”
The mechanism wasn’t difficult to find, once they were able to trace the chain through the wall and into one of the adjoining rooms. Between Anurr and Sandson, they were able to lower the cage slowly.
“Man, are we ever glad to see you guys.” Tullner said when they finally touched down.
“Where’s Marcus?” Daniel asked. He was looking for another cage suspended from the ceiling which they might have missed.
“Don’t bother.” Tullner told him. “He’s not here.”
“Where is he?”
“He betrayed us, I think.” Carter replied.
Sandson went to work on the lock. I didn’t take him long before he had the door open.
“What do you mean, you think he betrayed you?” Daniel asked.
Tullner walked past them, heading toward the crates in the far corner. It was clear he was not very happy at being tricked so easily.
“All I know is, once you guys entered the building through the hole in the roof, the valrik started to move in. They had the whole place surrounded in seconds. They were waiting for us. The whole thing was a trap,” he said, tossing a few of the crates aside. When he found the one he was looking for, he retrieved his sword and quickly strapped it on.
“I don’t get it. How does Marcus play into this?” Daniel asked.
“His Edge.” Carter replied. “You membered what Kile said? She warned us not to look into his eyes. Well, we kind of forgot that.”
“All I remember was him saying something about joining the valrik and the next thing I know, I’m waking up in a cage suspended in midair.” Tullner said as he handed Carter back his blade. “I ever see that guy again, I’ll cut him in two before he has a chance to say anything.”
Carter strapped on his sword and looked around the room. “Hey, where is Kile? She with you?”
“No, she went to confront Ravenshadow,” Daniel replied.
“What, you let her go face him alone?” Tullner asked.
“She took Alex with her.”
“Well, no offense to your friend, Danny, but I don’t really think Alex is up to the challenge. With Marcus playing for the other team, she’s in danger.”
“Don’t underestimate her, or Alex,” Daniel replied. “You’d be surprised. Alex can handle himself when he has to, and as for Kile… well, if there’s one thing you can say about Kile, she’s unpredictable.”
“Unpredictable or not, we have to find her,” Tullner said as he headed for the exit. Sandson and Anurr quickly fell in behind him.
Carter grabbed Daniel by the arm. “Where are the valrik?” he asked.
“Oh, them, they went home.” Daniel replied.
When they exited the mines, they were met by Browne, who seemed agitated.
“You’ve got to see this, guys.” He said, pointing to the sky.
Tullner looked up and squinted as the morning light reached his eyes.
“What am I looking at?” he asked.
“I see it.” Anurr said. “What is it? It looks like a large bird.”
“That’s no bird.” Browne said, shaking his head. “That, my friend, is a dragon.”
***~~~***
27
They circled the stone city three times trying to locate the others, but Kile didn’t care. For the first time in a long time she felt free. She was flying, really flying. Not vicariously through the eyes of a bird, but actually sorting through the clouds. Granted, she was riding on the back of Umingoth, but it was the closest she would ever get to the real thing. It was the greatest sensation of her life, and she wished it would never end. Alex, on the other hand, was looking a little green.
The sun was now rising over the eastern lands, over the realm of Aru, but she turned her eyes west, to the lush green lands on the far side of the desert.
“What is over there?” she asked Umingoth.
-I do not know.-
The dragon replied, he slowly turned west.
-Long has it been since I have spread my wings. Much has changed in the years I have been imprisoned. We can go see, if you wish.-
She wanted desperately to say yes, but she knew she couldn’t. Not yet, she told herself. There will come a time when she will be able to, but it wasn’t now. The west would have to wait a little while longer.
“There’s still too much we have to do,” she told him. “We have to find my friends, then we have to return and warn the King.”
-As you wish, but you may already be t
oo late.-
Umingoth turned away from the green lands. Steadying his wings, he banked right, and turned into the rising sun.
“What do you mean, it may be too late?” Kile asked. “Do you know what Ravenshadow was planning?”
-Of course I do. As I said, he did not think I could understand him, so he spoke at length of his plans in my presence.-
“Why haven’t you told me this before?”
-You never asked.-
“I’m asking now. What is Ravenshadow’s plan? What did he need you for?”
-Ravenshadow has sent vir into the Northlands. They have plundered and burned villages, all in the name of your King.-
“But we’ve never had any problems with the north folk.”
-It does not matter. At this time, the vir of the north have raised an army, bent on revenge. They only await the proper moment.-
Of course, with the Callor province under the rule of Lord Rimes and occupied by the valrik, and with most of the King’s Command stretched out along the wasteland’s border, King Roland would have no other choice but to pull the rear guard in to confront the threat on his front doorstep. It would leave most of the northeastern territory undefended. Then the men of Rojan would ride into the Kingdom of Aru unchallenged.
“So, you were supposed to be the proper moment,” Kile shouted. “You were going to lead the invasion?”
-That is what he had in mind.-
Umingoth replied.
With a dragon leading the northern men, the damage would have been catastrophic. There weren’t too many armies that could stand against the might of a dragon. But still, it didn’t make any sense. By destroying the outpost of Moran, they prevented the valrik from reinforcing Lord Rimes. The valrik were held in the Denal province, and Lord Rimes was out of the picture. There is no longer a threat to Azintar, which meant the rear guard would remain stationed in the city. And with the dragon no longer under Ravenshadow’s control, not that he ever was, the north folk would be riding into a massacre. If this was Ravenshadow’s full plan, it was falling apart all around him.
“Down there,” Alex shouted, pointing to a handful of figures who were moving away from the stone city and heading back up into the hills.
“They must be heading back to the camp,” Kile replied.
“Does that mean we get to land?”
“We’ll be on the ground soon.”
Instead of going directly back to camp, she had Umingoth circle the hills. Kile tried to tell herself it was because she wanted to make sure no one was converging on the site, but the truth was, she was reluctant to give up flying so soon. When she ran out of excuses, she urged Umingoth to the ground.
She had hoped he would be discrete, landing a few yards away from the camp, so as not to cause too much of a disturbance, but Umingoth had his own ideas. He not only land in the middle of the campsite, he actually made it a point to land on the tent. His back foot crushing the canvas structure and his wings stirred up the sands of the desert, creating a small dust storm. Men, Ogres, dogs and horses ran in all directions at his arrival; all but Grim refused to move. The mountain pony stood silently and watched with interest as the dragon descended.
Umingoth landed and tucked his leathery wings to his body. He lowered himself to the ground all while keeping an eye on the mountain pony. Grim never blinked, or if he did, it was difficult to tell under all that hair.
Kile slid off the dragon’s back, using his front leg as a gangplank. Once she was on the ground, she helped Alex down. He was a little wobbly and ended up falling on his ass.
“That is the last time I’m riding one of those,” he said when he was finally on the ground. “If man was meant to fly, it was definitely not on the back of a dragon.”
Kile left him where he sat and headed to where Grim was waiting for her.
-Wonderful, a large lizard. Is he joining our rag-tag army now?-
The mountain pony asked.
“Umingoth has agreed to help.” Kile replied. “So be nice.”
-Oh, so the lizard has a name.-
Grim snorted.
-Don’t place too much into what a dragon says, they are not known for their truthfulness or their trust.-
-So says a mountain pony.-
Umingoth replied.
“Okay, knock it off. I have enough problems to deal with, without having to separate the two of you.”
-He started it.-
Umingoth grumbled.
Daniel was the first to approach, although he kept a safe distance from the dragon. He was so nervous in Umingoth’s presence, he hadn’t realized he was standing beside Grim. He tried to say something, but the only thing that came out was Kile, drake, and flatlands.
“It’s all right Danny,” she told him, as she extended a hand to allow an overly excited Vesper to run up her arm. He took his place on her shoulder and she scratched the yarrow’s head. “He’s on our side, for the moment,” she added.
-Don’t be so sure.-
Grim mumbled.
“That is… the drake…?”
“Yes, this is Umingoth, the drake of the flatlands and the last of the class A open scripts.”
“What in all the realms?”
Kile spun around to see Tullner standing off to one side. The young soldier adjusted his glasses as if he wasn’t sure he was seeing what he was seeing.
“Tullner, you’re alright,” she said, running to him. “Is Carter…?”
“He’s fine.” Tullner replied, his eyes never leaving the dragon, who was now watching him with an equal amount of suspicion. “What’s going on here?”
“It’s a long story and I don’t think we have much time,” she explained. “Ravenshadow has been stirring up trouble in Rojan. They believe King Roland is trying to advance into the northern territory.”
“Well, that’s ridiculous. There’s been a treaty with Rojan since the days of King Waltair II.”
“I don’t think that matter. They already think we broke the treaty.”
“Even if they do try to invade Aru, the King’s Command is still stationed in Azintar.” Browne said from a safe distance away. “It won’t be much of a battle.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure.” Tullner replied. “My grandfather told me stories about the wars in the north. The northern men will not go down easily. Rojan is not a nation to be taken lightly”
“But they will go down.” Browne said, and he dared to a few steps closer. “Maybe it’s for the better.”
“How can you say that?” Kile asked. “The men of the north have no stake in this war. They didn’t ask for it, they don’t want it, they’re just defending their homeland.”
“Not to mention the fact it will split the forces between two fronts.” Tullner replied. “We’ll be at war, not only with the Uhyre along the wasteland, but with the Rojan from the north.”
“That might be, but there’s nothing we can do about it.” Daniel added. “By now, Larks has already brought our message to Colonel Barshed.”
Kile had all but forgotten about Larks. The Hunter left days ago. He should have easily arrived with the message by now. Not only will the King’s guard be waiting for the Rojan, but so will the troops of the King’s Command, who were stationed in Callor.
“I’m afraid Danny’s right.” Tullner added. “There really is nothing we can do about it.”
“We have to try.” she told them.
“Try what? For all we know, the war could have already started. There’s no way we can get there in time.” Tullner explained.
“Grim,” she said, turning toward the mountain pony. “He may not be as fast as Larks, but he can run day and night without needing rest.”
“You aren’t seriously thinking of riding all the way back to Callor on that horse, are you?” Tullner asked.
“What, me, no of course not.”
“Well, that’s good.”
“You’re going to.”
Tullner looked at Kile, then at Grim. The pony didn’t appe
ar to be any happier with the idea.
“You’re mad.” he replied.
“It has to be you.” she explained. “You’re the commanding officer of Perha Squad. They’ll have to listen to you.”
“Oh yeah, if they don’t clap me in irons first for going AWOL, and that’s just assuming I actually reach Callor in one piece, and your horse doesn’t try to kill me on the way.”
Kile stared at the mountain pony. “Grim will behave himself, because I don’t have time to argue with him,” she said.
-Fine, if that’s what you want. But you will owe me.-
Grim answered.
“Wouldn’t it be easier if you went?” Daniel asked. “I mean, you understand Grim, and you’re the only one who can control him.”
“No. For starters, they already think I’m a loon. I seriously doubt if they’ll take my word for anything. If you remember, I tried to assassinate the Alva ambassadors.”
“Oh year, I forgot about that.”
“Besides, I have to try to stop the war, before it gets started, if I’m not too late.”
“And how are you planning on doing that?” Tullner asked.
“Simple. The same way Ravenshadow wanted to start it. Umingoth is going to fly Alex and me to Rojan.”
“We’re going to what, now?” Alex asked.
Kile waved him away. “It’ll be fine,” she said.
“Wait-- you’re going to take a dragon into a hostile territory, and then do what?” Daniel asked.
“I don’t know, I’ll think of something when I get there.”
“You’re more likely to start a war than end one.” Tullner pointed out.
“Maybe not.”
“If you’re really set on flying, why not just go straight to Callor and deliver the message yourself?”
“You’re forgetting, Loon,” she said, pointing to herself. “And besides, I have to keep Umingoth out of sight. He’s the last of his kind. It would be like painting a target on him. We’ll have vir from both sides trying to see who can knock him out of the sky first.”
“I don’t know about this,” Daniel protested.
“Look, I’m all out of ideas, so unless you can think of something...”
