“Theosus was your caretaker, right? Where did he come from?” Gondrial asked.
“I am not sure; he was just always here. He is the one who would bring us food and try to make our lives more comfortable. We would all be dead without him.”
“Do you have a family?” Sanmir asked.
“A daughter.” Alerick shifted in his chair. “She lives with her mother in Tyre.” He puffed on his pipe. “Thank you for the pipe, friend Asterial, it has been too long.”
“You are welcome, Alerick,” Asterial responded.
Alerick leaned back in his chair. “Yes, sir, if not for that Rennon of Brookhaven, I would not be able to enjoy this fine tabac.”
Gondrial started coughing and fell back in his chair.
“Who did you say?”
Alerick looked puzzled. “Rennon of Brookhaven. Is something wrong?”
“Rennon is with this Theosus fellow heading to By’temog right now?” Sanmir asked to make sure.
“Aye, Rennon of Brookhaven. He cured us all. He and his friend Deylia are with Theosus now.”
“By the gods, now I remember where I heard the name Theosus,” Asterial said. “Morgoran sent Rennon and Ganas to meet with him . . . in Trigothia!”
Sanmir tapped out his pipe. “We have to get back to the ship.”
“Ship, out here? What are you talking about?” Alerick asked.
“Thank you for the fellowship, Alerick, but we must be going,” Asterial said as he tapped out his pipe as well.
Gondrial was brushing the ashes off his clothes when Asterial slapped him on the shoulder and whispered in his ear, “Get the girls and see to Alerick.”
“Sleep?”
“What else? I don’t mean kill him.”
“Right,” Gondrial said as he headed for the spot where the women were taking an afternoon nap in the sun.
Chapter 22
The portal chamber did not have many places to hide, but Kaxen had managed it. He blended himself into the corner and watched as Morgoran stepped through the portal to Symbor before he stepped out of the shadows. He had finished repairing the connection to the Symbor portal mere moments before they arrived. Now he was faced with a dilemma— other people had put their lives in danger to go after him. He was particularly worried about Trendan, Asrion, and Aurelie. He had no doubts about going after and retrieving the keys, each one by one, but now he had to decide which key to pursue first.
The headaches were getting worse, and the urgency of getting to the tome was stronger than ever. With the tome, he could restore magic back to the way it was intended to be, the way Vex had intended it to be before the War of the Oracle. As Vex had warned him after the trials on the Isle of Doom, obstacles stood in every direction. He had to assess the situation and come up with a plan of action. Morgoran would be the toughest obstacle, so Symbor would have to wait. No, he had to get a hold on his thoughts. Morgoran was not the toughest; that distinction would be the dragons of Draegodor. The dragons would be a challenge that he was not yet prepared for. His only choice would be the general of Ishrak. He also needed to get his friends out of danger.
He manipulated the portal settings and directed it to By’temog. The portal opened, and he went through it. He felt and suppressed the now familiar feeling of nausea the portal caused, and emerged in the ruined city, expecting to run immediately into Trendan, but no one was there to greet him. He exited the chamber and looked around for any sign of Trendan or Asrion, but there was none. Something was wrong; something didn’t make sense. He quickly went back into the portal chamber to see the portal swirling open once more. His first impulse was to hide, but for some reason, he just stood there. Morgoran came through the portal, followed by Melias.
“Clever, Morgoran, you knew I was hiding in the chamber, and you also knew I would not let you send my friends here to be put in danger on my account.”
“It was a long shot, I’ll admit. I thought you might catch on. I would never go speak to a king while I send someone else into danger alone.”
“Where did you send them?”
“I sent Kimala, Bren, and Aurelie to Draegodor. As for Trendan, Fayne, and Asrion, I sent them here. I just delayed their arrival time.”
Trendan stepped through the portal first, followed by Fayne and then Asrion.
Fayne fell to her knees. “That is a vile thing. The longer you are in that portal, the worse it gets.”
“Kaxen, you are here!” Trendan said. “It’s good to see you.”
Asrion shook off the ill effects of the portal, and Kaxen expected him to react similar to Trendan, but he just gave a feeble grin.
“You are not yourself, Kaxen. I have brought your friends here to help convince you to come back with me. I want to help you.”
“I know what you are thinking, Morgoran, but you are wrong. What happened at Rugania was supposed to happen. I am stronger; I have the combined knowledge of all who came before me. I even have aspects of you. I know how to help reverse the abominations to the dragon clans; I know how to preserve one’s essence in precious crystals as you and Toborne pioneered; I know what I am doing, and I know how to defeat the general. You just have to trust me.”
“I know it seems like you are in control, that you can do anything, but it isn’t so. I too thought the strides I made with the help of Toborne would be a benefit. It isn’t true. It is a destructive path, not a creative one. You have to let me help you.”
Kaxen could see that Morgoran was not going to see reason. I need to get them all out of here, he thought, but if I use too much essence, it will alert Sythril. “All right, open the portal. I will go with you.”
“I’m afraid not. I’m not convinced you are sincere. It will require an act of trust on your part. You will have to come with me on my terms. I need to contain your ability to draw essence.”
Anger welled up within Kaxen. Morgoran is manipulating me. Vex was right; no one will understand. I have to take control. Oh well, it looks like I will have to deal with the general sooner than I had planned, he thought.
Kaxen drew in essence so fast, Morgoran was dumbfounded and directed it at the portal. The outer circle of the portal melted away like butter on a hot day. “No portal, no Lora Daine. If you want to leave here, you will have to fight your way out!”
“Kaxen, don’t!” Morgoran commanded.
Kaxen gave Asrion and Trendan a nod as a pang of regret pierced his heart. “One day you’ll understand. One day you’ll know it had to be this way.”
Morgoran drew in essence and threw it at Kaxen in a trail of pure energy, but Kaxen had already gone the instant before it would have hit him.
Noises from somewhere in the center of the city told Kaxen that his presence was now known. The danger to his friends was minimal if he could get to the general before he got to them. Kaxen could take the amulet and lift the curse at the same time, thereby keeping his friends out of harm’s way. He turned to the chamber door and willed a massive stone slab to move over on top of it. It wouldn’t hold Morgoran forever, but it would allow Kaxen enough time to get at the general.
Like a cat stalking his prey, Kaxen searched out the cursed army and found them making their way toward the source of the commotion he had made earlier. He leaped from the nearest building and landed right before who he thought must be General Sythril. He was not ready for the leader’s frightful appearance. He was tall, wearing a bloodstained set of armor with spikes and sharp edges. His face was sunken in and weatherworn, almost like decaying leather. The two sockets where its eyes should have been were glowing red orbs. The stench as the army marched up behind their leader was horrendous. Kaxen was not sure he could face the general based on the smell alone.
“Halt, General,” he said. “I can lift your curse and free you from this bondage.”
The general hesitated a moment before breaking out into howls of laughter. “What makes you think I am cursed, silly mortal? I earned my place here.” He outstretched his arms, gesturing to the city around hi
m. “I earned all of this in battle.”
Kaxen had not expected that answer. “I need that amulet!”
“Such boldness. You are welcome to try and take it from me.” The general’s men began to move in, and he held up his arm to keep them at bay. “My men are ready to tear you apart. Should I let them or should I make you one of us?”
“Neither,” Kaxen said as he released his wrath upon the general, who easily blocked the attack and reflected it back at Kaxen. He dived out of the way before he was struck with his own magic.
“You are out of your league, boy. Haven’t you heard the stories? Do you have any idea how many men have tried to defeat me since I became ruler of Ishrak?”
“Wait, you believe you are the ruler of Ishrak? Do you not have any idea what you are?”
“I know what I am! I am a king! I defeated Isheza and took his kingdom. Look at all the people around you! Hear them cheer their king to victory!”
The general produced his massive sword and held it up to the sky. Kaxen cringed as he heard the distant screeching and cries from creatures unseen. Something else was coming.
“Ah, so we meet in battle, Morgoran the Betrayer!”
“I didn’t betray you, Brenlan. You never did have any brains, alive or rotten!”
Morgoran proved to be more capable than Kaxen bargained for. Kaxen mentally kicked himself. Of course, a stone over a door would not hold him for long. I should have rendered him unconscious.
“Insults will not preserve you, betrayer! I have an army!”
“Good, I’m glad you found something in your meaningless life . . .” he chuckled, “or rather, your after-death, to occupy your time. However, I have the Mt. Aroanian Crystal!” He gestured to Kaxen’s pack, and it began to smoke. Kaxen removed it and threw it to the ground. The crystal he took from the archives burned a hole through the pack and flew into Morgoran’s hand.
The general gasped. “Get the crystal!”
Hoards of undead swarmed from behind the general. Morgoran whispered some words into the crystal, and General Sythril screamed in agony and frustration as his soul was ripped from his decaying body and trapped in the azure Aroanian Crystal. The undead soldiers collapsed into a pile of atrocious-smelling bones and flesh.
Morgoran smirked at Kaxen. “Was that your plan?”
Kaxen knew at that moment that Morgoran still believed he was the naïve boy the old wielder knew before the trial. “Actually, no, it isn’t. I would never face General Sythril alone; this is my plan.” A dreadful scream from the skies above made Morgoran take a step back. Fire bathed the undead corpses, replacing the rotting-flesh smell with that of burning flesh. Kaxen held up his hand, and the crystal returned to him. He did the same to get the amulet from the corpse of the general. “You should have listened to me, old wielder! You should have stayed in the portal chamber where you were safe.” He leaped into the air with the help of a burst of essence and was plucked out of midair by an enormous black dragon. As Kaxen was carried away, a hoard of black, green, and earth-tone dragons swept the city with fire behind him.
“The dragons of Kragodor!” Melias cried out as he changed his form. “Get back to the portal chamber!”
“No,” Morgoran countered. “The portal is useless now.”
Melias flew to intercept a green dragon bearing down on the party, but was struck from the side by a black dragon and again from the other side by another green. He fell to the ground and did not move. Morgoran looked upon the incident with horror. Trendan pumped arrows into the attackers, but they mostly bounced off the dragons’ hard scales, leaving the dragons without a scratch.
“Take cover, all of you! Fighting that many dragons alone is folly,” Morgoran commanded. The small party took cover in a mostly intact building nearby.
Fayne clung to Asrion, much to Asrion’s astonishment. Trendan perched below a window, watching as the dragons systematically swept the area with fire.
Morgoran rubbed his hands together nervously. “I never should have allowed you to come through that portal. I am sorry. I thought we were going to deal with undead, and I thought I could use a couple of clerics. I didn’t know I was leading you to slaughter.”
“It was our choice too, Morgoran,” Asrion said. “Don’t fill your last moments with regret.”
A crash of thunder rocked the building, and bits of stone crumbled from the ceiling.
“Something is happening out there,” Trendan told them. “Flashes of lighting.”
Morgoran moved to the window. Lightning outlined the skies and showed him the extent and sheer numbers of dragons. Hundreds of dragons swarmed above. Soon the lightning became more intense. Winds blew with impressive force just above the city, making it difficult for the dragons to maintain flight. Soon they gave up the search and flew away as fast as they had appeared. The storm continued to rage.
“What is happening?” Trendan was dismayed. “It’s as if the Plain of Storms moved over the city.”
Morgoran’s face lit up for a moment. “Maybe it has.”
“Or maybe this is a new threat we will have to deal with,” Asrion said.
“We will wait out the storm here. As far as a building that is falling down goes, this one seems steady enough for now.”
Asrion looked at the wavering structure and grimaced.
“I may be able to help stabilize it with essence for the duration of the storm,” Morgoran said.
The storm went on for two more hours before finally giving way. Morgoran had forgotten that it was actually daytime. The city was shrouded in darkness, first by the curse of the general, and second by the dark storm clouds. He looked upon the relieved faces of his young companions and noticed there was some kind of tension between Fayne and Trendan. Asrion had managed to wiggle his way clear of Fayne’s grip and was peering at the sky from the opposite window.
“I found them!” came a voice from the doorway as Kyrie stepped, almost bounced, into the room.
“Kyrie? Who are you shouting at?” Morgoran asked.
“Asterial, Sheyna, Gondrial, and the others.”
“How did you know we were here?”
“The mindwielders.” He grabbed Morgoran by the hand. “Come on, this way.”
Morgoran followed the little Kylerie elf out into the street where Asterial, Gondrial, and the others waited. He looked for Melias in the rubble where he saw him fall, but he was not there.
Morgoran embraced Asterial. “It’s so good to see you, brother. I thought it was over.”
“Not quite yet, brother, you aren’t getting out of work that easily. I would come to the spirit world and resurrect you if I had to!”
“I bet you would at that.” He moved to Lady Shey. “My apprentice, as lovely as ever.”
“I am thankful you are safe,” she replied.
“Enowene, we have a few issues to discuss. I ran into Kimala.”
“We will talk later. For now, I am pleased we found you.”
Morgoran looked at Asterial. “Aye, how was that possible?”
Asterial pointed to Rennon, who was busy hugging and being hugged by his own friends. “That boy has cured the afflicted, and he may have brought about the return of the mindwielders.”
“The storm was brought on by him?”
“He and about one hundred former afflicted camped out near the old gated entrance. We caught up with him just before the hoard of dragons appeared. We knew they had to be after something or someone. Deylia, Rennon’s female companion over there, could not sense the cursed ones anywhere in the city, but she could sense you. How did you defeat Sythril?”
“Did you see the body of Melias here? He was taken down by three dragons.”
“No, just the burning bodies of the cursed.”
“Kaxen was here. I put the general in the Aroanian Crystal right before Kaxen took it and flew off with one of the dragons.”
“The Aroanian Crystal? So he is looking for the keys.”
Gondrial and Theosus joined them.
“It is true, old friend, you are back and looking much better than the last time I saw you.”
“Theosus Fiderea, I see you managed to carry out our plan.”
“Aye, the boy was difficult to convince, but your vision was true to the letter.”
“I think we are missing something,” Gondrial said.
Morgoran gave him a reassuring gaze. “I will fill you all in.”
“Oh, I sent the Ganas boy to Draegodor as you wished,” Theosus said.
“Good, we need to get that army back here as soon as we can, but I fear we have a more pressing problem, and it’s going to take you coming out of exile and going back to Draegodor. Kaxen needs the golden serpent key from King Amarantus’ treasure hoard in Draegodor. I wasn’t worried about it before because I thought it would be impossible for him to get, but from what I just witnessed, Kaxen is cleverer than I thought. In order to defeat a stronghold of dragons, you—”
Theosus winced. “Attack it with a stronger force of dragons.”
“We need to get word to Draegodor.”
“I think we have a pretty quick way to get there,” Asterial said.
Gondrial chuckled. “We managed to enchant a decently-sized ship. Sanmir is securing it by the front gates now.”
“That’s extraordinary. We needn’t waste any more time; we must get going then.”
“Morgoran, I can’t go with you to Draegodor. I am needed in Ardenia. There are people there still being executed.” Theosus was clearly struggling with his emotions. “I am also needed to help Rennon; he will need my guidance now more than ever.”
“All right, my friend. We can manage. Go rescue your afflicted.”
“Thank you, Morgoran. I will join the fight as soon as I return.”
Morgoran nodded. “Now, let’s go see this ship.”
As Asterial led Morgoran away, Rennon stopped him. “Morgoran, I have some information that may be of some importance.”
Morgoran stopped. “What is it, Rennon?”
Rennon motioned to Deylia. “This is my friend Deylia. She is the one that sensed you were in the city.”
On the Wings of Dragons: Path of the Wielders 3 Page 24
