by Eric Vall
The firebird disappeared in a flash of blue flames, and then Ravi’s red dirt-streaked face smiled up at me as she sat on the remnants of a golem and kicked her feet back and forth.
“I’m perfectly fine,” she assured me. “That was so exhilarating! It reminded me of the time we fought those Death Stalkers.”
“We?” I chuckled. “If I remember correctly, I think you were knocked unconscious.”
The phoenix blushed and dropped her eyes. “Okay, well … ”
“I’m just teasing you,” I laughed as I shifted into my human body and looked up at the phoenix. “I was glad to have you by my side today.”
Ravi’s beautiful face broke out into a broad grin, and then I held my hands out to her. The small phoenix jumped from the rocky remains of the golem and landed in my arms with a giggle.
“Adventures with you are never boring,” she laughed against my chest.
“I’d have to agree with you there,” I snickered as I took in the smoky scent of her hair. Then I pressed a kiss to her brow and stepped back. “Do you think the sisters are alright?”
Ravi opened her mouth to respond, but, as if on cue, several voices cut her off.
“Lord Evan!”
“Lord Evan, are you okay?”
“We brought back up!”
Ravi and I turned in the direction of the dryads’ voices, and we watched as Laika and the sisters rounded a bend in the canyon at full tilt. The caravan wagons were not far behind them, and I could see Nike and Alyona perched on the bench of the lead cart with anxious expressions.
“We’re okay!” I shouted as I waved my arm in the air. “We’re fine!”
Despite my reassurances, Laika didn’t slow her pace even a little, and the wolf Demi-Human skidded to a halt in front of me a few moments later.
“What happened?” she demanded at once as her gray eyes took in the surrounding destruction, and she didn’t even sound the least bit winded. “We heard a loud commotion, and then the dryads appeared screaming about you being in trouble.”
“We ran into some golems,” I replied before I nudged the phoenix beside me with a wink, “but it wasn’t anything Ravi and I couldn’t handle.”
The orange-haired girl grinned at the praise, but Laika narrowed her gray-eyed gaze at me.
“But you’re not hurt?” she questioned, and I could hear a note of worry in her voice.
“Nope,” I assured her with a smile. “We’re perfectly fine. We even found some orichalcum before the golems attacked us.”
I gestured behind me at the suspended wagon and the chest of sacred metal abandoned on the canyon floor, and Laika blinked in surprise as her shoulders relaxed.
“Orichalcum?” the wolf echoed. “All the way out here?”
I nodded in response, but the dryads and wagons reached us before I could say much else.
“Did someone call for some reinforcements?” Nike chuckled as he swung himself out of the wagon.
“You’re a little late to the party, brother,” I laughed.
“We would have come sooner,” Alyona frowned as Nike helped her down as well, “but Laika and Lord Nikolaus feared it wouldn’t be safe.”
“They were right to look out for you,” I nodded, “we had this handled.
“And you’re sure you’re alright?” my future wife fretted as her amethyst gaze roved over me.
“Right as rain,” I smiled, “though I wouldn’t turn down a kiss if you’re offering.”
Alyona sighed and rolled her purple eyes, but she still rose onto her tiptoes and sweetly pressed her mouth against mine.
Then the dryads descended, and they chattered and gasped excitedly as they described the battle to Nike, Alyona, and Laika. The sisters exaggerated a little here and there, but overall it was a fairly accurate retelling.
While Alyona checked over Ravi and the sisters for any injuries, Laika walked a perimeter around the caravan to make sure no other golems were going to pop out of the ground, and Nike joined me as I walked back to the wagon still suspended by the dryads’ roots.
“Well, today has certainly been eventful,” the Lord of Light chuckled.
“We were due for some excitement.” I grinned and began to store the orichalcum chest in my spatial storage. “I just can’t believe we got this far through the canyons without encountering anything else.”
“Be careful what you wish for, brother,” Nike laughed and shook his head.
I snickered in response and shifted into my dragon form to extract the rest of the treasure from the lofted wagon. A few minutes later, everything was stowed away in my spatial storage, and as I looked out over the destruction of the battlefield, my eyes were drawn to the dryads’ roots again.
“The sisters believe we are almost to the end of the Crimson Canyons,” I remarked as we made our way back to the caravan.
Nike nodded. “They’re correct. The exit should be around the next bend. Then Tikal will be perhaps another day’s journey away.”
“Awesome,” I grinned, “I can’t wait to get this campaign really started. How was that limping horse, by the way? Do I need to take a look at him?”
“No need,” Nike shook his head, “it was merely a sharp rock wedged into the horseshoe. I extracted it easily, and the horse is fine now.”
“I knew I could count on you.” I clapped the silver-eyed noble on the shoulder.
We reached the women crowded around the lead wagon, and they turned to me with expectant expressions.
“What are your orders, Lord Evan?” Laika asked as she nodded to me.
I noted that her hand was still gripping the hilt of her sword at her side, but I let it go for now. The wolf had a penchant for worrying, and nothing I could say would change that.
“I say we keep on moving,” I said with a smile. “Who’s ready to get out of these canyons?”
“Oooh, ooh, we are!” the dryads chimed in unison and waved their arms in the air.
“Me too,” I laughed, “so everybody mount up, and let’s see what’s waiting for us around the next corner.”
The sisters squealed in excitement and darted off to climb into one of the wagons, and Laika and Alyona shook their heads fondly before they followed suit. Nike chuckled as he walked to the second wagon too, and that left me alone with Ravi.
“Did you want to ride up front with us?” I asked the phoenix with a quirked brow.
“Um, actually,” she bit her lip and kicked at the sandy ground, “I was wondering if I could fly a little ahead.”
“Oh, really?” I asked.
“Yeah,” Ravi nodded, “I’ve been in my human body for most of the journey, and it felt good to stretch my wings a bit while fighting those golems. Besides, this is my first time seeing something other than the desert and dry regions that surround Hatra. I want to see what this new land looks like from the air.”
“Alright,” I allowed with a furrowed brow, “but don’t get too far ahead. Stay where we can see you and stay in the air where it’s safe.”
“Yes, of course!” Ravi grinned in delight and bounced on her toes. Then she leapt up and pressed a kiss against my cheek. “Thank you, Evan!”
“You’re welcome,” I chuckled as the phoenix whirled away, and her red robes fanned out behind her.
Then she disappeared in a flash of blue flames before her feathered form launched into the air.
I shook my head as the firebird rolled and spiraled through the sky, and then I turned and mounted the lead wagon again.
“Where is she going?” Laika asked with a frown as she watched Ravi soar on ahead.
“She wants to be the first to see the end of the canyons,” I shrugged, “it’s hard to tell her no.”
“Can you tell any of us no?” Alyona asked with a smirk.
I gasped and put a hand to my chest. “Oh, gods, you’ve discovered my weakness!”
Laika rolled her eyes as she flicked the horses’ reins and got the caravan moving again, and Alyona giggled as she pressed against
my side.
We rolled onward through the canyons, and the wagon jolted over the rocky remnants of the golems. Before long, though, we left them far behind, and then we curved around a bend in the path.
And just like Nike and the dryads predicted, we finally came to the end of the Crimson Canyons.
The red walls abruptly came to an end, and a bright blue sky stretched endlessly overhead. Then, before us, an emerald forest sprawled out toward the horizon. Only, it wasn’t like the forest around Hatra. This looked more tropical, like a jungle, and as we finally stepped out of the canyon proper, the arid climate quickly became humid.
Ravi pinwheeled overhead and made bird noises of excitement as she saw the jungle in front of us, and her small orange body darted forward in unbridled eagerness.
I chuckled at her enthusiasm, and even Laika was smiling as she snapped the reins and urged the horses faster.
We quickly approached the jungle, and when we were about a hundred yards away from the tree line, Ravi swooped down from the sky and landed in a column of blue fire. She waved at us when she was back in her human form, and even from this distance, I could see the broad, ecstatic smile on her face.
I grinned back and lifted a hand to wave in return, but then I froze as my heart stopped in my chest.
With my dragon vision, I could see Ravi in perfect detail even though she was still nearly seventy yards away …
Which meant I could see in perfect clarity as half a dozen figures burst out of the jungle and converged on the phoenix.
“Ravi!” I roared as I rocketed to my feet. “Watch out!”
Chapter 11
Ravi’s blue eyes went wide as my roar echoed out across the plains, and she whipped around to face the figures surrounding her. A moment later, her body disappeared in a flash of flames, and then her small bird form shot up into the air.
The people who had emerged from the tree line cried out in alarm as their quarry ascended into the sky, but they quickly composed themselves. As I watched, they pulled bows and arrows from behind their backs, and by their fluid movements, I knew they were expert hunters.
Ravi pinwheeled and dove through the sky, but when she tried to make her way back toward us, her attackers unleashed a volley of arrows and blocked her way. The phoenix screeched in alarm and narrowly avoided the projectiles, but she couldn’t escape.
“Oh, gods, Ravi!” Alyona gasped beside me as her amethyst eyes widened in horror.
“We need to hurry!” I growled at Laika, and black scales crawled up my arms in fury.
“I am pushing the horses as fast as I can!” The wolf Demi-Human bared her teeth and snapped the reins harder, but we were still over fifty yards away.
There was no way we’d reach Ravi in time.
Fuck that.
“Laika, protect Alyona,” I snarled as I stood to my feet.
“What are you doing?” The wolf’s gray eyes flicked to me for an instant before they focused back on the horses.
“Showing these fuckers they messed with the wrong phoenix,” I spat, and then I started to climb atop the covered wagon.
The cart jolted and bounced over the uneven ground as the horses galloped at breakneck speeds, and I was nearly tossed off several times before I made it to the top. I balanced precariously for a moment, and then I bent my knees, spread my arms, and launched myself into the sky.
The second I was airborne, I shifted into my dragon body. The transition happened in an instant, but it was disorienting as fuck to go from human sized to roughly the size of a large barn. I flapped my wings to try to gain some altitude, and my right one clipped the ground on the downswing. I nearly pitched forward into the earth and crushed the wagon I’d just jumped from, but I rolled my massive body to the side and kicked out with my powerful hindlegs. My talons tore into the dirt, but I gained enough traction to push myself higher into the sky, and I bared my fangs as I finally gained altitude.
Laika and Alyona’s wagon barreled ahead of me, but I quickly overtook them with a few flaps of my enormous black wings. As I rose higher into the air, I focused my attention again on the tree line ahead of me, and rage burned through my veins.
Ravi was still trying to evade her attackers, but I could tell she was fighting a losing battle. She darted back and forth through the air, but every time she changed directions, a new volley of arrows barred her way. It was only a matter of time before one of the projectiles struck her, and I knew I couldn’t let that happen.
So, as I drew closer and closer to the battle, I flared out my wings as far as they would go, opened my maw, and let out an ear-shattering roar.
The sound was so loud, I was sure they could hear it all the way back in Hatra, and it was definitely loud enough to fuck with my opponents.
I was less than thirty yards away now, and I could see Ravi’s assailants were some type of cat Demi-Humans. Long spotted tails trailed behind them, and spotted ears stuck out from the top of their heads. As my roar descended upon them, the Demi-Humans cried out in alarm and pain while they dropped their weapons, pawed at their ears, and fell to their knees.
Ravi used this opportunity to dart toward me, but then a movement caught my eye, and I looked down to see one last Demi-Human with a bow and nocked arrow still in his hands.
Before I could call out to Ravi to warn her, the Demi-Human loosed his arrow, and the projectile arched through the air toward the phoenix. I realized it wasn’t just an ordinary arrow, though, and I watched as a net flared out behind Ravi and descended on the small bird.
Like hell I was going to let Ravi be captured like some animal.
So, I opened my maw again, but this time I unleashed a torrent of flames instead of a roar.
My column of white-hot fire shot through the air like a bolt of light, and Ravi flew headlong into it. Since phoenixes were impervious to fire, I knew she’d be alright, and I watched in satisfaction as the net the Demi-Human had shot was reduced to ashes. I cut off my flames a moment later, and then Ravi appeared through the smoke like a vision from the gods.
“Lord Evan!” the phoenix gasped as she flared out her wings and alighted atop of my snout.
“Are you okay?” I snarled while I rose higher into the sky and out of the range of the archers.
“I’m fine,” she panted, but I couldn’t tell if she was telling the truth since it was a little hard to focus on her form with her perched between my eyes.
“They didn’t hurt you?” I growled while I flapped my wings and hovered in the air.
“No,” Ravi replied, “though not for lack of trying. That was a lot of arrows.”
An enraged snarl rattled in my throat, and I turned my body to face back the way we came. Our caravan of wagons had stopped about forty yards away from the battle, and I could see Laika, Nike, and the dryads circled around Alyona in the lead wagon.
“Go join the others and stay back,” I instructed Ravi. “I’ll take care of these assholes.”
“Yes, Lord Evan,” the phoenix acquiesced, and then she fluttered her wings and did as she was told.
I watched her small orange form until she reached our wagon again and changed into her human body, and then I bared my fangs and turned back to the cat Demi-Humans.
Now that Ravi was safe, the red fog of fury was no longer blinding me, and I could study the scene before me more clearly. Nearly two dozen cat Demi-Humans had regained their composure, and they’d picked up their weapons as they faced me in staggered rows. Archers were in the back, but I saw more than half of them held swords and other melee weapons.
Then there was the man who had fired the net at Ravi.
He stood before the assembled fighters, and he stared up at me with unwavering intensity. His spine was ramrod straight, his chin raised in defiance, and by his posture alone, I could tell he believed he could take me on.
Poor stupid bastard.
I tucked my wings and plummeted back toward the ground, and I landed twenty-five yards away from the cat Demi-Humans and their lea
der. The earth shook beneath me when I touched down, but the Demi-Humans were unfazed, and their balance didn’t falter.
I narrowed my eyes at Ravi’s attackers, and then I pried open my jaw, took a deep breath, and unleashed a long deafening roar. I was hoping they’d run so I could give chase and prolong their suffering a bit before I killed them. This time, the Demi-Humans flinched and tried to cover their rounded ears again, but their leader clenched his jaw, met my eyes, and didn’t move a muscle.
Well, he had balls, I’d have to give him that.
Too bad he was about to be nothing more than ash. If he didn’t want to run, then I’d barbeque them where they stood.
I took another deep breath and started to call upon my fire power once more, but then a voice cut through the air like a knife.
“Evan, stop!”
I froze with my maw half open and flames already crackling at the back of my throat, but Alyona’s voice had been as hard as steel, so I held off on turning the Demi-Humans into beef jerky.
The sound of rattling wagon wheels reached my ears then, and I glanced over my shoulder to see the caravan clattering to a stop beside me.
“I thought I told you to stay back,” I rumbled.
“I’m sorry, Lord Evan,” Ravi winced as she looked up at me from the lead wagon bench, “but Lady Alyona said it was of the utmost importance that we stop you from making a mistake.”
“The only mistake I could make is not burning these bastards to a crisp right here and now,” I snarled as I turned my head to glare at my opponents again. They hadn’t moved except to pick up their weapons, and their leader was still staring at me unfalteringly.
“No, killing them would be the mistake, my love,” Alyona said as she stood from the wagon. Then Laika helped her down, and the princess walked over to place her hand on my scaled foreleg.
“What are you talking about?” I growled, but Alyona’s touch was already calming me. “These mother fuckers tried to kill Ravi.”
“Actually, I don’t think they meant to kill me,” the phoenix chimed in with a wince.
“They shot dozens of arrows at you,” I hissed.
