by Sam Ryder
She knew she would’ve died if they hadn’t given her their strength. She wasn’t sure how she felt about that, but some truth eluded her, exhaustion making it hard to think clearly.
If the Morgoss would only back off, she could let these things kill her. It would be better, right? They would continue to live in the darkness, afraid to step out of their hidden places. Unlike the Black, this darkness could stay where it belonged.
The Morgoss had told her these creatures were called the Narzani, ancient monsters that had once flown across Tor, wreaking havoc on the gods and goddesses that inhabited the planet’s bounds. Eventually, however, they’d been subdued, defeated by the powerful armies of demigods and demigoddesses.
Driven by their instinct for self-preservation, the Narzani had fled to these inhospitable lands, creeping into the small places others could not, or would not, go. Over time, they’d been changed. Their eyes, once fully black, had gained an orange tinge that might’ve been caused by the severe heat they’d grown accustomed to. Their wings had become no more than stubs, incapable of flight. Their bodies were somewhat gnarled now, loose flesh hanging off their bony frames, but they didn’t lack for strength. And yet their prowess in battle wasn’t the worst thing about these gray-haired, orange-eyed creatures. If only. No, it was their number. Left alone for generations upon generations, they’d bred too many children to count. They were the grains of sand, the stars in the sky. Countless. Vrill could only hold them off because she stayed near the window of light cascading into the tunnel, and the Narzani seemed to endeavor to avoid the light at all costs. Also, the space they came from was limited, and only a dozen or so could enter the main portion of the cave at any given time.
All of that led to this point, this final showdown. The Narzani were creeping out once more, their hackles up, the edges of their spindly bodies ghostly when surrounded by the shadows.
Call him, the voice commanded inVrill’s head.
Vrill wanted to fight them now, but she was drained. She realized that had been the point. The Morgoss could’ve had her call Mrizandr down immediately to help her. They’d waited, however, to break her will. Forcing her to comply with their wishes. Still, she tried to refuse them. “N-n-n—” The word wouldn’t come out, lodged in her throat.
Call him. More insistent now, impossible to resist.
Vrill called the dragon through her link, feeling the warmth of her second collar against the tender skin of her throat.
Good. That is better. Now tame our army. Don’t fail us.
Vrill tried to hold her breath, to keep her lips clamped tight, her teeth locked. To no avail. Her lips parted easily, were even forced to smile. “I will, my masters,” she said, hating the taste of every word on her tongue.
The Narzani were close now, low growls emerging from the backs of their throats.
They shrank back, however, when the heavy sound of powerful wings beating the hot air sounded from without the cave. Mrizandr stuffed his snout in, curling one lip back to reveal a single obsidian fang. A growl rumbled like approaching thunder. Flames licked at the dragon’s mouth.
And the Narzani bowed before the might of Mrizandr.
They’d been lost and leaderless for many years. Not anymore. And Vrill was the one to lead them.
Just before she clambered onto the dragon’s back, Vrill realized what truth had been eluding her tired mind for a long time now:
Mrizandr didn’t respond to darkness. That was why the Morgoss couldn’t control the dragon directly. That was why they needed her.
Which meant she had something completely unexpected in this situation.
Power.
She also had a theory, and though it pained her to admit it, it involved the Three. She needed their help.
The only problem was that the Morgoss’s invisible chains seemed to be growing thicker around her with each passing Black.
She would need to find a way to break those chains before they broke her and everything good left on this planet.
~~~
YEP. BACK TO ME.
The further beyond the mountains I traveled, the hotter it got. Not just New Mexico in the summer hot, but Hell hot. It was like I’d descended into some underworld, cracks in the stone spouting noxious yellow smoke, fissures erupting and spraying molten material. Fortunately, none of the eruptions were close to me, or a single glob of the melting rock would’ve burned a hole straight through to my heart or brain. After everything, I’d be killed by flaming rocks. Not exactly poetic.
Even worse, the rock itself was superheated from within to scorch my feet. Over the days and weeks since I’d been on Tor, my feet had developed many layers of callouses, which usually did the job to protect my feet almost as well as shoes would have. This heat, however, seemed to burn right through my hardened soles to the sensitive nerves beneath the surface.
Eventually, I had to stop.
I sat down to take the heat from my feet and it immediately began to roast my rump.
I growled in protest and fought back to my feet, searching for a place to rest and cool myself. A bit of shade perhaps, where the rock might be slightly cooler.
It was like walking on hot coals and I danced from side to side as I moved down a rough incline, my eyes flitting back and forth, growing desperate, until—
I saw it—water!
It had an unusual yellowish tint and was barely a trickling stream tumbling through a tight space between two shoulders of rock, but still. It was wet and had the power to cool my burnt skin.
I made my way toward it as quickly as possible, cringing with each step. I reached it without falling, which was lucky considering the damage the rough, hot rocks would do to my body. I sank my feet into the water.
The water wasn’t cold, obviously. But it wasn’t hot either. It was very warm, however, which wasn’t ideal. Still, it beat the fuck out of walking on lit coals.
I stood there for a long time, just breathing, smelling the sulfur stench but not caring. Considering what to do. Absently, I reached up and touched my new fangs. They were smooth along the sides, the enamel moist. I poked the tip of one with the pad of my finger. The fang was so sharp it broke the skin, drawing blood. I sucked it off.
I shook my head to clear my thoughts. This was no time to dwell on the strange new change that had been wrought in me. I needed to make a decision.
Going forward was clearly an impossibility. Even if I had proper footwear, the soles of shoes or boots would melt under this heat, melding with my feet.
That left retreat, something I was loath to do. It felt like abandoning Vrill all over again. Failing my mission. The amulet continued to hang in the air, pointing further in the direction I’d been heading. Now I knew for certain Vrill was with the dragon, for it would be impossible to travel on foot this far into the molten wastelands. She was flying overhead somewhere, perhaps on some mission for the Morgoss.
The amulet twitched, up and then back down, before pointing steadily toward those forsaken canyons. “What was that?” I said to myself. Besides when the amulet had gone haywire in the depths of the mountain, it had been steadfast in the way it tugged at the skin on the back of my neck, like a strong fish on the end of an angler’s line.
On a whim, I called, “Vrill?”
Of course, there was no response. Because I was dumb. Wherever she was, what possible chance was there that she could hear—
A familiar shriek cut into my thoughts. In the past, that distant sound had raised the hairs on the back of my neck. Now, however, the hunting call of the dragon ignited a thrill in my chest.
I stood on my tiptoes, craning my neck to spot its form. At first, nothing. Then—
There! It was far away, but closing fast, a streak against the golden sky. It might’ve been a bird, except it was moving too fast, like a jet. Its wings weren’t undulating but tucked behind it as it shot toward the ground on an angle.
Right toward me.
Wicked.
Behind its long, sca
led neck, I could just make out the form of its rider, dark and at ease, as if riding a dragon was a daily activity. Which, for Vrill, it was.
The dragon continued its descent, on a collision course with the spot I stood, prone and without defense. I had choices. Run back upstream. Chance my feet on the hot rocks and retreat that way. Fight the beast to save Vrill.
None of those options felt quite right, so I just stood there, waiting, my knees bent in the event I had to dive away as the dragon crashed directly into me.
It didn’t.
With a majestic grace it swooped down, its wings emerging like great black sails on either side, catching the air and slowing its momentum at the last possible second. It landed mere yards away on a shelf of hot rock that flanked the sulfuric stream.
It didn’t roar at me or breathe fire to cook me for its dinner. It simply lowered its head to reveal Vrill, her eyes targeting me with a narrow stare. As much as I was happy to see her, it pained me to look at her. Even more scars laced her body now, raised white lines against her dark skin. Even her face was scarred, her cheeks raked by some weapon wielded by her demon overlords. In that moment, I hated the Morgoss with every atom in my body.
I noticed one of her two collars was glowing darkly, matching the hue of the collar around the dragon’s neck.
She’s commanding it not to attack, I thought. And it’s obeying her. Holy shit, she’s a dragon master!
The only problem, I knew, was the other collar, the one I presumed linked her to the Morgoss, who could just as easily command her to instruct the dragon to eat my head off. If they were paying attention at this particular moment, which I really hoped they weren’t.
“How did you find me?” Vrill said.
Without taking my eyes off her, I reached down and grasped the gem that hung from my neck. It was still straining at its leash, trying to get back to her. “The Three gave me this to find you.” It was the full truth, considering they’d wanted me to find her dragon more than anything, but still…
“You shouldn’t have come here,” Vrill said, frowning.
I shrugged, trying to remain calm, trying not to let my anger or pain show. Trying to be strong for her. “I’m never very good at doing what I’m supposed to do,” I said.
“S-S-Sam,” she said, her teeth chattering. Dammit. She can barely speak my name. What have they done to her?
“I’m here, Vrill,” I said, my voice breaking slightly on her name. “And I’m not leaving.” I spoke without opening my mouth all the way, because I didn’t want her to see my fangs—what I’d become.
She shook her head hard from side to side. “Th-there is something I need you to d-do.”
Kill the dragon? Count me in! Murder those Morgoss bastards and rip the collars from your neck? I’m your guy! But she didn’t say either of those things. She said, “H-have ooze ready. A l-lot of it.”
“What?” She was speaking nonsense, gibberish. Ooze? What the fuck did ooze have to do with anything? Was it a warning? Was she telling me our Warriors were going to be torn to pieces, requiring a shitload of ooze to put us back together?
“Go,” she said, her voice finally coming out with the heavy command I knew she was capable of. “Go now.”
“Vrill,” I said. “I can’t leave you again. I won’t.”
“S-S-S—” She shook her head, angry at her inability to speak my name. “Y-You need to t-trust me. They’re coming. Go!”
The last was a scream and I saw the pain that contorted her face. If the Morgoss had been oblivious to our conversation before, they weren’t now. She was fighting their will just to speak with me, to give me the message about the ooze. But why? What did it all mean? Who was coming? And what was she doing this far beyond Annakor anyway? There was nothing to be sought in this hellish place.
Her teeth were locked together, her face full of the strain of righteous resistance I’d seen before, when she’d forced the dragon to retreat right when it was about to destroy us all. Back then she’d thwarted the Morgoss’s will and paid the price in torture and punishment.
Now, however, she seemed to be struggling more. Because of me. If I stayed here to try to save her now, it would only make things worse. All she’d asked was that I trust her. I owed her that and so much more.
“Fight them, Vrill,” I said. And then I turned around and started up the yellow stream. I didn’t look back, because I didn’t want to make things any harder for Vrill than it already was.
The further upstream I moved, the cooler the water became. Many hours later, it lost its yellowish tint. Eventually I found its source, the very same pool I’d discovered when I exited the tunnels as I escaped the albino demons.
Oh hell no, I thought. There was no way I was going back the way I’d come. Still, I did climb up the rocks to reach higher ground. My skin was stiff and blistered, like I’d been tanning without sunscreen, and it protested each movement.
When I reached a point high enough to give me a view of the burnt lands, I stood and finally looked back.
I saw Vrill astride the dragon, hovering in the air. They seemed to be watching me.
My breath hitched, but not because of Vrill.
Because of the movement I saw beneath her. Dark things, a shifting tide. From this distance, they were as small as ants, an entire nest of them swarming over the land, moving in this direction. They didn’t seem to mind the heat, which made sense, because clearly these lands were their home.
Her words came back to me: They’re coming.
Other questions were answered, like why Vrill had been here in the first place, what she was doing. She was on a mission too, one commanded by the Morgoss. She’d been seeking an army of darkness, a scourge the likes of which the planet had never seen—or at least had not seen for a long time.
And she’d found it.
Thousands upon thousands of the shadowy creatures covered the lands, heading toward the mountains.
I had a new mission now—get back to camp before they reached us.
I turned away, searching for a pass through the mountains.
THIRTEEN
OOZALICIOUS
“This army,” Beat said. “What kinds of monsters are they exactly?”
I was back at camp. It had taken me two more Blacks to get back, a time that felt like an eternity. One Black I was forced to hunker down in a narrow mountain pass I’d discovered, my position hidden from the gargats patrolling the sky by a rock outcropping. Thankfully, no monsters had come through the pass on foot, or I’d have been up a stream without a paddle, or even a boat for that matter. Oh, and the stream would’ve been infested with sharks, crocodiles and piranhas. Anyway, I made it, and now sat with the Warriors to tell them what I’d seen. I wanted them to know first, before the Three, because they were the ones who would have to fight what was coming.
Beat was still waiting for my response. The others too, all eyes on me. Besides Beat, there were ten sets of eyes, representing all seven of the inhabitable planets in our galaxy, besides Tor. Tor was what we were charged with defending. There were humans and Lri Ay, Primoans and Oceanians, Askanders and Corruns. And Protonos, like Lace and Chestah.
A real mix of peoples each bringing different skills and talents to the table. It felt like they were all meant to be here at this time, for this battle. I felt slightly foolish for having such an overly melodramatic thought, but it felt right.
I’d been here long enough to realize that sometimes the world—even this one—had a way of balancing itself out.
“Sam,” Beat said. “You’re freaking me out. What the fuck do these monsters look like?”
“Sorry,” I said, keeping my upper lip pulled down over my fangs. I wasn’t ready to reveal them yet. “I only saw them from afar. They were dark, furry, sorta rabid-looking?”
Beat frowned. “Like dogs? C’mon, you’re going to have to give us more than that.”
I shook my head. “More like reptiles with fur. I think. Honestly, they were far away. They looked
somewhat small, but that’s not the issue. The issue is that there are thousands of them. They could be kittens and we’d be in trouble.”
Beat nodded. “And you said Vrill and her dragon are leading them?”
“Correct. I think she’s the one who tamed them or persuaded them to attack us. Something like that. But only because the Morgoss are forcing her to obey them,” I clarified for everyone else’s benefit. Beat, Lace and Millania understood that Vrill wasn’t purposefully trying to hurt us, but I wanted to make sure no one else thought of her as the enemy.
“Why are you talking weird? You look like you’re chewing tobacco something.”
Of course Beat would notice—it was stupid of me to try to keep it hidden. “Uh…”
Beat shifted to get closer, one of her hands reaching out to touch the skin on my chest. “You should talk to the Three immediately. This shit’s getting real.”
I didn’t need to look to know what she meant. I could feel the white veins beneath my skin pulsating, as if filled with unquenchable energy. “There’s something else I need to tell you but promise not to freak out.”
“We fight monsters,” Beat said. “Just tell us.”
It was a fair point, but things might be different if one of their own was a monster. Still…there was nothing for it. I opened my mouth and lifted my upper lip to reveal my twin fangs.
To her credit, Beat didn’t recoil, though she did frown. I saw at least three of the others flinch. One of the flinchers was Uva. I didn’t look at any of them, my eyes focused on Beat. She stared right back at me, still wearing that frown. “Big fucking deal,” she said. “Are you going to drink my blood?”
“No?” Oops. I hadn’t meant to make it sound like a question.
“Then we’re cool. Right everyone?” I followed her gaze around the circle. One by one, the Warriors nodded in agreement, although a few of them looked uncertain of themselves. Uva being one of them.
