by I Heaton
He swung his axe at a man and smashed his tail into the ballista. Soon the weapon was totally destroyed and he moved started to move on. He stopped as he heard Tyler yell “Tom! They are almost here!” Tom ran back over and saw it was some cavalry that were approaching.
He had one line follow him and they climbed the wall, Tom had noticed rock baskets on the wall and they started dropping and throwing the rocks into the enemy ranks below them. The Ilemite siege weapons and archers had stopped firing and suddenly arrows began flying again from the fort, this time shooting the Ilemite forces.
Tom heard cracking below him and knew the Ilemites were almost through the door. He had his men go back down and glided down also. The Arstanian infantry and cavalry were still attacking the archers and large weapons, so it was just the Anvil who would be holding back the enemy forces, along with some archers firing at the Ilemites.
Tom told his men to get back as the final bracing post broke and the door swung open once more.
Then his men stepped forward and filled the gap. Tom hovered behind and cast spells over the Anvil members’ heads. Alex ran passed him and jumped over the Anvil and began fighting the Ilemite cavalry.
After a while the cavalry was defeated but the infantry was almost to them. Tom went in front of his men and started casting spells at the approaching infantry. Soon the enemy got to them and Tom went back behind his men, knowing he would only put himself in danger and get in the way.
Alex stayed up front but was slowly getting pushed back. Suddenly an enemy infantry man slashed Alex from the side, opening a long cut in his armour and side. Alex stumbled passed the Anvil and fell, clutching his side.
Tom looked up as he heard a deep roar, he saw Gontal on his massive brown dragon, his flail swinging slowly at his side. Tom quickly looked to Alex and realized he would have to fight alone. The Anvil could handle themselves, along with the other men who attacked the fort.
Tom turned as much dragon as he knew how and launched into the air. A griffin rider broke away from the Arstanian line and attacked the General, but with a wave of his hand Gontal sent a wall of fire at him and next thing Tom knew the rider and griffin were tumbling down, blackened.
Tom realized how crazy this was but kept going. The General sent another wall of fire at Tom, who blocked the attack. They closed the distance between them and the dragon spit fire at Tom, but missed. Tom wheeled around and landed on the dragon’s back. Gontal tried to turn, but was fastened to the saddle.
As Tom raised his axe the dragon flew upwards suddenly and Tom stumbled. Tom struck the dragon in the back and the axe held. As the dragon leveled out once again Tom unstuck his axe and jumped off.
He flew away from the dragon a moment then turned again, now flying at the dragon head on. Alex lay on the ground looking through a red haze, he saw Tom fighting the dragon and Gontal. He smiled and was proud of his apprentice, then his head sunk.
Tom thought a moment put his axe in his belt and flexed his clawed hands. He barely dodged the dragon’s mouth and dug his claws into the head of the dragon, using his momentum to swing his tail and hit the large frontal bone in the dragon’s wing.
The beast roared in pain and tried to snap at Tom, who was already out of reach. Gontal helped his dragon descend and smiled smugly as Tom landed in front of him.
This boy would be defeated easy, he thought. Little did he know that is was Werin thought or that Tamil had dismissed him without a second thought. The dragon suddenly lunged forward and Tom began running towards it.
He had no idea what he was going to do and realized only some other giant beast could hope to defeat a dragon.
Suddenly he felt his arms growing heavy and himself changing. He looked down and didn’t see his legs, but the legs of a giant Stone Lion. He was a shapeshifter.
Chapter 26
Tom looked back up and saw the sudden doubt in the General’s eyes. He smiled and leaped forward just as the dragon did. The two met in mid air, tumbling down with Gontal almost getting crushed.
Tom swiped his paw at the dragon, creating deep gashes in its side. He changed into a Ronto, a breed of giant wolves. He clamped his teeth on the dragon’s neck. He struggled to keep the dragon down, slowly twisting its neck.
Suddenly he heard a loud crack and the dragon was still. Gontal jumped at him, flail swinging at Tom’s head. Tom quickly dodged the attack and thought what to change into.
Suddenly he had a thought. He changed himself into a full dragon. His black scales glistening in the sunlight, he blew a column of fire at the General, but was blocked. He changed slightly and became a wyvern, he spit acid all around the General and tried to hit him, but again was blocked.
Gontal ran at him and swung his flail at Tom tried to step back but was unused to the wyvern’s four legs and couldn’t get totally out of the way of Gontal’s swing. The spiked head hit the tip of Tom’s snout.
Tom swung his head back at Gontal and sent him flying into a rock. Tom spit acid at the dazed general and hit his left leg slightly.
Gontal stood again and threw an axe at Tom, who flapped his wings and began flying to dodge it. Tom flew over to Gontal and slashed at him with his claws, but Gontal dodged and Tom got a handful of dirt.
Tom stayed in the air as he battle Gontal. Each time Tom flapped Gontal was buffeted slightly by the wind. Tom swung his tail at Gontal who tried to step to the side, but was still hit in the side.
Gontal swung his flail at Tom as Tom swiped at him with a back claw. The two strikes hit each other and Tom felt the bones in the leg break. He roared in pain and bit at Gontal, but missed.
He spat acid and flew backwards. He changed into a cranto and slithered quickly at Gontal. He bit at the general again then wrapped around him and began squeezing. For a few moments Tom thought he might defeat him then but Gontal sent him flying with a burst of air magic.
He became human again and smiled. He took a throwing axe from his belt threw it at Gontal. The General deflected the axe easily with his flail handle. But in the moment the General was distracted Tom changed once more.
He became a hummingbird and flew towards the General, who was looking around suspiciously. Tom landed on the flail handle and looked at the General, who, too late, noticed him. Tom turned into a human and just as he did he swung his axe into the General’s head.
Gontal’s flail was knocked from his hands as Tom suddenly grew, so he couldn't block it. The General, out of a spirit of defiance and hate, slid his dagger from its sheath and stabbed Tom once in the shoulder.
Both fell, the General was dead as he hit the ground. After the Ilemite troops saw their General and his dragon dead, began to run. Leaderless and confused they began to flee, slowly at first but soon the enemy troops flooded away.
Later, as a Arstanian man from the Anvil searched for survivors he came upon the acid covered ground. He carefully walked through the acid and found Tom, laying with the dagger still in his shoulder barely breathing.
The man took the dagger out, bandaged the wound and carried him to the medical tent. Tom woke suddenly and began to get up, putting some weight on his arm. Instantly pain shot through his body from his shoulder.
I have got to stop hurting myself he thought and began looking at his surroundings. It was a normal medical tent, with lines of beds against the walls. He looked to his left and saw Alex laying asleep in his bed, a long bloody bandage on his side.
He looked right and saw Joseph, a line leader from the Anvil. Tom looked around and swung his legs off the bed and tried to stand up. He regretted it as his head swam, a flash of pain shot through his broken leg and he collapsed back on his bed.
Two healers rushed over and made sure he was fine. He woke a few hours later and this time simply called for a healer, instead of trying to get up himself. They told him he had been found in the middle of puddles of acid and scorch marks, along with Gontal and his dragon’s bodies.
The memory came back to him and just to make sure he lifts his arm as th
e healer turns away. He closed his eyes and focused, when he opened them he saw the arm of a wolf.
He quickly changed his arm back as the healer turned back around. He asks how long he would have to stay, but the healer said he could go whenever. Tom swung his legs over the bed and tried to stand again with some crutches. He sat back down for a moment then slowly rose.
He walked over to Alex who was waking up slightly. “I guess I am not the only one who gets hurt now.” Tom says with a weak grin.
Alex smiled back “No, I guess that is one thing I forgot to teach you.” and with that Alex went back to sleep. Tom walked out of the tent and went back to his.
Two days later Alex is able to walk around and King Frederick calls an assembly. Tom and Alex walk together down to the parade ground with the rest of the army.
The king walks to the raised platform and begins speaking, thanking the men for their service. He finishes thanking the army as a whole and calls units and individuals to come forward and get awards. “Now, for probably the greatest unit, the Anvil.” Alex nudges Tom to walk up with the rest of the Anvil, who were standing behind him.
They walked to the platform and were thanked and given awards. Tom began walking down with his men when the king motioned for him to stop and come back. “Finally, the mastermind, leader and trainer of the Anvil, Thomas Welton. Not only did he train the Anvil, but he somehow managed to kill Gontal and his dragon single handedly, only getting stabbed in the shoulder by a cheap shot and a broken leg. For Thomas, I award the Gold Flame, the highest award of bravery and strength.” Tom stood, stunned, as the king himself handed him the amulet.
The king shook his hand and thanked him again, then let him join his men. The general assembly soon came to an end, but King Frederick asked Tom and a few others to stay after.
The king approached Tom “I have decided to give you a choice. You can continue to train as a Dragon Guardian or you can continue training and commanding the Anvil. You, along with the Anvil, would be part of the Castle Arstan guard. You would not be able to continue both. I’m sorry, but you need to choose.” King Frederick waited as Tom thought a moment.
Being a commander he would enjoy many privileges and skip years of training, but he thought of the peace of flying, the happiness of when he got one of Alex’s training exercises correct, the thump of a bolt or axe hitting a target or learning new magic.
Tom looks at the king and takes a breath “I’m honored, but I would like to continue my training as a Dragon Guardian. I feel I am better suited for that. Although I think Tyler, a young man in the Anvil, would be a good leader.” Tom saluts and walks away.
He walked through camp, amazed that only two years ago he was planning to become a common blacksmith somewhere.
Now he had been offered a position to help guard the royal castle, met the king, helped to kill or killed the three Ilemite Supreme Generals and their dragons, been in a war, had commanded a unit of 75 men, was friends with Dragon Guardians, an Immortal, wyverns and their riders, his brother was a Master Smith apprentice and werewolf.
He knew how to use many weapons, had seen golems, werewolves, vampires, dragons and countless other figures of legend and finally found out he was a natural shapeshifter.
Eventually he found Alex and asked about shapeshifters “Well, natural shapeshifters are either very rare or they don’t even exist, we are not sure. They can change into any form of animal, although the wounds they receive in one form transfer to the other forms. Unlike Dragon Guardians, they do not need a spell to change. We know very little about them. Why do you ask?” Alex explained, then Tom thought a moment how to tell him.
“Well, when I was fighting Gontal I knew I wouldn’t be able to defeat him and his dragon in the body I have now, I thought I could beat him as a stone lion. Then I became one. I am a shapeshifter.” Alex was obviously shocked. He then looked doubtful, until Tom changed himself into a dog.
When Tom returned to normal form he said “Please don’t tell anyone you don’t need to. I want to keep this as quiet as possible. And I have another question. When will we return to Blangto?” Alex thought a moment
“First I will give you a week off, I think you earned it. Then we will return to Blangto. And as for your little secret I will only tell the Guardian commander and the king. They both have the right to know they have a shapeshifter under their command. Now go get packed.” and with that Alex turned and walked away, leaving Tom to pack his belongings.
An hour later Tom, Alex, Zack, Dejoni, John, Mastifi, Madison and Bryn. They all began walking towards Pine Grove and Hilltop Lake. The two girl’s masters were allowing them a week's break as well. As they got far enough away from camp, Tom stopped and turned into a full dragon.
Everyone besides Alex gasped in amazement. Tom changed back into a human for a moment “Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you all, I am a shapeshifter.” then he changed to a wyvern and after a moment decided a dragon was bigger and changed into a dragon.
He had Madison and Bryn climb onto his back and the group flew off. The setting sun shining behind them as they flew away from the Ilemite war and towards home.
