by Mike Shelton
Fear and anger boiled up in Alli at that same time. This was one of the Chameleon’s brothers. His evil, she had learned, they couldn’t fight without the powers of the dragons.
Breelyn looked back at the approaching man and then yelled up into the air, “Jaimon, leave now. Please. I don’t want you or the dragons hurt.”
“What about all the other innocent people you will kill with this army?” Alli screamed down at her.
The General approached and came up next to Breelyn. “There are no innocent people in Alaris,” he yelled up at Alli. “They took my father’s throne one hundred and fifty years ago, and now he will have it back.”
Even though Alli didn’t know if it would do any good, she gathered a lightning strike as quickly as she could and threw it down at the General. With a flick of his hand, the General made the lightning dissipate into his tendrils of blackness and reappear again a few feet away before it hit the ground.
“How?” Alli said out loud but more to herself.
The General threw his hands into the air, and blackness raced from them toward the dragons. Cholena had barely maneuvered to the side before the darkness slid by her into empty air.
“We can’t fight him like this, Alli,” Jaimon said. “We need more help.”
Alli hated to leave but knew that Jaimon was right. “The Citadel. It’s not far away. There are more than enough wizards there to stop this army.”
Jaimon directed Cholena up higher. Before the dragon turned around, Alli saw Breelyn’s face. Conflicting emotions seemed to almost immobilize her.
“Remember your master!” Alli yelled down at her, not knowing for sure if she would hear. Though, a split second later, Alli thought she saw a brief and tiny nod of Breelyn’s head.
Cholena, with her two riders, and Miriel headed east to the Citadel. Alli and Jaimon would rally Roland and his wizards, and they would stop the army together, before it invaded Alaris.
* * *
In the few hours it took them to fly to the Citadel, it had grown dark outside. When they finally arrived, the gates to the city were closed, and very few individuals were outside. Landing in a courtyard, Alli and Jaimon jumped off the dragon. The late spring air was still warm, but Alli rubbed her arms anyway. Something here was not right.
A few guards met them in the courtyard and nodded their respect.
“Battlemaster,” said Arcon, one of the guards Alli knew. “Welcome back.”
Turning to Jaimon, they greeted him as well.
“Seems quiet around here for this time of evening,” Alli noted.
Arcon turned to the other guard before responding. “Things have happened here, Battlemaster.”
“What things?”
Arcon waved his hand toward the building. “Come and follow me. I will take you to a member of the Council.”
“I would like to see Roland—I mean, the High Wizard.”
But Alli almost had to run to keep up with Arcon’s long legs. Jaimon trailed behind her.
“I have important information for him,” she added.
Arcon was silent and just continued walking next to the other guard. So Alli decided that she wouldn’t be getting any answers from this bunch and would have to wait to see Roland to find out what was going on.
Entering the front doors of the Citadel, Alli and Jaimon were greeted with quiet stares. No one would meet Alli’s eyes. What was going on?
“Where’s the High Wizard?” she asked.
Just then, Gorn, her old mentor, came walking down the hallway. She realized how old he now looked. He had never fully recovered from the ordeal in Celestar, when so many of the guardians were killed.
“Gorn!” Alli ran up to him and hugged him. Looking back up at him, she noticed a heaviness in his eyes that hadn’t been there before.
“Alli,” he said. “So good to see you.” Looking over to Jaimon, Gorn nodded his head. “Dragon Rider.”
Jaimon nodded back and walked up next to Alli.
“What is going on here, Gorn?” Alli asked.
“Come with me” was all that Gorn would offer. He led Alli and Jaimon up the stairs and down the hall. Alli recognized this as a way to Roland’s private rooms.
Without thinking about it, she ran her hand over her hair and tried to straighten her clothes, the dark ones that had been given to her by the Followers of the Dragon. She was suddenly aware of how tight they felt, and she blushed, thinking about meeting Roland in them.
“Is this place always so somber?” Jaimon asked Alli.
She was glad for this diversion. “No. Especially since Roland has been in charge. There are usually people bustling around, laughing, and talking—you know Roland.”
“But…?”
Jaimon had started to ask something, but right then they had reached Roland’s rooms. A soldier stood at attention in front of the door. Nodding his head to Gorn, he stepped aside. A sudden foreboding filled Alli’s heart. Had something happened to Roland? Why hadn’t he met them down below? She steeled her emotions and willed Gorn to open the door quicker.
Gorn put his meaty hand on the knob and then waited a moment, as if he didn’t want to go in. Finally, he pushed the heavy wooden door open. The parlor was dark, with only a few candles lighting the room. Tam was sitting on a chair by the bedroom door. But he stood up when they approached.
“Tam, what’s wrong?” Alli was worried about him too. “You look like you haven’t slept in weeks.”
Tam held his mouth tight. Tears gathered in the corners of his eyes, and he tried to blink them away. “I’ve tried my best, Alli. I really have.” His words were thick with emotion.
“You’re scaring me, Tam.” Alli’s defenses went up, and she turned her head, in quick motions, to survey the room. She still didn’t see Roland anywhere. Her heartbeat picked up as she realized something was very, very wrong. “What is going on?”
Tam beckoned her and Jaimon toward the bedroom door, while Gorn stayed behind. Opening the door, Alli saw Selena and another wizard by the side of the bed. At the sight of Alli, their eyes went wide.
“Selena.” Tam motioned for her and the other wizard to leave the room.
As she moved past Alli, Selena whispered, “I’m sorry.”
Sorry? About what?
It was dark in the room, but Alli could see someone was lying on the bed. She stepped closer and gasped.
“No, no.” Her hand flew to her mouth, and tears filled her eyes. Jaimon grabbed Alli from one side and steadied her from falling. She took a step closer. Lying in front of her was Roland. His head sat on a pillow, his blond hair brushed perfectly around his light face. His eyes stood closed, and a tube was fitted over his mouth.
Alli rounded on Tam. “What have you done to him?”
Tam stood and took it, tears streaming down his own face. “Oh, Alli,” he groaned, then pulled her into his strong arms and held her until her tears stopped.
Finally, she pulled away. She noticed Jaimon sitting on a chair on the other side of the bed. He stared at the floor, his head held in his hands. He looked up as Alli moved back toward the bed again. Then Jaimon stood up and joined her, looking down at Roland.
“What happened?” Jaimon asked.
“Wizards from the Sanctuary in Quentis came here,” Tam said, in control of his emotions once again. “They attacked him with a dark power.”
“From Quentis?” Jaimon asked, looking at Alli.
She nodded.
“The Chameleon’s followers,” Jaimon said. “He’s infecting everything.”
“Roland isn’t…?” Alli couldn’t say the word.
“Dead?” Tam shook his head. “No, not really. But…” Tam glanced around nervously.
Alli reached her hands up to Tam’s shoulders. “Tell me, Tam. You were as close to him as anyone. You put this contraption on him. For some reason, you think he isn’t dead.”
“It’s crazy, Alli,” Tam began. “When they attacked, Roland and the rest of us held out as long as we could
. Then, at some point, Roland seemed to make a decision and just blinked out. His body collapsed. But, before it did, his spirit left it. His spirit is still alive,” Tam said, becoming more animated. “It sounds crazy, Alli, but I will tell you. I felt him here, in this room, just days ago. He spoke to my mind. His soul is still alive.”
Alli nodded but stayed quiet.
“That does sound like a tall tale, Wizard,” Jaimon said. “A body can’t live without its soul. It’s not natural.”
Tam hung his head. “I know. I just keep hoping.”
“Hoping that he will come back?” Jaimon asked.
“Yes.” Tam brought his head up. His eyes were bloodshot.
Alli put her hands on Tam’s arms. “I believe you, Tam. I do! I have felt Roland twice this past week. I know he was with me, watching me. Somehow, his spirit is trapped somewhere.”
“Yes.” Tam nodded and grew more excited. “Yes, that is what I keep saying. But the longer he lies here like this, the less and less others believe me.”
“Alli?” Jaimon questioned.
“Jaimon, you don’t know Roland like I do. He is stubborn and flashy and incorrigible at times, but he is powerful and brilliant when it comes to magic. If anyone can find a way back out, it will be him. One more reason to find Bakari.”
“Where is the Dragon King?” Tam asked.
Alli shrugged her shoulders.
“North,” Jaimon said. “He is north.”
Alli looked at Jaimon with a question in her eyes.
“Cholena and Miriel can feel him to the north,” Jaimon said. “There is a bond there, but not with his dragon—with another animal. He is now riding south through the kingdom of the Realm to try and find Abylar, who is lost somewhere in the mountains there.”
Alli smiled and said, “Go to him, Jaimon.”
“You’re not coming with me?”
“My place is here.” Alli nodded toward Roland’s lifeless body. “I need to be here to help him return. I am his Battlemaster.”
“And his friend?” Tam said in a teasing tone.
Alli blushed. “And his friend.”
Jaimon nodded. “I will take both Cholena and Miriel with me.”
“Miriel?” Tam asked. “Then the elf is with you also?”
“Oh, no!” Alli said. “I forgot all about that. That is why we came here—to get help. Breelyn is leading troops to attack Alaris.”
“But you need to stay here, Alli—with him.” Tam nodded toward the bed.
“I know.” She smiled. “Gorn?” She called the elderly battle wizard in from the sitting room, where he had stayed. “You up for one more battle?”
CHAPTER THIRTY TWO
Bakari had been riding hard for three days, and he was exhausted. The kind folk in the twin cities had sent him with a pack of food, along with a bag of oats for Flash, the Cremelino he rode. He had ridden as far as he could each day and then found a copse of trees to sleep under. Flash was true to his name and ran with boundless energy along the road from the twin cities west to Sur. He and Flash had then turned south and were now entering Tean, a smaller city in the western part of the Realm.
You need to rest, Wizard! Flash said to Bakari’s mind.
I will rest when I find my dragon.
The Cremelino slowed her run to a trot so as not to attract as much attention in the town.
We will rest here tonight, Flash said.
I can go farther, Bakari tried to argue. Though, he knew in the end that it was a losing battle. The Cremelino was right, and Bakari wouldn’t be any good to Abylar this way.
The guards nodded their heads to him and let him pass without stopping him. But the Cremelino’s presence drew attention from onlookers as they continued down the main thoroughfare of the city. From what Liam and Breanna had taught Bakari, the herd of Cremelinos had increased in number the last few years, but they were still considered rare, and not all wizards had them. So Bakari presumed that the citizens of the city figured that he was one of their own wizards.
Better off that way, he thought, than knowing I am the Dragon King, without a dragon.
We will find your dragon, Flash encouraged him. We feel something in the mountains south and west of here. There is power growing—both good and evil.
“Abylar,” Bakari said out loud with a deep sigh. Oh, how he missed his dragon.
Soon Bakari found himself a nice inn. He paid extra, to make sure his Cremelino was taken care of, and then he sat down in the common room, for a hot meal.
The common room was fairly crowded, but he had been able to find a small table, alone at the edge of the room. Other patrons kept glancing his way, but he didn’t know if it was due to his color, his age, or the Cremelino he had come in on—or to a combination of all three. But he was too hungry and tired to get overly concerned about it.
A nice servant approached and gave him a warm smile. She wasn’t much older than Bakari himself. “We have stew and bread tonight, or, if you would like, we also have some lamb chops left over from yesterday.”
Bakari smiled back. “The stew sounds wonderful—two bowls, please.”
The servant laughed. “You don’t look like you could eat that much—though, it wouldn’t hurt, to put a little more fat on those bones of yours.”
Her teasing brought a small laugh from Bakari, and he relaxed a bit more and said, “I’ve been traveling a long way.”
The young woman nodded but didn’t ask any more questions. She brought Bakari a small loaf of bread and some water, which he devoured and drank quickly, before his stew had even arrived.
Finally, it did. Taking an overflowing spoonful of the stew, he gave a small yelp.
A few men at a nearby table laughed at his outburst.
Then one of them leaned over, closer to Bakari, and said, “Take your time, kid. Nobody’s going to take it from you. This inn has got some of the best food in town. Enjoy it!”
Bakari felt embarrassed and nodded his head at the man. Turning back to his stew, he took another spoonful, but this time he blew on it a few times before stuffing it in his mouth. He tasted warm beef, carrots, tomatoes, and onions.
“Mmm.”
After the first bowl, Bakari did slow down for the second. About halfway through it, he wondered if he shouldn’t have ordered so much. He sat back in the chair and took a deep breath. For the first time since sitting down, he listened to the conversations close to him.
“I tell you, something’s happening, Hans,” said a man that appeared to be in his thirties. “I hear there are problems at the wizard school. Young wizards are leaving.”
A man with a deeper voice spoke up. “I agree.” Then he lowered his voice, and Bakari strained to hear. Bakari missed the enhanced hearing he had before, when he was with Abylar.
“And, Kade,” Hans said, “have you felt your powers weakening lately?”
There was a pause in the conversation as the young serving woman refilled their glasses.
When she was gone, a third man spoke up. “I feel it too. My powers are weakening. It’s like someone is draining them away from me.” He took a sip of his drink, then continued, “Someone is attacking the wizards. We need to gather together and make a plan.”
“Do you think the king knows?” Kade asked. “He is the mightiest wizard in the land. We should go to him.”
“Aye,” said Hans with his deeper voice. “You are right, Kade. But, in the meantime, we should bond together and fight back.”
Bakari wanted to ask them what was going on, but he didn’t want to draw any more attention to himself than needed. Were the Chameleon and his brothers attacking the wizards somehow? Bakari hadn’t felt any recent drains on his powers—other than the exhaustion he was feeling.
Finishing his second bowl of stew and downing another glass of water, Bakari left money for the serving woman and headed upstairs to the small room he had rented. The room had one small bed and a table with a chair next to it and a pitcher of water and a cleaning bowl on top. Wash
ing his face, Bakari turned back to the bed and lay down on it.
Before drifting off to sleep, he thought about Kharlia and was glad that she was safe, back in Elvyn. He hoped she was learning a lot and doing well. He missed her company and encouragement. He knew that he had a tendency to get down on himself for not living up to the expectations of the Dragon King, but Kharlia always lifted him back up and supported him. She was a good woman.
And, with that last thought, Bakari drifted into a deep and dreamless sleep.
* * *
Kharlia and her two Elvyn guards were riding on horseback with a small group of military scouts, who Mericus had sent to the border to see what Breelyn and the army behind her were doing. Rather than going straight across to Westridge, they were told to go north to the Citadel first and elicit some help from Roland and his wizards. But the group of scouts had treated the Elvyn guards with quiet reservation and had seemed to only tolerate the presence of Kharlia among their ranks.
A few days after leaving Cassian, they approached River Bend. This brought back happy and painful memories for Kharlia: happy, because she remembered being there with Bakari, and painful, because it reminded her that he was most likely thousands of miles away now and busy with his own quest.
“Why not just go straight to the Citadel?” asked Keryth, one of the Elvyn guards.
Kharlia shrugged her shoulders. She hadn’t traveled far from her own small town outside of Cassian until Bakari had needed her help the last year.
Then Conway, one of the few scouts that had befriended them, turned to the three from Elvyn and said, “The fields between Cassian and Whalen are farmed and soft—it is harder for the horses. The road to River Bend and then to Whalen, even though longer, saves us time and is easier on the horses.”
“Thank you, Conway.” Keryth nodded his head. “There is much about this land that we do not know.”
“We are used to the trees,” Gloron said. “All of these open spaces are strange to me.”
Conway dismounted with the other scouts. Kharlia and her two Elvyn guards followed suit and began to lead their horses into the town. Unlike the last time she was in River Bend, children now ran in the streets, and vendors were taking down their tents for the day. The city appeared to be thriving.
