Knights of the Dragon (of Knights and Wizards Book 1)

by A. J. Gallant

  Zedock couldn’t take his eyes off her, and he could tell that she liked it. Women could be tricky beasts, saying the opposite of what they felt. He had never heard of two dragons being a little bonded, which probably meant that they would have bonded fully had she stayed a bit longer. Or had they actually bonded? Was she now ready for the taking? Was mating imminent? She was so beautiful that he could barely contain himself. He went over and rested his head on her back. He smiled and caressed her with his head. “Does that mean we can mate now? Can we build a nest? Can we mate? Please, please, please!”

  His touch sent shivers through her. Ella smiled a wicked smile. “If I can make you hate me whatever bonding that has occurred will be severed. Did you know that?”

  “I could never hate you.” She caught him in the face with her claw, so hard that it snapped his head back. “Ow.”

  “Do you hate me now black dragon?”

  “I don’t hate you, but that hurt. Now I have a sore neck.” He cracked his neck, and it felt better. Her feminine wiles were wilder than he’d like. His father had warned him about the compelling ways and trickery of a female.

  She hit him with a right and a left. Whack whack! “How about now? You despise me don’t you?”

  Zedock continued to be enamoured by her scent and exquisiteness. “I don’t hate you, but now my nose is bleeding. If you break my neck, that might do it because then I’d be dead but my ghost would probably still love you. Here I’ll give you my neck so you can break it.”

  Ella’s heart thumped a little faster. Oh no, she was starting to melt because even his ghost would love her. She sighed unsure of her next move. Ella kissed the back of her neck, and it made her eyes flutter, and so she took to the air and didn’t look back. Zedock watched until she was out of sight and then sighed loudly. Now there was lots of new scent to sniff.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  STONE, ALEXA, AND THE OTHERS arrived at Flat Top Rock just before noon. Flat Top was on top of an easily climbable rock formation on the edge of the desert which was also part of a cave system that led underground. Dragons occasionally sunbathed on top of it. At one point in time, the Yurrosy had had a temporary outpost on it, but all that remained now was an abandoned hut that time and the elements had ravaged and the bones of a red dragon that had perished there long ago. Dragon bones were deceivingly light as they were hollow.

  They climbed and had a look around and could see for miles in the open space, knowing it wouldn’t be safe to spend the night up there because they would be exposed. It wouldn’t be difficult for anyone to spot them. They were undecided whether to move forward or to rest; desperation often made people make errors in judgment as did fatigue. They felt constricted by time and had much anxiety over Leeander’s fate. As they got closer to the enemy they hoped to find a small party that they could defeat and still manage to keep at least one alive that would be able to lead them to a wizard. It was as if throwing a rock at a crow in flight, lots of luck was needed to succeed.

  Alexa had another idea that she would soon put into play.

  “Nice view from up here.” Alexa turned around and fixed her blue eyes on the horses as they drank from a nearby pond. She guessed that the pond was a creation of magic because the water was so cold and clear, one could see rocks on the bottom. It was most likely a creation of a wizard that needed a drink. The water was so cold that Denton had a pain in his head. “I believe I came through here as a child with my father, but it’s a vague memory now.”

  Brent pushed Denton, and he almost fell over. “Are you sleepwalking?”

  “Just a little tired.”

  They decided it was time to rest and get their bearings. It was hot, but at least, there was a moderate wind blowing. Two black dragons were wrestling to the east; the young one’s liked the challenge of play-fighting on the ground, mainly fighting without fire. Although they knew the humans were there, they were ignored. One grabbed the other by the tail and threw him.

  Alexa took a deep breath and hoped that her old spell would work. It was one of the reasons why she was so insistent upon going out with them in search of a wizard; the other was that she couldn’t stand to play the waiting game. Alexa opened a small white pouch from around her neck and out of it took an ordinary looking pebble. She placed it in the palm of her hand and showed it to Stone.

  Stone was captured by those blue eyes but managed to pull away and look down at the pebble; he thought that she was the most beautiful woman that ever existed. “A rock?”

  “It’s actually a spell that I got from Adorok when I was about eight. Hope it still works. Most of his enchantments have now weakened, and many don’t work at all.” She licked the pebble that slowly morphed into a giant raven, its wings being the last to appear out of its blackness, pushing their way out with difficulty. The bird jumped on her arm as it waited for her instructions. She spoke to it as it cocked its head. “Go and find the nearest wizard and then return as fast as you can.” The bird squawked and took to the air from her right forearm. She watched the direction in which it headed until she could see it no more.

  Lance looked at Alexa with suspicious eyes. “Are you telling me that bird is going to return with a wizard?”

  She shook her head. “No, but he will show us where the location of the nearest sorcerer, and since we are now closer to the enemy than to Leeander it won’t be Adorok.”

  Lance was wondering why they hadn’t tried to follow it. “Do we follow it?”

  “No, you’ll see.”

  Lance smirked. “If it’s Adorok’s spell it’ll probably show us the location of the nearest cat.”

  “Pray that it doesn’t.”

  Archer Obed sat and commenced to sharpen one of his arrows that he had retrieved from an oak tree the other day; he had already sharpened it, but he wanted to make sure that it was ready to go. He always carried more arrows than he thought necessary and had over a hundred of them in two quivers. He still had the scar from taking one in his left shoulder and had, in fact, admired the shot that had come from such a great distance, even though it had had as much luck as skill to it.

  Lance tore off a piece of dried and salted meat that he carried and commenced to chew. Later he would boil the rest to make a broth out of it. “If we do find a wizard he’ll probably change us all into ravens.”

  Alexa glanced at Merrill’s massive arms and thought they were too big for his body; they made him look strong as hell but a bit peculiar. He was also the shortest of the group. She watched as he cracked his neck and it looked painful. They all knew the odds, but verbalizing wouldn’t help anyone only add to the doubt that they already felt.

  Alonzo lay down for a nap. “Stone, wake me when it’s necessary.”

  They rest of them sat and drank. They spotted a red dragon in the distance, climbing down they took cover until it passed, no way of knowing if it was under the influence of the Yurrosy or not. Alonzo lay back down to try and resume his nap, and he was sufficiently tired that slumber didn’t take long to come to him, slipping off into a dream of battle.

  Stone thought about the Yurrosy. “Did you know that they forge tiny swords for their children? They are taught to kill at a young age. They produce many great fighters, and I was sliced by one of them, almost died. They rarely hesitate.”

  Lance nodded. “I remember. He sliced your leg open and mine as well. We were indeed lucky to have survived.”

  Several hours passed. Alexa snuggled up to Stone, and they kissed. Stone had to admit to himself that he loved her, but the fact that she was the princess worried him. Although he thought it unlikely, what if by some miracle they did survive the quest? It didn’t seem likely that the king would approve of a union between the two of them. Although it probably hadn’t been wise to become such good friends with the king, there was no going back now. He didn’t know if the princess was serious or merely continuing with the ruse, but those lips were delicious. The way she looked at him should have been proof enough, but some men were simple
on the matters of the heart.

  “We’ve got company,” said the knight Fendrel. He sat staring off into the distance; looked like about a dozen of the Yurrosy marching in their general direction. It was difficult to say because they looked like mere specks. Sight could play tricks on a person from such a long ways away.

  Alexa stood and watched as they marched. It seemed strange to stare at the enemy and wonder if they would soon destroy everything and everyone that she loved. They remained perhaps two miles off but should they stay on their present course it would certainly be a close encounter. They all wondered where the hell they were going. They could hide in the dark cave, but that might be the destination. “Stone, do you think that stupid dragon reported our location?”

  “I wouldn’t doubt it. A dragon’s vision is far superior to a human’s. Although if that were the case I don’t know why it wouldn’t have attacked unless they want one of us alive.” Stone tried to concentrate on seeing what they were, thinking that the two taking up the rear might be archers but he couldn’t be sure; still too far away for the details to be sharp. The heat radiated and distorted the image somewhat, and that didn’t help any.

  Some time passed, and now he could see that they were leading a single jet-black horse that was pulling a large cart covered over with a black tarp. It didn’t look as though they had a wizard with them; they usually preferred to be prominent to frighten their enemies. All were walking with their heads down, and none looked happy, the drudgery of walking leagues was no fun. They carried the red flag that appeared to be the color of blood. It was tradition to use it to soak up some of the blood of their fallen comrades once a battle was over, believing it to be a way of carrying the departed souls with them, giving them more strength on the battlefield. They were carrying war axes and also swords on their sides but no shields. Stone couldn’t guess why they weren’t all on horses; a punishment perhaps?

  Stone and the others climbed down and hung out in front of the dark cave to wait and see if the enemy were going to alter their course, at least, they would be tired from all that walking. After a bit, Stone went up to check, and they were still heading in their direction, it appeared to him that they were indeed heading for the cave and sufficiently close that he had to be careful so he wouldn’t be spotted. He hoped that there wasn’t a wizard hiding in that cart, but then again that’s why they were out here, to capture a wizard. A wizard in waiting would not likely be a happy ending. Being outnumbered it was difficult to guess the result but Stone’s men were battle tested warriors. Stone would have to consider getting the archers to attack soon if he was to command them to do so; he wished he didn’t have to worry about the princess. The lack of shields would be to their advantage.

  Stone sighed. “Let go inside and see if they change course.”

  Everyone went into the dark cave and as they proceeded further in they discovered that the cave system was a lot deeper than they had thought; they also found thousands of weapons stockpiled. Was that cart bringing more weapons? It was possible, likely even.

  “They’re stockpiling,” said Alonzo. “It’ll keep their army fresher when they march by the thousands. That’s one disadvantage of being so big, just about impossible to have a horse for everyone. That cart that they’re pulling most likely has more weapons and they’re gonna be coming in here.”

  Stone nodded. “Most likely they haven’t recovered from that disease that was killing all the horses; I know we haven’t.”

  “A disease or a damn spell cast by one of those miscreant wizards.” Alonzo hated magic and most wizards as well. He supposed that they had their place, but such power in the wrong hands was always bad news.

  A red dragon that was deeper into the cave system could hear their voices echoing off the walls. She had been digging a new tunnel when she turned around to listen, curious she decided to investigate. Redblaze came up behind them, and as she spoke, she startled all of them. “What are you doing in my cave?”

  “What the hell are you doing in here dragon?” Stone was impressed by the dragon’s glowing green eyes. “I thought that dragons only lived high up in the cliffs? Are you living in here?”

  “Most do,” the dragon nodded. “But I’ve taking a liking to this place. I guess you could say I’m a bit of a loner. You wouldn’t believe how far down this cave goes. Huge moles down here and they taste delicious. I’ve been exploring for months, and there are still many areas that I haven’t been in. Are you the ones that are filling my entrance with junk?”

  Alexa touched the dragon’s face, surprised to discover the scales almost as hard as rock. “That would be the Yurrosy, and they’ll be here in a few minutes with another load.”

  “They are the nastiest bunch of humans that I have ever seen. Should I burn them? I should probably burn them. What do you think? If I don’t burn them, they’ll never go away.”

  “Yes please burn all of them.” Lance listened and could now hear them approaching. “Best be quiet because here they come.”

  “Burning them does sound like a good idea.” The dragon snorted indignantly.

  Lance wondered how smart the average dragon was. “That would save us time and energy.”

  “Be quiet here they come. Let me get a belly full of fire.” She took in a deep breath and her stomach turned a bright red as her embers stoked; her stomach acid was now fuel for her fire.

  The sounds of the horse pulling the cart got louder and louder. They appeared at the cave entrance and commenced to throw the weapons inside. The dragon swelled up like an oval ball, and she produced an enormous, sustained fireball, burning them to a crisp with only a single scream. Then Redblaze turned around and kicked all the weapons out of her cave with such force that had anyone been standing there they would have been shredded. And then she hit the weapons with such a hot blast that they fused together and now would be no good to anyone, except to be used as scrap metal.

  Lance walked through one of the dead bodies and watched as it fell apart now being simply ash. “They never knew what hit them. Dragon, you wouldn’t know where we could find a wizard?”

  “A wizard? I have no idea. I’m going to do some more exploring you can come if you like? I can catch a mole for you. There’s one in the tunnel right behind that wall; I can hear him digging. Sometimes they keep me awake when I’m trying to take a nap.”

  “We’d like to, but unfortunately, we have business to attend to.”

  “Nothing like fried mole legs but it’s your loss.”

  But as soon as Stone and the others left the cave they were attacked by a dozen more Yurrosy. Merrill just managed to avoid being decapitated as he pulled his sword, the blade striking hard against the cave. They had come from the south on horseback. Alexa killed the first, she parried one cutting his hand off and then sliced deep into another’s shoulder, then put them both out of their misery. She was furious when it came to fighting, best never to take the enemy lightly.

  Stone was amazing to watch in battle; he was so skillful that it made even his soldiers wary of his talent. His foresight enabled him to see three moves ahead, and that made him deadlier than most; his aptitude for anticipating was most impressive. He had trained himself to take in the entire scene, not just the immediate threat in front of him.

  Alexa killed another, and the look on his face at having been dispatched by a woman was most telling.

  “Watch it!” Stone’s mighty swing cut one of them in two, through his bicep and out the other side, kicking another off balance to save Lance. He took another’s head, and when his sword clashed with a third, the blow was so powerful that it knocked the sword out of the hand of his opponent and, of course, he was done. The eight that remained tried to focus on Stone but that was their downfall. The archers took several as the Knights finished the others. It was a nasty but necessary business.

  The battle had been bloody although short lived, and amazingly none of them had even gotten a scratch out of it, although Merrill’s armor sustained a dent. Sto
ne quickly made his way up the rock to see if he could see any other dangers. He saw nothing but knew that they had to move away from the area as the Yurrosy would soon be aware that their soldiers were missing, and they would send more. Alexa started to erase their tracks as the others followed her lead.

  Just as they were about to leave the raven returned, and out of its eyes it lit up a three-dimensional vision near the wall of the cave, showing a wizard that was in the process of building his house with magic. Some sorcerers were content to spend their lives alone out in the middle of nowhere, and perhaps this was one of them. The distance was quite far, but they decided to give it a shot nonetheless, because if he was the closest they had no choice. The bird then returned to the form of a pebble. The magic depleted it could not be used again.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  THE NEXT FEW DAYS BOTH ZEDOCK AND ELLA were restless dragons, and both families had taken notice. They refused to talk about the encounter that had them thinking about one another and the future as well, and Zedock continued to fly around mumbling Ella. Could it be that they were destined to be together? They were young and whatever fate had brought them together had been mistaken, Ella was sure of it. Still she couldn’t get that black dragon out of her mind and now he was even in her dreams, how utterly distasteful was that? They were strangers but still there was something about him that grabbed her and wouldn’t let go, that was the scary part. When some mates were perfectly suited the bonding was fast, but not only that it was permanent.

  Ella wanted to be alone, so she flew away from her family and found a deserted spot high up on Mount Drag. She sat and stared off the edge of the cliff as she considered who amongst the red dragons she might decide to select. That was a serious problem because she disliked all of the younger dragons and the older ones were either taken or insufferable. It seemed to her that all dragons of her age were either too full of themselves or just not interesting enough. They didn’t have the spark to ignite her fire. She made herself laugh as she thought about painting Zedock red. What if she could find a wizard that would do it? Now she was just silly.