Keep of Dragons (The Azuleah Trilogy Book 3)

by Daniel Adorno

  “She doesn’t need to do that,” the lead operator said. “The person operating the tower can pull the lever.”

  Avani pursed her lips thoughtfully. “What’s your name, soldier?”

  “Sergeant Wallace, your Highness,” he said, a hint of defiance evident in his voice.

  “Sergeant Wallace, do you know why you and your men keep missing the target?” She asked.

  Wallace frowned. “It’s because those blasted dragons are so quick. We can’t track them fast enough!”

  “No. It’s because you are trying to do too much. As the lead operator of this contraption, you’re trying to aim and pull that lever fast enough to hit the target. But in the time it takes you to reach and pull the lever, your aim has suffered slightly and you’ve wasted a precious second to shoot,” she argued.

  Wallace didn’t look convinced. But she was ignoring his skeptical expression and searching for the purple dragon they’d previously missed. In a few seconds, she spotted it. The dragon had landed on the street adjacent to the castle. It was terrorizing a group of merchants who’d armed themselves with farm implements and other crude weapons to join the fight.

  “There! Ormond swivel the tower ninety degrees to the right,” she ordered. When the elf had gotten into position, she waited a moment. The dragon was preparing to unleash a breath of fire onto the merchants. “On my mark, Inya. Fire!”

  Inya pulled the lever and the bolt tower jolted backward as it released its massive projectile into the air. The bolt cut through the air and closed the distance to its target in a matter of seconds. Avani watched the bolt strike the dragon in the neck. The beast’s eyes widened in shock and it stumbled forward. Seeing the creature mortally injured, the merchants surged forward and hacked away at the dragon until it lay still on the ground.

  Wallace and his men stood with mouths gaping at the dragon’s demise. Avani gave a slight smile to the sergeant.

  “You see, Sergeant, it can be done if you trust your men to help you,” Avani said. She turned to Ormond. “Find another bolt tower and show them the strategy, Ormond. Inya, take a handful of our troops and relay the same instruction to the remaining bolt operators along the wall.”

  Both elves nodded their understand and raced down either side of the battlements. Avani prepared to say something more to Sergeant Wallace, but a yell from the wall stopped her.

  “Incoming!” An Aldronian soldier shouted.

  Avani whirled around and saw the dragon. It took a steep dive into the battlements where her soldiers were situated. Its claws ripped through the crenellations, killing several Numans instantly and wounding more. She nocked an arrow, drew the bowstring, and released in a split second. The arrow hissed above the wall and sunk deep into the dragon’s scaly chest. She followed with two more arrows before the massive golden creature had a moment to recover.

  “Out of the way, my lady!” Wallace shouted.

  Avani turned and saw the sergeant and his men had loaded the crossbow and swiveled toward the dragon. She stepped aside and watched them follow the same tactic she’d just demonstrated.

  “Fire!” Wallace yelled at the soldier closest to the lever.

  The metal spike flew in a narrow arc then impaled the dragon’s back. Its piercing screech hurt her ears. Then the dragon did something unexpected. It leaped off the crushed battlements and dove toward the windows of the throne—presumably fleeing from another volley directed at it. In the second before the beast crashed through the large glass windows, Avani’s heart stopped. Violet was standing on the other side of the glass.

  “Violet!” She screamed. But the cry came too late. The dragon crashed through the windows in an explosion of stone and glass. Avani could scarcely breathe or move, but somehow she willed her body to run. She ran down the battlements then leaped with elven prowess onto the buttress next to the outer wall of the throne room. The injured dragon’s tail stuck out from the gaping hole in the structure, lashing wildly from side to side. She heard an agonized scream—Violet! Avani slung the bow over her shoulder and began the perilous descent down the buttress to save her friend.

  Chapter 23

  “You traveled through a magical gate?” Silas asked incredulously.

  Lucius nodded then looked to Alistair to explain the details of the Elder Gates, but the druid simply sipped a cup of coffee as he sat down by the campfire.

  “It’s kind of a long story,” Lucius finally said.

  Silas rolled his eyes and shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. You’re here now and I’m all the gladder for it. Are you four all that remain of the Drachengarde who I sent?” He exchanged glances with Lucius, Siegfried, Darius, and Dudley.

  “I’m afraid so, sire,” Dudley replied.

  The king sighed heavily then sat down next to Ravenmane, who apparently was now going by the name Becca. Lucius and the others finished retelling everything they’d experienced in the last month. The surprise attack from Kraegyn, the flight to Kroshen, and the successful invasion of Ghadarya. Though the king wasn’t happy to hear they’d disobeyed his orders by neglecting to return to Aldron with Avani, he rejoiced in the demise of Ghadarya’s fall.

  Alistair had also revealed that the dwarven army would attack Arkadeus at first light which gave Silas very little time to rouse his forces for a coordinated strike.

  “Could you delay the dwarves somehow?” Silas asked, glancing at the druid. “Is there a gate we could travel through to inform Balfour?”

  Alistair chuckled. “My dear king, I have forestalled Balfour’s bloodlust for several months now. I’m afraid I have exhausted what little patience he has left. He will wait no longer to strike Memnon’s forces. Dwarves, as you know, are quite stubborn when it comes to war.”

  “Just war?” Lucius said sardonically.

  Alistair gave a faint smile then shrugged to concede the point.

  “Very well,” Silas said standing up. “We move out within the hour, straight for the fortress. Blaise, inform the soldiers.”

  “Yes, sire.” Blaise said, then hurriedly walked off with several knights in tow.

  After a moment, Silas turned to Lucius and Siegfried then spoke to them in a lowered tone. “I assume you plan to get inside the fortress and slay Kraegyn?”

  Lucius nodded. “Of course.”

  “That will prove difficult with all the fighting,” Becca admitted.

  “You know a way around that surely,” Siegfried said, crossing his arms.

  Becca exchanged a glance with Silas then nodded.

  “We’re planning to infiltrate Arkadeus from the hidden gate along the western wall. A soldier will pose as me in the main battle while I lead a dozen cavalry away from the fight to the gate,” Silas said.

  “That will be a dangerous undertaking,” Lucius said. “How will we break away without the Draknoir pursuing us?”

  “The dwarves will attack Memnon’s right flank. We’ll circle their forces and lose any pursuers when the dwarves engage. The only problem is getting there before Balfour leads the charge,” Silas said ruefully.

  “If it comes to it, I can always lend a hand to safeguard your escape,” Alistair interrupted.

  “And how is an old man going to stop a force of Draknoir at our backs?” Silas said.

  Alistair smiled. “I have my ways, your Majesty.”

  They talked for another half hour about their plan then adjourned before the departure to Arkadeus. Lucius made his way through the overgrown bushes, he had walked through earlier and followed a game trail to a clearing. In the clearing stood a mature beech tree with a hollow large enough for a tall man to walk inside. This was the elder gate Alistair had led them out of earlier.

  Tethered to a branch on the tree was Penna and another horse Siegfried had chosen as his steed, Maven. The two horses looked up as he approached, snorted, then returned to eating the grass in the clearing.

  “Come you two. We have quite the journey ahead of us,” he said.

  The rest period before the army set
out for Arkadeus passed quickly. Lucius scarcely had a moment to lie down on the soft grass before Siegfried woke him. He mounted his horse with the others and they rushed through the dark forest. For several hours, the surrounding scenery did not change. Elms, beeches, overgrown bushes, and thickets occupied every space as far as the eye could see. Had they not been keeping a rushed pace, Lucius might have fell asleep in the saddle from the boring surroundings. But eventually they came to a clearing that seemed familiar to Lucius. Then he realized it was no clearing at all. They had come to the burnt remains of the section of forest consumed by Kraegyn’s fire a month earlier. Blackened stumps and charred vegetation dotted the landscape for several miles.

  “This was the Black Dragon’s doing?” Silas asked, scanning the area nervously.

  “Yes,” Lucius said.

  Silas ordered their company to forge ahead, and they made their way through the ashen grave of Ithileo. Their pace increased significantly through the area. Lucius wasn’t sure if this was due to the lack of trees encumbering them or the general unease everyone felt among the burned section of forest. He decided it was probably the latter when he involuntarily nudged Penna to greater speed. In a few miles they were back inside the cover of another lush forest as the first streaks of a red dawn appeared in the sky. Lucius’ stomach tightened when they crested a ridge and through a gap in the foliage, he could see the dark spires of Arkadeus. The formidable fortress was like a black rock that stood out of place among the forests and green hills of Ithileo’s northern border. It looked exactly as Lucius had dreamt it—foreboding and impregnable. The ancient structure was strategically situated on a hill which would allow the Draknoir to easily defend against an invasion. He wondered how they could ever hope to infiltrate the place, much less overtake it.

  As the sun rose from the horizon, the Aldronian army finally crested the ridge overlooking Arkadeus. The trees thinned out along this area, forcing the thousands of soldiers to be exposed when the march toward the fortress began. Lucius watched as the various companies of archers, pike men, men-at-arms, and cavalry arranged themselves into battle formations previously arranged by their commanding officers. Several feet away, Silas watched the army’s preparations grimly then procured a spyglass from his belt. He gazed at the fortress below for several minutes and frowned.

  “What is it, sire?” Lord Blaise asked curiously.

  “There are Draknoir warriors on the battlements. They look to be shouting commands at each other. There’s a handful of them, but I can’t see Memnon or his main force—wait a minute!” Silas said abruptly. “They’re opening the gates... there are thousands of them.”

  Though he didn’t possess a spyglass like the king, Lucius could make out the plethora of Draknoir troops pouring out of the fortress. He could see numerous warriors marching in organized rows and columns. Bringing up the rear of the massive force were Draknoir mounted on Mundi lizards. The sight of the overgrown lizards brought back the terrible memory of fighting them in Kroshen. But that prospect paled in comparison to the moment Kraegyn appeared before them. The Black Dragon swooped up from behind Arkadeus and perched his giant body on the black walls. Even from this distance, Lucius saw the creature’s disconcerting blue eyes and wicked grin.

  “Are you ready for this, brother?” Siegfried said beside him.

  “When is one ever ready to take on the source of his nightmares?” Lucius replied, gripping the hilt of the Requiem Sword tightly.

  “And yet you faced him before in the forest. You have a power which is beyond your fear, Lucius. Rely on it. Trust in Yesu as you have done so many times before,” Siegfried said. He put his hand on his shoulder and squeezed. “Today you will slay that beast.”

  Lucius gave a weak smile, unsure if he could perform such a feat, but comforted that Siegfried had such confidence in him.

  “We should move out soon. They clearly know we’re here so there’s no need to delay this,” Silas said, exchanging glances with Blaise and Rainier.

  “What about the dwarves?” Becca asked.

  “They’re right over there,” Alistar said nonchalantly. The old druid was walking among them when he stopped and pointed to the tree line southeast of the fortress. At first, Lucius couldn’t see anything. Then he saw a mass of figures quickly emerging from the cover of the forest. The dwarves were charging!

  “Balfour! That impertinent little—” Silas stopped short then shook his head miserably. “Blaise, Rainier, rally the men! We charge now.”

  Blaise and Rainier parted from their group and the anxious excitement of the imminent battle spread throughout the ranks. Lucius and Siegfried took their positions with the rest of the royal party which included Becca, Darius, Dudley, and the king. Together with eight mounted knights, they planned to split off from the main force and infiltrate Arkadeus. The task might be easier with the dwarves’ sudden attack. Balfour’s troops would cause confusion among the Draknoir and once the Aldronian army struck, the chaos might provide the cover they needed to get inside the fortress unseen.

  A trumpet sounded within their camp. Lucius recognized it as the preliminary note before the general order to charge was given—characterized by a long, blaring note. Men all around him gripped their weapons tighter and whispered prayers to Yéwa. On Lucius' right, Alistair climbed onto the saddle of a buckskin mare and carried his staff lengthwise across the pommel. The druid possessed no other weapon, but Lucius doubted he’d need anything beyond his staff.

  The trumpet blared once more and Silas yelled the fierce battle cry, “For Aldron!”

  Every soldier repeated the war cry as the front line surged forward. Lucius followed Silas’ lead down the steep ridge. He noticed for the first time, the king of Aldron wasn’t dressed in his usual wartime attire. He had foregone donning the golden plate mail and purple surcoat that would identify his status among the rest of his troops. Instead, he wore simple chainmail and drab leather that helped him blend in with the sea of Aldronians rushing to Arkadeus. Somewhere in the center of the advancing column, a decoy wore his royal armor and carried the Aldronian standard to fool the Draknoir. Lucius prayed that the ruse would work long enough to sneak away from the battle.

  Adrenaline pumped wildly in Lucius’ veins as they reached the hill where Arkadeus stood and met the first wave of Draknoir. The front lines of infantry and cavalry collided with the bloodthirsty beasts in a tangle of longswords and scimitars. Men and horses fell instantly. The Draknoir were merciless, but they suffered immediate casualties as well. Pikes impaled the reptilian warriors and arrows sunk deep into their bodies as the fighting increasing on all sides. Lucius had never seen so much carnage or so much blood.

  Further west, the dwarves cut through a swath of the enemy line and advanced up the hill. With large hammers and axes, the small warriors gleefully ravaged their opposition. Their brazen efforts spurred on the Aldronians and the Draknoir lines broke in a number of places. For a moment, Lucius wondered if they might win this battle prematurely. But then the fires came.

  Four dragons descended upon the battlefield like birds of prey hunting mice. One of the beasts swooped in low and hurled a fireball into the left flank of Balfour’s forces. Screams of agony reached Lucius’ ears as dwarves ran around engulfed in flames.

  “Archers! To the east, two volleys!” Rainier shouted. Hundreds of longbows drew back and fired a volley.

  The black arrows obscured the sky like a gray cloud then descended unto another advancing the dragon. With a terrible cry, the dragon flew upward and past the Aldronian lines. Then a second volley of arrows released. This time the target was a third dragon who’d cut through part of the front line with its talons. Hundreds of arrows found their mark in the beast’s neck, face, and wings. It bellowed angrily, but shook off the arrows like pestering gnats. The dragon took to the air, preparing for a strike directed at Lucius’ position. Beside him, Siegfried released several arrows at the dragon. None of the shots were successful. The green-scaled dragon had flown too hig
h for any arrow to reach him. Now the beast descended quickly at them. But a flurry of lights stopped him midway through his descent.

  “Faeries!” Darius yelled, pointing at the lights.

  Thousands of faeries were flitting around the dragon, cutting it with their small swords in multiple areas of its body. The dragon flailed about with its wings and claws, trying desperately to strike the small creatures and failing miserably. A jubilant cheer broke out among the Aldronians and Lucius smiled in spite of himself. He pictured Syl up there in the heat of battle, hacking and slashing as fast as his tiny body could propel him. One faerie could scarcely do much damage to a dragon, but thousands? That would be a force to be reckoned with, Lucius thought.

  “It’s time to go,” Silas shouted. Their group had yet to engage the Draknoir directly since they were several rows behind the front line where the fighting was fiercest. Silas glanced at Lucius and Siegfried then gestured toward the back of the dwarven lines. “Let’s break away from the flank and circle in a wide arc around the dwarves. We’ll take a path toward the woods for cover.”

  Everyone nodded their understanding. Silas took off at a gallop and Lucius followed closely along with the rest. They steered their horses through the carnage around them, avoiding any direct contact with the Draknoir warriors. A few of the brutes broke through the lines and gave chase, but Lucius and his friends quickly cut them down then sped away. Once they reached the dwarves, their maneuvering became more difficult. Balfour’s soldiers were not organized well, they preferred all-out war with little regard for the rank-and-file column formations of Aldron’s army. This allowed the Draknoir to break through multiple gaps in the dwarvish offense and subsequently, Lucius and the others became easy targets.

  The worst threat came from a pack of Mundi lizard riders who crashed through the dwarves with relative ease. Seeing the group of cavalry fleeing the battlefield emboldened the riders to engage them.

  “I really hate those things,” Lucius said as he urged Penna to a gallop.