Dragon Alliance Dark Storm : Dark Storm

by J. Michael Fluck

  Rom Weir itself sat on an outcropping on the southernmost point of the northern shore and entrance to Sauric Bay. Both Rom and Rem Weirs stood as guards to the entrance of the bay and Draconia; only the illuminated Alliance flag atop the Capital Weir could be seen from the bay entrance. The two weirs themselves were only ten miles apart and functioned as a pinch point to the entrance to the vast Sauric Bay. Any invading fleet would have to fight its way past both fortress weirs to get to the capital city. While these twin weirs were the smallest in comparison to the other eleven, they were heavily fortified with thick walls, carved parapets, and dozens of reinforced firing ports for large catapults, trebuchets, and ballista. The port for the fleet stationed there was actually tucked behind the weir on its bay side to protect it from the sea as well as any invading ships. To reach any docked vessels, enemy ships would have to pass a fusillade of catapult, ballista, and archer fire.

  The largest catapults, the “long arms,” as they were called, had just under a six-mile range, so the entire entrance of the bay could fall under fire from one or both weirs. Rom Weir was only big enough to hold five pairs of dragons: two bronze, one copper, and two brass dragon pairs. Rem Weir mirrored that arrangement. Both weirs were the only two in the Alliance that had the full complement of dragons that they had before the Great War. This was mainly due to the fact that they were the busiest, both guarding the entrance to Sauric Bay and providing escort to not only their fleets, but also the non-weir-assigned fleets based at Draconia.

  The garrison assigned to Rom Weir was also small by comparison. They had one infantry battalion, a reinforced catapult battalion for the fixed weapons that defended the weir, a sapper company, an aerial battalion of mostly hippogriff and giant osprey, a latouc company, a cavalry troop, and a ranger detachment.

  “Sir, our work with the sea elves has also been going very well. We have coordinated our flights with their patrols to aid them in their battles and for greater coverage of the sea lanes. While we are attempting to make our quotas on the crystals, it is difficult with our present schedule,” Keisem stated.

  “We understand, Keisem. Do your best to maintain your output of the comfort crystals, but it is better the citizens of the Alliance are safe than comfortable. Keep up the good work,” Becknor stated. “Grommel, Zalenth, give us Rem Weir’s contribution.”

  “General Becknor, Michenth, Rem Weir shares the same concerns that Rom Weir does with the current tempo of covering flights we are performing and our support to the navy and the sea elves. Our dragons are working for their pay, believe me. Our two garrisons have been serving on numerous excursions with the navy to give the naval infantry some rest as well. We have also conducted several exercises, which focused on defense operations from a seaborne invasion and counterattack, as well as aiding the naval infantry in an assault. Both went well in spite of several coordination issues that arose, which we are currently resolving. We could use more dragons, but we are still holding our own at present. Zalenth and I slew a large kraken two days ago. It was leading a saragwin raiding party against a merchant convoy from Southland and the Canaris Twins, approximately two hundred miles from the mouth of Sauric Bay.

  “One of our brass dragons burned two pirate ships to the water level even though she gave them several opportunities to surrender. We have never seen this type of behavior with pirates before. Usually, they are cowards and will either run or surrender if pressed hard,” Grommel replied.

  “Master Wizard Hestal, for your edification, the kraken were of exceptional magical ability, which made our victory that much more difficult, but they were not expecting a bronze dragon to show up so quickly. To give better news, our long-arm catapults from both weirs performed expertly in a recent training exercise, striking the practice barge targets well over half the time. However, as a veteran of the seas for over a thousand years, I must reinforce my view that my sense of foreboding is peaking. I have never seen such discourse among all creatures of the ocean as I do now. A greater war is coming, but we don’t know why. The saragwin are much more organized than they ever have been. We are also seeing greatly increased power with them and the pirates, but a curious decrease in the talon sails of Morgathian warships. Very puzzling,” Zalenth stated to reinforce his rider’s comments, his pointed snout accenting his sharp words.

  Bronze dragons had a more streamlined appearance, with their scales a dull metallic bronze-green to a deep-bronze color. They had large fins on their tails, and their claws were webbed. Their frilled armored heads had two main horns on the top of their skulls and three smaller horns at the end of their cheek frills. Their mouths terminated almost in a beak, but they still had very powerful jaws for a nasty bite. They were excellent swimmers and could breathe underwater. Their wings were also adapted to propel them through the water as well as they did in the air. The webbing behind their forelimbs and rear legs also aided in their underwater speed. Overall, bronze dragons were strong flyers as well as extremely strong swimmers, feeling at home in both environments. They were the most feared and respected of all creatures who called the water their home.

  Bronze dragons averaged thirty-three to thirty-six yards in length and had wingspans of fifty-five to sixty yards. While their magic abilities were water based, their repertoire of spells was impressive and could certainly give them an edge in a fight over a blue and even a red dragon. They were slightly stronger than a copper dragon, extremely agile in the air, and even more so underwater.

  “This is from a fear of the Alliance Navy and a credit to the dragon and sea-elf escort, as well as our stationing of more wizards on the ships of our fleet,” Admiral Zewal stated.

  “I wish to share your enthusiasm, good Admiral, and it is also a curiosity as to why there have been few attacks on our warships from vessels under the Morgathian or any other standard than that of the pirate Blood Wolf flag,” Zalenth agreed with the senior admiral.

  Grommel was a man of short stature, being at least four inches shorter than Mkel, almost of dwarf height, but he was as tough as they came. His peppery black hair and thick black mustache accented his ruddy sea-worn complexion. He originated from the large northern island of Askala, which was a territory of the Alliance far off the northwest coast of the republic. His family then moved to the Ice Bay area, so he grew up accustomed to the sea and the cold.

  Askala was a large island that lay almost a thousand miles off the northwest coast of the republic. It was now a territory of the Alliance but was once inhabited by large populations of white dragons, ice giants, and gnolls. They plagued the small local communities and tribes, who survived on fishing, selective farming, and limited fur trading. After the Great War, the remainder of the evil creatures were driven off or slain, and then gemstones and gold were discovered. It was now becoming a solid source of the precious materials. A move was afoot to make it officially part of the republic and place a small weir there, but the main issue was that it was snow-covered a good part of the year and desperately needed a teleportation circle and a contingent of dwarves for the mining.

  Grommel was a vaunted veteran of the Great War; he and Zalenth had sent many chromatics to their deaths, as well as a host of other Morgathian foes. His dragonstone spear was a double-edged, long-bladed weapon that had incredible piercing ability and could fire brilliant prismatic energy bolts of great power. He was a good match for Zalenth, who was one of the oldest bronze dragons in the Alliance and had fought in both major dragon wars. Grommel had a unique personality in that he could be very serious in matters of urgency or battle but very light-hearted off duty. He could drink like a dwarf and reminded Mkel of one in spite of being a dragonrider; he had the greatest respect for him and Zalenth, as well as their abilities, wisdom, and general demeanor.

  Rem Weir was a mirror image of Rom Weir as far as construction and layout were concerned. It stood on the tip of the outcropping on the southern entrance to Sauric Bay. It had a similar complement of dr
agons to Rom Weir, with a total of thirteen, having had a young bronze recently hatched. Its garrison was also similar in strength and composition to Rem Weir, for they both were guardian fortresses for the bay and Draconia itself and also supported the Alliance Navy.

  “We understand and respect your opinions and observations and will look into these issues with a renewed vigor, Grommel. We also thank you for your efforts and leadership in these matters,” Becknor stated.

  “Zalenth, we are taking this renewed aggression both on and under the seas very seriously. Much insight and intelligence gathered to date has validated your suspicions. However, the fog is still very thick, and we do not know the exact nature of these signs,” Valianth echoed the dragonrider general’s sentiments.

  “Thank you, sir; Valianth, the concern is appreciated,” Grommel said graciously.

  “Thank you. Bkert, Rapierth, it is Atlean’s turn.”

  “General Becknor, Michenth, Valianth…” Rapierth nodded to all three. “Atlean Weir is currently undergoing a prosperous time. The trade shipping and merchants are doing very well, but the escort requirements are increasing. While for some strange reason, we have not had the local saragwin and pirate incursions that the northern weirs and port cities seem to be experiencing; several ships do get attacked far out at sea. We recently had a fight with a large kraken when we came to the aid of a Freiland raider ship. This beast was as long as a gold dragon and had greatly enhanced magical powers. It proved quite a challenge for me and my rider before we turned it into chum. Our production of lighting crystals is going very well, for the trade companies and merchant guilds are having no problem getting them through the Atlean port. This means that we will be more than ready to initiate the creation of these floating crystals. Our legion is at full strength, and we have a joint exercise with the fleet and naval infantry in two weeks. Our decision to attach a naval infantry battalion to our legion and detach one of ours to the fleet was an excellent choice for the last exercise, so this will be repeated.”

  “General, we have also had the hatching of a male brass dragon and the nesting of a bronze dragon egg in the last month,” Bkert stated with his normal toothy smile.

  “Excellent, Bronze Rider, more metallic dragon births are always welcome,” Valianth answered.

  “And congratulations for a good fight with that huge kraken. I understand you delivered the killing blow to its evil protruding eye with your spear,” Mkel congratulated his friend.

  Bkert replied with only an even wider grin.

  “Yes, Rapierth and Bkert, congratulations for the successful fight in the sea lanes and for the hatching of the new dragons to our fold. It is also good news with your crystal production,” Becknor stated. “I flew over Atlean several days ago with Colonel Therosvet and Valianth. The port and the city are bustling. It is unique in that you are not having as much trouble as the northern ports,” he stated quizzically.

  The city and harbor of Atlean was the second biggest in the Alliance with only Draconia being larger. Atlean Weir towered over the sprawling city of Atlean itself and was also the second-largest weir in the Alliance, again after the Capital Weir. The city spread out for tens of miles inland from the busy, reinforced port that actually had ships stacked up for offloading at times. Atlean was a center for many merchant guilds that preferred to conduct business there rather than Draconia, which fell in the shadow of the central government and stricter regulations.

  Atlean Weir sat inside an immense extinct volcano that rose over twelve thousand feet above the harbor and had a base of over eight miles wide. At its peak before the Great War, it housed over two hundred dragons, but now, even though it had the second largest dragon contingent, those numbers were just around forty. The weir was roughly a mile and a half to the northeast of the harbor. The dwarves had hollowed out part of the mountain with the help of a large contingent of copper dragons after the First Dragon War and reinforced the immense main entrance, which were almost the same dimensions as the Capital Weir’s. It stood at over three times the size of Draden, but much of it was presently unused. At the huge archway entrance apex were the carved stone heads of the five types of metallic dragons, each with two dragonstones embedded in their eyes. While this was five times the number that powered Draden Weir, the immense size of Atlean warranted it, and these dragonstones were created by bronze dragons.

  The lake at the center portion of the Weir was partially carved out and tapped into the old lava tube that went down to an unexplored depth. Even the sea elves had not attempted to find its extent. Water was supplied from both this fissure and by the snowcapped surface of the mountain. The dwarves had managed to dig several tunnels to the temperate height of the peak where the snow collected and receded based on the season but below the permanent snow line. These points collected water to various internal reservoirs and together fed the weir’s needs. Most of the heavy excavation was done by the copper dragons, which were excellent diggers and could move tremendous amounts of rock with their tough claws, which cut it like mithril. Their highly corrosive acid breath weapon could almost melt stone, making it much easier to remove, while their segmented stubby horns could also gouge and crack rock very effectively.

  Rapierth and the Atlean Weir wizard Shaltor worked closely with the commander of the legion assigned there, as well as the Atlean fleet admiral and naval infantry contingent. They assigned their senior bronze dragons as direct liaisons to those military units. Shaltor, who also had a keen eye for business opportunities, ensured he and several select brass dragons worked with the city’s merchant and shipping guilds. This was to both guarantee the free flow of trade to the city and for the weir’s benefit in the crystal and mineral trade, along with other essential goods they needed.

  Atlean City had a central business area surrounding the harbor to handle all the trade. Beyond this area, the guilds of all types, as well as huge markets were prolific. The city’s housing sprawled for well over twenty miles to the east and south of the harbor. Beyond that and to the north past the weir, sparse forests and farmland spread for as far as the eye could see. The harbor itself was not as protected as Draconia because of the flat nature of the port, but it would take a large force even to attempt to invade there. It was defended by its organic fleet and the weir, not to mention the non-weir legion and a large reserve force of volunteers from the city. Atlean enjoyed the second largest volume of imports and exports of goods and products, mostly because of the size of the port and its location in the southern portion of the Alliance. It was also relatively close to Draconia, but not too far either from the southern cities. Atlean was also a center hub of the extensive road network that connected all parts of the Alliance and handled a great deal of merchant traffic that the teleportation circles couldn’t.

  Most of the structures in the city were made of stone and dwarven concrete, with wooden houses sprinkled throughout. There were also several universities and beautiful churches and cathedrals located throughout the city. As with Draconia, the illumination from the lighting crystals sparkled on the water of the harbor and made the city glow as viewed from either the weir or the sea.

  The Atlean Weir legion had a robust configuration. It comprised three infantry battalions (two medium and one heavy) and a naval infantry battalion attached for cross training and flexibility. They also had a mixed cavalry battalion with heavy, medium, and light mounted troops, a catapult battalion, an aerial battalion, a sapper battalion, a support battalion, a ranger company, and a latouc company. Two mountain giant clans and one thunder giant family also resided in the weir and worked with the legion and the dragons on many occasions. They also cooperated with Shaltor on other endeavors of business on behalf of the weir and for mutual benefit. The dragon complement of Atlean Weir was over forty strong with eleven bronze, fourteen copper, and fifteen brass dragons. The weir was also augmented by a regular Alliance Army legion garrisoned on the southern limits of the city.
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  “Yes, sir, we have been lucky,” Bkert answered General Becknor.

  “Indeed, we hope that our luck holds out, but we will be ready if it doesn’t. We have been working with Shaltor in coordinating our legion and the Atlean fleet, but we have more dragons than the other coastal weirs available for missions. If the need arises, we are always willing to help our brothers,” Rapierth added.

  “Again, you and your weir’s efforts are appreciated, but I feel you should maintain all your operations and strength in Atlean, for the need might arise there quickly,” Michenth answered in a slightly foreboding tone.

  “Thank you again, Atlean. Raptoth, Turjon, what say you of Lancastra Weir?” Becknor asked.

  “General Becknor, it is so wonderful you inquired. Lancastra Weir, like our comrades in the north, has seen this war under the ocean increase in ferocity. We have responded to more and more attacks and have even stopped a saragwin infiltration up the Missora River Basin toward our swamp towns. Anything to help our sea elf allies in their fight against these devils, we strive to provide. This, along with several of our dragons eliminating kraken and pirate ships that manage to slip through the navy, has kept us somewhat busy. Raptoth and I came to the aid of one of our Alliance galleys and a warship and sent five Shidanese manned pirate ships down to the depths this month alone. In spite of all this, trade and export are going well, even without any of the Tekend family’s ships at our port,” Turjon stated in his normal crisp, smiling manner, which drew laughter, for it was understood that whenever those merchant ships belonging to the powerful Enlightened senator’s family guild sailed, they were not attacked for some strange reason, even without escort. This had led to many speculations regarding the business dealings that the wealthy family conducted.

  “In spite of these events, it has not affected trade a great deal, and we are making enough lighting and heating crystals to meet our current demand. We could even take on a moderate amount of production of these levitation variants. To keep matters moving, the weir is conducting business in a prosperous manner and the workings of Lancastra are also running smoothly, even our water distribution system. We have created four dragonstone weapons in the last month, including one wizard’s staff. On a lighter note, Raptoth’s mate is ready to fly,” he said, still with his crisp smile on his face.