Dragon Alliance: Rise Against Shadow
Page 45
“I have to tend to their wounded, my lady,” Watterseth said as they started to ride over to the wagons where they had collected the wounded soldiers from the fight with the orcs.
“No one on our side was killed, but they have ten wounded, my dear holy man,” Beckann informed him as she quickly surveyed the support corps wagons and the cavalry platoon.
“That will be solved soon, and bless you, my lady,” Watterseth replied. The support corps captain in charge of the train started to get the wagons moving again to facilitate the supplies getting to the village, but a small contingent remained behind to get his own wounded back as well. Beckann nodded to him to let him know that she would accompany the wagon train the remainder of the way to battlefield.
“Dragonriders, Master Wizard, Weir soldiers; many thanks for a job well done. You have saved countless Alliance lives and defeated a powerful force bent on our destruction. Please let me call for healers for your dragons,” General Daddonan stated.
“Have your healers tend to your wounded first, General Daddonan, we dragons heal quickly,” Gallanth spoke out.
“I understand, my good Gallanth, but Talonth’s wounds look deep,” the general replied.
“I will be all right, General. Your healers can apply aloras after all your men are treated,” Talonth explained.
“Yes, but if it weren’t for you all, there wouldn’t be many of my men left to attend to,” Daddonan lightly argued back.
“It is our honor to serve your brave legion,” Strikenth said to ensure solidarity among the dragons.
“I understand, my good dragons. I underestimated the stubbornness of dragonkind,” General Daddonan said with a half smile as he turned his head toward the three dragonriders standing beside him, all chuckling slightly. “The cavalry and the hippogriffs riders are chasing down the fleeing remnants of the sorcerer’s army. My men are now collecting anything of interest in their encampment and cleaning up bodies for burning and burial.”
This was a standard Alliance practice, to burn all but human corpses, which were buried. It was as much a guard against disease as a final deference to your enemies. The chromatic carcasses would be taken back to the capital and several other Weirs to be skinned and processed for armor and weapons. The bones, organs, and hide would all be utilized. Their synthensiums will be transformed into powerful components for the Alliance wizards to be made into potions and other elixirs. This was also done so that they could not be made into weapons for those who could not control them or those who would use them for evil or selfish purposes.
“General, we could use a couple of men to help us apply the aloras salve we carry with us, if you could spare a few. They do not need to be healers,” Mkel said. General Daddonan immediately pulled his seeing crystal and spoke Colonel Ponsellan and Colonel Sheer’s names. Both responded very quickly.
“Gentlemen, I need a platoon to help the dragonriders apply aloras to their noble mounts,” Daddonan requested.
“Sir, I have to reorganize my men and tally enemy killed …,” Ponsellan started to whine, but Colonel Sheer interrupted him: “I will send a platoon over immediately.” He knew that Ponsellan was attempting to claim more of the Morgathian and orc dead as credited from his battalion, as much to make up for his almost fatal mistake during the battle as for his own sense of personal glory.
He may have it, Sheer thought to himself, as he called to one of his company commanders who had the most strength left after the battle to send over a platoon to the dragons. The infantry captain had to almost shout to his men to be quiet for the exuberance of getting a chance to get that close to a dragon. He quickly picked one of his platoons and sent them off.
The platoon jogged over to the metallic dragons with surprising speed, considering they had just finished a tough battle and were all still in full armor. The lieutenant yelled to his men to fall into line and turned to face the dragonriders. “At your service sir,” he spoke plainly to General Daddonan but with a hint of excitement as he rendered a hand salute.
“Lieutenant, have your men ground their weapons and armor and break into three sections, one for each of the dragonriders,” General Daddonan ordered.
“Yes sir,” he replied, saluted the general again, and then turned to his men. “First squad to Gallanth, second squad to Talonth, and third squad to Strikenth,” he ordered. His squad sergeants replied with a salute and immediately started to have their men stow their equipment in a line, and then they moved toward the respective dragons. Mkel, Lordan, and Padonan walked them to their mounts and handed the large jars of the healing salve while giving them instructions on how to apply the aloras and how to take care while they were climbing on the dragons.
One young soldier had just applied an aloras-soaked cloth onto one of Talonth’s wounds, when he noticed the greenish-blue blood almost grab the cloth and drain the salve from it. “Sergeant, did you see that? Its blood is alive,” the startled soldier yelled.
“It is, lad; dragon blood carries its own life force. How do you think they make dragonstone weapons, or even heating and cooling crystals? This is also how they heal quickly and derive much of their power,” the sergeant explained to his charge.
“Your sergeant is correct,” Talonth spoke to the startled and slightly embarrassed young legionnaire.
“We thank your men for their help, sir. This will allow them heal even faster. They will be back to full strength in a day or two now,” Colonel Lordan told General Daddonan.
“Anything for our Alliance dragons; speaking of that, which one of you will be staying out here until we clean this mess up and get everyone back to Handsdown, and eventually to Battle Point?” he asked.
Lordan gave Mkel a quick wink as if to say he knew this was coming. Jodem then spoke up, “General, all three of these mighty dragons have been injured in this great fight. They need to take their leave to return to their Weirs to rest in case of another conflict. I will request a Capital dragon to stay behind for a day or so to help cover your clearing out of any leftover resistance, and I will stay as well if necessary.”
“Master Wizard, I am honored by your offer of assistance and both know of and have seen your power, but I am concerned about the return of more chromatic dragons and fear you would be overwhelmed without metallic support,” General Daddonan expressed his concerns.
“General, Gallanth and I have to return to Draden, for our envoy from Freiland is expected to arrive any day now,” Mkel responded, “and we must prepare for the monthly senate meeting in Draconia. I might be requested to testify regarding the POE senators calling for a reduction in veteran benefits and budget decreases for the military. You have my word, sir, that if a chromatic threat arises, Gallanth and I will be by your side in the blink of an eye. Plus Gallanth doesn’t sense any impending attacks, especially from chromatics, and he has a sense of these things.” Mkel was attempting to avoid an argumentative situation while also giving a promise based on the renowned gold dragon power of foresight.
“Sir, I talked to General Becknor a couple of minutes ago on my seeing crystal. He is sending Bagram and Tigrenth from the Capital Wing to stay with the legion until you return to Battle Point,” Padonan said. “They will be arriving within the hour with an entourage to view the battlefield and talk to you and your senior commanders, as well as to pick up the chromatic carcasses.”
“That is good news; I look forward to seeing General Becknor, and I have confidence in your Capital Wing brother lieutenant, Strikenth,” Daddonan acknowledged as he nodded to the silver dragon. Lordan met eye contact with Padonan to acknowledge a good call.
“General, as soon as the aloras salve is applied to our dragons’ wounds, we must take to the air to collect the chromatics’ treasure hoards. We will divide it when we get it back at Handsdown,” Mkel explained.
“Dragonriders, I would ask that you bring it back here first, so my men c
an see it with their own eyes. Then you can take it back to Handsdown, where I will have my legion’s money managers meet you. They will have containers for you to take your portions back to your Weirs. The question now is, how will we divide it?” Daddonan asked.
“Sir, with Colonel Lordan’s and Lieutenant Padonan’s concurrence, I suggest that whatever we bring back, Battle Point keep half, with the other half split three ways between us,” Mkel suggested.
“I concur, your men have fought hard and well today, but I must insist on you personally ensuring that the families of the slain legionnaires be given a bonus over the normal pension due to a veteran’s surviving family,” Lordan insisted.
“I will personally see to it, my good colonel,” Daddonan replied with a determined smile.
“Padonan, is Strikenth strong enough to gather treasure?” Mkel asked.
“The chromatics fought fiercely, and he is injured, but between our dragon’s healing powers and the aloras salve, my friend will be up to collecting the spoils of victory,” Padonan answered with his usual half smile.
“Let’s redistribute a little treasure. I almost feel like an Enlightened senator,” Lordan joked; all those around him started to laugh at his sideways insult to the Enlightened senators’ misguided and false premise of wealth distribution. They feigned their concern for the poor and pushed to give free welfare to those that did not deserve it, in exchange for votes. All three dragonriders remounted, as the Battle Point soldiers backed away from the dragons.
“Good hunting, my friends,” General Daddonan yelled to them. They all waved as their dragons turned and took a couple of steps to get the forward momentum to take off without knocking the soldiers on the ground off their feet with the downdraft of their wings.
“Where are they going, sir?” one of the soldiers standing close to General Daddonan asked.
“To bring back a little gold and treasure for the legion,” Daddonan explained. “They are going to collect the slain chromatics’ treasure hoards. It is a kind of battle spoils for a victorious dragon to take their opponent’s treasure; for chromatics prize their accumulated wealth almost above their own lives. It is also a final insult to them to have their stolen treasures used for good, and especially for the people of the Alliance.”
Gallanth emerged from teleport in the low mountain ranges that lie over the border of the northwestern Morgathian lands. He sharply veered to the right and descended toward a particularly strange rock outcropping on the side the lower mountain. He took the mental picture from Thurex of the location of his lair before he died to ascertain the general location. I smell his lair on the south side of this mountain, Gallanth said to Mkel. “This land is desolate, and the farm fields look poorly maintained in the valley,” Mkel stated as he looked through his crossbow sight. It is the sign of oppression and collectivism, Gallanth answered as he banked around the rocky mountainside. Mkel was surprised to not hear the beating of chromatic wings to challenge their presence in the evil dragons’ own territory. I think that the demon dragon was not challenged in these lands, even by his chromatic kin. This would also explain the desolation of the area, Gallanth explained, answering his rider’s mental question, and we likely killed all the chromatics in this portion of the region, for even under the service of Tiamat and the Morgathian Empire, they still need a large expanse of territory, and Morgathia stretches three thousand miles by three thousand miles. This will create many openings for younger, hungry chromatics to take their place.
This would also mean that his lair would likely not be guarded, Gallanth continued, for chromatic dragons, especially reds, are extremely protective over their hoards and do not trust anyone or anything around them. Gallanth started to back wing and hover just in front of a large outcropping that opened to a huge cave. “It isn’t very well hidden, my friend,” Mkel stated.
“He did not fear anything save Tiamat herself, or the Usurper Five, and I am surprised he was serving under that Morgathian sorcerer. While he was a Talon sorcerer, he was not powerful enough to subjugate a dragon of that strength. There must have been something else motivating him. A possible pact with the Talon Council in exchange for the ritual of his demonization process with the dark crystal,” Gallanth surmised.
“Yes, this with what Vorgalla told us at Handsdown lends to a great deal of intrigue with the list of recent events. We will have to see what the General’s Council’s advisors and the Wizard Council of Thirteen can piece together, as well as Eladra if she is willing to help,” Mkel theorized.
“It will also make this month’s senate gathering interesting. Now let us see what Thurex used to guard his treasure, Gallanth said. As he hovered closer to the landing, a force wall spell repelled him.
“Simple but effective; let us see how powerful his legacy spells are,” Gallanth said as he backed off and fired a sunburst beam from his golden eyes and followed it up by a plasma fireball. Mkel fired an exploding-tipped bolt at the same time. The magic shield glowed and shook from the combined impacts and then gave way as its magically derived light disappeared. Gallanth then landed on the outcropping and furled his wings. He walked into the large cave, in which he barely fit, being slightly larger than the vanquished red dragon. Dragons can cast legacy spells that will remain intact with their power by using a drop of their blood to give it energy. Stay mounted, my friend. It is not uncommon for chromatics to place multiple traps in their lairs.
Mkel lowered the mithril alloy crystal visor on his helmet, which also allowed him to see in the dark, as it was powered by a small dragonstone, and made sure the two spell shields from his dragonstone weapons were at full strength. The cave was scarred with several scorch marks on the walls and littered with hundreds of blackened bones on the ground. Mkel guessed they were sacrifices given to the red dragon as tribute, for they loved the taste of human flesh, especially young maidens and children. All of a sudden, Gallanth’s head and neck were engulfed in flames. His quick reaction, magic shield, and tough, almost fireproof hide kept the flames from causing him any injuries, but it would have killed or severely injured a chromatic dragon. Mkel’s shields from both Markthrea and Kershan protected him from being burnt. Gallanth backed away from the wall of flame and raised his left talon, invoking a freezing ray spell. The icy beam extinguished the flames, and he then proceeded deeper into the mountain.
The cave opened up to a larger chamber, approximately one hundred fifty yards across, with a roof that rose fifty yards above the floor. A huge mound of gold and silver coins was piled in the middle of the chamber, along with various artifacts and precious gemstones. Gallanth scanned the hoard quickly and was just about to step into the chamber when he backed off. Mkel, fire a bolt at the treasure, he said telepathically. Mkel quickly replaced his exploding-tipped bolt with a standard one and fired. Just as the projectile streaked into the large room, an icy beam shot across the chamber entrance and was reflected multiple times throughout the cave. It finally subsided and froze the whole inside of the cavern.
“Clever Thurex, he had the ice trap focused from one side of the cave and reflected it off the mirror polished opposite side to strike an intruder multiple times if they entered and did not know the command to nullify it. This was meant for a rival red dragon in particular, not very trusting of their own kind,” Gallanth surmised. “I estimate just over a half a million gold, silver, and platinum coins, and at least one hundred fifty good quality gems. A sizable hoard, but not quite what I expected him to have. If you look over here, there are marks in the stone floor that indicate he removed over half of his treasure very recently, which doesn’t make sense for a red dragon. Especially a demon red, for they do not part with their hoard easily; this is curious.”
“Well, in any event, the remainder is the Alliance’s now, save several of those gems for us and Silvanth. What do you say about giving that fortress at the entrance of the valley a little visit, my friend?” Mkel asked.
“I will hit the right tower with an exploding bolt, you hit the left tower with a fireball, and we’ll fly over the wall, knocking off anyone defending it. Maybe you can give them a spell to choke on when we pass over the fortress?” Mkel suggested as he proposed a quick plan as Gallanth leaped from the ledge and nose-dived toward the river far below. He dove almost straight down to gain speed and pulled up barely a hundred feet above the river. The speed of the maneuver forced Mkel to brace himself against his crossbow mount, but he recovered and prepared Markthrea to fire.
As they got to within a half mile from the fortress, he could see the defenders on the wall and towers finally recognize the threat that was coming their way. Not much they can do about it now, Mkel thought to himself as he lined the crosshairs of Markthrea’s sight on the right tower. He could feel Gallanth’s neck and body tense up as he gathered the plasma fireball together from deep in his synthensium. The large gold then unleashed the glowing fiery ball of energy, which streaked toward the left tower. Mkel waited a few seconds and fired. Both projectiles impacted within a second of each other, blowing great holes in the towers and actually crumbling the top of the left tower that Gallanth had struck.
The soldiers on the wall did not have time to load their ballista, and the archers who did manage to fire arrows either missed Gallanth or bounced them off his heavily armored hide and magic shield. The gold dragon streaked just over the parapets, sending several Morgathian soldiers hurtling toward the ground from the windblast. As Gallanth flew over the fortress courtyard, he cast an incendiary cloud spell over the barracks building. A dark reddish black cloud of sparking vapor emanated from his mouth and descended on the stone building and enshrouded it, causing it to enfilate. Dozens of Morgathian soldiers began running out choking and then succumbed to the flames. Gallanth lowered his tail, hitting the opposite wall with his rounded arrowhead-shaped plate, taking out a five-yard by ten-yard section of the blackened stone face.