by Cat Wilder
Ka-boom!
It blew a hole in the stone wall, and I felt the entire tower quiver. Would it collapse upon us? I noticed both Izzy and Garik pause to look around. And then Qaath held out his hand, palm down, and spoke an odd word.
A long, deadly looking spear flew up out of the casket and into his hand.
"That's it," Garik shouted. "The Dragon Lance."
Dragon Lance of Ur Cathor.
The Dragon Lance had a six-foot shaft, lacquered shiny black, with serpentine red, gold, and blue dragons carved into its length. The elaborate lance head stretched it out with another two feet of silvery, razor sharp steel. I saw five rubies embedded in the lance head, and an empty socket for another. I could feel magic pulsing from it the second it touched his hand.
We all stared at him. He grinned wickedly, and then pointed the lance at me.
"No you don't!" Izzy cried, and threw her sword.
He kicked off from the wall to fly out of the way, giving me the opportunity to shoot him with two more arrows. Then I hit him with Percussion.
"Get him, Garik!" I shouted, taking off running toward the vampire. I didn't think the arrows really hurt him, but the percussion spell slammed him against the far wall. The undead necromancer fell to the floor, but jumped right back to his feet. So I hit him with Percussion again. As Qaath slammed back against the wall, Garik, Izzy, and I converged on the evil vampire.
He scowled at us, and then launched himself up and away a split second before we reached him. I spun around to see him atop the stairs, and watched with frustration as he hurried through the door and onto the top of the tower.
"Shit, do you think he can fly away?" I asked.
Garik's eyes widened, and then he took off running up the stairs, taking the steps four and five at a time. I led Izzy up, but not as fast. I heard them fighting before I reached the halfway point.
We emerged out into twilight. There remained enough indirect sunlight to see well, but it was getting darker quickly. Izzy had her sword back, so rushed past me to engage. Qaath easily defended himself against Garik's sword attack, using only the Dragon Lance. I paused to wonder how a wooden shaft could parry a sword without being hacked to pieces.
Magic. I shook my head, trying to find a weapon with both of my friends so close and battling him. And I needed something that could actually hurt him. Fire? I pulled the Fire Whip off my belt, and sent it snaking across the floor. Its fires came alive, but my mana could intensify the flames even more. Maybe even hot enough to dismember a drow vampire.
"Hey, vamp, wanna have some hot BDSM playtime?"
He paused to glance my way, a look of confusion in his burning red eyes. Maybe he didn't know what BDSM meant? Maybe he liked the idea of bottoming to me? Either way, his hesitation allowed Garik's sword to impale him.
"It takes more than that to slay a vampire, dragon!"
He backhanded Garik, sending the powerful dragon-knight flying across the tower. Then he kicked Izzy away, before turning on me. I lashed out at him, striking the vampire across the face.
He howled in agony and fury.
So I lashed him again, and again. I laughed, so pleased I'd found a weapon he had no defense against. My battle joy ended when he spun the Dragon Lance around and sliced my whip in two. Its magic died instantly.
He stalked toward me, spinning the lance around like some kind of Kung Fu master. I froze, my body stealing itself for the pain of brutal death yet again. Out the corner of my eyes, I saw Izzy roll onto all fours, shaking her head to clear the cobwebs. I threw my hand out toward her. Qaath swung the Dragon Lance in a decapitating blow.
"Get him, Izzy!"
The vampire slanted a look back her way. I needed nothing more. I ducked under the lance, lunged and spun at the same time. My foot slammed into his face as he turned back toward me. His arms flew wide, I stopped myself from hitting him with a thunderbolt, and instead I caught hold of the Dragon Lance.
With a savage twist, I wrenched it from his grasp. I continued to turn, which became a spin. I swung that long Dragon Lance with all my strength, aiming for his throat.
Qaath cried out, jumping back just enough to make me miss. It took all my strength and skill to reverse the direction of that lance.
I thrust it through his black heart.
The undead necromancer cried out, looked embarrassed, and then growled at me. So that didn't kill him either. I yanked it out of his chest, and swung it at his neck. Qaath wasn't fast enough to save himself again.
"Got him!" I cried as his head came off and flew over the side and into the chasm. A red box appeared before his headless body. Mana 522. So I grabbed his corpse, which rewarded me with a heady rush of 522 points of mana. And my Mana bar flashed, showing I had 1146.
I spun and planted my foot in his body's chest, sending it over the side, too. "Good riddance."
"Yes!" Izzy and Garik shouted.
I lifted the Dragon Lance and shouted my victory to the heavens.
Chapter 13
Garik knew the way, so I brought up the rear. I never liked being last in line, but loathed the idea of Izzy being alone in back. Her riding skills remained marginal, and she had no real desire to improve. I quickly learned that she'd fall behind if put in the rear.
I wore all my enchanted objects: Bracers, gloves, and rings. I still couldn't believe Qaath Yazn destroyed my Fire Whip. I wanted to cut his head off again. The Dragon Lance remained safely in my inventory. I tried to use Bind on it, so I wouldn't drop it if killed, but something about the lance's enchantment wouldn't allow me to bind it to me.
The entire trip south from the Black Tower wended through the forested foothills and lower mountains. The towering, snow-topped peaks loomed over us to the east, my left. They reminded me of the Alps, even though I'd never seen a real mountain, much less a mountain range, in real life.
We'd been on the road for eight days since slaying Qaath Yazn. I hadn’t seen another living being in three days. We passed by burnt-out farmsteads and villages every day. In some cases the crops in the fields were untouched by fire, but I didn't see any farmers left to tend them. Neither did we see any livestock. Garik said Vikarous probably ate them.
My health, stamina, and mana all ticked back up at one point per hour each. So I'd already maxed out on health and stamina, but mana didn't have an upper limit. So my mana stood at 1337. At that rate, and provided I didn't have to use any magic, I'd possess almost 1400 by the time we reached Vikarous' lair.
We trudged up a steep incline, walking our horses. An old growth forest crowded the road to either side, keeping us in shade. Once we reached the top, we'd mount up again. In that terrain, we spent as much time walking the mounts as riding them. I missed flat country.
"We're in luck," Garik called as soon as he reached the peak. "Horncastle survives."
Izzy and I walked up and stopped one to either side of him. Horncastle looked very far away to my eyes, but I could tell we'd reach it before sunset. Garik told us we would turn eastward there, so the dragon's lair waited only a few more days away. Unfortunately, we'd have to sell the horses in town and continue on foot. No one built roads to dragon lairs, not even in awesome games like Battle for Glory.
"It's a beautiful sight," I said.
The market town of Horncastle straddled the trade road into Gotari. It squatted in the saddle between two sharp "horns" and behind massive stone walls. The horns looked like natural pyramids to me, but Garik claimed they were mountain peaks. And I thought we were still in the foothills.
The builders incorporated the original castle into the town's western walls. They painted the walls and citadel bright white, with red battlements. The kingdoms of Gotari and Kolms tended to leave their defensive works either bare stone, or stone covered in a pale yellow plaster. The Dragon Realms whitewashed everything. Nothing said Dragon Realms like whitewashed walls and red tile roofs.
We stood on the trade road, so west of and lower than the town. It looked quite formidable from my pers
pective. Since we stood lower than the town, I couldn't see anything but the citadel and western walls. I didn't see anyone on the trade road.
"How do you know there's anyone alive up there?" I asked.
He pointed above the town. "See the smoke. That's the little cloud you get above a living city. Also, my vision is better than yours, so I can see soldiers patrolling the walls."
"How come there are no farms or villages outside of town? Where do they get their food?"
"All of their farmlands lie on the east side of town," Garik said. He scowled toward Gotari. "For centuries, Gotari raiders have made it impossible to populate the lands to the west."
I could see that. The jagged ridge that Horncastle rested atop went for days in both directions. The thick forest also made it difficult for mounted raiders. Besides, who'd want to raid someone defended by dragon-knights who could fly and breathe fire?
"Why are we just sitting here staring like bumpkins?" Izzy asked. "Let's get into town, find an inn, and get a nice hot bath."
A real bed and a hot bath sounded divine. We slept under the stars most nights. We hadn’t used the tent since escaping the rain more than a week back. And we hadn’t found an inn that offered baths in six days. Yeah, I felt dirty.
"Dame Ana has an inn in Horncastle," Garik said. "I stay there every time I pass through. She offers hot baths."
"Lead on, my friend," I said.
We made it halfway down the hill before I saw the signs of recent battle. Burnt and broken wagons littered the side of the road. The charred remains of oxen and horse lay within the debris. A swath of trees about a hundred feet long lay burned to the ground.
"Dragon attack?" I asked.
"Yes," Garik said. "Looks like Vikarous is making life tough for Horncastle."
We passed two more battle sites that showed multiple fire strikes by Vikarous on merchants. No wonder we had the roads to ourselves. It proved even worse on the trade road to Gotari. The charred remains of the slaughtered beasts of burden looked fresh. So it appeared that Vikarous remained active in the area.
"These are all pretty recent," Izzy said. "Do you think Vikarous is just getting around to Horncastle?"
"Looks that way," Garik said. "But the town had two dragon-knights defending it last time I passed through. That should be enough to keep the town relatively safe, and at least the north-south trade road open."
I gave him a sharp look. "You said other dragons couldn't morph around him."
"No, I said we couldn't shift within his domain. Horncastle is just outside of his domain."
Izzy eyes narrowed. "How's that possible? You said his lair is just three days away. We've been seeing the signs of his attacks for the last week."
"His actual domain is only about two days walk around his lair," Garik said, unfazed by our questions. "But he can terrorize a much wider region."
Armed and armored men came out as we approached the town gates. I hadn't seen the bunkers until they emerged. Defense against dragon attacks? The entrances faced the walls, so it would be hard for a dragon to breathe fire straight into them.
"Declare yourselves!"
We reined in. Garik lifted his hand, palm toward them. "Peace. I am Sir Garikarous, the High King's Royal Envoy returning from a mission to Gotari."
"Welcome to Horncastle, my lord," the soldier said. "And your companions?"
My girlfriend puffed up and proudly announced, "I am Izzy Szin, Princess of the Zevalli Drow."
Yeah, the soldiers all stared at her. Stared at her tits. I shook my head and got their attention.
"And I'm Carly, a warrior-mage and humble friend of these two most esteemed personages." Garik and Izzy turned in their saddles and looked at me. I wagged my brows, and continued. "We've been on the road a long time, and really need to find room, board, and baths."
"Not necessarily in that order," Izzy added.
The soldiers all gave me suspicious looks. Why me? Izzy was the evil dark elf. Why didn't they give her the evil eye?
"Please inform Sir Pakarous and Dame Jenaria that I'm passing through," Garik said. "We'll be staying at Ana's Inn if they need to speak with me."
"Yes, my lord, we'll inform the citadel's commander," the soldier said, and waved us through. "But Vikarous killed both of the dragon-knights last week."
Garik stared at them a long moment, before nodding and continuing onward. Izzy and I silently followed the dragon-knight through the gate. The long and curved gatehouse tunnel opened up on a bustling intersection. Vendors selling cooked food and raw produce were scattered along the walls in all directions. Members of every race crowded the streets, with only a slight numerical advantage to humans. I spotted the most dwarves I'd ever seen in any city.
Garik dismounted, so Izzy and I followed his example.
We followed the street along the base of the wall and turned at the third corner. The narrow passage twisted and turned, some stretches wider than others, and we passed by a few very old, large trees in the road, too. I saw no rhyme or reason to the layout of the buildings. They just threw them up anywhere, with no consideration to straight lines in the street. The buildings didn't stand side-by-side in a straight line, or even oriented in the same directions. All were whitewashed stone, with red tile roofs, though on most the whitewash looked pretty faded.
"How do these trees survive in the streets?" I asked.
Most were olive trees, not terribly tall, but with thick trunks and gnarly branches cut back just high enough for men driving wagons. We had to lead our mounts to avoid getting knocked off.
"In the Dragon Realms we like wider streets shaded by trees," Garik said. "Horncastle looks more like a Gotari town than Dragon Realms, so you'll see a lot more trees in the streets the deeper we move into the kingdom."
We finally reached a plaza. A simple fountain provided water, surrounded by hard-packed earth. I counted three olive trees, one oak, and two plum trees in that plaza, all of which looked ancient, with tables and chairs set up under them. That plaza jutted off in three different directions, not even close to square or round like in most cities.
These people could seriously use an urban planner. At least learn how to build a straight street or two.
On the north side of the plaza stood a two-story, red-roofed structure. It was the only building I'd seen not whitewashed. Instead, they'd covered the stone in beige-colored plaster and had painted a pair of pastoral scenes to either side. Men loitered outside its open double doors. Garik made for the stable next door.
"Hello, Hank," Garik called to a tall, mean-looking man examining a horse's hooves. "Are you buying right now?"
Hank stood up straight and squinted at us. "Garik?" His face lit up. "The king hasn't thrown you in the hole yet? Will wonders never cease?"
They embraced like old friends. Garik introduced first Izzy, and then me. Unlike the gate guards, Hank remained cool and deferential toward Izzy, but smiled warmly at me.
"Not for me trying," Garik said. "He punishes me by sending me off to places like Gotari."
Hank grimaced. "That sucks goblin balls."
"You don't know the half of it," Garik continued. He suddenly looked grim. "So I heard Pakarous and Jenaria both died defending the town."
"Just last week," the stableman said. "First, the feral dragon injured Dame Jenaria so badly she was bedridden. Sir Pakarous flew off in a rage, and never came back. That night Vikarous attacked the castle, and the Lady came staggering out to do battle. It wasn't much of a fight, I'm told."
"Damn."
"It got worse. Vikarous said he'd be back, and we'd better give up either a beautiful maiden, or a chest of gold. Or else." He gave Garik a calculating look. "As soon as the garrison commander learns you are here, expect him to demand you do your duty and defend the town."
Garik looked sick. He pulled his cloak away to reveal the enchanted collar. "The Gotari orc king put his damned collar on me. I can't morph until it's removed."
The dragon-knight changed the subje
ct back to the horses. Hank looked them over carefully, and then checked the tack just as meticulously. Then he and Garik began haggling over each and every horse, and each piece of tack. I watched in amazement as my friend squeezed every bit of value out of Hank. Afterwards, we divided up the proceeds equally.
"Let's get a room and figure out what we're going to do," Garik said. "Without Pakarous' and Jenaria's help, we have to rethink our plans."
Chapter 14
I led the way to the inn. Izzy might be dreaming of a hot bath, but I wanted a room to dump our weapons and gear first. Maybe a beer or two to wash the road dust out of my mouth, before we ate. I wanted to eat first, because after a hot bath I would probably fall asleep.
We luxuriated in the dark and cool of the inn’s common room after escaping the heat and dust of the streets. We paused upon entering to let our eyes adjust and soak in the mouth-watering smells from the kitchen.
"Ana might've been a savage fighter, but that woman can cook," Garik said.
"You fought by her side?" I asked.
"No. She served a different king, but we fought together as part of the same army standing against Raax and his orc horde," Garik said. "The orcs tried to conquer the Five Kingdoms first, before we turned them away and toward Gotar. She earned the nickname Orcslayer during those campaigns."
"And now all I do is slay hunger," a tall, dark-haired woman said from the kitchen door.
"Ana!" Garik cried, and they hugged.
Ana had to be six feet if she was an inch, and an attractive thirty-something. Her snug wine-red dress showed off her strong, athletic body. I saw a few gray hairs in her dark brown hair, braided down her back. Barefooted, she moved as quietly as a ghost.
"Be welcome," she said to Izzy and me. "I am your host, Ana. How may I serve you?"
"I am Izzy Szin of the Zevalli," Izzy said. "I will be eternally grateful for a nice, hot bath."
"I think Garik and I are more interested in beer," I said. "But, yes, I think we all would appreciate a bath."
