“Hey, did you hear that, Bastion?” Tamara said, winking at the wizard. “We're awesome.”
“Well, I know I am. Can't really speak for you, big sister.”
“Watch it, kid,” she growled and punched him on the shoulder.
Her brother just snickered.
Tamara extended a hand to Simon, who shook it firmly.
“If you need us, you know where we are, right?” she asked.
“I do.”
Simon shook Sebastian's hand as well and thanked them both again.
He watched as they clasped hands and then their Gate pulled them into the void.
“You can come out now,” Simon said as he rolled his eyes.
The mesa was empty, except for the enormous carcass of the primal, parts of it still smoldering, and Simon felt exhaustion start to creep up on him.
“How did you know I was here?”
“Where else would you be, Aeris?” he asked as he turned and saw the little guy floating toward him. “You're much too curious to have waited down below with Kronk where it was safe.”
“You have an odd definition of safe, my dear wizard. Why, a white dragon could have swooped down on us at any time. Besides, the paladin was in good hands. The elvish maiden left one of her people to care for the woman until the battle was over.”
“How is she?” Simon asked anxiously.
“Resting comfortably and very cranky that she couldn't rejoin the battle. Hard to do with broken ribs, is what I told her.”
“She has broken ribs? Ouch.”
“Had broken ribs. She's almost completely healed now and waiting for you to transport her home.”
“Amazing the way her powers work. Well, we're done here, I suppose. And the end of the primal means the end to all of the lesser white dragons. Plus, the water elementals will have been drawn back to their own realm with the death of the primal dragon. I wonder if it affected the battle at the dwarven capital? We'll have to find out.”
“But not tonight, my dear wizard. You look done in. Worry about that after you take the paladin home and then head home yourself for some food and sleep. Tomorrow, as they say, is another day.”
“You're starting to sound like Kronk, you know that. One worrywart is all I can handle, thanks.”
“Bah, I wasn't worried,” Aeris said as Simon began to chant the incantation for the Gate spell. “Well, except for when I thought you'd been eaten. And then it was only because I knew Kronk would blame the whole thing on me when I told him.”
“Thanks so much. It always makes me feel so warm and fuzzy when you share your true feelings.”
They exchanged a long look and then both wizard and elemental burst out laughing.
“Okay then,” Simon said. “Grab hold. We'll head down and pick up Liliana and Kronk and then head for home. It's been a very long day.”
Afterword
Massive wings stirred up dust and crusty snow as the dragon landed on the flat mesa. It was almost a third as long as the plateau itself and every step shook the ground as it moved its immense bulk.
On either side of it, two lesser dragons landed more gracefully and hung back, allowing their leader to move forward alone.
The dragon approached the remains of the primal white dragon. Weeks had passed since it had been killed and its carcass was covered with thin snow and patches of ice.
The dragon glared down at the remains and then lifted its heavy head, yellow eyes blazing and scanned the rest of the area.
It saw the frozen bodies of red and white dragons, drakes and the mutated dragonoids. As its eyes fell on these, it snorted with clear disgust.
“So the reports were true,” it rumbled, its thick bass voice making the frigid air tremble.
“Yes, great one,” one of the escorts said respectfully. “No sign of any white dragons for weeks. No communication between our people and them.”
“Hmm.”
The dragon stomped forward several more paces and lowered its head to sniff at something on the ground. It was a broken arrow, tipped with shining steel that seemed to glow in the cloudy light of the overcast sky.
The dragon sniffed again and then reared back, roaring a challenge.
Its escorts unfurled their wings and rushed forward, seeking an enemy that wasn't there.
“What is it, master?” one of them asked timidly as their leader stared at the ground, its neck arched and its eyes bulging.
“Elves. I smell elves here. It is they who attacked my sibling.”
“But master, we have reports that humans are responsible for...”
The huge head, as large as the lesser dragon itself, swung around and slammed into the speaker, sending it rolling, its wings flailing around it.
“Humans? Humans are but rats waiting for their final extermination. They are only surpassed in stupidity by the lowly dwarves. No, the only race that has the prowess and weapons to launch an attack on a primal dragon are the elves. Oh, perhaps they had a few humans along, as servants, but they are responsible for this.”
The lesser dragon righted itself and slunk back to huddle near its leader. The massive head turned to look at it and the dragon shied away. The leader chuckled.
“There, there. Forget my anger. You are young, You have never faced elves before. But I have. It was I who led the attacks that drove the cursed elves back into their own realm, never to return. But see? The snake slithers out of its hole, feeling safe and strong once more. Well, we must teach these snakes a lesson and remind them who the true rulers of this world really are.”
“What will you do, master?” the second dragon asked.
“I will do what should have been done those thousands of years ago. I will pursue the elves into their own realm and wipe them out at the source.”
It looked down at the shattered body of the primal white dragon.
“They have dared to kill a primal. They must also be responsible for the deaths of my other two siblings. Well, now they shall see what true power is.”
The dragon reared back again and belched out a torrent of sticky black liquid across the body of the fallen primal. The carcass collapsed in on itself and began to melt away until there was nothing left but pools of scummy liquid.
“I shall spread my rot from one end of the elvish lands to the other. And then, then I shall finally exterminate the last of the humans.”
The dragon spread its enormous rust-colored wings to the wind and, with a mighty leap, took to the air. The two lesser brown dragons exchanged a look of evil glee and followed their master into the sky.
“This,” one hissed at the other as they struggled to catch up with their leader, “ is going to be fun.”
The End
Links
Here are Links to the first three books in my series: The Titan's Legacy
The Return of the Titans
The Battle for Sanctuary
The Hunt for Hyperion
Here are Links to the first two books in my series: The Angelic Wars
Confronting the Fallen
The Rise of the Fallen
Here are Links to the first two books in my series: Tales from the New Earth
The Dragons Return
The Dragons Revenge
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Thanks so much for reading!
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