The Chronicles of Dragon Collection (Series 1 Omnibus, Books 1-10)

by Craig Halloran

  “Lie down. Be quiet. Don’t move.” I said to Ben, lying down myself.

  Ben did. I actually wanted to thank him. It wasn’t very often that he did what I said.

  “It’ll be a few hours before dusk, so we’ll just lie low for now. Got anything to eat?”

  Ben shook his head.

  “Great. I’m surprised Bayzog didn’t prepare you better. Are you sure one of those vials isn’t a bottle of Tasty Wonders?”

  He scrunched up his face, shook his head and said, “I don’t think so.”

  “Well, that’s too bad. Those are pretty good, and they can hold you over for days. Stupid wizard. You’d think he’d have better prepared you.” I looked at him. “Right?”

  He nodded, his eyes focused on the Crane's Neck, lying on his belly sopping wet. The rain would start and stop, between drizzle and heavy drops. He shivered even though it wasn’t that cold. At least he was quiet. At least he had obeyed for once, and that was a comforting thought.

  Rain pelting my face, I lay alongside him thinking. How many dragons did the clerics have? They'd spoken of at least three, but there could be more. I rubbed my dragon arm, imagining if my scales might turn white after I freed them. I could go home then. I wanted to see my father more now than ever, and I couldn’t remember ever wanting to see his giant dragon's head so much before. I pulled my hood over my head, hunkered down, and waited.

  A few paths led past the Crane's Neck, some narrow and some wide, between the rocks and ridges. There wasn’t much else in the valley, either, just a small variety of trees and bushes, enough to be hospitable to the critters. Another hour had passed when I heard Ben’s stomach growl.

  “Still glad you came?”

  He didn’t say anything.

  It was getting annoying.

  “All right, Ben, you’ve made your point: you can be quiet.”

  He rolled over and smiled, saying, “See, I told you I could be a good soldier.”

  “Indeed,” I said, rolling my eyes. “Well, there’s no sense in having your ravenous stomach give us away. It could wake up a drunk bugbear. Run down to the horses and fetch the rations hanging from my saddle.”

  He quickly ambled over the rocks, down and out of sight. I had to admit: I was hungry, too. I rubbed my ribs. Tormac had given me a good walloping, and my jaw still felt loose. It was a shame; he’d be a good ally if he wasn’t such a bad man. The world was full of men like him, but there was always something worse. The orcs. The ogres. The goblins. The bugbears and gnolls. You’d think men would act better than them, but often―too many times―they disappointed me. Their short lives made them particularly greedy.

  Ben shuffled back over the rocks and fell to his knees.

  “Here you go, Dragon,” he said, holding out a small sack.

  “Eat, Ben.”

  He reached into the bag and dug in. I grabbed a bite as well.

  Ben shook a canteen in my face.

  I took it and drank, handed it back, and said, “Drink, that dwarven bread is hard to get down sometimes.”

  “Kind of bitter,” he said, talking a swallow. “But I feel full already.”

  “Brenwar would kill me if he knew what I was doing.”

  “Who?” Ben said, looking up at me.

  “Oh, sorry, Ben, just a friend of mine, a dwarf. He’s usually with me on days like this, telling me what I can and cannot do. Or what I should or should not do.”

  “Kind of like you do me, huh?”

  I felt like I'd swallowed a bug. I was nothing like Brenwar.

  “Just eat.”

  Down in the valley, about an hour later, I noticed a small group of figures coming from behind the Crane's Nest.

  “Get down, Ben!”

  From our bellies, we could see the Clerics of Barnabus, five of them in all, and a small cage. I had a pretty good idea what was in that cage, too. A dragon. Two broader figures emerged with spears and armor. Lizard men. I could feel Ben tense up at my side.

  “It’ll be all right. Don’t move, Ben. Don’t make a sound.”

  The five Clerics faced the path leading from the east. The lizard men began searching the nooks and crevices in the area. The rain became a steady pour, and I lost sight of the lizard men.

  “Not good, Ben. Not good.”

  CHAPTER 34

  Instinct. Sometimes it was the only explanation for why some men lived while others died. My own had bailed me out many times, but I wasn’t sure about Ben as he kept looking over at me. It takes time to develop instincts in some; in others it’s quite natural. Some don’t get it at all.

  Keeping my voice low, I said, “What are you thinking?”

  “There’s probably more of them, isn’t there?”

  “Good.” I was reassured. He wasn’t stupid; he had some savvy to him. “Maybe a couple. Just keep an eye out.”

  I rose up to my knee and readied Akron.

  Snap. Clatch. Snap.

  “You going to shoot them?” Ben asked.

  “Hopefully at some point in time, but right now I’m just being prepared.”

  “Oh.”

  I wasn’t really sure why I readied my bow. I just did. Something bothered me. Tired, swollen, and stubborn, I felt a little off, and there was a nagging warning bell behind my eyes. Peering through the rain, I looked for any sign, anything odd.

  “Can they smell us?” Ben asked.

  It was a good question. Good for him.

  “They’re pretty good trackers, but not like most hunters, and their snouts are so-so. It’s the orcs you have to watch out for. But this rain keeps our scent down, plus we're downwind. So I’d say we're safe for now.”

  The farther the sun dipped, the colder it seemed as we waited. The lizard men reappeared about an hour later and gathered near the clerics.

  “Dragon, I see something coming,” Ben pointed.

  I could barely make out the purple through all the rain, but it was the clerics from Quintuklen, riding on horseback.

  My heart raced as they greeted one another and revealed the covered cage.

  “What is it?” Ben asked.

  Despite the heavy rain, I could make out a small, white dragon inside. Not just any white dragon, but a long-tailed white. They weren’t very big dragons, either, but one of the smaller breeds.

  “A dragon. A powerful one at that.”

  Below, I could see no coins were exchanged, and the talk had stopped. The Clerics of Barnabus led, and the Clerics from Quintuklen followed.

  “Are we going to rescue it?”

  “Don’t you worry about that,” I said, grabbing his shoulders. “Now listen to me, Ben, and listen good.”

  He was all ears.

  “Stay with the horses. There’s plenty of food with them. If I’m not back in two days, go back to Quintuklen and see Bayzog and Sasha. Just tell them what you know, not that it will matter.”

  “But I want to go.”

  I squeezed his shoulders until he grimaced.

  “I’m counting on you. We can’t follow those men on the horses. They’ll catch us. We can’t leave the horses, now, either, can we?”

  He shook his head, eyes down, saying, “No.”

  “What you are doing might not seem important, Ben, but it is. It is to me and to the horses. This is what a good soldier does.”

  He frowned, saying, “But Bayzog gave me these weapons, and potions too.” He unsheathed his dagger and stuck it in my face. “See?”

  In a single motion, I twisted it away and jammed it back in his sheath.

  “Yes, Ben. Perfect weapons and potions to protect yourself and the horses with.” I slapped him on the shoulder. “Remember what I said, and take care, Ben.”

  As he started to object, I turned and leapt off the ridge, hopping down from one boulder to the other like a mountain cat. When I made it to the bottom, I looked up and waved.

  He was gaping.

  “Sorry Ben, I can’t have you following me, now can I?”

  Off into the rain I
went. I had monsters to stop and dragons to save.

  ***

  The sun had set by the time I traveled the first league, and the trail was already faint. Ahead, I could see one lizard man had drifted back, waiting. It was a common tactic.

  The lizard men made good guards and soldiers, ferocious soldiers, but not as loyal as hounds. They were known to take bribes now and again. No, the lizard men were the orcs of reptiles, a blasphemous creation and insult to dragonkind in my opinion.

  I crouched into the bushes, waiting. “Come on,” I said to myself, “get going, will you?”

  He stood like a statue alongside the path, a dark statue. Five minutes passed, then ten, then twenty.

  I heard him chew on something, swallow, spit, then begin to tread up the path.

  Finally!

  I had followed him another league when he stopped and waited again. Ahead, I could see a series of hills forming into the perfect place to hide in. "There are always secrets in the hills," the seers said. I hunkered down. What to do?

  The lizard man was making sure no one followed. But how did I know he was following them and not leading me somewhere else? With the time all his breaks took, they could have gone anywhere by now. The heavy rain would easily wash away their tracks.

  “Drat!” I cursed under my breath.

  Maybe they knew I was onto them already.

  Frustrated, I ambled down the path.

  Twenty paces away, the lizard man stepped full into the path, spear lowered.

  I unleashed Akron’s arrow into his scaly green thigh.

  Thwack!

  The lizard man pitched forward, hitting the ground with a painful hiss.

  Lizard men don’t scream, but they hiss something awful when you shoot them in the leg.

  It took a stab at me as I walked over. I sidestepped, then ripped the spear from its hand and broke that over its head.

  “I can’t have you following me, now, can I?”

  I slugged it in the jaw, and its eyes rolled up in its head.

  “I hope they weren’t expecting you. You’ll be awfully late with that arrow in your leg,” I said. Got to move, Dragon. I didn’t have much patience left, and the disturbing thought of caged dragons infuriated me. I hooked Akron on my back and jogged up the path. It shouldn’t be that hard to catch up with a bunch of clerics, even if they do know the terrain better than I do. An hour later, I stopped and kneeled down. I ran my fingers over some muddy footprints in the path. Excellent! Through the slop, I forged ahead.

  Two more leagues I had followed the trail when the rain let up. The bright stars peeked over the trees, and the waters rushed over the hillside while I heard the sound of people shuffling up ahead. I crept up until I could see them. It was them, a small band of clerics accompanied by one lizard man that guarded the rear.

  The path wound up the hill, through the trees, and alongside a gulch. That’s when I got my first look at it. A temple jutted out in stark contrast to the woods. The exterior wall was overgrown in vines and withered with decay, and many of the stone columns behind it had fallen. The party of men filed through a gap in the wall and disappeared from sight. The lizard man hung back at the gate. I remained behind the trees.

  Great.

  The temple wall, or what was left of it, was a hundred feet long and fifteen feet high. It ran from hillside to hillside. On the wall, a few lizard men stood watch, and for all I knew, the place was full of them. Now, I could handle a few lizard men, but ten or twenty? That would be something.

  What to do, Dragon? What to do? Sneak inside, or bust them all in the face?

  I unhitched Akron.

  Snap. Clatch. Snap.

  The string coiled into place.

  Clerics. Lizard men, whoever else. No one was going anywhere until I freed those dragons. I had them trapped.

  I whipped out an arrow and rubbed spit on its tip. It twinkled with life. My dragon heart began to thunder inside my chest. I knew the dragons were in there, but not for long. The time to fight had come.

  “Show evil no mercy,” I said through gritted teeth.

  I took a deep breath, nocked the arrow, pulled back, aimed, and let it fly.

  CHAPTER 35

  The arrow sailed true to its mark, smacking into the temple.

  KA-BOOM!

  My blood coursed through my veins with new energy. Explosive action. That’s what I liked. The lizard men on top went flying into the air with a shower of rock before crashing to the ground. I don’t know if that killed them, but it wouldn’t hurt my feelings if it did.

  The lizard man at the gate stood gaping at the hole in the temple wall, waiting, uncertain.

  Still hidden from sight, I nocked another arrow, waiting. One. Two. Three…

  Lizard men poured from the gate, and even more of the reptilian heads popped up over the wall again. I knew it! I let another arrow fly. It juttered at the feet of the lizard man at the gate, drawing grunts and cries. I stepped into the clear and waved at them as they raised their weapons at me.

  “Wait for it, snake face!” I yelled.

  KA-BOOM!

  A half dozen lizard men filled the sky with green.

  A crossbow bolt zinged past my head. Nocking another arrow, I charged the gate. Three reptilian faces peeked over the wall, crossbows pointed at my chest. The crossbows rocked into action as I tried to dodge. A bolt skipped off my chest plate as I let the other arrow fly.

  KA-BOOM!

  Shards of rock flew everywhere. The top of the wall where the lizard men stood was a smoking ruin as I scrambled over the rubble and through the smoky hole. I heard the lizard men hissing and moaning nearby. I put a normal arrow in my teeth and loaded another in my bow. I aimed through the dust and smoke.

  Twang!

  I caught one in the thigh.

  Twang!

  Another in the shoulder.

  Their loud hisses caused another alarm. I let my other senses guide me through the ruins and dust as another throng of lizard men came on. I didn’t care.

  Twang! Twang! Twang! Twang! Twang!

  I had plenty of arrows.

  Twang! Twang! Twang!

  Hisses and smoke were all I heard, and the lizard men weren’t going anywhere without severe limps.

  Locating one, I kicked the crossbow out of its hands, wrapped my dragon arm around its neck, and squeezed.

  “Where are the dragons?”

  Lizard men could speak; they just didn’t speak much.

  It shook its head, hissing.

  I cranked up the pressure.

  “Where are the dragons?”

  It pointed its scaly finger as it choked out the word, “There.”

  Two columns led the way from the courtyard into a narrow tunnel.

  “How many more?” I demanded.

  “Many clerics. No more lizard—” it started as a shadow fell over me.

  I jerked away.

  Clonk!

  Something clipped the back of my head, drawing spots in my eyes. It was a lizard man, a big one with brawny arms and shoulders. It reminded me of Tormac, but with scales and not as ugly.

  It swung its club into my shoulder, almost breaking my arm, as I dove to the ground.

  I rolled onto my back, pushed off, and landed on my feet, ripping Fang from his sheath.

  Shing!

  The bullish lizard man charged, club high, swinging down.

  Fang sheared its club in two.

  The slits inside the lizard man’s skull widened as it stared at what was left of its club. Shielding its eyes from Fang’s glow, it backed away.

  “Run,” I said. “Or die,” I warned. “It matters not to me.”

  Tongue flicking from its mouth, it eyed me and my sword.

  Poised to strike, I took another step forward.

  It turned, ran toward the gate, and was gone, leaving me alone with a bunch of groaning lizards.

  It took everything I had not to kill that big lizard man, and if he had attacked, I’m not so sure I
could have held back. I'd had enough of clerics, lizard men, dragon poachers, orcs … the whole lot of them.

  “You should follow your comrade if you know what’s good for you,” I said as I headed for the entrance, waggling my sword under the nose of one lizard man as I passed. “You better not be here when I come back, or I’ll slice every bit of lizard from your skin.”

  Hissing and crawling, they slowly made their way toward what was left of the entrance.

  “Good.”

  Still, my anger rose as I made my way inside the tunnel. I told myself it was the heat of battle, but I loved to battle. I just had to exercise control.

  “Just free the dragons, Nath,” I said to myself. ‘Knock all the clerics out if you have to.”

  Into the darkness I went, following a stone corridor in which no torches were lit. My keen eyes could barely make out the faint lines of the corridor I traveled, but I could smell them. The men, the sweat, the evil, and something else.

  “Hmmm… Be ready, Fang,” I whispered.

  His razor-sharp edge hummed in reply, flaring once then winking out.

  The air was still: quiet, like a tomb of the dead. Using caution, I planted one foot after the other until I found myself at a crossroads. Three tunnels opened like mouths. There was no telling how far this temple went back into the mountain.

  “What do you think, Fang?”

  The cold steel didn’t sing.

  “Thanks.” Peering down the middle tunnel, I inhaled. Decay, men, incense, and dragons. If I got close enough, I could smell their blood. “A little light would be nice. Besides, I’m sure they know I’m coming―unless of course they are deaf acolytes.”

  Fang’s hum added a soft white light.

  “Thanks,” I said, making my way down the middle tunnel. That’s what Brenwar would have done, I figured. “Take the direct approach,” I said in my best Brenwar voice.

  Ancient markings―carvings and paintings long worn and faded―lined the walls. It was hard to tell what race of people had lived here so long ago because it was another ancient language I did not recognize. A door greeted me at the end, or at least what was left of one. I heard something on the other side and pressed my ear along the door. Beautiful humming or singing grabbed me by the ears and pulled me through.