“You’ve met your match, Sansla,” I managed to say.
Sansla dropped a knee into my chest, kicked me off him, and grabbed his bleeding neck.
I grabbed mine and rose to my feet again.
Brenwar stepped in between.
“You’ve met double your match, beast!”
Sansla Libor held out his oversized palm and said, “Stop.”
I froze.
Brenwar huffed and looked back at me. “Did it speak?”
I nodded, cocked my head―chest heaving―and cupped my ear. “Say again?”
“Stop,” Sansla said. “I can speak, but not for long. The curse. The curse will take over.”
***
Sansla Libor kneeled alongside Shum’s body with a sad look in his eyes. It was the first time I got a close look at him. His eyes, a rich brown, were flecked with blue and distinctly elven. There was a sleekness to his face, and his expressions were elven. There was even a notable point to his ears, and his husky and powerful body moved with an agile quality about it.
He leaned over Shum, brushed his face with his paw, and closed his eyes. A savage beast turned inside out. He opened his eyes and studied the four of us. I couldn’t tell if he was angry or not, but something bothered him.
“How did you know?” I said.
“I’m the king.” His voice was throaty but still elven. “I know of such things.” He shook his head. “Who is responsible for this?”
“I am,” I said.
Sansla rose to his full height. His face twitched, and he squinted. His paws clutched into fists. He shook it off and sighed. “No, it was not you that killed him. Who was it?”
I explained.
When it was over, he said, “I see.” He scratched his chin. “Times are dangerous. Beware. Anything can happen.” He pointed at me. “Especially to you. Your curse can mislead you. It gives you power but takes control.”
My breath left me. Coldness filled my belly.
Sansla twitched again. His face contorted and turned. Mean and ugly. He gasped.
Brenwar’s knuckles were white on his war hammer.
My hand fell to my hilt.
“I’ve not much time,” Sansla said, forcing the words out. “I must take him.”
“Hold on, Sansla,” I said, “Where did you have in mind?”
“Home,” he said. His voice thickened.
“Come with us,” Sasha blurted out. “The Ocular of Orray can heal you, the elves say. That’s what Shum was here for. He was trying to find you. He wanted to help you.”
Sansla shook his great head. Pain filled his eyes. “Do they have the Ocular?”
Bayzog and I locked eyes for a moment.
Brenwar’s brows buckled as he looked at me. “Why, you liar!” He stormed away.
I hadn’t told Brenwar that the elves had the Ocular of Orray because I simply didn’t think we’d find Sansla so quickly. Plus, I didn’t want him to know that it had failed on me.
But I had lied to my best friend, and that was as bad as it got. I’d have to try and settle up with Brenwar later.
“Did you try the Ocular?” Sansla said to me.
“It failed,” I said. “But I might not be cursed. This might just be me.” I showed my arms. “I am a dragon, after all. You’re an elf. You’re not supposed to be a monster.”
“Nath!” Sasha said, eyeing me. “He’s not a monster.”
“Sorry,” I said, “but I’m not cursed and he is. Sansla, you need to come with us and take your chances with the Ocular. I’m certain it will heal you.”
He stepped forward and looked down on my snorting face.
“We are cursed, Nath. Evil grows within the two of us. I can sense it in you. I could smell the blood on your hands from miles away. Death and decay surround you now. A cloak you cannot shed.” His thick neck twitched and strained. “You should mind your friends better.”
I balled up my fists. “I’m not cursed! I’m a dragon!”
“I can’t stop what is happening to me,” Sansla said, “But you can.” He turned his back on me and picked up Shum. “The Elome elves would kill me,” he said. “They won’t trust me. I must control the darkness that consumes me. There are other ways. Shum’s death awakened the good within me, but the curse takes hold again.”
“Let us try,” I said.
Sansla placed Shum on his horse. “Secure him.” He rubbed the Roamer Stallion between the eyes. “He knows where to go.”
“But―” I said.
Sansla stepped back and spread his wings. “We’ll meet again, Nath Dragon,” he said. “Next time, I might have to kill you or you kill me.” Sansla jumped into the air, batted his wings, and soared into the sun and out of sight.
CHAPTER 11
Back in the saddle, horses walking through the grass, we headed for the village. We’d talked, all of us except Brenwar, about what had happened.
I wasn’t so sure what Sansla Libor meant about meeting me again and fighting to the death. Did he mean he should die because he was cursed or that I should die because I was?
Am I cursed?
I didn’t know. All I knew was that I was beaten and angry and had unanswered questions. But something else ate at me. There’d been more unneeded deaths.
Bayzog and Sasha rode up along either side of me. Sasha was smiling. Bayzog showed a bit of a smile over his slender chin.
“What?” I said.
“Are you wanting to pursue Kryzak?” Bayzog asked. “We’re with you.”
It irritated me. They’d almost died because of some twisted test and now they wanted to tag along again. I couldn’t have it. I might not be able to shake Brenwar, but I could at least shake them.
“Come now, Bayzog. You know I can’t have that.” I shifted in my saddle. “I think you’d be safer in Quintuklen. After all, we found the Ocular of Orray like we set out to. Sansla Libor found us, and he seems to be faring better than me.” I shook my head. “I’m going to the village to make my goodbyes to Ben and move on.”
Both of them frowned.
I frowned, too. Our quest was over, and now all I wanted to do was get back to saving dragons. I’d hunt down Kryzak later if I had to.
“So,” Sasha said, “you don’t want to track down the fiend that almost killed all of us? You’re just going to ride the opposite way?”
“Sasha,” Bayzog intervened, “vengeance isn’t always the answer. I think Nath is wise with what he speaks. There’s been enough death already, hasn’t there? And what was gained for it?”
“I’ll tell you what was gained,” she said. “We took down more of them than they took down of us.” Her knuckles were white on the reins and her cheeks reddened. “I say we hunt them down and take it to them.”
Bayzog and I locked eyes.
I wanted to smile.
He continued his frown. “Let’s reassess when we get back to the village.”
Sasha huffed and trotted up ahead.
Bayzog followed right after.
My eyes drifted onto Brenwar. Rigid in the saddle, he kept his eyes forward. I should be glad. He might not have meant to speak to me ever again, but I was certain he couldn’t contain himself. I was confident that he’d yell at me at some point. Something tugged inside my chest. A notion. A feeling.
Sorry. I should just ride up there and say, Sorry.
I didn’t.
***
Ben could feel his heart pounding inside his chest and the blood rushing behind his ears. Garrison stood, stout and formidable, with cold steel ready. Ben swallowed. He knew he had to stop the man. Put him down before more people died. Wait, the ettins. Had Garrison been in on the ettins, too? A dozen thoughts rushed through Ben’s head. He locked his eyes, readied his stance, and lifted his chin.
Garrison charged.
Ben’s knees locked.
Garrison chopped right at him.
In an instant, Ben dove away. He scrambled back up to his feet and regained his stance. Shaking. Heart beating like
a rabbit’s.
“Hah!” Garrison said, chopping his sword into the grass. “This will be over in seconds. Sorry, Ben. I hate to kill you.”
Fight, Ben. Fight!
Garrison closed the gap between them and swung hard.
Ben’s lanky sword arm snapped up.
Clang!
He winced.
“Yes, Ben. We aren’t practicing anymore.” Garrison chopped.
Ben parried.
“Rattles the joints doesn’t it, farm boy?”
Clang. Clang. Clang.
Ben’s hands ached and fear blossomed inside his chest.
Slit!
Garrison cut his thigh open.
Stab!
Poked the other.
“Hurts, doesn’t it, Ben? Now we’re even, though. I just wanted to see you bleed before you died. I might even poke extra holes in you after you die.”
Garrison struck harder and faster.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
Ben blocked and parried every strike.
“Stop doing that and die, will you!” Garrison said, spitting blood from his mouth.
Ben saved his breath. He can’t hit me. Just hit him!
Garrison was stronger, but his technique was routine. They’d sparred dozens of times.
Ben knew every move, but did Garrison know his? Did he even have a move?
Think of something, Ben!
Garrison backed away, chest heaving.
“I’m not—gasp—going to hold back any longer.”
Ben took a deep draw in through his nose. He wasn’t tired. He was loose. A spring of energy was inside him.
“I’m not holding back either,” Ben said. He darted in and struck with all his speed.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Stop it, Ben!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Garrison fought him off with two hands on his sword. Desperation crept onto his face.
“Stop, Ben!” Garrison said, sucking for breath.
Bang!
Garrison’s sword flew from his hands. He collapsed to his knees with his head down.
“You win,” Garrison said, still huffing for breath. “Go ahead—gasp—kill me.”
Ben inched closer and raised his sword over his head.
Garrison slowly shook his head back and forth.
“Go—gasp—ahead, Ben. I deserve it.”
“Yes you do,” Ben yelled. “You’re evil. You hurt people and you’ll hurt more people.”
Garrison’s head rose. Laboring for breath, the man offered a sheepish smile behind his short beard. “I know,” he said. “Might as well continue the trend with you.”
“Huh?”
A small dagger appeared in Garrison’s hand. “For Barnabus!” In a flash, he struck Ben in the belly.
Ben’s eyes widened, and then narrowed.
“NO!”
He brought his blade down on Garrison’s head.
***
We’d made our return back to the village only to find both Garrison and Ben missing. Garrison worried me. When Sasha was abducted, Garrison’s eyes had drifted and his voice had trembled a little. He was either a good liar or really confused, but I’d given him the benefit of the doubt.
None of the villagers or Legionnaires had seen them coming or going, either. It made me wonder if Ben had come after us or if maybe something bad had happened to them.
“Look!” a villager yelled, pointing.
A man staggered down the path of a grassy gnoll. It was Ben, and he was clutching his belly. I ran to him and caught him in my arms when he collapsed. His eyes were weak and his hands were bloody.
“Ben,” I said. “What happened? Who did this?”
“G-Garrison,” he sputtered out.
He pushed his hand into mine and handed me something. It was a small totem. A figurine.
“Barnabus,” Ben said. “He spied for Barnabus. Set us all …” his body shook, “u-up.” His eyes rolled into his head.
I screamed.
CHAPTER 12
Leagues away, Kryzak waited in a strange grove in the woods. The trees stood, but they had no leaves. Reptiles and bugs crawled over the dirt. A draykis carried stones as big as skulls and placed them on the ground, completing a full circle. It was big enough for a man to lie down in.
“That will do,” Kryzak said.
He reached inside a pouch and tossed a colorful powder inside the ring, adding some small dragon bones and dragon claws. He clutched a large dragon tooth inside his hand and squeezed.
The time to report to Selene had come.
He took a deep breath.
Selene. As much as he adored her, he feared her. Perhaps that was what drew him to her. He’d never seen anyone so beautiful and evil before.
She didn’t tolerate failure, however. She’d kill him at the slightest sign of weakness.
The draykis concerned him. They weren’t pawns the likes of lizard men, gnolls, goblins, and acolytes. They were powerful weapons, and many of them had died. He wasn’t happy with that. So why should she be?
He stretched his fist over the circle and squeezed the tooth, breaking his own skin. Blood dripped through his fingers and to the ground. Then he chanted an incantation, stepped back, and watched.
The dust inside the circle stirred, and a tiny vortex of mystic colors formed. A woman’s figure took shape. It was Selene, standing with her arms folded across her chest. The image twinkled with tiny sparks, filling it with color.
Kryzak’s fingers stretched out.
“Don’t you dare, Kryzak,” she said.
He withdrew his hand.
“My,” she said, “so eager to see me again, are we?”
He bowed.
“As always, but now more than ever.”
“Your flattery is charming, but it won’t compensate for your failure,” she said, her colorful image darkening. “What is the situation of Nath Dragon?”
“He lives, but his company is smaller.”
“Go on.”
Kryzak told her everything. How he had incorporated the ettins and enlisted the aid of the dragon poachers. How he had trapped them in the tunnels and almost drowned them all. About his spies and Nath’s search for the Ocular of Orray and about the cursed Wilder Elf, Sansla Libor.
Selene’s tail brushed back and disappeared where it crossed the rocks. Her face was a mask of concentration.
Kryzak’s hand fell to the wooden grip on his war mace. It gave him little comfort.
“How many did Nath Dragon kill when he came back?” she asked.
“The tunnels were filled with death.”
“And Nath Dragon,” she said, toying with her robes, “what was his condition?”
“He was distraught. Confused. A storm trying to hold back its anger.”
“And you saw the Roamer die?”
He nodded.
“Interesting,” she paced inside the circle and folded her arms behind her back. “And what of my draykis? Are they all dead as well?”
“Save one,” Kryzak said, his head beading with sweat.
“And the dragons you mentioned,” she said. “I assume you still have them captured?”
“It was me or them, but the fury still remains.”
“What?” she screamed. The dust exploded around her feet. “How many?”
“Nine,” he said. “I’ll capture eighteen—”
“With what, you fool? You have one draykis!” Her eyes blazed like fire. “It will take months at least. “You have failed me, Kryzak! Perhaps you are helping Nath Dragon save the dragons now!”
“Never, High Priestess! I erred, that is all! I misjudged him!” He pleaded. “It was me or them!”
Selene’s face was a mask of fury.
“Do you value your pathetic human life above that of dragons?”
“I-I—certainly not, High Priestess!”
“Close your eyes,” she commanded.
“Er,” Kryzak swallowed, “as you wish.” He shut his eyes.
It stepped alongside Kryzak.
“Strike him.”
Its long tongue licked out of its mouth and along its teeth. “With pleasure,” it said, balling up its clawed fist.
Whop!
It flattened Kryzak to the ground.
Kryzak could feel his face swelling already.
“Find my dragons!” she yelled. “And don’t lose Nath Dragon, either! And if you don’t have better news to report soon, you’ll be dead.”
When Kryzak opened his eyes, she was gone. The one remaining draykis stood over him with a grin on its face. Kryzak dangled the purple amulet and said, “Looks like you’re going to be the next one to face Nath Dragon.”
***
Selene sat on her throne with a smile on her face, petting the drulture on her shoulder. Kryzak had done well. Even better than expected.
“I have to hand it to him: he’s very creative.”
The drulture let out a tiny roar, and its feathers ruffled.
“Oh, not as creative as you, my pet, but he’s awfully good for a man.”
Yes, Kryzak had exceeded expectations, but letting him know that wasn’t a good motivator.
“I have to keep him on his toes.”
And it seemed Nath Dragon was wearing down. The evil within was growing. He couldn’t fight it forever. Not when his friends died or when dragons were captured. He’d meet with failure after failure. She almost felt sorry for him. He was naive. His head was filled with a standard that was impossible to live up to, set by his father.
“Not killing anyone. In this world. Hah!”
Gorn Grattack had told her about the high standards set by the Dragon King, Nath’s father, and they’d both laughed. No, it was so much easier to do evil than good, and Nath would learn that. And why wouldn’t he want to learn? Why wouldn’t he want to rule Nalzambor and do whatever he wanted? He didn’t need his father. His father needed him. She’d show him that.
“Are you hungry?” she said to the drulture.
It offered a growl.
She clapped her hands.
The great doors opened and the lizard man soldiers stepped inside and kneeled.
“Feeding time,” she said.
Moments later they returned with a cage. Inside it, something wide eyed trembled.
The Chronicles of Dragon Collection (Series 1 Omnibus, Books 1-10) Page 52
