He summoned a mage light at once and sent it out to illuminate the open field. It grew in strength as it traveled and rose to light up the whole area.
All of the dragons were gone. A gaping hole big enough to drop a house into was all the evidence that anything had happened. That and the grinding pain from the wizard's cracked rib.
“Damn it, she's taken off underground,” Simon exclaimed. “But to where? And why?”
He looked at Kronk and Phen and pointed out at the enormous hole.
“Could you two go out and fill that in, please? God knows where it leads, but it's a danger that I don't want to deal with right now. Take any of your friends off of guard duty to lend you a hand if you need it.”
“No need, master,” Kronk assured him. “Phen and I can repair the damage. It will not take very long.”
“Good. Okay, off you go.”
The little guy nodded and both of the earthen hurriedly climbed over the parapet and down the outside of the wall.
Simon spun around to look at the tower. He pointed at the open front door.
“Gate!”
He teleported so quickly into the building that he landed on his knees and cursed as he ripped his robe and tore off some skin. More pain added to his aching side. Great.
“Aethos, Kassus, Incendus! I need you!” he shouted as he limped across the floor to the foot of the stairs.
He heard the three elementals arrive, each in their own unique way, but stumbled up the steps and didn't turn around to watch them appear.
“Sir wizard?” he heard one of them call out. Aethos maybe.
“I'm upstairs!” Simon yelled as he entered his study and flung himself into his leather chair.
He waved a hand to light all of the candles and began digging through the drawers of his desk.
“Where is it?” he grumbled, his hands clumsy with fear. “Where is that damned book?”
“Um, sir wizard?”
“Hmm?”
Simon looked up to see Aethos float into the room followed by the burning fireball that was Incendus.
“Kassus is waiting downstairs,” the air elemental explained. “He fears that his weight might destroy your steps.”
“Ah yes, very thoughtful,” the wizard replied absently.
He went back to tearing through his drawers.
“Did you summon us for a specific reason, sir wizard?” Incendus crackled. “Or...?”
Near the bottom of one of his drawers was a battered old notebook, its leather cover stained and well worn.
“Aha! There you are. Thank God.”
Simon looked at the elementals again and gave them a tight grin.
“Sorry. I was just trying to find a book that an old friend gave me a long time ago. Now, the reason that you are here is that the dragon queen and the argent dragon are about to do something that I'd rather they not do, aided by their five children. I think that they may be about to destroy the planet. Or at least a large chunk of it. Of course, I could be wrong about that; I'm no expert on the psychology of dragons.”
Aethos gaped at him and, if the situation hadn't been so dire, Simon would have laughed at his expression.
“Destroy the planet?” the air elemental repeated.
“Five children? They have children together?” Incendus said in amazement. “How is that even possible? I don't understand.”
“Join the club,” Simon told him as he flipped thought the notebook. “Look guys, I'd love to explain but time is ticking and God knows what that insane, vengeful creature is planning. We need to find her and quickly.”
He pushed himself to his feet and groaned at the horrid feeling of bones grinding in his side.
“You are injured, sir wizard?” Aethos asked with concern.
“It's nothing. I've had worse.”
Simon limped through the doorway and walked to the top of the stairs.
“Kassus,” he called out.
The earth elemental lumbered into sight below and looked up at him.
“Sir wizard?”
“There is a large hole out in the field in front of the tower. It was made by the dragon queen.”
The earthen's blazing eyes widened but he only nodded silently.
“I need to know where she's gone. No one moves faster underground than your people, but I don't want to send one of the smaller earthen after her. They simply aren't as strong and tough as you are. So could you do me a favor and go after her? I give you permission to return directly to the tower once you have anything to report, if you choose to accept the mission.”
“Follow the dragon queen?”
The large elemental smiled, his eye's glowing with eagerness.
“That sounds like a worthwhile endeavor. I accept. I will report back as soon as I have any information.”
“Thank you, Kassus. I appreciate it.”
The earthen slammed his fist to his chest and stomped off.
The wizard returned to his study and sat down again, trying not to aggravate his ribs.
“And what of us, sir wizard?” Aethos asked. “What can we do?”
Simon looked bleakly at the two powerful elementals.
“For now, nothing. But I have a feeling that the dragons are going to clash as soon as the queen emerges at whatever her destination is. I'm guessing that Argentium and his sons have ways of tracking her that we don't. He appeared here as soon as she showed up earlier, which tells me that he was waiting for her.”
The mysterious mark on the outer wall came to mind suddenly.
“Son of a...” he muttered. “Did that damned dragon leave that thing there? Just in case she showed up here again?”
“Sir wizard?”
“Hmm? Oh, sorry. Something just occurred to me. It's not important right now. As I was saying, I think that a battle in in the offing and I wanted to ask you both if you might be willing to join me if I need some help.”
He smiled and shrugged, wincing yet again as he moved.
“And I'm pretty sure that I'm going to need some help.”
Aethos moved closer to the desk, floating an inch above the floor, and looked at Simon closely.
“You need not even ask, sir wizard. You have my support, always. But may I suggest that you seek a healer immediately? As with all of my people, I can see beneath your flesh. And what I see are grievous wounds that must be tended to at once. You will not be able to stand to battle in your present condition.”
“I'm fine, Aethos. And please stop peeking into my body, thanks.”
“I am also at your command, Simon O'Toole,” Incendus said. “But do not dismiss my colleague's advice so quickly. Get yourself to one of the healers in Nottinghill Castle and do it quickly. You will do no one any good if you collapse before the confrontation with the dragon queen.”
Why do so many elementals insist on mothering me, Simon wondered with a mixture of gratitude and irritation. And speaking of mothering...
“Aeris, come home. I need you.”
The air elemental appeared above the center of the desk in blissful silence and Simon spared a grateful thought to the ruler of the plane of Air for getting rid of the ostentatious entrance that his people used to make.
“What's going on?” Aeris asked with a frown. “I haven't finished my search yet.”
He stared at Simon, obviously unaware of Aethos and Incendus behind him.
“And what's happened to you? You're hurt! Did you fall down the stairs again? Honestly, my dear wizard, you are too clumsy to send me off for long periods of time. Kronk is too slow-witted to save you from yourself, don't you know that?”
Simon rolled his eyes and smiled at the others.
“You see what I have to put up with? Not back ten seconds and he's already scolding me.”
Aeris turned around and gasped as he saw Aethos and Incendus watching him. The air elemental looked amused, while the fireball that was Incendus merely floated silently, crackling flames the only sound that it made.
“Oh m
y,” Aeris exclaimed as he bowed hurriedly. “What's going on?”
“I'll tell you in a minute. Okay, my friends, I'll take your advice and seek out a healer. No point in being stubborn about it, I suppose. In the meantime, I'd like to request that both of you ask a few others of your stature to join us in the upcoming battle. I think that we are going to need all of the help we can get.”
Aethos laughed in delight.
“I'm going to start a riot when I make that announcement,” he said with a wide grin. “You have no idea how many of my brethren envy me. Life in the elemental planes can get so very dull sometimes.”
“I agree,” Incendus said. “I will be hard-pressed to limit the number who wish to come to this world.”
“Just remember that there can only be ten of your kind aiding me at one time,” Simon cautioned them. “Aethos, there are already three air elementals here on Earth and I have no intention of dismissing Aeris or the others. They have served me well and it would be poor thanks if I sent them away now.”
Aeris beamed at him gratefully, while Aethos bowed in acknowledgment.
“Your loyalty is one of your defining characteristics, sir wizard, and I appreciate it. I will limit my choices to six others of my kind.”
“But I may allow nine of my people to come with me?” Incendus exclaimed. “Wonderful. It will be a memorable battle.”
“If it comes to that,” Simon cautioned them all. “It is just possible that Argentium and his sons will be able to neutralize the queen without our help.”
“His sons?” Aeris repeated blankly.
“Doubtful, sir wizard,” Aethos replied. “The queen is quite resistant to magic and the powers of other dragons in general. And despite her inability to fly, she is a formidable foe. She can use several breath attacks and her poisonous spines are insanely toxic, even to my people. If she gets the upper hand in battle, we will be lost. We will have to be aggressive and keep her off-balance if we are to defeat her.”
Simon held up his hand.
“One step at a time, please. We have to find her first. Hopefully Kassus will be able to track her down sooner rather than later.”
“Kassus?”
“Why do you keep repeating things?” Incendus asked Aeris curiously. “Is your hearing impaired?”
Before the air elemental could take offense at the question, Simon answered quickly.
“He's been off on a mission for me,” he told the fire elemental. “So he's out of the loop. I'll fill him in shortly. Okay then, thank you both for coming. I'll call again once we have the queen located and we're ready to move.”
“I look forward to it,” Aethos said with a bow.
“As do I,” Incendus added.
They both faded away at once and Simon sat back with a sigh.
“This is going to get bad,” he said weakly.
“And it will begin right now unless you tell me exactly what is going on,” Aeris warned him.
The wizard looked at the elemental and saw his teasing smile.
“But first, let me make you some tea. You look like you could use some.”
“Thanks Aeris. That sounds wonderful.”
He watched as the elemental shot out of the room and then Simon began flipping through the notebook again.
“Come on, Daniel,” he said softly. “Where did you hide that damned spell?'
“Please don't make a fuss,” Simon said an hour later.
He was lying in the infirmary in Nottinghill Castle, a room that he was a little too familiar with for his own liking, and Elaine was sitting next to him and running her hands gently over his bare torso.
“I'm not fussing,” she corrected him pertly. “I'm examining. Clerics have to do it just as doctors used to, so stop complaining and be still like a good boy, all right?”
“Yes ma'am,” he replied dutifully and closed his eyes.
She grinned at the wizard's response and then frowned as she took in his pale skin and too-thin frame.
“You need to eat more,” she said as she passed her hands over his side, an inch above his body. “I don't know much about wizards, but I've noticed that our mages in residence eat like hungry teenagers. Must be the use of magical power that drains the body somehow.”
“Possibly,” Simon said quietly, eyes still closed. “It is certainly exhausting to cast more than a few spells, unless they're of the simpler variety.”
“Then eat more when you can, my friend. Right now I'd say that a stiff breeze could knock you over.”
He snorted a laugh and opened his eyes slightly.
“I'll keep that in mind,” he told her.
“Good. Well, you were right. Cracked ribs. But not one; three. All on the right side.”
“Oh damn.”
“Now, now. Chin up. It's a simple repair and the gods favor you, so this shouldn't take long. However, I will have to put you to sleep for a few hours, both to save you from the discomfort of the healing itself and to help accelerate the process. And you'll eat once you wake up; cleric's orders.”
Simon nodded and closed his eyes again, too tired and too relaxed to argue.
Elaine looked across at Aeris, who was floating on the opposite side of the bed.
“Do me a favor and tell the others, would you?” she asked. “Tamara likes to be kept abreast of these things, and it will reassure the rest of them.”
“Of course, lady cleric,” he replied with a bow. “I'll be back shortly, my dear wizard,” he added.
“Thanks Aeris,” Simon murmured. “I'm glad that you're here.”
The elemental exchanged a glance with Elaine.
“He's obviously delirious,” he said with a little smile.
The cleric chuckled and watched the elemental fly off.
“And now, my friend,” she said softly, “we'll begin. Just relax and let yourself drift off into sleep.”
Waking up pain free was always a pleasant experience, and one that Simon hadn't experienced all that often over the years since his Change. So when he sat up with a jerk and looked around to see Aeris floating next to his bed, he had to laugh at himself and his initial panic.
“Sorry, I thought that I was still dreaming,” he told the elemental. “I don't feel any pain, at all. Amazing.”
Aeris raised an eyebrow.
“You dream about me, my dear wizard? I'm flattered.”
“You wish.”
He looked around the infirmary.
“Elaine isn't here?”
“No, she has several other patients to care for, including a young lady who is, I'm told, going through a rather challenging pregnancy. But she told me that you would wake up about three hours after your healing and she was exactly right. A rather remarkable healer, I think. She's certainly had the proper calling.”
Simon tucked his pillow behind him for support and sat back.
“And me? Have I answered the 'proper calling'?” he asked jokingly.
Aeris looked at him thoughtfully.
“Yes, I would say so. At least, I can't imagine you as anything other than a wizard. You've never adequately explained what an eye-tee specialist is, but it sounds like it was extremely boring.”
“God, you have no idea. Let's not even talk about it.”
“Then let's talk about something more exciting. Like the end of the world? Oh and while we're discussing that happy subject, I brought you some food. Elaine insisted that you be fed and she warned me quite forcefully that you must be made to eat or there would be dire consequences.”
Aeris flew over to a cart and pushed it across to the bed, while Simon watched with interest. He was actually quite hungry.
The curtains were drawn on the windows in the room, but he noticed a slight glow around their edges. Dawn was approaching.
“Nothing fancy,” the air elemental told him as he lifted the lids from several plates. “Sandwiches made with some freshly-baked bread. A small salad. Oh and a berry tart. Chef made them fresh and insisted that you get one. He says tha
t there aren't many available this early in the berry season and not to tell anyone that you got special treatment.”
Simon smiled at that remark and took a sandwich. It was chicken and tasted wonderful.
“Thank him for me, would you?” he said around a mouthful of food. “I appreciate the trouble he went to.”
“I will. Now, I don't want to rush you or anything but you did send Kassus chasing after the dragon queen. That was several hours ago and you haven't been home since, which means that he may have reported back and, surprise, you aren't there. Don't you think you should call him?”
Simon swallowed his food and nodded.
“I know. But I didn't bring my mirror with me. Could you...?”
“Find you one?”
Aeris let out a long-suffering sigh.
“What would you do without me, hmm? That's what I'd like to know. Fine, I'll ask Tamara, if you insist. But since you aren't an invalid, maybe you could request one from her yourself? She's waiting with most of the other leaders in the main hall.”
“Aeris!”
Simon flung back the blanket and got out of bed, stuffing another sandwich into his mouth as he did so.
“Why didn't you tell me that? I shouldn't have kept them waiting.”
“I thought I just did. Relax, oh great and powerful one. You were in a healing sleep, remember? They've been making plans since you told them of the confrontation between the dragons. And they would have been doing so whether you were here or not. So take your time and finish your food. And drink some of that apple juice. Freshly made from last year's stores, according to Chef.”
The wizard took a deep breath to calm himself down and accepted the elemental's advice.
“Okay. I'll do that.”
He still ate hurriedly. When he was done, Simon ran his fingers through his hair to pull out the tangles and did his best to smooth out the wrinkles from his plain brown robe.
“How do I look?” Simon asked the watching Aeris as he picked up his staff from where it was leaning against the wall.
“Lovely, for someone who just slept in his clothes. Don't worry, my dear wizard. Your friends don't care about your appearance; they're just happy that you are alive and well.”
The Queen of Dragons (Tales from the New Earth Book 8) Page 39
