by Matt Forbeck
The others in the cave awoke in an instant. None of them, including Dougal and Riona, could do a thing before Ember threw herself between the two ghosts and began slashing about, her blade and claws cutting clean through their spectral forms as if they were no more than mist.
The ghosts' twinned screeches rose higher and higher in pitch until Dougal felt his eyes start to roll back in their sockets. Ember's snarls and growls added to the cacophony.
Ember yelped as the ghosts' pale weapons passed through her, not breaking her skin but harming her just the same. The ghosts screamed as her claws and sword cut through them. Her strikes drew no blood, but with every swipe they dragged away more of the glowing ectoplasm that made up the ghostly figures, diminishing them more each time.
Riona grabbed her own sword, but Dougal held the others back with a raised hand. "If we try to help her, she'll wind up slashing us too," he said. To the others he shouted, "Gather your things and get ready to move!" When Kranxx, Killeen, and Gullik hesitated, he turned toward them and barked, "Now!"
Ember spun about like a wolf, flailing all around her and doing her best to ignore the pain when the ghosts struck her back. Soon the older ghost dissipated entirely.
The younger ghost howled in the grip of his insane fury and redoubled his attacks. With only a single foe now, Ember concentrated on taking the ghost apart. Dougal realized that if the shepherds had been living, Ember would have killed them each several times over by now. As it was, the others were ready to leave by the time she managed to dispatch the second apparition.
Dougal scooped up Ember's pack. "Are you all right?" he asked her as she staggered over to him.
"I'll be fine," she said as she took her pack from him. "It only hurts when I breathe."
"I think I have something in my pack to help," said Kranxx, unlimbering his satchel.
The charr just waved him away. "Ghosts hurt the soul more than the flesh, though they are no less deadly."
"Well done!" Gullik said. "You made quick work of those spirits. I only wish I'd been allowed to destroy them myself!"
"You'll get your chance if we don't get out of here fast," said Dougal. "It is difficult to really kill a ghost." He pointed to the swirling gray mists that still moved about the cave's entrance. "They'll re-form in a matter of minutes. Maybe less."
"Let's not be here when that happens," Kranxx said as he crawled up onto the norn's shoulders again.
"I'd love to be able to remain here and study them for a while," Killeen said. "They probably used this cave as a resting place when they were tending their sheep."
"We have our mission to think of first," Riona said as she headed for the cave's mouth.
Moving fast in the growing, muddy dawn, Ember led the group around from the cave's entrance to the crest of the hill. As they topped the hill, the sun cleared the horizon, and Dougal saw the Dragonbrand for the first time.
He felt as if he'd been stabbed. If the arrival of the ghosts had disturbed him, witnessing the damage done to Ascalon shook him to the bone. While the hilltop they were on stood in sunshine, to the north a ribbon of storm stretched from one side of the sky to the other. Dougal thought he could see a bit of daylight peeking out on the far side of the storm, but to the north and the west the darkness stretched out to the horizons. The storm seemed like a river that flowed from the north to the west. The thunderheads scudding over it ignored the prevailing winds in the rest of the region and raced along the same path like logs being pulled downstream through a set of rapids.
Lightning arced through the storm clouds, and thunder rolled along the ribbon and out across the surrounding lands. Now that he saw this, Dougal knew that he had heard the noise while he'd been trying to sleep but had simply chalked it off to Gullik's snoring. Rain fell in patches in some sections of the wide ribbon but not in others, and the lightning paid it no mind, zapping down from the sky wherever it liked.
The terrain below the clouds disturbed Dougal the most. The land had turned entirely to sharp-angled crystals that appeared to glow with power, although Dougal could not tell if that light was simply reflected from the sun or actually came from within. Bent and twisted amethyst trees stood by the side of a frozen cobalt stream that rolled through a landscape covered with scattered scrub brush and patches of grass all transformed into crystals both fragile and sharp. Where the ground was bare, it was twisted upon itself in gray lava-like swirls and dotted with half-shattered bubbles that looked like hatched ebony eggs clustered at the base of the glittering trees.
Lightning smashed down into one of those trees, and it exploded into uncountable fragments of amethyst. The crystal shards tinkled against the glassy landscape as they cascaded to the ground and shattered again and again until they formed a gray-violet dust that coated everything near where the tree had once been.
Ember elbowed Dougal. "I thought you had been here before."
"We came through the Shiverpeaks," he replied. "In any case, that was before all this."
Killeen goggled at the scene. "How terrifying," she said softly, "and yet starkly beautiful." When she saw the others staring at her, she asked, "A dragon did this?"
"Yes," Kranxx said, once more perched atop Gullik's shoulders, "and without any effort at all. Its name was Kralkatorrik. The creature is such an aberration that this is what happened to the land it simply flew over. It didn't even have to touch it."
"Bear, Snow Leopard, Raven, and Wolf," said Gullik. He spoke quietly, as if his voice might invite more destruction.
"It's horrific," said Riona, aghast. "A crime against nature."
Dougal nodded. "This is why we're doing this, right? If we don't find a way to work together, we don't stand a chance against the creatures that did this."
"Statistically, we don't have much of a chance no matter what we do," said Kranxx. When Riona scowled at him he added, "But uniting the peoples against the dragons would elevate us from 'No chance at all' to 'Very little chance' instead."
Without a word, Ember did the one thing that every fiber of Dougal's body screamed at him not to do. She launched herself down the hill and toward that raw, crystal-packed wound in the world. A moment later he found himself loping after her, along with the rest of the group.
The path to the Dragonbrand was wide and easy, the smoothest going since the team had left Ebonhawke behind. The sun shone down on their heads, and the grasses around them swayed in the gentle wind like waves in the sea. It felt good to be out in the open air and sunshine again.
Dougal glanced at Killeen. She had seemed a bit off after having had to spend so much time in the darkness of the night and then in the shade of the cave. Now, though, she grinned from ear to ear, seemingly one with the nature through which she passed. Looking at her, Dougal couldn't help but smile himself.
It did not take long to reach the Dragonbrand. It seemed as if the corrupted landscape sensed they were coming and gathered itself closer to be able to entrap them faster. Or maybe it was just how Dougal tried to treasure his last few moments in the untouched land that made that time slip by so fast.
Ember came to a halt on the edge of the Dragonbrand, just before she reached the border of the purplish, crystalline obscenity. The others fell into rank alongside her, each of them staring out across the twisted atrocity to wonder what horrors it might hide from them.
Then, after drawing a deep breath, Ember stepped into the weird landscape, and the others followed.
The glassy grass crunched to dust under their feet, and soon the shards of it became deep enough to cover their ankles. The air crackled with electricity that made Dougal's hair lift up. Although he could see no threats, he sensed danger from every angle. He drew his sword and saw the others ready their weapons too.
"This is fascinating," said Killeen. "It's as if all these plants have been frozen in this state between life and death. Do you think they still grow?"
"Not after we step on them," said Kranxx.
"I wonder how this works," the sylvari said.
"It's so curious." She picked a sapphire bloom from an amethyst bush and watched it slowly crumble in her hand.
"Let's keep moving," said Dougal. "The sooner we're through this place, the better."
"Bear's blood!" said Gullik. "This is all very strange, but it can't be worse than Ascalon City itself, can it?"
There was the distant, faint sound of an explosion, and something skipped off the ground in front of the norn's feet. Once it had been a standing pool of water, but now cracks spiderwebbed from where the bullet had shattered it.
Dougal spun about to see where the shot had been fired from, but Ember had already spotted the source. "There!" she said, pointing back the way they had come.
A charr warband stood on the edge of the Dragonbrand, ten soldiers all told, heavily armored and ready for battle. The warrior in front raised his rifle and roared, and the others echoed his call.
"Run!" Kranxx said, batting Gullik on the top of his head.
The norn laughed and pulled his axe. "If they've already seen us, my tiny friend, then the time for stealth is over!" He hefted his weapon in response to the challenge. "Wolf's teeth, the time for battle has begun!"
"Hold it!" Dougal said. He cast a wary eye on the warband. "They don't seem to be charging."
Battle lust danced in Gullik's eyes. "Then we shall take the battle to them!"
Ember grabbed the norn's elbow before he could stomp off to fight. "If they meant to fight us, they would have attacked already." The other charr of the warband were scrambling with their rifles as well.
"Oh-ho!" The norn beamed with pride. "They are wiser than they would seem if they fear to engage us in battle!"
"I don't think it's us they're afraid of," said Riona. "They just don't want to come in here."
"Maybe they know something we don't," Dougal said as he glanced around them.
"There's another warband coming from the northeast," said Ember.
"And that looks like one in the southwest," said Riona.
"We need to keep moving," Dougal said. Another distant pop and another shot puffed the earth next to him. "Right now." The three warbands, all on the closer side of the tortured strip of land, now sounded horns to each other. Their message was clear.
Without a word, Ember turned to the northwest and started off again. The others fell into step behind her, the norn and his asura passenger last.
"By the Wolf's whimper," Gullik growled, "only cowards run from such a fight!"
"Don't think of it as running away from that fight," Kranxx said. "Think of it as running toward a bigger one."
The norn let out a deep chuckle. "I do enjoy your wisdom!"
"I still don't like it," Dougal said, keeping pace with Riona and Ember. "What could be in here that would be so terrifying that it would keep three warbands of charr from coming after us?"
Riona smirked at this. "Let's hope we don't have to find out."
The gunfire behind them intensified, but at this range they were minimal targets, and the worst it did was shatter some of the glass foliage near them. None of the shots came close to hitting anyone, but it didn't seem as if the charr were trying very hard.
"Hold it!" Dougal said.
Ember skidded to a halt in the shattered purple grass, and the others following her all did the same. "What is it?" the charr said.
Dougal shaded his eyes and gazed to the southwest. "There," he said. "They're not shooting at us anymore. Look."
The two charr warbands on the southern edge of the Brand had joined together and were busy unloading their rifles into a crystalline hill hunkered to their east. It was a larger target, Dougal noted, but had no effect on them and their flight.
"I haven't seen anything this odd since I stumbled upon that hylek fertility ritual!" said Gullik.
Dougal knew then exactly what was happening. He'd heard tales of minions created by the Elder Dragons to execute their will-and anyone who might trespass upon their lands. Here in the Dragonbrand, they stood squarely in the Crystal Dragon's territory. Its passage had scarred this land and claimed it as its own. It stood to reason the creatures that lived here would belong to the Crystal Dragon too.
"We need to get out of here right now!" Dougal said, grabbing Ember's shoulder.
She shrugged him off with a growl. "We should get to the far side of that hill for cover."
"No," Dougal said. "We need to head in the other direction as fast as possible."
"We can't go back to the south," said Riona. "Those warbands will tear us to pieces."
Killeen put a hand on Dougal's arm. "What's wrong?" she said.
Dougal stabbed a finger in the direction of the hill, which had started to shudder. "That!"
As they watched, the hill continued to quiver as if shaken by an earthquake, although the land that they stood on seemed as solid as ever. A terrible noise sprang from the hill. It sounded like thousands of glasses shattering all at once.
Then the hill raised its head and opened its eyes.
Run!" snapped Riona. "Run for the northern edge!"
Ember sped off to the north at a dead sprint, with Riona chasing straight after her. Dougal took Killeen's hand and pulled her along as he followed them.
Gullik stood and watched the hill rise. Kranxx pounded on his head. "Time to go!" the asura said.
"Raven's beak!" the norn said. "It's beautiful!" He hefted his axe before him. "This shall be my greatest triumph-or the tragic end of my tale!"
Dougal glanced back over his shoulder and saw the norn still standing there. "Gullik!" he shouted. "Come on!"
"Join me here or farewell!" the norn shouted. "From this foe, I shall not turn!"
Dougal hauled up short, and Killeen along with him. "Damned heroes," Dougal said. "He's going to get them both killed."
The hill shuddered one last time and then clambered to its feet. Although shaped like a man, the resemblance ended there. It stood three times as tall as the norn and appeared to have been formed from a stack of priceless diamonds the size of boulders. Twin spots sparkled in its face where eyes would be, but it bore no mouth, nose, or ears. What it had been before the passing of Kralkatorrik was unknown, but now it was that dragon's champion, its guardian of this land of twisted black rock and crystal forests.
The creature's limbs scraped against each other as it pulled itself to its full height, and the horrible noise set Dougal's teeth on edge. Gullik stood there before it, his rumbling laughter reverberating in the crystals all around as he thumbed his axe.
"We talked about discretion, remember?" Kranxx yelled at the norn. "We have bigger things to do!"
Gullik leaned backward as he craned his neck to look up at the unfolding creature, and laughed. "Bigger than that? I think not!"
Unbalanced, Kranxx smacked Gullik on the head one more time and then slipped from the norn's shoulders.
"He's insane!" the asura shouted as he raced after Dougal and Killeen.
"True," Dougal said with grudging admiration, "but I wouldn't bet against him."
Once Kranxx was clear, Gullik stalked toward the dragon's minion, hunting for the opening for his first blow. He moved left, then right, and watched how the minion tracked his movements. Anxious to get to the battle, Gullik chopped down a crystal sapling in his path. It collapsed in a shower of shards.
The minion locked on the norn with its glowing eyes, then leaned toward him and charged.
Each of the minion's steps thundered against the crystal terrain and brought cracks of lightning crashing down nearby. Although it seemed slow, its long legs covered ground fast, and it was upon Gullik before Dougal could blink.
The minion drew back a blunt-fisted arm and brought it down at Gullik with devastating speed. The norn leaped to one side to avoid the blow, and it smashed into the ground instead.
Before the minion could ready another attack, Gullik took his axe in a double-handed grip and swung it at the creature's leg. The limb cracked straight through at the knee, and when the minion tried to take a step forw
ard, it left its lower leg behind.
Unbalanced by the surprising loss of its leg, the creature swayed for a moment and then toppled forward. Dougal saw what was about to happen and shouted for Gullik to get out of the way. The minion was too large, though, and the norn too slow, and the bulk of the creature came down right on top of him, crushing him under its phenomenal weight.
Dougal stared at the scene in shock. He had thought Gullik was crazy for trying to take on the creature, but somewhere in his heart he hadn't believed that the much-larger-than-life norn could lose the fight. Especially not so quickly.
Kranxx smacked Dougal on the leg as he passed, then sprinted away. "Run!" the asura called back over his shoulder. Dougal turned back toward the hulking beast, looking for some sign that Gullik had survived the creature collapsing upon him.
That was when he realized that Killeen was no longer beside him. The sylvari had raced forward, and was now standing before the minion, carving the air in an intricate pattern to fashion a spell.
Dougal stopped and cupped his hands around his mouth to shout at the sylvari. "Killeen! Forget it! He's gone!"
"No!" she said, still concentrating on her spell, her face creased in concentration. "He can't die. I won't let that happen!"
Glowing blackness stretched from Killeen's hands to encircle the minion, turning the shadows of its flesh to a brilliant white and its glittering hide to night. The creature froze for a moment, then threw its arms over its head as if letting loose a silent scream.
Hope soared in Dougal's heart, but it came crashing down an instant later when the blackness around the creature cracked, and the minion slammed its arms back down onto the twisted landscape, unfazed by the incantation.
Dougal glanced back to see Riona, Ember, and Kranxx in the distance. They had stopped running, probably locked in their own argument about returning. He turned to see the minion bearing down on Killeen, slowed only slightly by the fact that Gullik had removed one of its legs below the knee. The sylvari scrambled backward, but even on its knees the minion was gaining on her.
