“That is a weakness we may be able to exploit,” Keiko said. “If an opponent believes he is more powerful than you, it can make him careless, foolish. That may be our one advantage.”
“I agree,” Aiden told her as Malcolm looked at the small woman admiringly.
“As do I,” Liliana said. “Now the question is, how do we get down there?”
“We'll Gate down,” Simon told them. “But not as a group. Keiko, I know that Tamara and Sebastian can cast Gate. Can you?”
“Of course. They were kind enough to share the spell with me.”
She bowed delicately at the siblings who smiled in return.
“Good. I don't want Pyrathius to have a single target to focus on. Tamara, you'll Gate down with Malcolm. Bastian, you take Aiden please. And Keiko will take Liliana. I'll go alone with my little friends.”
He looked down at Kronk and winked. The earthen grinned up at him. He'd quietly reappeared a few minutes before.
“Sounds good. So when do we go?” Tamara asked, shifting from one foot to the other. “This damned air may kill us all before the dragon gets his chance.”
There were a few chuckles at her grim humor.
“I'm waiting for Aeris to return,” the wizard told her. “It shouldn't be too long.”
“Not long at all, my dear wizard,” a voice piped up from behind him.
“Speak of the devil.”
“I hope that was a compliment,” the air elemental said as he moved to hover next to Simon.
“So what's the word from Ethmira?”
“She and her forces are on the northern slope, just below the top of the crater,” Aeris told them as he pointed across the volcano. “Unfortunately, they cannot descend inside. Not only do they not have a way to do so, but they would be exposed and quickly overwhelmed down there. Ethmira says that you'll have to find a way to draw Pyrathius out and into range of her archers.”
He shrugged apologetically.
“Sorry, but that's the only way that they are going to be effective, they say.”
“That's okay. I was expecting that.”
Simon looked around at the others.
“You all know about the surprises I have in store for our 'ally' down there. But while they might have worked on the primal brown dragon, I have my doubts about how well they'll work on Pyrathius. But I'll try them anyway, just in case.”
“Why wouldn't they work?” Aiden asked. He looked puzzled. “The earth elementals immobilized the brown, didn't they?”
“They did. But this guy is twice the size of that primal and at least twice as powerful. I mean, look at that hell down there.”
Simon gestured at the glowing, smoking cauldron below them.
“Pyrathius sleeps in a volcano! And I have it on good authority, Esmiralla's, that he can actually raise the temperature of his skin almost to the same heat level as molten rock. I doubt if creatures actually made of stone are going to be much help. Same goes for the fire elementals. The other primals' weaknesses were all related to their strengths, but this guy? He seems to thrive on heat. He's different from the others. And frankly, I don't know what it will take to bring him down.”
“Okay, hang on a second,” Tamara cut in. She stepped forward and glared into Simon's eyes. “If you don't think that we can win this battle, just why the hell are we here?”
“Easy, sis,” Sebastian told her sharply. “No one made you come. Or any of us for that matter. If we weren't here, Simon would have come alone.” He looked at the wizard. “Isn't that so?”
“It is. And I'm here, Tamara, because this is our one chance to beat him. I'm not being defeatist or fatalistic, I promise you that. I'm just being honest. Would you rather I sugarcoat it and lie to you? I will if it will make you feel better.”
Tamara held his gaze for a long, tense moment and then let out a ragged breath. She shook her head and stepped back.
“No, of course not. I appreciate the truth, even if it's not what I want to hear. But if the elementals can't help us, how can we defeat him? I know that it's a long shot, but you must have some ideas, no?”
Simon smiled grimly at her.
“I always have ideas. And I did put in a call before we left this morning, after I had one of my crazier notions. But there's no use in talking about that because I doubt that anything will come of it. But Pyrathius isn't all powerful. Esmiralla told me that he is still vulnerable to the same things all dragons are. Spells like Blizzard, Lightning and Magic Missile will still hurt him. It's just that he's so damned big that it may not be enough. I'm hoping that between our magical attacks and Ethmira's archers, we'll do enough damage to kill him. Even wounding him severely will help.”
He looked at Malcolm, Aiden and Liliana.
“A sword through the eye into the brain will kill even a primal, no matter how big he is.”
“Now that's a plan I like!” Malcolm said with a broad smile. “You get that bastard earth-bound and the three of us should be able to finish him off.”
“Huh. Maybe,” Tamara said darkly. “But hey, better a half-assed plan than no plan at all, I suppose.”
“Thank you for your enthusiastic support,” Simon said with an elaborate bow.
The mage snorted but managed a weak smile.
“That's better,” the wizard said. “Now, since that monster knows we're here, we'd better not keep him waiting too long or he'll become suspicious.”
“I agree.”
Simon looked at each person one at a time, ending with Kronk and Aeris.
“Okay then, let's get this show on the road. Mages, make sure you throw a shield around yourself and your partner before you Gate. I'll go first to get the beast's attention. Each of you pick a spot that you can see from here,” he looked over the edge and pointed out several large humps of hardened lava that were visible through the smoke. “Any of those will do. That way you'll be scattered and harder to target. Any questions?”
“Yes, about a hundred, but they'll keep,” Tamara said bleakly. She looked around at them all. “Good luck, guys. And remember, Bastian and Keiko, if things start to go south, grab your partner and Gate the hell out of there. Get back to Nottinghill Castle and we'll regroup and come up with a new strategy.”
“Got it,” Sebastian said.
Keiko bowed in acknowledgment.
Simon looked at the elementals.
“Okay. Kronk, Aeris, grab hold please. Let's do this.”
Simon found that the smoke was actually less dense on the floor of the crater. Most of the vents were above his head and the sooty fumes rose slowly, blocking out the sky but leaving a clear area below that allowed him to breathe. He took a moment to murmur a thank you to his fickle luck before looking around for the primal.
The spot that he'd chosen to Gate to was as close to the middle of the crater as he could see, but it was still nowhere near the center. That section had been obscured by the densest smoke and Simon knew that Pyrathius was in there somewhere. He could feel him.
The ground under his feet was broken stone and twisted ropes of solidified lava. It made walking a challenge.
“Kronk, we're heading in that direction,” he said, pointing. “Could you lead please? See if there's a clearer path to use? I'd rather not break my neck before the dragon has a chance to kill me.”
“You should not speak like that, master,” the little guy chided him. “And yes, I will take the lead. Please don't stay back too far or you will lose sight of me in this smoky air.”
“Got it.”
Kronk set off along a twisting route and Simon followed as closely as he could. Aeris remained by his right shoulder, trying to look everywhere at once as they moved.
“I don't like this,” the elemental muttered after a minute or so.
“No kidding. Me neither. Is Kassus ready?”
“Kronk says he is. So is Incendus. He's staying close by the elves; seems to find them fascinating for some reason. By the way, not to be negative or anything but he thinks his ge
tting involved is a waste of time.”
Simon coughed and turned his head to spit out a mouthful of grit. His shield was filtering out most of the smoke, but there was so much of it that some was seeping through.
“Thanks. I know that. But it can't hurt to at least have him here as a diversion, can it?”
Aeris shrugged, still looking nervously from side to side.
“Of course not. I'm just passing along his message. Oh by the way, he's got a very long list of curse words that he learned over the years. He employed quite a few of them when describing how useless he and his fellow fire elementals are going to be against Pyrathius.”
The wizard was forced to chuckle at Aeris' rather dry observation.
“I'm not at all surprised. I've used a few today myself. Now, why has Kronk stopped moving?”
The little earthen was standing as still as the statue he resembled and, as Simon and Aeris joined him, pointed upward.
“He is there, master,” he said in a barely audible whisper.
Simon opened his shield to let the little guy in and sealed it again. Then he looked up, and up again. An errant gust of wind cleared away the smoke for a moment and there was Pyrathius, staring down at them balefully.
My God, the wizard thought numbly. His head looks like it's the size of my tower. We can't beat that!
The scaled, red maw of the primal dragon opened and his thin black lips pulled back in a feral grin, exposing blackened, twelve-inch fangs.
“Well now, if it isn't the dragon-killing wizard, come to visit.”
The ground literally shook as Pyrathius spoke and Simon staggered back several steps, trying to keep his balance.
The dragon's enormous, cat-like yellow eyes blazed evilly at the wizard with reptilian amusement.
“I wouldn't exactly call it a visit,” Simon shouted up at him, trying to be heard over the roaring of the gas vents and the rumbling of the earth.
“You asked us to be your allies, remember?”
“Of course I remember, human. But you've taken so long to give me an answer, I was beginning to think that you would turn me down.”
“Turn you down?”
Simon tried to look surprised. He hoped it worked; he wasn't really much of an actor.
“How could we turn you down?” he continued. “Without you, the queen will kill us all, won't she?”
“Exactly right. How clever you are, for a human. Yes, she will destroy both myself and my servants, and then you and your people. None of us is safe from her madness.”
The dragon reared back and flapped his enormous wings once. The smoke and dust were blasted away in all directions and the floor of the crater was exposed for a brief few seconds.
It looked like the surface of the moon, if the moon was on the doorstep of Hades. Glowing red cracks and bubbling pools of lava reflected evilly off of the dragon's scorched, scarred scales. Twisted lumps of rock and enormous boulders were scattered drunkenly in all directions. Pyrathius was nestled into the exact center of the crater and the heat from the volcano rose up around him in shimmering waves. The primal looked comfortable in his hellish surroundings and watched Simon like a cat watching a particularly plump bird. It was unnerving.
“So what exactly did you want us to do in this war of yours against your mother?” Simon yelled. “What's your plan?”
“Plan? Ah yes, a plan. I suppose I do need one of those, don't I?”
The dragon closed his evil eyes and lowered his head to rest it on his forearms, looking for all the world like he had fallen asleep.
“What is he doing?” Aeris whispered as he flew close to the wizard's ear.
“He's playing with us,” Simon muttered. “The way a cat will play with a mouse before finally killing it. We are amusing him.”
“But master, doesn't he want our help against the queen?”
The wizard looked down at the little guy and smiled bitterly.
“I thought he might have been honest about that, but now that we're here, I think it was all a ruse. Maybe at first he might have wanted that, but now that we are in his grasp, as he sees it, I think that his hatred for us, and for me in particular, will convince him to attack.”
He gave Pyrathius a quick glance.
“As I've said, arrogance personified. Even his brothers had the wit to be somewhat cautious. This guy? He's just the biggest bully in the playground. No wonder the queen wants to kill him.”
The primal opened his eyes and lifted his head high above the ground, so high that Simon was forced to crane back his neck to see it.
“Something you may not know about dragons, little human, is that our sense of hearing is quite good. And I just heard every word you said.”
Simon leaned on his staff and twisted it so that the end dug into the ground a bit.
“I know you did, Pyrathius.” The dragon's eyes widened as he heard his name used. “You were meant to. I just wanted you to know that I know what you are really doing. You seem to be underestimating humanity.”
“Underestimating? Bah!”
The dragon spat a globule of fire that slammed into the ground with a burst of flames. Simon's shield spluttered and flashed as bits of molten rock bounced off of it.
“I do not underestimate you. I know exactly how powerless you all really are. Yes, you killed my brothers. So what? I have personally examined several of those kills. And my minions have spied on you each time you took down a primal. That is why my drakes are not with me. They are afield, watching, learning, reporting back to me. Did you know that? I thought not. Every kill, every victory, was the result of trickery and base deceit. Every. Single. One.”
The massive head shot down at alarming speed and a blast of wind screamed by the wizard's shield until Pyrathius face was no more than a dozen yards from Simon and the elementals.
“You are not powerful, human. You are a coward, a spineless worm. You deceived your betters and overcame them but don't think that makes you heroic; it does not. It makes you exactly what you just accused me of being: a bully. My brothers were honorable creatures. They fought the way that dragons have always fought. Maw to maw, power to power, face to face. But you? You befuddled them, used their own nobility against them.”
The dragon pulled back again.
“Oh but you have much to answer for. I only wish that I could kill you as slowly as you deserve. But I cannot. I can, however, tell you something that will fill your soul with despair as you fall into eternal night. Know that I have found a way to sever myself from my queen, and my lesser dragons from myself. No longer will harm to them mean harm to me. No longer will the death of our beloved mother mean our deaths. When I defeat her, and I will defeat her, I will live on. The supreme being on this world. And I shall hunt down each member of your wretched race one by one and slay them as slowly and as deliciously as I can. That is my revenge on you, wizard, for your crimes against my kind. Keep that thought in mind as you die, won't you?”
“My God, you do love the sound of your own voice, don't you?” Simon yelled up at him.
“Mock me if you will,” the primal chortled. “I will allow it. And think on this as well. If you did somehow find a way to destroy me, you would still lose. My lesser dragons will not fall at my death. They will go on. And thanks to my intelligence and power, they will thrive, because now they have the gift that those cursed Chaos lords refused to grant us. A gift given by me, Pyrathius!”
Simon began to gather power from the air around him, drawing in the magical energy that infused the very rock he was standing on.
“Kronk, go and get Kassus,” he whispered. “Tell him to strike as soon as he can. Aeris, get to Ethmira. She can attack at any time. The primal is so big that I'm sure her archers can hit him from up on the rim.”
“Take care, master,” the little guy said and ducked underground.
“Okay. Open a hole for me in your shield,” Aeris muttered. “Thanks. And watch your ass, my dear wizard. I do believe that this dragon is insane.”
The air elemental faded from sight and Simon counted to three before sealing his shield again.
“What gift are you talking about?” he shouted at the primal, keeping the monster's attention on himself.
“What gift? Why, the greatest of all gifts, of course.”
Simon hadn't realized that a dragon could actually look smug, but this one did. In fact, he looked extremely pleased with himself.
“I have given them the ability to procreate.”
“You mean...?”
“Yes, human. My minions can now lay eggs and have offspring of their own. Soon the skies of this world with be darkened by the wings of countless red dragons. Ah, it makes my old heart soar just thinking about it. And imagine, if it hadn't been for you killing my brothers, why, this never would have happened! So in a way, this is all your fault. Congratulations...wizard.”
Pyrathius leered down at him as Simon stumbled back in shock at the accusation.
No, this can't be my fault, he thought. His mind was reeling. The dragons were going to exterminate the human race. I had to kill the primals! I had no choice. This monster is playing me, lying through his rotten teeth.
Is he? It was that small voice that sometimes whispered to him in the dark. Is he really? All it takes is a single snowflake to start an avalanche. A single pebble to set off a landslide. And that was you, Simon. You were the catalyst for all of it. Good job.
“Ah, I see by your face that you understand now,” the primal said, gloating. “All this time you've seen yourself as the hero, haven't you? And yet you've been the villain all along. This is so satisfying to me, it really is. I can happily kill you now knowing that you have seen the truth. Delightful.”
“You talk too much!” Simon shouted in fury.
He meshed the power that he had gathered around him into a single bolt and pointed Mortis de Draconis at the huge maw above him.
“Ice Spear!” he bellowed and unleashed the spell.
A razor-sharp missile of bitter ice coalesced and screamed upward. Pyrathius, caught completely off-guard, pulled back and brought up his wings to block the spear. The missile slammed into the thick red skin of his wings and ripped through it, leaving ragged holes in both that spewed green blood. It showered down to the ground, smoking and burning as it landed.
The Dragons of Ash and Smoke (Tales from the New Earth Book 5) Page 38
