“I’m not sure. Just fast-moving shadows,” Tess replied. She drew her sword and reached down with her other hand to pull the dagger from her boot.
“How do you set a shadow on fire?” Aesus asked.
“Can shadows even hurt us?” Xan asked.
One of the horses neighed and became restless. The other horses stirred.
“To the horses,” Drakor said. “We can’t stay here.”
The group moved quickly to their respective horses and mounted them, keeping an eye out for whatever was hiding around them.
Toshen oriented his horse based on the ringing in his ears. “This way.”
The others followed him as he galloped through the forest, ducking to avoid low branches and trying to see what lay ahead.
After half an hour, Toshen slowed and waited for the others to come beside him.
“Do you think we lost those things?”
Drakor looked over his shoulder. “Hopefully.”
“If they’re just shadows without physical forms, they might be harmless,” Aesus said.
“Or they might have other powers we’re not aware of that would harm us,” Xan said.
“There was no way of telling until it was too late,” Tess said. “It was best that we fled.”
“While I know dark magic is bad, I don’t know how it works or what can be done with it,” Drakor said. “Dead wolves. Shadows. These are all new to me. I don’t know what else we might encounter here.”
“I’m worried about where we’re sleeping tonight,” Xan said. “I don’t want to lie down and breathe this fog—or whatever it is.”
“Let’s see if we can find some raised area or a tree to sleep in,” Drakor said. “At least we’ll be off the ground.”
The group searched for an hour and finally found a tree four people could sleep in while one person stood watch on the ground. The tree was wide in girth and its four large branches were spread low at ninety degrees on the trunk. Drakor shaved the top of the branches with his sword to provide a flat surface to lie on.
After a meal of dried fish and bread, they settled in for the night. A small lantern hung from a branch dimly lit the surrounding area. Drakor took the first watch.
CHAPTER 27
Drakor awoke just as the sun lit the sky. He sat up and saw that Tess, Xan, and Aesus were still asleep. He looked for Toshen and saw him standing a few feet from the tree, bow out and arrow drawn. A wolf’s howl in the distance broke the silence.
“Toshen,” Drakor whispered.
Toshen turned to look at Drakor and walked toward him. “It’s been howling for the past hour. Some other wolves responded, but they sound much farther away.”
“I’ll wake the others so we can get going.”
After a quick breakfast of bread and dried berries, they mounted up and continued their journey. Toshen took the lead, followed by Aesus and Tess, Xan, and Drakor at the rear.
Two hours into their ride, Toshen stopped and signaled for the others to stop. He pulled the bow from his back and held it on his lap.
“Is there a problem?” Aesus asked.
“We’re being watched,” Toshen said. “Tess’s shadows have returned.”
Tess looked into the surrounding trees and tried to get a glimpse of a shadow, but didn’t see any.
Aesus looked around and also didn’t see anything. He turned to Xan and Drakor. “Shadows.”
Drakor moved his horse next to Toshen’s. “How many?”
“Five, but I might be wrong,” Toshen said. “They move so fast, it’s hard to tell.”
He saw something move on his left, quickly aimed his bow, and fired. It passed through the intended target and disappeared into the fog.
“Arrows don’t work against them.”
Without warning, ten shadowy figures emerged from the fog as if they had risen straight out of the ground, and formed a large circle around the group. The shadows were translucent with an ill-defined form.
One of the shadows in front of Toshen shimmered and turned into a solid form about his height. It was a female dark elf. She had gray skin, pointy ears, and long graying-black hair swept over her shoulder. She wore a dark-purple leather halter top, low-riding pants, knee-high boots, and a flowing black feathered cape. A short sword hung from her belt.
“I thought all the dark elves were dead,” Drakor said.
“What are you doing in my forest?” the dark elf asked.
“We’re on a quest. Given a choice, we wouldn’t be here.”
“But you are here. In my forest. What’s the quest?”
“We can’t share that with you.”
The dark elf clenched her fist at her side. “You mean you won’t share it with me.”
“We mean you know harm, elf. We’re just here to complete the quest.”
The elf raised her hand and pointed a finger at Xan’s satchel. “Yet you have two things that belong to me.”
“We have nothing that belongs to you.”
The elf laughed. “Yes, you do. I can sense them. Give them to me and leave the forest, and I’ll spare your lives.”
“We won’t give you anything and we won’t leave the forest.”
“Then I’ll have to kill you to claim what’s rightfully mine.”
“Can we know our killer’s name before our demise?”
The dark elf grinned. “Of course. I’m Nashara, queen of the dark elves.”
The nine shadowy figures shimmered and turned into dark elves. Four were dressed in black leather armor and wielded a bow, two wore dark-purple robes, and the other three wore black leather armor and wielded short swords. The two robed elves each raised a hand, and a sparks of light appeared on their fingertips.
Toshen quickly fired two arrows and felled the two dark elves dressed in purple robes.
Nashara cast a bolt of frost at Toshen, but he saw her raised hand and dodged the bolt as it came at him.
Aesus turned his horse and hit two of the archers in the chest with fireballs and sent them to the ground.
The other two archers fired at Aesus. One missed, but the other struck Aesus next to his shoulder. Aesus cringed and grabbed his chest.
Xan looked at the arrow in Aesus’s chest and frowned, not knowing how to heal his injury with the solid object embedded in it. She cast a spell to alleviate the pain.
The dark elf swordsmen standing by Tess ran forward and lunged at her, but she maneuvered her horse out of the way. She turned her horse into his back as he stood there and knocked him to the ground. When he tried to get up, she plowed her horse into him and sent him head over heels, breaking his neck.
Drakor charged Nashara with his sword drawn. She dodged as he swung and cast a bolt of frost that missed him but struck his horse in the head. The horse reeled in pain and Drakor fell off its back.
Two of the swordsmen rushed Drakor as he lay on the ground. He rolled over, stood, and parried with the first attacker until he slashed off the elf’s sword hand. As the elf screamed and watched in horror the blood gushing out of his arm, Drakor ran his sword through his chest.
The second elf swung at Drakor, who dodged the blow. Drakor spun around with sword held high and struck the elf in the neck, partially decapitating him. The elf dropped his sword, grabbed his neck, and fell to the ground.
Drakor spotted Nashara a short distance away. As she rose her hand to cast a spell, he grabbed his dagger and flung it in her direction. Before she could fire a frost bolt, the blade landed in her stomach. She grimaced, grabbed the dagger’s handle, and fell backwards to the ground.
Toshen spun his horse around, saw the two remaining archers, and fired two arrows. The first struck an archer in his throat and sent him to the ground. The second arrow struck the remaining archer in the upper chest, but that didn’t stop him. The archer fired an arrow back at Toshen, but missed. Toshen fired another arrow that struck the elf between his eyes, and he fell.
The group turned their attention to Nashara. She was standing, hunched over
and clutching her stomach. Blood covered her lips and dripped from the corner of her mouth.
“This isn’t over!” she shouted. “You’ll never leave the forest alive.”
She reached into her waistband, pulled out a small black object, and threw it down at her feet. There was a bright flash of light and a cloud of smoke concealed her body. When the smoke cleared, she was nowhere to be seen.
Xan rode over to Aesus and inspected his wound. “We’ll have to pull the arrow out before I can heal you.”
Aesus raised his leg to dismount his horse, but slowly lowered it and gritted his teeth. “I need help.”
Toshen dismounted and he and Drakor helped Aesus off his horse. Toshen held Aesus’s body steady while Drakor grabbed the arrow’s shaft. Aesus nodded and Drakor ripped the head of the arrow out of his flesh. Aesus screamed, the sound echoing through the forest. Xan whispered a healing spell and Aesus’s wound healed.
Aesus moved his shoulder in a circular motion. “Much better.”
Xan saw Drakor’s horse on the ground and walked to it. The bolt of frost had pierced the horse’s jaw and exposed some teeth and gums. The horse was still alive, but in shock.
“Can you heal horses?” Drakor asked.
“I’ll try,” Xan said.
Xan knelt, placed her hand over the injured area, and whispered a healing spell. The wound on the horse’s jaw closed and healed, and the horse stood up. She patted the horse on its neck and the horse nodded its head and neighed.
“What are we going to do about Nashara?” Toshen asked Drakor.
“I’m not sure,” Drakor said. “She’s clearly after the books.”
“Maybe we can make a deal with her,” Aesus said. “She reads the spell of fusion, and we give her the books.”
“I don’t think it’s that simple,” Drakor said. “We don’t even know what the spell does.”
“Does it matter? Once we read the spell at the altar, the quest is complete.”
“He does have a point,” Toshen said.
“You want to make a deal with someone who just tried to kill us?” Tess asked. “That doesn’t seem like a good idea.”
“Agreed,” Drakor said. “But what alternative do we have?”
“Maybe something at the altar will help us read the book,” Tess said.
“That’s only if we can get to the altar before we encounter her again.”
“Let’s hope we never encounter her again,” Toshen said. “We’re really in no position to make a deal. If we don’t give her the books, she’ll kill us – or at least try to kill us.”
Drakor grunted. “For now, let’s just focus on getting to the altar. There are a few more hours of daylight, so let’s make the most of it.”
The group rode until the sky darkened. They found a tree to sleep in and ate a meal of dried fish and bread. Xan took first watch while the others slept.
CHAPTER 28
The group traveled east for four more days until they came upon a solid black wall in the early afternoon. The wall stood twenty feet tall and extended two hundred yards in each direction. The surface shone like a piece of black glass.
“What’s this?” Toshen asked. He dismounted his horse, removed his glove, and felt the texture of the wall. It felt cool and smooth to the touch.
“It’s the wall surrounding the Temple of Beziel,” Drakor said. “The entrance is on the south side. Once inside, the Altar of Sacrifice is in the center of the temple.”
“Do you think Nashara is expecting us?” Xan asked.
“I think she knows we’re coming.”
“Then we’re walking into a trap,” Aesus said.
Drakor nodded. “We’ve run out of time, so we need to get to the altar tonight. I don’t want to fight our way in, but we need to be prepared for anything.”
Toshen took a few steps back and looked at the top of the wall. “It’s too bad we can’t climb over this wall.”
“If we build a ladder, we can,” Tess said. “There’s more than enough wood to make one. We just have to lash it together. Then we can lower a rope on the other side and climb down. But I don’t think we have enough rope.”
Toshen took out his dagger and dug next to the wall. “Maybe we can go under.” When he reached a depth of six inches, he hit solid rock. He tapped it a few times with his blade and then stood. “This won’t do.”
“What’s rope made of?” Xan asked Tess.
“What’s it made of…?” Tess asked. She put her hand over her face, rolled her eyes, and shook her head. “Why didn’t I think of that?”
She walked to a straight, slender tree about her height, took out her dagger, and stripped off a thin strip of blackened bark. She peeled off the outer layer, cut the inner layer lengthwise twice, braided the three pieces together and pulled the braid tight between her fists.
“Now we have enough rope.”
Toshen and Aesus gathered wood to construct the ladder while Drakor, Xan, and Tess made short and long lengths of tree bark rope. After a few hours, they had enough material to construct the ladder and the rope to climb down on the other side of the wall.
“It’ll be dark soon,” Drakor said. “Let’s eat something, rest until dusk, and then climb the wall.”
“What about the horses?” Xan asked. “If we leave them here, the wolves might get them.”
“We’re not leaving someone behind to guard them.”
“We won’t be able to get out of the forest without them,” Toshen said.
“That’s a chance we’ll have to take,” Drakor said.
“Let’s at least put our food in a tree,” Tess said. “Then we won’t starve if something happens to the horses.”
Drakor nodded. “Agreed.”
They removed the provisions from the horses and hid them in a tree away from the wall. They tied the horses to another tree close by.
It was dusk by the time they finished eating their meal of dried meat.
“Help me with the ladder,” Toshen said.
The group leaned the ladder against the wall and Toshen climbed to the top. He peered over the edge and saw a pyramid-shaped building in the center of the temple grounds. It had the same black mirror finish as the wall. Two white obelisks marked the south entrance. A walled area extended north behind the pyramid and connected it to a rectangular building. Two rows of black braziers lit the walkway that led to the obelisks, with additional lit braziers spaced around the entire structure. He didn’t see anyone moving about.
“It’s clear,” Toshen whispered down to the others. He threw the rope over the other side and climbed down.
One by one, they climbed over the wall. Toshen kept a watchful eye, bow out and arrow drawn. Once they were all inside the wall, they moved slowly toward the temple, Drakor and Tess with their swords drawn, ready for the slightest sign of trouble. They reached the southwest corner of the temple and hid behind a low wall.
“This is too easy,” Toshen whispered. “Where is everyone?”
“Maybe they’re inside,” Tess replied.
“How do we get to the altar?” Toshen asked.
“Through the front or around the back by the holding cells,” Drakor said. “I don’t suggest we go through the front.”
“Lead the way,” Toshen said.
Crouching to avoid casting any large shadows from the braziers, Drakor slowly headed north along the west temple wall. The others followed. He turned a corner, followed the wall to a large open portcullis, and entered. Two rows of large holding cells led to another open portcullis. The area was lit with torches, which revealed the cells were empty. He paused for a moment, glanced at the others, and continued toward the far end.
After they passed through the second portcullis, both gates closed behind them.
“We’re definitely not leaving the way we came,” Toshen said.
“Indeed,” Aesus said. “The trap has been sprung.”
“Let’s keep moving,” Drakor said.
The group stepped i
nto an amphitheater with a waist-high platform at its center. The Altar of Sacrifice. It was rectangular, three yards in length and two yards in width. Below its three-inch-thick, smooth surface were rows of outward-facing skulls.
Five figures stood in front of the platform, the pyramid behind them. Nashara was in the middle. The others with her were dressed in dark-purple robes, the hoods drawn over their heads.
The group walked up to the platform in a line: Drakor in the middle, with Xan and Toshen on his left, and Aesus and Tess on his right.
“I knew you would come,” Nashara said. “Welcome.”
“You’re not going to try to kill us this time?” Drakor asked.
“I underestimated your skills and overestimated ours during our first encounter. There are so few of us left in the order. I can’t afford to make the same mistake twice. Why are you here?”
“You might as well tell her, Drakor,” Aesus said.
“Drakor?” Nashara asked. “Not the dragon Drakor. You can’t possibly be him.”
“One and the same,” Drakor said.
Nashara grunted. “This becomes even more intriguing as it unfolds. I was here when you were… our guest.”
“Prisoner.”
Nashara shrugged. “All right then, prisoner. Why are you here?”
“We need to place a staff on the altar, and have you read the spell of fusion.”
“Spell of fusion? You have an enchanted crystal?”
“We have a crystal.”
“And once you fuse the crystal, what’s supposed to happen?”
“We don’t know. Maybe you can tell us.”
Nashara grinned. “Let me tell you a tale.” She paced as she spoke. “When we captured you and the other three dragons, we found a glowing crystal in the lair of one of the other dragons. We sensed its magical energy, but we didn’t know how to extract it. After doing some research, I crafted a spell to corrupt it. The spell allowed me to absorb its energy, but it broke the crystal into several pieces. I was surprised that the pieces still glowed, meaning there was more energy to extract. I tried to corrupt the smaller pieces, but I couldn’t. So I crafted a spell to make the crystal whole, so I could corrupt it again. That spell is the spell of fusion.”
Three Quest Deal (Tales of Former Dragons Book 1) Page 14
