“No, he claimed it was too far away to see it clearly,” she replied, wishing now that she could have asked more about its color.
Zoran asked what he had been mulling over while she told them about dragons. “What is a dragon’s life span? Do they have any natural enemies? Can they be killed by humans?”
She gave him a curious look, and then replied, “Again, life spans vary with species. Golden dragons may live for five hundred years; some others may live somewhat less. You might say, Zoran, that a dragon is at the top of the food chain. Their only enemies are other dragons who desire their treasure, not unlike the criminals and barons of our world.” She couldn’t resist a dig at the ruling establishment here on Adapazan and Zoran’s father. “Can they be slain by us? Probably, but certainly not easily. I suspect that a creature of these proportions can sustain wounds which would kill a human twenty times over. Don’t get any wild ideas, Zdenka; arrows merely bounce off their thick hides. Sword strikes might pierce their skin, though I know of no one who has been stupid enough to test that theory.”
Zoran still had more questions forming in his mind. All this was totally new to him and potentially very critical information. “If there has not been a dragon around here for a quarter of a century, why has one come here now?”
“I suspect, Zoran, that if you could find the answer to that question, we would all be far wiser. Who knows what goes on in the mind of a dragon? Certainly not I, even though I trained one in my youth. Now unfortunately, this is the only copy of my book. Please read it together; look over each other’s shoulders if you must. It should only take you an hour or so to learn all that I know of dragons. It is very little, actually.” She left the group crowding close together to read this incredible book.
Zoran said what they were all thinking, “We are learning something that no one else on Adapazan knows!” No one noticed that Emil and Renata stood well back of the other five and only pretended to read.
That night, Jarka pulled Zoran aside. “We need to talk, talk privately. Come on.” She pulled him into her room, closing the door, but only after making sure no one was in the hallway.
“Look, don’t you think that Emil and Renata are doing something really weird? I just found out from the doorman, Marek. Those two really do leave around three in the morning on Sundays. They don’t get back until at least midnight on Sunday. They’ve been doing that ever since we began our training. Now don’t you think that is just a little weird? I certainly do. Whatever could anyone be doing leaving in the middle of the night, eh? Nothing is even open, I mean stores and shops and stuff. Where can they be going? I’ve never seen them with horses, so they must go on foot. I just know that they are up to something. You are supposed to be our leader, so investigate or something. I’m sure the others are just as concerned about those twins as I am, although they haven’t said anything about it to me yet, but I’m sure they don’t trust them either. I certainly don’t trust them.”
She would have continued, but Zoran cut her off by putting his finger on her lips. “I’ll see what I can find out. Until then, we have no reason to distrust them, but I admit they are a little strange. Still, Archmage Nadia seems to trust them leaving and returning at those hours, so I think we should extend them the same courtesy — at least until we know what they are up to going out at that time. Okay?”
She flashed him a smile, “Okay, but do check on them. Where can they possibly going and doing?”
Back in his own room, Zoran realized she did have a valid point. He was their supposed leader, and two of their team were certainly acting strangely on this one day of the week. Perhaps they knew how to teleport; if so, they could go anywhere on Adapazan, but why?
When the next personal day came around, Zoran decided to try and follow the twins. However, he was sound asleep at three in the morning. After grabbing breakfast, he too left the tower. Outside, he cast Invisibility on himself and then cast Fly and flew up high over the city. His plan was simple: see if he could spy the twins down there among all of the ten thousand who lived in Brn. Exhausted, he returned at suppertime.
“Well?” Jarka asked. She had once more cleverly gotten him into her room.
“I searched the whole city all day long. I saw no sign of them, but they could well have been indoors during the day. I overslept, but then I don’t know if Marek will let me out that early.”
“Well, I did a bit of my own searching. No one in town has ever seen the twins since the day we all entered the tower! Now isn’t that even stranger? They go out and no one sees them? Really!”
“Okay, okay, I’ll keep trying, Jarka. Honestly, I think in the end they will have a valid excuse, though we just cannot foresee what that might be. I’m pooped. See you in the morning.”
Chapter 6 A Service
Two days later, Archmage Nadia called the group into the study. “I have a small mission for you. I know that you have been cooped up for months. This will get you out into the fresh air. I need you to provide protection for a wagon. Laval Mining produces many fine raw gems and gold. Each year about this time, they make a delivery run to Brn, carrying an entire year’s worth of product with them. The value of their cargo is larger than normal this year, something bordering on perhaps three hundred thousand gold pieces. The owner has requested that I provide security for their trip to Brn. I agreed, as I always do.”
“The mine is located about seventy-five miles from here by road, shorter if one could go in a straight line. It is down range from here and around on the other side of the mountain. You will have to travel a good distance along the twisting mountain road and then pass through nearly forty miles of the Dark Forest, before the road winds along up our long valley road, passing numerous patches of pine forests. The laden wagon will make only about fifteen miles a day, so you ought to be back here late Saturday, if all goes well.”
“Of course bandits are well aware of the mine’s yearly shipment. Perhaps more than one group will attempt to waylay it, who can say. I doubt that you will encounter Yellers; our patrols have pretty much driven them out of Brn territory. However, banshees are known to inhabit some of the mountainous areas through which you must pass. As Zdenka knows well, the woods is home to packs of megalowolves. Both will be nighttime threats, while I would anticipate that the bandits would prefer daylight attacks.”
“I would be surprised if you didn’t get a chance to exercise your magical spells this trip,” she coyly hinted. Zoran knew every aspect of this trip smelled of danger, real danger.
“After you all get your things together, I will open a Mystical Door from here to the mine. You simply step through the door and you will be there. The owner will provide you with horses for the return trip to Brn. If anything bad happens that you cannot handle, send word to me. Also, I will send along three healing potions with Jarka, just in case of an emergency. Now go pack what you think you will need.”
Fifteen minutes later, the very excited group gathered around Archmage Nadia in their dining room. All wore their leather outfits, packing all of their weapons along with a change of clothes. Eagerly, they watched her every motion as she cast a very complex spell. Zoran had not heard of Mystical Door before and naturally had a professional curiosity about it. Unfortunately, he got no clues from its casting. One by one, each stepped through the door only to find themselves stepping out before a wooden mine shack and at a much higher elevation.
Several guards, both heavily armored and holding many weapons, stood guard around an open wagon. A burly man stood nearby, waving each arrival towards him as he or she suddenly stepped out into an unfamiliar place. That they were high in the mountains was obvious immediately. Zoran noticed that the air was both thinner and less humid. A brief round of introductions followed.
The owner, the burly man, explained, “I’ve a good horse for each of you. Milan is the driver and Tomas goes along as his guard. They are carrying a week’s worth of food for all of you and some water, but there are many streams along the way. Thanks
for protecting this shipment. I must say that this has been our best year ever. Go with God.”
Milan and Tomas came out of the nearby stables leading a pair of horses each. Two other men led three more. The wagon had two large draft horses pulling it. The two handed the reins to Zoran, Zdenka, Jarka, and Karel; then headed for their wagon. The other hands brought the remaining three up to Bernard and the twins.
As they drew close to the three, suddenly the horses began neighing wildly and rearing up, refusing to move any closer. No matter how the men pulled, the horses only grew more upset. Bernard called out, “Hey. Hold on; don’t force them. Back off.” He walked up to the frightened animals and began petting them and talking soothingly to them, one at a time. Quickly, the three calmed down under his expert handling.
“Let me,” he said and took the reins of one horse. Still talking soothingly to it, he slowly led it up to Emil and gave him the reins. The horse was very nervous but didn’t act up. Bernard repeated the action with the next horse, finally giving the reins to Renata. Then, he fetched the last one for himself. “Okay, Emil, Renata, mount up. They should be okay now. I don’t know what got into them. Something sure spooked them.”
“Er, Bernard,” Emil whispered, “we don’t know how to ride. How do we do it? We’ve never been on a horse or seen anyone riding.”
“Zoran, little help here?” Bernard called out. Zoran rode up to them, fighting to keep his horse from acting up as well, as it drew closer to the three. Quickly and softly, Bernard explained the problem to Zoran.
“Everyone, get going; we will catch up to you in a couple minutes. We are going to walk them a bit to get the horses over their skittishness,” Zoran called out. At once Milan obeyed. After giving the four a strange look, the rest of his team moved out, Karel taking up the point position with Zdenka and Jarka on either side of the wagon. He heard the three chatting about what was going on.
“Okay, let’s follow on foot. Lead them like we are,” he explained to the two very nervous twins. Once out of sight of the mining camp, he explained, “It’s okay that you don’t know how to ride. I am having us walk for two reasons. One, it will give Bernard and I some time to teach you to ride — well the basics anyway. Two, I didn’t want to embarrass you further back there, what with all the men watching you.”
“Thanks, Zoran. I really appreciate it. We’ve never ridden a horse before,” Renata explained.
“Think nothing of it,” Bernard added. “Probably half of the folks living in Brn have never been on a horse either.” Zoran noticed that this really seemed to bring a measure of relief to both of them. Now he began a crash course on riding horses. Ten minutes later, the four caught up to the others, though both Emil and Renata looked petrified sitting in their saddles.
“Hi all, they’ve never ridden before,” Zoran explained to the others. The others took it in stride, though once more Jarka gave them a queer look.
The day passed mostly uneventful, save one minor situation. In the early afternoon, a swarm of paleowasps crossed their path. Before anyone could react, Emil handled them by shooting off a Ball of Fire, incinerating the lot. He was teased for reacting with total overkill, however, but Emil took it in stride, a smile on his face.
Around five, they began looking for a place to camp. Tomas, who had traveled this route many times, knew just the spot, only a short way off the road. They pulled in to a small half-moon shaped glen where three pine trees struggled for life amid the high altitude granite mountain side. Nearby a small stream bubbled its way on down the mountain.
As they pulled into the glen, Zoran’s inner sense kicked in, signaling danger to him. “Someone’s watching us,” he called out. “Stay alert.”
“How do you know?” Zdenka asked him.
“Just do,” he didn’t directly answer her. He wanted to say because I am Duska, but dare not. The group made camp; the twins were more than glad to scour for firewood, leaving Bernard and Karel to deal with the horses, eventually tethering them between the trees.
Milan asked, “Say, one of you ladies wanna do the cookin? Otherwise, yea’ll have to eat my miserable attempt.”
“Oh brother, okay, okay, move over. I’ll do it, only you get to wash the dishes,” Zdenka resigned herself to the task. No way was she going to eat lousily cooked meals for five days!
Since no further danger seemed apparent, Zoran chatted with her while she began cooking their supper. “I do it every day for dad and myself,” she explained.
“Smells good. I’m famished,” he chatted away. Still, his inner sense continued to gnaw in the back of his awareness. Something was out there and watching them, but what?
A while later, the group dined on the best trail cooking that Milan and Tomas had ever had. Milan didn’t grumble at all, when afterwards, he had to wash the many pots, pans, and dishes. As darkness fell, the two put their bedrolls beneath the wagon and hit the sack, leaving the rest to guard them.
Zoran gathered the six to him. “Okay, I am sure that it’s still out there, probably watching us. I get the sense that it’s alone, so probably not a megalowolf pack or bandits. Archmage Nadia said not to worry about Yellers, so my money is on a banshee. Let’s have two of us on watch each shift. Zdenka and I will take the first shift of three hours. Then Bernard, you and Jarka relieve us. Then Karel, you and I will take the dawn shift.” While Zdenka protested that he would get short changed on sleep, he shrugged it off. If a banshee was out there, he wanted a double watch.
While the others slept, he and Zdenka sat around the small cooing fire, periodically stoking it. They killed the time by chatting a bit about their lives, though he found it difficult to relate many things that he wished he could share with her, concentrating on some of the funnier episodes that he and his two buddies had gotten into before he had fled. At last, they roused Jarka and Bernard and turned in themselves. Zoran fell asleep at once.
Around one in the morning, his inner sense sounded an alarm in his head, almost as if someone were screaming him awake. He sat up; it was screaming! Jarka had thrown more logs on the fire and cast a Light spell, illuminating the whole small glen. Bernard dashed around the campsite looking for the banshee, while holding his ears.
The others got up rapidly as well. Then, Zoran saw her; the banshee was sliding down the slope to their camp. Ghost-like, wearing a gauze of a nightgown, hands more like claws, and fangs, long pearly white fangs, she seemed to float towards them, shrieking her piercing, paralyzing call. With great effort, Zoran forced his nearly immobile muscles to draw his swords. Zdenka’s arrow flew true to its mark, piercing the banshee right between her eyes. To everyone’s utter amazement, the arrow went on through the banshee as if she were indeed a ghost!
Jarka, seeing that everyone was moving in slow motion as a result of the banshee’s call, acted. She cast a Scream spell on herself, then a Magnify spell. Now she began singing and yelling, “La di da di do di da!” Her greatly amplified voice drowned out that of the banshee. Zoran felt his strength returning and rushed the banshee, slicing her twice with his short sword pair. Both blades cut through thin air. She in turn tried to grab him with her talon claws. His intuitive combat training kicked in, and he dove to the ground on her right, hit, and rolled out of her reach.
At that moment, Bernard and Karel both shot Lightning Bolts at the creature; it staggered and shrieked in great pain. Recognizing this was working, Renata, Emil, and Zdenka shot their Lightning Bolts nearly simultaneously. The banshee’s ethereal form shook violently in many directions and slumped to the ground, lifeless. A moment later, a giant puff of smoke rose from where its body had lain. Ashes were all that remained of the banshee.
Jarka cancelled her spells. “Well done all of you! Wow. So that was a banshee. Great going gang.”
“Fabulous idea, Jarka, you more or less canceled her paralyzation cry,” Zoran praised them. His inner sense was now totally quiet. “I think she was what I was sensing when we stopped here, so we are probably safe, but let’s continue th
e guard duty.” However, none could relax, for they were way too keyed up over the battle.
As they chatted, Zoran realized his mistake. “Sorry gang, I reacted with my swords, which I always used to do, instead of using magic. You all were great, saving my butt.”
“Well I did too,” Zdenka added. “Until now I never met something my arrows couldn’t handle. I ought to have remembered and shot my spells.”
“Hey, don’t knock yourselves,” Bernard interrupted, though becoming a bit bored once more as the excitement died down. “You reacted the way that you were trained. It takes time to undo training patterns in dogs. I suppose it is the same with us.”
An hour after first light and breakfast handled, the group began rolling on down the mountain road once more. In the distance, the dark green color of the Dark Forest loomed. They would reach it by noon. Here, Zoran expected to confront the bandits, who would use the cover of the dense woods to their advantage.
As they entered the Dark Forest, Zoran and Zdenka took the point position, some hundred feet in front of the lumbering wagon. He had Jarka hang back a hundred feet to their rear just in case bandits made a rear assault.
Around three in the afternoon, Zoran’s inner sense tingled once again. “Stay alert, something is up!” he called out. The seven’s eyes constantly studied the dense trees near the road, but a bandit could well be within ten feet of them and they wouldn’t be able to see him. Many trees were two feet across and quite densely packed, giving the woods its name. Slowly the wagon rolled along the rutted road.
Not long after this, around a bend, Zoran and Zdenka reined in; ahead a large tree had fallen, blocking the road. “Trap. Stay alert,” he called out. His inner sense told him that many individuals were lying in wait. As they drew closer, it was clear that the tree had recently been felled and was going to be difficult to move out of the way. Two feet in diameter, the tree totally blocked the road and would need the draft horses to move!
Zoran Chronicles Volume 1 A Dragon in Our Town Page 7
