“Thank you.” Guildmaster Millinith patted Anaya on the neck. She turned to the man. “As he is a sorcerer, we’ll need three binds on him.” She glanced at the crowd of people who’d gathered nearby. “Ramsey, you two keep the people back.”
The guards walked over to the milling crowd and started moving them behind the fences.
Millinith turned back to the man. “Master Doronal, could you, Louis, and Gwen do the honors?”
Master Doronal glanced at the two sorcerers and then at the unconscious man. “Of course. I’d like to get some answers from this manis myself.”
An angry roar came from above, drawing all eyes upward. Balam nearly flew into the ground in his haste, leaving deep claw marks where he landed. Where is he? I will eat him!
You will not! Anaya stepped between the furious dragon and the man on the ground Calm yourself, Balam. I am fine. I told you that I am unhurt.
“She’s okay,” Aeron said. “She’s really okay.”
Balam, breathing heavily, almost panting in distress, looked from Aeron to Anaya. He gave out a scared chirp.
Anaya leaned toward him, touched his nose with hers, and chirped back.
With an exhalation of breath near to a whine, Balam lay his head on Anaya’s shoulder and wrapped her in his wings.
“Gwen, Louis, everyone, let’s get this man inside, quickly.” Master Doronal leaned down and grabbed one of the unconscious man’s arms.
“Not in my stable,” Aeron said. He glanced at the two dragons. “Renata’s rooms, for now.”
“Hmm. Good point.” Master Doronal nodded.
They had the man tied in a chair in Renata’s study in less than five minutes.
“You both have binds on him?” Master Doronal looked from Louis to Gwen. They nodded. “Good. Now, if he counters yours, just reapply. Standard sorcerer binding stuff. Though we’ve never had to use it here in the Caer.” He looked at Aeron. “Whenever you’re ready.”
Aeron clenched his jaws. In his left hand he gripped a wooden mallet used in leatherworking. The head was stiff leather, but was not soft at all. In his other hand was a large glass of water. He threw the cold water into the man’s face and set the glass down.
The man twitched and shook his head. He let out a moan.
“Hey.” Aeron slapped him. “Wake up.”
The man looked around the room, at the people, and back to Aeron. His eyes narrowed.
Aeron transferred the mallet to his right hand.
The man glanced at it, then back at Aeron.
“If you even think about using magic,” Aeron said, “we’ll know.” He smacked the head of mallet into his left hand. “If you try to remove the binding spells on you, we’ll know.” He smacked the mallet again. “If you lie to us, we’ll know.” Aeron studied the mallet. “Do any of those things and I will use this, sending you back to sleep for a while.”
Aeron leaned toward the man, close to his face. “I’m cold, wet, and angry. You tried to kill my dragon. My Anaya!” He had to take a moment, breathing heavily, to regain control of his voice. “I will not swing this lightly. Do you understand?”
The man nodded, never taking his eyes from Aeron.
“Now, the Guildmaster of the Dragon Craft Guild has a few questions for you. So, too, does our Master Sorcerer. And when they’re done, I may have a few myself. Do you understand?”
The man nodded.
“Good. Guildmaster?”
Millinith was seated to the man’s left. She studied his face. “What is your name?”
“Manis Stoltz.”
“You were sent to kill Anaya?”
Stoltz lowered his gaze. “The dragon, yes. But I also had another mission. A mission to—” He let out a breath.
“To . . . ?” Guildmaster Millinith’s eyes narrowed.
He looked at her. “To ask for your help.”
Aeron stood. “You expect us to believe that? Kill my dragon and ask us for help? Are you mad?”
“I–I know, it sounds . . .” He shook his head and lowered it. It seemed only the bindings kept his entire body from slumping in the chair. “How was I supposed to accomplish both tasks? Capu Cirtis gave me a mission, and then Nesch Takatin gave me another. Either mission alone could be successful, but I was doomed to fail one of them if I tried both.”
Master Doronal sat forward. “What were you supposed to ask us for help with?”
Stoltz looked up. “I was to ask, beg if I had to, for the dragon guild’s help in convincing more of the Order that dragons are not what Yrdra created. Many have come to believe that her evil creations are actually the foul creatures that have been killing people near the villages. I believe this, too, actually.”
Guildmaster Millinith frowned. “Then why kill Anaya? Why not ignore that mission and complete the other?”
Stoltz looked from her to the floor. “He spoke so quietly when he gave me the mission, but there was steel in his words. He told me that if I did not kill the dragon, then unimaginable things would be done to my little brother.”
“What?” Aeron stared at him.
“It’s a privilege to be selected for the Order. So, a month ago when my brother was chosen to join, everyone in my family was happy. Two of us had been selected. It was an incredible honor.” Stoltz looked at Aeron, face distorted with fear and worry. “He’s only eight!”
The manis closed his eyes. “The entire trip here I agonized over what to do. They’re both leaders in the Order. I couldn’t ignore one of the missions, could I? Even as I watched your dragon laying there, so peaceful, I debated.” He turned again to Aeron. “But he’s my baby brother.”
Aeron wanted to hurt him, beat him with the mallet, break his arms, his legs, his face.
His face. The misery reflected in his face was real.
Never having had a brother or a sibling of any kind, Aeron didn’t know exactly what the man was going through, but he did know how he felt about the threat to Anaya. What wouldn’t Aeron do to protect her? Could he really blame this man for trying to save his brother?
“You could have asked us to help you.” Aeron flung the mallet to the floor. It bounced and struck a wall. “I can forgive the rest, but you didn’t try hard enough.”
With defeat in his voice, Stoltz said, “You can’t help me.”
Master Doronal turned to Guildmaster Millinith. “We can spread a rumor that he died, was killed in his attack on Anaya.”
She nodded slowly. “Yes. People saw a slumped body being dragged into this building. That could work. We’ll have a stretcher brought and have him taken away under a shroud.”
Stoltz looked from one to the other. “I don’t understand.”
That was actually a great idea. “When the Order hears you’ve been killed,” Aeron said, “there will no longer be any reason to harm your brother.”
“You . . . you would do that for me?”
Master Doronal turned to the manis. “Make no mistake, you’ll be kept in gaol until we can verify your story. You tried to attack one of our people, after all.”
“But, I only attacked the dragon.”
“Exactly. Anaya is one of our people.”
“She’s just an ani—” His eyes grew large, and he searched the faces around him. “Who said that?”
Aeron knew who it had to have been. What did you tell him?
I told him that I forgave him.
Aeron was astonished. In time, he might be able to. Maybe. But not yet, not right now. He turned to the manis. “Anaya is not ‘just an animal,’ Stoltz. No dragon is just an animal. Only people can forgive.”
The man drew a sharp breath. “It was s–she who said that?”
Master Doronal looked from Aeron to the manis. “Did Nesch Takatin explain how we were to meet him?”
The man stared at the ground in front of him.
“Stoltz?” Master Doronal prompted.
“What? Nesch Takatin?”
“Yes. I imagine we’ll need to meet with him to discuss how be
st to convince the Order that nahual are the things to fight instead of dragons.”
Stoltz shook his head. “No. Nesch Takatin ordered me to kill the dragon. Capu Cirtis is the one who wants your help.”
It took a few minutes to make sure they’d all heard him right. As far as Aeron was concerned, it was good news. At least the leader of the Order was of a mind with them. Now they just had to figure out what to do.
By the time Stoltz had been carried away, covered, to the infirmary, everyone was back except Willem. Master Doronal and Guildmaster Millinith went to meet with Lord Baronel. Gwen and Louis, who’d carried Stoltz away, would keep watch over the room at the infirmary. Later tonight, when fewer people were about, Stoltz would be taken to a gaol cell below the barracks.
The dragons all sat together just outside the first stable, constantly nose-touching and chirping with Anaya. Balam sat next to her in constant contact—wings, forelegs, his chin resting on her, always something touching.
Aeron sighed. When would Willem’s damn shift be over?
The dragonlinked stood nearby, all upset, saying they wished they had been able to help.
“I would have killed him right then and there!” Liara said.
“I almost did,” Aeron said. “If Anaya hadn’t knocked him unconscious, I may have. Which would have been terrible.”
“Terrible?” Renata looked surprised. “He attacked Anaya.”
“Killing someone is not to be taken lightly!” That he had thought about doing so, the fear that he might have, made his words loud and harsh.
Everyone stared at him in shock. Even the two guards glanced over.
“If you kill someone, you can’t—” He looked at the ground. In a quieter voice, he said, “You can’t . . . take it . . . back.” Aeron let out a breath. “It’s not like calling someone a name. You can’t apologize to them. They’re dead. Forever. And the fact that you killed them will haunt you forever.”
He turned to Anaya. Would he have to make that choice one day?
Balam raised his head, looked to the north, and a let out a pleading rumble.
You will bring Willem. Anaya sounded firm. I am safe here, now.
Balam looked at the other dragons. He let out a bark, it almost sounded like an order, and stood. A portal appeared in the sky. The dark green dragon lifted into the air and disappeared into the misty gateway.
“Well,” Jessip said, staring at the portal, “someone killed the man. He won’t be a threat to the dragons or us anymore.”
“He’s not dead.” Aeron barely spoke above a whisper.
They all turned to him.
“But,” Fillion said, confusion in his eyes, “we saw him carted away on the stretcher, shrouded.” His brows slowly raised, and he said, “Shrouded.”
Balam reappeared through the portal and it vanished. Before his dragon had all four legs on the ground, Willem leapt off. Not even glancing at anyone else, he hurried over.
Eyes searching, Willem said, “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, for now.” He took Willem’s hand.
“Anaya told Balam what happened. It was already over by then and she told him you were both fine, so I decided to finish the shift. Balam was so worried, though, that I sent him ahead.” Willem glanced at Anaya. “Is she alright? Balam mentioned something about she’d been hurt.”
The green dragon had already returned to his spot by her side.
“A slight bruising of her chin from when she fell forward, is all,” Aeron said. “She’s fine, otherwise. Kept her head better than the rest of us, to be honest.”
He glanced about the yard. There were people at the fences, and there were the guards, of course. “Let’s go inside and I can explain to you all what happened.”
Aeron led them to his study and sat in his chair. “It all started with the fire at the loading stables.”
No one spoke until he got to the end.
“Nesch Takatin?” Renata said. “I–I can’t believe it. He seemed so . . . nice.” She waved her hand. “Comparatively, anyway.”
“Did the manis know anything about Capu Cirtis’s plans?” Sharrah asked.
“Yeah,” Cheddar said, “did he? What do they want us to do?”
“He had no idea. His instructions were to meet with us, ask for our help, and arrange a meeting.”
“Where?” Gregor said.
Aeron shrugged. “A temple or something, not too far from Bataan-Mok.”
“When are we going?” Willem looked determined.
“I don’t know that we are going. The masters went to meet with Lord Baronel about Stoltz. When they’re done, they’ll return here to discuss what we’re going to do.”
“Oh, we’re going,” Willem said. “At the very least so I can punch this Nesch piece of shit in the face.”
Aeron thought about Anaya and what had almost happened to her. “If anyone is going to punch him, I will be the first.” Still, he squeezed Willem’s hand in thanks.
“It makes sense to hide the manis away like that,” Fillion said. “It will buy his brother some time so we can figure out what to do.”
“What can we do, though?” Liara asked. “How many of the Order believes the same as the Capu?”
“That is precisely what we need to find out.” Guildmaster Millinith, Master Doronal and Master Canneth walked in the dragon door. “Let’s talk about this in the office.” She headed to the other side of the building.
As people found seats, Aeron said, “We cannot let this go. Someone made a direct attack against the Dragon Craft Guild.”
“Well,” the Guildmaster said, “against one of our members.”
“If you attack any one of us,” Jessip said, “you attack all of us.”
“Exactly!” Fillion slammed his fist on the table.
“I have to say,” Master Doronal drummed his fingers, “I agree with them.”
Master Canneth nodded. “As do I.”
Aeron thought he saw a flicker of annoyance flash across the Guildmaster’s face. “We must proceed with caution,” she said.
“Their leader wants our help,” Gregor noted.
“Yes,” Guildmaster Millinith allowed, “but there is dissent in their ranks. And he knows it. Elsewise, he would have sent an official delegation. Instead, he sends one man, alone. And that messenger was intercepted and given a mission in direct opposition by the second-in-command of the Order.” She looked at the people seated around the table. “Think on that. Before we can decide what our best course of action is, we need information. Information about what exactly is happening down there and how Capu Cirtis thinks we can help.”
Aeron hadn’t really thought it all through. She was right. Rushing headlong down there could be a mistake, could end up with someone getting hurt. Even so, he felt like they had to do something, like he had to do something.
“I can go and talk to Isandath,” Renata said. “Maybe he’s learned something by now.”
“No.” The Guildmaster shook her head. “I need you here, helping me.”
“I’ll go.” Polandra stood. “I’ll find out what Isandath has discovered.”
“I’m going with you,” Aeron said.
“Actually,” Guildmaster Millinith said, “all of you that can ride your dragons are going.”
“What?” Aeron looked at her. That would be far too many people.
“At least to the caves. It will give the rest of you a gateway destination near Bataan-Mok. Everyone except Aeron and Polandra will return.”
That made sense, Aeron supposed. And, it would give everyone a chance to burn off some energy.
“I want to go, too.” Liara stood. She glanced at Polandra. “But I’ll need a lift.”
The copper-skinned girl nodded. “Sure, I can take you.”
Fillion looked at Gregor. “Would you like to go, too?”
Gregor shook his head. “No, I’ll visit another time. I was in the middle of some research when all this insanity began.”
“Researc
h?”
“Yeah, I’m,” Gregor glanced at the Guildmaster, “researching some unusual salts.”
Fillion’s brows raised. “Oh. Right. Okay.”
“Everyone get ready,” Guildmaster Millinith said. “I’d like you all to leave within the hour.”
The portal appeared within the enormous, geometric glass sphere. A huge ball of slowly swirling mist, it was brightly lit from behind, or rather, from the ‘other side.’
It must be nice and sunny there, Aeron thought, unlike the half-overcast weather that had moved in here. Not surprising. The caves were in a desert, after all. It was probably sunny all the time.
The geometric sphere vanished, and the mist began to fade in the center of the portal, revealing a bright blue hole in the gray sky. Aeron felt the pulsing of a great deal of magical power from Renata as she maintained the portal.
“Let’s go,” she said. Xochi lifted up into the air.
Aeron and the rest of the dragonlinked followed into the portal.
He’d never seen so much dirt. And exposed rock. And scraggly brush. He glanced to the right and caught sight of a spire of stone rising dozens of feet above a craggy cliff. It nearly reached to where they hovered.
It’s very different, here.
But pretty, in its own way.
Aeron nodded and patted Anaya on the neck. Yeah. It has a severe kind of beauty, doesn’t it? And it was definitely warmer here. He wondered if he should have left the winter gear off.
Renata and Xochi led them down to the top of the cliff, near the spire.
After landing, the dragons and riders began looking around, all intensely curious. The ground ended at the edge of a deep ravine, a drop of at least seventy feet to the dry bed of an ancient river below. The land before them was of ravines and small canyons running through plains full of brush and the occasional crooked, stunted tree.
“Ow!”
Fillion, squatting, sucked on a finger. He pointed. “Do not touch these funny plants. The fat, short ones.”
A Storm in the Desert: Dragonlinked Chronicles Voume 3 Page 11
