Dragon Rider (DragonMage Saga)

by Platt, S. P.

  ‘There is a door out of the school just close to the cave entrance we should be able to slip through. Come on I want to help as all you do. The Renegade will not go for a while yet for we know he puts everything into the attack on the spell.’ Angel was moving now they finished their meal.

  They found the door out on to the deck and could see the creatures were just hovering above the school. The wizards had not started the spell from the big shield room and they also found there were no creature’s bodies blocking their path.

  They made a dash for the cave with their shields ready and sure enough as they ran some spell went flying and hit one of them in the back shield. This propelled him into the cave where the others were waiting.

  ‘Well that was close so let’s find a position and see what we can do to help.’ Medwin was the first to lead off as he finished talking.

  They followed him into the cave and proceeded to an area over by the other end of the deck and close to the door at that end. As they went Angel seen Gavrie over in the back and headed over to him. The others just kept going to the position they were going to hold.

  Angel walked up to Gavrie and spoke softly to him. ‘That will be all the creatures and the portal has closed and the Renegades have bolted. The Dragon Riders kept them from opening big portals until finely with our wizards arriving they just took off.’

  ‘The creatures are just a little weary of coming close to the deck for some reason, so we can’t use your secret weapon so we are just going to have to wait till there is something that will bring them down. You might as well go and join your fiends and we will just wait and see what happens.’ Gavrie turned back to what he was doing.

  As they waited they felt a small ripple in their magic sense and wandered what that was as they have never felt a ripple in their magic like that before. Angel had a sudden thought and the others looked at him as they seamed to come to the same conclusion. They all said it at the same time. ‘The Renegade.’

  ‘We had better check and see what he’s done. I think we had better go and see.’ He looked around to make sure Gavrie was not around before they moved off.

  They moved over to the side by the next deck but could not go for there were too many wizards and students looking. They had to have a distraction and very soon for they could not let the Renegade carry on if he was responsible for that ripple in the magic.

  Angel looked around his thoughts working hard to find a way to distract the other wizards. If only we could get the creatures to attack, then we could get away, but how to get them to attack. There must be a reason they have not attacked. ‘Aura are there anymore creatures coming, can you see?’

  ‘There is a big group still climbing up to the top of the mountain, they are the last of the ones that tried to fight the Wizards and Dragon Riders. They should just about be over the top now.’ She was following them at a distance when Angel spoke to her.

  Angel moves out of the cave and looked up and could see the dot of the creatures coming down from the top of the mountain. ‘There are more coming that’s why they are waiting just out of range.’

  Gavrie came out to stand beside Angel and the others, looking up and seeing them coming down. ‘There must be another couple of hundred coming and with those that are waiting there will be about six hundred. They will attack when the others get here so be ready.’

  Angel looked at Medwin who gave a nod and the girls doing the same as they slowly moved to the side closest to the door they need to go through. They would only have a short time to get through the door with out being seen. That will be our only chance, but the creatures need to attack soon.

  No sooner than he thought that, when the creatures attacked with the new lot joining in. They came in mass and tried to swamp the wizards but with the spell on the walls working and the wizards working spells as well, they were taking toll of the creatures.

  They moved with their shields up, for the spell on the walls could not tell them from creatures. They ran very quickly and getting to the gate opened and got through it. They had taken several hits on their shields as they got through the door, other than that they were fine.

  *

  They were sure that when they ran for the gate no one had seen them so they run across the deck to the next door and going through waited for their dragons. But what Angel had not seen was Gavrie looking at them just as they made the dash for the gate to the other deck.

  He was just keeping a check on the students and looked at Angels little group when they had made the dash for the gate into the next deck. What are they up to and were are they going. I think it might be time to find out exactly what they are up to.

  He was just about to go and follow when the creatures started to hit the wall spells and it had knocked them out. There was a sudden surge of creatures and Gavrie had to help now that the spells on the walls were knocked out they were going to have to go back to what they use to do.

  They at lest had the new lances even though there were not many of them yet, but they did have wizards in the back of the cave working on modifying the old ones. These new lances were a lot better and the creatures are stopped good and proper. They had students going back and forth supplying the wizards.

  Gavrie looked back at the gate but there was no way he was going to be able to get to see what they are up to for a long time yet. I just hope they know what they are doing as I am not going to be able to help them should they get in any sort of trouble. As soon as I can I will find out just what is going on with that four.

  *

  Contents

  The Old Spell Ripples

  The four were waiting for their dragons that were on their way now, they had stayed to make sure Angels mother and brothers where ok. They having met up with the Wizards and trying to get as many Renegades as they could. They were now on there way back and the Dragon Riders stayed with the Wizards.

  Aura come flying up from under the deck followed by the others. They alighted just in front of them and gave each other a good welcome. They were just about to climb up when there was another ripple in their magic, this one was not quite as strong as the first one but it was scary as they did not know what was coursing it.

  ‘Come on I think it time we found out what our Renegade is up to, this is getting me worried?’ He climbed up onto Aura as he spoke to the others.

  ‘It must be him as the ripple I think is centred on the old spell and we are in tune with it at the moment.’ Medwin was already sitting on WhiteMoon ready to go.

  Shylyn looked at Maive and nodded to each other. ‘The Renegade is responsible for the ripple, we know it is a ripple in the magic and Maive and I think he is mastering his spell a lot better.’

  ‘We need to check the hole but I think you will find it will be bigger as we think the old spell is sending us a warning. Shylyn and I think the old spell has become attached to us as we have tried to heal it and when Angel nearly got drawn into the spell we think there was a link formed with the spell. The spell is sending out a warning and I think we had better listen to it.’ Maive gave WhiteFire a gentle nudge with her knee and he lifted.

  The others followed suit and speed off over the edge of the deck and down and under. They came up past the deck the Renegade is working on and landed on the next one. The dragons were going to stay hidden in the cave just out of sight while the others went to see how the spell was.

  They walked to the door leading into the next deck and stopped to make sure there was no one. Opening the gate they looked but finding no one they move through and go into the cave where the dragon of the Renegade is. They sense he knows they are there.

  The cave is dark at the back and that's where the dragon waits, he moves about as they come into the cave. Angel goes to him while the others wait and keep an eye out for the Renegade. Moving over to him Angel calls to him.

  ‘Will you talk to me?’ As he stands there the dragon moves and comes out as far as he can without dragging on the magic chain that is around his leg.
/>
  ‘When will you free me?’ His head came down to be level with Angel.

  ‘I think it is going to be soon for the spell is warning us that something is happening. I will go and see the old spell now and then we decide what must be done but I think the time is very near. Stay ready.’ Angel looked him in the eye as he spoke, and deep down he knew it was going to happen soon.

  The dragon moved back into the back of the cave without saying anything else. Angel walked back to the others and they moved over to the mouth of the cave but not so they could be seen. They moved against the wall and crept to the gate leading into the next deck knowing the Renegade was just up stairs in the tower.

  They went through and close as they could to the area where the hole in the spell was. Angel walked up to the spell while the others kept a lookout. Medwin went to the door of the tower and stayed by the door listening out for the Renegade.

  Shylyn and Maive stayed just outside the door ready to worn Angel if he came. Angel was as close as he could get without being seen from the room in the tower. Placing his hands up in front of him he moved them so as to just slightly touch the old spell. He then let his magic gently touch the spell as he did not want to alert the Renegade.

  Letting his magic sense move lightly over the spell he found the hole and could see it was bigger and more ragged. The healing spell they had used the other time that let it work on the repair was still working but was having trouble holding the Renegade spell back.

  As he watched he could see the edges getting eaten away slowly before his eyes. He knew he had to work quickly and called up his magic and drew on the others. Then he gently, so as not to disturb the spell and alert the Renegade what was happening, he used his magic to again enhance the repair of the old spell.

  He just encouraged the spell to repair itself and as he watched, it seamed to glow ever so slightly. Then it began to push back the Renegades spell just a little first and then seamed to hold there for the moment as it worked on the edges of the hole. That’s all he could do at the moment.

  Angel went back to the others as they waited by the door with Medwin just inside it. ‘I think it time we had a look at the spell he is using; we will just have to be very quiet as we climb up.’

  They went through the door and joined Medwin who was at the foot of the stairs. They slowly climbed and listened as they did so, for they did not want the Renegade to suddenly come down as they went up. Shylyn was in the middle with Angel in front and Medwin at the back. Maive was beside Shylyn as they crept up the stairs.

  ‘What do we do if he comes out while we are here in between floors; it’s not the best place to be caught in. We need to, on the next level find a place we can hide in if he happened to come out?’ Shylyn looked all around and up to see when the next level would be here.

  ‘Ok good idea when we get to the next level we find a room very close to duck into if he happens to come out. Shylyn when we get to the next level you find us a place we go to if needed, then catch up to us.’ Angel gave her a reassuring look as he told her.

  They came to the next level and Shylyn peeled off and hunted up a room if they needed it. When she found something she would go and catch up and that way if the Renegade did come out she would go to that place with them following. If Shylyn was still not with them when they get to the next level then Maive would look on that level while Medwin and he would carry on.

  By the time they got to the next level Shylyn had caught them up and nodded her head to indicate she had found a place. At the next level Maive looked for a place while the others carried on up. The tower had about six levels and at each level one of them would look for a place to hide.

  At the fifth level they all went to the room they waited in the other time when he never came. They closed the door so there was just a gap, for if anyone had come up the stairs while they were in there and had the door been open they would easily be seen. But with a slight gap then they could keep an eye open for anybody.

  They sat in a circle where Angel drew their magic to him, but not their dragons, that was just in case they needed it. But their dragons were in their minds as they sat to get themselves ready to study the magic.

  Sitting just under the room they could literally feel the magic in the very air around them. With a floor between them they felt the spell the Renegade was using was very, very strong. It was the strongest spell they have ever felt before even that of a portal.

  They could feel this spell was so old for the magic in the very air was so strange. It was magic that felt different to what their bodies have been using and the only other magic close to it but was still different from, was the old spell. They could sense a little of the old spell about it but then something has changed it, something with different magic to what they use.

  ‘This magic feels so weird we will need to let our magic go and feel the spell itself instead of what we feel here now. I will go up there now with the magic sense and see if I can pick up what the difference is.’ Angel took a deep breath and relaxed so the magic would flow freely through him.

  Sitting there he allowed his magic to gently drift up to the next floor where the Renegade was. There he slowly went near the Renegade and the spell he was trying to cast. He could feel the effort the Renegade had to cast the spell, it just would not work right and he had to keep working on it as he sent it against the old spell.

  He could feel the pattern and could feel in places it did not feel right; also there was something different in the magic behind the spell. He found it so frustrating just not being able to figure out what the difference in the magic was. It just niggled at the back of his mind that something about it was not right but just could not work it out.

  As he tried time after time to see into the magic the difference would upset what he was doing and he would come back out of the spell, or it pushed him out of the spell, that was it pushed him out for his magic was not meant for this spell nor was the Renegades. That’s what had been niggling at the back of his brain, the magic was not meant for his magic ether.

  ‘That’s it I must go and have a look at the spell he is trying to cast for that is the centre of the problem. I must go up there now; you stay here and wait for me. I will show you how to watch what happens with the spell and the magic so you can disrupt it if the Renegade sees me. That might just distract him enough so I could get away.’ Angel looked at them knowing when he told them what he wanted to do, they would object.

  Medwin was the first to voice his doubts. ‘You can’t it would be just asking for trouble and we are not ready yet to fight him.’

  ‘It would be plan stupid to go up there and look, you might as well knock on the door walk in and ask if you can watch just plan Stupid if you ask me.’ Shylyn just gave him one hell of a look as she spoke.

  Angel turned to Maive and gave her a look of, (well your turn now). She did not disappoint. ‘If he sees you, us disrupting the spell want stop him from getting you and as Medwin said we’re not ready for him yet.’ She knew as she spoke Angel had made up his mind and with us trying to talk him out of it, made him more determined.

  He looked at them and as he went to the door his last words to them run a chill down their backs. ‘We may not have a choice about not being ready think about that while I have a look.’ He left them there thinking on what he had just said.

  Angel crept up the stairs very quietly, listening as he climbed. As he came to the top of the steps he could just see into the room where the Renegade was. He was not able to see the Renegade but he could see the magic that was coming from the room. He'd never seen anything like this before not even the old spell holding Nirvana.

  From in the room below using their magic to feel the spell did not show them how it looked through the eyes with magic. They did know that it was different from other magic but seeing it with his eyes now let him understand what they were seeing.

  His thoughts were now so intent on the spell he moved ever so slowly up the last step and crept along th
e wall to the door. He never gave it a thought the Renegade might be able to see him for so intent on the spell was he. He stopped just at the door where he poked his head around to get a better look at the spell.

  Aura was suddenly in his head and with a strong command tried to bring him back to thinking properly. ‘Angel stop now before you are seen, NOW Angel?’ There was a very deep command in her voice and it seamed to be working.

  Angel pulled his head back out of the door and just leaned against the wall beside the door. ‘It’s ok Aura but I need to see more of the pattern to the spell he is using. It is very important that is why the old spell holding the school sent the ripple in the magic to warn us this spell he is using is hurting it.’

  Aura felt his need to know and it was very strong but she felt it just a bit too strong where he puts himself at risk of being seen. ‘Yes you need to see the spell we all know that but what’s the point if you get seen and the Renegade gets you. Then it was just a waste of time and you might get the others hurt in the process. Then you promised the Renegades dragon you would free him. If you are going to do that, then you must be careful, OK?’ She felt she needed to make him think and shock him into being careful, she had been with him in his mind when he first saw the spell and how it wanted to draw him into it.

  Aura had wanted to stay and look at the spell for the pattern of it was so different to anything she had seen before and it wanted to draw you in. The spell the Renegade is using was so alien in ways yet there was also something in there that was like the old magic holding the school to the mountain.

  ‘Aura are you there I’m ok, the spell wanted to draw me in. The pattern is so beautiful but there is something else in there I need to know. I have got to have another look at the pattern and I need you to help keep it from engulfing me. Pull me back when it starts to overpower me, then I will go back again and each time it tries to overpower me you just bring me back. This needs to be done OK?’ There was determination in his voice and he could feel Aura was worried about him.