“Of course not!” Earl said. “They’re staying for your graduation!”
“I’m not graduating,” Dagdron said. “I’m skipping my final mini-quest.”
“Who would’ve thought?” Earl said dreamily, ignoring Dagdron’s comment. “Our final mini-quests are tomorrow. It’s all gone by so fast.”
“Your mom’s doing really well,” Elloriana said, getting back on subject. “And she really wants to see you.”
“Why are you still here?” Dagdron asked. “Your parents were supposed to drag you back to Lordavia.”
“Seeing that we saved Lordavia and the whole land, my parents changed their minds,” Elloriana said. “I have their blessing to be an adventurer.”
“We didn’t save the land,” Dagdron said. “We’re all going to die as soon as Mazannanan figures out how to get Wendahl’s net off Avooblis.”
“We most certainly did!” Earl said, jumping back into the conversation.
“Then why has my hideout been ruined for the past month?” Dagdron shook a nearby branch so a hole opened up in the leaves through which they could see the blue magical barricade that surrounded the academy along with the fence. “And I saw a troll up the mountainside this morning.”
“Really?” Earl and Lita exclaimed, their hands joyfully going to the hilts of their swords.
Dagdron scowled at them. Earl, Lita, and Elloriana had already discussed too many times how barricades like the one around the academy were being put around villages and towns all across the land. While they had prevented Mazannanan and Avooblis from taking control of the elements, his howl had indeed called forth the dark and evil creatures. News about sightings of trolls, jagtaurs, spumasaurs, imps, and all sorts of creatures that Dagdron didn’t care about when Earl described them was spreading throughout the land. The goblin hordes, having called the forest around Bodaburg home for so many years, were fleeing as more powerful creatures roamed about. Caravans between cities were diminishing unless proper protection could be afforded. And kings, mayors, and other city leaders were clamoring for adventurers to come to their areas to fulfill quests as darkness spread across the land.
“Maybe if you had come to the meeting two weeks ago, you would understand better,” Elloriana said.
“I keep telling him how inspiring it was to see Headmaster Gwauldron, Wendahl, Egon, Grizzard, and Rance working together,” Earl said.
Dagdron returned to his dagger throwing. For the past month, Earl had constantly talked about his hopefulness for the future. But Dagdron didn’t share Earl’s optimism. Grizzard, Wendahl, and even Egon had proven they were capable, but the headmaster had caused the problems, and Rance’s spell-casting power hadn’t done much even when he was attacking Dagdron, Earl, Elloriana, and Lita. And did any of them think setting up magical barriers would stop Mazannanan or Avooblis?
“But, honestly, Dagdron,” Elloriana said. “Why do you think Mazannanan didn’t take back his shrine?”
Dagdron shrugged before throwing his dagger. After the hillside battle, they had expected to return to the academy to find it destroyed and the Shrine of Avooblis rebuilt, but that hadn’t been the case. The three stone arches in the shrine had been cracked and crumbled, and the altar had been split in two. The ancient tome was gone, as were the ingredients from the shelves, but Mazannanan hadn’t stayed put. They had also led Wendahl, Egon, and the headmaster to the treasure trove. It had been completely cleared of gems, and the irritating imp was gone, too.
“We defiled it,” Dagdron said.
“I bet you’re right,” Earl said. “Mazannanan didn’t consider it worthy of Avooblis.”
“He distracted us again!” Lita said, thumping her fist on a branch.
“Go talk to you mom, Dagdron,” Elloriana said.
“She wants to see you,” Earl added. “And it would really help her recovery.”
“No,” Dagdron said.
“You don’t have to talk to her,” Earl said. “She doesn’t even talk much. Your dad told us that all she’s said about being in the Arches of Avooblis was that Mazannanan would make her serve him. Cooking and cleaning and stuff.”
“She’s not the only one who won’t talk about it,” Elloriana said, looking at Dagdron. “You haven’t said one word about what it was like.”
“Quiet, wench.” Dagdron caught his dagger and held it tightly. Elloriana smiled at him as she read his hidden pensive look. “It was boring. It was like the air was thick and you couldn’t move.”
“How did you find your mom?” Earl said.
“She’s not my—”
“Who cares?” Elloriana said. “Just tell us.”
Dagdron glanced at Elloriana’s impatient glower. He had noticed, especially over the past few weeks, that she had changed. She was still as bossy as ever, but the tones she used weren’t as snobby as before. Her straightforwardness was almost more like a…rogue, Dagdron thought. He scowled at her.
“I pushed my way across the room, where there were two archways. The left one went to an identical room, the other to a chamber filled with lava, but I heard my dad’s wife before I went through,” Dagdron explained.
“What?” Earl interrupted. “Do you think it’s Avooblis’s homeland?”
“I assume,” Dagdron said. “I grabbed my mo—” Dagdron stopped short, but a grin spread across Earl’s face and Lita grunted happily. Elloriana fought to keep her face expressionless, but a smile slipped out. “I had to pull her back across the chamber, and then I had to invoke Avooblis’s name before the arch would open for us.”
“Mazannanan really told you how to escape?” Elloriana asked.
Dagdron nodded. “My mom didn’t know Avooblis’s name, so there was no way she could’ve gotten out.”
“You are so brave,” Earl said admirably, shaking his head.
“Get out of my tree!” Dagdron seethed, pointing his dagger at Earl.
Earl, Elloriana, and even Lita, smiled but lowered themselves out of the tree.
The following morning, Dagdron woke up when the door crashed open. He was shocked to see Lita stomp into the room and, together with Earl, they lifted him from the ground, put his soiled cloak on, and dragged him from the room and down to the eating hall.
Earl and Lita kept an eye on Dagdron as he stabbed a few sausages with his dagger. They loaded up plates with bread, meat, and cheese, much to Chef Barig’s delight as he encouraged all the third years to eat a hearty breakfast before their final mini-quests.
Lita accompanied them to the boys’ table, no longer caring about the rules. Dagdron sat restlessly on purpose, because each time he even budged an inch, Earl and Lita dropped their food, ready to stop any escape attempt.
Shortly afterward, Elloriana joined them, and Cort did as well.
“Are you ready for our final quest?” Cort asked excitedly.
Are you? Dagdron thought without saying anything. He eyed Cort’s face and arms, which were exposed because he had his sleeves rolled up. Cort’s body was in the same condition as Dagdron’s cloak—sliced, torn, burned, and tattered. And his blond hair had been partially burned off.
“He’s more than ready,” Earl said, patting Dagdron on the back.
“This year has been a good learning experience,” Cort said, glancing at his scarred arms. “I feel ready to face real adventure in the real world.”
“We all know exactly how you feel,” Earl said.
“I just can’t believe how fast it’s gone,” Cort said. “But at least I know we’ll always have a strong bond for everything we’ve been through together.” He glanced happily and nostalgically at Dagdron.
Earl and Lita were all smiles, and Elloriana had to suppress a giggle as they saw Dagdron’s vacant scowl.
“We haven’t even talked one time in three years,” Dagdron said.
“But we went through the Adventurers’ Academy together. We survived Scar’s runs, we survived the silent teacher’s daggers, and we survived Flip’s quests this year. That’s a bond that wi
ll never be broken.”
Dagdron’s scowl hardened.
“He knows exactly what you mean,” Earl said, squeezing Dagdron’s shoulder.
Dagdron bit the last sausage from his dagger, jabbed the blade at Earl’s arm, and stood from the table. Earl and Lita, taking their plates with them, followed after him. Elloriana did the same, laughing as they walked toward the exit.
“See you in the dungeon,” Cort called after them.
They finished breakfast in front of the statues of Wendahl, Grizzard, and Egon. Other students rushed across the entrance hall, excited about the end of the school year. But none of them knew who the statues were. None of them knew about the Arches or Avooblis or what had happened at Central Crossing. The headmaster had asked everyone to keep things a secret so as not to send panic throughout the entire land. He claimed inhabitants everywhere would know darkness was spreading with the rise of all the creatures. Dagdron didn’t deny this was true, but he also knew the headmaster was just hiding his own shame for being the one to release the evil.
“It’s time!” Earl exclaimed, rubbing his hands together before gripping one of Dagdron’s arms. Lita grabbed the other, and they escorted Dagdron across the chamber with Elloriana giggling behind.
“Quiet, wench,” Dagdron said as they went down the classroom tower stairs.
Earl and Lita released Dagdron in the right-hand corridor, where Cort and Flip were waiting. Black sheets had been hung up in the hallway, marking a path that lead into the first classroom on the left before crisscrossing back and forth to all the ten rooms.
“Just in time,” Flip said. “Dagdron, you’ll go first. Cort will go once you finish.”
Dagdron scowled at Earl, Lita, and Elloriana, but they smiled at him and waited until he slipped into the first classroom.
Dagdron paused just inside the doorway next to a wooden chair. Spikes covered every inch of the floor. He whipped out his dagger without hesitation and sliced up the chair, creating two planks from the seat. He moved across the room placing one plank and then the other across the spikes. When he reached the far corner, which was lit up by a torch, he found two hand-sized rocks. He picked the one with a D scraped on it, and then the spikes on the opposite side of the room began rising. As soon as they hit the ceiling, the row of spikes next to it moved upward, but at a faster pace. Dagdron pocketed the rock and used the boards to make his way along the outer edge of the room. Keeping his balance, he made it safely to the door and followed the zigzag pathway across the corridor to the second room.
As soon as he was inside, a fizzling sound came from the left side as one of the many ropes strung over the thorn bushes lit on fire, moving along like a fuse. Dagdron leapt onto one of the rickety platforms, creeping close to the walls to keep his balance as the boards shifted. When one of the platforms fell beneath his weight, Dagdron grabbed one of the ropes and stretched from rope to rope until he reached the far corner. He grabbed another rock with a D on it and hurried to swing back across the chamber as more and more ropes caught fire.
The third room was a remake of the blazing coals with board swings hanging across the room. Dagdron, without hesitating, climbed onto the first swing and gained momentum before jumping from swing to swing. He took a third rock and swung back without a problem.
In the fourth room, a torch hung in the middle, lighting up two rocks. Nothing else was on the floor, so Dagdron darted toward the center. Halfway there, a monster bolted from the shadows of a corner. Only when he saw the scar-covered hand that was stabbing a dagger toward his gut did Dagdron realize who it was. He somersaulted to the side as Scar growled angrily. Dagdron rolled back to his feet and whipped out his dagger, turning just in time. He deflected Scar’s jab, but the weight of the teacher pushed the younger rogue backward.
Knowing he couldn’t beat Scar in a straight-out dagger fight, Dagdron sprinted away from the middle of the room. When Scar ran after him, Dagdron did a quick turnaround, rolling on the ground to avoid the vicious blade swinging his way. Scar’s momentum carried him toward the wall, so Dagdron jumped to his feet, sprinted to the rocks, pocketed his, and then raced to the doorway. Scar bellowed angrily as he gave chase, but Dagdron escaped without being sliced.
Just inside the doorway of the fifth room, Dagdron found a three-foot-high wall blocking his path. He climbed to the top, looking down at the large, boiling cauldrons scattered across the floor. He jumped down and darted across the room, weaving among the cauldrons as they bubbled and squirted hot water. He snatched up his rock and got ready to run back to the doorway, but all the cauldrons tipped over at once, gushing boiling water across the floor. Dagdron instinctively jumped onto the closest cauldron as all the pots bobbed right side up again. Still holding the rock in his right hand, Dagdron extended his arms, balancing on the cauldron rim. He rocked back and forth, lifting each foot in turn to give it a break from the hot metal. His movement slowly floated the cauldron back to the wall blocking the entrance. He leapt over and rushed out the door.
A web of ropes crisscrossed the sixth room. Dagdron pulled out his dagger, ready to slit his way through, but then he stashed his weapon away.
I’ve been around Earl and Lita too much, Dagdron thought. Instead of rushing across the room with a weapon in hand like a warrior would, Dagdron examined the ropes more closely. Tiny bells were attached to the ropes at different intervals. Dagdron took his proper sneaking stance and slipped his body into the rope web. Only a few feet in, he came across a hairy, vicious-looking beast. He assumed Earl had explained to him what it was at one time or another during the past three years, but Dagdron didn’t have any idea what it was called. He only knew he didn’t want to wake it up.
Dagdron slunk across the room, carefully contorting his body to move without ringing any of the bells. On his way, he passed a goblin, a dog, a canary, and a few other hairy creatures only Earl could have identified. He was sure to move with utmost stealth, knowing that waking even the bird could lead to a chain reaction of creatures attacking him. He retrieved his rock and slipped his way back to the doorway without ringing a single bell. He was about to race on to the next room but, instead, he turned back around, grabbed hold of a rope with each hand, and shook them as forcefully as he could. The bells rang loudly and were followed by the ruckus of creatures waking and roaring. Dagdron hurried out the door, slamming it shut behind him.
Back across the hallway, Dagdron found the seventh room pitch black. Knowing he was silhouetted in the doorway, Dagdron closed the door and shuffled to the right before dropping to the ground, crawling a few feet before pausing to listen. He caught the slight sound of a dagger being drawn and knew the noiseless second-year rogue teacher was in the room with him.
Dagdron crawled forward until his hands fell on a hard object. He knelt, slowly outlining it with his hands. It felt like an anvil. He scooted past the anvil, knowing it would have been set there to trip him, and found an axe on the opposite side, waiting to bludgeon a victim.
Dagdron ducked behind the anvil as he heard the whiz of a thrown dagger. The blade clanged against the anvil, so Dagdron stood up into sneaking position and stealthily crept away, hoping the silent rogue couldn’t follow his path. He snuck around for a few minutes, feeling any objects he bumped in to and then dodging the subsequent dagger that flew in his direction. He eventually stubbed his left foot against an object. When a number of daggers came his way, Dagdron dropped to the ground, feeling the shape of a box. He found the lock holding it shut in front and whipped out his lock pick. He picked the lock as quickly as he could, dodging to the right and left to avoid the daggers. Right as he opened the box and grabbed the D rock, he saw an aged hand thrust a dagger from above. Dagdron somersaulted to the side, and as he jumped back to his feet, he crashed into a glass object. He never saw what it was as it shattered on the floor, because he abandoned all thought of silence and raced to the door, pushing the obstacles out of his way. One last dagger whizzed over his shoulder and stuck into the wooden door, but
he escaped without being stabbed.
Dagdron found the eighth room refreshing. There were enchanted jars covering the entire floor, but wooden bridges that were at least a foot wide crossed to the corner. After all the balancing he had done during his third year at the academy, Dagdron jumped to the bridge with all confidence. Only when his feet started slipping and sliding did he realize how dumb he had been to underestimate the situation. As his feet slipped, he knocked slime from the bridge and it squirted onto half a dozen jars below. A combination of flame, blast-bolt, stun, and lightning spells shot across the chamber.
Dagdron steadied himself on the bridge and, instead of worrying about losing his balance, he slid his right foot forward and then his left, gliding through the slime. The goop that flipped to the floor set the magic jars exploding, casting out their spells, but Dagdron navigated the bridges successfully without falling. He grabbed his eighth rock and had started his slide back when a part of the bridge on the other side of the room fell. Jars shattered as the wood hit them, launching spells, which set off a chain reaction of smashing jars and different-colored spells shooting in all directions. Dagdron slid as fast as he could, but then the entire bridge fell, so he leapt forward, landing on broken glass. He was hit by a blast-bolt spell, and a flame spell singed another hole in his cloak, but he reached the door.
“I hate magic,” Dagdron muttered, slamming the door behind him.
He raced through the sheet tunnel to the last door on the left side. He was surprised to find Flip standing in the far corner of the room. He looked as calm as he always did. A platform had been constructed in the middle of the room with two rocks on it. From each corner, ramps led up to a narrow bridge that formed a square five feet back from the platform. Ropes hung from the ceiling between the bridge and center.
Flip remained motionless as Dagdron thought out a strategy, but then the young rogue heard the hiss of snakes. He bolted to the ramp to his right as the snakes slithered toward him. Dagdron planned to use one of the ropes to swing to the center platform as soon as he reached the bridge, but before he could, Flip was up the ramp and did an acrobatic flip to the platform without using a rope.
The Howl of Avooblis Page 32
