A searing yellow light as bright as the sun rose from the rocks. Cregan blinked until his sight returned. He started toward his fellow wizards. Three had fallen. They thrashed the way Arton had after being pushed into the fyrethron tangle. Mecador sent flash after flash of white flame toward the rocks. A hazy sheet in front of him meant he’d erected a barrier.
Spears and arrows flew through the air. The time is now. Though Mecador was protected from the missiles arising from those in front of him, he wouldn’t expect a blow from behind. Cregan aimed his prepared knife and threw. The blade slammed into the chief wizard’s back. His wand flew from his hand. He fell. His body thrashed. A spear pierced his chest.
Cregan laughed. Now to see Arton’s life ended. He took three more wands and fitted them into his right hand. He sent power to light the white stones. “Arton. Traitor. You stand against the wizards. I challenge you to a death duel.”
* * *
Arton drew a deep breath. He had to accept the challenge. He’d seen the knife slam into Mecador’s back. Cregan had killed his father. His rival could declare himself chief wizard. None of the other wizards could defeat Cregan.
Could he?
The dazzling yellow light faded. He saw Lorana standing in full view of the plain. “Get down,” he shouted.
She hefted her knife. “I will see Cregan dead.”
“The battle is mine.”
His eyes widened as six white rays shot toward Lorana. He leaped over a rock and pulled her to the ground. The sizzling flames flew over them. Shards of stone fell on and around them. Arton pulled a wand from his belt. More white fire hit the rocks where the clan fighters were hidden. He heard cries of pain.
“I will duel,” Arton shouted. He activated his wand. An orange spear of light shot from the stone at the end. “No.” He hadn’t meant to use the orange.
Cregan wheeled. “Do not think you can win.”
Arton saw his rival held three wands in each hand. He merged six flames into one blaze. The orange fire from Arton’s wand hit the white flame to form a blazing ball. The whirling white and orange circled above Cregan.
Arton felt the other wizard’s attempt to reclaim the fire. The white rays separated from the orange and returned to the wands that had created them. They traveled along the wood to reach Cregan’s hand. Flames shot up his arms beneath his tunic. A shrill scream filled the air.
Arton closed his eyes. When he opened them only the dragon skin clothes remained. Cregan had disintegrated, just as the wood and the fyrestones had. Arton dropped his wand and sank to the ground, pressing his hands against his face. He had never intended to wage an unfair battle with Cregan. They should have met as equals, white to white, not six white and one orange.
Lorana touched his shoulder. “Arton.”
He shuddered. “Using the orange against him wasn’t right.”
“Neither was his use of six wands at a time.” She knelt before him and clasped his hands. “Did he use fairness when he tried to kill me?”
Arton reached for her. “Cregan knew if he killed you I would be rattled. He believed he would win.”
She rose and pulled him to his feet. “Look down. The wizards who aren’t ill from fyrethron poisoning are kneeling in surrender. You must go and remove their wands.”
“Come with me. We are two united.” Together they climbed over the rocks to reach the plain. Those of the clan who hadn’t been injured followed. Arton counted the standing clansmen and women and found thirty.
One of the wizards raised his hands. “Arton, you are now Supreme. What would you have us do?”
Arton shook his head. “I’m not a wizard but something more. I will not rule you.”
“What are we to do?”
“Return to the citadel. Prepare to leave when the spring traders arrive. Any of the guards and hareem women who claim kinship with the clans can remain. Those who wish to join you are free to go. We will give you two days to be ready.”
“What if we barricade the citadel against you and use our wands together against people who have no protection.”
Lorana squeezed his hand several times. He remembered she had escaped the citadel without help. He raised the wand with the orange stone at the tip. “I can burn my way inside and set all ablaze.” He set a rock burning. He wasn’t sure how many wizards he could defeat before they overpowered him. “Go. Make haste.”
The four wizards turned. All but two of the guards arrived with the burden beasts. They placed the ailing wizards on the beasts and left.
Arton released a sigh of relief. He turned to the clansmen. “Send for our steeds and bring the injured to me.”
Before long he’d used the red-tipped wand to heal the worst of the injured. Four of the men and two women had died. When he finished, he couldn’t stand. Lorana brought him broth and a number of rolled flatbreads.
* * *
“Come with me.” Lorana shook Arton awake. “Dragon follows the wizards at a distance.” She grabbed a flask of water and more of the rolled flatbreads.
Arton clasped her hand. “The wounded…?”
“Are recovering.” She sat on the blanket. “Will the wizards leave with the slavers?”
He shrugged. “We will see. Once they’re barricaded in the citadel, they might fight again.”
“Would you really use the orange to burn our way inside?”
“Perhaps. How did you escape? All who remained at the citadel were questioned under the wand and had no idea of how you left.”
“There is a secret passage.”
“I thought there might be, but I searched and found nothing.”
“The passage is well hidden, and you would have to know the trick to opening the wall.”
“How did you know?”
“I found a scrap of paper when they kept me in the dungeons.”
He leaned forward and kissed her. “We can use that way and surprised them.”
Lorana moved into his arms. Her tongue met his questing one. Without words they undressed and pulled the blankets together to make a single pallet. Quick touches became caresses. Arton rose over her. Soon they united. As they moved together, he kissed her lips. Before long all thoughts except how he made her feel vanished.
She felt as though she rode a dragon, soaring higher and higher. She peaked and the sensation of falling to rest in Arton’s embrace swept through her. He shouted her name. She released his on a breath.
Little kisses brushed sweaty skin. “I love you,” he said.
“As I love you.”
He pulled his dragon cloak over them. The sun had just risen. She reached for her clothes and dressed. ‘Report.’
‘They traveled all night. They are almost to the citadel.’
Arton stretched. “What news?”
She told him what Dragon had said. She walked to look at the plain. “The steeds are here.” She dressed and started down.
Arton followed with his cloak and the blankets. He went to check the men he had healed.
Once the ailing were on their way back to the oasis, the remaining clansmen and women mounted the steeds. Food was eaten while they rode. For two days they continued toward the citadel. On the morning of the third day, several scouts returned. The men halted near the leaders. “Wizards are on the wall. I doubt they will allow us free access.”
Arton nodded. “I believe that is the case. There is a way for us to end this.” He turned to Lorana. “Tell them how you escaped.”
She drew a deep breath. “I was held in the hareem. There is a secret passage from the storeroom leading to the outside. The storeroom opens into the hareem and also to the main corridors.”
“So how do we do this?” Temerol asked.
“The group will approach the gate but will remain at a distance,” Arton said.
“They will send fire from their wands,” the green leader said.
Arton shook his head. “I will erect an invisible barrier like the one Mecador raised. The fire from their wands will not
penetrate, nor will any weapons.”
Lorana stood beside him. “He can burn the gates using the orange. I’ll lead a group into the tunnel. When he burns the gate we will divide into two groups. One will enter the hareem while the other moves into the main corridors and take the wizards from behind.”
“How will we know when to attack?” Temerol asked.
“Dragon will tell me.”
The red leader stared at her. “Some of us will die.”
“To drive them from our land will be worth a sacrifice,” Temerol said.
Arton clasped Lorana’s hand. “We will win.” He kissed Lorana. “Stay safe.”
“You, too.” She rested her forehead against his chest and then straightened. She gestured to the men and women who would follow her. “We must find a place to rest until dark.”
In the darkness of night she crept toward the citadel. When she reached the wall Lorana ran her hands along the stone until she found the carvings of dragons. She hit the sequence. Part of the wall opened. “Follow me. Keep one hand on the wall to guide you through the dark.”
Her heart pounded. She drew several deep breaths to calm her racing emotions. Excitement, fear, and dread of returning to the place where she’d been kept as a prisoner filled her thoughts. Finally she stepped into the passage. Twenty men and women followed her.
‘Dragon, can you hear me?’
‘I hear. I watch.’
‘Good.’ Lorana moved forward. She sensed the men and women at her back. She slid her hand along the stones lining the escape route. Acid curdled the contents of her stomach. She drew a deep breath. This wasn’t the time to be sick.
“I’m here to help.” She repeated those words over and over. Confidence rose. At the end of the tunnel, she felt the stones for the carvings. She pressed them in the correct order for opening the entrance.
Lorana led the group to the door leading to the main corridor. They cut the leather hinges. Fifteen would enter into the main halls of the citadel. She told them as much as she could remember about the halls. The other five would follow her into the hareem to capture the woman and children. ‘Dragon.’
‘The sun rises. Arton and his group approach the gates. He builds the barrier. “Open the gates,” he shouts. One of the wizards sends a white ray. The barrier stops the flame. A clanswoman fires an arrow. The wizard falls. Arton burns the gate.’
“Now.” Lorana opened the door into the hareem. She heard the other door fall. She and her companions rushed into the main room. Quickly they rounded the women, girls and small children into one of the rooms. She counted each person as they passed. Where was Hag Mother? She crossed to the room where the older woman slept. She peered inside. An arm snaked around her neck.
“Traitor.” The old woman spat. “You killed my son.”
“Cregan threw a knife into Mecador’s back.”
“I don’t believe you. Cregan is dead, and there is no one to confirm your story.”
Lorana felt the coldness of a blade at her throat. The older woman pushed her into the main room.
“You can’t win,” Lorana said. “Arton burned the gate and the clans are now fighting any who resist. The wizards are gone from the walls.”
“I don’t believe you.” Hag Mother pushed Lorana toward the gate. Lorana felt blood trickle down her neck. She slowly entered the courtyard.
The grille was gone. Lorana saw wizards and guards being bound by ropes. “See.”
Hag Mother pushed her toward the missing grille. “Arton, you will cease what you are doing,” the old woman shouted.
He turned. His wand froze in mid-air. “Let her go. You have no power.”
The crone slumped. The knife clattered on the stones. One of the clansmen grasped Lorana’s arm.
Dragon flew overhead. ‘I saw four ships. They are coming here.’
Lorana walked to Arton’s side. “I’ll go with the clansmen to the cells with all these people. We will offer those related to the clans a chance to stay.”
Arton nodded. “We’ll need to search the suites of the wizards for things to pay the traders to take those who are leaving.”
Lorana and the clan leaders moved among the people and made the offer. Arton and a dozen men strode away. They would go to the beach and wait for the ships.
The following morning they herded those who were leaving to the shore. Dragon flew above them. The captains and cargo masters waited for them.
“What is this?” one of the captains asked.
Arton pulled the orange-tipped wand free. “You are taking these people from our shores.”
“Why?”
“They are banished.”
Lorana held four bags in her hands. “In each bag you will find jewels, gold, and other valuables. There is more in those three carts.”
“What if we refuse?”
Arton activated the wand. He set a bush on fire. Next he burned rocks and sand on the shore. “Your ships will burn as easily.”
With no more arguments, the prisoners were divided into four groups and rowed to the ships. The cargo masters assessed the goods.
Hag Mother turned. “We will return and you will learn only wizards are fit to rule.”
One of the clansmen lifted her and set her in the small boat. As the men rowed away, she continued to scream the threat.
“Will you accept traders?” a ship’s captain asked.
“No.” Lorana and Arton joined the shouts from the clansmen and women.
They stood on the shore and watched until all the sails vanished. She turned to him. “Will they return?”
“I pray not, but we’ll remain alert.” He pulled her into his arms. Their lips touched.
Dragon landed.
‘They are gone.’ Lorana smiled.
‘Yes. Now you and Arton have time to make and lay eggs.’
Laughter erupted. “We’ll do just that,” Arton said.
Lorana looked into his eyes. “We will grow old together with love.”
The End
More Books by Janet Lane Walters from Books We Love
The Gemini Sagittarius Connection (Opposites In Love Book 3)
The Taurus Scorpio Connection (Opposites In Love Book 2)
The Aries Libra Connection (Opposites In Love Book 1)
A Marriage Takes Two
Sanctuary’s Ending (The Goddess of Solunda Book 1)
Temple of Fyre (Island of Fyre)
Pursuing Doctor West
Bast’s Warrior (An Alternate Egypt Book 1)
Horu’s Chosen (An Alternate Egypt Book 2)
Toth’s Priest (An Alternate Egypt Book 3)
Amber Chronicles
Shattered Dreams (Moonchild)
Rekindled Dreams (Moonchild)
Melodic Dreams (Moonchild)
A Double Opposition
Moon Summoned
Lines of Fire (The Guild House - Defenders Hall)
Code Blue
The Doctor's Dilemma
Heart Throb
Books We Love Special Edition - Janet Lane-Walters
Gemstones
Choices
Healwoman
Young Adult books By J L Walters
Escape (Affinities Book 1 - Young Adult Fantasy)
Havens (Affinities Book 2 - Young Adult fantasy)
Searches (Affinities Book 3 - Young Adult Fantasy)
Confrontations (Affinities)
About the Author
Janet Lane Walters is a multi-published award winning author. To date she has published more than 40 novels, 10 novellas, 4 non-fiction books, and a number of short stories and poems. She lives in the scenic Hudson River valley, a setting in many of her novels. She bills herself as the eclectic writer and writes romances, from sweet to spicy, cozy mysteries, alternate world fantasies, historicals, paranormals and fantasy from YA to adult. She is the mother of 4 and the grandmother of 7. She lives with her psychiatrist husband who has no desire to cure her obsession with writing. Among her hobbies are Astrol
ogy and composing music. She also admits to housework as a hobby, for isn’t that what one does in their spare time.
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