“We don’t know much about the creature,” Persea continued, ignoring her audience’s shock. “There were some who believed we should have studied it further, but the majority of the Academy was far too frightened. The preliminary analyses indicated that the creature was not entirely dead. Instead, it was being kept frozen by a remarkably powerful spell stored inside the Glowstone blade of a sword buried in its chest. The Council of Arch-Mages decided to leave it alone. A massive steel crypt was built around it, and several protective spells were cast to make sure no one else found it. The entire affair was made a secret. Some of the lower echelons involved in the excavations even had their memories erased out of precaution.”
“Wait!” Aric said. “You’re saying Sohtyr wants to control a God in the same way that he can control a Dragon? That can’t be possible.”
“It doesn’t matter if it’s possible,” Persea told him. “If Sohtyr is allowed to wake the creature up, the consequences will be cataclysmic, whether the mind control spells works or not.”
“You keep referring to it as ‘creature’,” Clea said. “This is a God we’re talking about‒”
Persea cut her off. “It was a God. We don’t know what it is now.”
“You mentioned protective spells,” Leth said. “What exactly are we talking about? Because if you mean those blue creatures, there’s no way they can stop Sohtyr. They’re barely a challenge for the Guild’s trainees.”
“That’s a just a low level security measure,” Persea explained. “Aimed at scaring away random adventurers. There are other, more sophisticated defenses in place.”
“You arrogant fools!” Eliran accused. “That’s why you won’t let me inside the vault upstairs?”
“Eliran!” Persea warned.
“You locked the creature up, but instead of throwing out the key you kept it here, in Lamash.”
The Arch-Mage looked like she was about to burst with rage. They saw her open her mouth and began to scream at the top of her lungs, but all they heard was a garbled, unintelligible mess.
“What?” Eliran asked. “Mistress, you’re breaking off.” She stepped towards the hypervisor and waved her hand. “Stupid old thing…”
Then, a horn blew somewhere near, echoing between the mountain peaks.
Aric cursed. “Raiders,” he said.
Eliran looked from Aric to the scrambling image in the hypervisor. “No, not raiders,” she said. “Sohtyr.”
The sun was hanging low, reddening the sky as if it were ablaze. Lyra watched it quietly with one leg dangling outside the stone railing. Beside her, Nahir slid a whetstone along the steel blade of his sword.
“Must you keep doing that?” Lyra asked. “It can’t possibly get any sharper beyond a certain point, you know?”
“I know how to sharpen a blade, Lyra of Awam,” Nahir told her without taking his eyes from the sword.
“Right. You’re an Honor Guard,” Lyra said. “I bet they gave you your first sword when you were six or something.”
“Five,” Nahir corrected. “I was five at the time. I remember being very happy.”
“Five?” Lyra couldn’t believe it. She shook her head. “Did you have any toys at all?”
This time, Nahir raised his head. “Why would I need a toy when I had the real thing?” he asked.
“Hey!” Tharius burst into the small balcony, gasping. “Have you guys seen Aric?”
“He’s in the Mage Tower, I think,” Lyra replied. “With the Witch.”
“Oh, damn it…” Tharius let his head fall to his chest.
“What’s the matter?” Lyra asked
“Ashur is complaining that his shift is over and no one has shown up to replace him,” Tharius replied. “He’s threatening to leave the watch point.”
“So?” Lyra asked.
“What do you mean, so?” Tharius asked. “We can’t leave a watch point vacant.”
“Alright, then replace him,” Lyra suggested.
“I just finished an eight-hour shift,” Tharius said. “Can’t you please go?”
“Me?” Lyra asked, pretending to feel offended. “I’m responsible for healing the Witch. It’s not my fault she left the infirmary.”
“What infirmary!?” Tharius argued. “You’re not healing anyone, you’re right here. What difference does it make if you just move to the eastern wing?”
“I’m spending time with my good friend here,” Lyra said. “And we’re having a great time, aren’t we Nahir?”
The Cyrinian glanced from his blade to Lyra and then back to his sword, but didn’t really say anything.
Tharius exhaled loudly. “You’re going to make me go all the way to the Mage Tower?” he asked.
Lyra shrugged. “I’m not making you do anything.” She turned to the desert so Tharius couldn’t see her smile.
“And what about you?” Tharius asked Nahir. “This is your watch, but you’re not even looking out.”
The grinding sound of Nahir’s blade stopped.
“No need,” Nahir said. “She’s doing it for me.”
Tharius gritted his teeth. He felt like growling.
“Calm down, Tharius,” Lyra told him. “Just breathe and enjoy the view. Look at this gorgeous sunset over the dunes. Look at that beautiful eagle over there, soaring in the sky. When was the last time we had the chance to just relax?”
“Eagle?” Tharius asked, then his jaw dropped. “Merciful Ava…”
“What?” Lyra asked.
The metallic singing of Nahir’s whetstone stopped.
“That’s no eagle,” Tharius said.
“Get inside,” Nahir commanded, standing up. He took the horn across his shoulders to his mouth and blew as hard as he possibly could.
Clea ran towards the window and opened it, flooding the room with light and making the sounding horn even louder.
“It’s coming from the main tower,” she said. “From the south, I think.”
“We have to go,” Aric said. “Now.” He turned and stormed out of the room.
Without a word, Clea and Leth turned and followed him. Eliran, however, did not move.
“I can’t,” the Sorceress said.
“Can’t?” Aric asked. “We need your help. You’re probably the reason he’s here in the first place.”
Eliran shook her head. “No,” she said. “He’s here for that vault. I have to stay. I can’t let him get inside.”
Leth and Aric exchanged a look.
“You think he can get in?” Leth asked. “I thought you said that wasn’t possible without the counter-spell?”
“I also thought I could defeat him before I faced him,” Eliran said. “You should go. Help your friends. But I have to protect that door.”
Aric hesitated. “Alright, they will stay and help you,” he said, indicating Leth and Clea.
“Out of the question,” Eliran told him. “I can’t let you risk your lives for matters of the Academy. Besides, you don’t even know what is attacking the main tower. My guess is you’ll need as much help as you can get.”
“Matters of the Academy?” Aric asked. “I heard your boss. If Sohtyr wakes up that thing, it’ll be everyone’s concern.”
“I’m not fond of the idea,” Leth said, “but I agree with Aric. By your own account, you are weaker than this Sohtyr. What chance do you have against him?”
“I’ll know what to expect this time,” Eliran replied. “Also, I don’t need to defeat him, just make sure he doesn’t get into the vault before his Runium wears off. And I’ll have the protective spells of the vault to assist me.” She stepped closer to Aric and looked him in the eye. “You’ll have to trust me on this one. I know what I’m doing.”
Aric took a deep breath. This didn’t sound right, but across the stone bridge, the alarm kept sounding eerily. Whatever it was, it was dangerous, and his Hunters needed him.
“Fire take this!” Aric let out. “Alright, we’ll deal with whatever it is and get back here as quickly as possible.”
With a sigh, Aric turned and fled towards the stone bridge, followed by Leth and Clea. They swung the door open and sand swirled around them, forcing them to cover their eyes. The stone railing was searing hot, but the winds at that height were too strong, and they were forced to hold on as they sped across the bridge. The horn suddenly went quiet and was replaced by the whistling of the wind.
Then, a roar thundered right above them, and Aric felt his stomach sink.
Grimacing, the three of them looked up and saw the massive shape of a red Dragon. The beast opened its mouth and spewed forth a jet of fire.
“Run!” Aric yelled, racing across the bridge.
A wave of fire pursued them as they ran, and Aric rammed the door to the main tower open, bursting through it just in time to escape the blaze. Leth and Clea rolled into a ball, crashing in right next to Aric, the edges of their clothes smoldering and smoking.
“Merciful Ava!” Clea said, gasping.
Aric tried to stand up but fell back down, screaming and holding his shoulder. He cursed and his eyes welled.
“What is it?” Leth asked, rushing to his side. He helped Aric stand up straight.
“I think I dislocated my shoulder,” Aric managed to say. “Do you know how to‒‒”
He finished the question with a frightening howl of pain. Leth had just pulled Aric’s arm back into place. “Yes,” he replied.
Aric closed his eyes and gritted his teeth, then gasped as a tear rolled down his face. “Thank you,” he ended up saying. He looked as pale as Eliran’s robes.
“What do we do?” Clea asked. She was trying to look outside, to see where the Dragon was.
“We should be safe as long as we stay inside,” Leth replied, helping Aric back up. “This fortress was designed to be Dragon proof.”
“The lower levels, maybe,” Aric said. “But if that thing wants to burst through the balconies, it can.”
“There’s a lot of fortress to hide in,” Clea added. “And not that many of us.”
“And let a Dragon destroy Lamash?” Aric argued. “No way.”
“What do you suggest?” Leth asked.
“I suggest we kill it,” Aric replied.
When Aric, Leth, and Clea got to the entrance hallway of the fortress, most of the Company was already there. The young Hunters were huddled behind the slanted, tendon-like columns, their heads low, as if they were afraid the ceiling might collapse at any moment. Somewhere outside, the Dragon roared fiercely.
“You’re all here. Good,” Aric said, kneeling next to them.
“I gathered as many as I could find,” Tharius said. “I knew you’d want the Company together.”
“Yeah,” Ashur added. “He even made Orisius and Irenya race to the armory. He seems to think we’re about to fight that thing out there.”
“Good,” Aric said. “Because that’s exactly what we’re going to do. Who’s missing?”
“Just Prion,” Tharius replied. “I couldn’t find him.”
“Fine,” Aric said. “We don’t want to be fighting next to anyone who doesn’t have our back.” He paused, then looked straight into Ashur’s eyes. “In case you didn’t get that, I was saying‒‒”
“I’m staying,” Ashur cut him off. “If you’re fighting a Dragon, then so am I.”
Ashur stared at Aric with a defiant look. It was almost as if this was just another one of Saruk’s challenges.
“Good,” Aric said, smiling. “Okay, here’s the plan. This is the largest place in Lamash. It’s big enough to fit a Dragon, and should give us enough room to fight it. So we’re going to lure that thing in here.”
There was a sudden look of apprehension on everyone’s face, but Aric ignored it.
“Lyra, you’ll stay in the rear. If anyone falls or gets hurt bad enough, you step in and get them out.”
“Understood,” Lyra replied with a nod.
“Clea, Orisius, Dothea, the same as in Nish.” Aric pointed at the stone platforms around where the columns met the ceiling. “Get yourselves up there and harass the Dragon with arrows.”
“Up there?” Dothea asked. “How are we supposed to climb up there?”
“I brought ropes from the armory,” Orisius replied, showing them a large bundle of thick, strong rope. “I was thinking we could tie the dragon down.”
“And I told him that was a stupid idea,” Irenya said.
“It’s not stupid,” Orisius retorted, then turned to the rest of the group. “Someone tell her it’s not stupid, please?”
“Yeah,” Clea said, taking the rope. “It’s pretty stupid. But it’ll get us up there.”
“Good,” Aric said. “Then start climbing. We need to hurry.”
Clea gave him a nod and the three archers left the huddle.
“Leth, Tharius, and Nahir,” Aric continued, “you’re with me. We’ll be the bait.” He received three serious nods. “Everyone else, find cover around the hallway and keep out of sight until I give the signal to attack.” He inhaled deeply and glanced around at each one of his Hunters. “Get ready. We’re about to slay our first Dragon.”
It took the Company a moment to digest that thought. Feet shifted, and there were a couple of loud sighs, but no one said anything. Then, with a final nod from Aric, everyone hurried to their positions.
The main gate was fastened shut by a thick wooden plank, which Nahir’s powerful arms removed. With the gate opened, Leth snuck out, followed by Tharius. The two of them inspected the sky, looking for the Dragon. Aric stayed behind, collecting torches from the lobby’s walls. He made one last inspection of the hallway, making sure the Company was ready for the fight. He saw the shapes of his Hunters hiding behind the hallway’s columns, their Glowstone lances firmly in their hands. Up near ceiling, his three archers dangled from the ropes, only a couple of feet left to climb. They were as ready as they would ever be.
“There it is,” Tharius warned.
Aric stepped outside and followed Tharius’ arm.
There it was, a jagged, dark red gash in the twilight sky. To the west, black smoke billowed from the side of the mountain. Clearly the beast had been busy destroying that flank of the fortress.
“Are we sure about this?” Leth asked. “We could just hide in the lower levels. There would be no shame in that. We’re not graduated yet.”
Instead of replying, Aric simply handed a burning torch to each of them. “Here,” he said. “This ought to get its attention.”
Leth shook his head with an amused smile. “Damned crazy Aurons.”
It didn’t take very long for the Dragon to notice them as they began to wave the torches above their heads. The Dragon shrieked and turned, drawing three quarters of a circle in the air. Furling its wings, the monster plunged towards them, letting out another growl.
“Ava mother…” Tharius mumbled.
“Brace yourselves,” Aric said.
The Dragon grew larger and larger, flames coming out from the corners of its mouth as if it were a furnace.
“This might not be the ideal moment to point out a flaw in your plan,” Leth told Aric, “but what now?”
“What do you think?” Aric asked, turning around. “Run!”
He didn’t have to give that order twice. All four of them turned tail and fled back into the fortress, the massive Dragon darting after them so fast they could hear it zooming through the air. At the last possible moment, the beast opened its wings, braking and touching down right in front of the main gate with an earth-shaking thump.
“Dive!” Aric screamed.
The four Hunters jumped sideways, landing flat on the ground just in time to avoid a gush of fire. They picked themselves up quickly, resuming their flight deeper into the hallway, hoping the beast would fall into their trap. Lurking in the shadows of the columns on both his sides, Aric saw the rest of his Hunters, ready for their moment to strike.
The Dragon, however, did not seem ready to cooperate yet. Maybe somethi
ng about that hollow did not feel right.
“It’s not coming,” Tharius said. “It’s not falling for it.”
“Leave this up to me, Captain,” Nahir said, drawing a Glowstone axe from his back. The Cyrinian had been the only one to fashion one of those.
“What? What are you going to do?” Aric asked, feeling unsure.
“What I can,” Nahir replied. “Get ready to strike.” And with that, he plunged forward, screaming like a madman with his axe swinging above his head.
The Dragon roared.
“Fire take this!” Aric complained, regretting not having stopped Nahir. “Alright. Leth, Tharius, spread out. Join the ambush.”
He rushed behind one of the columns and watched Nahir duck beneath a jet of fire, rolling over his head and standing right back up without so much as slowing down, even though part of his jacket had caught on fire.
To Aric’s great relief, Nahir wasn’t about to commit suicide. At the last moment, the Cyrinian turned and hid behind the open gate, disappearing from the Dragon’s sight. But the beast wasn’t about to let him escape that easily. Shrieking, the Dragon stormed into the Fortress, its paws shattering the stone slabs beneath them.
“Now!” Aric screamed. “Attack!”
Arrows rained from above at the same time a swarm of Hunters charged at the beast. The Dragon was momentarily overwhelmed by the sudden attack. It sent its head lurching backward, screeching in pain. Aric saw Trissa drive a spear into the monster’s ribcage, and next to her Ergon slashed one of its massive heels.
Then, rage took over the Dragon. With swords, arrows, and spears sticking out from its body, the monster crashed against the columns on his sides as if it was a cage he was trying to escape from.
The onslaught came to a halt as the Hunters tried to protect themselves. Jullion was knocked down by the Dragon’s tail, and Ashur screamed for Lyra.
“It’s going to tear the place down!” Leth screamed, taking cover from the falling debris.
It certainly seemed that way. Aric stepped back from the beast. The entire fortress was shaking. Huge blocks of stone fell from the walls and ceiling. It looked like the hallway was about to cave in.
The Dragon Hunter and the Mage Page 41
