The bear smiled as Cyrus moved on.
Two empty chambers further in he came to an elaborate room, with marble floors and walls, powerful sconces lit up the place. There was a large leather sofa that was filled with horse hair and feathers and when he lay on it found it to be quite comfortable; the fright of having lost his leg, even though it was now back in its proper place, had taken a lot out of him and he felt exhausted. Lots of things to explore in this room, books and pouches, a silver table with multiple drawers; in fact whatever sorcerer had made this place most likely had lived in this huge chamber. There was a large painting over the hearth; two red dragons staring into one another’s eyes as if they were in love.
Cyrus removed as much dust as he could before getting on the sofa; he closed his eyes and went to sleep and almost immediately commenced to snore.
Two spirits materialized near the fireplace, two old women wearing grey robes with hoods that were translucent; they looked down at the snoring Cyrus and were not at all happy to see him there.
“Why is it that only the bad ones find their way in here?”
“Sister he does have some good qualities.”
“The bad outweigh the good. His scale is definitely tipped toward the dark.”
“The last one was destroyed.”
One removed her hood revealing that she was bald. “Yes but he survived for over three centuries and killed over seven hundred people.”
“You know sister we should have never crafted those stones. Did you see him scream when the bear took his leg?”
The bald one nodded. “We had the most difficult time to wake that bear up. That enchantment is a lot weaker than when we first cast it.”
“He snores loud enough to wake the dead.”
And then they both giggled like young girls.
Cyrus awoke sensing something but he wasn’t sure what, looking around he saw that everything was as it had been. He stretched and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes but was still tired and stressed from his encounter with the bear, and so very happy to still have his leg. He would be dead now, bled out for sure. Up on the mantle were four white pouches covered in dust and after staring at them for a time he opened them to find several colored rocks in each one. Gems would have been great but rocks? They might be magical but they simply looked like rocks; he threw a red one in the corner and backed away, watching as it bounced but nothing happened.
Cyrus moved on to the window sill where a bright yellow book rested; the window was chiselled from marble and was completely made out of stone, not a genuine window but a likeness. He wondered if only a wizard could see through it. Inside the book were lots of symbols and words that he didn’t recognise, some of the words flickered like fire as it trying to get his attention, so now he was certain that a wizard had lived here at one time, but there was so much dust that it must have been a very long time ago.
Cyrus stared up at a painting over the fireplace, so well accomplished that he almost expected the dragons to move. Whoever had painted it had a great deal of talent unless it had been conjured, almost like looking through a window rather than looking at a canvas. He went to the silver table and searched through the drawers, locating several scrolls in the middle drawer and when he unrolled them they contained more unknown words and symbols. In the bottom drawer he found a black rock that left traces on his hands, like a piece of coal might but it wasn’t coal. It was dark purple not black.
He turned and stared at the painting because people sometimes hid things behind them so might not a wizard do the same? It might be worth having a peek. It occurred to Cyrus that the painting itself should be worth a fair price it was so beautiful. It took three attempts for him to get up on the mantle, he carefully removed the painting that was as wide as his outstretched arms, lost his balance and fell backward, the art went flying and he could hear small objects falling on the floor; he landed hard hurting his back and had to rest for a moment before standing up. At his feet was a beautiful purple sapphire shaped like a shield, and as he picked it up he noticed a radiant oval red ruby against the wall, and what a beauty. Cyrus jumped around excitedly now believing that he was rich. How quickly things had changed for him.
He picked up the ruby placing it in the palm of his hand and it felt like it cut him; the ruby was halfway into his palm, now hidden by a small pool of blood and no matter how hard he tried he couldn’t get it out. Suddenly it was gone, he could feel it and see it travelling up his arm and as he attempted to block it with his left hand it simply went around, up and past his shoulder. He thought he might drop dead at any moment. What a clever enchantment because who could resist a ruby. When it moved into his lung it made Cyrus cough twice, but as it entered his heart he collapsed. The other gems rolled and slid across the stone floor, making their way around to his outstretched hand and entered, following the same path as the first.
CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
KAPANO, ASHER AND AEWYN WERE ROLLING the unconscious Marcus in a see-through bubble heading back toward their den, smug looks on all their faces. Marcus was slip-sliding inside the sphere but remained in a deep sleep; his wand was vibrating as it slid with him but he was in no condition to respond. The wizard inside the wand wasn’t sure what exactly was happening but he knew it wasn’t good.
Several leagues away his knights were just beginning to rise from the spell but remained in a state of confusion. All they knew was that the boy was gone and they must find him. Brother staggered and fell over, got up staggered some more and fell over again.
The three wizards rolled the boy into the chamber where the Staff of Herding stood; Kapano broke the bubble with a touch of his finger and Marcus was now flat on the floor with all three staring down at him. Kapano thought the only reason they had managed it was because of Marcus’s lack of experience, nonetheless they now had their hands on a TarCranian wizard.
Asher scratched his head. “Are you sure he’s TarCranian?”
Kapano nodded. “Wait here I’m gonna show you something.” He left the chamber and returned a short time later with a large scroll, as he unrolled it they could see it was a map of about a hundred square leagues, small blue circles were in multiple places on the scroll. “Do you see all these markings, they are the locations of all the wizards in this area, look another one just materialized there. Notice how most of them are the size of small pebbles? And this is where we are, look at the size of this one.” It looked like it was more than a hundred times the size of the others. “That’s the boy’s energy.”
Asher scrunched his eyebrows. “Why have you kept this map to yourself?”
Aewyn was both impressed and fearful. “Perhaps he’s even more powerful than a TarCranian wizard.”
Kapano shook his head. “Nothing is more powerful than a TarCranian wizard.”
Asher scratched his head again. “Maybe we should just put him back? Perhaps if we just leave them alone they’ll forget about us?”
“What did you have for breakfast? Stupid berries?” said Kapano. “There’s no going back now. We attacked them!”
Marcus turned over and started to mumble in his sleep. “So you chimer and mother moo.”
Aewyn thought the boy looked like he might wake up. “Are you sure that he can’t break the sleeping spell?” Now that Marcus was in their presence he was scarier than they thought he would be.
Kapano nodded. “Oh yes, yes, yes. I’m sure.” Even though he wasn’t completely certain it was best to say that he was.
Aewyn’s eyes narrowed, too many yes’s for his liking. “I hope you speak the truth.”
And then Kapano added. “At least I don’t think he can break it.”
Marcus stood up and pulled his wand, waved it and then there was suddenly a boa constrictor in the room he then commenced talking to it. The serpent was massive and the three of them ran out of the chamber as Marcus spoke to the snake, but to him he was imagining an old friend of the family. “How’s your mother? Does she still have those awful pains in her legs?�
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He imagined the friend saying that she also had a terrible pain in her neck.
“That is too bad,” said Marcus. “You give her my best.” He lay back down and closed his eyes once more.”
Kapano nodded. “He not only talks in his sleep but walks as well. Look the snake is trying to consume the boy.”
“Maybe we should let it eat him,” said Asher.
The snake had dislodged its jaws and was in the process of swallowing Marcus and was almost up to his knees when the boy turned on his side, kicked and suddenly the snake was gone.
Kapano went back inside the chamber. “Quick lets bind him before he really wakes up. Come on we’ll get him on the table.
Kapano and Aewyn lifted Marcus placing him on the study oak table. Kapano waved his hand in circles and bound him with purple rope, and then Aewyn did the same except that his bindings were a pinkish hue, and finally Asher added his chain link binding to secure the boy. They hoped he would not be able to escape but weren’t sure of the TarCranian’s abilities.
Kapano looked down at the wand and then at Aewyn. “Hand me his wand.”
“I’m not touching that thing,” said Aewyn. “Who knows what’s attached to it.”
“Asher hand me the wand please.” Kapano was frightened to touch it himself, at least until someone else did.
Asher shook his head. “Get the wand yourself if you want it.”
Kapano went over and stood near the wand, desperately hoping nothing would happen when he touched it, and so with a single finger he reached down touching it and nothing happened. “See nothing to it.” But when he picked up the wand there was a loud crackle and it threw him viciously against the far wall, rendering him unconscious from the blow, his body now smouldering.
“Something to it,” said Asher.
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
THE NEW VILLAGE WAS RAPIDLY TAKING SHAPE; the niiwu had been working on it day and night. They had never made their own weapons, mostly taken from humans they had killed and eaten but now some of them magically knew not only how to build a forge but how to forge weapons as well. Five of them were hard at work on the forge, excited by their new knowledge.
The area was bustling with the sound of axes cutting into trees, deep voices shouting commands, branches being trimmed, and a strong wind whistling through the trees. Several more huts were taking shape simultaneously, one was gesturing that the top wasn’t set properly. Two were honing their swords as another one was biting into a wild boar that he had killed. They were starting to like banding together in large groups with the idea that if they could get enough of them together they might be able to take over the entire area. There were discussions of taking over Leeander and living in that big solid castle. The more they discussed it around the great bonfire at night the more they liked the idea. Since they were much stronger than humans why shouldn’t they rule? It might be nice to have human servants until it was time to eat them. It seemed that Kromska’s ideas were being appreciated by most.
Two niiwu started to fight, two males had been posturing over a certain female and everyone had become aware of the battle that was to ensue and so it was the perfect time to take a break and watch. The female that they were battling over was walking around with her naked chest out and pointing to herself to show everyone that they were fighting over her, both of her faces were happy. She was very attractive to the niiwu but to humans they pretty much all looked the same except the females had breasts.
The two headed beasts came together like boulders rolled from opposite hills, all four heads screaming furiously. One raked one of the others faces trying hard to scratch his eyes out, drawing blood that dripped down on the ground. The one with the scratched face jumped and kicked the other one in the chest, pushing him back hard against a tree and the impact leaving an indentation, no human could have survived such a blow. The niiwu had two hearts in their chest, and all four were pumping vigorously as the battle raged, blow exchanged for blow. When they screamed to try and intimidate their opponents their faces altered, looking wild and evil with their huge teeth expanding and spittle flying everywhere.
The one with the injured face picked up a double-sided battle axe, making it a battle to the death. The other also took an axe and then the battle renewed. It was certain that one of them would die now and the female was elated as it would increase her rank in the tribe. The bloody one swung his axe with all his might, so fast that the sound of it cut through the air, just barely slicing through the other’s stomach, just a scratch but the potential had been appreciated by all. He who had received the scratch laughed and so did he who had caused it.
The one with the bloody face, Kranlor, feigned an attack and as the other took a step back he fell; he chopped into his chest stopping one heart and then the other killing him. More than a dozen of the niiwu were instantly on the body eating it as the victor screamed towards the sky.
CHAPTER FIFTY
RYXA WAS SITTING on her sole remaining egg, depressed. She thought it might be best to consider that Daganth had not survived the fall, that he was dead and for her to shift her attention to the one she had, after all what choice did she have. If only Marcus was around so she could talk to him, he had a way of making her happy and she might be able to take some comfort from him, but a wizard’s life wasn’t really one of his own. She missed flying around with him on her back and now he was involved with that human female, which of course made sense but she had to admit that she was a little jealous.
Ryxa hadn’t eaten in days and although she was hungry she couldn’t eat; she was confused by what life was dishing out to her. If things continued to unfold in a like manner she might end up being a bitter old dragon one day, life had a way of molding one into whatever it wanted.
Ryxa felt movement from her egg and when she got up and looked it actually jumped and then rolled right out of the nest. She placed herself between her egg and the exit to make certain that it wouldn’t be able to fall out and watched as her baby jumped, each time it came down onto the rock floor it made quite a thump, and on the third jump there was a spark as it hit.
“Baby girl what are you doing in there?”
“I’m trying to get out of here Mama.”
Ryxa watched as she had never heard of such a thing as a jumping egg, but perhaps Marcus’s spell had inadvertently given her the ability to open her own egg which of course made sense she supposed. The egg jumped four more times and Ryxa ran to it and held it up, examining it closely. “You’ve got a crack in it little one keep going.” She returned the egg to the hard rocky floor.
“I can’t Mama I’m too tired. I think I need a nap.”
It was frustrating to have the egg not break open but a mother simply wasn’t allowed to facilitate the escape, part of being ready to leave the confines was getting out by oneself. And so Ryxa lay down with her head on her claws and watched and waited; she could now hear the little one snoring, making her roll her eyes. Having lost Daganth she was now impatient for her to hatch, desperately hoping that her new baby would take her mind off of things, at least a little. After a time and with so little sleep Ryxa’s eyes became heavy; they closed briefly and then quickly opened. Her big dragon head commenced to bob up and down, repeatedly waking her when her head commenced to fall, letting out a loud snort she laughed at herself.
It commenced to rain and a crack of thunder woke Ryxa and as she opened her eyes she instantly noticed that the egg was gone. She snapped her head back to see if there had been room for the egg to have rolled past her to fall and there was, not a lot of room but just enough. She screeched louder than she ever had at the thought that her little one had also fallen to her death. “Oh no, no, no, no, no!”
Ryxa put her head down and sniffed the floor, following the scent into a side tunnel and found her baby girl snoring from the effort that it had taken to break herself out of the egg. The dragon licked and kissed her baby, so happy that she had not suffered the same fate as Daganth. She cradled her i
n her arms and kissed her over and over.
Sparkles of white light went from the mother’s mind into the baby’s, an instinctual transfer of knowledge which occurs with some dragons. “Mama I was sleeping!”
“I’m sorry little one you can go back to sleep. I think I’ll call you Bahati. I had a great-great-grandmother that was named Bahati and everyone loved her.” Ryxa’s joy didn’t last long as she went back to worrying about Daganth now that her baby had hatched.
Bahati stretched her wings which remained slightly wet, but she took flight out of her mother’s arms and flew into the main part of the cave. “Mother I can fly!”
Ryxa yawned. “Of course you can fly you’re a dragon.”
The dragon waddled to the cave’s door and looked out into the world for the very first time, distant mountains and another black dragon was flying way up high, so much so that it was not much more than a speck. “It is so big out there. Can we go out?”
“Bahati let me rest for a bit and then we’ll go out. You must not go out by yourself, promise me.”
She shook her head. “I promise.” Although her father was an Amethyst shade of purple dragon named Ashkoor she was black just like her mother. She started to sniff the floor. “Where’s Daganth? I can smell him. Did he hatch?”
Daganth’s scent was so weak that Ryxa could no longer smell it but perhaps Bahati had a talent for scent. “You can smell your brother?”
“Yes and he stinks.”
“So you can follow your brother’s scent?”
Bahati looked cute as she cocked her head and looked up at her mother, thinking. “You can’t smell him?”
Ryxa took to the air and hovered outside the cave. “Come on then let’s see if you can follow you brother’s scent.”
Knight of the Sword (of Knights and Wizards Book 3) Page 16
