Sands of Time - 19. Chapter 19

The ambush was sudden and overwhelming as the two walked along the snow-covered forested country road. “FALL BACK!” Ivran called out as he blocked yet another blow and was rewarded with a hammer blow to his left hip. Thankfully, his Alphar armor was good and holding.

“To where?” Sudryl questioned as his back met Ivran’s. “We are surrounded!” Sudryl’s blade flashed, and the orc attacking him fell, its head cleaved in two. Two more took its place, and before long, Sudryl fell from a hammer blow to the side of his head.

When he hit the ground, he was not entirely unconscious, but he was fading. Irvan hit the ground a moment later, and that's when the blows from the feet and fists of their attackers started to rain down upon them. With a herculean effort, Sudryl reached out and grabbed Irvan’s hand before his eyes glazed over, and he fell into the darkness.

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“FALL BACK!” Garnet shouted. “Aegir! FALL BACK!” Garnet cried out again as he took out two more Kobolds, only for four to take their place. He missed the one on his side and received a knife in his muscular shoulder for his troubles.

Sigvat was too far gone in his rage. He didn’t have the same paralyzing awe as others did since he had been around dragons his entire short life. So when the Dragon charged at them, all he could think about were his new friends and the people who treated him and his sister well. Without hesitating, he charged.

Aegir, hearing Garnet’s orders, as well as his father’s from further back, he faltered a step. Does he follow the orders, or does he go with Sigvat? Just then, his father’s voice came to him from his memory. ‘We never leave anyone alone in a fight.’ With his mind made up, he started forward while slamming his sticks together, forming his staff. Blades out on both sides, he ducked and weaved around the remaining Goblins, heavily wounding them where he could and killing two outright.

“Well, shit!” Hontel cursed, then looked at Darren, who was frozen in fear. “You wanted to prove yourself.” the boy said out loud but he was only speaking to himself. He pulled his long sword up to his shoulder, dipped the other one, and charged towards the dragon.

“Well fuck!” Syth cried as he saw what was happening up front. By now, the goblins and kobolds were threatening to get past the corners and get into where he and Killian were. He was about ready to collapse his bow and pull his renders but couldn’t now. He reached back and drew a special blue-tinged arrow and quickly nocked it.

He couldn’t help but grin as he felt the fletching touch his chin. Fletching that was made out of the feathers he pulled out of Gordesh’s rear end. The indignant squawking and cussing were enough to have everyone nearby roll on the ground in laughter.

The dragon reared his head back and drew in a deep breath, intending to burn the insolent creatures that dared to challenge him. He may only be a Warrior Dragon, but he was Ro’on-em, son of a Great who would soon be King of the Reds.

Syth had waited till the Dragon lunged forward to breathe on the young ones, to loose his arrow. The timing was almost perfect as the flames were just roiling up in the Dragon’s gullet when the arrow hit and exploded into a giant ball of ice.

Ro’on-em tried to scream in agony, but he couldn’t take a breath. He reared his head back, bringing his front legs off the ground. He swung it one way, trying to dislodge the rapidly melting ball, then he swung it hard the other way. That’s when his head collided with a granite wall—at least, that’s what it felt like, but it was actually Amakiir flying full speed to help.

Ro’on-em’s head was swimming so severely that he didn’t hear the crashing of the stalactites as his head smashed through them. Nor did he really feel his head hit the ground. What he did feel, though, was the pain of Sigvat’s horn slamming into and piercing the back of his front knee, breaking several small bones in the process.

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Ivran’s swollen and bleary eyes opened like little slits. His head was pounding, and he knew he was bound. All he could tell was that he was draped over some huge beast's shoulder. Next to him, Sudryl was similarly bound and being carried by a large Orc. Looking at his companion, he realized they had been stripped of their armor, weapons, and possessions. He took a deep breath, and that’s when he realized that he was severely injured. As his eyes closed once more, he wondered if they would ever open again.

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As Ro’on-em roared in pain, blowing out the remains of the icy plug, he swung his head around to the side to see what had impaled the back of his knee. Unfortunately for him, an ice-cold blade slid across his cheek, parting scales and freezing the flesh underneath.

Aegir sprung away as the Dragon’s head came towards him. He had no desire to be close to any teeth as big as those were. He could see Hontel give a mighty upward swing, trying to drive his longsword under the scales on the Dragon’s exposed side. Aegir didn’t see what happened, but he was sure, by yet another roar of pain, that Hontel had done what he wanted.

Further down on the dragon, Sigvat yanked his horn out of the now-shattered knee joint, but he wasn’t truly satisfied. While his face was still covered and dripping with the Red’s blood, he wanted more. He reared back and, with everything he could muster, punched the dragon right in the same spot his horn had entered before, creating a gaping wound.

Ro’onem roared in pain again, but this time, he suddenly shifted and brought his tail around as quickly as he could, and it slammed into the odd-looking creature and threw it halfway across the cavern, causing his attackers to have to scramble out of the way.

Aegir saw that the Dragon had tail-whipped Sigvat away and was slowly moving his head back toward the two remaining assailants. There was no time to go to the Rhinoling's aid. He remembered then what Syth had done back on the first day they met, and Killian killed the True Green. Aegir waited until he saw the temple plate on the Red, and that’s when he charged.

Garnet had just cleared himself some room. He wasn’t sure how many kobolds he’d killed, but the ground around him ran wet and sticky with their blood. He had numerous light wounds, as well as a stab wound to his thigh. He hadn’t bothered to take the blade out yet; he really hadn’t had the time.

First, he looked to find Xavier. From their bond, he knew he had not been significantly wounded, but he still needed to see his King with his own eyes before he was satisfied. What he saw made him glad they had accepted Lew. Xavier was back-to-back with the Pantherling. Lew’s new sword was flashing around; every stroke was the death of an enemy. Xavier had conjured his magic shield, and his Falcatta, the symbol of rulership for the Sand Dragons, was dripping with blood and gore.

Garnet’s next thought was for his student. What he saw made his blood run cold. He saw Aegir charging directly at the dragon’s head, which was close to the ground. He had his staff pointed like a spear as he deftly ran forward. Over the din of battle, Garnet couldn’t hear the battle cry that was coming from the lad’s mouth.

The lad, showing more grace than Garnet had seen before, flowed around one Goblin and ducked below the strike of another. Never once did he lose a step or the focus on his target. His moves, however, stirred something in Garnet, though he quickly pushed it out of his mind. Now was not the time to think about that.

Garnet’s eye also caught something else. Just before Aegir was to hit the dragon, Hontel drove his new long sword through a scale and deep into the dragon’s shoulder. The result could not have been better for Aegir.

Aegir's staff lined up perfectly as the dragon swung his head towards the injury. Ro’on-em saw the face of his killer just a moment before the blow landed, for at that moment, Aegir’s blade punctured Ro’on-em’s right eye. The full force of Aegir’s frame drove the staff deep into the Dragon’s orbital socket.

Never in his life had he felt such pain before. Ro’on-em roared in absolute agony and terror. He yanked his head back as hard as he could, but the human on the end of the staff refused to let go. This proved to be Ro’on-em’s undoing. Aegir’s body weight drove the staff in deeper. The blade had already entered the Dragon's brain when the boy was finally forced to release the staff, but by then, he had been flipped into the air over the dying dragon.

Aegir slammed into the cavern's ceiling and nearly blacked out as several bones broke from the impact. When he landed, he actually landed on the dragon’s snout, which softened the blow… somewhat.

A brief moment later, he blacked out as a magical wave erupted from the body of the Red, impacting him like a physical blow. The last thing he saw as his eyes closed were Goblins and Kobolds fleeing the cavern, with Syth racing behind them to where Sigvat had been thrown.

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“ARRRRGGGGG!” Sudryl cried out through his dislocated jaw as he was hoisted up by his arms. He barely heard the laughter that his agonized cry brought to his captors.

Through the one eye that he barely opened, he saw they were in a cave. He saw the flickers of a fire, but he was still chilled to the bone. He didn't want to guess whether that was from the winter snow or his injuries.

It took every bit of willpower to stay conscious long enough to see what was happening around him. He knew his right shoulder was dislocated, and his left kneecap was not in the proper position. However, what he could see of Ivran’s blood-covered body made him feel that his companion had suffered the brunt of their captor's malice.

As the pain forced him to fade away again, he said a prayer to all the gods to spare Ivran and to help him endure whatever the future might hold.

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“AEGIR!” Garnet cried out as he watched the small boy fly off the dragon’s head and hit the ceiling. He couldn’t help but cringe when he saw his small body fall from the ceiling, no less than 15 meters, only to land on the Red’s muzzle.

The red-tinged wave of dragon magic that erupted a brief moment later took Garnet by surprise. Somehow, the three students had actually brought down the Red Warrior dragon on their own.

He was not surprised to see the Kobolds and Goblins turn and run. They were not known for bravery, especially when they no longer held the advantage. Garnet started to move towards where Aegir had fallen while surveying the remnants of the battle.

His first thought was towards Xavier. Seeing his Blood Brother move towards an injured guard with Lew right beside him, sword drawn, made Garnet feel much better.

Bruin and the two Bear Scorpions were giving chase, while Mablin, Olpha, Lucas, Killian, and even Lew were throwing one last spell to kill as many as they could before they got away.

“LUCAS!” Garnet called out as he neared the dragon's body. “Bring down the side passages.”

“GOT IT!” Lucas called back, “HEY, KILLIAN! TIME TO LEARN A NEW TRICK!”

Had the situation been different, Garnet might have found humor in seeing Aegir draped across the snout of the Red. However, what he did see gave him a reason for pause. Swirling around his young student was Dragon Magic, slowly seeping into the boy. A quick look at Hontel and Sigvat showed the same; although not as significant a gifting, it was still there.

“AEGIR!” Garnet heard Gradon cry out. He barely had the time to catch the man before he got to his son.

“Gradon! NO!” Garnet forcibly said, forcing the man to look at him. “Aegir is fine!... But we must let him wake on his own.”

Gradon continued to struggle against the hold Garnet had him in, but Garnet was simply stronger than the man was. “TEACHER GRADON!” Garnet bellowed, bringing the man up short. “Your son is fine! Look, he is not injured at all. The Dragon’s magic healed him. Now, we must let his gifting settle.”

“Gifting?” Gradon asked, bewildered.

“Yes, Teacher Gradon,” Garnet said as he let the man go. “Your son is now amongst the few, like Killian, who can claim they have been found to be worthy adversaries by the Dragon they killed. While this Dragon was drawing his last breath, he gifted your son, as well as Hontel and Sigvat. All three are now marked as Dragon Killers.”

“Marked?” Gradon asked, looking at his son with worry. “Marked how? How do you know?”

“It is something that only a Dragon would see,” Garnet responded. He was about to continue when the sound of two large explosions roared and echoed throughout the cavern chamber. Everyone spun and watched the dust and other after-effects of whatever it was that Lucas and Killian had done. The two main side tunnels and several smaller ones were now completely blocked off with rubble.

Syth knelt beside Sigvat just in time to see the ruby-tinged magic of a dragon gifting swirl around his ward and sink into his thick hide. A moment later, Sigvat opened his eyes and blinked, then focused on Syth. “OH… I feel weird… Am I still alive?... Is everyone alright?”

Syth’s eyes widened, and his jaw nearly dropped. “Yes, I think you are just fine, and so is everyone else… Can you say something else?”

“I suppose I could, but why?”

“Because you are speaking in dragon tongue!... And it is perfect!”

Sigvat got to his knees and excitedly asked, “Me’s is? Me’s talken da dragon talk? Really?”

Syth sighed in relief to hear the boy he knew once again. “Well, you were…” He smiled. “Can you do it again?”

Sigvat frowned in concentration for a moment. “I really do not know if I can or not…”

Syth grinned. “That is it! You can do it if you want to, and that is great! That Red Warrior you helped to kill has gifted you with dragon tongue… And maybe something else, too. We will find out when we have the time. Now, let us get you on your feet and join the others. We will walk slowly so you can practice… And when you talk with Garnet in the future… Always use Dragon Tongue… He will love it!” Syth nearly giggled in anticipation of Garnet’s reaction to hearing Sigvat’s newly acquired speech abilities.

“By the Gods, what in all the hells hit me?” Hontel asked as he stumbled towards them. He was so unsteady that Gradon had to reach out and grab the boy, bringing him close to keep him stable. “Thanks,” he said softly, looking at his sword arm strangely. “I could have sworn the dragon broke my arm…”

“He may have,” Garnet said, “But when he died, you got healed by the magical release. Not to mention, you three were Dragon Gifted.”

“Dragon Gifted?” Hontel asked woozily.

“Yes.” Garnet’s focus shifted briefly to Gradon. “By the way, Teacher Gradon… This is Hontel. He is with the Watch and was sent to spy on us. Xavier decided it was in our best interest to invite him to stay with us.” Garnet decided that it was almost comical to see Gradon’s reaction. However, he had other things to deal with.

Seeing Syth and Sigvat walking towards them, Garnet nodded to himself. “If you do not mind, I will let Syth explain about the gifting.” His eyes searched, then hardened as he found his target… Guardsman Darren. “Now, if you will excuse me, I have a Guardsman to castrate.”

Syth and Sigvat passed Garnet on their way towards the fallen Dragon. When he got to where the rest were now standing, Syth looked over his shoulder at Garnet, then back to Gradon. “He looks pissed. Want to lay odds on whether Mablin will need to hire a replacement?”

“Uhhhh… no thank you,” Gradon said distractedly.

“Oh boy… he is speaking softly. That is not good.” Syth added as he watched the young guardsman pale from whatever soft words were spoken to him.

“Oh… Bloody hell.” They both turned at Aegir’s voice. “Is this the spirit realm?” He asked as he got to his hands and knees. “I cannot tell if I am in pain or not.”

Gradon looked at Syth, “What is he saying? What language is that?”

“Another one gifted with Dragon tongue,” mused Syth, “and perfect diction. I wonder what else?”

Gradon squatted in front of his son, who shifted into a sitting position with his head in his hands. “Aegir?” Gradon asked softly. “Are you okay?”

“Yes, Father,” Aegir said. “I think I am.” He raised his head out of his hands and looked at Gradon. “Why are there three of you?”

Gradon grinned and shook his head. He was about to reply when Aegir seemed to notice for the first time he was sitting on a dragon's snout. “Yeeeeeeks!” He shrieked and tried to jump to the side, but that only made him roll off the snout and into his father, knocking the man on his ass with an arm full of his barely teenage son.

“AEGIR!” They heard Madelyn cry as she came running. She had thought he was okay since Gradon hadn’t called for healing, but the cry she just heard from her son worried her.

“I am okay, Mom,” Aegir said softly as he tried to stand but found he couldn’t. “Really, I am okay,” he said again as she got close enough for him to see. He didn’t mention that she looked really weird, with four arms and six legs.

“Do not try to stand yet,” Syth said as he first caught and then lowered the boy to the ground. “You got the most gifting; it will take you a while to adjust.”

“Yeah, remember how long it took me?” Killian said as he walked up to the small group, his Frozen Flame Gladius out and blood-covered. “And I had special training that Uncle Mablin paid a great deal of coin for.”

“From what I can tell,” Syth began, “Aegir received the brunt of the Dragon Gifting. Sigvat received the next largest amount, and Hontel received a smaller amount but was still gifted.”

Madelyn looked at her son and then at Killian. “We never felt it was our place to ask, but now I must. What happened when you got the Dragon Gifting?”

“Well, it was really Lucas who helped me figure it all out, but the first thing he said was that it is different for everyone,” Killian replied while nervously pushing his strawberry-red hair out of his face.

“That is true,” Syth said as Garnet walked back to the group. A quick glance showed the young guard now standing a short way away from Mablin, looking thoroughly dejected.

“There are a few things that are constant, but most things need to be learned over time.”

“Okay…” Gradon urged the young Drow on.

“Well, first, as you can see, they have been healed of their injuries. They may also find some of their older scars have faded. I doubt this Dragon was old enough or powerful enough to do much more than that regarding healing.

I would also hazard a guess that all three of them have advanced in their field by a not insignificant amount. This can cause issues in the short term, as I know that at least two of them do not have the foundation needed to handle their new guild rankings.” He paused and looked at Hontel, who stood proud but then deflated and shook his head.

“There is never shame in admitting to a lack of education, especially when it is something that can easily be remedied by those around you,” Garnet said sagely. “The three of you will receive intensive training until we feel that you have a proper understanding of who and what you are now. We will focus on martial abilities since only Aegir is a spell caster. However, the time for you to finalize your desired subfields is now past due.”

Aegir nodded quickly, which brought a small smile to Garnet’s face until it dropped as quickly as it came. “Good… Now, let us discuss your refusal to follow orders.”

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A turn of the hourglass later found the group formed up and moving down the far tunnel. However, Xavier thought that calling it a tunnel was misleading as it was easily large enough for even his father to have walked through. Xavier smiled and pushed the memory of his father to the back of his mind. Now was not the time for nostalgia… He needed to stay alert. The order of march was slightly altered, with Guardsman Darren in the far back corner with Mablin, and the three youngsters were flanking Syth and Killian.

Xavier couldn’t help but let out a small giggle as he thought about the three youngsters walking several paces behind him. He also giggled at remembering how frightened all three looked as Garnet was ‘speaking’ to them. The third giggle though was enough to cause Garnet to look at him oddly. “What?” He asked softly.

Xavier looked at Garnet and couldn’t help but snicker outright, which caused him to falter for a step. Garnet stopped and turned, looking down at his Blood Brother with a ghost of a smile on his face. “What are you finding so funny, Xavier?”

“Well…” he had to pause for a moment before an outright laugh broke out. Knowing that there could be enemies around, Xavier did not want to make that much noise. When he had gathered himself, he looked around before looking up at Garnet. “I was just wondering if you had been suddenly possessed by Head Trainer Traddel.” The shocked look on Garnet's face almost made Xavier lose his resolve not to laugh loudly. “Why, if my memory doesn’t fail me, what I heard a few minutes ago was a word-for-word rendition of the lecture he gave us many years ago. It was an excellent impersonation.”

Garnet sputtered a few times before he turned sharply and continued walking down the path. “Shut up, Xavier!” Came floating over his shoulder, though Xavier could hear a barely restrained laugh in his voice.

“Sir Garnet!” Lew’s voice called softly, filled with shock and horror. Using Garnet’s full title was just an added bonus. “You would speak in such a way to our beloved King?”

“That and worse,” Came the reply, but Garnet still didn't turn.

As they proceeded down the passage Xavier began to experience a sense of deja vu. There was something familiar about this corridor. It was like he had been here before, but he couldn’t find any real memory of that. Even so, the sense that he knew this place grew with each step.

“HOLD!” Lew urgently whispered while holding up a closed fist. Ahead, Garnet immediately brought his Warhammer up, ready to attack. Next to Lew, Nimbi had gone on alert, her ears facing forward and a small soft growl coming from her. “Nimbi hears something.”

“Well, one would hope so!” A deep, rumbling voice came down the corridor. “I just hope that you can put up a good fight before I eat you.”

Lew had quickly used animal magic to listen through Nimbi’s ears and winced at the volume of the voice, but he heard something else too. “Nimbi hears nine or ten ahead of us but they are retreating down the passage.”

All eyes turned to Garnet to see his response, but it wasn’t verbal. All he did was hold up a wide-open hand and then close it. Without a word, the Seandreans started to herd everyone closer to the front—still spread out, but much closer together than they had been. Knowing that, at this point, it didn’t really matter, Olpha didn’t dispel the lights.

“Just follow the torches!” The deep voice rumbled again.

They did indeed see torches, but Xavier was convinced that the passage should have come to a dead end here, and this was a solid wall until a short time ago. However, just past the torches, he could see the entryway to a truly massive cavern. “Something is wrong,” Xavier whispered just as they reached the opening.

Garnet immediately threw up a closed fist, causing the entire party to stop and prepare to fight.

No one spoke as they waited to see what Xavier was talking about. Garnet was sure it wasn’t the veritable army that he could see arrayed before them. A quick guess had them outnumbered at least five to one. He didn’t react when he heard a whimper from behind him or when he heard the flat of Gradon’s blade smack someone.

He saw what had to have been the last of the Kobolds and Goblins, but on top of that, he saw Orcs, a couple of Trolls, a score or more of Red Dragonlings, and a few creatures he had never seen outside of the deep caves that the city of Seandra was built into.

Chiroptas were to bats what Hawklings were to Hawks. They were slightly smaller than an average man, their soft, leathery wings allowed them to glide but not fly, and they had naturally wicked claws on both hands and feet. To top it off, they had a mindset that was as aggressive and nasty as any Harpy.

The final thing he saw was a True Red and a pair of smaller Warrior Dragons standing near the back. It looked like they were trying to break down a wall but were not having any luck. Garnet wondered if he and/or Xavier would have to shift to take on the True. He looked old and powerful. Out of all that was arrayed against them, Garnet knew that he posed the biggest threat.

“Ahh, dinner is served…” The Dragon taunted again. “Oh come now… Please tell me you will not lose your nerve so close to the end!”

All of this happened in the few moments it took for Xavier to figure out where he was. When he did, it took almost all of his willpower not to fly off into a rage and attack everyone before them in the cavern. He growled menacingly, “I know this place!”

Garnet’s body whipped around so hard that the others could hear his joints crack. It wasn’t what Xavier said that caused his violent reaction. It was the sudden rage he felt from his Blood Brother that had his full attention. “You what!?”

Xavier looked up at Garnet and simply shook his head, indicating he would not answer. “If this Red is smart… He has positioned archers and Magic throwers behind the outcroppings that flank the entrance to the main Chamber. We see only part of their forces in front of us.”

Knowing by his tone, Xavier would explain nothing else, Garnet nodded. He waited a few moments as a plan came to him. Thinking all the different angles through in a matter of seconds, he smiled slightly as he signaled for the rest to come to him; it was time for the Reds to find out that he did indeed have some of the best tactical training that The Seandrean military could provide.

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Ivran was floating in an endless expanse of blackness… And pain. It was like being in a dream just before truly waking up, but this was a nightmare… and it was unlike any he had ever had before. ‘Where is Sudryl? …Why isn’t he here?’

As he slowly regained consciousness the darkness remained but the pain became much more intense. He tried to move his arms to ease the agony coming from a broken arm, but that was impossible because his arms were stretched out over his head. He tried to open his eyes but was unable to do so. He was not aware of the swelling that kept them shut. Nor was he aware that one eye was encased in a blood clot from a serious gash on his forehead. Every shallow breath he took was a tearing ragged pain from the broken ribs… And when he tried to move his legs it quickly became apparent that at least one, if not both, had been fractured.

Where was Sudryl? Why wasn’t he here? He tried to call out the name of his companion, but his mouth and throat were dry and his tongue felt like it had turned to stone. If anyone had been listening the only sound they would have heard coming from the limp body hanging by its arms in the cavern, would have been a low groan. As his awareness slowly returned the sounds coming from around him began to intrude.

At first, all he heard was meaningless noise. It took a moment or two for him to sort out what he was hearing and when he did, it was the sounds of fighting. The clash of metal on metal combined with screams and yelling. He couldn’t understand any of the words. His subconscious mind told him that there were less than two score combatants. Then he heard what could only be two spell casters dueling, then everything went silent and he let himself slip back into the darkness.

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“Ohh, Very good… You are not running away,” The True Red taunted as the invaders started walking towards them. He was waiting for them to cross the threshold before he sprung his little trap. However, that's when things changed and his battle plan began to fall apart.

On Garnet's command, Olpha, Syth, and Mablin cast identical fog spells. Mablin, being the most powerful of the three, cast his about 20 meters ahead of them while Syth and Olpha cast their fog spells to the sides.

Mablin was surprised when Garnet told Syth to cast. A brief explanation educated Mablin that Enchanted Archers can cast spells of the school they are bonded to, like normal. The downside is that it is less powerful than if they had put it on a projectile. Just before the fog fully obscured the Red True, Garnet gave the signal, and they all sprinted forward.

“ATTACK!” They heard the dragon roar out, and Garnet gave a feral grin as they all stopped just short of the entryway. Less than a heartbeat later, arrows rained down from both sides, hitting nothing but empty space and the rocky ground.

The first to come charging through the fog was a rabid group of shouting and screaming Goblins and Kobolds. Several of the invaders laughed as the first group faltered and stopped, wondering where the enemy was. They were run over by the second wave coming right behind them, creating a log jam of tangled arms and legs. The first group was trying to get up when the third wave hit them.

Then chaos really hit as the next flight of arrows landed. This time, the targeted area was far from empty, and hardly an arrow failed to find a target. Only the dead were spared of having to listen to the screams of wounded and dying Kobolds and Goblins.

“CEASE FIRE!” Someone shouted, and that was what Garnet was waiting for. He was just raising his arm to signal the attack when Aegir, Sigvat, and Hontel rushed forward toward the disorganized throng of attackers.

“Go get them…” Xavier laughed and then rushed forward with Lew and Nimbi at his side, and joined the younger group.

“By the gods, I am going to have words with that boy!” Garnet growled as he signaled everyone forward.

“Which one? Xavier or Aegir?” Syth asked as he moved up beside Garnet and let loose an arrow.

“Both dammit!” By now, the fog spells were starting to dissipate, but it was too late for the element of surprise that the enemy was hoping for.

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The old man hidden inside the heavy hooded robe looked down at the dead mage as he kicked what remained of her spell book aside. “Stupid! You should have known better than to go head to toe with me,” he grumbled crankily as he looked at the corpse of his twin sister. “Damn Witch! I told you that your friends would end in your death. I just didn't ever think it would be by my hand... You damned bitch!” and then he cast a spell that reduced what remained of her book to glowing cinders.

Then he turned his attention to the two elves hanging from iron spikes driven into the limestone walls of the cave. He reached into his robe, touched the medallion hanging from his neck, and thought to himself, ‘These two had better be worth the effort… I’m getting too old for this shit.’

Just then, the lieutenant of the City Guard walked up. “The Captain will be pleased when he learns that we finally caught up with this bunch… But it cost us three dead and two seriously wounded. They won’t ever fight again.”

“You’re right. The price is high… Do you need help with the wounded?”

The lieutenant shook his head. “I don’t think so. Our Healthman has it covered I think.”

A bony hand with twisted fingers emerged from the sleeve of the old man’s robe and pointed. “We need to get these two down before I can help them. Be gentle… They’re badly damaged… And they’re the reason I’m here.” A short time later he looked at the two broken bodies briefly before going about the business of setting the broken bones. Then he once again reached inside his robe and touched the medallion and his lips moved in a silent prayer.

‘Lord Rovnar, these two are at death’s door and need your healing…’ Then as an afterthought he grumpily added, ‘I suspect their being here is your doing anyway.’ A blue glow enveloped the two elves and sank into them repairing damaged organs and splintered bones. There was more that needed to be done, but they would live. Then the old man heard a familiar voice whisper in his ear. He nodded and turned to the lieutenant.

“If you will remain here for a while until I return? Lord Rovnar has one more task that I must perform before I can return to my chair by the fireplace.” Before the young man could reply a portal suddenly opened up and there was nothing but inky blackness on the other side. The portal quickly engulfed the old man and the two elves and snapped shut, leaving those who were left behind blinking in surprise.

A little less than half a turn of the sand glass later a portal opened again startling the city guardsmen. The old man, completely encased in his heavy robe, stepped out and shivered slightly in the cold air of the cave. He sighed heavily. “We can go home now… They are where they need to be for the time being.”

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Thane grinned as he saw the archers scramble as Suiadan came lumbering towards them faster than a creature of his size should be able to move. He was brought up short, though, as he saw a larger-than-average Red Warrior Dragon behind the archers. Amakiir flew over his head towards the Red just as Thane was about to call him.

Gradon almost ran into Guardsman Darren as the older teen stopped dead in his tracks. When Gradon saw what the boy was looking at, he swallowed hard; it was Mablin, though, who spoke so softly only Gradon could hear. “I can not believe I am about to say this, but we must attack it.”

“What?” Gradon harshly replied. “Are you nuts?”

“Are you going to tell your thirteen-year-old son that, while he had the intestinal fortitude to attack a Dragon, his father and uncle did not?”

“Oh, hells…” Gradon groaned. He then looked at the fear-frozen teen in front of him and gave him a hard shove. “Come on, you worthless maggot! If my son is brave enough to fight a dragon, so are we!”

They had to run to catch up with Thane, who was already slicing into the archers, Suiadin, and one of the guards right with him. Gradon called out a warning to Thane when he saw the Dragon inhale deeply, but Thane did nothing more than cut another Orc in half and then turned to face the Red fully.

When the fire from the Red’s maw erupted towards Thane, Gradon was sure he saw the boy smile. When the fire reached him, Thane’s blade flashed and cut the inferno in half, parting harmlessly around him. Well, harmless to Thane, not to the three Orcs, one Troll, and the handful of Goblins and Kobolds that were nearby. “How kind of you!” Thane called out as he quickly advanced through the opening that had been made.

Gradon had only taken a few steps when he heard Thane call out, “I will clear the road; you take out candle breath!”

✶✶✶✶✶

Olpha looked at the archers and just scoffed while Lucas used a wind blast to bat a flight of arrows out of the air. She hefted her battle axes and called over her shoulder. “Malachi! Take Madelyn and hers and back up Xavier; they have the True to worry about. Lucas and I got this horde of riff-raff.”

Madelyn wasn’t sure who was more disappointed as they turned toward the front: Bruin, Faelwen, or Malachi. “Why does she always get to have all the fun?” The young Dwarf grumbled.

Madelyn turned her head to comment when she suddenly felt herself getting shoved unceremoniously to the side. Years of combat training under her husband had her rolling before realizing it. What she saw when she was back on her feet made her jaw drop. Malachi was standing there, unflinchingly, as a bolt of fire came hurtling towards him. Just before it hit him, he spoke through clenched teeth, “I do not THINK so!” in a single movement, he brought one of his hand axes, which was shimmering with magical power, up and ‘smacked’ the bolt of fire off to the side, where it hit an Orc who was charging at them.

✶✶✶✶✶

Garnet paused as he watched the young ones up front. So far, the three were only dealing with Goblins and Kobolds, which is what Garnet wanted, since it would hone their skills against lower-ranked enemies. Sigvat was doing his best impression of a Demon Bull, and doing so rather effectively. He was showing signs of some wounds, but nothing really deep.

This fight gave Garnet a very good idea of how Hontel fought. It was obvious that the lad was a street fighter in the way that he never shied away from dealing damage however he could. A ‘professional’ warrior might not use what some would call ‘dirty’ tactics, but a street fighter excels at their use. This was demonstrated when Hontel just kicked some dirt into a Kobold's eyes so the boy could dispatch a Goblin.

It was his protege that brought him up short, however. His jaw lowered slowly as he watched Aegir duck and flow through the enemy, slicing with every movement of his staff. Garnet almost dropped his khopesh when he saw Aegir perform a cartwheel, with his staff still held in his hands, and kicked a Kobold hard on the top of the creature’s head. When his feet were again on the ground, his hands were no longer holding his staff, but the two fighting sticks with the blades still extended. He then spun himself down to his knees while extending his arms fully, cutting into two other Goblins and a Kobold.

Syth moved up next to Garnet and watched Aegir dance and weave his way through the enemy again, cutting deeply wherever he went. “I did not know you knew the Drow Death Dance.”

“I do not,” Garnet spoke in complete bewilderment. “I was too focused on duties for Xavier to learn it, although it was offered.”

The Drow Dance of the Soul Hunter, ‘Bross de’Len ta’shock’, is a martial arts style exclusively used by Spirit Warriors. It is said that the originator of the style had spent years in the Spirit Realm learning from the spirits how to fight. It is said that his ‘instructors’ were elemental spirits in the realms of air, fire, water, and earth. The Dance, as it is normally referred to, was then only taught to the promising young Spirit Warriors among the Drow and sometimes offered to promising allies.

“Then how does…” Syth started to ask, only to get interrupted by Garnet, who moved his sword to the ready as he saw a Red Dragonling start towards the kids.

“I have no idea,” Garnet said as he moved to intercept the Dragonling. Syth watched Aegir for another moment before he shook his head in wonder. A moment later, the Dragonling’s buddy got an arrow through its eye. It was dead before it hit the ground. “Dammit Syth! That one was mine!”

✶✶✶✶✶

Lew’s sword flashed, and the Dragonling’s scales parted like paper, spilling intestines over the rock below. As the Dragonling’s hands went down to hold his guts in, Nimbi pounced up, slicing her already bloody claws across his throat. He wasn’t dead when he hit the ground, but you wished he were, a wish that was soon to come true.

This was easily the most intense battle he had ever experienced. He didn’t want to push forward into the throng of enemies, but he refused to leave Xavier’s side. Another quick glance showed that Xavier was battling with two Red Dragonlings and pushing them back toward the True. Lew had no idea why the young King would do something so risky but trusted he had a reason.

As it was, he couldn’t think too much about Xavier’s motives as he saw a spell caster flip to a page in his book and start to cast something. Lew knew he was too far away to stop the caster physically, so he pulled from his memory one of the spells that he had memorized after the first time he cast it.

As he pulled magical energy from his connection with Nimbi, he formed the words, and his offhand spread his fingers out wide, then pushed forward. Lew followed closely behind as his wave of magic hit the spell caster right before he could complete whatever spell he was trying to cast. His vocal abilities left him as a wave of a putrid skunk smell washed over him, causing him to sputter, cough, and choke. A few others were on the ground as well before the wave dissipated.

The spell caster's head separated from his body as Lew’s new katana sliced downward. He turned to check on Xavier just as he felt an iron-hot poker drive through his arm and into his side. He stumbled back a step as he saw an arrow had gone through his forearm.

“LEW!” Xavier called, the concern evident in his voice.

Lew saw that the head of the arrow had passed out the inside of his arm and then pinned it into his hip. With a cry of rage and pain, he ripped the arrow out of his hip, reached over, and broke the tip off the now-exposed arrow, then pulled the rest out of the other side. He dropped to his knees and vomited; when he looked up, he saw Nimbi attacking a couple of Goblins who had tried to move in and take advantage.

He also saw Xavier had moved to cover him, but at a price, as his King now had blood dripping from his hand from a nasty gash on his upper arm. The sudden rage that flowed through Lew washed away all pain as he saw nothing but the enemies and Xavier's blood. With a roar worthy of the dragons, Lew lunged forward and took the fight to the dragonlings.

✶✶✶✶✶

“OH SHIT!” Gradon cursed as he threw himself to the side, barely escaping the inferno that the Red Warrior Dragon had just unleashed at him. The Dragon snapped at Darren on the other side and would have cut the lad in half if he hadn’t scrambled out of the way, but that allowed Gradon to dart up and slash the dragon in the neck. It was the same spot he had hit a few times before, and this time, he saw even more scales break off and fall to the ground. The dragon roared in pain and started to snap at Gradon again.

Instead, it shrank back from a powerful ice blast from Mablin. Gradon used the distraction to switch his grip and pump as much magic into his muscles as he possibly could. A moment later, his bastard sword was driven hilt deep into the neck of the Beast.

The Dragon’s violent recoil from the injury threw Gradon back over ten meters. His fall, though, was softened by the body of one of his guards; still, by the snap he heard and the pain he felt, he probably broke an arm. As he shakily rose to his feet, he couldn’t help but think of the fact that he now had two guards to replace.

Darren ducked a tail whip and then had to back peddle when the Dragon shook violently, sending Gradon flying backward. He was almost thrown as well since the burns on his legs were slowing him down.

The dragon fell to its side, trying to use its front paws to dig the sword from his neck. A sword that now seems to have punctured its windpipe. Seeing it down and heavily distracted, Darren knew he should attack but was once more frozen in fear. He wasn’t sure where it came from, but a calm fell over him, and he watched as his body sprang forward seemingly of its own account.

It was almost like watching from afar as he rushed forward and drove his pick deep into the dragon’s skull. He yanked the pick free and did it again and again. He wasn’t sure how many times he drove his war pick into the bloody hole in the Dragon’s head before Mablin grabbed him and pulled him back. “It is dead, boy!”

Darren sucked in a few deep breaths as he looked at the corpse of the dragon. A dragon that he had helped kill. He almost grinned, but then a powerful wave of red energy blasted from the body of the red and slammed into him hard, and he felt like his body was on fire. His last conscious thought was, ‘What a dirty trick! Just when I thought I’d live, the damned thing kills me with magic…’

✶✶✶✶✶

‘This had better work,’ Xavier thought to himself as he, once again, pushed closer to the True. If his plan didn’t work, he doubted that either he or Lew would live long enough to regret the bold maneuver. He almost regretted how Lew was following him into this, with no idea what would happen. It was a responsibility that he had known his whole life but never truly appreciated except for times like this. People were willing to follow him blindly, with no clue what the end game was, just trusting in him. “Well, I will make it work again!” he muttered to himself as he cut down another dragonling that was in his way.

He growled in pain as the next Dragonling he was facing got past his defenses and sliced his upper thigh. But still, he worked his way closer to the True. He fired off yet another ice blade, and it impacted deep into a Dragonling that was facing off with Madelyn.

The Cavern was awash in the sounds of fighting; they were doing well, but he could tell that most, if not all, of his companions were injured. Above the din of battle, Xavier could hear, and sometimes catch glimpses of the two warrior dragons that were still trying to open a magically sealed wall, and his blood boiled. What was behind that wall was NOT theirs, and they would pay with their lives for this effrontery!

He gutted and brought down the Dragonling he was facing and took a moment to glance around. Lew and Nimbi were next to him, having also just dropped an enemy, a Chiroptas, this time. Malachi and Madelyn were working their way up toward the True from the left side, with Lucas and Olpha not far behind them, while Garnet, Killian, and Syth came in from the right. Sigvat, Hontel, and Aegir were mopping up the last of the Goblins and Kobolds, though all three were moving slower due to injuries and the sheer amount of physical energy they were expending.

Having seen the Chiroptas, Xavier glanced up just in time to see nearly a score of the bat-like creatures dropping from the ledges they were perched on. “LOOK OUT OVERHEAD! CHIROPTAS!!”

Lucas and Olpha were the first to look up. When they saw the creatures silently gliding in to make their attack, Lucas sent a gust of air that smashed three of the creatures into the stalactites above, breaking bones and bodies. For her part, Olpha quickly dispatched five of the creatures with glowing darts of pure magical energy.

When Killian looked up, he suddenly remembered something that Kandric had shown him on a fishing trip while they were at camp. He quickly began spinning his arm above his head. A dark green spinning circle of magic took shape. As he kept spinning it, it grew larger and larger, with a fine spider web-like net forming inside the ring. Then, with a flick of his wrist, the spinning net flew up, snaring four of the gliding creatures, who immediately became entangled and fell to earth in a struggling mass. Unfortunately for them, they fell on top of the last few goblins facing Sigvat. It was only a matter of moments before he reduced the entire lot to an unrecognizable pool of gore.

Three of the creatures had targeted Thane and the group of unconscious figures by the fallen dragon. Before they even got close, Amakiir landed on top of one, forcing it down and into the limestone floor. The gargoyle’s only response was “Yuck…” as he took off in search of more gliding toys to play with.

A second Chiroptas glided over Suiaden only to discover that the bear Scorpion’s tail was a little longer than anticipated. Suiaden brought the creature hanging on his stinger around and sniffed it. He shuddered and flicked the carcass off to one side. He had certainly had better food choices than this today.

The third Chioptas managed to land and charged directly at Thane. He had barely come within reach of Thane’s sword before he found himself without a left arm and wing. An instant later, he was also shorter by one head.

Chioptas were not suited for this type of combat. They relied on total darkness so their prey couldn’t see them coming directly. Nor could they hear them approach as they silently glided in for the kill. Within a matter of minutes, this part of the battle was over and had virtually no effect on everything else happening.

Xavier saw the True look around and then the beast got a very angry look on his face. The overwhelming force he had put together to deal with these interlopers had failed him completely. He roared in defiance, and Xavier got ready… The time was now.

The True dipped down to try and bite at Bruin, who jumped out of the way barely in time. He then drew in a huge breath of air, opening his maw wide. That’s what Xavier needed to see.

One thing a shifted Dragon still had access to was their breath weapon, even if it was much smaller and weaker than if they had been in their true form. As the True pushed his wide-open maw forward to spew flames that would destroy his tormentors, Xavier sprinted forward, ignoring the wound in his thigh that protested vigorously. When he was close enough, and the Red was about to blast out a great gout of flame, a sandblast ripped from Xavier’s mouth and exploded into the soft tissue on the inside of the Dragon’s mouth and down its throat.

The screaming roar of pain that would have deafened those in the cavern was cut off by the bloody wad of soft tissue, tongue, and sand that clogged its throat. The True reared up on its hind legs, trying to get away from the sandblast, twisting its head from side to side in pure agony. That was when all hell broke loose as a massive surge of death magic from a Great Green Dragon filled the cavern.

The magical torches and Olpha’s light globes shuddered and turned green as the wave of Dragon Death magic hit them. Xavier screamed as he grabbed his head and started to topple over. This was drowned out by the True’s renewed roar of pain after he managed to swallow the gore clogging his throat. The Red’s agony was now combined with disorientation at being hit with a massive wave of Green Death Magic, which left him momentarily vulnerable.

Just before Xavier passed out, he saw a gigantic Green Great looking down at a rag-tag group of kids performing some type of blood ritual. The Green’s head was severed from its body, and somehow, he managed to die in two different places.

Aegir’s head snapped around when he heard Xavier’s scream and was just in time to see Garnet falter and tumble over. The dragonling that had expected to die with the Illorc’s next blow quickly recovered and thrust his blade forward. The stroke was off and missed its target but it did manage to make a deep wound in Garnet’s shoulder.

“NOOOOOOO” Aegir cried out as he nearly flew the short distance to his Mentor. It is doubtful that the dragonling knew what was happening, or when it died, as a blur of fighting sticks and sharp blades struck like a force of nature. “YOU WILL NOT HARM MY MENTOR!” As quickly as it had started, it was over, with Aegir standing guard, in two worlds, over Garnet and daring anything, living or dead, to challenge him.

“Aegir…” Garnet groaned. “I’ll be fine… Give me a moment.”

“He is ferocious.” Said one of the spirits that had been observing.

“He is tenacious.” Noted another.

“He is quite instinctive.” Observed the third.

The fourth nodded in agreement with the three others. “He is interesting, and has much to learn… It will be fun."

The True twisted as he started to come down, and Malachi saw that Madelyn was in the way while still going toe to toe with a Chiroptas. Malachi launched himself at Madelyn just as Faelwen impaled the Chiroptas on her tail stinger, then whipped it off to the side.

Madelyn was sure she felt a couple of ribs crack as Malachi slammed into her, but Malachi’s howl of anguish overshadowed her cry of pain. She jumped back to her feet and saw that Malachi’s foot had been caught under the dragon’s paw and crushed. The dragon shifted his weight and pushed Malachi a good meter away; the problem was that his right boot was trapped under the dragon’s forepaw with his foot still inside it.

Malachi, flat on his back and in agony, roared in defiance, yanked out one of his throwing axes, and threw it with all of his might. The axe embedded itself deep into the bony ridge between the Dragon’s eyes, creating a jagged fracture that penetrated deeply.

Lew saw Xavier grab his head as the Green’s death wave hit. He also saw the Red’s paw coming down hard and fast. With a quick shove, he pushed Xavier back and into the waiting arms of Syth, then turned his full attention to the Red. Part of his mind was screaming that he was being suicidal, but his honor drowned out that side. His blade flashed as it bit into the side of the descending paw, severing toes. He then stepped even closer as the Dragon’s neck came into range and racked his blade across the underside of the neck, showering himself in hot, viscous dragon’s blood.

Seeing the others attack the True, Killian was sending magical spear after magical spear into the side of his neck; he was starting to feel woozy, not just from a lack of blood from the injuries he’d sustained so far in the fight but from the sheer amount of magic he was throwing. Never before had he cast so much magic so quickly, but he wasn’t about to stop now.

Madelyn hesitated in her attack on the dragon, trying to decide if she needed to help Malachi; her pets did not, however. Once the dragon’s neck was in range, Bruin ran forward and racked both bladed wings across the same spot as he spun in a fast circle, ripping a scale completely off, exposing vulnerable flesh beneath. Then, as quickly as a bolt of lightning, he bound away.

Faelwen, moving with shocking speed given her size, ran forward, then reared up on her hind legs. When she came down, her stinger tail shot forward and into the spot, Bruin had opened up. Unfortunately, the Dragon chose that moment to rear back up, and her stinger, still pumping venom, snapped off deep in its neck.

When Malachi cursed at her to attack, Madelyn did just that. With a leaping charge, she brought her mace down hard on the side of the true’s jaw. Her weapon's magical properties showed their usefulness as electricity crackled along the beast's jawline for several seconds. This caused the muscles in its jaw to contract so violently that some of its teeth shattered.

His head crashed to the ground, and he was nearly unconscious from the continued assault. The final blow came from Lew, who ran up to the dragon, screamed out a battle cry, and drove his katana deep into the barely open eye.

The cavern was quiet for the briefest of moments before a Red wave of magic erupted from the True even before the green wave had fully dissipated. The last thing Lew heard was Nimbi whimpering nearby as all of their wounds closed due to the magic pouring out of the dead True Red as he finished his passage into the spirit realm.