The Tomes Of Magic (23 page)

“It shouldn’t be much longer now,” Rolin said.

“Good, once all this is over we can find a more permanent solution to our problems,” Lethos replied.

“What kind of changes are you thinking?”

“A little time apart would be nice. I used to enjoy a certain amount of freedom, but that was long ago. Perhaps I will take a long trip.”

“What about the mindmeld?”

“I think it would lessen the link to the point that you might actually thank me.”

The Archwizard was about to come back with a witty retort when he spotted two dragons on the horizon. A sense of calm came over him when realized it was James and Paul. It had been a long time since he had seen either of them, and he was looking forward to talking to them. Seeing the two of them made him feel like it might be possible to get the surviving Archwizards back together after the death of the dragon King.
We will reinstate the council
, he thought as he watched the two dragons land. Paul and James dismounted from their dragons and approached Rolin and Lethos. Their dragons followed behind slowly. It seemed to dawn on them that they were finally going to be facing the dragon King. Rolin already had a decent idea of what he was up against, but the other two seemed slightly anxious.

“Welcome, gentlemen. Are you ready to face the dragon King?” Rolin asked.

“We need to formulate a plan first,” James replied.

“The three of us fly to his tower and sever his head from his neck.”

“That would be equivalent to committing suicide. Our army can face theirs while we take to the skies above. They have the advantage, but we can bring magic into the mix. I have no idea how our army will fare against the dragons.”

“Should we contact any of the others?” Paul asked.

“Those without dragons may not be willing to join us, but we should contact Janessa,” Rolin replied.

“I think we should contact Emily as well. Perhaps Ector and Cormac too.”

“We won’t stop you from contacting whoever you feel like contacting, but I only plan on contacting Janessa.”

“Fair enough. You contact Janessa, I will contact Emily. If things go well with Emily I might contact Ector or Cormac.”

*

Sev ordered a halt and then unsheathed his sword. Ector had his staff ready, but the others were confused. The Ranger swung off his horse and crouched. He had no idea what was happening, but he could feel that something was off. The leaves in the trees began to rustle as the winds picked up. A strange mist surrounded the army, causing no small amount of chaos. Sev sheathed his sword when saw the familiar lights of the fairies. He attempted to tell the others, but his voice failed him. A lone dryad walked out of the mist with her finger at her lips. The Ranger stood with his hand near his sword, wary of the woodland being in front of him. He let out a sigh of relief when he saw Caitlyn and Leniya walk out of the mist behind the dryad. They were followed by centaurs, unicorns, and satyrs. Sev ignored the others and walked straight to Caitlyn. He hugged her before he turned to face the newcomers.

“We are heading south, come, I will lead the way,” he said.

“Wait, we are not ready to leave yet,” the dryad replied.

“What are we waiting for?”

“The fairies are testing our leaders. It is for the best,” Caitlyn answered.

“Why wasn’t I tested?” Sev asked.

“You were tested long ago, young Ranger
. Your heart is unchanged,” Ilyania answered.

“Is there any way that I can help the process along?”

“No, your connection to those being tested will cloud your vision. We often have a soft spot for those who we love. The fairies will not harm any of your friends, but we cannot risk anyone getting the test wrong. It isn’t that we don’t trust you, you are one of the few people that we do trust.”

Sev nodded as he watched the mist fade away. He could tell that most of the others could still see the mist. Gareth and Miriel were the first to pass the test. They made their way over to Sev and the others. He explained what was happening and they all turned to watch in silence. The majority of the elves passed their test within the first few minutes. It was the dwarves that took the longest. Borfin was the first of the dwarves to pass, joining them around the same time as Kervos. The small group began discussing their options as they waited for the others to pass their tests. By the end of it, a full discussion had already started about how the fairies and their allies had refused to fight the dragons. They explained that the Holy Order was the main threat to their kind.

“Fine, but how will we defeat the Holy Order?” Kervos asked.

“We don’t know yet, but first we must travel to the Fortress of Light. It should give us plenty of time to plan our assault,” Sev replied.

“Should we have Ector contact his allies?” Gareth asked.

“I don’t know that we can trust them,” Ector replied.

The group continued their discussion as they slowly made their way north. Sev still felt on edge as he once again took the lead. Things had been far too calm recently. It felt as though he were missing some important piece of information. Ector and Caitlyn rode on either side of him. He had known each of them long enough to know that they felt something as well. The Ranger glanced back over his shoulder at the rest of the troops. His Rangers were constantly scanning the area, a sign that he immediately recognized. In fact, even people who were complete strangers to him were showing some signs of worry. The only groups he couldn’t figure out were the fairies and their allies. They all had the same expressions as when he had first seen them.
Something isn’t right
, he thought as he leaned closer to Caitlyn.

“You feel it too, don’t you?” He asked in a whisper.

“Yes, but I don’t know what it is that I feel,” she replied.

“I feel it as well,” Ector added.

“Try contacting the others, they may know more than us.”

*

Janessa jumped when James appeared in front of her. She took a deep breath as she shook her head at his apparition. He began to apologize when another figure appeared. Ector looked around as he tried to gather his bearings. The moving and swaying of the ship made it more difficult for them to communicate.
What do they want?
Janessa wondered as she waited for them to speak. Ector and James looked at one another, neither quite sure if they should talk in front of the other. Janessa shook her head before addressing them.

“The two of you contacted me, so out with it,” she said.

“Of course, my apologies. I didn’t realize that James would be trying to communicate with you as well. Something feels terribly wrong, does either of you sense it?” Ector asked.

“It is the dragon King. We can’t tell exactly what he is doing, but the feeling gets stronger as we get closer to his location. Rolin thinks that it is magic,” James replied.

“Is that even possible?” Janessa asked.

“The dragons are in agreement. We don’t exactly know how it works, but the mindmeld seems to have somehow changed their interaction with magic. We plan to attack at midday, will you be able to join us?” James asked.

“I hadn’t intended on attack the dragon King that soon, but I should be able to get there soon enough,” Janessa replied.

“We are going to have to sit this one out, but we wish you luck,” Ector said.

“It is settled then, we meet on the outskirts of dragon territory at midday,” James said before disappearing.

Ector nodded and then disappeared as well. Janessa sighed as she leaned back against the ship’s railing. She had hoped to be able to get in some rest before the fight, but circumstances seemed to be pitted against her. Her men would understand, maybe even welcome the decreased travel time. Kimeth would be happy.
There is no other choice
, she thought as she made her way up to the wheel. The sailor stepped aside and allowed her to take the wheel. She placed one hand on the wheel and raised the other in the air. Piloting a single ship could be done by most magicians, but increasing the speed of an entire fleet required an expert. She used her magic to create a wind for each of the ships of the fleet. Her method allowed each of the ships to reach its maximum speed. They now traveled at a speed that was rare without magic. Once she added another spell to add a current to push each ship, the entire fleet began to travel faster than any had traveled before.

Call off your allies, we will save them for a future fight
, she instructed Kimeth.

Why aren’t we using them?
The dragon asked.

I would prefer the element of surprise. Your allies are far too important to bring into the fray this early. We may have years of war ahead of us,
Janessa answered.

*

The ship rocked forward, pushing Cassandra into a near panic. She grabbed Leoth’s arm and the two made their way out of the captain’s quarters and onto the deck. Their troops looked just as bewildered as they did. The ship was traveling much faster than it had been before. Leoth helped his wife climb the stairs to the ship’s wheel. Their navigator had no idea what had caused the increase in the ship’s speed, but he was able to inform them that the others ships in the fleet were keeping the same pace. Cassandra looked around and saw two cloaked figured at the rear of the ship. She pointed them out to Leoth and they approached them together.

“Who goes there?” The Emperor asked.

“Thanos and Talia, but we cannot talk now. It is taking all of our concentration to keep the fleet going this fast.”

“What is the meaning of this?” Cassandra asked.

“It really isn’t the best time, but I will tell you anyway. Septimus wanted us to speed things along, so we are here to decrease the time taken on the crossing,” Talia replied.

Paul, James, and Rolin flew high above the gathering armies. They had to leave their own army behind so they could stop the dragon King. Their altitude allowed them to bypass all of the King’s defenses except for his dragons. The dragon tower loomed in the distance.
We must stop him
, Paul thought as he spurred Argos forward. Lethos and Hanoth surged forward as well. Paul could feel Argos’ fear of the coming battle. The dragon King had more battle experience than all of the other dragons. Even though they had the Wizards on their side, the three dragons were outnumbered by the dragon King and his minions. Janessa could help tip the balance, but it would still be a difficult battle. Paul spotted several dragons coming at them.

“It seems the dragon King wants to test his new experimental troops,” he said.

“Just remember, they aren’t our allies anymore. Show them no mercy,” Rolin added.

The enemy dragon riders began hurling spells at the three attackers. Paul laughed as Argos danced through the sky, dodging each of the oncoming spells. He pulled his sword and ducked low against the dragon’s back. Argos quickened his pace as he aimed for the leader of the riders. Paul tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword and waited to close the gap. His opponent readied a spear as the two dragons got close enough to attack one another. Paul wasted no time, he jumped off of Argos back and collided with the opposing rider. The two tussled for a minute or two as Paul struggled to get into a position where he could use his sword. His flaming blade sliced through his opponent’s armor. Argos coiled back and waited for his rider to return before striking the other dragon’s throat. The dragon and rider plummeted from the sky to their doom. Paul and Argos looked for their next target as Rolin and James were just dispatching their opponents. The enemy began unleashing more spells as riderless dragons took to the skies to join the battle.

James broke off from the fight with the dragon riders and intercepted the oncoming dragon reinforcements. With the assistance of Hanoth, he unleashed a firestorm at his enemies. Fireballs tore through wings and flames roasted the oncoming dragons, but they pressed on. Hanoth quickly found himself surrounded by dragons. James continued his onslaught of spells, only pausing long enough to tailor the specific spells to their targets. His dragon batted away dragon after dragon as the battle raged on. Hanoth slammed two dragons into each other as they closed in. James pushed back several others with a massive gust of wind. The dragons and their allies continued to pour into the skies. Wyverns, drakes, and other smaller winged beasts swarmed James and Hanoth. The two had to break off their fight and pull back.

“There are too many of them!” He yelled to Rolin and Paul.

“Nonsense, keep it up and we will force the dragon King onto the field to face us!” Rolin yelled back.

The illusion master sent out a shock wave blast that knocked two Wizards off their dragons. As their mounts readjusted their course to pick up their riders, Rolin sent bolts of lightning to stop them. He continued to hound them with icicles until their Wizards were too close to the ground to save. Lethos
grabbed hold of one of the other dragons and ripped one of its wings off. The dragon and rider began to free-fall. Rolin shot off several more spells at the oncoming dragon riders. They dodged his attacks and countered with spells of their own. The Archwizard was forced to pull his dragon back and join the already retreating James and Paul. They regrouped and were about to attack when a jet of water knocked several of their enemies out of the sky. Janessa swooped in and pressed her advantage against the surprised dragon riders. The other three followed her lead and they were able to push back the enemy riders and the riderless dragons.

*

Serith looked out over the assembled army. They were not as well-disciplined as she would have liked, but they would serve her purpose.
Time for a real change
, she thought. The Captains were relaying her instructions to their battalions. Xander arrived late, as Serith had expected. He didn’t even know exactly what was happening. She had purposefully left him in the dark. His initial reaction would be enough to tell her if she could work with him or not. Her ambitions were beyond that of the Grand Crusader. Being a Grand Crusader meant that you shared power with the Grand Cleric. She had no intention of answering to anyone. It had nothing to do with how she felt about Bartholomew. In fact, she felt he was one of the more competent members of the Holy Order. Xander was another story. He had few ambitions, which is why Bartholomew had arranged for him to become Grand Crusader. Serith would need to consider if she wanted to use him in any position or if it would be too much trouble.

“What is going on here?”
Xander asked when he arrived.

“We are preparing for war,” Serith answered.

“That is not your decision.”

“Our enemies have fled to the south, we must give chase.”

“What if someone decides to attack while we are off warmongering?” The Grand Crusader asked.

“We control the lands to the west. Our enemies evacuated the north. Where exactly would that attack come from?”

“You can’t do that without permission from Bartholomew.”

The Crusader smiled. She had what she needed. His failure to acknowledge that such a move would require his own permission spoke volumes about what she was up against. It solidified her suspicion that he didn’t see himself as worthy of command. She still needed to figure out if she could transfer his loyalties from Bartholomew to her.
I’ll keep pushing for war,
she thought as she looked out over the army. Though they were not the most well trained army on the continent, their numbers alone were enough to contend with any kingdom. With Bartholomew and the Wizards fighting the dragon King, she could easily put herself in position to take over a majority of the continent. The Barbarians would side with her over the rest of the Holy Order. She watched as Xander tried to give the order for the others to stop their war preparations.

“I’ll convince Bartholomew that this was the best course of action. You can get all the credit for it if we succeed,” Serith said as she approached
Xander.

“What if we fail?” He asked.

“I would take all the blame.”

*

Septimus walked down the gangplank and onto the dock. Alamor’s harbor was not an actual part of the town itself. It was more of an independent dock used by anyone coming from the east. The inhabitants of Alamor used it more than anyone else and, as such, it became known for being a part of the castle town. They had accepted this fact and did what they could to keep it in working order. The Warlock paid the docking fee and headed toward the inn near the harbor. It was one of several buildings that they had constructed at the wharf. The shopkeepers tried to get him to buy something, but he declined. He pushed open the door to the inn, expecting it to be empty. The common room was quite boisterous, which annoyed Septimus. He much preferred quiet, but that wasn’t an option. The innkeeper showed the Warlock to a secondary room that was significantly quieter.

“Do you have much knowledge of how things work in the harbor?” Septimus asked when the young man brought his food.

“My brother works the docks on the weekends. What do you need to know?” The man asked.

“What happens when the dock is too full to accept ships?”

“Ships can anchor along the coast. Will they have important cargo?”

“Passengers mostly, we should be fine unloading them ourselves. I just wanted to make sure we could drop anchor without actually docking.”

“The dock is open for anyone to use. Alamor is in favor of freedom. We like to think that everyone should be free to use the docks and that everyone would be happy to help keep them running.”

“Thank you for your assistance, you have been most helpful,” Septimus said.

*

“The fairies and their allies don’
t think it is a good idea,” Ellesar said.

“We must stop the dragon King, there is no telling what could happen if we don’t. I understand why they would choose to stay away from the dragons, but matters have changed.” Ector said.

“Then we must rely upon your former colleagues.”

“If we are not going to fight the dragons, then we will need to continue north and ignore the dragons.”

“The fairies believe that we should help to solidify the region. An army could go far in making certain that the correct leaders are put in the correct roles. Heading north is their top priority.”

Gareth sighed as the two continued to argue about the dragon King. He was particularly confused at how the elves and the Druids interacted. They were similar in many ways, yet often came to conflicting decisions on how to move forward. The elves thought of themselves as the masters of the forest, while the Druids saw themselves as servants of the forest. It was that difference that fueled many of their arguments. The former Grand Crusader had often taken on the role of intermediary between the two factions. Some of the other groups had also approached him in helping them as a sort of arbiter between their interactions. It was a strange role for him. As Grand Crusader, he had been more than just an impartial go between. His word had been equivalent to law. Now, everything he said was taken as a suggestion and often ignored. Aside from his role as commander of the armies, he largely reworded what the different factions were saying to one another. He often found that changing key words would change how the other parties reacted.

“You’ll get used to it,” Sev said as he approached Gareth.

“It isn’t just them,” Gareth replied.

“People are afraid, these are uncertain times we are living in. They may not seem like the type to let fear creep into their lives, but I can see it daily. It isn’t like they don’t fight when they aren’t afraid, but nowadays the little things set them off. I’ve seen how you bring peace by just changing one or two simple words. I’m glad to have you with us.”

“You might be the first person who has said that to me. The others have been welcoming and I am still surprised they were willing to trust me with command of the army, but they won’t even talk to me unless it has something to do with war or the army.”

“The elves and the Druids don’t have a record of being among the most accommodating peoples. They live such isolated lives, it is no wonder that they find you intimidating.”

“What about you? Have you traveled outside of the forest much?” Gareth asked.

“More than almost any elf or Druid. Sure, most of them have many more years on me, but I get out more regularly than they do. I use my patrolling as an excuse to explore beyond our lands. The Old Forest is a nice buffer from the outside world, but that doesn’t mean we should completely remove ourselves from it. They see the worst in the humans that rule Canai. It comes as no surprise though, intermingling of races has never been a strong suit of the humans.”

“I suppose not. We aren’t so different from the elves and dwarves though. The Holy Order has always been overly wary of outsiders.”

“We could all learn something from the Halflings. Never have I met a race that is more accepting of others. Perhaps we can use their example to help to guide our people to a closer friendship.”

“It is certainly a worthy cause.”

*

Tarick adjusted his helmet as he waited for Rodric to join him. Their armies stood on either side of a deep ravine. Janessa’s uncle had been the one to suggest a meeting in the middle before joining steel. Rodric accepted the proposal, but had yet to arrive at the meeting place. Though his men were on edge, Tarick remained unfazed. The grizzled veteran had been through more battles than most of the Gloomvale Isles inhabitants. He had taken to the front lines against a particularly vicious bandit group back when he was eighteen. His first command was at the age
of twenty-five. Several pirate Captains had joined together to try to take over the isles and he was integral to stopping them. In more recent years, he had put down several rebellions. Though the Gloomvale Isles rarely saw true war, they had more than their fair share of battles. More often than not, Tarick had found himself in the middle of such showdowns. His men were about to suggest they return to the army when Rodric came riding down the hill with a handful of men.

“My apologies for making you wait,” he said as he dismounted.

“Let’s get down to business,” Tarick replied.

“You called this meeting, what is it that you want?”

“I want to forego war, Rodric. We do not need to be spilling each other’s blood.”

“Would you prefer going up against those flying monstrosities?”

“I would be fighting them alongside Janessa if you hadn’t started your little uprising. We have a common enemy, why can’t we unite against them?” Tarick asked.

“Very well, we will unite our armies. I challenge you to a duel for command of your army,”

It took a moment for Rodric’s challenge to set in. Tarick nodded and closed the visor on his helmet. He took his sword from one of his soldiers and walked away from the meeting place. Rodric picked up his sword and followed his opponent into the center of the ravine. Both armies began to scramble down the mountain to get a better view of what was happening. Tarick saluted to Rodric and then got into his fighting stance. The two tested each other with half-hearted attacks, trying to find a weakness. Satisfied with his findings, Rodric swung for his opponent’s left arm. Tarick blocked the blow and then blocked another attack. He stayed on the defense and blocked three more attempts. The two continued their dance, neither combatant able to gain an advantage.