Cloak & Dagger: Book II of The Dragon Mage Trilogy (39 page)

Sawtooth passed through the last magical door and climbed some stairs. At the top, she pushed up the floor board of a local barber shop and stepped into the back room. It was dark, but her keen eyesight helped her navigate her way to the front door. Then she undid the lock with a quick spell and stepped into the dark streets. The door closed behind her without a sound, and she relocked it using the same magic. Sawtooth turned to face the uncanny damp early morning air. It was so damp that she was drenched even though it wasn’t raining. But instead of heading in the direction of home, she turned and headed for the king’s castle. The king had to know. He wouldn’t like being disturbed at this odd hour, but there was no helping it. The only question left in her mind was - should she tell him about the stolen ring?

Part IV

The Gathering of Evil

Chapter 30

T
he dragon was in a bind. The cavern where he had eaten his fill of lizardmen had many tunnels leading away from it, but none of the paths were large enough to accommodate his great bulk. The only way out of there was to follow the underground river. It wasn’t the most comfortable path to travel, but he could handle getting wet. The stench of the poisoned water was dissipating, now that the fresh water was running down the underground river to replace the poisoned water that had run before it. Several smaller streams had diverted from the river, but the tunnels they followed were too small for a dragon to traverse. Hours later he had reached the end of the line. The river did not end below ground, as he had expected, but was actually a little above sea level. He knew this because he could smell the fresh air coming in as the flow of the river exited the mountain. He could also hear the river’s water splash into the waters of North Lake not far below.

But that was as far as he could go. The river tunnel opening was too shallow for him to go past. The water here actually reached the top of the ceiling before exiting the mountain with a fairly loud roar. If he attempted to go out with the rushing water, he would be crushed like an ant against the unrelenting cavern roof. He couldn’t even get close enough to the opening to see if it was night or day outside. The river’s flow was simply too strong.

In rage, he blasted at the opening with his fiery breath. This did nothing to the surrounding rock other than blackening it somewhat. A moment of steam from the water was instantly dissipated by the inflow of air. He was trapped and there was no escape.

The dragon sat on a flat rock at the side of the river for a number of hours trying to think of a way to escape the grip of the unrelenting mountain. At last he fell asleep.

He did not know how long he had been asleep when he sensed something nudging him. He awoke with a start. Beside him on the rock sat a unicorn.

“Good morning,” said the unicorn politely.

“Who are you?” asked the dragon sleepily. He was not pleased at being woken up.

“You know very well who I am,” said the unicorn.

“Oh, yes,” said the dragon in recognition. “You’re Frosty.”

“Very good,” said Frosty. He looked intently at the dragon but said nothing.

At last the dragon spoke up. “What do you want?” he snapped. He did not like being stared at.

“I need you to come with me,” said Frosty calmly.

“Where?” demanded the dragon.

“You’ll see,” said Frosty. “First, you have to change back into a human.”

The dragon laughed. “I can’t. The mage is dead. I’m a dragon for good.” He looked at the unicorn and sniffed him. “You know, you smell like a delicious meal. Maybe I’ll have you for breakfast.”

“I think you’d better let Kazin take control,” said Frosty frostily. “You can’t stay like this forever.”

The dragon laughed again. “He’s gone! Dead! That’s why I’m in control.”

“Kazin is still alive,” said Frosty. “I can sense him.”

“He’s dead,” insisted the dragon.

“He’s alive,” insisted Frosty. “You just don’t want to admit it.”

“He’s dead!” growled the dragon menacingly. “And so are you in a moment!”

“Look within and you will see Kazin is still alive,” said Frosty calmly.

“No,” said the dragon.

“Yes,” countered Frosty.

“I’m not going to waste time arguing with you!” snapped the dragon. He opened his jaws and blasted Frosty with a flurry of flames. When the smoke cleared, the unicorn stood there unharmed and unmarked.

“You can’t harm me that easily,” said Frosty with infuriating calm. “Now let Kazin take control.”

“No!” snapped the dragon. “You can’t make me do it!”

“Do you want to get out of here?” asked the unicorn.

“Yes!” cried the dragon. “Help me get out of here and I’ll let you live!”

“Let Kazin take control or I’ll let you sit here until you die.”

“You wouldn’t!” shrieked the dragon. “You wouldn’t abandon Kazin!”

“So you admit Kazin is still alive,” said Frosty matter-of-factly.

“I didn’t say that!” cried the dragon.

“You knew my name,” said Frosty.

“So?” said the dragon

“How do you know?” asked the unicorn.

The dragon paused to reflect. “I’m not sure.”

“Kazin told you,” said Frosty. “He’s within you. Don’t you hear the voice inside your head?”

“What voice?” asked the dragon.

“Can’t you hear it? I can.”

The dragon listened. Then he heard it. It was faint but noticeable. The mage was still alive. “Nooo!” shrieked the dragon. “It can’t be!” He spun on the unicorn and blasted him with another series of flames. He continued until his breath was spent. Panting in exhaustion, the dragon saw the air clear and the annoying unicorn standing before him unharmed.

“Do you give up yet?” asked Frosty.

The dragon lost his patience and lunged angrily at the unicorn, but Frosty was ready. He sprouted wings and flew aside. The dragon could not stop his forward momentum, and splashed headlong into the river. The current grabbed the immense beast and propelled him helplessly toward the cavern opening.

The dragon couldn’t fight the current and knew he was doomed to die if he kept his form. There was no chance to think. Without any other choice, he transformed into the human mage due to his overwhelming desire for survival. Only the mage’s small body would have a chance to survive the exit from the mountains.

Frosty plunged into the water with the mage and grabbed hold of the inert body of Kazin. As they cleared the opening, Frosty sprouted his wings and lifted the mage clear of the waterfall to avoid plummeting into the depths below. A moment later, the unicorn was airborne and flying toward the Tower of the Moon as fast as he could go.

* * * * *

Malachi surveyed the activity below and wondered if the effort would be worthwhile. The rain had stopped momentarily, but the dark clouds remained. The wind had also increased, whipping the cleric’s robe about his ankles. In the distance, he could see another contingent of soldiers herding villagers from the communities up north to the safety of the Tower of Hope. Their torch was particularly bright in the darkness.

“I’m amazed at the progress they’re making,” said Mara.

Malachi jumped and turned to look at the grey mage. “Oh - Mara! You startled me.”

“Sorry,” said Mara. “I can’t blame you for being jumpy.”

Malachi sighed and looked northward toward the dark clouds. “This is a troubling time,” he said. “I don’t know if we’ll make it through this time.”

“I have some news to cheer you up,” said Mara.

Malachi returned his attention to the grey mage. “I’m listening.”

“All of the available grey mages at the Tower of the Sky are on their way. The ships departed from the western ports and should be here in a day or so.”

Malachi sighed dejectedly. “I just hope they arrive in time. If they’re late, they’ll find the Tower of Hope in ruins. There’s no knowing when the enemy will get here, or even if they’re coming. I’m amazed they haven’t already shown up. It shouldn’t have taken them so long to travel this way. My scouts haven’t reported any sightings, but I don’t expect we’ll have much advance warning either way. The uncertainty is driving me up the wall.”

“You’ve weathered battles like this before,” reminded Mara.

“Sure,” said Malachi. “But this time our magical ability may not be enough to defend against the magic of our attackers. No offence intended,” he added.

“Our magic may not be as potent as the black mages’ magic,” said Mara, “but my people can combine offensive and defensive magic quite effectively. We just need to change our tactics and concentrate on our strengths.”

Malachi nodded. “That’s why we’re building a moat. It prevents us from going on the offensive, but also hinders the enemy from charging the tower. It’s primarily intended to hold back the earth elemental, against whom we have no defense. The earth elemental won’t cross water.”

“I think it’s ruthless,” said Mara, “to use an elemental to fight their war for them. It’s inhuman.”

“Lizardmen aren’t human,” reminded Malachi.

“Obviously,” said Mara.

“The moat is almost complete,” said Malachi, changing the subject. “It’s almost time to fill it with water from North Lake.”

“How did you manage to get so many people to pitch in?” asked Mara. “There seems to be a lot of people working on it.”

“We offered additional rations of clean water,” explained Malachi, “as well as more dwarven ale. Most people were only too eager to help. There are also plenty of other volunteers that are arriving in droves from other parts of the land. By now word has spread everywhere and people are bolstering General Larsen’s army. We need every able-bodied soldier we can get.”

“And still you don’t think it will be enough?” asked Mara.

Malachi sighed. “I don’t know. We need a miracle. A dragon would be nice.”

“You mean like Arch Mage Kazin?” asked the grey mage.

“Yes,” said Malachi. “Ever since he went into the mountains, we haven’t heard from him. Even his familiar has no idea where he is. I hope nothing has happened to him.”

“The familiar was the unicorn I saw yesterday?”

“Yes,” answered Malachi. “I sent the unicorn off to the Tower of the Moon late yesterday with some samples of the dwarven spirits, as well as a stash of wildhorn leaves and faelora. Hopefully it’s enough to get them to find a cure for the disease.” The high cleric clenched his jaw. “If I could just stop the dying.”

“There’s no point fretting about things that are beyond our control,” admonished Mara. “Let’s concentrate on things we can do to win this war.”

Malachi seemed to gain some strength from Mara’s optimism. “Quite right, Mara. Quite right.”

The high cleric was about to lead the way back down the steps into the courtyard to continue handing out extra rations, when he noticed the latest contingent of soldiers escorting some people past the usual assignment posts for newcomers. As they approached the tower’s gates, he could make out a white-cloaked figure and a large figure with light greenish skin among them. He couldn’t believe his eyes. Taking the steps two at a time, the high cleric worked his way down to the gates. They were just opening as he arrived and he huffed and puffed from the exertion of his run.

Mara caught up to him shortly after and watched the small group of people enter the courtyard with interest. A cleric with a dirty white robe entered, followed by a cyclops, a dwarf, an elf, and a brightly flaming figure who shifted nervously in the presence of so many magic wielders. The last figure was the most unusual and drew the most stares from those who had assembled to gawk at the newcomers.

“Vera!” exclaimed Malachi when he recognized the cleric. He stepped forward and embraced her warmly. “Thank heaven you’re alright!”

“I’m fine,” said Vera with a weak voice.

Malachi looked over at the cyclops without fear of being paralyzed, but the cyclops looked away out of habit. “Cyril! I’ve missed you! How are you doing?”

“I’m fine,” said Cyril, not sure how to react now that he was back.

Vera introduced Rebecca and Alric and Malachi shook their hands warmly. Alric had a disappointed expression on his face, as though he did not find what he had been looking for.

When Vera introduced Tyris, it was Malachi who was unsure how to react.

“Do not use summoning magic,” said Tyris in a low voice.

“You are safe here,” said Malachi. “We do not even know how to summon a being like yourself. It has been generations since we had the ability, if ever.”

Tyris nodded.

Malachi then introduced Mara to the others.

“A pleasure,” said Mara with a friendly nod.

“Did you run into Arch Mage Kazin by any chance?” asked Malachi. “He went looking for you after you left so suddenly.”

Vera looked crestfallen. “He found us alright, and helped us immensely while we were looking for the source of the poison. But he got poisoned. He – he didn’t make it.”

Malachi gasped and his eyes widened. “That is grievous news indeed! He will be sorely missed by everyone. I was counting on him as much as everyone else.”

“He instructed us to carry on, and that’s what I intend to do,” said Vera fervently.

“His good advice will be heeded,” said Malachi seriously. “Come! You must be tired and hungry. You shall all be washed and fed and we’ll discuss your adventures inside!” He led the way into the tower and filled everyone in on the latest events at the tower.

Chapter 31

K
azin opened his eyes and tried to adjust to the bright daylight coming in from the window to his right. It wasn’t exactly bright to the other occupants in the room, considering the dark, dreary cloud cover outside, but for someone who had been unconscious for a long time, it was more than enough. He closed his eyes again. Beside him, he heard some voices chanting softly.

“He’s awake!” whispered a feminine voice nearby.

The other voices stopped chanting and Kazin felt someone lean close over him. “Are you sure?”