The Dragon Savior of Tone: World of Tone: Book 2 (30 page)

They also had nearly a hundred of the domes spread just in front of the trenches. They were preparing to defend themselves as best as they could. Terra flew behind the village and saw the small opening covered by a single panel. He had to make it impossible to use this exit. He wanted no dwarfs to escape the village and enter the gorge beyond. There was no easy or convenient way to attack the village that he could discover. They would defeat them, but at a great cost of life.

Terra traveled on to the end of the mountain range and saw the trees had filled in the gap between where his mind was and the great black mountain in the distance. As he crossed the gap, he saw the trees ended two to three thousand dragon lengths away from the foothills surrounding the dark edifice. He flew to the foothills and saw only ten to twenty thousand dwarfs. He thought there could be up to fifty thousand hiding within caves dug into the hills and low mountains. He returned to himself and considered how to best fight the dwarfs.

Later that sunset, Terra was sitting looking out across the now vast expanse of trees. He noticed a bright green light within the trees just outside the area the human fighters had set up their sleeping mats. He pointed it out to Fienna and they decided to go look at what it may be. They walked with a small protective group of humans and land nymphs. Even though Terra was enormously powerful, the fighters and the dragons never left him unprotected.

They entered the edge of the trees. As they approached the light, Terra could see a small clearing. At the far end of the open area was one of the protector trees. It had sent several small bolts of continuous lightning striking a single spot just in front of the tree. The lightning formed a round sphere of glowing green energy.

Terra walked into the clearing and the lightning withdrew back into the tree. A low wind began to blow through the trees and the blade-like leaves on the protector tree began to vibrate. An odd sound filled the clearing.

“Weee thaaank youuu.” The sound resolved into a complex voice.

“You thank me for what?” Terra asked.

“Youuu gaaave liiife. Weee heeelp youuu.”

“You are already helping, you have protected us from the lightning. That is enough.”

“Weee kiiill Sooolaaan.”

“You wish to kill the Solon for us?”

“Nooo, weee kiiilll Sooolaaan.”

“You have already killed the Solan?” Terra asked in confusion.

“Yeees, sheee huuurt uuus muuuch. Weee stooop heeer.”

“Thank you for the help. I have killed too many and more are to come.”

“Weee knooow, weee heelp kiiill liiittle beeeasts.”

“You wish to help us fight the dwarfs?”

“Yeees.”

“We welcome your help, we would happily accept anything you can do,” Terra told the great tree.

“Weee heeelp.”

“Thank you.”

“Youuu paaart ooof uuus fooor aaall tiiime. Weee heeere fooor yuooo aaall tiiiime.”

“You honor me. I will always be here for you as well. We will rest here for one sun-rising and then continue to the dwarfs' village,” Terra told the tree.

He and Fienna, as well as their escort, walked back to their sleeping area. He was surprised the trees were actually strong enough to kill a Solan. They had made the upcoming fight a bit simpler, but it would still be difficult.

The humans and the land nymphs that had accompanied Terra told their leaders what they had witnessed. They had all been amazed by what had happened. They had no idea trees could communicate. They always assumed that they had no intelligence or feelings. This would change how they treated trees and used wood. Even more amazing was the fact that the trees considered Terra their savior and they would help them fight the dwarfs. Terra was more than simply the Draman; he was the one true savior of Tone.

The sunsets were getting colder and the dragons used their fire to heat large rocks to a red glow. It kept the fighters warm without burning wood.

Chapter 55 - The Fight Planned

(Planning for the unknown is always difficult.)

- The Time of the Draman -

Terra sat atop a great mountain peak with Fienna, overlooking the dwarf’s final village. He saw the great trenches and the domes as well as the high rock walls. Thousands of dwarfs were working in the trenches and some were under the domes. As they watched, Terra noticed a large dwarf standing atop the wall above the central opening. He appeared to be directing the work and a number of smaller dwarfs were watching the trees and lands about the village. They were expecting the fight, but they did not know when or how many they were about to encounter. Terra and Fienna took off to attend a meeting with all the leaders. He had made his final plans for the fight during the last four sun-risings of the walk. They had stopped just out of sight of the village.

Terra and Fienna landed in a small cove at the base of the mountain where they would sleep. Terra turned back to his human form. Fienna landed behind him and lay down. Terra took a long stick and began to draw in the loose soil. He created an uncannily accurate picture of the village and the surrounding area. The leaders arrived as Terra was finishing the drawing. They sat and studied the incredible picture before them. On one side of the drawing were a human and a dragon showing the scale of the picture.

They saw a four-walled village. One wall was up against a large mountain, while the back wall was facing the great gorge. The land behind the village sloped down over three to four thousand dragon lengths to a dry riverbed. The base of the gorge was perhaps four hundred dragon-lengths deep. Numerous channels, obviously cut by water that once flowed from the mountains, led down to the dry bottom of the great gorge. The front of the village stood directly in the path Terra and his fighters had been walking. The fourth wall now faced thousands of trees. More protector trees grouped together than Terra had yet seen.

The two walls not protected by the mountains and gorge had deep parallel trenches dug just in front of them. The domes sat at the edge of the outermost trench. It was a well-constructed and protected village. Terra continued to draw as they watched.

“I wish to explain my plan for the upcoming fight. This is the village that is awaiting us,” Terra explained. He then described the entire village, including the new set of trenches.

“Now that we all understand what we are facing, let me describe my plan. First, we need to prevent the dwarfs from escaping through the back opening. Dawra and Hectise, I wish the dragons to take one thousand humans to the base of the gorge. They will have to put them in place directly after sunset. I do not want the dwarfs to see the dragons dropping the humans off.

Naron, I need eight hundred fighters that throw the small wood shafts and two hundred with the shields and long metal blades to protect the others. They will need to climb to the lip of the gorge just behind the village after they are dropped off. The slope is steep, but it can be walked. At the lip, there are some large groups of rocks, set up behind them. I want no one to know you're there so you must be extremely quiet and remain hidden from the village,” Terra said as he pointed to the drawing.

“At sun-rising, before first light, I want a few dragons to fly into the gorge and find a good place to land the fighters. I need you not to be seen, so fly through the mountains and then cross over to the gorge. Fly up the gorge, and then return the same way you came.

After sunset, I want a thousand dragons to drop their humans off in groups of fifty. The fight will start the next sun-rising. Just before first light, I wish for two hundred dragons to position themselves just below the lip of the gorge behind the humans. The dragons and the humans will keep the dwarfs in the village,” Terra explained.

“You believe they will go into the gorge?” Naron asked.

“I would, so I assume they will. There will be no other place for them to go. Naron, the human fighters will be in the front of the village. You must cover the entire front wall. You have the fighters and weapons. The land nymphs and elves will handle the tree side of the village. I want the land nymphs to position themselves from the gorge to the center of the wall, and the elves will be between the humans and nymphs.

“The humans will have to stay out of sight behind the mountain that is just in front of the village. The nymphs and elves will position themselves in the trees before first light. All must gain their positions without alerting the dwarfs.

I want all the fighters to do one thing. If they find any children, they are to be saved and kept alive. I hope they can be taught to follow a different path. I don't think there will be many; I don't believe the dark one has use for new life. I think he gave the dwarfs immortal lives to avoid births. They probably only allow enough new life to replace those who are killed.

I will start the fight by putting holes in the front and sidewalls of the village with my sounder power. Then the dive dragons will hit the domes. I would like the first three dragon Flights to fill the trenches with fire. I hope this will burn out the dwarfs with pure heat. The remaining Flights will fill the village with as much fire as possible.

You all know that dwarfs are resistant to fire and the caves they built will protect many from the dragons’ flames. I don't know how many will survive, but there will be a considerable number left to fight after the fire.

While the dragons perform their task, the fighters need to position themselves. I need the fairies to keep all three groups in touch with each other. They will be the way the leaders can communicate with the others, listen to them when they come to you. When the dragons' fire ends, it will be up to the fighters. One thing, there are many more protector trees by the village. I don’t know what they might do. I plan to talk to them after sunset, I hope they will answer.”

“May I ask why don't you simply use your sounder powers to destroy them all?” the elf king asked.

“I am sure you all have noticed what happens when I use the power of sound. Tone freezes for an instant, and the world seems to shudder at its use. I fear using that much sound could do permanent damage to the entire world. I won't take such a risk. I will only use my power three times in a row to prevent lasting harm to Tone. Perhaps I'm wrong, but I will not take the chance,” Terra explained.

“After my flight, I will join the humans in my human form. I will be with them for the ground fighting.”

“You can't. We can handle the ground part. You should just watch,” Naron told Terra and the other leaders quickly agreed and urged Terra to watch from the air.

“I will ask no one to do something I would not. I will participate,” he said with absolute finality.

“You all have much to prepare, I suggest you get started” Terra told the leaders. They left and went back to their fighters to explain the plans.

“
Terra, you really think that you can over use your sounder magic?
” Fienna thought to her love.

“
The last few times I used it, something felt different to me. The magic was more powerful, more expansive. All my magic is greater and I truly don't want to add to Tone's already extensive devastation. Plus, they all seemed to need to be part of this odyssey. Perhaps they do need to fight to see what this type of conflict is really about. I hope this experience will teach them how much pain fighting causes. It may prevent this from ever happening again,
” Terra thought back.

“
You have limits, my love. You can be hurt and even killed. You need to be more careful, please. I could not live without you.
”

“
I know, my love, but I need to make this world safe for our daughter. Part of that is this fight. On the ground, I will be able to prevent many deaths. Knowing that, I can't simply watch,
” he thought to her.

“
Yes, yes, I know. There is one thing you need to consider. Everyone knows that there is a final fight, and you are the only one that can face the beast within that mountain. I know you will destroy the dark one, but at what cost?
” she thought with both love and fear.

“
I must do whatever is needed to save all I care for,
” Terra thought to his love.

After sunset, Terra walked into the trees and stood before one of the protector trees. He looked up, staring at the great tree for a long time.

“I have come to tell you we will soon begin the fight against the dwarf village. The dragons will start the fight and then the humans, land nymphs, and elves will continue it until no dwarfs survive. My fighters will hide among you, until after the dragons complete their fire flights. I am here in hope you can help. Whatever you can do will be appreciated,” Terra told the tree. The leaves began to vibrate; it was like thousands of tiny voices coming together.

“Weee proooteeect, weee waaatch, weee heeelp. Aaafteeer draaagooons, waaait fooor uuus.”

“I will have my fighters wait after the dragons' fire ends. We cannot wait long. Can you give a sign to tell me when I can send my fighters in?”

“Leeeves wiiill faaall.”