The Dragons of Ice and Snow (41 page)

“
You
know, losing it, getting soft in the brain, um,” the wizard
tapped his forehead, “going crazy.”

“
Ah
I see,” Kronk said, his eye's widening in understanding.

He
pondered the question in his usual slow, steady way.

“
I
do not think it is as serious as that, master. I believe that he is
lonely and afraid, but Aeris will never admit it. You know that.”

“
I
have to agree. We'll never tell him we know, but I hope that if he
does want to come back, that he admits it and doesn't let his pride
overrule his head.”

Simon
got up and walked over to get his staff.

“
Okay,
I'll worry about Aeris later. Right now, I'm heading back to
Nottinghill.”

“
Good
luck to you, master. I hope it goes well.”

“
Me
too. See you soon.”

The
wizard invoked the Gate spell and felt the void close in around him.

Seconds
later he was standing in the town hall. There was no one around and
he took a moment to wonder where exactly his body went when he
watched the world go black during a Gate. After all, he had to go
somewhere. It took time to teleport from one place to another and the
farther away the target was, the longer it took to reach.

I
call it the void, he thought, but is it the Void where the gods
fought after they fled the Earth or someplace else?

He
shrugged.

Something
else to research at a later date.

He
walked to the back of the hall and knocked on Clara's door.

“
Come
in,” she called out and he opened the door and entered.

Simon
was surprised to find the cleric sitting on her sofa, knitting.

He
crossed the room, sat down at her nod and just stared at what looked
like a scarf.

Clara
saw his expression and laughed lightly.

“
I
knit when I'm nervous,” she said, knitting needles flying.
“Like yourself, I was in middle-age back before I Changed. I
learned to knit when my daughter was born.”

“
Daughter?”
he asked with real surprise.

She
stopped and rested her hands on the pile of wool on her lap. Her eyes
got misty as memories seemed to overwhelm her.

“
Yes,
I had a daughter. I suppose a lot of us had kids back then. And
spouses, parents, you name it. It's all so sad, really, and yet I'll
go for days now without even thinking about her.” She glanced
tearfully at Simon. “Did you have any children? Ah, I see.
Well, Cindy was living in Florida when...when it all fell apart. Had
just gotten married. Whole life in front of her. And then the dragons
came and that was that. There were times early on afterward where I
would spend hours just wondering what her last moments had been like.
Was she alone? Did she suffer? Gods, I would torture myself thinking
of the worst possible scenarios.”

Simon
didn't know what to say. He'd been a lifelong bachelor. His parents
had passed away when he was quite young and he had had no siblings.
The only person he had grieved for had been his friend Daniel and
even that had been temporary, because Daniel had survived.

I'll
have to contact him once this is all settled, he thought fleetingly.

“
You're
very quiet suddenly,” Clara said to him as she picked up her
knitting again.

“
Just
thinking,” he replied. “Life is so weird now and we're
all just trying to survive and get through it. Memories of the old
world seem to get lost in the shuffle, don't they?”

“
That's
what I meant,” she said as she watched her needles. “Cindy
is gone and I guess I still have survivor's guilt. I lived, she died.
Why? For what purpose? I think that the only way I made it through
was by believing that in this new life, I could make a difference.”

She
hesitated and stared silently at the blue and white scarf on her lap.

“
Maybe
that's why I care so much about the people here. They're all my
children in a way, I suppose.” She looked at Simon with a
fierce expression. “And I'll do anything to keep them safe.
Anything.”

The
wizard settled back in the couch and nodded appreciatively.

“
I
agree. Even though I never had kids, I feel a responsibility toward,
well, everyone, I guess. I mean, the human race is on its last legs,
literally. Not to sound too dramatic here, but the hunters have
become the hunted. I know how much you love this town, Clara. I do
too. But my concern has to be more...global. My fight against the
dragons is to help protect all of the Nottinghills out there. I don't
know how many there are, but they all deserve the chance to survive
and grow.”

She
smiled weakly and turned to look out of the window.

“
Well,
it looks like time is getting short,” she said and set aside
her knitting. “The sun's going down. Shall we head over to see
what's happening with Malcolm and Aiden?”

“
Right
behind you,” Simon told her as they rose to leave.

Outside,
dusk was closing in. Simon saw several people coming and going around
the village, some carrying loads on their shoulders, other chatting
in groups of two or three. It all looked very pleasant and domestic.

Clara
led the way across town to the enclosure. Its high walls looked
brooding and ominous in the fading daylight.

Two
guards were standing by the door as they approached. One was a woman
that Simon didn't know. The other was one of the men who had stood
guard the previous night.

“
Liam,
did you get enough rest?” the cleric asked him when they
arrived.

The
man smiled at her concern.

“
I'm
fine, thanks. Josh was a little too tired to stand watch tonight, so
I asked Becky.”

He
looked at his partner, who nodded at them.

“
She's
as fond of our friends in there as I am and accepted right away.”

“
How
could I not?” Becky said to him sharply. “The hell those
two have gone through, just for doing their jobs? They deserve our
support.”

“
You're
so right,” Clara said. “Thank you both for volunteering.
Now, have either of you been in lately?”

“
We
were waiting for you, ma'am,” Becky said. “But if we're
going to secure them in chains, we'd better get on with it. Time is
running short.”

The
four of them looked to the west. The sky was blood red and rays of
intense yellow light fanned out across the horizon as the sun slowly
sank out of sight.

“
Not
to worry,” Simon told them. “Moon-rise isn't for at least
an hour. We have loads of time.”

Clara
waved the guards toward the door and they hurried to remove the beams
hanging across it and swing it open.

The
cleric led the way inside. Someone had hung torches from sconces
around the enclosure and the flickering light threw weird shadows
everywhere. Sitting in the center of the room, both Malcolm and Aiden
looked up as Clara and Simon walked in, the guards following along
behind.

“
Hey
guys,” the big man called out as he and his partner stood up
and brushed off their trousers. “Back again, I see.”

“
Wouldn't
want to miss the big event,” Simon told them jokingly. “Hey,
you two clean up nice.”

Both
men had shaved and changed their clothes. Now they were wearing
rawhide tunics and brown leather pants with boots to match.

“
Thanks.
We feel better than we did, that's for sure,” Aiden told him as
he pushed his thick black hair from his face.

“
So
who did your braids?” Clara asked Malcolm, smiling.

“
Julia.
She was a stylist back in the day, or so she says.”

He
reached up and ran a hand over the tight braids that flowed from his
scalp to his shoulders.

“
I
guess she's telling the truth. They feel good.”

“
They're
fine,” Aiden said with some exasperation. He looked at the
cleric and the wizard. “There's obviously no conceit in his
family; he got it all.”

“
Watch
it, you,” Malcolm growled in mock anger. “How would you
like to wake up to a shaved head one morning, hmm?”

“
Yeah?
How would you like to wake up as a blond?”

The
big man gasped.

“
You
wouldn't! You know how stupid I looked the last time I bleached my
hair.”

“
Exactly,”
Aiden said darkly. “So tread lightly, big man.”

Simon
heard a giggle and turned an amused gaze over his shoulder at Becky,
who was holding a hand over her mouth.

“
They
really should take this act on the road,” he told her. She
nodded mutely.

“
Well,
gentlemen,” Clara spoke up briskly, getting everyone's
attention. “Time for the big question of the night. Do you
trust the amulets to stop your transformations before they begin, or
should we use those,” she nodded distastefully at the pile of
chains lying near the wall, “just in case.”

Malcolm
glowered at the heavy links of iron and then closed his eyes wearily.

“
We
feel different since putting on the amulets, my lady cleric, but
neither Aiden nor I are willing to take chances. Put on the damned
chains, just in case.”

Clara
waved the guards toward the chains and watched as the previous
night's binding was repeated.

“
I
really hate this,” Simon whispered to her.

“
I
agree. But it is their choice.”

“
Doesn't
stop me from hating it,” he replied tersely.

By
the time the two men had been wrapped in length after length of heavy
chains, the sky had faded to black and the first stars had appeared.

The
guards helped lower both men to the ground gently and then, at a nod
from Clara, left the room.

“
How
soon to moon-rise?” Clara asked Simon.

He
looked up at the purple sky above the roofless enclosure.

“
Any
time now,” he said quietly.

“
You
both should head outside,” Malcolm told them. “You're at
risk if this doesn't work, you know.”

“
We'll
take that chance,” the cleric said and Simon nodded silently.
“The chains will hold long enough for us to retreat, should it
come to that.”

“
Clara,”
a voice called from the doorway. It was Liam.

“
The
moon is just creeping into sight.”

“
Here
we go,” she said to them all.

Simon
stood still, watching the men lying bound on the ground. His hands
were clenched into fists and he was gritting his teeth so tightly
that his jaw ached.

Both
Malcolm and Aiden had the same expression on their faces. It was as
if they could hear something just out of earshot, a call that the
others couldn't.

“
What
is that?” Aiden asked. He scowled and his eyes darted around
the room.

“
A
song?” Malcolm replied, puzzled. “Or...music? It almost
sounds familiar. I don't...”

At
that moment, both men went rigid, their chains chiming and clinking
together. Then they convulsed, their bodies shuddering and writhing.

“
Oh
gods, Simon. It didn't work. They're changing. Run. Run!”

Clara
turned to dart toward the door but Simon caught her arm and shook his
head.

“
No,
wait. Look,” he said excitedly. “They're fighting it!”

The
cleric turned and watched, wide-eyed.

Simon
was right. The men's bodies seemed to blur, their outlines'
indistinct. For a moment, there was a hint of fur and fangs, a
bestial growling and then...it was gone.

Malcolm
and Aiden lay there panting, as if they'd just run a great race. They
were slick with sweat and wild-eyed. But they were still human.

“
Liam,”
Simon called out. “Is the moon fully risen?”

“
Yes
sir, it's well above the horizon now.”

The
two men stared up at Simon who grinned widely.

“
It
worked,” he told them.

They
waited an hour after moon-rise, just to be sure, but Malcolm and
Aiden showed no signs of transforming into monsters and Clara finally
ordered the guards to remove the men's chains.