The Dragons of Ice and Snow (56 page)

“
You're right. It's
draining me. And not just me, but every thing and every one who has
an ounce of magic in their system.”

“
Exactly. The
dragons and the elves are probably immune. They don't use magic, they
are
magic. But for me, you, my brother and Liliana, we are being stripped
of our powers. We have to get that Gate down now, before we can think
of taking the fight to the primal dragon.”

“
Um,
guys?” Aiden interjected. “Speaking of which, where
exactly is the primal anyway?”

“
What?”

Everyone
looked around the plateau. The view to the Gate was clear enough, but
the large bodies of the dragons were blocking their line of sight to
the eastern part of the mesa, where the primal white had been
standing.

“
Damn
it, I can't see past those cursed dragons,” Liliana said
angrily. She turned to look at Malcolm. “Give me a boost, would
you? I'll have a better view from the top of the boulder.”

“
No
problem, but let's move around to the other side, where those dragons
can't see us.”

“
Right.”

The
two of them stayed low and circled back around the boulder while the
others kept watch.

“
How
long before the earthen and the air elementals attack?” Tamara
asked as she continued to stare at the Gate.

“
When
I tell them to,” Simon said simply. “My little friend
here will pass on the message for me.”

“
Your
little..?”

A
flicker in the air next to Simon's head became opaque and then they
saw Aeris sitting on the wizard's shoulder.

Aiden
stifled a laugh, while Sebastian grinned in approval.

“
Good
idea,” Tamara said. “You don't need to use magic to pass
along your message.”

“
Exactly.
I made Kronk wait below. He's not happy about that, but he can't help
us with this. On the other hand, my friend here can. So, how are you
doing, Aeris?”

“
I
feel like a parrot, that's how I'm doing,” the elemental said
crossly. “And no, I don't want a cracker, thanks.”

Even
Tamara clapped a hand to her mouth to muffle her laughter at Aeris'
comment and Simon smiled at him.

“
Cute.
Now stop making us laugh or we'll end up as dragon chow.”

That
comment killed everyone's mood and the elemental nodded.

“
Simon!”
Liliana hissed down at him.

He
looked up and saw her lying on the edge of the boulder, looking
across the plateau.

“
What
is it? Can you see the primal?” he whispered.

“
No.
The bloody thing is gone.”

A
stunned silence followed the paladin's words.

“
What
are you talking about?” Tamara said angrily. “It can't be
gone.”

“
I'm
telling you that monster is not there. The only thing on that side of
the mesa is its servant, the one that Aeris mentioned. And that's
it.”

“
Come
back down and join us,” Simon said quietly and he watched as
Liliana slowly backed out of sight.

“
How
can it be gone?” Aiden asked faintly. “Where would it go?
And why?”

They
waited until Malcolm and Liliana rejoined the group and then they
huddled together.

“
I
don't get it,” Sebastian said. “That thing has been here
for weeks or months working its foul alchemy and suddenly it decides
to leave. Why?”

“
If
I might make a suggestion? Perhaps it sensed your imminent attack?”

They
all looked at Aeris.

“
But
how?” Liliana asked. “We saw no dragons when we assembled
below. And those ones there seem to have no idea that we are
present.”

“
Exactly,”
Simon said. “Aeris, I know that dragons can sense magic, but we
haven't cast any spells up here. And down on the plains below, I
summoned the elementals by name, not with a spell. Besides, at that
distance, I doubt that a dragon could feel any magic anyway.”

“
I
agree, my dear wizard. Any normal dragon. But this is a primal we're
talking about. Its powers are much more powerful than those of a
lesser dragon.”

He
hesitated.

“
And
you did use magic below. You Gated all of us to that location.”

“
Oh.
Oh crap. So you think that monster sensed that?”

“
Possibly.
It doesn't really matter though, does it? For whatever reason, the
primal white is gone.”

“
Maybe
it retreated through the Gate,” Tamara mused. “It could
crawl through that portal if it had to, I'm sure.”

Simon
sat down and rested against the boulder. The others did the same.
Liliana was on his left and Aiden sat down with a creak of metal on
his right.

“
So
now what?” he asked.

“
We
stick to the plan,” Tamara whispered forcefully. “We save
the captives, break those eggs, destroy the Gate and kill the
dragons. That's what we're here for, isn't it?”

“
Yes,
but we're also here to kill that primal dragon!” Liliana said,
glaring at the mage. “If it gets away, what's to stop it from
starting the whole thing all over again somewhere else?”

Tamara
glared right back.

“
So
what would your prefer? That we retreat, leave those poor souls to
their fate? Let the dragons go free?”

Liliana
slumped a bit, took off her glove and rubbed her eyes.

“
No,
of course not. You're right. We have to at least clean up this mess.
Taking away those eggs will be a heavy blow in and of itself. And
killing the dragons will certainly be satisfying.”

“
Now
that's what I like to hear,” the mage said with a smile. She
clapped a hand on the paladin's armored shoulder and gave her a
shake.

“
Listen,
I'd rather kill that damned primal too, but if that's not an option,
we take what we can get.”

“
Agreed.”

“
Simon?
You still with us?” Malcolm asked as he watched the wizard
closely. “What's wrong?”

“
This,”
he said. “This whole thing. Something's off here. I can feel
it.”

“
Off
or not, unless we attack soon, we're going to be discovered,”
Aiden told him.

“
Okay,
you're right. Let's do what we can now and worry about the primal
later.”

He
looked at Aeris.

“
Tell
our friends to attack, now.”

“
I'm
on it,” Aeris said with some relief and zipped off toward the
edge of the mesa, fading as he went.

“
Okay,
guys,” he said to Malcolm and Aiden. “The mages and I
need that Gate down as quickly as possible. While it exists, all we
can do is stand here and be cheerleaders for the rest of you. So make
that your priority.”

“
But
that sounds lovely, sir wizard,” Malcolm told him with a
mischievous grin. “I'm sure you'd look lovely in a skirt,
waving pompoms.”

Simon
snorted.

“
I
don't have the legs for it.”

“
Since
the primal has scurried off, I'll give you gentlemen a hand,”
Liliana said to the warriors.

“
The
more the merrier,” Aiden said, smiling. “Let's crawl
along the edge of the mesa. We'll get as close as we can before the
elementals attack.”

“
Good
thinking. Wish us luck,” Malcolm said and the three of them
faded into the shadows as they moved back around the boulder.

Simon
was looking around, trying to spot Ethmira among the groups of
archers that were huddled behind other boulders to his left and
right. Unfortunately, the magical orbs of light were concentrated
closer to where the primal had been standing originally and he
couldn't make out anyone's features.

Those
orbs, he mused. What was it about those orbs? Something teased at the
back of his mind, but it wasn't getting through. He dismissed it as
nothing. If it was important, it would come to him eventually.

He
slipped his staff off of his back and gripped it with both hands.
Then he looked up to see the two mages watching him.

“
What
is it?”

“
Nothing.”
Tamara said. “It's just that both of us would love to be able
to augment our powers by channeling them through a staff.
Unfortunately, it's apparently against the 'rules'.”

“
Yeah,
it is handy, I'll give you that. Why mages aren't able to use them is
beyond me.”

“
Oh
well, we do okay without them,” Sebastian said to his sister,
who shrugged irritably.

“
By
the way, can you both cast a Shield spell?” Simon asked them.

“
Of
course. Why do you ask?”

“
It's
just that I don't know that much about mages. I mean, for whatever
reason, I specialize in elemental magic. Do either of you have a
specialty?”

Tamara
grinned, her irritation forgotten.

“
Not
like yours, but we both have favorite spells that we cast better than
others. Mine is Magic Missile.”

“
Really?
Cool. And yours?” he looked at Sebastian, who also smiled
widely.

“
Lightning.
I love that spell. And I've loved it even more since you told me
about the death of the primal black dragon. As far as I know, none of
the other dragons have a lightning attack.”

“
True
enough.”

Tamara
began to add something, but Simon held up a hand. He cocked his head
to one side and then took off a glove and put his hand flat on the
icy cold ground.

“
Do
you feel that?” he whispered.

The
mages both put a bare hand on the solid rock beneath them. After a
few seconds, they looked at Simon.

“
Yes.
I think your earth elementals are about to bust in through the back
door,” Sebastian said eagerly.

“
About
bloody time,” Tamara added. “It will give Malcolm and the
others their chance to smash those crystals.”

The
three of them stood up and stayed close to the boulder so that the
dragons wouldn't spot them. Simon put his glove back on, tightened
his grip on his staff and then, they waited.

And
waited some more.

After
what seemed an eternity, Tamara looked at Simon, her eyes flashing in
the reflected light of the distant Gate.

“
What
are they waiting for, a bloody invitation?”

At
that moment, the ground beneath them convulsed and all three were
knocked off their feet.

A
tremendous burst of sound rolled across the mesa and Simon saw the
ground under the dragons bulge as if from an underground explosion.

The
dragons roared and screeched, wings flapping as they tried to get
airborne. But as the three magic-users watched, the rock under the
creatures flowed up like liquid and encased their feet and legs,
becoming solid again in an instant.

“
Holy
crap,” Tamara muttered.

In
mindless rage, the red dragons exhaled blasts of searing fire at the
ground, melting the rock around them. But as soon as the ground
softened, it would instantly cool and harden again.

The
white dragons froze the ground with belches of intense cold and broke
the rock, pulling their feet out. But the rock immediately flowed
again and they were caught once more.

“
They're
trapped!” Sebastian said gleefully.

“
Archers!”

Simon
turned toward the sound of Ethmira's voice. He still couldn't see
her, but he watched to see what would happen.

“
Ready!
Fire a volley...now!”

From
several different directions, those watching saw fifty arrows streak
across the purple sky, lit up like fireworks from the light of the
magical orbs and the glaring crystals.

They
fell like rain amongst the dragons and the beasts' roars turned to
squeals of anguish. A second volley was in the air before the first
had found its targets. And almost every arrow found its mark, the
dragons' heads.

“
My
God,” Tamara said in a hushed voice. “They're aiming for
the eyes.”