The Dragon's Test (Book 3) (12 page)

Erik folded his arms. “Relinquish your claim,” Erik said. “You and I both know it is not just. Let it go and I will not only forget, but I will forgive as well.”

Orres’ mouth turned up into a half smile and he nodded. “I am not likely going to live through the battle,” he said. “But, whether I live or die, I hereby swear that I have no claim to Lady Dimwater’s hand, and I release her to marry whomever she chooses.” He turned to Wendal. “You are my witness.” He turned to Lady Arkyn and said, “Lady Arkyn, you are also a witness. Whatever becomes of me, Lady Dimwater is released from our engagement.”

Braun stood uncomfortably silent and shifted his weight. Wendal and Arkyn both nodded and looked to Erik. Orres stretched his hand out to seal the promise.

“Braun, you are also a witness to this,” Erik said. “Let all here today say that Orres and Lepkin are brothers, inseparable from this point on.” Erik reached out and took Master Orres’ hand and gave it two hearty shakes before pulling his hand back. He was proud to have finally ended the feud, and yet he felt a twinge of guilt. He knew that the real Lepkin had no idea what had happened. In fact, the last time Erik had spoken with Lepkin, he had sworn to challenge Orres.

“We should get back to preparing the field,” Braun said. “We are wasting time.”

Erik nodded. “Go and get yourselves fed. Where are the others?”

“They are waiting in the forest to the southeast,” Lady Arkyn said. “We three came alone to test your hospitality before we brought everyone else.”

“How many more are there?” Braun asked.

“Seventeen,” Wendal said. “Including us, that is.”

“That is not a lot,” Braun replied. “Go, get some food and we will go and get the others out from the forest.”

“It will be good to fight alongside you once again,” Orres said to Erik. “Let’s hope you have a few more tricks in that sly head of yours.” Then Orres reached up to steady himself by grabbing onto Wendal’s shoulder and they slowly made their way to the dining hall. Lady Arkyn walked behind them.

Erik watched the trio go for a mome
nt and sighed. “We should go out and check on the men,” Erik after a moment.

“Then we can get the others that came
with Orres. Any extra pair of hands would help tremendously,” Braun noted.

Erik nodded. He turned and looked up the stairs. “Can I count on you to make her leave?”

“Lady Lokton is not easily dissuaded once she has made up her mind,” Braun said sourly. “I don’t know if I can make her leave or not. As it is, no one else has actually prepared to leave either.”

“What do you mean?” Erik said hotly. “I told you that they needed to leave. Everyone who is not going to fight should be gone.” Erik sighed and pulled the front door open. “Why didn’t you listen to me?” Erik yelled as he stepped out into the late morning sun.

Braun was only half a step behind him. “I told them to be ready,” Braun shouted back at Erik.

“Then why are there no wagons?” Erik yelled. He pointed to the space in front of the manor where he had instructed Braun to assemble the wagons. Nothing was there. He turned back and sent a cold glare toward Braun, but he was unable to say anything else.

“Braun!” one of the men shouted from the trenches nearby “In the field!”

Erik and Braun ran out toward the field and stopped abruptly when they saw it.

“By the gods!” Braun said. “That is him!” he said. “That’s Senator Bracken!”

Erik noted the banners high on poles, carried by a sizeable troop of mounted warriors. On their flanks were ranks of footmen. “And he has an army with him,” Erik said. “Tell the men that he is not a senator. He is a warlock.”

“His army rides under the king’s banner,” Braun said.

“They are not the king’s men,” Erik said. “Come, we must sound the alarm.”

“We aren’t ready,” Braun said.

“Move!” Erik shouted as he slapped Braun’s arm. “Get the catapults out now!” Erik took off
running back to the manor. “I’ll have Lady Arkyn get the others they brought.”

Braun broke into a dead sprint for the blacksmith shop. He shouted up to the rooftop, “Archers prepare for battle!” He looked back over his shoulder at the men in the trenches. “Shovels down men! To arms!”
The men in the trenches abandoned their tasks and scrambled for their weapons.

Gondok’hr motioned for his lieutenant to come up to him. The officer galloped up beside and pulled his horse in close. The warlock grinned and pointed to the north side of the manor. “Send the first group of footmen there. The enemy has not yet finished their moat.”

The officer nodded and reached for his bugle. He gave a single, long blow and then shouted at the top of his lungs. “First squad, advance!” The lieutenant then broke off and galloped out to the first squad of footmen.

Gondok’hr didn’t halt the rest of his army, he kept them moving along with him at a slower pace to allow his footmen to advance ahead of the group. He still had much of the field to cross, but he had already seen Braun and Erik run away as they had in his vision. A feeling of triumph washed over him. “I will have your head, boy,” he promised. “Then I shall trade it for what I seek.”

The footmen sprinted out ahead of the main army, their armor clanking and causing a horrible ruckus. As they pulled about sixty yards ahead of the main army their captain halted them.

“Archers!” someone shouted.

Gondok’hr held up his hand and halted the army.

Several men fired bows from the roof of the manor. The arrows rained down onto the footmen’s shields. A couple men were caught by arrows that found gaps, but most of the men survived. The captain gave the order and they began running forward again, only to stop and take cover under a second barrage of arrows. This time, however, the arrows were aflame and they were aimed behind the footmen. Each arrow struck near a pile of hay and instantly burst into a roaring fire. Smoke billowed up from the field, reaching for the heavens above the manor.

The warlock sniggered. “Clever boy,” he said. Then his ears picked up the sound of squeaking wheels coming around the manor. He guessed at what the sound heralded long before he saw the catapults launch their black projectiles through the air. His stoic grin was wiped from his face when he noted that each projectile was dripping with dark liquid.

“Back!” Gondok’hr shouted. “Everyone back!” It was too late. The missiles slammed into the ground as if the god of thunder were attacking. Hulking, boulder-like globs of rock and oil pulverized several groups of warriors unfortunate enough to not get out of the way in time. Oil and tar splattered out onto anything near enough to get caught. Next came more fire arrows, and the catapults threw clay pots of flaming oil out.

The smoke from the burning hay was too thick to see the group of footmen anymore. It also veiled the battlefield as though a curtain of fathomless night had descended between him and the manor. What’s worse, it covered the sky so much that he could not see when the catapults fired next. Sizzling clay balls rained down around him, erupting in fire as they broke on the ground. Horses and men shrieked in horror as flames lashed out and engulfed many of them.

Gondok’hr looked to the sky just in time to see a clay ball descending out of the smoke. Its trajectory would have plopped it directly in his lap, but he cast a spell with a wave of his hand. A blue, bubble-like shield encircled him and a few warriors lucky enough to be within ten feet of where he sat atop his horse. The clay ball shattered against the shield and flames washed over it as the oil inside ignited and slid across the surface of the magical ward.

“Back!” Gondok’hr shouted again. A bugle blew three times and the army quickly moved into a retreat. He didn’t halt his army until they all stood at the far edge of the field, just out of range of the catapults, and far from the archers’ reach.

The warlock’s lieutenant rode up next to him and saluted. Gondok’hr noted that the lieutenant’s armor was scorched on the left side. The man’s left hand was charred, but the officer didn’t make any mention of it. Then again, none of the warriors raised by Gilifan’s magic ever complained. That was one of their better traits.

“Take fifty men and go around to the south, through the woods,” Gondok’hr commanded.

The lieutenant nodded and galloped away, shouting orders to a group of footmen nearby. They broke into a run after him, making for the southern edge of the field.

Gondok’hr looked to the thick blanket of smoke and smiled. He could clear it, if he wanted to, but he had an idea of how to use it to his advantage. The smoke was drifting, covering the field, and slithering through the trees to the south.

*****

Lady Arkyn raced through the trees and bushes. She bent over slightly, keeping her head just below the thick, black smoke as it stretched into the forest. She found the others exactly where she had left them, huddled together in a small clearing edged with a large fallen oak on the north side.

“What is happening?” Master Gorin asked. The large, hulking man had his steel warhammer slung over his left shoulder.

Lady Arkyn noted the look on his face and nodded to him. “They are here,” she said. “Master Lepkin is inside with Wendal and Orres. All of House Lokton has been called to arms, but I fear we are in for a long, hard fight.”

“Well then, let’s go and give them a warm welcome,” Gorin said as he brought his hammer down to rest in his other hand.

Lady Arkyn held up a hand. “We have wounded,” she reminded him.

“Then send them to the house for respite, Gorin and I can move to the defenses,” Master Peren said.

“The enemy is sending men this way,” Lady Arkyn said quickly. “I need both of you to escort the wounded to the house.
”

“Better we should stay with you and cover our friends,” Gorin said. “How many are coming?”

Arkyn shook her head. “Two score, perhaps a few more, it was hard to count through the smoke. I only caught a couple of glimpses on my way out to you.”

“I can handle that,” Gorin said. “I already proved as much back at Kuldiga Academy.

“Let’s not waste time arguing,” Arkyn said finally. “Let’s move.” She pointed to a couple fellow archers. “You see to it that everyone gets to the manor. Orres and Lepkin are expecting you. Peren, Gorin, and I will delay the enemy.”

The archers nodded and starte
d moving quickly. Lady Arkyn took a mental note. Not counting Orres, herself, Wendal, Peren, and Gorin, there were twelve masters, most of whom were in decent enough shape, but some could use fresh bandages at the very least. Any time they could rest while House Lokton fought would be a welcome respite as well.

“Leave the horses with us,” Peren said. He smiled at Arkyn. “It will help even the odds a bit. She regarded him curiously but nodded her consent. Peren walked to the horses and grabbed their reins. “This is going to be fun,” he promised them.

The three went toward the enemy, keeping their pace slow enough to stay just inside the thickening smoke where they could remain hidden. They could hear the clanking armor coming closer. Sticks snapped under foot and men shouted at each other as they made their way.

Lady Arkyn gave a soft w
histle to Gorin and gestured that she was going to kneel in a copse of young saplings. She pulled several arrows from her quiver and stuck them in the ground in front of her. Gorin nodded and walked out several yards to the left, hiding next to a large, leaning oak. He pulled his knife loose and twirled his hammer in front of him before jerking his head to the side and cracking his neck.

Peren walked ahead, to the edge of the smoke. Arkyn could see
all but the back of his head as the smoke there was beginning to descend lower under the push of a breeze. The horses stood, flanking him. One of them nickered and pawed at the ground with its hoof. The other snorted and struggled to keep its nose below the smoke. Peren released the reins and started weaving his hands in front of him.

The clanking armor came closer. The steady, heavy footsteps were almost in synch with each other,
as though they marched to drums. Lady Arkyn squinted and looked under the curtain of smoke, just making out the first glints of armor through the forest. Someone in the oncoming group let out a shout and then the footsteps broke rhythm. She could tell that each soldier was running forward separately. They had seen Peren.

She set an arrow to the string and went to pull back but she stopped as a column of orange and red fire encircled Peren, ripping through the smoke. Lady Arkyn raised a hand to shield her eyes from the intense light. Even with her keen sight, she could not see beyond to the enemy, but their frantic cries told her that something awful had stopped them in their tracks. The light and fire disappeared and there, where Peren and the horses had stood, were a pair of beasts the like of which she had never seen before.

Each monster stood upon hind legs as thick as tree trunks, with sharp talons stretching out from their scaled feet. Long, barbed tails swished back and forth behind them and their arms were tipped with sharp, curved claws instead of hands. The enemy stood before them, petrified and unmoving. The beasts emitted low growls from behind their massive, fur covered heads.

“This should be good,” Peren whispered as he appeared next to Lady Arkyn.

“What did you do?” she asked. He winked and pointed back to the beasts. She turned back to see a man on horseback charging forward with his sword drawn.

The beast on the left moved impossibly fast. Despite its massive size it weaved in between the trees and lashed out with its right claw, severing the horseman in half. Then it brought its left claw down from above, drilling the horse through its neck and pinning it to the ground.
The beast on the right launched forward, jumping over the first two lines of warriors and crushing several men under its talons. The enemy erupted into action. They descended upon the beast, swinging and hacking at it with swords and axes. The beast lashed out with its claws, sending men flying into nearby trees with such force that they broke through the lower branches and then bounced off the ground.

Lady Arkyn sucked in a breath and averted her eyes. “What are those things?” she asked. Peren didn’t answer her, he was busy weaving his fingers in the air and muttering arcane words that she did not recognize. She looked back to the enemy and watched as the two beasts tore through their ranks. It seemed that they were unstoppable. Within a mere couple of moments the entire group of warriors lay broken on the ground and the beasts snorted and howled their triumph.

“We should be good to go now,” Peren said. “I will send them to greet our enemy.”

Lady Arkyn nodded and whistled for Gorin. The large man nodded and cast one more glance at the beasts before joining them.

“Remind me to pay you the four copper pieces I owe you,” Gorin told Peren. “Don’t want you to send those things to collect the debt.”

Peren snorted. “Four copper pieces wouldn’t cover the trouble,” Peren said.

“Why didn’t you do that at the academy?” Lady Arkyn asked.

Peren shrugged. “I have to be standing with the animal I am going to change,” he said. “At the academy I was inside with no animals nearby.”

“Couldn’t you turn the enemy soldiers?” she asked.

Peren shook his head. “No, I can only change animals. Besides that, I have to be able to get the animal to assent to my spell for it to work. It may have looked easy, but that is the biggest change I have ever been able to create successfully.”

“What happens if you don’t succeed?” Gorin asked as they started back for the manor.

“You don’t want to know,” Peren said honestly.

*****

Gondok’hr turned his horse to the side and trotted out to the southern side of the field. The screams and shouts that erupted from the trees let him know that something had caught his men, and they had met a horrible fate. He halted his horse and waited. As the shouting and screaming died down, a pair of sharp howls assaulted his ears. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.
Whatever it was, it was big.

Suddenly the smoke parted and warped away from a pair of hideous beasts. They had long snouts filled with fangs and their arms ended in sharp, bloody hooks. They ran forward at the speed of the fastest horses. A lesser man would have soiled himself and cowered in fear. Gondok’hr sniggered and cast a hand before him, muttering an ancient incantation. A ball of blue fire appeared before him and he sent it flying for the pair of beasts. As it tore through the air, sizzling and dripping blue liquid fire, it doubled, then tripled in size until it slammed into the first beast and laid it low on the ground in an instant. The second beast jumped to the side, avoiding the blue death and then resumed its charge.

Gondok’hr smiled and pointed at the beast with his left hand. “Kazhur, mo himbei,” he said. A bolt of green energy streaked from his hand and stung the beast in the left eye. The beast twirled around and slammed to the ground, twitching and howling terribly.

“Archers,” Gondok’hr called out. “Finish them off,” he said. A rank of twenty archers ran to him and aimed their bows at the beasts. They let their arrows fly just as the second beast started to rise to its feet again. The warlock waved his hand again and each of the arrows glowed white with fire and magically turned in the air to descend on the second beast, raining a searing hot death down upon its head. The beast groaned and fell back to the dirt, never again to rise.

Gondok’hr turned to the smoke and sighed. “Enough games,” he said. He stood in the stirrups and waved his hand at the smoke in the field. The thick blanket moved to obey his command, lifting from the forest and the field to descend upon the manor, allowing him to see his way to the house and covering his approach. Next he summoned a raincloud and extinguished the flames in the field. “March forward,” he told his men. “Archers remain with me, the rest of you march forth and raze the manor to the ground!” The men instantly obeyed, marching forward in lockstep through the field as the fires sizzled and protested against the rain.