Battlefield of the Sacred Land Page 7

  Tolin burst out with fake laughter. “Indeed, the matron of dragons, eh?”

  The dragon knight’s brow furled, and he became very serious. “You should keep better track of him, sir.”

  “Please, this man does not know me.” Gondolar feigned like he was tripping over something in the street, and he stuffed the note in a fold of the dragon knight’s armor.

  The knight pushed him back off. “He is dangerous. I will blame you if he causes any harm. You had better get him off to the clerics at once,” the dragon knight said to Tolin.

  Brell had now seen them and was walking at a brisk pace right for them. Gondolar quickly put his hand on the knight’s shield. He was barely able to touch the Lora Daine fixed upon it. “Ianthill, Symbor!” he said, and released the small amount of essence he was secretly gathering up.

  The knight jerked the shield back, but Gondolar saw that his spell took. The stone slowly began to glow. The dragon knight looked at his shield with surprise. “What? You are not supposed to . . .” The dragon knight snapped away with a crackle. Gondolar sneered at Tolin.

  Brell jumped in and seized him. “It is no matter; help will not arrive soon enough to save you. Our master would like to have a word with you.”

  Gondolar began to draw in essence.

  “I can feel you drawing in essence,” Tolin said. “I wouldn’t if I were you. Both of us are mindwielders. We can force you to stop if you wish to continue.”

  “You should have stopped him from activating that Lora Daine!” Brell said sourly.

  “He didn’t use much essence. I didn’t feel it until he used it,” Tolin countered.

  Gondolar let the essence fade. If Tolin was telling the truth, and he thought he probably was, he could handle one mindwielder but not two. He didn’t want to risk it. He decided he would let them take him for the moment. He still had all his concealed weapons. He would wait for the right moment and take them both down at the same time.

  Gondolar let them lead him down the cobblestone streets to a smart-looking tenement building still within the docking district of Paladine. He had grown curious about the two men’s employer. His curiosity was satisfied, however, upon entering the number ten tenement. Kambor, dressed in fine traveling clothes and a woolen cloak, was only just arriving. He stood staring at Gondolar for a moment while removing his gloves.

  Gondolar sniffed. “I have never understood why dragons bother to have such elaborate disguises. If it was me, I would just fly everywhere in my dragon form and be done with it. It seems somehow dishonest when you travel around in a form not your own.”

  Kambor’s eyes narrowed menacingly. “Perhaps, but the general population would probably disagree. They still sting from our lesser brethren taking their livestock and burning their farms. I think most would prefer to remain ignorant of the presence of dragons among them.”

  “I know I would,” Gondolar quipped.

  “Amusing.” Kambor feigned a smile. “I am sorry to have to bring you here like this. I only wished to talk. It was clever of you to drug the horses.”

  “Not clever enough. They found me,” Gondolar said.

  “I can see I must get to the point. You feel injured by me in some way. What did you tell Veric?”

  “Ah, you want to know if I told him it was you who sent the Drasmyd Duil to kidnap his daughter.”

  “Aye, I do.”

  “I personally never got the chance. Of course, Kymlie is with him right now, and he is the one who informed me, so I’m sure Veric knows by now. Oh, and here you are conveniently in town.”

  Kambor glanced up at Brell and Tolin and signaled for them to go.

  “I wouldn’t send them after Kymlie, or Veric for that matter, unless you want them dead, that is. It’s too late, Kambor. The last I saw Veric, he was very different.” Gondolar grinned mischievously. “A fair warning to you, Kambor, run!”

  Kambor signaled Brell and Tolin to wait. “His stay in Venifyre has changed him, you say? How?”

  “I never said anything about his stay in Venifyre. Look, I would love to sit here and chat all day, but I really must be going. I have important work to do. If you are hoping the dragon knight you sent to Symbor will alert Ianthill or Morgoran to come here, you are mistaken. I left Ianthill and Morgoran a few days ago on their way back to the Vale of Morgoran. Ianthill is probably at Signal Hill by now, far, far away from Symbor and your message.”

  “Ah, well, that is unfortunate.”

  “You have proven to be a nuisance, and I am very close to getting the war I need. I am afraid I cannot let you impede me further.”

  “Now wait a moment. You are a gold dragon. You are not a murderer by nature.” Gondolar was becoming a bit concerned now. “What have you against wielders anyway that you would want a war?”

  “Nature changes, I am afraid. I will deal with both Veric and Kymlie. You will not have your meeting with the First Trine to warn them.” Kambor signaled Brell and Tolin again.

  Gondolar readied and tossed his finger-sized daggers at the two men, and the deadly knives had the same result as before—dead and dying men with severed arteries. He produced his good long daggers and pointed them at Kambor, who did not so much as flinch.

  “Please, Master, you may heal me,” Brell pleaded.

  Kambor shook his head at the dying Brell. “Aye, my magic could save you, but since you failed to search him, you got what you deserved, didn’t you?”

  “There is terrible cruelness in you, Kambor. What made you so cruel? Gold dragons are supposed to be protectors of man. Why would you turn against them?” Gondolar asked.

  Kambor became angry. “Because it is about time for my kind. We were made to be superior; we are superior! Your kind squabbles magic and unleashes war far more devastating than any I could conjure up. The best way to protect man is to rule over him!” He raised his hands, and Gondolar found he could not move. He began to draw in essence, but Kambor was quicker. “You have never encountered the full extent of dragon magic before, have you? You do not know how to counter it with your pitiful wielding skills. You are a prime example of my point! Well, it is of no consequence. I think you will die by your own daggers.”

  Gondolar tried as hard as he could, but his hands betrayed him. The power of a gold dragon was near god-like. The essence Gondolar was attempting to draw dissipated as he struggled to stay his own hands from stabbing him in the neck.

  Golvashala flicked his wrists, and Gondolar’s daggers moved at lighting speed. The last thoughts on Gondolar’s mind were of Adell and Kimala.

  Dorenn was horrified as he awakened from Oria’s trance. She got up and began pumping the water as usual, almost like nothing had happened.

  Dorenn found himself almost panting. “Does Gondrial know Kambor, that is, the Oracle, killed his father?”

  “I have no idea. You should ask him.”

  Dorenn gave her a look of frivolity. “Certainly. Why not? That would be a great conversation.”

  “Oh,” Oria giggled. “I can see how that may be inappropriate.”

  “You think so?” Dorenn said sarcastically. His expression softened. “Poor Gondolar. I really liked him too. I can see where Gondrial gets his sharp wit.” He thought for a moment. “I can also see why Fawlsbane Vex is showing me all this. Kambor is evil and dangerous. After all I have been through since I left Brookhaven, I had not thought about Kambor as a real threat. I didn’t really take him seriously. If he awakens now with the Sacred Land the way it is, he will be nearly unstoppable.”

  Oria put the water on to boil. “I am just the prophetess of Fawsbane Vex. All that war and Sacred Land business is your affair.”

  “I suppose so,” Dorenn said.

  “I will get supper ready. You need to drink something. I have a feeling the next part of all this I must show you might take a while.”

  Dorenn nodded, eager to obey. “Do you know how much longer I will be here?”

  “I am just the prophetess of Fawlsbane Vex. I am not privy to suc
h things. He will keep you here as long as he needs you to be here.” She began to cut up some fresh carrots. “If you are worried about your friends, remember, time is different here. They may not even realize you are gone yet.”

  “That may be,” Dorenn said, “but I still feel the anxiousness and urgency of it all.”

  Part 3: The Narrative of Kambor

  Chapter 9: Gods of War

  After he had eaten, Dorenn sat in his comfortable chair, sipping his fourth glass of water. He mulled over what he had seen so far as Oria took care of a few last-minute details and joined him.

  “You say the next part will take a while?” Dorenn asked, suddenly feeling very melancholy again.

  “I’m not sure if it will take more time or take more of a toll on you; it’s unclear. Sorry, that’s the best I can do. I am merely the prophetess of—”

  “Of Fawlsbane Vex, aye, as you’ve stated repeatedly.”

  She nodded. “Shall we begin?”

  “My lord Kambor. The deed is done.”

  Kambor turned from his thoughts while gazing out of the second-story window of his residence in Paladine, Symboria. “Good, Jot, good. They are all burned, then?”

  “Aye, all traces of Brell, Tolin, and the elf have been cleansed.”

  “Cleansed by the hands of you men? I’m not so certain. I had better see for myself.”

  “With dragon magic too, my lord,” he added in. “The kind you gave to Aela. Please, sir, might I have my reward as well? You did promise and . . .”

  “Silence!” He looked around the room. “Where is Aela?”

  Jot wrinkled his long nose. “She will be up in a moment. She was tending to the horses.”

  “Horses? What for?”

  “For our journey home, my lord. You dismissed us yesterday from your service, remember?”

  “Of course I remember. Consider yourself and your counterpart un-dismissed. Now that Brell and Tolin are no more, you two will be my new dragon knights.”

  Jot’s face lit up. “Us, dragon knights to a gold dragon! Oh, thank you, my lord!”

  “First order of a new dragon knight is don’t grovel, Jot.”

  “Aye, my lord,” Jot said, straightening up.

  “It seems I failed with the previous two knights by neglecting to train them as such. I’ll not make that mistake with you two.” He paused. “Provided you have the brains for it. Brell and Tolin obviously did not.”

  “I will certainly do my very best, my lord,” Jot said.

  Aela entered the room and silently bowed to Kambor. He looked over her lithe body and had the sudden realization that both she and Jot were particularity suited to do more nimble work than their predecessors. “Assassins! I will train you both as silent assassins,” he said joyously.

  Aela looked to Jot. “Jot, we are to be Kambor’s dragon knights.”

  “Thank you, my lord,” Jot said, bowing.

  Kambor circled around them both appraisingly. “I only allow two dragon knights in my service at a time. Too many mouths equals too many spilled secrets.” He clasped his hands together. “The training will be most rigorous. I want you both to be able to slip in undetected and out the same way. To accomplish these feats of stealth, you must do as I ask in your training.”

  “We will do as you ask, my lord,” Aela said, and Jot agreed.

  “Good. I will begin your training immediately. Although, I do have one small task for you to do first, and you can consider it the beginning of your training. I need you to go to the address I am about to provide you and spy on the man named Veric. Do not return until you have ascertained something of use. Do you understand my meaning?”

  “Aye, we do, my lord,” Jot said. Aela nodded.

  “Excellent. You are already proving to have more wit than those before you.” He went to the door. “Now run along while I make preparations for your advanced training.”

  It wasn’t even an hour before Aela and Jot returned. Kambor greeted them and then sat in his favorite chair with the two before him. “Back already; do tell.”

  “My lord, the man you sent us in search of has departed Paladine. We searched but found no evidence of where he might be off to; however, the barkeep situated above was quite helpful. It only took a few jabs of Aela’s dagger for him to spill out all the information we needed.”

  Kambor was ecstatic. “You see, you two do have what it takes to be my dragon knights. I should have made this change long ago. Where is Veric going?”

  “Ishrak, my lord. By’temog, to be exact. The barkeep mentioned something about a General Sythril,” Aela said.

  “Sythril is of no consequence. Veric will not meet with him. There is a great ruined library at By’temog that might be perfectly suitable for a trap.” He bolted out of his chair. “Come, I need to pass on some of my abilities to you or you will never survive the cold of the flight.”

  “We are going with you?” Jot asked.

  “Aye, of course you are. I need your help with the trap I have planned. Also the training I have in mind for you two is not far from there, in the Jagged Mountains. I intend to fly us there, so you will need your warmest attire in addition to the abilities I will grant you.”

  Jot looked at Aela, and she returned his devilish grin.

  Dorenn stirred awake. Oria woke shortly after.

  “What’s the matter?” Oria asked. “It’s not time for you to wake yet. There is still quite a bit of the story.”

  Dorenn sat up. “I’m sorry, but a thought entered my mind, a powerful thought, and I think it jolted me awake.”

  “Ah, the issue with Tatrice and Bren,” Oria stated. “I can feel it on the forefront of your mind, a distraction. Very well, we shall discuss it so that you may concentrate on what the master is trying to show you.”

  Oria did seem to become more and more connected with him as their time together passed. “Is that also part of my education here?” Dorenn asked, not surprised she knew something about it. “Am I to let it continue and do nothing about it? She is married to Bren, after all. Perhaps that ship has already sailed?”

  “I’m not certain; it might be,” she answered. “I do believe it’s too late.”

  “I left her in a bad situation.”

  “I have already told you . . .”

  “Aye, I know. Time moves differently here, but it doesn’t for me. I still feel like I have left my friends in danger.”

  “You haven’t. They are unaware. To them you are still looking in on Kimala.”

  “You know about everything, then, I suppose. You even know where I was going before coming here.”

  “I am channeling the thoughts of a god. I don’t know anything he hasn’t shown me or told me through his channeling. But I am privy to your relationship with Tatrice.” She cleared her throat. “I will tell you all I know about it after we finish Veric and Kambor’s tale. Agreed?”

  “Agreed. I have some questions about that story too, if you don’t mind.”

  “All right.”

  “Why was Veric going to find General Sythril? Isn’t the general a ghost patrolling the ruined city?”

  “Not yet. Veric had created what would be called the Unseen by what he did to Kymlie. Kymlie would be able to resume his Kylerie form, but he would still be the father of the Unseen. Veric went to By’temog and did the unthinkable.” Oria hesitated.

  “What? What did he do?”

  “He tried to remove the curse on General Sythril and his cursed men with the power of Aedreagnon and in the process killed them all. Only, they were cursed to roam the city, so they rose from the dead.”

  “Veric created the unlife?” Dorenn said with shock in his voice.

  “And worse. Veric is a mortal trying to control a god. Think about that. Each time he tries to use the power of Aedreagnon, he kills, maims, or destroys. Now that you know why Veric traveled to By’temog, we can skip to the point where Kambor is trying to trap him in the library.”

  Dorenn nodded and sat back in his chair.
<
br />   “Kambor! You traitor and coward! Show yourself.” Veric held his two curved daggers at the ready. “Why have you lured me to this dead place?”

  Kambor moved forward. The thundering pounding of his steps shook the foundation of the library. Books fell from shelves, and furniture toppled. He could see that Veric had taken the stance of the pouncing tiger, knees bent, dagger blades pointing downward. Kambor peered from out behind a bookshelf. “I never meant for this to happen.” His dragon’s voice was deep and reverberating, echoing off the great library ceiling. “But it is fitting that we meet in the very city you killed. Look around you. This was once the greatest library of Ishrak, maybe the world. Look at it now, look at By’temog. Look upon all you have destroyed, slayer!”

  Kambor instinctively knew when Veric pounced. The slayer’s daggers fell toward his head as the teeth of a tiger biting into its prey. Kambor twisted his head at the last moment, and Veric cascaded off him and onto the floor. He followed Veric with dragon’s fire, but the quick dragon knight managed to get behind a solid marble counter before the fire burned him. “You know why I have to do what I have to do, Veric. Don’t deny me.”

  “It is you who has betrayed me, Kambor! Why would I not deny you? You realize I have the power to destroy you from here. I don’t need to fight you.”

  “I do, slayer. You may destroy me as you have everything and everyone around you. Do it!”

  “You make it seem as if I’m the evil one here. You twist this into some kind of redemption for yourself and you condemn me as a slayer. This city destroyed itself. General Sythril cursed himself to roam the streets. And what of your betrayal and vile plans? What about you, Kambor? What about you, Golvashala? You killed poor Gondolar. You orphaned Gondrial and Kimala and you widowed Adell!”

  “I may have orphaned Gondrial, but the half-elf is almost a hundred seasons old and apprenticed to Ianthill. I think he will be fine. As far as Kimala, I have not orphaned her. You have abandoned her.”

  “What are you talking about? How could I abandon her?”