“We will figure that out later, now we need to get rid of their residue.”
Preparing For War
Mariah drew her sword as soon as she saw the small pack of soldiers approaching them. Amber stopped and stepped behind the former guardswoman. Lamont placed a hand on each of their shoulders. He nodded before stepping toward the small group. They stopped and started discussing something before coming closer. Mariah could feel the tension building, but she deferred to Lamont for now. He was far from as trustworthy as Wrotan, but he wasn’t without his positives. The group of soldiers stopped and waited for the three to initiate contact. Lamont reassured the two women before heading toward the other group.
“I am Lamont of the spirit monastery, we do not seek to fight anyone. Our goal is to meet up with a traveling companion of ours,” he said.
“Hail, Lamont. Though I’ve not met you, I know of you. I am Nicolai of the spirit monastery. You and your companions are welcome in our camp,” one of the soldiers said.
Lamont thanked the paladin and motioned for the other two to follow. They fell in behind Nicolai and his paladins. The camp was much larger than Mariah was expecting. She had been under the impression that there wouldn’t be much of an army to challenge the dragons with. This was one of those rare times when she enjoyed being wrong. The dwarves cheered as she made her way past them. They remembered well how she and Wrotan had paired together to take down the dragon terrorizing their lands. It made her wonder how the hunter was fairing in his quest to find Kade. She knew that their entire quest would be for naught if he could not meet up with them. Her thoughts were interrupted by Lamont tapping her on the shoulder and motioning toward the tent.
“Where is Wrotan?” Hadrin asked as they entered the tent.
“He went with two mages to find Kade. We are to meet them inside the four kingdoms prior to engaging the enemy,” she replied.
“This is unfortunate. He is our best resource on fighting those beasts, I had hoped to be able to discuss tactics with him at length before the battle. We must be ready to move soon. In the meantime, I want everyone working on getting as much information about dragons as they can. We want to be able to provide Wrotan with as much information as necessary.”
*
Kade threw up his hand, deflecting the dragon fire away. Since Wrotan had revealed that they were inside his mind, he found himself able to do things that would otherwise be impossible. The shadow dragon let out a deafening roar as it sprang toward the young man. He smiled as he used his newfound powers to shrink the beast down to the size of a house cat. The miniature dragon let out a squeaky roar as it redirected itself away from its former prey. Kade grabbed hold of the creature, but he hesitated. Something deep inside had trouble ending the tiny little beast. He couldn’t tell if it was a remnant from the spell they had used on him or if it was because he had shrunk the creature down to a much smaller version of itself. The dragon snapped at him and he dropped it. It let out a roar as it began to grow.
“Don’t back down!” Wrotan yelled.
The hunter was holding off the spirit warrior as Kade battled against the dragon. Both the shadow dragon and the spirit warrior had managed to leave a sort of link inside the young man’s mind, allowing them to tap into some of his powers. He clenched his fists as he grew to match the size of the dragon. The stepped back as he lunged forward. His fists shot out with incredible speed, taking the beast in the face. The dragon attempted to escape, but Kade was too fast. His fists slammed into the creature’s face one after the other. It crashed to the floor and he dropped down and continued the beating. The dragon let out a weak roar as it began to fade away. Kade shrunk back to his normal size as he turned toward Wrotan and the spirit warrior. The hunter had managed to defeat his opponent, but only Kade could banish him for good.
“Finish it and we’ll get out of here,” Wrotan said.
“Gladly,” the young man said as a sword appeared in his hand.
“This is foolishness, you know we are your best chance for victory,” the spirit warrior said.
“I’ve heard more than enough from you!” Kade yelled as he drove the sword into the warrior.
*
Wrotan rocked back as he came out of the spell. He shook his head before looking around the room. Everyone was looking toward Kade’s bed. The young man was beginning to stir. He slowly sat up on his bed. Josephine placed a hand on his chest. She slowly nodded before moving the hand up to his forehead. Her smile was enough for everyone to know that they had succeeded. Wrotan stood up and stretched his muscles. He had no idea how long it had taken to free the young man, but it felt as though he had been sitting there for years. There was no question that Kade would be feeling it even more so. It had been a strange event for both of them. The hunter walked over to the bed and put his hand on Kade’s shoulder.
“We need you to recuperate as fast as possible. Things have changed in your absence. The known world has been pulled into this war,” he said.
“I’ll be ready to leave once I’ve eaten. I am quite famished,” Kade said.
“We cannot allow you to go alone,” Padraig said.
“What did you have in mind?” Wrotan asked.
“My daughter, Zaira, has volunteered to accompany you with her ten best warriors. In the meantime, I will be bringing together as much of the army as I can so that we can follow behind.”
“You have our thanks.”
*
Lamont closed his eyes and recited the words to the spell. His heartbeat quickened as he was rushed to the spirit realm. He was taking a serious risk using a spell that he had never researched, but the benefits were too great for him to pass up. The spirit world always gave him some measure of comfort. This time, however, was vastly different than any other time he had visited. There were dozens of tall, thin humanoid beings. They were whispering to one another and periodically pointing at him. He knew that these were the spirit people that he had always thought existed. Aside from their longer, thinner arms, legs, and torso, they were mostly human. Their faces were slightly elongated, but he could see how easily they could use magic to modify their appearance and blend in with humans or elves. One of the spirit warriors broke off from the group and approached him.
“You are the one called Lamont?” He asked.
“Yes, I am Lamont. What may I call you?” The monk asked.
“I am called Sheltek. You would think of me as part warchief, part prelate.”
“My life’s work has been dedicated to researching your people. This is a dream come true for me.”
“We are appreciative of your work. You found the connection between our people and the dwarves of old. That is why we left you with the spell scroll. It was our hope that you could act as an anchor for me and my people.”
“Why would you need an anchor? Can you not transfer between worlds?” Lamont asked.
“The shadow dragons have kept us from making the transfer. We need you to find out how they are stopping us.”
“I can’t imagine they expected anyone to assist you. What if I can find a way to open a portal from my end?”
“It could work.”
*
Wrotan drew his sword as slowly as he could to avoid his target from hearing. He raised his arm and was about to bring it down when Kade pulled him back. The hunter shot his companion a glare before turning back toward the Knight. His target was still oblivious of the eminent danger. There were more opponents than allies, but Wrotan felt that the element of surprise would be enough to make up for the difference. Kade was dangerously close to ruining that advantage. The younger man pulled the hunter back before stepping toward the Knight. Zaira stared at the two of them while keeping her bow trained on another of the opponents. Her ten warriors were all huddled behind her with their hands on their hilts.
“Attos, are you here?” Kade asked as he stepped into the clearing.
“Kade! We thought you were dead,” the knight said.
“I am quite al
ive, thanks to my friend.” The young man motioned toward Wrotan.
“It seems that we are fortunate you were with them,” Attos said when he spotted Wrotan, Zaira, and the ten soldiers.
“You could have told me that they were your friends,” Wrotan said as he sheathed his sword.
“I only spotted it at the last minute. My mind is repaired, but there is still a bit of a fog that keeps me from really remembering everything from my past,” Kade said.
“Shall we continue our hit and run tactics against both armies?” Attos asked as he showed the others into camp.
“I’m afraid we don’t have time for that. We need to meet up with the armies we’ve raised and attack head on,” Wrotan replied.
“How many armies should we be expecting?” Zaira asked.
“The spirit monks, the paladins, the dwarves, the wildlanders, the borderlanders, the Arcane Academy, and now the fairy kingdom. I’m not entirely certain that all of them will be decent sized armies, but together we should have a fighting chance.”
*
Hadrin drew his sword as soon as he saw one of the strange beings coming out of the portal. He lunged forward, attempting to drive his sword into the creature’s stomach. Lamont threw his body into the elf, knocking him to the side. Alandra pulled the monk off the floor and drew her knife. She placed it at his throat and demanded an explanation. Bertram pulled the two of them apart and positioned himself between Lamont and the others. The elf Prince glared at the two of them while he tried to think of a way to resolve the situation. Cristoph quickly arrived and joined Bertram in trying to get the two sides to communicate rather than attempt to kill one another. Hadrin waited for the newcomers to put away their weapons before he sheathed his sword.
“I am Sheltek, leader of the Kelimar. We are the new leaders here. Lamont will be our representative to the people of this world,” the newcomer said.
“Lamont, you fool. You’ve doomed whatever chance we had against the shadow dragons,” Hadrin said.
“Hold a moment, perhaps we can negotiate a treaty of sorts. The Kelimar may prove useful against the shadow dragons,” Cristoph said.
“You fight against the shadow? This is acceptable to us. We see no reason why you would need to be our servants. Tell me, where are the dragons gathered?” Sheltek asked.
“It won’t be quite as easy as you expect. They’ve gathered a strong force of elves and dragons. In fact, the shadow dragons are a mere fraction of what we must fight against.”
“We have little knowledge of your world. Those of us who avoided imprisonment have been unable to contact us. How many dragons do we face?”
“Our scouts believe that we are up against dozens of shadow dragons, hundreds of other dragons, and thousands of elves. We weren’t so much expecting to win as much as deal them a blow that would severely hamper their ability to rule. However, with your appearance, we may have the upper hand.”
“Doubtful, we are two thousand strong. Our numbers would fare well against the shadow dragons alone, but we cannot hope to assist with these hundreds of other dragons. Nor do we know if we can defeat thousands of elves.”
“I would wager that it is closer to tens of thousands of elves. My father is smart enough to have a force that could at least do some damage to the dragons. Our greatest hope is that the other elven royals do not like the idea of living under dragon rulers,” Hadrin said.
“Whether or not they join us matters not, we will fight the shadow dragons and their allies until one side no longer draws breath,” Sheltek said.
*
Finrul looked up as the portal opened before him. Obrin strode through and glanced around the room. The sorcerer knew that the King would want to meet with the other royals. He stood up and motioned toward the door at the far end of the room. The night elf King looked toward the door before shaking his head. He pointed to the door on the opposite wall. Finrul raised an eyebrow, but nodded in agreement. He knew that it meant Obrin wished to speak with him alone before going to the other two. It had been quite some time since the King wanted to speak with him alone. He took a seat at one of the smaller tables in the study and waited for Obrin to the do the same.
“Finrul, you’ve been loyal since the beginning. The dragons like that and, more importantly, I like that. I feel that I can trust you,” he said.
“Thank you, it is an honor that you feel that way. How can I assist?” Finrul asked.
“Ophelia and Lothrin are looking to betray the dragons.”
“You want me to stop it.”
“No, I want you to help me hide it from them. This does not mean that I am in favor of such a move, but I would like an out in the event that the dragons push too hard.”
“Is that wise?” The sorcerer asked.
“Likely not, but I don’t have much choice. They will rebel whether we attempt to stop them or not. My best course of action is to leave a bridge to safety if necessary,” Obrin replied.
“I can see the logic in that.”
“In the meantime, we need to move against the two remaining kingdoms. This will require the full force of our armies.”
“Shall we tell the others?”
“I will tell them personally. You will go first and ensure that our scouts do the job they are supposed to.”
Obrin didn’t wait for a reply. He excused himself and headed out the door. Finrul took a deep breath as he looked down at the table. Everyone looked to him in their plans to make sure the dragons didn’t subjugate the world. He sighed as he stood up. There was never enough time for the amount of planning he preferred. He used his magic to open a portal to the location that Obrin had previously specified. There was already a small forward camp set up on top of a hill. It was a defensible position, but it also gave away their location. He looked out over the valley and was surprised to see that there were two separate armies, one on each side of the valley. The human army looked to have more than fifty thousand troops, but the other army was significantly smaller. He called over one of the scouts.
“What am I seeing here?” He asked.
“The humans are angry that we devastated their ally’s castle. They’ve decided to go on the offensive. I can’t be certain, but they should be ready to attack us by tomorrow,” the woman replied.
“What about that army?”
“We aren’t certain where they’ve come from, but they have less than ten thousand troops. I don’t see how they could be much of a threat to us or the humans.”
“Are they not allied with the two remaining kingdoms?”
“They do not appear to be.”
Finrul nodded as he looked back at the smaller army. There was something strangely foreboding about their force. He clenched his fists in frustration. Things were happening too fast and there were far too many variables. It was supposed to be a simple fight between the humans and the dragons. After which he and his allies were going to make the final decision on whether to turn on the creatures or not. Now, there was a new army to deal with. He couldn’t help but wonder if they had anything to do with the reports of the death of their earth dragon in the dwarven lands. True, it was only one dragon, but earth dragons were known to be the most resilient of dragons. Any person or group that could slay one was not to be ignored.
*
Kade slowed to a stop when he spotted the armies moving about. The others stopped as well. Zaira shook her head and muttered something under her breath. Attos looked to Kade and the young man nodded to reassure the Knight. Wrotan was the only one that was undisturbed by the presence of so many armies. He examined each army in turn and then took in the entire battlefield. The others knew better than to interrupt him while he was formulating a plan. They waited patiently as he continued to take in the situation. Kade took a deep breath as he looked back at the valley. There was no doubt in his mind that there would be a massive slaughter in that valley before the end of the day. The only question on his mind was which of the armies were friends and which were foes.
“I never imagined it would come to a showdown like this,” Wrotan said as he rejoined the others.
“What exactly are we looking at?” Zaira asked.
“This army here,” Wrotan pointed to the closest of the armies, “they are friendly. Wildlanders and borderlanders. We would be smart to pair up with them before the fighting starts. As for the others, the dragons make it easy to identify our primary enemies. The larger of the two remaining armies must be whatever is left of the four kingdoms. That smallish army is made up of dwarves, spirit monks, and paladins. They claim to be our allies, but I do not trust Lamont.”
“What’s our move?” Attos asked.
“We join up with our allies and hope that the others show up before the fighting starts,” Wrotan replied.
“What of Lamont and his army?”
“There are four armies. If the leaders have any experience, they will know to pair off into two smaller one on one battles. We can deal with Lamont and his men later if necessary.”
*
Bertram looked over his shoulder as he neared the small group. Defecting was never an ideal option, but Lamont had seemingly forced their hand. Hadrin looked as though he was about to jump out of his skin and murder the monk. Alandra was doing everything she could to calm him down, but it seemed to do little good. Hrimgur paced back and forth as he waited to hear what the others had to say. Mariah and Amber both looked as though they could wait no longer to leave the army. Nicolai and Charise were glaring at one another. It was a highly volatile situation and the leader of the paladins knew it would only get more volatile after people started making their decisions. He took a deep breath before addressing the others.
“I believe you all know what this is about,” he said.
“There is nothing to discuss. We all know the correct choice,” Hadrin said.
“Hold a moment, some of us have obligations,” Nicolai said.
“Our deal is with Mariah, Bertram, and Wrotan. We cannot make a move until the three of you are in agreement,” Hrimgur said.
“That has already been decided. I just wanted to be certain that everyone knew the gravity of their choices,” Bertram said.
“Am I the only one that values loyalty?” Nicolai asked.