Kathir's Redemption (Book 6) (27 page)

Swinging his axe, Skemtun moved in to join him as the elves and their dragons joined the fight. The elves drew their bows and fired at the greenskins. Several fell from the arrows, but many of them were protected by their metal armor.

“
They have armor?
”
said Kathir incredulously.

“
Stolen from Mount Velik,
”
said Skemtun.
“
That
’
s dwarf armor
—
they
’
ve broken up the pieces and attached them with leather straps.
”

The orcs struck back and hit the travelers with another vicious assault. An orc fighting Skemtun swung a great club and struck the dwarf in the head so fiercely that he was knocked unconscious. The orc screamed in victory and jumped over Skemtun
’
s body to deliver the killing blow.

“
Stop him!
”
screamed Kathir, who turned just in time to watch a see a blast of blue flame topple the beast before he could strike. Kathir glanced over to see Councilor Komu looking very pleased with himself. Kathir jumped forward, grabbed Skemtun by the arms and dragged his limp body back to where Komu and Delthen stood behind their shield. 

Tallin shouted for everyone to move back. Duskeye reared up on his hind legs and sent a stream of flame in the orc
’
s direction. The other dragons stepped directly behind Duskeye and let loose their own mouthfuls of fire, bringing the battle to an end almost immediately. Several orcs were burned to a crisp, and those that survived ran away in fear.

The two elves jumped on their dragons and pursued the fleeing orcs, killing them before they could return to their camp and give away the convoy
’
s location.

“
That was a good shot,
”
Tallin said, walking toward Kathir.
“
It
’
s a pity about your horse.
”

“
The poor thing,
”
Kathir said, patting the horse
’
s trembling flank. The horse
’
s face was streaked with blood, and its pain-crazed body twisted and turned wildly. Blood shot from the horse
’
s neck in spurts, leaving crimson splashes on the snow.
“
Can you do anything for him?
”

Tallin shook his head.
“
I
’
m sorry
—
I don
’
t know how to heal horses. Animal healing takes special training
—
you have to understand the anatomy of the animal to heal a serious injury. I can heal dragons and minor wounds in some animals, but this injury is beyond my skill.
”

Kathir sighed.
“
That
’
s it, then. Poor beast. I must confess, I don
’
t feel good about having to shoot this fine horse
…
but I have to put him out of his misery.
”

“
Wait! Don
’
t be so sure about that,
”
said Komu, tottering forward. The old wizard cracked his knuckles and placed a glowing hand on the terrified animal
’
s neck.
“
I can save him. This is a chance for me to practice my healing skills. I don
’
t get to work with animals very much these days.
”

Komu kneeled forward and pet the horse
’
s face gently.
“
There now, boy, you
’
ll feel better in a moment.
”
  Komu pulled a scarf from around his neck and draped it over the terrified horse
’
s eyes like a blindfold. The animal immediately calmed down. He placed a glowing hand on the horse
’
s neck. There was a flash, then the horse shuddered.

They all watched in amazement as the horse
’
s wounds disappeared. Minutes later, the startled horse was back on its feet. Kathir went to it and patted its nose gently.
“
Amazing!
             

“
He
’
s a little worse for wear,
”
said Komu,
“
but he
’
ll be sound enough to ride.
”

Even Tallin was impressed.
“
How did you do it?
”

“
I studied animal healing in my youth,
”
Komu said, rising stiffly.
“
I can heal almost any farm animal. Those skills came in handy when I was younger
—
my parents were sharecroppers, and their animals were always getting hurt, so I learned how to heal them. We had to do work ourselves, you know. That was a long time ago, but I still remember.
”

“
This is all very touching, really,
”
Druknor quipped,
“
but shouldn
’
t we get out of here? More greenskins are sure to be nearby.
”
He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped a blotch of dark blood from his face.
“
For each one we killed, there are five more out there, and they
’
re just waiting to attack us again.
”

Druknor was right, they did need to move. Everyone mounted their horses and dragons, and they were off again.

They rode through the day and into the night and rested only when necessary. After a while, the road became a narrow trail that began to slope upwards. And they soon found themselves just a few leagues from Mount Velik.

The elves and the other dragon riders landed near the horses, and they all gathered together to discuss their strategy. The smoke was even thicker than before, and scorching sparks flew all around them.

Bolrakei coughed and covered her nose with her sleeve.
“
The air smells awful! I can hardly breathe!
”

Tallin nodded.
“
The orcs cleared the forest by slashing trees and burning them. I flew ahead and saw that they
’
ve cleared the entire circumference of the mountain. They
’
ve burned the ground vegetation too. The earth is scorched black for leagues. We won
’
t have any cover as we approach, so we
’
ll be forced to use strong concealment spells for the remainder of the journey. It
’
s too risky to continue in daylight. We should approach at night, since even the strongest concealment spell won
’
t hide our shadows. There
’
s really no other option. We can
’
t afford to be seen, heard, or smelled. All of us will have to work together,
”

Delthen looked shaken.
“
That
’
ll be exhausting! I can
’
t maintain a high-level concealment spell for hours!
”

“
I can,
”
said Tallin.
“
So can the elves. We will help you if your protective shield falters.
”

“
Are we going to stop here for the night?
”
Kathir asked.
“
It doesn
’
t seem safe enough.
”

“
Yes,
“
said Tallin.
“
This is our last chance to sleep, while we still have some forest cover. Everyone
’
s tired. We must eat and rest before we try to enter the mountain. We
’
ll continue on after midnight.
”

Bolrakei looked around nervously.
“
Is it safe to stay here? This area must be crawling with orcs!
”

“
The air is hazy and full of smoke. That will conceal us somewhat,
”
Sela said,
“
There
’
s a secluded cave nearby. I found it while I was patrolling. The entrance is narrow, but the inside is just large enough to hold all of us and the horses. We won
’
t be able to light a fire, but at least everyone will be able to sleep and stay dry. There
’
s no room for the dragons, but they can fly to a safe location further away. We
’
ll tackle the final leg of our journey after we
’
ve rested.
”

Delthen folded his arms.
“
That
’
s all well and good, but what happens after that? The greenskins are guarding every door and every entrance. How are we going to get inside the mountain?
”

It was a practical question and one to which there seemed to be no easy answer. Finally, Mugla spoke up.

“
I know a secret entrance into the mountain,
”
she said quietly.
“
I told Tallin and Sela about it when we started this journey.
”

“
You know a way inside Mount Velik that I don
’
t?
”
Skemtun asked, surprised.

Mugla nodded.
“
This entrance is private and warded, and it can
’
t be seen from the outside. It leads directly into the spellcasters
’
chambers. Hopefully, the wards are still active, and none of the orcs have discovered the chamber. We
’
ll need to leave the dragons outside though. The passage isn
’
t large enough for animals to squeeze through. But they
’
ll be waiting outside if we run into trouble.
”

Amandila
’
s eyes widened.
“
Going into Mount Velik without the protection of the dragons sounds incredibly dangerous.
”

“
There
’
s no other way to get inside without being seen,
”
said Tallin.
“
We
’
ll rest for the night, then we
’
ll need to push on to the southern side of the mountain. That
’
s where the spellcasters
’
entrance is. The dragons will monitor our progress from above. They
’
ll stay within the cloud cover. We will all need to go on horseback from here on. Mugla, Sela, and the elves are lighter than the rest of us
—
they can share a horse.
”

Everyone agreed to this plan, and they soon found their way to the cave that Sela had mentioned. The elves volunteered to keep watch, and everyone else fell into an exhausted sleep. They rose shortly after midnight and saddled the horses in the dark.

It had rained heavily while they were asleep, so the smoky air had cleared some. The mountaintop was visible in the blue moonlight, its snowclad peak rising up into the sky like a glittering white pyramid. The smaller peaks that surrounded it looked unimpressive in comparison.

Skemtun hung back so that he could ride alongside Kathir and talk.

“
All our caverns are going to be destroyed, I just know it,
”
Skemtun whispered dejectedly.
“
Thousands of years of hard work
—
for nothing.
”

“
Don
’
t be so discouraged,
”
said Kathir.

Skemtun sighed.
“
I
’
m trying, but it
’
s hard. I wish there was a way to rout the orcs without damaging our home.
”

“
Just remember all your people waiting for you back at Highport,
”
Kathir said.
“
The people who used to live in this mountain are more important than the mountain itself.
”

“
Aye, you
’
re right.
”
Skemtun scratched his arms absently.
“
I feel strange
—
itchy all over.
”