The Tomes Of Magic (26 page)

“Yes, I don’t understand how he did it, but he could move incredibly fast when he was angry.”

“I knew I wasn’t alone. Your husband died today, I could tell. Don’t ask me how, but I know he is dead. He fell at the hands of another one like us.”

“You are certain of this?” Ector asked.

“I have never been more certain in my life. When they began to fight, I could feel a ripple. The Emperor’s death caused an even greater one,” Sev replied.

Cassandra dropped to her knees, tears streaming down her face. Leoth had meant everything to her. The life she lived before meeting him was nothing compared to the years she spent with him. Her dreams of growing old together and having kids and grandkids all fell apart in that moment. He was the last of her true family. His loyalty had been even fiercer than even his skill on the battlefield. She couldn’t help but feel as though she were responsible.
I never should have pushed him to be Emperor
, she thought as she sobbed. A part of her wanted to give up on life, but she knew he would want her to soldier on. Her grief was only matched by her need for revenge. The half-elf had spoken about another who was faster than the wind itself. That was her one clue to her husband’s killer. Before she could pursue the man, she would need to face a dilemma. The elves would only let her go if she denounced her husband.

“I want him dead,” she muttered.

“Denounce the Emperor and you can chase him to the ends of the earth,” Kervos said.

“Cut her loose,” Sev demanded.

“Are you mad? We cannot allow these people to come here to pillage and murder. They must denounce the actions of their so-called Emperor.”

“Her husband’s killer is a dangerous man, more dangerous than the Warlock there. I cannot stand idly by and let him kill again.”

“Then go without her. There is no reason that she needs to be a part of this.”

“No, she deserved to see her husband avenged.”

“He is mine to kill,” Cassandra interrupted the argument.

“The man is far too dangerous. I am not even certain of what I am capable of, how can we possibly know what he is capable of?” Sev asked.

“This is foolish, we should lock her up,” Kervos said.

“No, she travels with me until the culprit is dead.”

*

Thanos approached
Taleveth’s cave with caution. He had no idea if the connection would stay strong after a long period of distance. Everything felt distant as he entered the mouth of the cave. It was like a forgotten part of himself had been found. He immediately realized that the strength of the connection was what made him feel that way. The dragon had become like an extension of himself. Everything had happened so fast that he didn’t even realize what he had missed. There was a chirping sound in the darkness. Flames lit the end of the cavern and he could make out the form of Taleveth. The dragon looked in his direction. Thanos felt a strange rush of emotion as his old friend moved toward him. It was disorienting for a moment. He had forgotten what it felt like to be connected to the ancient dragon. The flames lessened and began to follow the dragon. Thanos smiled when he realized it was Rowles.

“It is good to see the two of you. I have been gone for far too long. We have much work that needs to be done,” the Archwizard said.

Rowles was significantly larger than the last time Thanos had seen him. It wasn’t much of a surprise though, the phoenix had been growing fast since birth. Taleveth seemed to be coming out of a deep slumber. The Archwizard had instructed them to stay out of trouble and he was glad they had listened. He climbed up onto Taleveth’s back and the skeletal dragon launched into the air. Rowles sped up to join them. The trio set their course for the dragon tower and their enemy. Thanos began informing his companions what it was they were up against as well as his plan of attack. The two creatures would free the Wizards and their dragons while Thanos took care of the dragon King. He was unsure that he would be able to beat the powerful opponent, but he knew that he could hold him off long enough for the others to be able to join the fray.

*

Paul pressed his back flat against the pillar as he watched the skeletal dragon appear out of nowhere and land on the tower. Thanos slid off the dragon’s back and threw up his hands. The dragon King made a move to launch off the ground, but ended up crashing back down after only getting a few feet into the air. His rage mounted as the Archwizard imprisoned him in a massive cage made of bones. A phoenix landed next to Paul and began to attack his chains. The skeletal dragon took to the skies and engaged the dragon King’s servants. Two dragons turned their attention from the phoenix to the skeletal dragon. They split off and attacked their new opponent from each direction. Taleveth swatted the first dragon to the ground before twisting and wrapping his tail around the second. He pulled it in closer and grabbed hold of the neck, his massive claws digging into the dragon’s scales. His hind legs touched down on the tower and his claws dug into the stones. Using his tail and legs for extra leverage, the skeletal dragon tore the head off his opponent and let it fall off the edge of the tower. He let out a loud roar as he shoved the rest of the body off the side as well.

“Insolent fools, I shall show you real power!” The dragon King bellowed as he broke through the cage.

He reared back before pouncing toward the skeletal dragon. The two crashed together, tearing at each other with their claws. Taleveth sliced into the dragon King’s wing before breaking free of his opponent’s hold. He took to the air, staying out of reach of the King. Thanos thrust his right hand toward his opponent and a black tentacle surged out and wrapped around the King’s left leg. The Archwizard raised his left hand, causing bone spikes to burst forth from the top of the tower. It dug into the right leg of the dragon. The flesh around the wound began to rot as the dragon King tried to back away. Taleveth surged out of the sky and pounced on the King. He tore at his opponent’s neck, drawing blood. Thanos shot several more tentacles at the dragon King. He followed them up with a massive icicle that tore through the dragon’s wings. The King roared in pain as he crashed to the floor. Taleveth and Thanos both surged forward and continued their assault. The Archwizard created a knife made of bone and thrust it into the dragon’s stomach. His skeletal dragon companion dug his teeth into the King’s neck.

“It ends now!” Rolin yelled as he threw off the shackles that the phoenix had weakened.

The illusion master surged forward, using his magic to create a sword. He leaped forward and grabbed hold of a horn on the dragon King’s head. The beast tried to yank his head away, but the Archwizard was too fast. He plunged his sword in the dragon’s forehead with a triumphant yell. The King roared in pain as Rolin created an icicle in his other hand and thrust it into a spot next to the sword. He jumped back onto the tower spinning to face the dying creature. Thanos and Taleveth both followed suit and backed away from the dragon King. Paul, James, and Janessa joined them as the beast struggled for breath. The death magic master stepped forward to deliver the killing blow, but Rolin stopped him. He stepped back and let the illusion master deliver the finishing blow. Rolin created another magical sword and drove into between the eyes of the dragon King.

“We’ve got company,” Paul said as he stood at the edge of the tower.

“What should we be expecting?” Thanos said as he climbed back onto Taleveth’s back.

“Dragons of all kinds, they are storming the tower.”

Several earth dragons were scaling the tower as their winged brethren took to the skies. The other Wizards mounted their dragons and fanned out to prepare for the attack. Two earth dragons leaped off the tower and grabbed hold of Argos. All three dragons plummeted toward the ground. Paul shot off several fireballs at his opponents, knocking one of the earth dragons away. Thanos raised his arms as Taleveth dropped into a dive. A wave of electricity shot out of the Archwizard and knocked several dragons out of his way. He threw his hands to the side and several vines shot up from the ground and engulfed Argos and the earth dragons. The vines shifted until the air dragon was free. Hanoth flew down alongside Paul’s dragon and fended off several dragons as they ascended to join the other dragon riders. Taleveth joined them and they fought off several more dragons.

“They’ve got numbers,” Rolin said.

“We can take them,” Paul replied.

Janessa shot a stream of water at the incoming dragons. She spread out the flow of water and then increased the flow so that it covered the majority of her enemies. James and Paul followed up her move with blasts of lightning. The lightning jumped from dragon to dragon, using the water to travel faster. Janessa cut off the water before the electricity reached her. Rolin shot out waves of air that pushed back against the dragons, driving them further toward the ground. Thanos raised his arms and vines shot forth from the ground, pulling the dragons down the rest of the way. The five dragon riders left while their enemies were still trapped by the vines. They flew far enough away to not have to worry about their pursuers and then they all landed and dismounted.

“We can’t let those beasts roam free,” James said.

“It is hardly my problem,” Rolin added.

“So that’s it?”

“Yes, I have no stake in this anymore. Let me mourn Melissa,” Rolin replied as he stormed off.

“I have somewhere to be as well,” Paul said as he watched the illusion master mount his dragon.

“Must I do this alone?” James asked.

“My uncle needs my assistance back home,” Janessa answered.

*

James watched as Rolin flew off and Paul followed suit. He stepped forward to stop Janessa, but Thanos stopped him. He sighed as Kimeth lifted off from the ground, leaving just the two Archwizards.
What has happened to all of us?
the fire master asked himself. Thanos placed his hand on James’ shoulder. They looked at each other and nodded. James couldn’t read minds, but he could tell that the death master would assist in clearing out the dragons. He ran his hand along Hanoth’s neck, trying to figure out his options. Thanos had already climbed atop Taleveth and was patiently waiting for James. The fire Archwizard felt strangely weak. Most of the time, he was the one who people came to for assistance. Now, there was nothing he could come up with that could help. It seemed as though the answers were slipping through his fingers.

“Go with your gut, James. I will follow you on this,” Thanos said.

“I’ve got nothing. After everything we’ve gone through, it is hard to plunge into another fight,” James replied.

“This is probably the last thing you want to hear, but we may have to face more war in the near future. I came back with Septimus and an army. They were fighting with the Holy Order and the elves, I believe. Any of the three factions could have won and any of them could be out to get us.”

“And you expect me to rush back to kill those dragons?”

“I do, but I would be mad to expect you to do it without pause. There is nothing wrong with being apprehensive about fighting. It proves that you haven’t changed so much or even that you have changed for the better. You must think it strange to hear this from me.”

“Uncharacteristic or not, I appreciate it,” James said.

“Come, let us teach the dragons a lesson they won’t soon forget.”

“Yes, but we must also give them a chance to surrender. Hanoth has proven to be a just and powerful ally, not all dragons seek to enslave others.”

Thanos nodded and then waited for James to climb atop his dragon. Hanoth and
Taleveth took off and began flying back to the dragon tower. The Archwizards knew that they could be flying to their deaths, but they accepted that possibility.
We can make a difference
, James thought as he prepared himself for the coming battle. The defeat of the dragon King had been a feat straight out of a legend, but their odds were even worse now. It seemed strange that the easier of the two tasks would garner the most fame. James knew that defeating the remaining dragons would be just as important, if not more important. He wondered how many there were in total. Their King had slowly been bringing more and more into the fold after coming into power. He did not discriminate against type, size, or power. James took a deep breath as he saw the winged beasts on the horizon.

“You don’t happen to have an army hidden somewhere, do you?” He asked.

“Just a phoenix, but he is following Rolin,” Thanos answered.

“I thought I had seen one earlier.”

The mass of dragons and their weaker allies spotted the two incoming dragon riders. They surged through the air at the oncoming threat. Their lack of a leader reduced them to a more wild state. They were more dangerous, but less organized. Thanos made the first move. Taleveth dove down and to his right as the Archwizard levitated two boulders into the air. They zoomed toward the first pack of dragons and collided with several enemies. Drakes and wyverns dropped out of the skies as their dragon allies held steady. James instructed Hanoth to follow Taleveth as he shot out a spout of fire from his hands. The two dragons soared in unison as their enemies rushed to catch up with them. Hanoth switched directions and circled underneath the incoming dragons. James used magic to make it look like the dragon was charging the middle of the enemy’s main group. The illusion vanished as jets of flame rushed up from below. Thanos took advantage of the erupting chaos and shot out knives made of bone. The knives struck their targets and began to decay the flesh around the wounds.