Chapter 17
The Year of Wild Magic
(1372 DR)
Death stalked the cavern.
Taen could see it clearly in the newborn light-razor-sharp teeth, a powerful, scaled hide, and a hideous cartilaginous tail that whipped around the confines of the high-ceilinged cave. It moved slowly, its broad, ridged head casting from side to side, peering down at the party with burning orange eyes. The creature's nostrils flared, sucking the fetid odor of the cave in with short snuffs.
The half-elf moved slowly, careful not to spook the beast. He watched as the creature tracked his movements, its tail weaving slowly, undulating like a charmed serpent above its head. When Taen caught sight of the barbed stinger gleaming wetly in the arcane light, he let out a curse.
"Wyvern," Roberc whispered. "Very dangerous." Were they not in such a precarious situation, Taen would have laughed at the fighter's all-too-unnecessary comment. Though not as massive as their draconic cousins, and quite a bit more dull witted, wyverns were powerful beasts whose massive teeth and razor-sharp claws could easily eviscerate the best-armored opponent. Its poison-tipped tail, however, presented the clearest danger to them all. Assassins all across Faerun coveted the dread creature's poison; it could kill a human in mere heartbeats.
The half-elf glanced around at his companions. Borovazk stood with axe and warhammer held steady. Taen watched as he tracked the wyvern's movements, obviously looking for a vulnerable spot in the massive beast's thick brown-scaled armor. Roberc had already dismounted and stood easily by the half-elf's side, his sword and shield ready. Marissa stood behind them, raising the Staff of the Red Tree in the air. Above them in the darkness of the cavern's heights, Rusella flapped noisily as she circled the site of impending battle.
The wyvern stopped moving and hissed again, the high-pitched noise reverberated in the massive chamber, echoing and folding in upon itself, sounding to Taen's ears like the screams of a thousand children.
"Ready," he whispered to his companions. When they all nodded, he continued. "Wait for my signal." Carefully, he reached into his belt pouch.
"Now!" he shouted and flung out his hand. Light bloomed once again from the fingertips of the half-elf's hand, this time leaping from his outstretched fingers to the creature's eyes.
With a mighty hiss, the wyvern reared up on its hind legs, unfurling nearly fifty feet of leathery, cracked wings and shaking its head to dislodge the glowing ball of illumination that pulsated between its eyes. At that moment, Borovazk let out a deep-throated cry and sprang forward. His gleaming axe cut deep into the beast's scaled hide, unleashing a flow of steaming blood that pulsed hotly from the wound, spraying him with its dark, crimson hue. The explosion of fluid did little to slow the ranger's attacks. The Rashemi gave another cry and brought the solid weight of his warhammer down upon the wyvern's left hind leg. The sound of splintering bone echoed in the cavern, soon overpowered by the beast's screaming hiss.
Not wasting any time, Roberc barreled toward the creature, whirling his short sword in a deadly arc. His first cut rebounded off the wyvern's hardened scales, but the second pierced the creature's armored hide and parted the soft skin underneath, puncturing muscle and tissue.
Though blinded, the wyvern lashed out with a sweep of its massive head. Powerful jaws snapped sharp-edged teeth mere handspans above Borovazk's head. The now-chanting ranger ducked belatedly beneath the attack, as if just realizing his danger. Taen would have called out a warning, but the wyvern's powerful tail struck downward, forcing the half-elf to skitter backward; it struck the very stone where he had just been standing with a shower of earth and pebbles.
"Are you all right?" Marissa called out.
Taen stumbled to his feet and nodded affirmatively. The half-elf knew that his light spell wouldn't hold for much longer. If they had any chance of emerging from this battle alive, they would have to finish off the wyvern fast.
Just then, the beast shifted its body, turning quickly to its left. The sudden movement caught its attackers by surprise, and Taen watched in horror as both Borovazk and Roberc fell beneath the shifting bulk of the wyvern's torso. Still blinded, it extended its wounded left leg slightly, as if searching for its attackers.
Borovazk rolled to his feet with surprising speed, avoiding the taloned claws of the wyvern. Roberc, however, couldn't quite escape. Within a heartbeat, the creature had him pinned beneath the wicked curve of its talon. The wyvern's tail rose up for a final strike.
With a ragged cry of denial, Marissa lifted her staff and cried out a prayer. Instantly, a whirling column of flame appeared above the wyvern's head and fell upon it like burning rain. The beast gave a long, bellowing hiss of pain and beat its scarred and burning wings, carrying it out of the divine flames.
Freed from the pinning talon, Roberc rolled out from beneath the massive form of the wyvern and returned to the battle. He gave a quick wave to signal his condition then advanced on the monster.
Seeing the light spell almost completely gone, Taen reached into his pouch and pulled out a small clump of fur. Grasping a thin glass rod in his other hand, the half-elf chanted the ancient words to a spell. As the power swelled and grew within him, he pointed the rod at the retreating wyvern. A bright flash of blue-white light erupted from the glass as a bolt of ragged electrical energy sped toward the beast. It struck the wyvern with a sizzling burst of power. Small tendrils of electricity spattered and arced across the length of the wyvern's dark brown torso; it shuddered briefly beneath the force of the spell before falling to one knee.
The odor of burned flesh filled the cavern. Taen nearly gagged from the acrid stench, but he pressed on. The wyvern hissed once more, fanning its giant wings in a furious fashion. Dirt and small pebbles flew up from the cavern floor, tossed wildly by the force from the beast's buffeting wings. The storm of debris stung eyes and skin, making it difficult for Taen to track his enemy's movements in the shadowy cave. It grew in intensity, fueled by the wyvern's bestial rage, the endless slapping of its wings against the dank cavern air.
The half-elf squinted against the assault, peering into the dust-filled cave. In the swirling chaos of the turbulent atmosphere, he could barely make out the shadowy bulk of the wyvern, moving to the right.
"Can you see it?" Taen called out to his companions. A chorus of voices exclaimed their frustration. "It's moving toward the right rear wall of the cave," he shouted.
"Borovazk see," the ranger returned the shout and charged toward the brown-scaled beast.
The triumphant ringing in his voice faded, soon replaced by a breathless curse. Taen ran toward the Rashemi and let out his own string of invectives. Standing to either side of the wounded beast were two smaller wyverns, their red eyes whirling in obvious agitation. Before them lay the half-eaten carcasses of a thick-furred brown bear and two unclad humans. Blood and gobbets of flesh hung loosely from their gaping, sharp-toothed jaws.
Taen had little time to process the presence of the two dead humans, as the largest wyvern took that moment to still its wings and pounce forward. Still moving forward by the force of his own momentum, Borovazk could do little except swipe at the creature's ridged head with his double-bladed axe. The wild swing struck the wyvern at an angle and bounced harmlessly off its thick scales. Untroubled by its attacker, the beast struck out and clamped its jaws down upon the ranger's shoulder. Sparks flew as the wyvern's teeth scraped across the Rashemi's chain mail. Borovazk grunted loudly as the creature's bite ripped through his armor, tearing at the unprotected flesh beneath.