“I guess so,” Zollin said. “But from the way they burned and pillaged their way through Falxis, I’m not sure I’d want them turned loose anywhere near me.”
“Soldiers are all the same,” Ornak said. “Been that way forever, I suppose. To the victor goes the spoils-that’s the old saying, anyway. I’m just grateful we’re out of their way.”
“Well, you’ve given us a lot to talk about on the road,” Zollin said, sliding another silver mark toward the man.”
“No hurry, is there?” Ornak said. “You can have all you want to eat and drink.”
“We’ve had our fill for today. Delicious drink though,” Zollin said, draining the last of his spiced coconut milk.
“Come back and visit us on your way back up the coast,” Ornak said, taking them to be traders. “We’re always open and you’re always welcome here.”
“Thank you,” Zollin said.
He and Eustice left the tavern and climbed into their saddles. Zollin had enjoyed the drinks, but he was anxious to get on the road again. He wanted to find Brianna and see if what the tavern owner had told him was true. If King Oveer had failed to stop the invading army, there was nothing that would stop them from laying siege to the Grand City. Zollin was just wondering if that would help him or hurt him in his quest to stop Offendorl and the Torr when he heard a familiar growl.
The horses, suddenly nervous, started backing away from the grove of palm trees ahead.
“It’s okay,” Zollin said, trying to calm his horse and Eustice, who suddenly looked worried. “I think it’s Brianna.”
He handed the reins of his horse over to Eustice and told him to wait. He then walked slowly toward the grove of trees. There were large bushy plants growing around the base of the trees, which were tall and skinny. The sound of the ocean waves lapping against the shore obscured all other sound. Zollin let his magic flow into the trees and was rewarded to find the dragons. He also felt Brianna’s pain and he bolted forward.
“How bad is she?” he said in a loud voice as he pushed his way past the shrubs. The light inside the grove of trees was mottled and Zollin was suddenly aware of the strong, musky scent of the dragons.
A low growl was the only reply, but he saw Brianna lying on the sand, her body covered with palm fronds. Her skin was pale and she was trembling. Zollin hurried over, ignoring the massive heads of the dragons as they followed her. He noticed in the back of his mind that there were only four dragons with Brianna, and that the smallest one seemed to be sleeping. He assumed the fifth was on watch somewhere, perhaps even high overhead, but those concerns were far from his mind as he knelt beside Brianna.
Zollin started to remove the palm fronds that covered her, but Selix, the great golden dragon, hissed a warning, lowering its massive head in front of Zollin and baring its teeth. Zollin let the branches go, holding up his hands.
“I only want to help her,” he said. “Thank you for bringing her to me.”
He was careful not to touch anything but her hand as he let his magic flood into her and immediately noticed the shoulder that was out of its socket. It was the same shoulder she had injured before in Felson when she had been accosted in the streets. He nudged it gently with his magic. In most cases, popping the shoulder back into place was a strenuous and painful ordeal, but because he sensed exactly what needed to be done to move the shoulder back into its socket, he could do it with a minimum of pain or discomfort. The shoulder slipped back into place easily enough, but the muscles and tissues around it were swollen. Zollin took his time removing the fluid from the tissues until everything seemed normal. Brianna’s bones seemed lighter and Zollin took his time inspecting her body. It had changed since she had found her powers. There was less fat and more muscle tissue, although it wasn’t dense like he expected. There was space between the fibers, almost like a loosely woven garment.
Her bones were different too. More porous and even flexible, but incredibly strong at the same time. He couldn’t find anything else wrong with her, but she was still sleeping. He guessed she probably needed time to sleep and recover, but he needed to make sure she was alright.
He shook her softly and watched as her eyes fluttered open.
“Zollin,” she said. “I’m glad to see you.”
“Me too,” he said, grinning despite his concern. “Are you okay? What happened?”
“Bartoom and the wizard attacked us,” she said, her face growing red and tears streaking from her eyes. “He lured the dragons to him and then tried to kill them. Torc was killed before we escaped.”
The dragons around them growled and moaned. It was a frightening yet incredibly sad sound. Zollin looked up and saw the three big dragons looking at him. Smoke was coming from Ferno’s mouth.
“I’m so sorry,” he said, first to the dragons and then to Brianna. “I’m sorry. I got you into this mess. I should have been with you.”
“No, it isn’t your fault,” Brianna said. “I knew…we all knew it was risky going to the wizard, but we thought we might learn some useful information. Everything just went bad so quickly.”
“At least you’re alright now,” Zollin said. “And you’re safe.” He looked up. “You’re all safe. I won’t let this happen again. I swear I’ll stop Offendorl, if it’s the last thing I do.”
Then suddenly an image appeared in Zollin’s mind. He saw the hulking green dragon battling with him, side by side. It was so vivid and clear he knew it wasn’t just a thought.
“What is it, Zollin?” Brianna asked.
“I’m not sure,” Zollin said, taking a deep breath and then looking up at Ferno. “Did you just do that?”
The dragon nodded and the image flashed into his mind again. “Okay,” Zollin said. “We’ll do it together.”
Chapter 24
King Zorlan had pushed the pursuit and Prince Wilam had been fighting a rear action retreat for almost two days. His men were exhausted, but there was simply no time to rest. If they stopped, they were attacked. First, archers had begun to pick off the stragglers. Then, as night fell on the third day of their retreat, Zorlan’s cavalry charged, catching the rear of Wilam’s column completely off guard. He lost a third of his force, which was barely over half of what he’d started with. They now had around 1,300 men, and more were lost every hour. They could see the enemy troops to their rear, content to push Wilam’s retreating force.
The young prince directed the rear action himself. The rear of the column was mostly the wounded soldiers that still had the strength to keep moving but were slower than their companions and naturally fell to the rear. Wilam moved the few archers he had remaining to the sides of the rear column. He rode his horse, and when the enemy moved forward he blew a war horn that signaled the archers to fan out to either side. They dropped to one knee and fired their arrows before turning and jogging backward again.
Usually the volley of arrows was enough to stop whatever force tried to close the distance between the two armies. They weren’t set on destroying Wilam’s troops, at least not yet. In fact, Wilam doubted that King Zorlan’s main force was even within a day’s march of his troops. But, the Falxisan king had been smart enough to send a band of cavalry and archers to harass their retreat. If they survived the retreat, they would be worn out and exhausted for days. Wilam, his whole body aching and his stomach twisting in knots, rode silently, half turned in his saddle so he could keep a watch on the pursing force.
The Oslan countryside was arid and dusty. There were few farms and fewer villages along the road, most spaced a full day’s walk apart. Food was plentiful throughout Osla because of trade, but most of the land was unfit for farming. Silk production and diamond mining were the chief industries, but those were found south of the Grand City. In the almost barren plains leading to the capital there was no respite from the sun’s heat or the dust that seemed to fill the air, invading Prince Wilam’s nose and mouth. His eyes burned from the dust, and as the day wore on he had trouble even seeing the enemy behind them.