Chapter 9: Rain of Fire
Coming back into consciousness brought nothing but pain to Gobber. Groaning, he placed his good hand against his throbbing head, only to wince as he felt the bruise that had spread across the side of his face. Opening his eyes, Gobber blinked a few times to clear them before he glanced around.
It took Gobber a few moments to understand that he was no longer in the tavern. Pushing himself up into a seated position, Gobber realized he had been laying on a cold, stone floor. Looking around, Gobber saw that he was in a relatively small room, with stone walls and a wooden ceiling. The room had been further sectioned off into cells with iron bars that ran from floor to ceiling. Gobber currently sat in one of those cells, which had no furnishings besides a straw mat covered with a threadbare blanket and a dirty iron bucket sitting in the corner.
Glancing to his side, Gobber jumped in surprise as the Vendal girl suddenly threw herself at the Viking, slamming into the metal bars that separated them and sticking her arms into his cell, clawing wildly at the air just in front of Gobber's face. Letting out a cry of alarm, Gobber stumbled back to his feet and moved as far away from the Vendal girl as the cell would allow, placing his back against the metal bars in the process.
Looking at the adjoining cell, Gobber could see that the Vendal girl and the old man were sharing it, with the old man sitting on a straw mat while the girl continued to try and get to Gobber.
"Well, look who finally decided tae wake up," a voice said, grabbing Gobber's attention.
Looking out of his cell, Gobber found Will, Boyd and Andra seated in wooden chairs along one wall. While Andra's gaze was focused on the Vendal girl and Boyd was staring at nothing in particular, Will was glaring directly at Gobber with his arms crossed over his chest.
"This is a right mess ye've made, Gobber," Will said sternly.
"Aye, an' it's good tae see ye too, m'lord," Gobber grumbled as he moved towards the front of his cell, "An' yes, Ah'm fine, thanks fer askin'."
"This is serious, Gobber," Will admonished, "Ye knew how precarious thin's were fer ye 'ere an' ye went an' picked a bar fight with a bunch o' villagers? Whit were ye thinkin'!?"
"Ah was thinkin' 'at Ah cudnae jist stand by an' let 'at bastard Balfour beat his apprentice!" Gobber snapped, his expression turning angry, "Ye wud hae daene th' same thin' if ye had been there!"
"'At's probably true," Will agreed with a sigh, his anger bleeding out of his features, "But th' fact o' th' matter is 'at ye've managed tae land yerself in some hot water."
"Why?" Gobber questioned, "Everyane saw whit happened. How did Ah end up as th' ane in a cell?"
"Maudie told us whit happened," Will stated with a nod, "But most o' th' townsfolk are singin' a different tune or aren't sayin' anythin' at all."
"Well, isn't 'at jist typical?" Gobber asked with an annoyed groan.
"It's certainly nae ideal," Will agreed with a sigh, "It'll be difficult tae track down this other dragon with ye locked up in 'ere."
"Is there anythin' ye can dae?" Gobber questioned, "Ye are th' lord's son, after all."
"There are saeme strings Ah can try an' pull, but it's nae like Ah can jist order Malcolm tae release ye," Will explained.
"Why nae?" Gobber inquired.
"Because we're all on thin ice with th' village as it is, whit with bringin' a dragon an' a pair o' Vendal intae their midsts," Will elaborated, "If Ah gae orderin' yer release, we cud end up with an angry mob on our hands, regardless o' if Ah'm th' lord's son or nae."
"Beautiful," Gobber stated sarcastically as he leaned against the front of his cell, "Ah haenae even been in ma mother's homeland a week an' Ah've already managed tae get myself locked up."
"Cud be worse," Boyd observed as he continued not looking at anything in particular, "They cud hae hung ye from th' rafters o' th' tavern an' been daene with it."
Gobber pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration as Will slowly turned his head to glare at Boyd.
"Thank ye fer puttin' it intae perspective fer me, Boyd," Gobber sighed.
"Ye're welcome," Boyd replied obliviously.
Shaking his head, Gobber turned his attention back to Will.
"How's Sheamus?" Gobber questioned.
"Th' apprentice?" Will asked in turn, to which Gobber nodded, "He's alright. Ah had someone check him out an' they said he shud heal up fine."
"Well, 'at's saemethin' at least," Gobber commented with a sigh, "An' Maudie?"
"She's worried saemethin' fierce aboot ye," Will answered, "But all in all, she's alright."
"Well, guess there's nae much else fer me tae dae right now then," Gobber said as he leaned against the wall of his cell, "How has yer night been gaein', lads?"
"Much less excitin' than yers, all thin's considered," Will replied with a sigh as he leaned back in his chair, and gestured at the Vendal prisoners, "We've been cooped up in 'ere all evenin', tryin' tae get saeme infermation oot o' our guests."
"Hae ye been able tae get anythin' oot o' them?" Gobber inquired.
"Nae a word," Will answered, "Literally, Ah haenae understood a word either o' them hae said."
As if on cue, the young woman pushed herself against the front of her cell and began screaming at Will with a rapid fire assault of the Vendal tongue.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah!" Will shouted over the young woman as he waved his hand dismissively at her, "Keep talkin', lassie. Ye're jist wastin' yer breath. Nae ane 'ere can understand a word ye're saying!"
And then Andra said something that clearly, if hesitantly, was in the Vendal tongue.
A dead silence fell over the room as everyone, including the two Vendal, turned to look at Andra in shock. Slowly, Will's shock turned to confusion.
"Whit th' hell was 'at!?" Will demanded.
"Ah'm pretty sure 'at was Vendal," Boyd answered.
"Ah know it was bloody Vendal!" Will exclaimed while swatting Boyd on the shoulder, "Since when daes Andra speak it!?"
Andra mumbled something in reply, causing Will's expression to grow even more bewildered.
"Whit dae ye mean, 'ye listened'!?" Will spat in bafflement, "'At's nae how 'at works!"
"Andra has always had an ear fer languages," Boyd stated, "He's also quite good at speakin' Imperial."
Will glared at Boyd and looked like he was ready to say something else when the Vendal girl began chattering in her native tongue. Andra looked at her intently, listening to every word she said. While he couldn't understand what was being said, Gobber watched the girl as she spoke, watching as she gestured emphatically at Andra, her gaze completely focused on on the lordling. Eventually, she stopped and Gobber turned his gaze towards Andra.
"Whit did she say?" Gobber questioned.
Andra replied with a long sting of mumbled words and phrase, to which Gobber replied with attentive nods. Once Andra was finished, Gobber turned his attention towards Boyd.
"Whit did he say?" Gobber asked.
"He said 'at she said she needed his help tae get oot o' 'ere," Boyd explained, "She needs tae get her an' th' auld man back tae their tribe."
"Ask her whit they're daein' in th' Highlands," Will requested, "Is this saeme kind o' invasion?"
Andra looked hesitant before saying something to the girl in Vendal. The girl groaned in frustration, before replying, which Andra translated for them.
"He says 'at she says it's nae any kind o' invasion," Boyd said, "Th' Vendal we saw today are th' remnants o' th' anes who were left behind durin' th' Highlands' war with 'em."
"Left behind?" Gobber questioned.
After listening to a quick back and forth between Andra and the girl, Boyd turned his attention back to Will and Gobber.
"She says 'at when th' Vendal retreated after losin' th' war, nae all o' 'em made it oot," Boyd explained, "Mor'du didnae bother tae wait around tae get all o' his people ontae his ships, sae saeme o' 'em gaet left behind."
"Sae they've been….what?" Gobber questioned in confusion, "Just hidin' oot in th' wilderness?"
After a quick translation, the Vendal girl replied with what was obviously a yes, though that didn't stop both Andra and Boyd from translating anyway.
"How could a group o' Vendal jist be livin' in th' Highlands withoot anyane noticin'?" Gobber asked as he leaned against the bars of his cell.
"The Highlands are a big place," Will answered with a shrug, "There's a lot o' untamed wilderness oot there. Plenty o' places tae hide. Sae, aye, Ah can believe it."
"Okay, well, Ah guess th' next question is why they were lurkin' 'round th' farm this mornin'," Gobber stated.
Nodding in reply, Andra turned his attention back towards the Vendal girl and translated the question. After a pause, she answered and the translation filtered back to them through Boyd.
"She says 'at her tribe has been havin' a hard time huntin' an' foragin' fer enough food as o' late," Boyd explained, "Sae saeme o' 'em snuck up tae th' farm a few nights ago tae steal saeme vegetables. 'At's when th' dragon attacked."
Gobber blinked in surprise at this.
"Wait," Gobber spoke up, bringing everyone's attention to him, "Th' dragon attacked while they were stealin' from th' farm?"
"'At's whit she said," Boyd replied with a shrug.
"Has she seen this dragon afore?" Gobber asked.
After watching a few moments of back and forth between Andra and the Vendal girl, Boyd turned his attention back to Gobber.
"She says 'at her tribe had spotted a dragon followin' 'em fer th' last few days," Boyd answered, "Always from afar, but always circlin' overhead."
Gobber's eyes narrowed at this.
"Wait, are ye sayin' 'at this dragon has been followin' yer tribe?" Will questioned in surprise.
Andra looked like he was going to translate what Will had said, but stopped as he saw Gobber raise his good hand.
"Whit did th' dragon look like?" Gobber asked.
Gobber drummed his fingers nervously against the bars of his cell as he waited for the conversation between Andra and the Vendal girl to end.
"She says 'at it was a big dragon," Boyd said after Andra finished speaking to him, "Bigger than most at least. She says it's th' kind 'at has two legs, an' wings instead o' arms, like a bird. She says it had a club tail an' big, crooked horns."
"What color was it?" Gobber questioned as he gripped one of his cell bars tightly, something that made Will notice the older man's agitation.
"White," Boyd answered after a moment.
"White like bone," Gobber whispered as his eyes went wide.
"Gobber, whit is it?" Will questioned as he rose to his feet, looking at the older man with concern.
"Boneknapper," Gobber muttered in reply, his mind still trying to process the realization he had just come to.
"What?" Will asked, a look of confusion on his face.
"It's a bloody Boneknapper!" Gobber hissed as he snapped his gaze towards Will.
Before Will could ask anything further, a thunderous roar ripped through the air somewhere above the building, drawing everyone's attention upwards. This was followed by the muffled sound of screams from outside building.
"By th' Hammer o' Thor," Gobber whispered in horror, "It's 'ere."
"Come on, lads!" Will shouted, turning towards Andra and Boyd as the two hopped to their feet, "We hae tae-"
A loud whoosh cut off Will's words before the roof suddenly burst into flames. The group looked up in silent alarm for a moment before the Vendal girl began screaming in fear as the old man hopped to his feet and grasped the bars of the cell. Looking around wildly for a moment, Andra finally spotted a ring of iron keys hanging from a wooden peg attached to the wall nearby. Grabbing the keys, Andra quickly ran over and unlocked Gobber's cell, allowing the Viking to quickly hobble out.
"We've gae tae get oot o' 'ere!" Will cried as the fire spread to the wooden rafters supporting the roof.
As the group began making their way towards the exit, the Vendal girl's screams caught Andra's attention and he turned back to look at her, finding the girl reaching towards him desperately through the bars of her cell, her eyes wide with fear. Andra stared at her for a moment, before glancing up at the burning rafters, which had already begun to groan ominously. Then, squaring his shoulders, Andra turned his attention towards the Vendal and rushed over, keys at the ready.
Unlocking the door, Andra held it open and allowed the old man to pass. When the Vendal girl moved to follow, a thunderous crack came from directly above them and when Andra looked up, he saw one of the rafters had snapped and a large chunk was tumbling down towards the girl. As the Vendal girl let out a scream of fear, Andra stepped forward and shoved her out of the way before catching the falling piece of timber.
As the Vendal girl picked herself up off the floor, she looked at Andra in surprise as he held the burning timber on his shoulders, the young man crying out in pain as the flames began to lick at his exposed hands. Grunting with effort, Andra dropped the timber to the side and looked down at his raw, red hands. Andra was pulled out of his thoughts as the Vendal girl ran up and grabbed his arm, pulling him towards the exit while shouting at him in her tongue. Quickly the two made their way through the burning building and stumbled out onto the street.
Reunited with the others, the group looked at the burning jailhouse with wide eyes before the building collapsed in on itself with a tremendous crash, sending cinders and smoke flying into the night sky.
Quickly, the group's attention was pulled away from the burning jailhouse as a thunderous roar ripped through the air. Turning their attention towards it, the group spotted a large shadow moving across the starlit sky. A moment later, a large gout of flame spewed out of the shadow down at the village, lighting another building on fire and sending people scrambling away. By the light of these flames, Gobber was able to make out what the dragon looked like.
As the Vendal girl had said, the dragon was indeed a massive beast, larger than a Monstrous Nightmare with a build similar to that of a Deadly Nadder, though it's tail ended in a bulbous club and a pair of twisting horns grew from its head. The dragon was indeed skeletal white in color, though Gobber could see that this was not because of the dragon's actual coloration, but because it wore a piecemeal set of armor made from various bits of bone.
"Is 'at…." Will began to say, watching with horror as the dragon rose back into the night sky.
"A Boneknapper," Gobber confirmed with a look of grin determination as he turned his attention towards Will, "Lad, we need tae get th' townsfolk oot o' 'ere!"
"Whit aboot th' dragon!?" Will replied, pointing at the beast in question as it circled above them.
"Th' dragon caught us with our pants down," Gobber explained quickly, "We wonae be able tae dae anythin' against a beast like 'at until we regroup an' think o' a strategy. An' we cannae dae 'at while th' whole village is in danger!"
Will seemed to think over Gobber's words of a moment before giving a determined nod.
"Ye're right," Will said before he turned his attention to Boyd and Andra, "Lads, grab any o' our fightin' men ye can find an' hae 'em start leadin' th' rest…."
Will trailed off as he looked at Andra in confusion.
"Where'd those bloody Vendal gae!?" Will demanded.
Confused, Andra looked to the side, only to find, to his surprise, that the Vendal girl and the old man had disappeared.
"Och, ferget aboot 'em, Andra," Will said with a sigh as Andra began looking around wildly for the Vendal, "We've gae bigger problems tae deal with! Come on!"
With that, the trio of lordlings turned and began running through the burning town. Gobber moved to follow them, but stopped when he heard a bellowing roar echo through the town, different in pitch to the Boneknapper's own call.
"Th' Hotburple," Gobber whispered in realization, before he changed direction and began racing towards the village smithy as fast as his pegleg could carry him.
A short time later, Gobber reached the smithy, which he saw to his horror was on fire. As he approached the smithy, the Hotburple's roars grew louder, accompanied by the sound of metal clanging against metal and a person's grunts of effort. Hustling around the corner of the smithy, Gobber found Sheamus desperately working to free the dragon from the chains that were binding it.
"Sheamus!" Gobber exclaimed, his eyes widening in surprise as he saw the boy, "Whit th' bloody Hel are ye daein'!?"
"Master Gobber!" Sheamus shouted back as he lifted his head to look at Gobber with wide, frightened eyes, a heavy iron hammer in his hand, "De dragon! Oi-Oi couldn't leave him to die!"
"Dragon's are fireproof, lad!" Gobber argued, "He'll be fine!"
At that point, there was a great crash as part of the smithy collapsed in on itself and the rest of the building leaned to the side so it was looming over them, causing the Hotburple to groan with terror.
"But dey're not crush proof!" Sheamus replied as he turned his attention back to one of the chains and began whacking it with the hammer, "Oi've almost got-"
Sheamus was interrupted as part of the smithy roof near them collapsed, sending bits of wood flying through the air, one of which struck Sheamus on the hand, causing him to cry out in pain and drop his hammer.
"Are ye alright, lad!?" Gobber questioned as he hurried over to Sheamus' side.
"Oi tink so," Sheamus said through gritted teeth as he showed Gobber the long sliver of wood that was sticking out of the back of his hand. Grabbing it with his other hand, Sheamus yanked out the sliver of wood with a grunt and tossed it to the side, before covering the wound with his hand to staunch the bleeding.
"Get oot o' 'ere, lad," Gobber said, gesturing away from the smithy with his head, "Ah daenae need tae worry aboot ye bleedin' oot while this place burns doon."
"But what about de dragon!?" Sheamus questioned as he gestured towards the Hotburple.
"Ah'll handle th' dragon!" Gobber replied before pointing emphatically away from the smithy, "Now, get gaein'!"
Sheamus looked at Gobber hesitantly for a moment before nodding and hurrying away. Gobber watched him leave for a moment before scooping the hammer off the ground and turning his attention to the dragon.
"Okay, ye big grump," Gobber said as the dragon looked up at him with pleading eyes, "Let's get ye oot o' 'ere."
With that, Gobber began hammering on the chains holding the dragon, sweat forming on his brow and his arms as the fire consuming the smithy drew ever closer. Then, with a grunt of exertion, Gobber slammed the hammer down on the chain for a final time, the metal links snapping with a sharp clang. Immediately noticing the slack of the now broken chain, the dragon rose to its feet, using its new leverage to pull the pitons holding the other chain down free from the ground in a shower of dirt. Roaring in triumph, the dragon beat its wings and lifted into the air, quickly rising into the smoke-filled night sky.
"Ye're welcome!" Gobber called after the dragon before shaking his head and tossing the hammer onto the ground. As another part of the smithy collapsed and was consumed by flames, Gobber quickly hurried away from the structure, sparing one last glance towards the sky, but saw no sign of either the Hotburple or the Boneknapper through the smoke cloud hanging over the burning village.
A few minutes later, Gobber reached the point where the villagers had gathered on a small hill overlooking the village. Gobber spared a moment to look around at the frightened and soot-stained faces of the villagers before he spotted Maudie hustling over to him.
"Gobber!" Maudie exclaimed as she ran over and threw her arms around the Viking's neck, "Ah was sae worried aboot ye!"
"An' Ah ye," Gobber replied as he hugged her back, "Ah'm happy tae see ye made it oot alright."
"Whit happened?" Maudie questioned as she pulled back, "Why did 'at dragon attack the village?"
""At's what Ah'd like tae know too" Will said as he walked up to them with Boyd and Andra in tow, "Maybe ye can tell me whit th' Hel we're dealin' with, Gobber."
"Like Ah said, it's a Boneknapper," Gobber replied as he scratched his chin, "Big, tough, breathes fire, an' has a nasty old club tail."
"Why dae they call it a Boneknapper?" Boyd questioned as he and Andra joined them.
"Well, because unlike other dragons, Boneknappers daenae grow scales," Gobber explained, "They're fleshy like ye an' me. Sae, tae make up fer 'at, they gather bones, usually dragon bones but others will dae too, an' essentially fashion suits o' armor oot o' 'em."
"Well, 'at's morbid," Maudie observed.
"Dae ye know why it wud attack a village?" Will questioned.
"Normally, a lone dragon wudnae pull saemethin' as dangerous as attackin' a human settlement, an' Ah didnae see it tryin' tae take any food," Gobber replied with a thoughtful expression, "But Ah've heard stories 'boot Boneknappers becomin' sae obsessed with completin' their armors 'at when they find a piece 'at perfectly fits it, they're willin' tae gae tae th' ends o' th' Earth in order tae get it.
"But whit daes 'at hae tae dae with th' village?" Will questioned.
"It's th' Vendal," Boyd said, causing everyone to turn their attentions towards him.
"Whit?" Will asked in confusion, "Whit are ye on aboot, Boyd?"
"Th' Vendal," Boyd repeated, "Th' auld man, he had a staff with a bunch o' bones on it."
A look of shock passed over Will and Andra's features as they digested Boyd's words.
"Think aboot it," Boyd went on, "Th' Vendal gae tae th' farm, th' dragon burns down th' farm. Th' Vendal gae tae town, th' dragon burns down th' town. It's followin' 'em, jist like th' Vendal girl said."
"Ma thoughts exactly, Boyd," Gobber agreed as he pointed a finger at the lordling, "Th' Boneknapper is huntin' 'at auld man. It wants ane o' th' bones on his staff."
"Sun above," Maudie whispered in horror, "Whit shud we dae?"
"Ah think that's gaein' tae hae tae wait, Maudie," Will said wearily as he looked at something past Gobber, "Because Ah think we've gaet more immediate problems tae deal with."
"Ye!" a voice roared from behind Gobber, "This is all ye're fault, ye Vikin' bastard!"
Turning towards the voice, Gobber saw Balfour bearing down on him, rage etched across his features and dozen equally furious villagers following behind him.
"Oh boy," Gobber whispered as his eyes went wide.
A/N: Another fun chapter here. Hope you guys liked it! As always, feedback and critiques are always welcome, so please review! Later!