Fate of the Forsworn
Chapter 21
Midnight battle (part 2)
Jess held her sword easily at her side, frowning in concentration as Ardepp dismounted Revar. The blue Rider stared at her foe, determination shining in her eyes as she began to walk towards her at a calm, unhurried rate. Behind her, Arareal snarled warning at Revar, as if to remind the male dragon that it was her who had torn out his eye. Revar snarled back, but the pain of his wounds caused him to stop halfway through. Ardepp held her sword out as Jess approached, and began to look afraid. Here was a warrior who would not lie down and accept defeat. With an animalistic yell, the elven Rider flung herself at Jess, slashing at her maniacally. Jess blocked each and every strike with seeming ease, walking slowly towards the elf, her blue sword never in a position it did not need to be in. Ardepp found herself on the back foot against Jess, her hazel eyes slits of fury as she increased the speed of her attacks until it seemed a dozen swords were striking at Jess from various angles simultaneously. Jess ceased moving forward, but remained unscathed in the panicked assault. She swung at Ardepp with her sword, and caught the elf's sword just under the crossguard, keeping her from attacking. Jess's eyes took on an almost glacial calm as she twisted with the weapon and sent the silvery-blue sword flying. Suddenly a deafening roar sounded as Revar lunged unexpectedly at Arareal. The female dragon was taken by surprise as his talons coursed through her side, prompting a yelp of pain. Jess winced as she too felt the searing pain, giving Ardepp the opportunity she needed. Twisting Jess's own sword out of her grip, she brought the pommel down hard on her skull, drawing blood and almost knocking the blue Rider out cold. Resting the tip of the blade on her throat, Ardepp gave a wicked smile.
"I cannot deny you fought well, Jess, but your time has come. Make peace with your human gods now."
A blast of sound, similar to thunder but much louder, sounded from the far end of the roof where Arareal had been fighting Revar. Between the two was a battered and bruised Kyvoster, his posture suggesting he'd just used his peculiar lightning-like attack. Jess took full advantage of the distraction and seized her blade, wresting it free from Ardepp's grip. Hastily taking it in both hands, she delivered a mighty slash with the weapon, severing all the fingers on both of the elf's hands. Ardepp screamed in pain, echoed by Revar's roars, and fell at Jess's feet, her eyes showing true panic now she was unable to wield a weapon. Jess looked down at her foe, indecisive as to whether or not to finish her off, but a sudden weight on her mind decided the issue for her. Ardepp was mentally assaulting her, and already the elf was beginning to erode her defences. Snarling in frustration, Kyvoster began to pour his strength into Jess's defences, enough to keep her mind clear and her choices her own. Arareal charged as Revar made to finish off the hybrid dragon. She lunged for his neck but only tore off a number of scales. Ducking back, Kyvoster bared his fangs and bit deep into the silvery-blue dragon's exposed neck, ripping through the jugular. Revar's eyes flashed as he attempted to maul the younger dragon, but the blood pooling in his lungs muddied his mind, and it was mere seconds before the older dragon collapsed and moved no more. Ardepp gave a scream of pure rage and began to pour all her energy into a titanic explosion that would eliminate her foes. Without giving her the chance, Jess thrusted with her sword, slaying the elven Rider. The unspoken spell flickered and died as Ardepp collapsed to the floor, her blood painting the stones red. Jess took two steps back before falling to her knees. Arareal growled at Kyvoster, who took the hint and flew from the keep roof as the cyan dragoness approached her stricken Rider.
You did what you had to do, Jess. Had she unleashed her spell, I doubt even an Eldunari's magic would have shielded us.
Jess shook her head and got up.
"It's just, I know Ardepp was a traitor who has slain nine members of our order, but killing another Rider was difficult at best."
If we leave now, we could recuperate from our grief in seclusion.
Jess blinked as she looked at her dragon.
"We could?"
Yes. You know full well I will always be at your side to support you, my Rider. Out of all the people in Alagaesia, I chose you to bond with, did I not?
Jess gave a wan smile as she stood up.
"We'll see how the others have managed first. Kyvoster at least seemed badly hurt."
Arareal turned to let her Rider climb onto her back.
Niev's dragon is wounded in body and soul, and has not gone back to the others.
Sure enough, Niev's red dragon was speeding away from Gil'ead at a speed only Arareal could hope to outpace. Jess shook her head sadly.
"He needs time to heal. We should go to everyone else first."
Arareal flew her Rider down to the churned-up battlefield. Of all the combatants, it was hard to say whether Caryn or Miremel was more injured. Niev was lacking any physical injuries, and at his side was the white Eldunari of Ty'roc. When she'd flown to fetch her Rider, Jess had brought the Eldunari with her, healed her dragon, and then teleported it to Niev. The male Rider was knelt over Caryn, shaking as he wept. Sarrarra was nuzzling him, making a soft crooning noise as she looked at her critically wounded Rider. Caryn was still bleeding at a frightening rate. Arareal landed nearby, enought to prompt a look up from Niev. Jess dismounted and approached. Niev spoke in a hoarse voice.
"You should have been the leader of this attack group, Jess. Look at the mess from me taking charge."
Jess frowned and slapped the older Rider. Niev recoiled but did not move otherwise. Rellith, Charl and Arisu all looked over at them as Jess spoke sternly to him.
"YOU did none of this. Ardepp's and Revar's strengths were known to us, just as the powers of those strange beasts you all fought were unknown to you. None of us were fully prepared for the horrific strength they had. These things happen, Niev. Ardepp and Revar have both been slain, and none of us perished."
Niev indicated Caryn, who was unmoving.
"Tell that to Caryn."
Jess shook her head and put one bare hand on Ty'roc's Eldunari. The old dragon within twitched and touched her mind, racing through the emotions in it before channeling a great deal of raw energy into her. She spoke in the Ancient Language, binding together her wounds and healing her. For a while, Caryn did not so much as move. Finally, the bleeding ceased and the youngest of the assembled Riders twitched and opened her yellow eyes. She stretched and yawned, and tried her utmost to get up, but Niev held her down, his words still garbled from his grief.
"Tr-try and lie still, Caryn. You took one hell of a thrashing."
Caryn gave a weak smile as Jess moved to heal Sarrarra's wounds with Ty'roc's Eldunari.
"I'm alright, seriously. It's you who's aching, Niev, I can tell."
Niev gave a shrug as Sarrarra was healed.
"Kyvoster has severed his mental bond with me, but I still know how he feels. Hearing Ardepp's screams when he killed Revar, no doubt feeling a dragon die and their bond breaking like brittle glass. Kyvoster is wounded inside, I can't begin to describe it. He wants both my companionship and total solitude, and I can only give him one or the other. I know where he's likely to be, but going after him may not be wise right now."
Caryn sat up and looked at Niev long and hard.
"Niev, you and Kyvoster are bonded, just as all of us here are with our dragons and our Riders. You must go to him. I can understand that he's miserable, and rightly so, but you need him just as much as he needs you. Alone, his grief, sorrow and anger will only swell, but with you by his side, he will heal much faster."
Niev sighed and got to his feet. Sarrarra barred his way, snarling as her mind touched his.
I will take you to Kyvoster, Niev. Of us all here beside you, he shares the deepest bond with me.
The male Rider nodded and thanked both Caryn and Sarrarra. He said his farewells to his companions, mounted the yellow dragon, and was soon lost to sight as Sarrarra followed his thoughts to where Kyvoster was. Jess looked up as he vanished, gave a sigh, and moved on to helping Arisu to heal. By now it was early morning, and Rellith, Charl, Caryn, Karra and Arareal were taking the time to rest. Nerene was doing her utmost to help Jess heal Arisu, as she had received little in the way of wounds. Miremel had refused treatment for her wounds and was hunting for everyone far from Gil'ead. A muted throbbing noise came over the air to them all, unmistakably that of a flying dragon. Jess looked up to see none other than Kialandi approaching on her massive dragon, larger even than Miremel. The purple dragon landed nearby and proceeded to glower at all the assembled Riders apart from Rellith. Kialandi dismounted and approached Jess, her face haughty and proud.
"So. Ardepp and her dragon Revar are dead."
Jess could feel her patience fraying as she healed a wound in Arisu's side.
"Have you come to tell us what we know already, or do you want to belittle us human Riders again? Despite what you preach, Kialandi, your kind are far from perfect. It was an elf who wrought such destruction here. Leave us to heal."
Kialandi's eyes blazed as she struck Jess in the abdomen, knocking the wind out of her.
"Is that how you address a superior Rider? My point remains; elven Riders would not have presumed to kill one of our order and their dragon. And keep your poisoned..."
Kialandi got no further as Arareal roared and lunged towards her.
Enough meddling, elf. I do not care if my Rider spoke out of turn, we are battle-weary and wish for nothing more than to rest.
The elven Rider turned to Rellith.
"What of the eggs Ardepp stole?"
Rellith returned her gaze stonily.
"She did not bring them with her, and we do not know where she was prior to coming her. Now please, leave us be."
Kialandi walked up to Caryn, her eyes malicious slits.
"Don't think I've forgotten how you insulted me, Caryn. I do not take kindly to having a bottle of wine smashed against my head."
Caryn's frustration boiled over and she got to her feet in less than a second.
"And I don't take kindly to having you turn up to spoil every moment of my life. I don't enjoy being slapped because Sarrarra chose me as her Rider. I don't like being called 'no better than a Ra'zac' for eating meat. And I certainly don't like being told my elevation to the status of a full Rider was both undeserved and frivolous by a bigoted elf who then goes on to say that a Rider similar to me in every aspect, apart from the fact he was of a differing species, earned it far more than any human ever could. Is that really what you think, Kialandi? Or are you merely jealous because Niev no longer comes running when you send for him?"
A hush descended over the assembled Riders and dragons. Kialandi turned and walked to her dragon without saying a word. As she climbed onto her dragon's back, she spoke.
"No Rider can ever replace another. I shall search for the eggs."
Minutes later, they were both gone. Jess wordlessly returned to the task of healing the wounded among them as Miremel returned, several deer in her claws. She roared in greeting and proceeded to divide up the food equally. Charl gave a light tremble as a hunk of venison was dropped before her by the brown dragoness. Nerene saw and promptly ate her portion for her. Miremel growled at the pearlescent dragoness.
That meat was for your Rider. Have you no consideration?
Nerene recoiled slightly but spoke up nevertheless.
My Rider dislikes eating flesh.
Miremel turned to Charl with something approaching surprise in her expression.
Truly?
Charl nodded. The brown dragoness apologised and set about giving out the rest of the meat. For a while, there was no sound apart from the dragons eating and the Riders cooking their meal. Ever the curious one, Caryn turned to Charl.
"Is there a reason you don't eat meat?"
Charl looked up from her meal.
"Yes, but I'd rather not discuss it."
Caryn nodded and turned back to where she'd lit a fire. By now, her piece of venison was nicely cooked. She plucked the meat off the spit, picked up the flat, clean rock that she had been given in lieu of a plate, and began to tuck into her meal eagerly, taking care to do so in a way that Charl couldn't see. As it got ever closer to noon, the sky began to darken as an enormous thundercloud swelled up over the plains. Shortly, a rumble of thunder was heard. Having been the first to finish her meal, Jess was disposing of the remains when she looked at the swelling thunderhead and felt her blood chill to ice-water. Poking down from the base of the cloud were a pair of tornadoes. She gulped nervously and then turned to her comrades.
"We have trouble. Worse even than Ardepp, Revar and Kialandi put together."
Caryn was still eating and made a noise of disbelief.
"Now come on, lets not exaggerate."
Arisu laughed lightly, but stopped at the look on Jess's face.
"Try looking up, Caryn."
Caryn gave a gasp of shock as she looked up and saw the distant tornadoes. Charl and Rellith muttered curses. All four dragons snarled warily as another rumble of thunder was heard. Jess spoke quickly to her dragon.
"Is there any way we can divert those tornadoes?"
Rellith answered instead.
"No, nor can we tell which way they're going. They could last an hour, they could last only a minute or so. We had better warn the people in the city."
Jess nodded and hastily mounted Arareal. The other Riders did likewise, except for Caryn, who looked uncertain what to do before Charl beckoned her to climb up behind her. Smiling, Caryn dropped what was left of her food and clambered up onto Nerene. The four dragons flew towards Gil'ead at haste, and were there in a mere two minutes. Roaring loudly, they soon had the attention of the entire city. Jess magically amplified her voice with a spell and yelled down to the inhabitants below.
"People, this is an emergency! Two tornadoes are headed this way. Head into the lower levels! I say again, head into your lower leves!"
Below, the panicked citizens began to stream into their wine cellars and the sturdy stone keep. By now, it had begun to hail. A bolt of lightning briefly cracked the sky in two. Jess called to the Riders and assigned a quarter of the city for each of them to scan in case anyone had been left behind. Caryn dismounted from Nerene and climbed into a watchtower to get a better look at the portion she had to scan, and proceeded to do so. Arareal looked up at her Rider with pride.
You are a born leader, my Rider.
Jess smiled when she suddenly saw trouble. Out on the plains, almost a mile away, was none other than little Peter, running towards Gil'ead. Cursing under her breath, Jess urged Arareal forward to rescue the child. In less than a minute Jess was soaked to the skin in the torrential rain, and when Arareal landed, she slipped in the mud. Peter looked up at Jess, shaking with cold and sniffing. Her reprimand died on her lips as she gestured for the orphan to climb onto Arareal's back. A dull roar grew ever louder as the two tornadoes grew ever closer. Peter scrambled up Arareal's leg hastily, but slipped on the wet scales and fell to the ground below. An unpleasant snap confirmed Jess's worst fears as she leapt down, scooped the boy up, and saw the facture above his knee. By now the tornadoes were a mere half mile away, and the noise was deafening. Jess mounted Arareal with Peter in her grip and immediately the cyan dragoness took off, only to be buffeted by the powerful winds. Struggling with all her might, Arareal flew to the western edges of Gil'ead, where the tornadoes were less likely to pass. Even as she landed, the larger of the tornadoes began to waver. The other began to weaken, and to their joy, had soon worn itself out altogether. But the remaining tornado began to tear into the easternmost section of Gil'ead, shredding homes as if they were made of tissue. There was no sign of the other Riders, which hopefully meant they had made the wise choice and gone to ground. Jess and Arareal could only watch in dismay as the tornado tore through part of Gil'ead, flinging debris everywhere. It lasted less than five minutes, but to the blue Rider, her charge and her dragon, it felt like millennia.
It was late afternoon when the Riders assembled on the devastated plains. The citizens had emerged from hiding, but the storm had taken its' toll with a vengeance, and over a hundred people had perished when sheltering in a church had turned into a death trap. Karra and Miremel had promptly begun to dig for survivors, but there were none there. Caryn, Arisu and Rellith had begun to organise clean-up efforts, but little progress had been made. Jess had taken Peter to be healed and then called the meeting. Everyone looked at the blue Rider, feeling truly exhausted.
"All of you have done well today. First with Ardepp, now with this. Messages have been sent to the nearby towns and cities for aid, and for now, we must rest. We'll do nobody any good if we collapse, so eat, drink, get some sleep, and we'll do what we can come morning."
The Riders and dragons separated. All four dragons returned to the decoy nests to the south to sleep whilst the five Riders entered the keep. The streets were full of people made homeless by the disaster, but there was surprisingly little hostility to the Riders, who were acknowledged as heroes for warning the city and calling everyone to shelter. Once in the keep, Jess headed for her quarters, formerly Niev's, only to find that Peter was there, clutching her pillows. She gave a long sigh, too tired to argue with the orphan.
"What is it Peter? I'm very tired."
Peter turned and Jess gasped in amazement. There, in the hands of the orphaned child, was Ardepp's sword. He hopped down off her bed and passed it to her.
"Is this weapon yours?"
Jess took it from him and shook her head.
"No. This used to belong to a Dragon Rider. Did you see the fight today between us twelve and that other Rider?"
Peter nodded.
"I heard the dragon land to the north of the city and saw it do something there before it came around and went to attack you, but I don't think I saw much. Is this that dead Rider's sword?"
Jess sighed.
"Can we please speak tomorrow, I just want to sleep, I've had a..."
Suddenly she stopped talking. Ardepp had carried nothing with her besides her weapon and scabbard, and the eggs were still missing. She dropped Ardepp's sword and looked at Peter intently.
"Where did you see Revar land last night?"