Chapter 8
A Dracull and a plan
Alec was a very tall, very thin person. He had a tall skinny head and a mix between small yet wide features such as shoulder, hands etc. He like his mother, had her hair and eyes, and her talent for magic innately. He also had a mustache and a small smudge of a beard covering only a small square under his bottom lip. He also was equipped with an enormous sense of humor that could make even Elphaba Thropp burst into hysterics I swear.
As Anthony had just departed the House of Princess Nastoya wearing the new wool robe and wielding the dragon staff, the wind swirled around faster and faster, louder and darker. Trees in the surrounding area were torn from their roots and sent high into the air. Anthony had jabbed the bottom of the staff into the ground to act as an anchor for the twister, and it worked. When the twister died down, an incredible green light almost blinded him and then it went out with the sudden stop in the wind. A tall man with the same hair as Ozma stepped forwards with a very low voice, far lower than Anthony's ever hoped. Despite going through puberty already and also being 20 years old now, his voice sounded much the same as it did the first time he came to Oz.
"If I were to say to you I am looking for the Altar Staff…" The low voiced man who still neglected any visionary detection of himself to me with the green light, asked an interesting question, one that only I and Glinda would know the answer to.
"Then I would say to you Shell Thropp broke it in my own hands on the night before he overthrew the Emerald City," I replied.
"Then it is true," The light dimmed down to nothing revealing Ozma Coleane's son. Wearing the best uniform of the home guard issuable, the man smiled and offered a hand to shake meeting a friend of his mother. Anthony bowed from the neck at the Prince of Oz, and then shook his hand.
"I am Anthony the Blue, you must be Pastoria, afer your father no doubt?" I asked.
"I am indeed, but please, call me Alec. A pleasure to meet a close friend of my mother, I never got old enough to meet her before I was taken away. But I wasn't the only one to be banished. It seems all of Oz has gone missing! I trust you are on your way somewhere to continue a plan in finding them? How do you propose to stop the Empereor though?"
"Yes that is true, all of my friends who are the leaders of the states in Oz, are gone, as well as Lady Glinda the Good and don't forget the bloody traitor of Oz too, my ex of all people," I exclaimed.
"Hmm yes, an ex that continues to be a bitch, who would have guessed that one?!" Alectilted his head and in a hilarious expression, twitched his eye. We both laughed because it was a fairly true statement! We continued south along the Kells still trying to meet up with Yackle. A few hours went by and Alec got confused, his mind going back to our mission.
"Wait a minute Anthony, we're going south to see who now? Yackle?" Alec asked, with somewhat less of a positive inquiry but rather more of a perplexed melancholy to it. Anthony picked up on that and was cautious with his next words.
"Well yes that's what Princess Nastoya suggested I do, why? Don't tell me she's dead," I replied using the staff to slice through the vegetation on the mountain sides as we continued hiking down to ground level.
"You didn't hear? Her entire village was ambushed, the Mauntery burned to the ground. Anthony, the Emperor only targeted nuns! Women and children slaughtered by BLACK MAGIC!" Alec yelled with watery eyes, it was not out of anger in Anthony's lack of knowing, but anger for the Emperor.
"Oh my God Alec, what in blazes are we to do now?" I sat down on a tree stump, my dragon stff shining brightly on my tanned face.
"Well, I know where the people that The Emperor took are, but," he trailed off.
"What? Alec, but what?"
"The place they are held captive is a dark, hexed, vexed cursed and poisoned spit of land, undistinguishable from any other normal forrest in Quadling County. With a few terrible and possibly impossible drawbacks. The land ages all who enter it rapidly for as long as they are in it. It takes away your magical powers within you, your staff will be fine but you can't summon that famous shield of yours in there. And lastly, it twists your heart. It tries to turn you against any friends you may have brought along with you." When Alec told me this I had goose bumps. The hairs on my neck stood on end, the mental image of rapidly aging "tranquil" wizards fighting each other was terrible. Tranquil here having the Ozian meaning of a tortured magical being having all their personal magic drained be it temporary of permanent. Remembering this was the only true way The Wicked Witch of the West was killed before the Mombi trials. Alec raised an eyebrow waiting for my response.
"Well, what choice do we have? I cant let my friends be tortured or god knows what else, and we both cant let Ozma, Evardo and Glinda be held captive, we must go there and save them!" I concluded. Alec nodded, but still had more to say.
"There is one more thing. The thunder you keep hearing at night, is not thunder at all. It is the roars of the Draculls."
"The roar of what?" I asked, never hearing of something called a dracull before.
"A Dracull, a sort of zombie Dragon. It's a regular Dragon, but undead and has magic instead of fire breath. They can turn a city into dust, people to ash, and attack at any moment, being completely silent." Alec answered. A few lightbulbs lit above my head.
"Alec! Where does the Emperor raise the dead Dragons? You must take me there immediately! I know of a friend who just may be able to help us again. If it doesn't work, we head for that cursed land that leads to where our friends are imprisoned. But no matter what happens, know that I will defend you with every breath I have until that sham of a mage is dead and gone." I promised.
"Thank you, you have my word and sword that as long as I can breath I will slay all your foesbefore they even knew what or who hit them! now follow me the Dragon cupboard is closer thn our previous planned destination!" we sprung up off our tree stump seats and turned roughly 90 degrees now heading east, towards Munchkinland to enter the Dragon graveyards, and for Anthony to hopefully find an old ally, if his gut was right.