The Battle for Ilirea (Part 1):
Harry was standing at the centre of a circle of dragons. Dragons of a dozen different colours stood around him. They ranged in size from a small house to a small hill. From what he understood, that meant the oldest among them might have seen half a millennium. Beyond their circle everything was lost in the mists. Tendrils of white, like cotton, reached out to them and took a myriad of shapes. There was no source of light but it wasn't dark. The fog around a few dragons was roiling at their unease. Harry stilled it with a thought.
"You cannot leave. This place is for your safety", Harry said. "While your hearts remain in the physical world, your minds and souls can rest and recover here safely. No one can enter this construct without your approval. Even if your true names are known, it will be very difficult for someone to reach you here, not without overpowering the sum of your wills denying them entrance. Only then will the magic of the names take hold. Most of the time, the worst thing to happen would be someone breaking your Eldunari and but that should be preferable I think to the alternative."
The surroundings darkened for a moment before he mastered his frustration. He had been through this argument multiple times now while making the construct but dragons were stubborn.
"Once the war is over I will teach all the Eldunari how to enter and exit this place, how to create and maintain it and of its dangers. All of you will be responsible for upholding this. That is why you cannot leave. You are yet inexperienced in such magic, it will be difficult for you to sustain this magic if your numbers are small."
"I understand your points well, Harry-elda but it's not in our nature to cower while others fight our battles", Regina said. She was the oldest dragon- a deep purple in colour. Her voice was deep and each word carried with it an echo of a growl. Talking was still a novelty, she did not have enough control yet to hide the traces of her heritage.
"The oath-breakers slaughtered flights of younglings, killed our companions, enslaved them, enslaved us." Her voice shook and shadows grew around the dragons. Her eyes looked into the distance, and in them as in the mist, Harry could see flashes of her memories. She focused on him. "Our powers were used for unspeakable acts. It would be shameful if we didn't fight. Will you deny us?"
Harry felt the agreement of all the others. Their resolve was unshakable, the mist mirroring their agitation. He had pleaded and argued with them but it was of no use- they wouldn't relent. It grated on his instincts to let them fight. They had just been rescued. But if they wanted to, he wouldn't stop them. Their anger was justified. Their knowledge, particularly their experience in sharing minds with the forsworn would be invaluable. He couldn't deny them.
"Very well, if that is your decision I will respect it. However, those of you whose true names have not changed, I will send your Eldunari to Ellesmera before the battle begins." Harry said. His tone brooked no disagreement and starting from him the roiling fog began to still, moving outwards in a circle.
"We accept, Harry-elda" Regina said.
"Well then. It will take considerable effort for the few of you to sustain this place. Let's begin by making this place a bit more habitable" Harry said and the fog was moving once more. He gestured and the flatness beneath their feet became earth. Grass grew from it and colour bled into it. "The first thing you should know is that this place is mutable. You can create things, it will be taxing at first but as you grow experienced they will require little effort to maintain. The more Eldunari that are here the easier it will be and eventually this place will take a character of its own. Though that will present its own challenges.."
Harry had always enjoyed teaching and in the dragons he had good pupils though their attention did wander. He gestured and the half formed deer of clouds that was near Nightfury, a young black dragon, took shape and colour and bolted to the centre of the clearing, its hoofs clopping along the earth. The dragon yelped as his thoughts ran away from him.
"As Nightfury was trying, it is possible to create lifelike beings here though they are not truly alive. With so many of you present it is imperative that all of you agree on the larger details of this place for stability. Eventually, this realm will settle and each of you can create a slice of your own according to your wishes. It will help new eldunari to acclimatize and allow older ones the experience of using their bodies and might keep their minds from losing themselves in thought"
He patted the deer on the head and it bounded into the clouds and disappeared. Harry laughed at the mournful look on the young dragon's face. A few of the older dragons were chuckling too.
"Such manipulation is not limited to just matter. Time and space are mutable too."
A breeze came out of nowhere pushing away the clouds and their clearing expanded in all directions as far above them the sky became blue. He looked at the enraptured faces around him, many of whom had not felt the wind in decades and smiled. Teaching them was rewarding on so many levels.
"And though it may seem that way, distance doesn't truly matter here. It is a trick of your mind…", he continued.
#######
A while after his meeting with the dragons Harry sat on the battle council called by Evandar. Oromis, Brom, Glaedr and Saphira were also summoned.
"The Eldunari have been sent to Ellesmera."Evandar said. "Islanzadi and Gilderien are seeing to their safekeeping. The rest are with Oromis and will aid us in battle. This is good news but we have a problem." He nodded to Oromis.
"I interrogated Darius with the help of the Eldunari. Galbatorix has summoned all of the Forsworn to Ilirea" Oromis said "He wants to reverse the effects of the banishing. He suspects, correctly, that we would attack now before the forsworn have acclimatized to the banishing."
"He isn't wrong", Brom said. "Even without Harry elda intervening, this would have been the perfect time to attack."
"Yes, the problem is he has had some success with countering the effects of the banishing." Evandar said.
"That's…that's not possible" Brom stammered, looking at the faces around him.
"All spells have their counters." Harry said. He wasn't surprised. The only thing of note here was how quickly Galbatorix had done it.
"No! Not this", Brom said. "The magic of the dragons is powerful. The riders in all their years of study have scarcely been able to understand it. How could Galbatorix counter it?"
"His success is limited, though that is impressive in so short a time" Oromis said. "Galbatorix has merely mitigated the effects of the banishing. He was always gifted at the arts of the mind. That is why Darius was able to function at all. And he didn't do it alone." His lips curled. "He had help from the shade, Durza."
"So the shade is the source of your worry?" Harry asked. He could understand that. He had suspected that the banishing went beyond just affecting the mind- it affected the sense of self, the soul itself. Spirits would be able to understand such manipulations better.
"In part", Oromis said. "In addition to Durza, two other shades survived the battle of Vroengard. There are also numerous human magicians who have sworn their allegiance to Galbatorix. All of them have been granted powers beyond the norm by the king and his pet shade. These are not insurmountable odds, not to the elven army." He nodded towards Evandar who continued.
"We had counted on the dragons being unable to function as they had before the banishing. We were wrong. Darius, Formora and Kialandi were able to direct their mounts - better than if they were mere beasts."
"Yes. I have examined Darius's dragons mind." Oromis said. He sighed. "While he has no true sense of self, he is not completely ruled by his instincts. Galbatorix's spell allows him to function based on the memories Darius has of them working together."'
"That would mean merging minds" Harry said. "I can see how that would work. But I suspect it is just a temporary solution. In the long term it would put an unbearable strain on the rider's mind. They would have to break the spell lest they go mad. And the dragon would return to its mindless state, not completely beast like due to their bonds but far from what they truly are."
"You are right Harry elda" Oromis said. "The spell is not without its limitations. The dragons will not be able to easily carry out manoeuvres they haven't done before. They will have no true ideas, no initiative. But they will fight and fight well as all the forsworn have experience aplenty of battles."
Evandar carried on where Oromis left off. "With the mobility they afford to the riders, they can create a lot of trouble. If the dragons can continuously attack us, it will be extremely difficult to mount a true offensive. Galbatorix is ruthless. He would be perfectly willing to burn his own army if it meant defeating us. It's only the Forsworn whose lives he values, if that…"
As much as I would like to disagree, he is right. Glaedr said. He and Saphira had been silent till now as they were sharing the conversation with the Eldunari at their side. Saphira is the most skilled flyer of her...of her generation. He paused and for a brief moment Harry felt his emotions, emotions shared by the Eldunari in his mind, - pain, loneliness and helpless rage. Harry could empathize. Oromis patted Glaedr's leg and the feelings cut off. Glaedr mastered himself and continued. Everyone respectfully ignored the break.
And I.. I have centuries of experience on most of the Forsworn's dragons. But the elves will be busy with the magicians, shades and the human army-conscripted or otherwise. We will be hard pressed to stop all thirteen if they can imitate some measure of their previous skills…which were considerable.
"And Galbatorix and the Forswon have no doubt put numerous wards on them." Brom said remembering the battle at Vroengard. "It would take time to get around them, time they won't afford us and with the Eldunari's strength it will be nigh impossible to get through them by force alone, even with the aid of the Eldunari you rescued Harry elda."
Saphira turned an eye to look at Harry. You can remove that strength, can't you Harry elda and with it much of the advantage of the oath breakers?
"I can" Harry said. "I will" he added after a moment's pause. "That will still leave you with thirteen dragons to deal with for however long I am occupied in taking out the Eldunari, not to mention Galbatorix himself. I have no doubt that he and the shade will be putting up additional protections around them."
"The protections did not stop you earlier." Evandar said.
"They didn't, but those were protections applied by the riders." Harry said. "Their understanding of magic governing souls is crude. I could bypass them as I was reaching for the Eldunari- as souls they exist on a level deeper than most magic. But so do shades as hosts of spirit and their magic will pose a problem."
They all looked alarmed so Harry clarified.
"They do not have any advantage against me, quite the opposite in fact. But, I cannot bypass their magic directly. I will have to dismantle it. But this is all speculation. For all we know Galbatorix might not trust the shade enough to allow him to guard the Eldunari."
"Yet it is not a possibility we can close our eyes to", Oromis said. "Durza has been with Galbatorix since the beginning. I don't know which of them has the greater hold on the other, but regardless it is likely that the shade's magic will be used to protect the Eldunari, at least those that are with Galbatorix himself."
"And as I said it is nothing we can do anything about right now. The problem of the dragons…that I can help with" Harry said eyeing the ground around him and the bag at Glaedr's side that held the Eldunari.
#######
Galbatorix looked at the army assembled in front of the city gates. The bulk of them were conscripted from the remnants of the erstwhile human army. They wouldn't serve any significant purpose in the battle against the elves but they needed to be blooded. The deaths – and there would be many would be laid at the feet of the elves and would serve to increase animosity between the races.
However, the battle would be decided by those that would lead them- dragon riders and shades, razac and human magicians who had sworn loyalty- all united under his banner. He was especially proud of the human magicians. The elves and the riders had kept so much knowledge to themselves. Too afraid to use magic to its full potential, they had hoarded secrets, keeping power out of the reach of others who were not so craven. He had rediscovered lost secrets and with the barest of efforts made these humans capable of matching elves in battle. There was a cost, they wouldn't survive long after the battle but he didn't need them to. Once the elves and whatever riders had survived were crushed, he would perfect the technique and the next generation would be greater still, and loyal. Yes! He would ensure that.
He had plans…so many plans for his reign but he needed more power and knowledge. Power would come from the Eldunari. In time they would all bow to his will. As for knowledge...Durza had yielded all his secrets but it was not enough. He had found several lost artefacts in his travels. Artefacts that hinted at ancient secrets; secrets greater by far than any held by the riders. He needed time to follow the leads. For that he needed to deal with this pesky rebellion.
"Morzan", he called. His voice carried to the ends of the battlefield. Unlike the elves and riders, he did not need words for such petty magic. A red dragon rose from the frontlines. The winds from its wings buffeted the soldiers around him. No matter how much he tried he could not recall his name…the magic of the dragons was absolute. He shook his head. What petty fools they were? They had cursed the very last of their race. He shook his head- they were ruled by their instincts and desires and despite their magnificence they could be very spiteful and short sighted.
Few moments later, the red dragon alighted behind him and the rider jumped off.
"My King", Morzan slapped a fist to his chest, head bowed in supplication, as was the human way. He was clad in his distinctive red armour and cut an imposing figure.
"How is the army?" Galbatorix asked, turning to face him.
"Eager to test their mettle against the enemy, my liege", Morzan said.
"Good. I believe that the riders, whatever few have remained will have asked the elves for aid. Without their dragons they will scarce be a challenge to us, but I want this rebellion crushed. I tire of it."
"I will ensure our victory is absolute." Morzan said. His voice was hard and Galbatorix could hear the anger and hatred in it. Morzan had loved his dragon and the loss of his partner was fresh. His rage would serve him well in the coming battle.
"See to it." Galbatorix said in dismissal.
"Do you intend to join the battle, Ebrithil?" Morzan asked, looking up to meet his gaze, one of the few who dared do so. The elven title felt odd when directed towards him. Though it wasn't elven, not truly, he reminded himself. The language was of a race that was far greater.
"Do you need my help to defeat this ragtag army?" he laughed.
"I…".
Galbatorix cut off Morzan's reply with a raised hand. He looked towards the battlefield. They had captured Darius and recovered the Eldunari he held, and no doubt plundered his mind. The poor fellow was the weakest of them all and most affected by the dragon's magic. Still, the elves wouldn't kill Darius- not till they defeated him and that wouldn't happen. Darius would be recovered and restored to the new order- if he could earn his place. The lost Eldunari would be recovered in time. He would break them again, this time fully. He crushed the anger of the Eldunari at the back of his mind. They were shackled but it was best to be vigilant nonetheless- until he could control them completely.
He would wait for the attack to come. He was sure the elves knew of his success at countering the dragon's magic. In time he would cure it entirely and they would not want to give him the chance to do so. As if he needed it. He had defeated the whole Order at Vroengard. These pitiful remains would not be a challenge even with the elves. He might even march on their forests once the others of his order were cured- someone would know the location of their cities. He smiled in anticipation. Yes he would enjoy crushing their hopes as they had once crushed his. But unlike him they would have no hope of recovery.
They thought to hide their army from him using illusions and deception…but he was by far their better in those arts. They could hide their presence, but these were his lands. He knew them well. He could identify the gap in the landscape that their illusions left and follow that. He could even pierce their illusions, but why bother. Let the fools have their security for a while.
"Yes, I suppose I will in time", he said answering Morzan's question. The red rider had remained still and unmoving, looking not the least bit discomfited by the long silence. "Ensure that a few of the elves are captured alive. Give these directions to the army. Any who can capture an elf alive will be rewarded by me, personally."
Morzan nodded and closed his eyes. He opened them a few moments later.
"I have informed the commanders," he paused and continued with barely hidden loathing. "The shades too and they will inform the Razac"
"Peace, Morzan." Galbatorix said. "I know you find them distasteful, but they serve a purpose and will continue to do so for a long time yet. You stand above them, now and for all eternity. Be content with that." He gestured to the distance. "Those that come stand in our path. Your rage is better spent on them."
Morzan looked at the horizon and saw the dust rising. The elves had come and seeing the city ready had dropped their illusions. A dragon pierced the dust clouds, rising above the army. Even from this far Morzan could recognize her.
"So Brom has survived as well as Saphira. I thought him broken and her dead." If he felt anything regarding them, he did not show it. His face held no expression as he stared into the distance at his once friend, now enemy.
"You gave them a chance which they refused. They chose to stand against you,"Galbatorix said. "But maybe it is too much to expect you to fight against him again. Some other can do it. Formora or Kialandi would be glad to confront them."
"NO!" Morzan said. "They are mine."
"Go then. Show them the folly of opposing you" Galbatorix said. His lips curled in amusement as Morzan turned around and mounted his dragon. The dragon jumped and with a few flaps was gone.
#######
Morzan landed at the front of his company. He was greeted by silence. The ones closest to the front moved back. Cowards! These soldiers held no loyalty to either him, Galbatorix or the empire and the ones that did- the razac, shades and human magicians, they were not given to cheering. He did not care. They would fight and that is all that mattered.
He stared at the approaching army. They were not his concern. The others would deal with them. His fight would be with Brom. He had offered him the chance to join the new order but Brom had refused. He could have avoided fighting, but at Vroengard Brom had chosen to oppose him and had cost him…his dragon. He could not even remember his name. It…No, he sensed his frustration and grew restless. With a gentle touch Morzan tried to calm his broken mind. He felt an empty chasm where before there was comfort and companionship. It threatened to swallow him- but he endured and the dragon settled down. He longed to hear his voice again. He would. He could not give up hope.
Galbatorix had done much for him and the human cause. He had led them to victory against insurmountable odds, though the methods had oft been distasteful. He had to hope that the king would come through, that his dragon would be healed. If not, well it did not bear thinking about. He turned away from the morbid thoughts. He had an enemy to fight. These past weeks without his dragon had been hell. He would now unleash the same upon his enemies, upon Brom, though it wouldn't be enough. It could never be enough.
The elves were closer now. He could feel the tremors of their rhythmic march. He could see the dust rising in their wake. Morzan squinted. There was something wrong there- an illusion? No, he would have sensed that. The cloud! It was moving ahead of the army! He should have wondered why there was dust at all- the elves could be very stealthy when they wished. This was something they had done deliberately. Why though?
It moved closer and Morzan cautiously reached out with his senses. It was magic, that was for sure, but he couldn't tell what kind nor could he divine its purpose. The elves were using magic to keep the dust in the air. It made it much more difficult to sense anything else. It escaped his senses, like water through a fist, every time he tried to pinpoint it. Even the soldiers could see it now, and they too realized something was amiss.
He felt a stab of fear- was it the dragons again? What sorcery had they come up with now? Saphira was flying above the army and she gave out a roar of challenge. His dragon gave an answering roar and belched fire at the closest targets- his soldiers. Morzan quickly put an end to it but one unfortunate soul caught fire. Morzan paid him no heed, nor did he hear the alarmed cries of the people nearby as a few rushed away and others tried to help put out the fire.
He focused on the magic. No, this was not the dragons. This did not bear the heaviness of their magic. This was something new. Something from the elves, though he had never read of it in any of the histories. Their ranks were barely visible- indistinct shapes hidden by the dust. Their silent run across the landscape was unsettling the soldiers. He could hear their whispers, the back and forth questions and answers and the moans of the injured soldier. He could sense their fear. With a thought and a word, Morzan ended the soldier's suffering. The ranks stilled.
"A battlefield has no place for mercy", he said. His voice reached everyone. "You will get none from the elves, who care not for why you fight. They will kill you all the same. You will get none from me should any of you abandon the fight. I will know and you will wish you had died here. So fight! Fight with all your might and pray that you survive. We will win and as this city was freed so shall the world be free from under the yoke of the elves. Led by our new order, you will prosper beyond your wildest imaginations- and find power that was denied to you. Some have already had a taste. Look to them! Should you prove yourselves worthy, you will join their ranks. After centuries of bowing and begging for scraps of power, we will seize our rightful place at last."
He did not want to wait and see what the dust cloud had in store for him. It did not hold a death spell of that he was sure. Whatever else it was would be unlikely to get through his wards. Maybe it was a way to sow confusion and fear- the ranks had nearly broken just looking at the approaching army. Maybe it was for Saphira -one dragon against thirteen wasn't a fair fight- as if he needed the help. Maybe they thought that limiting visibility would help offset that disadvantage? It didn't matter. They would fall all the same. The king, it seemed, had similar thoughts.
"ATTACK!", his voice thundered over the battlefield. It was laced with magic. The army moved.
"Forward!" Morzan repeated and could hear similar commands, repeated down the line by the other riders and commanders. His dragon roared out a challenge. It was echoed by the other dragons and the Lethrblaka. He was loath to fight alongside them, but it could not be helped. The only consolation was that they would meet their fate once their use was at an end.
The army moved slowly, egged on by the commanders. Morzan and the riders stayed back, waiting. The Lethrblaka rose in the air screeching their challenge to Saphira. She answered with a roar undaunted by their numbers.
The dust cloud was now far ahead of the elven army and easily visible. Unlike what he first thought, it did not limit his sight by much. Morzan wondered at the purpose again. The Lethrbaka and razac flew into the cloud. Morzan held his breath and waited. He did not know if he wanted them to fall or to survive.
They took a few moments to find their bearing, but nothing else happened. The razac and their mounts screeched triumphantly and surged forward. Their wards had held. Morzan released his breath. He realized he had wanted them to die but it did not matter. It was time for him to join the battle.
He invoked the spell to connect to the mind of his dragon. It was only for a moment but all he could feel was pain, he couldn't think, couldn't muster any resistance, all he could do was endure. The moment passed, and pain was replaced by emptiness. Morzan ignored it focusing on the battlefield. His dragon shook his head and rose into the air roaring his challenge. Out of the corner of his eye Morzan saw the other Forsworn rising after him, following his lead.
They flew into the cloud where the Lethrbaka were harrying the elven army. They were not having much luck as the elves grouped together to raise shields to fend them off. Morzan fired off a shield breaker at a group of elves just as the Lethrbaka attacked. The bolt hit their shield at the same time as the Lethrbaka dived. The shield held and the winged beast was forced to pull up. Morzan did not give up though. He poured power into the spell, pulling from the Eldunari. More elves joined together to resist him. It was foolish, he knew, but he would not lose to the elves. He would not! His dragon roared and Morzan added his strength to the attack. He felt some give in their spells when something crashed into his dragon and they were sent reeling.
His connection to the spell broke. The world tilted. The straps dug into his legs and he bent at the waist, holding on to the spike in front. His dragon snarled trying to find purchase on the attacker but his claws slid off. He could not see the assailant. They were spiralling downwards. His attack on the elves was ruined so he fully merged his mind with his dragon. Working together they were able to fend off the attacker. They broke off and were only just able to right themselves before they hit the ground. They flew a bit higher to see what had crashed into them. He could see a shimmer in the air flying towards him. Dragons! It must be but how? Only Saphira had escaped Vroengard and all other riders were accounted for and yet this could be nothing else.
The other riders and the Lethrbaka, were fending off their invisible attackers. Brom and Saphira were weaving in and out of the fight providing support whenever anyone gained space. Two Lethrabaka lay broken on the ground- the elven army marched around them. The Razacs fought the elves furiously but they were surrounded and would fall any moment. Their tricks were useless against the elves.
He felt cold to the bone. This was the purpose of the dust cloud- to hide the presence of the dragons from sight and eye- to mask a subtle illusion within a more obvious one. And they had fallen for it! He did not get any more time to think. The dragon was upon him again. He had to fight tooth and nail to keep in the air. His attacker had no sense of self preservation and seemed determined to crash them both into the ground. He flew higher to give himself some time.
Kialandi had been grounded and looked injured. Her dragon was fighting off the invisible attacker and trying to take to the air. She was not having much luck. The elves had encircled the two and were countering any spell work that Kialandi tried. He realized they were not trying to kill her. The fighting dragons prevented anyone from getting to Kialandi but with the way things were going she would soon lose.
The human army had entered the dust cloud. The elven army had yet to engage them- yet there were large number of bodies scattered amongst the moving army-more elven sorcery at play. He cursed. The shades and magicians were hanging back. They were egging on the rest but it was slow going as the fear of the elven spells was greater. Morzan snarled. Cowards!
That was all the time his attacker afforded him and Morzan was forced to defend again. He missed his companion, his dragon. Before the banishing, the dragon could have fought while Morzan found a way to gain advantage. Now, Morzan was alone. Sweat trickled down his brow and his stomach clenched. He could not fight like this. Without seeing his attacker there was no way to find a weakness, not with his concentration diverted towards the mind link. The shimmer was only apparent when close. He tried to break the illusion but the caster was strong, or the spell very specific as he could not find a flaw. He disengaged and tried to make some distance.
"LOSNA!"
The king's voice echoed over the battlefield. Morzan shivered as the power of the word washed over his wards. They remained untouched. That was not so for the magic the elves had put up. The dust cloud settled in a wave, the spell holding it up losing ground to the king's magic. When it passed over the invisible dragons, the air around them shimmered- magic fighting magic before Galbatorix's spell overpowered the other. The dragons were revealed and Morzan had the first look at their attackers though his attention was drawn to one in particular. Glader loomed over the battlefield- the biggest dragon by far except for Shruikan.
TRAITORS…OATHBREAKERS!
The voice thundered through his mind. Morzan could not help the shudder that went through him. They were supposed to be dead! Another roar answered the challenge. The king had joined the battle.
#######
So it begins.
The voice echoed in their minds as they flew to meet Galbatorix.
"It is good to see you survived Oromis" Galbatorix said. "I was quite disappointed when I learnt you had fallen. I had thought you stronger- it is heartening to be proven right. Will you not join me?"
"After all that you have done, you dare ask that!" Oromis growled.
"All change is tumultuous, Oromis. You know this. History is rife with examples. A change of the magnitude I seek to bring?" he laughed. "The price was never going to be low. But it has been paid now. Acknowledge my rule and you will live. The elves will follow your lead. With the dragons you have brought, we can build the order anew, stronger than before. Even your old apprentice can find a place."
"You couch your madness and selfish desire in sweet words and expect us to believe you," Oromis said. "I give you this one chance, not for your sake but for those whom you have forced to your side. Surrender now and we can prevent further bloodshed."
Glaedr kept an eye on the battlefield while Oromis talked to Galbatorix. Harry-elda and a group of elves had disappeared. Now that he did not have to maintain the illusion or the dust cloud and accompanying spells, he would have begun hunting down the shades. The stone dragons were faring well. Already most of the Lethrbaka were down. He had taken down Kialandi himself. Without interference from the Forsworn and the Lethrbaka, the elven army was free to fight the human army. The ones who truly did not wish to fight had already fallen to Harry-elda's sleeping spell. Even so the elves were taking care to take as few lives as possible- broken bones and lost limbs could be remedied but the lives lost could strain racial relations for decades.
"You would spare me?" Galbatorix asked.
"No!" Oromis replied. There was no point lying about this. "We are beyond that now. You and your brethren will face justice. You will never wield magic again, nor influence or power of any kind. But perhaps your lives might be spared. Hear me now and hear me true, if you fight you will find only death."
"Disappointing" Galbatorix said. "I had thought you wise, but you are as foolhardy as the rest of your order. You will meet their fate."
A powerful mind crashed into theirs and the conversation came to an end. A lesser rider and dragon might have disconnected when they protected their minds but they were elders. They defended as one. Galbatorix gained no ground so he added the power of the Eldunari. Oromis and Glaedr felt the multitude of minds and the pressure on them increased. Rather than let the fight drag on, Oromis defended while Glaedr recalled the memory of the times the elves tried to heal him. He remembered the pain and pushed it to the forefront of his mind. Glabatorix faltered for a moment and that was enough for them to repel the attack completely.
Atop his dragon, Galbatorix was shaking his head and Glaedr flew straight towards Shruikan. At the last moment he twisted avoiding a frontal crash that would favour the bigger dragon. He tried to bite down on the Shuikan's neck but the black dragon pivoted and avoided it. The king struck with his sword at Glaedr but Oromis blocked it. After so many centuries they had no need to discuss plans- their thoughts flew freely into one another, two minds making a greater whole.
As the dragons grappled, Glabatorix and Oromis tried to inflict what damage was within their reach but met only the other's sword. Glaedr pushed away from Shruikan and snapped at Shruikan's tail but the dragon managed to avoid it and then they crossed each other. He flapped his wings to regain height and turned to meet the king and his dragon for another skirmish.
This will not be easy.
It was difficult to say which if the two said it but the other was in agreement. It could be quite odd, much like having a conversation with oneself, except the pair were used to it.
We need only stall for time till Harry-elda can deal with the shades.
Yes…
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Even though he had seen him plenty of times- the bulk of Shruikan still amazed Morzan. It was a testament to the king's might that his dragon could outmatch Glaedr. His momentary distraction almost cost him dearly as his attacker, a dragon red as his own, was upon him. He tried attacking his mind but all he found was a wall smooth as obsidian. He could sense nothing, could find no weakness, nothing to grasp. He withdrew his probe and focused on fighting through more conventional means.
His dragon grappled with the enemy- raked his claws across skin not covered by scales and bit down on anything that he could reach and yet there was no blood. Morzan hacked whatever part he could reach with his sword but it skidded off. Impossible! He growled in frustration, the ferocity of his attacks increasing with rage and yet there was no response from the enemy. The ground grew closer and Morzan asserted his authority and they disengaged, working hard to ascend. His opponent did the same and they were across each other again.
Morzan withdrew a bit from his dragons mind to think. This was not working. The dragon had some good wards. None of their attacks had broken skin. His dragon sported dozens of small injuries- nothing serious but they made it difficult for him to concentrate. He took out a stone from the pouch at his belt and touched it to his dragon. The injuries healed. His opponent flew towards them, trying again to get into close quarters to engage but Morzan forced his dragon to fly higher suppressing his desire to fight. He needed time to think.
There was something wrong here. The dragon was skilled at fighting and yet they seemed to be unused to their bodies. If he did not know the squeamishness of the elves, he would have thought they had found a clutch of eggs and aged them magically for almost all the dragons were of similar size. But the dragon and rider leading them would not have allowed that. This was something else.
He engaged again and again and yet he could not inflict any injury on the enemy. His magic slid off wards that he had never seen and claws and sword slid off the skin as if on stone. There should be no way to protect something so absolutely. The energy toll would be enormous. The riders did not have so many hearts as to sustain it. Or did they? They had hidden dragons after all..
The red dragon turned in the air to face them and Morzan saw the sun falling on him. His scales did not shimmer! He had not noticed it before but now it was clear. He paid attention next time they engaged and he realized that they were not scales at all. Come to think of it he had heard not one sound from his enemy. This was not a dragon- it was something made to look and feel like one. When they engaged this time Morzan used a healing spell. It bypassed the protections on the dragon and told him all he needed to know. He muttered a spell.
"THE DRAGONS ARE MADE OF STONE."
His words echoed over the battlefield. He held no love for the other riders and yet victory hinged on them all. He didn't know how the elves had enchanted stone to fly without draining every one of them. He doubted the others knew either. Even at their peak few riders could match the best of the elven enchanters- they had kept their secrets close. Yet knowing the dragons were made of stone would help.
He sighed in relief. No wonder the words of death had not worked, had found no purchase. He had feared unknown magic when all the while his opponent was not alive at all! His fear faded. The elves thought they could win this battle through base trickery. He was more than a match for their tricks.
He wheeled around to face the dragon once more. The construct would be protected against spells of stone. But he tried them all the same- spells to gouge, to break, to grind- as expected none of them worked. When they clashed next he put a spell to enhance the cutting edge of his sword and hacked at the dragon. He felt the drain on his energy and a small cut appeared on the construct. This would take too long. He put his sword away.
He hurled himself at the stone dragon once more. His anger lent ferocity to his dragon. He attacked with renewed vigour and yet Morzan knew it would not be enough. He tried a dozen methods- fire, lightning, ward breaking spells and while he had limited success with some- they did not do enough damage to stop the construct. Brute force would not work. He looked around.
They were losing ground. Oromis was holding his own against the King and Shruikan. The Lethrbaka and Razac had been defeated. Three of his fellows were on the ground – the riders were fighting but the dragons were pinned by the stone constructs. Kialandi and her dragon were not fighting anymore. They lay still- either dead or unconscious. None of the stone dragons had fallen. He needed to do something, and fast.
He thought frantically of anything that might let him bypass the protections on the dragon. It was enchanted against all forms of damage. But what if he did not seek to damage it? Next time when they were in range Morzan tried a softening spell, used on rocks before shaping them. He felt resistance but for the first time he felt the spell start to cave from the get go. He applied more energy and the enchantment protecting the dragon failed and his spells took.
When they clashed again, his dragon tore out great chunks from his attacker. The wings were deformed in the first clash; the claws could not penetrate the skin of his dragon. Soon enough, the core was exposed and Morzan could seethe glint of an Eldunari. He urged his dragon to crush it but before his jaws could close around the gem, it vanished. The construct lost formation and fell to pieces around him. Morzan smiled and his dragon roared in triumph.
Where strength fails, cunning can prevail.
Brom had often told him this, particularly when he thought he had done something clever. It was one of Brandt's sayings- the rider had been foolish to turn down their offer but he had been powerful and Morzan regretted the necessity of his death. Now Brandt's words had helped him deal a blow to the cause he had supported. Morzan laughed in glee and then set his sights on the blue dragon that was coming his way. It was time. But first, he muttered the words to a spell linking him to the King's other riders.
Stone softening spells work on the dragons.
His duty done he could now finish what he started in Vroengard. His dragon roared sensing Murtagh's emotions. It was time.
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The beginning of the battle..
Harry had been able to sense the shades from far away- their presence was a festering sore on the battlefield. The beings radiated pain and anger and hatred in a way that was not natural. The spirits raged against the world for binding them. The emotions of humans were too much for them to bear- especially when they were summoned in moments of grief and anger. The eternal beings were locked in a loop from which their was no escape. The human mind housing them had fractured adding to their misery and twisting them into agents of chaos and destruction. He had wanted confront them immediately but he needed to keep up the spell holding up the sand.
"I'll join the battle once the cloud has done its work." Harry said to Evandar.
Evandar nodded
"We'll hold back the shades till then" he said. "We might even finish them off before your work is done. Shades have never faced the full might of the elven army or even a group of elves before."
"Do be careful. Each of them have a multitude of spirits bound inside and Galbatorix has further strengthened them."
"As you say Harry elda"
Harry stopped running and Evandar led the elven army past him and into battle. Harry did not act against the winged bats- Lethrbaka, and their riders when they entered his cloud. They were for the riders to confront. Their allegiance was wholly to the king and the magic was useless against them. When the human army entered the battlefield, the magic imbued in the sand acted on any who were conscripted to fight, and who were uncertain. They fell into a deep sleep. Harry directed the sand to coalesce around them, providing rudimentary protection against physical blows.
The stone dragons crashed against the Lethrbaka and the forsworn, sowing confusion in their ranks, but Harry ignored that battle. He focused on increasing the speed of the cloud as it covered the whole of the human army. He provided protection to any who fell to its magic. It was slow going but it would reduce casualties and make it easier to establish harmony among the races after the battle was won.
"LOSNA."
The word of power rolled over the battlefield. It acted against his spell and Harry chose not to resist. Its work was done. As the sand settled on the battle field Harry directed it towards the fallen human soldiers bolstering their protections. He would have liked to remove them from the battle altogether but it was not possible- he was needed elsewhere. He could feel the shades engaging groups of elves. They were holding on, but a little help wouldn't be amiss.
He disapparated and appeared next to one of the shades. His skin was pale, his eyes red and narrowed with malice as he fought against the elves. Harry's appearance near him shocked him enough that he froze for a moment. That was enough for Harry to lay a hand on him.
Petrificus totalus.
The binding spell learnt in first year had benefited a lot from Harry's years of experience. The shade strained against it, but the spell held him immobile and helpless. Before he could launch a wordless spell, Harry placed his hand against the Shade's forehead.
The world around him vanished. The sounds of the battlefield fell away. Harry appeared on a vast endless plain of white which resolved into King's Cross station. He could shape it as he wished but this felt appropriate. Glowing orbs appeared around him. The orbs shimmered and pulsed as they threw themselves against him.
Harry raised his hand in a warding gesture and they bounced off before they could touch him. They tried again and again and Harry was reminded of a group of buzzing bees. He let them throw themselves against him- he had all the time in the world. After a while of fruitless attempts, the orbs circled around him- their anger spent. The light around them dimmed and they seemed wary now. Harry grinned.
"Greetings, old ones!"
A/N: It's been five years since I last posted this. In between I had stopped writing for a while, then I was working on something else, then I was not completely happy with this chapter and ended up modifying it an infinite number of times. Finally I just decided to post it. Won't make any promises for the next part though I will complete this story at the very least.
Hope you like it.