I recognized one of the Syndicate men there. It was Marts who had accompanied us to the fights with his trusty bronze telescope.
As soon as I spoke, they nearly jumped out of their skins.
I whispered, “
I pulled my Gem of Pure Sight from the pommel of my rapier and put it to my eye to get a closer look at the worktable. Cralix must have just stepped away and I couldn't find her with the gem.
“.”
”
I took the gem from my eye and there she was. With the gem, gone. Without, there.
“
I gave her the gem to see for herself. I could immediately see abject fear on her face as she went white as a sheet.
“
My blood ran cold. Then I heard a woman's laughter, a diabolical laugh. I couldn't pinpoint its source. It seemed to be coming from everywhere at once, inside my head even. Loud enough to hurt. It was her. I recognized her sinister tone.
“She knows we're here! Everyone stand ready!”
May came to my side. “Do you hear that love? That sound?”
Then I did hear it, the flapping of leathery wings just audible over the crashing of the waves on the chalk cliffs below. The sound carried in the darkness, echoing off any surface it could find. To try to count it would be impossible.
“How many, May?”
“I don't know, Darling. A hundred, maybe more. They're coming over the water from the West.”
I pointed that way and said “Watch there everyone! They come!”
From his vantage point on an escarpment, Margin saw them first, and, with his bow, had downed two before anyone else had raised a sword.
The creatures came in feet first, landing before they attacked. I promptly skewered two and May was cleaving through them like a scythe through wheat. I saw one of the Syndicate men get picked up and dropped over the cliff, but most of them seemed to be holding their own.
I heard a cry from Margrin, “Another wave, there,” he pointed to the Northwest.
We were just finishing off the last wave.
I called to May, “This is a diversion. We must find her. She'll likely begin her Ascension soon.”
“I'm coming with you, she said.”
I know the chivalrous thing would have been to say “No, My Beloved, it's too dangerous.” But I was terrified and I desperately didn't want to face Cralix alone.
“Good, your sword is needed with me. Let's go! To the villa.”
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
There were no doors on the building, with year-round perfect weather, most of the houses in the area were just courtyards surrounded by verandas. As stealthily as possible, we went through an archway leading to the central courtyard to get our bearings. Then I had my secret weapon, the Gem of Pure Sight. Holding the thing to my eye, I could see through walls as I wished. There was nobody in the villa. No ?rdelon, no Clarix, no parents, devils, nothing. I was confused. I signalled to May that we should walk around the grounds outside to see if we could spot anything.
The rest of our party was battling another wave of Agruzar and we didn't see anything with a cursory tour around the grounds of the villa. I took May by the hand and we walked to the edge of the chalk cliff. Looking over and down, I could see a sloping walkway leading down to the rocky beach below, at its end, a sea cave, lantern light pouring out of its entrance into the night. I put my finger to my lips and indicated for May to follow me.
We eased our way down the path, making sure to avoid any loose rocks that might announce our approach. We could hear chanting, just two voices. It had to be Cralix and ?rdelon.
The entrance to the cave was a small, semicircular opening just large enough for two people to walk through side by side. It was hard to understand the chanting, it was in Elvish, I think, but an ancient version, one dedicated to the Dark Arts. I chanced a peak around the cave opening and saw both of my parents against a wall in the cave's rear. Both were bound and gagged but otherwise okay from what I could see. The floor of the cave was covered with chalk drawings, circles, pentagrams and heptagrams, runes and sigils, several candles, and a smoking pot of incense. In ?rdelon's hand, a huge dagger covered in jewels. It had to be a foot long, and its purpose was clear. It was for my parents.
It was then that my mother saw me. Her eyes widened with surprise. It was a reaction not missed by ?rdelon who wheeled toward the cave entrance and released a fireball that hurtled toward me with alarming speed. Thankfully, I had the presence of mind to dive back toward May. I felt the heat fly close past me, but it missed, exploding just above the waves and illuminating the night sky.
Hopefully that would get the attention of the rest of the party and we would get some help. Looking back into the cave, the two villains had gone back to their chanting and rune drawing. We had apparently interrupted a crucial point of the ritual because the two were moving about frantically as if a hard deadline was approaching.
From a kneeling position on the ground, ?rdelon suddenly stood upright as if a puppeteer had pulled his strings, his face began to sink in and his eyes collapsed in their sockets. A thin sheet of sickly green flame covered his form and he tightened his grip on the dagger, turning toward my parents.
“May! It's time! Take him, I'll get ready for Cralix!”
In a scabbard strapped to her back, May had brought along her great sword, a thing as long as she was tall. In one fluid motion, she unsheathed the blade with a , rushed into the cave and, with one slashing arc, cleaved ?rdelon in two, his torso landing at my mother's feet.
Cralix let out a blood curdling scream and rushed at May as if she had claws with which to attack. May sidestepped the lunge and pushed the Witch to the ground, using her momentum against her.
“Get out of there!” I yelled at May. “You'll be in my shot”
I unslung the crossbow from my shoulder and began to fumble for the special bolt. Finally finding it and placing it in its groove, my hand began to shake from fear and the thing fell to the rocky ground. I was on my knees in the dark, trying to find it when May's voice said “You'll be needing this, Love.” handing me the bolt.
I was just putting the thing back into the crossbow track when I heard a roar like a pride of angry lions accompanied by a screech like an eagle. The ground was trembling, or perhaps it was just me. No, loose gravel was coming down the Cliff side.
“Come, Tendil, to the beach.”
May grabbed my hand, pulling me away from the cave and onto open ground where I could hopefully get a clear shot. As we waited, the disquieting sounds coming from the cave grew louder, the ground trembled more violently until the whole of the mouth of the cave exploded outward, showering us with debris. Where there once was a cave, there now stood a huge Black Dragon, its neck craning and its catlike eyes blinking away dust and falling rock to find us in the darkness.
As it, she, stood to her full height, her wings unfurled and propelled her upward into the night sky. Instead of coming for us directly, Cralix flew to the top of the cliff, many of the Syndicate men firing at her with crossbows and Margin putting at least three arrows into her exposed belly. She flew in low over them all and unleashed a wide stream of green, acid-like bile that turned them into gleaming white skeletons before they collapsed in neat piles. A devastating breath weapon.
Father Vastila and Mother Felistia were shooting bolts of light at her that seemed to do little more than make her uncomfortable.
I saw Veralia standing at the cliff edge, waiting her turn, and I yelled “Veralia, now!”
Hearing her mother's name, Cralix reared back mid-flight to get a better look, and Veralia began calling out her name. I could swear I saw a flicker of sadness in the dragon's eyes, but I had one duty. Margrin had politely used his shots to show me where the creature's heart was. With careful aim, I squeezed the trigger mechanism and loosed the bolt.
After an audible The dragon's form folded in on itself and the beast plummeted from the sky, crashing with a thud to the beach below. Running up to the body, I had to be sure it was done. Her face had begun to sink into her skull and her eyes were just beginning to collapse. I had caught her just as she was Ascending.
Where the cave had been, Father Vastila and mother Felistia were helping my parents out of the rubble. Margrin waved to me from his promontory and yelled “Nice shot, Your Majesty!”
Looking to May, I said “Darling, let's go home. We aren't done. We need to see what has happened with Carca and Mag'stula.”
To the rest of our party I called out, “Come and gather, Friends, we teleport home in five minutes!”
As I kissed May, my Mother demanded, “Tendil! Who is this strange woman? Stop kissing her at once!”
I calmly replied, "She's your daughter-in-law, Mother and no, I won't stop now or ever!"
As she went to bend my father's ear about it, we were already back in Nez Ambril.