An Emerald Arrow
since the news of Whitestone’s liberation from the grip of the Kelvurian sorcerer, the entire city of Galium had not stopped to rest. The impending siege was visible along the front range of the Drelek Mountains. The campfires could be seen on the horizon the night before, and their camp that evening was well within striking range. The forces of Drelek would attack that night.
Galium had made preparations. The wagoners had carried as many families as possible out of the city and its surrounding hills. Tobin was of great help. He gathered the others and organized them to take as many families as they could out to Crossdin. Should Galium’s defenses fall, at least the innocents would be safely away from the city.
Any of the families that couldn’t leave were brought within the great stone walls of the city, where they could be better protected. Though King Thygram Markensteel was rather direct in his communication with people, his compassion for them was evident. He gave short directions to anyone and everyone, but always for their benefit. The soldiers were another story. He would speak to them of glory unknown and the tales that the bards would tell of their valiant battle. He spoke to them with encouragement and a fervor that even inspired Orin and his companions.
The defense plan was rather simple. Orin and Coal would ride with the hog cavalry. They did equip Orin with a horse, for war-hogs are better suited to dwarves. Coal would ride a great hog named Grub, a rather shaggy beast with mighty tusks.
Ellaria and Ezel would remain atop the wall to aid from there. With Ezel’s magic and Ellaria’s bow, they would be able to defend at a distance. They would try to keep the wyvern riders distracted, along with the rest of the Galium archers. And finally, Bendur Clagstack and Lotmeag Kandersaw would lead two teams of garvawk warriors to fight the dragon.
It was as solid a plan as could be made for the circumstances. And though the nerves of the entire city were on edge, they waited in the calm before the storm, knowing they had done all they could to prepare.
The first horns sounded in the middle of the night while the moon was high and illuminated the battlefield. Among the goblin foot soldiers stood tall orcs and even taller trolls. The orcs seemed to be commanding the goblins and keeping them in order. The brutish trolls, however, maneuvered through the lines without regard to the formation the orcs tried to keep, sending goblins skittering in bunches to avoid large troll feet.
Argus Azulekor laughed at the disarray but restrained himself quickly. Even though he found their lack of discipline humorous, he recognized the graveness of the situation. They had seen no sign of the dragon or the wyvern riders, but they knew the beast would show itself before the battle was through. King Thygram, standing next to him, gave a long sigh. The moment had arrived.
He turned to look behind him where the war-hog riders were standing, ready. His eyes fell upon the stranger in their midst. Orin looked odd, saddled on a horse, tall above the others. Though the king was thankful to have the guardian with them. The Griffin Guard trained expert warriors, and he had no doubt Orin would fight a good fight to defend his kin.
“The hour is here!” The king spoke over them. “We have seen no sign of the dragon, but surely our enemy thinks the dragon to be a surprise for us. The beast is almost certainly looming in the shadows of the mountains. But we know he is there. Even with this knowledge, we bear hearts of steel. Galium has never wavered, and it never shall. It shall be as the stone of the bedrock that our ancestors built it upon.
“So, take heart, brothers and sisters. Be strong as the mountain that stands as a beacon for all we are here. They think we do not know what they bring against us. Truly, they do not know what they have unleashed against themselves!”
“Yeah!!” a particularly excited war-hog rider hollered. The dwarves all around laughed. Even King Thygram let out an amused chuckle before he turned back to look over the battlefield.
“This has turned into quite the adventure, hasn’t it?” Coal said to Orin, gazing up at him and smiling.
“Not at all what I expected,” Orin nodded, finding the scene surreal.
“Life doesn’t always give us what we expect, but what we do with the unexpected tells the tale of who we are.” The sentiment from the dwarf surprised the man, but he said nothing to ruin it. Coal continued, “I am glad to ride alongside you. I did not expect to make such a sure friend.”
“Nor did I,” Orin agreed. “Let’s finish this well, so we might enjoy more fellowship together.”
“Aye,” Coal said. “That was my plan.”
Coal straightened the helmet on his head and adjusted himself in the saddle on top of the war-hog. Grub grunted at the motion, and Coal patted the creature on its shaggy shoulder. He gripped the mighty war hammer in the saddle loop, admiring its craftsmanship. It had been a gift from King Thygram’s own collection. It was a finely crafted dwarven war hammer, as fine as any the dwarf prince had ever seen. The metal shimmered in the moonlight, and the golden accents and runic markings brought the whole piece together with a beautiful elegance. It was equal parts art and tool of destruction. And Coal was ready to use it for the latter.
Atop the wall, Ellaria shrugged in the light armor the dwarves had put together for her. It was not uncomfortable; she merely was not used to it. And admittedly, she shifted in her nervousness. She was no warrior, but here she stood at the edge of battle, surrounded by warriors depending on her. A slender hand pressed against her palm, wrapping around hers, giving a gentle and comforting squeeze. She looked down at Ezel. Even though the wall-walk had a low battlement for their protection, Ezel stood in between them for visibility.
He didn’t look over the battlefield. He looked at the young woman next to him. His kind eyes smiled at her; and though she was nervous, she realized she was not alone.
Suddenly, an arrow struck the little gnome, sending him toppling over on the wall-walk. He still held Ellaria’s hand, so he didn’t tumble off the back of the wall. She released a terrified scream that sent shivers down Orin’s spine. She gathered up the little gnome, who blinked at her curiously as though he had no idea what just happened. The hardwood medallion he wore around his neck glowed with an auburn tint; even stranger, the arrow was nowhere to be found.
Argus Azulekor rushed to the side of the gnome and stared at the token. “What is that?” the old mage asked hurriedly.
Ezel looked at it with surprise, as well. He had not learned anything about the medallion yet, but somehow it was imbued with a magic that had just saved him.
“I don’t know,” Ellaria answered the mage. “The wizard Enkeli gave it to him.”
“A wizard?” Argus restated, stunned. He inspected the little grey gnome, and finding no wounds on him, declared, “I think that wizard just saved your friend’s life.”
“Is he able to stand?” King Thygram asked.
“Oh, he is quite fine, my King,” the old mage replied. “I should very much like to inspect that token later, though,” he said to Ezel.
The gnome nodded his agreement. Perhaps the dwarf mage would be able to help him understand the gift.
“Good,” the king said. He turned back to look out over their enemy’s formations. “It appears our enemies think they are ready to face us.”
King Thygram Markensteel waved his hand above his head to signal the war-hogs into action.
“Let us show them how wrong they are!” The king shouted.
With those words, the battle for Galium began.
Dwarven arrows fell like rain upon the Drelek forces. For their part, the goblin archers had moved into position to return fire, but the superior height advantage went to the dwarves atop the wall of Galium.
The war-hog riders burst forth from the gates and charged ahead to meet the warriors of Drelek. The boars’ large tusks met ill-fated goblin bellies. Though, the ones that took the brunt of dwarven steel might have argued themselves as less fortunate. As the dwarven warriors barreled through the first line of goblins, the clanging of steel on steel erupted. The goblins fought back with all they had.
Lotmeag Kandersaw itched to join the battle, but Bendur Clagstack stayed the younger warrior with a steely look. They sat hunched in the dark spots of the mountains, hiding in crags as if they were the shadows themselves. The garvawks waited silently, totally obedient to their dwarven riders. The sky was still unplagued by wyvern riders, and they’d seen no sign of the dragon, yet.
As the intensity of the battle far below raged more and more, so did the fire in the warriors’ bellies. Lotmeag knew they had to wait. For Drelek would not so carelessly attack Galium.
The dragon would come.
Coal’s mighty battle hammer slammed into a goblin’s face as his war-hog greeted another with its vicious tusks. Coal laughed, happy that Grub had turned out to be such a fierce battle companion.
Orin had become quite the target as the largest member of the cavalry. His height upon the horse made him easy to pick out. The horse, however, was rather set on surviving the battle and moved swiftly as Orin cut down the foes that came against them.
Several goblins with spears rallied together to surround the war horse. They inched ever closer as the horse bucked uncomfortably. Orin turned it side to side, looking for an out but saw nothing. As he was preparing to dismount and fight them on foot so the horse could get away, a blazing green arrow pierced one of the goblins right through the neck, dropping him instantly. A blue bolt of faery fire blasted into another, just before another arrow whizzed by. Orin looked up to his friends on the wall and gave them a nod as the surrounding goblins panicked. He was not sure they would see his gratitude from the distance, but he felt it still. He would have to make sure to show it when they celebrated later.
Coal rode in behind one of the spear-wielding goblins and heaved his hammer into its back. A loud crack sounded, and the goblin dropped. Orin noted that the dwarf looked as though he were having fun. Though a fire burned within him and adrenaline coursed through his veins, the man wouldn’t say he was having fun. The guardian was optimistic, and he would keep that attitude. A hopeless warrior sees no future and shrivels in battle. Orin would fight for his friends and their new allies. There was a lot more at stake than just his life.
“Take down the troll!” Orin shouted to Coal over the clanging of weapons.
Coal nodded to him, and the two rode straight at a nearby troll who was causing havoc among some of the other hog riders. Grub ran straight for the troll’s legs, cutting the monster’s thick hide with its razor-sharp tusks. The troll squealed at the pain in its leg as Coal laid a hammer blow right into its knee. The massive troll reacted and swung down hard with his mace. It slammed into Grub, sending the war-hog and the dwarf flying off to the side.
Two other war-hog riders started beating at the troll’s injured leg as Orin rode past, slicing at the troll’s middle. The troll swung wildly, not sure which enemy to go for first, feeling as though it were being swarmed. A haphazard swing caught Orin right in the chest, sending him flying to the ground. Fortunately for him, he had been close to the troll and taken the extended handle of the mace rather than its spiked head.
Orin coughed as he tried to breathe. He’d gotten the wind knocked clean out of him, and it took everything he had just to suck air back into his lungs. He rolled over in the dirt, heaving. He looked up at the troll as it moved toward him with rage in its eyes, lifting its mace high. It stumbled as one of the riders dug his axe deep into the troll’s already ripped leg. The troll wailed as he fell to his good knee and turned to attack the rider.
As he turned, Coal’s mighty war hammer came in like an avalanche, smashing into the troll’s lowered head. In his dazed state, Orin watched with amazement as the dwarf seemed to fly through the air to hit the troll.
Orin coughed a couple more times as Coal heaved the guardian to his feet. “You alright there?” the dwarf asked, concerned. He looked the man over for any punctures Orin’s armor might have taken from the spiked mace.
“Hit ... with the handle ... A wild swing,” Orin assured him.
“Good!” Coal slapped him on the back. “Can’t have you dying already. We haven’t even seen the dr—”
And before the word left the dwarf’s lips, a sudden roar from above the peaks rattled the entire valley.
Dwarf and goblin alike paused at the arrival of the dragon of Drelek. The beast soared over the ridge, bathed in moonlight and followed by a squadron of wyvern riders. Loud cheers rolled out from the goblins on the battlefield, which spurred the dwarves back into action. The battle raged anew.
The dragon swooped low over the battlefield and released a burst of flames, scattering warriors from both sides. It wafted high into the air once more and charged toward Galium. Orin watched in awe.
“Come on, then,” Coal said to the guardian. “That one is for the garvawks. These ones are for us.” He turned toward the goblin army and squeezed the mighty war hammer in both hands.
“Then let us have them!” Orin agreed. And the two ran back into the fray.
Argus Azulekor swirled his hands in a well-practiced but seemingly aimless way. He chanted some ancient illusion spell that crackled and sparked magic energy in the air around him. Sparks turned to flame, and suddenly the magic blazed to life in a red and orange symphony of lights. The flames flew up into the air and unfurled mighty wings, taking on the shape and size of a dragon, which flew across the front of the ridge.
Much to their delight, the Drelek dragon immediately changed course to chase after the mage’s illusion. The dragon flew with the fury of hurricane winds. It had never seen such an opponent, and the dragon raged to destroy it. When its great maw took on only sparks and flame with no flesh to sink its teeth into, the beast flapped in great fury. The wind from its wings split the illusion into pieces, sending sparks flying in every direction. The distraction had done its job.
Bendur, Lotmeag, and the rest of the garvawk warriors appeared suddenly through the sparks and flames and attacked the great dragon’s underbelly with their piercing panther claws. The dragon writhed in confusion, and the waves of wind from its massive wings sent several of the garvawks spinning away.
The dragon launched itself high into the air to get away from them and scratched and kicked at the ones still clinging to his underbelly. One poor dwarf got scraped right off his garvawk and flung to the mountainside below. His garvawk didn’t fare any better as the dragon’s great claws clamped around its body and crushed it.
It took a minute for the wyvern riders to realize the dragon’s screeches and roars were a result of it being attacked. They had initially swooped in to aid the ground forces but were quite distracted with the archers on the wall. Half of them had been on their way to the wall when they swerved to aid Gar Nargoh and the dragon. The other half was too engaged with the ground forces to notice.
“No, no, no!” Argus cursed the situation.
When the wyverns arrived to aid the dragon, Lotmeag took his garvawk into a dive along the ridge. They couldn’t fight the dragon and the wyverns. He whistled as loud as he could, and his team of garvawk riders fell into a dive behind him. The motion of the garvawks diving into the shadows of the ridge halted the wyvern riders as they lost sight of the warriors. The moon was high and bright, and the contrasted shadows made it difficult for the orcs to spot their opponents. A couple of the wyvern riders moved closer to the ridge, trying to find the dwarves in the shadows.
Suddenly, the garvawk warriors reappeared out of the shadows, overcoming the two wyvern riders who had ventured too close. The other orcs swooped in to engage the garvawk warriors while they were visible in the moonlight. Tooth and claw and maw and sword and axe and spear collided in mayhem.
With fewer garvawks to contend with, the Drelek dragon ripped through the warriors quickly. Bendur Clagstack’s face ran with tears as he did everything he could to fight the dragon, while his brothers fell left and right. He was the last of his team remaining and came face to face with the dragon. He looked past the great maw of the dragon to lock eyes with the orc that rode the vile beast.
Bendur’s great grey beard flew sideways in the mountain breeze. He wiped his face with his sleeve, took his last throwing axe in his hand, and settled himself in the saddle. “I’m sorry, love,” he patted his garvawk’s sleek fur and kicked hard.
The garvawk shot off, and the two charged at the massive dragon. Bendur let out a primal war cry as they flew. The dragon’s neck began to glow as it worked up the fire from its belly. It opened its great jaws and unleashed a blast of fire, but not before Bendur Clagstack loosed his last throwing axe. The dragon turned its body ever so slightly as it crunched its teeth down on the cooked snack.
The throwing axe flew harmlessly by the orc rider, ringing with a clang off the hardened scales of the dragon’s tail.
“Our garvawk warriors have failed,” King Thygram said to Argus. He turned his attention to the archers. “Focus all of your arrows on the wyverns over the battlefield!”
Argus looked up into the sky at the mighty dragon. It was coming their way.
Ellaria grew more in tune with the magic of the green stone around her neck as she loosed arrow after arrow. In fact, she had run out of physical arrows and had not replenished her quiver from the arrow barrels. Instead, she simply nocked and drew her bowstring with arrows made of pure green magical energy with seamless, fluid motions.
As she stole a look up at the dragon and saw the beast burn and eat one of the garvawk warriors, she realized their original plan was failing. She loosed another green arrow toward a wyvern rider, and at that exact moment, one of Ezel’s blasts struck the same wyvern. The green and blue mystical forces came together and erupted into a massive explosion against the unlucky wyvern and its orc rider. Both hit the ground, unmoving.
A sudden idea came to her, and judging by the similar look in Ezel’s eyes, it was in line with his own thoughts.
“Argus!” she yelled.
“What is it, my lady?” the mage asked as he lobbed a fireball from his short silver and blue scepter.
“I have an idea!” she yelled before loosing another blazing emerald arrow. “Ezel and I need to get to the tower! Can you get the dragon to come this way once we’re there?”
“The beast comes this way now!” Argus replied.
Ellaria and Ezel turned, and sure enough, the dragon was on its way. They bolted along the wall-walk, running behind dwarven archers and hopping over the fallen, wishing for more time to proceed past them with reverence. They ran with the urgency of active battle. The pair slipped through a doorway and turned down the hall toward the stairs, which they ascended rapidly. They heaved through the door at the top and tried to catch their breaths.
But the dragon was upon them.
The dragon of Drelek swooped low over Galium and unleashed a shower of fire. The archers that didn’t dive and scatter away from the fire shot arrows feverishly. The hardened scales of the dragon rejected entry to the bee stings, and arrows fell dangerously back at the dwarven archers.
“We’re going to need a better shot,” Ellaria said to Ezel, looking out one of the great windows.
She climbed out the window onto the ledge and used the cleverly smithed stonework on the outside of the tower to climb onto the roof. Ezel managed the climb as well, and they readied themselves for the dragon’s next pass. The smell of smoke rose into the air, and the embers of reduced buildings inside Galium lit the city.
The dragon took a wide turn before settling on its next path of destruction over the dwarven city. And then it charged.
“We’ll fire on three, yeah?” Ellaria said to Ezel. She didn’t need to look at him to know he was with her. “One.”
The dragon flew in with a madness in its great eyes, as though it were hungry for more devastation.
“Two.”
Ellaria held her bow taut, the muscles in her arms shaking not out of weariness but with the power of the magical stone. Ezel swirled his hands in a holding pattern, waiting to unleash the blast. His eyes blazed with blue faery fire, and several of his runic tattoos were alight. Their faces were set like flint as they watched the incoming dragon.
The furious monster’s neck glowed amber as the fires welled within him. Just as the dragon began to spew his vile flames, “Three.”
Green and blue magic intersected in midair to become one bolt of ruin. The bolt landed a massive blow to the shoulder of the dragon, which instantly turned and spewed flame at the tower and slammed its wicked tail against the building. The beautiful stonework was undone, as the roof of the tower was smashed below them, sending the woman and the gnome toppling off the side.
They tumbled through the sky together. Ezel had grabbed Ellaria and combined his magic with the magic of the token to shield her from the fire. All seemed to slow down. Ellaria and Ezel had only a split second to think of the demise that raced toward them before a silvery griffin swooped in and caught the pair.
Stunned, Ellaria gripped the griffin tightly, tears flowing freely off her chin. She clung to the griffin as Ezel clung to her. Tied around the griffin’s foot was a small banner of crimson cloth with golden stitching.
“Enkeli!” She joyfully shouted to Ezel. She had thought them dead, but here was the helper he’d promised to send.
When she regained some sense about her, she realized she knew the silvery feathers of the griffin. She shook herself upright on the creature to view him properly. “Silverwing!” She shouted with glee. “You silly boy!”
She could hardly contain the excitement within her, but Ezel tapped her firmly to grab her attention. The dragon had been dealt a blow it did not appreciate. It had flown up high into the air over the battlefield to compose itself. That, or the orc rider needed to regain control of the beast. Either way, the dragon roared furiously and shook its massive body as if to shake off the pain of the blow.
“Alright, silly boy, I hope you’re ready to do some fancy flying, because we’ve got something to finish! You ready, Ezel?” She asked, looking over her shoulder at him. The gnome nodded, a new determination in his eyes, blazing blue again.
Ellaria kicked, and Silverwing shot off toward the dragon. She leaned into the speed, and her red hair flowed behind her like a banner in the wind. Ezel clung to the back of her light armor as they flew with all haste, directly at the dragon of Drelek.
The great monster saw them riding in and puffed up his chest, preparing to let out the greatest cascade of fire the creature had ever loosed. The dragon heaved his head high and his wings wide—exactly what the companions had hoped for.
Ellaria sat as straight as she could and nocked an emerald energy arrow that drew magic continually from the stone as they flew within range. Ezel pushed all the force of magic he could from his own body, flowing from the runic tattoos, through his arms, off his hands, and wrapping around the woman to join forces with the magic arrow poised in her bow. The thing became a spectacle of light in the sky as they drew closer.
The dragon drew its breath.
As if they were two chords of the same symphony, all their powers unleashed at the same time.
The javelin of pure energy was faster than the dragon’s fire, and it erupted into the beast’s chest. It pierced the hardened scales and struck the dragon’s heart with an explosive force. The green and blue light overwhelmed the fiery amber within, only to be overtaken by darkness as the dragon plummeted to the ground far below. Goblins, orcs, and trolls ran screaming in all directions, trying to avoid the large falling mass. The dragon’s final blow was against its own masters as it crashed hard to the ground, taking dozens of Drelek warriors with it into death.
When Ellaria looked up from the dragon on the ground, her emerald eyes landed on a face she knew, in an unexpected place. Not far off, Merrick, sitting atop a great spotted falcon, stared at her in awe, and behind him a great force of peoples from all over Tarrine gathered. He shook his head at her in disbelief, but his shaking soon turned to an impressed nod.
A young man decked in Whitestone armor hollered for a charge, and all the peoples that rode with him went into a dive over the battlefield. Griffin Guard, Loralith Riders, and even orange-painted Drelek orcs followed the man into the fray.
Pandemonium ran through the attacking Drelek forces when the dragon was felled. Those at the rear of the battlefield turned tail and ran. Others fought with renewed fervor, desperate for their lives. The wyvern riders fought tooth and claw but were overcome by the combined forces. Lotmeag and the few surviving garvawk warriors helped finish off the attacking wyvern riders.
Once the wyvern riders were gone and the host of flying warriors hovered over the battlefield with no aerial opponents to engage, the Drelek ground forces threw down their weapons in defeat. They begged their enemies to have mercy on their surrender. Karnak and Smarlo landed near a large group of surrendering goblins to help the dwarves, while the Scar Squadron and the Griffin Guard secured all the prisoners.
The Elves of Loralith went to the city to aid in suppressing the fires of the dragon and look for anyone who might have gotten caught in the rubble of some of the fallen buildings.
Ellaria and Ezel landed near Orin and Coal, who sat on a rock. Coal was ripping a piece of smoke-dried meat to share with the exhausted guardian. Orin laughed at the sight of Silverwing.
“Enkeli sent him,” Ellaria said with a baffled shrug. She hugged the neck of the beautiful griffin, who nuzzled her, happy to be with her again. Orin shook his head in amazement.
Ezel climbed slowly onto the rock to join them. His little body was sore, but he was happy to see his friends unharmed and wanted to be near them. Orin and Coal extended hands and heaved the gnome onto the rock.
“Thanks,” he signed and took the chunk of dried meat from Coal’s other hand, which he munched happily.
Coal’s confused expression revealed he had no idea what just happened or why he no longer had any jerky.
Then a great falcon swooped in and landed near Silverwing and Ellaria. Merrick hopped off the mighty bird and ran to his sister, taking her in his arms and squeezing her hard enough to make sure she wasn’t an illusion.
“I knew it!” Coal yelled. “Never doubted your survival for a moment.” Orin and Ezel shook their heads and grinned, as they took bites of the meat and watched the family reunion.
“It’s good to see you,” Orin shouted to Merrick.
“I thought I might never see you again. But then again, I have never known one as stubborn as you, little brother,” came a familiar voice from the side of them.
Orin turned, and there stood Pernden. He hopped to his feet, tossed the meat to Coal, who happily accepted it, and climbed off the rock.
“I feared what had become of you,” Orin said.
“It’s been a rather busy season at Whitestone,” Pernden shrugged. “I feared you dead.”
Orin smiled at his brother, only a year and a half his elder. The two shared a brotherly hug, and Pernden grabbed at his brother’s shoulders, taking stock of him.
“I’m fine,” Orin assured him. “I’m fine.” A quiver ran through his face, and he stepped back and pulled Rayin’s sword from his sheath.
Pernden understood immediately. Their younger brother had died.
“I have had time to grieve for him. And you, as it happens,” Pernden said comfortingly to his brother.
Orin bowed slightly and raised the sword up in front of him, offering it to Pernden, the head of their family. “This is for you. For memory and honor.”
Pernden waved a hand to his younger brother and shifted. He revealed Wintertide from his own belt and shook his head. “I have already inherited one,” he said sadly.
Orin recognized the blade immediately. “Melkis?” he asked, grief followed shock in his parade of expressions.
“We have much to discuss,” Pernden said, pulling Orin into another embrace. “But I am glad to see you.”
Coal and Ezel finished their jerky and watched their friends, completely content. It had been a long night, and dawn was birthing a new day.
The dwarf nudged the grey gnome with his elbow and signed, “Well, see? We did it.”
Ezel tilted his head; the dwarf was right. They had done it. They had helped their new friends defeat the dragon of Drelek. And though there was much cleanup to do, they had won the battle.
“And what will we do now?” Ezel asked.
Coal laughed. “I don’t know. We have lots of new friends. Maybe it’s time for a new adventure,” he flourished with his hands.
Ezel smiled back as he twiddled the token that hung around his neck. “This hasn’t been adventure enough for you?”
The dwarf laughed from deep within his belly and added, “After some good rest, of course.”
“Of course,” Ezel responded, exhausted but grateful.