Desolation (Dragonlands Book 4) (19 page)

Connor followed Sophia down long hallways and endless staircases, descending into the bowels of the Red castle. He'd only come this way once before, when Tressa had shown him the hidden danger that lurked in its depths.

"Decarian is growing bolder by the day," Sophia said. "We marked a line on the ground with chalk and, well... it's better if I let you see exactly what's happening. We don't know how to stop it. We still have plenty of goats in the pens outside. Every day one is slaughtered and honey is spread thinly on its limbs. A brave volunteer feeds them to Decarian."

"What?" Connor asked. "Feeds them to Decarian? Don't you just toss the limbs to him?"

"No," Sophia said, shaking her head. "We tried that, but the food just falls into the fire. Decarian needs to have it fed to him. You will see that, too. We'll be feeding him the final bit of honey."

They walked around a curve, down one more flight of stairs, and into the mouth of the cavern. A cool breeze danced in the air with a touch of warmth coming from where Decarian lay beyond.

"We've been spreading the honey thinner and thinner every day," Sophia said. "We were hoping to make it last until Tressa comes back from Desolation with help or a solution. We would take anything at this point. I'm thrilled you've remembered what makes the honey in Hutton's Bridge special, but I'm afraid it's simply too late to produce any before Decarian breaks free."

Sophia motioned to Connor as she slipped through the entry to Decarian's lair. He hesitated, taking a deep breath, then followed her.

The huge beast roared, shaking its four-horned head. Muscular arms flexed as his hands reached out toward Connor. Decarian's nails landed on the ground, scraping against the rock as he pulled them back. He burst into raucous laughter.

Despite Decarian's pleasure at having riled him, Connor winced. If not for the chalk line, Decarian could have easily skewered both Connor and Sophia with one of his long, pointy fingernails. He could reach much farther than the last time Connor had seen him.

"Connor," Decarian bellowed, his voice echoing in the chamber.

Connor stumbled as he took a step backward.

"Come to me, Connor." Decarian smiled, the light of the torches glinting off his teeth. "I'm hungry."

Connor glanced at Sophia, alarmed. "He didn't speak the last time I was here."

"It's new," Sophia said. "We believe it means his strength is growing. With today being the last day for the honey, we fear for all of our lives. Oh, here is our brave volunteer now."

A man walked into the cavern with a goat's leg tucked under his arm. The scent of fresh blood filled the room. Connor swallowed his revulsion at the coppery scent. He'd never had a stomach for slaughter. It was why he'd worked in the apiary instead of the slaughterhouse like his father.

The man nodded at Sophia. "I'm ready."

"Just like yesterday," she said. "Fly high and drop the goat's leg in his mouth. Then get away as fast as you can. You'll do fine, Velio.

He gave Sophia a grim, determined smile. Velio tossed the goat's leg into the air. Before it fell to the ground, he changed into his dragon, grabbing the leg with his talons. His wings flapping, Velio soared closer to the fire, then shot straight up.

Decarian laughed. "Food. Come to me." His deep voice reverberated through the cavern, setting Connor's nerves on edge.

Velio circled Decarian twice, evidently aiming for Decarian's open mouth. Decarian dutifully tilted back his head, waiting for his dinner.

"Does he know the honey keeps him bound?" Connor asked Sophia.

"We're not sure," she admitted, her eyes glued to Velio as he lined up for the drop.

"Why not starve him to death?" Connor asked. "Let him die."

"I wish it were that simple," Sophia said. "Starving him won't help. He'd break free before he died from starvation."

Velio pumped his wings as he hovered in place.

"It's about to happen," Sophia said. "This is the last bit of honey."

Velio dropped the goat leg into Decarian's waiting mouth. Before he could fly off, Decarian shot an arm up at him, catching Velio in his grasp.

"No!" Sophia said, her hands over her mouth.

"I'll help him," Connor said, but Sophia grasped his arm, her nails digging into his skin.

"It's too late," she said. "We've seen this before." Tears welled at the corner of her eyes.

Decarian chewed on the goat leg while he squeezed Velio in his other hand. Velio fought, his talons clawing at Decarian and barely leaving a mark. He bit at Decarian's fingers, but the beast didn't even register his attacks.

Decarian swallowed, then turned his attention to Velio. He brought the dragon to his lips and bit the head off. Blood splattered all over Decarian's face. His tongue snaked out of his mouth to catch the red liquid.

Connor looked at Sophia. "You don't have to watch this."

"Yes, I do. These are my men. They volunteered, knowing it might mean their deaths. It is the only way I know how to honor them. I won't leave them alone with Decarian until it is done," Sophia said, her voice filled with anger and sadness.

Decarian brought Velio’s neck to his mouth, sucking on it. "This one is good," he boomed. "Better than the last five."

Five? Connor looked at Sophia. Her narrowed eyes were focused on Decarian. They'd lost five dragons feeding this monster? How many more would die once he got loose?

Decarian popped the rest of the dragon in his mouth, chewing noisily.

"Let's go," Sophia said, her head bent and her hands shaking. "Now do you see? He grows in power. He likes the taste of flesh. And now we have nothing left to fight against him. He will break free." Sophia started back up the stairs without looking to see if Connor was following. "We will evacuate the castle tonight. All able-bodied dragons will carry at least three humans on their backs."

"Where will you go?" Connor asked.

"South. To the Charred Barrens. There we will regroup."

"You're going to let him break free and wander the Dragonlands killing everything in his path?" Connor asked.

"We don't know what else to do," Sophia said. "I want to fight, but not even our best-trained warriors can defeat him. Decarian has hordes of minions below. We can't count them because they are hidden in the fire. We hear them when he is quiet. Their screams tell us they are ready for battle."

Connor thought of the illustrations in the Meadowlands again. It showed burning land and dead humans. Green dragons fleeing to the west. He realized he hadn't seen dragons of any other color. Where were the Black and their armies? Were they hiding underground, just as Sophia suggested?

"Hutton's Bridge stands in between the Flaming Hills and the Charred Barrens," Connor said. "We will be sacrificed. Again."

"Then bring the children to the Ruins of Ebon. We have plenty of space for everyone underground." Sophia emerged from the final staircase into the main hall. Sunlight shone on them from a chiseled window.

Connor blinked a few times, trying to see clearly in the brightness. "What about Tressa? What will happen when she comes back to find the castle destroyed and everyone gone?"

"Tressa will be fine," Sophia said. "My great-granddaughter is better at adapting to changing circumstances than anyone I've ever met."

"She went to Desolation to find a solution to this problem, and you're giving up!" Connor screamed at the older woman. Now that he had his memory, he was struck by how much younger she seemed since coming back to life. Dragon blood worked miracles on humans. It was too bad their blood couldn't destroy Decarian.

"What would you have me do?" Sophia slammed her fists onto her hips. "Should I let them all stay in the castle? What happens when Decarian rises out of the depths? His bulk will destroy the very foundations of this castle, and it will come crashing down upon them. They will die."

Connor held up a hand. "Say that again."

"The castle will collapse under his size. Anyone in it will die." Sophia looked at him strangely. "This is why we must evacuate."

"You're right," Connor said. "Begin the evacuation now."

Sophia nodded. "Then you must leave, too. If you want your bees, they are in the apiary in the courtyard."

Sophia hurried off, listing out loud all of the preparations she needed to make for the evacuations.

Connor, on the other hand, stood quite still, lost in thought. If he could find a way to bring the castle down on Decarian, crushing the giant beast beneath its weight, then maybe, just maybe he'd be able to change prophecy.

Tressa soared above the barren landscape, her wings thrust out to the sides, wind rushing under them. Behind her flew a ghostly army of dragons. The parents of Hutton's Bridge, who'd been lured away from their village in the dark of night and turned into statues in Desolation, weren't fully dead. They were frozen until someone could rescue them. Their bodies were gone, lost to time and decay, but whatever had trapped them allowed their souls to live on in the stone.

It was the cruelest of torture, but it was also what allowed them new life this day.

They never thought they'd be dragons.

Alden, the former leader of Hutton's Bridge, flew next to Tressa, letting the memories of his former life flood into her mind. At first she was overwhelmed, yet the more she saw, the more she wanted to know. Who was the man who had come to the village in the dark of night, offering the villagers protection from the Red's imminent invasion? How had he tricked them into trusting him?

Alden's regret and sadness over leaving his children behind weighed heavily on his heart. Tressa tried to reassure him, grateful the two of them had established a link. She tried to explain how sometimes good people fall under the thrall of a magic user, but Alden couldn't understand. He said a bond between father and daughter should be stronger than any kind of foul magic. Then he spoke her name.

Sophia.

The ghost dragon flying next to Tressa was her great-great-grandfather.

Her heart hammered in her chest. She wished they were both in human form so she could wrap her arms around him.

One glance told her that would never be possible. These dragons had no bodies. They were as wispy as clouds, their forms undulating and billowing as the air currents pushed them along. Hundreds flew behind her, their joyous cries drowning out the sadness and fear they'd projected earlier.

Tressa pushed as hard as she could, despite her exhaustion. Donovan had brought her here for a reason. If this was it, then she needed to get to him as soon as possible. They could leave Desolation and head back into the Dragonlands.

Tressa's keen dragon eyes spotted Donovan and Fi in the distance. Fi jumped up and down, her arms waving in the air.

Tressa landed, her talons digging into the parched earth. The ghost dragons hovered behind her. Tressa closed her eyes, expecting to turn into a human. It didn't come. She was still stuck as a dragon.

Do you have any idea how I can get my human body back?
she asked Fi.

I don't. I wish I could tell you.
Fi patted Tressa's scales.
Don't worry. We'll figure it out.

Donovan stared at Tressa, his expression unreadable. "What did you find at the rocks?" he asked her.

Can you see anything behind me?
Tressa asked Fi.

No. Why?
Fi stood on her tiptoes and craned her neck.
What should I see?

A horde of ghost dragons.

Fi continued to look. She walked around Tressa once. When she got back to the place she started, she gave Tressa a funny look.
I know you've been through a lot, and you haven't slept. I think maybe you're hallucinating. You should get some sleep.

No,
Tressa said.
I'm fine. Those stones were a grouping of hundreds of statues. Trapped inside them were the souls of the people who left Hutton's Bridge eighty years ago when the fog fell over the village. My blood freed them as dragons. Apparently I'm the only one who can see them.

But how?
Fi asked.
Where did they come from?

I was attacked by the shades,
Tressa said.
I defeated them, but I was wounded. My blood brought these dragons to life.

Should I tell Donovan?
Fi rested a hand on Tressa's snout.
He might be able to explain. He's the reason you went there.

I know...
Tressa looked at Donovan's face again. Despite his disinterested gaze, Tressa noticed his chin was slightly elevated. The small bit of skin between his face and his collar was pink, and one tiny drop of sweat hung from the crown of his head. Had Tressa been in her human body, she might not have noticed those small signs, but as a dragon her senses were heightened. Nothing went undetected.

Let's keep it between us for now,
Tressa told Fi.

"Tressa told me she fought the shades. She was injured, and now she's exhausted and wants to get some sleep," Fi said.

Donovan nodded once, his chin dropping back to its normal place. "Well, then." He folded his arms over his chest. "Are you sure she said nothing else?"

"That was it," Fi said.

Tressa laid down on the ground, resting her snout on her forearms. Truth be told, she was tired. Sleep had evaded her for too long.

"Then we will head back to the Dragonlands after she has rested," Donovan said as he pulled a small ball of fabric from his coat. He tossed it into the air, erecting a tent over them.

Fi climbed up on Tressa's front leg and snuggled into it. "This feels opposite, doesn't it? Not long ago, I was saving your human arse. Now you're the big, powerful dragon helping out the little guys."

Tressa puffed a burst of smoke in Fi's face.

Fi laughed, waving it away. "I guess I deserved that."

Tressa nuzzled Fi, and the two relaxed.

Alden walked through the tent, settling next to Tressa.

What are we do to?
Alden asked Tressa.
If we cannot be seen, then perhaps we are of less use in this form than we were trapped as statues.

I don't know yet,
Tressa answered.
There must be a reason for your existence. I'm not willing to give up now that I've found you.

You treat me as if we are family,
Alden said.
That is a feeling I haven't had in many, many years.

We are.
Tressa reached out a foot toward him. Donovan's eyes followed her movements, but she pretended it was only a gentle stretch.
Your daughter Sophia is my great-grandmother. We are kin.

Alden let out a cool breath. Tressa's scales tingled and the hair on Fi's arms rose. Her friend had already fallen asleep, but she stirred at the chilling breeze.

I had not thought I would ever see anyone from Hutton's Bridge again.
He let out a little chuckle.
And the one who saved me turns out to be my descendent. The world works in strange ways.
Will you take me home?

I will,
Tressa said,
but the Dragonlands have fallen into chaos. Dangerous beasts from Desolation are about to break into our homeland, bent on destruction. Hutton's Bridge has lost nearly all of its adults again, and the children are hidden within its foggy borders. We don’t know how to protect them from this evil at our gates.

We will help you in any way we can,
Alden said.
Though we have been dormant for many years, trapped within the statues, we want to fight. We will happily kill whoever did this to us. We will fight for our people. We were fooled once. We will not be so naive again.

Soon,
Tressa said.
For now, we will sleep. After we are all refreshed, I plan to find out exactly what types of dragons you are and what sorts of power you wield.

Tressa's eyelids fell. She drifted off into dreams filled with fire and ice, death and life, love and loss.