Omensent: Rise of the Shadow Dragons (20 page)

"This is the
Lion's Head Inn." She told them, motioning for the elderly innkeeper to join them.

He
was an ancient looking old man with a weeks worth of beard growth and an angry look that appeared his normal expression. He scowled at Raven hatefully, then shuffled over, grumbling sourly under his breathe.

"This is Sully." She int
roduced with a fond smile. "He runs the finest establishment in all of Deiria! He'll show you to your rooms." She smiled down at the old man, who glared back at her hatefully. "I know he may look a bit surly, but he is truly a good man." She looked back to Damion and Veren. "After you have rested and refreshed yourselves, I'd suggest visiting his tavern. He makes some of the finest wine you have ever tasted!"

"Will you be returning soon?"
Damion asked hesitantly, not wanting to sound too interested.

Raven smiled a radiant smile that seemed to brighten everything around her. "
I'll return once I have finished filling my father in on the details." She frowned momentarily. "I'm not quite sure how I am going to explain what happened with Melvik, though." She shrugged. "I'm sure I'll think of something!"

Damion watched as she hurried out the door, then glanced down at Sully, who was staring up at him with an angry look. "Is there a bathhouse we can use?"

"Out back." Sully grumbled, still staring at Damion angrily. "Boy, what did your parents feed you to make you grow
so
big?" He shook his head in disapproval. "Don't you think you should have had the courtesy to stop growing at a reasonable height?"

"I didn't really have much to say in that matter."

The old man gave Snowfeather, who was perched sedately on Damion's shoulder, a disapproving look. "Make sure your bird doesn't make any messes while it's here. I don't want to have to scrub the floors after you leave."

"That shouldn't be a problem." Damion assured him calmly.

"I suppose you'll want some food after you wash?"

Damion smiled and nodded.

"I'll tell the cooks to butcher a couple of oxen then." The old man griped, turning to shuffle towards the kitchen. "I'll have your rooms made up while you bathe."

"Pleasant little fellow."
Veren laughed, watching as the old man paused to berate a passing servant.

"Raven seems to lik
e him though." Damion commented, chuckling in amusement.

They returned from the bathhouse to find Sully impatiently awaiting their return with a table groaning with food.
"It's about time!" The old man growled unhappily. "I've had my cooks working overtime to prepare all of this food!" He gave Damion an appraising look. "I figured it would take quite a bit to fill such a big fella."

Damion smiled, his mouth watering at the sight of all the food. "This is perfect, Sully!" He sat down and began to help himself.

After he and Veren had eaten far more than was good for them, they sat back in their seats enjoying a flavorful wine provided by Sully from his private stock.

"Tell me about the land that lies between Deiria and Arleia?" Damion asked
Veren curiously, taking a sip from his goblet of wine.

"Veiria?"
Veren's face grew bleak. "It's not a very pleasant place. It's mostly desert, and as hot as a dwarven forge. The Veirians are a backward primitive sort of folk who worship the spirits of their ancestors. They live in underground chambers hidden all over the desert and concealed by the shifting sands."

"Will they give us any problems when we enter their lands?"

The one eared man shook his head. "I doubt it. The Veirians are an odd sort. They eat the fruit of a certain cactus that apparently allows them to enter a trance like state, which is how they speak to their ancestors. They spend most of their time wandering the desert in a drug induced daze, unable to distinguish fantasy from reality."

Raven suddenly appeared in the doorway, her face pale. She hurried over to their table, her eyes slightly panicked. "You must leave at once!" She whispered, her voice slightly
desperate.

"Why?" Damion asked in confusion? "What has happened?"

"My father has called for you to be taken into custody and dragged before the council!" She told them, grabbing Damion by one arm and trying to drag him to his feet. "As soon as they gather enough men they're going to try to subdue you!"

Damion stood, but still did not follow
. "Why are you telling me this? Won't you get in trouble for warning us?"

The young woman's face grew flustered. "Well... You saved me! I owe my life to you!"

"You're father will not be happy that you have done this."

She dismissed this with a toss of her head. "You must hurry! I will lead you out of town!"

Damion and Veren followed her to retrieve their horses, then quickly made their way through the empty streets. Although it was dark, the streets were lined with torches which lit the way to the edge of town.

"Damn!"
Veren cursed as they rounded a corner to find the road blocked by nearly a hundred warriors, each armed with long bows which were drawn and leveled at their chests.

"Raven!" The young woman's father stepped from the crowd of warriors. "Step away from that vile creature! You're job is done now!"

"She has betrayed us!" The one eared man snarled in anger. "I knew we couldn't trust a Deirian!"

"That's not true!" Raven turned to stare at Damion desperately. "I..."

"Do as I say!" Evien Nightshade roared. "Get away from them so we can take them into custody!"

The young woman stared at her father in chagrin, then turned to gaze at Damion helplessly.

"Go." Damion snarled at her in a cold voice.

She continued to stare at him with a pleading look,
then finally looked away, staring instead at the clan chief, who stood awaiting his daughter to respond to his command. She turned away and then nudged her horse with her heels, disappearing into the crowd of warriors.

"Got any ideas?"
Veren murmured.

"None that doesn't involve a lot of people getting hurt." Damion replied, his mind still reeling by Raven's betrayal.

"Well you had better think quickly!" The one eared man whispered desperately. "Otherwise we are going to look like a couple of pin cushions!"

"Get down off your horses, and surrender the Dragon Sword!" The clan chief demanded. "You shall be taken
before the council in Willowton to answer for the crimes your actions have caused our people!"

"I don't have the time to play games with you, Ev
ien Nightshade." Damion growled in a dangerous voice. "You do not want to cross me!"

"I assure you, I'm not playing
games." The pale skinned clan chief told him. "You will do as I say, or you will die!"

An ear splitting roar echoed through the
forest surrounding the city, causing many of the Deirian warriors to jump in fear.

"Uh oh!"
Veren was already searching the sky, his face concerned. "That sounded like a dragon!"

A
nother roar split the air, then a shadowy form suddenly dropped from the night sky, slamming to the ground behind the Deirians. The black dragon shrieked once more, then lashed out with its lethal tail, sending a number of warriors flying limply through the air. It drew a deep breath, then began spewing fire over the nearest structure, setting it instantly ablaze.

"Fall
back!" The clan chief yelled to his men in a booming voice.

The Deirian warriors reacted with the
efficiency of well trained men as they retreated from the creature, then reformed their ranks in a practiced motion.

"Fire!"

A hundred arrows suddenly rained down on the raging dragon as the warriors released their bows, but the arrows merely bounced off harmlessly, unable to penetrate the creature's tough hide.

Damion launched himself from his saddle as he drew the Dragon Sword. "Take the horses and get out of here!" He ordered
Veren. "I'll catch up!" He paused to watch Veren disappear with the horses, then turned to the dragon, who was still being pelted with arrows.

The shadow dragon
suddenly reared and slashed out with its razor sharp talons, cutting down several warriors, then drew another breath, preparing to breathe flaming death down upon the Deirians.

Damion drew in his magic and sent a sizzling bolt of energy streaking from his fingertips, striking the beast in the side of its
enormous head.

The shadow dragon
shrieked as the bolt of energy exploded, momentarily blinding it. It shook its head to clear its vision, then whirled on Damion, it fangs bared and ready to strike. Its long whipping tail lashed out, absently crushing another warrior and hurling his body into his clansmen.

"Retreat
!" The Deirian clan chief screamed in terror, watching as his clan was being slaughtered. "Fall back to the forest!" He turned and fled, followed closely by what remained of his clan.

The shadow dragon
ignored the fleeing men and focused on Damion, who was rushing forward, the blazing Dragon Sword held aloft. It reared back, then lunged forward with a roar, raking the air before him with its claws, but he dove behind the stone wall of a building, avoiding the slashing talons by mere inches. The shadow dragon screamed in fury, then began belching flames, engulfing the structure behind which Damion was hiding, then turned its attention to spreading its flames to the other nearby structures. Fully half of the town was ablaze within seconds, and the screams of terror from the town's people were lost in the roar of the fire.

Damion raced from behind the stone structure and swung a vast overhand blow with the Dragon Sword
, striking the frenzied beast just under its massive armpit. The flaming blade sliced through the tough hide easily, leaving a deep jagged gash that exposed bone. He danced behind the dragon for safety as it began to thrash in pain, then saw his opportunity. He ducked the whipping tail, then leaped aboard the thrashing dragon, landing between its rear hips. He scampered nimbly up its spine and between its wings, then braced himself as the dragon went berserk.

The shadow dragon shrieked in fury as it began
to slam its body into one of the stone structures in an effort to dislodge Damion, but he held on tight, refusing to be thrown from the shadowy serpent's back. It desperately tried to whip its head far around enough to grasp him, but it was unable to reach him. Its belched a wave of flames high into the air, roaring in frustration.

Damion, continued to hold on, then, as the shadow dragon paused to roar its frustration,
he reversed his grip on the Dragon Sword and drove it down into the beast's back with all his strength, just between its shoulder blades. He felt the flaming blade slide through the gap between its ribs, and drive deep into the shadow dragon's beating heart.

The
dragon's shrieks suddenly stopped, and the enormous beast shuddered, its eyes wide with disbelief. Its massive legs trembled, and it took a staggering step forward, its flames suddenly replaced by the blood that had filled its massive lungs. It leaned heavily against one of the burning buildings, its large eyes glazing over.

Damion
tore the sword free, then leapt aside as the shadow dragon collapsed twitching to the ground.

The carnage left behind by the attack was dreadful, and the injured and dying lay scattered about in the burning ruins that
, only minutes earlier, was a thriving town. Several of the burning buildings had collapsed in on themselves, completely consumed by the intense flames.

Damion backed away from the shadow dragon's corpse
breathing heavily. He examined the dead beast carefully, noticing there was little difference between it and a scarlet dragon, except that it was smaller and much less muscular than their fellow serpents. The most distinguishing feature was the dragon's dull black coloring, which even in death seemed to pull the shadows in to obscure the body from clear view.