Omensent: Wrath of a Dragon God (39 page)

Damarius stumbled back to avoid the attack, then swung the flaming branch at the creature's head, forcing it to retreat several steps. It began to circle the old wizard, its shadowy sword held at the ready.

A flaming arrow suddenly flashed through the air and shot straight through
the chest of the shadow warrior, leaving a large gaping void in its wake.

The
inhuman creature stopped in its tracks and screeched horribly, but the old wizard suddenly leapt forward, bringing his flaming branch down in a powerful overhand blow, striking the living shadow directly on top of its head. The flaming branch passed through the insubstantial creature without resistance, slicing it in two. The shadow warrior's shriek was abruptly silenced, and the two halves evaporated into nothing.

"Ha!" Damarius shouted in triumph. He turned to look at Raven. "Thanks for that."

"No problem." She turned her attention to Damion and the remaining shadow warrior, who still were circling one another with deadly intent.

"Quit playing with it and finish it off." Damarius
finally barked impatiently.

Damion suddenly lunged forward, moving quicker than any normal man ever could, the Dragon Sword poised to strike. The shadow warrior struck out with its
insubstantial sword, attempting to block the powerful blow, but the flaming sword passed through the shadowy weapon, showering their campsite with sparks. Another powerful blow severed the shadowy creature in half at the waist, and its earsplitting screech echoed through the night, seeming to go on and on until it finally faded away into an unearthly silence.

"Well," Damarius sighed heavily, then brushed his long
brow lock from his eyes. "that was exciting!"

Damion chuckled. "Not bad, for an old man, that is."

The old wizard laughed. "That was exhilarating! I can't remember the last time I did anything like that!"

"Pretty impressive." Raven smiled at the old man.

"I think we had probably take turns at watch for now on." Damion commented, willing the flaming Dragon Sword to extinguish, and returning it to its sheath. "We don't need anymore of those things creeping up on us in the night."

They settled back down
around the fire, the adrenaline still pumping through their veins.

"What are you doing? Damion asked Damarius, who had still not
extinguished the fiery branch he had used to battle the shadow warrior.

"
This made a formidable weapon." The old wizard held up the flaming staff proudly. "I thought I would carve it into a walking staff." He drew out his dagger and began stripping the wood of its bark.

The huge warrior smiled. "Let me see it." He took the flaming staff from his old teacher and looked at it carefully. "It's good heavy oak.
" He murmured absently. "It should last for ages." He drew in his magic and focused it onto the flaming branch, which began to glow brightly, overwhelming and engulfing the flames.

When the glowing finally subsided, Raven and Damarius saw that the rough tree branch
had been transformed into a sleek staff which seemed to twist and intertwine with itself in a complex weave that dazzled the eye. The fire which had been burning fiercely at one end of the branch, now burned inside of a solid piece of crystal that was in the shape of a flame.

Damion looked the staff over
critically, then drew the Dragon Sword from its sheath, and gently placed the Dragon Gem against the flaming crystal. The flames, which continued to burn inside of the crystal, instantly turned bright red, taking on the exact same shade of the mythical stone. He nodded in satisfaction, and handed it back to Damarius.

The old wizard took the staff
, and looked it over critically. "This is very nice." He murmured, examining the piece of burning crystal mounted to the end. "Very,
very
nice. " He looked to Damion. "Thank you, young one. It's perfect."

"
I'm glad you like it." The huge warrior smiled. "I used the Dragon Sword to enchant the crystal. If you focus your magic through it, the crystal will amplify your power ten fold."

The old wizard looked impressed. "That should come in useful."

"It looks stylish too." Raven told him, trying valiantly not to start laughing. "Every mighty wizard needs his staff of power."

"Snicker if you will," Damarius told her in a lofty to
ne, brushing his brow lock from his eyes absently. "but I think it makes me look rather formidable."

The rustle of feathers drew their attention to Snowfeather, who sailed in from the darkness on silent wings with another hare clutched in his talons.
"I'm sorry."
He hooted regretfully.
"I couldn't find any sign of anyone camped out along this trail."

Damion sighed, then looked to his wife and shook his head
. His heart nearly broke at the look of despair that flickered across her beautiful face, and he walked over and drew her close, his anger once again flaring up.

************

"There's a group of riders heading this way." One of the twin knights warned, reining in his horse.

They had been moving quickly, trying to put as much distance between themselves and the v
illage before it grew too dark, and they were forced to stop for the evening.

"They appear to be another
Aliono patrol." The other knight added, pulling his horse along side his brother's stead. "Reinforcements, perhaps?"

"Let's hope not." Sly snorted. "I don't there's enough dragon's milk left to deal with
another patrol."

They waited as the
riders slowed to a stop. There was ten hard faced men dressed in armor similar to the armor worn by the soldiers back in the village. Many of the men carried torches in a futile effort to ward off the growing darkness.

"You men," One of the soldiers
, a surprisingly short man with a pock marked face, commanded in an arrogant tone. "You
will
answer some questions."

The twins
' faces grew stony.

"I think
I'd better handle this." Sly muttered to the knights, nudging his horse forward before either man could object. "What questions do you have, neighbor?"

"We have heard some disturbing reports coming out of this area," The man told him contemptuously. "What
news do you know of what's been happening?"

"
Disturbances? You must mean the dragon. Massive beast, it was." The little man shook his head. "It set several fields aflame, and nearly burned half a farm village to the ground. It blocked the road for a couple of days, then flew off. I guess it wanted to go look for something else to set on fire."

The man rolled his eyes, clearly not believing a word
of the little man's story. "A dragon? You expect me to believe it was a dragon that's been causing all of the disturbances in the area? You must be daft."

"He speaks the truth." Jacom growled in a hostile
voice.

"
And you do well to watch your tone when addressing your betters." Jarom added, his expression stern.

The man's
eyes narrowed suspiciously. "And what are Knights of Sarath doing so far away from home? Shouldn't you be selling your swords to some fat merchant worried about protecting his wagons of turnips?"

The twins' faces fell flat, but neither man replied.

"I have told you the truth, neighbor." Sly told the offending man, trying to salvage the situation. "If you don't believe me, you can go have a look for yourselves."

"We will," The man snarled. "and I think that you
, and these two... knights, will be joining us until we can confirm your story."

"I'm afraid
that's not going to happen, neighbor." The little man told him regretfully. "I would like nothing more than to return to the village for a nice tankard of ale, but, alas, we have a pressing issue that we need to attend to. You'll just have to carry on in our absence."

"
Your pressing issue will just have to wait." The man sneered, putting his hand on his sword aggressively. "You and those two brigands
will
do as your ordered, or..." He gestured to the soldiers at his back.

Sly sighed heavily. "Neighbor," He gave the man a serious look. "You and your friends are beginning to test my patience. I have already told you everything that we know. Now," He slowly straightened in the saddle
. "I would suggest that you and your friends continue on your way, and leave us to our business."

"I care nothing for your suggestions." The man spat, his voice full of
contempt. "You and your friends will be going no further. You will return with us to the village to confirm your wild story."

The little man sighed again, shakin
g his head in resignation, then, quicker than the eye could follow, he whipped his sword from its sheath and lashed out, sending the offensive little man's head spinning off into the underbrush.

The man's body stiffened horrible, pumping massive amounts of blood onto the road, then slowly toppled from the saddle.

The remaining soldiers stared at their dead companion in shock, then looked to Sly and the twin knights, who stared back at the men, their swords held at the ready.

"I think it
's time you men continue on with your assignment." Sly told them in a commanding voice. "The soldiers in the village are awaiting your arrival." He gave them a hard look. "I'd suggest you don't keep them waiting any longer."

The men all looked down at the headless body of their leader, then back to the scruffy little man who had
so easily taken his head. Finally, one of the men nudged his horse forward a step. "What should we do about Utter?" He gestured to the headless corpse.

"Take him with you," The little man shrugged carelessly. "or leave him to rot. It doesn't matter to us."

The man gestured to his fellow soldiers, and two of the men quickly dismounted and grabbed the corpse, while a third disappeared into the underbrush in search of the missing head. Once the body had been tied securely to its horse, the soldiers wordlessly passed the three men, and hurried off down the road, leading their fallen leader's horse by the reins.

"That was a bit tense."
Sly commented, taking a rag from a pocket and wiping the blood from his sword. "For a moment I thought we were going to have to chop our way through."