Part 73 (1/2)

The Storm Lord! So distracted by his visions of grandeur, of omnipotence, that he fell prey to a simple spell any apprentice could have cast! I caught him slumbering, dreaming of his perfection . . . and I simply made that dream go on and on and on . . .

What feeble creature dared speak so about he who moved the skies at will? In the blink of an eye, the Storm Dragon searched the world over, but failed to find the blasphemer.

A so-clever G.o.d, wouldn't you say? But too clever for himself, in the end.

Someone mocked him and he could not find the culprit. The Storm Dragon flew into a rage. Hurricanes swept over Irillian by the Sea, inundating the realm of the Blue Dragon. Floodwaters poured into the bowl-shaped region housing the kingdom of Zuu, sweeping away its inhabitants. Lightning ripped into Penacles, City of Knowledge, turning the kingdom of the Gryphon into one huge fire . . .

But all this brought the Dragon King no closer to discovering the heretic.

Determined to find him, the behemoth drew within him his power. Raging tempests all over the Dragonrealm dissipated instantly. The Storm Lord focused all his omnipotent will on the one task; he would find the knave.

Oddly, the more he withdrew into himself, the more it seemed that the cause of his fury lay in his own mind. He almost shook off the absurd notion, but again the voice taunted him.

See how he sleeps? A puppet with his own puppet world, playing the game I desire . . .

Fueled yet again by the sacrilegious words, the Dragon King confronted some barrier in his own thoughts. Whoever spoke out against their G.o.d thought to s.h.i.+eld themselves from his wrath! With a silent roar, the Storm Lord threw his full ferocity at the invisible barrier within- And woke up.

He no longer hovered over the world, as much a part of the heavens as the clouds or sun. Instead, he lay cramped in the back of one of his personal chambers and the worse part of it was that other, lesser creatures invaded the sanct.i.ty of his domain. The Storm Lord had every intention of punis.h.i.+ng all of them for their audacity-until he heard again the voice he had already grown to hate.

”You may take them away, now.” It belonged to a tiny, cloth-covered figure that stirred some vague memory. The Dragon King did not bother to delve into that memory, for his entire mind suddenly fixated on the fact that, not only was this the one who mocked him, but now that very same creature pretended to be him.

No greater offense could there be in the history of the world.

The Storm Lord let out a roar of outrage- THE DRAGON KING'S fury rocked the entire cavern complex, sending bits of the ceiling dropping on those below. Yssa pulled Aurim back as one large piece struck the floor just where the wizard had been standing.

The drakes stumbled away, startled more by the monstrous, unexpected roar than the collapsing ceiling. Ssssurak looked around in open panic-and was the first to see the awakening behemoth.

”M-my lord?” he blurted, looking from the Storm Dragon to Shade and back again.

”Blasphemy!” roared the scaly tyrant, ignoring his confused servants. All that existed for him was the one who had dared the unthinkable. ”You will be punished for this sacrilege, mortal!”

The onyx stone crackled with energy. A monstrous wind a.s.sailed not only Shade, but everyone near him. Huge drake warriors flew against the walls. Ssssurak clutched at Aurim, but the wind took him before he could grab hold. He struck the rock face with a harsh crack, then tumbled to the ground.

Aurim expected both him and Yssa to be tossed after the drakes, but an emerald s.h.i.+eld surrounded them, reducing the Storm Lord's fury to a slight breeze. He looked in surprise at Yssa, whose face was filled with strain. The wizard realized that, despite the warlock's spell, her mixed heritage had enabled her to do what Aurim could not.

Despite the Storm Lord's horrific a.s.sault, Shade stood untouched. The warlock's cloak did not even ruffle in the wind.

Behind Shade, the onyx crystal flared again-and the cavern walls around the dragon melted, pouring over the leviathan like hot lava. It covered him with such swiftness that even the immense creature could not stop it.

A drake warrior who had managed to regain his footing charged the warlock from the side. With an indifferent wave of his left hand, Shade sent a burst of crimson energy toward the attacker that struck the drake full in the chest-and burnt him to ash.

With a roar, the Dragon King shook off the steaming, hardening earth. He opened his mouth and flames scorched the area where Shade stood.

But again, the attack did not even singe the warlock's garments.

Shade drew from the crystal once more, sending a ring of fiery blades toward his adversary. The Storm Lord countered with a cloudless rain that washed the ring into oblivion.

And each time one of them cast a spell, the crystal flared more intensely.

Aurim eyed the stone. Even without the aid of magic, he could sense how the strain of both combatants actively drawing from it had begun to take a toll. The artifact could not much longer stand such abuse. At some point, the essential structure of the crystal would degrade.

When that happened, nothing would protect any of those still in the cave.

”Can you teleport us?” he asked Yssa.

She shook her head, unable to speak due to the continued effort of protecting them. The flames, the deadly rain . . . each attack spilled over on the pair. Aurim understood that if she tried to cast another spell, it would mean dropping their only defense.

Then a voice filled his head, a voice using the link with his mother-but that was not his mother's.

You must be ready when the artifact fails. We will guide you.

He glanced at the hooded figure battling the Dragon King.

The voice had been Shade's.

The crystal abruptly flared a deep crimson. Aurim felt the first hints of fragmentation. The stone had nearly reached its limits.

Caught up in their duel, neither Shade nor the Storm Lord seemed to notice or care. Scorch marks covered the Dragon King and the warlock's cloak had been reduced to tatters, but otherwise they had done little to one another.

”Give in to the inevitable, mortal creature!” roared the Storm Dragon. ”And we shall grant you a merciful death!”

The warlock said nothing, but when he cast his next spell, the aura surrounding the artifact turned nearly as black as the crystal itself.

The crystal cracked.

It is time! said the unsettling voice in Aurim's head.

Hoping he was not being played for a fool, Aurim cast his spell. He felt the presence of both his mother and the one who had spoken last.

The artifact ruptured.

A t.i.tanic force washed over the wizard. He heard Yssa scream. From far away came the roar of a dragon-a dragon in agony.

And suddenly . . . silence reigned.

An anxious gasp stirred Aurim back to reality. He discovered that he lay face down in a muddy field. As the wizard pushed himself up, a pair of hands took hold.

Aurim looked up hopefully, but it was not Yssa. Instead, his mother's concerned, tearful face filled his view.

”Are you all right?” she gasped.

”I think . . . I think I am.” As he straightened, Aurim desperately looked around. ”Yssa-”

”There, my son.”

The Green Dragon's daughter lay face up a few yards away. Aurim stumbled over to her, kneeling by her side. With relief, he saw that she breathed steadily.