“An eerie sound,” said Lyll, a smile curving her lips.
“What is it?” asked Kale.
Cam smirked, looking pleased with himself. “Hundreds of dragons stirring their blood. If we were on the land, we could feel the vibrations under our feet.”
“I’m sure the bisonbecks won’t like the ground shaking,” said Brunstetter.
“No, they won’t, and the earthquakelike feeling will be the last straw to send the less disciplined warriors home before the battle begins.”
Cam patted his damp beard. “Time for us to make a morning call.”
“Where are we going?” Toopka dogged the wizard’s steps.
“You’re staying here with Taylaminkadot.”
“I amn’t.”
“You can’t say ‘I amn’t.’ That isn’t a proper contraction.”
“Regidor says I can’t say ‘ain’t.’ What do you want me to say?”
“I want you to say, ‘Yes, Wizard Cam, I shall do as I am told.’”
“Aargh!” growled Toopka between clenched teeth.
An hour later, Toopka stood on the front steps of the castle with her hand firmly clasped by Taylaminkadot. The rest of the party shoved off in the skiff and headed for shore at the northernmost end of the lake.
Kale looked back at the castle and started. At every window, at every parapet, an armed soldier stood sentry.
“The castle is manned!”
“Illusion, my dear. Risto will tell his soldiers it is just illusion, but the sight will weaken their resolve. It’s so hard to believe your ears over your eyes, especially when appearances line up with expectations.”
“Will you tell us where we’re going now?”
“Oh, didn’t I say? We’re going to call upon the dragons.”
Her heart skipped a beat. Soon she would touch Celisse. All her efforts to mindspeak to the dragon had been useless.
If I can see her and touch her—if she sees me, I know she’ll want to come back.
The oars pushed through the water, and again she suspected the kimens somehow sped the boat over the waters. When they approached the shale-covered beach at the northern end of the lake, she marveled at the colorful array of dragons. Against the white backdrop of snow, the brilliant colors looked like colored panes in a stained-glass window.
Regidor stood on the shore as the boat skidded across the shallow water and scraped the coarse bottom. He greeted them with a smile. “Mission accomplished, Wizard Cam.”
“Splendid. Lord Brunstetter, Lee Ark, you’ll find your mounts ready to take you back to your troops.”
Lady Allerion shook a finger at her fellow wizard. “This was a ruse, Cam!”
Cam did nothing to hide the smug look on his face.
Kale bounced out of the boat and threw her arms around Regidor. He looked surprised and then caught her up with a hug, whirling her around the snowy beach.
“Where would you have me, sir?” Bardon’s voice sobered Kale.
A battle still loomed ahead of them. Regidor put her down, and they faced the elders.
Cam eyed Bardon solemnly. “You go with Lee Ark, Lehman.”
“Yes sir.”
“And me?” Kale was glad her voice didn’t squeak.
Lady Allerion put her arm around her shoulders. “You’re with me.”
Lee Ark, Brunstetter, Regidor, and Bardon took off on their noble steeds with most of the dragons soaring into the sky and following. The plan devised by Cam and Regidor had worked. Gilda had been overconfident in the influence that Risto had gained over the dragons through her persuasive personality. She’d scoffed at the possibility of Regidor taking the loyal dragons into Risto’s camp and winning back those under his influence.
The gentle dragons mingled with the dragons gone wild, and the voice of reason won. The dragons would return to the men they had deserted only weeks before. Many men under Lee Ark’s command would now ride into battle.
“I wish Toopka were here to ask some of her endless questions,” said Kale as the battalion of dragons shrank into the distance as they flew to the south.
“What questions do you have?” asked Lyll.
“Will the farmers accept the dragons after their betrayal?”
“Yes.” Lyll gently squeezed Kale’s shoulders and began to walk, guiding her daughter across the beach. “It may take time for the wounds to heal, but there’s an immediate need for cooperation. Fighting side by side will do much to mend the past.”
“Are we going to win this battle?”
Lyll laughed her deep, throaty laugh that somehow comforted Kale. “We’ve already won, Kale. We’ve chosen right, and that’s victory in itself. Now whether we come out of this engagement alive is another matter. But no one can take away the personal conquest of good over evil that we waged in our own hearts before the war began. And in the bigger scheme of things, if our side is defeated here on this battlefield, others will stand and fight tomorrow. As long as Wulder reigns, and He reigns forever, there will always be those who choose right over wrong.”
“Still, speaking of the smaller scheme of things, I wish you could just say, ‘Yes, we will win.’”
Lyll laughed low and quiet as she leaned to press her head against Kale’s. “I would like that too.”
57
TEST OF FIRE
Kale didn’t ask where the dragon saddles came from. She knew Cam and her mother were capable of fabricating what was needed out of what was there. While the two master wizards got ready, Kale spent the time apologizing to Celisse.
“I should have known you would not abandon me. I know now the desertion had to appear genuine so that no suspicion of a deception would get back to Risto, but I should have listened to the doubt in my heart and believed in you instead of what I saw.”
Soon Wizard Cam, Lady Allerion, and Kale set off on dragons, heading for the very center of Risto’s camp.
Where are we going? Kale asked Wizard Cam.
“To Risto’s doorstep.”
Why?
“To stop him. Once he’s out of the picture, his army will disintegrate. In the long run, we will save many lives.”
She took a deep, calming breath and surveyed the land beneath them. The grawligs, ropmas, and schoergs had indeed deserted. Tracks in the snow all headed toward the Morchain Range. To the south, the two forces battled fiercely. Kale thought she saw Paladin’s distinctive black dragon on the front line of warriors in the air. Their army was successfully pushing back the bisonbecks.
With Cam in the lead, the dragons began their descent. They landed in a crowded area, knocking down tents and laundry lines, regiment banners, and a weather sock as they tried to squeeze into the pathways of the enemy encampment.
Cam and Lyll slid from their mounts and charged toward the largest, most elaborate tent. Kale jumped to the ground, pulled her sword, and followed. She burst through the doorway and skidded to a stop right behind her mother.
Risto stood on a raised platform where a table littered with maps dominated the room. The wizard’s dark hair brushed the shoulders of his well-tailored coat. His lean and muscular body tensed as he spied the visitors, but no alarm registered in his clear blue eyes. His lips curved in a smile that sent chills down Kale’s spine. She had noted once before that Risto’s face uncannily resembled Paladin’s. But the evil wizard’s sly expression annihilated the similarities.
Seated across from Wizard Risto was the woman Kale had referred to as Mother Number One.
Mother Number Two spoke. “I believe you’ve met Risto before, Kale. But let me formally introduce his companion. This is Burner Stox.”
Burner rose with a cunning smile on her lips and coldness in her eyes. “I’m so pleased to see you here.”
Kale sidled closer to the Lyll Allerion she claimed as her real mother. Burner Stox made her skin crawl.
Risto laughed. “With all your artfulness, Lyll, Cam”—he nodded at each wizard—“you still managed to play right into my hands. You see, all this??
?—he waved his hand over the battle plans and gestured toward the surrounding countryside—“was contrived for the sole purpose of bringing the Dragon Keeper to us. How nice to also have two annoying wizards delivered at the same time. I must admit that I’m disappointed Fenworth and the meech dragons aren’t here as well. But it’s only a matter of time before they, too, fall into my hands.”
He gave Burner Stox a wink and a sardonic grin. “Shall we, my dear?”
She nodded, and both turned evil glares upon their company.
A fire burst around Cam and Lyll. Cam merely raised his arms, and a torrent of water cascaded over the flames. He moved to stand directly in front of Risto while Lyll approached Burner in an agile, catlike prowl.
Burner sneered. “We wanted you, Lyll Allerion, and Risto’s brilliant plan worked. Once rid of Paladin’s elite inner circle, we can easily control Amara.”
“Where is Crim Cropper in all this, Burner?” asked Lyll. “Surely your husband should be here for this triumph.”
Burner’s twisted smile deepened. “He’s playing scientist in a southern region. He doesn’t care for ‘field work.’ He’ll be grateful enough when I bring him more specimens for his experiments.”
Kale’s head swiveled back and forth as she watched the male wizards fight. Bolts of lightning, balls of fire, whirlwinds, hornets’ nests, and anything else the combatants captured from nature hurled across the small space between them. The female wizards tossed words back and forth and edged closer to each other. That in itself unnerved Kale.
Instinct told her that Burner Stox must not lay a finger on her mother. She edged around the side of the tent. When she managed to get to a flank position, she screeched out a warning.
“There’s two Ristos and two Burner Stoxes. You’re looking at a reflection. The real Risto—” She didn’t get to finish.
Simultaneously, Risto and Burner Stox grabbed their opponents. Cam and Lyll stiffened. The color drained from their flesh and clothing. When the evil wizards withdrew their hands, only statues remained.
Kale screamed.
Risto turned to her. “Dealing with you should be a lot simpler. But first I want my troops to see I have you in my power. It should do wonders for their morale.”
Kale raised her small sword, only to have it jump from her hand at Risto’s command.
He grabbed her by the arm. “Burner, keep that dragon of hers from following us.”
He dragged Kale out of the tent. Celisse let out a cry, and her huge head swung toward them. A light flashed, and Celisse wailed. Again the dragon stretched out her neck to intercept Risto’s departure. The light flashed, and Celisse fell.
Kale kicked at her captor, to no avail. Once on the back of a dragon and in the air, she dared not pull away from him. But she vowed she would flee at the first opportunity.
They landed on a hillside overlooking a heated battle of ground troops. Burner Stox followed. When she dismounted, she took hold of Kale’s arms in a viselike grip.
From the vantage point of the hill, Risto shouted encouragement to his men, pointing out the capture of the Dragon Keeper. He muttered spells, and his men fought with renewed vigor. He leveled his evil eye at a line of marione warriors, and they collapsed, to be slain by the brutal bisonbecks.
“No, no!” cried Kale. Oh, where is Paladin? What is it I should do?
“You? Ha!” Risto smiled in her direction, and she stiffened. “You can do nothing. You’re an apprentice wizard. What resistance can you muster? You’re untrained and have gained no power since we last met, especially under the tutelage of a decrepit old has-been like Fenworth! What could you learn from a wizard who’s more often a tree stump than a man?”
“I’ve never liked him, Thorp.” Fenworth stood on the hill behind them, staff in his hand, leaves clinging to his clothing, Thorpendipity on his shoulder, and a mouse climbing up his sleeve.
Risto laughed, sinking onto a boulder and leaning back as if Fenworth offered not a threat but only a great deal of amusement.
Burner’s harsh laugh rent the air in a series of hard-edged slashes. “May we offer you refreshment, old man? A cup of tea? A daggart?”
Fenworth turned a baleful glare on her. “Silence!” he commanded. Burner Stox stopped, gasped, and disappeared. A smell of sulfur lingered in the air.
Kale gasped. “Is she dead?”
“No,” said Fenworth with a grimace. “Just silent. In a room full of quacking ducks. She won’t like that.”
Risto bellowed. “You’re a fool. More of a clown than a wizard.”
Fenworth shook his head. “Now, Risto, just because I prefer not to be nasty about things.”
Rage transformed the evil wizard’s countenance, and Kale shrank from his fury. She collapsed on the ground, clenching her hands into fists. She wanted to disappear to a place of safety, as Burner had, but knew there just might be a chance for her to help.
Risto thinks I’m no threat. He doesn’t even remember I’m here. That’s good. Perhaps that will give me an opening.
Risto sprang to his feet at the same time the top of Fenworth’s staff burst into flame. Thorpendipity squawked and flew to perch in the bare limbs of a tree. Wizard Fenworth stormed across the space between him and the evil wizard. The old man threw his arms around the younger wizard, gripping him with sinewy arms.
“I know you think I am too old to be any real danger to you, Risto. But you have not considered this—I would rather die with you than let you live.”
Risto struggled, knocking the staff from Fenworth’s hand. Fenworth’s arms wrapped around the younger wizard in a grip that proved hard to break. Kale bounced to her feet and raced forward to snatch up the crooked branch that served as Fenworth’s walking stick.
As soon as she lifted it from the snow, the flame flared from the top of the staff. Instead of surging upward, it spurted out toward the heads of both wizards and cascaded down to engulf Risto and Fenworth. Kale shrieked and tried to drop the staff, but her fingers would not release the old wood.
Risto writhed within the blaze, and Fenworth released him, stepping back. But the inferno still clung to the old man’s clothing. The fire consumed Risto but danced around Fenworth.
Kale shook her hand and threw the staff down on the ground, then raised her arms to cover her eyes. She heard Risto’s piercing scream. The heat from the ball of fire grew, snapping and crackling. She stumbled backward and fell, then peeked over her arm and saw Fenworth reach out his hand. The staff leapt from the ground to his outstretched fingers. In another moment, Fenworth was gone. His staff stood for a second and then toppled.
Risto fell as the flames gathered into a tight ball around him. The sphere of flames dwindled until only a small flicker at the end of the fallen staff remained.
Sobbing, Kale ran to snatch up the unburned rod. The fire went out as soon as her fingers wrapped around the wood.
Holding all that was left of the old wizard, she looked around for help. A short distance away, men continued to battle.
Her knees buckled. She sat on the trampled snow, rocking the staff in her arms and sobbing.
“The trick is to pop inside the safety of the rod at the last possible moment.” Fenworth’s voice broke through her lament.
She looked at the staff in her hands. It thickened and grew heavier. She rested the end on the ground, and it bent in two places while she cradled the top in her arms.
“Can’t believe I’m stuck. No, I’ll just rest a moment and try again.” The voice came from the swelling stick.
She giggled and wiped tears from her eyes. She heard the staff take a deep breath, felt it expand, and watched as it turned into a familiar treelike figure.
“Metta, Gymn, Ardeo, Dibl, come out,” Kale called. The minor dragons cautiously crept out of the cape. “Help Fenworth.”
Gymn, Metta, and Dibl sat in Fenworth’s branches. Ardeo nestled on Kale’s shoulder, glowing faintly in the muted light of an overcast winter day. Metta sang softly. Gymn wrapped himse
lf around what might be an old man’s arm. The tree lost its wooden stiffness and grew warm as Fenworth reclaimed his body. He sat beside her on the cold, wet ground with his upper body and head resting in her lap.
He opened his eyes and smiled at her. “Ah, sweet girl, I think I shall retire. I wouldn’t want this to be known, but I believe I may be getting too old for this adventuring business.”
He looked around. “Where are Cam and Lyll?”
“At present they are statues in Risto’s headquarters.”
“Tut-tut. Oh dear, I shall have to put off retiring for a day or two, I see. We’ve a few problems to take care of.”
“You can take care of them, Wizard Fenworth,” she said, giving him a hug. “You are a great and powerful wizard.”
“Oh dear, tut-tut, I must get around to giving you a few more lessons before I retire. First, hugging wizards is not at all the thing to do. Second, I am not a great and powerful wizard. There is no strength in that. I am a devoted and trustworthy servant, as you shall be someday.”
58
WHERE IS HOME?
Wizard Cam had no servants at his castle, so they all made dinner, served it, and washed up. Taylaminkadot fussed about people who didn’t know their place. She would’ve done all the work if the others had let her. When she learned the extra guest for the meal was Paladin, she threw her apron over her head and sat in the corner until Librettowit coaxed her out.
Kale moved sluggishly with Gymn draped around her shoulders like a scarf. They had spent most of two days giving aid to wounded soldiers, most of whom were marione farmers who had valiantly traveled the distance to meet evil head-on. All who were able helped the wounded. Of course, Kale and Gymn were greatly needed. They treated the wounds of injured dragons as well. The dragons sometimes embarrassed her with their obvious adoration and their pleas for forgiveness.
“Just do what’s right from now on,” she said over and over. “You need to deal with Wulder. Show Him you’re sorry by doing right by your families.”
She returned to the wizard’s lake castle with a sigh of relief.