(Dragonkin) Dragon Rider (43 page)

   Darik faced the nine mages of Arnoran's army, and because they were weak from the spells cast to aid the men in their march through the night, they were not strong enough to defeat the supreme dragon mage. Oblivious to the battle that raged on around them, and lost in the magic of the battle between them, the mages of Chidren's army, used spell after spell in an attempt to defeat the dragon mage. One by one they were consumed by the power of the Staff of the Dragon, and as the battle began to come to an end, the last of Arnoran's mages lay dead on the ground.

   Most of the enemy's best fighters were dead, and the ones that were still fighting, began to retreat back to where their forces were strongest. The battle had not ended, but it was the empire that had taken the field, and the forces of the mage king were all but defeated. One of the warriors of the empire, who defeated many of the enemy's better solders, was not a commander or a captain, but he saved more than thirty men during the battle. He was just a man who had appeared at the garrison only days before Javen was to leave for Argnon, but showed enough skill to be allowed to join the first army when they departed. During the battle he had killed several of the enemy's solders that tried to attack Menimeth from behind. The dragon rider turned around quickly, but the man came out of nowhere, and killed them all before they could reach him.

   Menimeth was impressed with the man's skill, and when the man bowed to him before returning to the fight, Menimeth decided to make it a point to learn his name.

Javen could not allow his men to be pushed back by the swordsmen who attacked them at the end of his lines, and he raced to the man to end the threat. His men were holding their own as long as several men engaged Chidren at the same time, but they were being driven back slowly.

   Chidren slashed at the warrior before him, seconds after he wounded him with a thrust of his sword, but it was blocked by Javen before it could reach its target. Chidren exploded with anger by the failure to kill the man he had wounded, and he turned his attention to the warrior who had thwarted his attack. He was about to strike, when he realized that all of the other warriors of the empire had backed away, and only the single warrior faced him. The golden dragon that was woven into the armor made of dragon steel caught his attention, and Chidren became a lot more cautious.

   "You are the dragon warrior from the west?" Chidren asked, with as much disrespect as he could.

   "No, I am Javen, Commander of the first army of the dragon guard." Javen replied. "Menimeth is the dragon warrior, but he is also the king and Dragon Lord of the empire."

   "Then I will kill you before I kill him." Chidren said, and attacked Javen with a quick thrust of his sword.

   Javen easily parried the attack, and sliced Chidren's cheek open with the tip of his sword, as a reward for his effort. As blood ran down the leaders face, Chidren bellowed with rage, and the fight that ensued, proved epic. Men began to surround the combatants as the battle raged on, amazed by the level of skill the two men showed. Several times, Chidren thought he had the warrior, but each time he made the move he believed, would kill him, Javen parried his attack. Chidren grew angrier at each failed, attempt, but he knew the warrior could only defend against him, and could not attack without leaving himself open. Javen knew he was no match for Chidren, but he also knew the enemy leader could not defeat him if he continued in a defensive stance.

   For more than half an hour the two men fought, but Chidren could not defeat the warrior in the dragon armor with the tactics he was using. He began to attack the shield Javen carried, instead of the openings he thought he spotted, and managed to wound Javen several times in the process. Javen switched his feet, and placed the right foot in front instead of his left. That changed the way he moved, and the next time Chidren attacked him, it was Chidren who was wounded.

   Another half hour passed as the battle continued, and Javen was growing weaker with exhaustion as it did. He had been wounded several times during the battle, and he could not understand why Chidren was not growing tired like he was. He had managed to wound the enemy leader several times himself, including the wound to his cheek, but the man acted as though he had just begun the fight.

   Menimeth watched as Chidren attacked the end of Javen's lines, and halted the advance by the warriors who fought there. He watched, as Javen rushed to stop the warriors of his army from falling to Chidren's sword, and faced him in combat. The solders of the mage kings army began to retreat to where Chidren and Javen were fighting, as the two men worked their way to the center of the battlefield. All of the warriors of the empire followed them as they slowly retreated, and in time, the two armies faced each other from opposite sides of the two combatants,

   "It's time to put an end to this battle." Menimeth said to his dragon. "Land behind me, and together we will see that it comes to a quick end."

   "I am already on my way." Danorathin replied. "And I am coming up behind you now."

   The remaining solders of the mage kings army now numbered less than two thousand men, and more than half of them were wounded. The empire however, had lost far less, and most of the ones they did lose, were only wounded. The warriors of the empire now outnumbered the enemy by four to one, but the only fight that was being fought, was between Chidren and Javen.

   Menimeth made his way through the warriors of the empire, and they began to make room for him as he did. Soon, a wide gap had been formed in their ranks, as their king approached the two men who still fought, and stopped when he was less than ten feet from them. He motioned for the warriors of the empire to move back, and he faced Chidren again as they did.

   Javen stood facing the leader of the enemy forces, but Chidren did not attack him with Menimeth standing so close.

   "I will fight both of you if I must." Chidren said. "But if you will wait until I have killed this man, I will get to you next."

   "Javen. Go and see to your wounds." Menimeth said. "This coward belongs to me, and I will be the one to punish him for his crimes."

   Chidren looked at Menimeth for the first time, and the golden dragon on his breastplate captured all of Chidren's attention. As he turned to face the warrior in the dragon armor, Javen backed away from him, and stopped at the line of warriors who faced the enemy ranks from the opposite side of the two men. This fight, he would not have missed no matter how badly wounded he was, and he was not alone.

Chapter Thirty-Six

   The Dwarf and Elvin warriors led by Donderan, and Alazen, took their prisoners to where the two leaders faced each other between the two armies. They returned the deserters to the enemy lines from which they had come, and stopped to the east of the two combatants. The arrival of the five hundred warriors was a surprise to Gaston, and the other solders of the mage kings forces, but to Mareston it was not. The new arrivals had halted on their left flank, and it made some of the enemy solders even more, uneasy than before.

   Commander Rayden did not believe he needed to keep from sight any longer, so he and the men of the Lost Cavalry rode from the trees behind the unused siege weapons, and to the opposite side of the lines from Donderan and Alazen.

   The solders of the mage king looked at one another as they did, and the purple and gold cloaks and sashes of the empire, did not go unnoticed by them. Another fifteen hundred warriors appearing from behind them, made Gaston realize that Mareston was a lot smarter then anyone else in their army. He had listened to Mareston before, and it had saved his life, and he decided to follow the old solder wherever he went if they survived.

   Menimeth stood looking at the killer known as Chidren, who he had chased across the White Kingdoms for so many years, and he thought of the look on his sister's face as she died in his arms as he did. He thought about all of the people that had died at the murderer's hands, and the lives that had been shattered because of his actions. Today Menimeth would end Chidren's reign of terror, and avenge all of those he had murdered without mercy.

   Danorathin appeared over the trees behind the remnants of the mage kings forces, and instantly captured the attention of everyone who remained on the battlefield. He dropped to the ground with a great roar, which sent even the warriors of the empire scrambling to get out of his way, and stood behind his master. All of the mage kings solders, looked at the great bronze dragon with extreme fear, and even Chidren feared him.

   "Chidren." Menimeth said where everyone could hear him. "You are a coward, and your kind of evil will no longer be tolerated in the lands of magic."

   "Without that dragon, your words are empty." Chidren replied. "Only it, prevents you from dying right now."

   "The dragon will not harm you." Menimeth said. 'But the same cannot be said for me."

   "You will not fight me without the help of your dragon." Chidren spat, "It would cost you your life, and you know it."

   "Not by you." Menimeth replied. "The question is not who will win, but how long will I allow you to live before I kill you. There is no escape this time, and no one to die in your place while you run off with the loot. Your time in the lands of magic is over, and today is the last of your life."

   "Brave words from a man who hides behind a dragon." Chidren said. "But if you attempt to fight me without the help of your dragon, I will kill you, and my men will kill your dragon."

   "My friend is not as easy to kill as you may think." Menimeth said, as he looked around at the enemy solders. "And anyone who tries to interfere, or harm my dragon, will not survive the attempt."

   "We will not interfere with the fight between the two of you, but will wait for the outcome before deciding how two to proceed." Mareston said, as he stepped from the enemy lines. "It appears that the battle will be decided by the leaders of our armies."

   "Then you will surrender when the fight is over?" Menimeth asked.

   "If you defeat Chidren and kill him." Mareston said. "Yes, we will surrender."

   "You coward." Chidren screamed at Mareston. "I will kill you next."

   "You have killed for the last time." Menimeth said, as he faced the murderer of his family again. "Your threats are useless, and you will be silenced very soon."

   "I am from Kath. I was trained by the best fighters that the fortress has." Chidren said. "And I will teach you what happens when you oppose Arnoran."

   "I will deal with Arnoran when the time for me to do so has come." Menimeth replied. "I am not afraid of a foolish old man, who hires nothing more than thieves and murders to do his bidding, and this is not a fight but an execution."

   "Then a solder of Kath will be the executioner." Chidren said, and began to advance on Menimeth.

   Menimeth did not move from where he stood as Chidren approached, and the enemy leader wondered why he did not pull his swords from their scabbards to defend himself. To most of the men who watched as Chidren advanced on the warrior in the dragon armor, it appeared that the king of the empire was about to die. However, to those who knew what to expect from the dragon rider, it was only a matter of time before a show of his superior skill, would be witnessed by all.

   Chidren drew closer to the warrior with his sword held out in front him, but still Menimeth stood and watched him as he advanced. It was not until the mage kings killer was close enough to strike, that the dragon rider placed his hand on his sword. With a look of triumph, and an evil grin, Chidren lunged at the dragon rider with his sword held low, expecting him to attempt to avoid the strike by moving back, or to the side. That would have allowed him to wound the warrior, because the way in which he held his sword allowed him to strike in three different directions.

   Menimeth did not do what Chidren expected, and rushed the killer instead of retreating. By closing the distance between them so quickly, Chidren was not able to bring his sword up in time to prevent the dragon rider from punching him in the face, and knocking him to the ground. The cut on his face began to bleed again, and his nose was broken by the impact, but Chidren jumped from the ground and began screaming with rage. That was when the dragon rider drew Da'Thinagul from his left side, and the sword glowed brightly with a pure white light.

   The sight of the sword as it glowed in the dragon rider's hand brought a gasp from men on both sides of the combatants, and a look of surprise from Chidren. Menimeth stood with the sword held down, and watched the murder as he began to move to his left, to force Menimeth to swing his sword across his body. Instead, Menimeth just switched his sword to his left hand, and adjusted his footing. The attack came with lightning speed, as Chidren tried to decapitate the dragon rider, but Menimeth blocked every attempt that he made with ease. Chidren began to press the warrior with a heated attack against his sword hand, but Menimeth changed the hand in which he held his sword again, and began to drive the enemy leader back.

   Chidren retreated from the dragon rider, and began to circle him, looking for an opening in which to gain an advantage. Menimeth did not allow him to continue to circle, and attacked with a speed that very few of the men who watched the epic battle, had ever seen before. Chidren was hard pressed to defend himself, and was backing up as fast as he could without leaving himself open to the dragon rider's sword.

   Danorathin bellowed loudly when Chidren backed into him, sending the killer running for his life. Men began to laugh at him as he ran, and it made Chidren even angrier. Completely surrounded by the empire and his own men, Chidren had nowhere to go, and was forced to stop and face Menimeth once more. Picking up a shield from the ground dropped during the battle, Chidren prepared to face the dragon rider again.

   When Chidren once again attacked Menimeth, he was a lot more cautious than he had been before, and he moved in slowly. For the next twenty minuets the battle was heated, as the two men fought with great skill, but it began to become obvious to all the solders of both sides of the conflict, that the dragon rider was a far superior swordsman than Chidren.

   Chidren backed away from the dragon rider again, and thought about how best to attack him without getting himself killed. He was

about to attack again, when Menimeth spoke.

   "I have allowed you to live for far too long, but now I will end it." He said, and pulled Da'Thinfekal from its scabbard.

   With the two swords glowing brightly, Menimeth attacked Chidren, with a skill never seen before in the lands of magic. The killer tried to defend himself, but the attack was far more than he could counter, and within seconds, he was bleeding from several different wounds. Menimeth did not let up, and Chidren began to grow weaker. With the shield broken and useless, Chidren dropped it to the ground, and touched the ring on his finger.

   "The ring will not save you." Menimeth said. "You do not have the skill to defeat me, and you grow weaker with every wound you receive, but do not fear, I will kill you long before you can bleed to death."

   Chidren screamed with rage, and threw himself at the dragon rider, swinging his sword at the warrior's head. The scream was cut short as Menimeth blocked the attack, and stepping to the side, cut Chidren's throat as he passed. The look of surprise on his face was captured forever, as Menimeth turned and cut the killers head from his body with one stroke of his sword, Da'Thinfekal. Danorathin sat up on his back legs, and with his wings spread wide, roared at the sky above at the death of his master's greatest enemy. The head of the killer rolled away, as the body dropped to the ground, and a gasp escaped from many of the enemy solders. Menimeth removed an amulet from around his neck, and cut the ring from the hand of the dead outlaw, before backing away from the body.

   Drathin-Fathean-Adrada. Menimeth spoke the spell in a loud voice where all of the men could hear his words, and the body of the killer Chidren, burst into flames and was consumed within seconds. Only the head, and his ring finger remained, and the look of surprise was still on the murderer's face. The solders that had watched the battle sat stunned by what they had just witnessed, and the battlefield was eerily silent. The effortless way that the king of the empire had killed the most feared, solder, in the mage kings army, caused the remaining solders of Chidren's army to quickly surrender.

   With the death of his parents and his sister avenged, Menimeth turned his attention to the remaining enemy solders, which had thrown down their weapons and waited for their fate to be decided. Mareston stepped forward as the dragon rider turned to face them, and spoke for the men of the defeated army since he was now the highest ranking of the commanders.

   "I am commander Mareston. I formally surrender to you, and place myself and my men at your mercy." He said, as he kneeled at the feet of the dragon rider.

   "Stand." Menimeth commanded, and waited for the old solder to rise again. "You, and a large group of the solders behind you, did not fight in the battle. That is a curious thing, and it makes me wonder why you did not."

   "I did not believe that the fight we were attempting was anything more than foolish." Mareston said. "We chose not to fight because I did not believe we could win, and I did not want to allow my men to be killed."

   "Yet only you and a few hundred men stayed out of the battle, while most of the solders chose to fight." Menimeth said. "That is curious as well. Why did you not keep more from joining the battle?"

   "Only the men that were with me during the battle are the men that I would call, mine." Mareston said. "They have been with me for many years, and it is my job to protect them. Most of the men that fought in the battle did so out of fear of Chidren, and the death they would have received if they had not. The fear that Chidren was right and that he would take the castle, made the men believe that there was nowhere for them to go where they could escape the minions of the mage kings reach."

   "You were the only solder of the mage king's army that did not look surprised when the warriors of the empire appeared behind you." Menimeth said. "That is yet another curious thing that makes me wonder, why."

   "I have been a solder for more than thirty years, and know the signs of weakness in a kingdom." Mareston replied. "But you showed no weakness at all. When we attempted to weaken the empire with the solders dressed as brigands, we were defeated in every fight, and driven from the lands south and east of Argnon. I expected you to keep some of your warriors out of the battle, to cut off our escape."

   "You were not surprised by the appearance of my dragon, so you must have known about him already." Menimeth said, thinking out loud. "But all of the men in your army were genuinely surprised when he appeared, though some of them were not as surprised as most."

   "I have never seen him before, but I did hear him once." Mareston said. "All of us have been told many times that there are no more dragons, because Arnoran had killed them all over five hundred years ago, but I for one did not believe it to be true."

   "This man was at the monastery when we attacked it, and drove the brigands east." Danorathin said to his master. "But was riding away as we attacked."

   "It was at the monastery that you heard him." Menimeth said, to the old solder. "But you did not tell your commanders about him. Another curious thing, would you agree?"

   A look of surprise appeared on the face of the old solder at the extent of the information the dragon rider possessed, and he began to understand why they had lost in every fight against the empire.

   "Chidren and Avren, the two men in charge of the army, would never believe the rumors about the dragon were true." Mareston said. "They assured the men it was just a rumor created by the empire to place fear in them. Telling them that I heard what sounded like a dragon would have only cost me my life."

   "You had no faith in your leaders?" Menimeth asked. "Even though they used, fear, to control their men."

   "They had no military training above weapons training, and they did not know the first thing about tactics." Mareston replied. "They did not believe the empire could defend itself, and would not listen to the reports that were given to them, often killing the messenger after giving the report out of anger. No, I did not have much faith in our leadership."

   "Yet you followed them here anyway." Menimeth said. "But chose not to fight when you arrived."