Dragons' Onyx (24 page)

Tanya pressed her lips tightly together as she turned and stormed off at a run. The king watched her go and shook his head in dismay.

“Young people just do not understand tradition,” he sighed. “We will get through this battle without magic. Why can’t she see that? Her comments about the dwarves were meant to be hurtful.”

“Diplomacy comes with age,” replied Alex, “but there is still truth to her words. You truly do not understand what you are up against. I have seen what magic is capable of doing during a battle. While this Castle of Man is the greatest structure that I have ever seen, it will crumble and fall under a magical attack.”

“Preposterous,” countered King Devon. “The Castle of Man has stood for thousands of years. It will stand for thousands more.”

Bantam flew towards the group and hovered in the air.

“Tanya says to come quickly,” chirped the blue fairy. “The magical attack has started. I am going down to check the lower levels.”

“Be careful, Bantam,” warned Alex. “We cannot afford to lose you.”

The fairy nodded and darted over the side of the crenel. Alex, Jenneva, King Devon, and Lieutenant Montbalm hurried across the roof to Tanya’s side. Far below, flaming projectiles flew out of the woods towards the Castle of Man. Icy blue projectiles quickly followed and the cycle kept repeating.

“What are they doing?” asked King Devon.

“Stressing the foundation of the Castle of Man,” explained Jenneva. “The foundation rocks will be continually subjected to heat and cooling. Eventually, they will crack and crumble.”

“But those stones are paces thick,” argued the king.

“Their thickness only means that it will take longer,” countered Jenneva. “The stress will eventually fatigue the rocks to the point where they can no longer support the weight on top of them.”

“And the Castle of Man will tumble to the ground,” added Tanya. “They could be using more efficient spells.”

“It is an efficient use of their manpower,” replied Jenneva. “Not every Black Devil has the skills of a master, but they all know those two spells. When you have a thousand mages casting, even the simplest of spells can cause great damage. Plus, they do not have to expose themselves to the arrows of the defenders.”

“Still,” pondered Tanya, “it seems to be a slow process.”

“They are not in a hurry,” interjected Alex. “Remember that these magicians are Sarac’s defenders. They have no desire to enter the Castle of Man, but they do want to get the ogres and goblins inside. I am sure that there are other spells being cast down there that we cannot see. If the Ogres can get inside, Sarac will keep this castle for himself. If we manage to keep them out, then eventually the Castle of Man will fall. It makes perfect sense to me. Either way, they win.”

“You paint a grim picture,” sighed King Devon.

“The situation is grim,” shrugged Alex. “If you don’t agree to the use of magic before the Castle of Man is opened to those beasts in the pass, there will be no way of defeating Sarac’s forces. Even our use of magic at that point will be too little, too late.”

“If we could leave the Castle of Man,” suggested Tanya, “we could use magic on the pass. Perhaps we could situate ourselves in the mountains above the pass. At least we would be useful then.”

“We would have to go out the city side of the castle,” pondered Alex. “There is no way we could escape on the pass side. The ogres are already up to the moat.”

“That would mean facing all of the magicians outside the castle,” interjected Lieutenant Montbalm. “I would imagine that the spells that they are tossing would hurt people if they can destroy rocks.”

“They certainly would,” confirmed Jenneva, “but Tanya has a point. We are useless here inside the Castle of Man.”

Bantam soared over the crenel and landed on Tanya’s shoulder.

“The gates have been destroyed,” she reported. “The wooden doors are nothing but splinters now. Many have died.”

“Tree mines,” frowned Jenneva. “The Black Devils must be stopped from getting into the castle to open the gates on the other side of the castle. That is their goal. Once they open the gates to the pass, their job is over. The goblins, yaki, and ogres will take over from there.”

A horn blared through the sounds of trebuchets, which were tossing loads of stones on the attackers below.

“The first battlement is lost,” the king said with disbelief. “This cannot be.”

“Come, Tanya,” ordered Alex. “We must stop the Black Devils from opening the gates.”

“No,” objected Lieutenant Montbalm. “Let my people handle it. You have already sent most of your people below. I will send them up when I see them. We need to turn the tide of this battle before the second battlement is taken or all is lost. There will be no time for you to get down there. I want you to guard King Devon. I know your skills, and I want you to promise me that you will keep him safe.”

“That is something that I cannot promise,” frowned Alex.

“Do the best you can,” retorted Lieutenant Montbalm as he turned and dashed towards the stairway. “If the horn sounds again, use all of your skills if you have to.”

Moments later, Jami Witzak appeared on the rooftop. Bart Larmin and Stan Fargo were right behind him. Their clothing was riddled with tears and blood oozed from dozens of places. Alex winced as Jami approached and reported.

“The first battlement is in the hands of the enemy,” Jami announced. “They used magic on the siege engines. Catapults exploded. Shards of wood were flying everywhere. There are a lot of dead defenders down there, Colonel. Jer Wiltana is one of them.”

“I am sorry, Jami,” Alex responded. “Jenneva, you and Tanya take our men to our quarters and see to their wounds. I will stay with King Devon. Come back up when they are healed.”

Jenneva nodded sadly and led the way below to their quarters where she could use her healing magic without prying eyes. Alex shook his head and gazed through the crenel at the city below. Dark Riders and Black Devils surged into the buildings of Tor. Alex frowned at the lack of rocks being thrown down on them. Even if the first battlement had been abandoned, the second should be showering Sarac’s men with rocks.

Suddenly, a second horn blared through the air. There was a momentary halting of the trebuchets on the rooftop as the defenders looked at each other with disbelief.

“I have failed my people,” King Devon said remorsefully. “For thousands of years the Castle of Man has stood as the only thing of permanence in our lives. I have let it be taken by the enemy. My name will be cursed until eternity, if anyone survives to remember what my name was.”

“Nothing lasts forever,” murmured Alex.

Bin-lu groaned as he opened his eyes and saw only darkness. It took a moment for him to remember what had happened to him. His hand reached to the ache on his head, and he felt a small bump. His mind raced to figure out where he was and what the dangers were that awaited him. He did not move nor make a sound. His ears penetrated the silence surrounding him as he sought clues to his location. He could hear nothing.

Bin-lu rolled over to his hands and knees. Slowly he felt the damp floor until he came to a stone wall. A portion of the stone wall crumbled under his touch. A small stone clattered to the floor, the small noise it made sounding loud against the total silence.

“So you have awoken at last,” Shrimp said from the darkness.

“Shrimp?” whispered Bin-lu. “Where are you?”

“That is hard to explain to someone in the dark,” replied Shrimp. “You were caught like an amateur. You should leave the spy work to me.”

“I don’t have time for your attitude right now,” scowled Bin-lu. “I have discovered things that must be known in Tagaret. You have to take a message there for me. Can you find your way out of here?”

“Of course I can find my way out,” quipped Shrimp. “I am a fairy, not a human.”

“It doesn’t matter what you are,” retorted Bin-lu. “If they find you here, they will kill you. At least one of us has to get out of here alive, and it is your turn. Listen while I tell you the information that needs to find its way to King Arik.”

“I am not leaving you,” stated the fairy.

“You don’t strike me as the type of fairy who cares what happens to me or any human,” sighed Bin-lu. “Take the information before they come for me. If you stay, they will kill you.”

“I am not taking the information,” declared Shrimp, “and I am not staying here with you. When you are ready to leave, let me know.”

“Let you know?” echoed Bin-lu. “I would leave now if I could. What game are you playing?”

“No games,” replied the fairy. “When I get a job to do, I do it right. My job is to accompany you until you return to Tagaret. That is what I plan on doing. Stand up and then don’t move.”

“All right,” Bin-lu said, “I am standing.”

Bin-lu felt a tickle on his left ear.

“That was me,” announced Shrimp. “Turn towards me and walk slowly until you reach the door. I will be right back.”

While Bin-lu was walking with his hands out before him, Shrimp found the small airspace above the door and squeezed through. A torch near the stairs going upward lit the hallway outside the door. It provided the scantest of light, but it was enough for Shrimp to see the wooden bar that locked the door to Bin-lu’s room. The fairy hovered in the hallway while he cast a spell to levitate the bar upward. When he had the bar high enough to clear the braces, Shrimp levitated it to one side and lowered it to the floor. He squeezed back through the small passageway and landed on Bin-lu’s head.

“The door is unlocked now,” announced the fairy. “Be quiet about opening it. Everything here is old and squeaky.”

Bin-lu pushed gently on the door and eased it open just enough to be able to pass through it.

“Close it and put the bar back,” advised Shrimp. “It may not matter much, but then again, it just might.”

Bin-lu nodded as Shrimp leaped off his head and hovered. Bin-lu closed the door and replaced the restraining bar in its place.

“Give me a few minutes before you come upstairs,” warned Shrimp. “There are two guards out in front of this building that I need to put to sleep. Count to two hundred. That ought to be enough time.”

“Is it still dark outside?” asked Bin-lu.

“You have only been sleeping for less than an hour,” Shrimp said as he darted towards the stairs.

Bin-lu’s mind raced while he counted and put on his gloves and boots. He pictured the huge Lanoirian encampment and tried to think of how he would escape from it. There was no way that any of the guards would let a soldier walk out of the camp. Defections were not tolerated and runaways were severely punished as an example to the others. He ended up pushing the thoughts from his mind as he reached two hundred.

The Knight of Alcea crept up the stone steps to the ground level floor. He could hear distant voices and shuddered when he thought about the Black Devils catching him. When he reached the front door, he placed his ear against it. He could hear nothing over the din of the distant voices. Slowly, he opened the door and peered out. He saw a guard slumped against the wall. He opened the door further, searching for the other guard. When he spotted the sleeping form of the second guard, he eased through the doorway and closed the door.

“What now?” asked the fairy as Shrimp landed on Bin-lu’s shoulder.

“A good question,” replied Bin-lu as he strode away from the winery building towards his area of the camp. “I don’t suppose that you have any suggestions?”

“I would just fly away,” quipped the green fairy. “Of course, that is not an option for you.”

“I really would feel better if you knew what I have discovered,” sighed Bin-lu. “It is too important not to be shared with someone who can escape from this camp, and that is you.”

“Save your breath,” advised the fairy. “I already know everything that you know. I am a fairy after all.”

“There is no way that you can know what I heard,” retorted Bin-lu.

“Sure there is,” countered Shrimp. “I heard the same thing. Why do you insist on telling it to me again?”

“I thought I told you to wait outside,” frowned Bin-lu. “You were in the room with me?”

“I was inside,” Shrimp replied hesitantly.

Bin-lu halted and stared at the fairy accusingly. “Did you perchance land on my arm while you were inside?” he asked gruffly.

“Shouldn’t you keep walking?” asked the fairy. “You don’t want to get caught now.”

“Did you?” repeated Bin-lu.

“Well, your ear was blocking the only light in the room,” Shrimp blurted out. “How was I supposed to see your arm in the dark? You almost maimed me with that swipe of yours.”

Bin-lu shook his head and started walking again. “I thought you were a poisonous spider,” he chuckled after a few paces. “I hope I didn’t hurt you badly.”

“You won’t tell anyone, will you?” pleaded the fairy. “This is the first time that Prince Midge assigned me to a dangerous task. If he finds out, I will be grounded.”

“I thought you weren’t an amateur?” chuckled Bin-lu. “You sure talk a good game.”

“I didn’t want you to think that I wasn’t capable of the job,” admitted Shrimp. “That would be embarrassing.”

“A Knight of Alcea is truthful to his friends,” lectured Bin-lu. “That is the first lesson that you must learn. We must have faith in each other in order to survive. I guess what I am saying, is you don’t have to pretend to be something bigger than you are. We all have limitations and we must learn to adapt to the limitations of those we fight alongside. Do you understand?”

“Completely,” Shrimp answered quickly. “Does that mean that you won’t tell Prince Midge about my error?”

“I have no idea what you are talking about,” grinned Bin-lu. “I certainly didn’t see you in that room.”

“You are a wonderful human,” beamed the fairy. “I won’t ever deceive you again.”

“I hope not,” retorted Bin-lu. “Why are you called Shrimp? I would think that fairies would consider such a name demeaning.”

“Demeaning?” balked the fairy. “Then you don’t understand fairies very well. We are proud of our stature. In the land of ogres, smaller is better. Do you know how ferocious a shrimp is? For their size, I mean. Shrimp is a name I proudly bear.”