DragonsHeart.wps (36 page)

How had they managed this?

She enclosed her hand around the smooth hilt. Its significant weight gave her comfort. The bow and the arrows might have been easier to use, at least for her, but her sword had never failed her.

Now, how was she going to use it when she was inside of the shield?

“You can hide behind those pathetic winged horses for as long as you want—it’s only a matter of time before I figure out how to bypass their magic. It’s weak in comparison to mine.” His maniacal laugh made her skin crawl. He’d lost all vestige of his humanity. He was beast ... all of him.

At his words, a burst of lightening crackled out of one of their horns, it zipped around the room and then hit her father on his tail. He let out an agonized shriek.

Gradually, his howl of pain turned to pure fury.

‘
Get on my back!
’ The telepathic message came from Aphrodite.

She mounted her carefully, struggling at first with the gown she wore. She'd been away from Dragonia and their customary dress for far too long. Even without a saddle, she could still ride bareback.

* * * *

Another portal formed beside the one that Aine and Aurora had created.

Merdwyn popped out of it.

“Well, it’s about time I found the lot of you. I’ve been searching all of England for you. My brother has gathered troops and they’re on their way to help out as we speak.”

“Troops?” Aine looked perplexed.

“You don’t honestly think that my brother and I have gone into permanent

retirement do you? There’s always evil that we need to fight. Now, come on, we can use both of the portals, and for you, Dylan, I shall open a special one that will lead right into DRAGON’S HEART Marly Mathews 170

the picture gallery. You’ll be able to help Grania kill Draco. She’s rising to the challenge as we speak, though I daresay that since he’s nullified your spell you’ll have to use this.” He handed him Robin’s bow.

“We’ll find Grania’s bow and quiver soon, for some reason they've both

disappeared and I can't seem to locate them … for now, use Robin’s bow and be the warrior that you’ve always been meant to be. We’ll take care of Draco’s other forces.

When you finish off Draco, England and the world will be safe.”

“Thank you.” He didn’t want to mince words, he just wanted to help Grania.

Merdwyn waved his arm and conjured another portal. “Use this with my

blessings.” He smiled at Dylan. “When you go up against Draco, you will be fighting the demon beast. There is no remaining humanity in Draco. You managed to kill that part with your spell—not your intention, but it was your result.”

“Then, let me rectify my failure. I will kill Draco this time around. Make no mistake.”

With one last glance at his parents and Merdwyn, he hopped into the portal, and emerged in the middle of a standoff between Grania and Draco.

Fire danced around the room making the heat almost scorching, but blissfully it wasn’t affecting Grania. He erected a magical shield around his body to protect against the fire.

She looked like a warrior angel astride the Pegasus and wielding the sword in her hand. She was flying straight for his heart. He had to help her. The dragon hide was thick, he didn’t know if the first strike would take Draco’s life, and the way that Draco seemed invulnerable to physical harm ....

He mustered up all of his magical strength and concentrated it on attacking Draco.

The dragon howled in agony and his legs gave way beneath the brutal onslaught. He was being affected.

Dylan smiled, suddenly feeling weak. He fell to the floor.

“Phew, that took a lot out of me.”

‘
It is a wonder. You tapped on all of your power and channeled it out at him. It
is a very miracle that you are awake. That should have knocked you senseless. Humans
can be so mysterious.
’ He locked eyes with the Pegasus standing near to him
. ÔBuck up,
wizard. You still need to slay the beast. You are right. Her strike may not fell him. But,
there is a way to help her succeed. You must use that bow and shoot an arrow into his
heart at the precise moment that she strikes him with her sword. Only then do you stand
a chance of emerging unscathed from this battle.
’ He mustered his waning strength and reached for his bow. ‘
YouÕll have to get closer to him. If you canÕt fly, then hop on my
back, and IÕll bring you closer to him so youÕll be within killing distance.
’

He nodded, bolting up onto the Pegasus.

“Get me close.”

ÔYour wish is my command.Õ

As Apollo took him closer to Draco, he lined his arrow up for the shot. Grania was swerving into the right position to strike. Draco was weakened so much that he couldn’t really keep up with the both of them.

“You will
not
succeed in killing me. When I make the both of you perish into a billow of smoke I will start to exterminate all of the vermin on this planet. Anyone that is not a dragon shifter follower of mine will be put to death. The next few days will be DRAGON’S HEART Marly Mathews 170

bloody and wondrous at the same time. Ah, how I look forward to the future.”

“You have no future, Draco.” Grania’s voice was strong as she plunged her sword into his thick dragon hide. Draco howled, lashing out at her. He hit the Pegasus and the force of his blow penetrated the force field throwing Aphrodite out of flight. She plunged to the ground.

Grania was trying to stop their fast descent. He couldn’t worry about her, he had to focus on finishing the job she started. Grania would figure out a way to keep them from becoming pancakes on the ground. He just had to figure out a way to get one of the killing arrows into Draco. The sword blow didn’t seem to be doing the trick.

The free fall robbed Grania of breath. She had to do something. The bolt had affected Aphrodite. She couldn't tell if she was wounded or not.

‘
Pain. Goodness, that smarted.
’

She heard Aphrodite’s thought .…

“You’ll have to pull up, Aphrodite.” She spoke the words aloud instead of

projecting her thoughts.

‘
No strength for that, IÕm afraid. YouÕll have to do something about us

becoming one with the ground. I seem to be immobilized for the time being. Whatever
your father did paralyzed me.
’

“What do I do?”

‘
Dear child, you are carrying a magic kind, tap into the wish magic it holds, I can
sense a future fairy godmother in the making.
’

“Wish magic?”

‘
If you donÕt É I shudder to think of how we will feel in a few scant moments.
’

“I wish for the injuries you’ve suffered to be healed. That should solve our

problem.”

A white light draped over Aphrodite. In one split second, everything changed.

Her limp body became full of energy. She was so vibrant it nearly robbed Grania of breath—again.

‘
Thank you. Now I do believe that we should go and render assistance to Dylan.

He seems to be trying to get a clean shot into Draco. LetÕs make it so.
’

They flew toward Dylan and Apollo at top speed. The room shook. Draco’s

dragon form was doing so much damage that it would be a blessing if they could end this now.

Seeing them alive and well was enough of a distraction for Draco to give Dylan the element of surprise.

He moved to intercept them, and that’s when Dylan shot off his arrow. It struck Draco in the same area that she had plunged in her sword. She drew in her breath sharply and waited.

The animal still pursued her.

He was conjuring a breath of fire in his massive mouth, waiting for the right

moment to spew it out at her. Before he could move into the next stage of his attack, his eyes lit with confusion—dawning horror—and then, finally fear. The coward had finally met his match.

He had met the combined force of her and Dylan.

“No! This can’t be ... I am a God! I am immortal!”

“Even immortals like us can still find the shroud of death, and it has found you, DRAGON’S HEART Marly Mathews 170

Draco. The part of you that was my father disappeared long ago. This time your dragon’s heart betrayed you ... you are all beast and now I bid you adieu,” she called out.

Maniacal madness overtook his eyes, and in the next moment, he was gone. The

resulting explosion tore through the house. They had to get out of here. Making her wish, she, Dylan, Apollo and Aphrodite were transported to safety.

“It’s finally over, it’s the end.” She dismounted Aphrodite and ran toward Dylan.

He held her in a fast embrace.

“In my book, it’s the start of something wonderful. It’s the beginning of a future where humans, magic kind and dragon shifters all live together in harmony.”

“Harmony?” She raised her eyebrows.

“Well, maybe not harmony, I’m sure there will be a few bumps in the road.”

Laughter carried to them from the distance.

The cleansing sheen of moonlight dappled the landscape.

Fairies, Elves, dragon shifters, wizards and witches walked toward them.

“It’s over. The war has ended.” Aine’s voice was strong. “This time, it is no illusion. We have obtained victory. Our grim fate has been eradicated. Hope lives on.”

“Draco is gone.” Dylan locked gazes with his mother.

“And his defeat will be celebrated for years to come.” Merdwyn inclined his head toward him. Warriors on winged horses clustered around him. “My brother did remain true to his word. He brought his noblest of knights to slay the dragons.”

Grania looked around at their friends. They were safe. They were free.

She leaned in closer to Dylan, “Our future looks bright indeed.”

“With you lighting my way our future will be forever filled with light. You are the love of my life ... you are my mate and you are my protector.”

“As you are mine. Our child will inherit this new world.”

“Grania Lightfoot, I love you.”

“I love you, too, Dylan. We tempted fate, and we won.”

The End