Chapter 73: What Is It Going To Be?
The dragons came in low over the trees, wave after wave, wings blotting out the sun in long moving bands.
The first ones dropped down and fire rolled out of their mouths in wide burning lines across the Forsaken men.
Then they bank hard and dropping very low over the field and one by one, the magic users riding behind each dragon rider climb down.
They climb down, as they hit the ground and was already running and taking their defensive places.
The moment they all climbed down, the dragons pulled up again with their wings beating, and climbing back into the sky with only their riders left on their backs.
High above the field, the dragons turned as one and fell into a defensive line.
Below them, each rider now had a magic user standing on the ground beneath their dragon’s shadow, with their arms already lifting, and already building a shield in the air.
"Hold your line!" Professor Valerius voice sounded across the field.
The Forsaken Lords already stayed in line too.
Their poisoned arrows were flying now. Dozens of them, and arcing up toward the dragons in the sky. The magic users on the ground threw their hands up together, and the air in front of them rippled, and turned the arrows aside in showers of sparks as they send them spinning off back.
Suddenly, one arrow landed into a dragon’s wing, and the dragon screamed, dipping hard to one side before catching itself.
"Zharaak, vrek!"(Burn Now!) the rider on the back of the dragon roared.
Magnus turned as his eyes landed on Valerius through the smoke. "Go. Cover Power and Sael. I’ll hold the line here."
Valerius did not argue. He was already moving.
Before Valerius could even move, a sickening thwack of wood striking flesh echoed past him.
A stray poisoned arrow slipped past Valerius and then the shield, and then hit a magic user low in the stomach, and the shield in his hand died with him as he folded and dropped to his knees.
"ROWAN!"
Kaelin, a female magic user was three steps away. She was shielding the rider beside her. She turned at the sound of Rowan yelling and saw him on the ground with both hands pressed to his stomach, his face already turning the grey.
Around them, more of the Forsaken Lords were closing in, drawn by the fallen shield.
Kaelin looked at them. Looked at Rowan. Looked up once at the dragon she was still supposed to be shielding.
Then she flipped her hand.
The Forsaken soldiers that was coming towards them left the ground like they had been struck by something big and invisible, flying backward through the smoke before crashing down and not getting up.
She rushed at Rowan’s side as she dropped to her knees.
"Hey. Hey, look at me. Stay with me, okay? Keep your eyes open." Her hands were already moving, pulling his fingers away from the wound.
The arrow was still in him.
"This is going to hurt," she said, and pulled the arrow out.
Rowan scream as his scream echoed through the noise of the battle around them.
"I know, I know, I’m sorry..." Kaelin’s hands lit gold as they hover over the wound. She was trying to close the wound.
But it did not close.
The poison was already too much for her to heal. It was already spreading through Rowan too fast for her to heal it.
"No. No, no—stay with me. Rowan, stay with me..."
Rowan hands gripped hers. His grip was weak.
"Kae..."
"Don’t. Don’t you dare give up on me..." Her hands pressed harder to the wound as gold light spill over both of them now.
Rowan groan a little as his eyes found Kaelin one more time.
Then, slowly, they closed.
.....
Location: Aldenmoor
"Everything in this tavern belongs to the Starweaver family," he said. "Including that chair you just fell. Break it, and you’ll be the one paying for it."
Garrick went very still hearing Reynold’s words.
"What did you just say to me?"
"You heard me," Reynold said.
Garrick’s face turn ugly. "Who in the world do you think you’re talking to, you little brat" He was already moving and walking toward Reynold.
"I said, if you break the chair, you are paying for it. And then, you are giving me back what belongs to my family." Reynold said again.
"You arrogant little piece of trash!" Garrick roared as he stopped few feet away from Reynold. "Who gave you the right to speak to me like that? You think because your father was the owner of this tarven, you can come in here and play lord?"
Draymond moved fast too as he stepped between them with both hands out. "Everyone calm down, please! Let’s behave like civilized men," Draymond said looking between the two. "We can settle this. There is absolutely no need to draw blood or start a fight in my tarven."
"You better get this brat under control, Draymond," Garrick snapped, not taking his eyes off Reynold, "before I do it for you."
"There is nothing to get under control," Reynold said. His eyes were cold. "All I am asking for is my father’s property. Hand it over, and we walk out."
The only reason Reynold was doing this , because he was flat broke. He could not afford to pay the maid at the old Starweaver mansion, or could he support Gift’s mother. He wanted a source of income for them. This tavern, and the other shops these men had stolen, were his only hope.
Garrick let out a harsh mocking laugh. "I am not returning a single coin, let alone a building. You want it?" He sneered, turning his head toward the exit "Tell you what, boy. If you’ve got the nerve, follow me out of this tavern. I’ll teach you exactly how a kid your age is supposed to behave."
He turned for the door, already flicking two fingers toward a corner of the room. Three men stood up from a table there without a word, and walked towards them.
Reynold shifted to the three men and then back at Garrick. Reynold moved so fast. He crossed the room at fast that he wad standing in the doorway before Garrick got there.
"Respect yourself like the elder you are," Reynold said softly. "Return what belongs to the Starweavers, and let’s end this."
Garrick stared at Reynold for a second, his face twisting in disgust. Then, he spat in Reynold face.
"I’m not returning a single thing."
Before Garrick could even laugh or move, Reynold’s hand grabbed his wrist.
And Reynold squeezed it very hard.
A crunch of shifting bones was heard and Garrick’s eyes went wide, his mouth opened in shock before he let out a scream, his massive body trembling under Reynold’s grip.
""I wanted to settle this without any trouble," Reynold said, looking down at him with utter indifference. "But since you refuse to act like an adult, we’ll do this the hard way."
Seeing their boss whimpering on the floor, the three men moved with their hands gripped on their blades.
Alistair move too.
"I wouldn’t do that if I were you," Alistair’s voice sounded. He reached out and gently tapped Reynold on the shoulder then crossed one leg lazily over the other like he had all the time in the world, and looked at the three men with boredom.
"You see, my friend Reynold here isn’t just some angry orphan. He’s a cadet at the Wyrmwood Academy," Alistair said, pausing for a while. "And not just any cadet. He’s the one the rumour say he has three dragons. Oh, and he’s a magic user, too. Well... I suppose it’s not really a rumor if it’s true, is it?"
Alistair tilted his head, his grin widening.
"So, I’m sure men of your fine profession already know what it means to pick a fight with a Two."
The three men looked at each other.
None of them moved forward again.
"You useless bastards!" Garrick screamed at them, his face pale as Reynold’s grip tightened. "I don’t care if he’s a Two, attack him."
The men still did not move.
Garrick gritted his teeth. "Fine. Fine, you gutless cowards." His eyes shifted to Reynold, who was now staring toward Alistair for half a second. His attention was divided.
It was enough for Garrick.
Garrick stretched his free hand and caught Reynold hard between the legs.
Reynold let out a groan sound and then his hand grabbed Garrick’s collar, and he threw him off his feet.
Garrick flew across the room, hit a table hard enough. The wood shattered, and Garrick landed on it. He groan in pain as he held his broken ribs.
Half the room was on their feet now.
The three men stared down at their master on the ground, and then back at Reynold without moving.
From the corner of the room, Osric, slowly stood up. He adjusted his black robe, trying to hide the slight tremor in his hands.
"You cannot simply walk into this tarven and do as you please," Osric said, "Just because you are a Two does not mean you are above the law of Aldenmoor."
Reynold turned to look at him. "It’s not my fault that some people are just not smart enough to act like their age."
Osric’s swallowed hard. The words he wanted to say died in his throat. Looking into Reynold’s cold eyes, he could tell this kid was not here to play any game. Osric wisely took a step back and shut his mouth.
Reynold shifted his gaze back to Garrick, who was still groaning slowly in pain.
Reynold walked over, stopping right above him, and looked down.
"So," Reynold asked, "what is it going to be?"