“Challenging Tanis in her domain would be … unwise,” Ixabrax said.
“Yeah, I got that too,” Anatoly said. “But I’m not convinced wisdom is the driving force behind either Zuhl or Phane.”
Ixabrax chuckled, a deep rumble emanating from his enormous chest. “I suppose you’re right about that. Hopefully, Zuhl will learn the folly of his lack of wisdom, and soon.”
After drinking a cup of hot tea prepared over an oil lamp, Anatoly strapped his armor on and hoisted his pack.
“I’m as ready as I’m going to be,” he said.
“Very well,” Ixabrax said, lowering his neck to the ground. “Climb up and sit between my spikes. Hold on tight, I wouldn’t want to lose you before I’ve freed my family.”
“Your concern is touching,” Anatoly said, offering his hand to help Magda onto the dragon’s neck.
Ixabrax was unable to unfurl his wings in the narrow chasm, so he climbed the side of the ice cliff to the surface, a harrowing experience for Anatoly and Magda. Once he reached the glacier, he spread his wings and tested them with a few flaps.
“You spoke of an easy meal nearby,” he said, looking back at his two riders.
“I’ll guide you from the air,” Magda said.
“Very well.” Ixabrax crouched down and launched, springing scores of feet over the glacier before thrusting down with his wings and propelling them higher still.
Magda laughed with glee. Anatoly held on for his life, trying not to look down while the dragon gained altitude. Within minutes they landed in the field of dead that had been left in the wake of Magda’s reverse-gravity spell.
Ixabrax sniffed at his meal and frowned.
“Perhaps you could remove their armor, it tends to unsettle my stomach,” he said.
Anatoly looked at Magda incredulously. She shrugged with a wry smile and they went to work, stripping the men of their belongings before Ixabrax ate them one by one.
“I don’t actually prefer humans,” he said, chewing, “but you’ll do in a pinch.”
“I suppose that’s good to know,” Anatoly said, dumping the contents of one man’s pouch onto the frozen ground. “Hey, what’s this?” he asked, holding up a vial of slightly blue liquid.
Magda frowned, shrugging and looking to Ixabrax.
“Dragon draught,” he said. “It’s made from the filings of dragon scales. When consumed, it will render you virtually immune from the effects of the cold for several hours.”
“I like the sound of that,” Anatoly said, working the stopper loose and drinking half of it before handing the vial to Magda. She quaffed the rest.
“Perhaps others are carrying more,” she said.
Anatoly nodded and went to work searching the men more thoroughly as he removed their armor and weapons, piling them to one side. He found five more vials of dragon draught.
Once they’d finished searching the dead, and Ixabrax had eaten his fill, Magda cast a spell over the pile of equipment. A dagger began to glow softly.
“Ah, this might be useful,” she said, retrieving the well-made blade and attaching it to her belt.
“What’s it do?” Anatoly asked.
She shrugged. “I’d have to cast many more spells to determine the effect of its enchantment … or I could simply stab someone with it.”
“Fair enough,” he said, chuckling. “Are we ready?”
Ixabrax belched, the noise reverberating down the narrow canyon.
“It’s nearly nightfall,” the dragon said. “We should attack soon.”
Alexander appeared in their midst.
Ixabrax reared back, slightly startled.
“Sounds like you’re ready to go,” he said.
“Indeed, Human,” Ixabrax said. “You have a habit of appearing from nowhere.”
“I’ve been watching and gathering information,” Alexander said.
“I don’t pretend to understand the scope of your wizardry, but I’ll accept your guidance … for now,” Ixabrax said.
“Good,” Alexander said, motioning to a small patch of empty ground. An image of Whitehall appeared. “I’ve been working on this all day. At first I couldn’t even make a ball of light appear but I find the more I use my illusion magic the more capable I become, though I’m still fairly limited in duration so I’ll make this quick.”
He pointed to a tower near the middle of the sprawling marble fortress. “Abigail is in the topmost room of this tower,” he said. “Breach the wall here on the north side. Make sure you hit it from this side only. If you strike from a different angle you could hurt her. She’ll be hiding behind some furniture and ready to go when you get there.”
“Understood,” Anatoly said. “Once we have her, then what?”
“Retreat into the wilds and hide while we formulate a plan to free Ixabrax’s family,” Alexander said. “I haven’t had time yet to scout their aerie or the surrounding defenses. Besides, Abigail’s going to need some time to get her bearings.”
Ixabrax eyed him suspiciously.
“Do not consider reneging on your word, Human,” he said.
“Not a chance, Dragon,” Alexander said. “Freeing your family will hurt Zuhl’s military capability more than anything else … and it also happens to be the right thing to do. Your enslavement is a profound violation of the Old Law and I intend to set it right.”
“We shall see,” Ixabrax said.
“Given your experience with Zuhl, your suspicions are understandable but unnecessary,” Alexander said. “It’s nearly dark … you should begin your attack soon. Once you have Abigail, I’ll lead you to an empty cave farther north where you can rest and prepare for the next strike.”
He faded from view as Anatoly and Magda climbed onto the dragon’s back.
Chapter 21
Abigail was pacing. The sun had just slipped past the horizon on the last day before the winter solstice. Tomorrow was the day Zuhl would perform his yearly sacrifice, giving over her life to the darkness in exchange for another year of life without aging.
She knew Alexander was working on her rescue. She trusted her brother to do everything within his power. What she wasn’t sure about was whether he would be able to help her. He was so far away with only his newly discovered and untested magic at his disposal.
“Hi, Abby.”
She spun around at hearing the familiar voice.
“Cutting it a little close, aren’t you?” she said.
Alexander shrugged. “I had to make some preparations.”
“Not to sound ungrateful, but Zuhl’s going to sacrifice me tomorrow,” Abigail said. “Any chance you have a plan to get me out of here before then?”
“They’re coming right now,” Alexander said. “Push your bed over to the south side of the room, then tip it over and hide behind it. Hurry, you don’t have much time.”
“Now you tell me,” Abigail said, going to work on moving the bed. As she shoved it into place, she heard the muffled roar of a drakini from outside her tower. Moments later the temperature of the room fell precipitously, ice forming on the northern wall. She glanced back before turning her bed over and scurrying around behind it.
Seconds later the frozen wall shattered, sending stones flying across the room in every direction and opening the tower to the sky. A horn sounded in the distance and was immediately answered by another. The alarm had been raised.
Ixabrax landed on the breach, extending his head into the room as the door was thrown open and guards started to enter. The first man to cross the threshold stopped in his tracks and stared at Ixabrax eyeing him from a distance of only a few feet. He backed away slowly.
“Abigail!” Anatoly shouted from his perch on the dragon’s neck. “Hurry!”
She was up and running in a blink. Anatoly caught her outstretched hand and hoisted her onto the dragon. Two drakini flew behind them, both breathing frost that fell harmlessly on Magda’s shield.
“Go!” Anatoly shouted as soon as Abigail was seated between two of Ixabrax’s back spikes.
When the dragon launched into the sky, two drakini attacked, attempting to tear his wing membranes. Ixabrax tucked his wings in and fell into a steep dive toward the battlements, freeing himself of the drakini and forcing them to break off or risk plummeting to the ground. At the last moment, Ixabrax pulled up hard and turned north.