“It’s always a good idea to be alert out on this bridge, especially after what happened this day,” the male Korli growled, his voice deep and resonant.
“Oh! I am only teasing you, my dear!” Sapheramin crooned, looking up at Tollorias with adoring eyes. “And on that note, I think we had best head back into the city, don’t you agree? Even if the Tyrant’s lackeys are long gone, the people of Nimbronia are very curious about their new visitors.”
“An excellent plan,” Ellyesce concurred.
With some effort, the three dragons, the one elf, and the many Nesnan and Resai men and women still on guard duty made their way to the north end of the bridge and began their trek up into Nimbronia city. As they walked, Jaax asked Ellyesce what happened after he caught Jahrra and carried her off.
“As frightening and foolish as Jahrra’s stunt was, it’s effect was nothing but a boon for us. Once she fell over the side and you pulled free to dive after her, there was a good several seconds of stunned silence on both sides. Dhuruhn’s guard reacted first, the line along the fortress wall turning on their captors, then sending arrows into the Red Flange that stood gaping over the side once they got their chance. After that, chaos descended. The captain of Nimbronia’s guard and I managed to get Whinsey, her son and Dervit behind those trained to fight. They were eager enough to comply once Erron spotted his father among those who had come down the mountain to provide aid. After that, we returned to join those engaged with the Red Flange. The scarred one that leads them escaped. He was the first to make his way toward the south side of the bridge. The steward’s son called him Boriahs, I think, and he chased after him, picking his way through the melee.”
Jaax let out a curse, and Ellyesce gave him a quizzical look.
“Sorry,” the Tanaan dragon grumbled. “I had forgotten about Keiron. Did you tell Jahrra of his treachery while you were in the Serpent’s Tomb?”
Ellyesce glanced away and studied the snowy path before him. Jaax watched his jaw work before he sighed and said, “No. Dervit was about to tell her a day or so ago, but I cut him off. I was planning on doing so once she was safe within Nimbronia’s walls.”
Jaax gritted his teeth. So, Jahrra had found out about Keiron’s betrayal only a short while ago, and in the worst way possible. And yet, she had managed to fight him off without letting her emotions rule her. Which was more than what he had done only a few minutes before. Pride swelled in the dragon’s heart. His brave, bold Jahrra.
Beside him, Ellyesce continued with his report. “I tried to chase after them, but I was held back by the enemy line. Only after you flew back through with Jahrra and released a torrent of flame upon them was I able to get to the other side. By then, I had lost sight of both Boriahs and Keiron. I would have spent more time searching, but the enemy stubbornly refused to back down, even with Sapheramin and Tollorias adding their own flames to the fight. I then turned back to make sure the others made it safely behind Nimbronia’s walls.”
Jaax nodded, agreeing with Ellyesce’s decision. “I would have liked to see those two dead,” he growled, the remnants of his dragon’s fury burning bright like dying coals met by a steady breeze, “but you made the right decision.”
Ellyesce returned Jaax’s nod, but the dragon knew better. His friend was playing the scene over and over again in his head, wondering how he could have fought better.
“They used magic. Even if I hadn’t felt it stirring in the air around us, I would have known it.”
“Undoubtedly,” Jaax remarked as their upward path curved around a rocky outcropping. The edge of the city was still farther up the mountain peak, but he could discern some of the icy spires in the distance as he pushed past his weariness and the ache in his head to keep pace with the soldiers.
“How many losses?” Jaax wanted to know, afraid of the answer.
Ellyesce sighed. “A dozen or so of Nimbronia’s guard, twice as many if not more of the enemy.”
He tilted his head and gave Jaax a wry grin. “I think your fury took care of most of those.”
Jaax clenched his teeth again, trying not to think of what might have happened if any of their allies had gotten in the way.
“All of our traveling companions made it out safe, though. It was fortunate they were all closer to the north end of the bridge than the south. And it was good to see Pendric among them. I am glad he made it out of Cahrdyarein.”
Jaax smiled at that, imagining Pendric’s wife and son, and the limbit that Jahrra was so fond of. The small creature had been an extra burden on them when Jahrra had first insisted on bringing him along, but time had changed his opinion on that subject. Dervit never got in the way, and he was anything but a liability. He had proven his loyalty and brave spirit more times than Jaax thought possible, and he was beyond grateful for the friendship the limbit offered his ward. Jahrra would need it more now than ever.
“How much farther to the main gates?” Jaax asked, returning his attention to his current surroundings. “I’m used to flying this route.”
Ellyesce laughed. “Not much farther, I assure you.”
For the next several minutes, Jaax once again retreated into his own thoughts. As the sounds of the footsteps of the soldiers and dragons crunched around him, and as their voices, carrying tones of triumph for vanquishing their enemy and sorrow for those who were lost, the Tanaan dragon couldn’t help but wonder what Ciarrohn’s next move might be. His second in command, this Boriahs Ellyesce had mentioned, had almost captured Jahrra, a thought Jaax desperately tried to purge from his mind. Since he had failed, would he try to regroup with the soldiers that remained? Would those lingering in Cahrdyarein march on Nimbronia? Jaax gave a mental snort. That would be an extremely foolish venture. Dhuruhn, the dragon king of this lofty and magic-infused city, might stick stubbornly to neutrality in this impending war, but he would not tolerate a direct attack. The Creecemind ruler had stuck adamantly to his stance on the impending fight between the Coalition and the Crimson King, but would Boriahs’ actions today sway his position in the right direction? Would he finally see the reason and rightness in Jaax’s, and the Coalition’s, cause?
A cold wind gusted down the wide culvert the road into Nimbronia followed, the biting chill enough to work its way between Jaax’s scales. He gave a small shiver and lifted his head, his breath catching in his throat as his eyes fell upon the change of scenery before them.
On either side of their party, sheer rock walls, the natural bones of the mountain, rose to impressive heights. The icy spires of the city itself were just visible above the gate, like great icicles rising from the mountain peak in ever increasing layers. The turrets sparkled and shone like polished crystal in the dwindling afternoon light, the stark beauty bringing some ease to the Tanaan dragon’s heart. Recalling what it was like to soar between those very towers, Jaax lowered his head and instead studied the gate, two huge, thick slabs of ice keeping them from the general safety of Nimbronia. The ice was somewhat transparent, like dense glass, and the people who moved around on the other side appeared only as dark, shapeless figures. It was almost like watching lazy fish swim beneath the surface of a frozen lake. Guards dressed in the same wintry colors of those escorting him and Ellyesce stood along the top of the wall, their weapons ready should these newcomers be enemies and not friends.
“Who approaches?” one of the soldiers shouted down to them from a height of fifty feet or more.
“I am Gelthea, captain of the eighth unit, and these are my men and women. We have just fought off an attack on the southern bridge, and we bring with us those who mean no harm to our city.”