"Ladon..." She warned, laughing at the trick. "You're impossible."
As she watched, it transformed into a man with a really big...
"What are you looking at?" Clare called having transformed back into her normal form. She looked up, but just like that the man disappeared and a wolf was in its place.
Morgan was going to scold him but he had the most sheepish look on his face. She burst out laughing instead.
I forgot.
Serves you right for teasing me anyway.
"Hey there's another dragon." Clare’s voice had barely trailed off when Morgan felt a spike of pain in her chest. She gasped and looked for Melly. She found her in the middle of the clearing head back as wind and light swirled around her. Morgan jumped up and started searching for the danger.
"Clare! Change now and hide with Rhune!" She called. Clare didn't argue, knowing that when Melly was wind called it meant trouble followed.
"What is she doing?" Ladon asked standing up and following to stand with Morgan.
"She's wind called. The last time this happened the villagers tried to burn Rhune at the stake." She looked him in the eyes. Deadly serious. Then she pointed to the north. "Do you recognize that dragon?” In the distance, but coming fast, was a red dragon.
When he was close enough to recognize Ladon growled.
'"Bochus."
Melly fell out of her strange trance and fell to the ground. Morgan ran to her, collapsing beside her and pushing back her hair. "Melly? What did you see?" She asked gently but with insistence.
"He's poison." She gasped out, tears falling from her exhausted eyes. "He's going to kill him with poison."
"Who? Melly is Bochus going to kill Ladon?"
"One or the other. She gasped out. "One or the other will die. The Dragons will fall. The beginning of the end." Melly grabbed her arm so hard it would hold a permanent mark. "Morgan, stop him! He's too young! Poison...” Then she passed out.
"Melly!?" Morgan shook her trying to revive her. "Who will die? Who's too young? Melly?!" But it was no use. She looked around for Ladon but he was across the meadow looking very tense, talking to Bochus. Morgan prayed, even as she ran towards them, that she could get to Ladon before it was too late.
Eben! She sent out the mental call as loud as she could. We need you!
Morgan was almost to Ladon when he spoke through their bond.
Stay back Morgan. He is up to something.
Poison! She yelled in her head. Melly said he's poison.
"It was you!” Ladon turned with a growl. "You betrayed me to the humans. Stole my blood and gave it to a blood mage."
Lord Bochus looked from him to Morgan who stood a few feet behind him. Then he smiled. That smile said more clearly than the rant that followed he was insane.
"I had to, don't you see. The prophesy said if you took your place of power I would die. It was self-defense. Now you would destroy dragon kind with this human. No! I'm not the traitor here. You are."
"You gave his blood to the blood mage. Why?" Morgan called the question.
"That was the price, for the potion that made him weak enough to kill. But I couldn't strike the blow myself. If a seer were to search out his fate, it must look as if he played games with the humans and died for his foolishness. That was the price I paid." He was so excited it had to be unnatural. "The blood was the price I paid."
Is he drugged?
I'm not sure but he is most certainly crazed.
"Why are you here?" Ladon asked moving so that he blocked the line of sight to Morgan.
This had Bochus blinking. Confused and then his face cleared. "To kill you of course. It's the only way."
"If you wanted to challenge me all you had to do was wait for the new moon. Why now?"
"They can't see." Bochus looked around furtively. "They won't understand."
"Understand what?"
I'm almost there. Keep him talking. The sound of Ebens words had relief pouring through Morgan.
Bochus laughed then. "I had to be able to win." Then he was transforming into his dragon. Only it was something different that he became.
He retained his red color but he had grown to twice his normal size and his skin was mottled and black in places. A spike formed on his tail and his dragon talons morphed to curved weapons. He had two black horns on his head and his spittle hissed when it dribbled to the ground between razor sharp teeth.
Get out of here Morgan! Ladon called before he transformed into his now tiny looking dragon between them. Get the others to safety.
Bochus swung his spiked tail forcing Ladon to fly out of the way just as it crashed into the ground where he had stood.
Eben Hurry. She called then yanked the earth out from under Bochus so that his talons flew up and he was rolling back away from Ladon.
He roared his rage and then flew up belching fire towards them. Morgan called the wind sucking the air away so the fire never reached its intended target. Ladon gave his own war cry before launching himself at the bigger dragon and using his slighter form and speed to get behind him and bludgeon him with his own tail.
Bochus went tumbling again with a wild shriek but came back fast. Trying to grab for the much smaller dragon as Ladon flicked around him scraping him up with flashing claws. Then with a flash of gold Ladon called his great sword and swung going for a neck shot. But it was as if he was hitting stone. It just made Bochus madder and madder.
He turned and swiped with his mutated talons. He was going to connect. Morgan knew it, knew too that Ladon would die, even as a black shadow appeared between them and Eben took the swipe into his own side. His black talons dug into the abomination Bochus had become, and with six thousand years of dragon power behind him, he ripped off his head.
He dropped what was left of a twitching Bochus to the ground. Turning first to look for Morgan and then seeing her standing he turned to check Ladon. But Ladon was looking at the wound across Ebens flank.
Poison. Ladon said meeting his eyes. Eben felt the energy draining out. He would have dropped to the ground if Ladon had not grabbed him and lead him down.
Morgan came running as they landed. She gasped seeing the black stain spreading across his iridescent scales.
"No!" She yelled falling to her knees beside him just as they both shifted to human. "Eben no." But she knew. She could feel the poison spreading.
'One or the other will die.' Melly had said. Morgan assumed she meant Ladon or Bochus but what if she meant this?
"Eben." She whispered, her hands going to either side of his face so she could look into his eyes. "Don't you leave me."
His pulled her hand to his lips and kissed her fingers. "You worry about the silliest things Shameaa. There is no poison that can harm a dragon." But his words were slurring and his eyes going unfocused.
"Arrogant dragon." She cursed through her tears. "Always think you know everything."
"I have called for a healer." The voice was too deep and had Morgan looking up through her tears. She hadn't even noticed General Solan arrive until now. She looked at him through sightless eyes. Then beside her, she heard Rhune.
"He's dying, isn't he Morgan?" Too serious and too knowing for such a young boy. "I can see it spreading." Morgan looked from her brother to Eben who was now gasping for breath.
"The healer won't be in time." Ladon said from the other side of Eben. She looked across and saw the same devastation on his face she knew she was wearing on hers.
Shameaa. His voice in her head was weak. You may have been right...this once.
"I don't want to be right!" She cried. "I want you to beat this, like you beat everything else. Please Eben. Fight!" His hand found her cheek, pushing into her hair and wiping her tears with his thumb.
"I would not give up the light so soon after discovering its warmth." He said, and she grabbed his hand to hold it to her face as agony shook her. He reached his other hand to find Ladon and they clasped hands. "You will look after each other. All that is mine is yours.”
"You don't have to ask."
“Solan."
"Here." Came the gruff voice.
"You will bear witness that all these here belong to me. I claim them as dragon mage of the house of water."
"I will so witness."
"Then he looked at Morgan. "Shameaa..." Then he closed his eyes.
"No! Where's the healer?" She yelled, feeling him slipping away. "Fight! You arrogant dragon. Fight!" She shook him as hard as she could but there was nothing.
Then he jerked and Morgan looked up. A white light was swirling around him, the black shadow wound started to shrink and she blinked not understanding until Clare screamed.
"Rhune!"
She looked down Ebens body and saw Rhune with his hands on the wound. "What are you doing?” But she knew. She had seen her mother heal enough wounds to know when someone was healing with magic. Only Rhune had never had that power. Until now.
Even as she watched the shadow wound was leaching out of Eben...and into Rhune.
'Morgan stop him. He's too young!' This was what Melly had been warning her about! This!
"No." Morgan yelled knocking Rhune away from the wounded dragon. "Hold him away. It'll kill him!"
General Solan Picked up Rhune and turned so that he was away from the body. Rhune was struggling and yelling but he was no match for the Dragon General.
Morgan turned back to Eben. The shadow was smaller but it wasn't enough. Rhune could have saved him but he was too young, he would have died unable to fight off the poison. He was a healer.
Like their mother.
‘Blood or sex, Morgan. That's how you restore a fading dragon. Blood or sex. But only use it when the need is most dire.’
Morgan reached over to the sword Ladon had dropped and slashed her hand against it.
"Morgan!" He yelled reaching for her, but she already had her hand pressed between Ebens lips.
"Fight Eben." She whispered pushing Ladon back when he would have taken her hand away. "Fight!" She yelled it directly into Ebens face.
Just when she though it wasn't going to work, Eben latched onto her hand with sharp teeth. She cried out but it wasn't the pain. She watched as the shadows shrank with each gulp of blood he downed.
"It’s working!” She heard someone say right before she passed out from blood loss.