Shield yourself from the flames, Zahara interjected, briefly exposing their minds as she neared the enemies’ frontline.
As Zahara’s chest swelled with fire, Anders conjured the shield he’d used before in Southland, hoping it would buffer the heat as it did the orc’s arrows. In an explosion of red and orange flame, Zahara unleashed a deadly stream of fire down into the trees. Anders raised his arm instinctively to protect himself, though he felt the pressure pushing on him as the magic drew energy from his body. Flames billowed around them. Zahara continued to force the dragon fire down onto the kurr below. She torched a swath through the middle of the charging kurr, extinguishing only when they’d passed fully beyond the enemy ranks. Looking back, Anders saw Maija and Raffagaun making their first pass over the kurr. The dragon flew higher so Maija wouldn’t be charred by flame, but the dragon’s jet poured a conflagration of fire onto the kurr. As Zahara pulled up from their attack, Anders could see the forest burning below. He was shocked to see kurr continuing through the burn. Half their numbers had just been roasted by dragon fire, yet they continued to charge as if nothing could stop them.
Zahara joined Raffa in another pass at the kurr. From within the trees, Anders heard the clash as the kurr collided with the elves. Dropping low, the dragons prepared for another attack.
Anders shouted, “Careful not to touch the elves with fire!”
As they flew over, the trees flaming in their wake, Anders caught an occasional glimpse of the fighting below. Nadir and his soldiers struggled to regroup into battle formation. Their only warning about the vast number of kurr they were about to encounter was the dragon fire moments before their attack. It all happened so fast, Anders hadn’t had time to warn them, especially since there appeared to be a dark sorcerer in the midst of the kurr.
Anders heard trees cracking behind them and glanced back to see Raffa using his tail as a giant club, pulverizing the creatures into the ground wherever his tail landed. Though Maija couldn’t use magic, her dragon could make up for it with sheer force.
Zahara curved up as she reached the fighting, banking sharply in a sudden turn. Angling down, she plowed through the trees near the front of the battle. From the sound of crashing branches, Anders knew Raffa and Maija were close behind. The dragons touched down just beyond where elves and kurr remained tangled in a deadly struggle. Anders jumped from Zahara’s back, knowing they would be twice as destructive if he could wield his sword. He charged through the forest floor, pulling Lazuran from its sheath as he passed through burning trees. The blade felt at home in his hand and he knew their pairing would bring an end to all who stood against them.
Cutting his way into the morass, Anders worked his blade to cut down three kurr who pulled away from the group to confront him. Zahara snarled while swatting and gnashing her way into the fight. Raffa and Maija soon joined the battle. At one point, Anders caught a glimpse of the red dragon devouring multiple kurr with a single bite.
As the dragons and Anders tore into the enraged kurr, Anders saw the flashing lights of magic being deployed. He’d found the sorcerer in their midst, and angled toward it. Anders found himself hampered in his pursuit, though, as he struggled to match the kurr’s strength. He dodged countless strikes and continued to kill kurr after kurr, feeling it was more luck than skill. The large creatures continued to tear their way into the elves even though the two groups seemed to include equal numbers. In a final attempt to push through to the sorcerer, Anders found he was overwhelmed, so he deployed bursts of magic to clear a path back to Zahara and Raffagaun. Now on the defensive, he blocked and backed away farther from the fighting. Once he gained an opening, he climbed onto Zahara’s back. She continued to gnaw and swipe at the kurr as they hounded at her from multiple directions.
Looking toward where he last saw the flashes from the sorcerer in the fighting, Anders identified their origin. Zorna was in the midst of the kurr using magic against them. From his angle on the ground, Anders couldn’t see the short old woman and had assumed it to be the enemy sorcerer.
That means the enemy sorcerer is still out there watching all of this, he thought.
Spurring Zahara, Anders shouted, “The dark magic hasn’t revealed itself. We must find it before it attacks.”
Leaping skyward, she beat her wings through the trees and back into the sky. As she stalled in a hover, Anders searched the grounds for the dark magic’s signature. Anders felt Zahara’s chest swelling with fire. She was going to use their vantage point to burn more of the creatures. As Anders watched the fire’s initial destruction, movement in the air nearby drew his attention. He turned to see a dragon with open jaws descending on them.
In a last-ditch effort, Anders attempted to produce a shield. It was only half-formed when the dragon hit. The dragon’s open jaws bounced off the edge of the shield, knocking it to the side before the bulk of its chest rammed into Zahara. The dragon’s momentum carried itself past Zahara, causing her to tumble into Raffagaun. The assaulting dragon disappeared from Anders’ sight when Zahara crashed into the trees. Anders felt the blistering heat from Raffagaun’s stream of fire as he rolled, sending a flash of flame through the trees and into the sky.
He gripped the handle on his saddle as they crashed. If it weren’t for the magical connection active in his saddle, he would’ve lost this one-handed grip. He became keenly aware of Lazuran during their fall. He held the blade tightly, out away from them as they met the ground.
Lurching in his seat, Anders closed his eyes and waited to for Zahara to roll over on top of him. When he realized that they’d come to a full stop, he opened his eyes to see that Zahara had somehow righted herself and managed to land on her feet. Anders quickly searched for Raffa and Maija. Through the swaying branches, he spotted Raffagaun pressing off the forest floor with his wing in an attempt to right himself. As Raffa stood to his full height, Anders was relieved to see that Maija had stayed in her saddle and appeared uninjured.
With no sign of the dragon that had attacked them, Zahara and Raffa simultaneously launched back above the trees. Exploding through the canopy, the dragons continued to climb above the vegetation to avoid being caught hovering for a second time. With each dragon’s speed increasing as they rose, Anders and Maija searched for their attacker. Anders spotted a pair of dragons hovering high above the trees over the fighting. Leveling out at the same elevation, Zahara shifted her sights to the two riders.
With his senses focused on them, Anders felt excessive power radiating from them and thought, Merglan!
Preparing mentally, he felt that Zahara also recognized the large black dragon. “This is it, Zahara. We’re going to face them here and now,” Anders said. At their side, Raffagaun unleashed a deafening roar and Anders guessed that even the wild dragon sensed this was their greatest enemy. With little time to prepare, he watched the two riders move into position, wondering briefly who the other rider with Merglan could possibly be. This would be Anders and Zahara’s first rider-on-rider battle, and he hoped it wouldn’t be their last. Anders prepared to use his magic.
Anders’ heart raced as they came within firing range. Conjuring a shield, Anders allowed Zahara and Raffa to send streams of fire at their attackers. Anders and Maija met Merglan and his companion in a wall of flame as the dragon fire collided like two lances in a jousting arena. Fire spread rapidly in all directions and Anders momentarily lost sight of the dark sorcerer. He held Lazuran at the ready, prepared to block any physical attack that might emerge through the fire.
Zahara arched upward; Anders held on tight to his saddle during the sudden change in direction. Listing to one side, he saw the enemy dragon through the vanishing flames and latched onto Zahara. Anders struck out with his blade, stabbing at the creature as the dragons raked each other’s undersides. He stabbed again at the black scales and saw the red on his blade as he withdrew it. Killdoor’s massive eye turned on him and Zahara bit down on his exposed throat. Seeing Merglan, Anders reacted quickly to the man’s sword. He deflected the dark sorcerer’s attempts to stab Zahara and shouted for her to push away from the deadly embrace.
Merglan suddenly attacked him with his mind, bearing down on Anders and trying to distract him from his physical assault. Anders groaned as he held Merglan off. Anders continued to work with Lazuran, letting the sword guide his arm as he defended himself and Zahara on multiple fronts. The dragons snapped at each other as they kicked, trying to strike mortal blows.
In a flash, Raffagaun and Maija appeared at Killdoor’s back. Raffa’s enormous claws thrashed at Killdoor and Maija tried to swing at Merglan with her sword. Merglan sent a pulse of energy out in all directions causing Zahara and Raffagaun to separate from Killdoor. The dragon dropped away from them, diving back out into open skies.
“Zahara, are you alright?” Anders called to her.
“Just a few scrapes, nothing looks too serious,” he heard Maija shout.
“Where’s the other rider?” Anders asked as Zahara set her sights on Killdoor again.
“We scared him off for now,” Maija replied.
Confused, Anders panted, feeling the fatigue in his arm from the swordplay. He could hardly believe they had survived Merglan’s initial attack.
Pursuing them down closer to the forest, Anders and Zahara led the charge into Killdoor and Merglan. They cut and hacked violently as Anders and Merglan each used pulses of energy to try to unseat one another. As the two dragons worked to outmaneuver Killdoor, constantly moving one dragon to his flank, Anders’ confidence began to grow. Merglan’s mental attacks lessened the more he used his magic to attack Anders. He was now relying more on his sword. Though his physical strength was beginning to wane, Anders felt strong mentally. He thought if they could cause Merglan to drop his sword or fall from the saddle, they would win this fight.
As they tumbled and parried closer to the burned area where the kurr and elves fought, Anders wielded his blade in an adrenaline-fueled attack on Merglan. Driving them back, Anders saw that Killdoor’s wings were not reaching their full potential. He backed off and was astonished to see that Killdoor was unable to flap his wings. The dragon fell quickly toward the ground and Zahara dove after dragon and rider.
Anders forced his mind down onto Merglan’s as his dragon crashed through the scorched opening in the trees. The man’s wards were up, but for the first time, he didn’t try to attack. Instead, Merglan sealed his mind off. Zahara landed several dragon-lengths from the grounded enemy dragon just as Zorna approached with a blue-hued crystal hanging from a chain around her neck. Anders realized she had been the one working to constrain Killdoor once they’d neared the battle again.
As if mirroring each other’s actions, Anders and Merglan dismounted their dragons and dipped into fighting stances. Anders continued to send his mental strength at Merglan’s, feeling Zorna’s efforts working alongside his to crack into the sorcerer’s mind. Merglan’s mental walls remained sealed as Anders charged. Zahara and Raffagaun leapt out in front of him and met Killdoor moments before Anders and Merglan’s blades connected.
Anders and Merglan fought with magically enhanced speed as neither one relented. The dragons’ battle became lost to Anders as he focused wholly on breaking Merglan. Lazuran danced for Anders as he delivered a series of offensive strikes. Noticing a false step in Merglan’s stance, Anders sent a pulse of magic into his limbs, delivering an inhuman sideswipe. Merglan tried to block the swing, but Lazuran sent the sorcerer’s sword flying through the air. Lost in the thrill of the fight, Anders stomped at Merglan’s chest, sending energy into his leg as he kicked the sorcerer off his feet. He watched as Merglan landed a short distance away on his back. Anders sprang on him, stopping Lazuran’s tip just a hair’s width away from Merglan’s throat. The sorcerer lay dazed as Nadir and several elves rushed in to restrain him. Anders kept the point of his sword trained on Merglan as the Norfolk woman used magic to bind his arms and legs. Glancing at her, Anders could see the tendrils of energy wisping off the crystal and into her body. With Merglan magically restrained, she could focus on keeping his mind at bay.
Turning, Anders saw that Raffa and Zahara struggled to prevent Killdoor from attacking them all. Once Zorna had finished restraining Merglan, the Norfolk woman used energy from the crystal to physically restrain the dragon, leaving him to hover just inches above the ground.
Seeing the crystal’s energy at work, Anders asked, “Handy, you suddenly having that crystal to help control them.”
Through the lines on her face, Anders could see the woman straining to hold both Killdoor and Merglan from escaping. Through tight lips she said, “Nadir gave it to me. Said it came from his dead stepmother.”
Anders looked to Merglan again, his blade still held at the man’s throat, “Did you hear that? She’s using your own magic against you.” Anders waited for the sorcerer to respond, but he simply glared at them, struggling to break free of Zorna’s control.
Anders heard elves reporting to Nadir at his back, telling him that the remaining kurr had fled after seeing the dragon fall. From the corner of his eye, Anders saw Maija rush over to them. She held a bloodied blade, pointing it at Merglan as she stopped at Anders’ side.
“The other rider?” Anders asked.
“Last I saw of him, he was fleeing to the west,” she said.
