Cursed Bones

chapter 40



“I’m worried about Alexander,” Abigail said.

“He’s got a lot more than just us to deal with,” Anatoly said. “He’ll be back when the time is right.”

It had been a week since his last visit. Magda was almost completely healed, though she still favored her shoulder, occasionally wincing in pain when she forgot about her injury and moved too quickly. Their food was starting to run low and Ixabrax was beginning to grumble.

“We could assault Whitehall on our own,” Abigail said.

Anatoly looked at her reprovingly. “You know better than that. Good information about your enemy is half the battle. Alexander can provide us with near perfect information. Patience is the wise course.”

“Patience has never been my strong suit,” Abigail muttered, getting up and wandering over to the cave entrance. The sky was bright and cold, and there was just enough breeze to add a biting edge to the day. She scanned the snow-covered slope of the mountain, her eyes locking on to movement in the distance. It was so far away that she couldn’t be sure, but the more she looked, the more certain she became—a company of soldiers was headed toward them.

“Looks like we have company.”

Anatoly stood, spinning his axe into his hands. “How close and how many?”

“Looks like all of them, but they’re at least two hours away.”

“Oh,” he said, sitting back down.

“Shouldn’t we prepare?” Magda said.

“I’m not sure we need to,” Anatoly said. “I suspect Ixabrax is getting hungry right about now.”

“True,” the dragon said, “but not hungry enough to eat a hundred men. Besides, I believe you’re all now well enough to ride, so I suggest we leave this place in favor of a closer position, say the crevasse. That way we’ll be in a better position to make our attack when the illusionary wizard returns with his battle plan.”

“Fair enough,” Abigail said.

“We should share the remaining two vials of dragon draught,” Magda said. “Otherwise we could easily suffer injury from exposure over such a long flight in this cold.”

They packed their belongings and donned their fur cloaks. Then Ixabrax squeezed out of the cave and unfurled his wings, stretching them wide before lowering his neck and allowing the three of them to climb aboard.

Abigail couldn’t help smiling at the exhilaration of flight when the dragon lifted off the ground. He flew straight for the company of soldiers marching across the snow field toward the cave, roaring as he passed overhead. Most of the men scattered in terror but one man caught Abigail’s eye. Haldir was leading them to the cave, his arms bound to a stout limb resting across his shoulders and tied to his neck. His torso was bare, red from the cold and from the blood oozing out of dozens of shallow slices cut across his chest. He slumped to his knees as he watched Ixabrax soar overhead with a mixture of vindication and awe.

Several hours later, Ixabrax arrived at the crevasse where Alexander had first found him. They made camp, waiting for Alexander to return and help them plan their attack. After several days, they ran out of food and firewood. Ixabrax left them to hunt. He was gone for nearly a day before he returned with a stag and a fallen log.

“Now I’m really worried about Alexander,” Abigail said while they prepared their first hot meal in days.

Anatoly nodded. “This isn’t like him. Something must have happened.”

“Have faith. He’ll return,” Magda said.

“My patience grows thin,” Ixabrax said. “I have delivered on my part of the bargain, yet your brother is nowhere to be seen.”

“Maybe we should think about making our move without him,” Abigail said.

“We’ve already been over this,” Anatoly said. “Our best chance for success is to wait. Without Alexander, we’d be going in blind.”

“I know the layout of the aerie,” Ixabrax said.

“What about the rest of the keep?” Anatoly said. “The best chance your family has is to wait for Alexander to guide us.”

“I agree,” Magda said. “We’ll free your family, Ixabrax … just not today.”

Several more days passed, everyone growing more restless and uncertain by the hour before Alexander finally appeared.

“Where have you been, Human?” Ixabrax demanded.

“Searching for my wife,” he said. “She’s buried under a mountain and I can’t find her.”

Abigail, Anatoly, and Magda surged to their feet, but no one knew what to say.

“I’m still hoping she’s alive but I can’t know for certain.”

“I don’t understand, why can’t you go to her as you have to us?” Ixabrax asked.

“She went after the bones of an ancient creature that won’t allow magic to work anywhere nearby. Every time I get close, I wind up back in my body on Tyr.”

“I’m sorry, Alex,” Abigail said. “I wish I could give you a hug.”

“Me too,” he said, closing off his emotions and focusing on the task at hand. “I’ve already spent too much time looking for her, knowing full well that the same thing’s going to happen whenever I get close, no matter which angle I approach from. It’s time to focus my efforts where I can be useful and hope she can dig her way out.”

“So you have a plan then?” Ixabrax said.

“I do. Unfortunately, the book I sent Zuhl didn’t kill him. I’m not sure why, but he survived, so I plan to distract him while you enter the aerie and free the dragons.”

He gestured to the ground beside their fire pit and a scale model of the enormous white marble fortress appeared, rotating until the section in question was facing them. It was a huge dome with a hole wide enough for a dragon to fly through in the center of the roof. Six towers rose from the edges of the dome, each culminating in a battlement, and each manned by two soldiers.

The entire domed building was surrounded by the main walls of the keep, which also featured manned watchtowers at even increments. The main building, Zuhl’s manor, butted up against one side of the dome with many towers rising high overhead, offering a commanding view of the entire city and keep.

“As you can see, the place is a literal fortress. His men are vigilant, never hesitating to sound the alarm, so going over the walls is out of the question. They’d spot you before you even got close.”

“That doesn’t sound like a very optimistic assessment,” Anatoly said.

“Notice here,” Alexander said, pointing to a point in the outer wall where a small stream flowed through a grate and into the keep. “This stream feeds the main cistern, which in turn feeds the dragon aerie. The grate is stout enough to stop an angry bull, but the Thinblade will make short work of it. Once you’re in, you’ll be up to your armpits in freezing water, so we need to find a way to keep you warm. I was hoping you might have a spell, Magda.”

“I’m afraid I don’t, at least not until we’re out of the water. Dragon draught would be our best bet.”

“Where can we get some?”

“Zuhl’s soldiers were carrying the last vials we got our hands on,” Anatoly said.

“All right, so the first step will be to get some more dragon draught. Now, there’s a guard tower manned by two men overlooking the stream.”

“I do have a spell that can deal with them,” Magda said.

“Good,” Alexander said, gesturing to his illusionary model. It became transparent, revealing the path they would have to follow through the underground waterways. “There’s a magical field here,” he pointed to a place several dozen feet inside the keep. “I’m not sure what it does, but you should be able to cut your way around it.”

“That’s going to take some time,” Abigail said.

“I know, but I’m afraid the field might warn Zuhl of intruders. We can’t afford that.”

“Your plan is starting to sound pretty complicated,” Anatoly said.

“I know, but I’ve explored this part of Whitehall extensively and I’ve never seen such defenses. Zuhl takes his security as seriously as you would expect from a man who plans to live forever.”

“All right, so once we’re past the guards and through the grate and around the magical field, all up to our armpits in freezing water, then what?” Anatoly asked.

“There’s another grate at the spillway into the cistern. Once you’re through that, you can get out of the water and follow the access pathways that run alongside the waterways. This one,” he pointed to one of five passages leading from the main cistern, “leads straight to the dragon aerie. Unfortunately, the access path stops where water flows under the wall into a large pool on the side of the aerie. That passage is grated as well.”

“So we cut that grate and swim inside,” Abigail said. “Then what?”

“Then you’ll be in a giant room with six, hopefully sleeping dragons and possibly a number of human handlers. Pick the largest dragon and cut his collar before he wakes while avoiding or eliminating the handlers.”

“Is that all?” Abigail said.

“The largest will be my sire, Izzulft,” said Ixabrax. “He is a very light sleeper.”

“Wonderful,” Abigail said, “so we do this very quietly.”

“That would be wise,” Ixabrax said. Then he broke off a tooth and handed it to Abigail. “Show him this … he will know it comes from me and hesitate before eating you. Explain your intentions quickly and concisely. He has very little patience for humans, but he will do whatever he can to free our family. Once he understands your purpose, I have every confidence he will assist you.”

“That’s reassuring,” Anatoly grumbled.

“I need you to help me understand the nature of Zuhl’s control over your family,” Alexander said to Ixabrax. “When you were in the aerie, how much influence did Zuhl have over you?”

“We were instructed to remain within the aerie without harming his servants or damaging the building.”

“Good, I was afraid he might leave you with a command to attack any intruders.”

“I was born into slavery in that aerie and in all my years, he never left such a command, but then there was never a single incident of an intruder entering the aerie either.”

“Not terribly surprising,” Anatoly muttered.

“What is my part in this?” Ixabrax asked.

“I need you to deliver us near the fortress and wait in case there’s trouble,” Alexander said.

“I would do more.”

“I know, but you aren’t exactly inconspicuous. We can’t approach from the sky, or Zuhl will be alerted and then you’d have to face your whole family at once. This is the only way.”

“Very well, Human, if I had a better plan I would offer it.”

“Once the dragons are free, then what?” Abigail asked.

“You fly away and regroup at the crevasse,” Alexander said.

“And then what? We’re still stuck on this cursed frozen rock of an island.”

“If you free my family, I will carry you back to Fellenden myself,” Ixabrax said.

“Now that sounds like a plan,” Abigail said.

“Good. See about getting some dragon draught and I’ll check back tomorrow,” Alexander said, fading from sight.

Back on Tyr, he opened his eyes and groaned softly from the throbbing pain behind his forehead. He’d been pushing too hard lately … with Isabel missing and Abigail preparing to attack Whitehall, there was just so much to do and all of it required his attention.

Anja was sitting in a chair next to his bed, transformed by a shapeshift spell into a young woman of about sixteen years old with shoulder-length, coppery red hair that flared out just over the shoulders, bright golden-brown eyes, and a swath of freckles across her nose and cheeks. She smiled brightly.

“Mother has agreed to let me spend more time with you. I still have a thousand questions. If you’re feeling well enough, that is.” She added the last when she noticed his pain and exhaustion.

“Of course, I’m always happy to see you.”

“You need to rest,” she said, frowning, “and not the kind of rest where your mind is off wandering around the whole Seven Isles. Lay back and close your eyes. I’ll make you some tea.”

Alexander looked over at Jack, who was sitting at the little table he used for a desk, but all the bard had to offer him was a smile and a shrug. He just nodded and lay back, closing his eyes and resting his mind. There was still so much to do, but he knew that his best chance of success was to pace himself. He wouldn’t do anyone any good if he was too exhausted to use his magic when he needed it.

He spent the rest of the day talking with Anja, or more to the point, answering her seemingly endless questions. She was insatiably curious, her quick mind seizing on any new questions that Alexander’s answers raised. By late evening he was exhausted. Sleep came easily and he woke the following morning with a clear head and a long list of things to do.