Page 58 of Dragon Sword

The eagle king lunged at him with his beak and claws ready to rip and tear. Varjo swept his arm in front of him and a blade of dark magic shot out. The evil struck the eagle in the chest and sent him tumbling back. Those overhead screeched and dove down, but the king managed a sharp squawk which stopped their descent.

Varjo’s attention settled on Will and me. “Would you like to show me the pathetic limit of your powers?”

Will stretched his arms out on either side of him and two towering columns of fire shot up. The flames lit up the area and their heat dispelled all the fog within a hundred feet of the stones.

Varjo scowled at the evaporation of his magic. “Impressive, dragon, but too small to stop-”

Will didn’t wait for him to finish his mocking before he flung his hands downward and out, sending the columns crashing down on the creature. Varjo raised one hand and blocked the flames but the columns didn’t vanish. Instead, sparks flew between their two magics. Will gritted his teeth and the columns grew in size, melding together to create one huge heat tornado.

Varjo’s eyes showed shock as he was slowly brought to one knee. He lifted his other hand to block the attack and the next moment he flung his palms upward, shoving Will’s flames into the air. The sudden shift in direction twisted the fire and broke the columns. Will dropped to his knees panting with sweat streaming down his face.

Varjo hardly looked better as he climbed to his feet. Part of his face was burned and smoke rose from the wound. He lifted one shaking hand and brushed his fingers over the scorched flesh. His lips curled into a snarl and he flung his palms out toward us. A half dozen tendrils shot out and wrapped around our companions. One tried to grab me, but Will jumped in front of it and was captured. Others entrapped him in their slimy black bodies and all my companions were lifted off the ground.

“Let go!” Sylvia snapped.

“Fiends!” Alisa growled.

Will twisted his head around as he thrashed in the thing’s grip. “Run!” I froze. Indecision ruled my thoughts. Will let out a strangled cry as the creature tightened its grip. Still, he kept his pleading focus on me. “Run now!”

I stiffened my chin and nodded. And that’s when I ran.

Straight toward him.

CHAPTERTHIRTY-FOUR

I flungout my right arm and my flaming sword came to life. Its heat did as Will’s had done before, battered back the shadows. This time it was the horrible tendrils that shuddered and shrank before me, dragging my companions with them. I grabbed the hilt of the sword in both hands and swung down hard at those that held Will and the others.

Like his fiery columns before, my sword extended outward several feet and cut through the retreating tendrils. Will dropped to the ground and I hurried over to his side.

He coughed a little but managed to control himself long enough to frown at me. “I told you to run.”

I nodded. “And I did. Right toward you.”

A wry smile slipped onto his lips. “As stubborn as always.” He was interrupted by another cough.

My heart skipped a beat when blood splattered out of his mouth. “Will!” I shouted as I grasped his shoulder with my hand. The one he held now shook.

He closed his eyes and winced. “It’s. . .it’s nothing.”

“Don’t you dare tell me it’s just a flesh wound,” I scolded him as I looked around.

Will eased himself onto one knee and grasped my hand that held the sword. The flames flickered and warmed even brighter than before. He studied my sword for a moment before he looked at me. “We have to place all our strength into one blow.”

“But will that work?” I questioned him as I glanced over to our foe. The tendrils had slithered back into Varjo’s palm and the creature cupped his trembling hand in his other one as he glared at us.

“He wouldn’t need to consume others if he was at his full strength, so we may have a chance,” Will guessed as he studied my face. “However, do you know what that means?”

I could tell just from the exhaustion on his face but I nodded. “Yeah, but it’s worth a try.”

Will eased himself to his feet at my side and we joined to face the creature. The slithery corpse sneered at us. “You believe I am weak enough to fall for your simple flame magic?”

“If you have nothing to fear then why are your hands shaking?” Will countered.

Varjo tightened his hands into fists and gritted his teeth. Puffs of black mist flowed out of his eyes and emanated off his person. Will tightened his hand around mine and the flame burst outward another yard. The heat was so great that even I felt uncomfortable, even with the guard shielding our arms.

I jumped when a tendril of green energy slipped up my arm and wrapped around the hilt, shielding us from the flames. I looked over my shoulder and found Alisa standing a few feet behind us. Sylvia already had her weapon shouldered with the unused end pointed at our foe. The great eagle stood on his feet with his wings fully open and a soft breeze emanated from them as he began to flap harder and harder, stirring the flames of our sword.

I grinned up at Will. “It looks like we’re not alone, so let’s not let this be our last adventure, okay?”

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