Page 51 of Dragon Sword

I cocked my head to one side and studied the canister. “What is it?”

Sylvia patted the side and a hollow noise came from inside. “This is a special setup Steve made for us. It packs all the magic of the swamps. Everything from the putrid air to the poison plants is tucked into here waiting to explode out.” She dropped her weapon onto the ground with a dull thud and puffed out her chest. “And look at that! It took care of them all.”

Something was off. I lifted my eyes to the sky and furrowed my brow. “If they’re all gone then why isn’t the fog leaving?”

“Do not move!”

My first reaction was to spin around in the direction of the palace. A contingent of soldiers hurried toward us with Luja in the lead. The weazing figure of Lady Akka scurried along at his side with all the grace of a hippo. The guards surrounded the three of us and pointed their spears in our direction.

Luja stalked up to Will and glared at him. “You have made your true face known to us after all these centuries!”

Will faced him with a steady gaze. “I mean only to help you.”

Lady Akka clasped her hands together in front of herself and scoffed. “Such weak lies. You were banned from entering the city and yet you broke the king’s command. You still fraternize with the eagles. Now a darkness has befallen us and here you stand in the midst of it all pretending you know nothing of the matter.”

“We know that the shadow sealed beneath the grave of the first king is at fault,” Will shot back.

She narrowed her eyes at him and I noticed her hands tightened their grip on each other. “What do you mean?”

Will looked at each of the soldiers, trapping their attention on him. “The darkness that now covers your land is from the tomb of your king. The magic has weakened and it now tries to escape to wreak havoc on your kingdom once again. We must stop it together.” More than one guard glanced at his compatriot.

“More lies to save yourself from a century in the lowest dungeons!” Luja shouted. His face was red and his body shook as he swept his eyes over the guards. He stabbed a quivering finger at all of us. “Take them to the lower depths where they may join the other traitor!” The guards tensed, captured by indecision. Luja’s eyes nearly bulged out of his head and the muscles on his neck popped out. “Did you not hear me? Take them away!”

That’s when I heard a faint crackling noise beneath my feet.

CHAPTERTHIRTY

I looked down and blinked.A small vine pushed its way out of the stones between my legs and crawled across the surface. My eyes widened as even more erupted from the ground, creating a living green carpet beneath the feet of everyone present.

A rumble emanated from the spot just below Luja. His eyes widened and he made to move, but he wasn’t fast enough. A tree burst out of the ground directly beneath him and lifted him high into the sky. The branches took with them half the circle of guards. The rest jumped up and down as the vines that covered the ground latched onto their ankles. They thrashed and prodded the thick tendrils with their spears, but when one was broken two more took its place.

Will grabbed my hand and pulled me away from the ring of chaos. “Hey!” Sylvia shouted as she tossed her bag over her other shoulder and hurried after us. “Don’t you dare leave me behind!”

A trail of fine grass sprouted from the cobblestones and Will used that as a guide. We wound our way down the dark and abandoned streets and to the base of the Vahti. The lock was askew and he easily ripped it off before tossing it aside. We rushed inside and Sylvia was mindful to slam it shut behind us.

The interior of the tower was as spartan as you could find. A single winding wooden staircase in the center of the round room led up to the keep at the top. Many of the steps looked as old as the city and some had even rotted away.

A figure stood in the shadows behind the stairs. Sylvia noticed the stranger and dropped her bag before she pointed her bazooka at the person. “Who are you?”

Will illuminated the room with his light and revealed Alisa’s irritated expression. “Is that any way to talk to the person who just saved you?” Sylvia turned her face away and didn’t reply.

“That was reckless of you,” Will scolded her as he tossed the fireball at the ring of torches that hung from the walls, illuminating the room.

Alisa crossed her arms over her chest. “Did you have a better idea? Or was your plan to get captured?”

“The soldiers will now be looking for you,” he pointed out.

She lifted her nose and scoffed. “Let them look. I have more than enough seeds scattered around the city to bury the whole place.”

Will frowned at her. “That would deplete all your magic. You would die.”

She glared right back at him. “And if I did? Who would mourn for me besides you?”

I raised my hand. “I would.”

“I wouldn’t. . .” Sylvia grumbled. I shot her a disapproving look, and she rolled her eyes and raised her hand. “I’m only doing this because you might come in handy later.”

“Your choice is outnumbered,” Will pointed out.

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