Death Comes To All (Book 1) (35 page)

They
were four days out from the city when things abruptly changed. They
had only recently passed another patrol, who had almost pointedly
ignored them, and Bane felt certain that they had escaped their
pursuers without arousing anyone's suspicions. The guards they passed
seemed to be more concerned about bandits than they were about
whoever it was that the mage in the city had asked them to look for.
One glance at Grant was all that they needed to turn them away.

Trick
had stayed hidden in the trees while they were on the road, joining
them only at night when they set up camp. He suddenly flew down in
front of them, startling the horses. He chirped three times, short,
quick sounds, then flew to the pack horse in the back of the line. He
forced himself in one of the packs, squeezing himself into the tight
space, and disappeared into the void inside.

"What
was all that about?" Raine asked. Bane was glad someone else had
asked the question. Most of the time his companions understood the
dragonling, but he rarely had a clue what the animal was trying to
convey.

"I
don't know for sure," Grant answered vaguely. "Something
scared him. I don't know what it could have been. I've never seen him
that frightened before."

The
group didn't have long to wait for their answer. With a sudden roar
that pierced the air and caused the horses to rear back in fear a
huge creature flew by overhead, blocking out the sun with its massive
bulk. Bane struggled to gain control of his horse, which almost
succeeded in dumping him to the ground in its fright. Finally forcing
the animal to submit, he looked up in the direction of the sound.

Bane
couldn't believe his eyes. Deep crimson, glistening scales reflected
the sunlight in a dazzling display of color. In everything save its
size, which was easily five times larger than the horse he was
riding, and its color, the massive dragon looked almost exactly like
Trick.

It’s
so beautiful!

Never
in his wildest dreams had Bane expected to see a dragon in the flesh,
but now that he had he was both awed and terrified. He knew, without
a doubt, that the creature was looking for him and his companions.

"Don't
make any sudden movements," Grant whispered. "If we're
lucky, it won't look too closely at us. I don't know if it can see
through my disguise or not, but I don't want to take any chances.
Just act frightened. That's what anyone else would do if confronted
by a dragon."

"Who
needs to act," Bane mumbled. He was as nervous as the horses,
who stamped their feet and nickered loudly.

The
dragon flew over the group in a wide arc. It circled them once before
continuing on, following the road. As it flew out of sight Bane
noticed something strange about the creature. Its scales seemed to
shimmer in a strange way, reminding Bane of the way the top of a rock
shimmers in waves from the intense heat of a summer's day.

For
a moment Bane could have sworn he could see through its wings. It was
as if, for just a moment, the dragon wasn't actually there at all. He
waited until it was completely out of sight before speaking.

"How
thin are a dragon's wings?" he asked once he found his voice
again. The sound of his voice sounded like a weak whimper to his own
ears. He hated the thought of what it must have sounded like to his
companions.

He
coughed once to bring back the strength in his voice before
continuing. "I thought for a moment that I could see through it.
Could that possibly be a weakness against them?"

"I
thought I saw the same thing," Grant answered. If he had noticed
the change in Bane's voice he said nothing of it. "I don't
believe that was a dragon at all. I've read that some mages can
conjure shadows, spirit beings that take on the form of whatever the
mage wants it to. The shadow creature will have the same appearance
of whatever form the mage puts it into, though only a fraction of the
actual power that original being possesses.”

It
was just a shadow. So it wasn’t real?

“
I
wasn't aware that Bloodheart had the power to create shadow beings,
but I shouldn't be surprised. That creature wouldn't have been as
powerful as a true dragon, but it would still have been a formidable
opponent. Thankfully it seems that we were beneath its notice. I'm
not sure if we could have fooled a true dragon, and I'm sure a real
one would have been more than we could handle. I not even sure that
we could have handled the shadow version if it had decided to attack
us."

The
bags on the pack horse shuffled a little, and Trick peered his head
out from beneath the bags. After a quick glance the dragonling
decided that the dragon must have been gone. With a short chirp he
flew back up into the trees, quickly disappearing from Bane's sight.
He would be watching for any dangers from above, as Bane knew he had
been, and would certainly warn them of any impending dangers, like
the shadow dragon that had just passed them by.

"If
that dragon was nothing more than a shadow, why was it colored so
brilliantly?" Raine asked. "I don't know much about
magically created creatures, but shouldn't it have been a black,
smokey color, like a shadow?"

"Shadow
creations are made to mimic an actual animal. The original dragon
would have been red, it seems, so its shadow clone would look the
same."

A
sudden thought came to Bane. "Could it have been a shadow dragon
that attacked and killed your father all those years ago? You said
already that it would have taken several mages working together to
summon a real dragon, or Sloan did anyway, but a shadow dragon would
have been something that a single mage could have summoned, right?"

"Not
a chance. Unlike some mages, my father's magic was just as powerful
as many of the original great mages from ancient times. A simple
shadow creation wouldn't have been dangerous to him. A real dragon,
on the other hand, would have been an entirely different story. It’s
possible, however, that this shadow was created from that very same
dragon. I don't know for certain."

Bane
decided to drop it for now. While he wasn't convinced that his
companion was really as certain of his father's power as he claimed
to be, he knew that talking about that time pained him greatly. His
friend had been in a good mood for the most part, and he wanted Grant
to stay that way. He enjoyed his friend's easy going manner, though
he knew that, more often than not, it was little more than a facade.
The assassin kept his true feelings well hidden most of the time.

Once
the group had settled their horses they continued on. Now that they
were farther from the cities the guards were fewer and farther
between, and they didn't see a single patrol the rest of the day, nor
did they see any further signs of the shadow dragon.

The
same was true for three more days before Grant led them away from the
road entirely, heading eastward. Within an hour, Bane found himself
completely surrounded by swampland. Once more they were forced to
lead the horses, who nickered nervously, not happy about walking so
close to the murky water.

In
places the water crossed over the narrow path they traveled entirely.
Bane wouldn't have known there was a path at all if Grant hadn't led
the way. The man must have known where he was going however, for
though Bane often found himself walking through murky water, his feet
never sank below a few inches.

Underneath
the water was thick mud and muck, which clung to his boots and tried
to hold him in place. Ignoring the mud entirely, his companion led
them forward. Bane thought with each step that he would be pulled
under by some unseen danger, or step into a space without a muddy
bottom near the surface, but amazingly it never happened.

Mile
after mile the group continued. As the sun began to fade in the west,
Bane began to wonder where they would stop for the night.

Certainly
Grant doesn't plan on continuing on in the dark,
he
thought, hoping he was right. He didn't think it could possibly be
very safe for the horses, and a broken ankle now would surely be the
death of one of the large animals.

As
the light dimmed, Bane began to notice movement in the water on both
sides of him. It could have been a fish, he definitely hoped it was.
He knew, however, that it was just as likely that a large snake, or
even an alligator, lurked just beneath the surface, ready to attack
an unwary and unsuspecting traveler.

Just
as Bane began to lose hope entirely, he once again felt firm soil
beneath his feet, and the path that they were on opened into a small
clearing of earth. It was not a high above the water line. Bane was
certain that it would have been underwater completely if there had
been any rain in recent days.

Their
luck held, however, and the clearing was dry enough to make camp.
Bane was very grateful for that. He was not certain he could have
gone on much longer.

"We'll
make camp here," Grant announced needlessly. Bane doubted there
was a better location nearby. They were completely surrounded by
murky, dank smelling swamp-water in every direction. If Grant hadn't
known the way to lead the group along the hidden path they were on,
and Bane was certain that the man did, they wouldn't possibly have
been able to make it this far without being swallowed by the swamp
completely.

If
I were to disappear out here no one would ever find me,
he
thought with a shudder.

"We
won't be able to make a fire tonight," their leader continued,
as Trick flew down from above and wrapped his tail around Grant's
neck, shifting slightly to make himself more comfortable on his
master's shoulder. "It's not that we need to worry about someone
coming across us here, though we should still set up a watch just in
case that shadow dragon flies by this way. It's simply that we aren't
likely to find enough dry wood to make a decent fire. Even if we
could start a strong enough blaze to dry wood on, the wet wood we
would have to burn beforehand would create enough smoke that it would
be seen for miles. It's better not to give our pursuers any advantage
in finding us."

Bane
had to agree. He had no idea just how close anyone looking for them
might possibly be, but knew it would be foolish for them to take
unnecessary chances. Even if there was not any people close enough to
see the smoke, that shadow dragon might still be about, and Bane had
little doubt that it was searching for them. It would certainly take
notice of a group traveling straight through the swamp itself,
instead of keeping to the main roads.

No,
we’re the only ones crazy enough to do that.

They
quickly unburdened the horses of their saddles and packs, leaving
them untethered to wander the camp. There were trees they could have
attached the ropes to, but Grant was certain that they would not
wander into the deep water. The only possible danger to the animals
here was from only the largest of alligators or, this far south,
perhaps a rare crocodile. He was knew, however, that if any animal
large enough to harm one of the horses was near, Trick would waste no
time at all in warning them of it.

Bane
expected Raine to bring out her fishing equipment as soon as the
group was settled for the evening. They were completely surrounded by
water after all. Surely she would find fish in these waters, perhaps
even another gar fish like before. He recalled how happy she had been
when she caught the last one, and knew they were her favorite.

Raine
knew, however, that they would have no way to cook such a treat here,
and that catching one would only be a waste. As much as she liked to
eat them, she was not an animal. She was not about to eat meat that
was not properly cooked. Instead, she sated her hunger on a few thick
pieces of the jerky they had bought at the market.

Trick,
on the other hand, had no such scruples. Flying off of Grant's
shoulder, he flew up several yards and began several slow, spiraling
loops over the water surrounding their campsite. Finally spotting
something that fit his tastes, he folded his wings behind him and
dropped like a stone into the water, re-emerging a moment later with
a small fish impaled on his sharp claws.

Unlike
Raine, he doesn’t seem to care if his fish is raw,
Bane
thought with amusement.

Bane
wasn't actually certain whether the dragonling liked fish more than
jerky or not. He seemed quite happy eating meat in nearly any form,
as far as the sorvinian could tell. Unlike Raine, their small friend
couldn't ask for something in particular. More likely the dragonling
had moods that changed from moment to moment, and ate whatever he
happened to feel like eating at that time, just like the rest of
them. It certainly didn't act like any normal animal, that would eat
whatever was put in front of it as soon as the food was given.

Bane
had hoped to find something he could eat from the plants around him,
but couldn't see anything he knew to be edible nearby. Thick grasses
carpeted the areas along the outside edge of the swamps that
surrounded them. The only trees nearby that he could see were mainly
thick cypress, though he also spotted several mangroves intermingled
with them, their gnarled roots often sticking several inches out of
the water beneath the twisted trunks. If any part of those plants and
trees were edible, he was not aware of it.