to rejoin the dragons waiting to defend the east gate.
Thelvyn was surprised and rather alarmed to see that the invading army had already organized itself for attack. Rank upon rank of soldiers waited in a strange silence in the fields, the closest lines barely a hundred yards out from the wall. Hither they did not yet know that a force of dragons was waiting for them or else they had lost all fear of the dragons. The Masters were still only distant forms flying over the treetops in the distance. As he watched, they broke into four groups that slowly circled around to attack from different directions. Thelvyn could see that there were at least a score of gemstone dragons in each of the four groups.
'Pass the order quietly,' Thelvyn said. 'Have the dragons spread out about a couple of wingspans or so apart, so that we can try to hold as much of the wall as possible. Remind them to listen for my orders. If the Masters come in force, we might have to get away from here quickly.'
Because he had not been watching over the wall, he was surprised when grappling hooks and ladders suddenly appeared at the top of the gate, scraping and rattling as they were set into place and the ropes pulled tight. He took a deep breath to prepare his flame, then stood up on his hind legs to lift his head over the wall. The moment his head appeared, dozens of arrows began snapping and bouncing off the armor of his face so that he had to close his eyes and drop back down behind the protection of the wall. The invaders had been waiting for the dragons, with companies of archers standing ready to drive them back.
Unfortunately Thelvyn already had his flame ready, and all he could do now was to turn his head and let the blast of dragonfire wash over the paving stones of the street behind him. He couldn't risk lifting his head over the wall to use his dragon-fire on the attackers. While he had survived the first volley of arrows unscathed, he was fearful of an arrow or crossbow bolt penetrating the light armor of his face. At least the invaders would be vulnerable to the dragons the moment they tried to come over the wall. He moved back from the wall and waited, ready to attack anyone coming over the parapet with his flaming breath. His companions on either side of him did likewise.
Thelvyn paused, waiting and listening. The assault on the wall had grown curiously silent, and no one had climbed the scaling ropes that were already hooked over the wall. Moving closer to the massive timbers of the gate, he could hear only faint sounds from the vast army that was gathered outside the wall. Then he heard the sound of some large beast running, and a moment later, he leapt back in alarm as the gate was struck with tremendous force, nearly bursting the crossbars.
The other dragons hurried to help him hold the gate, but Thelvyn knew that the battle to defend the wall was already lost. He was certain the gemstone dragons were attacking the gate, and he was just as certain that they must have come in overwhelming numbers. When Kharendaen rushed up to him, he sat up on his haunches and turned her to face the middle of the city.
'Trying to hold this gate is pointless,' he told the dragons. 'We have to save ourselves to protect the people fleeing.'
He leapt forward, leading the way. He turned sharply as soon as he came to the first side street in order to get his dragons quickly out of sight from the main street in case the gem-stone dragons broke through the gate in the next few moments. ' the last of the dragons had only just darted down the narrow side street when they heard a tremendous crash as the Masters hit the ruined gate a second time. Timbers splintered, and huge shards of wood were sent hurtling into the walls of the surrounding buildings.
Thelvyn's only interest was in leading the dragons far enough away that the Masters wouldn't see how few of them there really were. Braastar still had not been completely abandoned. There were still people of Flaemish descent who were too far under the influence of the Masters to seek escape. They wandered the streets in bands, seeking out enemies who had been their own countrymen only hours before. The enslaved citizens elected to keep well away from the dragons.
Thelvyn led his companions diagonally across the city until they came at last to the south wall. Although there was no gate in this section of the wall, the dragons simply leapt over it. Then they flew quickly west toward the Aalban River, so low over the fields that the tips of their wings brushed the high grass. Only when they reached the banks of the river and turned south did they dare to fly a little higher.
They followed the river for several miles before they came to the drifting mass of boats and barges filled almost to overflowing with refugees. The people cheered loudly when they saw the dragons; Thelvyn wondered if they realized that the dragons had retreated to the river only because the city had fallen to the invaders. He was circling around to land on the nearest bank when he became aware a young gold dragon was struggling to overtake him. He locked his wings to drift over the river, waiting for the young dragon to move up beside him.
'The Masters are not far behind us,' the dragon reported. 'I was the last of our company, and J could see them following us across the fields from the city.'
'How many were there?' Thelvyn asked.
'I could not tell for certain. Many more than us, I am certain.'
Thelvyn nodded, and the young dragon turned and circled back to join the rest of their company. Thelvyn realized he had to make a quick decision. He had to decide whether to stay and defend the people fleeing Braastar or to save himself and the other dragons for more important battles rather than risk all their lives in a battle they could not win. It was the most difficult decision he'd had to make in some time, since he knew what the answer had to be. He didn't dare chance losing his own life needlessly, even to save the population of an entire city. His loss might well mean the defeat of his entire world. After a moment, he turned to land on the grassy east bank of the river, waiting while the others joined him.
'This is a battle we cannot afford to fight,' he told the dragons simply. 'Once the Masters discover how few of us there are, they will surely force their advantage against us. Our only hope is to try to bluff them. Follow my lead closely, but be ready to retreat in a moment.'
'What about the people of Braastar?' Kharendaen asked quietly.
Thelvyn could only shake his head. 'Perhaps the Masters will leave them alone.'
Thelvyn knew had badly it stung a dragon's pride to run from a fight, but there was no other choice. Hopping out to the edge of the bank, he spread his wings and leapt into the air, then waited for his companions to join him. Once all the dragons were in flight, he led them close to the east bank of the river, flying barely over the dark water of the river almost within the shadows of the forest that hugged the riverbank. With any luck, they would remain unseen until the last moment.
Luck was with them. Thelvyn was unable to see the gemstone dragons until they suddenly passed almost directly overhead, yet even then they were so intent upon their attack that they failed to see the dragons just below them. There were at least two dozen of them, their company composed mainly of large amber and ruby gemstone dragons. The gold dragons angled up sharply, and their swift flight carried them abruptly into the rear of the pack.
Following Thelvyn's lead, the dragons attacked quickly and furiously, using claws, fangs, and flames to inflict all the damage they could in the first few momencs of their attack, ripping into the vulnerable wings of the gemstone dragons to knock them out of the fight. The rest of the gemstone dragons circled around to attack as soon as they could, but by that time, Thelvyn had broken off the attack and led the dragons back down almost to the surface of the river before they turned and darted beneath the cover of the forest on the east bank. They weaved tightly in and out among the trees, their wings crashing through the smaller branches. Heavier and less agile, the Masters could not fly among the trees and were forced to follow the dragons above the tops of the trees.
Thelvyn planned to lead the Masters away from the river as far as he could, realizing that his only hope to save the people of Braastar was to get the Masters to pursue him. He wondered how long he could lure the Masters into following them. If he had to, he would send the other dragons away; he was the one the Masters wanted, and he would lead this chase into the Colossus Mountains if he had to.
After a few miles, the dragons had worked their way eastward to a very old, dense part of the forest, where it was easier to fly beneath the lower branches of the tall trees. The foliage in the forest's canopy was still too thick for the Masters to see them from above. Thelvyn spotted a particularly shadowy vale and landed. Flying in and out between the trees was tiring, and the dragons needed a rest. Thelvyn also needed a few moments to consider his next move. He posted a couple of the younger dragons on the perimeters of the vale to watch for danger.
'How long can we keep this up?' Kharendaen asked, sitting close beside her mate. 'Can you really hope to stay ahead of the Masters indefinitely?'
