air. But the sky was no safe place for them, crowded with the circling forms of the Masters waiting for their own turn to attack. Tucking away their wings tightly, the dragons dropped their heads low and ran as fast as they could, struggling for purchase in the loose sand.
Even on foot, they could move along with surprising speed, their long, leaping gait carrying them across the dunes back toward the questionable safety of the islands of boulders that rose in clusters out of the sand. They ran in an evasive path that the Masters could not easily follow on the wing. When the dragons reached the boulders, the warriors could not easily maneuver their way through the maze of large stones where the visibility was severely limited, and they were left behind.
Then the dragons spread their wings and leapt into the air. In moments, they disappeared into the cloud of swirling dust, escaping the pursuit of the Masters.
'Are you all right?' Thelvyn asked, flying close at his mate's side.
'I wasn't harmed,' she insisted, trying not to pant.
Thelvyn paused, having seen the shadowy form of one of the Masters following less than a hundred yards behind them, nearly hidden in the blowing dust. He could not allow any pursuit, since he had always suspected that what one of the Masters knew was known to them all. Without warning, he lifted his head and dropped his tail, using his wings and sails to catch the wind and slow him abruptly. It was a daring move on his part, even more daring than he was aware, and the results were much more drastic than he had expected. Caught completely unprepared, the gemstone dragon crashed heavily into the middle of his back, knocking them both from the sky. With the dunes only a few yards below, they had no time to recover.
Thelvyn's luck turned at that point. The gemstone dragon crashed heavily onto the middle of his back on the long slope of a high dune, and a moment later Thelvyn fell tail first right on top of his enemy. The impact sent them both sliding on their backs down the side of the dune. Thelvyn was somewhat shaken by the fall and struggled to catch himself, while the gemstone dragon was stunned and apparently more seriously injured. Kharendaen appeared out of the clouds of dust a moment later, having circled back. She dived sharply to the attack, taking the large amber dragon by the neck before it was even aware of its danger.
'Leave him be,' Thelvyn said, seeing that their enemy was already helpless. 'We have to get away from here while we still have the chance.'
Kharendaen seemed unwilling at first to release her victim, possessed momentarily by battle fury. All the fear and desperation of the last few days were taking a toll on her, leaving her at the mercy of her draconic instincts, and for the moment, she wanted only to lash out at her enemies. Thelvyn was startled, but he also learned something about dragons at that moment.
If even the proud, self-possessed cleric could be overcome by her instincts, was it any wonder that most dragons had a problem remembering to act civilized when they became enraged?
The moment passed swiftly. As if startled by her own fury, Kharendaen released her hold and stepped back from the body of the gemstone dragon. Then the dragons turned and scurried up the side of the dune, spreading their wings as they vaulted out over the crest. Moments later, they disappeared into the wind-driven clouds of dust and sand, taking care to make certain that they were not being followed. Thelvyn set an evasive course at first, in an effort to prevent the Masters from guessing his next destination. Of course, he could hardly leave clues about something that he had not yet decided. For the moment, he had no idea of what he should try to do next or where they should go.
The brief but furious battle had once more aggravated his back, not enough to be a serious problem, but he was in some pain. That and the need to pay attention to his course as they flew low over the dunes, nearly blind in the clouds of dust, left him unable to give much serious thought to his options for the moment. Within a few miles, they came entirely by chance upon another of the tumbled outcrops of stone that emerged like islands in the sand. He circled around quickly to find a sheltered place where they could rest while he gave some serious thought to the problem of finding another way home.
He found a place where they could climb in among a group of massive boulders and could at least have some relief from the driven sand and the worst of the dust. He was distressed to see that Kharendaen looked very tired and moved slowly and stiffly, having suffered her own injuries during their battle. Nevertheless, Thelvyn seemed to have taken the worst, discovering a yard-long tear in the sail of his right wing from his collision with the amber dragon. At least such damage would repair itself in a few days, even without magical healing.
'They knew about our gate,' Kharendaen said, nestling close against his chest. 'All they had to do was to wait for us to come to them.'
'Fortunately they seemed to have underestimated lis once again,' Thelvyn remarked. 'Now we have to find another way
home.'
'What choices do we have?' Kharendaen asked, turning her head to look up at him.
'We have a number of options, some better than others,' he said, having already considered that question. 'We could wait for a while and make another try at our own temporary gate, but I expect the Masters will guard it very closely as long as they know we are still in their world. I expect the old gate near Braastar is being watched at least as closely.'
'If nothing else, we could simply fight our way through to one of their other gates,' she suggested.
'That's something we could try as a last resort,' he agreed. 'The problem is that if we have to fight for access to a gate, they'll probably have time to close it first. We could return to their main stronghold and try to dart through that big gate before they can defend it, but I'm concerned that the Overlord will be aware of us if we come that close to his stronghold. That leaves us with the possibility of trying to open a completely new gate at a place of our own choosing.'
Kharendaen laid back her ears. 'Do you command the power necessary to accomplish such a thing?'
'I think I know how we could try,' he said. 'Remember the reason why you were told to accompany me. As his cleric, you might still provide some vague link to the Great One. If he could be made aware of our need, he might be able to reach out from his side to help us complete a worldgate.'
'But I've been isolated from my clerical powers ever since we first came into this world,' she protested. 'How can I possibly contact the Great One?'
'In the usual manner, I would suppose. Try to commune with the Great One, reaching out to him across the void.'
Kharendaen sat upright with her long tail looped tightly around her legs, closing her eyes so that she could concentrate. A moment later she was disturbed from her thoughts by a distant sound of something large moving through the fog of wind-blown dust, the slow, ponderous steps of some massive creature. She opened her eyes, and both of the dragons listened carefully for a moment.
'The metal warriors are coming,' Thelvyn said softly. 'The
Masters must have some idea of where to look for us.'
'Do we flee now and try again later?' Kharendaen asked.
'No. We should have time for at least one try,' Thelvyn decided quickly. 'They won't find us quickly in this place. The Great One may have to direct the dragon sorcerers to open a gate for us. We should be as close to the place that corresponds to the source of the Radiance in our own world as we can be.'
Kharendaen still looked concerned, and it took her a moment to regain the composure of a cleric. Once again she closed her eyes, and after a moment, her entire form began to glow with a soft blue light. Thelvyn waited patiently, certain that she must be having some success. Then he saw the form of a dragon slowly beginning to appear atop a large stone only a few yards from their hiding place. The image remained indistinct, pulsing into moments of clarity and then fading almost completely away. It was the image of his mother, Arbendael, not the Great One.
'The Great One hears you,' she said, although her voice was very distant and blurred. 'He cannot leave his own realms of influence to cross the void to this place, but I was able to come near enough that I may at least speak with you. What is your need?'
'We have to open a gateway back to our own world,' Thelvyn explained. 'All other gates are closed to us, and our enemies are at hand. But I doubt that I have the power to open a worldgate myself.'
'I think you have that power,' Arbendael told him. 'What you lack is the means to find your way home across the void. Open your portal and pass within it. Just as Kharendaen has reached out to guide me to you, I will draw you back home again.'
