"Argo!" Wilson looked back the halfling not responding as he looked down at the Capitol grounds. It was chaotic.
The knights from bought sides fought fiercely before giving into the sound of the bell. People raced to the top of the city, screams echoing around them as they attempted to escape the hellish sound.
Where was the king? The citizens?
The bell drowned out the voices.
"Argo?" WIlson shouted again, uneasiness surrounding him. He was afraid he might turn on them, fear that he would slam his dragon into the castle town to cause even more chaos.
Argo shook his head. "I'm okay... I'll be okay."
At the top of the castle, the bell sound rocking back and forth.
The castle was under siege. Alastair was winning.
"We're too late!" Emmy shouted, the sound being drowned out by the dragon wing beats. He wondered if, by any small chance, that was why they weren't being overturned by the bells power.
"No, we aren't!" Wilson demanded back. "We can destroy the bell. That should get rid of the spell."
But how was the question?
"Where's Alastair?" Wilson shouted, the dragons ducking away to avoid arrows that had flown in their direction. The dragons circled from above, Argo flying his dragon low enough to blow a few hooded fighters off their feet.
It was hard for him, people were getting hurt and what else could they do for them.
"The tower! She's with the bell!" Emmy pointed.
The tower soared high into the sky, the score of the ringing coming straight from it.
Wilson held onto the dragon's hide, his grip tightening as the beast shook about. They neared the peak of the tower with ease, Wilson unsure of how to go about the attack. Would they even be able to break it?
Carve out the runes and make it unusable? Wilson's thoughts blurred with plans as the black bird swooped in front of his dragon. The mount yelped, hovering in midair to snarl in the raven's direction.
What bird was brave enough to anger a dragon? He squinted at it. A shine of the necklace around its neck caught his eye.
Alastair's raven. He watched it fly back around before turning into the beast they had seen before. Bat wings flying up and down, a bat like face screeching at them as it turned to fly at them.
The Familiar was back.
Cinnabar lunged, claws outstretched, Argo holding up a hand.
Smoke burst from the town, from where fires raged on. It swarmed around the familiar, blinding Cinnabar. Wilson kicked his heels into the dragon's hide, it's wings flapping in the opposite direction.
Cinnabar would not let them get to the bell tower.
Alastair had to be there.
"Argo, go find your family!" Wilson demanded, pulling at the reins of his dragon to stop it midair.
Argo snapped, "Why would I do that!"
"They need you." WIlson ignored the fires, "They think you're dead. The least you can do is lead them."
Argo went quiet, shouting out a war cry in halfling before soaring down to the town to fight among them.
He hoped those on the front lines wouldn't shoot him down.
Emmy flew beside him, wincing at the sound of the bell, "I'll get it far away from us!" She shouted, turning her dragon.
It rammed headfirst into Cinnabar, tackling it to the buildings.
Wilson would have shouted out in success. In one quick movement, Cinnabar escaped Emmy's dragon, tossing it to the side. It fled back into the sky, aimed back at him.
The familiar was on them before WIlson could react, long black wings beating Wilson's dragon back. It's long tail slamming into its chest, knocking it back into the tower walls.
It's back slammed into the tower walls, caving in the stones.
His head slammed against the concrete stairs, leaving him to see stars. He fell off the dragon's saddle, leaning against the cold walls of the castle. It was a bit better than falling to the ground.
The dragon whimpered back, flapping its wings to gain some sort of leverage against the tower. Long talons clawed at the ground, leaving long marks into the ground.
The familiar slammed into it, biting at the monster's throat.
Flames erupted from the dragon's throat, allowing for a quick get away. Cinnabar followed it, WIlson backing away still watching them take off. Perhaps Cinnabar hadn't seen him fall off. Argo and Emmy were still out there.
He prayed that they would be okay.
Wilson ran up the steps, taking two at a time even. The sound of the bell got louder and louder. He covered his ears, only able to block out the noise slightly. Through the windows he occasionally saw three dragons shooting flames at the familiar. Cinnabar merely looked about, confusion written on its face.
The dragons would be affected by the bell soon. They would soon turn on their riders.
Suddenly, he was at the bell wincing at the sound. It was massive. The runes on its outer cover glowing as it rocked back and forth. The sound was louder than anything he had ever heard.
He grabbed at the sledgehammer on the ground, gripping its handle tightly.
Then the blast of energy torn into his skin.
It burned into his side, Wilson flying backwards. The hammer sitting just outside his reach.
"I thought that halfling was going to tear you to pieces," Alastair hissed, stepping into the light. Around her hand was a wave of golden energy, her own white dress flowed in the wing. The king stepping out from behind her.
Wilson held his breath, the king's eyes burning beside her. They looked distant, not focused on Wilson or anything. Why wasn't he with the others? Leading them into combat.
"King Degran, I swear, I would never go against-" He hesitated, watching the king draw his own weapon.
"Degran quite liked my gift," Alastair beamed, "He said it reminded him of his daughter."
Alastair stepping forward, picking up the hammer.
"You were so smart. You could have joined us." She held the hammer up.
Wilson rolled out of her way, the sledge hammer breaking apart the wooden ground. Wilson stumbled backwards, too afraid to go anything else.
"You could have been a leader like you wanted. Leading beside me!"
WIlson backed away, flinching as the king took a slash at his head.
To fight back was barely fair. He couldn't hurt the king.
He ducked under the blade, jumping over to grab at a spear that was resting against the wall.
Wilson yelped, holding up the metal rod to block another attack from the king. Battle commands echoed in his ears, Wilson pushing aside the king's attack to jab at his side. He barely caught onto the King, the attack being blocked by a metal breastplate.
Of course, he complained in his head.
Wilson backed away, a long gash suddenly appearing on his arm. He hissed, receiving a kick to the stomach. A sudden shift behind him made him jump, Wilson swinging around to cut at the threat.
He stopped, holding out the spear to Alastair's throat. She glanced down at it, a fear flashing through her eyes.
He could kill her.
Yet he couldn't bear the idea.
YOU ARE READING
The Magic Of An Alter Ego.
Fantasy|Book 1 of 2| Wilson had his hopes high for his future. Emphesis on had. He'd already made the grades in his local college, studied as much magic as he could despite being unable to truely use it to his advantage, and had his sights on one day join...
