Minglings - Book 3 chapter 22: What creeps in the dark

Sandra gritted her teeth and rushed through the desert hills, the sand sliding between her claws and making it hard to get a good grip. Each time the clouds slid before the moon, the world turned dark, and her vision turned oddly blurry and gray. It reminded her of the green night vision goggles she used to have.

Faint screams of pain came from all around her, but the dull rumbling from ahead was what concerned her the most.

As she reached a hill, she crouched down, her head snaking left and right. Armies and burning tents lay everywhere, the oasis behind it filled with dark shapes. Up ahead was the mountain range, now a towering dark bastian op hope. She instinctively knew she would be able to find food and shelter there. Her skin was too dark to blend well in the desert, but up there?

If only there wasn't something going on up ahead, she thought as she tried to make out what was cousin the rumbling. A dull thumb, as if something heavy fell on the ground, caused the sand to slide down around her.

Check it, and if there is no other option, I'll track back and try the long way around, she decided.

An angry rumble from her stomach told her that choosing the long way around would bring a whole other set of problems.

Low across the sand, she almost crawled up the last hill. As she did, she realized part of the dull roaring was actually a voice, barely distinguishable. Poking her head over the edge, she stifled a loud curse.

A gray snakelike monster seemingly made of stone, the size of a freight train, lay to the side. Cables and bands of dark brown and gray rock were binding it in place. Its head was planted to the side, and the rumbling came as it tried to break free while shouting in a deep, rumbling voice. Whatever it said sounded similar to the dragon's speech but more like a dialect. She could only pick up a slight idea of what it wanted, which was obvious. It was shouting at the comparatively tiny figures that stood in front of it to release it. Hooded and cloaked in dark gray mantels, there was something about them that gave her a very bad vibe.

Mages… but not Kobolds? Sandra thought as she remained motionless.

Faint voices flitted up, but she only caught one or two words spoken in the same language. Still, the tone was obvious, and the threat strong.

How strong is magic here? she thought as she watched one of the cloaked mages wave a hand, causing the bands to seemingly strengthen. The moonlight illuminated the light gray skin.

Fiends?

A sudden movement from the side almost made her jump, then her training kicked in, and she stayed motionless, not even moving her eyes but keeping the squints nearly closed. When there was no outburst or outcry, she very slowly looked to the side.

Two Kobolds came from the oasis, walking towards the stone snake. One had fiery tendrils around his arms, while the other had two brown globes of earth hovering beside his shoulders. They were dressed in similar robes as the kobold mages she'd seen when she awoke.

"We have finished. Leave!"

Sandra couldn't see which of the two kobolds had spoken, but the intense hatred was clear as day. The two kobolds stopped a good distance from the snake and what she was pretty sure were Fiends.

"Now, now. Don't be so angry," a silky smooth voice replied as one of the cloaked figures walked a few steps forward. "Aren't we allies? Look how helpful we are!" The figure motioned at the enormous and suppressed snake.

As the voice rang out, Sandra felt an instinctive urge to pounce on the figure and rip it shreds. She clamped down on it ruthlessly, remaining unmoving.

Definitely Fiends, she thought.

"We could have handled this ourselves," the Kobold snapped back. "Leave to your master. You may come crawling back when the Warlord summons you again."

The cloaked figures moved forward until they stood lined across from the Kobolds, and Sandra could sense the threatening atmosphere all the way from where she stood.

"You should be nice… Just because you are a five-scale now, doesn't-" the voice crooned.

"Leave," the Kobold with the hovering balls of earth shouted as he stepped forward. One of the balls of earth moved forward, emanating a glow that began illuminating everything.

"Are you sure you want to act like this?" the Fiend asked, the crooning now with a far more dangerous undertone.

The Kobold raised both hands as he began walking forward. The other ball of earth shot forward, hovering beside the first, and both began pulsating. The sand below the balls was slowly pushed away while cracking and snapping sounded.

"Fine, fine," the Fiend hissed, and all of them took a few steps back. "Then we will just let you deal with this." A slight hilarity returned to the voice as the cloaked figures turned and seemed to glide up the sandy dune, rapidly picking up speed. Within the blink of an eye, they were halfway to the top, and the gray and brown bands around the enormous stone snake vanished.

Sandra swallowed hard as she saw them move. The speed reminded her of the combat drones she'd seen, and she hoped she didn't have to deal with any of those mages any time soon. Then a booming roar came as the stone snake raised its head off the ground, glaring after the Fiends. When they whisked over the hill and away, it slowly turned its head to the nearby Kobold, which hadn't moved but was just watching him.

The monstrous voice said something, none of which Sandra understood, but the tone was clear. It was furious.

"Quiet. Either obediently follow us to be bound or die," the Kobold below growled.

The snake moved instead of answering, its head blurring forward with more speed than Sandra could have imagined it would have. The size of just its head was twice as large as her new dragon body, and as she saw the massive maw open wide, she almost backed up.

Only her training overcame her instincts, and she remained as still as possible.

The Kobold snorted, and both of the balls of earth flashed forward, slamming into the incoming stone snake. A dull boom was followed by a surprised and angry roar as the snake was flung back as if it was no more than a twig.

How powerful are these mages, Sandra thought as she felt an itch below the scales on her neck.

The stone snake struggled to get up, but one of the orbs of earth lowered down on its midsection, and loud snapping came as stone splinters shot everywhere. As Sandra sucked in her breath, she watched as the second orb rushed to the massive head, striking it like it was a hammer. The snake's body flew to the side, but the area where it was pinned remained stuck, and more snapping echoed out as large cracks and fissures appeared on the creature's midsection.

A howl of pain was followed by a deep rumbling. A single word that even Sandra knew meant surrender.

"Too late. You should have thought of that before," the Kobold snapped. "Disgusting, vile things like you get one chance. Now. Die."

The howling intensified as the mage continued hammering away at the stone snake, the compact balls of the earth pounding the stone snake like hammers. Large bits and sections began snapping off, and finally, the snake's midsection shattered. There was a bone-rattling roar, then the head of the stone snake slumped down, shivered a few more times, and then stopped moving.

Sandra was staring at the battle, her heart pounding, adrenaline through the roof. She'd always pictured dragons to be the top of the food chain, but as she watched the Kobold sniff and walk away as if nothing had happened, she shivered. She couldn't think of any good way, except jumping him in the dark, to fight that.

When the Kobold vanished back to the oasis, she waited for a long time until she was sure there was nothing lying in ambush. Only then did she rush forward? As she passed the stone snake, she saw thick, viscous gray liquid ooze from the cracks while a disturbing, bitter-sweet smell invaded her nostrils. It caused a twinge of hunger, but she ignored it and rushed up the next hill, ignoring the massive shards of stone.

It took her over a day until she finally reached the stony foothills of the mountain, and by then, she'd come to a conclusion. Whatever she was going to do, she shouldn't get mixed in with those mages until she was ready.

As she gazed up the towering mountains, she took a deep breath, suppressing the rumbling hunger in her belly.

I hope there's food up there.

–

Mason was quietly watching Sandra. He had a good idea why she was so afraid of the mages now, but he already knew his response wasn't the same one she was going to have.

Sandra sighed as she looked at him. "Now, do you understand?"

Mason hesitated. Were there different opinions due to their different types of dragons? Or was he missing something?

"I understand why you are weary of those sorcerers," he said, using the term he thought was more appropriate for what she had described.

"But you don't agree," Sandra said, her scaled head lowering and her dark eyes turning gloomy. "If we do what you do, what do you think will happen to all the other humans that turned into kobolds and came here?" she asked.

Mason cocked his head, then frowned. He'd not thought about that, and it took him only a few moments to realize what she was implying.

"You think they are going to hunt and kill them all?" he asked.

"Of course!" Sandra said with a snort. "That's what I would do in this situation!"

Is it? Mason thought but kept that shocked thought to himself.

"Say we do what you want to do," she continued. "If we succeed, get a mage, and begin learning magic, they will find out and see us as a large threat. They will send a large force of mages to wipe us out before we can become a true problem. And if we fail, there will be no benefit, while they might still decide to wipe us out just to be sure."

Mason turned his head to the entrance, ignoring Sandra's scowl as he thought about what she'd said. He hadn't thought about the others.

"What if we learn magic, then take everyone we can find and leave for some island or other continent as the Antracii did?" he asked.

"Which island? Which continent? Are you sure there won't be any other problems there that are even worse?"

Mason sighed. "If these mages are so powerful, why haven't they just wiped out the hound yet?" he thought out loud.

"Because from what we know, the hound is far more powerful and uses a different type of magic," Sandra said. "I'm not an expert in these things, but from what we have been able to piece together, Dragons naturally use a different form of magic. Some instinctive ones, while Kobolds and the others use something they have to learn."

"What if…" Mason began, then he shot up. "Shouldn't there be dragons that used to be kobold sorcerers around?" he asked.

"We've been searching for those," Sandra said. "It's one of the reasons I've been feeling Dragons, but from what we have heard, any mage… wait. Why do you keep calling those things sorcerers?" she asked, seemingly distracted.

Mason waved his clawed hand around. "Just based on the books I read… Mages is more like a term for people that use magic, while sorcerers are seen as people that have inherent magical aptitudes. Wizards are like those bookish types… and… well. I don't know! Sorcerer just sounds better for what you have been describing."

Sandra snorted. "So, semantics? Whatever. Sorcerers then! What we have found is that any sorcerer who changes is put to death as soon as they are found. Also, there are always large numbers of dragonblooded creatures held in the sorcerer towers to make sure they don't spawn somewhere far away."

Mason frowned as his mind spun. "We aren't all the same… and we need specific types of dragonblooded," he said slowly. "So, what we need is a Kobold sorcerer that has the blood of a very uncommon type. One they either didn't have or couldn't find a creature for."

"Which is why we have been reading through the entire catalog of books here," she said. "I've got those dragons that aren't good at fighting or building reading day in and day out as we try to categorize what types of dragons there used to be."

Mason put his head on his scaled arms and puffed a breath of hot air toward the entrance.

"I understand," he said softly before looking at Sandra and noting the sigh of relief. He felt bad when he continued. "But I think we should not put all our eggs in one basket. You are right that we shouldn't go with everyone in a large group and try to take over a spot north… but I think you are wrong when you want to stay here and slowly build up an army."

As he spoke, Mason saw Sandra's jaw set, her eyes flickering, and he quickly continued.

"I think what is best is if I take a few dragons and travel north to try to find a way to learn magic without drawing attention. If I take Clankrin with me, he won't be here to cause you trouble. He probably won't like it, but I think I can force him if I have to. Then you can pick another of the fire dragons to keep control over the others."

He saw Sandra's anger diminish slightly, then she frowned.

"Do you want to leave again that fast?"

Mason shook his head, remaining quiet. He didn't really want to leave, but as Sandra had talked about the powerful magic, he had come to another conclusion. If there was such powerful magic, there was sure to be some that would help him find and contact Jake. Perhaps something like a magical email or phone call?

"I wouldn't mind being rid of Clankrin," Sandra said. "But I had hoped you would stay here and help me get this place up and running."

Mason quietly looked back, and as he did, he realized something. Although he still felt an odd attraction to Sandra, it wasn't as powerful as it had been. Instead, there was a buzz in the back of his mind as the idea of magic kept playing around. He had a dozen things he could say, but instead, he kept his jaw shut.

"I guess that's a no?" Sandra finally said.

"We need to spread our options," Mason finally said. "And I think I wouldn't be much use to you here."

"You just want to go hunt after magic," she retorted coolly.

Mason didn't say anything, just watching her.

"Dammit," Sandra snapped. "Fine. I guess it was too much to hope for. Well, whatever. Do as you wish, then. At least promise me that you are not going to head out without planning. Who else are you going to bring?"

Mason shrugged. He could see the slight pain in Sandra's eyes before they filled with anger.

“Clankrin and Baudron,” he said. "I'll see if I can find one or two more, but no more than five or six."

Sandra sniffed, took a deep sigh, then focused on him.

"Fine," she said. "There are some more dragons here that I could do without. If you can't stay, at least help me by taking those away."

Mason opened his mouth, wanting to tell her he wasn't going to take a group of trouble factors. Then he hesitated and nodded. Although he was pretty sure he could leave when he wanted to, he wasn't a hundred percent sure. Besides, there was no use in burning his bridges.

As the thought of leaving ran through his mind, he wondered why things had gone like this. He knew part of it was the magic, which might help him find Jake... but he had the feeling there was something else going on.

"Alright. I'll help you plan and map a route," Sandra said, snapping him out of it.

"Do you have maps that go that far?" Mason asked.

"Not all the way, but at least to the edge of the Hound's Eye."

They continued talking for a long time, and when Mason finally left, he had the feeling that Sandra wasn't as angry anymore. Then again, perhaps that was just his wishful thinking.

–

I'll need to send someone with them just to be sure they don't do anything dangerous, Sandra thought as she glared at the opposite wall.

She suppressed her anger, failed, and growled so loud she feared Mason might hear it. That thought helped her reign her emotions back in.

Why am I this angry? she thought, not sure what was going on.

She wasn't a young girl anymore, nor did she have the hots for Mason - that punk. Was it just because she missed Earth and being around other humans, even those turned into kobolds or dragons?

There have got to be some that got transported here! It makes no sense… There are barely any rumors!

After letting her mind whisk about for a bit, she calmed down again.

"Perhaps something good will come of it. Glarissu should know someone reliable I can send with them," she muttered as she jumped out and flew away.

–

As Sandra flew off, she didn't notice a shadowy figure that was nestled high above her cave's entrance. As she disappeared into the massive cave, a tiny bat unfurled its wings and flew in another direction. Its tiny gleaming eyes radiated with glee and malice.

–

Mason saw Baudron sitting on one of the unfinished buildings, staring out across the city. Something about him gave off profound loneliness.

Bloodtraitors!

The vice-filled word bubbled up from his draconic side as he recalled Baudron's story.

A surge of rage accompanied it, and he shivered. He couldn't imagine what it must be like to grow up in a family where you weren't loved or cherished at a young age and were captured and sold as a slave.

He landed beside Baudron, who looked up with a rueful smile.

"Did I anger the queen?" the large brown dragon rumbled.

Mason snorted and patted Baudron's tale with his own.

"Nah. She's always been short-tempered," he said, wondering if that was a fair assesment. As he thought about it, he didn't get the feeling he gave her much of a choice.

I could have brought it more delicatly, he thought, before sighing.

"I've gotta go back to the volcano and talk with Clankrin," he said before hesitantly continuing. "Do you wanna come?"

"Volcanoes are hotter than the desert?" Baudron asked.

"Yes," Mason said, unable to hold back a grin.

"I'll wait here," Baudron said as he shivered. "I might not die there, but I'm sure it wouldn't be nice."

"Alright. I still need to have another chat with Sandra later. It seems she wants us to bring some others," Mason said. "I'll be back soon!"

When Baudron nodded, he jumped away, sailing towards the exit.

The trip back through the caves was almost as annoying as the first one, and when he finally reached the volcano, his temper was as hot as the air. Dozens of red and orange dragons were flying around, but after a quick search, he found Clankrin in the same high area they had been at before.

"Looking at your glare, Sandra wasn't interested?" Clankrin asked, an "I told you so" look on his scaly face.

"Yes and no," Mason said before he explained what had been decided.

When he finished, Clankrin was gnashing his teeth, steam coming from his nose, and he fully expected the other to angrily retort he didn't agree. To his surprise, Clankrin kept quiet, his eyes on the ground as he slowly calmed. Finally, after what had to be a minute or two, the red dragon looked up and snorted.

"I don't like this," Clankrin said before barking a forced laugh. "But from your face, I can see it's the best I can expect. Fine. We can bring six, or six in total?"

Slightly surprised at how easily Clankrin gave in, Mason frowned. He hadn't actually determined an exact number, then he shrugged.

"Six total for now," he decided on the spot.

Clankrin eyes narrow. "I have three I want to bring."

Seeing the challenge in the burning red and black eyes, Mason glared back. He knew that if he didn't push back now, he might be setting a dangerous precedent.

"You can bring two, and I'll bring two," he said as he turned his body towards Clankrin.

Clankrin shoulder muscles bulged, and for the second time in a short while, Mason was sure he'd act out. Instead, after a few moments, Clankrin relaxed and laughed.

"Good! If we are going with such a small group, we need to make sure each one is capable! Come bring your two, and we will see what they are like. When are we leaving?"

Looking around, Mason sighed. He'd only just reached this place. Did he seriously have to leave again right away?

A loud alarm suddenly blared through the cavern, and he jumped back, looking around.

"Someone is attacking the ruins," Clankrin said, his eyes wide in surprise. Then he turned and jumped up. "All dragons take flight! We are heading to the city!"

Attackers? Mason thought as he jumped into the air and rushed after Clankrin.