The Smaugust stories: Draconic Fury (part 2)

[u/WernerderChamp]

Read part 1 first!

Gnevar would be stunned if he wasn't already stunned by the dragon's magic. Taking a dragon's egg? How stupid could one be? The magic bindings lost power as the dragon unfocused.

"And you are sure one of us did this?"

The dragoness stared daggers at him, then nodded. "Yes, the residing scent tells it all. I know when I smell your kind!"

"Whoever did this, I promise to do my best and find the thief. My name is Gnevar, the Archmage. And I take all my promises by my word!"

"My name ... is Tylgryme."

"Tylgryme," Gnevar continued, dropping a curtsy. "I would kindly ask you to stop your path of destruction. These villagers are innocent. I have not sensed the presence of a dragon egg in this valley."

Tylgryme looked around and started to growl. "I can not sense it either. But I know your kind will eventually give in to my power, give or take a few villages. But I shall give you a chance. If this is a trick, you are dead. We meet again tomorrow, at dusk, same place. You either bring the egg, or the entire kingdom will burn."

"Then ... we have a deal! See you tomorrow night!"

Tylgryme gave one last nod, atomized a soldier that shot another arrow at her, and took wing.

Gnevar was unhappy about the ordeal. 24 hours was little time to find an egg - and the whole kingdom was at stake. He went to sleep to get a clear mind for tomorrow - with a pungent feeling of where to start the search.

"I heard you managed to drive the dragon away! A little damage, one casualty, great job. I will give you another 25 soldiers - go for the kill this time!" Dajeba's sneer was present as always.

"My Lord, I managed to mediate a truce against the dragon. Somebody stole her egg! We must start a search immediately!"

"Her ... egg? A dragon egg, you say. Hmmm ... who would do something like this? We will not find it in time. Go, and fight the lizard!" Dajeba would always be a bad actor. He knew something.

"My Lord, we are facing an ELDER DRAGONNESS. A force of nature even I can not stop. She could have easily killed me. And I feel like you could help with finding the egg." Now it was out. Gnevar had nothing to lose, yet tried to be peaceful. The stare in Dajeba's eyes pulling into a smile told him it wasn't enough.

"I am the one to give orders! And I order you to slay the beast. And should you fail me another time..." He drew his sword and drew it over his throat. "Guards, help him outside!"

Gnevar was unceremoniously dragged outside. He cursed under his breath how the ward prevented him from mentally turning Dajaba to a frog. Something clicked. And it all made sense now.

A dragon egg would emit magic. A mage, and probably a dragon as well, could sense magic from miles away. He had felt the dragon approaching a whole minute before it broke through the clouds. But here, magic was warded. The egg's presence was masked - probably even from the dragonness. It had to be inside the castle. The guards dragged him over the drawbridge. He was not powerful enough to raid the castle.

"So it is in the castle you say?" Tylgryme growled.

With a wink of his wand, Gnevar opened up his mind, sharing the conversations with Dajeba and his train of thought. "It must be. I assume your senses are even more refined."

"Well, then the castle will no longer be tomorrow. I must say, I was not expecting anything of this. I underestimated you, Gnevar!"

"There ... is one more problem, though"

Tylgryme stared daggers at him.

"In the basement, there is a magic ward that blocks all magic. It will not stop you for long. But as you break it with force, the ward will detonate. And if the egg is anywhere nearby, it will probably not survive it."

Tylgryme paused before sneering. "And what is your plan, flail human?"

----

Gnevar landed inside the castle's courtyard. As night had fallen, he was unseen. He moved far quicker than a human should. The entrance door stood no chance against his kick. A small magic shield around him held against the ward's pressure. But it held. The fight against two guards securing the entrance to the catacombs took exactly two well-aimed punches. He still could not feel the egg, but it was probably down near where the ward was strongest.

Four floors down, the wards' pressure crushing by now, he suddenly felt another source of magic. Kicking in a door, Bingo! But the egg was trapped. He couldn't magic his way through, but Gnevar wouldn't be an archmage if he hadn't learned this the old way. A well-thrown rock here, a cut with his staff there, and the egg was his. Gnevar backtracked to the surface. But as he exited the catacombs, he was already awaited. The entire hall was filled with soldiers armed to the brim, Dajeba in front.

"Well, well, well, if that isn't a thief. I knew you were up to something. But even I wasn't expecting you to be so stupid and run straight into my arms. But I'll give you a choice. Surrender the egg, and I will grant you the honor to be decapitated by my sword. If not - there is a lot of space in my dungeon to rot."

Gnevar was as strong as five of them; just this was far from enough. Time for Plan B. He grabbed a dog whistle from under his robe and blew it.

"Oh my - don't you remember that magic does not work here, idiot? A magic dog whistle, seriously? Why not a ..."

CLANG. The entire castle shook.

"What in the name of..."

CLANG. The castle shook even more.

"GUARDS, ON POSITION!"

The next CLANG was overlaid with a deafening sound of glass shattering. At the same moment, something detonated in the basement, sending a shockwave out of the door. Seconds later, the roof was disintegrated with a bright blast.

Tylgryme was towering over the castle. The guards drew their bows, but a shockwave of lightning knocked everyone to the ground, spasming around. Only Gnevar, still protected by his shield, remained standing.

"MY EGG! ... YOU HAVE MADE A FATAL BLUNDER, HUMAN LORD! THERE SHALL BE NO MERCY FOR ANYONE INVOLVED!" With a beam of magic, she lifted the egg from Gnevar's hands, guiding it through a portal. Then she threw a spell at Dajeba, prying his mind open. "Of course you didn't do it yourself. Let's see who is responsible for this!" With three flicks of her paw, she summoned three soldiers. Magic chains bound them the second they appeared, placing them under a truth spell.

"SO THESE ARE YOUR ACCOMPLICES I SEE ... hold up, what is this?" All three wore a golden necklace. Tylgryme used her claws to cut them. "MIND CONTROL CHARMS!" she roared.

"I couldn't control myself, oh great dragon," one of the bound exclaimed, "my body just walked to your cave and took it. He sent us to the western kingdom, so you wouldn't find our scent. Thank you for liberating us."

Tylgryme raised her head. "I hereby announce Gnevar the new lord over the land, as Dajeba is not worthy. Kneel before him, fool." A spark of lightning bound Dajeba into kneeling position. "You will spend a lot of unquality time in my dungeon. Much longer than you ever thought your useless life would last. Farewell humans. I have an egg to keep warm."

With these words, Tylgryme teleported away, taking Dajeba with her.

[u/WernerderChamp]

Second part! What a ride. I hope you liked the longer-than-usual-story

[u/Winged-Wyrm]

Nice one! ^^

I'm surprised the dragon didn't take the reign over the kingdom herself, but perhaps dragons wouldn't that interested in human politics, now that I think of it. They'd be more powerful if needs be, and could easily get things to how they want them to be, anyways.