Richard Knaak: Land of the minotaurs

"And what can we solve there? We're just a few among many!"

"Is that what you think?" asked Toron, suddenly nearby. Taller than even Kaz, he moved stealthily for a minotaur. He grinned. "Wait until you hear what Helati had planned…" His grin grew wider. "Too bad we might not need it, what with Kaz not coming here after all and the rest of you free. Your sister's quite a speaker, from what I understand, Hecar. She gave Dastrun a good scolding."

"But I thought she wasn't here at all. What do you mean?"

"I'll explain later-" was as far as Toron got when the entire party heard the crash.

The sound reminded Hecar of the war, when siege weapons could level half a city in the name of Takhisis. As part of the advance force, he had watched many a rock crash down on buildings and walls, killing defenders and civilians alike. Hecar had never liked siege warfare; it made no distinctions between worthy opponents and innocent children.

, "By the horns of Kiri-Jolith, what is that?" roared Toron, suddenly gazing skyward. "It can't be a-"

But it was. Hecar and the others knew what word Kaz's brother could not bring himself to utter. They knew the word, but could no more speak it than the dark-furred warrior, so stunned were they by the sight.

A dragon. A red dragon soaring high into the sky, burying itself in the clouds above.

They stood there, trying to make sense of it, but just as the first shock finally passed, they heard a smaller but no less significant crash.

This time a smaller, sleeker dragon, gleaming silver, raced skyward. There was something on its back, something that Hecar was fairly certain was a rider.

"Silver and red," he whispered. He could never forget the battles he had watched in the sky during the war. "Deadly foes. They'll fight to the death. The rider…" It seemed a voice spoke in his head. He nodded to himself, not caring whether the others heard or not. "Yes, it is Kaz. It would have to be."

Belatedly he realized that both dragons flew in the general direction of the circus.

Clouds had gathered over some parts of Nethosak, and Kaz knew that among them hid Infernus. Not for a moment did he think the red dragon was hiding in fear. Rather, Infernus was simply using the heavens to his best advantage, counting on Tiberia's inexperience. This was the first time the silver had flown and, although flight was natural to dragons, Tiberia's unsteady journey so far was an indication of just how much practice she needed.

"What do I do, Kaz?" the silver dragon gasped, pushing hard to gain more altitude. She was clearly frightened, but trusted Kaz to guide her along. "I don't see him!"

"He's in the clouds just above that tower." Infernus might be a master of aerial combat, but the minotaur had picked up a few things during his time as a dragon rider. A creature as large as a red dragon could not hide forever. "Go up! Do it now!"

Arcing awkwardly, the silver dragon rose. Kaz gripped Tiberia and the lance tightly, hoping they would break through the clouds without being attacked. Infernus would not flee. He had to defeat the pair if he hoped to salvage his plan. Fortunately for Tiberia, the red suffered the disadvantage of needing the silver alive. That did not mean Infernus had any intention of sparing Kaz. The minotaur was certain that his death was a priority.

They broke through the clouds… and found nothing.

Kaz craned his neck, searching. "Move ahead, but slowly."

"Should I go higher?"

"No, we-" It suddenly occurred to him what Infernus had probably done. "Yes, higher! Higher! Now!"

Startled, the young dragon was slow to react.

Infernus burst from the clouds just below them, colliding into Tiberia's underside. As soon as they touched, the red dragon twisted so that he could sink his claws into his younger counterpart's sides.

Only by sheer luck did Kaz hold on. He cursed himself for being a fool. Infernus had flown back down and come up under them. It was a simple tactic he should have predicted. Evidently he had been away from war much too long.

"I will shake you loose, gnat!" roared Infernus, twisting both dragons around and around. His greater wing-span gave him more control. Tiberia sought to counter his weight, but could not. "I will watch you plummet to your death as Captain Scurn did so nicely!"

It was impossible to get the dragonlance into position. A long tentacle nearly swatted him from his already precarious angle. The minotaur looked around and saw that what had nearly hit him was not a tentacle but rather one of the ropes left over from the guards' attempt to drag Infernus down. At least two of them whipped about as if alive.

Again the rope flew by. Kaz glanced at it, then he pulled himself tighter against Tiberia and shouted, "The rope! Grab the rope with your mouth and pull back!"

Tiberia did not understand at first. Then, as Infernus increased their spinning, the silver dragon snapped at the tether. She missed, but it hovered within range. Tiberia timed her next attempt better, catching hold of a long length of the rope. Immediately she followed the rest of Kaz's instructions.

The grappling hook was lodged deep in the lower scales of the red's neck. As Tiberia pulled, the hook tore deeper. The sudden pull by the other dragon caused Infernus to lose his momentum and, in part, his grip. He shifted his position to regain his advantage.

Kaz stared at the wings, now closer. He made an estimate of Tiberia's jaws and neck. "The wing! Let the rope loose and bite!"

Below them, the red dragon had obviously decided on the same tactic, but Tiberia was small, and her wings, flapping somewhat erratically, made for a more difficult target than the red dragon's much larger ones. Infernus could not stretch his wings back far enough. The silver stretched as far as she could, opened her maw wide, and bit.

Her foe shuddered and, for a moment, the three simply dropped. Tiberia's jaw remained clamped on the wing.

With a snarl, Infernus brought his lower paws up and, using the incredible strength of his legs, pushed the two leviathans apart. By doing so, he further damaged his wing, for Tiberia did not let go willingly. The red dragon fluttered awkwardly around, trying to compensate for the terrible injury.

Less injured, the silver dragon regained control almost immediately. Kaz shifted. They had to strike now before Infernus was able to adjust. He lowered the dragonlance, aimed, and called out, "Fly at him, Tiberia! Fly at him with every ounce of speed you can muster!"

Her companion nodded, spread her wings to their fullest, and pushed herself toward her foe.

They were too near one another for the silver to pick up much speed, but likewise were they too near for the red to maneuver away in any direction without his younger counterpart compensating.

Kaz gritted his teeth for the collision.

The dragonlance pierced its target in the left side of the chest. Infernus roared in agony and, out of sheer reflex, seized hold of Tiberia. Unable to concentrate hilly on flying, the red dragon began to drop… taking his adversaries with him.

Around and around they spun as they dropped through the clouds. Tiberia flapped her wings as hard as she could, trying to slow if not stop their descent. Kaz realized there was no way the silver dragon could support the three of them, and that Infernus had no intention of releasing his grip. The minotaur tried to pry the dragonlance from the red's chest in the hopes that Infernus might then let them loose, but the lance would not pull free. It was as determined to remain impaled in its target as its target was determined to hold on to Tiberia.

We're going to die! Kaz thought as the first tower tops came into sight below them. We're going to die. Damn you, gray man, we're going to die. I hope you and your balance are happy.