Chapter 66

Day 256:

John and his four friends had ridden their mounts as hard as they dared across the desert terrain. Though the khimeran weren’t horses exactly, they were four-footed beasts of burden. Spooky was the only one of them with any real riding animal experience, so he’d closely monitored their mounts’ health as the group traveled. He estimated that when ‘galloping’ their mounts, who were boosted by Deni’s magic, they moved faster than high level racehorses back on Earth. Even at a ‘trot’ they approached what a slow horse would consider a full gallop. The only downside was when walking; the animals’ gait was a little slow at that pace. But its footfalls were a lot quieter than any horse’s Spooky had ever heard.

Veronyka used her helmet’s zooming vision function to check for signs of their pursuers, every time they crested a piece of higher ground. On the fifth day after Sygraid split off to retrieve their friends, she caught her first glimpse of them. A wisp of dust floated on the breeze, and grew denser and thicker by the hour.

The sun was a hair’s breadth above the horizon when they took a break to let the animals rest. Already one was starting to limp, which put a greater burden on the others. Deni healed it nightly now, but they all knew he couldn’t keep the entire herd both uninjured and sped up solely on his own.

“It’s a little hard to make out, with the sun where it is,” Veronyka told the others, “but it looks like they’re gaining on us.”

“I’m guessing that they have a lot more spare mounts than we do.” Spooky supposed.

“Probably.” John agreed, sipping sparingly from his canteen. “We just have to hope that Sygraid gets here soon.”

Their food and water situation was growing worse as well. Keeping Deni from devouring the remainder of their supplies was growing harder daily, especially with his magic output. Veronyka and Spooky were convinced the boy was going through a growth spurt as well.

Ariel pointed to the northeast. “That double-peak is our guide. The city is on the far side of it. We are getting close; I estimate another day’s ride until we must navigate around the mountain.”

Deni piped up. “Why can’t we go right now? I’m not tired, but I’m getting hungry again.”

Spooky pointed at their mounts. The khimeran were all laying down, bellies pumping like a bellows as their eyelids drooped.

“See that, boy? We’re working the animals to exhaustion. If more of them get hurt, we’ll run out of spares and then we’ll really have to slow down or risk them catching us easily.”

The youth jerked, as if stung. “Oh. But why don’t we use the dragons also?”

John held up a hand to stop Spooky’s inevitably sharp reply. “Treb, your mother took all of them. Until she returns, those animals are all we have to ride.”

“I know.” Deni answered, pointing. “But she’s almost here.”

Both men spun their heads around.

“Where?” Spooky squinted.

John’s finger came up slowly. “There.”

Four dragons were coasting, wings spread wide as they descended out of the southern sky. The quartet swooped by, tipping one right after the other to arc around the encampment. The three riders each waved in sequence as Deni jumped up and down with his hands raised.

The dragons continued spiraling down, trapping more wind with their wings as they slowed to a stall mere yards above the ground. Four thumps, followed by a spray of sand as wings folded along their backs. Smartly, the aerial group stayed on the opposite side of John and company from the khimeran, who were now eying them warily.

Deni led the way as they moved to intercept the riders while they dismounted. The boy crushed his mother’s waist while she wrapped her arms around him, smiling. Halphis and Vasin beamed at the wholesome sight, then transferred their attention to John.

“Shon, I am very glad to see you once again.” Hal announced. “My thoughts were often filled with ... concern? For your well-being. I was happy to hear that the Djinn thugs did not hurt you.”

“It’s good to see you too.” John replied, clasping forearms with the Cambion.

Vasin stepped up next. “I too am glad to see you again. Are any of you injured beyond Deni’s ability to heal?”

John shook his head, but Spooky spoke up.

“One of our mounts is starting to limp. Would you mind checking it out? Treb is getting worn down.”

Vasin nodded. “Show me which one.”

While the pair moved off, Veronyka escorted John over to the dragons. She’d wanted to introduce him properly before Sygraid left, but he’d argued that they should wait, as it would only weaken the Titan’s chances. This time, she was intent on making sure they all knew the man.

“This one is mine. Ream’ch, say hello to John. He’s my ... mate.” She motioned.

John held a hand out, and the smaller dragon bumped him with her nose. She tilted her head sideways, so he could feel her white-camouflage hide. Hard, but smooth scales sliding under his fingertips conveyed a sense of resilience.

“I’m glad to meet you, Ream’ch.” John murmured.

Veronyka lead him to the largest one. “This is Mij’naga; he’s the only one strong enough to fly with Sygraid on his back now.”

“Hello, Mij’naga.” John repeated offering his hand.

Mij’naga ignored it, bumping John’s chest as the rugged snout inhaled his scent and studied him. John rubbed Mij’naga’s cheek, finding the dragon’s scales to be rougher, more rugged than the others’. His wings, shoulders and body projected an aura of strength much greater than the others. The lines of his head were more squared-off, and festooned with jagged, spiky-edged ridges. It almost reminded John of a worgh’s, but with a sleeker, more reptilian flair.

“He?” John asked Veronyka.

“Their two ‘genders’ aren’t like what we think of as male and female.” Veronyka explained. “The dragons have ‘those who can lay eggs’ and ‘those who are sterile’. The eggs don’t even have to be fertilized, just protected from harm. So, we call the mules: ‘he’ and the mothers: ‘she’. According to the Valkyries I’ve asked, mules are rarer in the early generations, but become more common with each successive generation removed from their matriarch. They don’t know why, and Zirnitra can’t or won’t explain.”

John patted Mij’naga’s neck. “Are you as strong and ... unrelenting as a mule, big guy?”

The dragon snorted and poked John’s chest with its snout in response.

John grinned at Veronyka. “I’ll take that as a ‘yes’.”

She rolled her eyes, then pointed at the middle one. “That’s Balaur. She’s the oldest of all four, by a lot. Keeps the others in line, mediates disputes, that kind of thing.”

John bowed. “A veteran; watching over the others. I like you already.”

She snorted, and turned her head for him to feel her neck when he reached out. Hers was the smoothest texture of the four, with a vibration rumbling beneath the surface. Though not the largest, her body was the longest, carrying six talon-ended legs in addition to her wings. Balaur was long enough that her ‘saddle’ contained two spots where a rider could strap in.

“I think she’s uh, purring?” John supposed.

“Then she’s really happy to meet you.” Veronyka diagnosed.

“Me too.” John told the dragon. “Me too.”

Veronyka motioned for the smallest dragon to approach. “This one’s Z’meuki. She’s the youngest. In fact, I think she’s still growing out of adolescence, or whatever stage qualifies as puberty or becoming a teenager. Fast and energetic, but a little wild.”

John gave Balaur a pat before moving to the last dragon. “Bet you have a hard time keeping her in line.”

Balaur gave him a growling purr and swung her head around to keep an eye on the last interaction.

John repeated offering a hand, then transitioned to a two-handed jaw-rub as Z’meuki stared him in the eye. John could see why Veronyka thought Z’meuki was still really young. Her wings and talons were still oversized compared to the rest of her body.

“I’ll bet you have a ton of energy, don’t you?” He asked playfully. “Need to run ... sorry, fly, stretch your wings, don’t you?”

The nod he got in response was unmistakable.

“That’s what I thought. Don’t worry, you’ll get your chance. We’ve got a whole bunch of people on our tail.” He assured the dragon.

Z’meuki’s excited growl was nearly a bark as she pushed her head into his chest.

“All right, you guys rest and we’ll get going early.” John instructed.

“Dulgan is not with you?” Ariel asked Sygraid, making John and Veronyka turn.

Sygraid shook her head.

“The Dvergyr was very upset that he couldn’t accompany Spooky, Deni and Sygraid when they came after you.” Vasin explained. “After their departure, he took leave from us and we have not seen him since. I believe he departed to the north, but am not sure.”

John and Ariel exchanged a glance.

“That would put him up this way, right?” John figured.

Ariel nodded. “His parent, Dadem Oakfall has a large trading house in Gluboskal. It is likely that Dulgan intended to go there.”

“We’ll keep an eye out for him, then.” John decided. “And hit up his house if we make it to the city.”

The newcomers brought what supplies they had with them, enough that the group hoped to make it to the city without issue. Vasin and Hal begged John to detail his adventures since they’d last seen him, and delighted in regaling their own in return. The group made a cold camp once it was too dark to see, for the half of their number without that oh-so-useful ability.

“In the morning, Veronyka, Sygraid, Spooky and ... who else has good eyesight?” John asked.

“Halphis has good eyes.” Spooky informed him. “But if you’re picking the flying team, you should go instead of me. I can sneak around on the ground better than any of us, and you’ve got that magic eye going.”

Everyone else nodded their support for this assertion, when John looked around.

“Okay, I guess it’s Syg, V, Hal and me going up come morning.” John summarized. “Hal, can Z’meuki carry you without an issue?”

“She can.” Hal asserted.

“What do you all think: two sweep our trail, and help steer away from the Regimentals, with the other two going ahead to scout it out?” John proposed.

“Hal can see pretty far now.” Veronyka spoke up. “Take him with you to check out our trackers. The vision zoom I can do with my helmet should let us find a good path forward, and if there’s a problem, Sygraid and I can handle it.”

“I like it.” John agreed. “Any other suggestions?”

“The boy and I will alternate, giving the mounts extra speed. I think it will tire us out less if we do it that way.” Vasin proposed. “And in the event we need something a little ‘extra’, he’ll have better reserves, and I can focus on any healing needed.”

“That’s our ground plan.” John looked to Ariel. “You lead the way?” He turned his head. “And Spooky, you bring up the rear?”

Both nodded their acceptance.

“All right, let’s get some sleep. We want to be moving before dawn.” John finished.

Day 257:

Flying up above the steadily-lightening terrain was an exhilarating respite for John. One of the activities he found most enjoyable while being an operator had been riding the exposed wing-strut on the small helicopters flown by the Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR). ‘Little Birds’ they were called. Two men would sit on each side of the fuselage, ready to leap into action the instant skids touched the ground. Wind would buffet him from above as well as in front, with the ground screaming by below. John thought it was even more of a rush than free-fall.