Orrie emerged flying from the door. The small group of dragons and others still waiting to cross through tumbled back away from the door.
"Oops," Tesa said. She hadn't thought about the people still waiting to come through before jumping back through the door.
Nevertheless, Orrie powered on, pumping his wings to climb above the trees, then hurtled through the air toward the beach. On the path below, Tesa could see the Yennar-Leian healers headed toward the beach. So, they had decided to return to their people. She didn't blame them, but felt a ping of sadness.
Rain pelted them and Tesa briefly thought of weaving a shield with her magic. But she would need the energy if she were to help hold off the mages from reaching the door before all of the dragons and riders went through.
They reached the beach to see that the ships had arrived near the shore. They were anchored now, and small boats filled with mages made their way to the beach. Tesa saw some of them point up at her and Orrie. She was glad when he wheeled around and she saw that more dragons had joined them. Orema on Delna, and Neela on Aerix.
We can't fight them head on, Orrie said.
A gust of wind buffeted them. Orrie folded his wings and dove to avoid it, but it followed. Tesa realized that it was an attack by the mages. She slipped into magesight, where she could see the magic being used.
It came from the little boats as they sped to shore. They hadn't even reached the beach yet, and they were attacking.
So much for venerating dragons, Tesa muttered.
I think they want to capture us, Orrie replied. They could use much more than wind if they meant to harm.
Tesa rolled her eyes. Not again.
The last ones are almost through, called Gira. Malía still stood guard over the open door. Malía says just keep them on the beach until we're all through.
Right, Tesa answered. To Orrie, she said, How are your flames? Let's provide a distraction.
In magesight now, Tesa could see the magic directing the gusts of wind, so she lent her sight to Orrie. He dodged the buffeting winds in a little dance through the air, and began to circle closer to the boats arriving on shore. In her peripheral vision, Tesa could see that Orema and Neela had joined her, having gotten Malía's message from Gira as well. Soon, more dragons joined, and they formed a darting, cavorting flock. Since not all of the other riders were mages, they weren't able to avoid the gusts of wind as well as Orrie did, but they coped with the blasts well enough anyway.
The first small boats had almost reached the shore. Orrie dove down in front of them and spit out a blast of flames in their path. Shouts rang out and the boats scattered into disarray as some attempted a dead stop and others turned to avoid the flames. On their next pass, though, the Yennar Leian mages had constructed shields, for the boats continued on unflinchingly toward the flames.
Well that didn't last long, Tesa said. What now?
You and Neela make a shield, said Aerix, flying close and following Orrie's dodges of the wind gusts which had resumed now that the mages on the boats had regained their bearings. Tesa was about to ask for clarification about what kind of shield, when Aerix sent an imagined image of the boats being stopped dead by a wall of water gushing up from the sea before them.
Just a bit longer, called Gira.
Tesa nodded and sent her assent to Aerix, who then split away from Orrie's side, readying to get in place so he and Neela could anchor their side of the shield. Tesa reached out to the water and gathered energy around her, just waiting for Neela to begin her part of the wall. Before they could start, a blast of sparks hurtled toward Aerix.
YOU ARE READING
Fate of Dragons
FantasyDragons and their riders protect Arethia's borders and keep peace within the land, along with the mages who work alongside them. Nobody knows why, but only women can bond with dragons to be their riders. But now, the dragons have been kidnapped by a...