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Smoky grunted. He had fully engaged the troll, leaving long bloody streaks along its belly. Another moment and a length of his hair rose to encircle the creature’s neck. The troll grabbed hold of the strands, yanking on them, but he was no match for an angry dragon, even in human form, and Smoky’s rage seemed to build as he throttled it dead.
“Got you, you bastard!” Shade’s cry made me whirl around. He had just caught another wolf on the wing, his blade deftly slicing its throat. Delilah and Arial had taken down the last wolf and we turned toward Hyto and Asheré.
Hyto nodded to his snow monkey, and the rogue monk held out his staff. A wave of pale mist began to emanate from it, and I found myself backing away and pulling out the horn.
“Poison! I can smell it from here. Poison gas!” I held up the horn and called on the Master of Winds.
Master of Winds, heed my call. Bring the winds to save us now!
As I thrust the horn into the air, a gale sprang up and raced through my body, sending me to my knees. Still I held steady, even though Delilah and Iris went tumbling to the ground. They rolled to the side, though Shade, Vishana, and Smoky managed to keep on their feet.
The winds howled forth from the horn, raging along the crest of the hill toward Hyto and the monk. It caught the cloud of poison in its wake and dispersed it, pushing it back. Hyto just laughed, but Asheré looked to be in trouble as the gas backfired on him, swelling around him. He dropped the staff and clutched at his throat. Hyto stared at him, not moving to help him.
Asheré reached a hand toward his master, but Hyto just let out a snort.
“Weakling. You fool, you never thought of this potential consequence and so you pay the price.” He kicked the gasping monk out of the way with a single swift foot to the stomach and headed toward us, his robes fluttering against the snow. “The poison won’t work on me, girl. I advise you to spare your sister and that pint-sized sprite by sending them away. Now.”
My stomach lurched. He was right. They were no match for Hyto. Even with Smoky, Vishana, and Shade, Delilah and Iris weren’t equipped to take him on. I turned to them.
“He’s right. Get out of the way. Now.”
“We aren’t leaving you.” Iris held firmly to her wand.
“This isn’t a question of loyalty. It’s a question of self-preservation. Move, now. And if things go wrong, run as hard as you can and hope to hell you can reach the barrow before Hyto does.” Pale as night, I turned away.
Delilah took Iris’s hand. I could feel her watching me but didn’t turn around. “Come on, Iris. Let’s move back a little. She’s right.”
Hyto stopped about twenty yards from us, and there was a sudden shifting as he began to transform. Out of a cloud of mist and snow, a white dragon—twice as large as Smoky—rose up before us. He looked like Smoky, only his skin was more white than opalescent, and his horns were far longer; the mane on his back whipped back and forth. He crouched on all fours, staring at us, and split the air with a violent chuckle.
Terror struck me through and I stood rooted to the ground. I’d thought Smoky huge when he was in dragon form, but now I realized he was still young—he wasn’t nearly the stature of his father.
Holy crap. This wasn’t going to end well. I could feel it in my bones.
Vishana turned to me. “Back away. Now. Let us have room.”
I realized she and Smoky were getting ready to change. Shade grabbed my hand and moved to drag me out of the way, but before he could, there was a rustle in the woods behind us. I heard Delilah let out a long cry. Iris, too.
Turning, I saw someone rushing forward. Someone I recognized.
Oh, no. Please, no. Please, don’t let this happen.
There, in full battle armor, with sword held high, raced Georgio. St. George, come to battle the dragon. He stared up at Hyto, his eyes wide with wonder and anger.
“You will not pass, serpent! You will not pass! Leave the winsome Lady Camille alone.”
“No! Shade, help him.” I pushed Shade away from me and simultaneously yanked the unicorn horn out of my pocket, aiming it at Hyto. The winds had not worked, but he was on the ground now.
Hyto was eyeing St. George with the look of a kid eyeing a Popsicle. His long neck coiled and—
Lady of the Land, take him down!
There was a roar as the ground began to shake and the snow fell from the branches of the trees to land with a plop on the ground. A low rumble filled the area as an earthquake echoed through the valley. The ground shifted in tortuous bends, like the waves off the ocean whipped up by a gale.
Below us, on the slope, I could hear the roar of an avalanche, and I prayed no one else had been coming up the mountain. Hyto shifted from side to side, dancing as nimbly as a dragon could dance, to keep his balance as the ground rocked back and forth.
Shade raced forward, grabbing Georgio before he could take on the dragon of his dreams, and practically flew with him to where Delilah and Iris waited. I glanced back, making sure that Georgio was safe. He seemed to have fainted, which was probably for the best. The last thing we needed was his interference.
I turned back to find Smoky and Vishana holding hands. Then mother nodded to son and they began to transform. As I scrambled out of the way—I knew better than to be in the way of three angry dragons—they rose up.
