Dragons mage, p.1
Dragon's Mage, page 1
part #2 of Dragon's Envoy Series
Dragon’s Mage
By James A. Haddock III
and
Gus James
Copyright © 2022 all rights reserved.
Website:
Jameshaddock.us
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Dragon’s Envoy David Slinger, Em, and their friends continue to face new challenges and opportunities. But with new opportunities, old rivals and animosities return. They must also remain vigilant to the growing threat of the dark priests and their thirst for power. It seems very few can be trusted, as everyone has their own agenda. As Slinger’s and Em’s power and influence grow so does their list of enemies. The dark priests have taken a personal interest in them. The dark priests’ influence and power are on the rise. When they draw first blood, Slinger and Em take a personal interest in their misery, vowing to visit retribution upon them. But have they underestimated the dark priests’ strength? Slinger and Em need to gather allies to meet the threat, as it seems not even kings are safe from their reach. As they meet each new threat, Slinger grows toward becoming a Dragon’s Mage.
Chapter 1
It was early evening, and I was sitting on the bottom of the river inside a man-sized air bubble, which was Em’s idea of a joke. She said I needed practice in my elemental water training.
My quartermaster, Crane; my ship’s carpenter, Keefer; and I had discussed the type of ship we needed. Since one like we wanted didn’t exist, I was going to make one from the three derelicts floating above.
I fixed in my mind what I wanted the boat, a small ship really, to look like. It would be an extra-shallow draft caravel barge with a single-masted lateen sail. She would have low gunwales like a longship, with ten ores per side and fifty-odd feet long. Her hull would be floored, covering the ballast stones, with covered cargo hold areas front and rear. The covered areas wouldn’t be quite as high as fore and aft castles on cogs but would serve the same purpose. The rest of the hull would be open but covered by a tarp of sailcloth.
When I was ready, I cast an illusion over the three derelicts above so they would appear the same no matter what I was doing to them. That done, I began melding the three ships into one. I had never tried combining multiple ships before, so I took my time.
People think magic users just snap their fingers and things appear. Not so, using magic takes practice and a lot of work. I am fortunate that I have a natural affinity for magic. I’m also fortunate to have a mage dragon as a teacher.
After several hours of meticulous work combining and renewing the old ships, I was satisfied. I raised my new ship to float where the three derelicts had been. If anyone was looking, all they would see were three derelicts.
I had my air bubble raise me to the surface and climbed aboard my new ship. I walked the length of the ship, looking her over. She was new, but I left her looking weathered. No one would give an old, odd-looking ship a second glance. I spelled her to keep her bilge empty and her bottom clean.
I nodded to myself and spelled the water to push us away from the docks and out into the main river channel. Now that I was away, I dropped the illusion over the derelicts. At a word, I lit the ship’s marker lanterns fore and aft. I cast the illusion of the ship’s sail being unfurled. I didn’t really need sails, because my water-spell was guiding the ship, and I stood at the wheel as if steering her.
I headed to a dock behind one of my unrestored river estates. Crane and Keefer were to meet me there with our crew. I eased the ship in, and she sat quietly by the dock. I dropped the sail illusion while I waited.
I saw men moving toward the ship, seabags on their shoulders. I counted Crane, Keefer, and eight sailors, all of which I recognized, but far less than the thirty I was expecting. “The rest are waiting at Wooten’s warehouse dock,” Crane said.
I nodded. “Take the wheel, Quartermaster. Get us underway.”
“Aye, Captain.” He took the wheel and started giving orders. We pushed off, and her sail went up. “She handles better than she looks,” Crane said. My smile mirrored his.
Master Wooten’s dock was but a mile or so upriver. The men stowed their seabags while we were underway. The quartermaster knew his business; he dropped our sail and slid up beside the dock as clean as ya please.
The rest of the crew were here and started loading our cargo, all of which were supplies to support ourselves until we made it to Greyson. There were towns along the way where we could resupply, but I wasn’t leaving anything to chance.
Twenty-five Marines, two sergeants, and a lieutenant followed the last of the supplies aboard. The Marines quickly took their seats and hung their round shields on the outside of the gunwale. I nodded to the quartermaster. We pushed off, raised the sail, and were underway once again. One would think we were sneaking out of the city as quiet as everyone was. After all that had changed in the last week, it did kind of feel that way.
* * *
A week into our journey, we met only a few boats. I had healed all the crew’s minor injuries and ailments without making a show of it. I needed everyone healthy.
I was already seeing that our ship needed some design changes. Her draft was shallow enough, and her lateen sail allowed us to sail into the wind. The problem was the deck, or lack of one. Two problems quickly became obvious: less cargo room and the men’s movements were limited. If a fight came, it was going to be a problem, and it needed to be addressed sooner rather than later. I mentioned adding a deck to Keefer, and he said he had seen the same thing.
We were a few days short of halfway to Greyson and should have been arriving at a river trading town called Gains soon. I planned on stopping there to resupply, not that we needed it yet, but I was still being cautious.
Just north of Gains, we passed a logging camp, where we stopped and tied the ship to trees along the bank. Keefer and I went into the camp to buy lumber for our needed deck. Keefer told them the type of trees we wanted. The owner said it would take a few days to fill our order.
Gains was only a mile or so further on, so we let half the men at a time go into town to have a few drinks. When the first group returned later in the day, they brought the first reports of trouble.
“Captain, you will want to hear this,” Keefer said.
“What’s that?”
He pointed at a man sitting on the bank. “This man says he’s from Greyson, or what’s left of it.”
I looked at the man; I didn’t remember ever seeing him around Greyson. “Your name?”
“Thatcher, m’lord. Worked in Greyson from time to time. There’s been a lot of cross-border raiding by the Trunnions. They cross, plunder, and burn, then run back across the border.”
“What are the king’s soldiers doing about it?” I asked.
“Nothing. They returned to the capital a week ago.”
I shook my head. “So much for honor among thieves,” I thought. “Tell me about these raiders. What kind of troops are they?”
“Mounted bowmen mostly, no foot soldiers,” he answered.
I nodded.” Thank you, master Thatcher,” I handed him a few coppers, and he was on his way.
“Lieutenant, we go armed and armored from here on.”
He nodded. “Yes, Captain,” and he left issuing orders to the marines.
I looked around thinking about the mounted archers we would be facing. The Marines were equipped with round shields and medium-length swords. I was remembering drawings in one of my books showing foot soldiers with long rectangular shields in a square formation fighting cavalry.
Twenty-five unmounted Marines, though formidable, were not a force to go up against mounted archers, not equipped as they were. I walked over to a huge pile of oak wood shaving and scrap pieces.
I stood looking at it thinking. The owner came over to me. “What are ya needing, Captain?”
I chin pointed at the oak castoffs. “How much for all this?”
He looked at the pile, frowning, and shrugged. “A few coppers.” I handed him a silver. He took it, shaking his head, and left.
I sat down on the pile and fixed in my mind what I wanted. I needed a shield that would cover a man’s body from shoulder to knee, and completely across the front of his body. The rim would need to be metal to encase the edges of the wood part of the shield, and a center boss to tie it all together. I didn’t have metal, but I could make hardened earth, which would work just as well and be lighter than metal.
I would also need to make the oak thin so it wouldn’t be so heavy as to tire a man too quickly in a fight. I could cross thatch it to make it strong yet flexible. They would need a shorter sword to use with the larger shield. Thinking of the cavalry, we would also need spears, like a long boar spear.
When I was ready, I started melding the pile of oak scraps and dirt into a shield, sword, and spear I wanted. After melding derelicts, doing this only took minutes. I picked up my new equipment from the scrap pile and walked back to the ship.
I had the men gather around me, “Men, it sounds as if we’ll be facing cavalry, mounted archers at least. You and your equipment are unmatched on the water but on land . . .” I shook my head.
“We’ll be fighting as one unit, each man supporting his brother in the formation. When attacking and the front man tires, at a signal, fresh men will rotate into the front positions and continue to press. It will take practice to get it right, but when we do, no one will be able to stand against the square. Stay in the square and live; lose the square and die.” They were nodding.
“I know you want to head right into the fray and kill them all. But I’m a little rusty on my sword-and-shield work, so I need some practice.” They laughed. “And I think we need a few more men to take with us. I’ll be sending the ship back to bring in a few of your friends up to join us.” That raised morale and lowered concerns that I might be foolish enough to go against the Trunnion army with only twenty-five Marines.
When the logger delivered the wood needed for the design changes, I made them that night. Everyone already knew I was a mage anyway. When I finished with the ship, I thought the changes would help with both cargo and crew. Besides, I liked the look a lot better.
* * *
I had them unload supplies for us while the ship returned to the capital. I had Crane and Keffer take a message to Weaver to give to Espada. It listed the men we needed and instructions to send the foot soldiers to me by ship and have the cavalry get here as soon as possible. I handed Crane a bag of gold and the letter. “I wouldn’t be upset if you brought another ship full of soldiers, but don’t let the whole capital know what you’re doing,” I said, smiling.
“We’ll see what we can do,” Crane said, smiling.
“We’ll train here and wait for your return,” I said.
“We’ll be back as soon as we can,” he answered.
The ship pushed off and turned downriver. Her run back to the capital should be quicker running with the river’s current.
We moved away from the logger’s camp and built a palisade to live and train in while we awaited reinforcements.
While the men started building the fort, I enhanced their armor. Their armor was primarily leather with some metal backing. I added a thin coating of hardened earth over the leather. It added little weight, but it was like having a metal shell. I did the same to their helmets. I spelled the shields to remain strong but flexible. I did the same to the short swords and spears but added sharpness and edge-holding spells. Some of the men had crossbows, and others had longbows. I spelled them to remain strong and flexible. I spelled the strings not to stretch and to stay dry even in a rainstorm. I added hardened earth tips to the bolts and arrows, making them lighter, harder, and stronger. They would now probably pierce any armor except mage armor.
The men felled trees for the palisade walls. I spelled them to stand strong together and added watchtowers at the corners. I lowered a ditch around the palisade and filled it with thorn bushes. We made a single gate with a bar across it. I spelled it all to hold fast. The men would live in tents. I, not having a tent, had to raise an earth house. Once I started raising it, it turned into a company long house. We all slept and ate warm and dry out of the weather.
At night Em and I would discuss military tactics and formations, employing troops on foot and mounted. We discussed the advantages of using and not using magic on the battlefield.
After a week of training with their new equipment and tactics, they were getting better at changing the formations of the square. They could interlock their shields like scales on a dragon. They liked that description and continued practicing the dragon scale maneuver. We divided the men into two units and had them mock fight, running through rotation drills, forming a square, and pushing with the front line.
In the second week, we changed their routines. Squads were sent out to patrol our area. One squad would go out in the morning and return at lunchtime. Another would leave at lunch and return before dusk. The day’s routine was drill practice in the mornings and camp improvement in the afternoons. We made it a practice to improve our position daily.
I really didn’t expect the ship to be back for another ten days. I needed a break, so I had one of the sergeants accompany me into Gains. We walked around the small town for a while, “Do we have a scout in the company?” I asked.
“Yes, sir, Lance Corporal Blunt, one of our archers,” the sergeant answered.
I nodded. walking over toward the line of stock pens.
The selection was poor, to say the least. These animals’ best years were behind them. I saw one horse that was young and was in good shape except for a split hoof.
“How much for that one?” I asked the wrangler.
“A fine animal,” he said.
I looked at him. “Try to cheat me, and I’ll have my sergeant take an ear. Yours, not the horses.” The sergeant drew his knife and started cleaning his fingernails. I smiled nastily.
“Oh, you mean the one with the split hoof?”
I nodded.
“Two silvers.”
“One, including a saddle and tack.”
“One and five coppers. You can piece something together from what’s in the tack room.”
I nodded. “Done.” I paid him, and he brought the horse over to me. I took care of the horse while the sergeant pieced a kit together. I took away the pain in his hoof and leg. His ears perked up. “I know, right,” I said, patting his neck. I healed his split hoof and strengthened all of them. The sergeant saddled him, and we walked around a bit more.
As an afterthought, I bought a cargo wagon and horse team. If we had to move, I didn’t want to leave our supplies behind. These horses were in decent shape but past their prime, as was the wagon.
* * *
I strengthened Lance Corporal Blunt’s round shield for him to take while scouting. He stood with the lieutenant and me listening to his orders. “I want you back here in five days or less. Scout the area between us and Greyson for any Trunnion activity. If you run into Trunnion forces heading this way, come straight back with a warning.”
He was nodding his head.
“Question?” the lieutenant asked.
“None, Lieutenant,” Blunt answered.
“On your way then, and don’t get killed,” he said.
“I’ll do my best, sir,” Blunt answered smiling. He mounted and rode out.
Twenty minutes after Blunt had left, he came galloping back. Sliding his horse to a stop in front of us. “Thirty mounted archers, five minutes behind me,” he reported.
I nodded. “Battle formation,” I shouted. “Blunt, get the archers in the trees on the right. You’ll know when to fire.”
“Yes, sir,” he answered and moved out.
Someone handed me my shield as the formation was taking shape. “Form square,” I shouted, and the formation shifted, forming a square. “We have thirty mounted archers coming to visit. Outer ranks hold fast; inner ranks ready crossbows.” The men made ready. “When I give the order, the outer ranks will kneel, and crossbowmen will fire.”
“Ah-ooo,” came their answer.
We didn’t have long to wait. When the mounted archers rounded the bend, they saw infantry in the open. Thinking we’d run and they’d have an easy victory, they charged. We held our positions, waiting. When they were in bow range, they loosed their first flight of arrows. Our shields handled the arrows easily.
They guided their horses to our left, intending to circle us. “Kneel,” I shouted, and the outer ranks knelt. “Fire,” I ordered, and fifteen bolts were loosed into the enemy’s side. Horses screamed and fell, causing those behind to fall. Of the horses that escaped the pile, only about half still had riders.
“Shields,” I shouted, and the outer rank stood covering the crossbowmen until they could recover their shields.
The enemy continued around us. As they started up our right side, our archers in the tree line loosed their arrows. Not one of the Trunnion horsemen escaped. To say it was a one-sided victory was an understatement.
“Double line formation,” I shouted. The men shifted from the square into the formation two men deep, me, the lieutenant, and the sergeants behind them. Some of the downed Trunnions were still alive. “Lieutenant, secure the area, check the dead and wounded. I’d like to have someone to answer questions, but take no chances.”
