Feathered Dragon - Douglas Niles [87]
Chical nodded. “It is a thing that an eagle does, but truly it is our greatest power”
“Thank you for accompanying me and my men,” Cordell added. “You give me some small hope, at least, of success.”
Chical shrugged. “Maztica is changing. You yourself have done much to see that the True World will never be tine; same place that it once was. But you are a brave man, and for now, anyway, we fight for the same cause.”
The Eagle Knight studied Cordell for a moment, and the general squirmed slightly under the scrutiny of those piercing black eyes. “But remember my warning. If you should again use your forces to march against the humans of the True World, you will find us united against you.”
“My friend,” said the captain-general with a sigh, “I find it much more comforting to have you on my side.”
“Then I pray that we shall remain on those terms,” said Chical. The warrior stretched and rose to his feet. “Now,” he added, “I will get some sleep. I must fly far in the morning.”
* * * * *
“They await us in the mountain heights,” reported Hittok The drider had skulked forward, dangerously close to
rear of the fleeing Itza column, to gain his information. Fortunately the night was dark, and the drider’s vision was far more acute than any human’s under these conditions.
“They flee no longer?” Darien heard the words of her comrade, and already her mind wondered at the reasons behind the news.
The long column of ants had slowed to a crawl, as even the nearly indefatigable creatures felt the strain of the long climb and the days of ceaseless marching. The white drider allowed them to pause in this mountain valley, not so much to rest as to allow the rear of the long column to catch up. Then when she pressed ahead in the morning, she would be able to bring her entire force to bear.
“So far as I could tell” Hittok continued to detail his findings. “I saw many warriors positioned along a rocky crest that rolls across the valley. Beyond them, I did not go. It could be that, as before, the men sacrifice themselves that their women and children can escape.” Hittok’s voice showed his scorn for the tactic.
“They cannot do so for many more battles,” noted Darien grimly. “We killed more than a hundred of them the last time, when they took us by surprise. Now if they wait for us, we shall be prepared.”
“Indeed,” agreed the black drider. “The valley bottom is open before them. The ants can spread into a wave and quickly sweep up and over them”
“But they must have some plan,” countered Darien. Her alabaster features twisted into a frown. “Humans do not sacrifice themselves for no purpose.”
“Perhaps,” Hittok said with a shrug, “they only desire to die like men.”
“Perhaps,” said Darien quietly. Still, the thoughtful expression on her face as she examined the mountain height before them showed that she remained unconvinced.
* * * * *
“Gigantius!” shouted Halloran at the instant the Lord of Jaguars sprang. The spell of enlargement, one of the last he
had learned from Darien’s spellbook, was the only enchantment that leaped into his mind. Once he had employed a potion to expand his size; now he tried to emulate that effect with a memorized enchantment.
He saw a nightmare visage of feline hatred, jaws widespread, streak toward his face. The light spell still illuminated the pit, but by now the great cat’s eyes had adjusted, and his aim was true.
Halloran met the creature’s leap with a charge of his own. His hands wrapped around the beast’s neck as all the strength in his arms and shoulders combined to hold the deadly fangs away from him.
Razor-sharp claws raked across his breastplate. The cat shrieked in rage, its powerful muscles driving its jaws slowly toward Hal’s face. He twisted, thinking only that he needed to keep the creature away from Erixitl, and the two of them rolled across