Of course, Cody had snuck a peek at the fray. His curiosity was a lost cause when Maddison mentioned the horn was Heroguard reinforcements. He had expected to see a gaggle of idiots try their best against the weakened drake, and hopefully provide enough of a distraction for him to sneak by and check on Hord’anne.

  Seeing the dragon be obliterated by a beam of starlight was far from his list of expectations. The man just stood there, sword raised. It was as if he was plucked from the pages of a fairytale. He certainly had far more than the favour of a god on his side. The only positive note from the sight was that the beam had missed Hord’anne, who lay face down near the crushed stables.

  But despite the desire to check on his friend pulling at him, he didn’t want to move. The last thing he wanted to do was make himself known to the man who stood in the clearing.

  There was nothing threatening about his demeanor. From what Cody could see once he removed his helmet, he was human. His armor, albeit more decorative than most, coloured a welcoming white and gold. The magic he could sense was vast, but not oppressive, settling close to the ground like bunches of leaves that could be kicked up with ease.

  But still, Cody felt his heart sink at the sight of the man. His body had gone cold as soon as he saw the dragon drop. He would have found more comfort if the man was adorned with dark steel and a blood-spattered cloak. Something to give him an obvious reason to fear him.

  Because right now, what he was feeling simply boiled down to an inexplicable and chilling terror.

  Maddison brushed past his side, lifting the helmet off of Sariel’s head. She was unable to overcome the height advantage Maddison had before he stuck the helmet on. But before the protest could be put to words he held out a little satchel, and to her delight it was filled with nuts and dried berries.

  The man finished patting the dust out of his hair, immediately spotting Maddison when he stood straight again. He raised his hand high above his head in a friendly wave. His voice was trained for large speeches, and flew across the clearing quickly. “Oh, Survivors!”

  Sariel returned the wave and the man swiftly approached them. Cody felt a little more comfortable with Maddison in the lead, but kept clear of eye contact once the stranger was in conversation distance.

  He gave Maddison's arm a pat when he reached the group, eyes twinkling with energy that thrummed through his voice. “Great job!” After letting out a happy sigh he eyed the group of speechless adventurers, then gazed back at the dragon’s corpse that was still crackling with energy. He looked back at Madison, sizing up his gear, and then clicking in. “Oh! Oh no. Was that… were you fighting her? Did I steal your kill?” He rubbed his head awkwardly, his face filling with regret. “I’m sorry, I saw a dragon and got a little excited. That's why they say to never meet your stars, that dragon can attest." He snickered, raising his hand to his mouth to block the nonexistent eavesdroppers. "It can get a little hot.”

  Cody looked back at the obliterated corpse, and likely didn’t realise his mouth was hanging wide open.

  “The credit is your group’s, don’t fret. It’s like… a pickle jar!” He gave Maddison’s shoulder a friendly punch, earning a stifled grunt as he went for the injured arm. “You loosened it for me!” He laughed, peeking past the mercenaries shoulder to nod at Timber and Sajus, and then looking around the rest of the backyard. He fixed his gaze on Maddison, a smile never falling from his face. “Anyone else?”

  “The squadron of heroes you’re looking for are all dead.” Maddison replied flatly.

  Cody stiffened as the man’s face fell some. What a way to have worded it.

  “I suspected as much.” He sighed, gazing back at the statue of the woman with a somber look. “What about the Follower?”

  “No clue.”

  Caleb eyed Maddison curiously, nearly eye to eye with the hulking man. His features were well set for the Heroguard posters he was often depicted on, steel grey eyes and ringlets of black hair that flowed just past his thick jaw. But he could turn a poster smile into a dark look at the flip of a coin, and Maddison’s manners were definitely forcing his brow to furrow.

  His eyes narrowed, and his voice dipped as he raised his shoulders. “You're a tall fellow.”

  “Don’t toot your own horn,” Maddison replied.

  His smile hollowed as he sized Maddison up, lingering on the familiar pieces of scaled armour he was wearing. The White Knight's hands did not move from his sides, but he didn’t need a sword to silence Maddison with his magical advantage.

  And suddenly, in the tense air, Cody did not feel so safe standing next to Maddison.

  ━━━━━━ ? ? ? ━━━━━━

  “Guild?” Caleb questioned.

  “Greenhorn.”

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  He relaxed a little bit at the name, eyeing the crow puttering around the grass at Sariel’s feet to confirm Maddison’s claims. And then he laughed, only managing to relax Sariel as she awkwardly joined in on the humour while trying to search for it. After composing himself, Caleb gripped Maddison’s injured arm, squeezing just hard enough to stiffen the mercenary. “Had me worried, friend. It's a good set, but it's still mighty suspicious putting on Heroguard armour.”

  Madison felt a rush of warmth travel from the knight’s hand and through his body, tingling its way up to his skull with a small pinch. He ripped his hand away, letting out a few dry coughs. “Are you trying to cast a spell on me?”

  “Oh no, I’m just removing her eggs. That’s how she controls things.” Caleb remarked, “Little surge of holy energy fries them easily though. Should close that bite up quicker too.” He tossed his gaze to Sariel, quick but deliberate. “She’s got a nasty bite, glad you had a cure.”

  “Her what…?”

  “Her eggs. In your skull.” Caleb repeated, smiling through the horrified silence Maddison paid him. “It’s okay, they’re gone now! Didn’t hatch a single one. Chin up soldier, there’s worse ways she can fight you. I’d say you all did a stellar job!” He smacked his pockets, awkwardly trying to shove his thick gloves into a tight coin purse. He finally managed to get a silver coin from his pocket, flashing its shiny surface at Maddison. “Ten slivs to help me search?”

  Maddison’s voice was unbreakably flat at the bribe. “I’m not taking side jobs right now.”

  Caleb didn’t linger long in Maddison’s silence, moving to Sariel to quickly size her up, and then turning his attention to Cody, the strange air of excitement returning when he accidentally locked gazes with the man.

  “Hello, young lad!”

  Cody jumped when he realized Caleb was walking towards him now, throwing up his open palms in surrender. “I’m not a Khalin sorcerer!”

  “Might you have a little bit of magic to spare? Katryna’s curse is still active. I’d like to break her anchor here before she sends another string.”

  “I-I would but-“

  “Lovely! I’ll just grab your hand.”

  Cody let out a little squeak of surprise as the knight grabbed his hands, a strange energy running down his arms as he felt the knight's magic gently pull at his flow.

  “Fire, very useful for this,” Caleb remarked, his eyes dropping to the ground as a string of runes slithered out from beneath their feet. Cody stared at the symbols, his nose scrunching as he didn’t recognize the text. It didn’t seem to come from any elemental dialects he was well versed in, and the way it flourished reminded him of Elaren roots.

  But he could piece together most Elaren sigils. This was older. Much older.

  The runes quickly scattered into the grass, and as they did, the sound of falling glass filled the town as the forcefield around Bervolt completely shattered, golden shards falling to the ground like bullets to strike the few remaining spiders that were drifting about in their little parachutes.

  The dusting of magic throughout Bervolt quickly dissipated once the spell was through, the only saturation remaining belonging to Caleb’s residual spellwork. Cody was quick to take his hands back once the knight loosened his grip, chancing a look at his face. The knight was eyeing the sky, lips relaxed into an approachable smile. Cody cast his gaze back to the ground as he felt the weight of the Knight’s stare.

  He felt relief once more when he saw Caleb’s boots turn away from him to rejoin Maddison.

  But as the knight’s back turned, a shadow swooped, growing over Sajus as a large beast landed in the grass just behind him. Despite its clumsy landing, it was quick to its goal, snatching the back of Sajus' shirt and pulling him into the air. Timber instinctively grabbed onto his brother, Cody grabbing Timber’s ankles before he was completely lifted out of reach as well. The gryphon pounded its wings, Cody feeling the airborne beast start to lift his weight, until the small bird in Timber’s free hand awoke, turning into a much smaller gryphon to tug at Timber’s shirt and barely keep him grounded with Cody.

  A sharp whistle cut the air as Caleb intervened, his voice booming at the beast once he had its attention. “Bagel! Down!”

  The gryphon dropped Sajus, landing next to the terrified boy and chittering questionably at the knight. He put an arm in the way of the gryphon as it tried for Cody’s robes, swinging both arms to wave the beast back.

  “I’ve already rescued them!”

  Bagel chuffed, twittering crossly as he bumped his beak against each of the guests, stopping momentarily when Sariel gave him a chin scratch. He didn’t care much for the space he occupied, his tail slapping Maddison twice, and his body nearly throwing Cody to the ground as he spread his wings to take to the sky once more.

  Caleb lifted Sajus back to his feet, looking around for any other damage the bird might have caused. “My apologies. I told him to rescue. He’s taking all the survivors just outside the gates.” He explained, eyeing the large beast as it landed near the crumbling mansion to dig through the debris and seek its next victim. Caleb’s attention quickly shifted to other things as he eyed the smaller gryphon, his smile returning as he opened his arms in welcome to the creature. “There you are! Splendid to see you unscathed 285!”

  Squirrel circled the backside of the group to keep a wall of people between her and the knight, stopping behind Sariel to fit her head under her arm.

  Caleb approached Sariel, eyes only on the Follower. “And where is your assignment?”

  Maddison moved in front of Sariel, the wound on his arm preventing him from raising it much. “She did everything she could to protect your Commander.”

  Caleb held his smile and practiced positivity. “Oh, I don’t doubt it! It’s part of their training after all. And it is part of my training to ensure that I have saved every one I can. 285 got along well with her commander, I would like to confirm that he has truly passed.”

  Maddison thought for a moment, his voice darkening. “And if he has?”

  “Worry not, she has no strikes. So I’m sure you know the answer to that, mercenary.” Caleb replied, crouching down to eye the gryphon from under her cover. “May Ra'zerun bless you, so that your new company is as compatible.”

  Squirrel let out a somber coo, the knight’s strange words somehow convincing her to shed her form and turn back into the familiar masked girl. She still kept close to Sariel, gazing up at the collapsed attic of the mansion where a trail of white stones cascaded off its face. Caleb eyed the wreckage, paying Squirrel a grateful nod before letting out a loud cattle whistle to call for Bagel's attention.