Dawn of the Aspects: Part II by Richard A. Knaak Read Free Book Online Page B

summoning a glowing sphere.
    In its purple light, the withered visage of a proto-dragon glared down at him.
    Kalec flung himself to the side, at the same time sending the sphere at the looming monster. The former Spell-Weaver’s efforts changed the simple illumination spell into a full attack. The sphere exploded as it hit the proto-dragon’s chest, searing into the dry flesh.
    A musky scent assailed Kalec as the magical energy burned into the proto-dragon. The former Aspect summoned a new and larger sphere, fully revealing the cave’s interior.
    More than a dozen additional proto-dragons, all as withered, peered at Kalec. He readied a potent spell, then paused when he realized that neither they nor the one he had attacked had thus far moved.
    These were not , he finally recognized, the undead that Malygos and the others had fought. They were merely dead proto-dragons.
    Merely? As Kalec observed them closer, he saw differences. Each of these proto-dragons was in some way misshapen. Yet it did not look as if those defects were the results of something that had happened in the egg. Kalec eyed one proto-dragon who appeared to have a fifth limb starting to grow out of his side. Another had a third eye just above her right shoulder.
    What sort of macabre display is this? Kalec stared at the group and saw that each also bore some injury. As he studied one corpse after another, he saw that those injuries had certainly impaired these proto-dragons, if not killed them outright. Moreover, the former Aspect saw that the dead actually lay sprawled against one another, as if they had been gathered in haste.
    Kalec paused again. It was clear to him that he had been steered to this place by the relic or whatever power it served, but what was he supposed to learn from this grotesque spectacle?
    A creaking sound set his nerves on edge and made him summon yet another spell. He turned to find the first proto-dragon tumbling forward, the damage done by the altered sphere too much for him to maintain his stability. The towering corpse struck the rocky floor and broke into pieces.
    The head rolled closer to Kalec, and in what remained of the second sphere’s light, he finally recognized the reptilian countenance.
    Malygos .
    Kalec retreated in shock, shaking his head all the while. This can’t be true! It can’t be! It’s not Malygos! That’s not possible—
    His mind spun. Kalec fell against one of the other corpses, which caused it to tilt into another. Suddenly, all the proto-dragons began falling toward him.
    In desperation, Kalec shut his eyes and concentrated his power all around him. The cave filled with brilliant white energy, so bright it blinded even its caster.
    Gasping, the former Aspect dropped to one knee. Head down, he waited for the corpses to bury him underneath them. When that did not happen, he cautiously looked up . . .
    Â . . . and found himself kneeling in his sanctum.
    At first, he dared not move. Kalec shivered as he tried to verify that what he now saw around him was the truth, more than the cave had been. He felt absolutely certain that he had been in the canyon—except that would mean that the relic had transported him from one part of the world to another with less effort than it required Kalec merely to breathe.
    A rapid thumping sound echoed in his head. It took a moment for the blue to recognize his own heartbeat. He tried to slow his breathing, also causing his heart to shift to a more normal rhythm.
    His surroundings did not change. Still kneeling, Kalec touched the floor. It felt solid, but then, so had the corpse against which he had fallen and the rock through which he had slipped.
    â€œThis is real. This is real,” Kalec muttered, the next second feeling uncomfortable at the fact that he needed to speak out loud while he sought to convince himself. But the cave was real, too! It was!
    He could not say which was worse, the notion of being tossed about